Giants on the Earth | Page 4

closed in on the struggling pair. As hairy hands
grasped his shoulders, Damis lunged back with all his strength. There
was the crack of a breaking bone and the Viceroy's arm hung dangling
and useless. Damis whirled on the guards, shaking himself loose for a
moment from their grasp, and his fists flew out. Two of the giants went
down before well-aimed blows but no one man, no matter what his
might, could fight against a score of the huge Jovians and Damis was
borne to the ground. Even as he fell, a roar went up from the watching
Terrestrials and with one accord they closed in to attack.

The Jovian guards who were nearest whirled about and raised the black
tubes threateningly. For a moment the Earthmen hesitated and then
came on with a rush. From the tubes came rays of intensely violet light.
As they fell on the front ranks of the charging Terrestrials, the form, on
which the rays impinged grew suddenly tenuous. The sunlight
penetrated through the bodies for a moment and then there was nothing
but a group of dancing motes of light to mark where they had stood.
* * * * *
Undaunted by the fate of their leaders, the balance of the mob surged
forward uttering cries of hate and rage. From all the doorways, fresh
hordes of Earthmen came rushing to join the fray. Again and again the
terrible rays of the Jovian guards blasted scores of their assailants into
nothingness but more came. Presently the tubes of the Jovians began to
lose their power and the violet light became lighter in shade. With a
roar the Earthmen swept forward and the huge guards went down under
the onrushing waves of humanity. Half a dozen of them were dragged
down and hurled back into the milling crowd where they were torn
limb from limb. The balance of the guards, guided by Havenner's
stentorian shouts, closed in around Glavour and the prisoner and
battered their way by sheer brute force toward the Viceregal chariot.
They had reached in and climbed in when a feminine shout pierced the
din of conflict.
"Damis! They have Damis prisoner! Rescue him!"
With a roar, the mob charged again. Mightily the Jovians strove but
they were outnumbered by hundreds to one. One after another was torn
from the chariot until Damis freed himself by a mighty effort and
leaped to the ground. As he did so, the driver's hand found the
controlling lever and the chariot shot forward, crushing under its
wheels several luckless Earthmen who stood in its path. A roar of
triumph rose from the crowd and Damis was hastily lifted to their
shoulders. He looked down on his rescuers with an anguished face.
"Lura!" he gasped. "Is she safe?"

One of the Terrestrials shouted something unintelligible and pointed up.
Damis' gaze followed the direction in which he pointed. From an upper
window of the building into which she had fled, Lura's face, wreathed
with smiles, looked down on him. He smiled and waved in triumph to
her. There was a stir on the outskirts of the crowd and an elderly man,
tall for an Earthman and with dignity and authority written large on his
countenance, made his way through the crowd. At a word from him,
Damis was lowered to his feet to face the newcomer.
"Damis," said the elderly man, "I never thought to grasp the hand of a
Nepthalim or of anyone with Jovian blood in his veins in friendship,
yet I can do no less than offer my hand. It is the thanks of a father to the
saviour of his daughter."
* * * * *
Damis met the outstretched hand with a grip that made the elderly man
wince.
"It is an honor and a pleasure to grasp in friendship the hand of Turgan,
the Kildare of this province," he said, "the hand of one who was born to
be ruler in fact, instead of an underling under a Jovian master."
"It is true that my father was king of this country before the Jovians
came, forty years ago," said Turgan gravely, "yet now there is no honor
or merit in it. Even the rank of Kildare, which is but that of a slave
ruling other more unfortunate slaves, could not have prevented my only
daughter from being dragged away to the seraglio of that monster. To
such a pass has one been brought whose birth made him the peer of any.
But now we must plan and plan swiftly, else are we undone. Glavour
will return with his minions. Safety will be found only in flight, for
mere numbers cannot oppose the weapons they will turn against us.
Damis, so far you have been one with our Jovian masters, as