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They say that love is blind; but so great a love as that of Dejah Thoris that knew me even beneath the thern disguise I wore and across the misty vista of that crystal maze must indeed be far from blind.
"And even then, O Prince," she cried, "the arm of the Holy Thern is long. It reaches to every nation of Barsoom. His secret temples are hidden in the heart of every community. Wherever we go should we escape we shall find that word of our coming has preceded us, and death awaits us before we may pollute the air with our blasphemies."
Many were the exclamations of astonishment and questioning wonder as Xodar's acts confirmed the suspicion which he had held. "A thern!" whispered Tars Tarkas. "Worse than that, I fear," replied Xodar. "But let us see."
"You have much to learn, thern," replied Xodar, with an ugly smile, "nor do I envy you the manner in which you will learn it." As we came on deck I saw to my surprise that the vessel was passing over a great field of snow and ice. As far as the eye could reach in any direction naught else was visible. There could be but one solution to the mystery. We were above the south polar ice cap.
For only an instant my curiosity was piqued, and then I replaced the torch in my pocket-pouch, but my fingers had not unclasped from it when there rushed to my memory the recollection of the conversation between Lakor and his companion when the lesser thern had quoted the words of Thurid and scoffed at them: "And what think you of the ridiculous matter of the light?
The pirate's hissing, "Die, cursed thern," was half choked in his windpipe by my clutching fingers. The hammer fell with a futile click upon an empty chamber. Before he could fire again I had pulled him so far over the edge of the deck that he was forced to drop his firearm and clutch the rail with both hands.
It must now be nearly sundown again. Come, we will go to some nearby window in the cliff and make sure." So saying, she led the way through winding corridors until at a sudden turn we came upon an opening which overlooked the Valley Dor. At our right the sun was setting, a huge red orb, below the western range of Otz. A little below us stood the Holy Thern on watch upon his balcony.
"They are the spoils of conquest," and with a sweep of my hand I removed the disguise from my head. When the black's eyes fell on my close-cropped black hair they opened in astonishment. Evidently he had looked for the bald pate of a thern. "You are indeed of another world," he said, a touch of awe in his voice.
Of all the holy of holies which the thern venerates and worships none is more revered than the yellow wig which covers his bald pate, and next thereto comes the circlet of gold and the great diadem, whose scintillant rays mark the attainment of the Tenth Cycle. And, knowing this, I removed the wig and circlet from my head, tossing them carelessly upon the flagging of the court.
I saw that none of the guardsmen had been of the party that accompanied Thurid and Matai Shang; and so, relying entirely upon my disguise, I walked boldly through the gateway and up to the thern guard. The men stopped their game and looked up at me, but there was no sign of suspicion. Similarly they looked at Woola, growling at my heel. "Kaor!"
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