efore her squatted Luud.
Against the opposite wall lay a large and beautiful male rykor. He was
without harness or other trappings.

"You see now," said Luud, "the futility of revolt."

The words seemed to release her momentarily from the spell. Quickly she
turned away her eyes.

"Look at me!" commanded Luud.

Tara of Helium kept her eyes averted. She felt a new strength, or at
least a diminution of the creature's power over her. Had she stumbled
upon the secret of its uncanny domination over her will? She dared not
hope. With eyes averted she turned toward the aperture through which
those baleful eyes had drawn her. Again Luud commanded her to stop, but
the voice alone lacked all authority to influence her. It was not like
the eyes. She heard the creature whistle and knew that it was summoning
assistance, but because she did not dare look toward it she did not see
it turn and concentrate its gaze upon the great, headless body lying by
the further wall.

The girl was still slightly under the spell of the creature's
influence--she had not regained full and independent domination of her
powers. She moved as one in the throes of some hideous
nightmare--slowly, painfully, as though each limb was hampered by a
great weight, or as she were dragging her body through a viscous fluid.
The aperture was close, ah, so close, yet, struggle as she would, she
seemed to be making no appreciable progress toward it.

Behind her, urged on by the malevolent power of the great brain, the
headless body crawled upon all-fours toward her. At last she had
reached the aperture. Something seemed to tell her that once beyond it
the domination of the kaldane would be broken. She was almost through
into the adjoining chamber when she felt a heavy hand close upon her
ankle. The rykor had reached forth and seized her, and though she
struggled the thing dragged her back into the room with Luud. It held
her tight and drew her close, and then, to her horror, it commenced to
caress her.

"You see now," she heard Luud's dull voice, "the futility of
revolt--and its punishment."

Tara of Helium fought to defend herself, but pitifully weak were her
muscles against this brainless incarnation of brute power. Yet she
fought, fought on in the face of hopeless odds for the honor of the
proud name she bore--fought alone, she whom the fighting men of a
mighty empire, the flower of Martian chivalry, would gladly have lain
down their lives to save.

C