Well was it for Tyler and the Dyaks, whose chief he had so suddenly become, that he had made arrangements for meeting the enemy with such thoroughness; for otherwise Hanns Schlott and the fifty men or more who accompanied him would have pushed on through the forest at a pace which would rapidly have eclipsed that of the retreating tribe and would have speedily overwhelmed them. But there were those lurking in the jungle prepared to arrest the progress of the pirates, and thanks to the resolute air which Tyler had displayed, and to the knowledge which the Dyaks now possessed, that he, with John Marshall alone to help him, had faced the crew of the prahu and safely escaped, they were full of confidence in their young chief's powers to lead them and bring them safely out of the engagement. Crouching there amongst the dense undergrowth, each man lifted the long wooden blow-pipe which these Dyak tribes use, and having already placed within it a sharp-pointed arrow, at the base of which was a pith-bulb to hold the air, they pointed them at the Malays and waited for the word to fire.
Hish! One of the pirates who had been sent in advance to follow the tracks of the fugitives gave a gasping cry, and fell upon his face, his hands convulsively grasping one of the tiny arrows.
"What has happened?" demanded Hans Schlott, giving a start of surprise. "Get up at once, and do not alarm us by your antics. Come, drag the fellow to his feet," he went on, seeing that the Malay lay still with his head buried in the undergrowth. "He imagines himself hurt, and will lie there till we force him to rise."
"He is dead!" exclaimed one of his comrades, rushing to his side and turning him upon his back. "See here, someone has fired at him with a blow-pipe. It must be the Dyaks who have been watching."
"Then they shall suffer!" burst in the Dutchman with an oath. "Once before we raided them, and a fine fat sum we gained by our slaves, I recollect. They shall be punished again, and in the meanwhile the death of one of our number shall not deter us. Push on, and keep your eyes open wide for these snakes of natives. A shot into the jungle will soon scare them Ho there! Level your weapons, all of you, and direct them so as to sweep close to the ground. Then pull the triggers as I give the word."
Waiting till all his men had run to him, and had become ready to carry out his orders, Hanns Schlott shouted "Fire!" a volley of musketry being at once poured into the bushes. Then with an answering shout his men sprang forward upon the trail. As for Tyler and his little force, for the moment the Dyaks were dismayed at the swishing bullets and at the patter of twigs and leaves which resulted. But they had suffered no harm, and that thanks to the fact that each one had kept his eyes fixed upon the enemy, and at the first sign of the movement had lain flat upon the ground. But in spite of their lucky escape they would have given back at once, and have plunged in mad flight into the forest, had it not been for Tyler. With a shout to encourage them, he fired at the nearest Malay and brought him staggering upon the ground. Then Li Sung's voice joined in and helped to maintain the courage of the Dyaks.
"Fear them not!" he cried in the Dyak language. "We are as yet unseen, and can punish them. Think of the women and children taken into captivity by these men! Keep your places and shoot straight!"
"I heard the voice of that Englishman," shouted Hanns Schlott. "Then he has picked up some of the Dyaks and hopes to beat us back with their aid. But he will soon learn that they are poor fighters, and will desert him. Forward, and do not let these men keep you!"
Striding to the front of his men, he led the way into the jungle, feeling confident that, at the most, the white men for whom he searched could not have obtained the help of more than a few of the natives. But he quickly changed his mind, for ere he had traversed a dozen paces one of the silent missiles again swished with its low peculiar note through the air, and, striking the Dutchman in the shoulder, brought him to a sudden halt.
"A second arrow, but not poisoned!" he cried, giving vent to an exclamation of annoyance and pain, "Not poisoned, as I said, my men, for that I happen to know. It is nothing—a mere pin-prick—and shall not stop us. On! shoot them down, and capture this runaway!"