CHAPTER IX.
THE REALIZATION OF A HOPELESS LOVE.
I opened my eyes--it was broad daylight, and for some moments I laydreamily surveying the familiar objects in my room, unconscious of allthat had happened to me during the previous night. Then, noticing that Iwas fully dressed, a sudden realization of it all came upon me, and,springing to my feet, I excitedly paced up and down my room, pinching myarms and legs to make sure that they were in normal condition.Satisfying myself upon this point, I then looked at the time, and, to myastonishment, found that it was noon.
As Mars passed out of wave contact about one o'clock in the morning, Imust have slept eleven hours after the return of my spirit to Earth. Ihad greatly feared that even if it were my good fortune ever to regainconsciousness, it would be only to discover that I had lost the use ofmy limbs and was powerless to move. That the super-radium current wouldpreserve my body in such a natural condition as even to induce sleep Iwould not have believed possible. Yet there was every indication that Ihad awakened from a natural sleep. I felt fresh and full of vigor, andthere on my couch lay the cone which, in my sleep, I had unfastened and,in turning over, crushed. If I had remained unconscious the entire timethere would not have been this evidence of restlessness, and Iconsidered it of importance as being proof that my sleep had beennatural. Beyond this, however, I did not consider the removal of thecone from my face as important, as the chloroform must have completelyevaporated soon after I became unconscious.
Now that I was once again in my laboratory with the humdrum life of amatter-of-fact world surging about me, evincing itself by the continualroar of traffic which reached me through the open window, my remarkableadventure of the night before seemed like a strange dream. As there wasno tangible proof that I had actually been on Mars, I might have beenled to the conclusion that I had chloroformed myself intounconsciousness only, and had passed from this state into a deep sleep,in which I had dreamed my remarkable experiences. But the clearness andconsistency of every detail were amply sufficient to convince me of thegenuineness of my experiences on Mars, and that the characters, sovividly portrayed in my mind, lived in flesh and blood on a worldmillions of miles away. Much more convincing than this, however, was themoral obligation that I felt incumbent upon me--a duty I owed toanother. No dream could have left me with this keen sense ofresponsibility.
Alas, I knew only too well that I loved, with an impossible love, abeautiful being of another planet, and that my duty lay in therenunciation of this love to Almos, its rightful possessor.
Thus my discovery had not brought me the joy of triumph. The proudmoments in an inventor's career when he holds up to the world the fruitof his ingenuity and study could not be mine. Indeed, the thought of theexcitement that the news of such easy communication with Mars wouldcause, if I demonstrated its truth before reputable scientists, made medetermined to guard the secret of my discovery the more jealously.Hundreds of instruments similar to mine would be made, and it would soonbecome known to all the inhabitants of Mars that they could talk to thepeople of Earth, resulting in constant communication from all parts ofboth planets. Such an innovation would soon be a regular pastime of therich. It would then be impossible for me to visit Mars again, as thecrossing of the currents of super-radium would add a grave danger tosuch an undertaking.
The possibility of my secret becoming known through an accident (someonebreaking into my room or overhearing me talk with Almos) now occurred tome, and, in the fear of my being separated from Zarlah forever, Idetermined upon another visit to Mars that evening.
I had planned to tell Almos at once of my thoughtless confession of loveto Zarlah, but in an effort to justify my great desire to see her again,I now saw several important reasons for postponing this. I had given mypromise to Zarlah to be with her the following evening, and it seemedonly honorable for me first to fulfil my promise to her. Moreover, underthe circumstances, it might be embarrassing for Almos to meet her uponsuch short notice. When a man takes a step of this kind, he usually hasspent some time in consideration beforehand, how much more necessary,then, is time for consideration when this step has been taken for him. Itherefore decided to keep my promise to Zarlah and to endeavor to visitMars again during the next wave contact.
I did not regret having left the note for Almos, however, as I had nomeans of telling whether the mechanism of the virator had done what wasexpected of it, or not. Almos' life depended upon the accurate workingof this mechanism after I had gone, and I was anxious to learn of hissafety. He would also want to learn of my safe arrival before preparinghimself for another undertaking of the kind; to see each other wastherefore necessary. Almos would undoubtedly have warned me of this, hadnot the cessation of wave contact prevented him from giving meinstructions.
It was late in the afternoon when a feeling of intense hunger remindedme that I had not tasted food for twenty-four hours. I contented myself,however, with a light meal at a neighboring cafe, knowing the danger ofeating heavily at this time. To my great surprise, I found that thissmall amount of food was evidently all my system required. Not only wasmy hunger appeased, but, while returning to my rooms, I was conscious ofa strength and vigor which were entirely new to me, and which I nowremembered I had first experienced upon awakening. Could it be that thesuper-radium current, possessing the wonderful regenerating rays thathad brought perpetual life to the people of Mars, was gradually workingthis change in my body over a distance of millions of miles? Impossibleas this seemed there was no other way of accounting for the remarkablechange which had taken place in my body.
The intense excitement I experienced at the thought of possessingperpetual life, health, and youth was but momentary, and I reached mylaboratory with a full realization of the enormous responsibilitieswhich my discovery was placing upon me. I could no longer keep itsecret; each day that I withheld the knowledge of these rays from myfellow beings, hundreds, nay thousands, of lives would be laid to myaccount. The knowledge had not been given to me that I should guard itselfishly. The hope that, even though I could never call Zarlah my own,I might often spend a few happy hours with her in her Martian paradisewas now shattered forever. I must stifle my love or commit a crimeagainst every living soul on Earth; and as I paced my room in agony,with my hands pressed to my temples to ease their throbbing, a great cryof anguish from the multitude in Death's grasp rang through my brain. Myheart was torn asunder by two great conflicting emotions, Love and Duty,and in this torture of mind and body I moved restlessly back and forthin my room, until the fading light warned me of the near approach ofwave contact with Mars.
There was but one course open to me; I would tell Almos of my experiencewith the rays, and if he should decide that they were the same as theregenerating rays, possessing all their properties, and that continuallife was now within reach of the people on Earth, I would make mydiscovery public on the morrow. This would be my solemn duty, no matterwhat sacrifice it involved, and I could not help feeling that thissecond visit to Mars might be the last.
A hasty examination of my instrument assured me that all was in order,and, turning on the current, I now watched the surface of wires for theglow that would signalize the commencement of wave contact. Should thisglow appear without an image of any kind it would have but onemeaning--that the mechanism of the virator had failed to do its work thenight previous, and that disaster had befallen Almos.
My heart beat fast, therefore, when in a short time a faint glowappeared on the upper portion of my instrument and rapidly spread untilit covered the entire surface. As it grew brighter I was obliged to turnaway, before I could recognize any image, and, as I stood shielding myeyes from the strong glare, I felt my heart sink within me. But, beforeI could approach the instrument again, I heard my name called in theclear, ringing tones of Almos' beloved voice.
I reached the instrument with a bound, and there, standing with hishands extended toward me and a smile of greeting on his handsome face, Isaw my brave Martian brother.
"My dear Almos, ho
w glad I am to see you are safe!" I cried, tears ofjoy springing to my eyes at finding that the fears of a moment ago wereunfounded.
"It is entirely due to your forethought in leaving the note, that eitherof us are safe," Almos responded. "Had you not done this, disaster toone or both of us must certainly have resulted, through ignorance ofeach other's plans. Let me congratulate you, my brave fellow, for havingso successfully accomplished your remarkable journey. This is theinitial step in the linking together of the destinies of Earth and Mars.
"But now I should like to hear an account of your experiences here, foralthough I have gradually become aware of many impressions you left, Ifind it is only of the things suggested by my mind that I can gatheranything."
"Then it is evident that the brain is merely a book of reference for themind," I replied, "as I was not instantly aware of your knowledge ofMartian affairs, but only upon a subject being suggested by my mind,was the information regarding it available. Thus, the mind is aware ofimpressions it has made on the brain, but is totally ignorant ofimpressions made by another mind, unless the thought is suggested."
I now gave Almos a brief description of my journey, explaining that, asI intended to make another visit to Mars that evening, I would leave thefull account of my experiences until the following night. I was carefulnot to make any reference to Zarlah, as I felt that my second meetingwith her would put me in a much better position to approach Almos onthis extremely delicate subject and lay before him my plans. Moreover, Iwas anxious that nothing should interfere with those few happy hours towhich I looked forward with such intense desire.
Almos listened to my narrative with wrapt attention, and not until Iconcluded by describing the remarkable effects of the regenerating rays,did he give utterance to a word. Then, to my amazement, he said:
"The result is what I fully expected. The proof that the regeneratingrays exist in the super-radium current, lies in the fact that your bodywas perfectly preserved for six hours, and there is no reason forsupposing that they differ, in any way, from the rays which preservelife here for an unlimited time."
"Then I can no longer keep my discovery a secret," I declaredresolutely. "It becomes my solemn duty at once to make public theknowledge of these wonderful rays emanating from Mars."
"What you say is indeed the truth," rejoined Almos. "The time has nowarrived; the existence of a people on Mars, our early history, progress,and the conditions under which we live at the present day, must nowbecome known upon Earth; our inventions and scientific advancement mustbe made available to Earth's scientists. Since the discovery of theradioscope, which enabled us to see the people on your planet, Mars hasyearned to give a helping hand to her younger sister. That time has nowcome, and before many years the conditions of life on Earth will besimilar to those here. A great work must be accomplished, however, butthe burden of that work rests upon me; when it is finished the goal ofmy life has been reached. There are many things that are not clear toyou now, my dear fellow, but there is no time at present forexplanations. In half an hour I shall have prepared for yourvisit--remember, no matter what happens, tomorrow all shall beexplained."
Having thus spoken, his voice and manner evincing great earnestness anddetermination, he waved his hand in farewell, and instantly theinstrument was plunged into darkness.
For some moments I stood motionless under the spell that his remarkablepersonality had cast over me, nor did even his abrupt manner appear atall strange, such perfect harmony of word and action existed in thisMartian genius. Indeed, it seemed a fitting conclusion to all that hadgone before. Speaking rapidly, as though realizing the loss of time inmere words, his handsome face, strong with determination, holding mefascinated, he had confessed the ambition nearest and dearest to hisheart--that of giving to Earth the discoveries and inventions ofhundreds of years of advancement in science; all that had resulted inthe longevity, health, peace, and happiness which existed upon Mars.
Humbled at my own insignificance and full of admiration for this greatcharacter, I turned slowly away, and, procuring a light, commenced toprepare for my journey.
My letters and other papers, with a brief note of explanation, stillremained on my desk, and, as my glance fell upon this bundle, I becameconscious of a nervousness, which, although to many would be perfectlynatural at such a time, was entirely strange to me. I had notexperienced the least nervousness on the occasion of my first visit thenight before, yet the mere sight of this package on my desk, with itsnote of explanation, now caused me an uneasiness, which, try as I would,I could not ignore.
Making the few necessary preparations about my room for the night, Isecured the door with lock and bolt, and, drawing my couch before theinstrument, poured out a glass of wine and lit a cigar, hoping thus tosteady my nerves.
The day had been warm and close, and a thunderstorm of unusual violencemade the night a wild one. Vivid flashes of lightning that seemed to viewith each other in intensity, darted from the heavens, accompanied bydeafening crashes of thunder that shook the building to itsfoundations, while the shrieking of the wind, as though it were rushingthrough the rigging of a ship at sea, added to the noise of the tempest.
Within a few moments the glow on my instrument would be the signal formy departure, and, as I prepared the cone of chloroform, I could notsuppress a shudder at the thought of my spirit going out into the furyof such a storm. It seemed as if Death, in the fear of being driven fromEarth and forever despoiled of his cruel victories, had turned loose theelements in his fury, and waited without to wreak vengeance on myaudacious spirit as it sped through space.
An instant an intensely white glare on the surface of wires at thismoment gave evidence of the super-radium current. It was the signal formy departure, and, with a brief but earnest prayer, I seized the cone,and, taking my position on the couch, inhaled the fumes of chloroform.
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