"That is the bed of the River Iss," said
Xodar. "It runs far beneath the ice field, and below the level of
the Valley Otz, but its canyon is open here."
Presently I descried what I took to be a village, and pointing it
out to Xodar asked him what it might be.
"It is a village of lost souls," he answered, laughing. "This strip
between the ice barrier and the mountains is considered neutral
ground. Some turn off from their voluntary pilgrimage down the
Iss, and, scaling the awful walls of its canyon below us, stop in
the valley. Also a slave now and then escapes from the therns and
makes his way hither.
"They do not attempt to recapture such, since there is no escape
from this outer valley, and as a matter of fact they fear the
patrolling cruisers of the First Born too much to venture from
their own domains.
"The poor creatures of this outer valley are not molested by us
since they have nothing that we desire, nor are they numerically
strong enough to give us an interesting fight--so we too leave them
alone.
"There are several villages of them, but they have increased
in numbers but little in many years since they are always warring
among themselves."
Now we swung a little north of west, leaving the valley of lost
souls, and shortly I discerned over our starboard bow what appeared
to be a black mountain rising from the desolate waste of ice.
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