by Unknown
When he had mastered their operation, which was rendered simple by reason of the fact that they were so nearly automatic, the trio stepped into a lock on the floor of the ship and Professor Stevens ordered them to couple their suits to air-valve connections on the wall, at the same time admitting water by opening another valve.
Swiftly the lock flooded, while their suits inflated.
"All right?" came his vibratory query.
"Right!" they both answered.
"Then stand by for the heavy pressure."
Wider now he opened the water-valve, letting the ocean in, while at the same time their suits continued inflating through their air-valve connections.
To his surprise, Larry found himself no more inconvenienced by the pressure than he had been from the moment the submarine dove to its present depth. Indeed, most of the air that was coming into his suit was filling the reinforced space between its inner and outer layers, much as the Nereid held air under pressure between her two thick shells.
"All right now?" called out the professor's vibrator.
"Right!" they called back again.
"Then uncouple your air-valve connections and make ready."
They did so; and he likewise.
Then, advancing to a massive door like that of a vault, he flung back its powerful clamps, dragged it open--and there beyond, its pressure equaled by that within the lock, loomed the black tide of the ocean bottom.
* * * * *
Awed by this solemn sight, tingling with a sense of unparalleled adventure, Larry stood there a moment, peering out over the threshold of that untrodden world.
Then he followed Diane and her father into its beckoning mystery....
Their searchlights cutting bright segments into the dark, they proceeded toward the vast mound that towered ahead, pushing through a weird realm of phosphorescent fish and other marine creatures.
As they neared it, any possible doubt that it was in fact a pyramid vanished. Corroded by the action of salt water and covered with the incrustations of centuries, it nevertheless presented unmistakable evidence of human construction, rising in steps of massive masonry to a summit shadowy in the murk above.
As Larry stood gazing upon that mighty proof that this submerged plateau had once stood forth proudly above the sea, he realized that he was a party to one of the most profound discoveries of the ages. What a furore this would make when he reported it back to his New York paper!
But New York seemed remote indeed, now. Would they ever get back? What if anything went wrong with their pressure-suits--or if they should become lost?
He glanced back uneasily, but there gleamed the reassuring lights of the Nereid, not a quarter of a mile away.
Diane and her father were now rounding a corner of the pyramid and he followed them, his momentary twinge of anxiety gone.
* * * * *
For some moments, Professor Stevens prowled about without comment, examining the huge basal blocks of the structure and glancing up its sloping sides.
"You see, I was right!" he declared at length. "This is not only a man-made edifice but a true pyramid, embodying the same architectural principles as the Mayan and Egyptian forms. We see before us the visible evidence of a sunken empire--the missing link between Atlantis and America."
No comments greeted this profound announcement and the professor continued:
"This structure appears to be similar in dimensions with that of the pyramid of Xochicalco, in Mexico, which in turn approximates that of the "Sacred Hill" of Atlantis, mentioned by Plato, and which was the prototype of both the Egyptian and Mayan forms. It was here the Antillians, as the Atlanteans had taught them to do, worshipped their grim gods and performed the human sacrifices they thought necessary to appease them. And it was here, too, if I am not mistaken, that--"
Suddenly his vibratory discourse was broken into by a sharp signal from the submarine:
"Pardon interruption! Hurry back! We are attacked!"
At this, the trio stood rigid.
"Captain Petersen! Captain Petersen!" Larry heard the professor call. "Speak up! Give details! What has happened?"
But an ominous silence greeted the query.
Another moment they stood there, thoroughly dismayed now. Then came the professor's swift command:
"Follow me--quickly!"
He was already in motion, retracing his steps as fast as his bulky suit would permit. But as he rounded the corner of the pyramid, they saw him pause, stand staring. And as they drew up, they in turn paused; stood staring, too.
With sinking hearts, they saw that the Nereid was gone.
* * * * *
Stunned by this disaster, they stood facing one another--three lone human beings, on the bottom of the Atlantic ocean, their sole means of salvation gone.
Professor Stevens was the first to speak.
"This is unbelievable!" he said. "I cannot credit it. We must have lost our senses."
"Or our bearings!" added Diane, more hopefully. "Suppose we look around the other side."
As for Larry, a darker suspicion flashed through his mind. Captain Petersen! Had he seized his opportunity and led the crew to mutiny, in the hope of converting the expedition into a treasure hunt? Was that the reason he had been so willing to remain behind?
He kept his suspicion to himself, however, and accompanied Diane and her father on a complete circuit of the pyramid; but, as he feared, there was no sign of the Nereid anywhere. The craft had vanished as completely as though the ocean floor had opened and swallowed her up.
But no, not as completely as that! For presently the professor, who had proceeded to the site where they left the craft resting on the sand, called out excitedly:
"Here--come here! There are tracks! Captain Petersen was right! They were attacked!"
Hurrying to the scene, they saw before them the plain evidences of a struggle. The ocean bottom was scuffed and stamped, as though by many feet, and a clear trail showed where the craft had finally been dragged away.
Obviously there was but one thing to do and they did it. After a brief conference, they turned and followed the trail.
* * * * *
It led off over the plateau a quarter mile or more, in an eastward direction, terminating at length beside one of the smaller pyramids--and there lay the Nereid, apparently unharmed.
But her lights were out and there came no answer to their repeated calls, so they judged she must be empty.
What had happened to Captain Petersen and his crew? What strange sub-sea enemy had overcome them? What was now their fate?
Unanswerable question! But one thing was certain. Larry had misjudged the captain in suspecting him of mutiny. He was sorry for this and resolved he would make amends by doing all in his power to rescue him and his men, if they were still living.
Meanwhile his own plight, and that of Diane and her father, was critical. What was to be done?
Suddenly, as all three stood there debating that question, Professor Stevens uttered an exclamation and strode toward the pyramid. Following him with their eyes, they saw him pass through an aperture where a huge block of stone had been displaced--and disappear within.
The next moment they had joined him, to find themselves in a small flooded chamber at whose far end a narrow gallery sloped upward at a sharp angle.
The floor and walls were tiled, they noted, and showed none of the corrosion of the exterior surfaces. Indeed, so immaculate was the room that it might have been occupied but yesterday.
As they stood gazing around in wonder, scarcely daring to draw the natural inferences of this phenomena, there came a rasping sound, and, turning toward the entrance, they saw a massive section of masonry descend snugly into place.
They were trapped!
* * * * *
Standing there tense, speechless, they waited, wondering what would be the next move of this strange enemy who held them now so surely in his power.
Nor had they long to wait.
Almost im
mediately, there issued a gurgling sound from the inclined gallery, and turning their eyes in the direction of this new phenomena, they saw that the water level was receding, as though under pressure from above.
"Singular!" muttered Professor Stevens. "A sort of primitive lock. It seems incredible that human creatures could exist down here, but such appears to be the case."
Larry had no desire to dispute the assumption, nor had Diane. They stood there as people might in the imminence of the supernatural, awaiting they knew not what.
Swiftly the water receded.
Now it was scarcely up to their waists, now plashing about their ankles, and now the room was empty.
The next moment, there sounded a rush of feet--and down the gallery came a swarm of the strangest beings any of them had ever seen.
They were short, thin, almost emaciated, with pale, pinched faces and pasty, half-naked bodies. But they shimmered with ornaments of gold and jade, like some strange princes from the realm of Neptune--or rather, like Aztec chieftains of the days of Cortes, thought Larry.
Blinking in the glare of the searchlights, they clamored around their captives, touching their pressure-suits half in awe and chattering among themselves.
* * * * *
Then one of them, larger and more regally clad than the rest, stepped up and gestured toward the balcony.
"They obviously desire us to accompany them above," said the professor, "and quite as obviously we have little choice in the matter, so I suggest we do so."
"Check!" said Larry.
"And double-check!" added Diane.
So they started up, preceded by a handful of their captors and followed by the main party.
The gallery seemed to be leading toward the center of the pyramid, but after a hundred feet or so it turned and continued up at a right angle, turning twice more before they arrived at length in another stone chamber, smaller than the one below.
Here their guides paused and waited for the main party.
There followed another conference, whereupon their leader stepped up again, indicating this time that they were to remove their suits.
At this, Professor Stevens balked.
"It is suicide!" he declared. "The air to which they are accustomed here is doubtless at many times our own atmospheric pressure."
"But I don't see that there's anything to do about it," said Larry, as their captors danced about them menacingly. "I for one will take a chance!"
And before they could stop him, he had pressed the release-valve, emitting the air from his suit--slowly, at first, then more and more rapidly, as no ill effects seemed to result.
Finally, flinging off the now deflated suit, he stepped before them in his ordinary clothes, calling with a smile:
"Come on out, folks--the air's fine!"
* * * * *
This statement was somewhat of an exaggeration, as the air smelt dank and bad. But at least it was breathable, as Diane and her father found when they emerged from their own suits.
They discovered, furthermore, now that their flashlights were no longer operating, that a faint illumination lit the room, issuing from a number of small crystal jars suspended from the walls: some sort of phosphorescence, evidently.
Once again the leader of the curious throng stepped up to them, beaming now and addressing Professor Stevens in some barbaric tongue, and, to their amazement, he replied in words approximating its harsh syllables.
"Why, daddy!" gasped Diane. "How can you talk to him?"
"Simply enough," was the reply. "They speak a language which seems to be about one-third Basque, mixed oddly with Greek. It merely proves another hypothesis of mine, namely, that the Atlantean influence reached eastward to the Pyrenees mountains and the Hellenic peninsula, as well as to Egypt."
* * * * *
Whereupon he turned and continued his conversation, haltingly it is true and with many gestures, but understandably nevertheless.
"I have received considerable enlightenment as to the mystery of this strange sunken empire," he reported, turning back to them at length. "It is a singular story this creature tells, of how his country sank slowly beneath the waves, during the course of centuries, and of how his ancestors adapted themselves by degrees to the present conditions. I shall report it to you both, in detail, when time affords. But the main thing now is that a man similar to ourselves has conquered their country and set himself up as emperor. It is to him we are about to be taken."
"But it doesn't seem possible!" exclaimed Diane. "Why, how could he have got down here?"
"In a craft similar to our own, according to this creature. Heaven knows what it is we are about to face! But whatever it is, we will face it bravely."
"Check and double-check!" said Larry, with a glance toward Diane that told her she would not find him wanting.
They were not destined to meet the test just then, however, for just at that moment a courier in breech-clout and sandals dashed up the gallery and burst into the room, bearing in his right hand a thin square of metal.
Bowing, he handed it to the leader of the pigmy throng, with the awed word:
"Cabiri!"
At this, Professor Stevens gave a start.
"A message from their high priests!" he whispered.
Whatever it contained, the effect produced on the reader was profound. Facing his companions, he addressed them gravely. Then, turning from the room, he commanded the captives to follow.
* * * * *
The way led back down the inclined gallery to a point where another door now stood open, then on down until finally the passage leveled out into a long, straight tunnel.
This they traversed for fully a mile, entering at length a large, square chamber where for a moment they paused.
"I judge we are now at the base of the large pyramid," the professor voiced in an undertone. "It would naturally be the abode of the high priests."
"But what do you suppose they want with us?" asked Diane.
"That I am not disposed to conjecture," was her father's reply.
But the note of anxiety in his voice was not lost on Diane, nor on Larry, who pressed her hand reassuringly.
Now their captors led them from the room through a small door opening on another inclined gallery, whose turns they followed until all were out of breath from the climb.
It ended abruptly on a short, level corridor with apertures to left and right.
Into the latter they were led, finding themselves in a grotesquely furnished room, lit dimly by phosphorescent lamps.
Swiftly the leader addressed Professor Stevens. Then all withdrew. The aperture was closed by a sliding block of stone.
* * * * *
For a moment they stood there silent, straining their eyes in the gloom to detect the details of their surroundings, which included several curious chairs and a number of mattings strewn on the tiled floor.
"What did he say?" asked Diane at length, in a tremulous voice.
"He said we will remain here for the night," her father replied, "and will be taken before the high priests at dawn."
"At dawn!" exclaimed Larry. "How the deuce do they know when it is dawn, down here?"
"By their calendars, which they have kept accurately," was the answer. "But there are many other questions you must both want to ask, so I shall anticipate them by telling you now what I have been able to learn. Suppose we first sit down, however. I for one am weary."
Whereupon they drew up three of those curious chairs of some heavy wood carved with the hideous figures of this strange people's ancient gods, and Professor Stevens began.
* * * * *
Their sunken empire, as he had surmised, had indeed been the great island of Antillia and a colony of Atlantis. A series of earthquakes and tidal waves such as engulfed their homeland ages before had sent it down, and the estimated archaeological date of the final submergence--namely, 200 B. C.--was approximately correct.
But long before this ultimate catastrophe, the bulk of the dishe
artened population had migrated to Central and South America, founding the Mayan and Incan dynasties. Many of the faithful had stayed on, however, among them most of the Cabiri or high priests, who either were loath to leave their temples or had been ordered by their gods to remain.
At any rate, they had remained, and as the great island sank lower and lower, they had fortified themselves against the disaster in their pyramids, which by then alone remained above the surface.
These, too, had gradually disappeared beneath the angry waters, however, and with them had disappeared the steadfast priests and their faithful followers, sealing their living tombs into air-tight bell-jars that retained the atmosphere.
This they had supplemented at first by drawing it down from above, but as time went by they found other means of getting air; extracting it from the sea water under pressure, by utilizing their subterranean volcanoes, in whose seething cauldrons the gods had placed their salvation; and it was this process that now provided them with the atmosphere which had so amazed their captives.
But naturally, lack of sunshine had produced serious degeneration in their race, and that accounted for their diminutive forms and pale bodies. Still, they had been able to survive with a degree of happiness until some ten or a dozen years ago, when a strange enemy had come down in a great metal fish, like that of these new strangers, and with a handful of men had conquered their country.
This marauder was after their gold and had looted their temples ruthlessly, carrying away its treasures, for which they hated him with a fury that only violation of their most sacred deities could arouse. Long ago they would have destroyed him, but for the fact that he possessed terrible weapons which were impossible to combat. But they were in smouldering rebellion and waited only the support of their gods, when they would fall on this oppressor and hurl him off.
That, though it left many things unexplained, was all the professor had been able to gather from his conversation with the leader of their captors. He ended, admitting regretfully that he was still in ignorance of what fate had befallen Captain Petersen and the crew of the Nereid.
* * * * *
