Sanoma Tora
This is the story of Hadron of Hastor, Fighting Man of Mars, as narrated by him to Ulysses Paxton:
Esta es la historia de Hadron de Hastor, guerrero de Marte, tal como él la narró a Ulysses Paxton:
I am Tan Hadron of Hastor, my father is Had Urtur, Odwar of the 1st Umak of the Troops of Hastor. He commands the largest ship of war that Hastor has ever contributed to the navy of Helium, accommodating as it does the entire ten thousand men of the 1st Umak, together with five hundred lesser fighting ships and all the paraphernalia of war. My mother is a princess of Gathol.
Yo soy Tan Hadron de Hastor; mi padre es Had Urtur, odwar del 1.er Umak de las Tropas de Hastor. Manda la mayor nave de guerra que Hastor haya aportado jamás a la armada de Helium, capaz de alojar como aloja a los diez mil hombres enteros del 1.er Umak, junto con quinientas naves de combate menores y todo el pertrecho de guerra. Mi madre es una princesa de Gathol.
As a family we are not rich except in honor, and, valuing this above all mundane possessions, I chose the profession of my father rather than a more profitable career. The better to further my ambition I came to the capital of the empire of Helium and took service in the troops of Tardos Mors, Jeddak of Helium, that I might be nearer the great John Carter, Warlord of Mars.
Como familia no somos ricos salvo en honor y, valorándolo por encima de todos los bienes mundanos, escogí la profesión de mi padre antes que una carrera más lucrativa. Para mejor favorecer mi ambición vine a la capital del imperio de Helium y entré al servicio de las tropas de Tardos Mors, jeddak de Helium, con el fin de estar más cerca del gran John Carter, Señor de la Guerra de Marte.
My life in Helium and my career in the army were similar to those of hundreds of other young men. I passed through my training days without notable accomplishment, neither heading nor trailing my fellows, and in due course I was made a Padwar in the 91st Umak, being assigned to the 5th Utan of the 11th Dar.
Mi vida en Helium y mi carrera en el ejército fueron semejantes a las de otros cientos de jóvenes. Pasé mis días de instrucción sin logro notable, sin encabezar ni quedar rezagado entre mis compañeros, y a su debido tiempo fui nombrado padwar en el 91.er Umak, asignado al 5.º Utan del 11.º Dar.
What with being of noble lineage by my father and inheriting royal blood from my mother, the palaces of the twin cities of Helium were always open to me and I entered much into the gay life of the capital. It was thus that I met Sanoma Tora, daughter of Tor Hatan, Odwar of the 91st Umak.
Siendo de noble linaje por parte de mi padre y heredero de sangre real por parte de mi madre, los palacios de las ciudades gemelas de Helium siempre estuvieron abiertos para mí, y me sumergí de lleno en la alegre vida de la capital. Fue así como conocí a Sanoma Tora, hija de Tor Hatan, odwar del 91.er Umak.
Tor Hatan is only of the lower nobility, but he is fabulously rich from the loot of many cities well invested in farm land and mines, and because here in the capital of Helium riches count for more than they do in Hastor, Tor Hatan is a powerful man, whose influence reaches even to the throne of the Jeddak.
Tor Hatan pertenece solo a la baja nobleza, pero es fabulosamente rico gracias al botín de muchas ciudades, bien invertido en tierras de labor y minas; y como aquí, en la capital de Helium, la riqueza cuenta más que en Hastor, Tor Hatan es un hombre poderoso, cuya influencia alcanza incluso al trono del jeddak.
Never shall I forget the occasion upon which I first laid eyes upon Sanoma Tora. It was upon the occasion of a great feast at the marble palace of The Warlord. There were gathered under one roof the most beautiful women of Barsoom, where, notwithstanding the gorgeous and radiant beauty of Dejah Thoris, Tara of Helium and Thuvia of Ptarth, the pulchritude of Sanoma Tora was such as to arrest attention. I shall not say that it was greater than that of those acknowledged queens of Barsoomian loveliness, for I know that my adoration of Sanoma Tora might easily influence my judgment, but there were others there who remarked her gorgeous beauty which differs from that of Dejah Thoris as the chaste beauty of a polar landscape differs from the beauty of the tropics, as the beauty of a white palace in the moonlight differs from the beauty of its garden at midday.
Nunca olvidaré la ocasión en que puse los ojos por primera vez en Sanoma Tora. Fue con motivo de un gran festín en el palacio de mármol del Señor de la Guerra. Se hallaban reunidas bajo un mismo techo las mujeres más hermosas de Barsoom, donde, pese a la espléndida y radiante belleza de Dejah Thoris, esposa de John Carter, Sanoma Tora destacaba tan clara y bella como Thuria entre las estrellas menores del firmamento nocturno.
When at my solicitation I was presented to her, she glanced first at the insignia upon my armor, and noting therefrom that I was but a Padwar, she vouchsafed me but a condescending word and turned her attention again to the Dwar with whom she had been conversing.
Cuando, a instancia mía, me presentaron a ella, echó primero un vistazo a las insignias de mi arnés y, al advertir por ellas que no era más que un padwar, se dignó dedicarme apenas una palabra condescendiente y volvió a prestar su atención al dwar con quien había estado conversando.
I must admit that I was piqued and yet it was, indeed, the contumelious treatment she accorded me that fixed my determination to win her, for the goal most difficult of attainment has always seemed to me the most desirable.
He de admitir que me sentí picado y, sin embargo, fue justamente el trato desdeñoso que me dispensó lo que fijó mi determinación de conquistarla, pues la meta más difícil de alcanzar siempre me ha parecido la más deseable.
And so it was that I fell in love with Sanoma Tora, the daughter of the commander of the Umak to which I was attached.
Y fue así como me enamoré de Sanoma Tora, la hija del comandante del Umak al que yo estaba adscrito.
For a long time I found it difficult to further my suit in the slightest degree; in fact I did not even see Sanoma Tora for several months after our first meeting, since when she found that I was poor as well as low in rank I found it impossible to gain an invitation to her home and it chanced that I did not meet her elsewhere for a long time, but the more inaccessible she became the more I loved her until every waking moment of my time that was not actually occupied by the performance of my military duties was devoted to the devising of new and ever increasingly rash plans to possess her. I even had the madness to consider abducting her, and I believe that I should eventually have gone this far had there been no other way in which I could see her, but about this time a fellow officer of the 91st, in fact the Dwar of the Utan to which I was attached, took pity on me and obtained for me an invitation to a feast in the palace of Tor Hatan.
Durante mucho tiempo me resultó difícil hacer avanzar mi cortejo lo más mínimo; de hecho, ni siquiera vi a Sanoma Tora durante varios meses después de nuestro primer encuentro, pues, al descubrir ella que yo era tan pobre como bajo de rango, me fue imposible conseguir una invitación a su casa, y dio la casualidad de que nuestros deberes nos mantenían tan separados que rara vez podía verla siquiera. Sin embargo, una noche fui invitado a un festín en el palacio de su padre.
My host, who was also my commanding officer, had never noticed me before this evening and I was surprised to note the warmth and cordiality of his greetings.
Mi anfitrión, que era además mi oficial al mando, nunca había reparado en mí antes de aquella velada, y me sorprendió notar la calidez y la cordialidad de sus saludos.
"We must see more of you here, Hadron of Hastor," he had said. "I have been watching you and I prophesy that you will go far in the military service of the Jeddak."
"Debemos verte más por aquí, Hadron de Hastor", había dicho. "Te he estado observando y vaticino que llegarás lejos en el servicio militar del jeddak".
Now I knew he was lying when he said that he had been watching me, for Tor Hatan was notoriously lax in his duties as a commanding officer, all of which were performed by the senior Teedwar of the Umak. While I could not fathom the cause of this sudden interest in me, it was nevertheless very pleasing since through it I might in some degree further my pursuit of the heart and hand of Sanoma Tora.
Ahora bien, yo sabía que mentía al decir que me había estado observando, pues Tor Hatan era notoriamente laxo en sus deberes como oficial al mando, todos ellos desempeñados por el teedwar más veterano del Umak. Aunque no lograba desentrañar la causa de aquel súbito interés por mi persona, no dejaba de resultar muy grato ver que se me acogía con tanta cordialidad en el palacio de Tor Hatan.
Sanoma Tora herself was slightly more cordial than upon the occasion of our first meeting, though she noticeably paid more attention to Sil Vagis than she did to me.
Sanoma Tora, por su parte, se mostró algo más cordial que en la ocasión de nuestro primer encuentro, aunque notoriamente prestaba más atención a Sil Vagis que a mí.
Now if there is any man in Helium whom I particularly detest more than another it is Sil Vagis, a nasty little snob who holds the title of Teedwar, though so far as I was ever able to ascertain he commands no troops, but is merely on the staff of Tor Hatan, principally, I presume, because of the great wealth of his father.
Ahora bien, si hay en Helium un hombre al que detesto en especial más que a ningún otro, es Sil Vagis, un desagradable snob de poca monta que ostenta el título de teedwar, aunque, por lo que jamás pude averiguar, no manda tropa alguna, sino que se limita a formar parte del estado mayor de Tor Hatan, principalmente, supongo, a causa de la gran riqueza y de la relación entre ambas familias.
Such creatures we have to put up with in times of peace, but when war comes and the great Warlord takes command it is the fighting men who rank and riches do not count.
A tales criaturas hemos de soportar en tiempos de paz, pero cuando llega la guerra y el gran Señor de la Guerra toma el mando, son los hombres de combate quienes cuentan, y el rango y la riqueza no valen nada.
But be that as it may, while Sil Vagis spoiled this evening for me as he would spoil many others in the future, nevertheless I left the palace of Tor Hatan that night with a feeling bordering upon elation, for I had Sanoma Tora's permission to see her again in her father's home when my duties would permit me to pay my respects to her.
Pero, sea como fuere, aunque Sil Vagis me estropeó aquella velada como habría de estropearme muchas otras en el futuro, dejé el palacio de Tor Hatan aquella noche con un sentimiento rayano en la euforia, pues tenía el permiso de Sanoma Tora para volver a verla en la casa de su padre cuando mis deberes me lo permitieran.
Returning to my quarters I was accompanied by my friend, the Dwar, and when I commented on the warmth of Tor Hatan's reception of me he laughed.
De vuelta a mis aposentos me acompañó mi amigo, el dwar, y cuando comenté la calidez con que Tor Hatan me había recibido, se echó a reír.
"You find it amusing," I said. "Why?"
"Te resulta divertido", dije. "¿Por qué?"
"Tor Hatan, as you know," he said, "is very rich and powerful, and yet it is seldom, as you may have noticed, that he is invited to any one of the four places of Helium in which ambitious men most crave to be seen."
"Tor Hatan, como sabes", dijo, "es muy rico y poderoso y, sin embargo, rara vez, como habrás notado, se le invita a alguno de los cuatro lugares de Helium en los que los hombres ambiciosos más ansían dejarse ver."
"You mean the palaces of the Warlord, the Jeddak, the Jed and Carthoris?" I asked.
"¿Te refieres a los palacios del Señor de la Guerra, del jeddak, del jed y de Carthoris?", pregunté.
"Of course," he replied. "What other four in Helium count for so much as these? Tor Hatan," he continued, "is supposed to come from the lower nobility, but there is a question in my mind as to whether there is a drop of noble blood in his veins, and one of the facts upon which I base my conjecture is his cringing and fawning reverence for anything pertaining to royalty--he would give his fat soul to be considered an intimate of any one of the four."
"Por supuesto", respondió. "¿Qué otros cuatro en Helium cuentan tanto como estos? Se supone", prosiguió, "que Tor Hatan procede de la baja nobleza, pero tengo mis dudas sobre si corre una sola gota de sangre noble por sus venas, y uno de los hechos en que fundo mi conjetura es que rara vez se le ve en ninguno de esos cuatro palacios."
"But what has that to do with me?" I demanded.
"Pero ¿qué tiene eso que ver conmigo?", quise saber.
"A great deal," he replied; "in fact, because of it you were invited to his palace tonight."
"Muchísimo", respondió; "de hecho, a causa de ello fuiste invitado esta noche a su palacio."
"I do not understand," I said.
"No lo entiendo", dije.
"I chanced to be talking with Tor Hatan the morning of the day you received your invitation and in the course of our conversation I mentioned you. He had never heard of you, and as a Padwar in the 5th Utan you aroused his interest not a particle, but when I told him that your mother was a princess of Gathol, he pricked up his ears, and when he learned that you were received as a friend and equal in the palaces of the four demigods of Helium, he became almost enthusiastic about you. Now do you understand?" he concluded with a short laugh.
"Dio la casualidad de que hablaba con Tor Hatan la mañana del día en que recibiste tu invitación y, en el curso de nuestra conversación, te mencioné. Nunca había oído hablar de ti y, como padwar del 5.º Utan, no despertaste su interés lo más mínimo; pero cuando le dije que tu madre era princesa de Gathol, se apresuró a hacer que te invitaran, pues, aunque Tor Hatan quizá no tenga sangre noble en las venas, su hija sí la tiene por parte de su madre, y sospecho que abriga la ambición de casarla dentro de una casa real, con lo cual la sangre real de Gathol sería no poca baza. ¿Me comprendes?"
"Perfectly," I replied, "but none the less, I thank you. All that I wanted was the opportunity and inasmuch as I was prepared to achieve it criminally if necessary, I cannot quibble over any means that were employed to obtain it, however unflattering they may be to me."
"Perfectamente", respondí, "pero, aun así, te lo agradezco. Todo cuanto yo quería era la oportunidad y, dado que estaba dispuesto a lograrla por medios criminales si hacía falta, no puedo poner reparos a ningún medio empleado para obtenerla, por poco halagüeño que me resulte."
For months I haunted the palace of Tor Hatan, and being naturally a good conversationalist and well schooled in the stately dances and joyous games of Barsoom, I was by no means an unwelcome visitor. Also I made it a point often to take Sanoma Tora to one or another of the four great palaces of Helium. I was always welcome because of the blood relationship which existed between my mother and Gahan of Gathol, who had married Tara of Helium.
Durante meses frecuenté el palacio de Tor Hatan y, siendo por naturaleza buen conversador y estando bien versado en las solemnes danzas y los alegres juegos de Barsoom, no era en modo alguno un visitante indeseado. Además me hacía un deber llevar a menudo a Sanoma Tora a uno u otro de los cuatro grandes palacios de Helium, lo cual me valía en no escasa medida el favor de Tor Hatan.
Naturally I felt that I was progressing well with my suit, but my progress was not fast enough to keep pace with the racing desires of my passion. Never had I known love before and I felt that I should die if I did not soon possess Sanoma Tora, and so it was that upon a certain night I visited the palace of her father definitely determined to lay my heart and sword at her feet before I left, and, although the natural complexes of a lover convinced me that I was an unworthy worm, that she would be wholly justified in spurning, I was yet determined to declare myself so that I might openly be accounted a suitor, which, after all, gives one greater freedom even though he be not entirely a favored suitor.
Naturalmente, sentía que progresaba bien en mi cortejo, pero mi progreso no era lo bastante rápido para ir al paso de los desbocados anhelos de mi pasión. Nunca antes había conocido el amor y sentía que moriría si no llegaba pronto a poseer a Sanoma Tora, y así fue como cierta noche visité el palacio de Tor Hatan resuelto a poner mi suerte a prueba.
It was one of those lovely nights that transform old Barsoom into a world of enchantment. Thuria and Cluros were racing through the heavens casting their soft light upon the garden of Tor Hatan, empurpling the vivid, scarlet sward and lending strange hues to the gorgeous blooms of pimalia and sorapus, while the winding walks, gravelled with semi-precious stones, shot back a thousand scintillant rays that, clothed in ever-changing colors, danced at the feet of the marble statuary that lent an added artistic charm to the ensemble.
Era una de esas noches encantadoras que transforman al viejo Barsoom en un mundo de sortilegio. Thuria y Cluros corrían por los cielos derramando su suave luz sobre el jardín de Tor Hatan, purpureando el vívido césped escarlata y prestando extraños matices a las espléndidas flores de la pimalia y del sorapus, mientras la fragancia de mil pimalias impregnaba el aire.
In one of the spacious halls that overlooked the garden of the palace, a youth and a maiden sat upon a massive bench of rich sorapus wood, such a bench as might have graced the halls of the great Jeddak himself, so intricate its rich design, so perfect the carving of the master craftsman who produced it.
En uno de los amplios salones que daban al jardín del palacio, un joven y una doncella estaban sentados en un macizo banco de rica madera de sorapus, un banco tal que podría haber engalanado los salones del propio gran jeddak, tan intrincado era su rico diseño, tan perfecta la talla del maestro artesano que lo produjo.
Upon the leathern harness of the youth were the insignia of his rank and service--a Padwar in the 91st Umak. The youth was I, Hadron of Hastor, and with me was Sanoma Tora, daughter of Tor Hatan. I had come filled with the determination boldly to plead my cause, but suddenly I had become aware of my unworthiness. What had I to offer this beautiful daughter of the rich Tor Hatan? I was only a Padwar, and a poor one at that. Of course, there was the royal blood of Gathol in my veins, and that, I knew, would have weight with Tor Hatan, but I am not given to boasting and I could not have reminded Sanoma Tora of the advantages to be derived because of it even had I known positively that it would influence her. I had, therefore, nothing to offer but my great love, which is, perhaps, after all, the greatest gift that man or woman can bring to another, and I had thought of late that Sanoma Tora might love me. Upon several occasions she had sent for me, and, although in each instance she had suggested going to the palace of Tara of Helium, I had been vain enough to hope that this was not her sole reason for wishing to be with me.
Sobre el arnés de cuero del joven lucían las insignias de su rango y servicio: padwar del 91.er Umak. El joven era yo, Hadron de Hastor, y conmigo estaba Sanoma Tora, hija de Tor Hatan. Había ido decidido a defender con audacia mi causa, pero de pronto había caído en la cuenta de mi propia insignificancia y me había quedado mudo.
"You are uninteresting tonight, Hadron of Hastor," she said after a particularly long silence, during which I had been endeavoring to formulate my proposal in some convincing and graceful phrases.
"Estás poco interesante esta noche, Hadron de Hastor", dijo tras un silencio particularmente largo, durante el cual yo me había afanado en formular mi propuesta con frases convincentes y elegantes.
"Perhaps," I replied, "it is because I am trying to find the words in which to clothe the most interesting thought I have ever entertained."
"Quizá", respondí, "sea porque trato de encontrar las palabras con que revestir el pensamiento más interesante que jamás haya albergado."
"And what is that?" she asked politely, though with no great show of interest.
"¿Y cuál es?", preguntó cortésmente, aunque sin gran muestra de interés.
"I love you, Sanoma Tora," I blurted awkwardly.
"Te amo, Sanoma Tora", solté con torpeza.
She laughed. It was like the tinkling of silver upon crystal--beautiful but cold. "That has been apparent for a long while," she said, "but why speak of it?"
Ella se rió. Fue como el tintineo de la plata sobre el cristal: hermoso, pero frío. "Eso hace tiempo que es evidente", dijo, "pero ¿para qué hablar de ello?"
"And why not?" I asked.
"¿Y por qué no?", pregunté.
"Because even if I returned your love, I am not for you, Hadron of Hastor," she replied coldly.
"Porque, aunque correspondiera a tu amor, no soy para ti, Hadron de Hastor", respondió con frialdad.
"You cannot love me then, Sanoma Tora?" I asked.
"¿Entonces no puedes amarme, Sanoma Tora?", pregunté.
"I did not say that," she replied.
"No he dicho eso", respondió.
"You could love me?"
"¿Podrías amarme?"
"I could love you if I permitted myself the weakness," she said, "but what is love?"
"Podría amarte si me permitiera esa debilidad", dijo, "pero ¿qué es el amor?"
"Love is everything," I told her.
"El amor lo es todo", le dije.
Sanoma Tora laughed. "If you think that I would link myself for life to a threadbare Padwar even if I loved him, you are mistaken," she said haughtily. "I am the daughter of Tor Hatan, whose wealth and power are but little less than those of the royal families of Helium. I have suitors whose wealth is so great that they could buy you a thousand times over. Within the year an emissary of the Jeddak Tul Axtar of Jahar waited upon my father; he had seen me and he said that he would return, and, merely for love, you would ask me, who may some day be Jeddara of Jahar, to become the wife of a poor Padwar."
Sanoma Tora se rió. "Si crees que yo me ataría de por vida a un padwar pelagatos aunque lo amara, te equivocas", dijo con altivez. "Soy la hija de Tor Hatan, cuya riqueza y poder son apenas menores que los de las familias reales de Helium. Tengo pretendientes cuya riqueza es tan grande que podrían comprarte mil veces. Dentro del año un emisario del jeddak Tul Axtar de Jahar visitó a mi padre; me había visto y dijo que volvería, y, por puro amor, tú, que quizá algún día sea jeddara de Jahar, me pedirías que me convirtiera en la esposa de un pobre padwar."
I arose. "Perhaps you are right," I said. "You are so beautiful that it does not seem possible that you could be wrong, but deep in my heart I cannot but feel that happiness is the greatest treasure that one may possess, and love the greatest power. Without these, Sanoma Tora, even a Jeddara is poor indeed."
Me levanté. "Quizá tengas razón", dije. "Eres tan hermosa que no parece posible que puedas equivocarte, pero en lo hondo de mi corazón no puedo dejar de sentir que la felicidad es el mayor tesoro que uno puede poseer, y el amor el mayor poder. Sin ellos, Sanoma Tora, hasta una jeddara es pobre de veras."
"I shall take my chance," she said.
"Correré ese riesgo", dijo.
"I hope that the Jeddak of Jahar is not as greasy as his emissary," I remarked rather peevishly, I am afraid.
"Espero que el jeddak de Jahar no sea tan untuoso como su emisario", observé más bien con enfado, me temo.
"He may be an animated grease-pot for all I care if he will make me his Jeddara," said Sanoma Tora.
"Puede ser un puchero de grasa con vida, por lo que a mí respecta, si me convierte en su jeddara", dijo Sanoma Tora.
"Then there is no hope for me?" I asked.
"¿Entonces no hay esperanza para mí?", pregunté.
"Not while you have so little to offer, Padwar," she replied.
"No mientras tengas tan poco que ofrecer, padwar", respondió.
It was then that a slave announced Sil Vagis, and I took my leave. I had never before plumbed such depths of despondency as that which engulfed me as I made my unhappy way back to my quarters, but even though hope seemed dead I had not relinquished my determination to win her. If wealth and power were her price, then I would achieve wealth and power. Just how I was going to accomplish it was not entirely clear, but I was young and to youth all things are possible.
Fue entonces cuando un esclavo anunció a Sil Vagis, y me despedí. Nunca antes había sondeado tales abismos de desaliento como el que me engulló mientras emprendía mi desdichado regreso a mis aposentos; pero, aunque la esperanza pareciera muerta, no había renunciado a mi determinación de conquistarla. Si la riqueza y el poder eran las únicas llaves de su corazón, entonces yo obtendría riqueza y poder. Cómo, no lo sabía, pero pronto lo averiguaría.
I had tossed in wakefulness upon my sleeping silks and furs for some time when an officer of the guard burst suddenly into my quarters.
Llevaba un rato dando vueltas en vela sobre mis sedas y pieles de dormir cuando un oficial de la guardia irrumpió de súbito en mis aposentos.
"Hadron!" he shouted, "are you here?"
"¡Hadron!", gritó, "¿estás aquí?"
"Yes," I replied.
"Sí", respondí.
"Praised be the ashes of my ancestors!" he exclaimed. "I feared that you were not."
"¡Alabadas sean las cenizas de mis antepasados!", exclamó. "Temía que no."
"Why should I not be?" I demanded. "What is this all about?"
"¿Por qué no habría de estarlo?", quise saber. "¿A qué viene todo esto?"
"Tor Hatan, the fat old treasure bag, is gone mad," he exclaimed.
"Tor Hatan, el viejo y gordo saco de tesoros, ha enloquecido", exclamó.
"Tor Hatan gone mad? What do you mean? What has that got to do with me?"
"¿Que Tor Hatan ha enloquecido? ¿Qué quieres decir? ¿Qué tiene eso que ver conmigo?"
"He swears that you have abducted his daughter."
"Jura que has raptado a su hija."
In an instant I was upon my feet. "Abducted Sanoma Tora!" I cried. "Has something happened to her? Tell me, quickly."
En un instante estuve en pie. "¿Raptado a Sanoma Tora?", grité. "¿Le ha pasado algo? Dímelo, rápido."
"Yes, she is gone, all right," said my informant, "and there is something mighty mysterious about it."
"Sí, se ha ido, desde luego", dijo mi informante, "y hay algo de lo más misterioso en todo ello."
But I did not wait to hear more. Seizing my harness, I adjusted it as I ran up the spiral runway toward the hangars on the roof of the barracks. I had no authority or permit to take out a flier, but what did that mean to me if Sanoma Tora was in danger?
Pero no aguardé a oír más. Empuñando mi arnés, me lo ajusté mientras subía corriendo por la rampa en espiral hacia los hangares del techo del cuartel. No tenía autorización ni permiso para sacar un volador, pero ¿qué me importaba eso si Sanoma Tora estaba en peligro?
The hangar guards sought to detain and question me. I do not recall what I told them; I know that I must have lied to them, for they let me run out a swift one-man flier and an instant later I was racing through the night toward the palace of Tor Hatan.
Los guardias del hangar trataron de detenerme e interrogarme. No recuerdo qué les dije; sé que debí de mentirles, pues me dejaron sacar un veloz volador monoplaza y, un instante después, cruzaba raudo la noche rumbo al palacio de Tor Hatan.
As it stands but little more than two haads from the barracks, I was there in but a few moments, and, as I landed in the garden, which was now brilliantly lighted, I saw a number of people congregated there, among whom were Tor Hatan and Sil Vagis.
Como este se alza a poco más de dos haads del cuartel, llegué allí en unos pocos momentos y, al aterrizar en el jardín, ahora brillantemente iluminado, vi congregadas a numerosas personas, entre las cuales estaban Tor Hatan y Sil Vagis.
As I leaped from the deck of the flier, the former came angrily toward me. "So it is you!" he cried. "What have you to say for yourself? Where is my daughter?"
En cuanto salté de la cubierta del volador, el primero vino hacia mí furioso. "¡Así que eres tú!", gritó. "¿Qué tienes que alegar en tu favor? ¿Dónde está mi hija?"
"That is what I have come to ask, Tor Hatan," I replied.
"Eso es lo que he venido a preguntar, Tor Hatan", respondí.
"You are at the bottom of this," he cried. "You abducted her. She told Sil Vagis that this very night you had demanded her hand in marriage and that she had refused you."
"Tú estás detrás de esto", gritó. "Tú la raptaste. Le dijo a Sil Vagis que esta misma noche le habías pedido su mano en matrimonio y que ella te había rechazado."
"I did ask for her hand," I said, "and she refused me. That part is true; but if she has been abducted, in the name of your first ancestor, do not waste time trying to connect me with the diabolical plot. I had nothing to do with it. How did it happen? Who was with her?"
"Sí que pedí su mano", dije, "y me rechazó. Esa parte es cierta; pero si la han raptado, en nombre de tu primer antepasado, no pierdas el tiempo tratando de vincularme a la diabólica intriga. Yo no he tenido nada que ver. ¿Cómo ocurrió? ¿Quién estaba con ella?"
"Sil Vagis was with her. They were walking in the garden," replied Tor Hatan.
"Sil Vagis estaba con ella. Paseaban por el jardín", respondió Tor Hatan.
"You saw her abducted," I asked, turning to Sil Vagis, "and you are here unwounded and alive?"
"Tú la viste raptar", pregunté, volviéndome hacia Sil Vagis, "¿y estás aquí ileso y con vida?"
He started to stammer. "There were many of them," he said. "They overpowered me."
Él empezó a tartamudear. "Eran muchos", dijo. "Me redujeron."
"You saw them?" I asked.
"¿Los viste?", pregunté.
"Yes."
"Sí."
"Was I among them?" I demanded.
"¿Estaba yo entre ellos?", exigí.
"It was dark. I could not recognize any of them; perhaps they were disguised."
"Estaba oscuro. No pude reconocer a ninguno; tal vez iban disfrazados."
"They overpowered you?" I asked him.
"¿Te redujeron?", le pregunté.
"Yes," he said.
"Sí", dijo.
"You lie!" I exclaimed. "Had they laid hands upon you they would have killed you. You ran away and hid, never drawing a weapon to defend the girl."
"¡Mientes!", exclamé. "Si te hubieran puesto las manos encima, te habrían matado. Huiste y te escondiste, sin desenvainar un arma para defender a la muchacha."
"That is a lie," cried Sil Vagis. "I fought with them, but they overpowered me."
"Eso es mentira", gritó Sil Vagis. "Luché con ellos, pero me redujeron."
I turned to Tor Hatan. "We are wasting time," I said. "Is there no one who can give us a clue as to the identity of these men and the direction they took in their flight? How and whence came they? How and whence did they depart?"
Me volví hacia Tor Hatan. "Estamos perdiendo el tiempo", dije. "¿No hay nadie que pueda darnos una pista sobre la identidad de esos hombres y la dirección que tomaron en su huida? ¿Cómo y de dónde vinieron? ¿Cómo y hacia dónde partieron?"
"He is trying to throw you off the track, Tor Hatan," said Sil Vagis. "Who else could it have been but a disgruntled suitor? What would you say if I should tell you that the metal of the men who stole Sanoma Tora was the metal of the warriors of Hastor?"
"Trata de despistarte, Tor Hatan", dijo Sil Vagis. "¿Quién podría haber sido sino un pretendiente despechado? ¿Qué dirías si te dijera que el metal de los hombres que robaron a Sanoma Tora era el metal de los guerreros de Hastor?"
"I would say that you are a liar," I replied. "If it was so dark that you could not recognize faces, how could you decipher the insignia upon their harness?"
"Diría que eres un mentiroso", respondí. "Si estaba tan oscuro que no pudiste reconocer los rostros, ¿cómo pudiste descifrar las insignias de sus arneses?"
At this juncture another officer of the 91st Umak joined us. "We have found one who may, perhaps, shed some light upon the subject," he said, "if he lives long enough to speak."
En esa coyuntura se nos unió otro oficial del 91.er Umak. "Hemos hallado a uno que quizá pueda arrojar algo de luz sobre el asunto", dijo, "si vive lo bastante para hablar."
Men had been searching the grounds of Tor Hatan and that portion of the city adjacent to his palace, and now several approached bearing a man, whom they laid upon the sward at our feet. His broken and mangled body was entirely naked, and as he lay there gasping feebly for breath, he was a pitiful spectacle.
Se había estado registrando la finca de Tor Hatan y la parte de la ciudad contigua a su palacio, y ahora varios hombres se acercaban portando a uno al que depositaron sobre el césped a nuestros pies. Su cuerpo roto y destrozado estaba enteramente desnudo y, mientras yacía allí jadeando débilmente en busca de aliento, ofrecía un espectáculo lastimoso.
A slave dispatched into the palace returned with stimulants, and when some of these had been forced between his lips, the man revived slightly.
Un esclavo enviado al interior del palacio regresó con estimulantes y, cuando se le hubo forzado a tomar algunos entre los labios, el hombre revivió ligeramente.
"Who are you?" asked Tor Hatan.
"¿Quién eres?", preguntó Tor Hatan.
"I am a warrior of the city guard," replied the man feebly.
"Soy un guerrero de la guardia de la ciudad", respondió el hombre con debilidad.
An officer approached Tor Hatan excitedly. "My men have just found six more bodies close to the point at which we discovered this man," he said. "They are all naked and similarly broken and mangled."
Un oficial se acercó a Tor Hatan con agitación. "Mis hombres acaban de encontrar seis cuerpos más cerca del punto donde hallamos a este", dijo. "Están todos desnudos y de igual modo rotos y destrozados."
"Perhaps we shall get to the bottom of this yet," said Tor Hatan, and, turning again to the poor, broken thing upon the scarlet sward, he directed him to proceed.
"Quizá lleguemos al fondo de esto todavía", dijo Tor Hatan y, volviéndose de nuevo hacia la pobre cosa rota sobre el césped escarlata, le indicó que prosiguiera.
"We were on night patrol over the city when we saw a craft running without lights. As we approached it and turned our searchlight upon it, I caught a single, brief glimpse of it. It bore no colors or insignia to denote its origin and its design was unlike that of any ship I have ever seen. It had a long, low, enclosed cabin upon either side of which were mounted two peculiar looking guns. This was all I had time to note, except that I saw a man directing one of the guns in our direction. The padwar in command of our ship immediately gave orders to fire upon the stranger, and at the same time he hailed him. At that instant our ship dissolved in mid-air; even my harness fell from me. I remember falling, that is all," and with these words he gasped once and died.
"Estábamos en patrulla nocturna sobre la ciudad cuando vimos una nave que navegaba sin luces. Al acercarnos y volver nuestro reflector hacia ella, alcancé a atisbarla un instante, uno solo. No lucía colores ni insignia que denotaran su origen, y su diseño era distinto del de cualquier nave que yo haya visto jamás. Tenía una cabina larga, baja y cerrada, a ambos lados de la cual iban montados dos cañones de aspecto peculiar. Esto fue todo lo que me dio tiempo a notar, salvo que vi a un hombre dirigiendo uno de los cañones en nuestra dirección. El padwar al mando de nuestra nave ordenó de inmediato hacer fuego sobre el desconocido y, al mismo tiempo, lo interpeló. En ese instante nuestra nave se disolvió en pleno aire; hasta mi arnés se desprendió de mí. Recuerdo caer, eso es todo", y con estas palabras dio un último jadeo y murió.
Tor Hatan called his people around him. "There must have been someone about the palace or the grounds who saw something of this occurrence," he said. "I command that no matter who may be involved, whoever has any knowledge whatsoever of this affair, shall speak."
Tor Hatan reunió a su gente en torno a sí. "Tuvo que haber alguien en el palacio o en los terrenos que viera algo de lo ocurrido", dijo. "Ordeno que, sin importar quién pueda estar implicado, quienquiera que tenga cualquier conocimiento de este asunto, hable."
A slave stepped forward, and as he approached Tor Hatan eyed him with haughty arrogance.
Un esclavo dio un paso al frente y, al acercarse, Tor Hatan lo miró con altiva arrogancia.
"Well," demanded the odwar, "what have you to say? Speak!"
"Bien", exigió el odwar, "¿qué tienes que decir? ¡Habla!"
"You have commanded it, Tor Hatan," said the slave; "otherwise I should not speak, for when I have told what I saw I shall have incurred the enmity of a powerful noble," and he glanced quickly toward Sil Vagis.
"Tú lo has ordenado, Tor Hatan", dijo el esclavo; "de lo contrario no hablaría, pues, cuando haya contado lo que vi, me habré ganado la enemistad de un poderoso noble", y lanzó una rápida mirada hacia Sil Vagis.
"And if you speak the truth, man, you will have won the friendship of a padwar whose sword is not so mean but that it may protect you even from a powerful noble," I said quickly, and I, too, glanced at Sil Vagis, for it was in my mind that what the fellow had to tell might be none too flattering to the soft fop who masqueraded beneath the title of a warrior.
"Y si dices la verdad, hombre, te habrás ganado la amistad de un padwar cuya espada no es tan mezquina que no pueda protegerte incluso de un poderoso noble", dije yo rápidamente, y también yo miré a Sil Vagis, pues tenía en mente que lo que el hombre tuviera que contar quizá no resultara nada halagüeño para él.
"Speak!" commanded Tor Hatan impatiently. "And see to it that thou dost not lie."
"¡Habla!", ordenó Tor Hatan con impaciencia. "Y cuida de no mentir."
"For fourteen years I have served faithfully in your palace, Tor Hatan," replied the man, "ever since I was brought to Helium a prisoner of war after the fall and sack of Kobol, where I served in the body guard of the Jed of Kobol, and in all that time you have had no reason to question my truthfulness. Sanoma Tora trusted me, and had I had a sword this night she might still be with us."
"Durante catorce años he servido fielmente en tu palacio, Tor Hatan", respondió el hombre, "desde que fui traído a Helium prisionero de guerra tras la caída y el saqueo de Kobol, donde serví en la guardia personal del jed de Kobol, y en todo ese tiempo no has tenido motivo para dudar de mi veracidad. Sanoma Tora confiaba en mí y, de haber tenido yo una espada esta noche, quizá aún estaría con nosotros."
"Come! Come!" cried Tor Hatan; "get to the point. What saw you?"
"¡Vamos! ¡Vamos!", gritó Tor Hatan; "ve al grano. ¿Qué viste?"
"The fellow saw nothing," snapped Sil Vagis. "Why waste time upon him? He seeks but to glory in a little brief notoriety."
"El tipo no vio nada", espetó Sil Vagis. "¿Para qué perder el tiempo con él? No busca sino gloriarse en una breve y fugaz notoriedad."
"Let him speak," I exclaimed.
"Que hable", exclamé.
"I had just ascended the first ramp to the second level of the palace," explained the slave, "on my way to the sleeping quarters of Tor Hatan to arrange his sleeping silks and furs for the night as is my custom, and, pausing for a moment to look out into the garden, I saw Sanoma Tora and Sil Vagis walking in the moonlight. Conscious that I should not thus observe them, I was about to continue on my way about my duties when I saw a flier dropping silently out of the night toward the garden. Its motors were noiseless, it showed no light. It seemed a spectral ship and of such strange design that even if for no other reason it would have arrested my attention, but there were other reasons. Unlighted ships move through the night for no good purpose, and so I paused to watch it.
"Acababa de subir por la primera rampa al segundo nivel del palacio", explicó el esclavo, "camino de los aposentos de Tor Hatan para disponer sus sedas y pieles de dormir para la noche, como es mi costumbre, y, deteniéndome un momento a mirar hacia el jardín, vi a Sanoma Tora y a Sil Vagis paseando a la luz de la luna. Consciente de que no debía observarlos así, iba a proseguir mi camino cuando vi un volador que descendía en silencio de la noche hacia el jardín. Sus motores no hacían ruido, no mostraba luz alguna. Parecía una nave espectral y de diseño tan extraño que, aunque solo fuera por eso, habría llamado mi atención; pero había otras razones. Las naves sin luces se mueven por la noche sin buen propósito, y por eso me detuve a observarla.
"It landed silently and quickly behind Sanoma Tora and Sil Vagis; nor did they seem aware of its presence until their attention was attracted by the slight clanking of the accoutrements of one of the several warriors who sprang from its low cabin as it grounded. Then Sil Vagis wheeled about. For just an instant he stood as though petrified and then as the strange warriors leaped toward him, he turned and fled into the concealing shrubbery of the garden."
"Aterrizó silenciosa y velozmente detrás de Sanoma Tora y de Sil Vagis; ni ellos parecieron advertir su presencia hasta que les llamó la atención el leve tintineo de los pertrechos de uno de los varios guerreros que saltaron de su baja cabina al tomar tierra. Entonces Sil Vagis giró en redondo. Por un solo instante se quedó como petrificado y luego, cuando los extraños guerreros se lanzaron hacia él, dio media vuelta y huyó a la espesura ocultadora del jardín."
"It is a lie," cried Sil Vagis.
"Es mentira", gritó Sil Vagis.
"Silence, coward!" I commanded.
"¡Silencio, cobarde!", ordené.
"Continue, slave!" directed Tor Hatan.
"Continúa, esclavo", indicó Tor Hatan.
"Sanoma Tora was not aware of the presence of the strange warriors until she was seized roughly from behind. It all happened so quickly that I scarce had time to realize the purpose of the sinister visitation before they laid hands upon her. When I comprehended that my mistress was the object of this night attack, I rushed hurriedly down the ramp, but ere I reached the garden they had dragged her aboard the flier. Even then, however, had I had a sword I might at least have died in the service of Sanoma Tora, for I reached the ship of mystery as the last warrior was clambering aboard. I seized him by the harness and attempted to drag him to the ground, at the same time shouting loudly to attract the palace guard, but ere I did so one of his fellows on the deck above me drew his long sword and struck viciously at my head. The blade caught me but a glancing blow which, however, sufficed to stun me for a moment, so that I relaxed my hold upon the strange warrior and fell to the sward. When I regained consciousness the ship had gone and the tardy palace guard was pouring from the guard room. I have spoken--and spoken truthfully."
"Sanoma Tora no advirtió la presencia de los extraños guerreros hasta que la asieron con brutalidad por detrás. Todo sucedió tan deprisa que apenas tuve tiempo de comprender el propósito de la siniestra visita antes de que le pusieran las manos encima. Cuando entendí que mi señora era el objeto de aquel ataque nocturno, bajé apresurado por la rampa, pero antes de que llegara al jardín ya la habían arrastrado a bordo del volador. Aun así, sin embargo, de haber tenido una espada, al menos habría podido morir al servicio de Sanoma Tora, pues alcancé la nave del misterio cuando el último guerrero trepaba a bordo. Lo así por el arnés e intenté arrastrarlo al suelo, gritando al mismo tiempo con fuerza para atraer a la guardia del palacio, pero, apenas lo hube hecho, uno de sus compañeros en la cubierta de arriba desenvainó su espada larga y descargó un golpe feroz contra mi cabeza. La hoja no me alcanzó sino de refilón, lo que, con todo, bastó para aturdirme un momento, de modo que aflojé mi presa sobre el extraño guerrero y caí sobre el césped. Cuando recobré el sentido, la nave se había ido y la tardía guardia del palacio salía en tropel del cuerpo de guardia. He hablado, y he hablado con verdad."
Tor Hatan's cold gaze sought out the lowered eyes of Sil Vagis. "What have you to say to this?" he demanded.
La fría mirada de Tor Hatan buscó los ojos bajos de Sil Vagis. "¿Qué tienes que decir a esto?", exigió.
"The fellow is in the employ of Hadron of Hastor," shouted Sil Vagis. "He speaks nothing but lies. I attacked them when they came, but there were many and they overpowered me. This fellow was not present."
"El tipo está a sueldo de Hadron de Hastor", vociferó Sil Vagis. "No dice más que mentiras. Los ataqué cuando vinieron, pero eran muchos y me redujeron. Este individuo no estaba presente."
"Let me see thy head," I said to the slave, and when he had come and knelt before me I saw a great red welt the length of one side of his head above the ear, just such a welt as a glancing blow from the flat side of a long sword might have made. "Here," I said to Tor Hatan, pointing to the great welt, "is the proof of a slave's loyalty and courage. Let us see the wounds received by a noble of Helium who by his own testimony engaged in single-handed combat against great odds. Surely in such an encounter he must have received at least a single scratch."
"Déjame ver tu cabeza", dije al esclavo y, cuando hubo venido y se hubo arrodillado ante mí, vi un gran verdugón rojo a lo largo de un lado de la cabeza, por encima de la oreja, justo tal verdugón como el que habría dejado un golpe de refilón con el plano de una espada larga. "Aquí", dije a Tor Hatan, señalando el gran verdugón, "está la prueba de la lealtad y el valor de un esclavo. Veamos ahora las heridas recibidas por un noble de Helium que, según su propio testimonio, se batió sin ayuda contra grandes desventajas. Sin duda, en semejante lance, debió de recibir al menos un solo rasguño."
"Unless he is as marvelous a swordsman as the great John Carter himself," said the dwar of the palace guard with a thinly veiled sneer.
"A menos que sea tan portentoso espadachín como el propio gran John Carter", dijo el dwar de la guardia del palacio con una burla apenas velada.
"It is all a plot," cried Sil Vagis. "Do you take the word of a slave, Tor Hatan, against that of a noble of Helium?"
"Todo esto es una intriga", gritó Sil Vagis. "¿Vas a dar crédito a la palabra de un esclavo, Tor Hatan, contra la de un noble de Helium?"
"I rely on the testimony of my eyes and my senses," replied the odwar, and he turned his back upon Sil Vagis and again addressed the slave. "Didst thou recognize any of those who abducted Sanoma Tora," he demanded, "or note their harness or their metal?"
"Me atengo al testimonio de mis ojos y de mis sentidos", respondió el odwar, y dio la espalda a Sil Vagis y se dirigió de nuevo al esclavo. "¿Reconociste a alguno de los que raptaron a Sanoma Tora", exigió, "o reparaste en su arnés o en su metal?"
"I got no good look at the face of any of them, but I did see the harness and the metal of him whom I tried to drag from the flier."
"No pude ver bien el rostro de ninguno de ellos, pero sí vi el arnés y el metal de aquel al que intenté arrancar del volador."
"Was it the metal of Hastor?" asked Tor Hatan.
"¿Era el metal de Hastor?", preguntó Tor Hatan.
"By my first ancestor, it was not," replied the slave emphatically; "nor was it the metal of any other city of the Empire of Helium. The design and the insignia were unknown to me, and yet there was a certain familiarity about them that tantalizes me. I feel that I have seen them before, but when and where I cannot recall. In the service of my jed I fought invaders from many lands and it may be that upon some of these I saw similar metal many years ago."
"Por mi primer antepasado, no lo era", respondió el esclavo con énfasis; "ni tampoco era el metal de ninguna otra ciudad del Imperio de Helium. El diseño y la insignia me eran desconocidos y, sin embargo, había en ellos cierta familiaridad que me atormenta. Siento que los he visto antes, pero cuándo y dónde no logro recordarlo. Al servicio de mi jed combatí a invasores de muchas tierras, y bien puede ser que en alguno de ellos viera un metal semejante hace muchos años."
"Are you satisfied, Tor Hatan," I demanded, "that the aspersions cast upon me by Sil Vagis are without foundation?"
"¿Estás satisfecho, Tor Hatan", exigí, "de que las imputaciones que me lanza Sil Vagis carecen de fundamento?"
"Yes, Hadron of Hastor," replied the odwar.
"Sí, Hadron de Hastor", respondió el odwar.
"Then with your leave, I shall depart," I said.
"Entonces, con tu permiso, me marcho", dije.
"Where are you going?" he asked.
"¿Adónde vas?", preguntó.
"To find Sanoma Tora," I replied.
"A encontrar a Sanoma Tora", respondí.
"And if you find her," he said, "and return her safely to me, she is yours."
"Y si la encuentras", dijo, "y me la devuelves sana y salva, es tuya."
I made no other acknowledgment of his generous offer than to bow deeply, for I had it in my mind that Sanoma Tora might have something to say about that, and whether she had or not, I wished no mate who came not to me willingly.
No di a su generosa oferta otro reconocimiento que una profunda reverencia, pues tenía en mente que Sanoma Tora tal vez tuviera algo que decir al respecto y, lo tuviera o no, yo no quería compañera que no viniera a mí de buen grado.
Leaping to the deck of the flier that brought me I rose into the night and sped in the direction of the marble palace of the Warlord of Barsoom, for, even though the hour was late, I was determined to see him without an instant's unnecessary loss of time.
Saltando a la cubierta del volador que me había traído, me alcé en la noche y partí raudo en dirección al palacio de mármol del Señor de la Guerra de Barsoom, pues, aun cuando la hora era tardía, estaba decidido a verlo sin la más mínima e innecesaria pérdida de tiempo.