Oz 10: Rinkitink in Oz by L. Frank Baum
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royal cavern .

so Rinkitink, having first made sure that_the pink pearl was still in_his vest pocket, willingly followed Klik, who ran on some distance ahead . but no sooner had Rinkitink set foot in_the passage than a great rock, weighing at_least a ton, became dislodged and dropped from_the roof directly over his head . of_course, it could_not harm him, protected as he_was by_the pink pearl, and it bounded aside and crashed upon_the floor, where it_was shattered by its own weight .

" how careless ! " exclaimed the little king, and waddled after Klik, who seemed amazed at his escape .

presently another rock above Rinkitink plunged downward, and then another, but none touched his body .Klik seemed much perplexed at_these continued escapes and certainly Kaliko was surprised when Rinkitink, safe and sound, entered the royal cavern .

" good morning," said the king of Gilgad ." your rocks are getting loose, Kaliko, and you'd better have them glued in place before_they hurt someone ." then he began to chuckle: "Hoo, hoo, hoo-hee, hee-heek, keek, eek ! " and Kaliko sat and frowned because he realized that_the little fat king was poking fun at him .

"I asked your majesty to_come here," said the Nome king, " to show you a curious skein of golden thread which my workmen have_made . if_it pleases you, i_will make you a present of it ."

with_this he held out a small skein of glittering gold twine, which_was really pretty and curious .Rinkitink took it in_his hand and at once the golden thread began to unwind -- so swiftly that_the eye could_not follow its motion . and, as it unwound, it coiled itself around Rinkitink's body, at_the same time weaving itself into a net, until it had enveloped the little king from head to foot and placed him in a prison of gold .

"Aha ! " cried Kaliko; " this magic worked all right, it seems .

"Oh, did it ? " replied Rinkitink, and stepping forward he walked right through_the golden net, which fell to_the floor in a tangled mass

Kaliko rubbed his chin thoughtfully and stared hard at Rinkitink .

"I understand a good bit of magic," said , he, " but your majesty has a sort of magic that greatly puzzles me, because it_is unlike anything of_the sort that I ever met with before ."

" now, see here, Kaliko," said Rinkitink; " if_you_are trying to harm me or my companions, give it up, for you_will never succeed . we're harm- proof, so to_speak, and you_are merely wasting your time trying to injure us .

" you_may_be right, and I_hope I_am not so impolite as_to argue with a guest," returned the Nome king ." but you_will pardon me if I_am not yet satisfied that you_are stronger than my famous magic . however, I beg you to_believe that I bear you no ill will, king Rinkitink; but it_is my duty to destroy you, if possible, because you and_that insignificant boy prince have openly threatened to_take away my captives and_have positively refused to_go back to_the earth's surface and let me alone .I'm very tender-hearted, as a matter of fact, and I like you immensely, and would enjoy having you as a friend, but --" here he pressed a button on_the arm of_his throne chair and_the section of_the floor where Rinkitink stood suddenly opened and disclosed a black pit beneath, which_was a part of ' the terrible bottomless gulf .

but Rinkitink did_not fall into_the pit; his body remained suspended in_the air until he put out his foot and stepped to_the solid floor, when_the opening suddenly closed again .

"I appreciate your majesty's friendship," remarked Rinkitink, as calmly as_if nothing had happened, " but I_am getting tired with standing . will_you kindly send for_my goat, Bilbil, that I_may sit upon his back to rest ? "

" indeed i_will ! " promised Kaliko ." I_have_not_yet completed my test of your magic, and as I owe that goat a slight grudge for bumping my head and smashing my second- best crown, I will_be_glad to discover if_the beast can also escape my delightful little sorceries ."

so Klik was sent to fetch Bilbil and presently returned with_the goat, which_was very cross this_morning because it had_not slept well in_the underground caverns .

Rinkitink lost no time in getting upon_the red velvet saddle which the goat constantly wore, for he feared the Nome king would try to destroy Bilbil and knew that as long as his body touched that of_the goat the pink pearl would protect them both; whereas, if Bilbil stood alone, there_was no magic to save him .

Bilbil glared wickedly at king Kaliko, who moved uneasily in_his ivory throne . then the Nome king whispered a moment in_the ear of Klik, who nodded and left the room .

" please make yourselves at home here for_a_few_minutes, while I attend to an errand," said the Nome king, getting up from_the throne ." I_shall return pretty soon, when I_hope to_find you pieceful -- ha, ha, ha ! -- that's a joke you_can't appreciate now but will later . be pieceful -- that's the idea .Ho, ho, ho ! how funny ." then he waddled from_the cavern, closing the door behind him .

" well, why didn't you laugh when Kaliko laughed ? " demanded the goat, when_they were left alone in_the cavern .

" because he means mischief of some sort," replied Rinkitink, " and we'll laugh after_the danger is over, Bilbil . there's an old adage that says: ' he laughs best who laughs last,' and_the only way to laugh last is to_give the other fellow a chance . where did that knife come from, I wonder ."

for a long, sharp knife suddenly appeared in_the air near them, twisting and turning from side to side and darting here and there in a dangerous manner, without any support whatever . then another knife became visible -- and another and another -- until all the space in_the royal cavern seemed filled with_them . their sharp points and edges darted toward Rinkitink and Bilbil perpetually and nothing could_have saved them from being cut to pieces except the protecting power of_the pink pearl . as it_was, not a knife touched them and even Bilbil gave a gruff laugh at_the failure of Kaliko's clever magic .

the goat wandered here and there in_the cavern, carrying Rinkitink upon his back, and neither of_them paid the slightest heed to_the knives, although the glitter of_the hundreds of polished blades was rather trying . to_their eyes . perhaps for ten minutes the knives darted about_them in bewildering fury; then they disappeared as suddenly as_they had appeared .

Kaliko cautiously stuck his head through_the doorway and found the goat chewing the embroidery of_his royal cloak, which he had left lying over the throne, while Rinkitink was reading his manuscript on " how to_be good" and chuckling over its advice . the Nome king seemed greatly disappointed as he_came in and resumed his seat on_the throne . said Rinkitink with a chuckle:

" we've really had a peaceful time, Kaliko, although not the pieceful time you expected . forgive me if I indulge in a laugh -- hoo, hoo, hoo-hee, heek-keek-eek ! and now, tell me; aren't you getting tired of trying to injure us ? "

"Eh -- heh," said the Nome king ." I_see now that your magic can protect you from all my arts . but is_the boy Inga as, well protected as_your majesty and_the goat ? '

" why do_you ask ? " inquired Rinkitink, uneasy at_the question because he remembered he had_not seen the little prince of Pingaree that morning .

" because," said Kaliko, " the boy has_been undergoing trials far greater and more dangerous than any you_have encountered, and it_has_been hundreds of years since anyone has_been_able to escape alive from_the perils of_my three trick Caverns ."

king Rinkitink was much alarmed at hearing this, for although he_knew that Inga possessed the blue pearl, that_would only give to him marvelous strength, and perhaps strength alone would_not enable him to escape from danger . but he_would_not let Kaliko see the fear he_felt for Inga's safety, so he_said in a careless way:

" you're a mighty poor magician, Kaliko, and I'll give_you my crown if Inga hasn't escaped any danger you_have threatened him with ."

" your whole crown is_not worth one_of_the valuable diamonds in my crown," answered the Nome king, " but I'll take it . let_us go at once, therefore, and_see what has become of_the boy prince, for if he_is_not destroyed by_this_time i_will admit he_cannot_be injured by any of_the magic arts which I_have at my command ."

he left the room, accompanied by Klik, who had now rejoined his master, and by Rinkitink riding upon Bilbil . after traversing several of_the huge caverns they entered one that was somewhat more bright and cheerful than_the others, where the Nome king paused before a wall of rock . then Klik pressed a secret spring and a section of_the wall opened and disclosed the corridor where prince Inga stood facing them .

"Tarts and tadpoles ! " cried Kaliko in surprise ." the boy is still alive ! "

chapter Twenty

Dorothy to_the rescue

one day when princess Dorothy of Oz was visiting Glinda the good, who_is Ozma's royal sorceress, she was looking through Glinda's great book of Records -- wherein is inscribed all important events that happen in every part of_the world -- when she came upon_the record of_the destruction of Pingaree, the capture of king Kitticut and queen Garee and all their people, and_the curious escape of Inga, the boy prince, and of king Rinkitink and_the talking goat .Turning over some_of_the following pages, Dorothy read how Inga had found the magic Pearls and was rowing the silver- lined boat to Regos to_try to rescue his parents .

the little girl was much interested to_know how well Inga succeeded, but she returned to_the palace of Ozma at_the emerald city of Oz the next_day and other events made her forget the boy prince of Pingaree for a time . however, she was one day idly looking at Ozma's magic picture, which shows any scene you_may wish to_see, when_the girl thought of Inga and commanded the magic picture to show what the boy was doing at_that moment .

it was_the time when Inga and Rinkitink had followed the king of Regos and queen of Coregos to_the Nome king's country and she saw them hiding behind the rock as Cor and Gos passed them by after having placed the king and queen of Pingaree in_the keeping of_the Nome king . from_that_time Dorothy followed, by_means of_the magic picture, the adventures of Inga and_his friend in_the Nome king's caverns, and_the danger and helplessness of_the poor boy aroused the little girl's pity and indignation .

so she went to Ozma and told the lovely girl ruler of Oz all about Inga and Rinkitink .

" i_think Kaliko is treating them dreadfully mean," declared Dorothy, " and i_wish you'd let me go to_the Nome country and help them out of_their troubles ."

" go, my dear, if_you_wish to," replied Ozma, " but i_think it would_be best for_you to take_the wizard with_you ."

"Oh, I'm not afraid of_the nomes," said Dorothy, " but I'll be_glad to take_the wizard, for company . and may we use your magic carpet, Ozma ? "

" of_course . put the magic carpet in_the red wagon and_have the sawhorse take you and_the wizard to_the edge of_the desert . while you_are gone, Dorothy, I'll watch you in_the magic picture, and if any danger threatens you I'll see you_are_not harmed ."

Dorothy thanked the ruler of Oz and kissed her good- bye, for she was determined to start at once . she found the wizard of Oz, who was planting shoetrees in_the garden, and when she told him Inga's story he willingly agreed to accompany the little girl to_the Nome king's caverns . they had both been there before and had conquered the nomes with ease, so they were_not at all afraid .

the wizard, who was a cheery little man with a bald head and awinning smile, harnessed the wooden sawhorse to_the red wagon and loaded on Ozma's magic carpet . then he and Dorothy climbed to_the seat and_the sawhorse started off and carried them swiftly through_the beautiful land of Oz to_the edge of_the deadly desert that separated their fairyland from_the Nome country .

even Dorothy and_the clever wizard would_not have dared to cross this desert without the aid of_the magic carpet, for_it would_have quickly destroyed them; but when_the roll of carpet had_been placed upon_the edge of_the sands, leaving just enough lying flat for_them to stand upon, the carpet straightway began to unroll before them and as_they walked on_it continued to unroll, until they had safely passed over the stretch of deadly desert and were on_the border of_the Nome king's dominions .

this journey had_been accomplished in_a_few_minutes, although such a distance would_have required several_days travel had they not been walking on_the magic carpet . on arriving they at once walked toward the entrance to_the caverns of_the nomes .

the wizard carried a little black bag containing his tools of wizardry, while Dorothy carried over her arm a covered basket in_which she had placed a dozen eggs, with_which to conquer the nomes if she had any trouble with_them .

Eggs may seem to_you to_be a queer weapon with_which to fight, but the little girl well knew their value . the nomes are immortal; that_is, they_do_not perish, as mortals do, unless they happen to_come in contact with an egg . if an egg touches them -- either the outer shell or the inside of_the egg -- the nomes lose their charm of perpetual life and thereafter are liable to die through accident or old age, just as all humans are .

for_this reason the sight of an egg fills anome with terror and he_will do anything to_prevent an egg from touching him, even for an instant . so, when Dorothy took her basket of eggs with her, she knew that she was more powerfully armed than if she had a regiment of soldiers at her back .

chapter Twenty- one

the wizard Finds an enchantment

after Kaliko had failed in_his attempts to destroy his guests, as has_been related, the Nome king did nothing more to injure them but treated them in a friendly manner .

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