Still, they must act, and the Jaguar did not hesitate. He had not risked his own life and that of his comrades to be arrested by any obstacle, whatever its nature might be; impossibilities themselves must not stay him, for, although he might be killed, he would not recoil an inch. Still the means he had at his disposal were extremely limited; he had but a silken cord about a hundred fathoms in length rolled round his body, and his comrades had no other weapons than their daggers.
The persons who have read the early scenes of this story will doubtless remember the portrait we drew of the Jaguar. Although still very young, or at least appearing so, he joined exceptional strength to marvellous agility and skill; his adventurous character found delight in extraordinary things, and impossibilities alone offered any attraction to him. After reflecting for a few moments, he advised his comrades to lie down at the foot of the rock, lest they should be blown away by the coromuel, which was raging at the moment, passed two daggers through his belt, and began examining with the most scrupulous attention the rock he wished to attack.
This granitic mass, whose base was bathed in the sea and beaten by the waves, had never been seriously investigated by anyone, for who had any interest in such a thing? The Jaguar alone, since the thought had occurred to him of carrying the fort by surprise, had, on several occasions and for hours together, examined it with a telescope. Unluckily, through fear of exciting suspicions, he could only inspect it from a long distance, and hence many details escaped his notice, as he perceived at once when he began a serious investigation.
In fact, this rock, which at a distance seemed to form an almost perpendicular wall, was hollowed out at several points, and fissures had been opened by time—that great demolisher, which wears away the hardest granite. Though the ascent was still extremely difficult, it was not impossible; the Jaguar welcomed this certainty with a quick start of delight.
"It is all right, brothers," he said to his comrades, "so take courage; now, I entertain firm hopes of success."
And he prepared to mount. Lanzi followed him.
"Where are you going?" the Jaguar asked him.
"With you," the half-breed answered, laconically.
"For what good? One man is sufficient for what I am going to do."
"Yes," he answered; "but two are better."