ery
grateful, as you may suppose, and agreed to support Prince Inga in
whatever action he commanded.

He led them to the middle cavern, where all the guards and overseers
fled in terror at his approach, and soon he had broken apart the chains
of the slaves who had been working in that part of the mines. Then they
approached the first cavern and liberated all there.

The slaves had been treated so cruelly by the servants of King Gos that
they were eager to pursue and slay them, in revenge; but Inga held them
back and formed them into companies, each company having its own leader.
Then he called the leaders together and instructed them to march in good
order along the path to the City of Regos, where he would meet them and
tell them what to do next.

They readily agreed to obey him, and, arming themselves with iron bars
and pick-axes which they brought from the mines, the slaves began their
march to the city.

Zella at first wished to be left behind, that she might make her way to
her own home, but neither Rinkitink nor Inga thought it was safe for her
to wander alone through the forest, so they induced her to return with
them to the city.

The boy beached his boat this time at the same place as when he first
landed at Regos, and while many of the warriors stood on the shore and
before the walls of the city, not one of them attempted to interfere
with the boy in any way. Indeed, they seemed uneasy and anxious, and
when Inga met Captain Buzzub the boy asked if anything had happened in
his absence.

"A great deal has happened," replied Buzzub. "Our King and Queen have
run away and left us, and we don't know what to do."

"Run away!" exclaimed Inga. "Where did they go to?"

"Who knows?" said the man, shaking his head despondently. "They departed
together a few hours ago, in a boat with forty rowers, and they took
with them the King and Queen of Pingaree!"

[Illustration]

The Flight of the Rulers

[Illustration]

CHAPTER 15

Now it seems that when Queen Cor fled from her island to Regos, she had
wit enough, although greatly frightened, to make a stop at the royal
dairy, which was near to the bridge, and to drag poor Queen Garee from
the butter-house and across to Regos with her. The warriors of King Gos
had never before seen the terrible Queen Cor frightened, and therefore
when she came running across the bridge of boats, dragging the Queen of
Pingaree after her by one arm, the woman's great fright