simple and good like yourselves stay here for long, as the contrast would show up their true characters to the old man. They all fear to lose their place in Mephisto's regard, and strive always to please him, for to be kicked out of his protection here would mean to face the caverns alone."[1]
None of us knew what to say. Our reception by the old man had seemed so favorable after our scare upon our arrival outside, that the sudden news that we were not out of danger was not welcome. Nydia offered: "We can get along with old Mephisto, if you can help us with the others for a day or so. We do not intend to stay long."
The woman looked at us, as though sizing us up more carefully, then launched into a swift series of instructions.
"Watch yourselves all the time. When you are with the old man, disclaim immediately any strange words that issue from your mouth, for they will control you and make you say exactly those things best calculated to set him into a rage; and when in anger he is still a bloody, ruthless man, who cares no more for human life than does a shark. If you fail to watch everything of the kind, if you let this blind girl say things you think are not her words, it will be too bad. You must say at once any one of you seems under evil ray control: 'That is not his self speaking, that comes from some make-ray around here somewhere.' The old fellow will know then what is going on and not blame you. Buit if you fail to watch such things, sooner or later they will cause him to lose his temper and destroy you, even though he would regret it later terribly, he could not help himself. His hangers-on do not allow any one else to live here for they are all half-mad. I have had the ear of Mephisto for many years and he trusts me, but even I am sometimes under his suspicions. It is a place full of mad people, and I would get my business over with and get away from here before something happens—you cannot survive. If you need me, ask for Chlio."
Solaris was much taken with the sultry, insolent yet friendly stare of her eyes, and with the warm life in the curves of her. Little Truly, who was sweet on Solaris herself, watched them both with a jaundiced eye. Solaris said:
"Could it be that one like you would care to leave with us when we go? You must be weary of this old hole and want to see somewhat of the rest of the world before age creeps into your bones and rots the beauty out of you. With Solaris, you would enjoy life."
She smiled a warm smile at Solaris.
"It might be that with such as you I would go if minded that way. I will think upon the offer. Now go to your rooms and I will try to watch over you while you sleep. And it may be you will one day watch over me and see that no harm comes to me."
"That may well be, if I have my way," was Solaris' answer, and we all knew that what was meant was a great deal, for we had often stood watch—in fact, all of us took our turns at watching over the sleep of the rest every night. Yet here we had no rays with which to watch. So we knew she was going to watch and felt more easy about going to bed weaponless and unguarded.
That night we composed ourselves to sleep, but with little success. Some of Mephisto's mad company, whom we had heard but had not yet seen, decided we needed entertainment. In the night we were drifting into unconsciousness, among the soft covers spread on the floor which Hugo had brought us when "it" began to happen.
The long couch, which was the largest piece of furniture in the room, and on which Nydia and Truly had made their bed, suddenly refused to obey the old-fashioned law of gravity and took to floating in the air. We knew it was someone playing with the levitator mech somewhere in the great pile, trying to frighten and mystify us, as is the mischievous way of so many of the mad of the caverns. But this was worse than that, for the great weight of the thing kept trying to crush us against the wall. Nydia and Truly clung desperately to it as it reared about the room like a captive balloon in a gale. Then the heavy couch rushed toward the ceiling, trying to smash the two girls against the stone, but they slipped off the side into our arms.
- ↑ Travelers in the caves must keep a watch fore and aft, and to both sides, with long range ray-view beams. It cannot be done by one man alone. To travel alone means to be shot in the back by the mad, flesh-eating nomads of the caves, who relish nothing so much as a human carcass.
