Chapter I: Part 1

The VANGUARD of VENUS

by LANDELL BARTLETT

Presented With the Compliments of Amazing Stories

Copyrighted 1928

EXPERIMENTER PUBLISHING CO., 230 Fifth Avenue, New York

The VANGUARD of VENUS

By LANDELL BARTLETT

(Extract from letter dated February 16, 1927, from Oliver Robertson, banker of Calcutta, India, to J. B. Cardigan, President of Cardigan Press Service, Inc.)

. . . . . we got into a pretty hot argument over it, too. Of course, I thought Morrison was kidding me at first; but he kept insisting that Murdock wouldn’t have done such a thing if he really hadn’t meant it for the truth.

I told him that Murdock had probably had his little secret hobby of fiction-writing unknown to any of his friends, that he had thought up this story for his own entertainment, and had taken this means of making it “plausible.” I admit I don’t understand why he should want to do such a thing, but I think you will agree with me that at least it is very clever. You can never tell what these serious-minded, middle-aged bachelors are going to do next. I was really quite exasperated at Morrison for believing this story. He knew poor Stanley better than I, it is true; but as joint executor of the estate, I insisted that if it were to be published at all, it should be as fiction, pure and simple. Then, if anyone wants to believe it, let him go to it.

Morrison argued that the notarial seal and the definite instructions on the envelope showed Murdock meant business--that he wasn’t the kind to clutter up a strong box with junk. He reminded me that Murdock had chucked a fine position in the United States to come to India on a smaller salary and in a technically inferior rating, which was a fair indication of the truth of his story. Murdock was unimaginative as far as I know, but this story seems to indicate otherwise. He was a splendid chap, sober and industrious. He was the only one killed in that wreck of the Central of India at Coomptah ten days ago . . .

Knowing you are in touch with publishers that can handle this sort of thing, I have taken the liberty of sending you Murdock’s document herewith, together with the envelope in which it was found. You will note that the instructions on the envelope indicate that it was to be opened only in the event of Murdock’s death, by his executors, or by himself, on June 21, 1931. If you can dispose of this material for profit, I certainly will appreciate it.

N. B.--Touched up a bit, it might make good reading--in fact, I think it is deucedly interesting as it stands.

Let me know as soon as possible, old man, what you think of this and what disposition you want to make of it. I’ll appreciate it very much if you can find a publisher, for it was Stanley’s wish . . .

Your old, hard-headed cousin,
Oliver Robertson.

(Stanley Murdock’s document, enclosed with the above letter, printed just as he himself wrote it. Pursuant to Mr. Robertson’s instructions, and to prevent uneasiness among the credulous, the public is warned that the story is undoubtedly fiction.)

September 18, 1923.
47 Victoria Drive, Rajput Gardens,
Calcutta, India,

TO WHOM THIS MAY CONCERN:

In accordance with instructions I have filed with the officials of the Calcutta Traders’ Bank, this document, which is to be read by my executors in the event of my death before June 21, 1931, or by myself on that date in the presence of three officers of the above bank. The reason for this I shall explain as clearly as possible.

An experience befell me while doing geological work in the United States of America that has profoundly altered my life, and by the year 1931, will alter the lives of every human being in the world. This statement, startling and unbelievable as it may sound, is nevertheless the truth, and is the reason I am writing, or you are reading this. And I am taking the only course consistent with my own welfare in giving this message to the public so that it may have even a slight chance of credence.

So preposterous will be found the contents of this document that such fact alone will largely explain my method of procedure. I want this message to be read, to be believed, and to be acted on. Had I told anybody of my experience at the time it happened, I would simply have been the laughing stock of my friends. Insisting on the truth of the story might have been cause for investigation as to my sanity, and the loss of my position if not of my liberty. It was utterly out of the question to even think of telling anyone what I saw. I had absolutely no proof, and could not then, let alone now, produce any evidence to back up my statements. Only time will prove that I am right, and that will be not later than August 21, 1931. There is a remote chance that the catastrophe will occur sooner, but knowing what I do, I believe that it will transpire on that exact date. So you can see what an awkward position I am in--a prophet--foretelling happenings years ahead, to the very day, to a skeptical world bound by the age-old dictum of common sense, to laugh him to scorn.

This, then, is the reason I have made the safeguards for reading this manuscript. The message being so vital to the world, I have deposited copies in the largest banks in Bombay and Madras. These documents are to be mailed to me on June 21, 1931, or in case I die, may be obtained by my executors any time before that date. Thus I will avoid practically eight years of derision with attendant loss of position and probable confinement for mental instability. At the same time, my warning is in no danger of being lost, and will be given to the world in time to do some possible good. If I am alive on June 21, 1931, I shall give my experience to the world on that date, allowing two months for those who heed it to escape a terrible fate. The reason I resigned my position in the United States and am now in India will be disclosed in the narrative.

IT was in January, 1923, that I met with this staggering experience. At that time I was employed by the Southwestern Syndicate as chief geologist for the Arizona-New Mexico district. I had been with them almost fifteen years, going to them from the Concord Company, with whom I had been associated since my graduation from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Both of these companies, if I can judge by the testimonials they so generously gave me on my resignation, rated me very highly, and were reluctant to part with my services. I mention this not in self-praise, but to show that I have always had a reputation for honesty and efficient work. And I sincerely hope that this reputation will sustain me when I say that what I am about to relate here is the absolute truth.

On January 14, 1923, Olin Gilfillan (my most trusted field lieutenant and a brilliant, hard-working man) and I set out on horseback from Lovington, New Mexico, and headed toward the Mescalero Ridge. We had with us a couple of pack mules bearing camping equipment and grub for a week. It was our intention to scout the southeast part of the Ridge, and report certain findings to the company. I shall not here relate any technical description of our route, inasmuch as my complete report is on file with the company in their Chicago office.

We left Lovington in the morning, and after a leisurely trip with a few stops for “sighting,” made camp in a little arroyo leading up to the Ridge. The day had been wonderfully clear, and in the early twilight I worked on my notes while Olin built a small fire of cedar and mesquite and prepared the coffee and bacon. After supper we lit our pipes and talked over various things until about nine, when we crawled into our sleeping bags.

It was some time before I dropped off, as there were several problems connected with the trip that I kept reviewing in my mind. I could hear Olin’s steady breathing, and envied him his ability to sleep soundly under any conditions. Up from the east swam a large, perfect full moon, flooding our camp in the little arroyo with its cold light. From far away came the indistinct, silly yapping of a couple of coyotes, and I could hear the horses stirring uneasily. Finally I fell asleep, and it seemed as though I had hardly closed my eyes when something--perhaps a sound, or maybe a premonition of something wrong--caused me to become wide awake. I sat up and, noticing that the moon was now overhead, looked at my wrist watch. It was almost one o’clock.

There seemed to be nothing amiss. Olin was snoring peacefully, the coyotes were no longer serenading the moon, only a little breeze was moving the tops of the mesquite brushes. I glanced over to where the horses had been tethered, and saw that they were very restive. Thinking that perhaps some coyote was skulking about our camp, I crawled out of my sleeping bag, took my rifle, and went over to where the horses were trembling and straining at their tethers. They were apparently scared at something immediately in front of them, as they both gazed with bulging eyes in the same direction. Aside from a large rock and a few straggling sotol plants, I could see nothing to cause their fear. Thinking that perhaps, some creature had hidden behind the rock, I made my way in a wide circle around it, but there was nothing I could see to explain the horses’ fright. I went to them and stroked their noses; this calmed them somewhat, but they continued to gaze fearfully at the rock.

IT came over me like a flash that I had not noticed that rock when we made camp--in fact, being now fully wide awake, I recalled that there was no large rock of any kind near our camp. I blinked my eyes and pinched myself to see if I was really awake. Could I have been mistaken about my first impression of our camp site, and have overlooked an object as large as that rock? My work has always called for keen observation, and it was absurd to think that if a fairly sizable boulder had been in sight, especially all by itself as this one was, I would have failed to note it. Yet there it was, gleaming dully in the moonlight, apparently firmly imbedded in the ground. But it _couldn’t_ (I reasoned) have been there when we first arrived. Imagine two geologists failing to see a rock of that size! How in the world could it have gotten there? Was it placed there by someone during the night, while we slept? And if so, why? But I had not noticed any footprints around it. It was obvious that it could not have rolled from anywhere. It had not been there four hours ago, it had not been carried, it had not rolled . . .

In all my experiences in out-of-the-way, God-forsaken places, I have never known fear. I have been shot at by Mexicans, held up by thugs, even bitten by a rattlesnake--but nothing has ever made me afraid. Not even intense shell fire on the Western Front, where I had served the last month of the war as an infantry captain in the 8th Division, ever made me aware of danger. I was cited once by the French government for bravery, but I take no credit for that. It is simply my make-up--I have no “nerves.” But now--this inexplicable rock appearing from nowhere--the very obvious fear it instilled in the horses--

My first impulse was to waken Olin and tell him of this startling phenomenon. The remote possibility that I might be mistaken, and had for some reason failed to notice this rock, due to my absorption in my note making, deterred me. How Olin would laugh at me if I roused him because of some foolish fancy about an innocent boulder that had been there all the time. He would never get done guying the life out of me. But I was positive that it had not been there when we made camp.

I was debating whether to investigate the rock and prove once for all there was no cause for alarm, or arouse Olin and get his opinion, when the rock was suddenly thrown back and I could see that it was only a hollow camouflage over a hole in the ground. Before I could cry out, I was seized from behind and strong hands had placed a gag in my mouth and a bandage over my eyes. I attempted to struggle, but my efforts were useless. It was as though my arms and legs were held in a powerful vise. Something sweetish that may have been chloroform was held over my nose, and before I lost consciousness I heard the squeal of a horse and the pounding of his hoofs as he broke from his tether and ran. There was no sound of any kind from my captors. I was dimly aware of being carried in powerful arms and laid upon some smooth surface that seemed to sink beneath me as darkness pressed upon me and I knew no more.

HOW long it was before I regained consciousness I do not know. I seemed to hear a sort of droning sound, like the faraway purr of an aeroplane motor. For a stupefied instant I believed I was again in my sleeping bag, awakening from a bad dream. Then the recollection of the hollow rock and my silent capture by strong hands seizing me swiftly from behind, the thundering hoofs of the frightened horse, came over me with sickening vividness. Cautiously I moved my arms and legs, and found that they were not bound. Neither was there a gag in my mouth or a bandage over my eyes. It was too dark to see anything of my surroundings, but I could feel that I was lying on a gently sloping, smooth, cold stone floor. I got unsteadily to my feet and carefully extended my hands above my head. Though I reached upward as far as I could, I could touch nothing. I got down on my knees and groped around, crawling several feet in every direction, and encountered no obstacle of any kind--only the smooth, dry stone that was the floor of my strange prison.

There was no way of telling the dimensions of the room or cave in which I had been deserted by my mysterious captors. Utter darkness enveloped me like a heavy blanket. After several minutes of futile crawling around, I realized that I must be in the middle of some tremendous room, and that it was a waste of time trying to find a wall or outlet. My captors evidently knew that this Stygian blackness would effectually bar my escape, even if there were a way out, and that was undoubtedly the reason I was unbound. Nothing I could do would help in any way, so I might just as well await developments calmly. I stretched myself full length on the stone floor and tried to puzzle out the reason for my terrible predicament.

That I had been kidnapped by bandits and removed to some cavern to await the payment of ransom seemed the most plausible solution. I wondered if they had seized Olin Gilfillan also. If so, why were we not together? Thinking he might be somewhere nearby, I shouted his name aloud. Only the hollow, booming echo of my own voice, sounding with eerie mockery from round about, answered me. I listened intently. Silence, a great, brooding silence, intensified by the darkness, by the magnitude of the cavern, and by my own breathing. I no longer heard the droning sound that I had noticed when I first regained my senses, so it must either have been my imagination or the effects of the drug I had been forced to inhale. Undoubtedly I was entirely alone in the darkness. And if I were being held for ransom, it would, be only a question of time before my captors brought me something to eat and drink.

Then there was the matter of the rock camouflage. The outlaws had probably hidden one of their number beneath it as a measure of precaution in case their plans miscarried. But what an elaborate precaution, when there were so many other simpler, and equally effective, methods of concealment. And they put it in a position where it would be bound to attract attention and investigation. Even putting it behind a sotol plant would be better than having it in the open. Could it have concealed the entrance to the cave I was now in? Then, why hadn’t Olin or I noticed the spot when we made camp? Perhaps the bandits had covered the place cleverly, using the false rock only as a screen for exit and entrance. That might explain the sinking sensation I noticed just before the drug put me to sleep--I was probably lowered into the ground at this point. I well knew that there were countless caves in this southeastern part of New Mexico. The mighty Carlsbad Cavern itself has a great number of branching chambers that have never been explored. What could be more perfect for the purpose of kidnapping for ransom than a well-concealed entrance to an unknown cavern in this rugged, little-traveled country? In many places near the Carlsbad Cavern the roof has fallen in, leaving deep depressions in the ground; in fact, the natural entrance to this cavern is in one of such depressions. The more I thought this over, the more I became convinced that my captors had cunningly concealed a comparatively small entrance to their own private cave, and that we, unfortunately happening to camp close by, provided easy prey for their first attempt.

HOW they could have made the place look like ordinary flat ground, with no footprints or other signs of disturbance anywhere, puzzled me greatly. Several of them had come out and had seized me from behind, but how had they covered their tracks, and where had they hidden that I did not see them as I gazed around? They must have come from some distance off, and been lightning quick to get me as they did. And having captured me so neatly and noiselessly, why was I now left alone with my thoughts, free to blunder around and break my neck in the darkness? They evidently thought to cow me, so that I would prove tractable, using the terror that comes from darkness and solitude as their trump card. I resolved that, come what might, I would never let them believe that I felt the slightest fear. And I further resolved that once I was free, I would leave no stone unturned to seek out this rendezvous and capture the whole gang, if it took half the United States army. Why I have not done this will be made evident as I continue.

Just as I had thoroughly determined to make bravery my one inflexible gesture, no matter what they did to me, I became aware of a presence approaching. It was only the faintest sort of rustling sound, as though someone in a flapping kimono and sandals were walking toward me. That someone, or something, was coming toward me in absolute darkness, apparently moving at a steady pace in spite of that fact, made my bravery dissolve into thin air. After all, what is fear? We can steel ourselves to meet known dangers philosophically, or even unknown ones if they are not totally unexpected; but when we are suddenly confronted with the unknown, with all its potentialities of horror aggravated by the awful cloak of inky darkness, or any equally terrifying circumstance, we become as frightened children. It is only natural. As the rustling sound grew louder, I involuntarily uttered a stifled, sobbing moan, and sought to crawl away in the opposite direction. I found that I could not move. I was paralyzed with a blind, unreasoning, sickening fear. I felt faint with nausea, and my teeth clicked together, as though I were perishing with cold. I have said before that I have no “nerves” and that ordinary perils have never ovecome me; but this was no ordinary situation, and what I had already been through paved the way to this climax of complete terror. I felt that death, sudden and painless, would be the most welcome thing that could happen.

Whatever it was, stopped near me and I could hear it breathing faintly. I tried desperately to control the clacking of my teeth and the trembling of my limbs. I cursed myself for having called Olin, for the noise, no doubt, had attracted the creature’s attention. As I could see nothing, not even the faintest indication of glowing eyes, my terror-stricken mind finally grasped the fact that no beast was near me; it was probably only one of my captors. Yet, how had he found his way to me, and where had he come from. My terror died away as quickly as it had come, leaving me still trembling and faint, but with my mind alert for what might follow, no matter how strange.

A RUSTLING sound close to my head and something touched me on the shoulder. It was a hand, bony, long-fingered, powerful, that seized my shoulder and pulled me up to a sitting position.

“Drink!” said a voice close to my ear. “Put your hands before your face, and take the bowl that is offered you.” The voice had a peculiar rasping quality, as if the speaker were having difficulty in controlling his tongue, and the pronunciation of the words was done in a sort of guttural drawl.

“What is it you offer me to drink?” I asked my unseen visitor, in the bravest voice I could muster, “and why have I been brought here?”

The hand on my shoulder slowly tightened until I winced with pain. Against my lips was pressed the rim of a rough, earthen bowl filled with some cold liquid.

“Drink!” again said the voice, and I sensed the menace in the metallic, rasping words, “to struggle is useless, for you cannot see in the dark. Do as you are told, or you shall be pinioned and forcibly made to drink. The liquid will not harm you, if that is why you are fearful.”

The pain from his tremendous grip on my shoulder was too much. It would indeed be of no avail to struggle in the dark with an unknown, powerful adversary who was apparently thoroughly indifferent to the lack of light. There was nothing to do but drink, and hope that he told the truth in saying no harm lay therein. It was only a small bowl, holding little more than an ordinary glass, and I quaffed the whole potion in large gulps. It tasted no different than ordinary water.

“That is better,” came the voice, as the bowl was taken from me and the hand on my shoulder removed, “now I shall talk to you. Sit quite still. You cannot possibly escape, and besides I can see you perfectly, so--”

I gave a gasp of incredulity. It was conceivable that the owner of this voice might be so used to the dark that he could make his way around; but as for seeing me perfectly in this smothering blackness . . . the man must be mad! That was it! I had been captured by some lunatic, and brought to this underground cavern for a terrible purpose. My only chance was to humor the creature, to use my wits and watch for a chance to overpower him. He was evidently endowed with a sort of sixth sense, and I would have to bide my time. Then, his voice--it was not the voice of a normal human being.

“I see that you do not believe my statement,” went on that drawling, peculiar voice. “You think that it is not possible for anyone to see in the dark. You not only think I am lying, but you think I am crazy. When I get done talking to you, it will be surprising if you do not think yourself crazy instead. We know no difference between light and dark, such as you dwellers on the Earth. Light is used by us only to intensify that which we already see--it is similar to what magnification would be to you. Light makes a reaction on certain nerves of ours, corresponding to your optic nerves, that simply intensifies the image. The stronger the light, the larger the image. As I look at you now, you are your normal size. We have lived and worked so long here that we are even more partial to dark than to light, although in our work we find it necessary--”

“Just a minute,” I broke in, realizing now that there was indeed a dangerous madman on my hands, and that only if I pretended to keep up a discussion on the topic which obsessed him could I hope to gain his good graces, “you must remember that I have only just arrived, and know nothing about you or your work. Where are the others who are associated with you? Did you bring me here to help you in any way? I’ll be glad to do anything I can.”

“I am not sure you will be needed after all,” said the voice, “I am appointed to look after you until--well, until you are summoned. The others you will see in due time. Meanwhile, as you have that human trait of curiosity and your face has expressed bewilderment and incredulity at certain things I have said, I shall explain what and who I am, so that you will grasp what I am talking about. To begin with, I am not a human being. Do not, however, let that fact alarm you. Because you cannot see me, and because I am talking to you in a language you can understand, you think I am utterly insane. You will shortly see for yourself that I am right. Listen carefully to what I tell you, so that you will be prepared to comprehend what will be shown you later.”

“But if you are not a human being,” I expostulated in a bewildered tone of voice that I strove to make matter of fact, “what are you? You speak English very well, and only human beings can talk. Are you a god of some sort?” I thought by this remark to flatter the fellow, and thus draw him out further in his absurd statements.

“Foolish one, of course I am not a god. But your question is reasonable, nevertheless. You suppose that only human beings can talk, which is correct as far as it applies to inhabitants of this planet. My parents came from the planet you know as Venus about one hundred of your years ago, and I myself was born here, in this cavern!”

AT this amazing statement I must have registered a very ludicrous astonishment, for my invisible captor gave a deep, throaty laugh and continued: “It is too bad you cannot see yourself now, Mister Stan-lee Murduck (that is about the way he pronounced it). You, too, would laugh. You see, we are not without a sense of humor. I know your head is seething with a conflicting tumult of thoughts. How did I know your name? From the notebook you had in your shirt pocket. You would no doubt be interested in my name. It is Oomlag-Tharnar-Illnag, or Oomlag for short. You may call me that. I am sorry that I cannot let you see my face just now, but we prepare all our involuntary visitors with a little talk in the dark first, so that our intentions will be made clear and they can better stand the shock of seeing us and our work.”

“Do you mean to tell me that other people have been brought here, too?” I shuddered at the thought. “What do you want with us--with me--and what becomes of us--‘involuntary visitors’?”

Again came the gurgling laugh.

“Oh, we have a certain very definite purpose with you. We would not trouble to bring you here, unless we could make good use of your services. We have only invited a very few visitors, but they are all people of much more than ordinary intelligence, such as yourself, and peculiarly fitted to aid us in our--ah, purpose.”

I realized fully my terrible position--talking in black darkness with a madman who claimed that his parents came from Venus, that others were associated with him in some sinister undertaking here in the cavern, and that several other people had also been made prisoners, for what unholy purposes I could not guess. The darkness and the strength of my unwelcome host were against me. In despair, I was now certain that my only hope was to draw him out in “a little talk,” and perhaps thereby gain information to help me escape, or, by pretending to be very eager to help him, to insinuate myself into his good graces and catch him unaware at a favorable moment.

“YOU tell me,” I said, as casually as possible, “that your visitors are allowed to see your work, but that before that event you prepare them by a little explanatory lecture here in the dark to better withstand the ‘shock.’ Would it be presumptuous of me to ask why it should be a shock to see you and your work?”

“Not at all,” came the voice of Oomlag. “But before I do that, you should be enlightened further as to why you are here. In a way, you are our slave, in the sense at least, that you will be compelled by us to spend the next few years underground. However, if you cooperate with us as I believe you will, you will be well treated and allowed to roam around as you please. If, after things have been fully explained to you, you do not prove agreeable and refuse to help, I can only say that you will very soon change your mind.

“Now, if you will be kind enough not to interrupt me, I shall give you a little discourse that you will probably not believe. No matter. You have all, being earth creatures, been most skeptical about what is, to your way of thinking, impossible. But at least try to follow me, and when you _do_ see us at work, you will be less apt to think it is all a dream or that you have lost your reason.

“As I said before, we are from the planet you call Venus. For many hundreds of years past we have been in a high state of civilization, one as far superior to yours as yours is to that of the crudest cave-man. We have developed certain scientific instruments and discovered forces that enable us to do things scarcely dreamed of by your scientists. Some of these things you will be shown in due time. It is well that we have made the wonderful advance that we have, for it has given us the secret of interplanetary flight, and in time to relieve the pressure of our population. Fortunately, your earth is only a little larger than ours, some 10%, and though almost half again as far away from the sun, your atmosphere is even better suited to us than our own. It is cooler and more stimulating. We were energetic enough as it was, but here on your earth we are paragons of energy. After we have conquered you and eventually exterminated you, as all your own superior tribes have done to your own inferior ones, we shall be the absolute masters of the two planets. With what we already know, plus things we shall find out as we begin to expand, I know that our population problem will not bother us again for untold centuries.

“After we have consolidated our position here, we intend to make an expedition to the ruddy planet you call Mars. We do not intend to settle, as conditions are not at all favorable for prolonged life there for us; but we do intend to see that the Martian civilization is broken and we ourselves secure from their menace. Though we cannot live comfortably on their planet, they can on yours, so it is wise to crush them as soon as possible, as they have a rather advanced civilization and might outdo us later. As for the larger planets known to you, such as Saturn, Neptune, and Uranus, and our smaller neighbor, Mercury, they may be disregarded, some being populated by crude insect-like creatures and others having only a low form of vegetation. Besides, their mass alone would prohibit our survival, even as it would yours. Though I weigh several pounds more here on your Earth than I would on Venus, its only effect is to give a corresponding feeling of well-being. Those who have come here direct, as my parents, say it is like a man under weight getting his full quota of flesh; he feels stronger, and he is stronger.”

THE creature paused, and I could hear his garments rustling. In spite of the fact that I still thought I was dealing with a lunatic, I felt but little fear. Though the strange throaty quality of his voice gave the words an accent rather difficult to understand at times, his choice of English was excellent and stamped him as a man with a splendid education. Perhaps he was some professor of astronomy who had become insane from overstudy, and was living his life underground, clever enough to wrest a living by going at times to the outside world and obtaining food somehow. Long familiarity with his habitat undoubtedly explained his uncanny ability to get around in the dark, and sense my position. And his rock camouflage--that was wonderfully clever. Yes, I would rather deal with an intelligent man obsessed on one subject than with a rambling, mumbling idiot. Could there be any truth about others working with him? Hardly. Later he would probably point out an imaginary series of tunnels and what not, firmly believing everything was there. If I was diplomatic enough I might get him to show me the entrance through which he had brought me, and then make a break for freedom. . . .

My face must have betrayed my growing interest and lack of fear, for Oomlag’s next remark indicated as much.

“What do you say now, Stan-lee?” he asked me, his garments still rustling like strips of dry, hard leather rubbing against each other. “Have I told you enough to make you realize how very much you are in my power, and to make you wish to see the things I have mentioned; or do you wish to ask questions about things I have overlooked? Our Field General has communicated with me, wanting to know if you are sufficiently enlightened. If you care to proceed now, I shall give the signal and we may advance; but if you are still afraid for your safety, further parley is your privilege.”

My mind was made up. Under the circumstances, there was only one thing I could do--go with the fellow, and find out once for all whether he was a lunatic or not. I could only hope I would not be hurled into some pit in the darkness.

“Sure, Oomlag,” I said, striving to seem very enthusiastic, “bring on your big show! Tell your General I am ready, and that my services are at his disposal. I think I can stand about any shock now.”

“You stood the darkness test better than most,” remarked Oomlag, dryly. “Usually we must speak long before we get near enough to touch. The fluid you drank was water with a mild drug to make your mind more active. Since you are ready, I will give the signal.”

Again his garments rustled. About a minute passed, but nothing happened to break the impenetrable darkness or my keyed-up sense of suspense.

“The Field General says to bring you in. Stand up, Stan-lee!” Oomlag ordered, at the same time grasping my right elbow with his lean, powerful fingers. As soon as I was on my feet, he faced me half way around and gave me a little shove.

“Walk straight forward until I tell you to stop!” he commanded, the gruff, guttural words being spoken close to my ear, “and do not speak a word. Say nothing until you receive my permission.”

I took a few slow, shuffling steps into the darkness, hands held before my face.

“Walk naturally!” Oomlag whispered, and there was nothing to do but obey. The floor of the cave sloped gently down, and I expected momentarily to go hurtling into some chasm. I was wholly at the mercy of this strange being, and tried to steel myself for whatever might happen. I imagine that walking the plank would be a similar sensation, the only difference being the certainty of destruction.

AFTER I had taken about a hundred steps, the floor seemed to become level. Oomlag was right behind me. I could hear the soft shuffle of his feet and rustle of his clothes. But he gave me no more spoken directions. Either I happened to be going in the right direction, or, what was more probable, I was being guided by some unknown influence. The floor continued level, and we must have walked fully five minutes in the dense blackness of the place before I noticed a little draft of warm air. At the same time I became aware of a rather high-pitched humming sound that grew louder as we moved forward. Then I began to hear more shuffling sounds, and a sort of subdued murmuring on all sides, as though a crowd of people were gathered and whispering to one another.

Suddenly Oomlag’s hand grasped my shoulder and stopped me in my tracks. Without uttering a word, we stood there, his hand still gripping my shoulder. My senses were keenly acute, and I knew, from the indistinct rustlings and murmurings I could hear, that we were surrounded by other beings.

Slowly, as the lights in a theater are gradually turned on, objects around me became visible. First I could make out several shadowy, tall figures standing about on all sides, and the outlines of two enormous white stalagmites. As the light became brighter by imperceptible degrees, I could see that it emanated from a multitude of octagonal crystals set in the walls of the cavern at regular intervals. Before me rose up a sort of throne built into a large niche in the cavern wall, and on this throne, apparently hewn from the living rock, sat one of the most preposterous-looking beings the imagination of man could conceive. The two stalagmites flanked this throne on either side, and other bizarre creatures were thronged in the space between the stalagmites and below the throne.

I shall do my best to describe the Field General commanding the hordes from Venus that are to conquer our earth in a few short years. I was sickened by the revelation that Oomlag was indeed no madman, but really one of an invincible vanguard with the world in their grasp. The Field General, as Oomlag had termed him, was a terrible thing to look upon. A tall figure, well over seven feet, with unbelievably long, skinny arms and legs, a torso like a pouter-pigeon, and above it, set on a short, thick neck, a head shaped like an ostrich egg. The head was entirely bald, covered with skin like parchment and of a most revolting ochre yellow color. The ears tapered almost to a point; the eyes, small and set close together, burned like those of a cat in the dark; the nose was very wide and flat, almost pig-like; and the mouth, thick-lipped and exceedingly wide, was doubly hideous due to the total absence of chin. In conversation later he revealed his teeth, the front four evidently filed to a point and the rest flat; all of a dark gray color. He was clothed in some sort of tight-fitting dull green garment which, together with a brick-red jacket or vest over his huge, round chest, gave him the appearance of a grotesque turnip. On his long, tapering feet he wore flat sandals held in place by thongs laced through the ends of his doublet, if I may call it that. His fingers were all long and of equal length, and he kept toying with some object resting in his lap. It looked like a bassoon without the mouthpiece.

THE lights had now reached their maximum, giving the huge room the effect of being flooded by intensely bright moonlight. Behind me, and on all sides, stood scores of these creatures, similar in appearance to the Field General on the throne, except that they wore dull green jackets instead of brick-red. They stood motionless, regarding me stolidly with their smoldering, beady eyes.

Oomlag stepped forward and saluted his commander with a sweeping motion of his right arm. He said something in a strange, guttural tongue, and the Field General evidently plied him with questions about me, for they kept up a long conversation, often glancing my way. Finally Oomlag turned to me.

“The Field General wants to ask you a few questions,” he said, stepping to one side.

The Field General regarded me intently for several moments. I quailed under the inspection of those calculating, cat-like, inhuman eyes of his. The only difference between him and what might be imagined in a nightmare was that he was the real thing--actual and horrible to look upon. With his loose, ochre lips exposing the sharp front teeth at every word, he spoke in a pronounced guttural accent, his English quite limited and hard to understand.

“You work rock work?” he asked with difficulty.

“Yes, sir,” I replied, my heart pounding against my ribs for all I could do to calm myself. “I’m a geologist.”

A short interjection by Oomlag evidently explained to the Field General what a geologist was.

“You know then what is r-r-radium?”

“Yes.”

“You know what is bismuth?”

“Yes.”

“You know any in between?”

“What do you mean by that, sir?” I inquired.

The Field General spoke a few rapid words to Oomlag, who said to me: “He means, do you know of any element of atomic weight between bismuth and radium? You know, of course, they are roughly 208 and 225, using 16 for oxygen as the standard, and I promise you, on my word, that if you can place any element in that gap, you will be well rewarded for the information.”

“There has been none discovered that I know of,” I replied.

“That is all,” said the Field General, curtly, adding something in his own tongue to Oomlag.

Again came the high-pitched humming sound, and the lights dimmed perceptibly. The creatures round about, who had regarded me stolidly during my short conversation with the Field General, now broke up into little groups of four or five and walked off in different directions.

From this large room, which was the executive chamber of the Field General, branched four tunnels, about twenty feet in height and the same in width, lighted at intervals of some hundred feet by octagonal globes, set in niches in the solid rock and projecting out at an angle of 45 degrees. Down one of these tunnels Oomlag now bade me walk, himself striding along beside me, like some over-fantastic figure in a parade of mummers. We had only gone a short distance from where the tunnel branched from the Executive Chamber when I noticed that on both sides appeared, at regular intervals, large curtains or hangings of material resembling the jackets these people wore, both in color and material.

“These hangings,” said Oomlag, in the same way a guide would point out and explain objects of interest to a tourist, “conceal doors to our apartment houses. Our mode of life is practically the same as yours; we breathe, we take food through our mouth, we require shelter, we mate, we are gregarious. The apartments proper I am not permitted to show you, but this I can say: they are hewn from the solid rock, as are all these tunnels, by our own machine brought from Venus. As you shall probably spend several years down here with us, it is desirable that you should have this preliminary trip and explanation before you are assigned to quarters. By the way, Stan-lee--I forgot you are an earth creature and subject to more frequent pangs of hunger than we. Do you care for food or drink? It is only a short distance to the dining room of our involuntary visitors, and I shall be glad to take you there before we go further. What do you say?”

EVER since my introduction to the Executive Chamber, I had wondered, in the back of my mind, where my fellow prisoners might be. I had seen no living thing save these monstrous men of Venus, and this sounded like a chance to see some of the other unfortunate human beings held captive here.

“Yes, I am very hungry, Oomlag,” I lied, “and I was just about to ask you if I could have something to eat.”

“Follow me.”

I followed Oomlag down this main tunnel about a quarter of a mile to where a smaller tunnel branched to the right. Some hundred paces we took down this, then found the way blocked by the usual dull-green hangings. Oomlag’s hands reached under his jacket, there was a rustling sound, and instantly the hangings parted, revealing doors like huge square blocks of cement. These doors slid noiselessly into the walls of the tunnel on each side.

We entered a chamber about a hundred feet square and about fifteen feet high, containing a dozen large, round tables of smooth rock, with smaller stools, also of rock, serving as chairs. Over each table, as well as in the comers of the room, were the octagonal crystal lights illuminating the room with their cold, intense rays. Behind us the immense doors slid together again without a sound.

At one of these rock tables Oomlag and I seated ourselves. Again he reached under his jacket and again there was a rustling sound. I was about to ask him what sort of signals he produced by this mysterious maneuver, when a panel in the rock wall at the far end of the room slid back, and a girl bearing a tray stepped out.

Needless to say, I regarded with extreme interest this first person of my own race I was privileged to see, who was, like myself, a captive of these terribly efficient Venusians. Was it sympathy with her plight that made me think her pretty? She seemed of a Spanish type, her long black hair parted smoothly in the middle, and hanging in glossy braids on either side of her pale, pathetically piquant face. She was clad in a dress made of the universal material used by these people, reaching almost to her ankles. Though she was small, the garment gave her a look of height and dignity. She moved gracefully to our table, and without a word placed before us the dishes on her tray. As she leaned over, she glanced at me with such a hopeless look in her large, brown eyes that I was stabbed to the heart. Before she turned away, I saw a tear rolling down her cheek. She brushed at it with a slender little hand, as she retired with the empty tray through the rock panel, which closed silently behind her.

“That,” said Oomlag, arranging the dishes before me, “is one of our most valuable guests. She has been with us almost five years, and has been invaluable in teaching us Spanish and English. She came from a small town in Arizona. I forgot to tell you, you are to hold no converse at any time with any of your fellow beings. To do so will have painful consequences. You think she is pretty, don’t you?”

I boiled inwardly. This leering, inhuman brute was my absolute master, and nothing I could say or do would help in the least; on the contrary, if I said what I really thought, it would be the worse for me.

“Oh, she’s not so much,” I said, casually. “She is too pale, for one thing. Tell me, Oomlag, what is this dinner you have ordered for me? How do you grow anything fit to eat down here? What is this soup made of?”

Before me, in hollow stone dishes, was a repast of hot soup, vegetables and bread. The only utensil was a large spoon made of some sort of fibre.

“While you eat,” said Oomlag, stretching his long legs and adjusting his jacket, “I shall endeavor to explain things to you. Before I can answer your questions, it is necessary to trace out certain other things. Take your soup and tell me what you think of it.”

I did so, finding it very delicious, rather like mock turtle. I told him it was very palatable.

“I am glad you like it. It is a combination of crushed yucca roots and prairie dog bones, prepared according to our own formula.”

I made a wry face and laid the spoon down.

“Ah, I see your imagination tells you the soup is not so good.” Oomlag grinned horribly, his yellow lips baring his sharp teeth. “Strange how you creatures allow your imagination to dictate your likes and dislikes. If I had not told you the ingredients of that soup, you would have enjoyed it thoroughly. Now, having told you, you find it disagreeable, though you just finished saying it was good. You might as well learn to like it, for you will have it every day. The vegetables are--but I must begin at the beginning. Not such bad bread, is it?”

“TO begin with, we are, as I told you before, from Venus. Our scientists have spent centuries in perfecting a machine for interplanetary flight. We have long had the necessary power. The problem was to determine the relative position of the two planets, the pull of gravity of the sun, Venus and your earth, the time necessary to make the flight, the provisioning and ventilating of the projectile, the perfecting of a device to detect and repel meteorites, and countless other problems, all vitally important. The data for all this was handed down from generation to generation, and finally everything had been thought of.

“No doubt you have been curious to know why the Field General interrogated you about bismuth and radium. He has had too much to do supervising things here, so has only a smattering of your languages; but that question he felt he should ask you personally. The reason is, we have an element about half-way in the atomic scale between bismuth and radium which gives us unlimited power by the breaking up of its atoms. We know that this element does exist on this earth, and the Field General thought perhaps you knew of its discovery. That, however, is only incidental, and not the reason for bringing you here.

“Having found out how to harness this element, we were well supplied with light and power on our planet. These lights you see are run by radio current from several plants in our workings, each dynamo, if I may call it that, generating a powerful radio wave which is caught and utilized by each of these crystals. The crystals are considerably larger the further away they are from the source of power, for distance demands more filament to catch the power waves.

“A fortunate discovery, though with tragic consequences to the discoverer, revealed the possibility of utilizing this element with another in such proportions as to repel anything in front of the wave generated by their intermixing. That was the beginning of our centuries of work on an interplanetary machine. It is obvious that if the ray generated by these two elements will repel anything in its path, then by proper control, intensifying and reducing it at will, enough force could be made to repel us away from Venus and toward the earth, using auxiliary rays to repel any stray meteorites. And there are plenty of those. But the exhaustive calculations! Nothing could be left to chance. The best brains of our people worked ceaselessly on the problem until everything was figured out.