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]
chapter Sixteen

the naughty Nome

shaggy man had said nothing during the conversation between queen Ann and Quox, for_the simple reason that he_did_not consider the matter worth an argument . safe within his pocket reposed the love magnet, which had never failed to win every heart . the nomes, he_knew, were_not like the heartless Roses and therefore could_be won to_his side as_soon_as he exhibited the magic talisman .

shaggy's chief anxiety had_been to reach Ruggedo's kingdom and now that_the entrance lay before him he_was confident he_would_be_able to rescue his lost brother . let Ann and_the dragon quarrel as_to who_should conquer the nomes, if_they liked; shaggy would let them try, and if_they failed he had the means of conquest in_his own pocket .

but Ann was positive she_could_not fail, for she thought her army could do anything . so she called the officers together and told them how to act, and she also instructed Tik-Tok what to_do and what to_say .

" please do_not shoot your gun except as a last resort," she added, " for I_do_not wish to_be cruel or to shed any blood-- unless it_is absolutely necessary ."

" all right," replied Tik-Tok; " but I_do_not_think Rug-ge- do would bleed if I filled him full of holes and put him in aci-der press ."

then the officers fell in line, the four Generals abreast and then the four Colonels and_the four Majors and_the four Captains . they drew their glittering swords and commanded Tik-Tok to march, which he_did . twice he fell down, being tripped by_the rough rocks, but when he struck the smooth path he got along better . into_the gloomy mouth of_the cavern entrance he stepped without hesitation, and after him proudly pranced the officers and queen Ann . the others held back a little, waiting to_see what would happen .

of_course the Nome king knew they were coming and was prepared to receive them . just within_the rocky passage that led to_the jeweled throne- room was a deep pit, which_was usually covered .Ruggedo had ordered the cover removed and it now stood open, scarcely visible in_the gloom .

the pit was so large around that_it nearly filled the passage and there_was barely room for_one to walk around it by pressing close to_the rock walls . this Tik-Tok did, for_his copper eyes saw the pit clearly and he avoided it; but the officers marched straight into_the hole and tumbled in a heap on_the bottom . an instant later queen Ann also walked into_the pit, for she had her chin in_the air and was careless where she placed her feet . then one_of_the nomes pulled a lever which replaced the cover on_the pit and made the officers of Oogaboo and their queen fast prisoners .

as for Tik-Tok, he kept straight on to_the cavern where Ruggedo sat in_his throne and there he faced the Nome king and said:

"I here- by con-quer you in_the name of queen Ann so- forth of Oo-ga-boo, whose Ar- my I_am, and I de-clare that you_are her pris- on-er ! "

Ruggedo laughed at him .

" where is_this famous queen ? " he asked .

" she'll be here in amin-ute," said Tik-Tok ."Per-haps she stopped to tie her shoe- string ."

" now, see here, Tik-Tok," began the Nome king, in a stern voice, "I've had enough of_this nonsense . your queen and her officers are all prisoners, having fallen into my power, so perhaps you'll tell me what you mean to_do ."

" my or-ders were to con-quer you," replied Tik- Tok, " and my MA- chin-er-y has_done the best it knows how to car-ry out those or-ders ."

Ruggedo pounded on_his gong and Kaliko appeared, followed closely by general Guph .

" take this copper man into_the shops and set him to work hammering gold," commanded the king ." being run by machinery he ought_to_be a steady worker . he ought never to_have_been made, but since he exists I_shall hereafter put him to good use ."

" if_you try to cap-ture me," said Tik-Tok, " I_shall fight ."

"Don't do_that ! " exclaimed general Guph, earnestly, " for it_will_be useless to resist and you_might hurt some one ."

but Tik-Tok raised his gun and took aim and not knowing what damage the gun might do_the nomes were afraid to_face it .

while he_was thus defying the Nome king and_his high officials, Betsy bobbin rode calmly into_the royal cavern, seated upon_the back of Hank the mule . the little girl had grown tired of waiting for " something to happen" and so had come to_see if Ruggedo had_been conquered .

"Nails and nuggets ! " roared the king; " how dare you bring that beast here and enter my presence unannounced ? "

" there wasn't anybody to announce me," replied Betsy ."I guess your folks were all busy . are_you conquered yet ? "

" no ! " shouted the king, almost beside himself with rage .

" then please give_me something to eat, for I'm awful hungry," said the girl ." you_see, this conquering business is a good_deal like waiting for a circus parade; it takes a long_time to_get around and don't amount to much anyhow ."

the nomes were so_much astonished at_this speech that for a time they_could only glare at her silently, not finding words to reply . the king finally recovered the use of_his tongue and said:

" earth-crawler ! this insolence to my majesty shall be your death- warrant . you_are an ordinary mortal, and to stop a mortal from living is so easy a thing to do_that i_will_not keep you waiting half so_long as_you_did for_my conquest ."

"I'd rather you wouldn't stop me from living," remarked Betsy, getting off Hank's back and standing beside him ." and it would_be a pretty cheap king who killed a visitor while she was hungry . if_you'll give_me something to eat, I'll talk this killing business over with_you afterward; only, I warn you now that I don't approve of it, and never will ."

her coolness and lack of fear impressed the Nome king, although he bore an intense hatred toward all mortals .

" what do_you wish to eat ? " he asked gruffly .

"Oh, a ham- sandwich would do, or perhaps a couple of hard- boiled eggs--"

"Eggs ! " shrieked the three nomes who were present, shuddering till their teeth chattered .

" what's the matter ? " asked Betsy wonderingly ." are eggs as high here as_they_are at home ? "

"Guph," said the king in an agitated voice, turning to_his general, " let_us destroy this rash mortal at once ! seize her and take her to_the slimy cave and lock her in ."

Guph glanced at Tik-Tok, whose gun was still pointed, but just then Kaliko stole softly behind the copper man and kicked his knee-joints so that_they suddenly bent forward and tumbled Tik-Tok to_the floor, his gun falling from_his grasp .

then Guph, seeing Tik-Tok helpless, made a grab at Betsy . at_the same time Hank's heels shot out and caught the general just where his belt was buckled . he rose into_the air swift as a cannon- ball, struck the Nome king fairly and flattened his majesty against the wall of rock on_the opposite side of_the cavern . together they fell to_the floor in adazed and crumpled condition, seeing which Kaliko whispered to Betsy:

" come with me-- quick ! -- and_I_will save you ."

she looked into Kaliko's face inquiringly and thought he_seemed honest and good-natured, so she decided to_follow him . he led her and_the mule through several passages and into a small cavern very nicely and comfortably furnished .

" this_is my own room," said he, " but you_are quite welcome to use it . wait here a minute and I'll get you something to eat ."

when Kaliko returned he brought a tray containing some broiled mushrooms, a loaf of mineral bread and some petroleum- butter . the butter Betsy could_not eat, but the bread was good and_the mushrooms delicious .

" here's the door key," said Kaliko, " and you'd better lock yourself in ."

" won't you let polychrome and_the rose princess come here, too ? " she asked .

"I'll see . where are they ? "

"I don't know .I left them outside," said Betsy .

" well, if_you hear three raps on_the door, open it," said Kaliko; " but don't let anyone in unless they give the three raps ."

" all right," promised Betsy, and when Kaliko left the cosy cavern she closed and locked the door .

in_the meantime Ann and her officers, finding themselves prisoners in_the pit, had shouted and screamed until they were tired out, but no one had come to_their assistance . it_was very dark and damp in_the pit and they_could_not climb out because the walls were higher than their heads and_the cover was on . the queen was first angry and then annoyed and then discouraged; but the officers were only afraid . every_one_of_the poor fellows heartily wished he_was back in Oogaboo caring for_his orchard, and some were so unhappy that_they began to reproach Ann for causing them all this trouble and danger .

finally the queen sat down on_the bottom of_the pit and leaned her back against the wall . by good luck her sharp elbow touched a secret spring in_the wall and a big flat rock swung inward .Ann fell over backward, but the next instant she jumped up and cried to_the others:

"A passage ! a passage ! follow me, my brave men, and we_may yet escape ."

then she began to crawl through_the passage, which_was as dark and dank as_the pit, and_the officers followed her in single file . they crawled, and_they crawled, and_they kept on crawling, for_the passage was not big enough to allow them to stand upright . it turned this_way and twisted that, sometimes like a corkscrew and sometimes zigzag, but seldom ran for long in a straight line .

" it_will never end-- never ! " moaned the officers, who were rubbing all the skin off their knees on_the rough rocks .

" it must end," retorted Ann courageously, " or it never would_have_been made . we don't know where it_will lead us to, but any place is better than that loathsome pit ."

so she crawled on, and_the officers crawled on, and while they were crawling through_this awful underground passage polychrome and shaggy and Files and_the rose princess, who were standing outside the entrance to Ruggedo's domains, were wondering what had become of_them .

chapter Seventeen

a tragic transformation

"Don't let_us worry," said shaggy to_his companions, " for_it may take_the queen some_time to conquer the metal monarch, as Tik-Tok has_to do everything in_his slow, mechanical way ."

" do_you suppose they_are likely to fail ? " asked the rose princess .

" I_do, indeed," replied shaggy ." this Nome king is really a powerful fellow and has a legion of nomes to assist him, whereas our bold queen commands a clockwork man and a band of faint- hearted officers ."

" she ought_to_have let Quox do_the conquering," said polychrome, dancing lightly upon a point of rock and fluttering her beautiful draperies ." but perhaps the dragon was wise to let her go first, for when she fails to conquer Ruggedo she may become more modest in her ambitions ."

" where is_the dragon now ? " inquired Ozga .

" up there on_the rocks," replied Files ." look, my dear; you_may see him from here . he_said he_would take a little nap while we were mixing up with Ruggedo, and he added that after we had gotten into trouble he_would wake up and conquer the Nome king in ajiffy, as his master the Jinjin has ordered him to_do ."

"Quox means well," said shaggy, " but I_do_not_think we_shall need his services; for just as_soon_as I_am satisfied that queen Ann and her army have failed to conquer Ruggedo, I_shall enter the caverns and show the king my love magnet . that he_cannot resist; therefore the conquest will_be made with ease ."

this speech of shaggy man's was overheard by_the long-Eared hearer, who was at_that moment standing by Ruggedo's side . for when_the king and Guph had recovered from Hank's kick and had picked themselves up, their first act was to_turn Tik-Tok on_his back and put a heavy diamond on top of him, so_that he_could_not get up again . then they carefully put his gun in a corner of_the cavern and_the king sent Guph to fetch the long-Eared hearer .

the hearer was still angry at Ruggedo for breaking his ear, but he acknowledged the Nome king to_be his master and was ready to obey his commands . therefore he repeated shaggy's speech to_the king, who at once realized that his kingdom was in grave danger . for Ruggedo knew of_the love magnet and its powers and was horrified at_the thought that shaggy might show him the magic talisman and turn all the hatred in_his heart into love .Ruggedo was proud of_his hatred and abhorred love of any sort .

" really," said he, "I'd rather he conquered and lose my wealth and my kingdom than gaze at_that awful love magnet . what can I_do to_prevent the shaggy man from taking it out of_his pocket ? "

Kaliko returned to_the cavern in_time to overhear this question, and being a loyal nome and eager to_serve his king, he answered by saying:

" if_we_can manage to bind the shaggy man's arms, tight to_his body, he_could_not get the love magnet out of_his pocket ."

" true ! " cried the king in delight at_this easy solution of_the problem ." get at once a dozen nomes, with ropes, and place them in_the passage where they_can seize and bind shaggy as_soon_as he enters ."

this Kaliko did, and meanwhile the watchers outside the entrance were growing more and more uneasy about their friends .

"I don't worry so_much about_the Oogaboo people," said polychrome, who had grown sober with waiting, and perhaps a little nervous, " for they_could_not be killed, even though Ruggedo might cause them much suffering and perhaps destroy them utterly . but we should_not have allowed Betsy and Hank to_go alone into_the caverns . the little girl is mortal and possesses no magic powers whatever, so if Ruggedo captures her she will_be wholly at his mercy ."

" that_is indeed

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