The Wizard of Venus

Chapter Nine

"You ARE REALLY a most remarkable fellow," said Ero Shah, "but I am commencing to be a little bit afraid of you," he added, laughing.

"You needn't be," I assured him, "for Chand Kabi did not teach me how to harm people physically with these occult powers. He, himself, knew how: he could have caused people at the farthest ends of the Earth to die had he chosen to do so, but he never did. Dear old Chand Kabi never harmed anyone."

"Were I you I should experiment," said Ero Sham "It might prove useful sometimes to be able to kill one's enemies at a distance. Why, you could win a whole war all by yourself."

"I am content with what I am already able to accomplish," I assured him; "and now if you will devote yourself to meditation for a while, I shall go to work on our fine-feathered friend again."

I did. Presently we heard a great commotion overhead.

Thinly, a voice reached us, screaming for help; and we distinctly heard the words, "He is chasing me! He is chasing me!" There was a lot of running, and we could hear other sounds as of furniture being overturned; then, as I relaxed, things quieted down. I heard Ero Shah chuckle.

Once more the warriors came. They peeked in fearfully.

"You are here?" one demanded.

"Do you not see me?"

"But I just saw you up above chasing the vootogan.

Why did you chase him?"

"Just for fun," I said. "It becomes very tiresome sitting here in this little cell."

"You had better put your mind on other things," snapped the warrior, for tomorrow you die. Morgas has had enough of you."

"Well," remarked Ero Shah after they had left, "it was fun while it lasted; but you seem to have been blown up by your own bomb. What are you going to put your mind on now?"

"On Vanaja and the jailer. This may not be so successful as the other experiment, but I can only try. In the mean time, you may devote yourself to silent prayer."

Ero Shan lapsed into silence, and I went to work on Vanaja and the jailer. I find it more conducive to success to have an accurate picture of my subject's face in my mind while I work on him. Nebulously hopeful, I had fixed the unattractive features of the jailer in my memory.

They were easy to recall, but Vanaja's were easier and much more pleasant.

An hour had elapsed since I had had my last fun with Morgas, and the castle had quieted down again. It was so quiet that I could hear the approach of sandalled feet along the corridor outside our cell.

"He comes!" I said to Ero Shan.