un--who will cast your
skin under my mares in stall for them to trample and thrust your red
flayed body upon a pole in the grain fields to frighten away the crows!
Does that answer you?"

Her laughter ceased; her eyes dwelt upon him--filled with an infernal
joy.

"The son of Cherkis!" I heard her murmur. "He has a son--"

There was a sneer on the cruel face; clearly he thought her awed. Quick
was his disillusionment.

"Listen, Kulun," she cried. "I am Norhala--daughter of another Norhala
and of Rustum, whom Cherkis tortured and slew. Now go, you lying spawn
of unclean toads--go and tell your father that I, Norhala, am at his
gates. And bring back with you the maid and the man. Go, I say!"

CHAPTER XXV. CHERKIS

There was stark amazement on Kulun's face; and fear now enough. He
dropped from the parapet among his men. There came one loud trumpet
blast.

Out from the battlements poured a storm of arrows, a cloud of javelins.
The squat catapults leaped forward. From them came a hail of boulders.
Before that onrushing tempest of death I flinched.

I heard Norhala's golden laughter and before they could reach us arrow
and javelin and boulder were checked as though myriads of hands reached
out from the Thing under us and caught them. Down they dropped.

Forth from the great spindle shot a gigantic arm, hammer tipped with
cubes. It struck the wall close to where the scarlet armored Kulun had
vanished.

Under its blow the stones crumbled. With the fragments fell the
soldiers; were buried beneath them.

A hundred feet in width a breach gaped in the battlements. Out shot the
arm again; hooked its hammer tip over the parapet, tore away a stretch
of the breastwork as though it had been cardboard. Beside the breach an
expanse of the broad flat top lay open like a wide platform.

The arm withdrew, and out from the whole length of the spindle thrust
other arms, hammer tipped, held high aloft, menacing.

From all the length of the wall arose panic outcry. Abruptly the storm
of arrows ended; the catapults were still. Again the trumpets sounded;
the crying ceased. Down fell a silence, terrified, stifling.

Kulun stepped forth again, both hands held high. Gone was his arrogance.

"A parley," he shouted. "A parley, Norhala. If we give you the maid and
man, will you go?"

"Go get them," she answered. "And take with you this my command to
Cherkis--that HE return with the two!"

For an instant Kulun hesitated. Up th