II. HER SISTER FROM THE NORTH
A week passed and Noren regained his health and vigour. But he was still troubled with anxious thoughts, and vainly endeavoured to penetrate the deep mystery which surrounded him. His young heart bounded at the thought of the high enterprise which awaited him, and yet the hints of the Tartar girl had filled him with an unknown dread. He had faced dangers in the field of battle, but was little fitted for intrigues and deeds which required the dagger rather than the sword. And his mind misgave him much when he thought of dark midnight schemes formed by a woman within the precincts of an unknown place. He looked around him but obtained no light. The marble decorations and the embroidered curtains of his gorgeous prison gave him no response, and the guards who paced outside his barred room were as silent as the grave.
Noren was permitted to go up by a winding staircase to the roof of the chamber which he occupied. There he breathed the fresh air of the open sky and walked to and fro, sometimes for hours, till the stars of the clear Indian sky glistened above his head. He saw guards and soldiers in the ample courtyard before him, and marble spires of edifices behind him, screened by a lofty stone wall. Such spires Noren had not seen even in Rajmahal; were these edifices built for mightier rulers than Raja Man Singh and for more illustrious ladies than the royal dames of Bengal? Palaces of great queens they must be, for the wall of red sandstone which screened them was not pierced by a single window or gate that Noren could see.
Late one evening, when darkness had fallen on the unknown palaces, Noren came down from the roof tired and troubled in mind. He made a sparing meal and went early to bed, and was soon unconscious in a heavy slumber as if under the influence of some drug.
The first watch of the night had barely passed, and the sounds of the drum from the Nakara-Khana still filled the air, when Jelekha stepped into the silent room, dimly lighted. Her movement was slow and cautious, and a strange light gleamed from her eye. Her arms were bare, and her unsheathed dagger was in her right hand. She crept noiselessly to the bedside and paused.
For a few moments her gaze was fixed on the sleeper. She listened to his breath, which was the breathing of dreamless slumber. She felt his heart beats, which were those of a strong man. Her face cleared up, and a smile curved her thin lips. Then she shook the dagger and waved it over the sleeper's head as she chanted some rhymes in her own tongue which may be rendered thus:
I
"Shades of midnight gather deep,
Spell hath power o'er soldier's sleep,
Watchful ginii of the mountain,
Wakeful spirits of the fountain,
Brace thy heart and steel thy arm,
Shield thee with their wondrous charm!
The star is on the wave,
Rise and be brave!
II
Shades of midnight gather deep,
Unseen beings round thee creep,
Grant thee strength and grant thee rest,
Wake thee to my high behest!
By their power I claim thee still,
Faithful to a woman's will!
The star is on the wave,
Soldier, rise and save!
III
Shades of midnight gather deep,
Some will laugh and some will weep!
Mothers who proclaimed this spell,
Fathers who in battles fell,
Spirits of the Tartar land,
Call thee to my dread command!
The star is on the wave,
Be a maiden's slave!
IV
Shades of midnight gather deep,
Rise before the morning's peep,
Shackled by this mystic art,
Blood to blood and heart to heart,
True in life and true in death,
Rise and draw a soldier's breath!
The star is on the wave,
Glory, or the grave!"
The chanting ceased, and Jelekha then brought the point of her dagger to the sleeper's bosom. The prick drew a drop of blood and waked Noren from a profound sleep. He opened his eyes, looked around him as if puzzled, and then fixed his eyes on the strange girl who stood smiling by the bedside, her dagger now sheathed.
"Methinks thou sleepest too long, young soldier. The appointed hour hath come."
Noren got up and smiled. "Thou shalt not find me unprepared, fair girl, if thou wilt grant me a moment to put on my soldier's dress and sword."
"Other duties hast thou to do than those of a soldier, and other garments hast thou to wear tonight. I have brought these for thee."
Noren examined the garments and then threw them down.
"Why, these are the garments of a woman," he exclaimed.
"They are."
"And they befit not a man and a soldier."
"I thought thou hadst spoken brave words and pledged thy devotion, in life and in death, to her who seeks thy aid," said Jelekha, with a wicked twinkle in her eyes and a smile on her mocking lips.
"Ay, in all that beseems a man," was the cool reply of Noren.
Jelekha smiled again—but the smile soon disappeared. She brought her face close to Noren's ear and whispered: "Thy life and mine, and the honour of a high lady, depend on thy compliance, soldier Noren! Do thy duty as a soldier, time presses."
Noren submitted in silence. An ample petticoat, such as is worn by women in Northern India, was fastened over his soldier's belt and sword. The bodice defied Noren's clumsy endeavours until Jelekha came and helped him with a smile. Some false hair was gracefully combed back and tied in a knot, and a veil hid half his face. An ample scarf depended from his shoulders in graceful folds, covering his breast and falling to his knees. A necklace of coral measured his throat; bangles of gold were with difficulty fitted on his bony wrists; and anklets of silver tinkled on his feet as he walked.
"Why, all the gay youths of the palace will now court a kiss from this tall damsel, graceful as a cypress," said Jelekha, with a smile. Noren's face crimsoned in his vexation, but he made no reply.
A sliding door in the wall, which the minutest inspection in daylight could not have detected, led to a long, dark passage. It was through this door, thought Noren to himself, that Jelekha had come so often to his sick room and disappeared so mysteriously.
The passage grew dark altogether when the sliding door was closed and locked, and Noren had to feel his way.
"Mind, there are steps and crooked turnings here, my fair sister Sharifa," said Jelekha, with suppressed laughter. "Henceforth thou art my sister from the North. Forget this and thy life and mine shall be the penalty we pay."
Forgetting the gravity of his present situation and his unknown risks, Noren was not a little amused at the part imposed upon him, and thoroughly entered into the joke. He laughed and stumbled over some unseen steps.
"Why, thou art more clumsy, sister Sharifa, than I thought! But thou hast lately come from our Northern Steppes, and art little accustomed to these labyrinths which the architects of Hind love to construct. Take my arm, dear sister; our mother in the North will never forgive me if any harm befalls thee while thou art in my charge. There are many steps and many turnings in this dark passage."
Noren was nothing loth to take the soft, warm arm, and held it more closely than the dangers of the passage warranted.
"How rough thou art, sister Sharifa. One would think thou hadst a man's strong hand and had learnt a man's rude ways. A girl should have softer manners, for a maiden wins her lover by her coyness."
"But methinks, oh, most decorous of sisters, a girl sometimes likes a little boldness in man. We maidens think little of a milksop, but are inclined to pardon a little masculine rudeness at times!"
"May be, sister, there be maidens whose hearts are thus touched. For me, my dagger is sooner touched by such rudeness than my heart," said Jelekha in a tone which could not be mistaken.
"I respect thy virtue, dear sister," said Jelekha's companion, rebuked. "And I shall never forget what thou hast done for me."
"Why, that is spoken like a sister. Thou speakest now like the gentlest of thy sex. Has thy gentle heart been touched, Sharifa, by the masculine ways of some youth of this land, who has vowed to make a fair Hindustanee of thee?"
"Indeed, indeed, if I must confess the truth, sister Jelekha, thou hast guessed rightly. A tall, slender youth tended me long in my illness and has taken my fancy. His long, white arms are matchless in their grace, and his bright eyes glisten like stars. Much I fear he has worked a charm on me! But his ruddy lips can wear a mocking smile at times, sister, and his ivory brow can wear a frown which frightens me! Much I doubt he is only a cruel deceiver!"
"Beware of such a man, my innocent sister. Love him not—or love and be his slave for ever!"
"Ay, ay, much I fear, sister Jelekha, I am his slave already, and he drags me along by a chain which I may not rend. Hast thou, my sister, ever felt thus?"
"Nay, gentle Sharifa, I was not born to be a chained slave, and if I ever sought a lover I would sooner purchase a submissive youth from the slave-market to do my bidding. My mother taught me the Charm of the Dagger when I was yet a girl; it is useful to us for making slaves of men."
"And hast thou worked the charm yet, sister, on some languishing slave—maybe some distressed soldier whom thou hast nursed in thy kindness?"
"Thou art too curious, my sister, and hast a saucy tongue in thy head it seems to me."
"Nay, nay, thou must overlook a sister's curiosity. Have I not told thee of a youth of lithe, supple form and dark, subtle eye, who has robbed me of my peace? And canst thou not call to mind some hapless wanderer from his home, some friendless stranger in this land, on whom thou mayst have worked the Charm of the Dagger or the stronger Charm of the Eye?"
"Thou art a shrewd girl, my dear sister Sharifa, and an impudent one I am thinking, in spite of thy innocent looks and meek eyes. There is indeed a youth on whom I once worked the charm, brave and handsome, too, but much I suspect he is as false as he is fair. Maybe the youths of this land are gay deceivers, maybe the heart of my chosen slave owns some other image of love, while his smooth tongue seeks to beguile me."
Noren started. Was this a stray shot, or did that strange woman know more of his past life than he had imagined? There was a silence, and the two walked side by side to the end of the passage.
Jelekha opened a small gate, and a spacious courtyard lay before them, paved with red sandstone. The light of the stars fell on Jelekha's face, and its expression was strange. All traces of merriment were gone. She anxiously surveyed the courtyard from end to end with her keen eyes, peering into the darkness, and she listened to the footfall of warders and the sound of night-birds. A feeling of grave anxiety, almost of terror, darkened her brow, and she spoke in a whisper which was almost a hiss.
"Listen, young soldier. The time has come to clear up all mystery. Thou shouldst know all and brave all. This great fort, surrounded by lofty walls, is the fort of Agra. Thou mayst have guessed that, soldier, for such another fort exists not on earth."
"I guessed as much, Jelekha. But proceed, I will not interrupt you."
"What thou sawest from the roof of thy room is only the outer portion of the fort. The halls of audience and the quarters of the highest in the realm are there, and Imperial officers and guards watch there day and night. The Princess of Amber, one of the Queens of our Emperor, has her Guest House there for her astrologers and physicians. Raja Man Singh is her nephew, and at his special request thou wert brought into one of the rooms of the Guest House for treatment, when none hoped to see thee live. Royal physicians have tended thee in thy illness."
"The noble Raja has indeed been good to me and to my House. He rewarded me when I deserved punishment; he saved me when I was at death's door."
"He is as great and powerful as he is noble and kind. Thou knowest perhaps that his sister is wedded to the Emperor's eldest son, Selim, who will be Emperor hereafter."
"Yes, so I have heard."
"Thou wilt see him to-night."
"See Prince Selim?"
"Prince Selim and his mother, and another wonderful person whose image is impressed on his heart."
"Thy words are strange, Jelekha. Can man's eyes, save those of the royal family, light on these ladies of the Harem?"
"Man's eyes, save those of the royal family, have not seen them; but dost thou forget that thou art a woman, and my sister, to-night?"
The young soldier had a brave heart, but his face was bloodless as he saw into the designs of Jelekha. To step in disguise into the Royal Zenana, guarded by a hundred guards, was death. But Jelekha gave him no time to think.
"Beyond this courtyard thou seest a lofty wall of stone. That wall screens the residence of the Queens and Royal Begums of Agra. Thou shalt cross that lofty wall which man has never yet crossed and come back alive. Thou shalt see those whose faces man has not seen."
"But wherefore this mad adventure?"
"Does thy heart fail? There is time yet to return."
"My heart fails at nothing which my duty bids me do. Show me that my duty bids me desecrate the sacred Zenana of our great and honoured Emperor, and to steal into the precincts of the royal ladies in the disguise of a woman."
"She who will yet be the most illustrious among the royal ladies has commanded thee to come. From her lips thou shalt receive her commands."
"Lead, and I will follow."