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Page 38
Well, neither had my own Dejah Thoris been able to understand what
to her had seemed a foolish and dangerous policy toward enemies.
Upon Barsoom, quarter is neither asked nor given, and each dead man
means so much more of the waning resources of this dying planet to
be divided amongst those who survive.
But there seemed a subtle difference here between the manner in
which this girl contemplated the dispatching of an enemy and the
tender-hearted regret of my own princess for the stern necessity
which demanded it.
I think that Phaidor regretted the thrill that the spectacle would
have afforded her rather than the fact that my decision left another
enemy alive to threaten us.
The man had now regained full possession of his faculties, and
was regarding us intently from where he lay bound upon the deck.
He was a handsome fellow, clean limbed and powerful, with an
intelligent face and features of such exquisite chiselling that
Adonis himself might have envied him.
The vessel, unguided, had been moving slowly across the valley;
but now I thought it time to take the helm and direct her course.
Only in a very general way could I guess the location of the Valley
Dor. That it was far south of the equator was evident from the
constellations, but I was not sufficiently a Martian astronomer
to come much closer than a rough guess without the splendid charts
and delicate instruments with which, as an officer in the Heliumite
Navy, I had formerly reckoned the positions of the vessels on which
I sailed.
That a northerly course would quickest lead me toward the more
settled portions of the planet immediately decided the direction
that I should steer. Beneath my hand the cruiser swung gracefully
about. Then the button which controlled the repulsive rays sent us
soaring far out into space. With speed lever pulled to the last
notch, we raced toward the north as we rose ever farther and farther
above that terrible valley of death.
As we passed at a dizzy height over the narrow domains of the therns
the flash of powder far below bore mute witness to the ferocity of
the battle that still raged along that cruel frontier. No sound
of conflict reached our ears, for in the rarefied atmosphere of our
great altitude no sound wave could penetrate; they were dissipated
in thin air far below us.
It became intensely cold. Breathing was difficult. The girl,
Phaidor, and the black pirate kept their eyes glued upon me. At
length the girl spoke.
"Unconsciousness comes quickly at this altitude," she said quietly.
"Unless you are inviting death for us all you had best drop, and
that quickly."
There was no fear in her voice. It was as one might say: "You had
better carry an umbrella. It is going to rain."
I dropped the vessel quickly to a lower level. Nor was I a moment
too soon. The girl had swooned.
The black, too, was unconscious, while I, myself, retained my senses,
I think, only by sheer will. The one on whom all responsibility
rests is apt to endure the most.
We were swinging along low above the foothills of the Otz. It
was comparatively warm and there was plenty of air for our starved
lungs, so I was not surprised to see the black open his eyes, and
a moment later the girl also.
"It was a close call," she said.
"It has taught me two things though," I replied.
"What?"
"That even Phaidor, daughter of the Master of Life and Death, is
mortal," I said smiling.
"There is immortality only in Issus," she replied. "And Issus is
for the race of therns alone. Thus am I immortal."
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