She and Allan: Chapter 18

Chapter 18

THE SLAYING OF REZU

At last we were on the plain, the bemused remnant of Rezu's army still
doubling before us like a mob of game pursued by wild dogs. Here we
halted to re-form our ranks; it seemed to me, although still she spoke
no word, that some order reached me from the gleaming Ayesha that
I should do this. The business took twenty minutes or so, and then,
numbering about two thousand five hundred strong, for the rest had
fallen in the fight of the square, we advanced again.

Now there came that dusk which often precedes the rising of the sun, and
through it I could see that the battle was not yet over, since gathered
in front of us was still a force about equal to our own. Ayesha pointed
towards it with her wand and we leapt forward to the attack. Here the
men of Rezu stood awaiting us, for they seemed to overcome their terror
with the approach of day.

The battle was fierce, a very strange battle in that dim, uncertain
light, which scarcely showed us friend from foe. Indeed I am not sure
that we should have won it, since Ayesha was no longer visible to give
our Amahagger confidence, and as the courage of the Rezuites increased,
so theirs seemed to lessen with the passing of the night.

Fortunately, however, just as the issue hung doubtful, there was a
shout to our left and looking, I made out the tall shape of Goroko, the
witch-doctor, with the other Zulu, followed by his two hundred and fifty
men, and leaping on to the flank of the line of Rezu.

That settled the business. The enemy crumpled up and melted, and just
then the first lights of dawn appeared in the sky. I looked about me for
Ayesha, but she had gone, where to I knew not, though at the moment I
feared that she must have been killed in the m�l�e.

Then I gave up looking and thinking, since now or never was the time
for action. Signalling and shouting to those hatchet-faced Amahagger to
advance, accompanied by Umslopogaas with Goroko who had joined us, and
Hans, I sprang forward to give them an example, which, to be just to
them, they took.

"This is the mound on which Red-Beard should be," cried Hans as we faced
a little slope.

I ran up it and through the gloom which precedes the actual dawn, saw a
group of men gathered round something, as people collect about a street
accident.

"Red-Beard on the stone. They are killing him," screeched Hans again.

It was so; at least several white-robed priests were bending over a
prostrate figure with knives in their hands, while behind stood the huge
fellow whom I took to be Rezu, staring towards the east as though he
were waiting for the rim of the sun to appear before he gave some order.
At that very moment it did appear, just a thin edge of bright light on
the horizon, and he turned, shouting the order.

Too late! For we were on them. Umslopogaas cut down one of the priests
with his axe, and the men about me dealt with the others, while Hans
with a couple of sweeps of his long knife, severed the cords with which
Robertson was tied.

The poor man who in the growing light I could see was raving mad, sprang
up, calling out something in Scotch about "the deil." Seizing a great
spear which had fallen from the hand of one of the priests, he rushed
furiously at the giant who had given the order, and with a yell drove
it at his heart. I saw the spear snap, from which I concluded that this
man, whom rightly I took to be Rezu, wore some kind of armour.

Next instant the axe he held, a great weapon, flashed aloft and down
went Robertson before its awful stroke, stone dead, for as we found out
afterwards, he was cloven almost in two. At the sight of the death of
my poor friend rage took hold of me. In my hand was a double-barrelled
rifle, an Express loaded with hollow-pointed bullets. I covered the
giant and let drive, first with one barrel and then with the other, and
what is more, distinctly I heard both bullets strike upon him.

Yet he did not fall. He rocked a little, that is all, then turned and
marched off towards a hut, that whereof Hans had told me, which stood
about fifty yards away.

"Leave him to me," shouted Umslopogaas. "Steel cuts where bullets cannot
pierce," and with a bound like to that of a buck, the great Zulu leapt
away after him.

I think that Rezu meant to enter the hut for some purpose of his own,
but Umslopogaas was too hard upon his tracks. At any rate he ran past it
and down the other slope of the little hill on to the plain behind where
the remnants of his army were trying to re-form. There in front of them
the giant turned and stood at bay.

Umslopogaas halted also, waiting for us to come up, since, cunning old
warrior as he was, he feared lest should he begin the fight before that
happened, the horde of them would fall on him. Thirty seconds later
we arrived and found him standing still with bent body, small shield
advanced and the great axe raised as though in the act of striking, a
wondrous picture outlined as it was against the swiftly rising-sun.

Some ten paces away stood the giant leaning on the axe he bore, which
was not unlike to that with which woodmen fell big trees. He was an evil
man to see and at this, my first full sight of him, I likened him in
my mind to Goliath whom David overthrew. Huge he was and hairy, with
deep-set, piercing eyes and a great hooked nose. His face seemed thin
and ancient also, when with a motion of the great head, he tossed his
long locks back from about it, but his limbs were those of a Hercules
and his movements full of a youthful vigour. Moreover his aspect as a
whole was that of a devil rather than of a man; indeed the sight of it
sickened me.

"Let me shoot him," I cried to Umslopogaas, for I had reloaded the rifle
as I ran.

"Nay, Watcher-by-Night," answered the Zulu without moving his head,
"rifle has had its chance and failed. Now let us see what axe can do. If
I cannot kill this man, I will be borne hence feet first who shall have
made a long journey for nothing."

Then the giant began to talk in a low, rumbling voice that reverberated
from the slope of the little hill behind us.

"Who are you?" he asked, speaking in the same tongue that the Amahagger
use, "who dare to come face to face with Rezu? Black hound, do you not
know that I cannot be slain who have lived a year for every week of your
life's days, and set my foot upon the necks of men by thousands. Have
you not seen the spear shatter and the iron balls melt upon my breast
like rain-drops, and would you try to bring me down with that toy you
carry? My army is defeated--I know it. But what matters that when I can
get me more? Because the sacrifice was not completed and the white queen
was not wed, therefore my army was defeated by the magic of Lulala, the
White Witch who dwells in the tombs. But _I_ am not defeated who cannot
be slain until I show my back, and then only by a certain axe which long
ago has rusted into dust."

Now of this long speech Umslopogaas understood nothing, so I answered
for him, briefly enough, but to the point, for there flashed into my
mind all Ayesha's tale about an axe.

"A certain axe!" I cried. "Aye, a certain axe! Well, look at that which
is held by the Black One, the captain who is named Slaughterer, the
ancient axe whose title is Chieftainess, because if so she wills, she
takes the lives of all. Look at it well, Rezu, Giant and Wizard, and
say whether it is not that which your forefather lost, that which is
destined to bring you to your doom?"

Thus I spoke, very loudly that all might hear, slowly also, pausing
between each word because I wished to give time for the light to
strengthen, seeing as I did that the rays of the rising sun struck upon
the face of the giant, whereas the eyes of Umslopogaas were less dazzled
by it.

Rezu heard, and stared at the axe which Umslopogaas held aloft, causing
it to quiver slightly by an imperceptible motion of his arm. As he
stared I saw his hideous face change, and that on it for the first time
gathered a look of something resembling fear. Also his followers behind
him who were also studying the axe, began to murmur together.

For here I should say that as though by common consent the battle had
been stayed; we no longer attacked and the enemy no longer ran. They,
or whose who were left of them, stood still as though they felt that the
real and ultimate issue of the fight depended upon the forthcoming duel
between these two champions, though of that issue they had little
doubt since, as I learned afterwards, they believed their king to be
invulnerable.

For quite a while Rezu went on staring. Then he said aloud as if he were
thinking to himself.

"It is like, very like. The horn haft is the same; the pointed gouge is
the same; the blade shaped like the young moon is the same. Almost could
I think that before me shook the ancient holy axe. Nay, the gods have
taken that back long ago and this is but a trick of the witch, Lulala of
the Caves."

Thus he spoke, but still for a moment hesitated.

"Umslopogaas," I said in the deep silence that followed, "hear me."

"I hear you," he answered without turning his head or moving his arms.
"What counsel, Watcher-by-Night?"

"This, Slaughterer. Strike not at that man's face and breast, for there
I think he is protected by witchcraft or by armour. Get behind him and
strike at his back. Do you understand?"

"Nay, Macumazahn, I understand not. Yet I will do your bidding because
you are wiser than I and utter no empty words. Now be still."

Then Umslopogaas threw the axe into the air and caught it as it fell,
and as he did so began to chant his own praises Zulu fashion.

"Oho!" he said, "I am the child of the Lion, the Black-maned Lion, whose
claws never loosened of their prey. I am the Wolf-king, he who hunted
with the wolves upon the Witch-mountain with my brother, Bearer of
the Club named Watcher-of-the-Fords, I am he who slew him called the
Unconquered, Chief of the People of the Axe, he who bore the ancient Axe
before me; I am he who smote the Halakazi tribe in their caves and won
me Nada the Lily to wife. I am he who took to the King Dingaan a gift
that he loved little, and afterward with Mopo, my foster-sire, hurled
this Dingaan down to death. I am the Royal One, named Bulalio the
Slaughterer, named Woodpecker, named Umhlopekazi the Captain, before
whom never yet man has stood in fair and open fight. Now, thou Wizard
Rezu, now thou Giant, now thou Ghost-man, come on against me and before
the sun has risen by a hand's breadth, all those who watch shall see
which of us is better at the game of war. Come on, then! Come on, for
I say that my blood boils over and my feet grow cold. Come on, thou
grinning dog, thou monster grown fat with eating the flesh of men, thou
hook-beaked vulture, thou old, grey-whiskered wolf!"

Thus he changed in his fierce, boastful way, while his two remaining
Zulus clapped their hands and sentence by sentence echoed his words, and
Goroko, the witch-doctor, muttered incantations behind him.

While he sang thus Umslopogaas began to stir. First only his head and
shoulders moved gently, swaying from side to side like a reed shaken in
the wind or a snake about to strike. Then slowly he put out first one
foot and next the other and drew them back again, as a dancer might do,
tempting Rezu to attack.

But the giant would not, his shield held before him, he stood still and
waited to see what this black warrior would do.

The snake struck. Umslopogaas darted in and let drive with the long
axe. Rezu raised his shield above his head and caught the blow. From the
clank it made I knew that this shield which seemed to be of hide, was
lined with iron. Rezu smote back, but before the blow could fall the
Zulu was out of his reach. This taught me how great was the giant's
strength, for though the stroke was heavy, like the steel-hatted axe he
bore, still when he saw that it had missed he checked the weapon in mid
air, which only a mighty man could have done.

Umslopogaas saw these things also and changed his tactics. His axe was
six or eight inches longer in the haft than that of Rezu, and therefore
he could reach where Rezu could not, for the giant was short-armed.
He twisted it round in his hand so that the moon-shaped blade was
uppermost, and keeping it almost at full length, began to peck with the
gouge-shaped point on the back at the head and arms of Rezu, that as I
knew was a favourite trick of his in fight from which he won his name
of "Woodpecker." Rezu defended his head with his shield as best he could
against the sharp points of steel which flashed all about him.

Twice it seemed to me that the Zulu's pecks went home upon the giant's
breast, but if so they did no harm. Either Rezu's thick beard, or armour
beneath it stopped them from penetrating his body. Still he roared
out as though with pain, or fury, or both, and growing mad, charged at
Umslopogaas and smote with all his strength.

The Zulu caught the blow upon his shield, through which it shore as
though the tough hide were paper. Stay the stroke it could not, yet it
turned its direction, so that the falling axe slid past Umslopogaas's
shoulder, doing him no hurt. Next instant, before Rezu could strike
again, the Zulu threw the severed shield into his face and seizing the
axe with both hands, leapt in and struck. It was a mighty blow, for I
saw the rhinoceros-horn handle of the famous axe bend like a drawn bow,
and it went home with a dull thud full upon Rezu's breast. He shook, but
no more. Evidently the razor edge of _Inkosikaas_ had failed to pierce.
There was a sound as though a hollow tree had been smitten and some
strands of the long beard, shorn off, fell to the ground, but that was
all.

"_Tagati!_ (bewitched)," cried the watching Zulus. "That stroke should
have cut him in two!" while I thought to myself that this man knew how
to make good armour.

Rezu laughed aloud, a bellowing kind of laugh, while Umslopogaas sprang
back astonished.

"Is it thus!" he cried in Zulu. "Well, all wizards have some door by
which their Spirit enters and departs. I must find the door, I must find
the door!"

So he spoke and with springing movements tried to get past Rezu, first
to the right and then to the left, all the while keeping out of reach.
But Rezu ever turned and faced him, as he did so retreating step by
step down the slope of the little hill and striking whenever he found a
chance, but without avail, for always Umslopogaas was beyond his reach.
Also the sunlight which now grew strong, dazzled him, or so I thought.
Moreover he seemed to tire somewhat--or so I thought also.

At any rate he determined to make an end of the play, for with a swift
motion, as Umslopogaas had done, he threw away his shield and grasping
the iron handle of his axe with both hands, charged the Zulu like a
bull. Umslopogaas leapt back out of reach. Then suddenly he turned and
ran up the rise. Yes, Bulalio the Slaughterer ran!

A roar of mockery went up from the sun-worshippers behind, while our
Amahagger laughed and Goroko and the two Zulus stared astonished and
ashamed. Only I read his mind aright and wondered what guile he had
conceived.

He ran, and Rezu ran after him, but never could he catch the
swiftest-footed man in Zululand. To and fro he followed him, for
Umslopogaas was taking a zig-zag path towards the crest of the slope,
till at length Rezu stopped breathless. But Umslopogaas still ran
another twenty yards or so until he reached the top of the slope and
there halted and wheeled round.

For ten seconds or more he stood drawing his breath in great gasps, and,
looking at his face, I saw that it had become as the face of a wolf.
His lips were drawn up into a terrible grin, showing the white teeth
between; his cheeks seemed to have fallen in and his eyes glared, while
the skin over the hole in his forehead beat up and down.

There he stood, gathering himself together for some mighty effort.

"Run on!" shouted the spectators. "Run back to K�r, black dog!"

Umslopogaas knew that they were mocking him, but he took no heed, only
bent down and rubbed his sweating hand in the grit of the dry earth.
Then he straightened himself and charged down on Rezu.

I, Allan Quatermain, have seen many things in battle, but never before
or since did I see aught like to this charge. It was swift as that of
a lioness, so swift that the Zulu's feet scarcely seemed to touch the
ground. On he sped like a thrown spear, till, when within about a dozen
feet of Rezu who stood staring at him, he bent his frame almost double
and leapt into the air.

Oh! what a leap was that. Surely he must have learnt it from the lion,
or the spring-buck. High he rose and now I saw his purpose; it was to
clear the tall shape of Rezu. Aye, and he cleared him with half a foot
to spare, and as he passed above, smote downwards with the axe so that
the blow fell upon the back of Rezu's head. Moreover it went home this
time, for I saw the red blood stream and Rezu fell forward on his face.
Umslopogaas landed far beyond him, ran a little way because he must,
then wheeled round and charged again.

Rezu was rising, but before he gained his feet, the axe _Inkosikaas_
thundered down where the neck joins the shoulder and sank in. Still, so
great was his strength that Rezu found his feet and smote out wildly.
But now his movements were slow and again Umslopogaas got behind him,
smiting at his back. Once, twice, thrice, he smote, and at the third
blow it seemed as though the massive spine were severed, for his weapon
fell from Rezu's hand and slowly he sank down to the ground, and lay
there, a huddled heap.

Believing that all was over I ran to where he lay with Umslopogaas
standing over him, as it seemed to me, utterly exhausted, for he
supported himself by the axe and tottered upon his feet. But Rezu was
not yet dead. He opened his cavernous eyes and glared at the Zulu with a
look of hellish hate.

"_Thou_ hast not conquered me, Black One," he gasped. "It is thine axe
which gave thee victory; the ancient, holy axe that once was mine until
the woman stole it, yes, that and the craft of the Witch of the Caves
who told thee to smite where the Spirit of Life which I feared to enter
wholly, had not kissed my flesh, and there only left me mortal. Wolf of
a black man, may we meet elsewhere and fight this fray again. Ah! would
that I could get these hands about thy throat and take thee with me down
into the Darkness. But Lulala wins if only for a while, since her fate,
I think, shall be worse than mine. Ah! I see the magic beauty that she
boasts turn to shameful----"

Here of a sudden life left him and throwing his great arms wide, a last
breath passed bubbling from his lips.

As I stooped to examine the man's huge and hairy carcase that to me
looked only half human, with a thunder of feet our Amahagger rushed down
upon us and thrusting me aside, fell upon the body of their ancient foe
like hounds upon a helpless fox, and with hands and spears and knives
literally tore and hacked it limb from limb, till no semblance of
humanity remained.

It was impossible to stop them; indeed I was too outworn with labours
and emotions to make any such attempt. This I regret the more since
I lost the opportunity of making an examination of the body of this
troll-like man, and of ascertaining what kind of armour it was he wore
beneath that great beard of his, which was strong enough to stop my
bullets, and even the razor edge of the axe _Inkosikaas_ driven with all
the might of the arms of the Zulu, Bulalio. For when I looked again
at the sickening sight the giant was but scattered fragments and the
armour, whatever it might have been, was gone, rent to little pieces and
carried off, doubtless, by the Amahagger, perhaps to be divided between
them to serve as charms.

So of Rezu I know only that he was the hugest, most terrible-looking
man I have ever seen, one too who carried his vast strength very late
in life, since from the aspect of his countenance I imagine that he must
have been nigh upon seventy years of age, though his supposed unnatural
antiquity of course was nothing but a fable put about by the natives for
their own purposes.

Presently Umslopogaas seemed to recover from the kind of faint into
which he had fallen and opening his eyes, looked about him. The first
person they fell on was old Billali who stood stroking his white beard
and contemplating the scene with an air which was at once philosophic
and satisfied. This seemed to anger Umslopogaas, for he cried,

"I think it was you, ancient bag of words and sweeper of paths for the
feet of the great, who made a mock of me but now, when you thought
that I fled before the horns of yonder man-eating bull--" and he nodded
towards the fragments of what once had been Rezu. "Find now his axe
and though I am weak and weary, I will wash away the insult with your
blood."

"What does this glorious black hero say, Watcher-by-Night?" asked
Billali in his most courteous tones.

I told him word by word, whereon Billali lifted his hands in horror,
turned and fled. Nor did I see him again until we arrived at K�r.

At the sight of the fall of their giant chief Rezu whom they believed
to be invulnerable, his followers, who were watching the fray, set up
a great wailing, a most mournful and uncanny noise to hear. Then, as I
think did the hosts of the Philistines when David brought down Goliath
by his admirable shot with a stone, they set out for their homes
wherever these may have been, at an absolutely record pace and in the
completest disarray.

Our Amahagger followed them for a while, but soon were left standing
still. So they contented themselves with killing any wounded they could
find and returned. I did not accompany them; indeed the battle being
won, metaphorically I washed my hands of them, and in my thoughts
consigned them to a certain locality as a people of whom it might
well be said that manners they had none and their customs were simply
beastly. Also, although fierce and cruel, these night-bats were not
good fighting men and in short never did I wish to have to do with such
another company.

Moreover, a very different matter pressed. The object of this business
so far as I was concerned, had been to rescue poor Inez, since had
it not been for her sake, never would I have consented to lead those
Amahagger against their fellow blackguards, the Rezuites.

But where was Inez? If Hans had understood the medicine-man aright,
she was, or had been, in the hut, where it was my earnest hope that she
still remained, since otherwise the hunt must be continued. This at
any rate was easy to discover. Calling Hans, who was amusing himself
by taking long shots at the flying enemy, so that they might not forget
him, as he said, and the Zulus, I walked up the slope to the hut, or
rather booth of boughs, for it was quite twenty feet long by twelve or
fifteen broad.

At its eastern end was a doorway or opening closed with a heavy curtain.
Here I paused full of tremors, and listened, for to tell the truth I
dreaded to draw that curtain, fearing what I might see within. Gathering
up my courage at length I tore it aside and, a revolver in my hand,
looked in. At first after the strong light without, for the sun was now
well up, I could see nothing, since those green boughs and palm leaves
were very closely woven. As my eyes grew accustomed to the gloom,
however, I perceived a glittering object seated on a kind of throne
at the end of the booth, while in a double row in front knelt six
white-robed women who seemed to wear chains about their necks and
carried large knives slung round their middles. On the floor between
these women and the throne lay a dead man, a priest of some sort as
I gathered from his garb, who still held a huge spear in his hand. So
silent were the figure on the throne and those that knelt before it,
that at first I thought that all of them must be dead.

"Lady Sad-Eyes," whispered Hans, "and her bride-women. Doubtless that
old Predikant came to kill her when he saw that the battle was lost, but
the bride-women killed him with their knives."

Here I may state that Hans' suppositions proved to be quite correct,
which shows how quick and deductive was his mind. The figure on the
throne was Inez; the priest in his disappointed rage _had_ come to kill
her, and the bride-women had killed _him_ with their knives before he
could do so.

I bade the Zulus tear down the curtain and pull away some of the end
boughs, so as to let in more light. Then we advanced up the place,
holding our pistols and spears in readiness. The kneeling women turned
their heads to look at us and I saw that they were all young and
handsome in their fashion, although fierce-faced. Also I saw their hands
go to the knives they wore. I called to them to let these be and come
out, and that if they did so they had nothing to fear. But if they
understood, they did not heed my words.

On the contrary while Hans and I covered them with our pistols, fearing
lest they should stab the person on the throne whom we took to be Inez,
at some word from one of them, they bowed simultaneously towards her,
then at another word, suddenly they drew the knives and plunged them to
their own hearts!

It was a dreadful sight and one of which I never saw the like. Nor to
this day do I know why the deed was done, unless perhaps the women were
sworn to the service of the new queen and feared that if they failed to
protect her, they would be doomed to some awful end. At any rate we got
them out dead or dying, for their blows had been strong and true, and
not one of them lived for more than a few minutes.

Then I advanced to the figure on the throne, or rather foot-stooled
chair of black wood inlaid with ivory, which sat so silent and
motionless that I was certain it was that of a dead woman, especially
when I perceived that she was fastened to the chair with leather straps,
which were sewn over with gold wire. Also she was veiled and, with one
exception, made up, if I may use the term, exactly to resemble the lady
Ayesha, even down to the two long plaits of black hair, each finished
with some kind of pearl and to the sandalled feet.

The exception was that about her hung a great necklace of gold ornaments
from which were suspended pendants also of gold representing the rayed
disc of the sun in rude but bold and striking workmanship.

I went to her and having cut the straps, since I could not stop to untie
their knots, lifted the veil.

Beneath it was Inez sure enough, and Inez living, for her breast rose
and fell as she breathed, but Inez senseless. Her eyes were wide open,
yet she was quite senseless. Probably she had been drugged, or perhaps
some of the sights of horror which she saw, had taken away her mind. I
confess that I was glad that this was so, who otherwise must have told
her the dreadful story of her father's end.

We bore her out and away from that horrible place, apparently quite
unhurt, and laid her under the shadow of a tree till a litter could be
procured. I could do no more who knew not how to treat her state, and
had no spirits with me to pour down her throat.

This was the end of our long pursuit, and thus we rescued Inez, whom the
Zulus called the Lady Sad-Eyes.

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