THE CASTLE OF THE SORCERER
They fell earthward until Raphael felt dizzy and sick. His ears hummed;
his stomach rose. He shut his eyes and clutched desperately at the
feathers along the eagle’s back. After an agony of excitement, the
wind-song died to a hum; they dropped less rapidly, and Raphael with a
gulp opened his eyes.
They were flying above the sea, which appeared in the morning light
to be covered by a bright sheet of silver mail. The aeroplane of the
Sorcerer had disappeared.
The eagles bore Raphael swiftly toward a cloud which lay in the
distance above the ocean. As they drew near, the cloud changed, and
land appeared rising fresh and green out of the sea. On this land the
boy made out a great palace of white marble.
‘Is this the Sorcerer’s castle?’ Raphael shouted into his friend’s ear.
[Illustration: ‘IS THIS THE SORCERER’S CASTLE?’ RAPHAEL SHOUTED]
Empyrean nodded.
First the eagles flew round the castle from left to right, and Raphael
marveled that there were no doors, no windows in this strange building.
All he saw were blind walls which towered heavenward, a huge pillar of
cream-white stone.
When the eagles had circled the building three times, they flew
directly across the top. On the roof was an immense court surrounded
by walls and shaped like the inside of a saucer. Within this bowl lay
the aeroplane of the Sorcerer. Raphael saw figures running about on the
roof.
Beside the large island lay a little one, barren and brown like the
naked back of a sea monster. Here the eagles gathered together for a
council of war. After many impatient and fierce proposals from his
followers, Chief of All the Eagles in the Sky spoke:
‘We have come, O Eagles, to save the sister of our friend and to war
against our enemy, the Sorcerer. But harken. We pit our strength and
cunning against a powerful foe who has magic at his command about which
we know little. Our brother,’--the eagle motioned toward Raphael--‘is
of another people, a people more accustomed than we to such machines as
this Sorcerer is lord over. Therefore it seems advisable to me that he
go forth and bring us news.’
The eagle ceased to speak. The bird-warriors turned and stared at the
boy, who, proud and self-conscious, bowed his head in assent. His first
test had come.
Calling upon Gæa, as Empyrean had instructed him, Raphael claimed the
powers of a water spider, and turned toward the water that separated
the little island from the larger one. He was to try the powers granted
him by the Queen Mother. Would the sea hold him? He stepped nervously
onto a wave that broke in a carpet of white foam at his feet, and took
a hasty step forward, then another. It was partly like walking over an
uneven floor, partly like climbing a moving sandhill.
Far below on the bottom of the ocean he could hear clams chanting a
hymn of triumph in which he distinctly caught the echo of his own name.
In a few moments Raphael stood on the shore of the main island
underneath the walls of the Sorcerer’s castle. The tall blocks of
stone which seemed to pierce the reeling sky were cold to his touch.
There was no life, no movement on the whole island. Even the palms
which fringed the shore were motionless. Only a large steel sign that
read, _Keep Out! This Means You!_ hinted at human occupation. To the
castle itself he could find neither door nor window. That’s very queer,
thought the boy.
Calling upon Gæa for the powers of a bird, Raphael raised his hands
above his head and stood upon his toes. Then, using his arms as wings,
he jumped upward. It was like beating a very soft feather pillow.
Slowly the boy left the ground, kicking awkwardly with his legs; and
lit, out of breath and sprawling, in the saucer-like basin where he
had last seen the aeroplane of the Sorcerer. The roof was deserted
and bleak. Only the thin outline of a large trapdoor showed where the
Sorcerer had entered his stronghold.
Raphael walked about nervously, expecting to be attacked at any
moment. He could see no sign of life, and yet he felt that invisible
eyes watched him.
There must be, he thought, another door to this castle under the sea.
Raphael leapt from the roof to fly back to the eagles. He dropped
earthward, and only by beating the air wildly with his outstretched
arms could he regain his balance. With a sense of relief he landed
fluttering like a wounded bird on the little island.
When he told the eagles what he had found, they burst into a shrill
clamor devising schemes of war. As before, Chief of All the Eagles in
the Sky was the last to speak:
‘Comrades, since you demand war, there shall be war. But I believe
you underestimate the power and resource of the enemy. Before we use
violence, let us discover whether there is another entrance to this
castle through which the Sorcerer might escape. Although a journey
below the sea is not possible for eagles, to Raphael, who has power
over the sea, it should not be difficult.
‘My boy’--he turned to Raphael--‘I charge you with this mission. Go to
the King or President of the Atlantic, for I think that he will help
us.’
In this way the conference ended.
[Illustration]