"You think that they would harm us?" I asked.
Nalte shrugged. "I do not know, but the chances are that they would kill you and keep me."
"Then we won't take the chance, but I would like to remain near here for a while and search for Duare."
"You can't land on the left bank until we are out of sight of Kormor," said Nalte, "or they would be after us in no time."
"And if we land in sight of this other city these people would take after us, if what you fear be true."
"Let's go down stream until we are out of sight of both cities," suggested the girl, "and then wait until night before coming back near Kormor to search, for that is where you will have to search for Duare."
Following Nalte's suggestion we drifted slowly down stream. We soon passed Kormor, but the white city on the right bank extended on for a couple of miles farther. I should say that its full length along the river front was fully five miles, and along all that length was the broad quay backed by a gleaming white wall pierced by an occasional gate—I counted six or seven along the full length of the water front.
Just below the city the river turned to the right, and almost immediately the cliffs shut off our view of both cities. Simultaneously the aspect of the country changed. The limestone cliffs ended abruptly, the river running between low banks. Here it spread out to considerable width, but farther ahead I could see where it narrowed again and entered a gorge between cliffs much higher than any that we had passed. They were wooded cliffs, and even from a distance I could see that they were not of the white limestone that formed those with which we had now become familiar.
There came to my ears faintly an insistent sound that was at first little more than a murmur, but as we drifted down the river it seemed to grow constantly in volume.
"Do you hear what I hear?" I demanded, "or am I the victim of head noises?"