Show I 1 A L R y OF MOONS I 1 by ROBERT W CHAMBERS illustrations by J J sheridan s copyright G P auti puti iams ms sons song SYNOPSIS tile the story opens in new york roy car denhup the storyteller inspecting a reptile owned by george godfrey of riff anys roy hoy and barris and rier pierpont pont two friends depart on a hunting trip to cardinal woods roods a rather lather obscure locality barris revealed the fact that lie ho had bad joined the secret service for the purpose of running down own a gang of gold makers prof lagrange on discovering the gangs formula had been mysteriously killed barris received a telegram of instructions ile he and pierpont pont set out to locate the gold making gang A valet reported seeing a queer chinaman in the supposedly untenanted woods roy went hunting he fell asleep in a dell on awakening lie he beheld a beautiful girl at a small email lake A birthmark resembling a dragons claw an on roys forehead had a mysterious effect upon the girl who said tier her name was ysonde suddenly she disappeared fleeing in terror roy beheld a horrible Clil chinese nese visage peering at him from the woods barris and pierpont pont returned barris exhibited a reptile like that owned by godfrey A ball of sup slip posed gold ho he held suddenly became alave alive ile he told of the kuen yuin a chinese nation of sorcerers numbering ii and explained that the moon maker their ruler whose liose A descent crescent symbol was a dragon claw was supposed to have recently returned to earth barris pierpont ont and roy failed to find csondes Vb Ys ondes dell flater bater roy hunting came to the alie beaud tul rul spot where lie found ysonde she told him how her stepfather evidently a chinaman made gold and of his mysterious actions CHAPTER vl VI continued where is this city I 1 asked faintly ylan yian I 1 dont latow know it is ia sweet with perfume and the sound of silver bells all day long yesterday I 1 carried a blossom of dried lotus buds from ylan yian in my breast and all the woods were fragrant did you smell it yes 1 I wondered last night whether you did how beautiful your dog is I 1 love him yesterday I 1 thought most about your dog but last night last night I 1 repeated below my breath 1 I thought of you why do you wear the dragon claw I 1 raised my hand impulsively to my forehead covering the scar what do you know of the dragon claw I 1 muttered tilt it is the symbol of yue laou and yue laou rules the kuen yuin my stepfather says my illy stepfather tells me everything that I 1 know we lived in ylan yian until I 1 was 16 years old I 1 am 18 now that is two years we have lived in the forest look see those scarlet birds what are ahey there are birds of the same color in yian where is ylan yian ysonde I 1 asked with deadly calmness ylan yian I 1 dont know but you have lived there infixes yes a very long time Is it across the ocean ysonde T it is across seven oceans and the great river which is longer than from the earth to the moon who told you that who my aly stepfather lie he tells me everything will you tell me his name nam e ysonde gisonde 1 I dont don t know it he is my stepfather that is all and what is your name you know it ysonde yes but what other name that is all ysonde have you two names why do you look at me so impatiently does your stepfather make gold have you seen him make it oh yes he made it also in ylan yian and I 1 loved to watch the sparks at night whirling like golden bees ylan yian ts Is lovely if it is all like our garden and the gardens around I 1 can see the thousand bridges from my garden and the white mountain beyond and the people tell me of the people ysonde I 1 urged gently tile the people of ylan yian I 1 could see them in swarms like ants ohl oh many many millions crossing and crossing ro re the thousand bridges but how lid did they look did they dress as I 1 do 1 I dont know they were very far away moving specks on the thousand bridges for 16 years I 1 saw them every day from my garden but I 1 never went out of my garden gai den into tile the streets of yian van for my stepfather forbade of ni me e you novel never saw a living creature near by in ylan yian I 1 asked in despair my birds oil oh such tall wise look ing birds all over gray and rose color she leaned over the gleaming water and drew her polished hand across the surface why do you ask me these ques aa k ki 11 flung FILIng like a corpse on my own threshold eions she murmured are you dis pleased tell me about your stepfather I 1 insisted does lie he look as I 1 do does lie he dress does he speak as I 1 do I 1 lie he american american I 1 dont know he does not dress dresa as you do and he does not look as you do he is old very very old he speaks sometimes as you do sometimes as they do in ylan yian I 1 speak also in both manners then speak as they do in yian I 1 urged impatiently speak as why ysonde why are you crying have I 1 I 1 hurt you 1 I did not intend I 1 did not nol dream of your caring there ysonde forgive me see I 1 beg you on my knees here at your feet I 1 stopped my eyes fastened on a small golden ball which hung from her waist by a golden chain I 1 saw it trembling against her thigh I 1 saw it change color now crimson now purple now flaming fla ining scarlet it was the symbol of the kuen yuin she bent over me and laid her har fingers gently on my arm why do you ask me such things she said while the tears glistened on her lashes it hurts me here she pressed her hand to her breast it pains I 1 dont know why ali ah now your eyes are hard and cold again you are looking at the golden globe alobe which hangs from my waist do you wish to know also what that is yes I 1 muttered my eyes fixed on the if infernal fernal color flames which subsided as I 1 spoke leaving the ball a pale pace gilt again it ft is the symbol of the kuen euln she said in a trembling voice why do you ou ask Is it yours fly Y yes where did yow you get it I 1 cried harshly i my my steffa then slie she pushed me away from her with all the strength of lier her slender wrists and covered her face if I 1 slipped my arm about her and drew her to me if I 1 kissed kissea away the tears that fell slowly between lier her fingers it if I 1 told her how I 1 loved her how it cut me to the heart to see her unhappy af after ter all that is 18 my own business when she smiled through her tears the pure love and sweetness in her eyes lifted my illy soul higher than the high moon vaguely glimmering through the sunlit blue above my illy happiness was so sudden so fierce and overwhelming that I 1 only knelt there her ringers fingers clasped in mine my lily eyes raised to the blue vault and the glimmering moon then something in the long grass beside me moved close to my knees and a damp acrid odor ador filled my nostrils ysonde Ys ondo dc I 1 cried but the touch of her hand band was already gone and my lily two clenched fists were cold and damp with dew Ys ysonde ondo I 1 called again my tongue stiff with fright but I 1 called as one awakening avak ening from a dream a horrid dream for my nostrils quivered with the damp acrid odor and I 1 felt the crab reptile clinging to my knee why had the night fallen so swiftly and where was I 1 where stiff chilled torn and bleeding lying flung like a corpse over my lily own threshold with licking my face and harris barris stooping above me in the light of a lamp that flared and smoked in the night breeze like a torch faugh tile the choking stench of the lamp aroused me and I 1 cried out ysonde CHAPTER VII what the devils the matter with him muttered pierpont pont lifting me in his arms like a child has he been stabbed barris barns in a few minutes I 1 was able to stand and walk stiffly into my bedroom where howlett hewlett had bad a hot bath ready and a hotter tumbler of scotch pierpont sponged the blood from my throat where it had coagulated the cut was slight almost invisible a mere puncture from a thorn A shampoo cleared my lily mind and a cold plunge and alcohol friction did the rest now said pierpont pont swallow your hot scotch and lie down do you want a broiled woodcock good I 1 fancy you are coming about barris and pierpont watched me as I 1 sat on the edge of the bed solemnly chewing on the woodcocks wishbone and sipping my bordeaux very much at my lily ease Pier pierpont Dont sighed his relief so lie he said pleasantly it was a mere case of ten dollars or ten days I 1 thought you had been stabbed 1 I was not intoxicated I 1 replied serenely picking up a bit of L celery only jagged inquired pierpont pont full of sympathy nonsense said barris let him alone want some more celery roy it will make you sleep 1 I dont want to sleep I 1 answered when are you and pierpont pont going to catch your goldmaker gold maker barris looked at his watch and closed it with a snap in an hour you dont propose to go with us but I 1 do toss me a cup of coffee pierpont pont will you just what I 1 propose to td do How latt bring the new bax of the mild imported and leave the decanter now barris ill pe be dressing n and you and pier pierpont p ont keep still and listen to what I 1 have to say Is that door shut tight barris locked it and sat down thanks said I 1 barris where is tile the city of yian an expression akin to terror flashed into barris eyes and I 1 saw him stop breathing for a moment there is no such city he said at length have I 1 been talking in my sleep it is a city I 1 continued calmly where the river winds under the tho thousand usand bridges where the gardens are sweet scented and the air Is filled with the music of silver hells bells stop gasped barris and rose trembling from his chair pie he ha hd d grown ton tell years older roy interposed pierpont pont coolly what the deuce are arc you harrying bar ris As for I 1 looked at barris and lie he looked tit me after a second or two he sat sae down again go on roy lie he said 1 I must I 1 answered for now I 1 aua am certain that I 1 have not dreamed I 1 told them everything but even af lies I 1 told it the whole thing seemed so vague so unreal that eliat at times dines I 1 stopped with the hot bot blood tingling irit in ears cars for it beci seemed nod impossible that sensible mon men in the he year of our lord 1896 could seriously discuss such matters I 1 feared pierpont pont but lie ho did note not oven even smile As for darris barris lie he sat sai with his handsome licad lead sunk on oil ills breast his unlighted cd pipe clasped tight in ill both hands when I 1 had finis lied pierpont pont turned slowly and looked at barris twice he moved his lips as if to ask something and then remained mute ylan yian is a city said barris speak 7 ing dreamily WIs was that what you wished to know pierpont lie he nodded silently ylan is a city repeated barris I 1 where the great river winds under the thousand bridges where the gardens are sweet scented and tile the air Is ia filled with the music of silver bolls my lips formed the question where is tills this city it lies said barris almost luerul 1 bously across the seven oceans and anc the river which is lo 10 lodger tiger than from the tha earth to tile the moon what do you mean said pier pont ah said barris rousing him himself seir with an effort and raising calsing his sunken su eyes 1 I am using the allegories of an an other land let it pass have I 1 no not told you of the kuen knon yuin euln ylan yian is the center of the kuen yuin it lies hidden in that gigantic shadow called china na vague all and vas baat as the e ani midnight n g heavens beavens a continent unknown im penetrable impenetrable repeated pierpont below his breath 1 I have seen it said barris dream ily 1 I have seen the dead plains or of black cathay and I 1 have crossed the mountains of death whose summits are above the atmosphere I 1 have seen the shadow of bangi cast across abad ion don better to dle die a million miles from Y cad and ator ater quedar than to have seen the white water lotus close in the shadow of bangi I 1 have slept among the ruins of where thy jhc winds never cease and the is wailed by the dead and yian I 1 urged gently there was an unearthly look on his face as lie he turned slowly toward me TO BE CONTINUED |