Chapter XVII: The Saboros Coming to the Rescue

Muro had just returned to the wagon from his position in the front, and John met him, as he expected some news from his actions.

“The Kurabus have joined the Illyas.”

“In which direction did the Kurabus come up?”

“From the northeast.”

“Where are the Brabos?”

“Directly to the south of the Illyas.”

“Do you think we had better go on?”

“No; we better wait until fight over.”

“Why do you think so? The Brabos are sure to be beaten.”

“The other tribes will go northeast to find us, and will leave this side free.”

Muro’s philosophy was now apparent. The wagon had been moved a long distance westwardly from the place where the Kurabus last saw it, and the presumption was that they would return to that position to look for it, and thus give an opportunity to make their escape.

It was certainly a well-devised scheme to outwit their enemies, but the best-laid plans come to nought where all the elements are not known.

“We might go a mile down the river, and reach the hill over there,” said Muro, pointing to the south.

“That will bring us about west of the battle-ground.”

“Yes.”

In a half hour the wagon reached the spot indicated, and the hill gave them a much better view of the conflict, and, besides, it afforded an opportunity to escape either by the north or the south, and the fort sections also furnished a means, in an emergency, to cross the river on their right.

The forces were now in position, and were both striving to outwit each other. They maneuvered back and forth for fully an hour.

“The Brabos do not know the Kurabus are with the Illyas,” said Muro.

“Why do you think so!”

“Because they are too confident.”

“How many warriors have the Brabos?”

“One hundred and thirty.”

“And how many do you think the others have all together?”

“About a hundred and seventy-five, or likely more.”

Suddenly the combined forces began the charge, first with the shower of arrows, followed by the usual rush.

“The Brabos are holding their ground,” exclaimed Muro.

“But the Illyas will be too much for them,” remarked Sutoto.

“Yes; they will win in the end.”

“But how well they are holding their line.”

“See, the Kurabus are advancing,” remarked John.

“They are trying to get around them,” ventured Harry.

“They won’t keep that up long,” said Sutoto.

Nor did they. For some reason the position of the Illyas was turned.

“What is that from the south?” asked Sutoto, as he drew himself up to a more advantageous position.

“They are Osagas,” exclaimed Ralph.

“There is a movement to the southeast; do you see it?” asked Sutoto.

“I see it plainly now,” answered John.

“There is another tribe there,” excitedly shouted Ralph.

“Are you sure?” said John.

“It does appear so; yes, you are right; a column is coming up.”

“Who are they!” asked Harry.

“Possibly they are the Saboros,” responded George.

Muro shook his head despairingly.

“It must be the Professor and his party,” exclaimed Blakely.

“Hurrah, if it is,” cried Tom. “Won’t that give us a chance?”

“I wonder who they are going to help?”

“Why, don’t you see, Harry, they are coming up behind the Brabos, and the latter see them now.”

“Yes; they will side with the Brabos.”

“How many can you see?”

Sutoto looked for a time, before answering: “About seventy-five or more.”

“Then it must be your people,” said John.

“I do not think so, as they would not be so far west.”

“They are, most likely, the Osagas,” was John’s comment.

“What is your reason for the conclusion?” asked Blakely.

“First, because it would be the natural direction for them to come; and second, the size of the band would be much greater were they Saboros.”

“The white man is right. Berees would not come along the river from Osaga village, nor would Saboros come that way.”

But some unusual movement was on foot, judging from the excitement now discernible in the ranks of the Illyas.

“The Illyas are being driven back.”

“They have discovered the new tribe. See them trying to hold their positions.”

“The Kurabus are in just as bad shape.”

“But they are really driving the Brabos forwardly.”

“That is only temporary, however. See; the Brabos and the new warriors are after them again.”

Back and forth the combatants surged. The noise of the conflict, which consisted mainly in the shouting and the shrieking, was plainly heard at the wagon.

“How I would like to take a hand,” said John, without taking his eyes off the fighters.

Muro looked at John. “I would like to go.” John looked around.

Blakely shook his head. “It would be unwise to mix up in their troubles, as we have enough of our own.”

“I should not think of doing it out of pleasure, or to gratify a spite, as I have neither of the desires, and it occurred to me a little while ago, that if we wiped out the Kurabus and the Illyas we would have pretty easy sailing with the Brabos.”

“That is to be considered,” said Blakely.

The unexpected reinforcements which the Brabos got, was the turning point in their fortunes. It was a hotly contested struggle, judged from the standard of island warfare.

“The Kurabus and Illyas are being licked,” cried out George.

“Good for the Brabos.”

“But won’t they come this way?”

“This seems possible, as they are making a pretty clean sweep.”

The force assisting the Brabos now made its way around to the right of the Illyas, and it was soon evident that the latter were beaten beyond all hope.

It thus turned out that the very plan, so apparently well selected on the part of John and Muro, was crushed by the defeat of the two tribes.

The runner which the Professor sent back to Uraso and Ralsea did not return. He should have been back before noon.

Calling one of the principal warriors he questioned him:

“Did you know the direction and distance that the runner went?”

“Yes; to the north.”

“Do you know what time he should have returned?”

“He should have been here when the sun was up there,” and he pointed to the position of the sun which was well before the noon hour.

“Can you send a fast runner there?”

“Yes.”

“What have you learned about the band toward the left?”

“We have not seen them since they left early this morning.”

“Bring the runner here as quickly as you can.”

The one indicated for the mission came up quickly, and the Professor, addressing him, said:

“Ralsea and Uraso have gone to the north, and I have had no word from them since last night. Go to them at once and tell them that I have moved the Berees to the northwest, and tell them, also, that a tribe moved away from us this morning, in that same direction, and they may be going toward my people.”

Then giving directions to the warriors, they started forward to follow in the trail of the mysterious tribe that had left them early in the morning.

Before three o’clock one of the scouts from the west appeared in their midst and hurriedly explained the situation.

“The tribe which left us was followed until they met another lot of warriors, and are now fighting with them.”

“How long will it take to reach them?”

He indicated two hours.

“Then lead us in that direction at once.”

In less than a half hour the Professor struck the trail of the tribe which had so peculiarly vanished in the morning, and it was now easy to track them.

For the past three days they had heard no sounds of the guns from the party in the wagon, and the Professor inferred, either that they had succeeded in resisting the assault made on them, or might have been captured, and were now in the possession of one or the other of the tribes which were fighting for possession.

Night came before they were able to reach the scene of the fight. The Professor stationed guards around the camp, and gave instructions to inform him of any suspicious movements in either direction.

It was singular, indeed, that the last runner sent to Uraso and Ralsea had not returned. Several times during the night the watchers from the east came to the Professor, and he hurried out with them to try and ascertain what the disturbances there might mean.

Early in the morning, however, it was seen that a war party was in the immediate vicinity on the east. This news was startling enough to cause the Professor to call in the pickets and investigate the position of the new enemy.

“Who are they?” he asked of the chief man left with him.

“They look like the Saboros.”

“Find out at once.”

Before the picket had time to return and report, others came rushing in with the announcement that the Saboros were now forming to charge them.

At this news the Professor ordered the warriors to move forward until they had reached the open. Then commanding the warriors to remain he marched forward alone and unarmed, to the amazement of those with him.

“Can we go with you?” pleaded the boys.

“Yes.”

The Saboros looked on him with astonishment. With a shout one of the warriors rushed out from the ranks and across the intervening space and embraced the Professor.

It was Stut. He looked at the boys as he was about to treat them in the same way, and started back in surprise.

“Where are the boys?”

“Still in the wagon.”

“Where is the wagon?”

“I do not know.”

Then, looking at the Berees, he was amazed at the situation.

“Tell me,” said the Professor, “why did you not come before?”

“The Kurabus captured me, and if it had not been for the Brabos I would have been killed. But do you know where Muro is?”

“I do not know. Three days ago they fought a battle with some one to the north, as we heard their guns, but we know nothing more since.”

The Saboros came up. Many of them had met the Professor before--once in the battle in the vicinity of West River, and once far to the east when they were allied with the Kurabus, at the time Stut was captured.

Stut told about the different ones, and what their stations were, and they crowded around this remarkable man about whom such wonderful tales had been told.

“Do you know who those people are that are fighting in the west?”

“We heard that the Illyas had gone to the west.”

“Do you know what they went there for?”

“They were going there to attack the Berees and Osagas.”

“Do you know why?”

“They claimed that the Osagas rescued their captives from them.”

“Do you know who the captives were?”

“Yes; some of your people.”

“Were your people coming here before you reached them?”

“Yes; that is why I met them so soon. I succeeded in getting away only three days ago, when the largest portion of the Brabos attacked and destroyed the Kurabus’ village.”

“Then they did not know Muro was with us?”

“No.”

“Why did they start on the warpath?”

“They learned that the white men who had killed Uraso were in the west, and they supposed that if Uraso had been killed I would also be offered up as a sacrifice.”

“But Uraso was not killed.”

“Not killed? Where is he?”

“He and Ralsea are now up to the north, and watching the Illyas and the Kurabus.”

“Are they fighting?”

“Yes; but whom we do not know.”

“Then it must be the Brabos.”

“But the Osagas have also gone to the north.”

“How do you know that?”

“Because we came through their village, and have been following them.”

Stut and the Saboros looked at each other.

“If that is the case, then the Osagas have joined the Brabos.”

“No doubt, then, the force we saw to the west of us yesterday was the Osagas.”

“Where are they now?” asked Stut.

“To the northwest, and we are following them.”

This news that Osaga was safe produced a marked impression on the Saboros, because through family ties the heads of the two tribes were united, and these two peoples were always most friendly with each other.

“Did you know that Osaga was captured by the Illyas?” asked the Professor.

“No!” exclaimed Stut in astonishment.

He immediately imparted this news to his warriors, and the effect was such as to indicate that they held a most bitter resentment toward that tribe.

In the absence of Muro, Stut was the chief of the tribe, and this was gratifying news to the Professor. They must proceed to the north with their combined forces, and by uniting with the Brabos and Osagas, crush two of the most villainous people.

One of the chief men under Stut immediately came forward, and said: “We would not have gone to the assistance of the Osagas in their fight against the white men, but we learned that the Tuolos and the Kurabus had also made a treaty, and intended to destroy them, as well as the Brabos, so that we wanted to get the white men first.”

The Professor could hardly credit this startling piece of information.

“Do you think, then, that the Tuolos also are with the Kurabus and the Illyas?” asked the Professor earnestly.

“Yes.”

A commotion was noticed among the Berees, and one of the runners sent in advance, toward what now appeared to be the Osagas, reported that the latter and Brabos had routed the two other forces, and were pursuing to the north.

“If that is the case, the Tuolos have not yet come up.”

“We must go forward at once,” exclaimed the Professor.

The combined forces set out on the march. Together they numbered two hundred and twenty men. There was the utmost good feeling between the two people, as was evident.

“Isn’t this good!” cried Will. “What a sight it will be when we reach the Osagas!”

“I wish I knew where the boys were,” responded Jim.

And the Professor echoed that sentiment.