commanded.
She was brought before him, this proud, beautiful girl, her flashing gray eyes and soft voice filled with gratitude and questions. Who was he? But he was wounded and tired now, and sank wearily onto a bench. As the others watched from a safe distance, she bathed his wounds with spirits, and bound them with cloth torn from her lacy petticoats.
"This tale has a surprising ending," his father told the enraptured Kit, "and I'll make it brief, because it's almost time for dinner' What did the Sixth Phantom do with the pirates and the beautiful queen?
21
First, he returned Natala and her stolen ships to her country, along with her dowry of treasure. Pirates served as the missing royal crew. All this took time to arrange, and Natala spent many weeks dining and talking with her masked rescuer. He told her about the jungle and the Deep Woods, and this Skull Cave. (Young Kit looked about wonderingly during this.) And he told her of quiet woodland trails and jungle pools and golden beaches and much else. And she told him of her life at court, of her loneliness and unhappiness there, and of the stranger whom she was to marry-a man she had never seen except in portraits-a man who was older than her late father, a man said to be a tyrant. It was a marriage of state-intended as a union between two nations-and that was that.
Now it was time to leave, and she knew that she loved this quiet powerful masked man. And he knew she loved him. For his part, he loved this gentle, warm, and beautiful girl. And she knew he loved her. But she was the Queen, and that was that. Her fleet departed from the pirate city. The masked man sailed a long part of the way, leaving Redbeard, Gillaim, and The Crusher behind as his lieutenants, to rule in his absence. His final order to them was, "do nothing until I return."
After a few idyllic days of sailing along the coast, a long war canoe filled with Mori warriors paddled alongside the frigate, and the masked man climbed in. He waved farewell to his beautiful queen until the ship was across the horizon. Then he headed back to the former pirate city. The Sixth had decided that piracy was over, and none challenged him. The vicious and criminal men among them were jailed. The others followed his command, for he had a daring plan. He would form a Jungle Patrol. A dozen small nations bordered the vast jungle, and along this long border, there was no law, no authority. The region was infested with bandits, who attacked caravans and travelers, and raided villages, and there were none to stop them. The Sixth Phantom decided that this patrol would fill that function, and be supported by the treasuries of all the small nations involved. This took time to develop and caused amazement in the capitals, when they knew who the Jungle Patrol would be: Redbeard and his pirate crews! "Who better, to fight land pirates, than sea pirates?" asked the Sixth.
And the rulers agreed, for they were afraid to refuse. But it was a good thing. And the Jungle Patrol, founded with pirates, exists to this very day.
"What happened to Queen Natala?" demanded Kit.
"Yes!" asked the mother who was also listening.
The beautiful queen returned to her fawning courtiers and their sickly compliments. And she met the king who would be her husband, and he was a lecherous, diseased, stupid man, though a king. She thought of the masked man, and the quiet jungle trails and the Deep Woods with its waterfall. And one night, the very night before the state wedding, she slipped out of the harbor on one of her ships with the ex-pirate crew which had remained with her. And they sailed back to Bangalla. One day, as the Sixth sat quietly on that Skull Throne (Kit and his mother looked out of the Cave toward the throne in the sunlight), excited pygmies rushed to tell him that a personage was approaching.
Approaching she was, Natala, the Queen of France, riding in a jeweled howdah, on an elephant, followed by a dozen more elephants,
She was brought before him, this proud, beautiful girl, her flashing gray eyes and soft voice filled with gratitude and questions. Who was he? But he was wounded and tired now, and sank wearily onto a bench. As the others watched from a safe distance, she bathed his wounds with spirits, and bound them with cloth torn from her lacy petticoats.
"This tale has a surprising ending," his father told the enraptured Kit, "and I'll make it brief, because it's almost time for dinner' What did the Sixth Phantom do with the pirates and the beautiful queen?
21
First, he returned Natala and her stolen ships to her country, along with her dowry of treasure. Pirates served as the missing royal crew. All this took time to arrange, and Natala spent many weeks dining and talking with her masked rescuer. He told her about the jungle and the Deep Woods, and this Skull Cave. (Young Kit looked about wonderingly during this.) And he told her of quiet woodland trails and jungle pools and golden beaches and much else. And she told him of her life at court, of her loneliness and unhappiness there, and of the stranger whom she was to marry-a man she had never seen except in portraits-a man who was older than her late father, a man said to be a tyrant. It was a marriage of state-intended as a union between two nations-and that was that.
Now it was time to leave, and she knew that she loved this quiet powerful masked man. And he knew she loved him. For his part, he loved this gentle, warm, and beautiful girl. And she knew he loved her. But she was the Queen, and that was that. Her fleet departed from the pirate city. The masked man sailed a long part of the way, leaving Redbeard, Gillaim, and The Crusher behind as his lieutenants, to rule in his absence. His final order to them was, "do nothing until I return."
After a few idyllic days of sailing along the coast, a long war canoe filled with Mori warriors paddled alongside the frigate, and the masked man climbed in. He waved farewell to his beautiful queen until the ship was across the horizon. Then he headed back to the former pirate city. The Sixth had decided that piracy was over, and none challenged him. The vicious and criminal men among them were jailed. The others followed his command, for he had a daring plan. He would form a Jungle Patrol. A dozen small nations bordered the vast jungle, and along this long border, there was no law, no authority. The region was infested with bandits, who attacked caravans and travelers, and raided villages, and there were none to stop them. The Sixth Phantom decided that this patrol would fill that function, and be supported by the treasuries of all the small nations involved. This took time to develop and caused amazement in the capitals, when they knew who the Jungle Patrol would be: Redbeard and his pirate crews! "Who better, to fight land pirates, than sea pirates?" asked the Sixth.
And the rulers agreed, for they were afraid to refuse. But it was a good thing. And the Jungle Patrol, founded with pirates, exists to this very day.
"What happened to Queen Natala?" demanded Kit.
"Yes!" asked the mother who was also listening.
The beautiful queen returned to her fawning courtiers and their sickly compliments. And she met the king who would be her husband, and he was a lecherous, diseased, stupid man, though a king. She thought of the masked man, and the quiet jungle trails and the Deep Woods with its waterfall. And one night, the very night before the state wedding, she slipped out of the harbor on one of her ships with the ex-pirate crew which had remained with her. And they sailed back to Bangalla. One day, as the Sixth sat quietly on that Skull Throne (Kit and his mother looked out of the Cave toward the throne in the sunlight), excited pygmies rushed to tell him that a personage was approaching.
Approaching she was, Natala, the Queen of France, riding in a jeweled howdah, on an elephant, followed by a dozen more elephants,
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