The Secret Tower

: Warlord Of Mars

I have no stomach to narrate the monotonous events of the tedious

days that Woola and I spent ferreting our way across the labyrinth

of glass, through the dark and devious ways beyond that led beneath

the Valley Dor and Golden Cliffs to emerge at last upon the flank

of the Otz Mountains just above the Valley of Lost Souls--that

pitiful purgatory peopled by the poor unfortunates who dare not

continue their abandoned pil
rimage to Dor, or return to the various

lands of the outer world from whence they came.



Here the trail of Dejah Thoris' abductors led along the mountains'

base, across steep and rugged ravines, by the side of appalling

precipices, and sometimes out into the valley, where we found

fighting aplenty with the members of the various tribes that make

up the population of this vale of hopelessness.



But through it all we came at last to where the way led up a narrow

gorge that grew steeper and more impracticable at every step until

before us loomed a mighty fortress buried beneath the side of an

overhanging cliff.



Here was the secret hiding place of Matai Shang, Father of Therns.

Here, surrounded by a handful of the faithful, the hekkador of

the ancient faith, who had once been served by millions of vassals

and dependents, dispensed the spiritual words among the half dozen

nations of Barsoom that still clung tenaciously to their false and

discredited religion.



Darkness was just falling as we came in sight of the seemingly

impregnable walls of this mountain stronghold, and lest we be seen

I drew back with Woola behind a jutting granite promontory, into

a clump of the hardy, purple scrub that thrives upon the barren

sides of Otz.



Here we lay until the quick transition from daylight to darkness

had passed. Then I crept out to approach the fortress walls in

search of a way within.



Either through carelessness or over-confidence in the supposed

inaccessibility of their hiding place, the triple-barred gate stood

ajar. Beyond were a handful of guards, laughing and talking over

one of their incomprehensible Barsoomian games.



I saw that none of the guardsmen had been of the party that

accompanied Thurid and Matai Shang; and so, relying entirely upon

my disguise, I walked boldly through the gateway and up to the

thern guard.



The men stopped their game and looked up at me, but there was no

sign of suspicion. Similarly they looked at Woola, growling at my

heel.



"Kaor!" I said in true Martian greeting, and the warriors arose and

saluted me. "I have but just found my way hither from the Golden

Cliffs," I continued, "and seek audience with the hekkador, Matai

Shang, Father of Therns. Where may he be found?"



"Follow me," said one of the guard, and, turning, led me across

the outer courtyard toward a second buttressed wall.



Why the apparent ease with which I seemingly deceived them did

not rouse my suspicions I know not, unless it was that my mind was

still so full of that fleeting glimpse of my beloved princess that

there was room in it for naught else. Be that as it may, the fact

is that I marched buoyantly behind my guide straight into the jaws

of death.



Afterward I learned that thern spies had been aware of my coming

for hours before I reached the hidden fortress.



The gate had been purposely left ajar to tempt me on. The guards

had been schooled well in their part of the conspiracy; and I,

more like a schoolboy than a seasoned warrior, ran headlong into

the trap.



At the far side of the outer court a narrow door let into the

angle made by one of the buttresses with the wall. Here my guide

produced a key and opened the way within; then, stepping back, he

motioned me to enter.



"Matai Shang is in the temple court beyond," he said; and as Woola

and I passed through, the fellow closed the door quickly upon us.



The nasty laugh that came to my ears through the heavy planking of

the door after the lock clicked was my first intimation that all

was not as it should be.



I found myself in a small, circular chamber within the buttress.

Before me a door opened, presumably, upon the inner court beyond.

For a moment I hesitated, all my suspicions now suddenly, though

tardily, aroused; then, with a shrug of my shoulders, I opened the

door and stepped out into the glare of torches that lighted the

inner court.



Directly opposite me a massive tower rose to a height of three

hundred feet. It was of the strangely beautiful modern Barsoomian

style of architecture, its entire surface hand carved in bold

relief with intricate and fanciful designs. Thirty feet above

the courtyard and overlooking it was a broad balcony, and there,

indeed, was Matai Shang, and with him were Thurid and Phaidor,

Thuvia, and Dejah Thoris--the last two heavily ironed. A handful

of thern warriors stood just behind the little party.



As I entered the enclosure the eyes of those in the balcony were

full upon me.



An ugly smile distorted the cruel lips of Matai Shang. Thurid

hurled a taunt at me and placed a familiar hand upon the shoulder

of my princess. Like a tigress she turned upon him, striking the

beast a heavy blow with the manacles upon her wrist.



He would have struck back had not Matai Shang interfered, and then

I saw that the two men were not over-friendly; for the manner of

the thern was arrogant and domineering as he made it plain to the

First Born that the Princess of Helium was the personal property

of the Father of Therns. And Thurid's bearing toward the ancient

hekkador savored not at all of liking or respect.



When the altercation in the balcony had subsided Matai Shang turned

again to me.



"Earth man," he cried, "you have earned a more ignoble death than

now lies within our weakened power to inflict upon you; but that the

death you die tonight may be doubly bitter, know you that when you

have passed, your widow becomes the wife of Matai Shang, Hekkador

of the Holy Therns, for a Martian year.



"At the end of that time, as you know, she shall be discarded,

as is the law among us, but not, as is usual, to lead a quiet and

honored life as high priestess of some hallowed shrine. Instead,

Dejah Thoris, Princess of Helium, shall become the plaything of

my lieutenants--perhaps of thy most hated enemy, Thurid, the black

dator."



As he ceased speaking he awaited in silence evidently for some

outbreak of rage upon my part--something that would have added to

the spice of his revenge. But I did not give him the satisfaction

that he craved.



Instead, I did the one thing of all others that might rouse his

anger and increase his hatred of me; for I knew that if I died

Dejah Thoris, too, would find a way to die before they could heap

further tortures or indignities upon her.



Of all the holy of holies which the thern venerates and worships

none is more revered than the yellow wig which covers his bald pate,

and next thereto comes the circlet of gold and the great diadem,

whose scintillant rays mark the attainment of the Tenth Cycle.



And, knowing this, I removed the wig and circlet from my head,

tossing them carelessly upon the flagging of the court. Then I

wiped my feet upon the yellow tresses; and as a groan of rage arose

from the balcony I spat full upon the holy diadem.



Matai Shang went livid with anger, but upon the lips of Thurid I

could see a grim smile of amusement, for to him these things were

not holy; so, lest he should derive too much amusement from my

act, I cried: "And thus did I with the holies of Issus, Goddess

of Life Eternal, ere I threw Issus herself to the mob that once

had worshiped her, to be torn to pieces in her own temple."



That put an end to Thurid's grinning, for he had been high in the

favor of Issus.



"Let us have an end to this blaspheming!" he cried, turning to the

Father of Therns.



Matai Shang rose and, leaning over the edge of the balcony, gave

voice to the weird call that I had heard from the lips of the

priests upon the tiny balcony upon the face of the Golden Cliffs

overlooking the Valley Dor, when, in times past, they called

the fearsome white apes and the hideous plant men to the feast of

victims floating down the broad bosom of the mysterious Iss toward

the silian-infested waters of the Lost Sea of Korus. "Let loose

the death!" he cried, and immediately a dozen doors in the base of

the tower swung open, and a dozen grim and terrible banths sprang

into the arena.



This was not the first time that I had faced the ferocious Barsoomian

lion, but never had I been pitted, single-handed, against a full

dozen of them. Even with the assistance of the fierce Woola, there

could be but a single outcome to so unequal a struggle.



For a moment the beasts hesitated beneath the brilliant glare

of the torches; but presently their eyes, becoming accustomed to

the light, fell upon Woola and me, and with bristling manes and

deep-throated roars they advanced, lashing their tawny sides with

their powerful tails.



In the brief interval of life that was left me I shot a last,

parting glance toward my Dejah Thoris. Her beautiful face was set

in an expression of horror; and as my eyes met hers she extended

both arms toward me as, struggling with the guards who now held

her, she endeavored to cast herself from the balcony into the pit

beneath, that she might share my death with me. Then, as the banths

were about to close upon me, she turned and buried her dear face

in her arms.



Suddenly my attention was drawn toward Thuvia of Ptarth. The

beautiful girl was leaning far over the edge of the balcony, her

eyes bright with excitement.



In another instant the banths would be upon me, but I could not

force my gaze from the features of the red girl, for I knew that

her expression meant anything but the enjoyment of the grim tragedy

that would so soon be enacted below her; there was some deeper,

hidden meaning which I sought to solve.



For an instant I thought of relying on my earthly muscles and

agility to escape the banths and reach the balcony, which I could

easily have done, but I could not bring myself to desert the

faithful Woola and leave him to die alone beneath the cruel fangs

of the hungry banths; that is not the way upon Barsoom, nor was it

ever the way of John Carter.



Then the secret of Thuvia's excitement became apparent as from her

lips there issued the purring sound I had heard once before; that

time that, within the Golden Cliffs, she called the fierce banths

about her and led them as a shepherdess might lead her flock of

meek and harmless sheep.



At the first note of that soothing sound the banths halted in their

tracks, and every fierce head went high as the beasts sought the

origin of the familiar call. Presently they discovered the red

girl in the balcony above them, and, turning, roared out their

recognition and their greeting.



Guards sprang to drag Thuvia away, but ere they had succeeded she

had hurled a volley of commands at the listening brutes, and as

one they turned and marched back into their dens.



"You need not fear them now, John Carter!" cried Thuvia, before

they could silence her. "Those banths will never harm you now,

nor Woola, either."



It was all I cared to know. There was naught to keep me from that

balcony now, and with a long, running leap I sprang far aloft until

my hands grasped its lowest sill.



In an instant all was wild confusion. Matai Shang shrank back.

Thurid sprang forward with drawn sword to cut me down.



Again Dejah Thoris wielded her heavy irons and fought him back.

Then Matai Shang grasped her about the waist and dragged her away

through a door leading within the tower.



For an instant Thurid hesitated, and then, as though fearing that

the Father of Therns would escape him with the Princess of Helium,

he, too, dashed from the balcony in their wake.



Phaidor alone retained her presence of mind. Two of the guards she

ordered to bear away Thuvia of Ptarth; the others she commanded to

remain and prevent me from following. Then she turned toward me.



"John Carter," she cried, "for the last time I offer you the love

of Phaidor, daughter of the Holy Hekkador. Accept and your princess

shall be returned to the court of her grandfather, and you shall

live in peace and happiness. Refuse and the fate that my father

has threatened shall fall upon Dejah Thoris.



"You cannot save her now, for by this time they have reached a

place where even you may not follow. Refuse and naught can save

you; for, though the way to the last stronghold of the Holy Therns

was made easy for you, the way hence hath been made impossible.

What say you?"



"You knew my answer, Phaidor," I replied, "before ever you spoke.

Make way," I cried to the guards, "for John Carter, Prince of

Helium, would pass!"



With that I leaped over the low baluster that surrounded the balcony,

and with drawn long-sword faced my enemies.



There were three of them; but Phaidor must have guessed what the

outcome of the battle would be, for she turned and fled from the

balcony the moment she saw that I would have none of her proposition.



The three guardsmen did not wait for my attack. Instead, they

rushed me--the three of them simultaneously; and it was that which

gave me an advantage, for they fouled one another in the narrow

precincts of the balcony, so that the foremost of them stumbled

full upon my blade at the first onslaught.



The red stain upon my point roused to its full the old blood-lust

of the fighting man that has ever been so strong within my breast,

so that my blade flew through the air with a swiftness and deadly

accuracy that threw the two remaining therns into wild despair.



When at last the sharp steel found the heart of one of them the

other turned to flee, and, guessing that his steps would lead him

along the way taken by those I sought, I let him keep ever far

enough ahead to think that he was safely escaping my sword.



Through several inner chambers he raced until he came to a spiral

runway. Up this he dashed, I in close pursuit. At the upper end

we came out into a small chamber, the walls of which were plank

except for a single window overlooking the slopes of Otz and the

Valley of Lost Souls beyond.



Here the fellow tore frantically at what appeared to be but a

piece of the blank wall opposite the single window. In an instant

I guessed that it was a secret exit from the room, and so I paused

that he might have an opportunity to negotiate it, for I cared

nothing to take the life of this poor servitor--all I craved was

a clear road in pursuit of Dejah Thoris, my long-lost princess.



But, try as he would, the panel would yield neither to cunning nor

force, so that eventually he gave it up and turned to face me.



"Go thy way, Thern," I said to him, pointing toward the entrance

to the runway up which we had but just come. "I have no quarrel

with you, nor do I crave your life. Go!"



For answer he sprang upon me with his sword, and so suddenly, at

that, that I was like to have gone down before his first rush. So

there was nothing for it but to give him what he sought, and that

as quickly as might be, that I might not be delayed too long in

this chamber while Matai Shang and Thurid made way with Dejah Thoris

and Thuvia of Ptarth.



The fellow was a clever swordsman--resourceful and extremely

tricky. In fact, he seemed never to have heard that there existed

such a thing as a code of honor, for he repeatedly outraged a dozen

Barsoomian fighting customs that an honorable man would rather die

than ignore.



He even went so far as to snatch his holy wig from his head and

throw it in my face, so as to blind me for a moment while he thrust

at my unprotected breast.



When he thrust, however, I was not there, for I had fought with

therns before; and while none had ever resorted to precisely that

same expedient, I knew them to be the least honorable and most

treacherous fighters upon Mars, and so was ever on the alert for

some new and devilish subterfuge when I was engaged with one of

their race.



But at length he overdid the thing; for, drawing his shortsword,

he hurled it, javelinwise, at my body, at the same instant rushing

upon me with his long-sword. A single sweeping circle of my own

blade caught the flying weapon and hurled it clattering against

the far wall, and then, as I sidestepped my antagonist's impetuous

rush, I let him have my point full in the stomach as he hurtled

by.



Clear to the hilt my weapon passed through his body, and with a

frightful shriek he sank to the floor, dead.



Halting only for the brief instant that was required to wrench

my sword from the carcass of my late antagonist, I sprang across

the chamber to the blank wall beyond, through which the thern had

attempted to pass. Here I sought for the secret of its lock, but

all to no avail.



In despair I tried to force the thing, but the cold, unyielding

stone might well have laughed at my futile, puny endeavors. In fact,

I could have sworn that I caught the faint suggestion of taunting

laughter from beyond the baffling panel.



In disgust I desisted from my useless efforts and stepped to the

chamber's single window.



The slopes of Otz and the distant Valley of Lost Souls held nothing

to compel my interest then; but, towering far above me, the tower's

carved wall riveted my keenest attention.



Somewhere within that massive pile was Dejah Thoris. Above me I

could see windows. There, possibly, lay the only way by which I

could reach her. The risk was great, but not too great when the

fate of a world's most wondrous woman was at stake.



I glanced below. A hundred feet beneath lay jagged granite boulders

at the brink of a frightful chasm upon which the tower abutted; and

if not upon the boulders, then at the chasm's bottom, lay death,

should a foot slip but once, or clutching fingers loose their hold

for the fraction of an instant.



But there was no other way and with a shrug, which I must admit

was half shudder, I stepped to the window's outer sill and began

my perilous ascent.



To my dismay I found that, unlike the ornamentation upon most

Heliumetic structures, the edges of the carvings were quite generally

rounded, so that at best my every hold was most precarious.



Fifty feet above me commenced a series of projecting cylindrical

stones some six inches in diameter. These apparently circled the

tower at six-foot intervals, in bands six feet apart; and as each

stone cylinder protruded some four or five inches beyond the surface

of the other ornamentation, they presented a comparatively easy

mode of ascent could I but reach them.



Laboriously I climbed toward them by way of some windows which

lay below them, for I hoped that I might find ingress to the tower

through one of these, and thence an easier avenue along which to

prosecute my search.



At times so slight was my hold upon the rounded surfaces of the

carving's edges that a sneeze, a cough, or even a slight gust of

wind would have dislodged me and sent me hurtling to the depths

below.



But finally I reached a point where my fingers could just clutch

the sill of the lowest window, and I was on the point of breathing

a sigh of relief when the sound of voices came to me from above

through the open window.



"He can never solve the secret of that lock." The voice was Matai

Shang's. "Let us proceed to the hangar above that we may be far

to the south before he finds another way--should that be possible."



"All things seem possible to that vile calot," replied another

voice, which I recognized as Thurid's.



"Then let us haste," said Matai Shang. "But to be doubly sure, I

will leave two who shall patrol this runway. Later they may follow

us upon another flier--overtaking us at Kaol."



My upstretched fingers never reached the window's sill. At the

first sound of the voices I drew back my hand and clung there to

my perilous perch, flattened against the perpendicular wall, scarce

daring to breathe.



What a horrible position, indeed, in which to be discovered by

Thurid! He had but to lean from the window to push me with his

sword's point into eternity.



Presently the sound of the voices became fainter, and once again

I took up my hazardous ascent, now more difficult, since more

circuitous, for I must climb so as to avoid the windows.



Matai Shang's reference to the hangar and the fliers indicated

that my destination lay nothing short of the roof of the tower,

and toward this seemingly distant goal I set my face.



The most difficult and dangerous part of the journey was accomplished

at last, and it was with relief that I felt my fingers close about

the lowest of the stone cylinders.



It is true that these projections were too far apart to make the

balance of the ascent anything of a sinecure, but I at least had

always within my reach a point of safety to which I might cling in

case of accident.



Some ten feet below the roof, the wall inclined slightly inward

possibly a foot in the last ten feet, and here the climbing was

indeed immeasurably easier, so that my fingers soon clutched the

eaves.



As I drew my eyes above the level of the tower's top I saw a flier

all but ready to rise.



Upon her deck were Matai Shang, Phaidor, Dejah Thoris, Thuvia of

Ptarth, and a few thern warriors, while near her was Thurid in the

act of clambering aboard.



He was not ten paces from me, facing in the opposite direction;

and what cruel freak of fate should have caused him to turn about

just as my eyes topped the roof's edge I may not even guess.



But turn he did; and when his eyes met mine his wicked face lighted

with a malignant smile as he leaped toward me, where I was hastening

to scramble to the secure footing of the roof.



Dejah Thoris must have seen me at the same instant, for she screamed

a useless warning just as Thurid's foot, swinging in a mighty kick,

landed full in my face.



Like a felled ox, I reeled and tumbled backward over the tower's

side.



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