When the Inca hove in sight the following morning Ted and Stanley were filled with wonder and dismay. It seemed as if the whole population of the valley had come with him. Long lines of soldiers marched in advance and at the rear of the procession. In the centre were the members of his court, the nobles, and a numerous body of the clergy. The pomp and splendor affected by the youthful monarch were surprising to the two Americans, who on their previous visit had become accustomed to the gorgeous attire of Huayna Capac and to the lavish display of wealth with which he surrounded himself.

A horde of menials swept the roadway in advance of the royal party; youths in snowy garments sprinkled it with scented water and strewed the petals of orchids and other rare flowers over the way the ruler must pass.

The golden litter in which the king rode was not the one used by his father, for, according to custom, upon the death of an Inca, all those things connected intimately with his use accompanied his remains to their final resting-place or were destroyed. Quizquiz had a more massive one, encrusted with emeralds, which were ingeniously mounted in the pale, pure gold, so as to form figures of the sun rising above the mountain tops, of llamas and of condors. And while fifty of his subjects of the highest rank trudged along under the oppressive weight of the litter and its occupant, Quizquiz, reclining on soft cushions, amused himself by striking at them with a long-lashed whip. The carriers seemed not to resent this abuse; they deemed it an honor thus to serve their sovereign, knowing all the while that to trip or fall while bearing the sacred burden would constitute a crime punishable by death.

Very obviously the Inca had carefully planned to impress the visitors with his power and magnificence. When the throng reached the helpless airplane and its equally helpless occupants, it formed a circle around them, leaving a space in the centre not over a hundred feet across. The golden litter was carried much nearer, so that the monarch could have a clear view of what was in front of him.

Ted and Stanley, their faces well concealed by their helmets, goggles, and upturned collars, returned the insolent stare of Quizquiz, and at the same time took in the colorful display of his trappings. On his head he wore the scarlet fringe, or borla, that fell down to his eyes, with two slender, glittering feathers standing up in front; that was his crown. His mantle, falling loosely about his rather well-knit body, was a mass of shimmering folds of rich brocade, gold and silver threads woven upon a white ground. His arms, which were exposed to view, were bedecked with bracelets; rings covered his fingers.

“I am Quizquiz, Child of the Sun, most illustrious of all the Incas that have honored the earth with their presence,” he announced haughtily, toying with his whip as he spoke. “My authority is unquestioned and unlimited. My subjects do my bidding. At a word from me they die, if it suits my pleasure. Indeed, I am called the Tiger.”

“None disputes the glory or the power of the great king,” Stanley replied promptly.

“Then make known your mission. The valley is sacred ground. Intruders are not welcome, as two men from the outer world learned during the reign of Huayna Capac, my father.”

At the latter words the two Americans detected a shade of hatred in the speaker’s voice, while his eyes flashed fire.

“We desire food, shelter, and rest until it suits our convenience to return to the sky whence we came. That is a small request to make of a king.”

Very obviously the Inca had carefully planned to impress the visitors

“You came from the sky! I saw that with my own eyes. Are you gods that you travel through space like the spirits of the departed?”

“We are masters of the air,” Ted said. He did not like the attitude of the questioner, and Stanley was visibly uneasy.

For a moment Quizquiz surveyed them. His face, while handsome, bore a sullen expression, and the beady black eyes and drooping mouth bespoke a cruel and cunning disposition.

“Yes, yes,” he said impatiently. “But are you gods? Are you brothers of the sun, or companions of the moon? You speak with the voices of men. You ask for food and rest, like mortals.”

“All who would make known their thoughts must speak with the voices of men. The Inca is no exception.”

Quizquiz was plainly puzzled.

“And the thing that carries you through the air,” he asked, “is it bird, beast, or devil?”

“That you shall hear for yourself. It speaks with the voice of thunder.”

According to a prearranged plan, Ted sprang to the ground and spun the propeller, while Stanley operated the switch and throttle. With a snort the engine was under way and rapidly picked up speed, until the hand of the indicator registered five hundred revolutions a minute, the shattered blade of the propeller adding a whining shriek to the roar of the exhausts.

The Indians stared wide-eyed at the marvellous performance, and many, no doubt, would have liked nothing better than to turn and flee, but the knowledge that a show of fright would bring dire punishment restrained them from following their impulse.

Stanley cut the switch and the engine stopped.

“Now you have heard,” he said. “Let your priests and wise men interpret the message.”

Quizquiz called Soncco and a number of other sages and after they had all admitted that they were unable to interpret the strange sound he dismissed them in anger with a flick of his whip.

“Twenty strokes of the lash for each one,” he shouted, and a body of soldiers promptly stepped forward to obey the order.

“Mercy, great and glorious father,” one of the older men cried out, falling upon his knees and extending his hands in supplication.

“An additional ten strokes for the beggar! Take him away,” Quizquiz ordered. “And if any one of them so much as sigh while the lash is falling on his back, run him through with a lance.”

“If it pleases the king, I will explain the message,” Stanley announced.

“I will hear your words, but let your speech be brief, for I am weary.”

“The great vehicle would carry the Inca into the sky, high above the tallest mountain-peaks, where the air is pure and where not even the condor dares venture; out of reach of the contaminating earth, to play among the clouds and to bask in the bright sunlight; it would take him so high that the radiance of the sun could descend upon his sacred person; men would be blinded by the dazzling splendor of the great king,” Stanley announced solemnly.

“Is that the message?”

“That is my interpretation. A few days are needed for preparations for the momentous event. And then, the flight into the heavens which even an Inca has never visited.”

If these speeches were calculated to flatter the vanity of Quizquiz, the two were doomed to disappointment. For a moment he regarded them with narrowing eyelids while his hands toyed nervously with the whip. Then he flew into a violent rage.

“Now indeed do I know that you are not gods, nor even the messengers of gods,” he shrieked, rising from his cushions and raising his whip as if to strike in their direction, “for else you must know that I, Quizquiz, mightiest of all the great kings, never touch my foot upon the contaminating earth; I honor my highest nobles by permitting them to carry my holy person from place to place. I need not the radiance of the sun, for I am already more resplendent than his brightest rays; is it not through my benevolence that the sun shines at all, and the stars come forth at night? It is I who permits the wind to blow and the rain to fall. Your words are blasphemy to my ears. All who live are my slaves, and to them my words are laws. Depart at once or you remain here forever!”

The two had no time to ponder the quandary in which this unexpected turn of affairs had placed them, and for a moment they were speechless.

“Villac Umu!” Quizquiz called. “Come to my side!”

Attendants brought forward the sedan containing the high priest, which had been kept a few paces to the rear previously. It was the same conveyance in which he had appeared some days before to interrogate them.

“How may I serve my revered father?” Villac smirked, with a great show of humility. “My one hope, my one desire is that I may one day give my unworthy life to please the king.”

“Speak not of death, Villac Umu, for I have need of you alone among all men. You, who relieve me of the burden of communing with the gods and with the spirits, tell me, who are these insolent ones who dare invade my kingdom, and who disobey me when I command them to depart.”

The high priest languidly raised his hands to his eyes, and for a full minute appeared to be lost in thought. Then he stood up and pointed toward Ted and Stanley with one hand. “I have divined the mystery,” he announced.

“Then speak, good Villac,” Quizquiz said indulgently. “Wisdom such as yours is given to few men. I knew I could depend on you.”

“The visitors from the sky are no other than the two strangers from the outer world who came into the valley during the reign of Huayna Capac, your father, and then escaped after having been condemned to death for their treason against the king. The great bird on which they ride is a contrivance of the evil one, and I know not the limits of its power. But as for the men, I recognize their voices, even though they feign hoarseness, and the color of their eyes is not unfamiliar to me. Seize them, great king, before they escape.”

“He talks like a madman,” Stanley quickly interrupted, quivering with apprehension.

“Still, I am inclined to believe his words. Uncover your heads and faces.”

“When the Inca removes his crimson fringe, for, as the borla is the emblem of his position, so does this head-dress proclaim ours.”

The crowd began to surge forward at this bold defiance hurled at their sovereign, whose eyes blazed as he raised his jewelled hands to heaven. It was a signal to the soldiers. Like an avalanche they swept upon the plane. The engine not running, Stanley’s gun was useless, but Ted swung his weapon and pulled the trigger. Three shots rattled out in quick succession; then the gun jammed and was worthless. The mob was upon them in a flash. Ted and Stanley fought valiantly, but the fight was of short duration. Numerous hands clutched them; they struck back with wrenches, but so soon as one of the soldiers dropped another jumped into his place. The odds against them were too great to be overcome.

In a short time the two had been dragged from their stronghold, their clothes nearly torn from their bodies, and barely conscious of the fact that they were being carried to the Inca’s litter.

Quizquiz’s eyes gleamed with a triumphant and malicious fire. He gloated over his prisoners, and could scarcely keep from leaping from his seat to pounce upon them.

“Ever since the day I caused the hole to be dug under the wall and learned of your escape, I knew you would return; that your greed for gold would overcome your better sense, and that you would again fall into my power. The great day has arrived. You are here, my captives, and I, Quizquiz, am king now! You shall suffer for those insults to me, and for your treachery to Huayna Capac when you protected the youth he had condemned to die. You shall not get away this time, be assured of that. You shall know what it is to suffer bitter agony, and when death comes to relieve you from the torture you will welcome it. Nor shall you long be kept in ignorance of the fate that awaits you, for the knowledge will add to your torment. The highest intellect of the nation shall pass the sentence. The valley will be rid of you forever and we shall live in peace, knowing well that your secret ends with your lives,” he roared.

“Quizquiz,” said Stanley, recovering his senses sufficiently to speak, and shaking his clenched fists up at the Inca before the guards roughly grasped his arms. “You cannot frighten us with your threats; it is you who are afraid, not we. We got the better of you once and we can do it again. If you are a man, come down and fight me now. I will show you up for the weakling you are, depending on that villainous creature called Villac Umu for every word that comes out of your mouth. You haven’t a thought of your own; if a bird had so little sense it would fly backwards. You may kill us if you dare, but so surely as you do our friends in the outer world will come in search of us; they will find the Hidden Valley and enter it as we did, from the sky. Your crimson crown will be dragged in the mud and your people exterminated. Now do your worst and the responsibility for what follows will rest on your own head.”

The throng stood silent as death, hardly daring to breathe. No one had thought it possible that any human being could utter such a tirade against the Inca and live. In awe, they expected the speaker to be struck to the ground by a hand from heaven, for had he not insulted a divinity? Even the king was speechless and waited for the miracle that he felt sure must happen, and that would vindicate his position. But nothing occurred. Then the people began to stir; into their minds had come the first suspicion that Quizquiz was not a god, but very human like the rest of them.

“I am waiting.” Stanley broke the spell with the sound of his voice. “Will you come down and fight, or do you admit before all your people that you are a coward and afraid of me?”

In response Quizquiz flicked his whip and the nobles holding his litter turned and started away.

The multitude, however, did not go away; it broke up into small groups and in hushed voices discussed the momentous events of the day.