A. Merritt's Fantasy Magazine, February 1950 — page 51: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

THE SMOKING LAND 51 I asked that just one of the halber- diers should stand twenty steps from me and throw the hat into the air. He did it, and I socked a bullet through it, and repeated twice before it hit the floor. It wasn’t a hard trick, I never was a great expert with a gun—just a good, average hand on the range. But with a target of that size the trick was easy. Only the speed was important. I told the halberdier to take the hat to the priestess, and he dropped on his knee and did so. Well, she turned it, and turned it, and saw the three holes through the fabric, and turned it again, and her face was as grave and still as a stone. Then she shook her head, and I saw the first sign of a frown. “Three lives might have been taken, and yet the gun was not reloaded,” said she. “There are three more lives still inside this little revolver,” I told her, with a touch of pride. She nodded. “That is enough,” said she. “Take him, and let the fire of the goddess consume him !”’ I nearly hit the floor. Then I shouted. “Justice! Let me have justice! I have spoken the truth, and now I’m to be murdered. Is this justice ?” Her voice was as undisturbed as the music of a running stream. “This that we have seen is magic, and at thy command. And such an enchanter who bearest lives in his hand, controlleth spirits which easily could tell him of- the goddess, the nameless name. Therefore thou didst know the cattle of the sacred herd, and willingly didst thou defile them. By thine own hand and out of thine own mouth art thou convicted. Now make haste, and bear him swiftly from me, that the thing may be done that must be done.” “The devil take you,” I said, “and all your kind. I see what you are—just a heart of stone. And I’ve been a fool to believe that there was decency, truth, honor or kindness in you!” The pair of halberd axes took me in the breast, and pulled me back. I felt my blood start and trickle down my breast as the keen points pricked the skin. They trussed. me like a goat in Mexico. They tied my hands and my feet, and one of the halberdiers put me over his shoulder and carried me down the hall to: the hearth that burned on the lap of the idol. She was the goddess, I could guess. And I had my guess confirmed, a minute later, when I was put on my feet and found the priestess kowtowing before the big fire. She from her knees, was saying, “‘Great goddess, protector and savior, all wise and all merciful, look into the heart of my judgment, which should be your judg- ment, and confirm it, and accept this sacri- fice. Let.the evil in this man pass from him through the fire, and his soul, thus purified, pass to thy knees and become thy bondsman forever!” With this, she turned around, and faced me. And lifted her hand. At the same time, out of dim nowhere, at the sides of the room, came two fellows all in black robes, and they took hold of me and started to urge me toward the fire. It’s an odd thing that I did not struggle and fight for my life, foolish as that would have been. I didn’t even yell, but instead, I stared into the face of the girl. She was very close to me now, and her beauty was even more patent than before. There was no flaw in her. She looked even more like shining crystal and more removed from me and the ways of men. And as I looked at her, not believing that such savagery could possibly accom- pany such a face—such dainty, delicate loveliness—she looked straight back at me, into my eyes, into my heart and soul —without changing a muscle of her face! And then Fate, or whatever you choose to call it, stepped in and batted out a home run for me, in the ninth inning, with the score one to nothing against me. | HEARD a scurrying, a scratching of feet far away, rushing nearer, and as those two halberdiers took hold of me, low down, ready to heave me into the fire, up came a white streak, and knocked one of them galley west, sending him Staggering. off the platform, and then bump, bump, bump down the steps, with a yell at every bump, until he hit the floor below. .., . The other executioner jumped away, COMicaoo® S (©