The planet of peril
hundred miles an hour, or almost half as fast as the planet itself
revolves on its axis."
"Exactly; yet my little one-man craft is not so swift when compared to
some of the larger airships, many of which travel twice as fast."
"Marvelous!" exclaimed Grandon. "What motive power do you use?"
"Ah, my friend, I regret that I am not at liberty to divulge that, for
Olba is the only country on the planet in which airships are made or
used. The factories and the secrets of manufacture are the exclusive
property of the government, and have been since the first airship was
invented, nearly four centuries ago.
"My people are peace-loving and not given to conquest. In the airship
they have a potent means of defense from their warlike neighbors. If
the Reabonians, for example, knew the secret of airship manufacture,
they would long ago have subjugated most of the other Zarovian nations,
all of which, with the exception of Olba, are as warlike as themselves."
Together the men walked to the ravine where the airship was concealed.
Grandon expected to see a craft equipped with wings or planes of some
sort, and a propeller. To his surprise he beheld what looked like a
small metal duck-boat with a curved glass dome over the tiny cockpit.
The airship was about ten feet long and three wide, and without planes,
wings, propeller, or rudder.
Vangal noted the look of surprise on the face of his companion.
"You seem puzzled by the appearance of my little craft," he said,
smiling slightly. "It will do no harm for me to explain something of
the general principles on which it operates, so long as I do not betray
the actual secret of motive power, with which I am familiar as an
officer of my government.
"Immediately in front of the glass dome you will notice a small, round
bulge in the deck. Under that bulge is a delicate mechanism which it
is impossible to remove or take apart without breaking a small vial of
acid that will instantly destroy it. This mechanism is the motive power
of the craft, so you can readily see that it would be quite impossible
for an enemy to learn our secret by capturing one of our ships.
"You are, no doubt, familiar with that power of the subconscious mind
which your Dr. Morgan calls telekinesis--the power with which your
terrestrial mediums sometimes cause tables and other ponderable objects
to rise and hang suspended, or move about in the air without physical
aid. My people have been familiar with this wonderful power of the mind
for many centuries, but never, until the invention of this mechanism,
were they able to put it to any practical use. It responds to, and
amplifies the power of telekinesis to a remarkable degree, so that by
mind power I am able to cause the craft to rise and hang suspended at
almost any attitude, or to move in any direction, backward, forward,
or sidewise. For emergency use, in the event of the failure of the
motive power, there are two parachutes, one under the small round lid
at either end of the craft. By pressing a button I cause the lids to
fly back and the parachutes to project from the holes and open almost
instantly."
"A most astounding and wonderful invention," exclaimed Grandon.
"Perhaps some day you will visit Olba, and when you do, Vorn Vangal
will see that you are provided with a suitable craft as long as you
stay in the country--for none but a government official or employee may
take one of these airships over the border. It is growing late, and I
must begin my journey," Vangal continued, opening the door in the rear
of the dome and stepping inside. "Farewell, my friend. I admonish you
to hurry home at once, for night will fall in a few minutes, and those
beasts of prey of which I warned you will be lurking in the shadows. I
see you have not brought your tork or scarbo with you. That is unwise.
From now on, never travel without them. On Zarovia you are in constant
danger from attack by man or beast. Farewell, and may you soon be
firmly seated on the throne of Uxpo."
Grandon warmly clasped the hand of his departing friend, and a feeling
of indefinable sadness came over him as he watched the tiny craft rise
noiselessly and smoothly to a height of perhaps a thousand feet, then
dart away, to be lost to view in a few seconds.
As he stood looking in the direction Vangal had taken, he was startled
by the sound of a stealthy footfall behind him. He wheeled, but his
eyes could not penetrate the shadows, for night had come on with its
characteristic suddenness. At the sound of a second footfall he turned
and dashed off through the forest, only to find himself amid a group
of warriors with leveled torks. The men, attracted by the sound of his
farewell to Vangal, must have crept up and surrounded him.
CHAPTER VI.
THE CONSPIRACY.
Despite the fact that the audience chamber of the imperial palace of
Reabon was crowded with people, the silence was so intense that the
buzzing of a fly would have been audible from one end of the room to
the other. Whereas, only a moment before, the people had laughed and
chatted in little groups, they now stood in straight, rigid lines along
the marble walls, arranged according to their respective ranks and
stations in life, for the scarlet curtains which surrounded the massive
throne had been drawn back, signifying the approach of the princess,
the Torrogina.
Those who stood at the lower end of the hall and farthest from the
throne were the slaves, the prevailing color of whose garments was
gray. Next to the slaves stood the common people, the tradesmen,
farmers, merchants, mechanics, and the like, who were attired in blue.
Then came the nobles and their families, who might be recognized
anywhere by their purple garments, and finally members of the royal
families of Reabon and her many rogats, who were privileged to wear
scarlet, the universal Zarovian color of royalty, and to stand next to
the throne during audiences.
All eyes were turned toward the door as four men entered, carrying a
great golden palanquin with curtains of scarlet. The litter-bearers
all wore heavy beards, cut off square below the chin. On their heads
were jeweled golden crowns, and their scarlet garments proclaimed their
royal birth. They were kings of four of the sixteen kingdoms which
comprised the empire of Reabon, and were serving their allotted time in
attendance on the Torrogina Vernia, as was required by law.
Behind the palanquin walked the illustrious Orthad, commander of all
the armies of Reabon, and responsible only to the princess herself.
He was armed with tork and scarbo, and resplendent in his magnificent
uniform, which was of purple, denoting his noble birth, and decorated
with no inconsiderable quantity of gold fringe, gold braid and jewels.
On a scarlet cushion held before him he carried the great jeweled
scarbo, the scepter of Reabonian authority.
A hundred members of the Imperial Guard marched behind in double file,
and ranged themselves at regular intervals alone the wall. Their
uniforms were of an olive green color, decorated with silver in lieu of
the gold which adorned that of their commander.
When the four palanquin-bearers arrived at the foot of the throne which
was reached by four broad steps, they gently lowered their burden to
the floor, and each stepped forward and lay, face downward, on one
of the steps. No sooner had they taken their places than the scarlet
curtains parted, and the beautiful ruler of the greatest empire in all
Zarovia, Vernia of Reabon, emerged and ascended the four human steps to
the throne.
As she took her seat with quiet dignity, every one in the room bowed
low with right hand extended palm downward. She made a picture of
dazzling loveliness, as she sat there attired in a clinging garment
of scarlet material that left her white arms and shoulders bare--her
jeweled crown resting lightly on her fluffy golden curls, a dainty,
alluringly feminine ruler who had succeeded a thousand mighty emperors
and was, herself, mightier and more ambitious than them all.
* * * * *
The first person to seek audience before the throne was a gayly
uniformed ambassador from the great western empire of Mernerum, laden
with costly presents from its mighty emperor, and bringing a proposal
of marriage, despite the fact that this same suitor had been refused no
less than a score of times before.
When Bonal, her prime minister in earthly courts, advised her that the
ambassador from Mernerum sought audience, Vernia looked a trifle bored.
"Are there not several other ambassadors with presents and similar
messages waiting without?" she asked.
"Yes, your majesty, there are ten in all from as many empires."
"Send them all in at once. I can say 'No' to all collectively and thus
save time, otherwise our entire day will be taken up in listening to
their pleas, and the more important business of the empire will have to
be postponed."
The ten ambassadors traversed the length of the hall with much pomp
and ceremony, each followed by a concourse of slaves laden with the
most costly presents a great emperor could procure, and humbly bowed
before the throne. Bonal announced their ten proposals as one, Vernia
promptly and courteously declined, and they sadly took their departure,
reflecting, no doubt, on the stormy receptions which awaited them when
they should announce the failure of their missions to their several
imperial masters.
Her matrimonial offers disposed of, the Torrogina listened to the
reports of the rulers of her various provinces. Last on the list came
Uxpo, as it was the last kingdom conquered. Though the other provinces
were ruled by princes, this one was temporarily under the control of
a military commander, for its fierce, warlike people had not been
completely subjugated. A stalwart young captain bore tidings from his
commander. He humbly approached the foot of the throne and waited for
permission to speak, then announced:
"Prince Thaddor has escaped from the quarries. He nearly killed two of
his guards and ran away into the fern-forest."
Vernia was greatly surprised. That Prince Thaddor had found courage
to escape seemed incredible to her, for she was well aware of his
gentle, studious ways and unresisting disposition; but that he had
nearly killed two of his guards in the process seemed little short of
miraculous.
"You have sent soldiers after him, I presume."
"Men are scouring the forests and mountains in search of him, but up
to the time of my departure, no trace had been found of the fugitive.
There is another matter of which my commander bids me speak. It has
been prophesied by some unknown soothsayer that a great fighter is
coming from another world to lead Uxpo to victory and independence.
This ridiculous prediction has spread throughout the kingdom, and as
result it is a seething caldron of unrest. The Fighting Traveks of Uxpo
make nightly raids on our soldiers, and even the women and children
have grown rebellious."
Vernia frowned slightly.
"This mutiny must be put down, once and for all," she said. "Orthad:
assemble an army of ten thousand men at once--I will lead them in
person. Bonal: my palanquin-bearers. Postpone all further hearings
until my return from Uxpo."
* * * * *
Half hour later two men stood on one of the smaller balconies of the
imperial palace in whispered conversation. One wore the scarlet of
royalty, the other the purple of the nobility and the trappings and
insignia of an imperial commander.
The one in scarlet, a youth of twenty, with furtive, shifty eyes and a
full sensuous mouth that was only partly concealed by a thin growth of
beard, whispered hoarsely: