ly silent and pointing toward
the base of the wall at the end of the room.

Turan looked in the direction the other's forefinger indicated, to see
projecting from the mouth of an ulsio's burrow two large chelae and a
pair of protruding eyes.

"Ghek!" he cried and immediately the hideous kaldane crawled out upon
the floor and approached the table. A-Kor drew back with a half-stifled
ejaculation of repulsion. "Do not fear," Turan reassured him. "It is my
friend--he whom I told you held O-Tar while Tara and I escaped."

Ghek climbed to the table top and squatted between the two warriors.
"You are safe in assuming," he said addressing A-Kor, "that Turan the
panthan has no master in all Manator where the art of sword-play is
concerned. I overheard your conversation--go on."

"You are his friend," continued A-Kor, "and so I may explain safely in
your presence the only plan I know whereby he may hope to rescue the
Princess of Helium. She is to be the stake of one of the games and it
is O-Tar's desire that she be won by slaves and common warriors, since
she repulsed him. Thus would he punish her. Not a single man, but all
who survive upon the winning side are to possess her. With money,
however, one may buy off the others before the game. That you could do,
and if your side won and you survived she would become your slave."

"But how may a stranger and a hunted fugitive accomplish this?" asked
Turan.

"No one will recognize you. You will go tomorrow to the keeper of the
Towers and enlist in that game for which the girl is to be the stake,
telling the keeper that you are from Manataj, the farthest city of
Manator. If he questions you, you may say that you saw her when she was
brought into the city after her capture. If you win her, you will find
thoats stabled at my palace and you will carry from me a token that
will place all that is mine at your disposal."

"But how can I buy off the others in the game without money?" asked
Turan. "I have none--not even of my own country."

A-Kor opened his pocket-pouch and drew forth a packet of Manatorian
money.

"Here is sufficient to buy them off twice over," he said, handing a
portion of it to Turan.

"But why do you do this for a stranger?" asked the panthan.

"My mother was a captive princess here," replied A-Kor. "I but do for
the Princess of Helium what my mother would have me do."

"Under the circumstances, then, Manatorian," replied Turan, "I cannot
but accept your ge