to its feet and with regal deliberateness
stalked into the open ground bordering the line of fires. Slowly the
jungle king strode along the unsteady line of burning wood, his lithe
sinews rolling beneath the shimmering hide, the sinuous tail moving in
graceful undulations. Soundless were his padded paws on the turf and the
mighty voice was silent.

Several minutes passed before one of the guards caught sight of the
single lion. The man lifted a loud shout of alarm and several more of
the sentries hastened to join their companion. When he pointed out Sadu
less than a spear's cast outside the fires, the others readied their
weapons for the attack they expected at any moment; while Sadu, seeing
the flurry of motion among the hated manthings, lifted his mighty head
and gave voice to a thunderous roar. "... Dylara! Dylara!"

The cave girl awakened instantly at sound of the frightened voice. She
sat up and threw back the folds of her sleeping furs. In the flickering
reddish glow of the night fires she saw the slender form of the princess
Alurna bending over her.

"What is the matter?" Majok's daughter demanded.

"The lions!" Alurna moaned through chattering teeth. "Listen!"

Fully aroused by the other's panic, Dylara rose from the ground and
tried to pierce the velvet wall beyond the light. Most of the camp's
sentries were grouped at a point near the line of fire, fingering their
spear and bows nervously and staring at something between them and the
jungle.

... Sadu ceased his uneasy pacing, his tail lashing now in brief, jerky
movements. Too long had he put off feeding. The fearsome fires were
dimmer now; let them die down just a little more and he would leap
across them and take his food.

Elsewhere among the sheltering trees the other lions watched him with
unblinking attention. By now there were fully a score of the mammoth
brutes lying among the tall grasses and reeds. In two's and threes--even
one family of six--they had assembled, drawn to the scene by the voices
of the first arrivals.

Again Sadu threw back his head and poured out his rumbling roar, seeking
to build up his confidence sufficiently to brave the fires protecting
his prey. Cautiously he began to inch his way toward the flames, his
hindquarters held low, his majestic head extended and flattened until
his nose was close to the ground.

While behind him other lions, made bold by his move, also began to creep
toward the circle of fire.