“And what will be my life as the King’s wife?” questioned Enola.
“Your life will be much the same as it is now, but you will be called upon to take a part in all duties which belong to the King. In the ceremonies of the Day of Resis, for instance, you will stand near me and perform the same duties which alone belong to myself, and in this way, sharing the duties of my office, we go down to our death, happy, knowing no sorrows or troubles and assured of that great happiness in the eternity beyond.”
“And do we then go together?” asked Enola, as she remembered the mode of death of some of the women of India.
“Yes; it is so decreed,” said Onrai.
The horror of this made Enola faint for a moment, and she made a resolve to leave this land as soon as possible. Until beyond the rocky cliffs again, all happiness for her had flown.
CHAPTER XLVII.
IN THE CITY AGAIN.
On the following morning the men were up early and at the terrace, awaiting their King and the strange, sad tale which they must hear. Onrai came on to the terrace with his friends and told the sad story of the battle and the eruption. The Onians stood drinking in every word, their eyes changing from curiosity to pain, and then to horror, their faces depicting the same emotions. Onrai related all of the fearful tale, of how the men had stood up before the negroes even when they were being mowed down like wheat before the scythe, and then of how the elephants had rushed on to them, thus turning the tide of battle, and then of the mad rush for the crevice, and the awful eruption which had killed and burned the survivors.
For some time after the King had finished speaking the men stood with that look of horror overcasting their faces, their very bodies having assumed an attitude which showed the greatest dejection. Onrai then continued: “We will start for the city again to-day and will make as long marches as possible, as we wish to reach there in time to rest, before the ceremonies of the Day of Resis takes place. On the plain, some few miles from here, will be found a herd of nearly a hundred elephants. They were driven, on this desperate night, into the worst part of the downfall of ashes, and half buried and nearly starving, are dying there now, on the plain. I wish one hundred of you to go, and if possible, revive these elephants and bring them to a place where they can receive proper care. The remainder of you will accompany us to the city. We start immediately,” and saying this, he again turned to his friends and told them to make immediate preparations.
This they did and it was only a short while until they were mounted, and on their way from the spot which had become most hateful and loathsome to them. To the avenue, which could only be told now by the bordering trees, they went, and following its course they headed for the city. Hope was rejuvenated as they left the scene of so much pain and death, and life seemed again to be putting on a garment of happiness which had long since been cast aside. The cavalcade of the witnesses of the recent fearful scene, left the place without a regret and without one glance backward to either volcano, bad lands or villa.
Their thoughts turned to things more pleasant, of the green fields and shady trees; even the lake with its memories of night horrors seemed less repulsive than the place they were leaving. But the thought of the city and its quiet pleasures were more pleasing than all others. In a half hour they could see ahead of them the green fields and trees, which they had so longed for. The layer of ashes gradually thinned until there was no longer any trace of it, and the hard, onyx-paved avenue again stretched before them in all its beauty. An hour later and they could see no traces of the eruption at all, and the long track of the cyclone had been cleared, until it presented very much the same appearance as did the rest of the surrounding country.