Chapter XXIV. The Chariot of the Pit
Oro came and of necessity alone. Yet there was that in his air as headvanced into the temple, which suggested a monarch surrounded by thepomp and panoply of a great court. He marched, his head held high, asthough heralds and pursuivants went in front of him, as though noblessurrounded him and guards or regiments followed after him. Let it beadmitted that he was a great figure in his gorgeous robes, with his longwhite beard, his hawk-like features, his tall shape and his glitteringeyes, which even at that distance I could see. Indeed once or twice Ithought that he glanced out of the corners of them towards the chapelwhere we were hid. But this I think was fancy. For as Yva said, histhoughts were set elsewhere.
He reached the statue of Fate and stood for a while contemplating it andthe suppliant figures on either side, as though he were waiting for hisinvisible court to arrange itself. Then he doffed his jewelled cap tothe effigy, and knelt before it. Yes, Oro the Ancient, the Super-man,the God, as the early peoples of the earth fancied such a being, namely,one full of wrath, revenge, jealousy, caprice and power, knelt insupplication to this image of stone which he believed to be the homeof a spirit, thereby showing himself to be after all not so far removedfrom the savages whose idol Bastin had destroyed. More, in a clear andresonant voice which reached us even across that great space, he putup his prayer. It ran something as follows, for although I did notunderstand the language in which he spoke Yva translated it to me in awhisper:
"God of the Sons of Wisdom, God of the whole earth, only God to whommust bow every other Power and Dominion, to thee I, Oro the Great King,make prayer and offer sacrifice. Twenty times ten thousand years andmore have gone by since I, Oro, visited this, thy temple and kneltbefore this, thy living effigy, yet thou, ruler of the world, dostremember the prayer I made and the sacrifice I offered. The prayer wasfor triumph over my enemies and the sacrifice a promise of the lives ofhalf of those who in that day dwelt upon the earth. Thou heardest theprayer, thou didst bow thy head and accept the sacrifice. Yea, theprayer was granted and the sacrifice was made, and in it were countedthe number of my foes.
"Then I slept. Through countless generations I slept on and at my sidewas the one child of my body that was left to me. What chanced to myspirit and to hers during that sleep, thou knowest alone, but doubtlessthey went forth to work thy ends.
"At the appointed time which thou didst decree, I awoke again and foundin my house strangers from another land. In the company of one of thosewhose spirit I drew forth, I visited the peoples of the new earth,and found them even baser and more evil than those whom I had known.Therefore, since they cannot be bettered. I purpose to destroy themalso, and on their wreck to rebuild a glorious empire, such as was thatof the Sons of Wisdom at its prime.
"A sign! O Fate, ruler of the world, give me a sign that my desire shallbe fulfilled."
He paused, stretching out his arms and staring upwards. While he waitedI felt the solid rock on which I stood quiver and sway beneath my feetso that Yva and I clung to each other lest we should fall. This chancedalso. The shock of the earth tremor, for such without doubt it was,threw down the figures of the ancient man and the lovely woman whichknelt as though making prayers to Fate, and shook the marble sword fromoff its knees. As it fell Oro caught it by the hilt, and, rising, wavedit in triumph.
"I thank thee, God of my people from the beginning," he cried. "Thouhast given to me, thy last servant, thine own sword and I will use itwell. For these worshippers of thine who have fallen, thou shalt haveothers, yes, all those who dwell in the new world that is to be. Mydaughter and the man whom she has chosen to be the father of the kingsof the earth, and with him his companions, shall be the first of thehundreds of millions that are to follow, for they shall kiss thy feet orperish. Thou shalt set thy foot upon the necks of all other gods; thoushalt rule and thou alone, and, as of old, Oro be thy minister."
Still holding the sword, he flung himself down as though in an ecstasy,and was silent.
"I read the omen otherwise," whispered Yva. "The worshippers of Fate areoverthrown. His sword of power is fallen, but not into the hands thatclasped it, and he totters on his throne. A greater God asserts dominionof the world and this Fate is but his instrument."
Oro rose again.
"One prayer more," he cried. "Give me life, long life, that I mayexecute thy decrees. By word or gesture show me a sign that I shall besatisfied with life, a year for every year that I have lived, or twain!"
He waited, staring about him, but no token came; the idol did notspeak or bow its head, as Yva had told me it was wont to do in sign ofaccepted prayer, how, she knew not. Only I thought I heard the echo ofOro's cries run in a whisper of mockery round the soaring dome.
Once more Oro flung himself upon his knees and began to pray in averitable agony.
"God of my forefathers, God of my lost people, I will hide naught fromthee," he said. "I who fear nothing else, fear death. The priest-foolyonder with his new faith, has spoken blundering words of judgment anddamnation which, though I do not believe them, yet stick in my heartlike arrows. I will stamp out his faith, and with this ancient sword ofthine drive back the new gods into the darkness whence they came. Yetwhat if some water of Truth flows through the channel of his leadenlips, and what if because I have ruled and will rule as thou didstdecree, therefore, in some dim place of souls, I must bear these burdensof terror and of doom which I have bound upon the backs of others! Nay,it cannot be, for what power is there in all the universe that dares tomake a slave of Oro and to afflict him with stripes?
"Yet this can be and mayhap will be, that presently I lose my path inthe ways of everlasting darkness, and become strengthless and forgottenas are those who went before me, while my crown of Power shines onyounger brows. Alas! I grow old, since aeons of sleep have not renewedmy strength. My time is short and yet I would not die as mortals must.Oh! God of my people, whom I have served so well, save me from thedeath I dread. For I would not die. Give me a sign; give me the ancient,sacred sign!"
So he spoke, lifting his proud and splendid head and watching the statuewith wide, expectant eyes.
"Thou dost not answer," he cried again. "Wouldst thou desert me, Fate?Then beware lest I set up some new god against thee and hurl thee fromthine immemorial throne. While I live I still have powers, I who am thelast of thy worshippers, since it seems that my daughter turns her backon thee. I will get me to the sepulchre of the kings and take counselwith the dust of that wizard who first taught me wisdom. Even from thedepths of death he must come to my call clad in a mockery of life, andcomfort me. A little while yet I will wait, and if thou answer not, thenFate, soon I'll tear the sceptre from thy hand, and thou shalt join thecompany of dead gods." And throwing aside the sword, again Oro laiddown his head upon the ground and stretched out his arms in the lastabasement of supplication.
"Come," whispered Yva, "while there is yet time. Presently he will seekthis place to descend to the sepulchre, and if he learns that we haveread his heart and know him for a coward deserted of his outworn god,surely he will blot us out. Come, and be swift and silent."
We crept out of the chapel, Yva leading, and along the circle of thegreat dome till we reached the gates. Here I glanced back and perceivedthat Oro, looking unutterably small in that vastness, looking like adead man, still lay outstretched before the stern-faced, unansweringEffigy which, with all his wisdom, he believed to be living and divine.Perhaps once it was, but if so its star had set for ever, like those ofAmon, Jupiter and Baal, and he was its last worshipper.
Now we were safe, but still we sped on till we reached the portico ofour sleeping place. Then Yva turned and spoke.
"It is horrible," she said, "and my soul sickens. Oh, I thank theStrength which made it that I have no desire to rule the earth, and,being innocent of death, do not fear to die and cross his threshold."
"Yes, it is horrible," I answered. "Yet all men fear death."
"Not when they have found love, Humphrey, for that I think is
his truename, and, with it written on his brow, he stands upon the neck of Fatewho is still my father's god."
"Then he is not yours, Yva?"
"Nay. Once it was so, but now I reject him; he is no longer mine. As Orothreatens, and perchance dare do in his rage, I have broken his chain,though in another fashion. Ask me no more; perhaps one day you willlearn the path I trod to freedom."
Then before I could speak, she went off:
"Rest now, for within a few hours I must come to lead you and yourcompanions to a terrible place. Yet whatever you may see or hear, benot afraid, Humphrey, for I think that Oro's god has no power over you,strong though he was, and that Oro's plans will fail, while I, who toohave knowledge, shall find strength to save the world."
Then of a sudden, once again she grew splendid, almost divine; no more awoman but as it were an angel. Some fire of pure purpose seemed to burnup in her and to shine out of her eyes. Yet she said little. Only thisindeed:
"To everyone, I think, there comes the moment of opportunity when choicemust be made between what is great and what is small, between self andits desires and the good of other wanderers in the way. This day thatmoment may draw near to you or me, and if so, surely we shall greet itwell. Such is Bastin's lesson, which I have striven to learn."
Then she flung her arms about me and kissed me on the brow as a mothermight, and was gone.
Strangely enough, perhaps because of my mental exhaustion, for what Ihad passed through seemed to overwhelm me so that I could no longer somuch as think with clearness, even after all that I have described Islept like a child and awoke refreshed and well.
I looked at my watch to find that it was now eight o'clock in themorning in this horrible place where there was neither morn, nor noon,nor night, but only an eternal brightness that came I knew not whence,and never learned.
I found that I was alone, since Bickley and Bastin had gone to fillour bottles with the Life-water. Presently they returned and we ate alittle; with that water to drink one did not need much food. It wasa somewhat silent meal, for our circumstances were a check on talk;moreover, I thought that the others looked at me rather oddly. Perhapsthey guessed something of my midnight visit to the temple, but if sothey thought it wisest to say nothing. Nor did I enlighten them.
Shortly after we had finished Yva appeared. She was wonderfully quietand gentle in her manner, calm also, and greeted all of us with muchsweetness. Of our experiences during the night she said no word to me,even when we were alone. One difference I noticed about her, however;that she was clothed in garments such as I had never seen her wearbefore. They were close fitting, save for a flowing cape, and made ofsome grey material, not unlike a coarse homespun or even asbestos cloth.Still they became her very well, and when I remarked upon them, all sheanswered was that part of our road would be rough. Even her feet wereshod with high buskins of this grey stuff.
Presently she touched Bastin on the shoulder and said that she wouldspeak with him apart. They went together into one of the chambers ofthat dwelling and there remained for perhaps the half of an hour. It wastowards the end of this time that in the intense silence I heard a crashfrom the direction of the temple, as though something heavy hadfallen to the rocky floor. Bickley also heard this sound. When the tworeappeared I noticed that though still quite calm, Yva looked radiant,and, if I may say so, even more human and womanly than I had ever seenher, while Bastin also seemed very happy.
"One has strange experiences in life, yes, very strange," he remarked,apparently addressing the air, which left me wondering to whatparticular experience he might refer. Well, I thought that I couldguess.
"Friends," said Yva, "it is time for us to be going and I am your guide.You will meet the Lord Oro at the end of your journey. I pray you tobring those lamps of yours with you, since all the road is not lightenedlike this place."
"I should like to ask," said Bickley, "whither we go and for whatobject, points on which up to the present we have had no definiteinformation."
"We go, friend Bickley, deep into the bowels of the world, far deeper, Ithink, than any mortal men have gone hitherto, that is, of your race."
"Then we shall perish of heat," said Bickley, "for with every thousandfeet the temperature rises many degrees."
"Not so. You will pass through a zone of heat, but so swiftly that ifyou hold your breath you will not suffer overmuch. Then you will come toa place where a great draught blows which will keep you cool, and thencetravel on to the end."
"Yes, but to what end, Lady Yva?"
"That you will see for yourselves, and with it other wondrous things."
Here some new idea seemed to strike her, and after a little hesitationshe added:
"Yet why should you go? Oro has commanded it, it is true, but I thinkthat at the last he will forget. It must be decided swiftly. There isyet time. I can place you in safety in the sepulchre of Sleep where youfound us. Thence cross to the main island and sail away quickly in yourboat out into the great sea, where I believe you will find succour. Knowthat after disobeying him, you must meet Oro no more lest it should bethe worse for you. If that be your will, let us start. What say you?"
She looked at me.
"I say, Yva, that I am willing to go if you come with us. Nototherwise."
"I say," said Bickley, "that I want to see all this supernatural rubbishthoroughly exploded, and that therefore I should prefer to go on withthe business."
"And I say," said Bastin, "that my most earnest desire is to be clearof the whole thing, which wearies and perplexes me more than I can tell.Only I am not going to run away, unless you think it desirable to doso too, Lady Yva. I want you to understand that I am not in the leastafraid of the Lord Oro, and do not for one moment believe that he willbe allowed to bring about disaster to the world, as I understand ishis wicked object. Therefore on the whole I am indifferent and quiteprepared to accept any decision at which the rest of you may arrive."
"Be it understood," said Yva with a little smile when Bastin hadfinished his sermonette, "that I must join my father in the bowels ofthe earth for a reason which will be made plain afterwards. Therefore,if you go we part, as I think to meet no more. Still my advice is thatyou should go." [*]
[ * It is fortunate that we did not accept Yva's offer. Had we done so we should have found ourselves shut in, and perished, as shall be told.--H. A. ]
To this our only answer was to attend to the lighting of our lamps andthe disposal of our small impedimenta, such as our tins of oil and waterbottles. Yva noted this and laughed outright.
"Courage did not die with the Sons of Wisdom," she said.
Then we set out, Yva walking ahead of us and Tommy frisking at her side.
Our road led us through the temple. As we passed the great gates Istarted, for there, in the centre of that glorious building, I perceiveda change. The statue of Fate was no more! It lay broken upon thepavement among those fragments of its two worshippers which I had seenshaken down some hours before.
"What does this mean?" I whispered to Yva. "I have felt no otherearthquake."
"I do not know," she answered, "or if I know I may not say. Yet learnthat no god can live on without a single worshipper, and, in a fashion,that idol was alive, though this you will not believe."
"How very remarkable," said Bastin, contemplating the ruin. "If I weresuperstitious, which I am not, I should say that this occurrence was anomen indicating the final fall of a false god. At any rate it is deadnow, and I wonder what caused it?"
"I felt an earth tremor last night," said Bickley, "though it is oddthat it should only have affected this particular statue. A thousandpities, for it was a wonderful work of art."
Then I remembered and reminded Bickley of the crash which we had heardwhile Yva and Bastin were absent on some secret business in the chamber.
Walking the length of the great church, if so it could be called, wecame to an apse at the head of it where, had it been Christian, thealtar would have stood. In this apse was a littl
e open door throughwhich we passed. Beyond it lay a space of rough rock that looked asthough it had been partially prepared for the erection of buildings andthen abandoned. All this space was lighted, however, like the rest ofthe City of Nyo, and in the same mysterious way. Led by Yva, we threadedour path between the rough stones, following a steep downward slope.Thus we walked for perhaps half a mile, till at length we came to themouth of a huge pit that must, I imagine, have lain quite a thousandfeet below the level of the temple.
I looked over the edge of this pit and shrank back terrified. It seemedto be bottomless. Moreover, a great wind rushed up it with a roaringsound like to that of an angry sea. Or rather there were two winds,perhaps draughts would be a better term, if I may apply it to an airmovement of so fierce and terrible a nature. One of these rushed upthe pit, and one rushed down. Or it may have been that the up rushalternated with the down rush. Really it is impossible to say.
"What is this place?" I asked, clinging to the others and shrinking backin alarm from its sheer edge and bottomless depth, for that this wasenormous we could see by the shaft of light which flowed downwardsfarther than the eye could follow.
"It is a vent up and down which air passes from and to the centralhollows of the earth," Yva answered. "Doubtless in the beginning throughit travelled that mighty force which blew out these caves in the heatedrocks, as the craftsman blows out glass."
"I understand," said Bastin. "Just like one blows out a bubble on apipe, only on a larger scale. Well, it is very interesting, but I haveseen enough of it. Also I am afraid of being blown away."
"I fear that you must see more," answered Yva with a smile, "since weare about to descend this pit."
"Do you mean that we are to go down that hole, and if so, how? I don'tsee any lift, or moving staircase, or anything of that sort."
"Easily and safely enough, Bastin. See."
As she spoke a great flat rock of the size of a small room appeared,borne upwards, as I suppose, by the terrific draught which roared pastus on its upward course. When it reached the lip of the shaft, it hunga little while, then moved across and began to descend with suchincredible swiftness that in a few seconds it had vanished from view.
"Oh!" said Bastin, with his eyes almost starting out of his head,"that's the lift, is it? Well, I tell you at once I don't like the lookof the thing. It gives me the creeps. Suppose it tilted."
"It does not tilt," answered Yva, still smiling. "I tell you, Bastin,that there is naught to fear. Only yesterday, I rode this rock andreturned unharmed."
"That is all very well, Lady Yva, but you may know how to balance it;also when to get on and off."
"If you are afraid, Bastin, remain here until your companions return.They, I think, will make the journey."
Bickley and I intimated that we would, though to tell the truth, if lessfrank we were quite as alarmed as Bastin.
"No, I'll come too. I suppose one may as well die this way as any other,and if anything were to happen to them and I were left alone, it wouldbe worse still."
"Then be prepared," said Yva, "for presently this air-chariot of ourswill return. When it appears and hangs upon the edge, step on to it andthrow yourselves upon your faces and all will be well. At the foot ofthe shaft the motion lessens till it almost stops, and it is easy tospring, or even crawl to the firm earth."
Then she stooped down and lifted Tommy who was sniffing suspiciouslyat the edge of the pit, his long ears blown straight above his head,holding him beneath her left arm and under her cloak, that he might notsee and be frightened.
We waited a while in silence, perhaps for five or six minutes, amongthe most disagreeable, I think, that I ever passed. Then far down in thebrightness below appeared a black speck that seemed to grow in size asit rushed upwards.
"It comes," said Yva. "Prepare and do as I do. Do not spring, or run,lest you should go too far. Step gently on to the rock and to itscentre, and there lie down. Trust in me, all of you."
"There's nothing else to do," groaned Bastin.
The great stone appeared and, as before, hung at the edge of the pit.Yva stepped on to it quietly, as she did so, catching hold of my wristwith her disengaged hand. I followed her feeling very sick, and promptlysat down. Then came Bickley with the air of the virtuous hero ofa romance walking a pirate's plank, and also sat down. Only Bastinhesitated until the stone began to move away. Then with an ejaculationof "Here goes!" he jumped over the intervening crack of space and landedin the middle of us like a sack of coal. Had I not been seated really Ithink he would have knocked me off the rock. As it was, with one handhe gripped me by the beard and with the other grasped Yva's robe, ofneither of which would he leave go for quite a long time, although weforced him on to his face. The lantern which he held flew from his graspand descended the shaft on its own account.
"You silly fool!" exclaimed Bickley whose perturbation showed itself inanger. "There goes one of our lamps."
"Hang the lamp!" muttered the prostrate Bastin. "We shan't want it inHeaven, or the other place either."
Now the stone which had quivered a little beneath the impact of Bastin,steadied itself again and with a slow and majestic movement sailedto the other side of the gulf. There it felt the force of gravity, orperhaps the weight of the returning air pressed on it, which I do notknow. At any rate it began to fall, slowly at first, then more swiftly,and afterwards at an incredible pace, so that in a few seconds the mouthof the pit above us grew small and presently vanished quite away.I looked up at Yva who was standing composedly in the midst of ourprostrate shapes. She bent down and called in my ear:
"All is well. The heat begins, but it will not endure for long."
I nodded and glanced over the edge of the stone at Bastin's lanternwhich was sailing alongside of us, till presently we passed it. Bastinhad lit it before we started, I think in a moment of aberration, and itburned for quite a long while, showing like a star when the shaftgrew darker as it did by degrees, a circumstance that testifies to theexcellence of the make, which is one advertised not to go out in anywind. Not that we felt wind, or even draught, perhaps because we weretravelling with it.
Then we entered the heat zone. About this there was no doubt, for theperspiration burst out all over me and the burning air scorched mylungs. Also Tommy thrust his head from beneath the cloak with his tonguehanging out and his mouth wide open.
"Hold your breaths!" cried Yva, and we obeyed until we nearly burst. Atleast I did, but what happened to the others I do not know.
Fortunately it was soon over and the air began to grow cool again. Bynow we had travelled an enormous distance, it seemed to be miles onmiles, and I noticed that our terrific speed was slackening, also thatthe shaft grew more narrow, till at length there were only a few feetbetween the edge of the stone and its walls. The result of this, or soI supposed, was that the compressed air acted as a buffer, lessening ourmomentum, till at length the huge stone moved but very slowly.
"Be ready to follow me," cried Yva again, and we rose to our feet, thatis, Bickley and I did, but poor Bastin was semi-comatose. The stonestopped and Yva sprang from it to a rock platform level with which itlay. We followed, dragging Bastin between us. As we did so something hitme gently on the head. It was Bastin's lamp, which I seized.
"We are safe. Sit down and rest," said Yva, leading us a few paces away.
We obeyed and presently by the dim light saw the stone begin to stiragain, this time upwards. In another twenty seconds it was away on itsnever-ending journey.
"Does it always go on like that?" said Bastin, sitting up and staringafter it.
"Tens of thousands of years ago it was journeying thus, and tens ofthousands of years hence it will still be journeying, or so I think,"she replied. "Why not, since the strength of the draught never changesand there is nothing to wear it except the air?"
Somehow the vision of this huge stone, first loosed and set in motion byheaven knows what agency, travelling from aeon to aeon up and downthat shaft in obedience to some law I did n
ot understand, impressed myimagination like a nightmare. Indeed I often dream of it to this day.
I looked about me. We were in some cavernous place that could be butdimly seen, for here the light that flowed down the shaft from theupper caves where it was mysteriously created, scarcely shone, and oftenindeed was entirely cut off, when the ever-journeying stone was in thenarrowest parts of the passage. I could see, however, that this cavernstretched away both to right and left of us, while I felt that fromthe left, as we sat facing the shaft, there drew down a strong blast offresh air which suggested that somewhere, however far away, it must openon to the upper world. For the rest its bottom and walls seemed to besmooth as though they had been planed in the past ages by the action ofcosmic forces. Bickley noticed this the first and pointed it out to me.We had little time to observe, however, for presently Yva said:
"If you are rested, friends, I pray you light those lamps of yours,since we must walk a while in darkness."
We did and started, still travelling downhill. Yva walked ahead with meand Tommy who seemed somewhat depressed and clung close to our heels.The other two followed, arguing strenuously about I know not what. Itwas their way of working off irritation and alarms.
I asked Yva what was about to happen, for a great fear oppressed me.
"I am not sure, Beloved," she answered in a sweet and gentle voice, "whodo not know all Oro's secrets, but as I think, great things. We are nowdeep in the bowels of the world, and presently, perhaps, you will seesome of its mighty forces whereof your ignorant races have no knowledge,doing their everlasting work."
"Then how is it that we can breathe here?" I asked. "Because this roadthat we are following connects with the upper air or used to do so,since once I followed it. It is a long road and the climb is steep,but at last it leads to the light of the blessed sun, nor are there anypitfalls in the path. Would that we might tread it together, Humphrey,"she added with passion, "and be rid of mysteries and the gloom, or thatlight which is worse than gloom."
"Why not?" I asked eagerly. "Why should we not turn and flee?"
"Who can flee from my father, the Lord Oro?" she replied. "He wouldsnare us before we had gone a mile. Moreover, if we fled, by tomorrowhalf the world must perish."
"And how can we save it by not flying, Yva?"
"I do not know, Humphrey, yet I think it will be saved, perchance bysacrifice. That is the keystone of your faith, is it not? Therefore ifit is asked of you to save the world, you will not shrink from it, willyou, Humphrey?"
"I hope not," I replied, without enthusiasm, I admit. Indeed it struckme that a business of this sort was better fitted to Bastin thanto myself, or at any rate to his profession. I think she guessed mythoughts, for by the light of the lamp I saw her smile in her dazzlingway. Then after a swift glance behind her, she turned and suddenlykissed me, as she did so calling down everlasting blessings on myhead and on my spirit. There was something very wonderful about thisbenediction of Yva's and it thrilled me through and through, so that toit I could make no answer.
Next moment it was too late to retreat, for our narrowing passage turnedand we found ourselves in a wondrous place. I call it wondrous becauseof it we could see neither the beginning nor the end, nor the roof, noraught else save the rock on which we walked, and the side or wall thatour hands touched. Nor was this because of darkness, since although itwas not illuminated like the upper caverns, light of a sort was present.It was a very strange light, consisting of brilliant and intermittentflashes, or globes of blue and lambent flame which seemed to leap fromnowhere into nowhere, or sometimes to hang poised in mid air.
"How odd they are," said the voice of Bastin behind me. "They remindme of those blue sparks which jump up from the wires of the tramways inLondon on a dark night. You know, don't you, Bickley? I mean when theconductor pulls round that long stick with an iron wheel on the top ofit."
"Nobody but you could have thought of such a comparison, Bastin,"answered Bickley. "Still, multiplied a thousandfold they are notunlike."
Nor indeed were they, except that each blue flash was as big as the fullmoon and in one place or another they were so continuous that one couldhave read a letter by their light. Also the effect of them was ghastlyand most unnatural, terrifying, too, since even their brilliance couldnot reveal the extent of that gigantic hollow in the bowels of theworld wherein they leapt to and fro like lightnings, or hung like huge,uncanny lanterns.
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