“Come, my Brother Paul. Also you, Cap’n Sam; and Cap’n Joe, as well. We must talk. It will be a small council. My other friends will remain here and wait for us.”
“I don’t like dividing our party,” said I, doubtfully.
“There will be no division.”
“Where are you going, then?” asked Ned.
“To the roof above. Soon we will return. Wait.”
Allerton, Joe and I followed the atkayma to the door. Just outside another narrow stair led to a small opening through which I saw a starry sky. We ascended these stairs and stood upon a flat roof surrounded by a low parapet.
The sky was a clear blue, set with myriads of diamond stars. Already a full moon was rising above the city, shedding its soft light so broadly that we could clearly distinguish the surrounding landscape. The air was dry, hot and perfectly still.
“Yonder,” said Chaka in English, as he faced the south, “stands the great mountain of Aota. Around it are the four peaks of Gam. That country is barren and covered with rocks. There are secret caves in which dwell fierce animals with evil spirits, and deep wells that draw one to his death. So my people have always been told, and they believe the tale. No Itzaex ever go to those mountains; they are considered sacred to the spirits of evil.”
“And where lies the hidden city?” asked Paul, eagerly.
“In the very center of Aota, whose steep sides it is impossible for man to climb.”