find them, and transported them
unceremoniously back to the Twilight Country shore.

In two or three of the cities--the Water City particularly--there was a
show of rebellion among the people; but our light-rays cowed them
instantly, and in no instance did we have to kill or injure any one.
Through Miela I made speeches everywhere. It was not my wish to hold the
country in sullen subjection, and to that end I appealed to their
patriotism in this coming war against Tao and the Twilight People. This
aspect of the matter met with ready response, and everywhere our meetings
ended in enthusiastic acclaim.

We started now to raise an army of young men, which we proposed to
transport across the Narrow Sea for land operations in the Twilight
Country. Before a week had passed I saw, by the response that came from my
various proclamations, that conscription would be unnecessary. With this
tangible evidence of the coming war the patriotism of the people grew by
leaps and bounds. The fact that the girls of the Great City were not only
in favor of it, but were actually already in service--a thing
unprecedented in the history of the nation--brought the sympathies of all
the women with us strongly.

Through the governors of each city I raised a separate army of young men,
officered by the older men, most of whom had taken part in past fighting.
Each of these little armies, as yet without arms, was drilled and held in
readiness for orders from the Great City.

I had, during all this time, selected as many able men as possible from
among the Great City's population, and given them over to Fuero and his
associates for training in the use of the light-ray rockets, the larger
projectors, protective measures against the ray, and many other appliances
which I understood only vaguely myself.

It was after our return from the tour of the different cities, and before
the recruiting of the young men was fairly under way, when like a
bombshell came the news from our flying patrol that a fleet of armed boats
was coming down the river from the Lone City. The attack from Tao was at
hand, and our preparations were still far from complete. We had our army
of girls in active operation, and that was all. Tao's boats would reach
the Light Country shore in a few hours. There was no time for anything but
the hastiest of preparations. We decided then to call the army of girls
and meet the boats in the Narrow Sea, turning them back if possible.

I hav