A Princess of Mars Rethroned (5 page)

The assembled
warriors and chieftains examined me closely, feeling my muscles and
the texture of my skin. The principal chieftain then evidently
signified a desire to see me perform, and, motioning me to follow,
she started with Tara Tarkas for the open plaza.

Now, I had made
no attempt to walk, since my first signal failure, except while
tightly grasping Tara Tarkas' arm, and so now I went skipping and
flitting about among the desks and chairs like some monstrous
grasshopper. After bruising myself severely, much to the amusement
of the Martians, I again had recourse to creeping, but this did not
suit them and I was roughly jerked to my feet by a towering fellow
who had laughed most heartily at my misfortunes.

As she banged me
down upon my feet her face was bent close to mine and I did the
only thing a gentlewoman might do under the circumstances of
brutality, boorishness, and lack of consideration for a stranger's
rights; I swung my fist squarely to her jaw and she went down like
a felled ox. As she sunk to the floor I wheeled around with my back
toward the nearest desk, expecting to be overwhelmed by the
vengeance of her fellows, but determined to give them as good a
battle as the unequal odds would permit before I gave up my
life.

My fears were
groundless, however, as the other Martians, at first struck dumb
with wonderment, finally broke into wild peals of laughter and
applause. I did not recognize the applause as such, but later, when
I had become acquainted with their customs, I learned that I had
won what they seldom accord, a manifestation of
approbation.

The fellow whom I
had struck lay where she had fallen, nor did any of her mates
approach her. Tara Tarkas advanced toward me, holding out one of
her arms, and we thus proceeded to the plaza without further
mishap. I did not, of course, know the reason for which we had come
to the open, but I was not long in being enlightened. They first
repeated the word 'sak' a number of times, and then Tara Tarkas
made several jumps, repeating the same word before each leap; then,
turning to me, she said, 'sak!' I saw what they were after, and
gathering myself together I 'sakked' with such marvelous success
that I cleared a good hundred and fifty feet; nor did I this time,
lose my equilibrium, but landed squarely upon my feet without
falling. I then returned by easy jumps of twenty-five or thirty
feet to the little group of warriors.

My exhibition had
been witnessed by several hundred lesser Martians, and they
immediately broke into demands for a repetition, which the
chieftain then ordered me to make; but I was both hungry and
thirsty, and determined on the spot that my only method of
salvation was to demand the consideration from these creatures
which they evidently would not voluntarily accord. I therefore
ignored the repeated commands to 'sak,' and each time they were
made I motioned to my mouth and rubbed my stomach.

Tara Tarkas and
the chief exchanged a few words, and the former, calling to a young
male among the throng, gave his some instructions and motioned me
to accompany him. I grasped his proffered arm and together we
crossed the plaza toward a large building on the far
side.

My fair companion
was about eight feet tall, having just arrived at maturity, but not
yet to his full height. He was of a light olive-green color, with a
smooth, glossy hide. His name, as I afterward learned, was Solan,
and he belonged to the retinue of Tara Tarkas. He conducted me to a
spacious chamber in one of the buildings fronting on the plaza, and
which, from the litter of silks and furs upon the floor, I took to
be the sleeping quarters of several of the natives.

The room was well
lighted by a number of large windows and was beautifully decorated
with mural paintings and mosaics, but upon all there seemed to rest
that indefinable touch of the finger of antiquity which convinced
me that the architects and builders of these wondrous creations had
nothing in common with the crude half-brutes which now occupied
them.

Solan motioned me
to be seated upon a pile of silks near the center of the room, and,
turning, made a peculiar hissing sound, as though signaling to
someone in an adjoining room. In response to his call I obtained my
first sight of a new Martian wonder. It waddled in on its ten short
legs, and squatted down before the boy like an obedient puppy. The
thing was about the size of a Shetland pony, but its head bore a
slight resemblance to that of a frog, except that the jaws were
equipped with three rows of long, sharp tusks.

CHAPTER
V

I ELUDE MY WATCH
DOG

Solan stared into
the brute's wicked-looking eyes, muttered a word or two of command,
pointed to me, and left the chamber. I could not but wonder what
this ferocious-looking monstrosity might do when left alone in such
close proximity to such a relatively tender morsel of meat; but my
fears were groundless, as the beast, after surveying me intently
for a moment, crossed the room to the only exit which led to the
street, and lay down full length across the threshold.

This was my first
experience with a Martian watch dog, but it was destined not to be
my last, for this fellow guarded me carefully during the time I
remained a captive among these green women; twice saving my life,
and never voluntarily being away from me a moment.

While Solan was
away I took occasion to examine more minutely the room in which I
found myself captive. The mural painting depicted scenes of rare
and wonderful beauty; mountains, rivers, lake, ocean, meadow, trees
and flowers, winding roadways, sun-kissed gardens--scenes which
might have portrayed earthly views but for the different colorings
of the vegetation. The work had evidently been wrought by a
mistress hand, so subtle the atmosphere, so perfect the technique;
yet nowhere was there a representation of a living animal, either
human or brute, by which I could guess at the likeness of these
other and perhaps extinct denizens of Mars.

While I was
allowing my fancy to run riot in wild conjecture on the possible
explanation of the strange anomalies which I had so far met with on
Mars, Solan returned bearing both food and drink. These he placed
on the floor beside me, and seating himself a short ways off
regarded me intently. The food consisted of about a pound of some
solid substance of the consistency of cheese and almost tasteless,
while the liquid was apparently milk from some animal. It was not
unpleasant to the taste, though slightly acid, and I learned in a
short time to prize it very highly. It came, as I later discovered,
not from an animal, as there is only one mammal on Mars and that
one very rare indeed, but from a large plant which grows
practically without water, but seems to distill its plentiful
supply of milk from the products of the soil, the moisture of the
air, and the rays of the sun. A single plant of this species will
give eight or ten quarts of milk per day.

After I had eaten
I was greatly invigorated, but feeling the need of rest I stretched
out upon the silks and was soon asleep. I must have slept several
hours, as it was dark when I awoke, and I was very cold. I noticed
that someone had thrown a fur over me, but it had become partially
dislodged and in the darkness I could not see to replace it.
Suddenly a hand reached out and pulled the fur over me, shortly
afterwards adding another to my covering.

I presumed that
my watchful guardian was Solan, nor was I wrong. This boy alone,
among all the green Martians with whom I came in contact, disclosed
characteristics of sympathy, kindliness, and affection; his
ministrations to my bodily wants were unfailing, and his solicitous
care saved me from much suffering and many hardships.

As I was to
learn, the Martian nights are extremely cold, and as there is
practically no twilight or dawn, the changes in temperature are
sudden and most uncomfortable, as are the transitions from
brilliant daylight to darkness. The nights are either brilliantly
illumined or very dark, for if neither of the two moons of Mars
happen to be in the sky almost total darkness results, since the
lack of atmosphere, or, rather, the very thin atmosphere, fails to
diffuse the starlight to any great extent; on the other hand, if
both of the moons are in the heavens at night the surface of the
ground is brightly illuminated.

Both of Mars'
moons are vastly nearer his than is our moon to Earth; the nearer
moon being but about five thousand miles distant, while the further
is but little more than fourteen thousand miles away, against the
nearly one-quarter million miles which separate us from our moon.
The nearer moon of Mars makes a complete revolution around the
planet in a little over seven and one-half hours, so that he may be
seen hurtling through the sky like some huge meteor two or three
times each night, revealing all his phases during each transit of
the heavens.

The further moon
revolves about Mars in something over thirty and one-quarter hours,
and with his brother satellite makes a nocturnal Martian scene one
of splendid and weird grandeur. And it is well that nature has so
graciously and abundantly lighted the Martian night, for the green
women of Mars, being a nomadic race without high intellectual
development, have but crude means for artificial lighting;
depending principally upon torches, a kind of candle, and a
peculiar oil lamp which generates a gas and burns without a
wick.

This last device
produces an intensely brilliant far-reaching white light, but as
the natural oil which it requires can only be obtained by mining in
one of several widely separated and remote localities it is seldom
used by these creatures whose only thought is for today, and whose
hatred for manual labor has kept them in a semi-barbaric state for
countless ages.

After Solan had
replenished my coverings I again slept, nor did I awaken until
daylight. The other occupants of the room, five in number, were all
females, and they were still sleeping, piled high with a motley
array of silks and furs. Across the threshold lay stretched the
sleepless guardian brute, just as I had last seen her on the
preceding day; apparently she had not moved a muscle; her eyes were
fairly glued upon me, and I fell to wondering just what might
befall me should I endeavor to escape.

I have ever been
prone to seek adventure and to investigate and experiment where
wiser women would have left well enough alone. It therefore now
occurred to me that the surest way of learning the exact attitude
of this beast toward me would be to attempt to leave the room. I
felt fairly secure in my belief that I could escape her should she
pursue me once I was outside the building, for I had begun to take
great pride in my ability as a jumper. Furthermore, I could see
from the shortness of her legs that the brute herself was no jumper
and probably no runner.

Slowly and
carefully, therefore, I gained my feet, only to see that my watcher
did the same; cautiously I advanced toward her, finding that by
moving with a shuffling gait I could retain my balance as well as
make reasonably rapid progress. As I neared the brute she backed
cautiously away from me, and when I had reached the open she moved
to one side to let me pass. She then fell in behind me and followed
about ten paces in my rear as I made my way along the deserted
street.

Evidently her
mission was to protect me only, I thought, but when we reached the
edge of the city she suddenly sprang before me, uttering strange
sounds and baring her ugly and ferocious tusks. Thinking to have
some amusement at her expense, I rushed toward her, and when almost
upon her sprang into the air, alighting far beyond her and away
from the city. She wheeled instantly and charged me with the most
appalling speed I had ever beheld. I had thought her short legs a
bar to swiftness, but had she been coursing with greyhounds the
latter would have appeared as though asleep on a door mat. As I was
to learn, this is the fleetest animal on Mars, and owing to its
intelligence, loyalty, and ferocity is used in hunting, in war, and
as the protector of the Martian woman.

I quickly saw
that I would have difficulty in escaping the fangs of the beast on
a straightaway course, and so I met her charge by doubling in my
tracks and leaping over her as she was almost upon me. This
maneuver gave me a considerable advantage, and I was able to reach
the city quite a bit ahead of her, and as she came tearing after me
I jumped for a window about thirty feet from the ground in the face
of one of the buildings overlooking the valley.

Grasping the sill
I pulled myself up to a sitting posture without looking into the
building, and gazed down at the baffled animal beneath me. My
exultation was short-lived, however, for scarcely had I gained a
secure seat upon the sill than a huge hand grasped me by the neck
from behind and dragged me violently into the room. Here I was
thrown upon my back, and beheld standing over me a colossal
ape-like creature, white and hairless except for an enormous shock
of bristly hair upon its head.

CHAPTER
VI

A FIGHT THAT WON
FRIENDS

The thing, which
more nearly resembled our earthly women than it did the Martians I
had seen, held me pinioned to the ground with one huge foot, while
it jabbered and gesticulated at some answering creature behind me.
This other, which was evidently its mate, soon came toward us,
bearing a mighty stone cudgel with which it evidently intended to
brain me.