“Take always the centre path, my son, and avoid the waters that are tranquil and smooth. The way is rough—thy path must of a surety be rough also, but with courage victory will come to you. Farewell!”
And Har-Barim left them alone in the temple.
Quickly they made their way to their house, there was no time to be lost. Plans had to be made and made quickly. Once more they were in a strange land, where through no fault of their own, hostility and enmity would meet them once more.
CHAPTER IV
OUT INTO THE GREAT BEYOND
The boys had no packing to do. They possessed nothing but the clothes they stood in, and a sailor’s clasp knife that belonged to Alan; but they put together a store of dried elers, a fruit that was sustaining, and that, down below, took the place of the bread of the upper world.
There were very few of the purple people about; it was the vigil of Meherut,—the most solemn feast day of their strange religion, and all were shut up in their houses with their curtains drawn spending their time in fasting and prayer.
On, on the boys went, always choosing the middle path if a choice was offered them, if not, then taking the path to the right. Gradually they left all sign of habitation and entered a most desolate region where the purple moss grew only in patches, and the purple lights were only few and far between. They stumbled on blindly; they dared not wait for food; every moment was precious to them. Suddenly Desmond stumbled and fell. “I can’t go a step further,” he cried. “How long have we been walking, Lanny?”
“About ten hours I should think.”
“Then for Heaven’s sake let us rest! We have a fair start of them—let us rest and have some food.” The elers refreshed them, and they drank of the water that rolled treacherously at their feet. It was not very wide, perhaps three feet at the most, but the current was strong and the whirlpools more torrential than ever.
Stretching themselves out on the ground the boys slept, and woke some five or six hours later feeling greatly refreshed. Then they continued their march, now leaving the river behind them, now coming upon it again and walking by its banks.