FALLING, LIKE ICARUS, INTO THE SEA
The aurora light, which had flamed brightly, was now extinct, and
darkness was upon the face of the deep, where we floated on the back
of the monster. He swam, forcing himself onward with his hind-legs,
with one broad wing folded up close. Had both been folded up the
athaleb could have swum rapidly; but the broken wing lay expanded
over the water, tossing with the waves, so that our progress was but
slight. Had it not been for this, the athaleb's own instinct might
have served to guide him toward some shore which we might have hoped
to reach before life was extinct; but as it was, all thought of
reaching any shore was out of the question, and there arose before us
only the prospect of death--a death, too, which must be lingering and
painful and cruel. Thus amid the darkness we floated, and the waves
dashed around us, and the athaleb never ceased to struggle in the
water, trying to force his way onward. It seemed sweet at that moment
to have Layelah with me, for what could have been more horrible than
loneliness amid those black waters? and Layelah's mind was made up
to meet death with joy, so that her mood conveyed itself to me. And
I thought that since death was inevitable it were better to meet
it thus, and in this way end my life--not amid the horrors of the
sacrifice and the Mista Kosek, but in a way which seemed natural to
a seafaring man like myself, and with which I had long familiarized my
thoughts. For I had fallen upon a world and among people which were
all alien and unintelligible to me; and to live on would only open the
way to new and worse calamities. There was peace also in the thought
that my death would snatch the prospect of death from Almah. She would
now be safe. It was only when we were together as lovers that death
threatened her; but now since I was removed she could resume her
former life, and she might remember me only as an episode in that
life. That she would remember me I felt sure, and that she would weep
for me and mourn after me was undeniable; but time as it passed would
surely alleviate that grief, and Almah would live and be happy.
Perhaps she might yet regain her native land and rejoin her loved
kindred, whom she would tell of the stranger from an unknown shore who
had loved her, and through whose death she had gained her life. Such
were the thoughts that filled my mind as I floated over the black
water with darkness all around, as I held Layelah in my arms, with my
coat wrapped around her, and murmured in her ear tender words of
consolation and sympathy.
A long, long time had passed--but how long I know not--when suddenly
Layelah gave a cry, and started up on her knees, with her head bent
forward listening intently. I too listened, and I could distinctly
hear the sound of breakers.
It was evident that we were approaching some shore; and, from what I
remembered of the shore of Magones, such a shore meant death, and
death alone. We stood up and tried to peer through the gloom. At
length we saw a whole line of breakers, and beyond all was black. We
waited anxiously in that position, and drew steadily nearer. It was
evident that the athaleb was desirous of reaching that shore, and we
could do nothing but await the result.
But the athaleb had his wits about him, and swam along on a line with
the breakers for some distance, until at length an opening appeared,
into which he directed his course. Passing through this we reached
still water, which seemed like a lagoon surrounded by a coral reef.
The athaleb swam on farther, and at length we saw before us an island
with a broad, sandy beach, beyond which was the shadowy outline of a
forest. Here the monster landed, and dragged himself wearily upon the
sand, where he spread his vast bulk out, and lay panting heavily. We
dismounted--I first, so as to assist Layelah; and then it seemed as if
death were postponed for a time, since we had reached this place where
the rich and rank vegetation spoke of nothing but vigorous life.
Fortune had indeed dealt strangely with me. I had fled with Almah, and
with her had reached one desolate shore, and now I found myself with
Layelah upon another shore, desolate also, but not a savage
wilderness. This lonely island, ringed with the black ocean waters,
was the abode of a life of its own, and there was nothing here to
crush the soul into a horror of despair like that which was caused by
the tremendous scenes on Magones.
In an instant Layelah revived from her gloom. She looked around,
clapped her little hands, laughed aloud, and danced for joy.
"Oh, Atam-or," she cried, "see--see the trees, see the grass, the
bushes! This is a land of wonder. As for food, you can call it down
from the sky with your sepet-ram, or we can find it on the rocks.
Oh, Atam-or! life is better than death, and we can live here, and we
can be happy. This shall be better to us than the lands of the Orin,
for we shall be alone, and we shall be all in all to one another."
I could not help laughing, and I said:
"Layelah, this is not the language of the Kosekin. You should at once
go to the other side of this island, and sit down and wait for death."
"Never," said Layelah; "you are mine, Atam-or, and I never will leave
you. If you wish me to die for you, I will gladly lay down my life;
but I will not leave you. I love you, Atam-or; and now, whether it be
life or death, it is all the same so long as I have you."
Our submersion in the sea and our long exposure afterward had chilled
both of us, but Layelah felt it most. She was shivering in her wet
clothes in spite of my coat which I insisted on her wearing, and I
determined, if possible, to kindle a fire. Fortunately my powder was
dry, for I had thrown off my flask with my coat before jumping into
the sea, and thus I had the means of creating fire. I rubbed wet
powder over my handkerchief, and then gathered some dried sticks and
moss. After this I found some dead trees, the boughs of which were
dry and brittle, and in the exercise I soon grew warm, and had the
satisfaction of seeing a great heap of fagots accumulating. I fired
my pistol into the handkerchief, which, being saturated with powder,
caught the fire, and this I blew into a flame among the dried moss.
A bright fire now sprang up and blazed high in the air; while I, in
order to have an ample supply of fuel, continued to gather it for a
long time. At length, as I came back, I saw Layelah lying on the sand
in front of the fire, sound asleep. I was glad of this, for she was
weary, and had seemed so weak and tremulous that I had felt anxious;
so now I arranged my coat over her carefully, and then sat down for a
time to think over this new turn which my fortune had taken.
This island was certainly very unlike Magones, yet I had no surety but
that it might be equally destitute of food. This was the first
question, and I could not think of sleep until I had found out more
about the place. The aurora light, which constantly brightens and
lessens in this strange world, was now shining gloriously, and I set
forth to explore the island. The beach was of fine sand all the way.
The water was smooth, and shut in on every side by an outer reef
against which the sea-waves broke incessantly. As I walked I soon
perceived what the island was; for I had often seen such places before
in the South Pacific. It was, in fact, a coral islet, with a reef of
rocks encircling it on every side. The vegetation, however, was unlike
anything in the world beyond; for it consisted of many varieties of
tree-ferns, that looked like palms, and giant grasses, and bamboo. The
island was but small, and the entire circuit was not over a mile. I
saw nothing that looked like food, nor did it seem likely that in so
small a place there could be enough sustenance for us. Our only hope
would be from the sea, yet even here I could see no signs of any sort
of shell-fish. On the whole the prospect was discouraging, and I
returned to the starting-point with a feeling of dejection; but this
feeling did not trouble me much at that time: my chief thought was of
rest, and I flung myself down on the sand and fell asleep.
I was awakened by a cry from Layelah. Starting up, I saw her standing
and looking into the sky. She was intensely excited. As soon as she
saw me she rushed toward me and burst into tears, while I, full of
wonder, could only stare upward.
"Oh!" cried Layelah, "they've turned back--they've found us! We shall
have to leave our dear, lovely island. Oh, Atam-or, I shall lose you
now; for never, never, never again will you have one thought of love
for your poor Layelah!"
With these words she clung sobbing to me. For my part I do not
remember what I said to soothe her, for the sight above was so amazing
that it took up all my attention. The aurora shone bright, and in the
sky I saw two vast objects wheeling and circling, as if about to
descend. I recognized them at once as athalebs; but as their backs
were hid from view by their immense wings, I could not make out
whether they were wanderers about to alight of their own accord, or
guided here by riders--perhaps by the Kosekin from whom we had been
parted.
This much at least I remember. I said to Layelah that these athalebs
were wild ones, which had come here because they saw or scented our
wounded one; but Layelah shook her head with mournful meaning.
"Oh no," said she; "Almah has come back for you. This fire-light has
guided them. If you had not made the fire they never, never, never
could have found us; but now all is lost."
There was no time for conversation or discussion. The athalebs drew
swiftly nearer and nearer, descending in long circuits, until at
length they touched the ground not far away on the wide sandy beach.
Then we saw people on their backs, and among them was Almah. We
hurried toward them, and Almah rushed into my arms, to the great
disgust of Layelah, for she was close beside me and saw it all. She
gave an exclamation of grief and despair, and hurried away.
From Almah I learned that our disappearance had caused alarm; that two
of the athalebs had come back in search of us; that they had been to
Magones, and had searched over the seas, and were just about giving us
up as lost, when the fire-light had attracted their attention and
drawn them here.
I said nothing at that time about the cause of our disappearance, but
merely remarked that the athaleb had fallen into the sea and swam
here. This was sufficient. They had to remain here for some time
longer to rest their athalebs. At length we prepared to depart. Our
wounded athaleb was left behind to take care of himself. I was taken
with Almah, and Layelah went on the other. We were thus separated; and
so we set forth upon our return, and at length arrived at the amir.