E. J. Craine

“ The Flying Buddies had been discovered by one of the gang, and a tall ugly looking customer who carried a gun in his hand, turned quickly. “Our welcome guests.”
“What are you doing here?” the tall fellow snarled.
“Dropped down very much as you did, I reckon,” answered Jim.
“Bugs drive you out of the sky?” This was probably the pilot who had just been driven out himself.
“Like blazes. That motor hasn’t been running lately. If the bugs forced you down, what you doing over here? Come on, speak out, and reach for the sky, while the reaching is good,” came the sharp command. ”

“ For a minute the three stood still, Mills indifferently, but the boys alert and watchful, then suddenly Jim began to think more rationally and he drew a deep breath of relief.
“It’s probably some one looking for us,” he declared. “Let’s go along and catch up with him.” But Bob caught his sleeve.
“Put on the curb, Old Timer, it isn’t anyone looking for us,” he insisted. “Come on, let’s lean against the wall as if we are resting and see what we can see. Keep your gun where it will do the most good in the shortest time.” ”

“ Jim’s eyes traveled over the well-shaped head, and thought of Ynilea, their special friend in the great Laboratory, and he wondered if this young fellow might not be receiving some of his training in one of the marvelous underground schools. He recalled that Don Haurea had told him that the world was ready for some of the information those scientific men had proved and it was possible that this lad, because of his advantages as a doctor’s son might have been chosen to bring out for humanity medical or surgical truths still unknown to modern life. ”

“ Bob said so softly that Jim barely caught the words.
“Gosh—sure it isn’t a native—you know they do hang around these ruins and it may be that he is put here to look out for the temple.”
“It isn’t a native. The ones who are not in the towns are all strong and straight looking and they don’t wear white men’s clothing,” replied Bob. They remained as they were carefully considering their next step, and as they stood thinking, their eyes rested on Mills who was crouching at the end of the rope very much like a monkey on a string. ”

“ He smoked thoughtfully and stared at Donald.
“Now you know the story of the Bloody Dam. There are few of the natives who really know the tale, but every year someone brings out evidence that the Black Woods must be avoided; many legends have grown up about it, and neither the natives nor the negroes will go into it at this time of the year. You are in charge of this section of the country, Captain Seaman, my father and mother have made their home here, so I received permission to tell you the story that you might understand,” he finished impressively. ”

“ The dwarf leaped at Mills, who rose just as the rush was made, but his feet were planted firmly, well apart. He did not permit his meal to be interrupted by the attack, but caught the little man much as he had the bigger one. However, instead of hurling him over the cliff, he spread him out face down on the ground and proceeded to sit on him. The dwarf struggled, kicked, bit and screamed but his efforts were futile.
“I’ve read that an insane man has the strength of half a dozen sometimes,” Jim said softly.
“Looks as if it’s true,” Bob answered. ”

“ Lang declared, but he took the precaution to tie the ends of the ropes which bound the arms of the Flying Buddies to separate trees so that they could not help each other to get away, then he, too, closed his eyes. Jim watched him several minutes, the smallest flash light in one hand, a gun in the other. The boy thought that he could keep awake and that he and his buddy could make some plan, but his own lids grew heavy and presently all of them were sound asleep, in spite of the terrors which surrounded them. ”

“ At times the forest cave lead them down steep declivities where it was evident to the Flying Buddies that the enclosure was made by hand, not nature, although she had helped. Another time they were walking forward on a woven floor and through the loosely secured vines they caught glimpses of sparkling water which pounded against the rocks that confined it and sent a spray so high that the place was spongy and wet. ”

“ Bob tried to grin but it was a sickly effort, and again they glanced down at the scene below. They could see the tall Indian walking indifferently across the terrace while Mills was just getting the heavy lid off the box which had been dragged from the foundation of ancient stones. It was doubtless the removal of this support which had caused the huge thing to fall and destroy the dwarf; but the lone white man in possession of the treasure appeared to be absolutely unaffected by the tragedy. ”

“ All O.K.;” he waggled and instantly the leader’s nose shot up, his hand went to the side of his cock-pit and his men followed him in a steep climb, after which they zoomed high, circled, while Jim went on talking to them with the flags. “Everybody is safe. No one hurt. All O.K.” The machines made two turns above their heads, then the engine of the leader’s plane was throttled and he glided like a great bird to the ground, made an admirable three-point landing and stopped. Instantly a man leaped out of the cock-pit and started forward. ”

“ Mills thundered. “What are you carrying?”
“Grub,” came the answer.
“Well, let’s stop and eat. We can make better time when we are not so empty,” Lang proposed. “Pass it along.” He and Lang sat down as best they could in the narrow quarters with only the smallest light to pierce the gloom which surrounded them. The Buddies also let their feet slide from under them and were grateful for the opportunity to rest. The two men who brought up the rear showed no such disposition, but stepped forward over the other’s legs. ”

“ The eyes of the Flying Buddies turned instantly to the sky and were astonished to see twelve tiny specks in a perfect V formation, racing without deviating an inch from their formation, high in the blue heavens. ”

“ The other side of the square was the first tier of a wide terrace, its massive walls seamed in even lines as its ancient builders had laid the rocks with infinite care, one above the other, and side by side. There were a few small fruit trees whose branches were gnarled and twisted; several giant olives which might have been imported from Spain hundreds of years ago; tall cactus with thorns sharp as spear points and strong as spikes stuck up like sentinels, while patches of smaller varieties spread over large sections of the sandy soil. ”

“ Jim asked.
“Yes. They have discovered that insect life exists in layers. The bugs that live above that foliage screen are different from those below it, and in a place as high as that, there are sometimes several species in the woods underneath.”
“Expect they get some wonderful butterflies,” said Bob, who had a fine collection of his own at home.
“Indeed they do. You can see them before you go. They have dozens of cases, and have already sent crates of them to the museums all over the world.” ”

“ I am sure the men here will listen to reason,” he said elaborately.
“They won’t have much time to listen to reason. Where I come from we make a practice to shoot or throw our bombs first and apologize afterwards,” Jim snapped, and his eyes blazed furiously. “I heard those women scream. Tell those fellows to take their hands off, or I won’t listen to anything—not a thing!”
“I will,” Donald said quickly. Both boys knew that a good many of the natives understood perfectly what was said, and now those who were nearest to the belligerent-looking young Texans stepped away from their captives. ”

“ Being cowboys of no mean standing, the Flying Buddies just naturally unhooked their ropes from their saddle horns when they changed from a horse to a plane, and on more than one occasion that habit of their lives had helped them through several mighty serious and tight spots. ”

“ Jim admitted.
“Will you send to search for Mills?” Bob asked their host, but before the captain could answer, Donald spoke.
“It will be as well, if I may be allowed to express an opinion, to let him remain as he is for the present.”
“Until the last butterfly passes?” asked the doctor.
“Yes sir, until the last butterfly passes,” the lad replied.
“He might injure himself or starve,” Seaman objected, but he made no move to start the search.
“He will not starve, for the forest is full of berries, larger fruits and roots upon which he will learn to sustain himself. ”

“ Manwell was a kindly looking woman, somewhat younger than her husband, and she presented two young friends, Phyllis and Barbara Harding and their mother.
“We have been planning to take the trip to the ‘bug settlement’ for some time,” Mrs. Harding told the Flying Buddies with a cordial smile, “but we residents of the islands are the greatest procrastinators in the world; it is only when we have guests with us that we exert ourself to show off our country.”
“Bob is a bug-nut; crazy about insect and plant life, so he’ll have a whale of a time,” Jim told her. ”

“ Jim kept it up and it came from his very boots.
“Say, am I so funny?” demanded Bob. He was becoming convinced that Jim’s mind was badly affected by the strain of the past twenty-four hours, and he didn’t wonder. “Come on, Pal, snap out of it—that won’t do you any good—not a bit. Why, you are acting worse than if some one was tickling the soles of your feet—”
“I’m tickled all over,” Jim gasped merrily. ”

“ The people of our land heard these stories and most of them withdrew to the fastness they had prepared for themselves, but the others refused to credit the strange stories and could not conceive of any race making slaves of them. They built themselves more hiding places, buried their treasures, made circuitous passages through the thick forests and filled them with spiked traps, deadly snakes, vipers, and treacherous bridges which would fall as soon as any weight was put upon them. ”

“ Seaman exploded.
“I should not be at all surprised,” the doctor answered, then went on, “whatever ailed him, he has already paid the price of his folly. The natives thought that their wives and children had been killed or would never come out of the Black Woods, so they came back with other tribes, bent upon revenge. We can hardly blame them. They happened to find us all here; took possession of the weapons in camp, and before any of us realized the danger, they surrounded the women.” ”

“ Desperately Lang threw all his weight on the opposite side. Jim and Bob sprang to help him, but as they pulled the section of the rope which Caldwell had knotted after he had chewed the strands, parted, and the smaller man went tumbling over backward into the rushing stream. The boys dared not stop to help him, but put all their strength into dragging Mills to safety. It was minutes before the big man was on the bridge again, and by that time there was no sign of the leader of the gang, although the boys made every effort to locate him. ”

“ Just then Mills tugged on the rope, he raised himself to his full height, his nostrils expanding as he breathed deeply.
“He must be empty as a drum. Wonder if it would be safe to feed him one of those pellets—I—” But the sentence was not finished. With a wild leap, Mills broke away, tore furiously up the nearest stairway and disappeared at an astonishing rate of speed over the higher terrace.
“We must go after him, but keep your gun handy.”
The Sky Buddies ran as fast as their legs could carry them, but they both knew that Mills was setting a much swifter pace. ”

“ Jim was thinking hard and he certainly wished that his pockets were full of explosives.
“They gathered up friendly tribes to help them, and landed here about half an hour ago, took possession of all the guns in the settlement, drove the native women away, and captured the white women,” Donald explained.
“Don’t they know the professor will come back with their families?” Bob asked.
“At this time none may come back from the Black Woods,” one man declared sullenly. “None comes out alive.”
“The Professor, who is a fool, will himself never come back. ”

“ Queer weapons were fired, blunderbusses and heavy cross-bows, long swords flashed and after ten minutes of the wildest confusion the natives were dead, all except a few women and children who were slung up behind the soldiers, while others gathered the treasure in their arms and galloped away with the rich booty, but as they scrambled up the rocks, a number of them were dislodged and came tumbling down. ”

“ If we turn him loose he may starve to death before he reaches a settlement or any one runs across him; then, if we let him keep with us until we get out it will be safer to keep him in hand. He can be a nasty bird and after a while some of the effects of what we were through may wear off, then he’ll revert to his charming self again and probably try to break our necks,” Bob answered, and after a moment’s consideration, Jim nodded that it was the wiser course.
“Go along,” he motioned to Mills, whose knees wobbled under him and his fingers fumbled inanely about his mouth. ”

“ To be sure the authorities had quietly ascertained that Arthur Gordon was still laid up with a broken leg at the home of the doctor who had taken him in charge after the accident in the snowy fastness of the Andes, and Ynilea, the Laboratory man at the Don’s had said that the Big Boss, frightened at the repeated disasters which had befallen many of his men and undertakings, had taken himself out of the country, but the Sky Buddies were convinced that this chap, whoever he was, had made up his mind to fathom the secrets and secure possession of the vast wealth. ”

“ Mute with horror, the men stared paralyzed at the calamity.
“There’s no way to get over,” a gangster sobbed.
“Maybe we can chop our way through the roof,” one suggested. He caught the side of the natural wall and hauled himself up, but when his ax struck the roof it rang against solid stone. Besides the stuff upon which the fellow was braced, gave way, and he slid back with a howl of fear.
“That log wasn’t all rotten,” Lang declared. “Come on back and at least we can cut some of the vines, make it stronger and get out that way.” ”

“ On they sped, and at last Bob pointed toward a high bare clearing and there beyond the ravine arose the great stones of the ancient temple ruin, where they had left Mills. Eagerly the lads scanned the cleared place, then their eyes went over the ruin, but not a sign of a human being did they see in either place. Glancing at the dial clock, Jim spiraled in wide circles which included the two places, while Bob searched vainly for a sign of the professor and his kidnapped band. ”