THE CONSPIRACY.
Despite the fact that the audience chamber of the imperial palace of
Reabon was crowded with people, the silence was so intense that the
buzzing of a fly would have been audible from one end of the room to
the other. Whereas, only a moment before, the people had laughed and
chatted in little groups, they now stood in straight, rigid lines along
the marble walls, arranged according to their respective ranks and
stations in life, for the scarlet curtains which surrounded the massive
throne had been drawn back, signifying the approach of the princess,
the Torrogina.
Those who stood at the lower end of the hall and farthest from the
throne were the slaves, the prevailing color of whose garments was
gray. Next to the slaves stood the common people, the tradesmen,
farmers, merchants, mechanics, and the like, who were attired in blue.
Then came the nobles and their families, who might be recognized
anywhere by their purple garments, and finally members of the royal
families of Reabon and her many rogats, who were privileged to wear
scarlet, the universal Zarovian color of royalty, and to stand next to
the throne during audiences.
All eyes were turned toward the door as four men entered, carrying a
great golden palanquin with curtains of scarlet. The litter-bearers
all wore heavy beards, cut off square below the chin. On their heads
were jeweled golden crowns, and their scarlet garments proclaimed their
royal birth. They were kings of four of the sixteen kingdoms which
comprised the empire of Reabon, and were serving their allotted time in
attendance on the Torrogina Vernia, as was required by law.
Behind the palanquin walked the illustrious Orthad, commander of all
the armies of Reabon, and responsible only to the princess herself.
He was armed with tork and scarbo, and resplendent in his magnificent
uniform, which was of purple, denoting his noble birth, and decorated
with no inconsiderable quantity of gold fringe, gold braid and jewels.
On a scarlet cushion held before him he carried the great jeweled
scarbo, the scepter of Reabonian authority.
A hundred members of the Imperial Guard marched behind in double file,
and ranged themselves at regular intervals alone the wall. Their
uniforms were of an olive green color, decorated with silver in lieu of
the gold which adorned that of their commander.
When the four palanquin-bearers arrived at the foot of the throne which
was reached by four broad steps, they gently lowered their burden to
the floor, and each stepped forward and lay, face downward, on one
of the steps. No sooner had they taken their places than the scarlet
curtains parted, and the beautiful ruler of the greatest empire in all
Zarovia, Vernia of Reabon, emerged and ascended the four human steps to
the throne.
As she took her seat with quiet dignity, every one in the room bowed
low with right hand extended palm downward. She made a picture of
dazzling loveliness, as she sat there attired in a clinging garment
of scarlet material that left her white arms and shoulders bare--her
jeweled crown resting lightly on her fluffy golden curls, a dainty,
alluringly feminine ruler who had succeeded a thousand mighty emperors
and was, herself, mightier and more ambitious than them all.
* * * * *
The first person to seek audience before the throne was a gayly
uniformed ambassador from the great western empire of Mernerum, laden
with costly presents from its mighty emperor, and bringing a proposal
of marriage, despite the fact that this same suitor had been refused no
less than a score of times before.
When Bonal, her prime minister in earthly courts, advised her that the
ambassador from Mernerum sought audience, Vernia looked a trifle bored.
"Are there not several other ambassadors with presents and similar
messages waiting without?" she asked.
"Yes, your majesty, there are ten in all from as many empires."
"Send them all in at once. I can say 'No' to all collectively and thus
save time, otherwise our entire day will be taken up in listening to
their pleas, and the more important business of the empire will have to
be postponed."
The ten ambassadors traversed the length of the hall with much pomp
and ceremony, each followed by a concourse of slaves laden with the
most costly presents a great emperor could procure, and humbly bowed
before the throne. Bonal announced their ten proposals as one, Vernia
promptly and courteously declined, and they sadly took their departure,
reflecting, no doubt, on the stormy receptions which awaited them when
they should announce the failure of their missions to their several
imperial masters.
Her matrimonial offers disposed of, the Torrogina listened to the
reports of the rulers of her various provinces. Last on the list came
Uxpo, as it was the last kingdom conquered. Though the other provinces
were ruled by princes, this one was temporarily under the control of
a military commander, for its fierce, warlike people had not been
completely subjugated. A stalwart young captain bore tidings from his
commander. He humbly approached the foot of the throne and waited for
permission to speak, then announced:
"Prince Thaddor has escaped from the quarries. He nearly killed two of
his guards and ran away into the fern-forest."
Vernia was greatly surprised. That Prince Thaddor had found courage
to escape seemed incredible to her, for she was well aware of his
gentle, studious ways and unresisting disposition; but that he had
nearly killed two of his guards in the process seemed little short of
miraculous.
"You have sent soldiers after him, I presume."
"Men are scouring the forests and mountains in search of him, but up
to the time of my departure, no trace had been found of the fugitive.
There is another matter of which my commander bids me speak. It has
been prophesied by some unknown soothsayer that a great fighter is
coming from another world to lead Uxpo to victory and independence.
This ridiculous prediction has spread throughout the kingdom, and as
result it is a seething caldron of unrest. The Fighting Traveks of Uxpo
make nightly raids on our soldiers, and even the women and children
have grown rebellious."
Vernia frowned slightly.
"This mutiny must be put down, once and for all," she said. "Orthad:
assemble an army of ten thousand men at once--I will lead them in
person. Bonal: my palanquin-bearers. Postpone all further hearings
until my return from Uxpo."
* * * * *
Half hour later two men stood on one of the smaller balconies of the
imperial palace in whispered conversation. One wore the scarlet of
royalty, the other the purple of the nobility and the trappings and
insignia of an imperial commander.
The one in scarlet, a youth of twenty, with furtive, shifty eyes and a
full sensuous mouth that was only partly concealed by a thin growth of
beard, whispered hoarsely:
"Have a care, my worthy Zueppa. It is not necessary to shout. I hear
quite well, you know, and some one might be loitering in the corridor.
Are you sure the four men who are to constitute her personal bodyguard
will not fail us?"
"Their loyalty to your highness, Prince Destho, is beyond question. If
they fail they will die, rather than betray us."
"They must not fail. There is too much at stake. After all, the task is
not too difficult. They have only to hide her in the northern mountains
for a year--a short year, mind you--then none will dare to question
my title to the throne. And you, my faithful Zueppa. I will make you
supreme commander of Reabon. The wealth of a king shall be yours, even
though you may not wear the color of royalty. Second only to myself,
you will hold the greatest office in Zarovia."
"May I not again remind your highness that there is a much easier and
simpler way to attain our ends? A deadly bullet, a quick thrust of the
knife or scarbo in the confusion of battle--"
"Stop, fool! Do you take me for an assassin? My ambition is great, but
my desire for this woman is greater. You must detain her for a year.
Then return her to me unharmed. She has spurned me, ridiculed me,
mocked me, but as Emperor of Reabon I can dictate terms. She will come
to my arms with willingness when she finds me ruling in her stead, for
law is law, and no ruler may remain outside the capital for a year and
retain the throne. If she remains obdurate, then will I have the power
and, believe me, the will, to bend her to my wishes."
"Your highness's plans shall be carried out to the letter. Farewell,
your highness--your imperial majesty that is to be."
In the great outer court, Vernia reviewed her army of ten thousand
picked soldiers. She was clad from head to foot in a suit of shining
scarlet leather, and wore a chain-belt which supported a small golden
tork on the right side, and a short, light scarbo with jeweled hilt on
the left.
Beside her stood the armored car which was to conduct her to the
field of battle. It could not be said to bear any resemblance to a
terrestrial car unless the fact that it had a wheel might be called
a resemblance. This great wheel, which was a full twenty feet in
diameter, supported the car, not above but inside it. The tire was a
trifle over a foot in width and covered with a resilient material that
was both tough and springy.
The entire vehicle was kept erect by a rapidly revolving gyroscope
in the center of the boxlike car, while the box itself was kept from
revolving by an inner idling wheel on which it was supported. Four
small gears which extended from the car at right angles from each
other, connected with the great inner gear wheel and with the power
mechanism. This was driven by the same kind of highly-explosive gas as
that used in the torks, and was capable of a speed of more than two
hundred miles an hour on a level road.
The machine was impractical for use in the forests and mountains but
would serve to convey the princess across the level plains to the
borders of Uxpo. From then on she would have to walk like her soldiers,
or ride in a litter. The driver sat just in front of the gyroscope, the
cushioned seat of the princess was immediately behind it, and an armed
guard stood in a small inclosure at each of the four corners of the car.
She mounted to the door on a small metal stairway, gave the command
to march, and stepped within and the guard raised the stairway and
fastened it in place, then resumed his position as the heavy vehicle
lumbered away at the head of the army.