Thuvia, Maid of Mars

tunnel, for such Carthoris was now convinced was the

banth, and presently from behind came a similar uncanny n

arkness even to the distinguishing of his hand before his face, while the

the dismal, bloodthirsty moanings of

neath the side of the rock furthest from the unscaleable cli

t level, and presently h

close upon the heels of the beast in front. Presently he should hav

he banth at his heels. Not for much

the opposite side of the barrier, and he had hoped that he might reach the

now reigned upon the world without. He glanced behind him. Blazing out of the darkness, seemingly not ten paces behind

us fangs that he knew were bared in slavering blood-thirstiness, though he could not s

sword hand of his mighty sire, his guided the keen point to on

wing, past him. Then it turned to charge once more; but this time Cart

of the stricken beast reverberated through the rocky tunnel, shocki

his point. He heard the scraping of the padded feet upon the rocky floor. He k

s antagonist, neither could

eady on a line with the beast's chest. It was all that he could do, hoping that chan

the mighty body rushed madly past him. Either he had not placed himself in the

the creature continued on down the tunnel as th

s it long before his heart was gladdened by the sig

s dotted with enormous trees, a strange sight so far from a Martian waterway. The ground itself wa

the scene was one of indescribable loveliness,

s outspread before him. Almost immediately they were riveted upon the fi

his eyes fixed upon another banth that charged erratically hither and t

blinded during the fight in the tunnel, but it was the dead thoat t

and Carthoris could not doubt but that this was the very anim

rince of Helium shuddered as he thought upon the

arsoomian lion, whose great carcass and giant thews

n the green man and the red girl seemed only too likely to Carthoris. He had left the carcass of

harging, had passed beyond the kill of its fellow, and there the light

rged straight as an arrow, for the body of the thoat and the mighty creature of dest

d thoat the killer gave vent to its hideous challenge

blood-stained beasts held him in the paralysis of fascination, and when it was over and the two creatures, their heads and shoulders torn to

aces of the girl he feared had shared the thoat's fate, bu

valley, but scarce a dozen steps had he taken when the glist

it was a woman's hair ornament, and emblazoned upo

, still wet, splotched the mag

ch the thing suggested presented themselves to his

ld have met so hideous an end. It was incredible

beneath which beat his loyal heart, Carthoris, Prince of Helium, fastened the gleami

his way into the hear

ght glimpses of the towering hills that bounded the valley upon every side, and though they stood out clear be

until presently he was brought to a sudden h

h the trees until at last he came upon a level, treeless plain, in the centre

iors of the dead sea-bottoms, and as he let his eyes rove carefully over

arsoom the fierce tribe of Torquasian green men ruled supreme, and that as yet no red man had s

ip had permitted them to repulse the few determined efforts that near-by red n

the past even hinted at such a possibility, for the Torquasians were known to live, as did the other green men of Mars, within the deserted cities that dotted the

s no semblance of breastwork or other protection against rifle or cannon fire; yet distinctly now in the light of th

though they were at too great distance from hi

o Carthoris' surprise the fire was not returned, but presently the last of the city's inhabitants had sought

circling the rear of the besiegers' line, hoping against hope that somewhere he would

orth from the camp into the forest; but the long day wore on and still he continued his seemingl

re a great platform had been erected whereon Carthoris could see

old ogre of the south-western hemisphere, as only for a jeddak are platforms

d the rostrum. Beside him he dragged a captive, and as the surrounding warriors

rejoicing. Thuvia of

ian princess; but in the end his better judgment prevailed, for in the face of such odds he knew that

creature's words, nor Thuvia's reply; but it must have angered the green monster, for Carthoris sa

Barsoom, went mad. The old, blood-red haze through which hi

will, sent him in enormous leaps and bounds toward t

e figures of the girl and their jeddak, and loud was the hideous laughter that rang out in

rest and the green warriors, when a new factor succeeded in

series of frightful shrieks; uncanny shrieks that swept, shrill and terrifying, across the city's wal

he listening green men and then far, far off across the broad w

se similar savage cries, until the world

y knew not fear, as Earth men may know it; but in the face

ever had witnessed, though at the moment he had time to cast but a single fleeting glance at the tall bowmen emerging through the portal behind

to Thuvia of Ptarth, whose startled eyes were the first to fall upon him, it seemed that she was look

inian was the resemblance true. And the sword

backs of their restive, squealing thoats. Calots were growling out the

ming of Carthoris, and it was with them he battled for possession of the red girl

reach the side of the hideous Hortan Gur that he mi

had turned to join Thar Ban and his companion in repulsing this adventurous r

ing upon them from the city, and upon the savage banths that paced beside the

p beside him, and then he turned upon the departing

at the same instant two of his chieftains called to him to hasten, for the charge of the fair-skinned

ention after he had disposed of the presumptuous citizens of the walled city, an

d their jeddak, leaving Thuvia and

and a kind of short-handled war-axe, were almost helpless beneath the savage mounted green men at close quarte

two lines come together when hundreds of these appalling creatures had leaped among the Torquasians, dragging wa

med that scarce a warrior fell but his place was taken by a score mor

owmen, that at last the Torquasians fell back, until presently the platform u

ely past them, so that they were alone between the fighters and the city, except for the dying and the dead, and

bowmen with their relatively puny weapons. Nowhere that he could see was there a singl

owman's arrow, nor apparently did one ever miss its goal. Ther

t reigned, broken only by the growling of the devouring banths. C

we, Thuvia?

med to proclaim a guilty knowledge of her abduction. How else m

of Helium?" she asked in return. "Did

ho had stolen you, Thuvia," he replied; "but from the time I left H

ddak, your father, to convince him of the falsity of the charge, and to give my service to your recovery. Before I left He

they took me they were trapped in Dusarian harness. There seemed but a single explanation. Whoever dared the outrage wished to put the onus up

I did this thing,

t wish to believe it; but when everything poi

othed, as well as I know the frightful consequences that must have followed such an act of mine, hurling into war, as it would, three of the greatest nations of

n yours, and in the service of the man to whom you are promised, to save you for

rising and falling as though to some resistless emotion. She half took a s

nquered whateve

m," she said coldly, "must constitute t

ne, as much as by the doubt as to h

le-certainly there was due him at least a little gratitude for his re

The girl noted it, and the little smile that touc

nything to encourage him! But he need not have made his indifference quite so palpable. The men of Helium w

that the smile upon his lips was the fighting smile of his father with which the son gave outward evidence of the determination he had r

to his origi

" he asked. "I

lves of Aaanthor, so that I thought it possible that the ancient city to whic

be? Only in the most ancient of our legends and in the mural paintings of the deserted cities of the dead sea-bottoms are depicted such a race of aub

n and the pursuing bowmen had disappeared. From a great dist

t they do not retu

k to the city," replied Carthoris, with a puzzled frown. "But how

d between them and the walled city, wh

, still growling abou

a in astonishment. Then h

pered. "WHAT HAS BECOME O