At length they reached the rocky shores of Iceland. There they landed,
still pursuing their journey. All this time the king felt no cold; for
the red stones in his crown kept him warm, and the emerald and sapphire
eyes of the wild beasts kept the frosts from settling upon his litter.
Oftentimes upon their way they had to pass through forests, caverns,
and rock-shadowed paths, where it was so dark that at first the king
feared he should lose his Shadows altogether. But as soon as they
entered such places, the diamond in his sceptre began to shine and
glow, and flash, sending out streams of light of all the colours that
painter's soul could dream of; in which light the Shadows grew livelier
and stronger than ever, speeding through the dark ways with an all but
blinding swiftness. In the light of the diamond, too, some of their
forms became more simple and human, while others seemed only to break
out into a yet more untamable absurdity. Once, as they passed through a
cave, the king actually saw some of their eyes--strange shadow-eyes; he
had never seen any of their eyes before. But at the same moment when he
saw their eyes, he knew their faces too, for they turned them full upon
him for an instant; and the other Shadows, catching sight of these,
shrank and shivered, and nearly vanished. Lovely faces they were; but
the king was very thoughtful after he saw them, and continued rather
troubled all the rest of the journey.
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