Astounding Stories of Super-Science, December 1930
Page 4
The Sea Terror
_By Captain S. P. Meek_
The trail of mystery gold leads Carnes and Dr. Bird to a tremendous monster of the deep.
"_The mass hung over the ship._"]
"I beg your pardon, sir. I'm looking for Dr. Bird."
The famous Bureau of Standards scientist appraised the speaker rapidly.Keen blue eyes stared questioningly at him from a mahogany brown face,criss-crossed with a thousand tiny wrinkles. The tattooed anchor on hishand and the ill-fitting blue serge suit smacked of the sea while thesquareness of his shoulders and the direct gaze of his eye spokeeloquently of authority.
"I'm Dr. Bird, Captain. What can I do for you?"
"Thank you, Doctor, but I'm not a captain. My name is Mitchell and I am,or was, the first mate of the _Arethusa_."
"The _Arethusa_!" Operative Carnes of the United States Secret Servicesprang to his feet. "You said the _Arethusa_? There _were_ nosurvivors!"
"I believe that I am the only one."
"Where have you been hiding and why haven't you reported the fact ofyour rescue to the proper authorities? Tell the truth; I'm a federalofficer!"
Carnes flashed the gold badge of the Secret Service and an expression ofanger crossed Mitchell's face.
"If I had wished to talk to an officer I could have found plenty in NewYork," he said shortly. "I came to Washington in order to tell my storyto Dr. Bird."
The seaman and the detective glared at one another for a moment and thenDr. Bird intervened.
"Pipe down, Carnes," he said softly. "Mr. Mitchell undoubtedly hasreasons, excellent reasons, for his actions. Sit down, Mr. Mitchell, andhave a cigar."
* * * * *
Mitchell accepted the cigar which the doctor proferred and took a chair.He lighted the weed and after another glance of hostility toward thedetective he pointedly ignored him and addressed his remarks to Dr.Bird.
"I have no objection to telling you why I haven't spoken earlier,Doctor," he said. "When the _Arethusa_ sank, I must have hit my head onsomething, for the next thing I knew, I was in the Marine Hospital inNew York. I had been picked up unconscious by a fishing boat and broughtin, and I lay there a week before I knew anything. When I knew what Iwas doing I heard about the loss of my ship and was told that there wereno survivors, and I didn't know what to do. The story I had to tell wasso weird and improbable that I hesitated to speak to anyone about it. Iwas not sure at first that it was not a trick of a disordered brain, butsince my head has cleared I am convinced of the truth of it ... and yetI know that it _can't_ be so. I have read about you and some of thethings you have done, and so as soon as I was able to travel I camehere to tell you about it. You will be better able to judge than I,whether what I tell you really happened or was only a vision."
Dr. Bird leaned back in his chair and put the tips of his fingerstogether. Long, tapering fingers they were, sensitive and well shaped,though sadly marred by acid stains. It was in his hands alone that Dr.Bird showed the genius in his make-up, the artistry which inspired himto produce those miracles of experimentation which had made his name ahousehold word in the realm of science. Aside from those hands he moreresembled a pugilist than a scientist. A heavy shock of unruly blackhair surmounted a face with beetling black brows and a prognathous jaw.His enormous head, with a breadth and height of forehead which wereamazing, rose from a pillar-like neck which sprang from a pair ofmassive shoulders and the arching chest of the trained athlete. Dr. Birdstood six feet two inches in his socks, and weighed over two hundredstripped. As he leaned back a curious glitter, which Carnes had learnedto associate with keen interest, showed for an instant in his eyes.
"I will be glad to hear your story, Mr. Mitchell," he said softly. "Tellit in your own way and try not to omit any detail, no matter how trivialit may be."
* * * * *
The seaman nodded and sat silent for a moment as though marshaling histhoughts.
"The story really starts the afternoon of May 12th," he said, "althoughI didn't realize the importance of the first incident at the time. Wewere steaming along at good speed, hoping to make New York before toolate for quarantine, when a hail came from the forward lookout. I was onwatch and I went forward to see what was the matter. The lookout wasLouis Green, an able bodied seaman and a good one, but a confirmeddrunkard. I asked him what the trouble was and he turned toward me aface that was haggard with terror.
"'I've seen a sea serpent, Mr. Mitchell,' he said.
"'Nonsense!' I replied sharply. 'You've been drinking again.'
"He swore that he hadn't and I asked him to describe what he had seen.His teeth were chattering so that he could hardly speak, but he gaspedout a story about seeing a monstrous head, a half mile across, he said,with a long snake body stretching out over the sea until the end of itwas lost on the horizon. I turned my glass in the direction he pointedand of course there was nothing to be seen. The man's condition was suchas to make him worse than useless as a lookout, so I relieved him andordered him below. I took it for a touch of delirium tremens.
"We were bucking a head wind, although not a very stiff one, and wedidn't make port until after dark, so we anchored at quarantine, justoff Staten Island, in forty fathoms of water, and Captain Murphy radioedfor a Coast Guard boat to come out and lay by us for the night. As youhave probably heard, we were carrying four millions in bar goldconsigned to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York from the Bank ofEngland."
* * * * *
Dr. Bird and Carnes nodded. The inexplicable loss of the _Arethusa_ hadoccupied much space in the papers ten days earlier.
"The cutter came out, signalled, and dropped anchor about three hundredyards away. So far, everything was exactly as it should be. I walked tothe stern of the boat and looked out across the Atlantic and then Irealized that Green wasn't the only one who could see things. The windhad fallen and it was getting pretty dark, but not too dark to seethings a pretty good distance away. As I looked I saw, or thought I saw,a huge black leathery mass come to the surface a mile or so away. Therewere two things on it that looked like eyes, and I had a feeling asthough some malignant thing was staring at me. I rubbed my eyes andlooked again, but the vision persisted, and I went forward to get aglass. When I came back the thing, whatever it was, had disappeared, butthe water where it had been was boiling as though there were a greatspring or something of the sort under the surface.
"I trained my glass on the disturbed area, and I will take my oaththat I saw a huge body like a snake emerge from the water. It lay inlong undulations on the waves, and moved with them as though it werefloating. It was quite a bit nearer than the first thing had been andI could see it plainly with the glass. I would judge it to be fifteenor twenty feet thick, and it actually seemed to disappear in thedistance as Green had described it. The sight of the thing sent shiversup and down my spine, and I gave a hoarse shout. The lookout hurriedto my side and asked me what the trouble was. I pointed and handedhim the glass. He looked through it and handed it back to me with acurious expression.
"'I can't see nothing, sir,' he said.
"I took the glass from him and tried to level it but my hands weretrembling so that I was forced to rest it on the rail. The lookout wasright. There was absolutely nothing to be seen and the peculiarappearance of the sea had subsided to normal. The lookout was staring atme rather curiously and I knew that he was thinking the same thing aboutme as I had thought about Green in the afternoon. I made some kind of anexcuse and went below to pull myself together. I caught a glimpse ofmyself in the glass. I was as white as a sheet, and the sweat wasrunning off my face in drops.
* * * * *
"I shook myself together after a fashion and managed to persuade myselfthat the whole thing was just a trick of my mind, inspired by Green'svivid description of his delirious vision of the afternoon. Eight bellsstruck, and when Mr. Fulton, the junior officer, relieved me, I laiddown and tri
ed to quiet myself. I didn't have much luck. Just before Itook the deck again at midnight I slipped down to the forecastle to seehow Green was coming along. He was lying in his bunk, wide awake, withstaring eyes.
"'How are you feeling now, Green?' I asked.
"He looked up at me with an expression of a man who has looked death inthe face.
"'Ain't there no chance of dockin' to-night, Mr. Mitchell?' he asked.
"'Of course not,' I said rather sharply. 'What's the matter with you?Are you afraid your sea serpent will get us?'
"'He'll get us if we stay out here to-night, sir,' he replied with anair of conviction. 'I saw the horrible mouth on him, large enough tobite this ship in half; and it had a beak like a bird, like a bloodyparrot, sir. I saw its horrible body, too, with great black ulcers onthe under side of it where the sharks had been after it. For all theshark takes a man now and then, he's the seaman's friend, sir, becausehe kills off the sea serpents who would take ship and all.'
"'Nonsense, Green!' I said sharply. 'Don't talk any more suchfoolishness or I'll have you ironed. You've been drinking so much thatyou are seeing things, and I won't have the crew disturbed by your crazytalk.'
"'You won't think it's talk when those big eyes stare into yoursto-night, Mr. Mitchell, and that body twists around you and squeezes thelife out of you. I don't care whether you iron me or not; I know thatI'm doomed and so is everyone else; but I won't talk about it, sir. Thecrew might as well rest easy while they can, for there's no escape if wehave to stay out here to-night.'
"'Well, be sure you keep a tight mouth then,' I said, and left ratherhurriedly. I was in a cold sweat, for his air of conviction, togetherwith what I had seen, had shaken me pretty badly. I heard the watchchanging up above, and knew there would be men in the forecastle in aminute. I didn't want to face them right then.
* * * * *
"Mr. Fulton reported everything quiet when I went on deck to relievehim, and although I surveyed the water through a night glass for as faras I could see, there was nothing out of the way. The Coast Guard'slights were shining less than a quarter of a mile away, and thingslooked peaceful enough. The wind had gone down with the sun; the sea wasalmost glassy, and there was a bright moon.
"After going around the ship, I relieved all of the watch except two menfor lookouts, and sent them below to get a good night's sleep. If Ihadn't done that, some of them might be alive now.
"I paced the deck for an hour trying to quiet my nerves, but reallygetting more nervous every minute. Three bells struck and I walkedforward and leaned on the rail to watch the water. I saw a peculiarswirl as though some large body were coming to the surface from below,and then I saw--it.
"Dr. Bird, I take a drink once in a while when I am on shore, but neverat sea and never in excess, and I know it wasn't a vision of drinkdelirium. I felt perfectly normal aside from my nervousness, and I don'tthink it was fever. Either I saw it or I am insane, for it is as vividto me as though I were standing on the _Arethusa's_ deck and thatmonstrous horror was rising once more before my eyes."
The seaman's face had become drawn and white as he talked, and drops ofsweat were trickling from his chin. Carnes sat forward absorbed in hisnarrative while Dr. Bird sat back with a glitter in his black eyes andan expression of great attention on his face.
"Go on, Mr. Mitchell," the doctor said soothingly. "Tell me just whatyou saw."
* * * * *
Mitchell shuddered and glanced quickly around the laboratory as thoughto assure himself that he was safe within four walls.
"From the surface of the sea," he went on, "rose a massive body, black,and of the appearance of wet leather. It must have been a couple ofhundred yards across, although the size of objects is often magnified bymoonlight and my terror may have added to its size. In the midst of itwere two great discs, thirty feet across, which glowed red with thereflected moonlight. It stared for a moment and then rose higher untilit towered above the ship; and then I saw, or thought I saw, a hugegaping beak like a parrot's. It was as Green had described it, largeenough to bite the _Arethusa_ in half, and she was a ship of threethousand tons.
"I was frozen with horror and couldn't move or cry out. As I watched, Isaw the long snake-like body emerge from the water, and the estimate Ihad made of the size in the afternoon seemed pitifully inadequate.Presently a second and a third snake arose from the water, and thenmore, until the whole sea and the air above it seemed a writhing mass ofhuge snakes. I remember wondering why the watch of the Coast Guardcutter didn't sound an alarm, and then I realized that the thing hadarisen on our port side and the cutter was on the starboard.
"The mass of snakes writhed backward and forward, and then two of themrose in the air and hung over the ship. I could see the under side and Isaw what Green had called the scars where the sharks had attacked. Theywere great cup-shaped depressions with vile white edges, and they didresemble huge sores or ulcers. They wavered over the ship for aninstant, and then both of them dropped down on the deck.
"I found my voice and I think that I gave a yell, but even as I openedmy mouth, I realized the futility of it. The _Arethusa_ was sucked downinto the sea as though it had been a tiny chip. I saw the water risingto the rail, and I think I cried out again. The ship tilted and I feltmyself falling. The next thing I knew was when I was in the hospital andwas told that I had been raving for a week. I was afraid to tell mystory for fear I would be put in an asylum, so I kept a tight tongue inmy head until I was discharged."
* * * * *
Dr. Bird mused for a moment as the seaman's voice stopped.
"You cried out all right, Mr. Mitchell," he said. "You gave two distinctshouts, both of which were heard by the watch on the _Wren_, the CoastGuard cutter. They reported that at 1:30, the _Arethusa_ sank withoutwarning. As soon as he heard your shouts, the watch gave the alarm andthe crew piled on deck. The _Arethusa_ was gone completely and the_Wren_ was tossing about like 'a chip in a whirlpool' as theygraphically described it. The _Wren_ had steam up and they fought thewaves and steamed over your anchoring ground looking for survivors, butthey found none. The sea gradually subsided and they did the only thingthey could do--dropped a buoy, to guide the salvage people, and radioedfor assistance. The _Robin_ came out and joined them, and both cuttersstood by until daylight, but nothing unusual was seen. The insurancepeople are trying to salvage the wreck now, but so far they have madelittle headway."
"That brings me to the rest of the story, the part that made me decideto come to you, Doctor," said the seaman. "Did you see what happened tothe divers yesterday?"
Dr. Bird nodded.
"I saw a brief account of it," he said. "It seems that two of them werelost through their lines getting fouled and their air connectionssevered in some way. I don't believe the bodies have been recoveredyet."
"They never will be recovered, Doctor. I was discharged from thehospital yesterday and the papers were just out with an account of it. Iwent down to the dock where the _John MacLean_, the salvage ship, tiesup, and I talked to Captain Starley who commands it. I have known himcasually for some years, although not intimately, and he gave me a fewmore details than the press got. He didn't connect me up at first withthe Mitchell who was reported lost on the _Arethusa_.
"The first man to go down from the _MacLean_ was Charley Melrose, anexpert diver. He went down in a pressure outfit to the bottom andstarted to work. Everything was going along fine until the telephonesuddenly rang and the man who answered it heard him say, 'Raise me, forGod's sake! Hurry!' The signal for raising was given, but they hadn'tgot him more than thirty feet from the bottom before there came a tug onthe line and he was gone! The air line, the lifting cable and thetelephone cord floated free and were reeled in. Melrose had been pluckedoff the end of that line as you or I would pluck off a grape."
* * * * *
Dr. Bird leaned forward with the curious glitter again in his eye.<
br />
"Go on," he said tersely.
"Blake, the other diver, donned a suit and insisted on being lowered atonce. Starley tried to dissuade him but he insisted on going down. Theylowered him over the side with a twelve-foot steel-shod pike in hishand. He never got to the bottom. He had not been lowered more than ahundred feet when a scream came over the telephone, and again there wasa jerk on the lines which threatened to wreck the reel--and the linecame aboard with no diver on the end of it. At the same time, Starleytold me, the sea boiled and churned as though the whole bottom werecoming up, and his ship was tossed about as though it were in a violentstorm, although it was calm enough for forty fathom salvage work andthat is pretty quiet, you know. Half the time his screws were out ofwater and he had a hard time to keep from being capsized. He fought hisway out of the disturbed area, and as soon as he did, it started toquiet down, and in ten minutes it was calm again.
"Starley was pretty badly shaken and besides he had lost both of hisdivers, so he came in and I saw him at the dock. When I heard his yarn,I took him into my confidence and told him what I had seen and that Iproposed coming to you and asking your advice. I was afraid until Iheard his story that it was merely a vision that I had had, but itcertainly was no vision that plucked those two divers off their lines."
"Has Captain Starley told that story to anyone else yet?"
"No, Doctor, he hasn't. He promised not to talk until after I had seenyou. I'll vouch for him; he'll keep his word through anything; and he iskeeping his whole crew on board until he hears from me."
* * * * *
Dr. Bird sprang to his feet.
"Mr. Mitchell," he said energetically, "you have shown excellentjudgment. Wire Captain Starley that you have seen me and that he is tohold his crew on board and to talk to no one until I get there. Carnes,telephone the Chief of Naval Operations and ask him to receive me inconference at once. Have him get the Secretary of the Navy in, too, ifhe is available. When you have finished that, telephone Bolton that youwill be away from Washington indefinitely."
"I'll telephone Admiral Buck for you, Doctor, but I don't dare telephoneany such message to Bolton; he'd take my head off. He has been runningthe whole service ragged lately, and this is my first afternoon off dutyin a fortnight."
"What's the trouble, a flood of new counterfeits?"
"No, the counterfeit division is getting along all right. In point offact, they have lent us a dozen men. The trouble is a sudden bigincrease in Communist activity throughout the country, with the YoungLabor party behind it. Bolton has been pretty jumpy since that Stokowskiaffair last August and he is afraid of another attempt of some sort onthe President."
"The Young Labor party? I thought that gang was bankrupt and out ofbusiness, since the Coast Guard broke up their alien smuggling scheme."
"They were down and out for a while, but they are in funds again--andhow! They must have three or four millions at least."
"Where did they get it?"
"That's what we have been trying to find out. The leaders have presentedbars of gold to a dozen banks throughout the country and demandedspecie. The banks shipped the gold to the mint and it was good gold,nine hundred and twenty-five fine. What we are trying to find out is howthat gold got into the United States."
"A shipment of that size should be easy to trace."
"It would seem so, but it hasn't been. We have accounted for every poundof every shipment that has come in through a port of entry, and we havechecked almost that close on the output of every mine in the UnitedStates. If the gold came from Russia, it would have had to cross Europe,and we can't get any trace of it from abroad. It looks as though theywere _making_ it."
* * * * *
Dr. Bird rubbed his head thoughtfully.
"Possible, but hardly probable," he said. "How much did you say theyhad?"
"Over three millions in thirty-pound bars. Each bar shows signs ofhaving a mint mark chiselled off, but that don't help much for they havedone too good a job. It has us pretty well bluffed."
Again Dr. Bird rubbed his head.
"Telephone Admiral Buck, and then phone Bolton and tell him exactly whatI told you to: that you will be away indefinitely. When he gets throughexploding, tell him that you are going with me and that possibly, justbarely possibly, we might be on the trail of that gold shipment."
"On the trail of the gold!" gasped Carnes. "Surely, Doctor, you don'tthink--"
"Once in a while, old dear," replied the Doctor with a chuckle, "whichis more than anyone in the Secret Service does. You might tell Boltonthat I said that, but hang up quickly if you do. I don't want the wiresof my telephone melted off. No, Carnesy, I have no miraculousinspiration as to where that gold is coming from; I just have a plainold-fashioned hunch, and that hunch is that we are going to have lots offun and more than our share of danger before we see Washington again.After you get through bearding Bolton in his den, you might call theChief of the Air Corps and ask him to have a bomber held at LangleyField subject to my orders. If he squawks any, I'll talk to him."
He turned to a telephone which stood on his desk and lifted thereceiver.
"Get Mr. Lambertson on the wire," he said. "He is the chief technicianof the Pyrex Glass Works at Corning, New Jersey."
* * * * *
The _U.S.S. Minneconsin_ steamed out of New York harbor and headed downtoward the lower bay. On her forward deck rested a huge globe. Thebottom quarter of the sphere was made of some dark opaque substance butthe upper portion was transparent as crystal. Through the walls could beseen a quantity of apparatus resting on the opaque bottom portion. Twomechanics from the Bureau of Standards were making final adjustments ofone of the pieces of apparatus, which resembled a tank fitted with apiston geared to an electric motor. From the tank, tubes ran to fourhollow pipes, an inch and a half in diameter, which ran through the skinand extended thirty inches from the outer skin of the twenty-footsphere. Dr. Bird stood near talking with the executive officer of theship and from time to time giving a brief word of direction to themechanics.
"It's safer than you might think, Commander," he said. "In the firstplace, that globe is not made of ordinary glass; it is made ofvitrilene, a new semi-malleable glass which was developed at the Bureauand which is being made on an experimental scale for us by the Pyrexpeople. It is much stronger than ordinary glass, and is not sensitive toshock. It is also perfectly transparent to ultra-violet light, beingsuperior even to rock crystal or fused quartz in that respect. Thewalls, as you have noticed, are four inches thick, and I have calculatedthat the ball will stand a uniform external pressure of thirty-fivehundred atmospheres, the pressure which would be encountered at a depthof about twenty miles. I believe that it will stand a squeeze of sixthousand tons without buckling, and it is impossible to fracture it byshock. It could be dropped from the top of the Woolworth Building, andit would just bounce."
"It seems incredible that it could stand such a pressure as you havenamed."
"My figures are conservative ones. Lambertson calculated them evenhigher, but we allowed for the fact that this is the first large mass ofthe material to be cast, and lowered them."
* * * * *
"But suppose your lifting cable should break?" objected the navalofficer. "The outfit weighs a good many tons."
"You notice that the lower quarter is made of lead. The specific gravityof the entire globe when sealed up tight with two men in it is only alittle more than unity. In the water its weight is so little that athree-inch manilla hawser would raise it, let alone a steel cable. Ihave another safety device. Granted that the cable should snap, I candetach the lead from it and it would shoot to the surface like arocket."
"How long can you remain under water in it?"
"A week, if necessary. I have an oxygen tank and a carbon dioxideremoving apparatus which will keep the air in good condition. The globeis electrically lighted, and can be heated
if necessary. Should mytelephone line become fouled and broken, I have a radio set which willenable me to communicate with you. I can't see that it is especiallydangerous; not nearly as much so as a submarine."
"What is your object in going down, if I may ask?"
"To take pictures and to explore the wreck if we can. The globe isequipped with huge floodlights and excellent cameras. The salvage peopleare having a little trouble and we are trying to help them out."
"You mentioned exploring. Can you leave the globe while it is underwater?"
"Yes. There is a locking device for doing so. A man in a diving suit canenter the lock and fill it with water. Once the external pressure isreleased he can open the outer door and step out. Coming back, he sealsthe outer door and the man inside blows out the lock and compressed airand then the inner door can be opened. It is the same principle as atorpedo tube."
* * * * *
A jangle of bells interrupted them and the _Minneconsin_ slowed down.Commander Lawrence stepped to the rail and gave a sharp order to thenavigating officer on the bridge. The bells jangled again and the ship'sengines stopped.
"We are almost over the buoy, Doctor," he said.
Dr. Bird nodded and spoke to the two mechanics. With a few finaltouches to the apparatus they emerged from the globe and Dr. Birdentered.
"Come on, Carnes," he called. "No backing out at the last minute."
Carnes stepped forward with a sickly smile and joined the Doctor in thehuge sphere.
"All right, boys; close her up."
The mechanics swung the outer door into place with a crane. Both theedge of the door and the surface against which it fitted had been groundflat and were in addition faced with soft rubber. Bolts were fastened inthe door which passed through holes in the main sphere, and Dr. Birdspun nuts onto them and tightened them with a heavy wrench. He andCarnes lifted the smaller inner door into place and bolted it tight. Dr.Bird stepped to the telephone.
"Lower away," he directed.
From a boom attached to the _Minneconsin's_ forward fighting top, a hugesteel cable swung down, and the latch at the end of the cable was closedover a vitrilene ring which was fastened to the top of the sphere. Thecable tightened and the globe with the two men in it was lifted over theside of the battleship and lowered gently into the water. Carnesinvoluntarily ducked and threw up his hand as the waters closed overthem. Dr. Bird laughed.
"Look up, Carnes," he said.
Carnes gasped as he looked up and saw the surface of the water abovehim. Dr. Bird laughed again and turned to the telephone.
"Lower away," he said. "Everything is tight."
* * * * *
The globe descended into the depths of the sea. Darker and darker itgrew until only a faint twilight glow filled the sphere. A dark bulkloomed before them. Dr. Bird snapped on one of his huge floodlights andpointed.
"The _Arethusa_," he said.
The ill-fated vessel lay on her side with a huge jagged hole torn in herfabric amidships.
"That's where her boilers burst," explained the Doctor. "Luckily we havea hard bottom to deal with. Let's see if we can locate any of Mitchell'ssea serpents."
He turned on other flood lights and swept the bottom of the sea withthem. The huge beams bored out into the water for a quarter of a mile,but nothing unusual was to be seen. Dr. Bird turned his attention againto the wreck.
"Things look normal from this side," he said after a prolonged scrutiny."I'll have the _Minneconsin_ steam around it while we look it over."
In response to his telephone orders the ship above them swung around thewreck in a circle, and Carnes and the Doctor viewed each side in turn.But nothing of a suspicious nature made its appearance. The spherestopped opposite the hole in the side and Dr. Bird turned to Carnes.
"I'm going to put on a diving suit and explore that wreck," he said. "Ifthere ever was any danger, it isn't apparent now; and I can't find outanything until I get inside."
"Don't do it, Doctor!" cried Carnes. "Remember what happened to theother divers!"
* * * * *
"We don't know what happened to them, Carnes. No matter what it was,there is no danger apparent right now, and I've got to get into thatship before I can get any real information. We could have lowered anunder-sea camera and learned as much as we have so far."
"Let me go instead of you, Doctor."
"I'm sorry to refuse you, old dear, but frankly, I wouldn't trust yourjudgment as to what you had seen if you went alone; and we can't bothgo."
"Why not?"
"If we both went, who would work the air to let us back in? No, this isa one-man job and I'm the one to do it. While I am gone, keep a sharplookout, and if you see anything unusual call me at once."
"How can I call you?"
"On this small radio phone. A pair of receivers tuned to the rightwave-length are in my diving helmet, and I will be able to hear youalthough I can't reply. I won't be gone long: I have only a small airtank, large enough to keep me going for thirty minutes. Now help me intomy suit and keep a sharp watch. A timely warning may save my life ifanything happens."
With Carnes' assistance, Dr. Bird donned a deep-sea diving outfit andscrewed down the helmet. He crawled through the inner door into the lockand lifted the inner door into place. Carnes fastened the door with nutsand the Doctor opened a pair of valves in the outer door and filled thelock with water. He removed the outer door; and, taking in one hand asteel-shod twelve-foot pike with a hook on the end, and in the other awaterproof flashlight, he sallied forth. As he left the shell he pausedfor a moment, and then returned and picked up the heavy wrench withwhich he had removed the nuts holding the outer door into place. Hefastened the tool to the belt of his suit. Then, with a wave of his handtoward the detective, he approached the hulk.
The hole in the side was too high for him to reach, but he hooked theend of his pike in one of the joints of the _Arethusa's_ plates andclimbed slowly and painfully up the side of the vessel. As hedisappeared into the hull, Carnes realized with a sudden start that hehad been watching his friend and neglecting the duty imposed on him ofkeeping a sharp watch. He turned quickly to the floodlights and searchedthe sea bottom.
* * * * *
Nothing appeared, and the minutes moved as slowly as hours should.Carnes felt that he had been submerged alone for weeks, and his nervesgrew so tense that he felt that he would scream in another instant. Asudden thought sobered him like a dash of cold water. If he screamed,Dr. Bird would take it for an alarm signal and possibly be afraid toemerge from the vessel. His watch showed him that the Doctor had beengone for twenty-five minutes and he moved slowly to the radiotransmitter.
"Dr. Bird," he said slowly and distinctly, "you have been gone nearlythirty minutes. Nothing alarming has appeared but I will feel betterwhen I see you coming back."
He glued his eyes on the opening in the ship's side and waited. Fiveminutes passed, and then ten, with no signs of the Doctor. Carnes movedagain to the receiver.
"It has been over half an hour. Doctor," he cried in a pleading voice."If you are all right, for God's sake show yourself. I am frantic withworry."
Another five minutes passed, and the sweat dripped in a steady streamfrom the detective's chin. Suddenly he gave a sob of relief and sankback against the side of the globe. A bulky figure showed at the edge ofthe hole, and Dr. Bird climbed slowly and heavily out of the hold anddropped to the sea bottom. He lay prone for a moment before he rose andmade his way with evident effort toward the sphere. He entered thecompartment and with a heroic effort lifted the outer door into place,and feebly and with fumbling fingers placed nuts on the bolts. His handswandered uncertainly toward the valves and closed the upper one. Hewaved his hand toward Carnes and sank in a heap on the floor of thelock.
* * * * *
With trembling hands Carnes connected the air and opened the valve. Airf
lowed into the lock and the water was gradually forced out. When thelock was empty, he waited for Dr. Bird to close the outer valve but theDoctor did not move. Carnes tore at the bolts which held the inner doorand threw his weight against it. It held against his assault, and hethought frantically. An inspiration came to him, and he disconnectedthe air valve. With a whistling rush, the air from the lock rushed intothe sphere and he forced open the inner door. A stream of sea waterdrove against his feet through the open valve, and he reached for thevalve to close it. The force of the water held it open for a moment, buthe threw every ounce of his strength into the effort. The valve slowlyclosed.
It was beyond his strength to haul the heavy Doctor with his pressurediving suit through the restricted confines of the inner door, so Carneswormed his way into the lock and with trembling fingers unscrewed thehelmet of the Doctor's diving suit. The helmet clanged to the floor andCarnes scooped up his hands full of water and dashed it into theDoctor's face. There was no response and he was at his wit's end. Hesprang for the radio to order the sphere hauled up when his glance fellon the oxygen tank. It took him only a moment to connect a rubber hoseto the tank, and in a few seconds a blast of the life-giving gas wasblowing into the scientist's face. Dr. Bird gave a convulsive gasp ortwo and opened his eyes.
"Shut off the juice, Carnes," he said faintly. "Too much of that'sbad."
Carnes shut off the oxygen and Dr. Bird struggled to a sitting positionand inhaled deep breaths.
"That was a narrow squeak, old dear," he said faintly. "Give me a handand I'll climb in."
* * * * *
With the detective's aid he climbed into the sphere and Carnes fastenedthe inner door. Slowly the Doctor rid himself of the diving suit and layprone on the floor, his breath still coming in gasps.
"Thanks for your warning about the time, Carnes," he said. "I knew thatmy air supply was running short but I was caught down there and couldn'treadily free myself. I thought for a while that my time had come, but itwasn't so written. By the looks of things, I freed myself just intime."
"Did you find out anything?" asked the detective eagerly.
"I did," replied Dr. Bird grimly. "For one thing, the gold is no longerin the hold of the _Arethusa_."
"It's gone?"
"Clean as a whistle, every bar of it. A hole has been cut in the vaultaround the combination, and the bars slid back and the door opened. Thegold has been stolen."
"Might it not have been stolen before the vessel sank?"
"The idea occurred to me of course, and I examined things prettycarefully. I know that the theft occurred after the vessel sank."
"How could you tell?"
"For one thing, the hole was cut with an under-water cutting torch. Forthe second, look here."
* * * * *
The Doctor rolled up his trousers and showed the detective his leg.Carnes cried out as he saw huge purple welts on it.
"What caused that?" he cried.
"As I entered the vault, I stepped full into a steel bear trap which wasset there for the purpose of catching and holding anyone who entered.Someone has visited the _Arethusa_, since she sank, and looted her, andalso arranged so that any diver who got as far as the vault would neverreturn to the surface to tell of it. Luckily for myself, I carried aheavy wrench and was able to free myself. Most divers don't carry such athing."
"But who could have done it?"
"That's what we have got to find out, and we aren't going to do it downhere. Give the word to have us hauled up; and, Carnes, don't mentionanything about the looting of the vessel. Allow it to be understood thatI couldn't get into the hold. We'll head back for New York at once. Iwant to have a few small changes made in this sphere before we use itagain. While I am doing that, I want you to get hold of the Coast Guardor the Immigration Service or whoever it is that has the completerecords in that case of alien smuggling, by the Young Labor party. Whenyou get the information, report to me and we'll go over it. You mightalso drop a hint to Captain Starley that will stop all further attemptsat salvage operations for a few days. Tell him that I'll arrange to havea Coast Guard cutter guard the locality of the wreck."
"Won't that be rather risky for the cutter?"
"I think not. The gold is gone and there is no reason to apprehend anyfurther danger in that locality, at least for the present."
* * * * *
At nine o'clock next morning Carnes and Dr. Bird sat in the office ofLieutenant Commander Minden of the United States Coast Guard, listeningintently to the history of the alien smuggling case. Commander Mindenwas saying:
"Their boats would load up and clear ostensibly for Rio de Janeiro orsome other South American port, but once they were in the Atlantic, theywould alter their course and head from the Massachusetts coast. Ofcourse, we had no right to interfere with them on the high seas, andthey never came closer than fifty miles of our coast line. When they gotthat close, they would cruise slowly back and forth for a few days andthen steam away south to the port they had cleared for. When they gotthere, of course there were no passengers on board.
"We patrolled the coast carefully while they were around but we nevergot any indication of any landing of aliens and yet we knew they werebeing landed in some way. We drew lines so close that a cork couldn'tget by without being seen and we even had the air patrolled, but with noresults. Eventually the air patrol was the thing that gave them away.
"They had been operating so successfully that they evidently gotcareless and started a load off late in the night so they didn't reachthe coast by dawn. A Navy plane was flying along the coast-line abouttwelve miles off when they spotted a submarine running parallel with thecoast, headed north. It didn't look like an American craft and they wenton and radioed Washington and found that we had no under-sea craft inthat neighborhood. They returned to their patrol and followed the subfor a matter of thirty or forty miles up the coast, and then it turnedin right toward the shore. The shore line there is rocky, and, at thepoint where the sub was heading, it falls sheer about two hundredfathoms. The sub ran right at the cliff and disappeared from view."
* * * * *
Lieutenant Commander Minden paused impressively. Carnes and Dr. Bird setforward in their chairs, for it was evident that the crux of the storywas at hand.
"When the plane reported what they had seen, we knew how those alienswere being landed. The point where the sub went in gave us a good ideaof the location of their base and we threw a cordon of men around andsearched. A Navy sub was sent to the scene and they reported that therewas a tunnel opening into the rock, about a hundred fathoms under water,running for they had no idea how far under the land. They stayed toguard the hole while we combed the land. It took us a week to locate theplace, but we traced some truck loads of food and finally found it. Thistunnel ran under the land for a mile and then ended in a large caveunderground. The Young Labor party had established a regular receivingdepot there, and took the aliens from the sub and kept them for a day ortwo until they had a chance to load them into trucks and run them intoBoston or some other town in the night.
"Once we had the place spotted, we sent a gang in and captured the wholeworks without any trouble. The underground cavern had no natural openingto the surface, but one had been made by blasting. We captured thewhole lot and then sealed the end of the hole with rock and concrete.That was the end of the affair."
"Thank you, Commander; you have given us a very graphic description ofit. I suppose you could find the entrance which was sealed up?"
* * * * *
"Easily. I led the raiding party. I forgot to mention one blunder wemade. Evidently some word of our plans leaked out, for the sub which wasguarding the outer end of the tunnel was called away by a radio messagesupposed to be from the Navy Department. It had gone only a shortdistance, however, when the commander smelled a rat and made his wayback. He was too late. He wa
s just in time to see the sub emerge fromthe hole and head into the open sea. He gave chase, but the other subwas faster than the Navy boat and it got clear away. The leader of thegang must have been on it, for we didn't get him."
"Who was the leader?"
"From some records we captured, his name was Ivan Saranoff. I never sawhim."
"Saranoff?" said Dr. Bird thoughtfully. "The name seems familiar. Wherehave I--Thunder! I know now. He was at one time a member of the facultyof St. Petersburg. He was one of the leading biologists of his time.Carnes, we've found our man."
"If you are thinking of Saranoff, I am afraid you are mistaken, Doctor,"said Commander Minden. "Neither he nor his submarine have ever beenheard of since and it has been generally conceded that they were lost atsea. We had some pretty rough weather just after that affair."
"Rough weather doesn't mean much to a sub, Commander. I expect that he'sour man. At any rate, the place we want to go is the end of thattunnel."
"I'm at your service, Doctor."
"Carnes, get the location of that tunnel entrance from Commander Mindenand order the _Minneconsin_ to proceed north along the coast to thatvicinity and stand by for radio orders. I am going to telephone MitchellField and get a plane. We have no time to lose."
* * * * *
The plane from Mitchell Field roared down to a landing, and Carnes, Dr.Bird and Commander Minden dismounted from the rear cockpit and lookedaround. They had landed in a smooth field at the base of a rise almostrugged enough to be called a mountain. A group of three men werestanding near them as they got out of the plane. One of the menapproached.
"Dr. Bird?" asked the newcomer. "I am Tom Harron, United States Marshal.These two men are deputies. I understand that I am to report to you fororders."
"I'm glad to know you, Mr. Harron. This is Operative Carnes of theSecret Service and Commander Minden of the Coast Guard. We are going toexplore an underground cavern that is located in this vicinity."
"Do you mean the one where they used to smuggle aliens? That is closedup. I was in charge of that work and we closed it tight as a drum twoyears ago."
"Can you find the entrance?"
"Sure. It isn't over a mile from here."
"Lead the way, then. We want to take a look at it."
The marshal led the way toward the eminence and took a path which led upa gully in its side. He paused for a moment to take his bearings andthen turned sharply to his left and climbed part way up the side of theravine.
"Here it is," he announced. An expression of astonishment crossed hisface and he examined the ground closely. "By Golly, Doc," he went on ashe straightened up, "this place has been opened since I left it!"
* * * * *
Dr. Bird hurried forward and joined him. The heavy stone and concretewith which the entrance to the cavern had been sealed were undisturbed,but in the side of the hill was set a steel door beside the concrete.There was no sign of a keyhole or other means of entering it.
"Was this steel door part of your work?" asked Carnes.
"No, sir, it wasn't. We sealed it solid. That door has been put theresince."
Dr. Bird closely examined the structure. He tapped it and went aroundthe edges and then straightened up and took a small pocket compass fromhis pocket and opened the case. The needle swung crazily for a momentand then pointed straight toward the door.
"A magnetic lock," he exclaimed. "If we could find the power line itwould be easy to force, but finding that line might take us a week. Atany rate, we have found out what we were after. This is their base fromwhich they are operating. Mr. Harron, I want you to station a guardarmed with rifles at this door day and night until I personally relieveyou. Remember, until I relieve you, in person. Verbal or written ordersdon't go. Capture or kill anyone who tries to enter or leave the cavernthrough this entrance. Just now we'll find that cavern more vulnerablefrom the sea end, and that is where I mean to attack. We'll force thatdoor and explore from this end later. Commander Minden, you may stayhere with Mr. Harron, if you like, or you may come with Carnes and me.We are going on board the _Minneconsin_."
* * * * *
The Mitchell Field plane roared to a take-off and bore south along thecoast. Half an hour of flying brought them in view of the battleshipsteaming at full speed up the coast. Dr. Bird radioed instructions tothe ship, and an hour later a launch picked them up from the beach andtook them out. As soon as they were on board they resumed theirprogress, and in two hours the peak that Dr. Bird had marked as alandmark was opposite.
"Steam in as close to the shore as you can safely," he said, "and thenlower us. Once we are down, you will be guided by our telephonedinstructions. Come on, Carnes, let's go."
The detective followed him into the sphere as the _Minneconsin_ edged uptoward the shore. The huge ball was lifted from the deck and loweredgently into two hundred fathoms of water. It was pitch dark at thatdepth, and Dr. Bird switched on one floodlight and studied the cliffwhich rose a hundred yards from them.
"We have missed the place, Carnes," he said. "We'll have them pull us upa few hundred feet and then steam along the coast."
He turned to the telephone and the sphere rose while the battleshipsteamed slowly ahead, the vitrilene ball following in her wake. For aquarter of a mile they continued on their way, and then Dr. Bird haltedthe ship.
"What depth are we?" he asked. "Eighty fathoms? All right, lower us,please."
* * * * *
The ball sank until it rested on the sea bottom, and Dr. Bird turned ontwo additional floodlights and studied the surroundings. The bed of theocean was literally covered with lobster and crab shell, with the bonesof fish scattered here and there among them. A few bones of land animalswere mixed with the debris and Carnes gave a gasp as Dr. Bird pointedout to him a diving helmet.
"We are on the right track," said the scientist grimly. He stepped tothe telephone and ordered the sphere raised to one hundred fathoms. Theship moved forward along the coast until Dr. Bird again stepped to thetelephone and halted it. Before them yawned the entrance to theunderground tunnel. It was about two hundred feet high and three hundredacross, and their most powerful beams would not penetrate to the end ofit. A pile of debris could be seen on the floor of the tunnel andCarnes fancied that he could see another diving helmet among the litter.Dr. Bird pointed toward the side of the cavern.
"See those floodlights fastened to the cliff so that their beams willsweep across the mouth of the tunnel when they are lighted?" he said."Apparently the cave is used as a prison and the light beams are thebars. The creature is not at home just now or the bars would be up. MyGod! Look at that, Carnes!"
Carnes stared and echoed the Doctor's cry of surprise. Clinging to ashelf of rock which extended out from the wall of the cavern and halfhidden among the seaweed was a huge marine creature. It looked like ahuge black slug with rudimentary eyes and mouth. The thing was fiftyfeet in length and fully fifteen feet in diameter. It hung there, movingsluggishly as though breathing, and rudimentary tentacles projectingfrom one end moved in the water.
"What is it, Doctor?" asked Carnes in a voice of awe.
"It is a typical trochosphere of the giant octopus, the devil fish ofIndian Ocean legend, multiplied a thousand times," he replied. "When theoctopus lays its eggs, they hatch out into the larval form. The freeswimming larva is known as a trochosphere, and I am positive that thatis what we see; but look at the size of the thing! Man alive, if thatever developed, I can't conceive of its dimensions!"
* * * * *
"I have seen pictures of a huge octopus pulling down a ship," saidCarnes, "but I always fancied they were imaginary."
"They are. This monstrosity before us is no product of nature. A dozenof them would depopulate the seas in a year. It is a hideous parody ofnature conceived in the brain of a madman and produced by some glandulardisturbance. Saranoff spent years in
glandular experimentation, and nodoubt he has managed to stimulate the thyroid of a normal octopus andproduce a giant. I fancy that the immediate parent of the thing beforeus was of normal size, and so, probably, are its brothers and sisters.The phenomenon of giantism of this nature occurs in alternategenerations and then only in rare instances. Its grandparent may not befar away, however. I wish it was safe to use a submarine to explore thatcavern."
"Why isn't it?"
"Any creature powerful enough to pull the _Arethusa_ under water wouldcrush a frail submarine without effort. Anyway, a Navy sub isn't builtfor under-water exploration like this ball is. The window space is quitelimited and they aren't equipped with powerful floodlights. I would liketo be able to reach that thing and destroy it, but it can wait untillater. The best thing we can do is to put out our lights and wait."
His hand sought the light switch, and the globe became dark. Only a tinyglimmer of light came down to them from the surface, a hundred fathomsabove. In the darkness they stared into the depths of the sea.
* * * * *
For an hour they waited and then Dr. Bird grasped Carnes by theshoulder and pointed. Far in the distance could be seen a tiny pointof light. It wavered and winked and at times disappeared, but it wasgradually approaching them. Dr. Bird stepped to the telephone and the_Minneconsin_ moved a hundred yards further from the shore. The lightdisappeared again as though hidden by some opaque body. Their eyeshad become accustomed to the dim light and they could dimly see a longsnake-like body approach the globe and then suddenly withdraw.
The light appeared again only a few hundred yards away. The waterswirled and the sphere swayed drunkenly as some gigantic body moved pastit with express train speed and entered the mouth of the cavern. Thelight turned toward them and they could see the dim outlines of a smallsubmarine on which it was mounted. Another rush of water came as theobject which had entered the cave started to leave it, and the lightswung around. It bore on a huge black body, and was reflected with a redglow from huge eyes, and the creature backed again into the cave. Backand forth across the mouth of the cavern the light played, and thewatchers caught a glimpse of a huge parrot beak which could haveengulfed a freight car. From the cavern projected twisting tentacles ofgargantuan dimensions, and red eyes, thirty feet in diameter, glaredbalefully at them. For several minutes the light of the submarine playedacross the mouth of the cave, and then the floodlights on the cliffsprang into full glow and bathed the ball and the mouth of the tunnel ina flood of light.
Before their horrified gaze was an octopus of a size to make themdisbelieve their eyes. The submarine had moved up to within a few feetof them, and the light from it played full on the ball. The submarinemaneuvered in the vicinity, keeping the ball full in the beam of itslight, and then drew back. As it did so, the floodlights on the cliffdied out and the beam of the submarine's light was directed away fromthem. Dr. Bird jumped to the telephone.
"Head straight out to sea and full speed ahead!" he shouted. "Don't tryto pull us in; tow us!"
* * * * *
The ball swayed as the _Minneconsin's_ mighty engines responded to hisorders and the cliff wall disappeared.
"As long as they know we're here, we might as well announce our presencein good style," said the doctor grimly as he closed a switch and threwall of the sphere's huge lights into action. He had turned on the lightsjust in time, for even as he did so a mighty tentacle shot out of thedarkness and wrapped itself around the ball. For a moment it clung thereand then was withdrawn.
"The thing can't stand light," remarked the doctor as he threw off theswitch. "That sub was herding it like a cow by the use of a light beam.As long as we are lighted up we are safe from attack."
"Then for God's sake turn on the lights!" cried Carnes.
"I want it to attack us," replied the doctor calmly. "We have nooffensive weapons and only by meeting an attack can we harm the thing."
As he spoke there came a soft whisper of sound from the vitrilene wallsand they were thrown from their feet by a sudden jerk. Dr. Bird stumbledto the switch and closed it, and the ball was flooded with light. Twoarms were now on them but they were slowly withdrawn as the lightsglared forth. The huge outlines of the beast could be seen as itfollowed them toward the surface. Its great eyes glared at themhungrily. The submarine was visible only as a speck of light in thedistance.
* * * * *
The _Minneconsin's_ speed was picking up under the urge of her hugesteam turbines, and the ball was nearing the surface. The sea was lightenough now that they could see for quite a distance. The telephone belljangled and Dr. Bird picked the receiver from its hook.
"Hello," he said. "What's that? You can? By all means, fire. Yes,indeed, we're well out of danger; we must be thirty or forty feet down.Watch the fun now," he went on to Carnes as he replaced the receiver."The beast is showing above the surface and they're going to shell it."
They watched the surface and suddenly there came a flash of lightfollowed by a dull boom of sound. The huge octopus suddenly sank belowthem, thrashing its arms about wildly.
"A hit!" shouted Dr. Bird into the telephone. "Get it again if it showsup. I want it to get good and mad."
He turned off the lights in the ball and the octopus attacked again. Theshell had taught it caution and it kept well down, but three huge armscame up from the depths of the sea and wrapped themselves about theball. The forward motion stopped for a moment, and then came a jerk thatthrew them down. The ball started to sink.
"Our cable has parted!" cried the doctor. "Turn on the lights!"
* * * * *
Carnes closed the switch. The ball was so covered with the hugetentacles that they could see nothing, but the light had its usualeffect and they were released. The ball sank toward the bottom and theycould see the huge cephalopod lying below watching them. Blood wasflowing from a wound near one of its eyes where the _Minneconsin's_shell had found its mark.
Toward the huge monster they sank until they lay on the bottom of theocean and a few yards from it. In an instant the sea became opaque andthey could see nothing.
"He has shot his ink!" cried the doctor. "Here comes the real attack.Strap yourself to the wall where you can reach one of the motorswitches."
Through the darkness huge arms came out and wrapped themselves aroundthe ball. The heavy vitrilene groaned under the enormous pressure whichwas applied, but it held. The ink was clearing slightly and they couldsee that the sphere was covered by the arms. The mass moved and the hugemaw opened before them. The pipes projecting from the sides of the ballwere buried in the creature's flesh.
"Good Lord, he's going to swallow us!" gasped the doctor. "Quick,Carnes, the motor switch."
He closed one of them as he spoke, and the powerful little electricmotors began to hum, forcing forward the piston attached to the tankconnected to the hollow rods. Steadily the little motors hummed, and thetank emptied through the rods into the body of the giant cephalopod.
"I hope the stuff works fast," groaned the doctor as they approachedcloser to the giant maw. "I never tried giving an octopus a hypodermicinjection of prussic acid before, but it ought to do the business.There's enough acid there to kill half New York City."
* * * * *
Carnes blanched as the ball approached the mouth. One by one the armsunwound until only one was holding them and the jaws opened wider. Theywere almost in them when the motion stopped. They could feel a shudderrun through the arm which held them. For a moment the arm alternatelyexpanded and contracted, almost releasing them only to clutch themagain. Another arm came from the depths and whipped about the ball, andagain the vitrilene groaned at the pressure which was applied. The armswere suddenly withdrawn and the ball started to sink.
"Drop the lead, Carnes!" cried the doctor. With the aid of the detectivehe operated the electric catches which held the huge mass of lead to thebot
tom, and the sphere shot up through the water like a rocket. Itleaped clear of the water and fell back with a splash. A half mile awaythe _Minneconsin_ was swinging in a wide circle to head back towardthem. They turned their gaze toward the shore.
As they looked a giant arm shot a hundred yards up into the air,twisting and writhing frantically. It disappeared, and another, and thenhalf a dozen flashed into the air. The arms dipped below the surface. Ahuge black body reared its bulk free from the water for a moment, andthe sea boiled as though in a violent storm. The body sank and again thearms were thrown up, twisting and turning like a half dozen huge snakes.The whole creature sank below the waves and the ball tossed back andforth, often buried under tons of water and once tossed thirty feet intothe air by the huge waves.
* * * * *
A momentary lull came in the waves. Carnes gave a cry of astonishmentand pointed toward the shore. With an effort, Dr. Bird twisted himselfin his lashing and looked in that direction. The huge body had againcome to the surface, and three of the arms were towering into the air.Grasped in them was a long, black, cigar-shaped object. As they watchedthe object was torn into two parts and the fragments crushed by theenormous power of the octopus. Again the arms writhed in torment, andthen they stiffened out. For a moment they towered in the air and thenslowly sank below the surface of the sea.
"The cyanide has worked," cried the doctor, "and in its last agonies thecreature has turned on its creator and destroyed him. It is a shame, forSaranoff was a brilliant although perverted genius, and besides, I wouldhave liked to have learned his method. However, I may find somethingwhen we open the land end and raid the cave; and really, he was toobrilliant a man to hang for murder. Once we open the cave and I get anydata that is there, my connection with the case will end. Trailing downthe gold and recovering it is a routine matter for Bolton, and one inwhich he won't need my help."
"What about that creature we saw in the cave, Doctor? Won't it hatchinto another terror of the sea like the thing that destroyed the ship?"
"The trochosphere? No, I'm not worried there. It won't try to leave thecave for some days yet, and by that time we'll have the land end openedand the floodlights turned on. They will keep it there and it willstarve to death. We could send down a sub to feed it a torpedo, butthere's no need. Nature will dispose of it. Meanwhile, I hope the_Minneconsin_ rigs up a jury tackle pretty soon and takes us on board.I'm getting seasick."
* * * * *
_IN THE NEXT ISSUE_
THE FIFTH-DIMENSION CATAPULT
_A Novelette of an Extraordinary Interdimensional Rescue_ _By_ Murray Leinster
THE GATE TO XORAN
_A Thrilling Story of a Metal Man's Visit to Earth_ _By_ Hal K. Wells
THE EYE OF ALLAH
_A Story of the Tracking Down of a Mysterious Scientific Killer_ _By_ C. D. Willard
THE PIRATE PLANET
_Part Three of the Outstanding Current Novel_ _By_ Charles W. Diffin
----_AND OTHERS_!
* * * * *