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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..ebf0ac8 --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #63529 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/63529) diff --git a/old/63529-h.zip b/old/63529-h.zip Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 4f16050..0000000 --- a/old/63529-h.zip +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/63529-h/63529-h.htm b/old/63529-h/63529-h.htm deleted file mode 100644 index 97f06ca..0000000 --- a/old/63529-h/63529-h.htm +++ /dev/null @@ -1,2112 +0,0 @@ -<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" - "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd"> -<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en"> - <head> - <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=us-ascii" /> - <meta http-equiv="Content-Style-Type" content="text/css" /> - <title> - The Project Gutenberg eBook of Mists of Mars, by George A. Whittington. - </title> - <link rel="coverpage" href="images/cover.jpg" /> - - <style type="text/css"> - -body { - margin-left: 10%; - margin-right: 10%; -} - - h1,h2 { - text-align: center; /* all headings centered */ - clear: both; -} - -p { - margin-top: .51em; - text-align: justify; - margin-bottom: .49em; -} - -hr { - width: 33%; - margin-top: 2em; - margin-bottom: 2em; - margin-left: 33.5%; - margin-right: 33.5%; - clear: both; -} - -hr.chap {width: 65%; margin-left: 17.5%; margin-right: 17.5%;} -hr.tb {width: 45%; margin-left: 27.5%; margin-right: 27.5%;} - -.center {text-align: center;} - -.right {text-align: right;} - -/* Images */ -.figcenter { - margin: auto; - text-align: center; -} - -.caption p -{ - text-align: center; - text-indent: 0; - margin: 0.25em 0; -} - -div.titlepage { - text-align: center; - page-break-before: always; - page-break-after: always; -} - -div.titlepage p { - text-align: center; - text-indent: 0em; - font-weight: bold; - line-height: 1.5; - margin-top: 3em; -} - -.ph1 { text-align: center; text-indent: 0em; } -.ph1 { font-size: medium; margin: .83em auto; } - - - </style> - </head> -<body> - - -<pre> - -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Mists of Mars, by George A. Whittington - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: Mists of Mars - -Author: George A. Whittington - -Release Date: October 22, 2020 [EBook #63529] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MISTS OF MARS *** - - - - -Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - -</pre> - - -<div class="titlepage"> - -<h1>MISTS OF MARS</h1> - -<h2>By GEORGE A. WHITTINGTON</h2> - -<p>"Kill all Martians," the orders read. "They<br /> -are savages, and have no rights." But Special<br /> -Investigator Barry Williams and Princess<br /> -Deisanocta had other plans—plans that would<br /> -bring destruction to the despoilers by<br /> -releasing an age-old justice from the Crypts.</p> - -<p>[Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from<br /> -Planet Stories Summer 1945.<br /> -Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that<br /> -the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.]</p> - -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p>Barry Williams watched the last sunshine lance across the red sands of -the Martian Desert. The sun dropped abruptly behind the flat horizon. -With the black curtain of night, the usual sharp chill came to the thin -Martian atmosphere.</p> - -<p>The cold bit into Williams through the warm ore-seeker's outfit he'd -adopted for this venture. He laughed suddenly, realizing why he noticed -the cold. His body was tense, rigid. Unconsciously he was crouching, -waiting, eyes narrowed, one heavily-gloved hand on his ray gun.</p> - -<p>With the laugh, Barry relaxed, although his sharp blue eyes never -ceased their wary sweep over the rolling sands. His hand dropped from -the weapon. It would be useless anyway against the deadly white mist, -for which he waited.</p> - -<p>That it would come, Barry never doubted. It was known and dreaded by -Earthmen in every Terrestrial Center on the red planet. In the past few -weeks, Earthmen had disappeared, vanishing for the last time into the -Martian night. Whispers said the white mist, the pale nemesis, sucked -the life from them.</p> - -<p>Only once had Earthmen seen the mist and lived to tell of it. A -spaceship, beating toward one of the Centers on a night flight from -a desert camp, had passed over a pale patch on the red sand. Its -occupants, in their haste did not stop to investigate. Only later, -telling of the strange sight, did they realize it had been mist—on a -planet too arid for water vapor. Only then did they remember seeing -an Earthman making his way on foot toward the same Center, within the -patch.</p> - -<p>Barry Williams' searching glance covered the terrain once more. Deimos, -the smaller moon, was already high. The larger, swifter Phobos was -rapidly overhauling its companion. Under their light, the scene was -clear. But it was so every night on Mars, yet Earthmen who ventured -into the desert at night died! Barry waited.</p> - -<p>He waited as had the occupants of that Center for the man to come in -and tell the story of that strange light patch against the red sand. -In the morning a searching party brought in his body. The story would -never be told by him.</p> - -<p>Nor by any other Earthman, it seemed. Later, a spaceship again sighted -the mist, and radioed that it was landing to investigate. Again, -Earthmen, now frightened and grim, waited through the Martian night. -Once more, a daylight searching party found only the dead.</p> - -<p>"Ain't fer human understandin'," one superstitious miner whispered in -awed tones. "Twenty year I bin on this cursed planet—nor ever heerd -the like o' this."</p> - -<p>"It's clear enough for me," answered a pink-cheeked youngster up to -Mars to make a fortune in rich ore dust. "I stay off the desert at -night. Only the miserable Martians can live out there then."</p> - -<p>"Justice from the Crypt," a third muttered, quoting the threat of an -old Martian, dying from wounds he'd received fighting Earthmen. "It's -like from the grave—this mist, the way it creeps from the sand white -and ghosty!"</p> - -<p>That was the spirit Barry Williams, special investigator for the -Terrestrial Bureau of Martian Affairs, found when he arrived. Behind -the fear were rumors, dead bodies, nothing more. At first, he'd blamed -superstition and the natural hazards of work in the desert. But now he -was here in the desert at night, waiting.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>It wasn't for this he'd been sent to Mars, Barry told himself -half-angrily. His mission here was important. But this threat to all -Terrestrials on Mars was ominous. There were no government agencies -to deal with the threat here. Mars was just a frontier where untold -riches lay for the taking beneath some of the red sand.</p> - -<p>The sullen, cowed Martians, working at the bigger mines, or following -their nomadic courses across the desert no longer attempted an -organized government. Despite their great majority in numbers, the -Martians played no part in running the planet. How they must be -rejoicing now, Barry thought, as death stalked their conquerors, death -striking from the desert in the night.</p> - -<p>Suddenly, Williams felt an icy tingle course through his blood. His -hand dropped again to his ray gun, tore it from the holster. He stood -erect, fighting an urge to crouch low against the danger.</p> - -<p>Along the crest of the sand-swell before him, something was rising. -Bright moonlight shimmered as the rays broke against a pale barrier.</p> - -<p>To the right, the left, behind him, it was the same. The white mist was -rising, surrounding him. Escape was cut off. Even to reach his nearby -spaceship was impossible without cutting through. Barry tried to relax. -There was nothing to do but wait.</p> - -<p>He remembered the words of the old Martian desert wanderer to whom he'd -spoken. This man had once been a chieftain, before the conquest of Mars -by Earth. His keen black eyes had bored into Barry.</p> - -<p>"If you wish the answer," he'd advised, "go into the desert at night. -<i>You</i> are different—<i>you</i> may return. I can tell you no more."</p> - -<p>Thicker grew the mist. A silver blanket, wrapping closer and closer -about Barry Williams. The moons and the barren landscape were blotted -out. All perspective vanished. High above, a tiny patch of stars was -visible—perhaps for the last time to Williams.</p> - -<p>He gripped the ray gun tighter. The strange white blanket touched his -skin now—seemed to press against him with a great weight. He raised -the gun grimly, then a picture flashed into his mind.</p> - -<p>One of the bodies that had come out of the desert had been shown him. -The dead fingers still gripped a ray gun. They had crushed against the -trigger for a long time—until the badly overheated weapon had at last -burned out, charring the unfeeling hand that had held it. But the power -that had brought oblivion had stood up against the ray.</p> - -<p>With a grim smile, Barry replaced his weapon. The blanket was tight -around him now. He could see nothing. His limbs grew numb under -overpowering lethargy. His lungs labored, sucking in the mist. -Consciousness wavered. He reeled, stiffly. His muscles hardened, his -braced feet sinking deep into the sand.</p> - -<p>Before his glazing eyes, a strange picture formed in the mist. A -beautiful Martian maiden, tall, slim, majestic—veiled in silver mesh. -On her lovely features was a look of stern judgment.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Was it fancy, or did the chanting of voices ring in -his ears, muffled weirdly by the shroud about him? -"Day—ees—a—nocta——Day—ees—a—nocta."</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<div class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/illus2.jpg" alt=""/> - <div class="caption"> - <p><i>Williams waited, seeing her come through -the mists.</i></p> - </div> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p>The picture, the sounds faded. At last his knees sagged. He pitched -face downward into the red sand.</p> - -<p>For what seemed a long time, Barry Williams floated in darkness. Then, -to a tiny corner of his mind, consciousness returned. He fought to -retain it. The mist, he realized dimly, did not harm the body—it -paralyzed. While he could think, the battle was not lost. He called -upon the deep reserves of his mind.</p> - -<p>Suddenly he was aware of sand digging painfully into the skin of his -face—the first physical sensation he'd know since he slumped forward -into oblivion. Hands tugged at his body, and the sting of the sand was -gone from his nostrils. He had been rolled over onto his back.</p> - -<p>Wild hope surged through Barry. He struggled against the leaden weight -on his eyelids—without success. His muscles did not respond. He tried -to move an arm—a leg—a finger. It was no use. Slowly, he realized -what had happened.</p> - -<p>Some power ruled his mind—had overcome it while he was unconscious. -For some reason, he had been <i>allowed</i> to regain a very limited -consciousness—just so much and no more! Perhaps he would learn the -answer to this mystery. Why had the white mist not destroyed him?</p> - -<p>A murmur of voices beat against his ears. He'd been given back his -hearing! The voices were low, soft. They spoke in a language foreign -to him—Martian he guessed. Words faded away. There was a moment's -silence, then the chant he had heard before.</p> - -<p>Above Barry, a voice spoke to him in inter-planetary Esperanto:</p> - -<p>"Son of Earth, you are not as the other Earthmen who come here to rob -this unhappy planet, and slay its children."</p> - -<p>The voice was that of a woman, clear, musical, unutterably -sweet—pathetically sad. It paused; spoke again. A new note crept into -the words, ringing, thrilling:</p> - -<p>"Go your way—leave in peace, but travel far from this planet. The Mist -of Mars will destroy all those who remain to despoil and murder here."</p> - -<p>Williams felt consciousness slipping from him once more. He struggled -to speak. He must speak! These people must be told of his mission here!</p> - -<p>But his lips would not move. Struggle was useless. Feeling was gone -from his body. The last sound he heard was the voice of a man, deep and -full:</p> - -<p>"Heed the warning of the Mother of Mist. This once you have been -spared."</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p class="ph1">II</p> - -<p>Barry opened his eyes as the red sun climbed over the rim of the -rolling desert. His head was clear, his mind refreshed and alert. These -symptoms strengthened his convictions that he'd been hypnotized.</p> - -<p>The power of a highly trained mind was being used in this campaign -against Earthmen. Perhaps the mist was produced both to hide the -operator and to frighten the victim—making the latter easier prey to -the force that invaded the brain, and had literally torn out the life -essence of the other victims.</p> - -<p>Shrugging off further speculation for the moment, Barry climbed -painfully to his feet. His muscles were stiff and cramped from lying -hours on the ground. He flexed his arms and legs, worked his fingers, -getting out the soreness. Then he started for his spaceship.</p> - -<p>As the rockets throbbed behind him, Barry tried all the controls. The -little ship whipped through every intricate maneuver he'd ever known. -It slowed his progress, this senseless stunting, but it showed him the -ship was in prime condition, answering his every touch on the controls.</p> - -<p>Why was he doing this? It was as if he were going on a trip. Yet he had -no such intention. The mist had spared him, and was gone.</p> - -<p>The mist! The thought brought the answer to his strange -preparations—hypnosis again—post-hypnotic suggestion!</p> - -<p>Having spared him and ordered him to flee the planet, the being behind -the mist had meant him to remember the advice.</p> - -<p>Barry's lips set in a straight line, and hard little muscles stood out -on his cheek, along his strong jaw. He hadn't the slightest intention -of fleeing Mars. He'd been sent here for a purpose by the Terrestrial -Government, and he had come to realize the whole deadly threat of this -Martian scourge against Earthmen was tied up with the reason for his -being here. Barry William was staying on Mars till he'd finished his -job.</p> - -<p>Below him, the circular, thick-walled, high-domed Center flashed over -the horizon and loomed larger in the lower view-plate before Barry -on the control board. Soon he was close enough to see the narrow -apertures, where, in the early days of Terrestrial occupation, mighty -ray cannon had blasted against bands of Martians who still had crude -weapons to use against the victors.</p> - -<p>Barry put his ship down neatly in a semi-circular row of other craft. -There were, he noticed, more ships parked outside than was usual for -a post not close to the bigger mine. One of them was a large, ornate -cruiser type, on which was painted in neat gold letters: "<i>Grey -Enterprises, Inc.</i>"</p> - -<p>It was the personal, space-going ship of Craig Grey, billionaire -ore-king, himself. The latter was probably inside the Center. That -would account for the unusual number of ships, for Grey never travelled -anywhere without a large following.</p> - -<p>As Barry stepped through the door-lock onto the field, a small knot of -men, dressed for travel, stopped outside the building door. They stared -open-mouthed at the Government identification letters on Barry's craft, -then at him.</p> - -<p>Obviously, they'd turned and bolted inside—bolted with a speed and -singleness of purpose that seemed like panic!</p> - -<p>Puzzled, Barry pushed aside the heavier, outer door. From inside, an -excited murmuring of voices came through the second door.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Silence fell over the big room within, as he entered. Every man there, -most of them free-lance ore-seekers, was in the crowd pressing around -one man who stood against the bar. That man was easily recognizable, -for his picture had been printed from Mercury to Pluto. He was Craig -Grey. A subordinate stood on each side of him, keeping the others at a -respectable distance.</p> - -<p>Grey looked at Barry with bleak, cold eyes. The ore-king was a dapper -little man, who apparently fought his advanced years with the aid -of science. His hair was coal black, as was the tapering, precise -mustache—though both should have been gray long ago. He lifted a -well-manicured hand, and sucked on a cigarette through a long holder. -Despite his culture and small stature, Barry Williams sensed that this -man could be a deadly enemy.</p> - -<p>The glowing cigarette in its long holder swept out in a graceful arc -toward the men Barry had seen outside. "This is the searching party -that was about to set out for you, Williams," said Grey in a flat, thin -voice. "A spaceship reported seeing you last night on the desert—with -the white mist closing in."</p> - -<p>"Very decent of you fellows to worry," Williams said amiably. "I came -in under my own power."</p> - -<p>His words fell into a silence that was tenser than before. They had -just been discussing him, Williams was positive. Grey, who had never -seen him, had known his name!</p> - -<p>Barry said nothing. He waited calmly for the answer to this odd -reception. Somehow, he sensed hostility in the Earthmen here.</p> - -<p>Beneath the poised, still friendly gaze of his blue eyes, the others -grew restless. Feet shuffled. Murmurs came from the rear of the group.</p> - -<p>"These Martian savages are behind this mist."</p> - -<p>"They're out to kill all us Earthmen," came another voice.</p> - -<p>And a third questioned: "How could a man get out of that mist alive?"</p> - -<p>"Unless he's a friend of those killers," finished another.</p> - -<p>The color of Barry's eyes deepened into the blue-grey of carbon steel. -"I owe explanations only to Earth Government!" he snapped. "Is that -clear?"</p> - -<p>Murmurs rose again—angry now, and the faces of the men grew dark and -menacing. But Grey waved his long cigarette holder for silence. He was -the unquestioned leader on Mars. His company owned most of the largest -mines.</p> - -<p>He spoke coolly: "What you say may be true, Williams, but we feel we've -a right to some answer. After all, my company has billions invested -here. And these men," his gesture took in the miners and ore-seekers, -"have their lives invested. All of <i>us</i> are threatened by this mist."</p> - -<p>"Fair enough," said Barry Williams. "I'll be glad to tell you, since -you're <i>asking</i>."</p> - -<p>He told them briefly of his encounter with the mist. When he'd -finished, the taut silence in which they'd listened was snapped by -angry mutterings. This time the anger seemed directed against the -accusations of the Martian maiden, rather than against Barry.</p> - -<p>"Those savages calling <i>us</i> murderers!"</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Craig Grey's voice was scornful. "Ridiculous of course. These creatures -are human only in superficial resemblance." He drew deeply through his -long holder, and blew a great cloud of smoke toward Barry. "Of course, -<i>you</i> know that Earth laws have declared them savages, and provided -that none save humans of Earth descent can hold property on Mars, or -citizenship in the Earth state. How could we murder or rob them—since -they're not human and own nothing?"</p> - -<p>"True—and interesting," conceded Williams. "I know too the laws were -passed on suggestion of exploring parties sent here by three big -inter-planetary combines, of which your own was the largest. That was -fifty years ago. You were at the head of your company then—excuse me -for giving your age away." Williams was speaking slowly, thinking his -way. Some of the puzzle of Mars was unfolding as he spoke, against this -background of resentful Earthmen.</p> - -<p>"Those laws gave you and your friends control of great wealth in the -ore mines. You broke the resistance of the Martians, and used some as -cheap labor in the mines. The others had to find ore dust and sell it -to you for a song, to buy food and other things from you at your price. -And they had to avoid being shot by ore-seekers who wanted the dust."</p> - -<p>Again the other men growled toward Barry.</p> - -<p>"Martian lover!"</p> - -<p>"Justice from the Crypt, eh? We'll send you back there!"</p> - -<p>"'Tain't murder or robbery to kill savages!"</p> - -<p>"Go running back to Earth with that phoney story."</p> - -<p>"No!" he answered them. "I'm not leaving Mars until I finish my job. -The Bureau of Martian Affairs sent me here to see if some educational -program could be started among the Martian savages. I think it could. -These people could pass for Earth citizens in the streets of Washington -itself. As soon as I get to the bottom of the mist, and stop it, I'll -be ready to go back with my recommendation."</p> - -<p>The men began to surge toward Barry. Apprehension, as well as anger -showed in their faces. What he suggested would mean the end of their -chances to exploit the planet and its people so freely—and of Mars as -a frontier.</p> - -<p>"I don't think you'll get away with this, Williams," Craig Grey said -softly. "You've admitted being on the side of the Martians who are -trying to kill us!"</p> - -<p>"I'll put the first man who raises a hand under arrest," said the other -just as softly.</p> - -<p>"That's a bluff I'll call," snarled a big man. He was one of the -subordinates who'd stood beside the ore-king. Now he hulked forward, -hand dropping slowly toward the belt where two ray guns dangled. -"You won't be arresting anyone! Every Earthman on Mars will be after -you—just like I am!"</p> - -<p>"I'll have to take your weapons," Barry began. To exert his -authority as a representative of Earth Government now might save the -situation—if he could make it stick.</p> - -<p>But an ugly look, spreading across the big man's face, pulling at his -thick lips and blazing from his eyes was the answer. It was the look of -a murderer, and there was no mistaking his intention as he brought up a -ray gun.</p> - -<p>"You can have them—this way," he sneered. The other men in the Center -scattered for cover, their faces relieved that the threat Barry -represented was to be so quickly removed.</p> - -<p>But Earth Investigators were well trained. Barry Williams' ray crossed -the other. The big man fell, life burned out of him. Barry swung the -weapon in his hand significantly about the men.</p> - -<p>"If this is the way you want it, there's an example of what will happen -to anyone else who tries to stop me. And don't forget, I represent the -authority of Earth Government!"</p> - -<p>He backed toward the door, watching them warily. "It won't be wise for -the rest of you to try to follow me!"</p> - -<p>Outside, he made for his ship at a dead run. Ray beams were splashing -into the red sand at his feet, when he entered the port. Safe behind -the apertures of the Center, the men were trying to cut him down.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Barry blasted his ship into the air, and watched the Center grow small -behind and below him. His lips were set in a straight, tight line, -while his mind went over his position.</p> - -<p>Grey would fan the hostility of all the Earthmen on Mars against him. -Barry was sure from what he'd seen of the Martians that they were far -from the savages they'd been called by explorers financed by Grey and -his associates. They were an intelligent peaceful race, uneducated and -unadvanced, but intelligent.</p> - -<p>Earth Government had been misled into oppressing them, and Grey had -profited enormously. The ore-king would stop at nothing to keep Barry -Williams from destroying the set-up. Already he'd connected Barry -with the white mist, a Martian attempt to win freedom and revenge—an -attempt that Barry must stop!</p> - -<p>The white mist meant the killing of Earthmen, and the rebellion would -convince Earth Government that the Martians were savages. Barry -Williams wanted to save human lives—even the lives of those who were -murdering and robbing on Mars under the flimsy pretext of these laws. -And he wanted to see justice done on Mars.</p> - -<p>These things were not very probable, though, Barry knew. Grey's clever -move had trapped him on Mars. He hadn't enough fuel in his ship to -reach Earth, nor was his radio strong enough to contact the planet. -With the Earthmen trying to kill him, he'd be unable to get supplies. -And the Martians had warned him to leave the planet—a second time the -white mist might not spare him!</p> - -<p>Still, his only chance was to reach the Martians who were behind the -white mist. If he could convince them of his intentions—he had to -convince them! Then they might help him reach Earth; and hold off their -ominous attacks against Earthmen until he could put the situation -before the Government of Earth. If he could manage that, Barry was sure -he could save human lives and do justice on Mars!</p> - -<p>He had to find the Martians! Barry brought his ship down low over the -red sand and started his search. He knew that hostile Earthmen, armed -to the teeth and intent on killing him, were searching also.</p> - -<p>Their search was successful, while he still looked vainly for Martians. -Not even a nomadic wandering native was moving over the sands. And the -blazing midday of the red planet brought the end of Barry Williams' -opportunity.</p> - -<p>"These natives know something is up," he was musing. Above him, the sun -was a ball of flame, its rays blistering, blinding through the thin -atmosphere.</p> - -<p>It was out of this blind spot that a voice snapped across Barry's -thoughts like a whiplash: "The game's up, Williams."</p> - -<p>He knew then that his thoughts had left him open to attack.</p> - -<p>"You heard me, Williams."</p> - -<p>The latter knew that cold, precise voice. It was Craig Grey. Barry -could not see the ship, but he knew the ore-king's cruiser would be -hovering high above, safely out of sight in the sun's rays. And from -that focal point of his enemies, the ether began to crackle with orders.</p> - -<p>Other craft began to converge rapidly on the spot, very close to where -the investigator had the white mist. They ringed Barry as the mist had, -closed in. Their blazing ship rays, in the nose of each craft, formed -spokes to a wheel of which Barry Williams' ship was to be the hub.</p> - -<p>He charged into that ring, broke it! He scattered them before him, some -of them dropping downward with blazing hulls.</p> - -<p>But, as often as he drove them before him, Grey's cold, hard face -appeared in the visa-radio. His commands reformed the others, brought -them back to the attack.</p> - -<p>Finally, as Barry fought off another encirclement, the space cruiser of -Craig Grey dropped unseen from above. Four red rays reached toward the -investigator's ship, closed about it like the fingers of a hand.</p> - -<p>Barry had no chance to turn and make the prolonged ray contact it would -have taken to damage the big, heavily-armored ship. His control board -indicators flashed a bitter message in his eyes—his ship was lost! In -the visa-plate before him; was Grey's exulting face, the long cigarette -holder clamped between the thin, smiling lips. Above, like good dogs -closing for the kill, the ships were following Barry down behind the -pack-leading cruiser.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p class="ph1">III</p> - -<p>Williams got his wrecked craft on an even keel somehow, and spun her -with his side jets to keep her even. His trip down was an incredibly -swift repetition of these movements, designed to land the ship on the -red sands with a cushioning belly-smack.</p> - -<p>They were following him down to make sure he did not escape the crash -alive—to ray the smashed ship into an incandescent heap of metal! At -the last moment, Barry stretched out a leg, and kicked hard at the -emergency door-lock lever release.</p> - -<p>Whipped open by the air-wash, the door was waiting as he leaped from -the seat. With a last look at the viewscreen—showing the red terrain -flashing into his face—he spun out into the air a second before the -crash. Darkness swept over him as he landed!</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<div class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/illus4.jpg" alt=""/> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p>It was not the darkness of unconsciousness. He'd landed on his back, -pulled by steel muscles into an arc that rocked the impact from his -hurtling body.</p> - -<p>But, somehow, a covering was over his eyes, and two men lay beside him, -one on either side. They spoke softly to each other over his head in a -language Barry recognized but could not understand; Martian!</p> - -<p>He'd found the Martians all right, the hard way! But Grey and his men -would ray them all out of existence in a matter of seconds. Overhead -the rockets of the ore-king's ships thundered closer. They'd seen his -body hurtle from the wreck, and were searching! He wished the Martians -hadn't blindfolded him.</p> - -<p>An intolerable glare from many ray beams beat through the covering over -his eyes. This was it! The heat of those beams brought sweat through -every pore of his body, but that was all. The drumming of rocket jets -receded. They were leaving!</p> - -<p>Why hadn't they seen him? They'd rayed his ship into a heap of molten -metal that warmed him where he lay, yards away. But he and his captors -were unhurt. Apparently, Grey and his men had decided they'd been wrong -about seeing the investigator jump. They'd decided he was still in the -wreckage. But why hadn't they seen Grey and the Martians?</p> - -<p>The question was quickly answered. As the thrumming of rockets died in -the distance, the two Martians pulled Barry to his feet. He blinked -as sunlight struck his eyes, and looked about. The three of them were -standing in the open, but a large square of rough cloth at their feet -explained why the ships above hadn't spotted them. It was colored to -blend into the red sand so perfectly it was almost invisible to Barry.</p> - -<p>His respect for Martians leaped! A peaceful race they had been, before -they were attacked and conquered. But now they were showing how fast -they could learn. They'd mastered one of the most effective stratagems -of warfare, camouflage.</p> - -<p>The clothing of his Martian captors was the same color as the cloth -that had covered them, even to masks over the face. One of them tugged -at Barry's arm and spoke softly in Martian. They wanted him to go with -them. He went gladly. If they took him to their headquarters, he'd -have the chance he wanted—to ask their help, and offer them his! His -heart was beating wildly. Grey and his followers would learn that Earth -Government had an answer for fraud and injustice!</p> - -<p>His respect for the Martians increased again, when he was taken through -a cleverly concealed passage into a sand-swell. Inside was a rough -room, ingeniously hewn and held from collapsing inward.</p> - -<p>Here were three more Martians, garbed as his captors were. One sat -before a visa-radio. This group of Martians was well organized! They'd -salvaged equipment from wrecked and abandoned ships.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>One of Barry's companions went to the radio and spoke rapidly in -Martian, apparently reporting. The view screen was blank, but -Barry heard the Martian use the word, "Deisanocta," and something -clicked in his mind! The chanting he'd heard last night in the mist, -"Day-ess-a-nocta!" Was it the name of the lovely Martian girl, she who -seemed to be the leader of these men? One of them had spoken of her -respectfully as the Mother of Mist.</p> - -<p>It was she he wanted to speak to, Barry Williams realized. And it was -her voice that struck his ears a moment later, answering the report of -the man! Her words were soft, gentle yet commanding. There was a timbre -to her throaty voice that moved Barry, brought him a picture of her -large, somber grey eyes against the clear white of her face.</p> - -<p>"Deisanocta," he cried, starting suddenly forward. "I must speak to -you!"</p> - -<p>His captors seized him roughly. Their faces were horrified. Barry -realized he had probably violated some form of Martian royal -etiquette—for this girl was undoubtedly a Martian princess. There had -been royalty on Mars when the Earthmen came, although the line had been -believed destroyed during the conquest.</p> - -<p>Again the soft voice came into the room through the radio, still -speaking in Martian. A few words, and the instrument clicked dead.</p> - -<p>"Wait!" cried Barry. But it was useless. The girl had ignored him, and -cut the connection.</p> - -<p>Two of the Martians held Barry Williams firmly, although no longer -roughly. Another had gone to a little cabinet.</p> - -<p>He came toward Barry, a hypodermic needle in his hand. Struggle was -useless. Barry extended his arm with a smile, and saw admiration in the -other's eyes.</p> - -<p>There was a sharp, momentary pain in his arm as the needle was expertly -inserted. Then a sensation of well-being, flooded the Earthman. A -warmth flowed through his veins, and pounded a flush into his face. -There was nothing else.</p> - -<p>The Martian went back to the cabinet, came again toward Barry. This -time he extended his hand, in the palm of which lay two white tablets. -The look on the Martian's face was clear. Barry Williams must take -them, of his free will or forcibly.</p> - -<p>Again Barry accepted graciously, and saw the Martians smile in -approval. He gulped down the tablets. It was only brief seconds later -that he sagged toward the ground. There was no sensation save a -weariness, a heaviness of his limbs and eyes. Darkness rolled over him, -soft and deep and comfortable blackness.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Barry Williams' will tugged at his eyelids, as his consciousness -returned. They responded sluggishly, reluctantly. His muscles, too, -resisted, with a numbness that revealed he'd slept a long time. Beneath -him, the red sand of the Martian desert was his couch.</p> - -<p>When, finally, his blue eyes focused, he saw nothing; nothing save a -white blanket that folded about him on every side—the mist! Struggling -to his feet, he moved stiffly a few steps, to the right, the left, -forward, back.</p> - -<p>There was nothing anywhere except that blanket of mist. No stars, no -bright moons! The sand at his feet was almost obscured by the silvery -curtain.</p> - -<p>Barry's mind was clearing, and he stopped short with a sudden -realization. Yesterday—or had it been yesterday, there was no telling -if it was night or day—the mist had oppressed his senses, brought him -to his knees paralyzed and helpless! Yet, now, it had no effect.</p> - -<p>He breathed deeply, remembering how his lungs had labored and his mind -reeled the last time. But the mist was refreshing as the purest air, -and his mind remained clear.</p> - -<p>The hypodermic they'd given him! It must be an antidote to the drug -that was in the mist—for Barry was now sure the mist was a depressive -drug, meant to paralyze and terrify. The dead Earthmen had not died -from the mist itself, but from some power that struck under cover of -that terror!</p> - -<p>But the Martians had immunized him! Barry shrugged. Perhaps he'd -convinced them he was a friend, and they'd stamped him with this -immunity that all their fellows might know him from the other Earthmen -who were enemies—</p> - -<p>The thought brought a sudden chill to Barry Williams' spine! He'd been -walking, first slowly, then, as his legs lost their stiffness, more -and more rapidly. Yet, still the mist was all about him. Never in its -ghostlike appearances before had the mist covered more than a small -patch of the desert!</p> - -<p>These thoughts began to add together in his mind. Immunizing him—a -fiend, putting him to sleep so that he would be unable to argue or -resist until he could be safely disposed of, the extent of the mist. -All this could mean—</p> - -<p>"This is it," Barry groaned aloud. "This is the revolt!</p> - -<p>"The first appearances of the mist were to terrorize, and to test! This -is the real thing; the mist over the whole surface of Mars, organized -Martians striking under its cover!"</p> - -<p>His words came back to him from the hateful white blanket, muffled and -run together into unintelligible echoes.</p> - -<p>"You failed—failed!" the echoes seemed to mutter. "Earthmen will -die—Earth troops will come against the 'savages.' No justice for Mars!"</p> - -<p>Barry shook his head angrily against his imaginings. Suddenly, he -stumbled and pitched forward over something at his feet.</p> - -<p>His heart sank at sight of the gruesome thing in the sand. A dead -Earthman—but not unmarked as had been the earlier victims of the -white mist. This man had been killed by violence, killed as he lay -unconscious, overcome by the mist drug!</p> - -<p>"This is it," Barry groaned again. Another form of death was striking -under the silver blanket. This man had been a murderer and exploiter, -but to Earth Government he was a citizen killed by savages!</p> - -<p>Barry Williams stumbled on dazedly. There was nothing he could do! He -stumbled over another body and passed on. A third form appeared in the -sand at his feet. He started to turn aside, then stopped.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Quickly he bent over the figure, his hand going to the pulse. There was -a heartbeat, and the chest moved slightly with breathing! This body was -alive, there were no wounds. Peering into the face, Barry realized it -was a Martian!</p> - -<p>A Martian overcome by the mist. After puzzling a moment, Barry laughed. -Of course! All the natives couldn't have been in on the plans—not even -most of them. Therefore, they'd be drugged and put to sleep like the -Earthmen.</p> - -<p>Martians overcome by the means that was to free them! Barry's mind was -racing. Free them! That was it! They'd be needed for the fighting. The -other Martians, the organized ones under Deisanocta, would come to give -immunizing injections to such of their fellows as this one Barry found -on the sand!</p> - -<p>With the realization, Barry Williams threw himself down on the ground. -He couldn't be far from the place they'd captured him. That meant, the -vicinity of the Martian Princess' headquarters. Perhaps she herself -would come, searching for her followers.</p> - -<p>She did. She came silently, short minutes later, moving like a wraith -in her silver mesh costume, that somehow made her seem part of the -mist. Mother of Mist. Barry remembered the title.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<div class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/illus1.jpg" alt=""/> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p>The silver accents of her voice came clearly to his ears. She spoke in -Martian. Two of her men appeared beside her. One went toward the fallen -Martian, something in his hand that Barry knew would be a hypodermic -syringe. The other saw Barry, started toward him.</p> - -<p>"Hold everything!" Barry leaped up. "I am no enemy."</p> - -<p>The other paused, he knew there could be only one Earthman who walked -through the mist unharmed. Barry's eyes went to Deisanocta.</p> - -<p>"Princess, I must speak to you!"</p> - -<p>She came closer, until her face was clear before him. Her grey eyes -glowed softly. "I know of your mission here, Barry Williams," she said -in her throaty voice. "Your mind was open to me when first we met in -the mist."</p> - -<p>It had been she who hypnotized him! Barry nodded slowly, he'd suspected -as much. "Then you must know I want to help your people. This fighting -must stop. I promise you that, if I can reach Earth—if you will help -me get a ship and fuel—I can win justice and freedom for your people!"</p> - -<p>The girl's eyes flashed. "A free Mars will make its own peace with -Earth," she cried. Here was the spirit not of savages—but of a free -race Earth could respect! Her voice softened. "But thank you, Barry -Williams. You have been spared because your purpose here was friendly, -and because I—I—trust you.</p> - -<p>"Now." Her eyes glowed from deep within, "You will sleep, Barry -Williams, sleep the walking sleep under my will."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Barry met her gaze, feeling the impact of her mind. For long moments, -his eyes were locked with hers. A puzzled doubt appeared at last on her -features.</p> - -<p>"Sleep, Barry Williams," she murmured uncertainly.</p> - -<p>"Sorry," he grinned. "There's no more power in the mist over my -will—and you can't hypnotize me against my will. Hypnotism is a new -art with your people, Princess. You forgot to condition me to your -commands."</p> - -<p>Deisanocta smiled. "An old Earthman implanted the science in my mind -when I was but a child, being hidden from the oppressors. Much that is -there, I do not know how to use."</p> - -<p>"Won't you let me help you," asked Barry Williams. "If you ignore my -advice, that's up to you."</p> - -<p>She considered his words. Her eyes on his still glowed, but with a -different light. "Very well," she said at last. "You may stay with me. -After victory, you can be my emissary to Earth."</p> - -<p>Barry walked beside her, the Martians of her party following -respectfully behind.</p> - -<p>"Why don't you take these men prisoners," Barry asked, "instead of -killing them?"</p> - -<p>Deisanocta answered sadly: "My people have been killed and beaten too -long. I could not restrain them.</p> - -<p>"Besides, these men could be dangerous. If some of my mist-producing -units failed, those who sleep in that area would awaken after a few -breaths of air. We would have enemies behind us." She smiled a little -wistfully. "These Earthmen do not sleep as deeply as you did from those -pills."</p> - -<p>"You must capture Craig Grey alive," he said with sudden realization. -"While he sleeps under the influence of the mist, you can hypnotize -him. Then we can learn the details of his fraud, how he deceived Earth -about your people! With names and facts, we can convict him—prove his -guilt!"</p> - -<p>"It shall be so," she promised. "Even now my followers are awakening -those of our people who sleep. When all are gathered, we will move into -the mine headquarters and the forts. We go slowly, for some of our -enemies will be in spaceships, safe from the mist drug. But we will -take enough weapons as we go to overcome them!"</p> - -<p>"I hope," Barry muttered.</p> - -<p>Deisanocta seemed not to hear him. Her grey eyes were alight, her -cheeks flushed with excitement.</p> - -<p>"The hour is very near," she said. "Mars shall be free!</p> - -<p>"Come, I must speak with my men."</p> - -<p>She led the way toward a nearby sand-swell, moving with that marvelous -sense of direction that seemed a characteristic of Martians. For -generations, they had made their way unerringly over the trackless -desert. Now, even in the mist blanket that made objects invisible short -feet away, the Princess did not falter.</p> - -<p>Straight to a cleverly concealed door she walked, through, and into -the same type of room Barry Williams had seen before. At her entrance, -a Martian lowered his ready heat ray and stood respectfully for her -commands.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p class="ph1">IV</p> - -<p>Deisanocta walked to the visa-radio, clicked it on. This time she -switched in the view screen also. Her white hands spun dials, and she -began to speak in Martian, calmly, insistently.</p> - -<p>The view screen took on depth and color. She adjusted condensing levers -and it divided into a dozen smaller squares. Slowly each square filled, -until the faces of a dozen Martian men looked out at her—silent, -waiting faces, behind each of which the white mist formed a backdrop.</p> - -<p>Deisanocta's red lips twitched, and her lovely eyes leaped into sudden -flame. For a moment, she was silent. Barry could feel tension building -up in the room, and see it in the faces of those who looked out of the -screen.</p> - -<p>Then the Princess spoke a single short sentence in her own tongue. -Barry Williams did not need an interpretation. The meaning of the -command was clear in its ringing syllables; "Strike for Mars!"</p> - -<p>Twenty-four eyes blazed from the screen—the eyes of twelve field -commanders flashing hatred of their oppressors and fierce exultation -that the hour of revenge was here! From each throat rose the same word, -spoken in awe, reverence, resolution. "Deisanocta!"</p> - -<p>Thus they saluted their leader, the Mother of Mist, Queen-to-be of -Mars! Then the screen was blank.</p> - -<p>"In short minutes Mars will belong again to its people, Barry -Williams," said the girl softly. "We wait here for the report of my -commanders."</p> - -<p>She sank to a sitting position on the red sand, arranging the silver -mesh of her dress about her slim body. Barry did likewise, as did the -Martian.</p> - -<p>Minutes dragged by. The radio screen glowed softly, but remained blank. -Barry felt the muscles gather in his arms and shoulders. This idle -waiting was hard to bear. If he could only be in there fighting—</p> - -<p>Deisanocta was finding it difficult to wait, too. The eager glow of -anticipation had died away in her beautiful eyes. They were reflective, -reminiscent.</p> - -<p>"All my life I've been trained for this moment," she said, at last. -"Deep in the Crypt, burial ground of our race, the Elders hid and -taught me."</p> - -<p>"In the Crypt!" exclaimed Barry. "Then the dying Martian knew of you -when he threatened 'Justice from the Crypt'!"</p> - -<p>"Hardly," she smiled. "That was twenty years before I was born—ten -years after the first Earthmen came to Mars.</p> - -<p>"He couldn't even have known that my parents were hidden there. They -were still young, the last of Martian royalty, hidden away by a few -faithful servants."</p> - -<p>"What did he mean then?"</p> - -<p>She shook her head, the black tresses gleaming faintly under the mist. -"We never knew."</p> - -<p>"Tell me about this Crypt," Barry asked. "And tell me more about your -people."</p> - -<p>"The Crypt is our ancient burial place. It is underground, dry, and our -dead are safe there from animals that would find bodies the shifting -sand would not protect.</p> - -<p>"Always, we laid our dead to rest there, until Craig Grey placed guards -at the doors and forbade the practice."</p> - -<p>"He was afraid some weapon was hidden there," reasoned Barry Williams. -"It's the only thing the dying Martian's threat could mean."</p> - -<p>"What weapon could be there?" Deisanocta asked mournfully. "Our people -were always peaceful. They lived beside the wells, growing the food -they ate. It took Earthmen to teach them to hate and kill—to know that -ore dust was worth blood!"</p> - -<p>"Does your written history give no clue of a time when the Crypt was -anything but a burial place?"</p> - -<p>"Our people knew nothing of writing. That, too, we learned from -Earthmen, my Elders learned it in secret and taught me."</p> - -<p>"And they developed the white mist there in the Crypt, and brought -the old Earthman who taught you hypnotism?" Barry asked. He pictured -her frightened childhood among the dead, in the darkness so close to -Craig's guards who would have killed her on sight.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The girl read his expression. "It was not so terrible," she said -wistfully. "There was peace, we were not tortured for ore dust, or made -to slave in mines. It is light there, even deep down; for the walls are -radioactive.</p> - -<p>"But my parents died of hearts broken by the suffering of their people. -It was later that the white mist was developed, and I learned that my -mission was to use it!"</p> - -<p>A faint noise broke into their conversation—a clicking that was -suddenly almost thunderous in their ears as every other sound died! -It was the radio receptor signal.</p> - -<p>In the screen, the twelve squares were filling again. The time for -reports had come—and there had been no special report of victory.</p> - -<p>Silence held, while the twelve faces grew into sharp focus. Barry -noted that at least three of the men had not been among the twelve who -last faced their Princess. The faces of the rest were dirty, tired, -depressed. A couple were bandaged. Before a word was spoken, Barry -Williams knew that the news would be bad, and premonition turned his -stomach into a leaden ball.</p> - -<p>In the screen, the twelve tired faces were silent, waiting. They were -wooden, unmoving, until Deisanocta spoke, calmly, questioningly.</p> - -<p>One after another, came the reports. Each was brief, and although Barry -could not understand the Martian words, he knew that he had been right. -The news was bad.</p> - -<p>Deisanocta's face paled as she listened. Deep in her eyes raged a -conflict of emotions, dismay, sorrow, anger. When the last report was -heard, she spoke again.</p> - -<p>There was no hesitation in the throaty accents. Words followed each -other in a torrent that slowly swept away the numbness from the twelve -faces before her! When she had finished, her commanders were again -eager, their eyes flashing, exulting.</p> - -<p>"Deisanocta! Deisanocta!" came their chant, a promise of victory. Again -they faded from the screen to carry out her orders.</p> - -<p>When the girl turned from the screen, some of the confidence had -slipped from her. Her dark head was bowed, and her slim figure had lost -some of its proud erectness.</p> - -<p>"Grey's men were waiting for the attack," she told Barry. "They wore -space suits!</p> - -<p>"We waited too long—until he discovered how to protect his men from -the mist. Many of my followers have died in battle. We have not won a -single objective!"</p> - -<p>"I am sincerely sorry," he said slowly. "Sorry that some of your people -have died; sorry that you have failed."</p> - -<p>Her head snapped up, color flooding the pale cheeks. "We have not lost! -The mist that covers Mars will remain. My men have surrounded the -enemy. They will harass his every move.</p> - -<p>"Let Grey wait for another attack—wait until his oxygen tanks are -empty, and his space suits useless! Then the mist will triumph!"</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Barry Williams shook his head sadly. "Can the mist reach up to the end -of atmosphere," he asked, "where their ships can go to compress clear -air? And, if so, can the mist reach across space to Earth, from where -Grey's freighters can bring compressed air?"</p> - -<p>"I wonder if I read your mind rightly," Deisanocta said scornfully. "I -wonder if you are the friend of Mars I thought you."</p> - -<p>He crossed to her in two quick steps. His hands gripped her elbows, -drawing her up to face the intensity of his eyes. "Yes, I am a friend -of Mars! That's why I'm here—that's why Grey and his men hunt me as -they do you!"</p> - -<p>She shook herself free. The flush of anger in her cheeks had deepened -into a flaming crimson. Her eyes avoided him. "Then do not try to -discourage me, Barry Williams. The mist will remain."</p> - -<p>He was silent, the plan he'd been about to suggest unspoken. If he was -distrusted, this was no time to propose it.</p> - -<p>Overhead, they heard the thrumming of rockets. Barry smiled -mirthlessly. "Grey has his scouts out."</p> - -<p>"They will see nothing in the mist," Deisanocta said confidently. But -she turned to the radio and contacted her field captains. "It is the -same everywhere," she told him. "The enemy's ships circle helplessly -overhead."</p> - -<p>"I don't like it," Barry said. "If I know Craig Grey, he's up to -something. Those ships aren't up there without a reason."</p> - -<p>Deisanocta ignored this, her eyes speaking plainly her disappointment -in the Earthman she'd believed a friend. Instead of answering him, she -turned to the Martian who had waited so patiently and silently for her -orders.</p> - -<p>"We will eat," she said haughtily to Barry, after a few swift words to -the other. "Perhaps Earth food will revive your courage."</p> - -<p>"Thank you." Barry ignored the slur, and sat down beside her where the -Martian was spreading a cloth on the ground.</p> - -<p>The thrumming of rockets died away as they began, and the Princess -glanced significantly at Barry Williams. He turned to the food in -silence, a frown of concentration on his forehead.</p> - -<p>They had dried horse meat from Earth, the staple dish of the natives, -a poor grade of canned corn that was like a thin mush, and hard, -wafer-thin pieces of bread.</p> - -<p>"My courageous followers won these provisions in battle," Deisanocta -said softly.</p> - -<p>Barry was finding even the unappetizing menu inviting. He ate rapidly, -being careful not to work too deeply into what he knew was a slender -store of food. The girl watched him as she nibbled at her food. The -scorn in her face slowly faded into sad reproach.</p> - -<p>It wasn't until the Princess poured a glass of liquid and set it -before Barry, that the far-away look was swept from his eyes by -sudden understanding. The liquid was Martian Wrin, a delicious, -invigorating drink from native roots, much coveted and seldom obtained -by Terrestrials. Even through the white mist that shrouded them, it -sparkled from ruby depths. The color galvanized Barry Williams.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>"Red!" he exclaimed. "<i>Infra-red!</i> Grey's ships were sweeping the -desert with infra-red rays, and taking photographs with film sensitive -only to those rays. When those prints are developed, he'll have the -location of every mist-producing unit that's on Mars, and of your -followers!"</p> - -<p>"I don't understand," stammered the bewildered Deisanocta. "I know -nothing of these things."</p> - -<p>"Just believe me," he pleaded. "Order your men and the mist units to -move at once!"</p> - -<p>Deisanocta moved to the radio and obeyed. Barry Williams' heart leaped. -She believed in him, her recent doubt forgotten before the vigor of his -arguments.</p> - -<p>"And us?" she asked.</p> - -<p>"We're all right, being underground. The infra-red rays won't betray us -in the photographs. Listen!"</p> - -<p>They heard the sound of rocket jets overhead, and it was magnified, -built into thunder in their ears. The radio was still tuned to the -field command radios, and they brought the sound of Grey's rocket ships -from every corner of the planet.</p> - -<p>Before their eyes, the white mist swirled, and on the view screen were -twelve small squares of silver. Suddenly, almost simultaneously, lurid -streaks cut across those squares—flaming heat rays, softened into -orange by the seething vapor!</p> - -<p>Deisanocta gasped. "You were right, Barry Williams! Had my forces not -moved, they would have been destroyed.</p> - -<p>"But it is Grey who has failed this time!"</p> - -<p>Barry faced her slowly. His blue eyes rested on her lovely face, and -the words he spoke caught in his throat.</p> - -<p>"Grey will wait a short while for the mist to dissipate," he said. -"When it does not, he'll go back to the pictures. About every spot -where a unit or force was shown, he'll draw a circle. The radius of -that circle will be the distance a man can travel on foot from the time -the photograph was taken, until the time the ships return a second time.</p> - -<p>"Then, one by one, he'll ray the entire area of those -circles—concentrating as many ships as necessary for the job."</p> - -<p>Deisanocta came very close to him. The pleading in the depths of her -eyes shook Barry Williams. Without realizing it, he put out his hands -and again grasped her elbows.</p> - -<p>This time she did not draw away. She moved closer, until her lips -almost brushed his as she spoke. He could feel her slim figure tremble, -not with fear, but with struggling to repress the tears that were -welling into her grey orbs, the sobs that were fighting her breath!</p> - -<p>"Then this is defeat?" she whispered. "My loyal followers wiped -out—the mist, our weapon, swept from the planet?"</p> - -<p>"The only alternative," he said with sudden fierce tenderness, "is to -order the units turned off and buried in the sand. Tell your men to -split into small bands and hide in the desert. Their camouflage will -protect them from Grey's scouts.</p> - -<p>"That way, Grey will think he's won, and your forces will be intact for -the future."</p> - -<p>Deisanocta's small hand found his and held it as she issued the -necessary orders.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>When the screen was again blank, Barry Williams spun the dials.</p> - -<p>"What are you doing?" she asked.</p> - -<p>"Tuning in Earth on the regular broadcast channels."</p> - -<p>"Earth! At this time, Barry Williams, you would listen to Earth -broadcasts!"</p> - -<p>He turned to her reproachfully. "Don't you trust me yet? I must know -how my government is reacting to the situation here; for, if you follow -my advice, you and I will be putting the case of the Martians before -that government. I still think we have a chance of convincing them. But -we'll need to find a spaceship, and take it."</p> - -<p>"You are right, Barry Williams," Deisanocta admitted sadly. "You were -right in the beginning, and my efforts have only brought failure.</p> - -<p>"My heart trusted you—believed in you; and because it was my heart, I -mistrusted. I followed my reason instead—and no woman should do that."</p> - -<p>"I'm following my heart—have from the beginning," Barry murmured. "And -it tells me we haven't lost yet." His hands left her elbows, went about -her waist. Behind them, the Martian turned away.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<div class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/illus3.jpg" alt=""/> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p>"<i>Revolt of Martian savages</i>," broke in a voice from the radio. They -froze, listening to the words that followed; "<i>Craig Grey, President -of Grey Enterprises, Incorporated, is present in person at the scene -of trouble, directing the heroic resistance of Terrestrial pioneers. -He has been authorised by World Government to capture Barry Williams, -investigator of the dastardly campaign, dead or alive.</i></p> - -<p>"<i>Williams disappeared into the desert, and the abortive attack by the -savages followed immediately. 'Justice in the Crypt', is said to be the -wild battle shout of the Martians. Federal troops have embarked for -Mars. It is—</i>"</p> - -<p>Barry snapped off the radio. "Grey has pulled off another one!" -Deisanocta clung to his hand mutely, her white face revealing the -despair the news had brought.</p> - -<p>Barry's mouth was a straight, hard line. His eyes flamed, and muscles -bunched in his shoulders. After a moment's silence, he turned the radio -back on.</p> - -<p>"More orders for you, Deisanocta. Get in touch with your men. We want -about half a dozen of the best, and tell them to bring along the -oldest Martian they can find!"</p> - -<p>"But what—why?"</p> - -<p>"If it's 'Justice from the Crypt' they want, we'll give it to them. -We're going to find out what's there, and use it!</p> - -<p>"Have your men meet us near one entrance to the place. Tell them to -bring a portable visa-radio, so we can call the rest if we need them. -This is the only chance we've got left!"</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p class="ph1">V</p> - -<p>Over the red sands of Mars, the silver mist of vengeance was slowly -thinning. The two moons sent their light probing down, breaking through -here and there to find and bathe the sand.</p> - -<p>Where those rays found the little party that crept cautiously toward -the Crypt, it did not betray them under the red camouflage blankets. -They moved silently ahead, invisible, determined.</p> - -<p>"We are there," Deisanocta whispered at last to Barry Williams, beside -her under the cloak. "We must rise and go on foot the rest of the way."</p> - -<p>"O.K." he said. He scoured the sky, his sharp blue eyes trying to -pierce the mist. "If any ships come over, they won't spot us. The mist -is thick here.</p> - -<p>"The trick will be to get by the guard at the entrance. We don't want -to have to overcome him and risk an alarm."</p> - -<p>Deisanocta was speaking to the Martians. They rose with Barry and the -Princess, and the little party stayed close together to avoid being -separated in the white shroud about them.</p> - -<p>A suggestion from Barry, and they formed into single file and moved -forward. A sharp-eyed Martian was in the lead.</p> - -<p>"We are fortunate," the Princess said. "The guard is away from his -post."</p> - -<p>"Hurry," ordered Barry. "Inside! If we meet him after we're in, that's -too bad for him."</p> - -<p>Silently as the whiteness about them, the party filed into the Crypt. -It was colder here, for the tunnel sloped sharply downward, and the air -was heavier. They had gone only a few steps before the last wisps of -the mist disappeared. The heavier air had held it out of the Crypt.</p> - -<p>About them, the walls shone with a faint radiance.</p> - -<p>"Now!" Barry turned to the girl. The party had been under his command -from the beginning. Even the Martians had at last recognized that this -Earthman was a leader.</p> - -<p>"Hypnotize the old Martian. With a willing subject, you can produce a -deep hypnosis. Command him to think of the Crypt, remember every thing -he ever heard about it, or saw in it, from the time he was an infant!"</p> - -<p>Deisanocta's eyes bored into the rapt, obedient face of the old -Martian. She murmured softly, sleepily in their tongue. The other's -face slowly smoothed, his eyes going blank.</p> - -<p>Her words became sharp, commanding, insistent. Under their leashing, -the old one's brow furrowed. He was remembering, digging deep into -forgotten recesses of his mind. At last Deisanocta spoke to Barry.</p> - -<p>"I see the Crypt seventy years ago. This one was here as an infant in -his father's arms.</p> - -<p>"It was different. There are fewer bodies. Their clothes are strange. -None bear the wounds of battle."</p> - -<p>"Remember what we're looking for," snapped Barry.</p> - -<p>"I am deep down in the Crypt," came the girl's voice, weaker. "Deeper -than even I have ever been. I do not know the part. There is something -here, something big—I cannot make it out. It is very faint in this -one's mind."</p> - -<p>"Tell him to lead us to it," said Barry. "That will save your strength."</p> - -<p>Seconds later they were following the old Martian through a labyrinth -of tunnels. He moved rapidly, unhesitantly, his face wooden and intent. -Deisanocta was beside Barry, her hand in his.</p> - -<p>"Can it be?" she questioned. "Is the answer as simple as this?"</p> - -<p>"I hope so," he told her. "It is something you wouldn't have thought -of, because you did not remember all you were taught about hypnotism. -And no one else could have done it against the old one's will."</p> - -<p>"Look!" Deisanocta cried suddenly. "He has lost his way."</p> - -<p>"Impossible," Barry said.</p> - -<p>But the old Martian was leading them toward a blank wall. Still he did -not hesitate. With steps rapid, certain, he marched directly into the -wall. His head struck, and he fell, rolling to their feet.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Barry bent over him quickly, then rose one hand digging at the wall. -"It's soft dirt," he explained. "Didn't hurt him. He's only stunned." -He stepped back to Deisanocta.</p> - -<p>"That's why Grey did not find whatever is here. It's somewhere behind -that wall—cut off by an earth slide!"</p> - -<p>"But—what is there?"</p> - -<p>"We'll soon find out." Barry's hand dug at the wall, scooping away the -soft dirt. "Tell the boys to start digging. But post a couple up the -tunnel in both directions, so we won't be surprised."</p> - -<p>Four Martians and Barry Williams dug at the wall with cupped hands. It -was hot, dirty work in the heavy air of the Crypt. Sweat beaded their -faces. Arms ached after the first few minutes.</p> - -<p>Barry did not slacken his pace, and the others stayed with him. At -last, the Earthman gave a cry of triumph.</p> - -<p>"It isn't thick! See, the dirt is crumbling away from us now—falling -on the other side." The vigor of their attack redoubled.</p> - -<p>Hearing the cries, the Martians posted down the tunnel came running -to help. Deisanocta stepped closer, her face radiant. Barry threw -her a glance, and his heart noted the way her black hair threw back -highlights of the walls' radiance.</p> - -<p>His hand shot out again at the wall, viciously, and the last grains of -dirt fell inward. Light showed through. Beside him, the others worked -frantically. In seconds, the opening was large enough for one of them -to pass through.</p> - -<p>"Deisanocta," Barry Williams gasped. "Go in. I'll be right behind you."</p> - -<p>The rest crowded behind, and all but the unconscious old Martian were -soon on the other side. They stared open-mouthed, incredulously at the -sight that met them.</p> - -<p>It was a great room into which they'd made their way, the walls -luminous, and stretching off almost out of view. There were no dead -here. Except for one object, the vast chamber was empty.</p> - -<p>That object itself was big, black, rearing upward above them halfway -to the distant roof.</p> - -<p>"A spaceship!" cried Deisanocta.</p> - -<p>"The great-grandfather of all space ships," added Barry.</p> - -<p>"Look at the size of it, the diameter of those rocket tubes! Used a -poor fuel, inefficiently. But they made it. Crashed through the roof -of this place. Look at the dark patch overhead, where sand filled in a -gap."</p> - -<p>"'Justice from the Crypt'," murmured the girl. "I think I—"</p> - -<p>"So do I," rapped Barry. "Come on, you and I are going inside. Tell the -others to guard this opening!"</p> - -<p>Hand-in-hand, the two of them passed through a yawning port. Beneath -their feet, the ramp was solid. Metal did not corrode, in this dry -atmosphere. The old ship had not deteriorated in its years here.</p> - -<p>Barry Williams and the girl passed down a long passage, unlit except -for the faint radioactive radiance that made its way in through smaller -portholes. They came to a door, which would not yield to Barry's -efforts.</p> - -<p>"Locked," he said. "We can't stop for that." His heat ray came out. -The beam played against the lock until the metal glowed and ran. Barry -kicked at the bottom of the door where the metal was cooler. It swung -inward.</p> - -<p>"It's the control room," Barry said as their eyes slowly adjusted -themselves to the even dimmer light of the room.</p> - -<p>Barry's hand groped against the wall beside the door. There was a -click, and a yellow radiance sprang from the ceiling. "Even the -batteries are still good," he muttered.</p> - -<p>"What is this?" Deisanocta cried with a shudder.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The room was a maze of instruments, levers, panels about the sides. But -it wasn't this that had shocked the Princess, it was the bodies.</p> - -<p>Two sprawled on the floor, one on its back still held a weapon in one -hand. That weapon pointed to the third body.</p> - -<p>Slumped in a chair before an instrument panel, the third body had grown -rigid, a look of amazement on the undecomposed face. In the right hand, -the weapon that had undoubtedly killed the other two, was still poised.</p> - -<p>"You can almost see the smoke curling from the muzzle of that ancient -automatic," said Barry grimly. "They fought it out—must have been -after the one in the chair landed the ship—and everybody lost!"</p> - -<p>"It's—it's horrible," the girl murmured. "Why—"</p> - -<p>A sudden commotion, reaching their ears faintly from outside, cut off -her question. There were shouts—cries of pain and rage. Running feet -pounded up the ship's ramp, came down the passage toward them.</p> - -<p>Barry brought up the heat ray in his hand—lowered it as a Martian -staggered into the room. He was burned across the face and body.</p> - -<p>His pale lips moved. Faint words came forth. Others were choked off as -he slumped to the floor. His body sprawled beside the other two already -there.</p> - -<p>"He says a god comes," Deisanocta explained wildly. "One they cannot -harm. The rest of my followers in the room outside have fallen."</p> - -<p>Other footsteps sounded at the door. Barry's heat ray came up again. -This time its beam sprang across the room, bathed the figure that came -through the door with blazing heat.</p> - -<p>"No good, Williams," came a sneering voice, metallic through a space -suit communicator. "Don't you know impervium when you see it?"</p> - -<p>"Yes, I know it," said Barry. His eyes had noted the thin, -fragile-looking garment over the space suit that Craig Grey wore. -Impervium, fabulous, incredibly expensive, proof against any heat ray. -"There's about a dozen suits in the System, and you have to have one!"</p> - -<p>Craig Grey's little black eyes snapped with triumph. "A man who fights -savages needs one, Williams," he mocked. His glance flickered to -Deisanocta, lingered a a long minute. "I see now why you went over to -the Martians."</p> - -<p>Barry took a step toward him, fingers itching. "You—"</p> - -<p>Grey brought up his heat ray. "Careful, Williams. You have little -enough time to live as it is."</p> - -<p>Barry stopped, bafflement stamped on his face. A rash move would leave -Deisanocta at the mercy of this man. Craig Grey laughed.</p> - -<p>"I figured you could solve the mystery about this place, that's why -I told my guards to let you past. I knew you'd come here instead of -trying to run to Earth—after I told them of your activities on Mars."</p> - -<p>"Grey, you can't get away with this," gritted Barry. He took another -step—not toward Grey, but in the direction of Deisanocta.</p> - -<p>"Stand still!" snapped the ore-king. The weapon in his hand was very -steady. "I want to look around."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>His glittering eyes roamed about the control room. "So this is the -secret weapon of the Crypt! I knew it'd be something my boys would be -better off not seeing—no chance of a leak this way."</p> - -<p>"Earth troops will find it," Barry threatened.</p> - -<p>"An atomic bomb will take care of that," the ore-king countered -smoothly. "You won't be around to tell them about it, and neither will -the girl. I'll keep the secret myself."</p> - -<p>Keeping his weapon trained on the two, Grey prowled about the room.</p> - -<p>"Here's the ship's log," he thumbed through rapidly, not relaxing his -vigilance for an instant. "Hmm. Left Earth in 2085—during the last -Continental War. Two scientists, a rich backer—" His hand swept to the -body in the chair. "That would be him—rich backers are often seeking -power.</p> - -<p>"Ship-full of refugees from all lands—average people. Going to -establish a Utopian world on Mars." He snapped the book shut.</p> - -<p>"Ancestors of your savages, Grey," said Barry quietly.</p> - -<p>"Yes," replied the ore-king. "Brains killed each other off in a locked -control room—probably the keys to the ship's stores are locked in here -with them. That left the others on their own—no sciences, no arts! -They just farmed.</p> - -<p>"What a clincher you almost had, Williams!"</p> - -<p>His heat ray came up, levelled. Barry shuffled another half-step. Craig -Grey laughed harshly, his little black eyes sweeping over them.</p> - -<p>"I'm a crack shot, Williams. You can't rush me. But, just to be sure, -you'll go first."</p> - -<p>The flaming beam of his heat ray cut across the room—and Barry leaped -at the same instant. Pain lanced through his left shoulder. But he was -not leaping toward Craig Grey—Barry was plunging toward the floor. -There was a body there, and he smashed into it—a body with an ancient -weapon still clutched in a right, long-dead hand.</p> - -<p>Craig Grey backed away a step, the ray beam sweeping a fiery arch -toward the other. A sharp report thundered in the room bouncing in a -dozen echoes and re-echoes from the metal walls. Smoke curled from the -muzzle of the old automatic in Barry's fingers, and bitter acrid smell -was in his nostrils. Long years in the dry atmosphere of the Crypt had -brought no corrosion, no deterioration to the weapon!</p> - -<p>Again Grey backed away, a curse ripping through his thin lips, suddenly -clenched with pain. His right arm dangled uselessly, the ray gun -dropping from nerveless fingers.</p> - -<p>Barry Williams came to his feet, the searing pain in his right shoulder -forgotten momentarily in his triumph. "Impervium was made to stop heat -rays, Grey. But an old automatic waited here hundreds of years to bring -justice to Mars!"</p> - -<p>He turned to Deisanocta. Her face was radiant, but the grey depths of -her lovely eyes clouded as they fixed on his seared shoulder. "Barry—"</p> - -<p>"Never mind me," he ordered brusquely. "Get to that radio we brought. -Tell your <i>men</i> to let loose the mist again and attack at once!"</p> - -<p>Craig Grey's pain-twisted face went paler. "The mist! You can't—I -destroyed—"</p> - -<p>"That's what you were supposed to think, Grey," Barry snapped. "But -you'll see that silver lining shining through the cloud you brought to -Mars. Then we'll put the mist drug and Deisanocta's hypnotism to work -on your rotten mind. We'll get enough details on your fraud to convince -any government!</p> - -<p>"Now come on, get outside! Your men'll fall like sheep without -leadership. I'll have the Princess speed things up by offering amnesty -to those that surrender without resistance."</p> - -<p>Craig Grey went slowly through the passage, down the ramp of the old -spaceship.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Twelve miles above the surface of the red planet Mars, hovered the -fleet of Earth transports. The Federal troops who'd made the trip -from Earth were never to land. For Mars was a free planet, and Earth -Government had commanded its forces to respect the sovereignty of -Deisanocta, Queen of Mars.</p> - -<p>From below, a steady stream of smaller ships was flowing up to the -transports, and back downward for another load.</p> - -<p>"Can't figure it out," said a puzzled soldier. "We came to fight -Martians—maybe take some Martian prisoners; and we're going home -loaded with Earthmen who are prisoners."</p> - -<p>"There aren't any Martians," explained his irate Sergeant, "They're -really Earthmen. And these prisoners have been treating them like -Martians—or—or—"</p> - -<p>"Never mind!" ordered his superior. "Anyway the ether between here and -Earth's been burning. Faces—pictures of documents, a confession, and -all sorts of stuff have been radiographed to the old home planet. And -we've got our orders."</p> - -<p>The Sergeant was on firmer ground now. "Here comes the guy I wouldn't -want to be—Craig Grey! After the stuff he's admitted, three times his -money wouldn't keep him from the gas chambers!"</p> - -<p>As the last of the Earth ships blasted homeward, Deisanocta, Queen of -Mars, turned to Barry Williams, acting Terrestrial Ambassador. Affairs -of Government weighed heavily on her, and Barry's training had been of -invaluable help.</p> - -<p>She fixed her tired eyes on him, and they glowed softly as she spoke. -"And what will you do, Barry Williams, after the Permanent Ambassador -has been appointed and sent here?"</p> - -<p>His blue eyes met her gaze. "Read my mind, Deisanocta. This time my -will is not opposed to it. The answer is there."</p> - -<p>She came closer. "I will not use science to find that answer, Barry. It -is in your eyes and on your lips, but you must speak.</p> - -<p>"There are some things a woman, even a Queen, wants to learn only from -the lips of the man she loves."</p> - - - - - - - - -<pre> - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Mists of Mars, by George A. 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Whittington - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: Mists of Mars - -Author: George A. Whittington - -Release Date: October 22, 2020 [EBook #63529] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MISTS OF MARS *** - - - - -Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - - - - - MISTS OF MARS - - By GEORGE A. WHITTINGTON - - "Kill all Martians," the orders read. "They - are savages, and have no rights." But Special - Investigator Barry Williams and Princess - Deisanocta had other plans--plans that would - bring destruction to the despoilers by - releasing an age-old justice from the Crypts. - - [Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from - Planet Stories Summer 1945. - Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that - the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.] - - -Barry Williams watched the last sunshine lance across the red sands of -the Martian Desert. The sun dropped abruptly behind the flat horizon. -With the black curtain of night, the usual sharp chill came to the thin -Martian atmosphere. - -The cold bit into Williams through the warm ore-seeker's outfit he'd -adopted for this venture. He laughed suddenly, realizing why he noticed -the cold. His body was tense, rigid. Unconsciously he was crouching, -waiting, eyes narrowed, one heavily-gloved hand on his ray gun. - -With the laugh, Barry relaxed, although his sharp blue eyes never -ceased their wary sweep over the rolling sands. His hand dropped from -the weapon. It would be useless anyway against the deadly white mist, -for which he waited. - -That it would come, Barry never doubted. It was known and dreaded by -Earthmen in every Terrestrial Center on the red planet. In the past few -weeks, Earthmen had disappeared, vanishing for the last time into the -Martian night. Whispers said the white mist, the pale nemesis, sucked -the life from them. - -Only once had Earthmen seen the mist and lived to tell of it. A -spaceship, beating toward one of the Centers on a night flight from -a desert camp, had passed over a pale patch on the red sand. Its -occupants, in their haste did not stop to investigate. Only later, -telling of the strange sight, did they realize it had been mist--on a -planet too arid for water vapor. Only then did they remember seeing -an Earthman making his way on foot toward the same Center, within the -patch. - -Barry Williams' searching glance covered the terrain once more. Deimos, -the smaller moon, was already high. The larger, swifter Phobos was -rapidly overhauling its companion. Under their light, the scene was -clear. But it was so every night on Mars, yet Earthmen who ventured -into the desert at night died! Barry waited. - -He waited as had the occupants of that Center for the man to come in -and tell the story of that strange light patch against the red sand. -In the morning a searching party brought in his body. The story would -never be told by him. - -Nor by any other Earthman, it seemed. Later, a spaceship again sighted -the mist, and radioed that it was landing to investigate. Again, -Earthmen, now frightened and grim, waited through the Martian night. -Once more, a daylight searching party found only the dead. - -"Ain't fer human understandin'," one superstitious miner whispered in -awed tones. "Twenty year I bin on this cursed planet--nor ever heerd -the like o' this." - -"It's clear enough for me," answered a pink-cheeked youngster up to -Mars to make a fortune in rich ore dust. "I stay off the desert at -night. Only the miserable Martians can live out there then." - -"Justice from the Crypt," a third muttered, quoting the threat of an -old Martian, dying from wounds he'd received fighting Earthmen. "It's -like from the grave--this mist, the way it creeps from the sand white -and ghosty!" - -That was the spirit Barry Williams, special investigator for the -Terrestrial Bureau of Martian Affairs, found when he arrived. Behind -the fear were rumors, dead bodies, nothing more. At first, he'd blamed -superstition and the natural hazards of work in the desert. But now he -was here in the desert at night, waiting. - - * * * * * - -It wasn't for this he'd been sent to Mars, Barry told himself -half-angrily. His mission here was important. But this threat to all -Terrestrials on Mars was ominous. There were no government agencies -to deal with the threat here. Mars was just a frontier where untold -riches lay for the taking beneath some of the red sand. - -The sullen, cowed Martians, working at the bigger mines, or following -their nomadic courses across the desert no longer attempted an -organized government. Despite their great majority in numbers, the -Martians played no part in running the planet. How they must be -rejoicing now, Barry thought, as death stalked their conquerors, death -striking from the desert in the night. - -Suddenly, Williams felt an icy tingle course through his blood. His -hand dropped again to his ray gun, tore it from the holster. He stood -erect, fighting an urge to crouch low against the danger. - -Along the crest of the sand-swell before him, something was rising. -Bright moonlight shimmered as the rays broke against a pale barrier. - -To the right, the left, behind him, it was the same. The white mist was -rising, surrounding him. Escape was cut off. Even to reach his nearby -spaceship was impossible without cutting through. Barry tried to relax. -There was nothing to do but wait. - -He remembered the words of the old Martian desert wanderer to whom he'd -spoken. This man had once been a chieftain, before the conquest of Mars -by Earth. His keen black eyes had bored into Barry. - -"If you wish the answer," he'd advised, "go into the desert at night. -_You_ are different--_you_ may return. I can tell you no more." - -Thicker grew the mist. A silver blanket, wrapping closer and closer -about Barry Williams. The moons and the barren landscape were blotted -out. All perspective vanished. High above, a tiny patch of stars was -visible--perhaps for the last time to Williams. - -He gripped the ray gun tighter. The strange white blanket touched his -skin now--seemed to press against him with a great weight. He raised -the gun grimly, then a picture flashed into his mind. - -One of the bodies that had come out of the desert had been shown him. -The dead fingers still gripped a ray gun. They had crushed against the -trigger for a long time--until the badly overheated weapon had at last -burned out, charring the unfeeling hand that had held it. But the power -that had brought oblivion had stood up against the ray. - -With a grim smile, Barry replaced his weapon. The blanket was tight -around him now. He could see nothing. His limbs grew numb under -overpowering lethargy. His lungs labored, sucking in the mist. -Consciousness wavered. He reeled, stiffly. His muscles hardened, his -braced feet sinking deep into the sand. - -Before his glazing eyes, a strange picture formed in the mist. A -beautiful Martian maiden, tall, slim, majestic--veiled in silver mesh. -On her lovely features was a look of stern judgment. - - * * * * * - -Was it fancy, or did the chanting of voices ring in -his ears, muffled weirdly by the shroud about him? -"Day--ees--a--nocta----Day--ees--a--nocta." - -[Illustration: _Williams waited, seeing her come through -the mists._] - -The picture, the sounds faded. At last his knees sagged. He pitched -face downward into the red sand. - -For what seemed a long time, Barry Williams floated in darkness. Then, -to a tiny corner of his mind, consciousness returned. He fought to -retain it. The mist, he realized dimly, did not harm the body--it -paralyzed. While he could think, the battle was not lost. He called -upon the deep reserves of his mind. - -Suddenly he was aware of sand digging painfully into the skin of his -face--the first physical sensation he'd know since he slumped forward -into oblivion. Hands tugged at his body, and the sting of the sand was -gone from his nostrils. He had been rolled over onto his back. - -Wild hope surged through Barry. He struggled against the leaden weight -on his eyelids--without success. His muscles did not respond. He tried -to move an arm--a leg--a finger. It was no use. Slowly, he realized -what had happened. - -Some power ruled his mind--had overcome it while he was unconscious. -For some reason, he had been _allowed_ to regain a very limited -consciousness--just so much and no more! Perhaps he would learn the -answer to this mystery. Why had the white mist not destroyed him? - -A murmur of voices beat against his ears. He'd been given back his -hearing! The voices were low, soft. They spoke in a language foreign -to him--Martian he guessed. Words faded away. There was a moment's -silence, then the chant he had heard before. - -Above Barry, a voice spoke to him in inter-planetary Esperanto: - -"Son of Earth, you are not as the other Earthmen who come here to rob -this unhappy planet, and slay its children." - -The voice was that of a woman, clear, musical, unutterably -sweet--pathetically sad. It paused; spoke again. A new note crept into -the words, ringing, thrilling: - -"Go your way--leave in peace, but travel far from this planet. The Mist -of Mars will destroy all those who remain to despoil and murder here." - -Williams felt consciousness slipping from him once more. He struggled -to speak. He must speak! These people must be told of his mission here! - -But his lips would not move. Struggle was useless. Feeling was gone -from his body. The last sound he heard was the voice of a man, deep and -full: - -"Heed the warning of the Mother of Mist. This once you have been -spared." - - - II - -Barry opened his eyes as the red sun climbed over the rim of the -rolling desert. His head was clear, his mind refreshed and alert. These -symptoms strengthened his convictions that he'd been hypnotized. - -The power of a highly trained mind was being used in this campaign -against Earthmen. Perhaps the mist was produced both to hide the -operator and to frighten the victim--making the latter easier prey to -the force that invaded the brain, and had literally torn out the life -essence of the other victims. - -Shrugging off further speculation for the moment, Barry climbed -painfully to his feet. His muscles were stiff and cramped from lying -hours on the ground. He flexed his arms and legs, worked his fingers, -getting out the soreness. Then he started for his spaceship. - -As the rockets throbbed behind him, Barry tried all the controls. The -little ship whipped through every intricate maneuver he'd ever known. -It slowed his progress, this senseless stunting, but it showed him the -ship was in prime condition, answering his every touch on the controls. - -Why was he doing this? It was as if he were going on a trip. Yet he had -no such intention. The mist had spared him, and was gone. - -The mist! The thought brought the answer to his strange -preparations--hypnosis again--post-hypnotic suggestion! - -Having spared him and ordered him to flee the planet, the being behind -the mist had meant him to remember the advice. - -Barry's lips set in a straight line, and hard little muscles stood out -on his cheek, along his strong jaw. He hadn't the slightest intention -of fleeing Mars. He'd been sent here for a purpose by the Terrestrial -Government, and he had come to realize the whole deadly threat of this -Martian scourge against Earthmen was tied up with the reason for his -being here. Barry William was staying on Mars till he'd finished his -job. - -Below him, the circular, thick-walled, high-domed Center flashed over -the horizon and loomed larger in the lower view-plate before Barry -on the control board. Soon he was close enough to see the narrow -apertures, where, in the early days of Terrestrial occupation, mighty -ray cannon had blasted against bands of Martians who still had crude -weapons to use against the victors. - -Barry put his ship down neatly in a semi-circular row of other craft. -There were, he noticed, more ships parked outside than was usual for -a post not close to the bigger mine. One of them was a large, ornate -cruiser type, on which was painted in neat gold letters: "_Grey -Enterprises, Inc._" - -It was the personal, space-going ship of Craig Grey, billionaire -ore-king, himself. The latter was probably inside the Center. That -would account for the unusual number of ships, for Grey never travelled -anywhere without a large following. - -As Barry stepped through the door-lock onto the field, a small knot of -men, dressed for travel, stopped outside the building door. They stared -open-mouthed at the Government identification letters on Barry's craft, -then at him. - -Obviously, they'd turned and bolted inside--bolted with a speed and -singleness of purpose that seemed like panic! - -Puzzled, Barry pushed aside the heavier, outer door. From inside, an -excited murmuring of voices came through the second door. - - * * * * * - -Silence fell over the big room within, as he entered. Every man there, -most of them free-lance ore-seekers, was in the crowd pressing around -one man who stood against the bar. That man was easily recognizable, -for his picture had been printed from Mercury to Pluto. He was Craig -Grey. A subordinate stood on each side of him, keeping the others at a -respectable distance. - -Grey looked at Barry with bleak, cold eyes. The ore-king was a dapper -little man, who apparently fought his advanced years with the aid -of science. His hair was coal black, as was the tapering, precise -mustache--though both should have been gray long ago. He lifted a -well-manicured hand, and sucked on a cigarette through a long holder. -Despite his culture and small stature, Barry Williams sensed that this -man could be a deadly enemy. - -The glowing cigarette in its long holder swept out in a graceful arc -toward the men Barry had seen outside. "This is the searching party -that was about to set out for you, Williams," said Grey in a flat, thin -voice. "A spaceship reported seeing you last night on the desert--with -the white mist closing in." - -"Very decent of you fellows to worry," Williams said amiably. "I came -in under my own power." - -His words fell into a silence that was tenser than before. They had -just been discussing him, Williams was positive. Grey, who had never -seen him, had known his name! - -Barry said nothing. He waited calmly for the answer to this odd -reception. Somehow, he sensed hostility in the Earthmen here. - -Beneath the poised, still friendly gaze of his blue eyes, the others -grew restless. Feet shuffled. Murmurs came from the rear of the group. - -"These Martian savages are behind this mist." - -"They're out to kill all us Earthmen," came another voice. - -And a third questioned: "How could a man get out of that mist alive?" - -"Unless he's a friend of those killers," finished another. - -The color of Barry's eyes deepened into the blue-grey of carbon steel. -"I owe explanations only to Earth Government!" he snapped. "Is that -clear?" - -Murmurs rose again--angry now, and the faces of the men grew dark and -menacing. But Grey waved his long cigarette holder for silence. He was -the unquestioned leader on Mars. His company owned most of the largest -mines. - -He spoke coolly: "What you say may be true, Williams, but we feel we've -a right to some answer. After all, my company has billions invested -here. And these men," his gesture took in the miners and ore-seekers, -"have their lives invested. All of _us_ are threatened by this mist." - -"Fair enough," said Barry Williams. "I'll be glad to tell you, since -you're _asking_." - -He told them briefly of his encounter with the mist. When he'd -finished, the taut silence in which they'd listened was snapped by -angry mutterings. This time the anger seemed directed against the -accusations of the Martian maiden, rather than against Barry. - -"Those savages calling _us_ murderers!" - - * * * * * - -Craig Grey's voice was scornful. "Ridiculous of course. These creatures -are human only in superficial resemblance." He drew deeply through his -long holder, and blew a great cloud of smoke toward Barry. "Of course, -_you_ know that Earth laws have declared them savages, and provided -that none save humans of Earth descent can hold property on Mars, or -citizenship in the Earth state. How could we murder or rob them--since -they're not human and own nothing?" - -"True--and interesting," conceded Williams. "I know too the laws were -passed on suggestion of exploring parties sent here by three big -inter-planetary combines, of which your own was the largest. That was -fifty years ago. You were at the head of your company then--excuse me -for giving your age away." Williams was speaking slowly, thinking his -way. Some of the puzzle of Mars was unfolding as he spoke, against this -background of resentful Earthmen. - -"Those laws gave you and your friends control of great wealth in the -ore mines. You broke the resistance of the Martians, and used some as -cheap labor in the mines. The others had to find ore dust and sell it -to you for a song, to buy food and other things from you at your price. -And they had to avoid being shot by ore-seekers who wanted the dust." - -Again the other men growled toward Barry. - -"Martian lover!" - -"Justice from the Crypt, eh? We'll send you back there!" - -"'Tain't murder or robbery to kill savages!" - -"Go running back to Earth with that phoney story." - -"No!" he answered them. "I'm not leaving Mars until I finish my job. -The Bureau of Martian Affairs sent me here to see if some educational -program could be started among the Martian savages. I think it could. -These people could pass for Earth citizens in the streets of Washington -itself. As soon as I get to the bottom of the mist, and stop it, I'll -be ready to go back with my recommendation." - -The men began to surge toward Barry. Apprehension, as well as anger -showed in their faces. What he suggested would mean the end of their -chances to exploit the planet and its people so freely--and of Mars as -a frontier. - -"I don't think you'll get away with this, Williams," Craig Grey said -softly. "You've admitted being on the side of the Martians who are -trying to kill us!" - -"I'll put the first man who raises a hand under arrest," said the other -just as softly. - -"That's a bluff I'll call," snarled a big man. He was one of the -subordinates who'd stood beside the ore-king. Now he hulked forward, -hand dropping slowly toward the belt where two ray guns dangled. -"You won't be arresting anyone! Every Earthman on Mars will be after -you--just like I am!" - -"I'll have to take your weapons," Barry began. To exert his -authority as a representative of Earth Government now might save the -situation--if he could make it stick. - -But an ugly look, spreading across the big man's face, pulling at his -thick lips and blazing from his eyes was the answer. It was the look of -a murderer, and there was no mistaking his intention as he brought up a -ray gun. - -"You can have them--this way," he sneered. The other men in the Center -scattered for cover, their faces relieved that the threat Barry -represented was to be so quickly removed. - -But Earth Investigators were well trained. Barry Williams' ray crossed -the other. The big man fell, life burned out of him. Barry swung the -weapon in his hand significantly about the men. - -"If this is the way you want it, there's an example of what will happen -to anyone else who tries to stop me. And don't forget, I represent the -authority of Earth Government!" - -He backed toward the door, watching them warily. "It won't be wise for -the rest of you to try to follow me!" - -Outside, he made for his ship at a dead run. Ray beams were splashing -into the red sand at his feet, when he entered the port. Safe behind -the apertures of the Center, the men were trying to cut him down. - - * * * * * - -Barry blasted his ship into the air, and watched the Center grow small -behind and below him. His lips were set in a straight, tight line, -while his mind went over his position. - -Grey would fan the hostility of all the Earthmen on Mars against him. -Barry was sure from what he'd seen of the Martians that they were far -from the savages they'd been called by explorers financed by Grey and -his associates. They were an intelligent peaceful race, uneducated and -unadvanced, but intelligent. - -Earth Government had been misled into oppressing them, and Grey had -profited enormously. The ore-king would stop at nothing to keep Barry -Williams from destroying the set-up. Already he'd connected Barry -with the white mist, a Martian attempt to win freedom and revenge--an -attempt that Barry must stop! - -The white mist meant the killing of Earthmen, and the rebellion would -convince Earth Government that the Martians were savages. Barry -Williams wanted to save human lives--even the lives of those who were -murdering and robbing on Mars under the flimsy pretext of these laws. -And he wanted to see justice done on Mars. - -These things were not very probable, though, Barry knew. Grey's clever -move had trapped him on Mars. He hadn't enough fuel in his ship to -reach Earth, nor was his radio strong enough to contact the planet. -With the Earthmen trying to kill him, he'd be unable to get supplies. -And the Martians had warned him to leave the planet--a second time the -white mist might not spare him! - -Still, his only chance was to reach the Martians who were behind the -white mist. If he could convince them of his intentions--he had to -convince them! Then they might help him reach Earth; and hold off their -ominous attacks against Earthmen until he could put the situation -before the Government of Earth. If he could manage that, Barry was sure -he could save human lives and do justice on Mars! - -He had to find the Martians! Barry brought his ship down low over the -red sand and started his search. He knew that hostile Earthmen, armed -to the teeth and intent on killing him, were searching also. - -Their search was successful, while he still looked vainly for Martians. -Not even a nomadic wandering native was moving over the sands. And the -blazing midday of the red planet brought the end of Barry Williams' -opportunity. - -"These natives know something is up," he was musing. Above him, the sun -was a ball of flame, its rays blistering, blinding through the thin -atmosphere. - -It was out of this blind spot that a voice snapped across Barry's -thoughts like a whiplash: "The game's up, Williams." - -He knew then that his thoughts had left him open to attack. - -"You heard me, Williams." - -The latter knew that cold, precise voice. It was Craig Grey. Barry -could not see the ship, but he knew the ore-king's cruiser would be -hovering high above, safely out of sight in the sun's rays. And from -that focal point of his enemies, the ether began to crackle with orders. - -Other craft began to converge rapidly on the spot, very close to where -the investigator had the white mist. They ringed Barry as the mist had, -closed in. Their blazing ship rays, in the nose of each craft, formed -spokes to a wheel of which Barry Williams' ship was to be the hub. - -He charged into that ring, broke it! He scattered them before him, some -of them dropping downward with blazing hulls. - -But, as often as he drove them before him, Grey's cold, hard face -appeared in the visa-radio. His commands reformed the others, brought -them back to the attack. - -Finally, as Barry fought off another encirclement, the space cruiser of -Craig Grey dropped unseen from above. Four red rays reached toward the -investigator's ship, closed about it like the fingers of a hand. - -Barry had no chance to turn and make the prolonged ray contact it would -have taken to damage the big, heavily-armored ship. His control board -indicators flashed a bitter message in his eyes--his ship was lost! In -the visa-plate before him; was Grey's exulting face, the long cigarette -holder clamped between the thin, smiling lips. Above, like good dogs -closing for the kill, the ships were following Barry down behind the -pack-leading cruiser. - - - III - -Williams got his wrecked craft on an even keel somehow, and spun her -with his side jets to keep her even. His trip down was an incredibly -swift repetition of these movements, designed to land the ship on the -red sands with a cushioning belly-smack. - -They were following him down to make sure he did not escape the crash -alive--to ray the smashed ship into an incandescent heap of metal! At -the last moment, Barry stretched out a leg, and kicked hard at the -emergency door-lock lever release. - -Whipped open by the air-wash, the door was waiting as he leaped from -the seat. With a last look at the viewscreen--showing the red terrain -flashing into his face--he spun out into the air a second before the -crash. Darkness swept over him as he landed! - -It was not the darkness of unconsciousness. He'd landed on his back, -pulled by steel muscles into an arc that rocked the impact from his -hurtling body. - -But, somehow, a covering was over his eyes, and two men lay beside him, -one on either side. They spoke softly to each other over his head in a -language Barry recognized but could not understand; Martian! - -He'd found the Martians all right, the hard way! But Grey and his men -would ray them all out of existence in a matter of seconds. Overhead -the rockets of the ore-king's ships thundered closer. They'd seen his -body hurtle from the wreck, and were searching! He wished the Martians -hadn't blindfolded him. - -An intolerable glare from many ray beams beat through the covering over -his eyes. This was it! The heat of those beams brought sweat through -every pore of his body, but that was all. The drumming of rocket jets -receded. They were leaving! - -Why hadn't they seen him? They'd rayed his ship into a heap of molten -metal that warmed him where he lay, yards away. But he and his captors -were unhurt. Apparently, Grey and his men had decided they'd been wrong -about seeing the investigator jump. They'd decided he was still in the -wreckage. But why hadn't they seen Grey and the Martians? - -The question was quickly answered. As the thrumming of rockets died in -the distance, the two Martians pulled Barry to his feet. He blinked -as sunlight struck his eyes, and looked about. The three of them were -standing in the open, but a large square of rough cloth at their feet -explained why the ships above hadn't spotted them. It was colored to -blend into the red sand so perfectly it was almost invisible to Barry. - -His respect for Martians leaped! A peaceful race they had been, before -they were attacked and conquered. But now they were showing how fast -they could learn. They'd mastered one of the most effective stratagems -of warfare, camouflage. - -The clothing of his Martian captors was the same color as the cloth -that had covered them, even to masks over the face. One of them tugged -at Barry's arm and spoke softly in Martian. They wanted him to go with -them. He went gladly. If they took him to their headquarters, he'd -have the chance he wanted--to ask their help, and offer them his! His -heart was beating wildly. Grey and his followers would learn that Earth -Government had an answer for fraud and injustice! - -His respect for the Martians increased again, when he was taken through -a cleverly concealed passage into a sand-swell. Inside was a rough -room, ingeniously hewn and held from collapsing inward. - -Here were three more Martians, garbed as his captors were. One sat -before a visa-radio. This group of Martians was well organized! They'd -salvaged equipment from wrecked and abandoned ships. - - * * * * * - -One of Barry's companions went to the radio and spoke rapidly in -Martian, apparently reporting. The view screen was blank, but -Barry heard the Martian use the word, "Deisanocta," and something -clicked in his mind! The chanting he'd heard last night in the mist, -"Day-ess-a-nocta!" Was it the name of the lovely Martian girl, she who -seemed to be the leader of these men? One of them had spoken of her -respectfully as the Mother of Mist. - -It was she he wanted to speak to, Barry Williams realized. And it was -her voice that struck his ears a moment later, answering the report of -the man! Her words were soft, gentle yet commanding. There was a timbre -to her throaty voice that moved Barry, brought him a picture of her -large, somber grey eyes against the clear white of her face. - -"Deisanocta," he cried, starting suddenly forward. "I must speak to -you!" - -His captors seized him roughly. Their faces were horrified. Barry -realized he had probably violated some form of Martian royal -etiquette--for this girl was undoubtedly a Martian princess. There had -been royalty on Mars when the Earthmen came, although the line had been -believed destroyed during the conquest. - -Again the soft voice came into the room through the radio, still -speaking in Martian. A few words, and the instrument clicked dead. - -"Wait!" cried Barry. But it was useless. The girl had ignored him, and -cut the connection. - -Two of the Martians held Barry Williams firmly, although no longer -roughly. Another had gone to a little cabinet. - -He came toward Barry, a hypodermic needle in his hand. Struggle was -useless. Barry extended his arm with a smile, and saw admiration in the -other's eyes. - -There was a sharp, momentary pain in his arm as the needle was expertly -inserted. Then a sensation of well-being, flooded the Earthman. A -warmth flowed through his veins, and pounded a flush into his face. -There was nothing else. - -The Martian went back to the cabinet, came again toward Barry. This -time he extended his hand, in the palm of which lay two white tablets. -The look on the Martian's face was clear. Barry Williams must take -them, of his free will or forcibly. - -Again Barry accepted graciously, and saw the Martians smile in -approval. He gulped down the tablets. It was only brief seconds later -that he sagged toward the ground. There was no sensation save a -weariness, a heaviness of his limbs and eyes. Darkness rolled over him, -soft and deep and comfortable blackness. - - * * * * * - -Barry Williams' will tugged at his eyelids, as his consciousness -returned. They responded sluggishly, reluctantly. His muscles, too, -resisted, with a numbness that revealed he'd slept a long time. Beneath -him, the red sand of the Martian desert was his couch. - -When, finally, his blue eyes focused, he saw nothing; nothing save a -white blanket that folded about him on every side--the mist! Struggling -to his feet, he moved stiffly a few steps, to the right, the left, -forward, back. - -There was nothing anywhere except that blanket of mist. No stars, no -bright moons! The sand at his feet was almost obscured by the silvery -curtain. - -Barry's mind was clearing, and he stopped short with a sudden -realization. Yesterday--or had it been yesterday, there was no telling -if it was night or day--the mist had oppressed his senses, brought him -to his knees paralyzed and helpless! Yet, now, it had no effect. - -He breathed deeply, remembering how his lungs had labored and his mind -reeled the last time. But the mist was refreshing as the purest air, -and his mind remained clear. - -The hypodermic they'd given him! It must be an antidote to the drug -that was in the mist--for Barry was now sure the mist was a depressive -drug, meant to paralyze and terrify. The dead Earthmen had not died -from the mist itself, but from some power that struck under cover of -that terror! - -But the Martians had immunized him! Barry shrugged. Perhaps he'd -convinced them he was a friend, and they'd stamped him with this -immunity that all their fellows might know him from the other Earthmen -who were enemies-- - -The thought brought a sudden chill to Barry Williams' spine! He'd been -walking, first slowly, then, as his legs lost their stiffness, more -and more rapidly. Yet, still the mist was all about him. Never in its -ghostlike appearances before had the mist covered more than a small -patch of the desert! - -These thoughts began to add together in his mind. Immunizing him--a -fiend, putting him to sleep so that he would be unable to argue or -resist until he could be safely disposed of, the extent of the mist. -All this could mean-- - -"This is it," Barry groaned aloud. "This is the revolt! - -"The first appearances of the mist were to terrorize, and to test! This -is the real thing; the mist over the whole surface of Mars, organized -Martians striking under its cover!" - -His words came back to him from the hateful white blanket, muffled and -run together into unintelligible echoes. - -"You failed--failed!" the echoes seemed to mutter. "Earthmen will -die--Earth troops will come against the 'savages.' No justice for Mars!" - -Barry shook his head angrily against his imaginings. Suddenly, he -stumbled and pitched forward over something at his feet. - -His heart sank at sight of the gruesome thing in the sand. A dead -Earthman--but not unmarked as had been the earlier victims of the -white mist. This man had been killed by violence, killed as he lay -unconscious, overcome by the mist drug! - -"This is it," Barry groaned again. Another form of death was striking -under the silver blanket. This man had been a murderer and exploiter, -but to Earth Government he was a citizen killed by savages! - -Barry Williams stumbled on dazedly. There was nothing he could do! He -stumbled over another body and passed on. A third form appeared in the -sand at his feet. He started to turn aside, then stopped. - - * * * * * - -Quickly he bent over the figure, his hand going to the pulse. There was -a heartbeat, and the chest moved slightly with breathing! This body was -alive, there were no wounds. Peering into the face, Barry realized it -was a Martian! - -A Martian overcome by the mist. After puzzling a moment, Barry laughed. -Of course! All the natives couldn't have been in on the plans--not even -most of them. Therefore, they'd be drugged and put to sleep like the -Earthmen. - -Martians overcome by the means that was to free them! Barry's mind was -racing. Free them! That was it! They'd be needed for the fighting. The -other Martians, the organized ones under Deisanocta, would come to give -immunizing injections to such of their fellows as this one Barry found -on the sand! - -With the realization, Barry Williams threw himself down on the ground. -He couldn't be far from the place they'd captured him. That meant, the -vicinity of the Martian Princess' headquarters. Perhaps she herself -would come, searching for her followers. - -She did. She came silently, short minutes later, moving like a wraith -in her silver mesh costume, that somehow made her seem part of the -mist. Mother of Mist. Barry remembered the title. - -The silver accents of her voice came clearly to his ears. She spoke in -Martian. Two of her men appeared beside her. One went toward the fallen -Martian, something in his hand that Barry knew would be a hypodermic -syringe. The other saw Barry, started toward him. - -"Hold everything!" Barry leaped up. "I am no enemy." - -The other paused, he knew there could be only one Earthman who walked -through the mist unharmed. Barry's eyes went to Deisanocta. - -"Princess, I must speak to you!" - -She came closer, until her face was clear before him. Her grey eyes -glowed softly. "I know of your mission here, Barry Williams," she said -in her throaty voice. "Your mind was open to me when first we met in -the mist." - -It had been she who hypnotized him! Barry nodded slowly, he'd suspected -as much. "Then you must know I want to help your people. This fighting -must stop. I promise you that, if I can reach Earth--if you will help -me get a ship and fuel--I can win justice and freedom for your people!" - -The girl's eyes flashed. "A free Mars will make its own peace with -Earth," she cried. Here was the spirit not of savages--but of a free -race Earth could respect! Her voice softened. "But thank you, Barry -Williams. You have been spared because your purpose here was friendly, -and because I--I--trust you. - -"Now." Her eyes glowed from deep within, "You will sleep, Barry -Williams, sleep the walking sleep under my will." - - * * * * * - -Barry met her gaze, feeling the impact of her mind. For long moments, -his eyes were locked with hers. A puzzled doubt appeared at last on her -features. - -"Sleep, Barry Williams," she murmured uncertainly. - -"Sorry," he grinned. "There's no more power in the mist over my -will--and you can't hypnotize me against my will. Hypnotism is a new -art with your people, Princess. You forgot to condition me to your -commands." - -Deisanocta smiled. "An old Earthman implanted the science in my mind -when I was but a child, being hidden from the oppressors. Much that is -there, I do not know how to use." - -"Won't you let me help you," asked Barry Williams. "If you ignore my -advice, that's up to you." - -She considered his words. Her eyes on his still glowed, but with a -different light. "Very well," she said at last. "You may stay with me. -After victory, you can be my emissary to Earth." - -Barry walked beside her, the Martians of her party following -respectfully behind. - -"Why don't you take these men prisoners," Barry asked, "instead of -killing them?" - -Deisanocta answered sadly: "My people have been killed and beaten too -long. I could not restrain them. - -"Besides, these men could be dangerous. If some of my mist-producing -units failed, those who sleep in that area would awaken after a few -breaths of air. We would have enemies behind us." She smiled a little -wistfully. "These Earthmen do not sleep as deeply as you did from those -pills." - -"You must capture Craig Grey alive," he said with sudden realization. -"While he sleeps under the influence of the mist, you can hypnotize -him. Then we can learn the details of his fraud, how he deceived Earth -about your people! With names and facts, we can convict him--prove his -guilt!" - -"It shall be so," she promised. "Even now my followers are awakening -those of our people who sleep. When all are gathered, we will move into -the mine headquarters and the forts. We go slowly, for some of our -enemies will be in spaceships, safe from the mist drug. But we will -take enough weapons as we go to overcome them!" - -"I hope," Barry muttered. - -Deisanocta seemed not to hear him. Her grey eyes were alight, her -cheeks flushed with excitement. - -"The hour is very near," she said. "Mars shall be free! - -"Come, I must speak with my men." - -She led the way toward a nearby sand-swell, moving with that marvelous -sense of direction that seemed a characteristic of Martians. For -generations, they had made their way unerringly over the trackless -desert. Now, even in the mist blanket that made objects invisible short -feet away, the Princess did not falter. - -Straight to a cleverly concealed door she walked, through, and into -the same type of room Barry Williams had seen before. At her entrance, -a Martian lowered his ready heat ray and stood respectfully for her -commands. - - - IV - -Deisanocta walked to the visa-radio, clicked it on. This time she -switched in the view screen also. Her white hands spun dials, and she -began to speak in Martian, calmly, insistently. - -The view screen took on depth and color. She adjusted condensing levers -and it divided into a dozen smaller squares. Slowly each square filled, -until the faces of a dozen Martian men looked out at her--silent, -waiting faces, behind each of which the white mist formed a backdrop. - -Deisanocta's red lips twitched, and her lovely eyes leaped into sudden -flame. For a moment, she was silent. Barry could feel tension building -up in the room, and see it in the faces of those who looked out of the -screen. - -Then the Princess spoke a single short sentence in her own tongue. -Barry Williams did not need an interpretation. The meaning of the -command was clear in its ringing syllables; "Strike for Mars!" - -Twenty-four eyes blazed from the screen--the eyes of twelve field -commanders flashing hatred of their oppressors and fierce exultation -that the hour of revenge was here! From each throat rose the same word, -spoken in awe, reverence, resolution. "Deisanocta!" - -Thus they saluted their leader, the Mother of Mist, Queen-to-be of -Mars! Then the screen was blank. - -"In short minutes Mars will belong again to its people, Barry -Williams," said the girl softly. "We wait here for the report of my -commanders." - -She sank to a sitting position on the red sand, arranging the silver -mesh of her dress about her slim body. Barry did likewise, as did the -Martian. - -Minutes dragged by. The radio screen glowed softly, but remained blank. -Barry felt the muscles gather in his arms and shoulders. This idle -waiting was hard to bear. If he could only be in there fighting-- - -Deisanocta was finding it difficult to wait, too. The eager glow of -anticipation had died away in her beautiful eyes. They were reflective, -reminiscent. - -"All my life I've been trained for this moment," she said, at last. -"Deep in the Crypt, burial ground of our race, the Elders hid and -taught me." - -"In the Crypt!" exclaimed Barry. "Then the dying Martian knew of you -when he threatened 'Justice from the Crypt'!" - -"Hardly," she smiled. "That was twenty years before I was born--ten -years after the first Earthmen came to Mars. - -"He couldn't even have known that my parents were hidden there. They -were still young, the last of Martian royalty, hidden away by a few -faithful servants." - -"What did he mean then?" - -She shook her head, the black tresses gleaming faintly under the mist. -"We never knew." - -"Tell me about this Crypt," Barry asked. "And tell me more about your -people." - -"The Crypt is our ancient burial place. It is underground, dry, and our -dead are safe there from animals that would find bodies the shifting -sand would not protect. - -"Always, we laid our dead to rest there, until Craig Grey placed guards -at the doors and forbade the practice." - -"He was afraid some weapon was hidden there," reasoned Barry Williams. -"It's the only thing the dying Martian's threat could mean." - -"What weapon could be there?" Deisanocta asked mournfully. "Our people -were always peaceful. They lived beside the wells, growing the food -they ate. It took Earthmen to teach them to hate and kill--to know that -ore dust was worth blood!" - -"Does your written history give no clue of a time when the Crypt was -anything but a burial place?" - -"Our people knew nothing of writing. That, too, we learned from -Earthmen, my Elders learned it in secret and taught me." - -"And they developed the white mist there in the Crypt, and brought -the old Earthman who taught you hypnotism?" Barry asked. He pictured -her frightened childhood among the dead, in the darkness so close to -Craig's guards who would have killed her on sight. - - * * * * * - -The girl read his expression. "It was not so terrible," she said -wistfully. "There was peace, we were not tortured for ore dust, or made -to slave in mines. It is light there, even deep down; for the walls are -radioactive. - -"But my parents died of hearts broken by the suffering of their people. -It was later that the white mist was developed, and I learned that my -mission was to use it!" - -A faint noise broke into their conversation--a clicking that was -suddenly almost thunderous in their ears as every other sound died! -It was the radio receptor signal. - -In the screen, the twelve squares were filling again. The time for -reports had come--and there had been no special report of victory. - -Silence held, while the twelve faces grew into sharp focus. Barry -noted that at least three of the men had not been among the twelve who -last faced their Princess. The faces of the rest were dirty, tired, -depressed. A couple were bandaged. Before a word was spoken, Barry -Williams knew that the news would be bad, and premonition turned his -stomach into a leaden ball. - -In the screen, the twelve tired faces were silent, waiting. They were -wooden, unmoving, until Deisanocta spoke, calmly, questioningly. - -One after another, came the reports. Each was brief, and although Barry -could not understand the Martian words, he knew that he had been right. -The news was bad. - -Deisanocta's face paled as she listened. Deep in her eyes raged a -conflict of emotions, dismay, sorrow, anger. When the last report was -heard, she spoke again. - -There was no hesitation in the throaty accents. Words followed each -other in a torrent that slowly swept away the numbness from the twelve -faces before her! When she had finished, her commanders were again -eager, their eyes flashing, exulting. - -"Deisanocta! Deisanocta!" came their chant, a promise of victory. Again -they faded from the screen to carry out her orders. - -When the girl turned from the screen, some of the confidence had -slipped from her. Her dark head was bowed, and her slim figure had lost -some of its proud erectness. - -"Grey's men were waiting for the attack," she told Barry. "They wore -space suits! - -"We waited too long--until he discovered how to protect his men from -the mist. Many of my followers have died in battle. We have not won a -single objective!" - -"I am sincerely sorry," he said slowly. "Sorry that some of your people -have died; sorry that you have failed." - -Her head snapped up, color flooding the pale cheeks. "We have not lost! -The mist that covers Mars will remain. My men have surrounded the -enemy. They will harass his every move. - -"Let Grey wait for another attack--wait until his oxygen tanks are -empty, and his space suits useless! Then the mist will triumph!" - - * * * * * - -Barry Williams shook his head sadly. "Can the mist reach up to the end -of atmosphere," he asked, "where their ships can go to compress clear -air? And, if so, can the mist reach across space to Earth, from where -Grey's freighters can bring compressed air?" - -"I wonder if I read your mind rightly," Deisanocta said scornfully. "I -wonder if you are the friend of Mars I thought you." - -He crossed to her in two quick steps. His hands gripped her elbows, -drawing her up to face the intensity of his eyes. "Yes, I am a friend -of Mars! That's why I'm here--that's why Grey and his men hunt me as -they do you!" - -She shook herself free. The flush of anger in her cheeks had deepened -into a flaming crimson. Her eyes avoided him. "Then do not try to -discourage me, Barry Williams. The mist will remain." - -He was silent, the plan he'd been about to suggest unspoken. If he was -distrusted, this was no time to propose it. - -Overhead, they heard the thrumming of rockets. Barry smiled -mirthlessly. "Grey has his scouts out." - -"They will see nothing in the mist," Deisanocta said confidently. But -she turned to the radio and contacted her field captains. "It is the -same everywhere," she told him. "The enemy's ships circle helplessly -overhead." - -"I don't like it," Barry said. "If I know Craig Grey, he's up to -something. Those ships aren't up there without a reason." - -Deisanocta ignored this, her eyes speaking plainly her disappointment -in the Earthman she'd believed a friend. Instead of answering him, she -turned to the Martian who had waited so patiently and silently for her -orders. - -"We will eat," she said haughtily to Barry, after a few swift words to -the other. "Perhaps Earth food will revive your courage." - -"Thank you." Barry ignored the slur, and sat down beside her where the -Martian was spreading a cloth on the ground. - -The thrumming of rockets died away as they began, and the Princess -glanced significantly at Barry Williams. He turned to the food in -silence, a frown of concentration on his forehead. - -They had dried horse meat from Earth, the staple dish of the natives, -a poor grade of canned corn that was like a thin mush, and hard, -wafer-thin pieces of bread. - -"My courageous followers won these provisions in battle," Deisanocta -said softly. - -Barry was finding even the unappetizing menu inviting. He ate rapidly, -being careful not to work too deeply into what he knew was a slender -store of food. The girl watched him as she nibbled at her food. The -scorn in her face slowly faded into sad reproach. - -It wasn't until the Princess poured a glass of liquid and set it -before Barry, that the far-away look was swept from his eyes by -sudden understanding. The liquid was Martian Wrin, a delicious, -invigorating drink from native roots, much coveted and seldom obtained -by Terrestrials. Even through the white mist that shrouded them, it -sparkled from ruby depths. The color galvanized Barry Williams. - - * * * * * - -"Red!" he exclaimed. "_Infra-red!_ Grey's ships were sweeping the -desert with infra-red rays, and taking photographs with film sensitive -only to those rays. When those prints are developed, he'll have the -location of every mist-producing unit that's on Mars, and of your -followers!" - -"I don't understand," stammered the bewildered Deisanocta. "I know -nothing of these things." - -"Just believe me," he pleaded. "Order your men and the mist units to -move at once!" - -Deisanocta moved to the radio and obeyed. Barry Williams' heart leaped. -She believed in him, her recent doubt forgotten before the vigor of his -arguments. - -"And us?" she asked. - -"We're all right, being underground. The infra-red rays won't betray us -in the photographs. Listen!" - -They heard the sound of rocket jets overhead, and it was magnified, -built into thunder in their ears. The radio was still tuned to the -field command radios, and they brought the sound of Grey's rocket ships -from every corner of the planet. - -Before their eyes, the white mist swirled, and on the view screen were -twelve small squares of silver. Suddenly, almost simultaneously, lurid -streaks cut across those squares--flaming heat rays, softened into -orange by the seething vapor! - -Deisanocta gasped. "You were right, Barry Williams! Had my forces not -moved, they would have been destroyed. - -"But it is Grey who has failed this time!" - -Barry faced her slowly. His blue eyes rested on her lovely face, and -the words he spoke caught in his throat. - -"Grey will wait a short while for the mist to dissipate," he said. -"When it does not, he'll go back to the pictures. About every spot -where a unit or force was shown, he'll draw a circle. The radius of -that circle will be the distance a man can travel on foot from the time -the photograph was taken, until the time the ships return a second time. - -"Then, one by one, he'll ray the entire area of those -circles--concentrating as many ships as necessary for the job." - -Deisanocta came very close to him. The pleading in the depths of her -eyes shook Barry Williams. Without realizing it, he put out his hands -and again grasped her elbows. - -This time she did not draw away. She moved closer, until her lips -almost brushed his as she spoke. He could feel her slim figure tremble, -not with fear, but with struggling to repress the tears that were -welling into her grey orbs, the sobs that were fighting her breath! - -"Then this is defeat?" she whispered. "My loyal followers wiped -out--the mist, our weapon, swept from the planet?" - -"The only alternative," he said with sudden fierce tenderness, "is to -order the units turned off and buried in the sand. Tell your men to -split into small bands and hide in the desert. Their camouflage will -protect them from Grey's scouts. - -"That way, Grey will think he's won, and your forces will be intact for -the future." - -Deisanocta's small hand found his and held it as she issued the -necessary orders. - - * * * * * - -When the screen was again blank, Barry Williams spun the dials. - -"What are you doing?" she asked. - -"Tuning in Earth on the regular broadcast channels." - -"Earth! At this time, Barry Williams, you would listen to Earth -broadcasts!" - -He turned to her reproachfully. "Don't you trust me yet? I must know -how my government is reacting to the situation here; for, if you follow -my advice, you and I will be putting the case of the Martians before -that government. I still think we have a chance of convincing them. But -we'll need to find a spaceship, and take it." - -"You are right, Barry Williams," Deisanocta admitted sadly. "You were -right in the beginning, and my efforts have only brought failure. - -"My heart trusted you--believed in you; and because it was my heart, I -mistrusted. I followed my reason instead--and no woman should do that." - -"I'm following my heart--have from the beginning," Barry murmured. "And -it tells me we haven't lost yet." His hands left her elbows, went about -her waist. Behind them, the Martian turned away. - -"_Revolt of Martian savages_," broke in a voice from the radio. They -froze, listening to the words that followed; "_Craig Grey, President -of Grey Enterprises, Incorporated, is present in person at the scene -of trouble, directing the heroic resistance of Terrestrial pioneers. -He has been authorised by World Government to capture Barry Williams, -investigator of the dastardly campaign, dead or alive._ - -"_Williams disappeared into the desert, and the abortive attack by the -savages followed immediately. 'Justice in the Crypt', is said to be the -wild battle shout of the Martians. Federal troops have embarked for -Mars. It is--_" - -Barry snapped off the radio. "Grey has pulled off another one!" -Deisanocta clung to his hand mutely, her white face revealing the -despair the news had brought. - -Barry's mouth was a straight, hard line. His eyes flamed, and muscles -bunched in his shoulders. After a moment's silence, he turned the radio -back on. - -"More orders for you, Deisanocta. Get in touch with your men. We want -about half a dozen of the best, and tell them to bring along the -oldest Martian they can find!" - -"But what--why?" - -"If it's 'Justice from the Crypt' they want, we'll give it to them. -We're going to find out what's there, and use it! - -"Have your men meet us near one entrance to the place. Tell them to -bring a portable visa-radio, so we can call the rest if we need them. -This is the only chance we've got left!" - - - V - -Over the red sands of Mars, the silver mist of vengeance was slowly -thinning. The two moons sent their light probing down, breaking through -here and there to find and bathe the sand. - -Where those rays found the little party that crept cautiously toward -the Crypt, it did not betray them under the red camouflage blankets. -They moved silently ahead, invisible, determined. - -"We are there," Deisanocta whispered at last to Barry Williams, beside -her under the cloak. "We must rise and go on foot the rest of the way." - -"O.K." he said. He scoured the sky, his sharp blue eyes trying to -pierce the mist. "If any ships come over, they won't spot us. The mist -is thick here. - -"The trick will be to get by the guard at the entrance. We don't want -to have to overcome him and risk an alarm." - -Deisanocta was speaking to the Martians. They rose with Barry and the -Princess, and the little party stayed close together to avoid being -separated in the white shroud about them. - -A suggestion from Barry, and they formed into single file and moved -forward. A sharp-eyed Martian was in the lead. - -"We are fortunate," the Princess said. "The guard is away from his -post." - -"Hurry," ordered Barry. "Inside! If we meet him after we're in, that's -too bad for him." - -Silently as the whiteness about them, the party filed into the Crypt. -It was colder here, for the tunnel sloped sharply downward, and the air -was heavier. They had gone only a few steps before the last wisps of -the mist disappeared. The heavier air had held it out of the Crypt. - -About them, the walls shone with a faint radiance. - -"Now!" Barry turned to the girl. The party had been under his command -from the beginning. Even the Martians had at last recognized that this -Earthman was a leader. - -"Hypnotize the old Martian. With a willing subject, you can produce a -deep hypnosis. Command him to think of the Crypt, remember every thing -he ever heard about it, or saw in it, from the time he was an infant!" - -Deisanocta's eyes bored into the rapt, obedient face of the old -Martian. She murmured softly, sleepily in their tongue. The other's -face slowly smoothed, his eyes going blank. - -Her words became sharp, commanding, insistent. Under their leashing, -the old one's brow furrowed. He was remembering, digging deep into -forgotten recesses of his mind. At last Deisanocta spoke to Barry. - -"I see the Crypt seventy years ago. This one was here as an infant in -his father's arms. - -"It was different. There are fewer bodies. Their clothes are strange. -None bear the wounds of battle." - -"Remember what we're looking for," snapped Barry. - -"I am deep down in the Crypt," came the girl's voice, weaker. "Deeper -than even I have ever been. I do not know the part. There is something -here, something big--I cannot make it out. It is very faint in this -one's mind." - -"Tell him to lead us to it," said Barry. "That will save your strength." - -Seconds later they were following the old Martian through a labyrinth -of tunnels. He moved rapidly, unhesitantly, his face wooden and intent. -Deisanocta was beside Barry, her hand in his. - -"Can it be?" she questioned. "Is the answer as simple as this?" - -"I hope so," he told her. "It is something you wouldn't have thought -of, because you did not remember all you were taught about hypnotism. -And no one else could have done it against the old one's will." - -"Look!" Deisanocta cried suddenly. "He has lost his way." - -"Impossible," Barry said. - -But the old Martian was leading them toward a blank wall. Still he did -not hesitate. With steps rapid, certain, he marched directly into the -wall. His head struck, and he fell, rolling to their feet. - - * * * * * - -Barry bent over him quickly, then rose one hand digging at the wall. -"It's soft dirt," he explained. "Didn't hurt him. He's only stunned." -He stepped back to Deisanocta. - -"That's why Grey did not find whatever is here. It's somewhere behind -that wall--cut off by an earth slide!" - -"But--what is there?" - -"We'll soon find out." Barry's hand dug at the wall, scooping away the -soft dirt. "Tell the boys to start digging. But post a couple up the -tunnel in both directions, so we won't be surprised." - -Four Martians and Barry Williams dug at the wall with cupped hands. It -was hot, dirty work in the heavy air of the Crypt. Sweat beaded their -faces. Arms ached after the first few minutes. - -Barry did not slacken his pace, and the others stayed with him. At -last, the Earthman gave a cry of triumph. - -"It isn't thick! See, the dirt is crumbling away from us now--falling -on the other side." The vigor of their attack redoubled. - -Hearing the cries, the Martians posted down the tunnel came running -to help. Deisanocta stepped closer, her face radiant. Barry threw -her a glance, and his heart noted the way her black hair threw back -highlights of the walls' radiance. - -His hand shot out again at the wall, viciously, and the last grains of -dirt fell inward. Light showed through. Beside him, the others worked -frantically. In seconds, the opening was large enough for one of them -to pass through. - -"Deisanocta," Barry Williams gasped. "Go in. I'll be right behind you." - -The rest crowded behind, and all but the unconscious old Martian were -soon on the other side. They stared open-mouthed, incredulously at the -sight that met them. - -It was a great room into which they'd made their way, the walls -luminous, and stretching off almost out of view. There were no dead -here. Except for one object, the vast chamber was empty. - -That object itself was big, black, rearing upward above them halfway -to the distant roof. - -"A spaceship!" cried Deisanocta. - -"The great-grandfather of all space ships," added Barry. - -"Look at the size of it, the diameter of those rocket tubes! Used a -poor fuel, inefficiently. But they made it. Crashed through the roof -of this place. Look at the dark patch overhead, where sand filled in a -gap." - -"'Justice from the Crypt'," murmured the girl. "I think I--" - -"So do I," rapped Barry. "Come on, you and I are going inside. Tell the -others to guard this opening!" - -Hand-in-hand, the two of them passed through a yawning port. Beneath -their feet, the ramp was solid. Metal did not corrode, in this dry -atmosphere. The old ship had not deteriorated in its years here. - -Barry Williams and the girl passed down a long passage, unlit except -for the faint radioactive radiance that made its way in through smaller -portholes. They came to a door, which would not yield to Barry's -efforts. - -"Locked," he said. "We can't stop for that." His heat ray came out. -The beam played against the lock until the metal glowed and ran. Barry -kicked at the bottom of the door where the metal was cooler. It swung -inward. - -"It's the control room," Barry said as their eyes slowly adjusted -themselves to the even dimmer light of the room. - -Barry's hand groped against the wall beside the door. There was a -click, and a yellow radiance sprang from the ceiling. "Even the -batteries are still good," he muttered. - -"What is this?" Deisanocta cried with a shudder. - - * * * * * - -The room was a maze of instruments, levers, panels about the sides. But -it wasn't this that had shocked the Princess, it was the bodies. - -Two sprawled on the floor, one on its back still held a weapon in one -hand. That weapon pointed to the third body. - -Slumped in a chair before an instrument panel, the third body had grown -rigid, a look of amazement on the undecomposed face. In the right hand, -the weapon that had undoubtedly killed the other two, was still poised. - -"You can almost see the smoke curling from the muzzle of that ancient -automatic," said Barry grimly. "They fought it out--must have been -after the one in the chair landed the ship--and everybody lost!" - -"It's--it's horrible," the girl murmured. "Why--" - -A sudden commotion, reaching their ears faintly from outside, cut off -her question. There were shouts--cries of pain and rage. Running feet -pounded up the ship's ramp, came down the passage toward them. - -Barry brought up the heat ray in his hand--lowered it as a Martian -staggered into the room. He was burned across the face and body. - -His pale lips moved. Faint words came forth. Others were choked off as -he slumped to the floor. His body sprawled beside the other two already -there. - -"He says a god comes," Deisanocta explained wildly. "One they cannot -harm. The rest of my followers in the room outside have fallen." - -Other footsteps sounded at the door. Barry's heat ray came up again. -This time its beam sprang across the room, bathed the figure that came -through the door with blazing heat. - -"No good, Williams," came a sneering voice, metallic through a space -suit communicator. "Don't you know impervium when you see it?" - -"Yes, I know it," said Barry. His eyes had noted the thin, -fragile-looking garment over the space suit that Craig Grey wore. -Impervium, fabulous, incredibly expensive, proof against any heat ray. -"There's about a dozen suits in the System, and you have to have one!" - -Craig Grey's little black eyes snapped with triumph. "A man who fights -savages needs one, Williams," he mocked. His glance flickered to -Deisanocta, lingered a a long minute. "I see now why you went over to -the Martians." - -Barry took a step toward him, fingers itching. "You--" - -Grey brought up his heat ray. "Careful, Williams. You have little -enough time to live as it is." - -Barry stopped, bafflement stamped on his face. A rash move would leave -Deisanocta at the mercy of this man. Craig Grey laughed. - -"I figured you could solve the mystery about this place, that's why -I told my guards to let you past. I knew you'd come here instead of -trying to run to Earth--after I told them of your activities on Mars." - -"Grey, you can't get away with this," gritted Barry. He took another -step--not toward Grey, but in the direction of Deisanocta. - -"Stand still!" snapped the ore-king. The weapon in his hand was very -steady. "I want to look around." - - * * * * * - -His glittering eyes roamed about the control room. "So this is the -secret weapon of the Crypt! I knew it'd be something my boys would be -better off not seeing--no chance of a leak this way." - -"Earth troops will find it," Barry threatened. - -"An atomic bomb will take care of that," the ore-king countered -smoothly. "You won't be around to tell them about it, and neither will -the girl. I'll keep the secret myself." - -Keeping his weapon trained on the two, Grey prowled about the room. - -"Here's the ship's log," he thumbed through rapidly, not relaxing his -vigilance for an instant. "Hmm. Left Earth in 2085--during the last -Continental War. Two scientists, a rich backer--" His hand swept to the -body in the chair. "That would be him--rich backers are often seeking -power. - -"Ship-full of refugees from all lands--average people. Going to -establish a Utopian world on Mars." He snapped the book shut. - -"Ancestors of your savages, Grey," said Barry quietly. - -"Yes," replied the ore-king. "Brains killed each other off in a locked -control room--probably the keys to the ship's stores are locked in here -with them. That left the others on their own--no sciences, no arts! -They just farmed. - -"What a clincher you almost had, Williams!" - -His heat ray came up, levelled. Barry shuffled another half-step. Craig -Grey laughed harshly, his little black eyes sweeping over them. - -"I'm a crack shot, Williams. You can't rush me. But, just to be sure, -you'll go first." - -The flaming beam of his heat ray cut across the room--and Barry leaped -at the same instant. Pain lanced through his left shoulder. But he was -not leaping toward Craig Grey--Barry was plunging toward the floor. -There was a body there, and he smashed into it--a body with an ancient -weapon still clutched in a right, long-dead hand. - -Craig Grey backed away a step, the ray beam sweeping a fiery arch -toward the other. A sharp report thundered in the room bouncing in a -dozen echoes and re-echoes from the metal walls. Smoke curled from the -muzzle of the old automatic in Barry's fingers, and bitter acrid smell -was in his nostrils. Long years in the dry atmosphere of the Crypt had -brought no corrosion, no deterioration to the weapon! - -Again Grey backed away, a curse ripping through his thin lips, suddenly -clenched with pain. His right arm dangled uselessly, the ray gun -dropping from nerveless fingers. - -Barry Williams came to his feet, the searing pain in his right shoulder -forgotten momentarily in his triumph. "Impervium was made to stop heat -rays, Grey. But an old automatic waited here hundreds of years to bring -justice to Mars!" - -He turned to Deisanocta. Her face was radiant, but the grey depths of -her lovely eyes clouded as they fixed on his seared shoulder. "Barry--" - -"Never mind me," he ordered brusquely. "Get to that radio we brought. -Tell your _men_ to let loose the mist again and attack at once!" - -Craig Grey's pain-twisted face went paler. "The mist! You can't--I -destroyed--" - -"That's what you were supposed to think, Grey," Barry snapped. "But -you'll see that silver lining shining through the cloud you brought to -Mars. Then we'll put the mist drug and Deisanocta's hypnotism to work -on your rotten mind. We'll get enough details on your fraud to convince -any government! - -"Now come on, get outside! Your men'll fall like sheep without -leadership. I'll have the Princess speed things up by offering amnesty -to those that surrender without resistance." - -Craig Grey went slowly through the passage, down the ramp of the old -spaceship. - - * * * * * - -Twelve miles above the surface of the red planet Mars, hovered the -fleet of Earth transports. The Federal troops who'd made the trip -from Earth were never to land. For Mars was a free planet, and Earth -Government had commanded its forces to respect the sovereignty of -Deisanocta, Queen of Mars. - -From below, a steady stream of smaller ships was flowing up to the -transports, and back downward for another load. - -"Can't figure it out," said a puzzled soldier. "We came to fight -Martians--maybe take some Martian prisoners; and we're going home -loaded with Earthmen who are prisoners." - -"There aren't any Martians," explained his irate Sergeant, "They're -really Earthmen. And these prisoners have been treating them like -Martians--or--or--" - -"Never mind!" ordered his superior. "Anyway the ether between here and -Earth's been burning. Faces--pictures of documents, a confession, and -all sorts of stuff have been radiographed to the old home planet. And -we've got our orders." - -The Sergeant was on firmer ground now. "Here comes the guy I wouldn't -want to be--Craig Grey! After the stuff he's admitted, three times his -money wouldn't keep him from the gas chambers!" - -As the last of the Earth ships blasted homeward, Deisanocta, Queen of -Mars, turned to Barry Williams, acting Terrestrial Ambassador. Affairs -of Government weighed heavily on her, and Barry's training had been of -invaluable help. - -She fixed her tired eyes on him, and they glowed softly as she spoke. -"And what will you do, Barry Williams, after the Permanent Ambassador -has been appointed and sent here?" - -His blue eyes met her gaze. "Read my mind, Deisanocta. This time my -will is not opposed to it. The answer is there." - -She came closer. "I will not use science to find that answer, Barry. It -is in your eyes and on your lips, but you must speak. - -"There are some things a woman, even a Queen, wants to learn only from -the lips of the man she loves." - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Mists of Mars, by George A. 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