"Bueno! Always presuming that the reinforcements have arrived safely. I fear the Indians." "Carambo! Surely a thousand well-armed soldiers are a match for a horde of naked savages. The reinforcements are safe in Janjalla by now. I am sure of it. Believe me, Don Juan, we shall exterminate the rebels." "First we shall have to exterminate _The Pizarro_, and----" "Hold!" interrupted Rafael joyfully, "the signal." A rocket shot up from _The Iturbide_ and scattered its fires in the dark air. The moon had entirely disappeared, and an intense gloom prevailed over land and sea. Hardly had the rocket's trail of fire disappeared when _The Iturbide's_ screw began to spin and followed by the torpederas she moved cautiously towards the harbour at half speed. At the end of an hour all three vessels were within sight of the town. Through the gloom sparkled the lights of Janjalla, and between them and the incoming vessels lay the huge bulk of _The Pizarro_, the glare of her search-lights shooting up into the dark like two gigantic swords of pale flame. _The Iturbide_ was leading by three hundred yards, and crept cautiously forward so as to pounce on her prey unawares. Whether the noise of her screw reached the ears of those on board _The Pizarro_, or that they marked her coming through the darkness, it is impossible to say, but just as she steamed within eight hundred yards, the search-lights swept round like the spokes of a wheel and in a moment their glare revealed her whereabouts. In the radiance she stood out like a phantom ship, and seeing that he was discovered, Pedraza cracking on all steam, swept past _The Pizarro_ in a wide circle. A heavy fire was at once opened by the rebels and they doubtless deemed that this foe was not alone, for keeping one light on the cruiser, they swept the sea with the other in search of her possible companions. Those on board _The Iturbide_ could hear the yell of mingled rage and terror, as the light struck the low bulk of _The Zuloaga_ darting through the water, evil looking and venomous. A broadside was poured on the torpedera, now left unprotected by _The Iturbide_ which was circling to the left in the inner part of the bay. Owing to the dexterity of _The Zuloaga's_ manoeuvring, none of the heavy guns could hit her. She skimmed the grey waves at full speed like a swallow, and the search light of _The Pizarro_ was much put to in following her. It was like a dancer in the theatre followed by the lime light. One moment the torpedera would be swallowed up in the gloom, the next moment the darting ray of the electric light would stab through the darkness and pick her out. The other ray followed _The Iturbide_, which kept steaming slowly backwards and forwards on the port side, firing her Armstrongs whenever she got a fair chance.