The blind beggar Uruz had sat at the base of Trigo’s statue in the great square of the city for as long as anyone could remember. One morning, Janno the Emperor’s nephew was crossing the square. As always, he dropped a coin into the beggar’s hat. A thousand thanks, Lord Janno. You knew who I was! Yet I never uttered a word! So you think that I can see after all. But you are wrong, Lord Janno. Why, I know you from the sound of your footfall, from the very rustle of your uniform. My eyes are my ears! The incident had passed from Janno’s mind by the time he reached the air fleet base, climbed into his tiny fighter craft and took off. Calling control. Have cleared the ground. Your orders, please. His orders took him to the stratosphere, high above the surface of Elekton, patrolling the sky frontiers of the Trigan Empire. At about noon, people in the great square of Trigan City saw . . . IT! Look! What is it? It was a wall of swirling green fog that swept across the great capital, enveloping everything . . . It’s fantastic! I’ve never seen such a thing before!. . . in a blanket of green blindness! Help! Where are you? I can’t see a thing! High above, Janno was shocked to hear the controller’s panic-stricken cries over his communicator. It’s all gone green! I’m blind! Janno, for pity’s sake! . . . What’s happening down there? Receiving no reply, Janno brought his craft down in a screaming dive. Nearing the ground, he saw the ominous green cloud that shrouded the city. It’s . . . unbelievable! Even as he looked, the green murk cleared away and the capital of the Trigan Empire lay below him in all its accustomed glory. It’s . . . gone! The pandemonium in the city was indescribable, with crashed vehicles littering the streets, and frightened and bewildered people wandering about in shock. It was as if the end of the world had come. What if it happens again? I think I shall go out of my mind! Uruz, the blind beggar, cried out in a loud voice. I tell you something terrible has taken place! An alien people have been amongst us. What? Explain yourself! His words struck a chill into the hearts of all his listeners. While this green fog of which you speak was upon us, while you were all stumbling about like the newly-blind . . . there came amongst us some who walked with sure-footed tread, as if they could see!
This instalment was originally published in Look and Learn issue no. 732 on 24 January 1976.
