CHAPTER VI
A FIGHT THAT WON FRIENDS
The thing, which more nearly resembled our earthly men than it did theMartians I had seen, held me pinioned to the ground with one huge foot,while it jabbered and gesticulated at some answering creature behindme. This other, which was evidently its mate, soon came toward us,bearing a mighty stone cudgel with which it evidently intended to brainme.
The creatures were about ten or fifteen feet tall, standing erect, andhad, like the green Martians, an intermediary set of arms or legs,midway between their upper and lower limbs. Their eyes were closetogether and non-protruding; their ears were high set, but morelaterally located than those of the Martians, while their snouts andteeth were strikingly like those of our African gorilla. Altogetherthey were not unlovely when viewed in comparison with the greenMartians.
The cudgel was swinging in the arc which ended upon my upturned facewhen a bolt of myriad-legged horror hurled itself through the doorwayfull upon the breast of my executioner. With a shriek of fear the apewhich held me leaped through the open window, but its mate closed in aterrific death struggle with my preserver, which was nothing less thanmy faithful watch-thing; I cannot bring myself to call so hideous acreature a dog.
As quickly as possible I gained my feet and backing against the wall Iwitnessed such a battle as it is vouchsafed few beings to see. Thestrength, agility, and blind ferocity of these two creatures isapproached by nothing known to earthly man. My beast had an advantagein his first hold, having sunk his mighty fangs far into the breast ofhis adversary; but the great arms and paws of the ape, backed bymuscles far transcending those of the Martian men I had seen, hadlocked the throat of my guardian and slowly were choking out his life,and bending back his head and neck upon his body, where I momentarilyexpected the former to fall limp at the end of a broken neck.
In accomplishing this the ape was tearing away the entire front of itsbreast, which was held in the vise-like grip of the powerful jaws.Back and forth upon the floor they rolled, neither one emitting a soundof fear or pain. Presently I saw the great eyes of my beast bulgingcompletely from their sockets and blood flowing from its nostrils.That he was weakening perceptibly was evident, but so also was the ape,whose struggles were growing momentarily less.
Suddenly I came to myself and, with that strange instinct which seemsever to prompt me to my duty, I seized the cudgel, which had fallen tothe floor at the commencement of the battle, and swinging it with allthe power of my earthly arms I crashed it full upon the head of theape, crushing his skull as though it had been an eggshell.
Scarcely had the blow descended when I was confronted with a newdanger. The ape's mate, recovered from its first shock of terror, hadreturned to the scene of the encounter by way of the interior of thebuilding. I glimpsed him just before he reached the doorway and thesight of him, now roaring as he perceived his lifeless fellow stretchedupon the floor, and frothing at the mouth, in the extremity of hisrage, filled me, I must confess, with dire forebodings.
I am ever willing to stand and fight when the odds are not toooverwhelmingly against me, but in this instance I perceived neitherglory nor profit in pitting my relatively puny strength against theiron muscles and brutal ferocity of this enraged denizen of an unknownworld; in fact, the only outcome of such an encounter, so far as Imight be concerned, seemed sudden death.
I was standing near the window and I knew that once in the street Imight gain the plaza and safety before the creature could overtake me;at least there was a chance for safety in flight, against almostcertain death should I remain and fight however desperately.
It is true I held the cudgel, but what could I do with it against hisfour great arms? Even should I break one of them with my first blow,for I figured that he would attempt to ward off the cudgel, he couldreach out and annihilate me with the others before I could recover fora second attack.
In the instant that these thoughts passed through my mind I had turnedto make for the window, but my eyes alighting on the form of myerstwhile guardian threw all thoughts of flight to the four winds. Helay gasping upon the floor of the chamber, his great eyes fastened uponme in what seemed a pitiful appeal for protection. I could notwithstand that look, nor could I, on second thought, have deserted myrescuer without giving as good an account of myself in his behalf as hehad in mine.
Without more ado, therefore, I turned to meet the charge of theinfuriated bull ape. He was now too close upon me for the cudgel toprove of any effective assistance, so I merely threw it as heavily as Icould at his advancing bulk. It struck him just below the knees,eliciting a howl of pain and rage, and so throwing him off his balancethat he lunged full upon me with arms wide stretched to ease his fall.
Again, as on the preceding day, I had recourse to earthly tactics, andswinging my right fist full upon the point of his chin I followed itwith a smashing left to the pit of his stomach. The effect wasmarvelous, for, as I lightly sidestepped, after delivering the secondblow, he reeled and fell upon the floor doubled up with pain andgasping for wind. Leaping over his prostrate body, I seized the cudgeland finished the monster before he could regain his feet.
As I delivered the blow a low laugh rang out behind me, and, turning, Ibeheld Tars Tarkas, Sola, and three or four warriors standing in thedoorway of the chamber. As my eyes met theirs I was, for the secondtime, the recipient of their zealously guarded applause.
My absence had been noted by Sola on her awakening, and she had quicklyinformed Tars Tarkas, who had set out immediately with a handful ofwarriors to search for me. As they had approached the limits of thecity they had witnessed the actions of the bull ape as he bolted intothe building, frothing with rage.
They had followed immediately behind him, thinking it barely possiblethat his actions might prove a clew to my whereabouts and had witnessedmy short but decisive battle with him. This encounter, together withmy set-to with the Martian warrior on the previous day and my feats ofjumping placed me upon a high pinnacle in their regard. Evidentlydevoid of all the finer sentiments of friendship, love, or affection,these people fairly worship physical prowess and bravery, and nothingis too good for the object of their adoration as long as he maintainshis position by repeated examples of his skill, strength, and courage.
Sola, who had accompanied the searching party of her own volition, wasthe only one of the Martians whose face had not been twisted inlaughter as I battled for my life. She, on the contrary, was soberwith apparent solicitude and, as soon as I had finished the monster,rushed to me and carefully examined my body for possible wounds orinjuries. Satisfying herself that I had come off unscathed she smiledquietly, and, taking my hand, started toward the door of the chamber.
Tars Tarkas and the other warriors had entered and were standing overthe now rapidly reviving brute which had saved my life, and whose lifeI, in turn, had rescued. They seemed to be deep in argument, andfinally one of them addressed me, but remembering my ignorance of hislanguage turned back to Tars Tarkas, who, with a word and gesture, gavesome command to the fellow and turned to follow us from the room.
There seemed something menacing in their attitude toward my beast, andI hesitated to leave until I had learned the outcome. It was well Idid so, for the warrior drew an evil looking pistol from its holsterand was on the point of putting an end to the creature when I sprangforward and struck up his arm. The bullet striking the wooden casingof the window exploded, blowing a hole completely through the wood andmasonry.
I then knelt down beside the fearsome-looking thing, and raising it toits feet motioned for it to follow me. The looks of surprise which myactions elicited from the Martians were ludicrous; they could notunderstand, except in a feeble and childish way, such attributes asgratitude and compassion. The warrior whose gun I had struck up lookedenquiringly at Tars Tarkas, but the latter signed that I be left to myown devices, and so we returned to the plaza with my great beastfollowing close at heel, and Sola grasping me tightly by the arm.
I had at le
ast two friends on Mars; a young woman who watched over mewith motherly solicitude, and a dumb brute which, as I later came toknow, held in its poor ugly carcass more love, more loyalty, moregratitude than could have been found in the entire five million greenMartians who rove the deserted cities and dead sea bottoms of Mars.