Oz 08: Tik-Tok of Oz by L. Frank Baum
Section [1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20]
take vengeance upon you ."

the metal monarch walked up and down in silence, thinking deeply .

" of two dangers," said he, " it_is wise to_choose the least . what do_you suppose these invaders want ? "

" let the long-Eared hearer listen to_them," suggested Kaliko .

" call him here at once ! " commanded Ruggedo eagerly .

so in_a_few_minutes there entered the cavern anome with enormous ears, who bowed low before_the king .

"Strangers are approaching," said Ruggedo, " and i_wish to_know their errand . listen carefully to_their talk and tell me why they_are coming here, and what for ."

the nome bowed again and spread out his great ears, swaying them gently up and down and back and forth . for half an hour he stood silent, in an attitude of listening, while both the king and Kaliko grew impatient at_the delay . at last the long-Eared hearer spoke:

" shaggy man is coming here to rescue his brother from captivity," said he .

"Ha, the ugly one ! " exclaimed Ruggedo ." well, shaggy man may_have his ugly brother, for all I care . he's too lazy to work and_is always getting in my way . where is_the ugly one now, Kaliko ? "

" the last time your majesty stumbled over the prisoner you commanded me to send_him to_the metal forest, which I_did .I suppose he_is still there ."

" very_good . the invaders will_have a hard time finding the metal forest," said the king, with a grin of malicious delight, " for half the time I_can't find it myself . yet I created the forest and made every tree, out of gold and silver, so as to_keep the precious metals in a safe place and out_of_the reach of mortals . but tell me, hearer, do_the strangers want anything else ? "

" yes, indeed they_do ! " returned the nome ." the army of Oogaboo is determined to capture all the rich metals and rare jewels in your kingdom, and_the officers and their queen have arranged to divide the spoils and carry them away ."

when he heard this Ruggedo uttered abellow of rage and began dancing up and down, rolling his eyes, clicking his teeth together and swinging his arms furiously . then, in an ecstasy of anger he seized the long ears of_the hearer and pulled and twisted them cruelly; but Kaliko grabbed up the king's sceptre and rapped him over the knuckles with it, so_that Ruggedo let go the ears and began to chase his royal chamberlain around the throne .

the hearer took advantage of_this opportunity to slip away from_the cavern and escape, and after_the king had tired himself out chasing Kaliko he threw himself into his throne and panted for breath, while he glared wickedly at his defiant subject .

" you'd better save your strength to fight the enemy," suggested Kaliko ." there_will_be a terrible battle when_the army of Oogaboo gets here ."

" the army won't get here," said the king, still coughing and panting ."I'll drop 'em down the hollow tube-- every man jack and every girl Jill of 'em ! "

" and defy Tititi-Hoochoo ? " asked Kaliko .

" yes . go at once to my chief magician and order him to_turn the path toward the hollow tube, and to make_the tip of_the tube invisible, so they'll all fall into_it ."

Kaliko went away shaking his head, for he thought Ruggedo was making a great mistake . he_found the magician and had the path twisted so_that it led directly to_the opening of_the hollow tube, and this opening he_made invisible .

Having obeyed the orders of_his master, the royal chamberlain went to_his private room and began to write letters of recommendation of himself, stating that he_was an honest man, a good servant and a small eater .

" pretty soon," he_said to himself, " I_shall_have to look for another job, for_it is certain that Ruggedo has ruined himself by_this reckless Defiance of_the mighty Tititi-Hoochoo . and in seeking a job nothing is so effective as a letter of recommendation ."

chapter Ten

a terrible tumble through a tube

I suppose that polychrome, and perhaps queen Ann and her army, might_have_been able to dispel the enchantment of Ruggedo's chief magician had they known that danger lay in their pathway; for_the rainbow's daughter was a fairy and as Oogaboo is a part of_the land of Oz its inhabitants cannot easily be deceived by such common magic as_the Nome king could command . but no one suspected any especial danger until after they had entered Ruggedo's cavern, and so they were journeying along in quite a contented manner when Tik-Tok, who marched ahead, suddenly disappeared .

the officers thought he_must_have turned a corner, so they kept on their way and all of_them likewise disappeared-- one after another . queen Ann was rather surprised at_this, and in hastening forward to learn the reason she also vanished from sight .

Betsy bobbin had tired her feet by walking, so she was now riding upon_the back of_the stout little mule, facing backward and talking to shaggy and polychrome, who were just behind . suddenly Hank pitched forward and began falling and Betsy would_have tumbled over his head had she not grabbed the mule's shaggy neck with both arms and held on for dear life .

all around was darkness, and_they were_not falling directly downward but seemed to_be sliding along a steep incline .Hank's hoofs were resting upon some smooth substance over which he slid with_the swiftness of_the wind . once Betsy's heels flew up and struck a similar substance overhead . they were, indeed, descending the " hollow tube" that led to_the other side of_the world .

" stop, Hank-- stop ! " cried the girl; but Hank only uttered a plaintive "Hee-haw ! " for it_was impossible for him to obey .

after several minutes had passed and no harm had befallen them, Betsy gained courage . she_could see nothing at all, nor could she hear anything except the rush of air past her ears as_they plunged downward along the tube . whether she and Hank were alone, or the others were with_them, she_could_not tell . but had some one been able to_take a flash- light photograph of_the tube at_that_time a most curious picture would_have resulted . there_was Tik-Tok, flat upon his back and sliding headforemost down the incline . and there were the Officers of_the army of Oogaboo, all tangled up in a confused crowd, flapping their arms and trying to shield their faces from_the clanking swords, which swung back and forth during the swift journey and pommeled everyone within their reach . now followed queen Ann, who had struck the tube in asitting position and went flying along with a dash and abandon that thoroughly bewildered the poor lady, who had no idea what had happened to her . then, a little distance away, but unseen by_the others in_the inky darkness, slid Betsy and Hank, while behind them were shaggy and polychrome and finally Files and_the princess .

when first they tumbled into_the tube all were too dazed to_think clearly, but the trip was a long one, because the cavity led straight through_the earth to a place just opposite the Nome king's dominions, and long before_the adventurers got to_the end they had begun to recover their wits .

" this_is awful, Hank ! " cried Betsy in a loud voice, and queen Ann heard her and called out: " are_you safe, Betsy ? "

" mercy, no ! " answered the little girl ." how could anyone be safe when she's going about sixty miles a minute ? " then, after a pause, she added: " but where do_you s' pose we're going to, your Maj' sty ? "

"Don't ask her that, please don't ! " said shaggy, who was not too far away to overhear them ." and please don't ask me why, either ."

" why ? " said Betsy .

" no one can tell where we_are going until we get there," replied shaggy, and then he yelled "Ouch ! " for polychrome had overtaken him and was now sitting on_his head .

the rainbow's daughter laughed merrily, and so infectious was_this joyous laugh that Betsy echoed it and Hank said "Hee haw ! " in a mild and sympathetic tone of voice .

"I'd like to_know where and when we'll arrive, just the same," exclaimed the little girl .

" be patient and you'll find out, my dear," said polychrome ." but isn't this an odd experience ? here am I, whose home is in_the skies, making a journey through_the center of_the earth-- where I never expected to_be ! "

" how do_you_know we're in_the center of_the earth ? " asked Betsy, her voice trembling a little through nervousness .

" why, we_can t be anywhere else," replied polychrome ." I_have often heard of_this passage, which_was once built by a magician who was a great traveler . he thought it would save him the bother of going around the earth's surface, but he tumbled through_the tube so fast that he shot out at_the other end and hit a star in_the sky, which at once exploded ."

" the star exploded ? " asked Betsy wonderingly .

" yes; the magician hit it so hard ."

" and what became of_the magician ? " inquired the girl .

" no one knows that," answered polychrome ." but I don't think it matters much ."

" it matters a good_deal, if_we also hit the stars when we come out," said queen Ann, with a moan .

"Don't worry," advised polychrome ."I believe the magician was going the other way, and probably he went much faster than we_are going ."

" it's fast enough to suit me," remarked shaggy, gently removing polychrome's heel from_his left eye ."Couldn't you manage to_fall all by yourself, my dear ? "

"I'll try," laughed the rainbow's daughter .

all this_time they were swiftly falling through_the tube, and it_was not so easy for_them to_talk as_you_may imagine when_you read their words . but although they were so helpless and altogether in_the dark as to_their fate, the fact that_they were able to converse at all cheered them, considerably .

Files and Ozga were also conversing as_they clung tightly to one another, and_the young fellow bravely strove to reassure the princess, although he_was terribly frightened, both on her account and on_his own .

an hour, under such trying circumstances, is a very long_time, and for more than an hour they continued their fearful journey . then, just as_they began to fear the tube would never end, Tik-Tok popped out into broad daylight and, after making a graceful circle in_the air, fell with a splash into a great marble fountain .

out came the officers, in quick succession, tumbling heels over head and striking the ground in many undignified attitudes .

" for_the love of sassafras ! " exclaimed a peculiar person who was hoeing pink violets in a garden ." what can all this mean ? "

for answer, queen Ann sailed up from_the tube, took a ride through_the air as high as_the treetops, and alighted squarely on top of_the peculiar person's head, smashing a jeweled crown over his eyes and tumbling him to_the ground .

the mule was heavier and had Betsy clinging to_his back, so he_did_not go so high up .Fortunately for_his little rider he struck the ground upon his four feet .Betsy was jarred a trifle but not hurt and when she looked around her she saw the queen and_the peculiar person struggling together upon_the ground, where the man was trying to choke Ann and she had both hands in_his bushy hair and was pulling with all her might . some_of_the officers, when_they got upon their feet, hastened to separate the combatants and sought to restrain the peculiar person so_that he_could_not attack their queen again .

by_this_time, shaggy, polychrome, Ozga and Files had all arrived and were curiously examining the strange country in_which they found themselves and which they knew to_be exactly on_the opposite side of_the world from_the place where they had fallen into_the tube . it_was a lovely place, indeed, and seemed to_be the garden of some great prince, for through_the vistas of trees and shrubbery could_be seen the towers of an immense castle . but as_yet the only inhabitant to greet them was_the peculiar person just mentioned, who had shaken off the grasp of_the officers without effort and was now trying to pull the battered crown from off his eyes .

shaggy, who was always polite, helped him to do_this and when_the man was free and could_see again he looked at his visitors with evident amazement .

" well, well, well ! " he exclaimed ." where did you come from and how did you get here ? "

Betsy tried to answer him, for queen Ann was surly and silent .

" I_can't say, exac'ly where we came from, cause I don't know the name of_the place," said the girl, " but the way we got here was through_the hollow tube ."

"Don't call it a' hollow' tube, please," exclaimed the peculiar person in an irritated tone of voice ." if_it's a tube, it's sure to_be hollow ."

" why ? " asked Betsy .

" because all tubes are made that way . but this tube is private property and everyone is forbidden to_fall into_it ."

" we didn't do_it on purpose," explained Betsy, and polychrome added: " I_am quite_sure that Ruggedo, the Nome king, pushed us down that tube ."

"Ha ! Ruggedo ! did you say Ruggedo ? " cried the man, becoming much excited .

" that_is what she said," replied shaggy, " and I believe she_is right . we were on_our way to conquer the Nome king when suddenly we fell into_the tube ."

" then you_are enemies of Ruggedo ? " inquired the peculiar person .

" not exac'ly enemies," said Betsy, a little puzzled by_the question, "' cause we don't know him at all; but we started out to conquer him, which isn't as friendly as it might_be ."

" true," agreed the man . he looked thoughtfully from one to another of_them for a while and then he turned his head over his shoulder and said: " never mind

Section [1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20]