At The Moment Of Marriage

: The Chessmen Of Mars

The silence of the tomb lay heavy about him as O-Tar, Jeddak of

Manator, opened his eyes in the chamber of O-Mai. Recollection of

the frightful apparition that had confronted him swept to his

consciousness. He listened, but heard naught. Within the range of

his vision there was nothing apparent that might cause alarm.

Slowly he lifted his head and looked about. Upon the floor beside

the couch lay the thing that had at
irst attracted his attention

and his eyes closed in terror as he recognized it for what it

was; but it moved not, nor spoke. O-Tar opened his eyes again and

rose to his feet. He was trembling in every limb. There was

nothing on the dais from which he had seen the thing arise.



O-Tar backed slowly from the room. At last he gained the outer

corridor. It was empty. He did not know that it had emptied

rapidly as the loud scream with which his own had mingled had

broken upon the startled ears of the warriors who had been sent

to spy upon him. He looked at the timepiece set in a massive

bracelet upon his left forearm. The ninth zode was nearly half

gone. O-Tar had lain for an hour unconscious. He had spent an

hour in the chamber of O-Mai and he was not dead! He had looked

upon the face of his predecessor and was still sane! He shook

himself and smiled. Rapidly he subdued his rebelliously shaking

nerves, so that by the time he reached the tenanted portion of

the palace he had gained control of himself. He walked with chin

high and something of a swagger. To the banquet hall he went,

knowing that his chiefs awaited him there and as he entered they

arose and upon the faces of many were incredulity and amaze, for

they had not thought to see O-Tar the jeddak again after what the

spies had told them of the horrid sounds issuing from the chamber

of O-Mai. Thankful was O-Tar that he had gone alone to that

chamber of fright, for now no one could deny the tale that he

should tell.



E-Thas rushed forward to greet him, for E-Thas had seen black

looks directed toward him as the tals slipped by and his

benefactor failed to return.



"O brave and glorious jeddak!" cried the major-domo. "We rejoice

at your safe return and beg of you the story of your adventure."



"It was naught," exclaimed O-Tar. "I searched the chambers

carefully and waited in hiding for the return of the slave,

Turan, if he were temporarily away; but he came not. He is not

there and I doubt if he ever goes there. Few men would choose to

remain long in such a dismal place."



"You were not attacked?" asked E-Thas. "You heard no screams, nor

moans?"



"I heard hideous noises and saw phantom figures; but they fled

before me so that never could I lay hold of one, and I looked

upon the face of O-Mai and I am not mad. I even rested in the

chamber beside his corpse."



In a far corner of the room a bent and wrinkled old man hid a

smile behind a golden goblet of strong brew.



"Come! Let us drink!" cried O-Tar and reached for the dagger, the

pommel of which he was accustomed to use to strike the gong which

summoned slaves, but the dagger was not in its scabbard. O-Tar

was puzzled. He knew that it had been there just before he

entered the chamber of O-Mai, for he had carefully felt of all

his weapons to make sure that none was missing. He seized instead

a table utensil and struck the gong, and when the slaves came

bade them bring the strongest brew for O-Tar and his chiefs.

Before the dawn broke many were the expressions of admiration

bellowed from drunken lips--admiration for the courage of their

jeddak; but some there were who still looked glum.



* * * * *



Came at last the day that O-Tar would take the Princess Tara of

Helium to wife. For hours slaves prepared the unwilling bride.

Seven perfumed baths occupied three long and weary hours, then

her whole body was anointed with the oil of pimalia blossoms and

massaged by the deft fingers of a slave from distant Dusar. Her

harness, all new and wrought for the occasion was of the white

hide of the great white apes of Barsoom, hung heavily with

platinum and diamonds--fairly encrusted with them. The glossy

mass of her jet hair had been built into a coiffure of stately

and becoming grandeur, into which diamond-headed pins were stuck

until the whole scintillated as the stars in heaven upon a

moonless night.



But it was a sullen and defiant bride that they led from the high

tower toward the throne room of O-Tar. The corridors were filled

with slaves and warriors, and the women of the palace and the

city who had been commanded to attend the ceremony. All the power

and pride, wealth and beauty of Manator were there.



Slowly Tara, surrounded by a heavy guard of honor, moved along

the marble corridors filled with people. At the entrance to The

Hall of Chiefs E-Thas, the major-domo, received her. The Hall was

empty except for its ranks of dead chieftains upon their dead

mounts. Through this long chamber E-Thas escorted her to the

throne room which also was empty, the marriage ceremony in

Manator differing from that of other countries of Barsoom. Here

the bride would await the groom at the foot of the steps leading

to the throne. The guests followed her in and took their places,

leaving the central aisle from The Hall of Chiefs to the throne

clear, for up this O-Tar would approach his bride alone after a

short solitary communion with the dead behind closed doors in The

Hall of Chiefs. It was the custom.



The guests had all filed through The Hall of Chiefs; the doors at

both ends had been closed. Presently those at the lower end of

the hall opened and O-Tar entered. His black harness was

ornamented with rubies and gold; his face was covered by a

grotesque mask of the precious metal in which two enormous rubies

were set for eyes, though below them were narrow slits through

which the wearer could see. His crown was a fillet supporting

carved feathers of the same metal as the mask. To the least

detail his regalia was that demanded of a royal bridegroom by the

customs of Manator, and now in accordance with that same custom

he came alone to The Hall of Chiefs to receive the blessings and

the council of the great ones of Manator who had preceded him.



As the doors at the lower end of the Hall closed behind him O-Tar

the Jeddak stood alone with the great dead. By the dictates of

ages no mortal eye might look upon the scene enacted within that

sacred chamber. As the mighty of Manator respected the traditions

of Manator, let us, too, respect those traditions of a proud and

sensitive people. Of what concern to us the happenings in that

solemn chamber of the dead?



Five minutes passed. The bride stood silently at the foot of the

throne. The guests spoke together in low whispers until the room

was filled with the hum of many voices. At length the doors

leading into The Hall of Chiefs swung open, and the resplendent

bridegroom stood framed for a moment in the massive opening. A

hush fell upon the wedding guests. With measured and impressive

step the groom approached the bride. Tara felt the muscles of her

heart contract with the apprehension that had been growing upon

her as the coils of Fate settled more closely about her and no

sign came from Turan. Where was he? What, indeed, could he

accomplish now to save her? Surrounded by the power of O-Tar with

never a friend among them, her position seemed at last without

vestige of hope.



"I still live!" she whispered inwardly in a last brave attempt to

combat the terrible hopelessness that was overwhelming her, but

her fingers stole for reassurance to the slim blade that she had

managed to transfer, undetected, from her old harness to the new.

And now the groom was at her side and taking her hand was leading

her up the steps to the throne, before which they halted and

stood facing the gathering below. Came then, from the back of the

room a procession headed by the high dignitary whose office it

was to make these two man and wife, and directly behind him a

richly-clad youth bearing a silken pillow on which lay the golden

handcuffs connected by a short length of chain-of-gold with which

the ceremony would be concluded when the dignitary clasped a

handcuff about the wrist of each symbolizing their indissoluble

union in the holy bonds of wedlock.



Would Turan's promised succor come too late? Tara listened to the

long, monotonous intonation of the wedding service. She heard the

virtues of O-Tar extolled and the beauties of the bride. The

moment was approaching and still no sign of Turan. But what could

he accomplish should he succeed in reaching the throne room,

other than to die with her? There could be no hope of rescue.



The dignitary lifted the golden handcuffs from the pillow upon

which they reposed. He blessed them and reached for Tara's wrist.

The time had come! The thing could go no further, for alive or

dead, by all the laws of Barsoom she would be the wife of O-Tar

of Manator the instant the two were locked together. Even should

rescue come then or later she could never dissolve those bonds

and Turan would be lost to her as surely as though death

separated them.



Her hand stole toward the hidden blade, but instantly the hand of

the groom shot out and seized her wrist. He had guessed her

intention. Through the slits in the grotesque mask she could see

his eyes upon her and she guessed the sardonic smile that the

mask hid. For a tense moment the two stood thus. The people below

them kept breathless silence for the play before the throne had

not passed un-noticed.



Dramatic as was the moment it was suddenly rendered trebly so by

the noisy opening of the doors leading to The Hall of Chiefs. All

eyes turned in the direction of the interruption to see another

figure framed in the massive opening--a half-clad figure buckling

the half-adjusted harness hurriedly in place--the figure of

O-Tar, Jeddak of Manator.



"Stop!" he screamed, springing forward along the aisle toward the

throne. "Seize the impostor!"



All eyes shot to the figure of the groom before the throne. They

saw him raise his hand and snatch off the golden mask, and Tara

of Helium in wide-eyed incredulity looked up into the face of

Turan the panthan.



"Turan the slave," they cried then. "Death to him! Death to him!"



"Wait!" shouted Turan, drawing his sword, as a dozen warriors

leaped forward.



"Wait!" screamed another voice, old and cracked, as I-Gos, the

ancient taxidermist, sprang from among the guests and reached the

throne steps ahead of the foremost warriors.



At sight of the old man the warriors paused, for age is held in

great veneration among the peoples of Barsoom, as is true,

perhaps, of all peoples whose religion is based to any extent

upon ancestor worship. But O-Tar gave no heed to him, leaping

instead swiftly toward the throne. "Stop, coward!" cried I-Gos.



The people looked at the little old man in amazement. "Men of

Manator," he cackled in his thin, shrill voice, "wouldst be ruled

by a coward and a liar?"



"Down with him!" shouted O-Tar.



"Not until I have spoken," retorted I-Gos. "It is my right. If I

fail my life is forfeit--that you all know and I know. I demand

therefore to be heard. It is my right!"



"It is his right," echoed the voices of a score of warriors in

various parts of the chamber.



"That O-Tar is a coward and a liar I can prove," continued I-Gos.

"He said that he faced bravely the horrors of the chamber of

O-Mai and saw nothing of the slave Turan. I was there, hiding

behind the hangings, and I saw all that transpired. Turan had

been hiding in the chamber and was even then lying upon the couch

of O-Mai when O-Tar, trembling with fear, entered the room.

Turan, disturbed, arose to a sitting position at the same time

voicing a piercing shriek. O-Tar screamed and swooned."



"It is a lie!" cried O-Tar.



"It is not a lie and I can prove it," retorted I-Gos. "Didst

notice the night that he returned from the chambers of O-Mai and

was boasting of his exploit, that when he would summon slaves to

bring wine he reached for his dagger to strike the gong with its

pommel as is always his custom? Didst note that, any of you? And

that he had no dagger? O-Tar, where is the dagger that you

carried into the chamber of O-Mai? You do not know; but I know.

While you lay in the swoon of terror I took it from your harness

and hid it among the sleeping silks upon the couch of O-Mai.

There it is even now, and if any doubt it let them go thither and

there they will find it and know the cowardice of their jeddak."



"But what of this impostor?" demanded one. "Shall he stand with

impunity upon the throne of Manator whilst we squabble about our

ruler?"



"It is through his bravery that you have learned the cowardice of

O-Tar," replied I-Gos, "and through him you will be given a

greater jeddak."



"We will choose our own jeddak. Seize and slay the slave!" There

were cries of approval from all parts of the room. Gahan was

listening intently, as though for some hoped-for sound. He saw

the warriors approaching the dais, where he now stood with drawn

sword and with one arm about Tara of Helium. He wondered if his

plans had miscarried after all. If they had it would mean death

for him, and he knew that Tara would take her life if he fell.

Had he, then, served her so futilely after all his efforts?



Several warriors were urging the necessity for sending at once to

the chamber of O-Mai to search for the dagger that would prove,

if found, the cowardice of O-Tar. At last three consented to go.

"You need not fear," I-Gos assured them. "There is naught there

to harm you. I have been there often of late and Turan the slave

has slept there for these many nights. The screams and moans that

frightened you and O-Tar were voiced by Turan to drive you away

from his hiding place." Shamefacedly the three left the apartment

to search for O-Tar's dagger.



And now the others turned their attention once more to Gahan.

They approached the throne with bared swords, but they came

slowly for they had seen this slave upon the Field of Jetan and

they knew the prowess of his arm. They had reached the foot of

the steps when from far above there sounded a deep boom, and

another, and another, and Turan smiled and breathed a sigh of

relief. Perhaps, after all, it had not come too late. The

warriors stopped and listened as did the others in the chamber.

Now there broke upon their ears a loud rattle of musketry and it

all came from above as though men were fighting upon the roofs of

the palace.



"What is it?" they demanded, one of the other.



"A great storm has broken over Manator," said one.



"Mind not the storm until you have slain the creature who dares

stand upon the throne of your jeddak," demanded O-Tar. "Seize

him!"



Even as he ceased speaking the arras behind the throne parted and

a warrior stepped forth upon the dais. An exclamation of surprise

and dismay broke from the lips of the warriors of O-Tar.

"U-Thor!" they cried. "What treason is this?"



"It is no treason," said U-Thor in his deep voice. "I bring you a

new jeddak for all of Manator. No lying poltroon, but a

courageous man whom you all love."



He stepped aside then and another emerged from the corridor

hidden by the arras. It was A-Kor, and at sight of him there rose

exclamations of surprise, of pleasure, and of anger, as the

various factions recognized the coup d'etat that had been

arranged so cunningly. Behind A-Kor came other warriors until the

dais was crowded with them--all men of Manator from the city of

Manatos.



O-Tar was exhorting his warriors to attack, when a bloody and

disheveled padwar burst into the chamber through a side entrance.

"The city has fallen!" he cried aloud. "The hordes of Manatos

pour through The Gate of Enemies. The slaves from Gathol have

arisen and destroyed the palace guards. Great ships are landing

warriors upon the palace roof and in the Fields of Jetan. The men

of Helium and Gathol are marching through Manator. They cry aloud

for the Princess of Helium and swear to leave Manator a blazing

funeral pyre consuming the bodies of all our people. The skies

are black with ships. They come in great processions from the

east and from the south."



And then once more the doors from The Hall of Chiefs swung wide

and the men of Manator turned to see another figure standing upon

the threshold--a mighty figure of a man with white skin, and

black hair, and gray eyes that glittered now like points of steel

and behind him The Hall of Chiefs was filled with fighting men

wearing the harness of far countries. Tara of Helium saw him and

her heart leaped in exultation, for it was John Carter, Warlord

of Barsoom, come at the head of a victorious host to the rescue

of his daughter, and at his side was Djor Kantos to whom she had

been betrothed.



The Warlord eyed the assemblage for a moment before he spoke.

"Lay down your arms, men of Manator," he said. "I see my daughter

and that she lives, and if no harm has befallen her no blood need

be shed. Your city is filled with the fighting men of U-Thor, and

those from Gathol and from Helium. The palace is in the hands of

the slaves from Gathol, beside a thousand of my own warriors who

fill the halls and chambers surrounding this room. The fate of

your jeddak lies in your own hands. I have no wish to interfere.

I come only for my daughter and to free the slaves from Gathol. I

have spoken!" and without waiting for a reply and as though the

room had been filled with his own people rather than a hostile

band he strode up the broad main aisle toward Tara of Helium.



The chiefs of Manator were stunned. They looked to O-Tar; but he

could only gaze helplessly about him as the enemy entered from

The Hall of Chiefs and circled the throne room until they had

surrounded the entire company. And then a dwar of the army of

Helium entered.



"We have captured three chiefs," he reported to The Warlord, "who

beg that they be permitted to enter the throne room and report to

their fellows some matter which they say will decide the fate of

Manator."



"Fetch them," ordered The Warlord.



They came, heavily guarded, to the foot of the steps leading to

the throne and there they stopped and the leader turned toward

the others of Manator and raising high his right hand displayed a

jeweled dagger. "We found it," he said, "even where I-Gos said

that we would find it," and he looked menacingly upon O-Tar.



"A-Kor, jeddak of Manator!" cried a voice, and the cry was taken

up by a hundred hoarse-throated warriors.



"There can be but one jeddak in Manator," said the chief who held

the dagger; his eyes still fixed upon the hapless O-Tar he

crossed to where the latter stood and holding the dagger upon an

outstretched palm proffered it to the discredited ruler. "There

can be but one jeddak in Manator," he repeated meaningly.



O-Tar took the proffered blade and drawing himself to his full

height plunged it to the guard into his breast, in that single

act redeeming himself in the esteem of his people and winning an

eternal place in The Hall of Chiefs.



As he fell all was silence in the great room, to be broken

presently by the voice of U-Thor. "O-Tar is dead!" he cried. "Let

A-Kor rule until the chiefs of all Manator may be summoned to

choose a new jeddak. What is your answer?"



"Let A-Kor rule! A-Kor, Jeddak of Manator!" The cries filled the

room and there was no dissenting voice.



A-Kor raised his sword for silence. "It is the will of A-Kor," he

said, "and that of the Great Jed of Manatos, and the commander of

the fleet from Gathol, and of the illustrious John Carter,

Warlord of Barsoom, that peace lie upon the city of Manator and

so I decree that the men of Manator go forth and welcome the

fighting men of these our allies as guests and friends and show

them the wonders of our ancient city and the hospitality of

Manator. I have spoken." And U-Thor and John Carter dismissed

their warriors and bade them accept the hospitality of Manator.

As the room emptied Djor Kantos reached the side of Tara of

Helium. The girl's happiness at rescue had been blighted by sight

of this man whom her virtuous heart told her she had wronged. She

dreaded the ordeal that lay before her and the dishonor that she

must admit before she could hope to be freed from the

understanding that had for long existed between them. And now

Djor Kantos approached and kneeling raised her fingers to his

lips.



"Beautiful daughter of Helium," he said, "how may I tell you the

thing that I must tell you--of the dishonor that I have all

unwittingly done you? I can but throw myself upon your generosity

for forgiveness; but if you demand it I can receive the dagger as

honorably as did O-Tar."



"What do you mean?" asked Tara of Helium. "What are you talking

about--why speak thus in riddles to one whose heart is already

breaking?"



Her heart already breaking! The outlook was anything but

promising, and the young padwar wished that he had died before

ever he had had to speak the words he now must speak.



"Tara of Helium," he continued, "we all thought you dead. For a

long year have you been gone from Helium. I mourned you truly and

then, less than a moon since, I wed with Olvia Marthis." He

stopped and looked at her with eyes that might have said: "Now,

strike me dead!"



"Oh, foolish man!" cried Tara. "Nothing you could have done could

have pleased me more. Djor Kantos, I could kiss you!"



"I do not think that Olvia Marthis would mind," he said, his face

now wreathed with smiles. As they spoke a body of men had entered

the throne room and approached the dais. They were tall men

trapped in plain harness, absolutely without ornamentation. Just

as their leader reached the dais Tara had turned to Gahan,

motioning him to join them.



"Djor Kantos," she said, "I bring you Turan the panthan, whose

loyalty and bravery have won my love."



John Carter and the leader of the new come warriors, who were

standing near, looked quickly at the little group. The former

smiled an inscrutable smile, the latter addressed the Princess of

Helium. "'Turan the panthan!'" he cried. "Know you not, fair

daughter of Helium, that this man you call panthan is Gahan, Jed

of Gathol?"



For just a moment Tara of Helium looked her surprise; and then

she shrugged her beautiful shoulders as she turned her head to

cast her eyes over one of them at Gahan of Gathol.



"Jed or panthan," she said; "what difference does it make what

one's slave has been?" and she laughed roguishly into the smiling

face of her lover.



* * * * *



His story finished, John Carter rose from the chair opposite me,

stretching his giant frame like some great forest-bred lion.



"You must go?" I cried, for I hated to see him leave and it

seemed that he had been with me but a moment.



"The sky is already red beyond those beautiful hills of yours,"

he replied, "and it will soon be day."



"Just one question before you go," I begged.



"Well?" he assented, good-naturedly.



"How was Gahan able to enter the throne room garbed in O-Tar's

trappings?" I asked.



"It was simple--for Gahan of Gathol," replied The Warlord. "With

the assistance of I-Gos he crept into The Hall of Chiefs before

the ceremony, while the throne room and Hall of Chiefs were

vacated to receive the bride. He came from the pits through the

corridor that opened behind the arras at the rear of the throne,

and passing into The Hall of Chiefs took his place upon the back

of a riderless thoat, whose warrior was in I-Gos' repair room.

When O-Tar entered and came near him Gahan fell upon him and

struck him with the butt of a heavy spear. He thought that he had

killed him and was surprised when O-Tar appeared to denounce

him."



"And Ghek? What became of Ghek?" I insisted.



"After leading Val Dor and Floran to Tara's disabled flier which

they repaired, he accompanied them to Gathol from where a message

was sent to me in Helium. He then led a large party including

A-Kor and U-Thor from the roof, where our ships landed them, down

a spiral runway into the palace and guided them to the throne

room. We took him back to Helium with us, where he still lives,

with his single rykor which we found all but starved to death in

the pits of Manator. But come! No more questions now."



I accompanied him to the east arcade where the red dawn was

glowing beyond the arches.



"Good-bye!" he said.



"I can scarce believe that it is really you," I exclaimed.

"Tomorrow I will be sure that I have dreamed all this."



He laughed and drawing his sword scratched a rude cross upon the

concrete of one of the arches.



"If you are in doubt tomorrow," he said, "come and see if you

dreamed this."



A moment later he was gone.









JETAN, OR MARTIAN CHESS



For those who care for such things, and would like to try the

game, I give the rules of Jetan as they were given me by John

Carter. By writing the names and moves of the various pieces on

bits of paper and pasting them on ordinary checkermen the game

may be played quite as well as with the ornate pieces used upon

Mars.



THE BOARD: Square board consisting of one hundred alternate black

and orange squares.



THE PIECES: In order, as they stand upon the board in the first

row, from left to right of each player.



Warrior: 2 feathers; 2 spaces straight in any direction or

combination.



Padwar: 2 feathers; 2 spaces diagonal in any direction or

combination.



Dwar: 3 feathers; 3 spaces straight in any direction or

combination.



Flier: 3 bladed propellor; 3 spaces diagonal in any direction or

combination; and may jump intervening pieces.



Chief: Diadem with ten jewels; 3 spaces in any direction;

straight or diagonal or combination.



Princess: Diadem with one jewel; same as Chief, except may jump

intervening pieces.



Flier: See above.



Dwar: See above.



Padwar: See above.



Warrior: See above.



And in the second row from left to right:



Thoat: Mounted warrior 2 feathers; 2 spaces, one straight and one

diagonal in any direction.



Panthans: (8 of them): 1 feather; 1 space, forward, side, or

diagonal, but not backward.



Thoat: See above.



The game is played with twenty black pieces by one player and

twenty orange by his opponent, and is presumed to have originally

represented a battle between the Black race of the south and the

Yellow race of the north. On Mars the board is usually arranged

so that the Black pieces are played from the south and the Orange

from the north.



The game is won when any piece is placed on same square with

opponent's Princess, or a Chief takes a Chief.



The game is drawn when either Chief is taken by a piece other

than the opposing Chief, or when both sides are reduced to three

pieces, or less, of equal value and the game is not won in the

ensuing ten moves, five apiece.



The Princess may not move onto a threatened square, nor may she

take an opposing piece. She is entitled to one ten-space move at

any time during the game. This move is called the escape.



Two pieces may not occupy the same square except in the final

move of a game where the Princess is taken.



When a player, moving properly and in order, places one of his

pieces upon a square occupied by an opponent piece, the opponent

piece is considered to have been killed and is removed from the

game.



The moves explained. Straight moves mean due north, south, east,

or west; diagonal moves mean northeast, southeast, southwest, or

northwest. A Dwar might move straight north three spaces, or

north one space and east two spaces, or any similar combination

of straight moves, so long as he did not cross the same square

twice in a single move. This example explains combination moves.



The first move may be decided in any way that is agreeable to

both players; after the first game the winner of the preceding

game moves first if he chooses, or may instruct his opponent to

make the first move.



Gambling: The Martians gamble at Jetan in several ways. Of course

the outcome of the game indicates to whom the main stake belongs;

but they also put a price upon the head of each piece, according

to its value, and for each piece that a player loses he pays its

value to his opponent.



More

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