Tip:
Highlight text to annotate it
X
Chapter 8 THROUGH THE CARRION CAVES
Straight toward the north, day and night, our destination compass led us after the fleeing
flier upon which it had remained set since I first attuned it after leaving the thern
fortress. Early in the second night we noticed the air
becoming perceptibly colder, and from the distance we had come from the equator were
assured that we were rapidly approaching the north arctic region.
My knowledge of the efforts that had been made by countless expeditions to explore that
unknown land bade me to caution, for never had flier returned who had passed to any considerable
distance beyond the mighty ice-barrier that fringes the southern hem of the frigid zone.
What became of them none knew only that they passed forever out of the sight of man into
that grim and mysterious country of the pole. The distance from the barrier to the pole
was no more than a swift flier should cover in a few hours, and so it was assumed that
some frightful catastrophe awaited those who reached the "forbidden land," as it had come
to be called by the Martians of the outer world.
Thus it was that I went more slowly as we approached the barrier, for it was my intention
to move cautiously by day over the ice-pack that I might discover, before I had run into
a trap, if there really lay an inhabited country at the north pole, for there only could I
imagine a spot where Matai Shang might feel secure from John Carter, Prince of Helium.
We were flying at a snail's pace but a few feet above the ground literally feeling our
way along through the darkness, for both moons had set, and the night was black with the
clouds that are to be found only at Mars's two extremities.
Suddenly a towering wall of white rose directly in our path, and though I threw the helm hard
over, and reversed our engine, I was too late to avoid collision. With a sickening crash
we struck the high looming obstacle three-quarters on.
The flier reeled half over; the engine stopped; as one, the patched buoyancy tanks burst,
and we plunged, headforemost, to the ground twenty feet beneath.
Fortunately none of us was injured, and when we had disentangled ourselves from the wreckage,
and the lesser moon had burst again from below the horizon, we found that we were at the
foot of a mighty ice-barrier, from which outcropped great patches of the granite hills which hold
it from encroaching farther toward the south. What fate! With the journey all but completed
to be thus wrecked upon the wrong side of that precipitous and unscalable wall of rock
and ice! I looked at Thuvan Dihn. He but shook his
head dejectedly. The balance of the night we spent shivering
in our inadequate sleeping silks and furs upon the snow that lies at the foot of the
ice-barrier. With daylight my battered spirits regained
something of their accustomed hopefulness, though I must admit that there was little
enough for them to feed upon. "What shall we do?" asked Thuvan Dihn. "How
may we pass that which is impassable?" "First we must disprove its impassability,"
I replied. "Nor shall I admit that it is impassable before I have followed its entire circle and
stand again upon this spot, defeated. The sooner we start, the better, for I see no
other way, and it will take us more than a month to travel the weary, frigid miles that
lie before us." For five days of cold and suffering and privation
we traversed the rough and frozen way which lies at the foot of the ice-barrier. Fierce,
fur-bearing creatures attacked us by daylight and by dark. Never for a moment were we safe
from the sudden charge of some huge demon of the north.
The apt was our most consistent and dangerous foe.
It is a huge, white-furred creature with six limbs, four of which, short and heavy, carry
it swiftly over the snow and ice; while the other two, growing forward from its shoulders
on either side of its long, powerful neck, terminate in white, hairless hands, with which
it seizes and holds its prey. Its head and mouth are more similar in appearance
to those of a hippopotamus than to any other earthly animal, except that from the sides
of the lower jawbone two mighty horns curve slightly downward toward the front.
Its two huge eyes inspired my greatest curiosity. They extend in two vast, oval patches from
the center of the top of the cranium down either side of the head to below the roots
of the horns, so that these weapons really grow out from the lower part of the eyes,
which are composed of several thousand ocelli each.
This eye structure seemed remarkable in a beast whose haunts were upon a glaring field
of ice and snow, and though I found upon minute examination of several that we killed that
each ocellus is furnished with its own lid, and that the animal can at will close as many
of the facets of his huge eyes as he chooses, yet I was positive that nature had thus equipped
him because much of his life was to be spent in dark, subterranean recesses.
Shortly after this we came upon the hugest apt that we had seen. The creature stood fully
eight feet at the shoulder, and was so sleek and clean and glossy that I could have sworn
that he had but recently been groomed. He stood head-on eyeing us as we approached
him, for we had found it a waste of time to attempt to escape the perpetual *** rage
which seems to possess these demon creatures, who rove the dismal north attacking every
living thing that comes within the scope of their far-seeing eyes.
Even when their bellies are full and they can eat no more, they kill purely for the
pleasure which they derive from taking life, and so when this particular apt failed to
charge us, and instead wheeled and trotted away as we neared him, I should have been
greatly surprised had I not chanced to glimpse the sheen of a golden collar about its neck.
Thuvan Dihn saw it, too, and it carried the same message of hope to us both. Only man
could have placed that collar there, and as no race of Martians of which we knew aught
ever had attempted to domesticate the ferocious apt, he must belong to a people of the north
of whose very existence we were ignorant possibly to the fabled yellow men of Barsoom; that
once powerful race which was supposed to be extinct, though sometimes, by theorists, thought
still to exist in the frozen north. Simultaneously we started upon the trail of
the great beast. Woola was quickly made to understand our desires, so that it was unnecessary
to attempt to keep in sight of the animal whose swift flight over the rough ground soon
put him beyond our vision. For the better part of two hours the trail
paralleled the barrier, and then suddenly turned toward it through the roughest and
seemingly most impassable country I ever had beheld.
Enormous granite boulders blocked the way on every hand; deep rifts in the ice threatened
to engulf us at the least misstep; and from the north a slight breeze wafted to our nostrils
an unspeakable stench that almost choked us. For another two hours we were occupied in
traversing a few hundred yards to the foot of the barrier.
Then, turning about the corner of a wall-like outcropping of granite, we came upon a smooth
area of two or three acres before the base of the towering pile of ice and rock that
had baffled us for days, and before us beheld the dark and cavernous mouth of a cave.
From this repelling portal the horrid stench was emanating, and as Thuvan Dihn espied the
place he halted with an exclamation of profound astonishment.
"By all my ancestors!" he ***. "That I should have lived to witness the reality
of the fabled Carrion Caves! If these indeed be they, we have found a way beyond the ice-barrier.
"The ancient chronicles of the first historians of Barsoom so ancient that we have for ages
considered them mythology record the passing of the yellow men from the ravages of the
green hordes that overran Barsoom as the drying up of the great oceans drove the dominant
races from their strongholds. "They tell of the wanderings of the remnants
of this once powerful race, harassed at every step, until at last they found a way through
the ice-barrier of the north to a fertile valley at the pole.
"At the opening to the subterranean passage that led to their haven of refuge a mighty
battle was fought in which the yellow men were victorious, and within the caves that
gave ingress to their new home they piled the bodies of the dead, both yellow and green,
that the stench might warn away their enemies from further pursuit.
"And ever since that long-gone day have the dead of this fabled land been carried to the
Carrion Caves, that in death and decay they might serve their country and warn away invading
enemies. Here, too, is brought, so the fable runs, all the waste stuff of the nation everything
that is subject to rot, and that can add to the foul stench that assails our nostrils.
"And death lurks at every step among rotting dead, for here the fierce apts lair, adding
to the putrid accumulation with the fragments of their own prey which they cannot devour.
It is a horrid avenue to our goal, but it is the only one."
"You are sure, then, that we have found the way to the land of the yellow men?" I cried.
"As sure as may be," he replied; "having only ancient legend to support my belief. But see
how closely, so far, each detail tallies with the world-old story of the hegira of the yellow
race. Yes, I am sure that we have discovered the way to their ancient hiding place."
"If it be true, and let us pray that such may be the case," I said, "then here may we
solve the mystery of the disappearance of Tardos Mors, Jeddak of Helium, and Mors Kajak,
his son, for no other spot upon Barsoom has remained unexplored by the many expeditions
and the countless spies that have been searching for them for nearly two years. The last word
that came from them was that they sought Carthoris, my own brave son, beyond the ice-barrier."
As we talked we had been approaching the entrance to the cave, and as we crossed the threshold
I ceased to wonder that the ancient green enemies of the yellow men had been halted
by the horrors of that awful way. The bones of dead men lay man high upon the
broad floor of the first cave, and over all was a putrid mush of decaying flesh, through
which the apts had beaten a hideous trail toward the entrance to the second cave beyond.
The roof of this first apartment was low, like all that we traversed subsequently, so
that the foul odors were confined and condensed to such an extent that they seemed to possess
tangible substance. One was almost tempted to draw his short-sword and hew his way through
in search of pure air beyond. "Can man breathe this polluted air and live?"
asked Thuvan Dihn, choking. "Not for long, I imagine," I replied; "so
let us make haste. I will go first, and you bring up the rear, with Woola between. Come,"
and with the words I dashed forward, across the fetid mass of putrefaction.
It was not until we had passed through seven caves of different sizes and varying but little
in the power and quality of their stenches that we met with any physical opposition.
Then, within the eighth cave, we came upon a lair of apts.
A full score of the mighty beasts were disposed about the chamber. Some were sleeping, while
others tore at the fresh-killed carcasses of new-brought prey, or fought among themselves
in their love-making. Here in the dim light of their subterranean
home the value of their great eyes was apparent, for these inner caves are shrouded in perpetual
gloom that is but little less than utter darkness. To attempt to pass through the midst of that
fierce herd seemed, even to me, the height of folly, and so I proposed to Thuvan Dihn
that he return to the outer world with Woola, that the two might find their way to civilization
and come again with a sufficient force to overcome not only the apts, but any further
obstacles that might lie between us and our goal.
"In the meantime," I continued, "I may discover some means of winning my way alone to the
land of the yellow men, but if I am unsuccessful one life only will have been sacrificed. Should
we all go on and perish, there will be none to guide a succoring party to Dejah Thoris
and your daughter." "I shall not return and leave you here alone,
John Carter," replied Thuvan Dihn. "Whether you go on to victory or death, the Jeddak
of Ptarth remains at your side. I have spoken." I knew from his tone that it were useless
to attempt to argue the question, and so I compromised by sending Woola back with a hastily
penned note enclosed in a small metal case and fastened about his neck. I commanded the
faithful creature to seek Carthoris at Helium, and though half a world and countless dangers
lay between I knew that if the thing could be done Woola would do it.
Equipped as he was by nature with marvelous speed and endurance, and with frightful ferocity
that made him a match for any single enemy of the way, his keen intelligence and wondrous
instinct should easily furnish all else that was needed for the successful accomplishment
of his mission. It was with evident reluctance that the great
beast turned to leave me in compliance with my command, and ere he had gone I could not
resist the inclination to throw my arms about his great neck in a parting hug. He rubbed
his cheek against mine in a final caress, and a moment later was speeding through the
Carrion Caves toward the outer world. In my note to Carthoris I had given explicit
directions for locating the Carrion Caves, impressing upon him the necessity for making
entrance to the country beyond through this avenue, and not to attempt under any circumstances
to cross the ice-barrier with a fleet. I told him that what lay beyond the eighth cave I
could not even guess; but I was sure that somewhere upon the other side of the ice-barrier
his mother lay in the power of Matai Shang, and that possibly his grandfather and great-grandfather
as well, if they lived. Further, I advised him to call upon Kulan
Tith and the son of Thuvan Dihn for warriors and ships that the expedition might be sufficiently
strong to insure success at the first blow. "And," I concluded, "if there be time bring
Tars Tarkas with you, for if I live until you reach me I can think of few greater pleasures
than to fight once more, shoulder to shoulder, with my old friend."
When Woola had left us Thuvan Dihn and I, hiding in the seventh cave, discussed and
discarded many plans for crossing the eighth chamber. From where we stood we saw that the
fighting among the apts was growing less, and that many that had been feeding had ceased
and lain down to sleep. Presently it became apparent that in a short
time all the ferocious monsters might be peacefully slumbering, and thus a hazardous opportunity
be presented to us to cross through their lair.
One by one the remaining brutes stretched themselves upon the bubbling decomposition
that covered the mass of bones upon the floor of their den, until but a single apt remained
awake. This huge fellow roamed restlessly about, nosing among his companions and the
abhorrent litter of the cave. Occasionally he would stop to peer intently
toward first one of the exits from the chamber and then the other. His whole demeanor was
as of one who acts as sentry. We were at last forced to the belief that
he would not sleep while the other occupants of the lair slept, and so cast about in our
minds for some scheme whereby we might trick him. Finally I suggested a plan to Thuvan
Dihn, and as it seemed as good as any that we had discussed we decided to put it to the
test. To this end Thuvan Dihn placed himself close
against the cave's wall, beside the entrance to the eighth chamber, while I deliberately
showed myself to the guardian apt as he looked toward our retreat. Then I sprang to the opposite
side of the entrance, flattening my body close to the wall.
Without a sound the great beast moved rapidly toward the seventh cave to see what manner
of intruder had thus rashly penetrated so far within the precincts of his habitation.
As he poked his head through the narrow aperture that connects the two caves a heavy long-sword
was awaiting him upon either hand, and before he had an opportunity to emit even a single
growl his severed head rolled at our feet. Quickly we glanced into the eighth chamber
not an apt had moved. Crawling over the carcass of the huge beast that blocked the doorway
Thuvan Dihn and I cautiously entered the forbidding and dangerous den.
Like snails we wound our silent and careful way among the huge, recumbent forms. The only
sound above our breathing was the sucking noise of our feet as we lifted them from the
ooze of decaying flesh through which we crept. Halfway across the chamber and one of the
mighty beasts directly before me moved restlessly at the very instant that my foot was poised
above his head, over which I must step. Breathlessly I waited, balancing upon one
foot, for I did not dare move a muscle. In my right hand was my keen short-sword, the
point hovering an inch above the thick fur beneath which beat the savage heart.
Finally the apt relaxed, sighing, as with the passing of a bad dream, and resumed the
regular respiration of deep slumber. I planted my raised foot beyond the fierce head and
an instant later had stepped over the beast. Thuvan Dihn followed directly after me, and
another moment found us at the further door, undetected.
The Carrion Caves consist of a series of twenty-seven connecting chambers, and present the appearance
of having been eroded by running water in some far-gone age when a mighty river found
its way to the south through this single breach in the barrier of rock and ice that hems the
country of the pole. Thuvan Dihn and I traversed the remaining
nineteen caverns without adventure or mishap. We were afterward to learn that but once a
month is it possible to find all the apts of the Carrion Caves in a single chamber.
At other times they roam singly or in pairs in and out of the caves, so that it would
have been practically impossible for two men to have passed through the entire twenty-seven
chambers without encountering an apt in nearly every one of them. Once a month they sleep
for a full day, and it was our good fortune to stumble by accident upon one of these occasions.
Beyond the last cave we emerged into a desolate country of snow and ice, but found a well-marked
trail leading north. The way was boulder-strewn, as had been that south of the barrier, so
that we could see but a short distance ahead of us at any time.
After a couple of hours we passed round a huge boulder to come to a steep declivity
leading down into a valley. Directly before us we saw a half dozen men
fierce, black-bearded fellows, with skins the color of a ripe lemon.
"The yellow men of Barsoom!" *** Thuvan Dihn, as though even now that he saw them
he found it scarce possible to believe that the very race we expected to find hidden in
this remote and inaccessible land did really exist.
We withdrew behind an adjacent boulder to watch the actions of the little party, which
stood huddled at the foot of another huge rock, their backs toward us.
One of them was peering round the edge of the granite mass as though watching one who
approached from the opposite side. Presently the object of his scrutiny came
within the range of my vision and I saw that it was another yellow man. All were clothed
in magnificent furs the six in the black and yellow striped hide of the orluk, while he
who approached alone was resplendent in the pure white skin of an apt.
The yellow men were armed with two swords, and a short javelin was slung across the back
of each, while from their left arms hung cuplike shields no larger than a dinner plate, the
concave sides of which turned outward toward an antagonist.
They seemed puny and futile implements of safety against an even ordinary swordsman,
but I was later to see the purpose of them and with what wondrous dexterity the yellow
men manipulate them. One of the swords which each of the warriors
carried caught my immediate attention. I call it a sword, but really it was a sharp-edged
blade with a complete hook at the far end. The other sword was of about the same length
as the hooked instrument, and somewhere between that of my long-sword and my short-sword.
It was straight and two-edged. In addition to the weapons I have enumerated each man
carried a dagger in his harness. As the white-furred one approached, the six
grasped their swords more firmly the hooked instrument in the left hand, the straight
sword in the right, while above the left wrist the small shield was held rigid upon a metal
bracelet. As the lone warrior came opposite them the
six rushed out upon him with fiendish yells that resembled nothing more closely than the
savage war cry of the Apaches of the South-west. Instantly the attacked drew both his swords,
and as the six fell upon him I witnessed as pretty fighting as one might care to see.
With their sharp hooks the combatants attempted to take hold of an adversary, but like lightning
the cupshaped shield would spring before the darting weapon and into its hollow the hook
would plunge. Once the lone warrior caught an antagonist
in the side with his hook, and drawing him close ran his sword through him.
But the odds were too unequal, and, though he who fought alone was by far the best and
bravest of them all, I saw that it was but a question of time before the remaining five
would find an opening through his marvelous guard and bring him down.
Now my sympathies have ever been with the weaker side of an argument, and though I knew
nothing of the cause of the trouble I could not stand idly by and see a brave man butchered
by superior numbers. As a matter of fact I presume I gave little
attention to seeking an excuse, for I love a good fight too well to need any other reason
for joining in when one is afoot. So it was that before Thuvan Dihn knew what
I was about he saw me standing by the side of the white-clad yellow man, battling like
mad with his five adversaries.