The God of His Fathers, Chapter 5 — Jack London

Hay Stockard shook his head. "Listen to me, Baptiste. I did not bring this priest here, but now that he is here, I cant let you kill him. Many of your people will die if we fight each other."
Baptiste looked into Stockards eyes. "But those who live," he said, "will not have the words of a strange God in their ears."
After a moment of silence, Baptiste the Red turned and went back to his own camp. Sturges Owen called his two men to him and the three of them kneeled to pray. Stockard and his wife began to prepare the camp for battle.
As they worked they heard the sound of war-drums in the village.
As Sturges Owen waited and prayed, he began to feel his religious fever cooling. Fear replaced hope in his heart. The love of life took the place of the love of God in his mind. The love of life! He could not stop himself from feeling it. Owen knew that Stockard also loved his life. But Stockard would choose death rather than shame.
The war-drums boomed loudly. Suddenly they stopped.
A flood of dark feet raced toward Stockards camp. Arrows whistled through the air. A spear went through the body of Stockards wife. Stockards bullets answered back. Wave after wave of Indians warriors broke over the barrier. Sturges Owen ran into his tent. His two men died quickly. Hay Stockard alone remained on his feet, knocking the attacking Indians aside.
Stockard held an ax in one hand and his gun in the other. Behind him, a hand grabbed Stockards baby by its tiny leg and pulled it from under his mothers body. The Indian whipped the child through the air, smashing its head against a log. Stockard turned, and cut off the Indians head with his ax.
The circle of angry faces closed on Stockard. Two times they pushed up to him, but each time he beat them back. They fell under his feet as the ground became wet with blood. Finally, Baptiste called his men to him.
"Stockard," he shouted. "You are a brave man. Deny your God and I will let you live!"
Two Indians dragged Sturges Owen out of the tent. He was not hurt, but his eyes were wild with fear.
He felt anger at God for making him so weak. Why had God given him faith without strength?
Owen stood shaking before Baptiste the Red. "Where is your God now? " demanded the Indian chief.
"I do not know," Owen whispered.
"Do you have a God?"
"I had."
"And now?"
"No."
"Very good," Baptiste said. "See that this man goes free. Let nothing happen to him. And send him back to his own people so he can tell his priests about Baptiste the Reds land where there is no God."
Baptiste turned to Hay Stockard. "There is no God," Baptiste said. Stockard laughed. One of the young Indian warriors lifted the war spear.
"Do you have a God?" Baptiste shouted.
Stockard took a deep breath. "Yes, he said, "the God of my fathers."
The spear flew through the air and went deep into Stockards chest. Sturges Owen saw Stockard fall slowly to the ground. Then the Indians put Owen in a canoe. Sturges Owen went down the river to carry the message of Baptiste the Red, in whose country there was no God.