Chapter XI.
Johnston clung tenaciously to the rock. He tried to look down to see ifthe barge had passed beneath him, but the intense strain on his arm nowdrew his head back, so that he could not do so. Once more he made aneffort to regain his position on the rock, but he was not able to raisehimself an inch.
He felt certain that the fall would kill him, and he groaned in agony.His fingers were benumbed and beginning to slip. Then he fell. The airwhizzed in his ears. He tried to keep his feet downward, but it wasno use. He was whirled heels over head many times, and his senses wereleaving him when he was restored by a plunge into the cold water.
Down he sank. It seemed to him that he never would lose his momentumand that he would strangle before he could rise to the surface. Finally,however, he came up more dead than alive. He had narrowly missed theflat-boat, for he saw it receding from him only a few yards away. On theshore stood Branasko motioning to him; and, slowly, for his strength wasalmost gone, Johnston swam toward him.
The latter waded out into the shallow water and drew him ashore.
"You had a narrow escape," he said, with a dry laugh. "I saw the boatcome from under the cliff just as you hung down from the ledge. At firstI hoped that you would get back on the rock, but when I saw you try anddo it and fail I thought that you were lost."
The American could not speak for exhaustion; but, as he looked at thedeparting craft with concern, Branasko laughed again: "Oh, you thoughtit had a crew; so did I at first, but it has no one aboard. It is drawnby a cable, and seems to be laden with coal."
"Did they notice our fall up there?" panted Johnston, nodding toward thelights in the distance.
"No, they are farther away than I thought."
"Well, what ought we to do?" "Hide here among the rocks till ourclothing dries and then look about us. We have nearly twenty-four hoursto wait for the sun to return through the tunnel."
"Where is the tunnel?"
"Over on the other side of that black hill. There, you can see the mouthof the tunnel through which the sun comes."
"We need sleep," said the Alphian, when their clothing was dry, "and itmay be a long time before we get a chance to get it. Let us lie down inthe shadow of that rock and rest."
Johnston consented, and, lying down together, they soon dropped asleep.They slept soundly.
Johnston was the first to awake. He felt so refreshed that he knew hemust have been unconscious several hours. He touched Branasko and thelatter sat up and rubbed his eyes and looked about him bewildered.
"I had a horrible dream," he said shuddering. "I thought that we were inthe sun and over the capital city when it fell down. I thought thefall was awful, and that all Alpha was aflame. Then the fires went out.Everything was black, and the whole world rang with cries of terrifiedpeople. Ugh! I don't want to dream so again; I'd rather not sleep atall. But hush! what is that?"
Far away, as if in the centre of the earth, they heard a low monotonousrumbling. They listened breathlessly. Every moment the sound increased.They could feel the ground trembling as if shaken by an earthquake.
"It is the coming sun," said Branasko. "We must get nearer the tunneland see what can be done. It would be useless to try to go back now."
Stealing along in the shadow of the cliffs to keep from being seen bythe workmen on the plateau above, they climbed over a rocky inclineand saw in the side of a towering cliff, a great black hole. It was themouth of the tunnel. Into it ran eight wide tracks of railway and sixmammoth cables each twenty or thirty feet in diameter.
"The sun cannot be far away now," remarked the Alphian.
"Is it not lighted?"
"I presume not; I think it comes through in darkness. The light is savedfor its passage over Alpha."
"Would it not be as safe for us to attempt to walk through the tunnel tothe palace of the king?"
"Never; it would be over fifty miles in utter darkness. There may be athousand trestles and bridges over frightful chasms: for the most part,I have heard the tunnel is a natural channel or a succession of cavernsunited by tunnels. The other is the safer way, though it certainly isrisky enough."
Louder and nearer grew the rumbling noise, and a faint light began toshine from the tunnel and flash on the cliff opposite.
"It is the sun's headlight," explained Branasko.
Johnston was thrilled to the centre of his being as he saw the lightplaying over the polished tracks and cables and illuminating the wallsof the great tunnel.
Suddenly there was a deep, mellow-toned stroke of a bell in the sun,and, as the two men shrank involuntarily into the deeper shade of thecliff, the great globe, a stupendous ball of crystal, five hundred feetin height, slowly emerged from the mouth of the tunnel and came to astop under the opening in the rock which led to the space above.
"What had we better do now?" said Johnston.
"Wait," cautioned Branasko, and he drew the American to a great bouldernearer the sun, from behind which they could, without being seen, watchthe action of the crowd of workmen that was hurriedly approaching. Theyplaced ladders of steel against the sides of the sun and swarmed over itlike bees.
"They are cleaning the glass and adjusting the lights," said theAlphian; "wait till they go round to the other side. Don't you see thatsquare opening near the ground?"
The American nodded.
"It is the door," said Branasko, "and we must try to enter it while theyare on the other side. Let us slip nearer; there is another rock aheadthat we can hide behind." Suiting the action to the word, Branasko ledthe way, stooping near to the ground until both were safely ensconcedbehind the boulder in question. They were now so near that they couldhear the electricians rubbing the glass.
One who seemed to be superintending the work opened the door and wentinto the sun and lighted a bright light. From where they were crouchedJohnston and Branasko caught a view of a little hall, a flight ofstairs, and some pictures on the walls.
Presently the man extinguished the light and came out.
"They are removing their ladders from this side," said Branasko in awhisper. "Be ready; we must act quickly and without a particle of sound.Run straight for that door and climb up the steps immediately."
The men had all gone round to the other side, and no one was in sight.
"Quick! Follow me," and bending low to the earth the Alphian dartedacross the intervening space and into the doorway. Johnston was quiteas successful. As he entered the door he saw Branasko crawling up thecarpeted stairs ahead of him, and, on his all-fours, he followed. Thefirst landing was large, and there in the wall they found a closet. Itwould have been dark but for a dim light that streamed down from above.Branasko opened the closet door. "We must hide here for the present," hewhispered.
They had barely got seated on the floor and closed the door when abright light broke round them and they heard somebody ascending thestairs. The person passed by and went on further up. The two adventurersdared not exchange a word. They could hear the footsteps above and thesound of the electricians outside as they polished the lights and movedtheir ladders from place to place.
"If he should stay, what could we do?" asked Johnston, after a longpause, and when the footsteps sounded farther away.
"There are two of us and one of him," grimly replied the brawny Alphian.
Johnston shuddered. "Let's not commit murder in any emergency," he said.
"It would not be murder; every man has a right to save his own life."
Nothing more was said just then, for the footsteps were growing nearer.The man was descending. He crossed the landing they were on and wentdown the last flight of stairs and out of the door.
Branasko rubbed his rough hands together. "We are going alone," he saidwith satisfaction.
There was a sound of sliding ladders on the walls outside. The workmenhad finished their task. A moment later a great bell overhead rangmellowly; the colossal sphere trembled and rocked and then rose andswung easily forward like the car of a balloon.
"We
are rising," said the Alphian, in a tone of superstitious awe.Johnston said nothing. There was a cool, sinking sensation in hisstomach and his head was swimming. Branasko, however, was in possessionof all his faculties.
"We shall soon be through the shaft we first discovered and throw ourlight over Alpha." As he spoke the space about them broke into blindingbrightness and for a few moments they could only open their eyes foran instant at a time. After a while Branasko opened the closet door andthey went up the stairs.
The first apartment they entered was most luxuriously furnished. Sofas,couches and reclining-chairs were scattered here and there over theelegant carpet, and statues of gold and marble stood in alcoves andniches and strange stereopticon lanterns, hanging from the ceiling threwever-changing and life-like pictures on the walls. The light streamed infrom without through small circular windows. After they had walked aboutthe room for some minutes, the Alphian pointed to a half-open door and astaircase at one side of the room.
"I think it leads to some sort of observatory on top," he said. "I haveheard that when the royal family makes this voyage they are fond oflooking out from it. Suppose we see." Johnston acquiesced, and Branaskoopened the door. From the increased brightness that came in they wereassured that the stairs led outward.
Ascending many flights of stairs and traversing a narrow winding gallerywhich seemed to be gradually sloping upward, they finally reached theoutside, and found themselves on a platform about forty feet squaresurrounded by iron balustrades. Above hung impenetrable blackness, belowcurved a majestic sphere of white light.