“He speaks a curious dialect,” he said, “But I think I understood him to say, “Soon, soon, you will be in the middle of the earth!” I wonder what he meant.”
Everyone thought about it. “Do you think it means that the river goes down underground?” asked Jack. “Well if it does, it’s what we want, isn’t it?”
“It depends on whether there is room for the raft or not,” said Ranni. “We must keep a sharp look-out.”
The river ran on. The boys saw the mountains of Killimooin around them. In front of them, slightly to the left, was the one they knew, on the other side of which Killimooin Castle was built. It looked very different from this side, but the summit was the same shape.
Suddenly they heard a terrific roaring sound ahead of them. Quick as thought Ranni plunged the tree-branch into the water and tried to steer the raft out of the current. But it was very swift and the raft kept on its course.
Jack saw that the big Baronian looked pale and anxious as he tried in vain to swing the raft from its steady course. “What’s the matter?” he asked.
“Can you hear that noise?” said Ranni. “I think the river makes a fall somewhere ahead — maybe a big waterfall. We don’t want to be caught in it. I can’t get this raft out of the current.
Pilescu suddenly slipped overboard, and, taking the raft with one hand, tried to swim to the shore with it. But he could not move it from the swift current.
“Jump!” he cried to the others. “Jump, and swim. It is our only hope. We are getting near the fall.”
Everyone jumped into the water. Paul was the weakest swimmer and big Ranni took him on his back. The raft went bobbing off by itself.