The Daily Alaska empire., 1934-03-08
GODDESS
by Herbert Jensen

ly. She lifted her head: her eyes focused: from out of that queer state of unreality her mind began to function normally.
 The litter supporting the high priest had been carried halfway up the pyramids st teeply slanting steps. The jaguar cage was being slowly advanced up the slope.
 She stumbled a little as her feet found the first step. The hum. she realized was tangible. It was louder "a deeply cadenced drone that was curiously familiar.
 Then quite suddenly she under stood angton's shouted words.
 "It's a plane! Janice, look up!"
 She glanced skyward. Her glance focused on a point above the east ern jungle almost in the eye of the rising sun. She saw outspread sill yer wings: topaz flashed upon the fore-shortened body.
 The dark Jumps of the three radial motors were silhouetted sharply. It was approaching with amazing rapidity. slanting in long power glide toward the pyramid. Above the growl of it's engines she heard tho oice of the ahkin screaming to his guards.
 She saw the body of the column spread out. The armed guards were racing in various directions. They appeared like tiny pawns on a huge chessbCard.
 Some still ran: the nearer ones knelt. holding their rifles before them pointing at the approaching airplane.
 The rifles began o,crack sharply. Suddenly the plane was over the square. r. zoomed and lifted. She saw body hang out of one of the ports pointing something that looked like a rife downward, yet was bulkier than a rife. I ANGTON cried out hoarsely. Il "They have a machine gun! Why don't they shoot? Don't they realize" Then in the next breath he shouted with despairing anxiety:
 They cal'tl They don't dare. The ahkin knew! A fallen body in tb oir ,,o usO,,Id ,uraotx o Iood;1rfv
 The plane made steep bank over the western buildings. Back 1t roared, the wheels of the landing gear scant inches above the heads of the soldiers staggered over the square.
 " Langton made an inarticulate sound. God. what flying! See. they scatter but they close up again. They'll never give way long enough to let the plane down.
 Janice! We must do something! Make 2 break. See. there's an open space on the eastern side. If we could run for it :. divert the guards II ship can land"
 He pivoted on his sound leg. There was a dull smack as the near CT guard of the six went down. Janice heard scream from the ahkin drowned by a riot of snarls of the jaguars as the bearers of the caged dropped it.
 She felt the hand of a guard roughly grasp her arm.
 She twisted away and flung her self at man whose upraised rife was poised over the blond head of her companion. Again the motors roared overhead. The sound of rife fire grew.
 The man she clung to went limp under a slash from Langton's fist. She saw knife upraised in brown fist.
 Langton's sinewy hand darted out and twisted it away. A lunging na- tive knocked her down to the steps. Her wildly rowing glance fell upon a discarded knife a foot from her hand.
 She snatched it up as Langton burst through the twisting bodies of the guards toward her.
 He gasped. We can't get away! Try to reach the ahkin and"
 His sentence ended in a moan as clubbed rife hit him behind the head. He -,tched toward Janice. The guard who had struck him turned his eyes. crazed with excite. ment. toward Janice.
 Slowly-it seemed almost slow, motion-he reversed his rife. The girl knew in that instant he intend ed to shoot her!
 She struggled backward up the steps. She was barely conscious that she had backed against the jaguar cage. Her ears were deaf te the savage growls behind her.
 The rife was raised-still with that illusion of retarded action. The natives teeth barred. the muscles o his hand frightened over the trigger guard.
 A spurt of flame darted from tn,
 muzzle.
 | (CobyrieAt, lo34. 5y Rsr5syf Jsnsss)
 Monday, retribution descends upon the Junsles of Yucatan.