The Black Tor Part 38

"But what about the torches?"

"Got plenty for both, and two men have got mine lanterns alight under their gaberdines. Better pa.s.s round torches for your men now."

Ralph agreed that this would be best, and Mark summoned Dummy with a faint bird-like chirrup, and made him bring the links.

Then at a word, Mark's men sprang up, and after marking down the spot below the dimly-seen top of the mountain-limestone ridge, beneath which, half-way down, as they well knew, the cavern lay, the two parties marched on in silence side by side, pausing every few minutes, in response to a shrill chirp, while the leaders took a few paces ahead to make a keen observation and whisper a few words.

"All still," said Ralph, after the last of these pauses, which took place where the slope had grown steep, and they had about a quarter of a mile to go upward to reach the entrance to the cavern.

"Are you sure we're aiming right?" whispered Mark.

"Certain. The hole is below that sharp point you can see against the sky. I remember it so well. Saw it when the men had surrounded us, and the captain was making signs."

"Keep on, then," whispered Mark. "Let's get one on each side of the mouth, light our torches, and rush in. We'll go in side by side, and the men must follow as they can."

The march upward in the darkness was resumed almost without a word, but no regular lines could be kept to now, on account of the blocks of stone projecting, rough bushes, and cracks and deep crevices, which became more frequent as they progressed. Then, too, here and there they came upon heaps of broken fragments which had fallen from above, split away by the frosts of winter.

Hearts beat high from excitement and exertion, for the slope grew more steep now, and an enemy would have been at great advantage above them, if bent on driving them back.

But all remained still: there was no warning of alarm uttered by sentry, no shrill whistle; and so utterly death-like was all around, that Ralph whispered to Mark, who was close beside him now:

"I believe they must be all out on some raid."

"Seems like it," whispered back Mark; and they paused to let their men get close up, for the entrance could now dimly be made out, some twenty yards higher.

"Better take your lantern," whispered Mark. "Then give the word after you are up, on one side, and we the other. We must go in at once then, for the light will startle them if they're there."

The lantern, carefully shaded, was pa.s.sed to Nick Garth, and once more they pressed on, the men spreading out a little on either side now, so as to get level with the entrance, which gradually grew more plain, in the shape of a narrow cleft, little more than wide enough to admit one at a time; and they saw now that stones had been roughly piled beneath it to form a rough platform in front.

Still no sound was heard, and the next minute the two little groups cl.u.s.tered in their places close by the platform; Ralph gave the word, the lanterns were bared, and thrown open, and three links at a time thrust in, to begin burning, though not so quickly as their owners wished, while men stood on either side with pikes levelled, ready to receive the enemy should a rush be made from inside.

It was a picturesque scene, as the light from the lanterns gleamed dimly upon eager faces, and lit up the bright steel weapons. Then, one after the other, the torches began to burn and send upward little clouds of pitchy smoke, the light growing brighter and brighter, and throwing up the grey stones and darkening the shadows, till all were armed with a blazing light in their left hands, and sword or pike in their right, while between the two parties the mouth of the cave lay dark and forbidding, but silent as the grave.

"Ready?" whispered Ralph.

"Ready!" came from Mark.

"Then forward!" cried the former, and, sword in hand, the two lads stepped from right and left on to the platform, their shadows sent first into the dark rift; while the Ruggs crowded after Mark, and Nick Garth and Ram Jennings shouldered them in their effort to keep their places close behind Ralph.

"Hang the link!" cried Mark suddenly. "Here, Darley, do as I do."

He threw his flaming torch right forward into the cave as far as it would go, and it struck against the wall and dropped some dozen yards in, and lay burning and lighting up the rugged pa.s.sage.

"I'll keep mine till we get past yours," said Ralph in a hoa.r.s.e whisper; and the lads pressed in, side by side, to find that the link was burning at an abrupt corner, the pa.s.sage turning sharply to the right.

Mark stopped and picked up his link, but before he could throw it again, Ralph stepped before him over the rugged floor and hurled his light, to see it fall right ahead, after also striking against the wall.

"Zigzags," said Mark in a sharp whisper. "Here, mind what you're doing with those pikes."

"All right," was growled, but the men who held the weapons did not withdraw them, two sharp points being thrust right forward, so as to protect the two leaders, the holders being Dan Rugg and Nick Garth.

Both Mark and Ralph objected to this again, but it was no time for hesitation. At any moment they might be attacked, and they were all wondering that they had heard nothing of the enemy, all being singularly still, save a low murmuring sound as of falling water at a distance.

"They must be all out," said Mark in a low voice. "Gone on some raid.

Well, we shall catch them when they come back."

Chirp!

"Who did that?" said Ralph quickly, at the sound of a steel weapon striking against the rock.

But no one answered; and as they advanced slowly, and Mark stooped to pick up his burning link once more where it lay against the corner of the natural pa.s.sage, Ralph seized the opportunity to change his sword to his left hand, and swing his round the corner out of sight.

They heard it fall, and the glow struck against the wall to their left, lighting up the pa.s.sage beyond the corner.

"Take care, Master Mark," whispered Dan Rugg.

"Ay, and you too, Master Ralph," whispered Nick Garth. "P'r'aps they're lying wait for us."

"No," said Mark, aloud. "They're away somewhere, and I hope they haven't seen our lights."

Whizz--thud!

There was an involuntary start from the attacking party, for at that moment the burning link Ralph had thrown came sharply back, struck against the wall where the glow had shone just before, and dropped, blazing and smoking, nearly at their feet.

"That settles it," said Mark excitedly.

"Yes, and that explains the c.h.i.n.k I heard. They're waiting for us.

Ready? We must charge."

Ralph's words were followed by the pressing forward of the men behind-- those of each family being eager to prove their valour by being before their rivals; and the next minute half-a-dozen were round the corner, with the two lads at their head, to find that the pa.s.sage had suddenly widened out into a roomy chamber, toward whose high roof the smoke from the torches slowly ascended, and contracted again at the end, about a dozen yards away.

"Yes, I remember," whispered Ralph. "I had forgotten: it goes off in a pa.s.sage round to the left again at that corner."

The men crowded in after them, finding ample room now, and all looked about, puzzled, for the enemy who had hurled back the link, several of those present being ready to place a strange interpretation upon the mystery.

But the explanation was plain enough when they reached the end of the chamber, where the onward pa.s.sage was but a crack some two feet wide, with a bristling palisade of pike-heads to bar their further progress.

There was no hesitation. At the sight of something real to attack, Mark uttered a shout.

"Here they are, lads," he cried. "Now for it! Pikes."

The men, Edenites and Darleyites, closed in together, forgetting all their animosities, and their pike-heads gathered into a dense ma.s.s, clashing against those which bristled in the narrow opening, clinked against the stone sides, and rattled, as the holders thrust and stabbed away past their young leaders' shoulders, for, to their great disgust, both Mark and Ralph found that they could do nothing with their swords.

And now the silence which had reigned was further broken by the excited cries of the men, given at every thrust they made into the opening, their attack eliciting yells of defiance, oaths, and threats of what would be done directly.

The fight went on for a few minutes, with apparently no effect on either side, the attacking party being unable to reach the defenders, while the latter seemed to be too much crippled for s.p.a.ce to attack in turn, contenting themselves with presenting their bristling points against the advance.

"Halt!" cried Mark suddenly. "This is of no use."

"No," growled Nick Garth, as, in obedience to the order, the men drew back a couple of yards, to stand, though, with their pikes directed at the narrow opening.