Argosy, Vol. 147, No. 1 — page 114: what you’re looking at

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

* ws “> J. ee 1a Bien making the Water City of his insidious propaganda, the Great City, as we had sup- |. He had been in constant communi- mn by boat with his men in the Water Jia now affairs there were ripe for fe) astic operations. : This Phat Mercer had come upon was tended to be Tao’s first armed invasion ie Light Country—some twenty of his trusted men armed with the light-ray. ining his emissaries in the Water City, aad d Sige the large following among the r there which they had already se- ed, they planned to seize the govern- oa Rand obtain control of the city. Then, sing it as a base, they could spread out : ds 2 conquest of the entire nation. Mer- sr listened with whitening face while Anina told him all this as best she could. |, But—but why does he want to attack the e Light Country, Anina? I thought he wanted to go and conquer our earth.” He: cy Very big task—your earth,” the girl al “Light Country miore easy. ny light-rays in the Great City. Those e needs before he goes to your earth. More mp le to get those than make others.” understood it then. The large tity of light-ray ammunition stored in he G eat City was what Tao was after. ee bis way of getting it, and once he _ and control of the Light Country s, he would be in a much better posi- | ate o attack the earth. The = idea came to Mercer then to steal the Ye at and escape with it. If he could do at, the enemies would have to return to Be Lone City on foot, and the threatened invasion of the Light Country would thus e postponed for a time at least. Mean- wh: #4 ith the boat he could hasten back ). me ne with news of the coming invasion. i Se ae were running through his while Anina was talking. It was a , but it might be done. There »p parently only one man in the boat, ew rise of ground between it made him out of sight, though tof nearing, of the others. you min the boat, Anina?”’ dded page Mercer drew a « a” oe 4 es ‘Ae € i Ullc | =A Ae a AA! we eu. a Le ce i oe ‘f ARGOSY-ALLSTORY WEEKLY. “We'll take a chance. It’s the only way. They’ve got that cursed light-ray.” He shivered as he thought of the danger they were about to invite. Then he explained to Anina what they were to do. She listened carefully, with the same expectant, eager look on her face he had seen there so often before. They left the blanket and fur jacket on the ground, and, making a wide detour around the fire, came back to the river bank several hundred yards above the boat. They stood at the water’s edge, looking about them. The boat was just around a slight bend in the stream; the glimmer of the fire showed plainly among the trees. Intense quiet prevailed; only the murmur of the water flowing past, and occasionally the raised voice of one of the men about the fire, broke the stillness. Mercer stared searchingly into the girl’s eyes as she stood there quietly at his side. She met his gaze steadily. “‘You’re a wonderful little girl,” he whispered to her, and then abruptly added: ‘Come on. Don’t make any splash if you can help it. And remember, if anything goes wrong, never mind me. Fly away—if you can.” They waded slowly into the water. The current carried them rapidly along. Side by side, with slow, careful strokes, they swam, keeping close to shore. The river was shallow—hardly over their heads. The water was cold and, Mercer thought, cu- riously buoyant, It seemed hardly more than a moment before the shadowy black figure of outlines of the boat loomed ahead. They could make out the figure of its single occupant, sitting with his arm on the gunwale. They swam hardly at all now, letting the current carry them forward. As silent as two drift- ing logs they dropped down upon the boat and in another moment were clinging to a bit of rope that chanced to be hanging over its stern. The bow of the boat was nosed against the bank; it lay diagonally downstream, with its stern some twenty feet from shore. Its occupant was sitting ampitishipg, facing the bow. Meroe cepa until his