“Land lies to the northward, tor, and ‘they’ are friendly,” were his queer words. Ubca looked up from his staring, not at all surprised at the message. Immediately he was upon his feet, working at the levers and twisting the dials. In navigating through a planet’s gravitational control the motors repelled the magnetic vibratory impulses instead of attracting them. Studying the compass, he found it already responded to Venus’ magnetic poles. Moura turned and left the pilot room, pausing a moment to say to Uncle Ezra, “Come, professor, f have something of interest to show you.” Left alone with Ubca, I hesitated before speaking, and I had to force my voice from my throat. “Tell me—what does this mean, tor? How can he know where land lies? Only this morning you said you’d never been to Venus before.”
Ubca, looking up from his instruments, gave me a searching look with his lavender eyes. Then he grinned broadly. “You appear to forget, Miss Rollins, the power that lies in the mind of Sa Dak[5]. Perhaps you have forgotten, or else never realized, that the Abruian mind is all-powerful, that the brains of all men are open to it. And Sa Dak has one of the most powerful minds ever known on Abrui! Nothing seems beyond the power of that tremendous brain!
“Why, then, with such a mind, should we be surprised that he is able to seek out the minds of those dwelling on this world, learn what there is to know of them, converse with them through the medium of the brain? I have seen it happen before—on one of the Saturnian moons. Only those people were unfriendly and we did not descend there, for we wished no trouble. No doubt, Sa Dak has already advised these Buians, or Venerians as you would call them, that we are coming, and they look for our arrival! Else, if they are not too civilized, they will believe one of their number has had a vision and think we are god-things!”
Slowly I nodded my head to what Ubca-tor had told me, unable to voice an opinion. It was all too hard for me to believe, to understand. True, I had forgotten that Moura had told us of the mental telepathic powers of his race but that somehow had left no impression upon me. Now timidly I asked. “Is—is my brain open to Moura’s mind—and yours, too?”
Ubca nodded. “All of Abrui have that faculty, even the Gors. But Sa Dak goes beyond that—he knows more than you could realize, what you will do under certain circumstances before you yourself are aware of the trend of your thoughts, since his mind moves so much more quickly than yours—or mine. It as though he had a finger on the pulse!””
YOU can imagine my reaction to that discovery. I had now to realize that my brain had been as an open book to these strange men! No privacy of mind whatsoever! Blushing under Ubca’s smiling eyes, I excused myself to run in retreat to the little cell-like room that was my own chamber, there to sit thinking of what I had learned. I felt both anger and fright, and wanted never to see any more of the Taborans. No woman can be happy in the thought that a man knows what passes through her mind, the very idea of such a thing tortured me, embarrassed me. I believed I could never face any of them again. Yet, strangely enough I did not resent Ubca-tor half so badly as I did Moura-weit.
Ubca I had found was a gentle person and although it appeared to me that he held himself somewhat aloof from Uncle and myself I had recognized the fact that he was of a self-effacing nature. So it was upon his leader that I vented my spleen, considering him at fault for not reminding me that my every thought was readable to him, for him to smile at perhaps.
Heretofore, I had felt that I disliked Moura, merely for the man he had been. During the two weeks on the Yodverl, it is true, I found no occasion in which to exercise my dislike, and in that time I had actually forgotten the thought that I had disliked him. Instead, I had been learning to admire him, to appreciate his kindly attitude to us, his consideration and his attentiveness, for first of all Moura was a gentleman. I had never before known a man of such force or greatness of mind, and I knew him for a genius. He seemed to me able to conquer anything. I remembered now, that during those long hours aboard the spaceflyer, I had even indulged myself in girlish dreams, wondering if it were possible for me, insipid person that I was, to inspire admiration in such a man as Moura-weit. One can not dwell in close quarters with one they think they hate and resist such thoughts, especially when that one is a handsome, virile man capable of bringing such thoughts to a woman. And what a ninny he must have found me to be, allowing me to live in my fool’s paradise, while I was unaware that he knew everyone of my worthless thoughts! How that galled me.
He had been kindly enough through the long days, playing the perfect host, looking out for my comforts, explaining this and that, but beyond it all there were no other contacts between us. Perhaps I had resented that more than anything else! And now I could only think of the counts I had against him, his villaincy toward Dana and Dick, and his world, his carrying Uncle Ezra off from Earth, bringing that delicate soul closer to his death by the strain and excitement this trip was exercising on him. And here he had been making a fool of me, allowing me to believe my intimate thoughts safely locked in my own bosom!
For the next two hours I kept to my room, not venturing forth for fear of meeting the creature of my hate, wondering at the same time if the walls kept my thoughts safe, and knowing they did not. But then I grew sensible and realized that he could have no interest in me as I dared suppose; that a plain colorless female like myself had little place in his own thoughts. And yet how miserable such a thought made me, too. Can anyone explain the intricacies of a woman’s mind? I am certain that not even Moura could do that.
Imagine then my wonder and chagrin when a knock came at my door and there stood Moura. “We are coming into the sight of land, Miss Rollins,” he said kindly, “Won’t you join us?”
I could not answer but walked past him and into the pilot room and he did not speak again, but I knew he had known my thoughts, that he had been interested in what passed through my mind, and his coming at that moment was his way of retribution for the terror he had caused me. He could have dispatched either Ubca-tor or Urto instead.
CHAPTER V
Venus
FROM the pilot room I saw that a green world lay below, a broad savannah in which a river wended its way, behind was the ocean we had just crossed. Moura took control of the ship and as though recognizing a landmark veered the ship so that we followed the river’s course as it meandered through the lowlands. On either side the grass stretched as far as the eye could see, and I was surprised to notice that the clouds had lifted and were no closer to the ground than about three thousand feet or so. We were flying half way between the ground and that ceiling.
It was not long, however, before we caught sight of a city far ahead, lying in a bowl of low hills, and Moura left the river that made a wide circle through the meadows, and he headed directly for the city itself. It was a thing of beauty, with tall fairy-like spires rising high into the greyish clouded sky, every color of the rainbow and more, but the pastel shades instead of the clear-cut hues of the spectrum. As we drew closer we could see that wide avenues and squares were set in between the tremendous buildings and were filled with a mass of beings, but from the height at which we flew, we could not as yet make out their forms clearly.
Now we hovered over the tallest building, which was an azure blue, tall and slender, with the delicate spires like arms reaching outward, arms that seemed a gesture of a people who were still seeking the truths, seeking to encompass the heavens. Yet, as we drew nearer, I saw that for all its etherealness the building was substantial, and even ponderous, expressing great power—a power that was beautiful because of its strength. Below were faces upturned to us and slowly, majestically, Moura brought his ship about and gently we began to drop Venusward on an even keel.
As we dropped toward the great square before the azure building it miraculously cleared itself of its people, but I had to wonder at Moura in so trustfully placing his ship and ourselves at their mercy. Plow completely he must have understood the race in that silent communion of his! He did not hesitate a moment during the descent, even though
we were all struck by the viciousness of the creatures below as we dropped to their level. And what creatures they were.
Twenty feet tall they stood with great ungainly bodies—night-marish manifestations so in variance with the beauty of their thoughts and their city. First our ship came to the level of their faces (we had to call those hideous livid white expanses with the long elephantine noses and square, staring lidless eyes a face) but never had Earthly eyes seen such monsters. The eyes set in the faces, four feet long and three across, were as large as saucers and each nose almost a yard and a half in length had what appeared to be a row’ of small fingers at the tip. There was no visible mouth and the ears were enormous things of flapping flesh. Then came the neck, two feet in length, flexible and boneless, upholding the broad long head and ending in shoulders but three feet wide. The rest of the body was pear shaped, a bulbous thing of gray-green flesh. From the inedquate shoulders dangled two small weak arms, flexible like the trunk, and having a row of small, delicate tapering fingers at their ends. The body was upright, until it reached the hips, where the pearshape doubled its girth and there were two pair of heavy round legs, the forelegs several feet longer than the hind ones, the latter being so bent at the knees it made one wonder how they walked. The feet themselves were circular pads that hit the ground with a resounding smack.
I think that even Moura, with all his composure, was shocked by the sight of these horrors, but he showed no outward sign as he brought his ship to the ground. Still his eyes did glitter strangely, and his lips were drawn tightly around his teeth. Of us all I think Uncle Ezra was the calmest. In these beasts he merely saw a new type of biological expression, and all the while he kept exclaiming at the awfulness of them, trying to class them to Earthly standards. Nothing could be too strange for him anymore. Ubca-tor was downright frightened, and I felt a kinship to him for it. Only Moura and Urto were able to hide most of their emotions.
UBCA was the first to speak, but his words were unintelligible to me for he spoke in Abruian, remembering only his mother tongue in his fear. Moura, always thoughtful, answered him in English so I could understand.
“There is nothing to fear, tor,” he told Ubca. “True, they are atrocities in our eyes, but in communicating with them I met a great mind that readily comprehended what we were and why we were here, and he knew immediately how to adjust his mind so that we could communicate. He was of a benign personality, and I could find nothing of violence or treachery in his makeup. He told me he was expressing the attitude of his whole race when he invited us to visit this city and guided us the whole way. You must not judge these creatures by their outward aspect, nature does not consider appearance when she creates. . . . See . . . they are clearing the way for the entrance of a personage. Come—we must go to meet—our friend.”
At Moura’s words we looked out into the square, and saw that the multitude of legs (which were alone in our direct line of vision) were moving aside and clearing a broad path down which another of their kind was approaching. He was perhaps more gigantic, more hideous than his fellows. We followed Moura into the anteroom of our ship and he went over to touch the lever that would open the heavy door, when Ubca laid a hand on his arm.
“You have not yet tested the air, Sa Dak, how know you that it is livable?”
Never impatient, Moura smiled broadly. “I know already what the atmosphere’s constituents are, tor. Our friend out there informed me hours ago!”
Ubca shrugged his shoulders sadly as if he believed Moura had surely lost his mind, but when we felt the rush of warm, fresh vapor-filled air that came with the opening of the doorway, we knew that “our friend” had not erred. And how good the sweet air, laden with moisture, was to us! There was perhaps in a slight degree more oxygen in the Venerian atmosphere, but not enough to distress us. Instead it gave an added feeling of well-being to our bodies.
Moura stood hesitating a moment in the doorway before going to meet the monstrosity that had now come to a halt fifty feet from the Yodverl. Turning to us, Moura suggested that after all we remain on the ship, while he went alone. Gladly I acquiesced, for I had no wish for closer proximity to those creatures. Yet I could not help but fear for Moura. Ubca had expected to accompany him, but so accustomed was he to taking the other’s orders that without question he stayed behind. He surprised me by flinging me a look that I did not define immediately, but from then on we were joined in a fellowship.
We had a common fear between us for our leader.
Later, as new events shaped themselves, that brotherhood of ours became a strong bond.
Almost sadly we watched the meeting of the two—the handsome silver man of Abrui and the monster of Venus. They came to a halt about ten feet apart and to my wonder nothing happened, but after they had stood in that manner for fifteen minutes or so I realized they were conversing through the medium of the brain. Then came a movement from the beast as he lifted his long nose or trunk and emitted a wholly unhuman shriek which continued a minute or so, rising and falling in volume, so that we were led to believe it was a form of speech. When the cry ended, the creature with Moura at his heels, turned and headed for the azure building on the right side of the square.
The two disappeared into the building while we feared and wondered.
Thereupon the great square was slowly deserted by the Venerians, and soon not a single living soul could be seen about. We could only continue to stare at the place wherein Moura had disappeared. Ubca called my attention to the sky above and we were treated to a scene so beautifully weird that there was pain in it. The sun was dropping low beyond the cloud bands and obliquely its rays fell upon the masses of vapor, throwing one color after another in awful affray before us, flashing back and forth through the moving mists, until our minds were stunned by the vivid changes. Then, slowly, it all faded and the night fell and utter blackness engulfed us.
Now the light of the Yodverl’s glass walls fell upon us dispensing the store of the sun’s energy that had been gathered during the period we had stayed out in Space, and shone on us gently without the glare that an incandescent light gives forth. Urto came to tell us that we had time for a dip in the pool before our evening meal was ready. Upset because Moura had left him behind, Ubca appeared distracted, but force of habit made him get into his swimming togs and join me in the pool while Uncle Ezra preferred to linger in the open to stare at the darkness round about.
We swam in the water without spirit. Ubca was fearful for his beloved friend; I was fearful of what might happen if the Venerians should in turn become hostile. Yet I, too, felt a strange loss that was occasioned by Moura’s absence. It was as if his departure had taken the color out of our beings, and we waited only for his return to regain the vitality his going had drained from us. I did not realize then how strongly his personality had already reacted upon me, how miserable I was to become when he was not about even for a short space of time.
But I must go on with my story.
CHAPTER VI
A Lesson in Mind Telepathy
AFTER eating our supper, Uncle Ezra again left Ubca and me to ourselves. All this time I had been trying to recall all I had learned of the Abruians, and now timidly I put my question to Ubca-tor. “What is this power of your people that they read the mind so easily, tor?”
Ubca answered gravely enough, as though he did not know already what lay behind my question. “It is a difficult thing to explain, Miss Rollins, but first must you comprehend that everything, be it chemical, mineral, organic or inorganic, is built up basically from vibration. Everything is a matter of vibration. Without it we could not have the atom, the molecule or the star. The smallest bit of matter or the largest, all pulse with this being. And if it was not for this natural phenomenon, we could not ourselves live. Our sensations are a matter of vibration; we see, hear and we feel—all because of this.
“A good example of it is given by your machines that broadcast sound. Through space the sound is distributed upon ‘wave lengths’ of differe
nt frequencies so that you might hear them. Yet though the waves are there, ordinarily your ears can not hear them, can not pick them up for you, without the medium of a certain mechanical receiver. The same is true of television. It is the same thing, you can not see the objects broadcast unless the machine to gather them and translate them for you is there.
“Now we might say that the brain resembles radio transcription to some degree. First the vibratory impulses must be broadcast from some central station before your receiver can ‘pick them up’ and in the same way the objects around you must broadcast themselves in the varying degrees of wave-lengths before you can either see, hear, feel or smell their odors; your brain is therefore likened to your radio receiver, but for you to catch the impressions made on the brain of another is as impossible as for you to try to listen to radio without a machine.
“You of Earth know that the various members of the body broadcast their wants and hurts to the brain. Even now our scientists of Abrui seek to discover the ‘wave-length’ used by these organs. When that is discovered, medical science will take a great stride forward. We do know, however, that as with all animate or inanimate articles the brain is one, for first the brain is composed of chemicals, the same chemicals that compose the divers solids around about us. The difference, however, lies in the fact that the brain is a more highly sensitized plate. We might compare it to the difference between a molecule of water and the great ball of a star. The water contains only three parts of two different elements. A star contains all the elements nature has devised—hundreds and thousands of different combinations to be had held together in that one great mass. And so it is with the brain; it is composed of many thousands of cells, each cell apart from the other, doing its individual work, but on the whole contributing its powers to the common center.
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