s of Usul as the demon said, "I have decided ATREIDES, PAUL 85 ATREIDES, PAUL which of ray donkeys to give thee to " And he cast Usul into the middle of the great desert As he lay there full of pity for him self and of fear for the next moment, a mouse hopped to his ear and spoke to him "My name is Muxabbi, watch me and learn from me, for my gift to you is knowledge ' Hie mouse began to sniff the wind and to watch the spray of sand from the dune tops Usul saw toe mouse start to burrow^ then stop as the sand drifted down When the mouse found the shadow of the wind, where the burrow did not collapse, it tunneled deeper and curled up inside with its nose deep inside its fur The wind rose, and small drifts of sand hid the mouse from sight The wind rose still more, and the sand scratched at Usul's hands and face All at once, before him there stood what seemed like a swirl of winds in the shape of a man, and a voice from it said, "I am Azfar, the Yellow Djinm, and thou hast been given me for my breakfast " And the wind howled and clutched at his cloak, it pushed him this way and that, and the sand stung his body Then Usul thought of the mouse He found the shadow of the wind on the lee side of a dune and crawled from place to place, testing the sand, as the wind tumbled and tossed at him When he found what the mouse had taught, he dug into the sand and scooped himself a burrow He covered himself with his cloak, draping it over his head and knee, tucking it in beneath him The wind screamed, and with one shriek sand would cover the mouth of Usul'i burrow, then with another the sand would be blown away as the gusts eddied and swirled in toe shadow of the wind All the white Usul waited until toe storm blew itself out Then he heard the voice of Azfar again The djmm said, "You have won, Usul I am sorry you are a prisoner but I can do nothing about that If you should ever be free, call me and 1 will do you one service " But when Usul lifted his cloak to speak, he found himself not in toe face of a dune, but in the middle of a great cavern As he sat there in wonder, a mouse hopped onto his knee and spoke to him "My name is Rauhanm," said toe mouse "Watch me and learn from me, for my gift to you is peace " "With that the mouse hopped to toe floor and crouched as if it were praying Usul watched but the mouse did not move He stretched forth his hand and touched it, but it did not move He rolled it over and lifted it up, but still it did not move Usul, thinking that toe mouse was dead put it on the floor again only to see it rise, shake itself, and run off as a distant rumble was heard The rumbles grew louder, as if someone marched toward him beating a great drum, and toe sounds echoed from the walls of the cave until Usul's head rang Between toe beats of the drum, Usul heard a rattling, clacking voice say, "I am Ahmar, toe Red Djmrii Thou art not a man Usul, nor even a very big boy, but thou wilt do for my dinner" And the beating of the drum became louder and louder until rocks cracked and shattered on toe walls of the cave Usui thought he could bear no more, and fell to his knees, clutching his ears and grinding his teeth Then he thought of the mouse, and praying, he looked deeper and deeper inside of himself, for the small place where all is quiet He looked and breathed from the center of his soul, and as he looked, he heard toe drum lesb and less Then he found the silent place, and rested there in reverence After what seemed only a beat of a bird's wing, he felt a touch on his shoulder and he knew all at once that a pebble had fallen on him He heard Ahmar's voice again, but weak and far off "Well, Usul you are more than you look Too bad you are a prisoner, but that is out of my hands When you are your own master, call me, and I will do you a service ' Usul opened his eyes to look for the demon, but saw none, nor even the cave in which he had been Now he saw nothing but a gray floor, stretching as far as he could see all round him, with a gray sky over ail He stood up and marveled, "Is this what death is like1' Has Alhen eaten me after alP ' But he knew this was not so, for he saw something small move far off It was a mouse, which hopped to him and onto his shoe and said to him, "My name is Basbasiyah, watch me and learn from me With that the mouse lept to the floor and began to wiggle its tail First it hopped on one foot then on the other It jumped up and down it spun in circles, it stood on its nose It capered and swaggered ATREIDES, PAUL 86 ATRE1PES, PAUL and danced.