Fifteen Hundred Miles An Hour

We also learned from Kaosp that Volinè, the King's daughter, had taken a great interest in us, and had deigned to make numerous enquiries about us from him, he being granted an audience each day, to inform her of whatever portion of our history he had been able to learn. The King himself was also eager to know how his captives fared, but never once did he come to see us in person.

On the tenth morning of our imprisonment, Kaosp brought startling news. Nothing less than that Volinè – Volinè, the King's proud, beautiful daughter, was coming to visit us, in our prison, some time during the day. He told us how she had besought him to let her see us; how he had tried to dissuade her; and how, ultimately, she had commanded him to take her, and that he had not dared to disobey her wish.

We were all full of expectant curiosity. Attendants came, and prepared our large room for the unusual visit; and Sandy's pocket dressing-case – his inseparable companion, even in captivity – was in great requisition by us all; for each of us felt it incumbent to make himself as presentable as possible to our fair and distinguished visitor.

She came. The day was nearly spent; the sun, in a sea of yellow radiance, was just about to sink behind the hills, as our prison doors were thrown open, and Kaosp, saluting respectfully, with helmet in hand, ushered Volinè and her attendant maidens into our presence. We have already alluded to her marvellous beauty, as we saw her reclining by her father's judgment-seat; but far more did her charms impress us now, as she swept, with all queenly grace, into our apartment, with head held high, and flowing golden tresses, mantling over her glorious bust and shoulders, and falling in silky coils below her waist. Her outer dress was polished black – a loosely-fitting robe, girdled at the waist, and which clung in ravishing folds to her stately form. A diadem of glittering purple stones, like diamonds, encircled her brow, and her robe was fastened across her left shoulder by a jewelled buckle of fabulous richness. Though of such commanding stature, she was grace itself; not a part of her magnificent figure out of proportion with the rest – a woman, yet a goddess, too. Beauty personified! Her lovely violet eyes gave an incomparable expression of saintly beauty to her countenance; and yet there was nothing meek or humble there; fire, and passion, and unbending will, lurked deep down in their purple, dreamy depths. No being in female form, whether human or divine, could have appeared more lovely, as Volinè stood, surrounded by the subdued golden glory of the setting sun, which poured in at the window, and threw a halo round her. A murmur of admiration involuntarily burst from each one of us, as we stood, in rapt astonishment, gazing upon the fair being before us. Then we each bowed low and respectfully, as she sank into the pillowed seat which had been provided for her. In truth, it was an impressive scene. Two Martial maidens stood on either side, carrying little golden vessels, suspended by chains of the same metal, and containing a subtle perfume, which soon pervaded our chamber with its sweetness. Two other maidens bore long, tapering, white wands in their left hands – in their right hands they had bouquets of rare and curious flowers.

"Strangers," she commenced in a voice that was singularly sweet and musical – "for your names I know not – I, Volinè, daughter of the King, give you greeting. I have bidden our trusty soldier Kaosp conduct me hither, so that mine eyes may see that it is still well with ye, for I feel an interest in your fate. My ears are open to any complaint, which perchance ye may wish to make concerning your treatment in this our palace, since my royal father and his councillors, in their great wisdom, commanded that ye be held prisoners here. We dwellers in the city Edos are not wanting in hospitality to the stranger; but ye are not our people, not of our world; we know ye not, still, Volinè is your friend."

Doctor Hermann advanced and kissed the white, ring-decked hand extended towards him, and did his best to convey our gratitude to the generous girl; telling her that we were friends, fashioned in the same creative mould as her own race; and that we came from the star which is known as Ramos, but to us, its people, as "Earth"; that we had come to study this new world of hers, and to take back our information, if we were spared to do so, to our fellow-men.

John Temple was then commanded by Volinè to come forward and salute her, a mark of royal favour of which he was not slow to avail himself, as what man would not when the donor was so ravishingly beautiful as she! Then Sandy was called for, and bidden to bring Rover, too. Volinè was deeply interested, and asked many questions, through Kaosp, concerning the Scotsman and his dog.

Volinè's voice was distinctly less commanding in its tone, even tender, when with some slight hesitation she asked that Graham might be presented to her; and as he came forward and pressed her hand to his lips for a moment, we all noticed a blush steal over her lovely face. As a special mark of her favour, she bade one of her attendant maidens hand to him the flowers she was carrying. Graham already was, evidently, held high in her esteem. He was so utterly confounded by such an unexpected mark of royal favour that, beyond kissing the hand held out to him, he was unable to utter a word of gratitude, of compliment, or thanks. Very soon after this the interview came to an end, and Volinè with her attendants withdrew, leaving us to recover ourselves as if from some delicious dream. We had had no feminine society for years, and if the Doctor and Sandy did not miss it, certainly Graham and Temple did, and appreciated the visit of this peerless maiden to the uttermost.

Graham had to run the gauntlet of the Doctor's and Temple's chaff over Volinè's very marked notice of him; but for the first time since we left Earth he failed to enter into the spirit of our jokes, and every now and then we caught him as though engaged in deep and earnest thought. The magic spell of a first love was beginning to work within him, and from this time forth he would never be the same man again!

"Come, come, Graham, my boy," said Temple on the following day, as the two sat together after our morning meal; "what is the matter with you? Why so melancholy? Surely, Volinè's is not the first pretty face you have seen?"

"Mr. Temple," answered Graham, "your last stray shot has hit the mark. No woman on Earth, you know as well as I, is so incomparably beautiful as she. Volinè is a goddess; the soul of Beauty! Would any fellow, especially situated as I am, fancy free, in the pride of early manhood, escape from such seductive attractions unscathed? From the moment that my eyes first fell upon her, I became conscious that I had found my ideal of female beauty at last – found it, alas! under circumstances which admit of no hope, however remote, to become ultimately its proud possessor. I have tried to conceal my feeling from you all; but Love ever betrays itself. She has filled my thoughts by day, and my dreams by night. Yes, I love her! and it is at least consoling to be able to confess my secret to such an old and tried friend as you. It relieves my feelings in some measure to tell them to another who can show some sympathy."

"Why, Graham, you must be hard hit indeed! But your chance is not by any means a hopeless one. From what we can see, Volinè is certainly interested in us, and in you particularly so."

"But look at the differences of our race and station – ah! and my position, too, a prisoner, whose very life is threatened," Graham sighed.

"All the more need for you to put matters in their best light. Go in and win, man. By doing so, you may gain your heart's desire, and save us from death. Volinè is all-powerful. Her word is second to the King's, and she is his only daughter. She looks upon you with decided favour already; and when once you get that far with a woman, the rest is easy – it is certainly so with the ladies of Earth; and if we believe in Doctor Hermann's theory of Universality, the maidens of Mars must be made of much the same material," answered Temple, laughing.

"What you say, Mr. Temple, certainly puts matters in a different light. That flickering phantom men call Hope, once more appears before me and bids me follow; but whither she may lead me is very doubtful."

"I say, Temple and Graham, you two appear to have a very serious topic for your conversation this morning," said the Doctor, rising from his seat at the other end of the room, where he had been busy writing memoranda in his pocket-book.

The Doctor was here interrupted by a visit from Kaosp, who spent the remainder of the morning with us, helping us to acquire the Martial language.

In the afternoon we had another visit from Volinè and her maidens. Her attention to Graham became even more pronounced, and she never seemed to tire of hearing him tell to her the story of Earth. Indeed, so much did she appear to enjoy his company, that the Doctor and Temple felt completely de trop. The Doctor appeared annoyed at Graham for encouraging this flirtation; but Temple was secretly pleased, for he saw in it a possible escape from captivity.

That night Graham retired to rest earlier than usual, pleading a headache for excuse. We now had complete use of the two apartments, thanks to Kaosp, the door separating them having been made to open and close at our will. The Doctor and Temple remained up, discussing one thing and another, until a late hour, the conversation eventually turning to the subject of Volinè and Graham.

"Doctor, I think it is rather a mistake on your part to show such an aversion to Graham's conduct with Volinè. You were the first to express an opinion, and even to hint that this girl might be of service."

"How so? It's bound to end in trouble, not only to him, but to us. And as for the latter part of your remarks, why, it was only a silly joke on my part."

"I differ from you, Doctor. This woman is all-powerful here. The King may govern his people, but his daughter governs him; although he may not know it – what man ever does? And if we can once gain her good word, say even through her betrothal to Graham, we are absolutely safe!"

"All very well; all very well, Temple, if things would turn out so; but when do things turn out exactly as we want them? There is much to be said on the other side of the question. Kings have peculiar ideas as to rank and station; princesses, even in the nineteenth century, may not choose their own partners; at least, as far as our world is concerned. I dare say the King has his own views respecting his daughter, and then when this foolish affair becomes known, as it surely will, we shall only incur a still larger amount of royal anger than we do at present. It is too risky a business, and I will be no party to it. Pray let us drop the subject, Temple; the hour is late, and we had better go to rest."

"As you will, Doctor, but as sure as I am sitting here I am convinced that a love affair between Graham and Volinè is our only chance."

"We shall see, Temple. It is playing a dangerous game with our own lives as well as his own, and I am just as certain that it will end in disaster."

Volinè's visits became more and more frequent. Rarely a day passed now that she did not either come in person, or send one of her attendant maids with flowers or fruits for the captives, but these gifts were really meant for Graham alone. She exercised her royal prerogative and showed her marked preference for him in many ways. We were also allowed more liberty, presumably through her intercession, and were now even permitted to walk for a short time each day in an enclosed garden below our prison windows. This was a great boon, as the close confinement was beginning to tell upon us greatly, seasoned as we were to the lack of exercise through our long sojourn in the Sirius.

We had been in prison five weeks, when the love affair between Graham and Volinè assumed a more decided phase. Volinè and he were lovers; more to each other than either thought or knew. Fierce and uncontrollable love was smouldering in each heart, requiring but some accidental spark to set the whole aflame. This was not long in coming. A secret meeting was arranged between them. Kaosp being Love's ambassador, he conveyed the welcome news to Graham that Volinè wished to see him in the grounds. Needless to say, the Doctor was highly displeased at this; but being in the minority he had the good sense to let matters take their own course, satisfying himself by warning Graham of the risk he ran.

Kaosp, too, showed some reluctance to be a party to this meeting. He feared discovery, and the King's anger; but pressure had evidently been put upon him, and as the dusk of evening deepened, he came, and secretly conducted Graham to the garden below. Graham must, of necessity, tell this portion of our narrative in his own words:

"I followed Kaosp, at his bidding, down the silent, deserted corridors, and at last felt the cool, refreshing night air beat against my face, as we passed under an arched gateway of the palace, into the open grounds. Here he left me, telling me to keep along a narrow pathway, until I came to an arbour where I was to wait until Volinè joined me. The night was gloriously fine; the Martial moons were beaming in a cloudless sky; the stars scintillated sharp as swords in the heavens; the far-away Earth shone with a dazzling fairness – the star of the evening. Flowers threw off delicious fragrance, though I could not see them; here and there a tall, tapering tree, towering far above the lower vegetation of this wondrous garden, shone out clearly against the green-hued sky; whilst distant fountains sang their soothing song. Oh, how can I express the expectant rapture that filled my soul, as I watched and waited for my darling! With leaden-flighted wings the moments dragged along; and yet she came not. Was all a dream? If so, oh God! then let me dream for ever! for the suspense of waiting for Volinè in that garden fair would be Paradise, compared with the pain of awaking and finding that all had vanished with my opening eyes.

"Soft, yet distant footsteps at last fell upon my eager ears, and she for whom I waited came stealthily along towards our trysting-place. We met as lovers of long standing, even though no single word of love had passed between us; the kiss I reverently pressed upon her white, upturned brow, was the first I had ever given her. But the language of love is universal – neither race nor dialect forms a barrier to the communication of its sweet secrets one to the other.

"'Volinè, beloved,' I whispered, trembling with joy. 'You, for whom I have waited so long, have come to me at last!'

"'Oh! man of Ramos, I am so happy to be with thee,' she answered, as I drew her gently within the shelter of the arbour, and sat down by her side.

"'Nay, Volinè, will you not call me "Harry"? I ask it as a royal favour.'

"'But "Harry" is not thy name. Still, to please thee, I will grant thy request. "Harry!" – "Harry!" is much prettier, too; I had not thought of that.'

"'But I had, Volinè, and have been longing to hear my name fall from your sweet lips.'

"'I fear, Harry, that I shall incur my father's anger in coming thus. I have dared his wrath, because I like thee and thy companions much, and because I would save thee and them from all harm. Now tell me all concerning thyself, for my soul is curious to know. Tell me, Harry, more of that mystic world from whence you came. Are the women of that world more fair, more beautiful than we? Doth no maid of Ramos hold thy heart in bondage? Hath not that power you tell me the sons and daughters of earth call Love, yet had no resting-place in thy soul?' And as she spoke these last words, Volinè laid her head upon my breast and gazed up into my face with her radiant love-lit eyes, as though she would read the innermost depths of my soul.

"'Ah! Volinè, Volinè, of a truth I tell you no woman has yet moved my heart like you have done,' I answered, gazing down into her peerless face, my pulses thrilled by the magnetic touch of her soft white hand resting trustfully in my own, and by the vision of her marvellous beauty. Her breath intoxicated me with its warm, rich fragrance; her throbbing heart against my own filled my senses with the wild delirium of passionate ecstasy.

"'Volinè,' I whispered – 'Volinè, the maidens of that Earth Star yonder, glimmering serenely fair in the evening sky, are good and pure, and with no mean measure of beauty – even, Volinè, as you are good, and as you are pure; but such beauty as yours is unknown amongst them. Man only knows of beauty such as yours in the holy legends of his heaven; only the angels of his faith are decked in such graces as are yours; but in his mortal life he knows them not, save by imagination, and as they have been revealed to him. Such peerless, queenly beauty as yours, Volinè, no mortal man beheld before; such winning grace, such maidenly charm, are what we men of Earth would call immortal and divine!'

"'Harry, thy words are sweet unto me, and I feel that they flow from thy heart; but I would have thee tell me more of that Love, by which these men of Earth enslave her daughters. Thy words are full of flattery of my bodily form. Is there nought else to charm thee, and bind thee closer to me, to unite thine immortal soul to mine?'

"My arm stole gently round Volinè's shapely waist without resistance – what bliss! – and I drew her yet nearer to me ere I made reply.

"'Volinè, my darling, I know nothing from experience of this Love of which you bid me tell, and of which you are so curious to hear. No woman on that star-world yonder has won it from my heart. Until I saw you I knew not love; but now its fires consume me. Volinè, I love you as never man loved woman yet. For you I would die, and in dying glorify and exalt that love you have inspired! Say, Volinè, that you return my love, and make my happiness complete.'

"'Harry, thou art dearer to me than all men. Nobles and princes of high degree have sought to woo me; but until I knew thee, I knew not the secret of my own heart.'

"'Bless you, dear one, for those precious words,' I answered, trembling in my great new-found joy. The love that is born of Desire is sweet; but the mysterious power that welds two hearts together, making them throb as one, and bringing perfect harmony to both, is sweeter still. In willing rapture I yielded to the captivity of her arms, which like bonds of ivory whiteness held me. I felt her smooth cheek against my own, burning with modesty and love, and in my new-found happiness I rained hot kisses on her upturned, willing lips. Closer and closer we stole into each other's arms; our sighs mingled together; time for us had now no measure; we lived but for each other; and in silent ecstasy we drank those pleasures that mutual love alone distils.

"'Harken, Harry, someone approaches! I shall die of shame to be discovered thus, and my father's wrath will be terrible.'

"'Courage, darling; no one shall harm you while I am by your side.' And I gripped with my right hand my revolver.

"But no one came to disturb the measure of our happiness, and the joyful moments, all too fleeting, slipped rapidly away.

"'Harry, now I must bid thee leave me; the hour is getting late, and my absence may be discovered.'

"'Stay, Volinè. On Earth, among my English race, when man makes love unto a woman, he pledges his troth to her with a ring of gold, set with jewels or precious stones, which she, the object of his choice, wears as a token upon the fourth finger of her left hand. So take this ring of mine as our love-pledge; let me place it on your finger – so – and promise me to wear it always there for my sake.'

"'Thy words are strange, Harry, for no such custom is known to us. But what a pretty idea, though! I will take thy ring and wear it as thou sayest. But thou must have one of mine in return'; and as she spoke, Volinè slipped a ring of curious workmanship from her finger, and placed it on my own.

"'Prize it, as thou wouldst prize me; guard it, as thou wouldst guard thy life; for it is a precious talisman, and was given to my mother by Echri, the most sacred of our priests. No man of Gathma dare harm or slay thee, if he knows that ring is on thy hand.'