Basil Copper: The Great White Space

I put that from me. There remained the unmistakable, indeed inescapable, fact that I had to go back towards the Great White Space. Alive or dead Scarsdale had to be found. And there was only me left to either rescue Scarsdale from the same abominable fate which had overtaken our companions or, tragic thought, to vindicate his memory. When I had come to this conclusion I became calmer, stopped my pacing about and checked my revolver and ammunition; I seized a canvas bag and putting the remaining five grenades in it set off back up the tunnel.

I had walked only a few hundred yards when I became aware of a low, mutterd mumbling up ahead. The light was growing in intensity now or my courage might perhaps have failed me, so 1 merely gripped the bag more firmly and went on. I could not at first place the direction from which the sound was coming. At one moment it resembled the faint buzz of insects, such as one might hear on a hot summer day in happier circumstances, when hovering on the edge of sleep.

But the idea of insects in the connotation of these repellent underground caverns was abhorrent in the extreme and my resolution took a hard knock at the outset. The faint mumble seemed to recede and advance like waves of the sea as I went down the corridor of ever-strengthening light and I donned my goggles in order that they should be ready when the radiance became too strong for my naked eyes. The insidious murmur now resembled a human being whispering some obscene thought in one of the caves almost beyond earshot and that was even more unpleasant, if anything.

But conversely, I felt my courage reviving. Might not Scarsdale have suffered some accident and even now, on hands and knees, be trying to make his way back to me, muttering some plea for help? This thought made me suck in my breath with an audible sound and life seemed to flow into my limbs; I went on down the corridor at a jog-trot.

The light grew stronger, washing in like surf over the black walls of the caves. There was no sign of Scarsdale; nothing moved in the whole of the corridor before me but the mumbling buzz grew in my ears, not at all overborne by the throbbing vibrations of the great pulse which were now again growing in intensity. I made sure I had my ear-plugs handy and switched off the lamp in my helmet. 1 was not sure how long these batteries lasted and would need the light for the return.

I dared not think too closely of my returning without Scarsdale; that was a horror which did not bear contemplation in the circumstances in which 1 now found myself placed. My breath whistled uneasily in my throat as I hurried uphill, the grenades making an unpleasant clicking noise as they bounced together in the canvas holder in my left hand.

My right hand held the revolver poised but despite the rigid grip of my fingers round the butt and trigger guard I could not stop the trembling in my fingers. Strange convention that impelled me still to cling to such a traditional weapon as a firearm. We had all seen how ineffective they had proved in our abortive battles with the slug-creatures, yet training was so ingrained that one clung to habit even where it had been proved useless. Thus I proved to myself that not only scientists cling uselessly to empiricism. Though of course scientists would then change their methods, whereas I was still clinging literally and pointlessly to mine.

So I reasoned jerkily as I pounded onwards into the strengthening light, prepared for anything as 1 neared the slight curve of the corridor which cut me off from sight of the approaches to the Great White Space, while all the while the mumbled mutter of the hidden whisperers grew with the thudding pulse in my ears.

As I rounded the slight curve the pulsations grew markedly stronger and the intensity of the light seemed to drastically undergo a change. The paleness turned from an opaque milkiness to the sharp brilliance of sunshine and then as I came suddenly out into the featureless arena where the walls of the caves fell away altogether the light seemed to dazzle my eyeballs and a pale thunderclap sounded in my ears. I clamped the goggles down over my eyes at once and as I staggered, smitten with the tremendous strength of the shafts of luminescence, the whispering hissed at my elbow as though the unknown mumblers were only a foot or so from where I stood.

I put in the ear-plugs as the throbbing grew to intolerable proportions. I was now bathed in liquid phosphorescence so bright that even my arms seemed to be lapped with living fire and so incandescent that the extremities of my limbs had disappeared. I narrowed my eyes to slits as I ran on and reached for the first grenade. It was like peering into a seething cauldron; the Great White Space was alive with throbbing pulsations of living light and through this blanched hole which led into the universe hopped and lurched not only the flopping slug-things we had earlier encountered but the living counterparts of the creatures we had seen in the jars.

They were far off and appeared not to have seen me as they flowed in a ghastly stream in and out of the luminescent circle on their obscure errands. But what took my eye and filled me with unutterable relief was the sight of the durable figure of Scarsdale. He stood to one side, almost in the spot where we had the last battle with the things in the side-galleries. His beard glowed with living fire as he waved and gestured to me excitedly.

'Coming, Scarsdale,' I said, relief surging through me. My words echoed and boomed through the galleries and disturbed the hopping things that crowded in and out of that horrifying door into space. They hesitated, broke ranks and once again that vile bleating and lowing noise echoed under the arch of the caverns. I took the pin out of a grenade and held it tightly. I altered course and ran towards Scarsdale. He hobbled up to meet me and I was worried that he might be injured but he continued to wave reassuringly.

There was now about a hundred yards separating us but the slug-creatures, half seen from the corner of my eye were rapidly closing halfway between the two of us.

'Hurry, Professor,' I called. 'We shall be cut off.'

The burly form of Scarsdale continued to wave.

'There is no danger, Plowright,' he called back. 'I have made the most fantastic discoveries.'

As I got closer to him I saw a surge of the winged insect-like creatures appear from the rock galleries behind him. Once again came the leathery beat of the horny wing-cases which had so haunted my dreams.

'Behind you,' I called, anxiety blurring the edges of my voice. I turned on my heel abruptly and hurled my grenade into the mass of hopping things which were crowding through the Great White Space to separate the two of us. The bleating cries changed to those of alarm as the grenade rolled onwards. The explosion made a sharp bang which slapped at the side of the cavern, red flame bloomed, darkening the brilliance of white light and angry pieces of metal buzzed vindictively about. There were again the moans of distress and the stench of scorched tissue but more and more of the flabby creatures, their bundled tentacles groping and writhing, were coming on. I threw three grenades rapidly with the strength of desperation and before the first explosion slapped back from the cave walls I was halfway across the distance which separated me from Scarsdale.

By now several of the things were almost level with the pair of us and still coming on, slopping across the cave floor with incredible speed. I called again to the Professor to make haste but he seemed to be slowing now, as though he were exhausted.

The horrible stench, which had been ever present, was now intensified and again I narrowed my eyes to slits as the pulsations of white light appeared to ululate to the rhythmic beat of those devilish vibrations. I glimpsed the forms of the slug-things all about me now, their monadelphous outlines fibrillating and undulating in the pitiless glare from outer space. Behind them I caught sight of one or two of the winged beasts, who seemed to be balefully directing the activities of the others.