John Carter, Warlord of Mars #19 - Dec. 1978

"The Valiant Die But Once!" by Chris Claremont, Ernie Colon, and Frank Springer.

With the Tars Tarkas solo adventure now out of the way, the series returned to the main story, which found John Carter in the remote city of Karanthor, and Dejah Thoris but a mere slave!:

Chan Tomar never lets Dejah get too far without reminding her she is his slave/. As he puts his hands on her, Dejah seethes...and plots revenge.

Outside in the garden, John Carter and Garthon talk, where Garthin explains how this city came to be: the original city of Karanthor was destroyed in a massive series of earthquakes (marsquakes?) and fires, leaving a tiny band of survivors to look for a new home.

They made one outside a tiny cave, where they could rest and grow crops. With most of the terrain outside this area now impassable, the men began to grow wings(!), and build a civilization amid the stalactites. Eventually, red-skinned Barsoomians began to arrive, and they were quickly turned into a slave class.

Just then, a slave girl named Hira arrives, carrying a message that Garthon's father wants to see them both. Carter notices the way they act around one another, and deduces they are in love. Garthon admits this, but says he cannot admit to being in love with a lowly slave.

John Carter and Garthon reach the mouth of the cave, where a defense is being prepared:

...to be continued!

Ernie Colon and Frank Springer are a so-so combination, art-wise: Springer (as most inkers did) sanded down some of Colon's rougher edges, which is one of my favorite things about Colon's work! But overall its not too bad, and I'm still really enjoying Colon's work on this series.