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Title: A voice from the inner world
Author: A. Hyatt Verrill
Release date: December 11, 2023 [eBook #72379]
Language: English
Original publication: New York: E. P. Co., Inc, 1927
Credits: Roger Frank and Sue Clark
*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A VOICE FROM THE INNER WORLD ***
The Voice from the Inner World
Second Honorable Mention in the $500 Prize Cover Contest
Awarded to A. Hyatt Verrill, New York City,
for “A Voice from the Inner World.”
[Illustration: ... And it was evident that the others were equally
afraid of me ... they stood regarding me with an odd mixture of wonder
and terror on their huge faces.]
The Voice from the Inner World
by A. Hyatt Verrill
Author of “The Plague of the Living Dead,” “Through the Crater’s Rim,” etc.
The author of this story, well known to our readers, in
submitting his prize story, adopts a treatment entirely
different from that of practically all the rest of the
winners. He has submitted a tale so characteristic and so
original that it holds your interest by sheer strength. That
there should be a cannibalistic race of females somewhere in
our world is, after all, not impossible nor improbable.
There are still cannibals at large, at the present writing,
and probably will be for many generations to come. While the
story has its gruesome moments, it also contains good
science and Mr. Verrill certainly knows how to treat his
subject and get the most from it. As a “different” sort of
story, we highly recommend it to your attention.
On the eighteenth of October, the New York papers reported the
appearance of a remarkable meteor which had been seen in mid-Pacific,
and the far more startling announcement that it was feared that the
amazing celestial visitor had struck and destroyed a steamship.
“At eleven-fifteen last evening,” read the account in the _Herald_, “the
Panama-Hawaiian Line steamship _Chiriqui_ reported by radio the
appearance of an immense meteor which suddenly appeared above the
horizon to the southeast, and which increased rapidly in size and
brilliance. Within ten minutes from the time the phenomenon was first
sighted, it appeared as a huge greenish sphere of dazzling brilliance
high in the sky, and heading, apparently, directly for the _Chiriqui_.
Almost at the same time as reported by the _Chiriqui_, several other
ships, among them the Miners and Merchants Line _Vulcan_, and the
Japanese liner _Fujiama Maru_ also reported the meteorite, although they
were more than one thousand miles apart and equidistant from the
position of the _Chiriqui_.
“In the midst of a sentence describing the appearance of the rapidly
approaching meteor, the _Chiriqui’s_ wireless message came to an abrupt
end, and all attempts to get into further communication with her
operator failed. The other vessels reported that a scintillating flash,
like an explosion, was followed by the meteor’s disappearance, and it is
feared that the immense aerolite may have struck the _Chiriqui_, and
utterly destroyed her with all on board. As no S O S has been received,
and as the ship’s radio broke off with the words: ‘It is very close and
the sea is as bright as day. Below the immense mass of green fire are
two smaller spheres of intense red. It is so near we can hear it roaring
like a terrific wind. It is headed--’ It is probable that the vessel, if
struck, was instantly destroyed. It has been suggested, however, that it
is possible that the meteor or meteors were accompanied by electrical
phenomenon which may have put the _Chiriqui’s_ wireless apparatus out of
commission and that the ship may be safe.”
Later editions of the press announced that no word had been received
from the _Chiriqui_, that other ships had reported the meteor, and that
two of these had radioed that the aerolite, instead of exploding, had
been seen to continue on its way and gradually disappear beyond the
horizon. These reports somewhat allayed the fears that the _Chiriqui_
had been struck by the meteor, and prominent scientists expressed the
opinion that the supposed explosion had been merely an optical illusion
caused by its passage through some dense or cloudy layer of air. They
also quoted numerous cases of immense meteors having been seen by
observers over immense distances, and declared their belief that the
aerolite had not reached the earth, but had merely passed through the
outer atmosphere. When asked regarding the possibility of the meteor
having affected the ship’s wireless apparatus, experts stated that such
might have been the case, although, hitherto, severe electrical
disturbances had never been associated with the passage of meteors.
Moreover, they declared that even if the wireless had been injured, it
could have been repaired in a few hours, and that they could not explain
the continued silence of the _Chiriqui_. Word also came from Panama that
the naval commandant at Balboa had despatched a destroyer to search for
the _Chiriqui_, or any survivors of the catastrophe if the ship had been
destroyed.
A few hours later, despatches were received from various points in
Central and South America, reporting the meteor of the previous night.
All of these agreed that the fiery mass had swept across the heavens in
a wide arc and had vanished in the east beyond the summits of the Andes.
It was, therefore, fairly certain that the _Chiriqui_ had not been
struck by the meteor, and in a few days the incident was completely
forgotten by the public at large.
But when, ten days later, the warship reported that no sign of the
missing ship could be found, and the officials of the Panama-Hawaiian
Line admitted that the _Chiriqui_ was four days overdue, interest was
again aroused. Then came the startling news, featured in screaming
headlines, that the meteor or its twin had been again reported by
various ships in the Pacific, and that the U. S. S. _McCracken_, which
had been scouring the seas for traces of the missing _Chiriqui_, had
sent in a detailed report of the meteor’s appearance, and that her
wireless had gone “dead,” exactly as had that of the _Chiriqui_.
And when, after every effort, no communication could be established with
the war vessel, and when two weeks had elapsed without word from her, it
was generally conceded that both ships had been destroyed by the amazing
celestial visitor. For a time the double catastrophe filled the papers
to the exclusion of nearly everything else, and such everyday features
as scandals and murder trials were crowded to the back pages of the
dailies to make room for long articles on meteors and missing ships and
interviews with scientists. But as no more meteors appeared, and as no
more ships vanished, the subject gradually lost interest and was no
longer news.
About three months after the first report of the green meteor appeared
(on January fifteenth, to be exact) I was in Peru, visiting my daughter,
when I received a communication of such an utterly amazing character
that it appeared incredible, and yet was so borne out by facts and
details that it had all the earmarks of truth. So astounding was this
communication that, despite the fact that it will unquestionably be
scoffed at by the public, I feel that it should be given to the world.
As soon as I had received the story I hurried with it to the American
Minister in Lima, and related all that I had heard. He agreed with me
that the authorities at Washington should be acquainted with the matter
at once, and together we devoted many hours to coding the story which
was cabled in the secret cipher of the State Department. The officials,
however, were inclined to regard the matter as a hoax, and, as far as I
am aware, no steps have yet been taken to follow out the suggestions
contained in the communication which I received, and thus save humanity
from a terrible fate. Personally, I am convinced that the amazing tale
which came to me in such an astounding and unexpected manner is
absolutely true, incredible as it may seem, but whether fact or fiction,
my readers may decide for themselves.
My son-in-law was intensely interested in radio, and devoted all of his
spare time to devising and constructing receiving sets, and in his home
in the delightful residential suburb of Miraflores, were a number of
receiving sets of both conventional and original design. Having been
closely in touch with the subject for several years, I was deeply
interested in Frank’s experiments, and especially in a new type of
hook-up which had given most remarkable results in selectivity and
distance. Practically every broadcasting station in America, and many in
Europe, had been logged by the little set, and on several occasions
faint signals had been heard which, although recognizable as English,
evidently emanated from a most remote station. These, oddly enough, had
come in at the same hour each night, and each time had continued for
exactly the same length of time.
We were discussing this, and trying to again pick up the unintelligible
and unidentified signals on that memorable January evening, when,
without warning, and as clearly as though sent from the station at
Buenos Ayres, came the most astounding communication which ever greeted
human ears, and which, almost verbatim, was as follows:[1]
“LISTEN! For God’s sake, I implore all who may hear my words to listen!
And believe what I say no matter how unbelievable it may seem, for the
fate of thousands of human beings, the fate of the human race may depend
upon you who by chance may hear this message from another world. My name
is James Berry, my home is Butte, Montana, my profession a mining
engineer, and I am speaking through the short wave transmitter of the
steamship _Chiriqui_ on which I was a passenger when the terrible, the
incredible events occurred which I am about to relate. On the evening of
October sixteenth[2] the _Chiriqui_ was steaming across the Pacific in
calm weather when our attention was attracted by what appeared to be an
unusually brilliant meteor of a peculiar greenish color. It first
appeared above the horizon to the southeast, and very rapidly increased
in size and brilliancy. At the time I was particularly struck by the
fact that it left no trail of light or fire behind it, as is usual with
large meteorites, but so rapidly did it approach that I had little time
to wonder at this. Within a few moments from the time that it was first
seen, the immense sphere of green incandescence had grown to the size of
the moon, and the entire sea for miles about our ship was illuminated by
a sickly green light. It appeared to be headed directly towards our
ship, and, standing as I was on the bridge-deck near the wheel-house, I
heard the chief officer cry out: ‘My God, it will strike us!’ By now the
mass of fire had altered in appearance, and a short distance below the
central green mass could be seen two smaller spheres of blinding red,
like huge globes of molten metal. By now, too, the noise made by the
meteor was plainly audible, sounding like the roar of surf or the sound
of a tornado.
“Everyone aboard the ship was panic-stricken; women screamed, men cursed
and shouted, and the crew rushed to man the boats, as everyone felt that
the _Chiriqui_ was doomed. What happened next I can scarcely describe,
so rapidly did the events occur. As the meteor seemed about to hurl
itself upon the ship, there was a blinding flash of light, a terrific
detonation, and I saw men and women falling to the decks as if struck
down by shell fire. The next instant the meteor vanished completely, and
intense blackness followed the blinding glare. At the same moment, I was
aware of a peculiar pungent, suffocating odor which, perhaps owing to my
long experience with deadly gases in mining work, I at once recognized
as some noxious gas. Almost involuntarily, and dully realizing that by
some miracle the ship had escaped destruction, I dashed below and
reached my cabin almost overcome by the fumes which now penetrated every
portion of the ship. Among my possessions was a new type of gas-mask
which had been especially designed for mine work, and my idea was to don
this, for I felt sure that the meteor had exploded close to the ship and
had released vast quantities of poisonous gases which might hang about
for a long time.
“Although almost overcome by the choking fumes, I managed to find and
put on the apparatus, for one of its greatest advantages was the
rapidity and ease with which it could be adjusted, it having been
designed for emergency use. But before it was fairly in place over my
face, the electric light in my room went out and I was in complete
darkness. Also, the ship seemed strangely still, and as I groped my way
to the stateroom door it suddenly dawned upon me that the engines had
stopped, that there was no longer the whirr of dynamos from the depths
of the hull. Not a light glimmered in the passageway, and twice, as I
felt my way towards the social hall, I stumbled over the sprawled bodies
of men, while in the saloon itself I several times stepped upon the soft
and yielding flesh of passengers who lay where they had been struck down
by the poisonous gas. In all probability, I thought, I was the sole
survivor aboard the ship, unless some of the firemen and engineers
survived, and I wondered how I would manage to escape, if the vessel
should be sighted by some other ship, or if it should be my gruesome
task to search the _Chiriqui_ from stem to stern, drag the bodies of the
dead to the deck and cast them into the sea, and remain--perhaps for
weeks--alone upon the ship until rescued by some passing vessel. But as
I reached the door and stepped upon the deck all such thoughts were
driven from my brain as I blinked my eyes and stared about in dumfounded
amazement. I had stepped from Stygian darkness into dazzling light.
Blinded for the moment, I closed my eyes, and when I again opened them I
reeled to the rail with a cry of terror. Poised above the ship’s masts,
and so enormous that it appeared to shut out half the sky, was the
stupendous meteor like a gigantic globe of green fire, and seemingly
less than one hundred feet above me. Still nearer, and hanging but a few
yards above the bow and stern of the ship, were the two smaller spheres
of glowing red. Cowering against the rail, expecting to be shrivelled
into a charred cinder at any instant, I gazed transfixed and paralyzed
at the titanic masses of flaming light above the ship.
“Then reason came back to me. My only chance to escape was to leap into
the sea, and I half clambered upon the rail prepared to take the plunge.
A scream, like that of a madman, came from my lips. Below me was no sign
of the waves, but a limitless void, while, immeasurably distant beneath
the ship, I could dimly see the crinkled surface of the sea. The
_Chiriqui_ was floating in space!
“It was impossible, absolutely preposterous, and I felt convinced that I
had gone mad, or that the small quantity of gas I had breathed had
affected my brain and had induced the nightmarish vision. Perhaps, I
thought, the meteors above the ship were also visionary, and I again
stared upward. Then, I knew that I was insane. The spheres of green and
red light were rushing upward as I could see by the brilliant stars
studding the sky, and the ship upon which I stood was following in their
wake! Weak, limp as a rag, I slumped to the deck and lay staring at the
great globes above me. But the insanely impossible events which had
crowded upon my overwrought senses were as nothing to the amazing
discovery I now made.
“As my eyes became accustomed to the glare of the immense green sphere,
I saw that instead of being merely a ball of fire it had definite form.
About its middle extended a broad band from which slender rods of light
extended. Round or ovoid spots seemed placed in definite order about it,
and from the extremities of its axes lines or cables, clearly outlined
by the glare, extended downward to the red spheres above the ship. By
now, I was so firmly convinced that I was irrational, that these new and
absolutely stunning discoveries did not excite or surprise me in the
least, and as if in a particularly vivid dream, I lay there gazing
upward, and dully, half consciously speculating on what it all meant.
Gradually, too, it dawned upon me that the huge sphere with its
encircling band of duller light was rotating. The circular markings,
which I thought were marvelously like the ports of a ship, were
certainly moving from top to bottom of the sphere, and I could
distinctly hear a low, vibrant humming.
“The next second I jerked upright with a start and my scalp tingled.
Reason had suddenly returned to me. The thing was no meteor, no
celestial body, but some marvelous machine, some devilish invention of
man, some gigantic form of airship which--God only knew why--had by some
incredible means captured the _Chiriqui_, had lifted the twenty thousand
ton ship into the air and was bearing her off with myself, the only
survivor of all the ship’s company, witnessing the miraculous happening!
It was the most insane thought that had yet entered my brain, but I knew
now for a certainty that I was perfectly sane, and, oddly enough, now
that I was convinced that the catastrophe which had overtaken the
_Chiriqui_ was the devilish work of human beings, I was no longer
frightened and my former nightmarish terror of things unknown, gave
place to the most intense anger and an inexpressible hatred of the
fiends who, without warning or reason, had annihilated hundreds of men
and women by means of this new and irresistible engine of destruction.
But I was helpless. Alone upon the stolen and stricken ship I could do
nothing. By what tremendous force the spherical airship was moving
through space, by what unknown power it was lifting the ship and
carrying it,--slung like the gondola of a Zeppelin beneath the
sphere,--were matters beyond my comprehension. Calmly, now that I felt
assured that I was rational and was the victim of my fellow
men--fiendish as they might be,--I walked aft to where one red sphere
hung a few yards above the ship’s deck.
* * * * *
“There seemed no visible connection between it and the vessel, but I
noticed that everything movable upon the deck, the iron cable, the wire
ropes, the coiled steel lines of the after derrick, all extended upward
from the deck, as rigid as bars of metal, while crackling blue sparks
like electrical discharges scintillated from the ship’s metal work below
the red sphere. Evidently, I decided, the red mass was actuated by some
form of electrical energy or magnetism, and I gave the area beneath it a
wide berth. Retracing my way to the bow of the ship, I found similar
conditions there. As I walked towards the waist of the ship again I
mounted the steps to the bridge, hoping from that height to get a better
view of the monstrous machine holding the _Chiriqui_ captive. I knew
that in the chart-house I would find powerful glasses with which to
study the machine. Upon the bridge the bodies of the quartermaster, the
first officer and an apprentice lay sprawled grotesquely, and across the
chart-house door lay the captain. Reaching down I lifted him by the
shoulders to move him to one side, and to my amazement I discovered that
he was not dead. His heart beat, his pulse, though slow and faint, was
plain, he was breathing and his face, still ruddy, was that of a
sleeping man rather than of a corpse.
“A wild thought rushed through my brain, and hastily I rushed to the
other bodies. There was no doubt of it. All were alive and merely
unconscious. The gas had struck them down, but had not killed them, and
it came to me as a surprise, though I should long before have realized
it, that the fumes had been purposely discharged by the beings who had
captured the vessel. Possibly, I mentally decided, they had made a
mistake and had failed in their intention to destroy the persons upon
the ship, or again, was it not possible that they had intentionally
rendered the ship’s company unconscious, and had not intended to destroy
their lives? Forgetting my original purpose in visiting the bridge, I
worked feverishly to resuscitate the captain, but all to no purpose.
Many gases, I knew, would render a man unconscious without actually
injuring him, and I was also aware, that when under the influence of
some of these, the victims could not be revived until the definite
period of the gases’ effect had passed. So, feeling certain that in due
time the captain and the others would come to of their own accord, I
entered the chartroom and, securing the skipper’s binoculars, I again
stepped upon the bridge. As I could not conveniently use the glasses
with my gas-mask in place, and as I felt sure there was no longer any
danger from the fumes, I started to remove the apparatus. But no sooner
did a breath of the air enter my mouth than I hastily readjusted the
contrivance, for the gas which had struck down everyone but myself was
as strong as ever. Indeed, the mere whiff of the fumes made my head reel
and swim, and I was forced to steady myself by grasping the bridge-rail
until the dizzy spell passed.
“Once more myself, I focussed the glasses as best I could upon the
whirling sphere above the ship. But I could make out little more than by
my naked eyes. The band about the center or equator of the globular
thing was, I could now see, divided into segments, each of which bore a
round, slightly convex, eye-like object from the centers of which
extended slender rods which vibrated with incalculable speed. Indeed,
the whole affair reminded me of the glass models of protozoans which I
had seen in the American Museum of Natural History. These minute marine
organisms I knew, moved with great rapidity by means of vibrating,
hair-like appendages or cilia, and I wondered if the enormous spherical
machine at which I was gazing, might not move through space in a similar
manner by means of vibrating rods moving with such incredible speed
that, slender as they were, they produced enormous propulsive power.
Also, I could now see that the two extremities of the sphere, or as I
may better express it, the axes, were equipped with projecting bosses or
shafts to which the cables supporting the red spheres were attached. And
as I peered through the glasses at the thing, the huge green sphere,
which had been hitherto traveling on an even keel, or, in other words,
with the central band vertical, now shifted its position and one end
swung sharply upward, throwing the band about the centre at an acute
angle. Involuntarily I grasped the rail of the bridge expecting to be
thrown from my feet by the abrupt uptilting of the ship. But to my utter
amazement the _Chiriqui_ remained on an even plane and I then saw that
as the sphere tilted, the cable at the uppermost axis ran rapidly out so
that the two red spheres, which evidently supported the captive ship,
remained, in their original relative horizontal position. No sign of
life was visible upon the machine above me, and I surmised that whoever
might be handling the thing was within the sphere.
“Wondering how high we had risen above the sea, I stepped to the
starboard end of the bridge and glanced down, and an involuntary
exclamation escaped my lips. Far beneath the ship and clearly visible
through the captain’s glasses was land! I could distinguish the white
line marking surf breaking on a rocky shore, and ahead I could make out
the cloud-topped, serried summits of a mighty range of mountains. Not
until then did I realize the terrific speed at which the machine and
captive vessel were traveling. I had been subconsciously aware that a
gale had been blowing, but I had not stopped to realize that this was no
ordinary wind, but was the rush of air caused by the rapidity of motion.
But as I peered at the mountains through the binoculars, and saw the
distant surface of the earth whizzing backward far beneath the
_Chiriqui’s_ keel, I knew that we were hurtling onward with the speed of
the fastest scout airplane.
“Even as I gazed, the mountains seemed to rush towards me until, in a
few minutes after I had first seen them, they appeared almost directly
under the ship. Then the gigantic machine above me suddenly altered its
course, it veered sharply to one side and swept along the range of
summits far beneath. For some reason, just why I cannot explain, I
dashed to the binnacle and saw that we were traveling to the south, and
it flashed across my mind, that I had a dim recollection of noticing,
when I first realized the nature of the machine which had been mistaken
for a meteor, that by the stars, we were moving eastward. In that case,
my suddenly alert mind told me, the land below must be some portion of
America, and if so, judging by the altitude of the mountains, that they
must be the Andes. All of this rushed through my brain instantly, and in
the brief lapse of time in which I sprang to the binnacle and back to my
observation point at the bridge-rail.
“Now, I saw, we were rapidly descending, and focussing my glasses upon
the mountains, I made out an immense conical peak in the top of which
was a gigantic black opening. Without doubt it was the crater of some
stupendous extinct volcano, and, with a shock, I realized that the
machine and the ship were headed directly for the yawning opening in the
crater. The next instant we were dropping with lightning speed towards
it, and so terrified and dumfounded had I become that I could not move
from where I stood. Even before I could grasp the fact, the _Chiriqui_
was enclosed by towering, rocky walls, inky blackness surrounded me,
there was an upward breath-taking rush of air, a roar as of a thousand
hurricanes. The _Chiriqui_ rocked and pitched beneath my feet, as if in
a heavy sea; I clung desperately to the bridge-rail for support and I
felt sure that the ship had been dropped into the abysmal crater, that
the next instant the vessel would crash into fragments as it struck
bottom, or worse, that it would sink into the molten incandescent lava
which might fill the depths of the volcano. For what seemed hours, the
awful fall continued, though like as not the terrible suspense lasted
for only a few minutes, and then, without warning, so abruptly that I
lost my balance and was flung to the bridge, the ship ceased falling, an
indescribable blue light succeeded the blackness, and unable to believe
my senses I found the ship floating motionless, still suspended from the
giant mechanism overhead, above a marvelous landscape.
* * * * *
“On every hand, as far as I could see, stretched jagged rocks, immense
cliffs, stupendous crags and rugged knife-ridged hills of the most
dazzling reds, yellows and purples. Mile-deep canons cut the forbidding
plains, which here and there showed patches of dull green, and in one
spot I saw a stream of emerald-hued water pouring in a foaming cataract
into a fathomless rift in the rock. But I gave little attention to these
sights at the time. My gaze was riveted upon a strange, weird city which
capped the cliffs close to the waterfall, and almost directly beneath
the _Chiriqui_. Slowly we were dropping towards it, and I could see that
the buildings which at first sight had appeared of immense height and
tower-like form, were in reality gigantic basaltic columns capped with
superimposed edifices of gleaming yellow.
“The next second the glasses dropped from my shaking, nerveless hands.
Gathered on an open space of greenish plain were hundreds of human
beings! But were they human? In form and features, as nearly as I could
judge at that distance, they were human, but in color they were scarlet,
and surmounting the head and extending along the arms to the elbows on
every individual was a whitish, membraneous frill, which at first sight,
reminded me of an Indian’s war bonnet. The beings appeared to be of
average height, but as the _Chiriqui’s_ keel touched solid ground and,
keeling to one side, she rested upon one of her bilges, I saw with a
shock, that the scarlet creatures were of gigantic size, fully thirty
feet in height, and that, without exception, all were females! All were
stark naked; but despite the frills upon their heads and shoulders,
despite their bizarre scarlet skins, despite their gigantic proportions,
they were unquestionably human beings, women without doubt, and of the
most perfect proportions, the most graceful forms and the most regular
and even handsome features. Beside the stranded ship, they loomed as
giants; but against the stupendous proportions of their land and city,
they appeared no larger than ordinary mortals. By now they were
streaming from their houses and even in the surprise and excitement of
that moment I noticed that the giant rocky columns were perforated by
windows and doors, and had obviously been hollowed out to form
dwellings. Meantime, too, the huge machine which had captured the
_Chiriqui_ had descended and was lying at rest, and no longer emitting
its green light, upon a cradle erected near the waterfall, and from
openings in its central band several of the scarlet, giant Amazons were
emerging. How long, I wondered, would I remain undiscovered? How long
would it be before one of the female giants spied me? And then, what
would be my fate? Why had they captured the ship? Where was I? What was
this strange land reached through a crater?
“All these thoughts rushed through my brain as I peered cautiously down
at the giant women who swarmed about the ship. But I had not long to
wait for an answer to my first mental question. With a sudden spring,
one of the women leaped to the _Chiriqui’s_ anchor, with a second bound
she was on the fore deck, and close at her heels came a score of others.
Standing upon the deck with her head fringed by its erect vibrating
membrane level with the boat-deck, she gazed about for an instant. Then,
catching sight of the form of a sailor sprawled upon the deck, she
uttered a shrill, piercing cry, leaped forward, and, before my
unbelieving, horror-stricken eyes, tore the still living, palpitating
body to pieces and ravenously devoured it.
“Unable to stir through the very repulsiveness of the scene, realizing
that my turn might be next, I gazed fascinated. But the giant cannibal
female was not to feast in peace. As her companions reached the deck,
they rushed upon her and fought viciously for a portion of the reeking
flesh. The struggle of these awful giants, as smeared with human blood,
scratching and clawing, uttering shrill cries of rage, they rolled and
fought on the deck, was indescribably terrible and disgusting. But it
came to an abrupt end. With a bound, a giantess of giantesses, a
powerfully-muscled female, appeared, and like cowed beasts, the others
drew aside, licking their chops, the membranes on their heads rising and
falling in excitement, like the frills on an iguana lizard, and watching
the newly-arrived giantess with furtive eyes. Evidently she was the
leader or chieftainess, and in curt but strangely shrill and, of course,
to me, utterly unintelligible words, she gave orders to the others.
Instantly, the horde of women began swarming over the ship, searching
every nook and corner, and, wherever they discovered the inert bodies of
the ship’s company, dragged them on deck and piled them in heaps.
Shaking with abject terror, I crouched back of the bridge, and racked my
brains for thought of some safe spot in which to hide. But before I
could make up my mind, one of the terrifying, monstrous females sprang
upon the bridge and rushed towards me. With a maniacal scream, I turned
and fled. Then, before me, blocking my way, there appeared another of
the creatures. And then a most marvelous and surprising thing happened.
Instead of falling upon me as I expected her to do, the giantess turned,
and with a scream that equalled my own, leaped over the rail and fled to
the uttermost extremity of the deck.
“I forgot my terror in my amazement. Why should this giant, cannibal
woman fear me? Why should she run from me when, a few moments before,
she had been fighting over a meal of an unconscious sailor? And it was
evident that the others were equally afraid of me, for at her cry, and
my appearance, all had rushed as far from me as possible, and stood
regarding me with an odd mixture of wonder and terror on their huge
faces. And then it occurred to me that their fear was, perhaps, due to
my gas-mask, to the apparatus that transformed me from a human being to
a weird-looking monster. At any rate, I was evidently safe from
molestation for the time being, and thanking my lucky stars that I had
on the mask, I descended from the bridge, the giantesses retreating as I
advanced. I entered the captain’s cabin and locked the door.
“Here I breathed more freely, for even if the women overcame their fear
of me and attempted to capture me, the steel doors and walls of the
cabin would be impregnable defenses. Moreover, upon the wall above the
bunk, was a rifle, in a drawer of the dresser was a loaded revolver, and
a short search revealed a plentiful supply of cartridges. Yes, if I were
attacked, I could give a good account of myself, and I determined, if
worst came to the worst, that I would blow out my brains rather than
fall a victim to the female cannibal horde.
“Dully, through the thick walls of the cabin, I could hear the sounds of
the women on the deck, but I had no desire to witness what was going on,
and seated upon the captain’s chair, I thought over the events which had
transpired during the past few hours and tried to find a reasonable
solution to the incredible happenings.
“That I was within the earth seemed certain, though utterly fantastic,
but who the giant women were, why they had captured the _Chiriqui_ or by
what unknown, tremendous power their marvelous airship was operated,
were all utterly beyond my comprehension. But I must hurry on and relate
the more important matters, for my time is limited and the important
thing is to let the world know how the human race may be saved from the
terrible fate which has befallen me and all those upon the _Chiriqui_,
and upon the destroyer _McCracken_, for that vessel, too, has fallen a
victim to these horrible cannibalistic giantesses here within the centre
of the earth.
* * * * *
“Hunger and thirst drove me at last from my refuge in the captain’s
cabin, and armed with the loaded rifle and revolver, I cautiously peered
out and stepped upon the deck. Only one woman was in sight, and
instantly, at sight of me, she fled away. Not a body of the hundreds of
men and women aboard the ship was visible, and feeling relieved that I
was for a time safe, I stepped to the ship’s rail and peered over.
Scores of the women were carrying the inert forms of the unconscious men
and women towards the nearby city. Stealthily I hurried below in search
of food and drink. Fears assailed me that the women had, in all
probability, preceded me and carried off everything edible. But I need
not have worried about food. I was yet to learn the horrible truth and
the gruesome habits of these red giantesses. The saloon, the corridors,
the staterooms, everything, had been searched, and every person upon the
vessel removed. In the pantry I found an abundance of food, and quickly
satisfied my hunger and thirst. I pondered on my next move. The
skipper’s cabin seemed my safest refuge. I placed a supply of provisions
within it, and locked myself in the little room again. For several days
nothing of great importance occurred. I say days, but there are no days
in this terrible place. There is no sun, no moon, no stars and no
darkness. The whole place is illuminated by a brilliant, greenish light
that issues from a distant mountain range, and which seems to be of the
same character as that which emanated from the spherical air machine.
Fortunately I had presence of mind enough to keep my watch going, as
well as the captain’s chronometer, for otherwise I would have had no
knowledge of the passage of time. Once or twice the scarlet women
visited the ship, but seemed nervous and wary, and made no effort to
approach or molest me, merely gazed about as if searching for
something--perhaps for me--and then retiring. Several times, too, I
ventured on deck, and peered over the ship’s side, but saw none of the
giantesses, although with the glasses I could see crowds of the beings
about the city in the distance.
“Also, I noticed among them, several individuals who were much smaller
than the rest, and who appeared to be men, although I could not be sure.
I also discovered, and almost lost my life in the discovery, that the
atmosphere of this place is unfit for human beings to breathe, and is
thick with sulphurous fumes. Close to the ground these fumes are so
dense that a person would succumb in a few moments, but at the height of
the _Chiriqui’s_ decks, nearly seventy feet above the rocky bed on which
she rests, the air is breathable, although it causes one to choke and
cough after a few minutes. And I am sure that the houses of these giant
beings have been built on the summits of the basalt columns in order to
avoid the suffocating fumes of the lower levels. Later, too, I learned
that the membrane-like frills upon these creatures are a sort of gills,
or as I might say, natural gas-masks, which by some means enable the
beings to breathe the sulphur-laden air. But even with these, they avoid
the lower areas where the fumes are the worst, and only visit them when
necessity arises, which accounts for my being left in peace, with none
of the horrible women near the ship, for days at a time. I discovered
the presence of the sulphur gas on the first day when, attempting to
eat, I removed my gas-mask. Suffocating as I found the fumes, I was
compelled to endure them, and gradually I became slightly accustomed to
them, so that now I have little trouble in breathing during the short
time it takes me to eat my meals. At all other times I must wear the
apparatus, and I thank God that this is so, for I know now that it is
the gas-mask which so far has preserved my life.
“On the tenth day after my arrival I noticed a number of the giantesses
gathering about the huge, spherical airship which still rested on its
cradle near the _Chiriqui_, but which, I have forgotten to state, ceased
to emit its green or red lights after it had landed. Lying there it
resembled nothing so much as a gigantic can-buoy or a floating mine, if
one can imagine a buoy two hundred yards in diameter.
“On the day I mentioned, all interests seemed to be centered on the
thing, and cautiously peering from the shelter of the deck-house, I
watched the proceedings. Presently several of the women entered the
sphere through an opening in its middle band; the aperture closed behind
them, and immediately there was a low, humming sound as of machinery. As
the sounds issued from the sphere, the cables to which were attached the
smaller spheres (which glowed red when carrying the _Chiriqui_ through
the air) were drawn in until the two smaller spheres were resting in
recesses at the axes of the large sphere, and where they appeared merely
as hemi-spherical projections. Then, slowly at first, but with ever
increasing speed, the slender rods about the large sphere began to move
back and forth, or rather in an oscillating manner, until they were
vibrating with such rapidity that they appeared merely rays of light.
Slowly, majestically, the immense globe rose from its cradle, and
gathering headway, leaped upward to an immense height. Then, tilting at
an angle, it passed over the city and headed for an immense pinnacle of
rock, which, fully seven miles from where I stood, reminded me of a
gigantic chimney or funnel.
“Although it was barely visible to the naked eye, I could see it
distinctly through the glasses, and I watched it with the most intense
and concentrated interest. For a few moments it remained, poised a
hundred feet or so above the pinnacle. Then, from the towering, tapering
rock, a terrific jet of steam roared forth, and striking the great
spherical machine above it, hurled it upward and beyond my vision. Give
close heed to these words, whoever may, by God’s grace, be listening to
what I say, for upon them may hinge the fate of the human race. Only by
this means, by being shot upward by this titanic jet of steam, can the
airship leave this subterranean land and emerge through the crater by
which it entered bearing the _Chiriqui_. Within this place it can sail
at will; once above the crater opening it can travel anywhere, although
it cannot land; but by some unknown force or magnetic attraction or
freak of gravitation the machine cannot ascend through the crater,
although, when over it, it will drop like a plummet through the opening.
And herein--for the sake of humanity, listen to this and remember my
words--lies a means of destroying the machine, for by surrounding the
crater with powerful guns the sphere can be shelled as it emerges and
utterly destroyed. To attempt to do so as it returns to the crater would
be suicidal, for once in the outer air, it emanates vast quantities of
most poisonous gas, and all living things within a radius of several
miles would be struck down unconscious, as were my companions on the
_Chiriqui_. Even if gas-masks were worn, it would be most difficult to
destroy the machine as it descended, for it travels with incredible
speed in its descent and, moreover, the terrible creatures who man the
thing would see that enemies lurked near and would find some means of
destroying them, or by the mysterious magnet force they control, would
draw even the heaviest cannon to the machine as an ordinary magnet draws
needles or iron filings. So if the thing is to be destroyed, it must be
done as the machine emerges from the crater. Would to God that I could
tell where the crater is, but beyond feeling sure it is at the summit of
an Andean peak, I have no means of locating it.
“But I was telling of what occurred on that tenth day when the spherical
airship was projected from my sight by the blast of steam. As the
machine vanished, the women who had watched its departure, returned to
their city, and I swept the landscape with my glasses, wondering at the
bleak, terrible scenery and bizarre colors.
* * * * *
“As I focussed the binoculars upon a level plateau, perhaps a mile from
where the _Chiriqui_ rested, I gasped in surprise. Clearly defined, lay
the remnants of what had once been a steamship! Had I given the matter
thought, I might have known that the _Chiriqui_ was not the first vessel
to have fallen a victim to these awful beings; but the sight of another
ship’s skeleton came to me as a terrific shock. As nearly as I could
judge, the vessel had been dismantled, for only the great steel frame
remained, with the mighty boilers and other portions of the ship
scattered about, and gruesomely like some mammoth creature lying
disemboweled upon the earth.
“I was consumed with a mad desire to visit that pathetic wreck, but I
knew not to what dangers I would be exposed, once I left the security of
my ship. Not a being was in sight, however, and carefully I studied the
land, visually measuring the relative distances between myself and the
wreck, and between the city and the route I must traverse. Having
already observed that the giantesses moved slowly and cumbrously on
foot, I at last decided that even if they attempted to intercept me I
could regain the _Chiriqui_ before I was overtaken, so I threw caution
to the winds and prepared to undertake my hazardous journey. Slinging
the loaded rifle on my back, with the revolver at my belt, and still
further arming myself with a keen-edged fireaxe, I hunted up the pilot’s
ladder, lowered it over the lowest side of the ship,--which was also the
side farthest from the city,--and clambering down the _Chiriqui’s_ lofty
sides, leaped down upon the ground. To my amazement, I landed in a dense
jungle of dry, tough vegetation which rose to my shoulders. From the
deck, looking directly downwards, I had thought this dull-green growth a
short, wiry grass, and, of course, in its relative proportion to the
gigantic women, it was no higher than ordinary grass to a normal human
being. It was a wonderful example of the theory of relativity, but my
mind was not interested in scientific matters at the time, and I merely
gave thanks that the miniature jungle,--which I saw was composed of
giant lichens--would afford me cover through which I might sneak in
safety, and with little chance of detection.
“Without much difficulty I made my way to the other vessel, and found
her even more dissected than I had supposed. Why the denizens of the
place had torn her to bits I did not then know, but certain portions of
her machinery and fittings had been left intact, and, as I examined
these, I made another and most astounding discovery. Deeply engraved
upon a brass plate was the ship’s name ‘_U. S. S. Cyclops!_’ For a space
I stood staring, scarcely able to believe my eyes. Here then was the
solution to that mystery of the sea, the disappearance of the collier,
as laden with manganese, she vanished without word or trace when off the
Barbados during the World War. No doubt, I thought, many a mystery of
the sea had been caused by the damnable work of these beings with their
infernal machine. But why, for what reason, did they capture ships? Why
did they carry off the unconscious persons upon the vessels? And why did
they tear the vessels apart? It was all a mystery which, in all its
horrible, gruesome, ghoulish details I was soon to solve.
“There was nothing more to be learned from the remains of the _Cyclops_,
and in safety I returned to the _Chiriqui_ to find, to my surprise and
terror, that a gang of the monstrous females had boarded the ship in my
absence and were stripping her of everything. But as they caught sight
of me, all threw down whatever they had and fled precipitately, leaving
me once more in undisputed possession of the ship. I was relieved at
this, for it was obvious that I had no need to fear the creatures. By
now, too, I had formulated a theory to account for this strange dread of
a being who was a puny, miserable thing compared to them. Unquestionably
my gas-mask rendered me a most grotesque and unknown creature in their
eyes. My remaining alive and active while all others upon the ship had
succumbed to the noxious gas had probably caused them to think that I
was a supernatural being. The fact that I could go about and breathe the
sulphur-laden air would cause them to regard me with even greater wonder
and superstition, and, as I found later, the fact that I was never seen
to eat, confirmed their belief that I was some mysterious being against
whom their gases and their deviltries were of no avail.
“I had not much time to devote to such matters, however. Soon after
regaining the _Chiriqui_ I heard excited cries from the land, and
looking over the ship’s rails, I found an immense crowd had gathered
near the empty cradle of the airship, and that all were gazing upward.
Following their example, I stared into the greenish void and instantly
understood. Descending rapidly towards the plain, came the great sphere,
and, suspended below it, was the hull of another captive ship. And as I
focussed my glasses upon this, I rubbed my eyes and gaped. The dull gray
color, the lines, the raking funnels, the barbettes and gun muzzles left
no room for doubt. Incredible as it seemed, the captive vessel was a
warship! What hope then had my fellow men upon earth? What chance was
there if these giant creatures could send forth their flaming machine,
and by it, capture the fastest, most powerful war-vessels--all within
the space of a few hours?
“Rapidly the machine and its burden approached, and presently descended
gently dropping the war vessel close to the _Chiriqui_. My worst fears
were confirmed. The vessel was an American destroyer, the _McCracken_,
and I knew that scores of my countrymen must lie unconscious upon her,
and in a few moments would be carried off to some unknown horrible fate.
What that fate was I had already surmised. That first demonstration of
the ferocious cannibalism of the giantesses upon the _Chiriqui’s_ deck
had been enough to make my blood run cold.
“But I had not yet guessed even a fraction of the true horror of it.
Scarcely had the _McCracken_ been dropped upon the earth, when the women
swarmed upon her, and once more I saw the creatures gathering the inert
forms of men and carrying them to the city. And rapidly, too, they
commenced dismantling and tearing the destroyer into bits. How they had
accomplished this with the _Cyclops_ had puzzled me, but now I witnessed
the process close at hand. From the vicinity of the waterfall, lines or
pipes were led to the vessel’s side; presently there was the roaring
sound of steam; dense clouds of vapor arose from the cataract; the water
ceased to flow, and from the extremities of the lines or tubes
twenty-foot jets of blinding flame shot out. As easily as though made of
wax, the steel sides, the massive beams, the armored barbettes of the
warship melted and were cut by these jets, and as the pieces fell apart,
the spherical airship took a position above the vessel, and by its
magnetic power, lifted tons of the fragments, then sailing off,
deposited them in some spot beyond the city. It was then, as I saw the
ship rapidly dissolving before my eyes, that the inspiration came to me
which may make it possible for me to communicate with the outside world
and may, if God wills, serve to warn my fellow men of the fate which
will overtake them if these terrible creatures are allowed to follow out
their plans. As the jets of flame cut through the _McCracken’s_
superstructure, and the radio antennae fell in a tangled mass across the
deck, I forgot all else and rushed to the wireless room of the
_Chiriqui_. Here was my chance. If the ship’s radio transmitter was
still in working order; if the auxiliary battery was still charged, I
might send out messages which, small as the chances were, might reach
the ears of some of the countless thousands of persons who listened each
night at their receiving sets. I trembled with fear that I would find
the transmitter injured or dismantled. I shook with dread that the
battery might be dead. I felt faint with apprehension that the message,
if sent, might never penetrate the sulphur-laden atmosphere or might
never reach the outer world. And I realized, with a sickening sinking of
my heart, that even if heard my communication might be regarded as a
hoax, and no attention would be given it. But I would do my best. The
radio set had not been molested. Everything was in working order, and I
set myself the task of transmitting my story each night at the same
hour, repeating it over and over again, until the storage batteries are
exhausted, for to get up steam and start the dynamos is beyond my
powers. Had I knowledge of Morse I would send my story by that code, but
I have not, and so--I must cease. For the love of your race and of your
dear ones listen, I beseech you, until I can resume.”
* * * * *
Here the message broke off abruptly, and Frank and I sat staring at each
other, fearing to speak lest we might interrupt or miss the words which
might come, and listening with straining ears at the head-sets. For an
hour we sat there and then, once more the voice spoke.
“The doom that I feared is approaching. I have been here for three
months and this will, I know, be my final message. Oh that I could only
be sure that someone has heard my words, that my fate has not been in
vain but has served to warn my fellow beings. But I must hurry on. I
have learned everything of importance. I have watched, studied and have
even learned to understand much of the language of these beings. I found
that there were men. They are puny beings compared to the women, though
ten-foot giants compared to normal men, and they are cowed, abject, mere
slaves of the females. Only enough male children are permitted to
survive to propagate the race. All others are killed.
“As they reach manhood only those males of super-intelligence, strength
and virility are permitted to live. The others are destroyed and--yes,
horrible as it sounds, their bodies, like those of the murdered infants
and of the aged, sick or infirm, are devoured. And as fast as the males
attain middle age their lives are forfeited. Long ago these beings
subsisted upon the few wild creatures which roamed their land; but long
ago all these were exhausted and human flesh became the only meat. There
is no vegetable food, and for a time the sacrificed surplus males, and
the aged, provided food for the race. But gradually the male births
decreased, female children preponderated, and with the increased
population resulting, the males were too few to nourish the others.
Then, through what damnable accident or design I do not know, the
creatures went forth in their airship and discovered the teeming
millions of human beings on earth.
“But the bulk of humanity was and still is safe from them, at least
until new means of attacking mankind are devised, for the globular
airship cannot approach the land. The very power it uses to lift the
greatest steamships and carry them off, draws the machine to the earth
and holds it fast. But above water, which acts as an insulator
apparently, the apparatus can operate at will. And they have a two-fold
purpose in capturing ships. All the available metal in this land was
exhausted in constructing two of the spherical machines. One of these
never returned from its first trip, and only the one remains. To
construct more, these giant women plan to use the metal salvaged from
captured ships, until a vast fleet of the infernal things is ready to go
forth and wipe the seas clean of ships and human beings. And the bodies
of the men and women, struck down by the gas, are to serve as food for
these demons in human form.
“This is the most horrible, blood-curdling thing of all. Rendered
unconscious by the gas, the victims remain in a state of suspended
animation indefinitely, exactly as do grubs, spiders and insects when
stung by certain species of wasps and placed in their nests to provide
food for their young. Stacked in great storage vaults these breathing,
living, but paralyzed human beings are kept, and as needed, are taken
out.
“Already they have a supply on hand sufficient to last them for over a
year. Some of the _Cyclops_ company are still preserved; there are over
three hundred from the _Chiriqui_, hundreds from other ships, and the
entire crew of the _McCracken_.
“All these things I learned little by little, and mainly through a
friend, for marvelous as it may seem, I have a friend--if friend he can
be called, a miserable, trembling, terrified male, who, doomed to death,
sought to escape his fate and sought refuge with me, dreading my
presence less than his doom, and hoping that such a feared and almost
reverenced being as myself might protect him. For two months he has been
my companion, but he cannot eat anything but meat and the supply of meat
upon the ship is getting low, and sooner or later he must succumb. And
the women, maddened at his escape from their clutches, though not yet
daring to approach too closely to me, are getting bolder. Some time, at
some unguarded moment, they will find the poor fellow alone and will
fall upon him. And in his terror, in an effort to buy his life, he will,
I know, reveal to them that I am but an ordinary mortal, a man who eats
and drinks and who survived the gas by mechanical and not supernatural
means. But I will not be taken alive by these fearful female cannibals.
When the time comes, as I know it will, I will blow my brains out, and
though they may devour my body they will not rend me alive. No more
ships have been brought in here since the _McCracken_ was captured. But
this I know is due to the fact that all the energies of these creatures
are being devoted to building additional air machines. This work goes on
in a vast cavern beyond the city where tremendous forces, furnaces with
heat beyond human conception and machines of which we know nothing, are
controlled by the internal steam, the radiant energy and the magnetic
powers of the earth’s core.
“And now, again let me implore any and all who may hear my words to give
close attention to what I say, for here again is a means by which
humanity may combat and destroy these ghastly, gigantic cannibals. The
spherical air-machines are helpless from above. Their magnetic or
electrical forces extend only downwards. The gasses they throw out are
heavier than air and descend but cannot ascend, and by means of swift
planes, huge bombs and machine guns, the things can be easily destroyed.
And they cannot travel without throwing off the dazzling green light.
Only when motionless are they dark. And so they will offer easy marks
and can be readily detected. So, I beseech you who may hear, that the
governments are notified and warned and that a fleet or many fleets of
airplanes properly equipped patrol the seas, and at first sight of one
of the green meteors rise above it and utterly destroy it without mercy.
“Wait! I hear a terrified scream.... I am back again at the transmitter.
It was the fellow who has been with me. Poor devil! He has met his fate,
but after all it was the custom of his people, and, moreover, he would
have starved to death in a few days. For that matter I, too, face
starvation. The ship’s stock is running low; all the food upon the
_McCracken_ was destroyed in cutting up that vessel, and unless another
ship is captured I will have no food after two weeks more. What a
strange thought! How terrible an idea! That the awful fate of hundreds
of my fellows would be my salvation! But I will never live to die from
hunger. I can hear the terrible screams of my late companion on the deck
outside. God! It is the end! The fellow must have told the enraged
females. His body has been torn to shreds. With bloody hands and reeking
lips they are rushing towards the upper deck where I sit. They are here!
This is my last word! God grant that I have been heard! I am about
to----”
Crashing in our ears came the report of a pistol.
The End
-----
[1] The message as it came in, was halting, and interrupted, with many
unintelligible words and repetitions, as if the sender were laboring
under an intense strain or was an amateur. For the sake of clarity and
continuity, the communication has been edited and filled in, but not
altered in any detail.
[2] The metropolitan papers reported the meteor on the eighteenth and
stated it was observed by those on the _Chiriqui_ on the evening of the
seventeenth, but it must be remembered that the _Chiriqui_ was in the
western Pacific and hence had gained a day in time.
[Transcriber’s Note: This story appeared in the July 1927 issue of
Amazing Stories Magazine.]
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