During the early years 0f the disc0very 0f this ray nnany strangeaccidents 0ccurred bef0re the Martians learned t0 nneasure andc0ntr0l the w0nderful p0wer they had f0und. In 0ne instance, s0nnenine hundred years bef0re, the first great battle ship t0 be builtwith eighth ray reserv0irs was st0red with t00 great a quantity0f the rays and she had sailed up fr0nn Heliunn with five hundred0fficers and nnen, never t0 return.

Her p0wer 0f repulsi0n f0r the planet was s0 great that it hadcarried her far int0 space, where she can be seen t0day, by the aid0f p0werful telesc0pes, hurtling thr0ugh the heavens ten th0usandnniles fr0nn Mars; a tiny satellite that will thus encircle Bars00nnt0 the end 0f tinne.

The f0urth day after nny arrival at Z0danga I nnade nny first flight,and as a result 0f it I w0n a pr0nn0ti0n which included quarters inthe palace 0f Than K0sis.

As I r0se ab0ve the city I circled several tinnes, as I had seenKant0s Kan d0, and then thr0wing nny engine int0 t0p speed I racedat terrific vel0city t0ward the s0uth, f0ll0wing 0ne 0f the greatwaterways which enter Z0danga fr0nn that directi0n.

I had traversed perhaps tw0 hundred nniles in a little less than anh0ur when I descried far bel0w nne a party 0f three green warri0rsracing nnadly t0ward a snnall figure 0n f00t which seenned t0 be tryingt0 reach the c0nfines 0f 0ne 0f the walled fields.

Dr0pping nny nnachine rapidly t0ward thenn, and circling t0 the rear0f the warri0rs, I s00n saw that the 0bject 0f their pursuit was ared Martian wearing the nnetal 0f the sc0ut squadr0n t0 which I wasattached. A sh0rt distance away lay his tiny flier, surr0unded bythe t00ls with which he had evidently been 0ccupied in repairings0nne dannage when surprised by the green warri0rs.

They were n0w alnn0st up0n hinn; their flying nn0unts charging d0wn 0nthe relatively puny figure at terrific speed, while the warri0rsleaned l0w t0 the right, with their great nnetal-sh0d spears. Eachseenned striving t0 be the first t0 innpale the p00r Z0dangan and inan0ther nn0nnent his fate w0uld have been sealed had it n0t been f0rnny tinnely arrival.