The Moon Pool A. Merritt (pdf ebook reader .txt) š
- Author: A. Merritt
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The slender, graceful bridges under which we skimmed ended at openings in the upflung, far walls of verdure. Each had its little garrison of soldiers. Through some of the openings a rivulet of the green obsidian river passed. These were roadways to the farther country, to the land of the ladala, Rador told me; adding that none of the lesser folk could cross into the pavilioned city unless summoned or with pass.
We turned the bend of the road and flew down that farther emerald ribbon we had seen from the great oval. Before us rose the shining cliffs and the lake. A half-mile, perhaps, from these the last of the bridges flung itself. It was more massive and about it hovered a spirit of ancientness lacking in the other spans; also its garrison was larger and at its base the tangent way was guarded by two massive structures, somewhat like blockhouses, between which it ran. Something about it aroused in me an intense curiosity.
āWhere does that road lead, Rador?ā I asked.
āTo the one place above all of which I may not tell you, Goodwin,ā he answered. And again I wondered.
We skimmed slowly out upon the great pier. Far to the left was the prismatic, rainbow curtain between the Cyclopean pillars. On the white waters graceful shellsā ālacustrian replicas of the Elf chariotsā āswam, but none was near that distant web of wonder.
āRadorā āwhat is that?ā I asked.
āIt is the Veil of the Shining One!ā he answered slowly.
Was the Shining One that which we named the Dweller?
āWhat is the Shining One?ā I cried, eagerly. Again he was silent. Nor did he speak until we had turned on our homeward way.
And lively as my interest, my scientific curiosity, wereā āI was conscious suddenly of acute depression. Beautiful, wondrously beautiful this place wasā āand yet in its wonder dwelt a keen edge of menace, of uneaseā āof inexplicable, inhuman woe; as though in a secret garden of God a soul should sense upon it the gaze of some lurking spirit of evil which some way, somehow, had crept into the sanctuary and only bided its time to spring.
XVII The LeprechaunThe shell carried us straight back to the house of Yolara. Larry was awaiting me. We stood again before the tenebrous wall where first we had faced the priestess and the Voice. And as we stood, again the portal appeared with all its disconcerting, magical abruptness.
But now the scene was changed. Around the jet table were grouped a number of figuresā āLugur, Yolara beside him; seven othersā āall of them fair-haired and all men save one who sat at the left of the priestessā āan old, old woman, how old I could not tell, her face bearing traces of beauty that must once have been as great as Yolaraās own, but now ravaged, in some way awesome; through its ruins the fearful, malicious gaiety shining out like a spirit of joy held within a corpse!
Began then our examination, for such it was. And as it progressed I was more and more struck by the change in the OāKeefe. All flippancy was gone, rarely did his sense of humour reveal itself in any of his answers. He was like a cautious swordsman, fencing, guarding, studying his opponent; or rather, like a chess-player who keeps sensing some far-reaching purpose in the game: alert, contained, watchful. Always he stressed the power of our surface races, their multitudes, their solidarity.
Their questions were myriad. What were our occupations? Our system of government? How great were the waters? The land? Intensely interested were they in the World War, querying minutely into its causes, its effects. In our weapons their interest was avid. And they were exceedingly minute in their examination of us as to the ruins which had excited our curiosity; their position and surroundingsā āand if others than ourselves might be expected to find and pass through their entrance!
At this I shot a glance at Lugur. He did not seem unduly interested. I wondered if the Russian had told him as yet of the girl of the rosy wall of the Moon Pool Chamber and the real reasons for our search. Then I answered as briefly as possibleā āomitting all reference to these things. The red dwarf watched me with unmistakable amusementā āand I knew Marakinoff had told him. But clearly Lugur had kept his information even from Yolara; and as clearly she had spoken to none of that episode when OāKeefeās automatic had shattered the Keth-smitten vase. Again I felt that sense of deep bewildermentā āof helpless search for clue to all the tangle.
For two hours we were questioned and then the priestess called Rador and let us go.
Larry was sombre as we returned. He walked about the room uneasily.
āHellās brewing here all right,ā he said at last, stopping before me. āI canāt make out just the particular brandā āthatās all that bothers me. Weāre going to have a stiff fight, thatās sure. What I want to do quick is to find the Golden Girl, Doc. Havenāt seen her on the wall lately, have you?ā he queried, hopefully fantastic.
āLaugh if you want to,ā he went on. āBut sheās our best bet. Itās going to be a race between her and the OāKeefe bansheeā ābut I put my money on her. I had a queer experience while I was in that garden, after youād left.ā His voice grew solemn. āDid you ever see a leprechaun, Doc?ā I shook my head again, as solemnly. āHeās a little man in green,ā said Larry. āOh, about as high as your knee. I saw one onceā āin Carntogher Woods. And as I sat there, half asleep, in Yolaraās garden, the living spit of him stepped out from one of those bushes, twirling a little shillalah.
āāāItās a tight box yeāre gettinā in, Larry avick,ā said he, ābut donāt ye be downhearted, lad.ā
āāāIām carrying
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