"English, yes," she agreed. "Master, there have been still more killings. They kill our men now for no reason; and those of the women who are young and beautiful they have herded together into a harem."
Prytan's old body trembled with anger. "We must stop it. And Meeta, have you told the Midge to meet us in the broken city?"
"Master, yes. They will be there when the storm is passed. We cannot fly in the wind, and even now it is very strong."
I could hear it, crackling through the giant foliage outside. Then there was a monstrous flare of color as though a rainbow had burst around us.
"It gets bad," young Jahnt muttered. He went to one of the windows; then sauntered to a door-oval and disappeared.
Meeta, I understood now, was one of the leaders of the Midge. It was her brother who had aided us to escape from Curtmann's ship. I told her about it now as she perched on my hand, with her soft eyes roaming my face and her tiny lips parted with eager breath as she listened.
"Oh I am glad of that. Rahn so wants to do what is right in serving our Gods. But it is confusing, Gods here on Venus who fight with one another—"
Through the window, upon a blast of storm-wind another little figure came fluttering. Another female Midge, like Meeta. With beating wings she hovered a second and then fell to the floor at our feet.
"Mela!" old Prytan gasped. "What is it?"
The storm had tossed her against a tree. One of her wings was broken; blood was on her body. But she had struggled on to us, bringing her news.