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02 - Out of Time's Abyss - Edgar Rice Burroughs · Daily Classic Sci Fi Books

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Chapter two. When Bradley went on guard at midnight September fourteenth, his thoughts
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were largely occupied with rejoicing that the night was almost spent without serious mishap,
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and that the morrow would doubtless see them all safely returned to Fort Dinosaur.
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The hopefulness of his mood was tinged with sorrow by recollection of the two members
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of his party who lay back there in the savage wilderness, and for whom
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there would never again be a home coming. No premonition of impending ill cast
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gloom over his anticipations for the coming day. For Bradley was a man who,
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while taking every precaution against possible danger, permitted no gloomy forebodings to weigh
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down his spirit. When danger threatened, he was prepared, but he was
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not forever courting disaster. And so it was that, when about one o'clock
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in the morning of the fifteenth he heard the dismal flapping of giant wings overhead,
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he was neither surprised nor frightened, but i prepared for an attack he
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had known might reasonably be expected. The sound seemed to come from the south
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and presently low above the trees in that direction the man made out a dim,
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shadowy form circling slowly about. Bradley was a brave man, yet so
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keen was the feeling of revulsion engendered by the sight and sound of that grim,
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uncanny shape, that he distinctly felt the goose flesh rise over the surface
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of his body. And it was with difficulty that he refrained from following an
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instinctive urge to fire upon the nocturnal intruder. Better, far better would it
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have been, had he given in to the insistent demand of his sub conscious
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mentor But his almost fanatical obsession to save ammunition proved now his undoing. For
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while his attention was riveted upon the thing circling before him, and while his
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ears were filled with the beating of its wings, there swooped silently out of
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the black night behind him, another weird and ghostly shape, with its huge
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wings partly closed for the dive, and its white robe fluttering in its wake.
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The apparition swooped down upon the Englishman. So great was the force of
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the impact when the thing struck Brady between the shoulders that the man was half
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stunned. His rifle flew from his grasp. He felt claw like talons of
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great strength, seize him beneath his arms and sweep him off his feet.
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And then the thing rose swiftly with him, so swiftly that his cap was
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blown from his head by the rush of air as he was borne rapidly upward
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into the inky sky, and the cry of warning to his companions was forced
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back into his lungs. The creature wheeled immediately toward the east, and was
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at once joined by its fellow, who circled them once and then fell in
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behind them. Bradley now realized the strategy that the pair had used to capture
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him, and at once concluded that he was in the power of reasoning beings
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closely related to the human race, if not actually of it. Past experience
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suggested that the great wings were a part of some ingenious mechanical device for the
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limitations of the human mind, which is always low to accept pot beyond its
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own. Little experience would not permit him to entertain the idea that the creatures
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might be naturally winged and at the same time of human origin. From his
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position, Bradley could not see the wings of his captor, nor in the
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darkness, had he been able to examine those of the second creature closely.
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When it circled before him, he listened for the puff of a motor or
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some other tail tale sound that would prove the correctness of his theory. However,
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he was rewarded with nothing more than the constant flap flap. Presently far
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below and ahead he saw the waters of the inland Sea, and a moment
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later he was borne over them. Then his captor did that which proved beyond
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doubt to Bradley that he was in the hands of human beings who had devised
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an almost perfect scheme of duplicating mechanically the wings of a bird. The thing
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spoke to its companion, and in a language that Bradley partially understood, since
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he recognized words that he had learned from the savage races of castpack. From
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this he judged that they were human, And being human, he knew that
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they could have no natural wings, for who had ever seen a human being
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so adorned? Therefore, their wings must be mechanical. Thus, Bradley reasoned,
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thus, most of us reason not by what might be possible, but
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by what has fallen within the range of our experience. What he heard them
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say was to the effect that having covered half the distance, the burden would
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now be transferred from one to the other. Bradley wondered how the exchange was
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to be accomplished. He knew that those giant wings would not permit the creatures
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to approach one another closely enough to effect the transfer in this manner, but
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he was soon to discover that they had other means of doing it. He
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felt the thing that carried him rise to a great altitude, and below he
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glimpsed momentarily the second white robed figure. Then the creature above sounded a low
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call. It was answered from below, and instantly Bradley felt the clutching talons
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release him. Gasping for breath, he hurdled downward through space for a terrifying
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instant. Pregnant with horror, Bradley fell. Then something swooped for him from
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behind. Another pair of talons clutched him beneath the arms. His downward rush
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was checked. Within another hundred feet and close to the surface of the sea,
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he was again borne upward. As a hawk dives for a song bird
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on the wing, So this great human bird dived for Bradley. It was
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a harrowing experience, but soon over, and once again the captive was being
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carried swiftly toward the east, and what fate he could not even guess.
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It was immediately following his transfer in mid air that Bradley made out the shadowy
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form of a large island far ahead, and not long after he realized that
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this must be the intended destination of his captors, Nor was he mistaken.
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Three quarters of an hour from the time of his seizure, his captors dropped
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gently to earth in the strangest city that Hume and Eye had ever rested upon.
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Just a brief glimpse of his immediate surroundings bouchsafed Bradley before he was whisked
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into the interior of one of the buildings, But in that momentary glance he
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saw strange piles of stone and wood and mud fashioned into buildings of all conceivable
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sizes and shapes, sometimes piled high on top of one another, sometimes standing
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alone in an open courtway, but usually crowded and jammed together, so that
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there were no streets or allys between them, other than a few which ended
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almost as soon as they began. The principal doorways appeared to be in the
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roofs and It was through one of these that Bradley was inducted into the dark
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interior of a low sealed roof. Here he was pushed roughly into a corner,
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where he tripped over a thick mat, and there his captors left him.
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He heard them moving about in the darkness for a moment, and several
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times he saw their large luminous eyes glowing in the dark. Finally these disappeared,
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and silence reigned, broken only by the breathing of the creature, which
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indicated to the Englishmen that they were sleeping somewhere in the same apartment. It
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was now evident that the mat upon the floor was intended for sleeping purposes,
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and that the rough shove that had sent him to it had been a rude
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invitation to repose. After taking stock of himself and finding that he still had
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his pistol and ammunition, some matches, a little tobacco, a canteen full
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of water, and a razor, Bradley made himself cometable upon the mat,
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and was soon asleep, knowing that an attempt to escape in the darkness without
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knowledge of his surroundings would be predoomed to failure. When he awoke, it
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was broad daylight, and the sight that met his eyes made him rub them
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again and again to assure himself that they were really open and that he was
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not dreaming. A broad shaft of morning light poured through the open doorway in
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the ceiling of the room, which was about thirty feet square or roughly square,
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being irregular in shape, one side curving outward, another being indented by
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what might have been the corner of another building jutting into it, another alcove
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by three sides of an octagon, while the fourth was serpentine in contour.
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Two windows let in more daylight, while two doors evidently gave ingress to other
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rooms. The walls were partially sealed with thin strips of wood, nicely fitted
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and finished, partially plastered, and the rest covered with a fine woven cloth.
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Figures of beasts and reptiles were painted without regard to any uniform scheme here
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and there upon the walls. A striking feature of the decorations consisted of several
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engaged columns set into the walls at no regular intervals, the capitals of each
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supporting a human skull, the cranium of which touched the ceiling, as though
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the latter was supported by these grim reminders, either of departed relatives or of
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some hideous tribal rite. Bradley could not but wonder which. Yet it was
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none of these things that filled him with greatest wonder. No, it was
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the figures of the two creatures that had captured him and brought him hither.
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At one end of the room, a stout pole about two inches in diameter,
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ran horizontally from wall to wall, some six or seven feet from the
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floor, its ends securely set in two of the columns. Hanging by their
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knees from this perch, their heads downward and their bodies wrapped in their huge
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wings, slept the creatures of the night before, like two great horrid bats.
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They hung asleep. As Bradley gazed upon them in wide eyed astonishment,
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he saw plainly that all his intelligence, all his acquired knowledge through the years
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of observation and experience, were set at naught by the simple evidence of the
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fact that stood out glaringly before his eyes. The creature's wings were not mechanical
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devices, but as natural appendages, growing from their shoulder blades, as were
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their arms and legs. He saw too, that except for their wings,
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the pair bore a strong resemblance to human beings, though fashioned in a most
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grotesque mold. As he sat gazing at them, one of the two awoke
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separated his wings to release his arms that had been folded across his breast,
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placed his hands upon the floor, dropped his feet, and stood erect for
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a moment. He stretched his great wings slowly, solemnly, blinking his large
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round eyes. Then his gaze fell upon Bradley. The thin lips drew back
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tightly against yellow teeth in a grimace that was nothing but hideous. It could
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not have been termed a smile. And what emotion it registered the Englishman was
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a lost a gas. No expression whatever altered the steady gaze of those large
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round eyes. There was no color upon the pasty, sunken cheeks. A
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death's head grimaced, as though a man long dead raised his parchment covered skull
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from an old grave. The creature stood about the height of an average man,
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but appeared much taller from the fact that the joints of his long wings
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rose fully a foot above his hairless head. The bare arms were long and
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sinewy, ending in strong, bony hands with claw like fingers, almost talon
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like in their suggestiveness. The white robe was separated in front, revealing skinny
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legs, and the the fact that the thing wore but the single garment,
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which was of fine woven cloth from crown to soul. The portions of the
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body exposed were entirely hairless, and as he noted this, Bradley also noted
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for the first time the cause of much of the seeming expressionlessness of the creature's
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countenance. It had neither eyebrows or lashes. The ears were small and rested
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flat against the skull, which was noticeably round, though the face was quite
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flat. The creature had small feet, beautifully arched in plump, but so
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out of keeping with every other physical attribute it possessed as to appear ridiculous.
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After eyeing Bradley for a moment, the thing approached him. Where from it
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asked, England, replied Bradley, as briefly, where is England? And
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what? Pursued the questioner? It is a country far from here, answered
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the Englishman. Are your people corsvana jo or coss Atloo? I do not
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understand you, said Bradley, And now suppose you answer a few questions.
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Who are you? What country is this? Why did you bring me here
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again, the separchurl grimace. We are wirus. Loota is our father past
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back as ours. This our country is called u O. We brought you
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here for him who speaks for Luata to gaze upon and question. He would
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know from whence you came and why. But principally, if you be consatlou,
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and if I am not caused whatever you call the bloomin beast, what
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of it? The Wiiru raised his wings in a very human shrug and waved
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his bony claws toward the human skulls supporting the ceiling. His gesture was eloquent,
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but he embellished it by remarking, and possibly, if you are,
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I'm hungry, snapped Bradley. The Wiru motioned him to one of the doors,
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which he threw open, permitting Bradley to pass out on to another roof
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on a level lower than that upon which they had landed early in the morning.
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By daylight, the city appeared even more remarkable than in the moonlight,
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though less weird and unreal. The houses of all shapes and sizes were piled
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about as a child might pile blocks of various forms and collars. He saw
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now that there were what might be called streets or alleys, but they ran
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in baffling turns and twists, nor ever reached a destination, always ending in
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a dead wall, where some weeru had built a house across them. Upon
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each house was a slender column supporting a human skull. Sometimes the columns were
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at one corner of the roof, sometimes at another, or again they rose
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from the center or near the center, and the columns were of varying heights,
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from that of a man to those which rose twenty feet above their roofs.
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The skulls were as a rule painted blue or white, or in combinations
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of both colors. The most effective were painted blue, with the teeth white,
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and the eye sockets rimmed with white. There Where other skulls, thousands
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of them, tens, hundreds of thousands. They rimmed the eaves of every
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house. They were set in the plaster of the outer walls. And at
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no great distance from where Bradley stood rose a round tower built entirely of human
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skulls, and the city extended in every direction as far as the Englishman could
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see. All about him, weirus were moving across the roofs or winging through
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the air. The sad sound of their flapping wings rose and fell like a
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solemn dirge. Most of them were apparelled all in white, like his captors,
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but others had markings of red or blue or yellow slashed across the front
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of their robes. His guide pointed toward a doorway in an alley below them.
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Go there and eat, he commanded, and then come back. You
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cannot escape. If any question you say that you belonged to foche Bal Sage,
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there is the way. And this time he pointed to the top of
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a ladder which protruded above the eaves of the roof near by. Then he
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turned and re entered the house. Bradley looked about him. No, he
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could not escape, that seemed evident. The city appeared interminable, and beyond
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the city, if not a savage wilderness filled with wild beasts, there was
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the broad inland sea, infested with horrid monsters. No wonder his captor felt
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safe in turning him loose in oo O. He wondered if that was the
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name of the country or the city, and if there were other cities like
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this upon the island. Slowly he descended the ladder to the seemingly deserted alley,
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which was paved with what appeared to be large round cobblestones. He looked
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again at the smooth worn pavement, and a rueful grin crossed his features.
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The alley was paved with skulls, the city of human skulls, mused Bradley.
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They must have been collecting him since Adam, he thought, And then
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he crossed and entered the building through the doorway that had been pointed out to
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him. Inside he found a large room in which were many weirrous seated before
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pedestals, the tops of which were hallowed out so that they resembled the ordinary
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bird drinking and bathing faunts so commonly seen on suburban lawns. A seat protruded
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from each of the four sides of the pedestals, just a flat board with
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a support running from its outer end diagonally to the base of the pedestal.
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As Bradley entered, some of the weirrous espied him, and a dismal wail
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arose. Whether it was a greeting or a threat, Bradley did not know.
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Suddenly, from a dark alcove, another wairloo rushed out towards him.
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Who are you? He cried, what do you want? Fosh Balsage sent
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me here to eat, replied Bradley. Do you belong to fashe Balsag asked
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the other that appears to be what he thinks, answered the Englishman, are
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you Corsandaledoo demanded the Weirroo give me something to eat, or I'll be all
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of that, replied Bradley. The Wirrou looked, uz sit here, jailu.
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He snapped, and Bradley sat down, unconscious of the fact that he
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had been insulted by being called a hyena man, an appellation of contempt in
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cast pack. The wiaru had seated him at a pedestal by himself, and
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as he sat waiting for what was next to transpire, he looked about him
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at the wiiru in his immediate vicinity. He saw that in each font was
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a quantity of food, and that each wiu was armed with a wooden skewer
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sharpened at one end, with which they carried solid portions of food to their
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mouths. At the other end of the skewer was fastened a small clam shell.
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This was used to scoop up the smaller and softer portions of the repast
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into which all four of the occupants of each table dipped impartially. The Wiaru
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leaned far over their food scooping it up rapidly and with much noise, And
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so great was their haste that a part of each mouthful always fell back into
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the common dish, And when they choked, by reason of the rapidity with
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which they attempted to bolt their food, they often lost it all. Bradley
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was glad that he had a pedestal all to himself. Soon the keeper of
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the place returned with a wooden bowl filled with food. This he dumped into
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Bradley's trough as he already thought of it. The Englishman was glad that he
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could not see into the dark alcove or know what were all the ingredients that
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constituted the mess before him, for he was very hungry after the first mouthful.
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He cared even less to investigate the antecedents of the dish, for he
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found it peculiarly palatable. It seemed to consist of a combination of meat,
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fruits, vegetables, small fish, and other undistinguishable articles of food, all
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seasoned to produce a gastronomic effect that was at once baffling and delicious. When
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he had finished, his trough was empty, and then he commenced to wonder
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who was to settle for his meal. As he waited for the proprietor to
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return, he fell to examining the dish from which he had eaten and the
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pedestal upon which it rested. The font was of stone, worn smooth by
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long continued use, the four outer edges hollowed and polished by the contact of
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the countless wareroo bodies that had leaned against them for how long a period of
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time Bradley could not even guess. Everything about the place carried the impression of
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hoary age. The carved pedestals were black with use, the wooden seat were
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worn hollow. The floor of stone slabs was polished by the contact of possibly
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millions of naked feet, and worn away in the aisles between the pedestals,
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so that the latter rested upon little mounds of stone several inches above the general
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level of the floor. Finally, seeing that no one came to collect,
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Bradley arose and started for the doorway. He had covered half the distance when
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he heard the voice of mine host calling to him. Come back. Jailu
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screamed the Warroo and Bradley as he was bid. As he approached the creature,
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which stood now behind a large, flat topped pedestal beside the alcohol,
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he saw lying upon the smooth surface something that almost elicited a gasp of astonishment
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from him. A simple common thing it was, or would have been,
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almost anywhere in the world, but castpack a square bit of paper, and
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on it, in a fine hand written compactly were many strange hieroglyphics. These
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remarkable creatures then had written as well as a spoken language, and besides the
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art of weaving cloth, possessed that of paper making. Could it be that
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such grotesque beings represented the high culture of the human race within the boundaries of
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Cashpack had natural selection produced during the countless ages of Caspacki in life, a
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winged monstrosity that represented the earthly pinnacle of man's evolution. Bradley had noted something
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of the obvious indications of a gradual evolution from ape to spearman, as exemplified
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by the several overlapping races of Alalus clubmen and hatchetmen that formed the connecting links
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between the two extremes with which he had come in contact. He had heard
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of the Crowlews and the Gallows, reputed to be still higher in the plane
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of evolution, and now he had indisputable evidence of a race possessing refinements of
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civilization eons in advance of the spearman. The conjectures awakened by even a momentary
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consideration of the possibilities involved, became at once as wildly bizarre as the insane
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imagings of a drug addict. As these thoughts flashed through his mind, the
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Wiru held out a pen of bone fixed to a wooden holder. At the
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same time made a sign that Bradley was to write upon the paper. It
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was difficult to judge from the expressionless features of the Whiru what was passing the
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creature's mind, but Bradley could not but feel that the thing cast a supercilious
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glance upon him, as much as to say, of course you do not
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know how to write, you poor low creature, but you can make your
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mark. Bradley sees the pen and in a clear, bold hand, wrote
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John Bradley, England. The Weiru showed evidences of consternation as it seized the
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piece of paper and examined the writing, with every mark of incredulity and surprise.
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Of course, it could make nothing of the strange characters, but it
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evidently accepted them as proof that Bradley possessed knowledge of a written language of his
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own. For following the englishman's entry, it made a few characters of its
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own. You will come here again just before lua hides his face behind the
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great cliff, announced the creature, unless before that you are summoned by him
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who speaks for Luata, in which case you will not have to eat any
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more. Reassuring cuss thought Bradley as he turned and left the building. Outside
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were several whiirus that had been eating at the pedestals within. They immediately surrounded
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him, asking all sorts of questions, plucking at his garments, his ammunition
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belt, and his pistol. Their demeanor was entirely different from what it had
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been within the eating place, and Bradley was to learn that a house of
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food was sanctuary for him, since the stern laws of the weirus forbade altercations
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within such walls. Now they were rough and threatening, as with wings half
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spread, they hovered about him in menacing attitudes, barring his way to the
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ladder leading to the roof from whence he had descended. But the Englishman was
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not one to brook interference for long. He attempted at first to push his
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way past them, and then, when one seized his arm and jerked him
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roughly back, Bradley swung upon the creature, and, with a heavy bloat
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at a jaw, felled it. Instantly, Pandemonium reigned. Loud wails arose,
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great wings opened and clothed with a loud beating noise, and many claw
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like hands reached forth to clutch him. Bradley struck to right and left.
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He dared not use his pistol for fear that once they discovered its power,
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he would be overcome by weight of numbers, and relieved a possession of what
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he considered his trump card, to be reserved until the last moment, that
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it might be used to aid in his escape, for already the Englishman was
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planning, though almost hopelessly, such an attempt. A few blows convinced Bradley
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that the Weirus were errant cowards, and that they bore no weapons. For
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after two or three had fallen beneath his fists, the others formed a circle
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about him, but at a safe distance, and contented themselves with threatening and
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blustering, while those whom he had felled lay upon the pavement without trying to
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arise, the while they moaned and wailed in lugubrious cornus. Again, Bradley
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strode toward the ladder, and this time the circle parted before him. But
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no sooner had he ascended a few rungs than he was seized by one foot,
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and an effort made to drag him down with a quick backward glance.
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The Englishman, clinging firmly to the ladder with both hands, drew up his
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free foot and with all the strength of a powerful leg, planted a heavy
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shoe squarely in the flat face of the whirrou that held him. Shrieking horribly,
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the creature clapped both hands to its face and sank to the ground,
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while Bradley clamored quickly the remaining distance to the roof, though no sooner did
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he reach the top of the ladder than a great flapping of wings beneath him
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warned him that the wierus were rising after him. A moment later they swarmed
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about his head as he ran for the apartment in which he had spent the
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early hours of the morning after his arrival. It was but a short distance
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from the top of the ladder to the door doorway, and Bradley had almost
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reached his goal when the door flew open and Foshe Balsage stepped out. Immediately,
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the pursuing weirus demanded punishment of the Jelu who had so grievously maltreated them.
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Boss Balsage listened to their complaints, and then, with a sudden sweep
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of his right hand, seized Bradley by the scruff of the neck and hurled
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him sprawling through the doorway upon the floor of the chamber. So sudden was
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the assault, and so surprising the strength of the Weiru, that the Englishman
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was taken completely off his guard. When he arose, the door was closed
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and fosh Balsage was standing over him. His hideous face contorted into an expression
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of rage and hatred. Hyena, snake lizard, he screamed, you would
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dare lay your low, vile, profaning hands upon even the lowliest of the
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weirus, the sacred chosen of Luata. Bradley was mad, and so he
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spoke in a very low, calm voice, while half smile played across his
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lips. But his cold gray eyes were unsmiling. What you did to me
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just now? He said, I am going to kill you for that,
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And even as he spoke, he launched himself at the throat of fosh Balsage.
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The other wherou that had been asleep when Bradley left the chamber had departed,
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and the two were alone. Fosh Balsage displayed little of the cowardice of
28:26
those that had attacked Bradley in the alleyway, but that may have been because
28:30
he had so slight opportunity. For Bradley had him by the throat before he
28:34
could utter a cry, and with his right hand struck him heavily and repeatedly
28:40
upon his face and over his heart, ugly smashing, short armed jabs of
28:45
the sort that take the fight out of a man in quick time. But
28:48
fosh Balsage was of no mind to die passively. He clawed and struck it
28:53
Bradley, while with his great wings he attempted to shield himself from the merciless
28:59
rain of blow, at the same time searching for a hold upon his antagonist's
29:03
throat. Presently, he succeeded in tripping the Englishman, and together the two
29:08
fell heavily to the floor Bradley underneath, and at the same instant the whirrou
29:14
fastened his long talons about the other's windpipe. Fosh Balsage was possessed of enormous
29:19
strength, and he was fighting for his life. The Englishman soon realized that
29:26
the battle was going against him. Already his lungs were pounding painfully for air.
29:30
As he reached for his pistol. It was with difficulty that he drew
29:34
it from its holster, and even then, with death staring him in the
29:38
face, he thought of his precious ammunition. Kant waste it, he thought,
29:42
and slipping his fingers to the barrel, he raised the weapon and struck
29:47
fosh Balsage a terrific blow between the eyes. Instantly, the claw like fingers
29:52
released their hold, and the creature sank limply to the floor beside Bradley,
29:57
who lay for several minutes, gas sping painfully in an effort to regain his
30:02
breath. When he was able, he rose and leaned close over the weiru,
30:07
lying silent and motionless, his wings dropping limply, and his great round
30:11
eyes staring blankly toward the ceiling. A brief examination convinced Bradly that the thing
30:18
was dead, and with the conviction came an overwhelming sense of the dangers which
30:23
must now confront him. But how was he to escape? His first thought
30:29
was to find some means for concealing the evidence of his deed, and then
30:33
to make a bold effort to escape. Stepping to the second door, he
30:37
pushed it gently open and peered in upon what seemed to be as store room.
30:41
In it was a litter of cloth, such as the whiru's robes were
30:45
fashioned fra, a number of chests painted blue and white, with white hieroglyphics
30:52
painted in bold strokes upon the blue and blue hieroglyphics upon the white. In
30:57
one corner was a pile of human and skulls reaching almost to the ceiling,
31:03
and in another a stack of dried Whiru wings. The chamber was as irregularly
31:07
shaped as the other, and had but a single window and a second door
31:11
at the further end, but was without the exit through the roof, and
31:17
most important of all, there was no creature of any sort in it.
31:22
As quickly as possible, Bradley dragged the dead Wheru through the doorway and closed
31:26
the door. Then he looked about for a place to conceal the corpse.
31:30
One of the chests was large enough to hold the body if the knees were
31:34
bent well up, and with this idea in view, Bradley approached the chest
31:40
to open it. The lid was made in two pieces, each being hinged
31:44
at an opposite end of the chest and joining nicely where they met in the
31:48
center of the chest, making a snug, well fitting joint. There was
31:52
no lock. Bradley raised one half the cover and looked in With a smothered
31:57
by jove, He went closer to examine the contents. The chest was about
32:02
half filled with an assortment of golden trinkets. There were what appeared to be
32:07
bracelets, anklets, and brooches of virgin gold. Realizing that there was no
32:14
room in the chest for the body of the Whiru, Bradley turned to seek
32:17
another means of concealing the evidence of his crime. There was a space between
32:22
the chests and the wall, and into this he forced the corpse, piling
32:27
the discarded robes upon it until it was entirely hidden from sight. But now
32:32
how was he to make good his escape? In the bright glare of that
32:36
early spring day, he walked to the door at the far end of the
32:40
apartment and cautiously opened it. An inch before him, and about two feet
32:45
away was the blank wall of another building. Bradley opened the door a little
32:51
farther and looked in both directions. There was no one in sight. To
32:54
the left over a considerable expanse of rooftop, and to the right another building
33:00
shut off his line of vision at about twenty feet. Slipping out, he
33:04
turned to the right and in a few steps found a narrow passageway between two
33:08
buildings. Turning into this, he passed about half its length when he saw
33:13
a whirrou appear at the opposite end and halt. The creature was not looking
33:17
down the passageway, but at any moment it might turn its eyes toward him,
33:22
when he would be immediately discovered. To Bradley's left was a triangular niche
33:29
in the wall of one of the houses, and into this he dodged,
33:32
thus concealing himself from the sight of the whiru. Beside him was a door
33:37
painted a vivid yellow and constructed after the same fashion as the other whirrou doors
33:43
he had seen, being made up of countless narrow strips of wood from four
33:47
to six inches in length, laid on in patches of about the same width,
33:52
the strips in adjacent patches never running in the same direction. The result
33:58
bore some resemblance to a crazy patchwork quilt, which was heightened when, as
34:02
in one of the doors he had seen, contiguous patches were painted different colors.
34:08
The strips appeared to have been bound together and to the underlying framework of
34:13
the door with gut or fiber, and also glued, after which a thick
34:16
coating of paint had been applied. One edge of the door was formed of
34:22
a straight, round pole about two inches in diameter that protruded at top and
34:28
bottom the projection, setting in round holes in both lintel and sill, forming
34:34
the axis upon which the door swung. An eccentric disk upon the inside face
34:38
of the door engaged a slot in the frame when it was desired to secure
34:44
the door against intruders. As Bradley stood flattened against the wall waiting for the
34:50
whiru to move on, he heard the creature's wings brushing against the sides of
34:54
the buildings as it made its way down the narrow passage in his direction.
35:00
As the yellow door offered the only means of escape, without detection. The
35:04
Englishman decided to risk whatever might lie beyond it, and so boldly pushing it
35:08
in, he crossed the threshold and entered a small apartment. As he did
35:14
so, he heard a muffled ejaculation of surprise, and turning his eyes in
35:19
the direction from whence the sound had come, he beheld a wide eyed girl
35:23
standing flattened against the opposite wall, an expression of incredulity upon her face.
35:30
At a glance, he saw that she was of no race of humans that
35:32
he had come in contact with since his arrival upon Kaprona. There was no
35:37
trace about her form or features of any relationship to those low orders of men,
35:43
nor was she appareled as they, or rather she did not entirely lack
35:47
apparel as did most of them. A soft hide felled from her left shoulder
35:52
to just below her left hip on one side, and almost to her right
35:57
knee on the other. A loose girdle was about her waist, and golden
36:00
ornaments such as he had seen in the blue and white chest, encircled her
36:05
arms and legs, while a golden filet with a triangular diadem bound her heavy
36:10
hair above her brows. Her skin was white, as from long confinement within
36:15
doors, but it was clear and fine. Her figure, partially concealed by
36:21
the soft deer skin, was all curves of symmetry and youthful grace. While
36:27
her features might easily have been the envy of the most feted of continental beauties.
36:32
If the girl was surprised by the sudden appearance of Bradley, the latter
36:37
was absolutely astounded to discover so wondrous a creature among the hideous inhabitants of the
36:43
city of human skulls. For a moment, the two looked at one another
36:46
in unconcealed consternation, and then Bradley spoke, using, to the best of
36:52
his poor ability, the common tongue of cast back. Who are you,
36:57
he asked, and from where do you come? Do not tell me that
37:00
you are a weiru? No, she replied, I am no weiru,
37:06
and she shuddered slightly as she pronounced the word. I am a galu.
37:09
But who and what are you? I am sure that you are no galou
37:15
from your garments, but you are like the galous in other respects. I
37:19
know that you are not of this frightful city, for I have been here
37:22
for almost ten moons, and never have I seen a male galu brought hither
37:27
before. Nor are there such as you and I other than prisoners in the
37:30
land of ou O, And these are all females. Are you a prisoner?
37:35
Then? He told her briefly who and what he was, though he
37:39
doubted if she understood. And from her he learned that she had been a
37:44
prisoner there for many months. But for what purpose he did not then learn.
37:47
As in the midst of their conversation, the yellow door swung open,
37:52
and a wiru with a robe slashed with yellow entered at sight of Bradley.
37:57
The creature became furious whence came this reptile, It demanded the girl, how
38:02
long has it been here with you? It came through the doorway just ahead
38:07
of you. Bradley answered for the girl. The Wiroo looked relieved. It
38:13
is well for the girl that this is so, it said, for now
38:15
only you will have to die, And stepping to the door, the creature
38:20
raised its voice in one of those uncanny, depressing wails. The Englishman looked
38:24
toward the girl. Shall I kill it? He asked, half drawing his
38:29
pistol. What is best to do? I do not wish to endanger you.
38:34
The whirroo backed toward the door. De fier it screamed, you dare
38:38
to threaten one of the sacred chosen of Luata. Do not kill him,
38:43
cried the girl, For then there could be no hope for you. That
38:46
you are here alive shows that they may not intend to kill you at all,
38:52
And so there is a chance for you if you do not anger them,
38:54
but touch him in violence, and your bleat scowl will top the loftiest
38:59
pedestal of u oh. And what of you, asked Bradley. I am
39:04
already doomed, replied the girl. I am cossatloe, cossatlo, cossatloo.
39:12
What did these phrases mean that they were so oft repeated by the denizens of
39:15
u Oh, lou and Lo, Bradley new to mean man and woman.
39:22
Atto was employed variously to indicate life, eggs, young, reproduction, and
39:27
kindred subject. Coss was a negative, but in combination they were meaningless to
39:32
the European. Do you mean they will kill you, asked Bradley. I
39:37
but wish that they would, replied the girl. My fate is to be
39:40
worse than death in just a few nights more with the coming of the new
39:45
moon. Poor she snake snapped, the Whiru, you are to become sacred
39:51
above all other shees, he who speaks for Luata has chosen you for himself.
39:55
To day you go to his temple. The Wiru you the phrase meaning
40:00
literally high place where you will receive the sacred command. The girl shuddered and
40:07
cast a sorrowful glance toward Bradley Ah, she sighed, if I could but
40:13
see my beloved country once again. The man stepped suddenly close to her side
40:17
before the Weiru could interpose, and in a low voice, asked her if
40:22
there was no way by which he might encompass her escape. She shook her
40:27
head sorrowfully. Even if we escaped the city, she replied, there is
40:31
the big water between the island of ou Oh and the galous shore, and
40:37
what is beyond the city if we could leave it, pursued Bradley. I
40:40
may only guess from what I have heard since I was brought here, she
40:44
answered, But my reports and chance remarks, I'd take it to be a
40:49
beautiful land in which there are but few wild beasts and no men, For
40:53
only the wirus live upon this island, and they dwell always in cities,
40:58
of which there are three, this being the largest. The others are at
41:01
the far end of the island, which is about three marches from end to
41:06
end, and at its widest point about one march. From his own experience
41:12
and from what the natives on the mainland had told him, Bradley knew that
41:15
ten miles was a good day's march in Caspack, owing to the fact that
41:20
at most points it was a trackless wilderness, and at all times travelers were
41:24
beset by hideous beasts and reptiles that greatly impeded rapid progress. The two had
41:31
spoken rapidly, but were now interrupted by the advent through the opening in the
41:36
roof of several whirus, who had come in answer to the alarm it of
41:40
the yellow slashing had uttered. This jerou cried, The offended one has threatened
41:46
me take its hatchet from it and make it fast where it can do no
41:51
harm, until he who speaks for Luata has said what shall be done with
41:55
it. It is one of those strange creatures that fausch Balsaged discovered first above
42:00
the Bangloo country, and followed back towards the beginning. He who speaks for
42:06
Luata sent Fosche Balsage to fetch him one of the creatures, and here it
42:09
is. It is his hope that it may be from another world and hold
42:14
the secrets of the Cossantalous. The wirus approached boldly to take Bradley's hatchet from
42:20
him, their leader having indicated the pistol hanging in its holster at the englishman's
42:25
hip. But the first one went reeling backward against his fellows from the blow
42:30
to the chin, which Bradley followed up with a rush and the intention to
42:35
clean up the room in record time. But he had reckoned without the opening
42:38
in the roof. Two were down, and a great wailing and moaning was
42:43
arising. When reinforcements appeared from above. Bradley did not see them, but
42:49
the girl did, and though she cried out a warning, it came too
42:52
late for him to avoid a large whiru, who dived head foremost for him,
42:57
striking him between the shoulders and bearing him to the floor. Instantly a
43:01
dozen more were piling on top of him. His pistol was wrenched from its
43:06
holster, and he was securely pinioned down by the weight of numbers. At
43:10
a word from the whiru of the yellow slashing, who evidently was a person
43:15
of authority. One left and presently returned with fiber ropes, with which Bradley
43:20
was tightly bound. Now bear him to the blue place of seven skulls,
43:25
directed the chief Wheroo, and one take the word of all that has passed
43:30
to him, who speaks for Luata. Each of the creatures raised a hand
43:35
the back against its face, as though in salute. One seized Bradley and
43:39
carried him through the yellow doorway to the roof, from whence it rose upon
43:44
its wide spread wings and flapped off across the rooftops of OOO, with its
43:49
heavy burden clutched in its long talons. Below him, Bradley could see the
43:53
city stretching away to a distance. On every hand, it was not as
43:59
large as he had though he judged that it was at least three miles square.
44:04
The houses were piled in indescribable heaps, sometimes to a height of a
44:08
hundred feet. The streets and alleys were short and crooked, and there were
44:14
many areas where buildings had been wedged in so closely that no light could possibly
44:19
reach the lowest tiers. The entire surface of the ground being packed solidly with
44:23
them. The colors were varied and startling, the architecture amazing. Many roofs
44:30
were cup or saucer shaped, with a small hole in the center of each,
44:34
as though they had been constructed to catch rain water and conduct it to
44:37
a reservoir beneath, But nearly all the others had the large opening in the
44:42
top that Bradley had seen used by these flying men. In lieu of doorways.
44:46
At all levels were the myriad poles surmounted by grinning skulls. But the
44:52
two most prominent features of the city were the round tower of human skulls that
44:58
Bradley had noted earlier in the day, and another and much larger edifice near
45:02
the center of the city. As they approached it, Bradley saw that it
45:07
was a huge building, rising a hundred feet in height from the ground,
45:10
and that it stood alone in the center of what might have been called a
45:14
plaza in some other part of the world. Its various parts, however,
45:19
were set together with the same strange irregularity that marked the architecture of the city
45:23
as a whole, and it was capped by an enormous saucer shaped roof which
45:29
projected far beyond the eaves, having the appearance of a colossal Chinese coolie hat
45:35
inverted. The whiru bearing Bradley passed over one corner of the open space about
45:39
the large building, revealing to the englishman's grass and trees and running water beneath.
45:45
They passed the building, and about five hundred yards beyond, the creature
45:50
alighted on the roof of a square blue building surmounted by seven poles bearing seven
45:55
skulls. This, then, thought Bradley, is the blue place of seven
46:00
skulls. Over the opening in the roof was a grated covering, and this
46:05
the whiirrou removed. The thing then tied a piece of fiber rope to one
46:09
of Bradley's ankles and rolled him over the edge of the opening. All was
46:14
dark below, and for an instant the Englishman came as near to experiencing real
46:20
terror as he had ever come in his life before. As he rolled off
46:23
into the black abyss, he felt the rope tighten about his ankle, and
46:28
an instant later he was stopped with a sudden jerk to swing pendulum like head
46:32
downward. Then the creature lowered away until Bradley's head came in sudden and painful
46:38
contact with the floor below, after which the whirrou let loose of the rope
46:44
entirely, and the Englishman's body crashed to the wooden planking. He felt the
46:49
free end of the rope dropped upon him, and heard the grating being slid
46:52
into place above him. End of Chapter two.