\"I
hadnoarms，\"murmuredAramis，aswildandterribleinhiswrathastheshadeofDido。？Andthen，withouttouchingFouquet\'shand，heturnedhisheadaside，andsteppedbackapaceortwo。？Hislastwordwasanimprecation，hislastgestureacurse，whichhisblood—stainedhandseemedtoinvoke，asitsprinkledonFouquet\'sfaceafewdropsofbloodwhichflowedfromhisbreast。？Andbothofthemdartedoutoftheroombythesecretstaircasewhichleddowntotheinnercourtyard。？Fouquetorderedhisbesthorses，whileAramispausedatthefootofthestaircasewhichledtoPorthos\'sapartment。？Hereflectedprofoundlyandforsometime，whileFouquet\'scarriageleftthecourtyardatfullgallop。
\"ShallIgoalone？\"saidAramistohimself，\"orwarntheprince？？Oh！fury！？Warntheprince，andthen—dowhat？？Takehimwithme？？Tocarrythisaccusingwitnessaboutwithmeeverywhere？？War，too，wouldfollow—civilwar，implacableinitsnature！？Andwithoutanyresourcesavemyself—itisimpossible！？Whatcouldhedowithoutme？？Oh！withoutmehewillbeutterlydestroyed。？Yetwhoknows—letdestinybefulfilled—condemnedhewas，lethimremainsothen！？GoodorevilSpirit—gloomyandscornfulPower，whommencallthegeniusofhumanity，thouartapowermorerestlesslyuncertain，morebaselesslyuseless，thanwildmountainwind！？Chance，thouterm\'stthyself，butthouartnothing;thouinflamesteverythingwiththybreath，crumblestmountainsatthyapproach，andsuddenlyartthyselfdestroyedatthepresenceoftheCrossofdeadwoodbehindwhichstandanotherPowerinvisiblelikethyself—whomthoudeniest，perhaps，butwhoseavenginghandisonthee，andhurlstheeinthedustdishonoredandunnamed！？Lost！—I
amlost！？Whatcanbedone？？FleetoBelle—Isle？？Yes，andleavePorthosbehindme，totalkandrelatethewholeaffairtoeveryone！？Porthos，too，whowillhavetosufferforwhathehasdone。？IwillnotletpoorPorthossuffer。？Heseemslikeoneofthemembersofmyownframe;andhisgrieformisfortunewouldbemineaswell。？Porthosshallleavewithme，andshallfollowmydestiny。？Itmustbeso。\"
AndAramis，apprehensiveofmeetinganyonetowhomhishurriedmovementsmightappearsuspicious，ascendedthestaircasewithoutbeingperceived。？Porthos，sorecentlyreturnedfromParis，wasalreadyinaprofoundsleep;hishugebodyforgotitsfatigue，ashismindforgotitsthoughts。？Aramisentered，lightasashadow，andplacedhisnervousgrasponthegiant\'sshoulder。？\"Come，Porthos，\"hecried，\"come。\"
Porthosobeyed，rosefromhisbed，openedhiseyes，evenbeforehisintelligenceseemedtobearoused。
\"Weleaveimmediately，\"saidAramis。
\"Ah！\"
returnedPorthos。
\"Weshallgomounted，andfasterthanwehaveevergoneinourlives。\"
\"Ah！\"
repeatedPorthos。
\"Dressyourself，myfriend。\"
Andhehelpedthegianttodresshimself，andthrusthisgoldanddiamondsintohispocket。？Whilsthewasthusengaged，aslightnoiseattractedhisattention，andonlookingup，hesawD\'Artagnanwatchingthemthroughthehalf—openeddoor。？Aramisstarted。
\"Whatthedevilareyoudoingthereinsuchanagitatedmanner？\"saidthemusketeer。
\"Hush！\"
saidPorthos。
\"Wearegoingoffonamissionofgreatimportance，\"addedthebishop。
\"Youareveryfortunate，\"saidthemusketeer。
\"Oh，dearme！\"saidPorthos，\"Ifeelsowearied;Iwouldfarsoonerhavebeenfastasleep。？Buttheserviceoftheking？;
\"HaveyouseenM。Fouquet？\"saidAramistoD\'Artagnan。
\"Yes，thisveryminute，inacarriage。\"
\"Whatdidhesaytoyou？\"
\"\'Adieu;\'
nothingmore。\"
\"Wasthatall？\"
\"Whatelsedoyouthinkhecouldsay？？AmI
worthanythingnow，sinceyouhavegotintosuchhighfavor？\"
\"Listen，\"
saidAramis，embracingthemusketeer;\"yourgoodtimesarereturningagain。？Youwillhavenooccasiontobejealousofanyone。\"
\"Ah！
bah！\"
\"I
predictthatsomethingwillhappentoyouto—daywhichwillincreaseyourimportancemorethanever。\"
\"Really？\"
\"YouknowthatIknowallthenews？\"
\"Oh，yes！\"
\"Come，Porthos，areyouready？？Letusgo。\"
\"I
amquiteready，Aramis。\"
\"LetusembraceD\'Artagnanfirst。\"
\"Mostcertainly。\"
\"Butthehorses？\"
\"Oh！
thereisnowantofthemhere。？Willyouhavemine？\"
\"No;
Porthoshashisownstud。？Soadieu！
adieu！\"
Thefugitivesmountedtheirhorsesbeneaththeveryeyesofthecaptainofthemusketeers，whoheldPorthos\'sstirrupforhim，andgazedafterthemuntiltheywereoutofsight。
\"Onanyotheroccasion，\"thoughttheGascon，\"Ishouldsaythatthosegentlemenweremakingtheirescape;butinthesedayspoliticsseemsochangedthatsuchanexitistermedgoingonamission。？Ihavenoobjection;letmeattendtomyownaffairs，thatismorethanenoughforme，\"—andhephilosophicallyenteredhisapartments。
ChapterXXII:
ShowingHowtheCountersignWasRespectedattheBastile。
Fouquettorealongasfastashishorsescoulddraghim。？Onhiswayhetrembledwithhorrorattheideaofwhathadjustbeenrevealedtohim。
\"Whatmusthavebeen，\"hethought，\"theyouthofthoseextraordinarymen，who，evenasageisstealingfastuponthem，arestillabletoconceivesuchgiganticplans，andcarrythemthroughwithoutatremor？\"
AtonemomenthecouldnotresisttheideathatallAramishadjustbeenrecountingtohimwasnothingmorethanadream，andwhetherthefableitselfwasnotthesnare;sothatwhenFouquetarrivedattheBastile，hemightpossiblyfindanorderofarrest，whichwouldsendhimtojointhedethronedking。？Stronglyimpressedwiththisidea，hegavecertainsealedordersonhisroute，whilefreshhorseswerebeingharnessedtohiscarriage。？TheseorderswereaddressedtoM。d\'Artagnanandtocertainotherswhosefidelitytothekingwasfarabovesuspicion。
\"Inthisway，\"saidFouquettohimself，\"prisonerornot，IshallhaveperformedthedutythatIowemyhonor。？Theorderswillnotreachthemuntilaftermyreturn，ifIshouldreturnfree，andconsequentlytheywillnothavebeenunsealed。？Ishalltakethembackagain。？IfIamdelayed;itwillbebecausesomemisfortunewillhavebefallenme;andinthatcaseassistancewillbesentformeaswellasfortheking。\"
Preparedinthismanner，thesuperintendentarrivedattheBastile;hehadtraveledattherateoffiveleaguesandahalfthehour。？EverycircumstanceofdelaywhichAramishadescapedinhisvisittotheBastilebefellFouquet。？Itwasuselessgivinghisname，equallyuselesshisbeingrecognized;hecouldnotsucceedinobtaininganentrance。？Bydintofentreaties，threats，commands，hesucceededininducingasentineltospeaktooneofthesubalterns，whowentandtoldthemajor。？Asforthegovernortheydidnotevendaredisturbhim。？Fouquetsatinhiscarriage，attheoutergateofthefortress，chafingwithrageandimpatience，awaitingthereturnoftheofficers，whoatlastre—appearedwithasufficientlysulkyair。
\"Well，\"
saidFouquet，impatiently，\"whatdidthemajorsay？\"
\"Well，monsieur，\"repliedthesoldier，\"themajorlaughedinmyface。？HetoldmethatM。FouquetwasatVaux，andthatevenwereheatParis，M。Fouquetwouldnotgetupatsoearlyanhourasthepresent。\"
\"Mordieu！youareanabsolutesetoffools，\"criedtheminister，dartingoutofthecarriage;andbeforethesubalternhadtimetoshutthegate，Fouquetsprangthroughit，andranforwardinspiteofthesoldier，whocriedoutforassistance。？Fouquetgainedground，regardlessofthecriesoftheman，who，however，havingatlastcomeupwithFouquet，calledouttothesentinelofthesecondgate，\"Lookout，lookout，sentinel！\"？Themancrossedhispikebeforetheminister;butthelatter，robustandactive，andhurriedaway，too，byhispassion，wrestedthepikefromthesoldierandstruckhimaviolentblowontheshoulderwithit。？Thesubaltern，whoapproachedtooclosely，receivedashareoftheblowsaswell。？Bothofthemutteredloudandfuriouscries，atthesoundofwhichthewholeofthefirstbodyoftheadvancedguardpouredoutoftheguardhouse。？Amongthemtherewasone，however，whorecognizedthesuperintendent，andwhocalled，\"Monseigneur，ah！monseigneur。？Stop，stop，youfellows！\"？Andheeffectuallycheckedthesoldiers，whowereonthepointofrevengingtheircompanions。？Fouquetdesiredthemtoopenthegate，buttheyrefusedtodosowithoutthecountersign;hedesiredthemtoinformthegovernorofhispresence;butthelatterhadalreadyheardthedisturbanceatthegate。？Heranforward，followedbyhismajor，andaccompaniedbyapicketoftwentymen，persuadedthatanattackwasbeingmadeontheBastile。？BaisemeauxalsorecognizedFouquetimmediately，anddroppedtheswordhebravelyhadbeenbrandishing。
\"Ah！
monseigneur，\"hestammered，\"howcanIexcuse—\"
\"Monsieur，\"
saidthesuperintendent，flushedwithanger，andheatedbyhisexertions，\"Icongratulateyou。？Yourwatchandwardareadmirablykept。\"
Baisemeauxturnedpale，thinkingthatthisremarkwasmadeironically，andportendedafuriousburstofanger。？ButFouquethadrecoveredhisbreath，and，beckoningthesentinelandthesubaltern，whowererubbingtheirshoulders，towardshim，hesaid，\"Therearetwentypistolesforthesentinel，andfiftyfortheofficer。？Prayreceivemycompliments，gentlemen。？Iwillnotfailtospeaktohismajestyaboutyou。？Andnow，M。Baisemeaux，awordwithyou。\"
Andhefollowedthegovernortohisofficialresidence，accompaniedbyamurmurofgeneralsatisfaction。？Baisemeauxwasalreadytremblingwithshameanduneasiness。？Aramis\'searlyvisit，fromthatmoment，seemedtopossessconsequences，whichafunctionarysuchashe（Baisemeaux）was，wasperfectlyjustifiedinapprehending。？Itwasquiteanotherthing，however，whenFouquetinasharptoneofvoice，andwithanimperiouslook，said，\"YouhaveseenM。d\'Herblaythismorning？\"
\"Yes，monseigneur。\"
\"Andareyounothorrifiedatthecrimeofwhichyouhavemadeyourselfanaccomplice？\"
\"Well，\"
thoughtBaisemeaux，\"goodsofar;\"andthenheadded，aloud，\"Butwhatcrime，monseigneur，doyoualludeto？\"
\"Thatforwhichyoucanbequarteredalive，monsieur—donotforgetthat！？Butthisisnotatimetoshowanger。？Conductmeimmediatelytotheprisoner。\"
\"Towhatprisoner？\"saidBaisemeaux，trembling。
\"Youpretendtobeignorant？？Verygood—itisthebestplanforyou，perhaps;forif，infact，youweretoadmityourparticipationinsuchacrime，itwouldbealloverwithyou。？Iwish，therefore，toseemtobelieveinyourassumptionofignorance。\"
\"I
entreatyou，monseigneur—\"
\"Thatwilldo。？Leadmetotheprisoner。\"
\"ToMarchiali？\"
\"WhoisMarchiali？\"
\"TheprisonerwhowasbroughtbackthismorningbyM。d\'Herblay。\"
\"HeiscalledMarchiali？\"saidthesuperintendent，hisconvictionsomewhatshakenbyBaisemeaux\'scoolmanner。
\"Yes，monseigneur;thatisthenameunderwhichhewasinscribedhere。\"
FouquetlookedsteadilyatBaisemeaux，asifhewouldreadhisveryheart;andperceived，withthatclear—sightednessmostmenpossesswhoareaccustomedtotheexerciseofpower，thatthemanwasspeakingwithperfectsincerity。？Besides，inobservinghisfaceforafewmoments，hecouldnotbelievethatAramiswouldhavechosensuchaconfidant。
\"Itistheprisoner，\"saidthesuperintendenttohim，\"whomM。d\'Herblaycarriedawaythedaybeforeyesterday？\"
\"Yes，monseigneur。\"
\"Andwhomhebroughtbackthismorning？\"addedFouquet，quickly:forheunderstoodimmediatelythemechanismofAramis\'splan。
\"Precisely，monseigneur。\"
\"AndhisnameisMarchiali，yousay？\"
\"Yes，Marchiali。？Ifmonseigneurhascomeheretoremovehim，somuchthebetter，forIwasgoingtowriteabouthim。\"
\"Whathashedone，then？\"
\"Eversincethismorninghehasannoyedmeextremely。？Hehashadsuchterriblefitsofpassion，asalmosttomakemebelievethathewouldbringtheBastileitselfdownaboutourears。\"
\"I
willsoonrelieveyouofhispossession，\"saidFouquet。
\"Ah！
somuchthebetter。\"
\"Conductmetohisprison。\"
\"Willmonseigneurgivemetheorder？\"
\"Whatorder？\"
\"Anorderfromtheking。\"
\"WaituntilIsignyouone。\"
\"Thatwillnotbesufficient，monseigneur。？I
musthaveanorderfromtheking。\"
Fouquetassumedanirritatedexpression。？\"Asyouaresoscrupulous，\"hesaid，\"withregardtoallowingprisonerstoleave，showmetheorderbywhichthisonewassetatliberty。\"
BaisemeauxshowedhimtheordertoreleaseSeldon。
\"Verygood，\"saidFouquet;\"butSeldonisnotMarchiali。\"
\"ButMarchialiisnotatliberty，monseigneur;heishere。\"
\"ButyousaidthatM。d\'Herblaycarriedhimawayandbroughthimbackagain。\"
\"I
didnotsayso。\"
\"Sosurelydidyousayit，thatIalmostseemtohearitnow。\"
\"Itwasaslipofmytongue，then，monseigneur。\"
\"Takecare，M。Baisemeaux，takecare。\"
\"I
havenothingtofear，monseigneur;Iamactingaccordingtotheverystrictestregulation。\"
\"Doyoudaretosayso？\"
\"Iwouldsaysointhepresenceofoneoftheapostles。？M。d\'HerblaybroughtmeanordertosetSeldonatliberty。？Seldonisfree。\"
\"ItellyouthatMarchialihaslefttheBastile。\"
\"Youmustprovethat，monseigneur。\"
\"Letmeseehim。\"
\"You，monseigneur，whogovernthiskingdom，knowverywellthatnoonecanseeanyoftheprisonerswithoutanexpressorderfromtheking。\"
\"M。
d\'Herblayhasentered，however。\"
\"Thatremainstobeproved，monseigneur。\"
\"M。deBaisemeaux，oncemoreIwarnyoutopayparticularattentiontowhatyouaresaying。\"
\"Allthedocumentsarethere，monseigneur。\"
\"M。
d\'Herblayisoverthrown。\"
\"Overthrown？
—M。d\'Herblay！？Impossible！\"
\"Youseethathehasundoubtedlyinfluencedyou。\"
\"No，monseigneur;whatdoes，infact，influenceme，istheking\'sservice。？Iamdoingmyduty。？Givemeanorderfromhim，andyoushallenter。\"
\"Stay，M。
legouverneur，Igiveyoumywordthatifyouallowmetoseetheprisoner，I
willgiveyouanorderfromthekingatonce。\"
\"Giveittomenow，monseigneur。\"
\"Andthat，ifyourefuseme，Iwillhaveyouandallyourofficersarrestedonthespot。\"
\"Beforeyoucommitsuchanactofviolence，monseigneur，youwillreflect，\"saidBaisemeaux，whohadturnedverypale，\"thatwewillonlyobeyanordersignedbytheking;andthatitwillbejustaseasyforyoutoobtainonetoseeMarchialiastoobtainonetodomesomuchinjury;me，too，whoamperfectlyinnocent。\"
\"True。？True！\"criedFouquet，furiously;
\"perfectlytrue。？M。deBaisemeaux，\"
headded，inasonorousvoice，drawingtheunhappygovernortowardshim，\"doyouknowwhyIamsoanxioustospeaktotheprisoner？\"
\"No，monseigneur;andallowmetoobservethatyouareterrifyingmeoutofmysenses;Iamtremblingallover—infact，IfeelasthoughIwereabouttofaint。\"
\"Youwillstandabetterchanceoffaintingoutright，MonsieurBaisemeaux，whenIreturnhereattheheadoftenthousandmenandthirtypiecesofcannon。\"
\"Goodheavens，monseigneur，youarelosingyoursenses。\"
\"WhenI
haverousedthewholepopulationofParisagainstyouandyouraccursedtowers，andhavebatteredopenthegatesofthisplace，andhangedyoutothetopmosttreeofyonderpinnacle！\"
\"Monseigneur！
monseigneur！forpity\'ssake！\"
\"Igiveyoutenminutestomakeupyourmind，\"addedFouquet，inacalmvoice。？\"Iwillsitdownhere，inthisarmchair，andwaitforyou;if，intenminutes\'time，youstillpersist，I
leavethisplace，andyoumaythinkmeasmadasyoulike。？Then—youshallsee！\"
Baisemeauxstampedhisfootonthegroundlikeamaninastateofdespair，buthedidnotreplyasinglesyllable;whereuponFouquetseizedapenandink，andwrote:
\"OrderforM。lePr関魌desMarchandstoassemblethemunicipalguardandtomarchupontheBastileontheking\'simmediateservice。\"
Baisemeauxshruggedhisshoulders。？Fouquetwrote:
\"OrderfortheDucdeBouillonandM。lePrincedeCond？toassumethecommandoftheSwissguards，oftheking\'sguards，andtomarchupontheBastileontheking\'simmediateservice\";
Baisemeauxreflected。？Fouquetstillwrote:
\"Orderforeverysoldier，citizen，orgentlemantoseizeandapprehend，whereverhemaybefound，leChevalierd\'Herblay，Ev阸uedeVannes，andhisaccomplices，whoare:
first，M。deBaisemeaux，governoroftheBastile，suspectedofthecrimesofhightreasonandrebellion—\"
\"Stop，monseigneur！\"criedBaisemeaux;\"Idonotunderstandasinglejotofthewholematter;butsomanymisfortunes，evenwereitmadnessitselfthathadsetthemattheirawfulwork，mighthappenhereinacoupleofhours，thattheking，bywhomImustbejudged，willseewhetherIhavebeenwronginwithdrawingthecountersignbeforethisfloodofimminentcatastrophes。？Comewithmetothekeep，monseigneur，youshallseeMarchiali。\"
Fouquetdartedoutoftheroom，followedbyBaisemeauxashewipedtheperspirationfromhisface。？\"Whataterriblemorning！\"hesaid;\"whatadisgraceforme！\"
\"Walkfaster，\"repliedFouquet。
Baisemeauxmadeasigntothejailertoprecedethem。？Hewasafraidofhiscompanion，whichthelattercouldnotfailtoperceive。
\"Atrucetothischild\'splay，\"hesaid，roughly。？\"Letthemanremainhere;takethekeysyourself，andshowmetheway。？Notasingleperson，doyouunderstand，musthearwhatisgoingtotakeplacehere。\"
\"Ah！\"
saidBaisemeaux，undecided。
\"Again！\"
criedM。Fouquet。？\"Ah！say\'no\'atonce，andIwillleavetheBastileandwillmyselfcarrymyowndispatches。\"
Baisemeauxbowedhishead，tookthekeys，andunaccompanied，exceptbytheminister，ascendedthestaircase。？Thehighertheyadvancedupthespiralstaircase，themoreclearlydidcertainmuffledmurmursbecomedistinctappealsandfearfulimprecations。
\"Whatisthat？\"askedFouquet。
\"ThatisyourMarchiali，\"saidthegovernor;\"thisisthewaythesemadmenscream。\"
Andheaccompaniedthatreplywithaglancemorepregnantwithinjuriousallusion，asfarasFouquetwasconcerned，thanpoliteness。？Thelattertrembled;hehadjustrecognizedinonecrymoreterriblethananythathadprecededit，theking\'svoice。？Hepausedonthestaircase，snatchingthebunchofkeysfromBaisemeaux，whothoughtthisnewmadmanwasgoingtodashouthisbrainswithoneofthem。？\"Ah！\"hecried，\"M。d\'Herblaydidnotsayawordaboutthat。\"
\"Givemethekeysatonce！\"criedFouquet，tearingthemfromhishand。？\"WhichisthekeyofthedoorIamtoopen？\"
\"Thatone。\"
Afearfulcry，followedbyaviolentblowagainstthedoor，madethewholestaircaseresoundwiththeecho。
\"Leavethisplace，\"saidFouquettoBaisemeaux，inathreateningtone。
\"Iasknothingbetter，\"murmuredthelatter，tohimself。？\"Therewillbeacoupleofmadmenfacetoface，andtheonewillkilltheother，Iamsure。\"
\"Go！\"
repeatedFouquet。？\"IfyouplaceyourfootonthisstaircasebeforeIcallyou，rememberthatyoushalltaketheplaceofthemeanestprisonerintheBastile。\"
\"Thisjobwillkillme，Iamsureitwill，\"mutteredBaisemeaux，ashewithdrewwithtotteringsteps。
Theprisoner\'scriesbecamemoreandmoreterrible。？WhenFouquethadsatisfiedhimselfthatBaisemeauxhadreachedthebottomofthestaircase，heinsertedthekeyinthefirstlock。？Itwasthenthatheheardthehoarse，chokingvoiceoftheking，cryingout，inafrenzyofrage，\"Help，help！？Iamtheking。\"？Thekeyoftheseconddoorwasnotthesameasthefirst，andFouquetwasobligedtolookforitonthebunch。？Theking，however，furiousandalmostmadwithrageandpassion，shoutedatthetopofhisvoice，\"ItwasM。Fouquetwhobroughtmehere。？HelpmeagainstM。
Fouquet！？Iamtheking！？HelpthekingagainstM。Fouquet！\"？Thesecriesfilledtheminister\'sheartwithterribleemotions。？Theywerefollowedbyashowerofblowsleveledagainstthedoorwithapartofthebrokenchairwithwhichthekinghadarmedhimself。？Fouquetatlastsucceededinfindingthekey。？Thekingwasalmostexhausted;hecouldhardlyarticulatedistinctlyasheshouted，\"DeathtoFouquet！deathtothetraitorFouquet！\"？Thedoorflewopen。