Yet this was not Storm, the seer, who spoke now, not Bill Fright, bargee and seaman, not even John Rolfe of his last life, or Gaston le Brut, the crusader, or Harald Christian, slave in Iceland. The spirit had flashed back to an earlier memory. Once again Storm was a Northman in the Roman army. He spoke in Latin with a broad Northland accent, spoke to the squad commander, the Decemvir, the Ten-man.
"Ten-man," said the Martyr, in a low, wailing voice. "Decemvir. This woman's tears rusted my armor for me. Oh, plead for me! The Centurion favors thee. Plead for me that I be not scourged, and dishonored because I do love this woman."
No-man heard only strange words which were spoken in delirium, a voice which pleaded with him. Rain's eyes, wide, staring, terrible, seemed to pierce him through—but when he spoke to her she made no answer. Then came the burning memory of his sin against Rain, her terrific and deserved vengeance, Storm's forgiveness, the wonderful friendship of them both which for these latter years had been the one bright light for him in a maimed life.
Sobered, horrified, and in tears, he groped his way back to the wagon, where he found and loaded his rifle. It seems to have been a double-barreled muzzle-loading weapon fired by percussion caps, casting half-inch slugs, quicker in action than the old-time flintlocks.
"Thou shalt do no murder!" so the words ran.
"What, then, if I do murder?" thus he reasoned. "I shall be damned to Hell forever. Well, I'm damned anyway for what I done, so it don't matter to me. But it matters a lot to them to put an end to all their pain, and let them loose into Heaven.
"What if I'm killed for doing this?
"Well, it's up to me to die, if I like, for them I loves—the woman I love, the man I love, the only two people on earth who done much good to me.
"I'll have to play drunk to these Injuns to get me in point-blank range, and my hands is none too steady even then. Wish't I could have just one last drink to steady me. No, better not. I may just as well die sober—to please them. Here goes."
Some there are among us who have lived sheltered from all temptation to do wrong and therefore very quick to judge their fellows. To such the event which followed will appear disgusting drunkenness and atrocious murder.