After a few minutes of vigorous splashing in the icy water, he rubbed

himself down with a coarse towel, shaved, threw on his clothes, and

lifted his powerful, but musical, bass voice in the wedding chorus from

"The Rose Maiden."



"Rise, sweet maid, arise, arise,

Rise, sweet maid, arise, arise,

'Tis the last fair morning for thy maiden eyes,"



he sang lustily, out of his sheer joy in being alive, and was surprised

to hear Dorothy's clear soprano, Margaret's pleasing contralto, and

Crane's mellow tenor chime in from the adjoining room. Crane threw open

the door and Seaton joined the others.



"Good morning. Dick, you sound happy," said Crane.



"Who wouldn't be? Look what's doing today," as he ardently embraced his

bride-to-be. "Besides, I found some cold water this morning."



"Everyone in the palace heard you discovering it," dryly returned Crane,

and the girls laughed merrily.



"It surprised me at first," admitted Seaton, "but it's great after a

fellow once gets wet."



"We warmed ours a trifle," said Dorothy. "I like a cold bath myself, but

not in ice-water."



All four became silent, thinking of the coming event of the day, until

Crane said:



"They have ministers here, I know, and I know something of their

religion, but my knowledge is rather vague. You know more about it than

we do, Dick, suppose you tell us about it while we wait."



Seaton paused a moment, with an odd look on his face. As one turning the

pages of an unfamiliar book of reference, he was seeking the answer to

Crane's question in the vast store of Osnomian information received from

Dunark. His usually ready speech came a little slowly.



"Well, as nearly as I can explain it, it's a funny kind of a

mixture--partly theology, partly Darwinism, or at least, making a fetish

of evolution, and partly pure economic determinism. They believe in a

Supreme Being, whom they call the First Cause--that is the nearest

English equivalent--and they recognize the existence of an immortal and

unknowable life-principle, or soul. They believe that the First Cause

has decreed the survival of the fittest as the fundamental law, which

belief accounts for their perfect physiques...."



"Perfect physiques? Why, they're as weak as children," interrupted

Dorothy.



"Yes, but that is because of the smallness of the planet," returned

Seaton. "You see, a man of my size weighs only eighty-six pounds here,

on a spring balance, so he would need only the muscular development of a

boy of twelve or so. In a contest of strength, either of you girls could

easily handle two of the strongest men upon Osnome. In fact, the average

Osnomian could stand up on our Earth only with the greatest difficulty.

But that isn't the fault of the people; they are magnificently developed

for their surroundings. They have attained this condition by centuries

of weeding out the unfit. They have no hospitals for the feeble-minded

or feeble-bodied--abnormal persons are not allowed to live. The same

reasoning accounts for their perfect cleanliness, moral and physical.

Vice is practically unknown. They believe that clean living and clean

thinking are rewarded by the production of a better physical and mental

type...."



"Yes, especially as they correct wrong living by those terrible

punishments the Kofedix told us about," interrupted Margaret.



"That probably helps some. They also believe that the higher the type

is, the faster will evolution proceed, and the sooner will mankind reach

what they call the Ultimate Goal, and know all things. Believing as they

do that the fittest must survive, and thinking themselves, of course,

the superior type, it is ordained that Mardonale must be destroyed

utterly, root and branch. They believe that the slaves are so low in the

scale, millions of years behind in evolution, that they do not count.

Slaves are simply intelligent and docile animals, little more than

horses or oxen. Mardonalians and savages are unfit to survive and must

be exterminated.



"Their ministers are chosen from the very fittest. They are the

strongest, cleanest-living, and most vigorous men of this clean and

vigorous nation, and are usually high army officers as well as

ministers."



* * * * *



An attendant announced the coming of the Karfedix and his son, to pay

the call of state. After the ceremonious greetings had been exchanged,

all went into the dining hall for darprat. As soon as the meal was over,

Seaton brought up the question of the double wedding that kokam, and the

Karfedix was overjoyed.



"Karfedix Seaton," he said earnestly, "nothing could please us more than

to have such a ceremony performed in our palace. Marriage between such

highly-evolved persons as are you four is wished by the First Cause,

whose servants we are. Aside from that, it is an unheard-of honor for

any ruler to have even one karfedix married beneath his roof, and you

are granting me the privilege of two! I thank you, and assure you that

we will do our poor best to make the occasion memorable."



"Don't do anything fancy," said Seaton hastily. "A simple, plain wedding

will do."



Unheeding Seaton's remark, the Karfedix took his wireless from its hook

at his belt and sent a brief message.



"I have summoned Karbix Tarnan to perform the ceremony. Our usual time

for ceremonies is just before koprat--is that time satisfactory to you?"



Assured that it was, he turned to his son.



"Dunark, you are more familiar than I with the customs of our

illustrious visitors. May I ask you to take charge of the details?"



While Dunark sent a rapid succession of messages, Dorothy whispered to

Seaton:



"They must be going to make a real function of our double wedding, Dick.

The Karbix is the highest dignitary of the church, isn't he?"



"Yes, in addition to being the Commander-in-Chief of all the Kondalian

armies. Next to the Karfedix he is the most powerful man in the empire.

Something tells me, Dottie, that this is going to be SOME ceremony!"



As Dunark finished telegraphing, Seaton turned to him.



"Dorothy said, a while ago, that she would like to have enough of that

tapestry-fabric for a dress. Do you suppose it could be managed?"



"Certainly. In all state ceremonials we always wear robes made out of

the same fabric as the tapestries, but much finer and more delicate. I

would have suggested it, but thought perhaps the ladies would prefer

their usual clothing. I know that you two men do not care to wear our

robes?"



"We will wear white ducks, the dressiest and coolest things we have

along," replied Seaton. "Thank you for your offer, but you know how it

is. We should feel out of place in such gorgeous dress."



"I understand. I will call in a few of our most expert robe-makers, who

will weave the gowns. Before they come, let us decide upon the ceremony.

I think you are familiar with our marriage customs, but I will explain

them to make sure. Each couple is married twice. The first marriage is

symbolized by the exchange of plain bracelets and lasts four karkamo,

during which period divorce may be obtained at will. The children of

such divorced couples formerly became wards of the state, but in my

lifetime I have not heard of there being any such children--all divorces

are now between couples who discover their incompatibility before

children are conceived."



"That surprises me greatly," said Crane. "Some system of trial-marriage

is advocated among us on Earth every few years, but they all so surely

degenerate into free love that no such system has found a foothold."



"We are not troubled in that way at all. You see, before the first

marriage, each couple, from the humblest peasantry to the highest

royalty, must submit to a mental examination. If they are marrying for

any reason at all other than love, such as any thought of trifling in

the mind of the man, or if the woman is marrying him for his wealth or

position, he or she is summarily executed, regardless of station."



No other questions being asked, Dunark continued:



"At the end of four karkamo the second marriage is performed, which is

indissoluble. In this ceremony jeweled bracelets are substituted for the

plain ones. In the case of highly-evolved persons it is permitted that

the two ceremonies be combined into one. Then there is a third ceremony,

used only in the marriage of persons of the very highest evolution, in

which the 'eternal' vows are taken and the faidon, the eternal jewel, is

exchanged. As you are all in the permitted class, you may use the

eternal ceremony if you wish."



"I think we all know our minds well enough to know that we want to be

married for good--the longer the better," said Seaton, positively.

"We'll make it the eternal, won't we, folks?"



"I should like to ask one question," said Crane, thoughtfully. "Does

that ceremony imply that my wife would be breaking her vows if she

married again upon my death?"



"Far from it. Numbers of our men are killed every karkam. Their wives,

if of marriageable age, are expected to marry again. Then, too, you know

that most Kondalian men have several wives. No matter how many wives or

husbands may be linked together in that way, it merely means that after

death their spirits will be grouped into one. Just as in your

chemistry," smiling in comradely fashion at Seaton, "a varying number of

elements may unite to form a stable compound."



* * * * *



After a short pause, the speaker went on:



"Since you are from the Earth and unaccustomed to bracelets, rings will

be substituted for them. The plain rings will take the place of your

Earthly wedding rings, the jeweled ones that of your engagement rings.

The only difference is that while we discard the plain bracelets, you

will continue to wear them. Have you men any objections to wearing the

rings during the ceremony? You may discard them later if you wish and

still keep the marriage valid."



"Not I! I'll wear mine all my life," responded Seaton earnestly, and

Crane expressed the same thought.



"There is only one more thing," added the Kofedix. "That is, about the

mental examination. Since it is not your custom, it is probable that the

justices would waive the ruling, especially since everyone must be

examined by a jury of his own or a superior rank, so that only one man,

my father alone, could examine you."



"Not in a thousand years!" replied Seaton emphatically. "I want to be

examined, and have Dorothy see the record. I don't care about having her

put through it, but I want her to know exactly the kind of a guy she is

getting."



Dorothy protested at this, but as all four were eager that they

themselves should be tested, the Karfedix was notified and Dunark

clamped sets of multiple electrodes, connected to a set of instruments,

upon the temples of his father, Dorothy, and Seaton. He pressed a lever,

and instantly Dorothy and Seaton read each other's minds to the minutest

detail, and each knew that the Karfedix was reading the minds of both.



After Margaret and Crane had been examined, the Karfedix expressed

himself as more than satisfied.



"You are all of the highest evolution and your minds are all untainted

by any base thoughts in your marriage. The First Cause will smile upon

your unions," he said solemnly.



"Let the robe-makers appear," the Karfedix ordered, and four women, hung

with spools of brilliantly-colored wire of incredible fineness and with

peculiar looms under their arms, entered the room and accompanied the

two girls to their apartment.



As soon as the room was empty save for the four men, Dunark said:



"While I was in Mardonale, I heard bits of conversation regarding an

immense military discovery possessed by Nalboon, besides the gas whose

deadly effects we felt. I could get no inkling of its nature, but feel

sure that it is something to be dreaded. I also heard that both of these

secrets had been stolen from Kondal, and that we were to be destroyed by

our own superior inventions."



The Karfedix nodded his head gloomily.



"That is true, my son--partly true, at least. We shall not be destroyed,

however. Kondal shall triumph. The discoveries were made by a Kondalian,

but I am as ignorant as are you concerning their nature. An obscure

inventor, living close to the bordering ocean, was the discoverer. He

was rash enough to wireless me concerning them. He would not reveal

their nature, but requested a guard. The Mardonalian patrol intercepted

the message and captured both him and his discoveries before our guard

could arrive."



"That's easily fixed," suggested Seaton. "Let's get the Skylark fixed

up, and we'll go jerk Nalboon out of his palace--if he's still

alive--bring him over here, and read his mind."



"That might prove feasible," answered the Kofedix, "and in any event we

must repair the Skylark and replenish her supply of copper immediately.

That must be our first consideration, so that you, our guests, will

have a protection in any emergency."



The Karfedix went to his duties and the other three made their way to

the wrecked space-car. They found that besides the damage done to the

hull, many of the instruments were broken, including one of the

object-compasses focused upon the Earth.



"It's a good thing you had three of them, Mart. I sure hand it to you

for preparedness," said Seaton, as he tossed the broken instruments out

upon the dock. Dunark protested at this treatment, and placed the

discarded instruments in a strong metal safe, remarking:



"These things may prove useful at some future time."



"Well, I suppose the first thing to do is to get some powerful jacks and

straighten these plates," said Seaton.



"Why not throw away this soft metal, steel, and build it of arenak, as

it should be built? You have plenty of salt," suggested Dunark.



"Fine! We have lots of salt in the galley, haven't we, Mart?"



"Yes, nearly a hundred pounds. We are stocked for emergencies, with two

years' supply of food, you know."



* * * * *



Dunark's eyes opened in astonishment at the amount mentioned, in spite

of his knowledge of earthly conditions. He started to say something,

then stopped in confusion, but Seaton divined his thought.



"We can spare him fifty pounds as well as not, can't we, Mart?"



"Certainly. Fifty pounds of salt is a ridiculously cheap price for what

he is doing for us, even though it is very rare here."



Dunark acknowledged the gift with shining eyes and heartfelt, but not

profuse, thanks, and bore the precious bag to the palace under a heavy

escort. He returned with a small army of workmen, and after making tests

to assure himself that the power-bar would work as well through arenak

as through steel, he instructed the officers concerning the work to be

done. As the wonderfully skilled mechanics set to work without a single

useless motion, the prince stood silent, with a look of care upon his

handsome face.



"Worrying about Mardonale, Dunark?"



"Yes. I cannot help wondering what that terrible new engine of

destruction is, which Nalboon now has at his command."



"Say, why don't you build a bus like the Skylark, and blow Mardonale off

the map?"



"Building the vessel would be easy enough, but X is as yet unknown upon

Osnome."



"We've got a lot of it...."



"I could not accept it. The salt was different, since you have plenty.

X, however, is as scarce upon Earth as salt is upon Osnome."



"Sure you can accept it. We stopped at a planet that has lots of it, and

we've got an object-compass pointing at it so that we can go back and

get more of it any time we want it. We've got more of it on hand now

than we're apt to need for a long time, so have a hunk and get busy,"

and he easily carried one of the lumps out of his cabin and tossed it

upon the dock, from whence it required two of Kondal's strongest men to

lift it.



The look of care vanished from the face of the prince and he summoned

another corps of mechanics.



"How thick shall the walls be? Our battleships are armed with arenak the

thickness of a hand, but with your vast supply of salt you may have it

any thickness you wish, since the materials of the matrix are cheap and

abundant."



"One inch would be enough, but everything in the bus is designed for a

four-foot shell, and if we change it from four feet we'll have to

redesign our guns and all our instruments. Let's make it four feet."



Seaton turned to the crippled Skylark, upon which the first crew of

Kondalian mechanics were working with skill and with tools undreamed-of

upon Earth. The whole interior of the vessel was supported by a complex

falsework of latticed metal, then the four-foot steel plates and the

mighty embers, the pride of the great MacDougall, were cut away as

though they were made of paper by revolving saws and enormous power

shears. The sphere, grooved for the repellers and with the members,

braces, and central machinery complete, of the exact dimensions of the

originals, was rapidly moulded of a stiff, plastic substance resembling

clay. This matrix soon hardened into a rock-like mass into which the

doors, machine-gun emplacements, and other openings were carefully cut.

All surfaces were then washed with a dilute solution of salt, which the

workmen handled as though it were radium. Two great plates of platinum

were clamped into place upon either side of the vessel, each plate

connected by means of silver cables as large as a man's leg to the

receiving terminal of an enormous wireless power station. The current

was applied and the great spherical mass apparently disappeared, being

transformed instantly into the transparent metal arenak. Then indeed had

the Earth-men a vehicle such as had never been seen before! A four-foot

shell of metal five hundred times as strong and hard as the strongest

and hardest steel, cast in one piece with the sustaining framework

designed by the world's foremost engineer--a structure that no

conceivable force could deform or injure, housing an inconceivable

propulsive force!



* * * * *



The falsework was rapidly removed and the sustaining framework was

painted with opaque varnish to render it plainly visible. At Seaton's

suggestion the walls of the cabins were also painted, leaving

transparent several small areas to serve as windows.



The second work-period was drawing to a close, and as Seaton and Crane

were to be married before koprat, they stopped work. They marveled at

the amount that had been accomplished, and the Kofedix told them:



"Both vessels will be finished tomorrow, except for the controlling

instruments, which we will have to make ourselves. Another crew will

work during the sleeping-period, installing the guns and other fittings.

Do you wish to have your own guns installed, or guns of our pattern?

You are familiar with them now."



"Our own, please. They are slower and less efficient than yours, but we

are used to them and have a lot of X-plosive ammunition for them,"

replied Seaton, after a short conference with Crane.



After instructing the officers in charge of the work, the three returned

to the palace, the hearts of two of them beating high in anticipation.

Seaton went into Crane's room, accompanied by two attendants bearing his

suitcase and other luggage.



"We should have brought along dress clothes, Mart. Why didn't you think

of that, too?"



"Nothing like this ever entered my mind. It is a good thing we brought

along ducks and white soft shirts. I must say that this is extremely

informal garb for a state wedding, but since the natives are ignorant of

our customs, it will not make any difference."



"That's right, too--we'll make 'em think it's the most formal kind of

dress. Dunark knows what's what, but he knows that full dress would be

unbearable here. We'd melt down in a minute. It's plenty hot enough as

it is, with only duck trousers and sport-shirts on. They'll look green

instead of white, but that's a small matter."



Dunark, as best man, entered the room some time later.



"Give us a look, Dunark," begged Seaton, "and see if we'll pass

inspection. I was never so rattled in my life."



They were clad in spotless white, from their duck oxfords to the white

ties encircling the open collars of their tennis shirts. The two tall

figures--Crane's slender, wiry, at perfect ease; Seaton's

broad-shouldered, powerful, prowling about with unconscious, feline

suppleness and grace--and the two handsome, high-bred, intellectual

faces, each wearing a look of eager happiness, fully justified Dunark's

answer.



"You sure will do!" he pronounced enthusiastically, and with Seaton's

own impulsive good will he shook hands and wished them an eternity of

happiness.



"When you have spoken with your brides," he continued, "I shall be

waiting to escort you into the chapel. Sitar told me to say that the

ladies are ready."



Dorothy and Margaret had been dressed in their bridal gowns by Sitar and

several other princesses, under the watchful eyes of the Karfedir

herself. Sitar placed the two girls side by side and drew off to survey

her work.



"You are the loveliest creatures in the whole world!" she cried.



They looked at each other's glittering gowns, then Margaret glanced at

Dorothy's face and a look of dismay overspread her own.



"Oh, Dottie!" she gasped. "Your lovely complexion! Isn't it terrible for

the boys to see us in this light?"



There was a peal of delighted laughter from Sitar and she spoke to one

of the servants, who drew dark curtains across the windows and pressed a

switch, flooding the room with brilliant white light.



"Dunark installed lamps like those of your ship for you," she explained

with intense satisfaction. "I knew in advance just how you would feel

about your color."



Before the girls had time to thank their thoughtful hostess she

disappeared and their bridegrooms stood before them. For a moment no

word was spoken. Seaton stared at Dorothy hungrily, almost doubting the

evidence of his senses. For white was white, pink was pink, and her hair

shone in all its natural splendor of burnished bronze.



In their wondrous Osnomian bridal robes the beautiful Earth-maidens

stood before their lovers. Upon their feet were jeweled slippers. Their

lovely bodies were clothed in softly shimmering garments that left their

rounded arms and throats bare--garments infinitely more supple than the

finest silk, thick-woven of metallic threads of such fineness that the

individual wires were visible only under a lens; garments that floated

and clung about their perfect forms in lines of exquisite grace. For

black-haired Margaret, with her ivory skin, the Kondalian princess had

chosen a background of a rare white metal, upon which, in complicated

figures, glistened numberless jewels of pale colors, more brilliant than

diamonds. Dorothy's dress was of a peculiar, dark-green shade,

half-hidden by an intricate design of blazing green gems--the strange,

luminous jewels of this strange world. Both girls wore their long, heavy

hair unbound, after the Kondalian bridal fashion, brushed until it fell

like mist about them and confined at the temples by metallic bands

entirely covered with jewels.



Seaton looked from Dorothy to Margaret and back again; looked down into

her violet eyes, deep with wonder and with love, more beautiful than any

jewel in all her gorgeous costume. Unheeding the presence of the others,

she put her dainty hands upon his mighty shoulders and stood on tiptoe.



"I love you, Dick. Now and always, here or at home or anywhere in the

Universe. We'll never be parted again," she whispered, and her own

beloved violin had no sweeter tones than had her voice.



A few minutes later, her eyes wet and shining, she drew herself away

from him and glanced at Margaret.



"Isn't she the most beautiful thing you ever laid eyes on?"



"No," Seaton answered promptly, "she is not--but poor old Mart thinks

she is!"



* * * * *



Accompanied by the Karfedix and his son, Seaton and Crane went into the

chapel, which, already brilliant, had been decorated anew with even

greater splendor. Glancing through the wide arches they saw, for the

first time, Osnomians clothed. The great room was filled with the

highest nobility of Kondal, wearing their heavily-jeweled, resplendent

robes of state. Every color of the rainbow and numberless fantastic

patterns were there, embodied in the soft, lustrous, metallic fabric.



As the men entered one door Dorothy and Margaret, with the Karfedir and

Sitar, entered the other, and the entire assemblage rose to its feet and

snapped into the grand salute. Moving to the accompaniment of strange

martial music from concealed instruments, the two parties approached

each other, meeting at the raised platform or pulpit where Karbix

Tarnan, a handsome, stately, middle-aged man who carried easily his

hundred and fifty karkamo of age, awaited them. As he raised his arms,

the music ceased.



It was a solemn and wonderfully impressive spectacle. The room, of

burnished metal, with its bizarre decorations wrought in scintillating

gems; the constantly changing harmony of colors as the invisible lamps

were shifted from one shade to another; the group of mighty nobles

standing rigidly at attention in a silence so profound that it was an

utter absence of everything audible as the Karbix lifted both arms in a

silent invocation of the great First Cause--all these things deepened

the solemnity of that solemn moment.



When Tarnan spoke, his voice, deep with some great feeling, inexplicable

even to those who knew him best, carried clearly to every part of the

great chamber.



"Friends, it is our privilege to assist today in a most notable event,

the marriage of four personages from another world. For the first time

in the history of Osnome, one karfedix has the privilege of entertaining

the bridal party of another. It is not for this fact alone, however,

that this occasion is to be memorable. A far deeper reason is that we

are witnessing, possibly for the first time in the history of the

Universe, the meeting upon terms of mutual fellowship and understanding

of the inhabitants of two worlds separated by unthinkable distances of

trackless space and by equally great differences in evolution,

conditions of life, and environment. Yet these strangers are actuated by

the spirit of good faith and honor which is instilled into every worthy

being by the great First Cause, in the working out of whose vast

projects all things are humble instruments.



"In honor of the friendship of the two worlds, we will proceed with the

ceremony.



"Richard Seaton and Martin Crane, exchange the plain rings with Dorothy

Vaneman and Margaret Spencer."



They did so, and repeated, after the Karbix, simple vows of love and

loyalty.



"May the First Cause smile upon this temporary marriage and render it

worthy of being made permanent. As a lowly servant of the all-powerful

First Cause I pronounce you two, and you two, husband and wife. But we

must remember that the dull vision of mortal man cannot pierce the veil

of futurity, which is as crystal to the all-beholding eye of the First

Cause. Though you love each other truly, unforeseen things may come

between you to mar the perfection of your happiness. Therefore a time is

granted you during which you may discover whether or not your unions are

perfect."



A pause ensued, then Tarnan went on:



"Martin Crane, Margaret Spencer, Richard Seaton, and Dorothy Vaneman,

you are before us to take the final vows which shall bind your bodies

together for life and your spirits together for eternity. Have you

considered the gravity of this step sufficiently to enter into this

marriage without reservation?"



"I have," solemnly replied the four, in unison.



"Exchange the jeweled rings. Do you, Richard Seaton and Dorothy Vaneman;

and you, Martin Crane and Margaret Spencer; individually swear, here in

the presence of the First Cause and that of the Supreme Justices of

Kondal, that you will be true and loyal, each helping his chosen one in

all things, great and small; that never throughout eternity, in thought

or in action, will either your body or your mind or your conscious

spirit stray from the path of fairness and truth and honor?"



"I do."



"I pronounce you married with the eternal marriage. Just as the faidon

which you each now wear--the eternal jewel which no force of man,

however applied, has yet been able to change or deform in any

particular; and which continues to give off its inward light without

change throughout eternity--shall endure through endless cycles of time

after the metal of the ring which holds it shall have crumbled in decay:

even so shall your spirits, formerly two, now one and indissoluble,

progress in ever-ascending evolution throughout eternity after the base

material which is your bodies shall have returned to the senseless dust

from whence it arose."



* * * * *



The Karbix lowered his arms and the bridal party walked to the door

through a double rank of uplifted weapons. From the chapel they were led

to another room, where the contracting parties signed their names in a

register. The Kofedix then brought forward two marriage

certificates--heavy square plates of a brilliant purple metal,

beautifully engraved in parallel columns of English and Kondalian

script, and heavily bordered with precious stones. The principals and

witnesses signed below each column, the signatures being deeply engraved

by the royal engraver. Leaving the registry, they were escorted to the

dining hall, where a truly royal repast was served. Between courses the

highest nobles of the nation welcomed the visitors and wished them

happiness in short but earnest addresses. After the last course had been

disposed of, the Karbix rose at a sign from the Karfedix and spoke, his

voice again agitated by the emotion which had puzzled his hearers during

the marriage service.



"All Kondal is with us here in spirit, trying to aid us in our poor

attempts to convey our welcome to these our guests, of whose friendship

no greater warrant could be given than their willingness to grant us the

privilege of their marriage. Not only have they given us a boon that

will make their names revered throughout the nation as long as Kondal

shall exist, but they have also been the means of showing us plainly

that the First Cause is upon our side, that our age-old institution of

honor is in truth the only foundation upon which can be built a race

fitted to survive. At the same time they have been the means of showing

us that our hated foe, entirely without honor, building his race upon a

foundation of bloodthirsty savagery alone, is building wrongly and must

perish utterly from the face of Osnome."



His hearers listened, impressed by his earnestness, but plainly not

understanding his meaning.



"You do not understand?" he went on, with a deep light shining in his

eyes. "It is inevitable that two peoples inhabiting worlds so widely

separated as are our two should be possessed of widely-varying knowledge

and abilities, and these strangers have already made it possible for us

to construct engines of destruction which shall obliterate Mardonale

completely...." A fierce shout of joy interrupted the speaker and the

nobles sprang to their feet, saluting the visitors with upraised

weapons. As soon as they had reseated themselves, the Karbix continued:



"That is the boon. The vindication of our system of evolution is easily

explained. The strangers landed first upon Mardonale. Had Nalboon met

them in honor, he would have gained the boon. But he, with the savagery

characteristic of his evolution, attempted to kill his guests and steal

their treasures, with what results you already know. We, on our part, in

exchange for the few and trifling services we have been able to render

them, have received even more than Nalboon would have obtained, had his

plans not been nullified by their vastly superior state of evolution."



The orator seated himself and there was a deafening clamor of cheering

as the nobles formed themselves into an escort of honor and conducted

the two couples to their apartments.



Alone in their room, Dorothy turned to her husband with tears shining in

her beautiful eyes.



"Dick, sweetheart, wasn't that the most wonderful thing that anybody

ever heard of? Using the word in all its real meaning, it was

indescribably grand, and that old man is simply superb. It makes me

ashamed of myself to think that I was ever afraid or nervous here."



"It sure was all of that, Dottie mine, little bride of an hour. The

whole thing gets right down to where a fellow lives--I've got a lump in

my throat right now so big that it hurts me to think. Earthly marriages

are piffling in comparison with that ceremony. It's no wonder they're

happy, after taking those vows--especially as they don't have to take

them until after they are sure of themselves.



"But we're sure already, sweetheart," as he embraced her with all the

feeling of his nature. "Those vows are not a bit stronger than the ones

we have already exchanged--bodily and mentally and spiritually we are

one, now and forever."