Tarrano the Conqueror

e Nor

ack! You do

hung in a tumbling, wavy mass over her shoulders. She stood tense-a frail, g

ould reach her, with a piercing cry, she was tearing at the instruments on the table; her fingers, with

was panting when Georg caught her by the

lza cried

ck to Elza, who had trus

instrument table. From a naked wire a little black coil of smoke was

the world. It gave me a queer feeling-made

nto sullen silence, and nothing we could do would make her break it. It infuriated me, that

y bade her sit there without moving. She seemed willing enough to do

nts. "Ruined. We cannot use them. Those messa

e in immediate danger was obvious, and we all realized it. Ahla had told some of her people that

f a cave-like room. Where was it? Might it not be near at hand-over on

a larger car of the Brendes. More than ever now, Dr. Brende was worried over t

d, she could do nothing now that the instrument room was out of commiss

had left it; but a moment's glance showed us it was wrec

ly the Brende car was well housed and barred. We saw that the gates had been tampered with, but with the limited time Ahl

led Robins. But the la

"Send your message down to Headquarters-with th

s had sent him. It was now 11:45. We waited some eight minutes, during which ti

If you move, I'll break every b

se Robins. They had relayed the message to Wrangel and Spitzbergen Islands-but the

car, far larger than the small one of mine, was fully equipped and p

side Elza in the semi-darkness, gazing down through the pit-rail window to where the island was dropping away beneath us. It was a pe

10,000-foot level, then headed directly North. It carried us inland; soon the sea was out of s

t beside him. "Can we get power all the way, Georg?... Elza chi

s power; I'll stay 10,000 or below. Under one thousand, when we get

. Their own power-sending station was working as usual. But this night-who could tell what General

siness," I put in. My ow

to make it so. Tell him we are the Inter-Allied News, father. That is true

far away to sight its lights. The cross-traffic was somewhat heavier here. Benea

se was straight north. Dr. Brende showed it to me on his chart-north, following the 70th West Meridian. Compass corrections as we got further north-and astronomical readings, thes

vessel. The temperature was growing steadily colder. The pit was inclosed, and I switched on the heat

d. It was flying almost north, bound for Bombay and Ceylon via Novaya Zemlya. It was in

ise Robins-but there was still no answer. We did not discus

icture almost anything. Georg even felt th

. Get the meteorological reports from the Pole-we need them. If they te

o 4,000 feet, but the fog still lay under us like a blanket. It clung low; we were w

ut there was nothing for her to see; the stars growing pale, pink sprea

in Bay. I had relieved Georg at the controls. The headlands of North Greenland lay before us. Then the fog lifted a little

the north-western tip of Greenland. The tower there gave us its routine signal, which we

t over us. The San Francisco Night line, for Mid-Eurasia and points South. It was crossing Greenland, f

ocean. Masses of drift ice and slush, but for the most part surprisingly clear. At eight o'clock, flying low-no more than a t

s signal perfunctorily. Southward now, on the 110th East Mer

t gleamed like millions of precious stones as they flung back the light to us. Or again, a mass of low, solid ice, flushed pink in the morning light. And behind us, just above the h

at the controls, kept his eyes on the instruments; and the doctor, trying vainly on

st northerly point of Eurasia. A long, low cliff of grey rock, ridged white with snow in its clef

s behind, and a strip of rocky lowland along the sea. There were patches of snow-the mountains were white with it; but on the lowlands, for the most part the Spring sun ha

could find-a hundred miles from the nearest person, so he told me. And as I gazed about me I realized how isolat

uld have been a pleasant December morning in Greater New York; and I gazed about me curiously. A level lowland of crags with the white of snow in their hollows; a colle

re was no one in sight anywhere. No one out to greet

dy rearing their heads to the Spring sunlight. I called Elza's attention to them. A vague apprehension was within me; my h

the ground; a path l

r. Brende

s! Grantley! W

ack faintly to us; but the

ait here with E

o on-se

rd. But Dr. Brende was with him, and in

e sides. In the silence I seemed to hear my heart pounding my ribs. Elz

Georg. "You

ther room, and in an instant was back wit

"Elza-you go outside with father.... They

e, pinning me. I heard Elza scream, saw Georg fi

ught-three men, it seemed to be, wh

p-they'll

f Venus men were surrounding us. Georg, his jacket torn to ribbons, w

e, with a crimson stain spreading on his wh