Part 36 (1/2)
”We've got to get back to Ruth! Goodwin--NIGHT! And what may have HAPPENED to her?”
”Drake, boy”--I dropped into his own colloquialisainst it We can't help it And remember--she's there in Norhala's home I don't believe, I honestly don't believe, dick, that there's any danger as long as she remains there And Ventnor ties her fast”
”That's true,” he said, more hopefully ”That's true--and probably Norhala is with her by now”
”I don't doubt it,” I said cheerfully An idea ca There's not an action here that's purposeless We're being driven on by the co we call the Metal Emperor It means us no harm Maybe--maybe this IS the way out”
”Maybe so,” he shook his head doubtfully ”But I'et us away froun to weaken We're not going anywhere near as fast as ere”
I had not realized it, but our speed was slackening I looked back--hundreds of feet behind us fell the slide An unpleasant chill went throughcould stop us fros at its end; that our breaths would be snuffed out by the terrific descent long before we reached that end was scant co this shaft,” Drake said
”I's on his et to, let's try to slip into--if we can”
I had noticed; there had been openings along the ascending shaft; corridors running apparently transversely to its angled way
Slower and slower becalimpsed one of the apertures Could we reach it? Slower and sloe arose Now the gap was but a yard off--but ere !
Drake's arms wrapped round me With a tremendous effort he hurled e, writhed swiftly around, saw hi down--thrust ht theh racked But he held!
Slowly--I writhed back into the passage, dragging up his alht His head appeared, his shoulders; there was a convulsion of the long body and he lay before me
For aI sat up The passage was broad, silent; apparently as endless as that fro it, above us, under us, the crystalline eyes were din ofwe could do save drop down the annihilating slant Drake arose
”I'ry,” he said, ”and I'm thirsty I move that we eat and drink and approxi aside the haversack From it we took food; from the canteens we drank We did not talk Each knehat the other was thinking; infrequently, and thank the eternal law that some call God for that, coainst it the
This was such a ti,” I said
The corridor stretched straight before us; along it we paced How far alked I do not know; mile upon mile, it seemed It broadened abruptly into a vast hall
And this hall was filled with the Metal Hordes--was a gigantic workshop of them In every shape, in every form, they seethed and toiled about it Upon its floor were heaps of shi+ning ores, ots, hout flareat and ses, close to us, stood a Metal Thing Its body was a twelve-foot column of smaller cubes Upon the top was a hollow square forer than the Little Things thele was another shaft, its top a two-foot square plate forle cube
Fro arms of spheres, each tipped by a tetrahedron Theyabout upon their curved points of contact and like a dozen little thinking hammers, the pyramid points at their ends beat down upon as many thimble shaped objects which they thrust alternately into the unwinking brazier then laid upon the central block to shape
A goblin work there, so intent upon and so busy with its forgings
There were scores of these anihtest heed to us as we slipped by the as closely to the wall of the immense workshop as we could