Page 97 - Astounding Pulp V2

96 ASTOU~ OING SCIE}.;CE-F ICTION
[;\ TIT E I> \ y or ·1 11 E C()I 0
" Y u :-aH:<l my Jif c," t he . trantier ment, came loo e and slid down into .. 1)11 tlot hl· afr:iicl ."" thl· ~t r:111..!,·r ,·r i<.' l.
said. the cre,·a;; e. omething clange<l, a with . u picion. shaking hi-.. he-ad. --T hi,
offends the Ice Gods: · lw ~aid. ·· f \·r- -- 11 i, a g:i-.. !IH•~ 11-.nl to p1c:-,·1H' th,•-..l'
'·Tt w as noth ing," Pengo replied. q ueer 1101:e. thill(!'.'. I k l,11d1 hl·,idc ll Ill' \\ ,l'
" No,'' h <.: c ried, '·this is a t hing to be P ngo became alert. "What was haps it is one of their 111:iciti1w,.. i11r
death." hra ,·l.". tl1n11g-h :1 :-c it·111 i-..t.
r emembcrc.:d.'' H e cemed deeply that?" J'c11«11 watdwd him n ·ndi iu-..id,· ,\nd
1nove<I. ·'::\.Ietal !"! T he tranger had jerked '·Xo; Ii ten. il i hollow .. - thc ~1 r:i11 -
ger truck il with his ax a11d it ran~ tnrn :-~111e1hing. T hl· " h,1k -..id,· Pi t h .'
'' \,\' c can be blood bro thers if you uprig ht. " Tt."s metal !"' His nost_rils c-dinckr ~w1111g ,1111 w ard \\ it h a dan~.
with a loud. ciuivering vuicc that 1lta(k
like," P en go said indifferently . Aa red as if he could smell the tlung. r~n-a li11~ wh:H wa:- i11,icll•.
Pengo afraid- ·'we 11111. 1 li11d a way to
The Su-a n ger 's fa ce glo wed w ith ex- He lay on the edge of the yawning s~lit, open it." l l"n••o •ra:-Jwd. Thl'r,• 1wn•r w a~ :\
~
\..
:-,i
citem en t . '·I t is a . y mbo l. J w ill help staring down in. " There is somethnig thiiw like- this.
y o u ti ll the soil. Y Olll" soil.' ' the re " he cr ied excitedly. something 31 Pengo watched lhc thin heardcd man Tlierr were :-:lwln·s and cnn1pann1c11t--
P e ng o fro wned. "You a r e one w ho the b~ttom of the pit. It is po ible to with distrust. L-f e seemed . 11ddenly f 11II . 1hr n ·li11ckr. Packl•d in thl':-l' Wt.' rt..'
d r ea1n s." r each it." of authority, this cienlisl. T hi: cyli11clcr 1 ll • I .
all manner of thing5: meta 1_11:-tru_menl~.
" Why not ?'. he cried. " In the Nor th, " Do not go down in," P engo warned. was a thing. obviously. made by other shoe:- for the fc •t and ~n,·c-nng~ tor th
a s the o ther s la y s ta rv ing , I dream ed "That is death." scientists. IL could not be good. Hut bod,·. paper pritlll'd wnh s ymhn l:; and
o f this place. _ T }.ere wou ld be la n d. B u t the man from the N orth was be- he was his friend. his blood brother and bri ·htlv colored clnth. Pcngl) m;-i.n·ck<l.
A n d a w o ma n w ith blue eyes a nd two side him self. Peno·o held his wrist to it was so. He helped him fearfully. ll ~,-a; indeed a thing frnm the ()Id
b r a id s o f y e llow hair-like yours. Per- steady h im. H e heard him spring to It took doing lo roll it rn·cr. for the
haps in s uch a land , I dreamed , would 'solid footing below then his voice call· Stranger would have it turned. Pengo T ime::. .
He s tared 11nconiprchcnd1ngly at the
'
. a
lie th e sec r et o f th e h eat." ing up: "Pengo ! Come down. It 1s saw now that there wa,· an insert of o-lass tuhes o f colo red w:itcrs anc~ at th
some other material in the metal like a
Pen g o g rew u n easy. " I wm h elp you stran ge thing !" window. It was smooth and cool to l::-1 _- nat metal can~ , tacked in neat
f - .
.
get th e woman ," h e said sh o rtly, "But H a ir bristling, Pengo let himseH do,,·n the touch and one could see through it s 11 n ,· B l t he tlun o· that a!- m a te d
·
.
u
::.
ro ws.
t h e la nd k eep s its sec rets. Tha t is in the crevasse. It was a narrow place, like water. ~ him " a::. a1 ·nstrurnent that looked 1·1-
1 ,e
1 1
.
.. •
T
holy. Jt is not r ig ht to sea rch out w ha t w here the earth had riven asunder, bul . dol1blc-hcadecl ham m e r. t \\"a~
is h o ly ." "Glass," the ·tranger said reverently. a I s w 1 1 . I
a t the bottorn it w idened and there was "It is from the Old Time.·· H is look bl; ck. of a ubs tancc ltkc It ,c s~on
The S tranger looked at him in sur- space for a ma n to m ove around. Pengo that . 1 cd in the earth a nc set m a
• ~
.
prise. " I s h eat- h oly ?" of madness" returned momentarilv. B ut b 111 , to wJ 11ch one en c. I ,, a!? at-
stood in the gloom w ith the damp smell· he · became -calm again and ., peered era e C l
di b as
· " Yes,'' Pengo said un certa inly. " It ing earth walls r ising around him. The !hrough it, cupping his hand . ''There bed bv thong-s of ha rd w ~n-e n co r:c .
m u st be. I t is like t h e G ods of the Ice. sky was a jagged sliver of blue whence 1s a way to open it." he said. He pointed tac . I· it out rna n ·cli ng al its
They must n ot be offended." h e had come. P eng-o too , cl the iio·htncs:- o f t he c lu b
::.
.
....
to a spot of reel color on the metal sur- st 11o othness an b He picked u1e 111-
" Over here, Pengo. It is truly metal.': face. "This must be hit with an ax.··
P .ENGO ·was uneasy. He w ondered 3 in the heavy a:~-m its cra dle an d a
He was n · ght P enbo-o saw. It ' ' The Stranger struck repealed blows strument loose .t; o a sm::trt click . I-J e
\\
w h er e h e had gotten these w ords. T hey ' . e
metal. ~I uch metal, all in 0!1e p1ec; on the spot until the ringing ·sound of ba1· came up w 1 ,
were . goo~ words. T hey ha d been told It was like a t ree trunk, rounded a . d it with a fead ul ou tcry: ..
i o h11n . 1n _th e old times. But t hey both ends, Jon a as a man. The Strnfl' it dinned in Pengo's ears. But at last d1 oppe_ th · thc Y ta lked w ith . t h e
" It 1s a
.,
ing
J •
.
m a d e him teadul. Fearful and con- b . I his strokes ceased and he was panting. •er told him. "S .. He p u t 11s
ee.
.
ger called it a cylinder. H e scrape<l <ltf exhausted. "I l_iave not I t 1e strengt 1. S
I "
scjo u s ot t h e terrible cold that w as . trang. f ti e holes o n th e d ia l
1
fever ishly from its smooth sides. "There he gasped. "You are mighty. You fi <Yer 111 one o •
everyw h e r e. H e m ov ed his feet in their 1no . the face of th e c radle. sp u n
is le!tering on it. I t is in the language will do it, my brother.'' t hat was m · 1· t·
. 1 d bacl· with a strange c ic ,-
sk in cove ring s to k eep the circulation of the O ld Tongue." ·t It w 11r ' . ·1
1 e
going . A r ock , dislodged by the m ove- 5 Pengo hesitated. A nything tha t ~ . . " They could talk f01 llij es,
i
Pengo regarded the un famiLar 111ark would make the heat return could not mg· n oise. - ,,
• 0 11e another.
offend the Gods. He thougl1.t, of the not seemg · d "L t
Curved Fang he had slain with ~ single ,;T his is not holy," Pen go sa t . e
,,
blow on the skull. Bunching his mus- us g o away. ? Now?'' T he Strange,·
cles, he smote the thing with all his " Go away . . o ·
l looked at him as if h e were m a d . Pen ~o
power.
The damp earth walls n:iuffled the became wary•
blow of it. T here was a sharp tinkle.
Bu T the m a n. {_1·om the N o rt~1 w as
Something f~II away a1:d a smell sprang . ned onl)' with w hat lay m the
from withi,1 it" with a his~. P engo drew cancer ·
Co11ti1111l'd on pa,ge 100
back against the wall white ·with fear.