CHAPTER X “THE THUNDERBOLT IS SWIFTER THAN THUNDER”

 IWA wished to make the secret entrance to the crater¹ known to Kaanaana, and they both thought it should not be disclosed to any one else. So he accompanied her on her return, the night after her arrival, having first given orders that no one should follow them under pain of death.

 

They found Aelani awake. “Keike,” said Hiwa, “this is your father. His spearmen await your commands.”

 

Then Kaanaana kneeled before his son and kissed his feet. But Aelani raised him from the ground and put his arms about him and kissed him.

 

“My father,” he said, “I love you because [72] my mother loves you better than her own life, and has talked to me about you every day since I was a little child. While the homage² due the moi cannot be omitted in public, between us three I am not a god among men, but only your son.”

 

Then Kaanaana embraced Aelani, and the two ate together, Hiwa sitting not far off, for it was contrary to the commands of Ku for men and women to eat together. After the moi and his father had eaten by themselves, and Hiwa had eaten by herself, Aelani slept in the grass hut, and Hiwa and Kaanaana slept under the great koa tree, for the moon had gone behind the mountains, and it was not safe to attempt taking the fisherman’s boat through the passage in pitchy darkness.

 

It was easy, however, in daylight, for there were three of them and a calm sea. So they set forth³ early in the morning and went to Niulii. But there were fishermen from Waipio fishing opposite the cliff who fled home in terror, and reported that they had seen the Spirit of Hiwa issuing from the depths of the sea, and with her the Lord of Kohala and a young man whom they knew [73] not, and that the three had a boat provided by the God of the Ocean, exceeding light and swift, in which they sped down the coast. The tale was taken straightway to Aa, and it greatly troubled him.

 

Meanwhile rumors⁴ had gone forth through all of Kohala round about Niulii, and, when Aelani arrived, wearing the royal mamo, thousands of people had assembled to do him homage. They were cooking a great feast for him in an umu or underground oven of hot stones—fatted dog and pig which he had never tasted, and taro⁵ and bread-fruit, and many kinds of lawalu fish. Also they had prepared many kinds of delicate raw fish, flavored with kukui nuts, and crabs⁶ and shrimps⁷ and mosses⁸. There were also fruits and berries, both from the lowlands and from the mountains. Neither was there any lack of awa that all might drink and be merry.

 

But Aelani, as soon as he had received the homage of the people, called a council of war, for time was precious, and the thought that Manoa was in the power of his enemy was like a hot coal in his breast.

 

[74] It was only a dozen miles from Niulii to Waipio by water; but Kaanaana had not war canoes wherewith to fight Aa on the sea, neither had he canoes of any kind to carry a sufficient force of fighting men. Therefore, an attack on the coast side would have been madness; but the Saw-Teeth were impassable, and the trail around them was long and difficult.

 

“My Lord of Kohala,” inquired Aelani, “how many spearmen can you have at daylight to-morrow morning, with provisions to cross the mountains?”

 

“Not more than eight hundred,” replied Kaanaana. “But I will have five thousand on the fourth day.”

 

“Eight hundred to-morrow,” said Aelani, “are better than five thousand on the fourth day. If Aa depends on Kaaahu, Lord of Honokaa, he leans on a fern that will sway back and forth as the wind blows. Yet the ahupuaa of Honokaa is the nearest of the great lordships, and the only one from which Aa can muster⁹ many spears before the fourth day. We should strike before any of the great chiefs can come to his help from the [75] south, for we are few at best, and only a small part of the kingdom.”

 

Kaanaana fell upon his knees and bowed his head to the ground. “Child of the gods,” he said, “shall I speak my manao?”

 

“Rise and speak!” exclaimed Aelani. “Thou art the greatest and wisest of my nobles. Thy moi will ever listen to thy manao.”

 

“My manao is that the great chiefs will not hasten from the south. They do not love Aa, and will stand aloof¹⁰ if they dare, or side with us if we seem the stronger. Moreover, Aa has twelve hundred fighting men at Waipio, and Kaaahu can bring him a thousand more before we can get there. Our way is over steep and difficult mountains, among sharp rocks and utter desolation, where mice would die of hunger and thirst, and even lizards¹¹ cannot live. Our spearmen, exhausted¹² with the journey, must fight men strong with rest and sleep. If we start to-morrow, we shall also be greatly outnumbered, and if we lose the battle not one of us will ever return. If we wait till the fourth day, and only one or two chiefs come against [76] us from the south, we can meet Aa with equal numbers. Yet it shall be as the moi kane says. His word is as the word of Ku.”

 

“Kaanaana, Lord of Kohala,” said Aelani, “I thank thee for honest counsel, and I would also have the lesser¹³ chiefs freely speak their manao.”

 

Thereupon the lesser chiefs fell upon their knees and bowed their heads to the earth, and the foremost of them spoke¹⁴ for all and said: “The way is most difficult, and eight hundred spearmen are not many, yet what the Child of the Gods says that we will do, whether it be life or death. His word is as the word of Ku.”

 

Then Hiwa spoke, as was her right in the royal councils, being equal in birth and rank to the moi kane himself, although not in power. And she said: “The Lord of Kohala is the wisest and greatest of the nobles. He and the lesser chiefs have spoken well; but fear now dwells in the heart of Aa and in the hearts of his followers¹⁵. My manao is to strike before it passeth away, that the hearts of the chiefs in the south may also become like white wax of cocoanuts, and [77] that they may turn from him in the beginning.”

 

“As Hiwa hath said, so be it!” exclaimed Aelani. “We march to-morrow at break of day. The thunderbolt is swifter than the thunder.”

 

Instantly fast runners were sent forth to summon the spearmen and get supplies of food. Then Aelani ate and drank, and the chiefs were merry, but Aelani’s merriment was feigned¹⁶, for he greatly feared for Manoa’s safety, and was impatient for battle because she was in the power of his enemy.

 

1 crater   

n.火山口，弹坑

参考例句：

• With a telescope you can see the huge crater of Ve-suvius.用望远镜你能看到巨大的维苏威火山口。
• They came to the lip of a dead crater.他们来到了一个死火山口。

2 homage   

n.尊敬，敬意，崇敬

参考例句：

• We pay homage to the genius of Shakespeare.我们对莎士比亚的天才表示敬仰。
• The soldiers swore to pay their homage to the Queen.士兵们宣誓效忠于女王陛下。

3 forth   

adv.向前；向外，往外

参考例句：

• The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

4 rumors   

n.传闻( rumor的名词复数 )；[古]名誉；咕哝；[古]喧嚷v.传闻( rumor的第三人称单数 )；[古]名誉；咕哝；[古]喧嚷

参考例句：

• Rumors have it that the school was burned down. 有谣言说学校给烧掉了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Rumors of a revolt were afloat. 叛变的谣言四起。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 taro   

n.芋，芋头

参考例句：

• Main grain crop has taro,corn,banana to wait.主要粮食作物有芋头、玉米、芭蕉等。
• You celebrate your birthday with taro,red bean and butter.用红豆、芋头和黄油给自己过生日。

6 crabs   

n.蟹( crab的名词复数 )；阴虱寄生病；蟹肉v.捕蟹( crab的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• As we walked along the seashore we saw lots of tiny crabs. 我们在海岸上散步时看到很多小蟹。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The fish and crabs scavenge for decaying tissue. 鱼和蟹搜寻腐烂的组织为食。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 shrimps   

n.虾，小虾( shrimp的名词复数 )；矮小的人

参考例句：

• Shrimps are a popular type of seafood. 小虾是比较普遍的一种海味。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I'm going to have shrimps for my tea. 傍晚的便餐我要吃点虾。 来自辞典例句

8 mosses   

n. 藓类, 苔藓植物 名词moss的复数形式

参考例句：

• Ferns, mosses and fungi spread by means of spores. 蕨类植物、苔藓和真菌通过孢子传播蔓生。
• The only plants to be found in Antarctica are algae, mosses, and lichens. 在南极洲所发现的植物只有藻类、苔藓和地衣。

9 muster   

v.集合，收集，鼓起，激起；n.集合，检阅，集合人员，点名册

参考例句：

• Go and muster all the men you can find.去集合所有你能找到的人。
• I had to muster my courage up to ask him that question.我必须鼓起勇气向他问那个问题。

10 aloof   

adj.远离的；冷淡的，漠不关心的

参考例句：

• Never stand aloof from the masses.千万不可脱离群众。
• On the evening the girl kept herself timidly aloof from the crowd.这小女孩在晚会上一直胆怯地远离人群。

11 lizards   

n.蜥蜴( lizard的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Nothing lives in Pompeii except crickets and beetles and lizards. 在庞培城里除了蟋蟀、甲壳虫和蜥蜴外，没有别的生物。 来自辞典例句
• Can lizards reproduce their tails? 蜥蜴的尾巴断了以后能再生吗？ 来自辞典例句

12 exhausted   

adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的

参考例句：

• It was a long haul home and we arrived exhausted.搬运回家的这段路程特别长，到家时我们已筋疲力尽。
• Jenny was exhausted by the hustle of city life.珍妮被城市生活的忙乱弄得筋疲力尽。

13 lesser   

adj.次要的，较小的；adv.较小地，较少地

参考例句：

• Kept some of the lesser players out.不让那些次要的球员参加联赛。
• She has also been affected,but to a lesser degree.她也受到波及，但程度较轻。

14 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

15 followers   

追随者( follower的名词复数 )； 用户； 契据的附面； 从动件

参考例句：

• the followers of Mahatma Gandhi 圣雄甘地的拥护者
• The reformer soon gathered a band of followers round him. 改革者很快就获得一群追随者支持他。

16 feigned   

a.假装的，不真诚的

参考例句：

• He feigned indifference to criticism of his work. 他假装毫不在意别人批评他的作品。
• He accepted the invitation with feigned enthusiasm. 他假装热情地接受了邀请。