18

Tarzan, the Jewels of Opar

by Edgar R. Burroughs

18, TARZAN, THE JEWELS OF OPAR by Edgar R. Burroughs
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The Fight For the Treasure


It was morning before Tarzan could bring himself to a
realization of the possibility of failure of his quest,
and even then he would only admit that success was but
delayed. He would eat and sleep, and then set forth
again. The jungle was wide; but wide too were the
experience and cunning of Tarzan. Taglat might travel
far; but Tarzan would find him in the end, though he
had to search every tree in the mighty forest.

Soliloquizing thus, the ape-man followed the spoor of
Bara, the deer, the unfortunate upon which he had
decided to satisfy his hunger. For half an hour the
trail led the ape-man toward the east along a
well-marked game path, when suddenly, to the stalker's
astonishment, the quarry broke into sight, racing madly
back along the narrow way straight toward the hunter.

Tarzan, who had been following along the trail, leaped
so quickly to the concealing verdure at the side that
the deer was still unaware of the presence of an enemy
in this direction, and while the animal was still some
distance away, the ape-man swung into the lower
branches of the tree which overhung the trail. There
he crouched, a savage beast of prey, awaiting the
coming of its victim.

What had frightened the deer into so frantic a retreat,
Tarzan did not know--Numa, the lion, perhaps, or
Sheeta, the panther; but whatsoever it was mattered
little to Tarzan of the Apes--he was ready and willing
to defend his kill against any other denizen of the
jungle. If he were unable to do it by means of
physical prowess, he had at his command another and a
greater power--his shrewd intelligence.

And so, on came the running deer, straight into the
jaws of death. The ape-man turned so that his back was
toward the approaching animal. He poised with bent
knees upon the gently swaying limb above the trail,
timing with keen ears the nearing hoof beats of
frightened Bara.

In a moment the victim flashed beneath the limb and at
the same instant the ape-man above sprang out and down
upon its back. The weight of the man's body carried
the deer to the ground. It stumbled forward once in a
futile effort to rise, and then mighty muscles dragged
its head far back, gave the neck a vicious wrench, and
Bara was dead.

Quick had been the killing, and equally quick were the
ape-man's subsequent actions, for who might know what
manner of killer pursued Bara, or how close at hand he
might be? Scarce had the neck of the victim snapped
than the carcass was hanging over one of Tarzan's broad
shoulders, and an instant later the ape-man was perched
once more among the lower branches of a tree above the
trail, his keen, gray eyes scanning the pathway down
which the deer had fled.

Nor was it long before the cause of Bara's fright
became evident to Tarzan, for presently came the
unmistakable sounds of approaching horsemen. Dragging
his kill after him the ape-man ascended to the middle
terrace, and settling himself comfortably in the crotch
of a tree where he could still view the trail beneath,
cut a juicy steak from the deer's loin, and burying his
strong, white teeth in the hot flesh proceeded to enjoy
the fruits of his prowess and his cunning.

Nor did he neglect the trail beneath while he satisfied
his hunger. His sharp eyes saw the muzzle of the
leading horse as it came into view around a bend in the
tortuous trail, and one by one they scrutinized the
riders as they passed beneath him in single file.

Among them came one whom Tarzan recognized, but so
schooled was the ape-man in the control of his emotions
that no slightest change of expression, much less any
hysterical demonstration that might have revealed his
presence, betrayed the fact of his inward excitement.

Beneath him, as unconscious of his presence as were the
Abyssinians before and behind him, rode Albert Werper,
while the ape-man scrutinized the Belgian for some sign
of the pouch which he had stolen.

As the Abyssinians rode toward the south, a giant
figure hovered ever upon their trail--a huge, almost
naked white man, who carried the bloody carcass of a
deer upon his shoulders, for Tarzan knew that he might
not have another opportunity to hunt for some time if
he were to follow the Belgian.

To endeavor to snatch him from the midst of the armed
horsemen, not even Tarzan would attempt other than in
the last extremity, for the way of the wild is the way
of caution and cunning, unless they be aroused to
rashness by pain or anger.

So the Abyssinians and the Belgian marched southward
and Tarzan of the Apes swung silently after them
through the swaying branches of the middle terrace.

A two days' march brought them to a level plain beyond
which lay mountains--a plain which Tarzan remembered
and which aroused within him vague half memories and
strange longings. Out upon the plain the horsemen
rode, and at a safe distance behind them crept the ape-man,
taking advantage of such cover as the ground afforded.

Beside a charred pile of timbers the Abyssinians
halted, and Tarzan, sneaking close and concealing
himself in nearby shrubbery, watched them in
wonderment. He saw them digging up the earth, and he
wondered if they had hidden meat there in the past and
now had come for it. Then he recalled how he had
buried his pretty pebbles, and the suggestion that had
caused him to do it. They were digging for the things
the blacks had buried here!

Presently he saw them uncover a dirty, yellow object,
and he witnessed the joy of Werper and of Abdul Mourak
as the grimy object was exposed to view. One by one
they unearthed many similar pieces, all of the same
uniform, dirty yellow, until a pile of them lay upon
the ground, a pile which Abdul Mourak fondled and
petted in an ecstasy of greed.

Something stirred in the ape-man's mind as he looked
long upon the golden ingots. Where had he seen such
before? What were they? Why did these Tarmangani covet
them so greatly? To whom did they belong?

He recalled the black men who had buried them.
The things must be theirs. Werper was stealing them as
he had stolen Tarzan's pouch of pebbles. The ape-man's
eyes blazed in anger. He would like to find the black
men and lead them against these thieves. He wondered
where their village might be.

As all these things ran through the active mind, a
party of men moved out of the forest at the edge of the
plain and advanced toward the ruins of the burned bungalow.

Abdul Mourak, always watchful, was the first to see
them, but already they were halfway across the open.
He called to his men to mount and hold themselves in
readiness, for in the heart of Africa who may know
whether a strange host be friend or foe?

Werper, swinging into his saddle, fastened his eyes
upon the newcomers, then, white and trembling he turned
toward Abdul Mourak.

"It is Achmet Zek and his raiders," he whispered.
"They are come for the gold."

It must have been at about the same instant that Achmet
Zek discovered the pile of yellow ingots and realized
the actuality of what he had already feared since first
his eyes had alighted upon the party beside the ruins
of the Englishman's bungalow. Someone had forestalled
him--another had come for the treasure ahead of him.

The Arab was crazed by rage. Recently everything had
gone against him. He had lost the jewels, the Belgian,
and for the second time he had lost the Englishwoman.
Now some one had come to rob him of this treasure which
he had thought as safe from disturbance here as though
it never had been mined.

He cared not whom the thieves might be. They would not
give up the gold without a battle, of that he was
certain, and with a wild whoop and a command to his
followers, Achmet Zek put spurs to his horse and dashed
down upon the Abyssinians, and after him, waving their
long guns above their heads, yelling and cursing, came
his motley horde of cut-throat followers.

The men of Abdul Mourak met them with a volley which
emptied a few saddles, and then the raiders were among
them, and sword, pistol and musket, each was doing its
most hideous and bloody work.

Achmet Zek, spying Werper at the first charge, bore
down upon the Belgian, and the latter, terrified by
contemplation of the fate he deserved, turned his
horse's head and dashed madly away in an effort to
escape. Shouting to a lieutenant to take command, and
urging him upon pain of death to dispatch the
Abyssinians and bring the gold back to his camp, Achmet
Zek set off across the plain in pursuit of the Belgian,
his wicked nature unable to forego the pleasures of
revenge, even at the risk of sacrificing the treasure.

As the pursued and the pursuer raced madly toward the
distant forest the battle behind them raged with bloody
savageness. No quarter was asked or given by either
the ferocious Abyssinians or the murderous cut-throats
of Achmet Zek.

From the concealment of the shrubbery Tarzan watched
the sanguinary conflict which so effectually surrounded
him that he found no loop-hole through which he might
escape to follow Werper and the Arab chief.

The Abyssinians were formed in a circle which included
Tarzan's position, and around and into them galloped
the yelling raiders, now darting away, now charging in
to deliver thrusts and cuts with their curved swords.

Numerically the men of Achmet Zek were superior, and
slowly but surely the soldiers of Menelek were being
exterminated. To Tarzan the result was immaterial.
He watched with but a single purpose--to escape the ring
of blood-mad fighters and be away after the Belgian and
his pouch.

When he had first discovered Werper upon the trail
where he had slain Bara, he had thought that his eyes
must be playing him false, so certain had he been that
the thief had been slain and devoured by Numa; but
after following the detachment for two days, with his
keen eyes always upon the Belgian, he no longer doubted
the identity of the man, though he was put to it to
explain the identity of the mutilated corpse he had
supposed was the man he sought.

As he crouched in hiding among the unkempt shrubbery
which so short a while since had been the delight and
pride of the wife he no longer recalled, an Arab and an
Abyssinian wheeled their mounts close to his position
as they slashed at each other with their swords.

Step by step the Arab beat back his adversary until the
latter's horse all but trod upon the ape-man, and then
a vicious cut clove the black warrior's skull, and the
corpse toppled backward almost upon Tarzan.

As the Abyssinian tumbled from his saddle the
possibility of escape which was represented by the
riderless horse electrified the ape-man to instant
action. Before the frightened beast could gather
himself for flight a naked giant was astride his back.
A strong hand had grasped his bridle rein, and the
surprised Arab discovered a new foe in the saddle of
him, whom he had slain.

But this enemy wielded no sword, and his spear and bow
remained upon his back. The Arab, recovered from his
first surprise, dashed in with raised sword to
annihilate this presumptuous stranger. He aimed a
mighty blow at the ape-man's head, a blow which swung
harmlessly through thin air as Tarzan ducked from its
path, and then the Arab felt the other's horse brushing
his leg, a great arm shot out and encircled his waist,
and before he could recover himself he was dragged from
his saddle, and forming a shield for his antagonist was
borne at a mad run straight through the encircling
ranks of his fellows.

Just beyond them he was tossed aside upon the ground,
and the last he saw of his strange foeman the latter
was galloping off across the plain in the direction of
the forest at its farther edge.

For another hour the battle raged nor did it cease
until the last of the Abyssinians lay dead upon the
ground, or had galloped off toward the north in flight.
But a handful of men escaped, among them Abdul Mourak.

The victorious raiders collected about the pile of
golden ingots which the Abyssinians had uncovered, and
there awaited the return of their leader. Their
exultation was slightly tempered by the glimpse they
had had of the strange apparition of the naked white
man galloping away upon the horse of one of their
foemen and carrying a companion who was now among them
expatiating upon the superhuman strength of the ape-man.
None of them there but was familiar with the name
and fame of Tarzan of the Apes, and the fact that they
had recognized the white giant as the ferocious enemy
of the wrongdoers of the jungle, added to their terror,
for they had been assured that Tarzan was dead.

Naturally superstitious, they fully believed that they
had seen the disembodied spirit of the dead man, and
now they cast fearful glances about them in expectation
of the ghost's early return to the scene of the ruin
they had inflicted upon him during their recent raid
upon his home, and discussed in affrighted whispers the
probable nature of the vengeance which the spirit would
inflict upon them should he return to find them in
possession of his gold.

As they conversed their terror grew, while from the
concealment of the reeds along the river below them a
small party of naked, black warriors watched their
every move. From the heights beyond the river these
black men had heard the noise of the conflict, and
creeping warily down to the stream had forded it and
advanced through the reeds until they were in a
position to watch every move of the combatants.

For a half hour the raiders awaited Achmet Zek's
return, their fear of the earlier return of the ghost
of Tarzan constantly undermining their loyalty to and
fear of their chief. Finally one among them voiced the
desires of all when he announced that he intended
riding forth toward the forest in search of Achmet Zek.
Instantly every man of them sprang to his mount.

"The gold will be safe here," cried one. "We have
killed the Abyssinians and there are no others to carry
it away. Let us ride in search of Achmet Zek!"

And a moment later, amidst a cloud of dust, the raiders
were galloping madly across the plain, and out from the
concealment of the reeds along the river, crept a party
of black warriors toward the spot where the golden
ingots of Opar lay piled on the ground.

Werper had still been in advance of Achmet Zek when he
reached the forest; but the latter, better mounted, was
gaining upon him. Riding with the reckless courage of
desperation the Belgian urged his mount to greater
speed even within the narrow confines of the winding,
game trail that the beast was following.

Behind him he could hear the voice of Achmet Zek crying
to him to halt; but Werper only dug the spurs deeper
into the bleeding sides of his panting mount. Two
hundred yards within the forest a broken branch lay
across the trail. It was a small thing that a horse
might ordinarily take in his natural stride without
noticing its presence; but Werper's horse was jaded,
his feet were heavy with weariness, and as the branch
caught between his front legs he stumbled, was unable
to recover himself, and went down, sprawling in the
trail.

Werper, going over his head, rolled a few yards farther
on, scrambled to his feet and ran back. Seizing the
reins he tugged to drag the beast to his feet; but the
animal would not or could not rise, and as the Belgian
cursed and struck at him, Achmet Zek appeared in view.

Instantly the Belgian ceased his efforts with the dying
animal at his feet, and seizing his rifle, dropped
behind the horse and fired at the oncoming Arab.

His bullet, going low, struck Achmet Zek's horse in the
breast, bringing him down a hundred yards from where
Werper lay preparing to fire a second shot.

The Arab, who had gone down with his mount, was
standing astride him, and seeing the Belgian's
strategic position behind his fallen horse, lost no
time in taking up a similar one behind his own.

And there the two lay, alternately firing at and
cursing each other, while from behind the Arab, Tarzan
of the Apes approached to the edge of the forest. Here
he heard the occasional shots of the duelists, and
choosing the safer and swifter avenue of the forest
branches to the uncertain transportation afforded by a
half-broken Abyssinian pony, took to the trees.

Keeping to one side of the trail, the ape-man came
presently to a point where he could look down in
comparative safety upon the fighters. First one and
then the other would partially raise himself above his
breastwork of horseflesh, fire his weapon and
immediately drop flat behind his shelter, where he
would reload and repeat the act a moment later.

Werper had but little ammunition, having been hastily
armed by Abdul Mourak from the body of one of the first
of the Abyssinians who had fallen in the fight about
the pile of ingots, and now he realized that soon he
would have used his last bullet, and be at the mercy of
the Arab--a mercy with which he was well acquainted.

Facing both death and despoilment of his treasure, the
Belgian cast about for some plan of escape, and the
only one that appealed to him as containing even a
remote possibility of success hinged upon the chance of
bribing Achmet Zek.

Werper had fired all but a single cartridge, when,
during a lull in the fighting, he called aloud to his
opponent.

"Achmet Zek," he cried, "Allah alone knows which one of
us may leave our bones to rot where he lies upon this
trail today if we keep up our foolish battle. You wish
the contents of the pouch I wear about my waist, and I
wish my life and my liberty even more than I do the
jewels. Let us each, then, take that which he most
desires and go our separate ways in peace. I will lay
the pouch upon the carcass of my horse, where you may
see it, and you, in turn, will lay your gun upon your
horse, with butt toward me. Then I will go away,
leaving the pouch to you, and you will let me go in
safety. I want only my life, and my freedom."

The Arab thought in silence for a moment. Then he
spoke. His reply was influenced by the fact that he had
expended his last shot.

"Go your way, then," he growled, "leaving the pouch in
plain sight behind you. See, I lay my gun thus, with
the butt toward you. Go."

Werper removed the pouch from about his waist.
Sorrowfully and affectionately he let his fingers press
the hard outlines of the contents. Ah, if he could
extract a little handful of the precious stones! But
Achmet Zek was standing now, his eagle eyes commanding
a plain view of the Belgian and his every act.

Regretfully Werper laid the pouch, its contents
undisturbed, upon the body of his horse, rose, and
taking his rifle with him, backed slowly down the trail
until a turn hid him from the view of the watchful Arab.

Even then Achmet Zek did not advance, fearful as he was
of some such treachery as he himself might have been
guilty of under like circumstances; nor were his
suspicions groundless, for the Belgian, no sooner had
he passed out of the range of the Arab's vision, halted
behind the bole of a tree, where he still commanded an
unobstructed view of his dead horse and the pouch, and
raising his rifle covered the spot where the other's
body must appear when he came forward to seize the
treasure.

But Achmet Zek was no fool to expose himself to the
blackened honor of a thief and a murderer. Taking his
long gun with him, he left the trail, entering the rank
and tangled vegetation which walled it, and crawling
slowly forward on hands and knees he paralleled the
trail; but never for an instant was his body exposed to
the rifle of the hidden assassin.

Thus Achmet Zek advanced until he had come opposite the
dead horse of his enemy. The pouch lay there in full
view, while a short distance along the trail, Werper
waited in growing impatience and nervousness, wondering
why the Arab did not come to claim his reward.

Presently he saw the muzzle of a rifle appear suddenly
and mysteriously a few inches above the pouch, and
before he could realize the cunning trick that the Arab
had played upon him the sight of the weapon was
adroitly hooked into the rawhide thong which formed the
carrying strap of the pouch, and the latter was drawn
quickly from his view into the dense foliage at the
trail's side.

Not for an instant had the raider exposed a square inch
of his body, and Werper dared not fire his one
remaining shot unless every chance of a successful hit
was in his favor.

Chuckling to himself, Achmet Zek withdrew a few paces
farther into the jungle, for he was as positive that
Werper was waiting nearby for a chance to pot him as
though his eyes had penetrated the jungle trees to the
figure of the hiding Belgian, fingering his rifle
behind the bole of the buttressed giant.

Werper did not dare advance--his cupidity would not
permit him to depart, and so he stood there, his rifle
ready in his hands, his eyes watching the trail before
him with catlike intensity.

But there was another who had seen the pouch and
recognized it, who did advance with Achmet Zek,
hovering above him, as silent and as sure as death
itself, and as the Arab, finding a little spot less
overgrown with bushes than he had yet encountered,
prepared to gloat his eyes upon the contents of the
pouch, Tarzan paused directly above him, intent upon
the same object.

Wetting his thin lips with his tongue, Achmet Zek
loosened the tie strings which closed the mouth of the
pouch, and cupping one claw-like hand poured forth a
portion of the contents into his palm.

A single look he took at the stones lying in his hand.
His eyes narrowed, a curse broke from his lips, and he
hurled the small objects upon the ground, disdainfully.
Quickly he emptied the balance of the contents until he
had scanned each separate stone, and as he dumped them
all upon the ground and stamped upon them his rage grew
until the muscles of his face worked in demon-like
fury, and his fingers clenched until his nails bit into
the flesh.

Above, Tarzan watched in wonderment. He had been
curious to discover what all the pow-wow about his
pouch had meant. He wanted to see what the Arab would
do after the other had gone away, leaving the pouch
behind him, and, having satisfied his curiosity, he
would then have pounced upon Achmet Zek and taken the
pouch and his pretty pebbles away from him, for did
they not belong to Tarzan?

He saw the Arab now throw aside the empty pouch, and
grasping his long gun by the barrel, clublike, sneak
stealthily through the jungle beside the trail along
which Werper had gone.

As the man disappeared from his view, Tarzan dropped to
the ground and commenced gathering up the spilled
contents of the pouch, and the moment that he obtained
his first near view of the scattered pebbles he
understood the rage of the Arab, for instead of the
glittering and scintillating gems which had first
caught and held the attention of the ape-man, the pouch
now contained but a collection of ordinary river
pebbles.