The Vermilion Feather

: The Doomsman

A beach of yellow sand and a stranded log upon which sat a boy looking

steadfastly out upon the shining waters.



It was a delicious morning in early May, and the sun was at his back,

its warm rays falling upon him with affectionate caress. But the lad was

plainly oblivious of his immediate surroundings; in spirit he had

followed the leading of his eyes a league or more to the westward, where

a mass of inde
inable shadow bulked hugely upon the horizon line.

Indefinable, in that it was neither forest nor mountain nor yet an

atmospheric illusion produced by the presence of watery vapor. It did

not change in density as does the true cloud; for all of its mistiness

of outline there was an impression of solidity about its deeper shadows,

something that the wind could not lift nor the light pierce. A mystery,

and the boy devoured it with his eyes, his head bent forward and his

shoulders held tensely.



The place was a rocky point of land jutting forth into a reef-strewn

tideway. The forest came down close to the strip of beach, but there was

comparatively little underwood, and the grass, growing up to the very

roots of the trees, gave to the glade an appearance almost parklike.

There was no house in sight, not even the thin, blue curl of a smoking

hearth to proclaim the neighborhood of man. Yet the sign of human

handicraft was not wholly wanting; through the tree trunks, at perhaps a

hundred yards away, appeared the line of a timber stockade--enormous

palisades, composed of twelve-foot ash and hickory poles, set in a

double row and bound together by lengths of copper wire. It was to be

further observed that the timbers had been stripped of their bark and

the knots smoothed down so as to afford no coigne of vantage to even a

naked foot. Add, again, that the poles had been charred and sharpened at

the top, and it will be understood that the barrier was a formidable one

against any assault short of artillery.



There was no beaten road or path near the line of palisades, but,

following the curving of the shore, a forest track, already green with

the young grass that was pushing its way through last year's stubble,

stretched away to the north and south. It was hardly more than a runway

for the deer and wild cattle, but it did not give one the impression of

having been originally plotted out by these creatures, after the

immemorial fashion of their kind. An animal does not lay out his road in

sections of perfectly straight lines connected by mathematical curves,

neither does he fill up gullies nor cut through hills, when it is so

easy to go around these obstructions.



The boy, who sat and dreamed at the water's edge, was in his eighteenth

year or thereabouts, slenderly proportioned, and with well-cut features.

The delicately moulded chin, the sensitive nostril--these are the signs

of the poet, the dreamer, rather than of the man of action. And yet the

face was not altogether deficient in indications of strength. That heavy

line of eyebrow should mean something, as also the free up-fling of the

head when he sat erect; the final impression was of immaturity of

character rather than of the lack of it. From the merely superficial

stand-point, it may be added that he had brown eyes and hair (the latter

being cut square across his forehead and falling to his shoulders), a

good mouth containing the whitest of teeth, and a naturally light

complexion that was already beginning to accumulate its summer's coat of

tan.



He was dressed in a tunic or smock of brown linen, gathered at the waist

by a belt of greenish leather, with a buckle that shone like gold. His

knees were bare, but around his legs were wound spiral bands of

soft-dressed deer-hide. Buskins, secured by thongs of red leather and

soled with moose-hide, to prevent slipping, covered his feet, while his

head-dress consisted of a simple band of thin gold, worn fillet-wise.

This last, being purely ornamental, was doubtless a token of gentle

birth or of an assured social station. A short fur coat, made from the

pelt of the much-prized forest cat, lay in a careless heap at the boy's

feet. It had felt comfortable enough in the still keenness of the early

morning hour, but now that the sun was well up in the sky it had been

discarded.



In his belt was stuck a long, double-edged hunting-knife, having its

wooden handle neatly bound with black waxed thread. A five-foot bow of

second-growth hickory leaned against the log beside him, but it was

unstrung, and the quiver of arrows, suspended by a strap from his

shoulders, had been allowed to shift from its proper position so that it

hung down the middle of his back and was, consequently, out of easy

hand-reach. But the youth was in no apparent fear of being surprised by

the advent of an enemy; certainly he had made no provision against such

a contingency, and the carelessness of his attitude was entirely

unaffected. It may be remarked that the arrows aforesaid were

iron-tipped instead of being simply fire-hardened, and in the feathering

of each a single plume of the scarlet tanager had been carefully

inserted. Presumably, the vermilion feather was the owner's private sign

of his work as a marksman. So far the lad's dress and accoutrements were

in entire conformity to the primeval rusticity of his surroundings.

Judge, then, of the reasonable surprise which the observer might feel at

discovering that the object in the boy's hand was nothing less

incongruous than a pair of binocular glasses, an exquisitely finished

example of the highest art of the optician. One of the eye-piece lenses

had been lost or broken, for, as the youth raised the glasses to sweep

again the distant sea-line, he covered the left-hand cylinder with a

flat, oblong object--a printed book. Its title, indeed, could be clearly

read as, a moment after, it lay partly open upon his knee--A Child's

History of the United States--and across the top of the page had been

neatly written in charcoal ink, "Constans, Son of Gavan at the Greenwood

Keep."



Mechanically, the boy began turning the leaves, stopping finally at a

page upon which was a picture of the lower part of New York City as seen

from the bay. Long and earnestly he studied it, looking up occasionally

as though he would find its visible presentment in that dark blur on the

horizon line. "It must be," he muttered, with a quick intake of his

breath. "The Forgotten City and Doom the Forbidden--one and the same.

Well, and what then?" and again he fell upon his dreaming.



For the best part of an hour the boy had sat almost motionless, looking

out across the water. Then, suddenly, he turned his head; his ear had

caught a suspicious sound, perhaps the dip of an oar-blade. Thrusting

the field-glass and book into his bosom, he drew the bow towards him and

listened. All was still, except for the chatter of a blue-jay, and after

a moment or so his attention again relaxed. But his eyes, instead of

losing themselves in the distance as before, remained fixed upon the

sand at his feet. Fortunately so, or he must have failed to notice the

long shadow that hung poised for an instant above his right shoulder and

then darted downward, menacing, deadly.



An infinitesimal fraction of a second, yet within that brief space

Constans had contrived to fling himself, bodily, forward and sideways

from his seat. The spear-shaft grazed his shoulder and the blade buried

itself in the sand. The treacherous assailant, overbalanced by the force

of his thrust, toppled over the log and fell heavily, ignominiously, at

the boy's side. In the indefinite background some one laughed

melodiously.



Constans was up and out upon the forest track before his clumsy opponent

had begun to recover his breath. It was almost too easy, and then he all

but cannoned plump into a horseman who sat carelessly in his saddle,

half hidden by the bole of a thousand-year oak. The cavalier, gathering

up his reins, called upon the fugitive to stop, but Constans, without

once looking behind, ran on, actuated by the ultimate instinct of a

hunted animal, zigzagging as much as he dared, and glancing from side to

side for a way of escape.



But none offered. On the right ran the wall of the stockade,

impenetrable and unscalable, and it was a long two miles to the north

gate. On the left was the water and behind him the enemy. A few hundred

yards and he must inevitably be brought to a standstill, breathless and

defenceless. Yet he kept on; there was nothing else to do.



The horseman followed, putting his big blood-bay into a leisurely

hand-gallop. A sword-thrust would settle the business quite as

effectually as a shot from his cross-bow, and he would not be obliged to

risk the loss of a bolt, a consideration of importance in this latter

age when good artisan work is scarce and correspondingly precious.



Constans could run, and he was sound of wind and limb. Yet, as the

thunder of hoofs grew louder, he realized that his chance was of a

desperate smallness. If only he could gain a dozen seconds in which to

string his bow and fit an arrow.



But he could not make or save those longed-for moments; already he had

lost a good part of his original advantage, and the horseman was barely

sixty yards behind. His head felt as though it were about to split in

two; a cloud, shot with crimson stars, swam before his eyes.



The track swung suddenly to the right, in a sharp curve, and Constans's

heart bounded wildly; he had forgotten how close he must be to the

crossing of the Swiftwater. Now the rotting and worm-eaten timbers of

the open trestle-work were under his feet; mechanically, he avoided the

numerous gaps, where a misstep meant destruction, and so at last gained

the farther bank and sank down panting on the short, crisp sward.



The cavalier reined in at the beginning of the trestle; he looked

doubtfully at the ford above the bridge; but the Swiftwater was in

spring flood, and, was the chase worth a wetting?



Evidently not, for, with a shrug of his shoulders, the horseman threw

one leg across the saddle-pommel and sat there, very much at his ease,

while he proceeded to roll himself a cigarette from coarse, black

tobacco and a leaf of dampened corn-husk.



Constans felt his face flush hotly as he noted the contempt implied in

his enemy's well-played indifference. Already he had put his bow in

order; now he stood up and, with some ostentation, proceeded to fit an

arrow to the string. The cavalier looked at these preparations with

entire calmness and busied himself again with his flint and steel.



"It would be murder," muttered Constans, irritably, and lowered his

hand. Then, moved by sudden impulse, he took aim anew and with more than

ordinary care. The arrow sung through the air and transfixed the fleshy

part of the cavalier's bridle-arm. The horse, whose withers had been

grazed by the shaft, started to rear, but his rider neither moved nor

changed color. Quieting the frightened animal with a reassuring word,

he deftly caught the tinder spark at the tip of his cigarette and drew

in a deep inhalation of the smoke. Then, with the utmost coolness, he

proceeded to snap the arrow-shaft in twain and draw out the barb,

Constans yielding him grudging admiration, for it was all very perfectly

done.



"Here is a man," thought Constans, and looked him over carefully.



And truly the cavalier made a gallant figure, dressed as he was in the

bravest raiment that the eyes of Constans had ever yet beheld. For his

close-fitting suit was of claret-colored velvet with gilt buttons, while

his throat-gear was a wonderfully fine lace jabot, with a great red

jewel fastened in the knot. A soft hat, trimmed with gold lace and an

ostrich-feather, covered his dark curls, while yellow gauntlets and high

riding-boots of polished leather completed his outward attire. Not an

unpleasing picture as he sat there in the sunshine astride the big

blood-bay, but Constans, looking upon him, knew that neither now nor

hereafter could there be any verity of peace between them. There is such

a thing as hate at first sight even as there is love.



The horseman had retained the feathered end of the arrow-shaft, and he

proceeded to examine it with an appearance of polite interest.



"Your private token, young sir?" he inquired, indicating the single

feather of scarlet. His voice was pitched in an affectedly high key, his

manner languidly ceremonious. Constans could only bow stiffly in the

affirmative.



"Ah, yes; it is one not to be easily forgotten. I, too, have my

sign-manual, and I should have been glad to have exchanged with you."



Again Constans bowed. He wanted to say something, but the words would

not come. The cavalier smiled.



"But there may be another opportunity later on," he continued. "At

least, we may hope so." He bowed, lifting his plumed hat. "To our future

acquaintance." He turned his horse's head to the southward, and rode

away at a slow canter without once looking back.



Constans watched the ostrich-crest as it rose and fell, until it was

lost to sight among the tree-trunks. Then, drawing his belt tight, he

started on a dog-trot in the contrary direction; the barrier, admitting

him to the protection of the stockade, was still some distance away, and

he must reach it without delay and give the warning. But, even as he

ran, he heard the tolling of a bell; it was the alarm that the Doomsmen

were abroad. Now, indeed, he must make haste or he would find the

barrier closed against himself.



Ten minutes later he stood before the northern entrance of the Greenwood

Keep. Already the warders were fitting into place the gates of

iron-studded oak, but they recognized the voice of their lord's son and

allowed him to squeeze his way through. Guyder Touchett, the burly

captain of the watch, clapped him familiarly on the back.



"Your legs have saved your skin, master. God's life! but you flashed

through the cover like a cock-grouse going down the wind. Yet I trembled

lest a cross-bow bolt might be following even faster."



"They have come--the Doomsmen?" panted Constans.



"Garth, the swineherd, reported their landing at the Golden Cove an

hour before sunup. Three war-galleys, which means twice that score of

men."



"Some mischance of wind or tide," said Constans, thoughtfully. "I

noticed that the water in the Gut was rougher than is usual at dawn."



"Like enough," assented Touchett. "These night-birds are not often seen

in a blue sky, and luckily so, for the safety of your father's ricks and

byres. After all, there is no certainty in the matter; Garth is stupid

enough betimes for one of his own boars, and there was a

christening-party at the barracks last night. You know what that

means--the can clinking until the tap runs dry."



"Yet you say he saw----"



Guyder Touchett shrugged his shoulders. "Anything you like. When the ale

is in the eye there are stranger things than gray cats to be discovered

at the half-dawn. In my opinion, Garth is a fool and a liar."



"And, as usual, your opinion is wrong," retorted Constans, "for the Gray

Men are really here. But I cannot wait; I must speak with Sir Gavan

himself."



"You will find him at the water gate," bawled Touchett, as the boy ran

past him.



Constans sped rapidly up the green slope leading to the house a quarter

of a mile away. As he ran, he mentally rehearsed the story of his late

adventure. Surely, now, Sir Gavan would permit him to bear a man's part

in the impending crisis. Had he not already drawn hostile blood--the

first?



Sir Gavan awaited his son at the water gate, his ruddy countenance

streaked with an unwonted pallor and his gray eyes dark with trouble.



"Where is your sister?" he asked, abruptly, as Constans ran up.



The boy stared. "She did not go out with me, sir. Do you mean that

Issa----"



"Hush! or your mother will overhear. Come this way." And Sir Gavan

preceded his son into the guard-room on the left of the vaulted

entrance, walking heavily, as one who bears an unaccustomed burden upon

his shoulders. Yet when he spoke again his voice had its accustomed

steadiness.



"No one has seen her since ten of the sundial. It is now noon, and the

alarm-bell has been ringing this half-hour."



Constans felt something tighten at his own throat. "You have searched

the enclosure?" he faltered.



"Every nook and corner," returned Sir Gavan. "Tennant, with a dozen men,

is now beating the upper plantations."



Constans thought guiltily of that cleverly concealed gap in the

palisades just beyond the intake of the Ochre brook. He and Issa had

shared it between them as a precious secret, and he had used it this

very morning as a short cut to the water-side. Tennant, their elder

brother, was not aware of its existence, but then Tennant was a prig,

and not to be trusted in truly momentous affairs.



There was his father's wrath. Constans turned sick at the thought of

arousing it. No; he could not tell him.



"I don't know," he said, vaguely.



Sir Gavan looked at him searchingly, then turned and strode out of the

room.



Constans felt his cheeks grow hot. Why had he not told all the truth?

He was a coward, a liar, in all but the actual word. He sat down on a

bench and buried his face in his hands; then the recurring thought of

Issa and of her peril stung him to his feet. Where had Sir Gavan gone?



Constans made his way, hesitatingly, into the court-yard of the keep. He

found it thronged with men, his father's retainers and servants. The

archers were busy putting new strings to their bows; the spearmen were

testing, with grave eagerness, the stout ash of their weapons, or

perchance whetting an edge on the broad blades. Half a dozen of the

younger men were engaged in covering the roof of the main and out

buildings with horse-hides soaked in water, as a protection against

burning arrows; others were driving the protesting cattle into the byres

and sacking up a quantity of newly threshed grain that lay upon the

flailing floor; everywhere the noise of shouting men and of hurrying

feet.



Sir Gavan was not to be seen, and Constans, after inquiring for him

through a fruitless quarter of an hour, entered the main house and

sought the fighting platform on its roof. Why had no lookout been

stationed here? Surely an oversight. He gazed eagerly about him.



Directly to the right of the house lay the home paddock, stretching away

some two hundred yards to the edge of a white-birch plantation. The

Ochre brook bounded it on one side, and the current had scoured out for

itself an ever-deepening channel in the soft, alluvial soil. A clump of

alders, just bursting into leaf, masked the bed of the stream at one

particular point, where the bank rose into a miniature bluff. Constans,

from his elevated position, was enabled to overlook this point, and so

to make out the figure of a mounted man behind the alder screen, his

horse standing belly deep in the water. It was the cavalier of the

ostrich-feathers; and then, through the white trunks of the birches, he

caught the flutter of a woman's gown. Constans tried to shout, to call

out, but the vocal chords refused to relax, the sounds rattled in his

throat.



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