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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..ceb77ba --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #52844 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/52844) diff --git a/old/52844-h.zip b/old/52844-h.zip Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index b3017e1..0000000 --- a/old/52844-h.zip +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/52844-h/52844-h.htm b/old/52844-h/52844-h.htm deleted file mode 100644 index df4a240..0000000 --- a/old/52844-h/52844-h.htm +++ /dev/null @@ -1,2366 +0,0 @@ -<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" - "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd"> -<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en"> - <head> - <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=us-ascii" /> - <meta http-equiv="Content-Style-Type" content="text/css" /> - <title> - The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Long Remembered Thunder, by Keith Laumer. - </title> - <link rel="coverpage" href="images/cover.jpg" /> - - <style type="text/css"> - -body { - margin-left: 10%; - margin-right: 10%; -} - - h1,h2 { - text-align: center; /* all headings centered */ - clear: both; -} - -p { - margin-top: .51em; - text-align: justify; - margin-bottom: .49em; -} - -.blockquot { - margin-left: 5%; - margin-right: 10%; -} - -hr { - width: 33%; - margin-top: 2em; - margin-bottom: 2em; - margin-left: 33.5%; - margin-right: 33.5%; - clear: both; -} - -hr.chap {width: 65%; margin-left: 17.5%; margin-right: 17.5%;} -hr.tb {width: 45%; margin-left: 27.5%; margin-right: 27.5%;} - -.center {text-align: center;} - -.right {text-align: right;} - -.caption {font-weight: bold;} - -/* Images */ -.figcenter { - margin: auto; - text-align: center; -} - -div.titlepage { - text-align: center; - page-break-before: always; - page-break-after: always; -} - -div.titlepage p { - text-align: center; - text-indent: 0em; - font-weight: bold; - line-height: 1.5; - margin-top: 3em; -} - -.ph1, .ph2, .ph3, .ph4 { text-align: center; text-indent: 0em; font-weight: bold; } -.ph1 { font-size: xx-large; margin: .67em auto; } -.ph2 { font-size: x-large; margin: .75em auto; } -.ph3 { font-size: large; margin: .83em auto; } -.ph4 { font-size: medium; margin: 1.12em auto; } - - - </style> - </head> -<body> - - -<pre> - -The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Long Remembered Thunder, by Keith Laumer - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: The Long Remembered Thunder - -Author: Keith Laumer - -Illustrator: Virgil Finlay - John Pederson - -Release Date: August 18, 2016 [EBook #52844] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE LONG REMEMBERED THUNDER *** - - - - -Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - -</pre> - - -<div class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/cover.jpg" width="370" height="500" alt=""/> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<div class="titlepage"> -<h1>THE LONG REMEMBERED THUNDER</h1> - -<p>BY KEITH LAUMER</p> - -<p>[Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from<br /> -Worlds of Tomorrow April 1963<br /> -Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that<br /> -the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.]</p> - -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p class="ph3">He was as ancient as time—and as strange as<br /> -his own frightful battle against incredible odds!</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - - -<p class="ph3">I</p> - -<p>In his room at the Elsby Commercial Hotel, Tremaine opened his luggage -and took out a small tool kit, used a screwdriver to remove the bottom -cover plate from the telephone. He inserted a tiny aluminum cylinder, -crimped wires and replaced the cover. Then he dialed a long-distance -Washington number and waited half a minute for the connection.</p> - -<p>"Fred, Tremaine here. Put the buzzer on." A thin hum sounded on the -wire as the scrambler went into operation.</p> - -<p>"Okay, can you read me all right? I'm set up in Elsby. Grammond's boys -are supposed to keep me informed. Meantime, I'm not sitting in this -damned room crouched over a dial. I'll be out and around for the rest -of the afternoon."</p> - -<p>"I want to see results," the thin voice came back over the filtered -hum of the jamming device. "You spent a week with Grammond—I can't -wait another. I don't mind telling you certain quarters are pressing -me."</p> - -<p>"Fred, when will you learn to sit on your news breaks until you've got -some answers to go with the questions?"</p> - -<p>"I'm an appointive official," Fred said sharply. "But never mind -that. This fellow Margrave—General Margrave. Project Officer for the -hyperwave program—he's been on my neck day and night. I can't say I -blame him. An unauthorized transmitter interfering with a Top Secret -project, progress slowing to a halt, and this Bureau—"</p> - -<p>"Look, Fred. I was happy in the lab. Headaches, nightmares and all. -Hyperwave is my baby, remember? You elected me to be a leg-man: now let -me do it my way."</p> - -<p>"I felt a technical man might succeed where a trained investigator -could be misled. And since it seems to be pinpointed in your home -area—"</p> - -<p>"You don't have to justify yourself. Just don't hold out on me. I -sometimes wonder if I've seen the complete files on this—"</p> - -<p>"You've seen all the files! Now I want answers, not questions! I'm -warning you, Tremaine. Get that transmitter. I need someone to hang!"</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Tremaine left the hotel, walked two blocks west along Commerce Street -and turned in at a yellow brick building with the words ELSBY -MUNICIPAL POLICE cut in the stone lintel above the door. Inside, a -heavy man with a creased face and thick gray hair looked up from behind -an ancient Underwood. He studied Tremaine, shifted a toothpick to the -opposite corner of his mouth.</p> - -<p>"Don't I know you, mister?" he said. His soft voice carried a note of -authority.</p> - -<p>Tremaine took off his hat. "Sure you do, Jess. It's been a while, -though."</p> - -<p>The policeman got to his feet. "Jimmy," he said, "Jimmy Tremaine." He -came to the counter and put out his hand. "How are you, Jimmy? What -brings you back to the boondocks?"</p> - -<p>"Let's go somewhere and sit down, Jess."</p> - -<p>In a back room Tremaine said, "To everybody but you this is just a -visit to the old home town. Between us, there's more."</p> - -<p>Jess nodded. "I heard you were with the guv'ment."</p> - -<p>"It won't take long to tell; we don't know much yet." Tremaine covered -the discovery of the powerful unidentified interference on the -high-security hyperwave band, the discovery that each transmission -produced not one but a pattern of "fixes" on the point of origin. He -passed a sheet of paper across the table. It showed a set of concentric -circles, overlapped by a similar group of rings.</p> - -<p>"I think what we're getting is an echo effect from each of these -points of intersection. The rings themselves represent the diffraction -pattern—"</p> - -<p>"Hold it, Jimmy. To me it just looks like a beer ad. I'll take your -word for it."</p> - -<p>"The point is this, Jess: we think we've got it narrowed down to this -section. I'm not sure of a damn thing, but I think that transmitter's -near here. Now, have you got any ideas?"</p> - -<p>"That's a tough one, Jimmy. This is where I should come up with the -news that Old Man Whatchamacallit's got an attic full of gear he says -is a time machine. Trouble is, folks around here haven't even taken -to TV. They figure we should be content with radio, like the Lord -intended."</p> - -<p>"I didn't expect any easy answers, Jess. But I was hoping maybe you had -something ..."</p> - -<p>"Course," said Jess, "there's always Mr. Bram ..."</p> - -<p>"Mr. Bram," repeated Tremaine. "Is he still around? I remember him as a -hundred years old when I was kid."</p> - -<p>"Still just the same, Jimmy. Comes in town maybe once a week, buys his -groceries and hikes back out to his place by the river."</p> - -<p>"Well, what about him?"</p> - -<p>"Nothing. But he's the town's mystery man. You know that. A little -touched in the head."</p> - -<p>"There were a lot of funny stories about him, I remember," Tremaine -said. "I always liked him. One time he tried to teach me something -I've forgotten. Wanted me to come out to his place and he'd teach me. -I never did go. We kids used to play in the caves near his place, and -sometimes he gave us apples."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>"I've never seen any harm in Bram," said Jess. "But you know how this -town is about foreigners, especially when they're a mite addled. Bram -has blue eyes and blond hair—or did before it turned white—and he -talks just like everybody else. From a distance he seems just like an -ordinary American. But up close, you feel it. He's foreign, all right. -But we never did know where he came from."</p> - -<p>"How long's he lived here in Elsby?"</p> - -<p>"Beats me, Jimmy. You remember old Aunt Tress, used to know all about -ancestors and such as that? She couldn't remember about Mr. Bram. She -was kind of senile, I guess. She used to say he'd lived in that same -old place out on the Concord road when she was a girl. Well, she died -five years ago ... in her seventies. He still walks in town every -Wednesday ... or he did up till yesterday anyway."</p> - -<p>"Oh?" Tremaine stubbed out his cigarette, lit another. "What happened -then?"</p> - -<p>"You remember Soup Gaskin? He's got a boy, name of Hull. He's Soup all -over again."</p> - -<p>"I remember Soup," Tremaine said. "He and his bunch used to come in -the drug store where I worked and perch on the stools and kid around -with me, and Mr. Hempleman would watch them from over back of the -prescription counter and look nervous. They used to raise cain in the -other drug store...."</p> - -<p>"Soup's been in the pen since then. His boy Hull's the same kind. Him -and a bunch of his pals went out to Bram's place one night and set it -on fire."</p> - -<p>"What was the idea of that?"</p> - -<p>"Dunno. Just meanness, I reckon. Not much damage done. A car was -passing by and called it in. I had the whole caboodle locked up here -for six hours. Then the sob sisters went to work: poor little tyke -routine, high spirits, you know the line. All of 'em but Hull are back -in the streets playin' with matches by now. I'm waiting for the day -they'll make jail age."</p> - -<p>"Why Bram?" Tremaine persisted. "As far as I know, he never had any -dealings to speak of with anybody here in town."</p> - -<p>"Oh hoh, you're a little young, Jimmy," Jess chuckled. "You never knew -about Mr. Bram—the young Mr. Bram—and Linda Carroll."</p> - -<p>Tremaine shook his head.</p> - -<p>"Old Miss Carroll. School teacher here for years; guess she was retired -by the time you were playing hookey. But her dad had money, and in -her day she was a beauty. Too good for the fellers in these parts. I -remember her ridin by in a high-wheeled shay, when I was just a nipper. -Sitting up proud and tall, with that red hair piled up high. I used to -think she was some kind of princess...."</p> - -<p>"What about her and Bram? A romance?"</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Jess rocked his chair back on two legs, looked at the ceiling, -frowning. "This would ha' been about nineteen-oh-one. I was no more'n -eight years old. Miss Linda was maybe in her twenties—and that made -her an old maid, in those times. The word got out she was setting -her cap for Bram. He was a good-looking young feller then, over six -foot, of course, broad backed, curly yellow hair—and a stranger to -boot. Like I said, Linda Carroll wanted nothin to do with the local -bucks. There was a big shindy planned. Now, you know Bram was funny -about any kind of socializing; never would go any place at night. But -this was a Sunday afternoon and someways or other they got Bram down -there; and Miss Linda made her play, right there in front of the town, -practically. Just before sundown they went off together in that fancy -shay. And the next day, she was home again—alone. That finished off -her reputation, as far as the biddies in Elsby was concerned. It was -ten years 'fore she even landed the teaching job. By that time, she was -already old. And nobody was ever fool enough to mention the name Bram -in front of her."</p> - -<p>Tremaine got to his feet. "I'd appreciate it if you'd keep your ears -and eyes open for anything that might build into a lead on this, Jess. -Meantime, I'm just a tourist, seeing the sights."</p> - -<p>"What about that gear of yours? Didn't you say you had some kind of -detector you were going to set up?"</p> - -<p>"I've got an oversized suitcase," Tremaine said. "I'll be setting it up -in my room over at the hotel."</p> - -<p>"When's this bootleg station supposed to broadcast again?"</p> - -<p>"After dark. I'm working on a few ideas. It might be an infinitely -repeating logarithmic sequence, based on—"</p> - -<p>"Hold it, Jimmy. You're over my head." Jess got to his feet. "Let me -know if you want anything. And by the way—" he winked broadly—"I -always did know who busted Soup Gaskin's nose and took out his front -teeth."</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - - -<p class="ph3">II</p> - -<p>Back in the street, Tremaine headed south toward the Elsby Town -Hall, a squat structure of brownish-red brick, crouched under yellow -autumn trees at the end of Sheridan Street. Tremaine went up the -steps and past heavy double doors. Ten yards along the dim corridor, -a hand-lettered cardboard sign over a black-varnished door said -"MUNICIPAL OFFICE OF RECORD." Tremaine opened the door and went in.</p> - -<p>A thin man with garters above the elbow looked over his shoulder at -Tremaine.</p> - -<p>"We're closed," he said.</p> - -<p>"I won't be a minute," Tremaine said. "Just want to check on when the -Bram property changed hands last."</p> - -<p>The man turned to Tremaine, pushing a drawer shut with his hip. "Bram? -He dead?"</p> - -<p>"Nothing like that. I just want to know when he bought the place."</p> - -<p>The man came over to the counter, eyeing Tremaine. "He ain't going to -sell, mister, if that's what you want to know."</p> - -<p>"I want to know when he bought."</p> - -<p>The man hesitated, closed his jaw hard. "Come back tomorrow," he said.</p> - -<p>Tremaine put a hand on the counter, looked thoughtful. "I was hoping -to save a trip." He lifted his hand and scratched the side of his jaw. -A folded bill opened on the counter. The thin man's eyes darted toward -it. His hand eased out, covered the bill. He grinned quickly.</p> - -<p>"See what I can do," he said.</p> - -<p>It was ten minutes before he beckoned Tremaine over to the table where -a two-foot-square book lay open. An untrimmed fingernail indicated a -line written in faded ink:</p> - -<p>"May 19. Acreage sold, One Dollar and other G&V consid. NW Quarter -Section 24, Township Elsby. Bram. (see Vol. 9 & cet.)"</p> - -<p>"Translated, what does that mean?" said Tremaine.</p> - -<p>"That's the ledger for 1901; means Bram bought a quarter section on the -nineteenth of May. You want me to look up the deed?"</p> - -<p>"No, thanks," Tremaine said. "That's all I needed." He turned back to -the door.</p> - -<p>"What's up, mister?" the clerk called after him. "Bram in some kind of -trouble?"</p> - -<p>"No. No trouble."</p> - -<p>The man was looking at the book with pursed lips. "Nineteen-oh-one," -he said. "I never thought of it before, but you know, old Bram must be -dern near to ninety years old. Spry for that age."</p> - -<p>"I guess you're right."</p> - -<p>The clerk looked sideways at Tremaine. "Lots of funny stories about -old Bram. Useta say his place was haunted. You know; funny noises and -lights. And they used to say there was money buried out at his place."</p> - -<p>"I've heard those stories. Just superstition, wouldn't you say?"</p> - -<p>"Maybe so." The clerk leaned on the counter, assumed a knowing look. -"There's one story that's not superstition...."</p> - -<p>Tremaine waited.</p> - -<p>"You—uh—paying anything for information?"</p> - -<p>"Now why would I do that?" Tremaine reached for the door knob.</p> - -<p>The clerk shrugged. "Thought I'd ask. Anyway—I can swear to this. -Nobody in this town's ever seen Bram between sundown and sunup."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Untrimmed sumacs threw late-afternoon shadows on the discolored stucco -facade of the Elsby Public Library. Inside, Tremaine followed a -paper-dry woman of indeterminate age to a rack of yellowed newsprint.</p> - -<p>"You'll find back to nineteen-forty here," the librarian said. "The -older are there in the shelves."</p> - -<p>"I want nineteen-oh-one, if they go back that far."</p> - -<p>The woman darted a suspicious look at Tremaine. "You have to handle -these old papers carefully."</p> - -<p>"I'll be extremely careful." The woman sniffed, opened a drawer, leafed -through it, muttering.</p> - -<p>"What date was it you wanted?"</p> - -<p>"Nineteen-oh-one; the week of May nineteenth."</p> - -<p>The librarian pulled out a folded paper, placed it on the table, -adjusted her glasses, squinted at the front page. "That's it," she -said. "These papers keep pretty well, provided they're stored in the -dark. But they're still flimsy, mind you."</p> - -<p>"I'll remember." The woman stood by as Tremaine looked over the front -page. The lead article concerned the opening of the Pan-American -Exposition at Buffalo. Vice-President Roosevelt had made a speech. -Tremaine leafed over, reading slowly.</p> - -<p>On page four, under a column headed <i>County Notes</i> he saw the name Bram:</p> - -<div class="blockquot"> -<p>Mr. Bram has purchased a quarter section of fine grazing land, -north of town, together with a sturdy house, from J. P. Spivey of -Elsby. Mr. Bram will occupy the home and will continue to graze a -few head of stock. Mr. Bram, who is a newcomer to the county, has -been a resident of Mrs. Stoate's Guest Home in Elsby for the past -months.</p></div> - -<p>"May I see some earlier issues; from about the first of the year?"</p> - -<p>The librarian produced the papers. Tremaine turned the pages, read the -heads, skimmed an article here and there. The librarian went back to -her desk. An hour later, in the issue for July 7, 1900, an item caught -his eye:</p> - -<div class="blockquot"> -<p>A Severe Thunderstorm. Citizens of Elsby and the country were much -alarmed by a violent cloudburst, accompanied by lightning and -thunder, during the night of the fifth. A fire set in the pine -woods north of Spivey's farm destroyed a considerable amount of -timber and threatened the house before burning itself out along -the river.</p></div> - -<p>The librarian was at Tremaine's side. "I have to close the library now. -You'll have to come back tomorrow."</p> - -<p>Outside, the sky was sallow in the west: lights were coming on in -windows along the side streets. Tremaine turned up his collar against a -cold wind that had risen, started along the street toward the hotel.</p> - -<p>A block away a black late-model sedan rounded a corner with a faint -squeal of tires and gunned past him, a heavy antenna mounted forward -of the left rear tail fin whipping in the slipstream. Tremaine stopped -short, stared after the car.</p> - -<p>"Damn!" he said aloud. An elderly man veered, eyeing him sharply. -Tremaine set off at a run, covered the two blocks to the hotel, yanked -open the door to his car, slid into the seat, made a U-turn, and headed -north after the police car.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Two miles into the dark hills north of the Elsby city limits, Tremaine -rounded a curve. The police car was parked on the shoulder beside the -highway just ahead. He pulled off the road ahead of it and walked back. -The door opened. A tall figure stepped out.</p> - -<p>"What's your problem, mister?" a harsh voice drawled.</p> - -<p>"What's the matter? Run out of signal?"</p> - -<p>"What's it to you, mister?"</p> - -<p>"Are you boys in touch with Grammond on the car set?"</p> - -<p>"We could be."</p> - -<p>"Mind if I have a word with him? My name's Tremaine."</p> - -<p>"Oh," said the cop, "you're the big shot from Washington." He shifted -chewing tobacco to the other side of his jaw. "Sure, you can talk to -him." He turned and spoke to the other cop, who muttered into the mike -before handing it to Tremaine.</p> - -<p>The heavy voice of the State Police chief crackled. "What's your beef, -Tremaine?"</p> - -<p>"I thought you were going to keep your men away from Elsby until I gave -the word, Grammond."</p> - -<p>"That was before I knew your Washington stuffed shirts were holding out -on me."</p> - -<p>"It's nothing we can go to court with, Grammond. And the job you were -doing might have been influenced if I'd told you about the Elsby angle."</p> - -<p>Grammond cursed. "I could have put my men in the town and taken it -apart brick by brick in the time—"</p> - -<p>"That's just what I don't want. If our bird sees cops cruising, he'll -go underground."</p> - -<p>"You've got it all figured, I see. I'm just the dumb hick you boys use -for the spade work, that it?"</p> - -<p>"Pull your lip back in. You've given me the confirmation I needed."</p> - -<p>"Confirmation, hell! All I know is that somebody somewhere is punching -out a signal. For all I know, it's forty midgets on bicycles, pedalling -all over the damned state. I've got fixes in every county—"</p> - -<p>"The smallest hyperwave transmitter Uncle Sam knows how to build weighs -three tons," said Tremaine. "Bicycles are out."</p> - -<p>Grammond snorted. "Okay, Tremaine," he said. "You're the boy with all -the answers. But if you get in trouble, don't call me; call Washington."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Back in his room, Tremaine put through a call.</p> - -<p>"It looks like Grammond's not willing to be left out in the cold, Fred. -Tell him if he queers this—"</p> - -<p>"I don't know but what he might have something," the voice came back -over the filtered hum. "Suppose he smokes them out—"</p> - -<p>"Don't go dumb on me, Fred. We're not dealing with West Virginia -moonshiners."</p> - -<p>"Don't tell me my job, Tremaine!" the voice snapped. "And don't try out -your famous temper on me. I'm still in charge of this investigation."</p> - -<p>"Sure. Just don't get stuck in some senator's hip pocket." Tremaine -hung up the telephone, went to the dresser and poured two fingers of -Scotch into a water glass. He tossed it down, then pulled on his coat -and left the hotel.</p> - -<p>He walked south two blocks, turned left down a twilit side street. He -walked slowly, looking at the weathered frame houses. Number 89 was a -once-stately three-storied mansion overgrown with untrimmed vines, its -windows squares of sad yellow light. He pushed through the gate in the -ancient picket fence, mounted the porch steps and pushed the button -beside the door, a dark panel of cracked varnish. It was a long minute -before the door opened. A tall woman with white hair and a fine-boned -face looked at him coolly.</p> - -<p>"Miss Carroll," Tremaine said. "You won't remember me, but I—"</p> - -<p>"There is nothing whatever wrong with my faculties, James," Miss -Carroll said calmly. Her voice was still resonant, a deep contralto. -Only a faint quaver reflected her age—close to eighty, Tremaine -thought, startled.</p> - -<p>"I'm flattered you remember me, Miss Carroll," he said.</p> - -<p>"Come in." She led the way to a pleasant parlor set out with the -furnishings of another era. She motioned Tremaine to a seat and took a -straight chair across the room from him.</p> - -<p>"You look very well, James," she said, nodding. "I'm pleased to see -that you've amounted to something."</p> - -<p>"Just another bureaucrat, I'm afraid."</p> - -<p>"You were wise to leave Elsby. There is no future here for a young man."</p> - -<p>"I often wondered why you didn't leave, Miss Carroll. I thought, even -as a boy, that you were a woman of great ability."</p> - -<p>"Why did you come today, James?" asked Miss Carroll.</p> - -<p>"I...." Tremaine started. He looked at the old lady. "I want some -information. This is an important matter. May I rely on your -discretion?"</p> - -<p>"Of course."</p> - -<p>"How long has Mr. Bram lived in Elsby?"</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Miss Carroll looked at him for a long moment. "Will what I tell you be -used against him?"</p> - -<p>"There'll be nothing done against him, Miss Carroll ... unless it needs -to be in the national interest."</p> - -<p>"I'm not at all sure I know what the term 'national interest' means, -James. I distrust these glib phrases."</p> - -<p>"I always liked Mr. Bram," said Tremaine. "I'm not out to hurt him."</p> - -<p>"Mr. Bram came here when I was a young woman. I'm not certain of the -year."</p> - -<p>"What does he do for a living?"</p> - -<p>"I have no idea."</p> - -<p>"Why did a healthy young fellow like Bram settle out in that isolated -piece of country? What's his story?"</p> - -<p>"I'm ... not sure that anyone truly knows Bram's story."</p> - -<p>"You called him 'Bram', Miss Carroll. Is that his first name ... or his -last?"</p> - -<p>"That is his only name. Just ... Bram."</p> - -<p>"You knew him well once, Miss Carroll. Is there anything—"</p> - -<p>A tear rolled down Miss Carroll's faded cheek. She wiped it away -impatiently.</p> - -<p>"I'm an unfulfilled old maid, James," she said. "You must forgive me."</p> - -<p>Tremaine stood up. "I'm sorry. Really sorry. I didn't mean to grill -you. Miss Carroll. You've been very kind. I had no right...."</p> - -<p>Miss Carroll shook her head. "I knew you as a boy, James. I have -complete confidence in you. If anything I can tell you about Bram will -be helpful to you, it is my duty to oblige you; and it may help him." -She paused. Tremaine waited.</p> - -<p>"Many years ago I was courted by Bram. One day he asked me to go with -him to his house. On the way he told me a terrible and pathetic tale. -He said that each night he fought a battle with evil beings, alone, in -a cave beneath his house."</p> - -<p>Miss Carroll drew a deep breath and went on. "I was torn between pity -and horror. I begged him to take me back. He refused." Miss Carroll -twisted her fingers together, her eyes fixed on the long past. "When -we reached the house, he ran to the kitchen. He lit a lamp and threw -open a concealed panel. There were stairs. He went down ... and left me -there alone.</p> - -<p>"I waited all that night in the carriage. At dawn he emerged. He tried -to speak to me but I would not listen.</p> - -<p>"He took a locket from his neck and put it into my hand. He told me to -keep it and, if ever I should need him, to press it between my fingers -in a secret way ... and he would come. I told him that until he would -consent to see a doctor, I did not wish him to call. He drove me home. -He never called again."</p> - -<p>"This locket," said Tremaine, "do you still have it?"</p> - -<p>Miss Carroll hesitated, then put her hand to her throat, lifted a -silver disc on a fine golden chain. "You see what a foolish old woman I -am, James."</p> - -<p>"May I see it?"</p> - -<p>She handed the locket to him. It was heavy, smooth. "I'd like to -examine this more closely," he said. "May I take it with me?"</p> - -<p>Miss Carroll nodded.</p> - -<p>"There is one other thing," she said, "perhaps quite meaningless...."</p> - -<p>"I'd be grateful for any lead."</p> - -<p>"Bram fears the thunder."</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - - -<p class="ph3">III</p> - -<p>As Tremaine walked slowly toward the lighted main street of Elsby a car -pulled to a stop beside him. Jess leaned out, peered at Tremaine and -asked:</p> - -<p>"Any luck, Jimmy?"</p> - -<p>Tremaine shook his head. "I'm getting nowhere fast. The Bram idea's a -dud, I'm afraid."</p> - -<p>"Funny thing about Bram. You know, he hasn't showed up yet. I'm getting -a little worried. Want to run out there with me and take a look around?"</p> - -<p>"Sure. Just so I'm back by full dark."</p> - -<p>As they pulled away from the curb Jess said, "Jimmy, what's this about -State Police nosing around here? I thought you were playing a lone hand -from what you were saying to me."</p> - -<p>"I thought so too, Jess. But it looks like Grammond's a jump ahead of -me. He smells headlines in this; he doesn't want to be left out."</p> - -<p>"Well, the State cops could be mighty handy to have around. I'm -wondering why you don't want 'em in. If there's some kind of spy ring -working—"</p> - -<p>"We're up against an unknown quantity. I don't know what's behind this -and neither does anybody else. Maybe it's a ring of Bolsheviks ... -and maybe it's something bigger. I have the feeling we've made enough -mistakes in the last few years; I don't want to see this botched."</p> - -<p>The last pink light of sunset was fading from the clouds to the west as -Jess swung the car through the open gate, pulled up under the old trees -before the square-built house. The windows were dark. The two men got -out, circled the house once, then mounted the steps and rapped on the -door. There was a black patch of charred flooring under the window, and -the paint on the wall above it was bubbled. Somewhere a cricket set up -a strident chirrup, suddenly cut off. Jess leaned down, picked up an -empty shotgun shell. He looked at Tremaine. "This don't look good," he -said. "You suppose those fool boys...?"</p> - -<p>He tried the door. It opened. A broken hasp dangled. He turned to -Tremaine. "Maybe this is more than kid stuff," he said. "You carry a -gun?"</p> - -<p>"In the car."</p> - -<p>"Better get it."</p> - -<p>Tremaine went to the car, dropped the pistol in his coat pocket, -rejoined Jess inside the house. It was silent, deserted. In the kitchen -Jess flicked the beam of his flashlight around the room. An empty plate -lay on the oilcloth-covered table.</p> - -<p>"This place is empty," he said. "Anybody'd think he'd been gone a week."</p> - -<p>"Not a very cozy—" Tremaine broke off. A thin yelp sounded in the -distance.</p> - -<p>"I'm getting jumpy," said Jess. "Dern hounddog, I guess."</p> - -<p>A low growl seemed to rumble distantly. "What the devil's that?" -Tremaine said.</p> - -<p>Jess shone the light on the floor. "Look here," he said. The ring of -light showed a spatter of dark droplets all across the plank floor.</p> - -<p>"That's blood, Jess...." Tremaine scanned the floor. It was of broad -slabs, closely laid, scrubbed clean but for the dark stains.</p> - -<p>"Maybe he cleaned a chicken. This is the kitchen."</p> - -<p>"It's a trail." Tremaine followed the line of drops across the floor. -It ended suddenly near the wall.</p> - -<p>"What do you make of it. Jimmy?"</p> - -<p>A wail sounded, a thin forlorn cry, trailing off into silence. Jess -stared at Tremaine. "I'm too damned old to start believing in spooks," -he said. "You suppose those damn-fool boys are hiding here, playing -tricks?"</p> - -<p>"I think." Tremaine said, "that we'd better go ask Hull Gaskin a few -questions."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>At the station Jess led Tremaine to a cell where a lanky teen-age boy -lounged on a steel-framed cot, blinking up at the visitor under a mop -of greased hair.</p> - -<p>"Hull, this is Mr. Tremaine," said Jess. He took out a heavy key, swung -the cell door open. "He wants to talk to you."</p> - -<p>"I ain't done nothin," Hull said sullenly. "There ain't nothin wrong -with burnin out a Commie, is there?"</p> - -<p>"Bram's a Commie, is he?" Tremaine said softly. "How'd you find that -out, Hull?"</p> - -<p>"He's a foreigner, ain't he?" the youth shot back. "Besides, we -heard...."</p> - -<p>"What did you hear?"</p> - -<p>"They're lookin for the spies."</p> - -<p>"Who's looking for spies?"</p> - -<p>"Cops."</p> - -<p>"Who says so?"</p> - -<p>The boy looked directly at Tremaine for an instant, flicked his eyes to -the corner of the cell. "Cops was talkin about 'em," he said.</p> - -<p>"Spill it, Hull," the policeman said. "Mr. Tremaine hasn't got all -night."</p> - -<p>"They parked out east of town, on 302, back of the woodlot. They called -me over and asked me a bunch of questions. Said I could help 'em get -them spies. Wanted to know all about any funny-actin people around -hers."</p> - -<p>"And you mentioned Bram?"</p> - -<p>The boy darted another look at Tremaine. "They said they figured the -spies was out north of town. Well, Bram's a foreigner, and he's out -that way, ain't he?"</p> - -<p>"Anything else?"</p> - -<p>The boy looked at his feet.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>"What did you shoot at, Hull?" Tremaine said. The boy looked at him -sullenly.</p> - -<p>"You know anything about the blood on the kitchen floor?"</p> - -<p>"I don't know what you're talkin about," Hull said. "We was out -squirrel-huntin."</p> - -<p>"Hull, is Mr. Bram dead?"</p> - -<p>"What you mean?" Hull blurted. "He was—"</p> - -<p>"He was what?"</p> - -<p>"Nothin."</p> - -<p>"The Chief won't like it if you hold out on him, Hull," Tremaine said. -"He's bound to find out."</p> - -<p>Jess looked at the boy. "Hull's a pretty dumb boy," he said. "But he's -not that dumb. Let's have it, Hull."</p> - -<p>The boy licked his lips. "I had Pa's 30-30, and Bovey Lay had a -twelve-gauge...."</p> - -<p>"What time was this?"</p> - -<p>"Just after sunset."</p> - -<p>"About seven-thirty, that'd be," said Jess. "That was half an hour -before the fire was spotted."</p> - -<p>"I didn't do no shootin. It was Bovey. Old Bram jumped out at him, and -he just fired off the hip. But he didn't kill him. He seen him run -off...."</p> - -<p>"You were on the porch when this happened. Which way did Bram go?"</p> - -<p>"He ... run inside."</p> - -<p>"So then you set fire to the place. Whose bright idea was that?"</p> - -<p>Hull sat silent. After a moment Tremaine and Jess left the cell.</p> - -<p>"He must have gotten clear, Jimmy," said Jess. "Maybe he got scared and -left town."</p> - -<p>"Bram doesn't strike me as the kind to panic." Tremaine looked at his -watch. "I've got to get on my way, Jess. I'll check with you in the -morning."</p> - -<p>Tremaine crossed the street to the Paradise Bar and Grill, pushed -into the jukebox-lit interior, took a stool and ordered a Scotch and -water. He sipped the drink, then sat staring into the dark reflection -in the glass. The idea of a careful reconnoitre of the Elsby area was -gone, now, with police swarming everywhere. It was too bad about Bram. -It would be interesting to know where the old man was ... and if he -was still alive. He'd always seemed normal enough in the old days: a -big solid-looking man, middle-aged, always pleasant enough, though he -didn't say much. He'd tried hard, that time, to interest Tremaine in -learning whatever it was....</p> - -<p>Tremaine put a hand in his jacket pocket, took out Miss Carroll's -locket. It was smooth, the size and shape of a wrist-watch chassis. -He was fingering it meditatively when a rough hand slammed against -his shoulder, half knocking him from the stool. Tremaine caught his -balance, turned, looked into the scarred face of a heavy-shouldered man -in a leather jacket.</p> - -<p>"I heard you was back in town, Tremaine," the man said.</p> - -<p>The bartender moved up. "Looky here, Gaskin, I don't want no trouble—"</p> - -<p>"Shove it!" Gaskin squinted at Tremaine, his upper lip curled back to -expose the gap in his teeth. "You tryin to make more trouble for my -boy, I hear. Been over to the jail, stickin your nose in."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Tremaine dropped the locket in his pocket and stood up. Gaskin hitched -up his pants, glanced around the room. Half a dozen early drinkers -stared, wide-eyed. Gaskin squinted at Tremaine. He smelled of unwashed -flannel.</p> - -<p>"Sicked the cops onto him. The boy was out with his friends, havin a -little fun. Now there he sets in jail."</p> - -<p>Tremaine moved aside from the stool, started past the man. Soup Gaskin -grabbed his arm.</p> - -<p>"Not so fast! I figger you owe me damages. I—"</p> - -<p>"Damage is what you'll get," said Tremaine. He slammed a stiff left -to Gaskin's ribs, drove a hard right to the jaw. Gaskin jack-knifed -backwards, tripped over a bar stool, fell on his back. He rolled over, -got to hands and knees, shook his head.</p> - -<p>"Git up, Soup!" someone called. "Hot dog!" offered another.</p> - -<p>"I'm calling the police!" the bartender yelled.</p> - -<p>"Never mind," a voice said from the door. A blue-jacketed State Trooper -strolled into the room, fingers hooked into his pistol belt, the steel -caps on his boot heels clicking with each step. He faced Tremaine, feet -apart.</p> - -<p>"Looks like you're disturbin the peace, Mr. Tremaine," he said.</p> - -<p>"You wouldn't know who put him up to it, would you?" Tremaine said.</p> - -<p>"That's a dirty allegation," the cop grinned. "I'll have to get off a -hot letter to my congressman."</p> - -<p>Gaskin got to his feet, wiped a smear of blood across his cheek, then -lunged past the cop and swung a wild right. Tremaine stepped aside, -landed a solid punch on Gaskin's ear. The cop stepped back against the -bar. Soup whirled, slammed out with lefts and rights. Tremaine lashed -back with a straight left; Gaskin slammed against the bar, rebounded, -threw a knockout right ... and Tremaine ducked, landed a right -upper-cut that sent Gaskin reeling back, bowled over a table, sent -glasses flying. Tremaine stood over him.</p> - -<p>"On your feet, jailbird," he said. "A workout is exactly what I needed."</p> - -<p>"Okay, you've had your fun," the State cop said. "I'm taking you in, -Tremaine."</p> - -<p>Tremaine looked at him. "Sorry, copper," he said. "I don't have time -right now." The cop looked startled, reached for his revolver.</p> - -<p>"What's going on here, Jimmy?" Jess stood in the door, a huge .44 in -his hand. He turned his eyes on the trooper.</p> - -<p>"You're a little out of your jurisdiction," he said. "I think you -better move on 'fore somebody steals your bicycle."</p> - -<p>The cop eyed Jess for a long moment, then holstered his pistol and -stalked out of the bar. Jess tucked his revolver into his belt, looked -at Gaskin sitting on the floor, dabbing at his bleeding mouth. "What -got into you, Soup?"</p> - -<p>"I think the State boys put him up to it," Tremaine said. "They're -looking for an excuse to take me out of the picture."</p> - -<p>Jess motioned to Gaskin. "Get up, Soup. I'm lockin you up alongside -that boy of yours."</p> - -<p>Outside, Jess said, "You got some bad enemies there, Jimmy. That's a -tough break. You ought to hold onto your temper with those boys. I -think maybe you ought to think about getting over the state line. I can -run you to the bus station, and send your car along...."</p> - -<p>"I can't leave now, Jess. I haven't even started."</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - - -<p class="ph3">IV</p> - -<p>In his room, Tremaine doctored the cut on his jaw, then opened his -trunk, checked over the detector gear. The telephone rang.</p> - -<p>"Tremaine? I've been on the telephone with Grammond. Are you out of -your mind? I'm—"</p> - -<p>"Fred," Tremaine cut in, "I thought you were going to get those state -cops off my neck."</p> - -<p>"Listen to me, Tremaine. You're called off this job as of now. Don't -touch anything! You'd better stay right there in that room. In fact, -that's an order!"</p> - -<p>"Don't pick now to come apart at the seams, Fred," Tremaine snapped.</p> - -<p>"I've ordered you off! That's all!" The phone clicked and the dial tone -sounded. Tremaine dropped the receiver in its cradle, then walked to -the window absently, his hand in his pocket.</p> - -<p>He felt broken pieces and pulled out Miss Carroll's locket. It was -smashed, split down the center. It must have gotten it in the tussle -with Soup, Tremaine thought. It looked—</p> - -<p>He squinted at the shattered ornament. A maze of fine wires was -exposed, tiny condensers, bits of glass.</p> - -<p>In the street below, tires screeched. Tremaine looked down. A black car -was at the curb, doors sprung. Four uniformed men jumped out, headed -for the door. Tremaine whirled to the phone. The desk clerk came on.</p> - -<p>"Get me Jess—fast!"</p> - -<p>The police chief answered.</p> - -<p>"Jess, the word's out I'm poison. An earful of State law is at the -front door. I'm going out the back. Get in their way all you can." -Tremaine dropped the phone, grabbed up the suitcase and let himself out -into the hall. The back stairs were dark. He stumbled, cursed, made it -to the service entry. Outside, the alley was deserted.</p> - -<p>He went to the corner, crossed the street, thrust the suitcase into the -back seat of his car and slid into the driver's seat. He started up and -eased away from the curb. He glanced in the mirror. There was no alarm.</p> - -<p>It was a four-block drive to Miss Carroll's house. The housekeeper let -Tremaine in.</p> - -<p>"Oh, yes, Miss Carroll is still up," she said. "She never retires -until nine. I'll tell her you're here, Mr. Tremaine."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Tremaine paced the room. On his third circuit Miss Carroll came in.</p> - -<p>"I wouldn't have bothered you if it wasn't important," Tremaine said. -"I can't explain it all now. You said once you had confidence in me. -Will you come with me now? It concerns Bram ... and maybe a lot more -than just Bram."</p> - -<p>Miss Carroll looked at him steadily. "I'll get my wrap."</p> - -<p>On the highway Tremaine said, "Miss Carroll, we're headed for Bram's -house. I take it you've heard of what happened out there?"</p> - -<p>"No, James. I haven't stirred out of the house. What is it?"</p> - -<p>"A gang of teen-age toughs went out last night. They had guns. One of -them took a shot at Bram. And Bram's disappeared. But I don't think -he's dead."</p> - -<p>Miss Carroll gasped. "Why? Why did they do it?"</p> - -<p>"I don't think they know themselves."</p> - -<p>"You say ... you believe he still lives...."</p> - -<p>"He must be alive. It dawned on me a little while ago ... a little -late, I'll admit. The locket he gave you. Did you ever try it?"</p> - -<p>"Try it? Why ... no. I don't believe in magic, James."</p> - -<p>"Not magic. Electronics. Years ago Bram talked to me about radio. -He wanted to teach me. Now I'm here looking for a transmitter. That -transmitter was busy last night. I think Bram was operating it."</p> - -<p>There was a long silence.</p> - -<p>"James," Miss Carroll said at last, "I don't understand."</p> - -<p>"Neither do I, Miss Carroll. I'm still working on finding the pieces. -But let me ask you: that night that Bram brought you out to his place. -You say he ran to the kitchen and opened a trapdoor in the floor—"</p> - -<p>"Did I say floor? That was an error: the panel was in the wall."</p> - -<p>"I guess I jumped to the conclusion. Which wall?"</p> - -<p>"He crossed the room. There was a table, with a candlestick. He went -around it and pressed his hand against the wall, beside the wood-box. -The panel slid aside. It was very dark within. He ducked his head, -because the opening was not large, and stepped inside...."</p> - -<p>"That would be the east wall ... to the left of the back door?"</p> - -<p>"Yes."</p> - -<p>"Now, Miss Carroll, can you remember exactly what Bram said to you that -night? Something about fighting something, wasn't it?"</p> - -<p>"I've tried for sixty years to put it out of my mind, James. But I -remember every word, I think." She was silent for a moment.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>"I was beside him on the buggy seat. It was a warm evening, late in -spring. I had told him that I loved him, and ... he had responded. He -said that he would have spoken long before, but that he had not dared. -Now there was that which I must know.</p> - -<p>"His life was not his own, he said. He was not ... native to this -world. He was an agent of a mighty power, and he had trailed a band -of criminals...." She broke off. "I could not truly understand that -part, James. I fear it was too incoherent. He raved of evil beings who -lurked in the shadows of a cave. It was his duty to wage each night an -unceasing battle with occult forces."</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<div class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/illus1.jpg" width="341" height="500" alt=""/> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p>"What kind of battle? Were these ghosts, or demons, or what?"</p> - -<p>"I don't know. Evil powers which would be unloosed on the world, -unless he met them at the portal as the darkness fell and opposed them."</p> - -<p>"Why didn't he get help?"</p> - -<p>"Only he could stand against them. I knew little of abnormal -psychology, but I understood the classic evidence of paranoia. I shrank -from him. He sat, leaning forward, his eyes intent. I wept and begged -him to take me back. He turned his face to me, and I saw the pain and -anguish in his eyes. I loved him ... and feared him. And he would not -turn back. Night was falling, and the enemy awaited him."</p> - -<p>"Then, when you got to the house...?"</p> - -<p>"He had whipped up the horses, and I remember how I clung to the top -braces, weeping. Then we were at the house. Without a word he jumped -down and ran to the door. I followed. He lit a lamp and turned to me. -From somewhere there was a wailing call, like an injured animal. He -shouted something—an unintelligible cry—and ran toward the back of -the house. I took up the lamp and followed. In the kitchen he went to -the wall, pressed against it. The panel opened. He looked at me. His -face was white.</p> - -<p>"'In the name of the High God. Linda Carroll, I entreat you....'</p> - -<p>"I screamed. And he hardened his face, and went down ... and I screamed -and screamed again...." Miss Carroll closed her eyes, drew a shuddering -breath.</p> - -<p>"I'm sorry to have put you through this, Miss Carroll," Tremaine said. -"But I had to know."</p> - -<p>Faintly in the distance a siren sounded. In the mirror, headlights -twinkled half a mile behind. Tremaine stepped on the gas. The powerful -car leaped ahead.</p> - -<p>"Are you expecting trouble on the road, James?"</p> - -<p>"The State police are unhappy with me, Miss Carroll. And I imagine -they're not too pleased with Jess. Now they're out for blood. But I -think I can outrun them."</p> - -<p>"James." Miss Carroll said, sitting up and looking behind. "If those -are police officers, shouldn't you stop?"</p> - -<p>"I can't, Miss Carroll. I don't have time for them now. If my idea -means anything, we've got to get there fast...."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Bram's house loomed gaunt and dark as the car whirled through the gate, -ground to a stop before the porch. Tremaine jumped out, went around the -car and helped Miss Carroll out. He was surprised at the firmness of -her step. For a moment, in the fading light of dusk, he glimpsed her -profile. <i>How beautiful she must have been....</i></p> - -<p>He reached into the glove compartment for a flashlight.</p> - -<p>"We haven't got a second to waste," he said. "That other car's not more -than a minute behind us." He reached into the back of the car, hauled -out the heavy suitcase. "I hope you remember how Bram worked that -panel."</p> - -<p>On the porch Tremaine's flashlight illuminated the broken hasp. -Inside, he led the way along a dark hall, pushed into the kitchen.</p> - -<p>"It was there," Miss Carroll said, pointing. Outside, an engine sounded -on the highway, slowing, turning in. Headlights pushed a square of cold -light across the kitchen wall. Tremaine jumped to the spot Miss Carroll -had indicated, put the suitcase down, felt over the wall.</p> - -<p>"Give me the light, James," Miss Carroll said calmly. "Press there." -She put the spot on the wall. Tremaine leaned against it. Nothing -happened. Outside, there was the thump of car doors; a muffled voice -barked orders.</p> - -<p>"Are you sure...?"</p> - -<p>"Yes. Try again, James."</p> - -<p>Tremaine threw himself against the wall, slapped at it, searching for a -hidden latch.</p> - -<p>"A bit higher; Bram was a tall man. The panel opened below...."</p> - -<p>Tremaine reached higher, pounded, pushed up, sideways—</p> - -<p>With a click a three by four foot section of wall rolled silently -aside. Tremaine saw greased metal slides and, beyond, steps leading -down.</p> - -<p>"They are on the porch now, James," said Miss Carroll.</p> - -<p>"The light!" Tremaine reached for it, threw a leg over the sill. He -reached back, pulled the suitcase after him. "Tell them I kidnapped -you, Miss Carroll. And thanks."</p> - -<p>Miss Carroll held out her hand. "Help me, James. I hung back once -before. I'll not repeat my folly."</p> - -<p>Tremaine hesitated for an instant, then reached out, handed Miss -Carroll in. Footsteps sounded in the hall. The flashlight showed -Tremaine a black pushbutton bolted to a two by four stud. He pressed -it. The panel slid back in place.</p> - -<p>Tremaine flashed the light on the stairs.</p> - -<p>"Okay, Miss Carroll," he said softly. "Let's go down."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>There were fifteen steps, and at the bottom, a corridor, with curved -walls of black glass, and a floor of rough boards. It went straight -for twenty feet and ended at an old-fashioned five-panel wooden door. -Tremaine tried the brass knob. The door opened on a room shaped from -a natural cave, with waterworn walls of yellow stone, a low uneven -ceiling, and a packed-earth floor. On a squat tripod in the center -of the chamber rested an apparatus of black metal and glass, vaguely -gunlike, aimed at the blank wall. Beside it, in an ancient wooden -rocker, a man lay slumped, his shirt blood-caked, a black puddle on the -floor beneath him.</p> - -<p>"Bram!" Miss Carroll gasped. She went to him, took his hand, staring -into his face.</p> - -<p>"Is he dead?" Tremaine said tightly.</p> - -<p>"His hands are cold ... but there is a pulse."</p> - -<p>A kerosene lantern stood by the door. Tremaine lit it, brought it to -the chair. He took out a pocket knife, cut the coat and shirt back from -Bram's wound. A shotgun blast had struck him in the side; there was a -lacerated area as big as Tremaine's hand.</p> - -<p>"It's stopped bleeding," he said. "It was just a graze at close range, -I'd say." He explored further. "It got his arm too, but not as deep. -And I think there are a couple of ribs broken. If he hasn't lost too -much blood...." Tremaine pulled off his coat, spread it on the floor.</p> - -<p>"Let's lay him out here and try to bring him around."</p> - -<p>Lying on his back on the floor, Bram looked bigger than his -six-foot-four, younger than his near-century, Tremaine thought. Miss -Carroll knelt at the old man's side, chafing his hands, murmuring to -him.</p> - -<p>Abruptly a thin cry cut the air.</p> - -<p>Tremaine whirled, startled. Miss Carroll stared, eyes wide. A low -rumble sounded, swelled louder, broke into a screech, cut off.</p> - -<p>"Those are the sounds I heard that night," Miss Carroll breathed. "I -thought afterwards I had imagined them, but I remember.... James, what -does it mean?"</p> - -<p>"Maybe it means Bram wasn't as crazy as you thought," Tremaine said.</p> - -<p>Miss Carroll gasped sharply. "James! Look at the wall—"</p> - -<p>Tremaine turned. Vague shadows moved across the stone, flickering, -wavering.</p> - -<p>"What the devil...!"</p> - -<p>Bram moaned, stirred. Tremaine went to him. "Bram!" he said. "Wake up!"</p> - -<p>Bram's eyes opened. For a moment he looked dazedly at Tremaine, then -at Miss Carroll. Awkwardly he pushed himself to a sitting position.</p> - -<p>"Bram ... you must lie down," Miss Carroll said.</p> - -<p>"Linda Carroll," Bram said. His voice was deep, husky.</p> - -<p>"Bram, you're hurt ..."</p> - -<p>A mewling wail started up. Bram went rigid "What hour is this?" he -grated.</p> - -<p>"The sun has just gone down; it's after seven—"</p> - -<p>Bram tried to get to his feet. "Help me up," he ordered. "Curse the -weakness...."</p> - -<p>Tremaine got a hand under the old man's arm. "Careful, Bram," he said. -"Don't start your wound bleeding again."</p> - -<p>"To the Repellor," Bram muttered. Tremaine guided him to the rocking -chair, eased him down. Bram seized the two black pistol-grips, squeezed -them.</p> - -<p>"You, young man," Bram said. "Take the circlet there; place it about my -neck."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>The flat-metal ring hung from a wire loop. Tremaine fitted it over -Bram's head. It settled snugly over his shoulders, a flange at the back -against his neck.</p> - -<p>"Bram," Tremaine said. "What's this all about?"</p> - -<p>"Watch the wall there. My sight grows dim. Tell me what you see."</p> - -<p>"It looks like shadows: but what's casting them?"</p> - -<p>"Can you discern details?"</p> - -<p>"No. It's like somebody waggling their fingers in front of a slide -projector."</p> - -<p>"The radiation from the star is yet too harsh," Bram muttered. "But now -the node draws close. May the High Gods guide my hand!"</p> - -<p>A howl rang out, a raw blast of sound. Bram tensed. "What do you see?" -he demanded.</p> - -<p>"The outlines are sharper. There seem to be other shapes behind the -moving ones. It's like looking through a steamy window...." Beyond the -misty surface Tremaine seemed to see a high narrow chamber, bathed in -white light. In the foreground creatures like shadowy caricatures of -men paced to and fro. "They're like something stamped out of alligator -hide," Tremaine whispered. "When they turn and I see them edge-on, -they're thin...."</p> - -<p>"An effect of dimensional attenuation. They strive now to match -matrices with this plane. If they succeed, this earth you know will lie -at their feet."</p> - -<p>"What are they? Where are they? That's solid rock—"</p> - -<p>"What you see is the Niss Command Center. It lies in another world -than this, but here is the multihedron of intersection. They bring -their harmonic generators to bear here in the hope of establishing an -aperture of focus."</p> - -<p>"I don't understand half of what you're saying, Bram. And the rest I -don't believe. But with this staring me in the face, I'll have to act -as though I did."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Suddenly the wall cleared. Like a surface of moulded glass the stone -threw back ghostly highlights. Beyond it, the Niss technicians, seen -now in sharp detail, worked busily, silently, their faces like masks -of ridged red-brown leather. Directly opposite Bram's Repellor, an -apparatus like an immense camera with a foot-wide silvered lens stood -aimed, a black-clad Niss perched in a saddle atop it. The white light -flooded the cave, threw black shadows across the floor. Bram hunched -over the Repellor, face tensed in strain. A glow built in the air -around the Niss machine. The alien technicians stood now, staring -with tiny bright-red eyes. Long seconds passed. The black-clad Niss -gestured suddenly. Another turned to a red-marked knife-switch, pulled. -As suddenly as it had cleared, the wall went milky, then dulled to -opacity. Bram slumped back, eyes shut, breathing hoarsely.</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<div class="figcenter"> - <img src="images/illus2.jpg" width="345" height="500" alt=""/> -</div> - -<hr class="chap" /> - -<p>"Near were they then," he muttered, "I grow weak...."</p> - -<p>"Let me take over," Tremaine said. "Tell me how."</p> - -<p>"How can I tell you? You will not understand."</p> - -<p>"Maybe I'll understand enough to get us through the night."</p> - -<p>Bram seemed to gather himself. "Very well. This must you know....</p> - -<p>"I am an agent in the service of the Great World. For centuries we have -waged war against the Niss, evil beings who loot the continua. They -established an Aperture here, on your Earth. We detected it, and found -that a Portal could be set up here briefly. I was dispatched with a -crew to counter their move—"</p> - -<p>"You're talking gibberish," Tremaine said. "I'll pass the Great World -and the continua ... but what's an Aperture?"</p> - -<p>"A point of material contact between the Niss world and this plane of -space-time. Through it they can pump this rich planet dry of oxygen, -killing it—then emerge to feed on the corpse."</p> - -<p>"What's a Portal?"</p> - -<p>"The Great World lies in a different harmonic series than do Earth -and the Niss World. Only at vast intervals can we set up a Portal of -temporary identity as the cycles mesh. We monitor the Niss emanations, -and forestall them when we can, now in this plane, now in that."</p> - -<p>"I see: denial to the enemy."</p> - -<p>"But we were late. Already the multihedron was far advanced. A -blinding squall lashed outside the river cave where the Niss had -focused the Aperture, and the thunder rolled as the ionization effect -was propagated in the atmosphere. I threw my force against the Niss -Aperture, but could not destroy it ... but neither could they force -their entry."</p> - -<p>"And this was sixty years ago? And they're still at it?"</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>"You must throw off the illusion of time! To the Niss only a few days -have passed. But here—where I spend only minutes from each night in -the engagement, as the patterns coincide—it has been long years."</p> - -<p>"Why don't you bring in help? Why do you have to work alone?"</p> - -<p>"The power required to hold the Portal in focus against the stresses -of space-time is tremendous. Even then the cycle is brief. It gave us -first a fleeting contact of a few seconds; it was through that that we -detected the Niss activity here. The next contact was four days later, -and lasted twenty-four minutes—long enough to set up the Repellor. I -fought them then ... and saw that victory was in doubt. Still, it was a -fair world; I could not let it go without a struggle. A third identity -was possible twenty days later; I elected to remain here until then, -attempt to repel the Niss, then return home at the next contact. The -Portal closed, and my crew and I settled down to the engagement.</p> - -<p>"The next night showed us in full the hopelessness of the contest. By -day, we emerged from where the Niss had focussed the Aperture, and -explored this land, and came to love its small warm sun, its strange -blue sky, its mantle of green ... and the small humble grass-blades. To -us of an ancient world it seemed a paradise of young life. And then I -ventured into the town ... and there I saw such a maiden as the Cosmos -has forgotten, such was her beauty....</p> - -<p>"The twenty days passed. The Niss held their foothold—yet I had kept -them back.</p> - -<p>"The Portal reopened. I ordered my crew back. It closed. Since then, -have I been alone...."</p> - -<p>"Bram," Miss Carroll said. "Bram ... you stayed when you could have -escaped—and I—"</p> - -<p>"I would that I could give you back those lost years, Linda Carroll," -Bram said. "I would that we could have been together under a brighter -sun than this."</p> - -<p>"You gave up your world, to give this one a little time," Tremaine -said. "And we rewarded you with a shotgun blast."</p> - -<p>"Bram ... when will the Portal open again?"</p> - -<p>"Not in my life, Linda Carroll. Not for ten thousand years."</p> - -<p>"Why didn't you recruit help?" Tremaine said. "You could have trained -someone...."</p> - -<p>"I tried, at first. But what can one do with frightened rustics? They -spoke of witchcraft, and fled."</p> - -<p>"But you can't hold out forever. Tell me how this thing works. It's -time somebody gave you a break!"</p> - -<hr class="chap" /> - - -<p class="ph3">V</p> - -<p>Bram talked for half an hour, while Tremaine listened. "If I should -fail," he concluded, "take my place at the Repellor. Place the circlet -on your neck. When the wall clears, grip the handles and pit your mind -against the Niss. Will that they do not come through. When the thunder -rolls, you will know that you have failed."</p> - -<p>"All right. I'll be ready. But let me get one thing straight: this -Repellor of yours responds to thoughts, is that right? It amplifies -them—"</p> - -<p>"It serves to focus the power of the mind. But now let us make haste. -Soon, I fear, will they renew the attack."</p> - -<p>"It will be twenty minutes or so, I think," said Tremaine. "Stay where -you are and get some rest."</p> - -<p>Bram looked at him, his blue eyes grim under white brows. "What do you -know of this matter, young man?"</p> - -<p>"I think I've doped out the pattern; I've been monitoring these -transmissions for weeks. My ideas seemed to prove out okay the last few -nights."</p> - -<p>"No one but I in all this world knew of the Niss attack. How could you -have analyzed that which you knew not of?"</p> - -<p>"Maybe you don't know it, Bram, but this Repellor of yours has been -playing hell with our communications. Recently we developed what we -thought was a Top Secret project—and you're blasting us off the air."</p> - -<p>"This is only a small portable unit, poorly screened," Bram said. "The -resonance effects are unpredictable. When one seeks to channel the -power of thought—"</p> - -<p>"Wait a minute!" Tremaine burst out.</p> - -<p>"What is it?" Miss Carroll said, alarmed.</p> - -<p>"Hyperwave," Tremaine said. "Instantaneous transmission. And -thought. No wonder people had headaches—and nightmares! We've been -broadcasting on the same band as the human mind!"</p> - -<p>"This 'hyperwave'," Bram said. "You say it is instantaneous?"</p> - -<p>"That's supposed to be classified information."</p> - -<p>"Such a device is new in the cosmos," Bram said. "Only a protoplasmic -brain is known to produce a null-lag excitation state."</p> - -<p>Tremaine frowned. "Bram, this Repellor focuses what I'll call thought -waves for want of a better term. It uses an interference effect to damp -out the Niss harmonic generator. What if we poured more power to the -Repellor?"</p> - -<p>"No. The power of the mind cannot be amplified—"</p> - -<p>"I don't mean amplification; I mean an additional source. I have -a hyperwave receiver here. With a little rewiring, it'll act as a -transmitter. Can we tie it in?"</p> - -<p>Bram shook his head. "Would that I were a technician," he said. "I know -only what is required to operate the device."</p> - -<p>"Let me take a look," Tremaine said. "Maybe I can figure it out."</p> - -<p>"Take care. Without it, we fall before the Niss."</p> - -<p>"I'll be careful." Tremaine went to the machine, examined it, tracing -leads, identifying components.</p> - -<p>"This seems clear enough," he said. "These would be powerful magnets -here; they give a sort of pinch effect. And these are refracting-field -coils. Simple, and brilliant. With this idea, we could beam hyperwave—"</p> - -<p>"First let us deal with the Niss!"</p> - -<p>"Sure." Tremaine looked at Bram. "I think I can link my apparatus to -this," he said. "Okay if I try?"</p> - -<p>"How long?"</p> - -<p>"It shouldn't take more than fifteen minutes."</p> - -<p>"That leaves little time."</p> - -<p>"The cycle is tightening," Tremaine said. "I figure the next -transmissions ... or attacks ... will come at intervals of under five -minutes for several hours now; this may be the last chance."</p> - -<p>"Then try," said Bram.</p> - -<p>Tremaine nodded, went to the suitcase, took out tools and a heavy black -box, set to work. Linda Carroll sat by Bram's side, speaking softly to -him. The minutes passed.</p> - -<p>"Okay," Tremaine said. "This unit is ready." He went to the Repellor, -hesitated a moment, then turned two nuts and removed a cover.</p> - -<p>"We're off the air," he said. "I hope my formula holds."</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Bram and Miss Carroll watched silently as Tremaine worked. He strung -wires, taped junctions, then flipped a switch on the hyperwave set and -tuned it, his eyes on the dials of a smaller unit.</p> - -<p>"Nineteen minutes have passed since the last attack," Bram said. "Make -haste."</p> - -<p>"I'm almost done," Tremaine said.</p> - -<p>A sharp cry came from the wall. Tremaine jumped. "What the hell makes -those sounds?"</p> - -<p>"They are nothing—mere static. But they warn that the harmonic -generators are warming." Bram struggled to his feet. "Now comes the -assault."</p> - -<p>"The shadows!" Miss Carroll cried.</p> - -<p>Bram sank into the chair, leaned back, his face pale as wax in the -faint glow from the wall. The glow grew brighter; the shadows swam into -focus.</p> - -<p>"Hurry, James," Miss Carroll said. "It comes quickly."</p> - -<p>Bram watched through half-closed eyes. "I must man the Repellor. I...." -He fell back in the chair, his head lolling.</p> - -<p>"Bram!" Miss Carroll cried. Tremaine snapped the cover in place, -whirled to the chair, dragged it and its occupant away from the -machine, then turned, seized the grips. On the wall the Niss moved -in silence, readying the attack. The black-clad figure was visible, -climbing to his place. The wall cleared. Tremaine stared across at -the narrow room, the gray-clad Niss. They stood now, eyes on him. One -pointed. Others erected leathery crests.</p> - -<p><i>Stay out, you ugly devils</i>, Tremaine thought. <i>Go back, retreat, give -up....</i></p> - -<p>Now the blue glow built in a flickering arc across the Niss machine. -The technicians stood, staring across the narrow gap, tiny red eyes -glittering in the narrow alien faces. Tremaine squinted against the -brilliant white light from the high-vaulted Niss Command Center. The -last suggestion of the sloping surface of the limestone wall was gone. -Tremaine felt a draft stir; dust whirled up, clouded the air. There -was an odor of iodine.</p> - -<p><i>Back</i>, Tremaine thought. <i>Stay back....</i></p> - -<p>There was a restless stir among the waiting rank of Niss. Tremaine -heard the dry shuffle of horny feet against the floor, the whine of the -harmonic generator. His eyes burned. As a hot gust swept around him he -choked and coughed.</p> - -<p><i>NO!</i> he thought, hurling negation like a weightless bomb. <i>FAIL! -RETREAT!</i></p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Now the Niss moved, readying a wheeled machine, rolling it into place. -Tremaine coughed rackingly, fought to draw a breath, blinking back -blindness. A deep thrumming started up; grit particles stung his cheek, -the backs of his hands. The Niss worked rapidly, their throat gills -visibly dilated now in the unaccustomed flood of oxygen....</p> - -<p><i>Our oxygen</i>, Tremaine thought. <i>The looting has started already, and -I've failed, and the people of Earth will choke and die....</i></p> - -<p>From what seemed an immense distance, a roll of thunder trembled at the -brink of audibility, swelling.</p> - -<p>The black-clad Niss on the alien machine half rose, erecting a -black-scaled crest, exulting. Then, shockingly, his eyes fixed on -Tremaine's, his trap-like mouth gaped, exposing a tongue like a scarlet -snake, a cavernous pink throat set with a row of needle-like snow-white -teeth. The tongue flicked out, a gesture of utter contempt.</p> - -<p>And suddenly Tremaine was cold with deadly rage. <i>We have a treatment -for snakes in this world</i>, he thought with savage intensity. <i>We crush -'em under our heels....</i> He pictured a writhing rattler, broken-backed, -a club descending; a darting red coral snake, its venom ready, slashed -in the blades of a power mower; a cottonmouth, smashed into red ruin by -a shotgun blast....</p> - -<p><i>BACK, SNAKE</i>, he thought. <i>DIE! DIE!</i></p> - -<p>The thunder faded.</p> - -<p>And atop the Niss Generator, the black-clad Niss snapped his mouth -shut, crouched.</p> - -<p>"DIE!" Tremaine shouted. "Die!"</p> - -<p>The Niss seemed to shrink in on himself, shivering. His crest went -flaccid, twitched twice. The red eyes winked out and the Niss toppled -from the machine. Tremaine coughed, gripped the handles, turned his -eyes to a gray-uniformed Niss who scrambled up to replace the operator.</p> - -<p><i>I SAID DIE, SNAKE!</i></p> - -<p>The Niss faltered, tumbled back among his fellows, who darted about now -like ants in a broached anthill. One turned red eyes on Tremaine, then -scrambled for the red cut-out switch.</p> - -<p><i>NO, YOU DON'T</i>, Tremaine thought. <i>IT'S NOT THAT EASY, SNAKE. DIE!</i></p> - -<p>The Niss collapsed. Tremaine drew a rasping breath, blinked back tears -of pain, took in a group of Niss in a glance.</p> - -<p><i>Die!</i></p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>They fell. The others turned to flee then, but like a scythe Tremaine's -mind cut them down, left them in windrows. Hate walked naked among the -Niss and left none living.</p> - -<p><i>Now the machines.</i> Tremaine thought. He fixed his eyes on the harmonic -generator. It melted into slag. Behind it, the high panels set with -jewel-like lights blackened, crumpled into wreckage. Suddenly the air -was clean again. Tremaine breathed deep. Before him the surface of the -rock swam into view.</p> - -<p><i>NO!</i> Tremaine thought thunderously. <i>HOLD THAT APERTURE OPEN!</i></p> - -<p>The rock-face shimmered, faded. Tremaine looked into the white-lit -room, at the blackened walls, the huddled dead. <i>No pity</i>, he thought. -<i>You would have sunk those white teeth into soft human throats, -sleeping in the dark ... as you've done on a hundred worlds. You're a -cancer in the cosmos. And I have the cure.</i></p> - -<p><i>WALLS</i>, he thought, <i>COLLAPSE!</i></p> - -<p>The roof before him sagged, fell in. Debris rained down from above, the -walls tottered, went down. A cloud of roiled dust swirled, cleared to -show a sky blazing with stars.</p> - -<p><i>Dust, stay clear</i>, Tremaine thought. <i>I want good air to breathe for -the work ahead.</i> He looked out across a landscape of rock, ghostly -white in the starlight.</p> - -<p><i>LET THE ROCKS MELT AND FLOW LIKE WATER!</i></p> - -<p>An upreared slab glowed, slumped, ran off in yellow rivulets that were -lost in the radiance of the crust as it bubbled, belching released -gasses. A wave of heat struck Tremaine. <i>Let it be cool here</i>, he -thought. <i>Now, Niss world....</i></p> - -<p>"No!" Bram's voice shouted. "Stop, stop!"</p> - -<p>Tremaine hesitated. He stared at the vista of volcanic fury before him.</p> - -<p><i>I could destroy it all</i>, he thought. <i>And the stars in the Niss -sky....</i></p> - -<p>"Great is the power of your hate, man of Earth," Bram cried. "But curb -it now, before you destroy us all!"</p> - -<p>"Why?" Tremaine shouted. "I can wipe out the Niss and their whole -diseased universe with them, with a thought!"</p> - -<p>"Master yourself," Bram said hoarsely. "Your rage destroys you! One of -the suns you see in the Niss sky is your Sol!"</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>"Sol?" Tremaine said. "Then it's the Sol of a thousand years ago. Light -takes time to cross a galaxy. And the earth is still here ... so it -wasn't destroyed!"</p> - -<p>"Wise are you," Bram said. "Your race is a wonder in the Cosmos, and -deadly is your hate. But you know nothing of the forces you unloose -now. Past time is as mutable as the steel and rock you melted but now."</p> - -<p>"Listen to him, James," Miss Carroll pleaded. "Please listen."</p> - -<p>Tremaine twisted to look at her, still holding the twin grips. She -looked back steadily, her head held high. Beside her, Bram's eyes were -sunken deep in his lined face.</p> - -<p>"Jess said you looked like a princess once, Miss Carroll," Tremaine -said, "when you drove past with your red hair piled up high. And Bram: -you were young, and you loved her. The Niss took your youth from you. -You've spent your life here, fighting them, alone. And Linda Carroll -waited through the years, because she loved you ... and feared you. The -Niss did that. And you want me to spare them?"</p> - -<p>"You have mastered them," said Bram. "And you are drunk with the power -in you. But the power of love is greater than the power of hate. Our -love sustained us; your hate can only destroy."</p> - -<p>Tremaine locked eyes with the old man. He drew a deep breath at last, -let it out shudderingly. "All right," he said "I guess the God complex -got me." He looked back once more at the devastated landscape. "The -Niss will remember this encounter, I think. They won't try Earth again."</p> - -<p>"You've fought valiantly, James, and won," Miss Carroll said. "Now let -the power go."</p> - -<p>Tremaine turned again to look at her. "You deserve better than this, -Miss Carroll," he said. "Bram, you said time is mutable. Suppose—"</p> - -<p>"Let well enough alone," Bram said. "Let it go!"</p> - -<p>"Once, long ago, you tried to explain this to Linda Carroll. But there -was too much against it; she couldn't understand. She was afraid. And -you've suffered for sixty years. Suppose those years had never been. -Suppose I had come that night ... instead of now—"</p> - -<p>"It could never be!"</p> - -<p>"It can if I will it!" Tremaine gripped the handles tighter. <i>Let this -be THAT night</i>, he thought fiercely. <i>The night in 1901, when Bram's -last contact failed. Let it be that night, five minutes before the -portal closed. Only this machine and I remain as we are now; outside -there are gas lights in the farm houses along the dirt road to Elsby, -and in the town horses stand in the stables along the cinder alleys -behind the houses; and President McKinley is having dinner in the White -House....</i></p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>There was a sound behind Tremaine. He whirled. The ravaged scene -was gone. A great disc mirror stood across the cave, intersecting -the limestone wall. A man stepped through it, froze at the sight of -Tremaine. He was tall, with curly blond hair, fine-chiseled features, -broad shoulders.</p> - -<p>"Fdazh ha?" he said. Then his eyes slid past Tremaine, opened still -wider in astonishment. Tremaine followed the stranger's glance. A -young woman, dressed in a negligee of pale silk, stood in the door, a -hair-brush in her hand, her red hair flowing free to her waist. She -stood rigid in shock.</p> - -<p>Then....</p> - -<p>"Mr. Bram...!" she gasped. "What—"</p> - -<p>Tremaine found his voice. "Miss Carroll, don't be afraid," he said. -"I'm your friend, you must believe me."</p> - -<p>Linda Carroll turned wide eyes to him. "Who are you?" she breathed. "I -was in my bedroom—"</p> - -<p>"I can't explain. A miracle has been worked here tonight ... on your -behalf." Tremaine turned to Bram. "Look—" he started.</p> - -<p>"What man are you?" Bram cut in in heavily accented English. "How do -you come to this place?"</p> - -<p>"Listen to me, Bram!" Tremaine snapped. "Time is mutable. You stayed -here, to protect Linda Carroll—and Linda Carroll's world. You've just -made that decision, right?" Tremaine went on, not waiting for a reply. -"You were stuck here ... for sixty years. Earth technology developed -fast. One day a man stumbled in here, tracing down the signal from your -Repellor; that was me. You showed me how to use the device ... and with -it I wiped out the Niss. And then I set the clock back for you and -Linda Carroll. The Portal closes in two minutes. Don't waste time...."</p> - -<p>"Mutable time?" Bram said. He went past Tremaine to Linda. "Fair lady -of Earth," he said. "Do not fear...."</p> - -<p>"Sir, I hardly know you," Miss Carroll said. "How did I come here, -hardly clothed—"</p> - -<p>"Take her, Bram!" Tremaine shouted. "Take her and get back through that -Portal—fast." He looked at Linda Carroll. "Don't be afraid," he said. -"You know you love him; go with him now, or regret it all your days."</p> - -<p>"Will you come?" asked Bram. He held out his hand to her. Linda -hesitated, then put her hand in his. Bram went with her to the mirror -surface, handed her through. He looked back at Tremaine.</p> - -<p>"I do not understand, man of Earth," he said "But I thank you." Then he -was gone.</p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>Alone in the dim-lit grotto Tremaine let his hands fall from the -grips, staggered to the rocker and sank down. He felt weak, drained of -strength. His hands ached from the strain of the ordeal. How long had -it lasted? Five minutes? An hour? Or had it happened at all...?</p> - -<p>But Bram and Linda Carroll were gone. He hadn't imagined that. And the -Niss were defeated.</p> - -<p>But there was still his own world to contend with. The police would be -waiting, combing through the house. They would want to know what he had -done with Miss Carroll. Maybe there would be a murder charge. There'd -be no support from Fred and the Bureau. As for Jess, he was probably -in a cell now, looking a stiff sentence in the face for obstructing -justice....</p> - -<p>Tremaine got to his feet, cast a last glimpse at the empty room, -the outlandish shape of the Repellor, the mirrored portal. It was a -temptation to step through it. But this was his world, with all its -faults. Perhaps later, when his strength returned, he could try the -machine again....</p> - -<p>The thought appalled him. <i>The ashes of hate are worse than the ashes -of love</i>, he thought. He went to the stairs, climbed them, pressed the -button. Nothing happened. He pushed the panel aside by hand and stepped -into the kitchen. He circled the heavy table with the candlestick, -went along the hall and out onto the porch. It was almost the dawn of -a fresh spring day. There was no sign of the police. He looked at the -grassy lawn, the row of new-set saplings.</p> - -<p><i>Strange</i>, he thought. <i>I don't remember any saplings. I thought I -drove in under a row of trees....</i> He squinted into the misty early -morning gloom. His car was gone. That wasn't too surprising; the cops -had impounded it, no doubt. He stepped down, glanced at the ground -ahead. It was smooth, with a faint footpath cut through the grass. -There was no mud, no sign of tire tracks—</p> - -<p>The horizon seemed to spin suddenly. <i>My God!!</i> Tremaine thought <i>I've -left myself in the year 1901...!</i></p> - -<hr class="tb" /> - -<p>He whirled, leaped up on the porch, slammed through the door and along -the hall, scrambled through the still-open panel, bounded down the -stairs and into the cave—</p> - -<p>The Repellor was gone. Tremaine leaped forward with a cry—and under -his eyes, the great mirror twinkled, winked out. The black box of the -hyperwave receiver lay alone on the floor, beside the empty rocker. -The light of the kerosene lamp reflected from the featureless wall.</p> - -<p>Tremaine turned, stumbled up the steps, out into the air. The sun -showed a crimson edge just peeping above distant hills.</p> - -<p>1901, Tremaine thought. <i>The century has just turned. Somewhere a young -fellow named Ford is getting ready to put the nation on wheels, and two -boys named Wright are about to give it wings. No one ever heard of a -World War, or the roaring Twenties, or Prohibition, or FDR, or the Dust -Bowl, or Pearl Harbor. And Hiroshima and Nagasaki are just two cities -in distant floral Japan....</i></p> - -<p>He walked down the path, stood by the rutted dirt road. Placid cows -nuzzled damp grass in the meadow beyond it. In the distance a train -hooted.</p> - -<p><i>There are railroads</i>, Tremaine thought. <i>But no jet planes, no radio, -no movies, no automatic dish-washers. But then there's no TV, either. -That makes up for a lot. And there are no police waiting to grill me, -and no murder charge, and no neurotic nest of bureaucrats waiting to -welcome me back....</i></p> - -<p>He drew a deep breath. The air was sweet. <i>I'm here</i>, he thought. <i>I -feel the breeze on my face and the firm sod underfoot. It's real, and -it's all there is now, so I might as well take it calmly. After all, a -man with my education ought to be able to do well in this day and age!</i></p> - -<p>Whistling, Tremaine started the ten-mile walk into town.</p> - - - - - - - - -<pre> - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's The Long Remembered Thunder, by Keith Laumer - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE LONG REMEMBERED THUNDER *** - -***** This file should be named 52844-h.htm or 52844-h.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/2/8/4/52844/ - -Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: The Long Remembered Thunder - -Author: Keith Laumer - -Illustrator: Virgil Finlay - John Pederson - -Release Date: August 18, 2016 [EBook #52844] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE LONG REMEMBERED THUNDER *** - - - - -Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - - - - - THE LONG REMEMBERED THUNDER - - BY KEITH LAUMER - - [Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from - Worlds of Tomorrow April 1963 - Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that - the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.] - - - - - He was as ancient as time--and as strange as - his own frightful battle against incredible odds! - - -I - -In his room at the Elsby Commercial Hotel, Tremaine opened his luggage -and took out a small tool kit, used a screwdriver to remove the bottom -cover plate from the telephone. He inserted a tiny aluminum cylinder, -crimped wires and replaced the cover. Then he dialed a long-distance -Washington number and waited half a minute for the connection. - -"Fred, Tremaine here. Put the buzzer on." A thin hum sounded on the -wire as the scrambler went into operation. - -"Okay, can you read me all right? I'm set up in Elsby. Grammond's boys -are supposed to keep me informed. Meantime, I'm not sitting in this -damned room crouched over a dial. I'll be out and around for the rest -of the afternoon." - -"I want to see results," the thin voice came back over the filtered -hum of the jamming device. "You spent a week with Grammond--I can't -wait another. I don't mind telling you certain quarters are pressing -me." - -"Fred, when will you learn to sit on your news breaks until you've got -some answers to go with the questions?" - -"I'm an appointive official," Fred said sharply. "But never mind -that. This fellow Margrave--General Margrave. Project Officer for the -hyperwave program--he's been on my neck day and night. I can't say I -blame him. An unauthorized transmitter interfering with a Top Secret -project, progress slowing to a halt, and this Bureau--" - -"Look, Fred. I was happy in the lab. Headaches, nightmares and all. -Hyperwave is my baby, remember? You elected me to be a leg-man: now let -me do it my way." - -"I felt a technical man might succeed where a trained investigator -could be misled. And since it seems to be pinpointed in your home -area--" - -"You don't have to justify yourself. Just don't hold out on me. I -sometimes wonder if I've seen the complete files on this--" - -"You've seen all the files! Now I want answers, not questions! I'm -warning you, Tremaine. Get that transmitter. I need someone to hang!" - - * * * * * - -Tremaine left the hotel, walked two blocks west along Commerce Street -and turned in at a yellow brick building with the words ELSBY -MUNICIPAL POLICE cut in the stone lintel above the door. Inside, a -heavy man with a creased face and thick gray hair looked up from behind -an ancient Underwood. He studied Tremaine, shifted a toothpick to the -opposite corner of his mouth. - -"Don't I know you, mister?" he said. His soft voice carried a note of -authority. - -Tremaine took off his hat. "Sure you do, Jess. It's been a while, -though." - -The policeman got to his feet. "Jimmy," he said, "Jimmy Tremaine." He -came to the counter and put out his hand. "How are you, Jimmy? What -brings you back to the boondocks?" - -"Let's go somewhere and sit down, Jess." - -In a back room Tremaine said, "To everybody but you this is just a -visit to the old home town. Between us, there's more." - -Jess nodded. "I heard you were with the guv'ment." - -"It won't take long to tell; we don't know much yet." Tremaine covered -the discovery of the powerful unidentified interference on the -high-security hyperwave band, the discovery that each transmission -produced not one but a pattern of "fixes" on the point of origin. He -passed a sheet of paper across the table. It showed a set of concentric -circles, overlapped by a similar group of rings. - -"I think what we're getting is an echo effect from each of these -points of intersection. The rings themselves represent the diffraction -pattern--" - -"Hold it, Jimmy. To me it just looks like a beer ad. I'll take your -word for it." - -"The point is this, Jess: we think we've got it narrowed down to this -section. I'm not sure of a damn thing, but I think that transmitter's -near here. Now, have you got any ideas?" - -"That's a tough one, Jimmy. This is where I should come up with the -news that Old Man Whatchamacallit's got an attic full of gear he says -is a time machine. Trouble is, folks around here haven't even taken -to TV. They figure we should be content with radio, like the Lord -intended." - -"I didn't expect any easy answers, Jess. But I was hoping maybe you had -something ..." - -"Course," said Jess, "there's always Mr. Bram ..." - -"Mr. Bram," repeated Tremaine. "Is he still around? I remember him as a -hundred years old when I was kid." - -"Still just the same, Jimmy. Comes in town maybe once a week, buys his -groceries and hikes back out to his place by the river." - -"Well, what about him?" - -"Nothing. But he's the town's mystery man. You know that. A little -touched in the head." - -"There were a lot of funny stories about him, I remember," Tremaine -said. "I always liked him. One time he tried to teach me something -I've forgotten. Wanted me to come out to his place and he'd teach me. -I never did go. We kids used to play in the caves near his place, and -sometimes he gave us apples." - - * * * * * - -"I've never seen any harm in Bram," said Jess. "But you know how this -town is about foreigners, especially when they're a mite addled. Bram -has blue eyes and blond hair--or did before it turned white--and he -talks just like everybody else. From a distance he seems just like an -ordinary American. But up close, you feel it. He's foreign, all right. -But we never did know where he came from." - -"How long's he lived here in Elsby?" - -"Beats me, Jimmy. You remember old Aunt Tress, used to know all about -ancestors and such as that? She couldn't remember about Mr. Bram. She -was kind of senile, I guess. She used to say he'd lived in that same -old place out on the Concord road when she was a girl. Well, she died -five years ago ... in her seventies. He still walks in town every -Wednesday ... or he did up till yesterday anyway." - -"Oh?" Tremaine stubbed out his cigarette, lit another. "What happened -then?" - -"You remember Soup Gaskin? He's got a boy, name of Hull. He's Soup all -over again." - -"I remember Soup," Tremaine said. "He and his bunch used to come in -the drug store where I worked and perch on the stools and kid around -with me, and Mr. Hempleman would watch them from over back of the -prescription counter and look nervous. They used to raise cain in the -other drug store...." - -"Soup's been in the pen since then. His boy Hull's the same kind. Him -and a bunch of his pals went out to Bram's place one night and set it -on fire." - -"What was the idea of that?" - -"Dunno. Just meanness, I reckon. Not much damage done. A car was -passing by and called it in. I had the whole caboodle locked up here -for six hours. Then the sob sisters went to work: poor little tyke -routine, high spirits, you know the line. All of 'em but Hull are back -in the streets playin' with matches by now. I'm waiting for the day -they'll make jail age." - -"Why Bram?" Tremaine persisted. "As far as I know, he never had any -dealings to speak of with anybody here in town." - -"Oh hoh, you're a little young, Jimmy," Jess chuckled. "You never knew -about Mr. Bram--the young Mr. Bram--and Linda Carroll." - -Tremaine shook his head. - -"Old Miss Carroll. School teacher here for years; guess she was retired -by the time you were playing hookey. But her dad had money, and in -her day she was a beauty. Too good for the fellers in these parts. I -remember her ridin by in a high-wheeled shay, when I was just a nipper. -Sitting up proud and tall, with that red hair piled up high. I used to -think she was some kind of princess...." - -"What about her and Bram? A romance?" - - * * * * * - -Jess rocked his chair back on two legs, looked at the ceiling, -frowning. "This would ha' been about nineteen-oh-one. I was no more'n -eight years old. Miss Linda was maybe in her twenties--and that made -her an old maid, in those times. The word got out she was setting -her cap for Bram. He was a good-looking young feller then, over six -foot, of course, broad backed, curly yellow hair--and a stranger to -boot. Like I said, Linda Carroll wanted nothin to do with the local -bucks. There was a big shindy planned. Now, you know Bram was funny -about any kind of socializing; never would go any place at night. But -this was a Sunday afternoon and someways or other they got Bram down -there; and Miss Linda made her play, right there in front of the town, -practically. Just before sundown they went off together in that fancy -shay. And the next day, she was home again--alone. That finished off -her reputation, as far as the biddies in Elsby was concerned. It was -ten years 'fore she even landed the teaching job. By that time, she was -already old. And nobody was ever fool enough to mention the name Bram -in front of her." - -Tremaine got to his feet. "I'd appreciate it if you'd keep your ears -and eyes open for anything that might build into a lead on this, Jess. -Meantime, I'm just a tourist, seeing the sights." - -"What about that gear of yours? Didn't you say you had some kind of -detector you were going to set up?" - -"I've got an oversized suitcase," Tremaine said. "I'll be setting it up -in my room over at the hotel." - -"When's this bootleg station supposed to broadcast again?" - -"After dark. I'm working on a few ideas. It might be an infinitely -repeating logarithmic sequence, based on--" - -"Hold it, Jimmy. You're over my head." Jess got to his feet. "Let me -know if you want anything. And by the way--" he winked broadly--"I -always did know who busted Soup Gaskin's nose and took out his front -teeth." - - -II - -Back in the street, Tremaine headed south toward the Elsby Town -Hall, a squat structure of brownish-red brick, crouched under yellow -autumn trees at the end of Sheridan Street. Tremaine went up the -steps and past heavy double doors. Ten yards along the dim corridor, -a hand-lettered cardboard sign over a black-varnished door said -"MUNICIPAL OFFICE OF RECORD." Tremaine opened the door and went in. - -A thin man with garters above the elbow looked over his shoulder at -Tremaine. - -"We're closed," he said. - -"I won't be a minute," Tremaine said. "Just want to check on when the -Bram property changed hands last." - -The man turned to Tremaine, pushing a drawer shut with his hip. "Bram? -He dead?" - -"Nothing like that. I just want to know when he bought the place." - -The man came over to the counter, eyeing Tremaine. "He ain't going to -sell, mister, if that's what you want to know." - -"I want to know when he bought." - -The man hesitated, closed his jaw hard. "Come back tomorrow," he said. - -Tremaine put a hand on the counter, looked thoughtful. "I was hoping -to save a trip." He lifted his hand and scratched the side of his jaw. -A folded bill opened on the counter. The thin man's eyes darted toward -it. His hand eased out, covered the bill. He grinned quickly. - -"See what I can do," he said. - -It was ten minutes before he beckoned Tremaine over to the table where -a two-foot-square book lay open. An untrimmed fingernail indicated a -line written in faded ink: - -"May 19. Acreage sold, One Dollar and other G&V consid. NW Quarter -Section 24, Township Elsby. Bram. (see Vol. 9 & cet.)" - -"Translated, what does that mean?" said Tremaine. - -"That's the ledger for 1901; means Bram bought a quarter section on the -nineteenth of May. You want me to look up the deed?" - -"No, thanks," Tremaine said. "That's all I needed." He turned back to -the door. - -"What's up, mister?" the clerk called after him. "Bram in some kind of -trouble?" - -"No. No trouble." - -The man was looking at the book with pursed lips. "Nineteen-oh-one," -he said. "I never thought of it before, but you know, old Bram must be -dern near to ninety years old. Spry for that age." - -"I guess you're right." - -The clerk looked sideways at Tremaine. "Lots of funny stories about -old Bram. Useta say his place was haunted. You know; funny noises and -lights. And they used to say there was money buried out at his place." - -"I've heard those stories. Just superstition, wouldn't you say?" - -"Maybe so." The clerk leaned on the counter, assumed a knowing look. -"There's one story that's not superstition...." - -Tremaine waited. - -"You--uh--paying anything for information?" - -"Now why would I do that?" Tremaine reached for the door knob. - -The clerk shrugged. "Thought I'd ask. Anyway--I can swear to this. -Nobody in this town's ever seen Bram between sundown and sunup." - - * * * * * - -Untrimmed sumacs threw late-afternoon shadows on the discolored stucco -facade of the Elsby Public Library. Inside, Tremaine followed a -paper-dry woman of indeterminate age to a rack of yellowed newsprint. - -"You'll find back to nineteen-forty here," the librarian said. "The -older are there in the shelves." - -"I want nineteen-oh-one, if they go back that far." - -The woman darted a suspicious look at Tremaine. "You have to handle -these old papers carefully." - -"I'll be extremely careful." The woman sniffed, opened a drawer, leafed -through it, muttering. - -"What date was it you wanted?" - -"Nineteen-oh-one; the week of May nineteenth." - -The librarian pulled out a folded paper, placed it on the table, -adjusted her glasses, squinted at the front page. "That's it," she -said. "These papers keep pretty well, provided they're stored in the -dark. But they're still flimsy, mind you." - -"I'll remember." The woman stood by as Tremaine looked over the front -page. The lead article concerned the opening of the Pan-American -Exposition at Buffalo. Vice-President Roosevelt had made a speech. -Tremaine leafed over, reading slowly. - -On page four, under a column headed _County Notes_ he saw the name Bram: - - Mr. Bram has purchased a quarter section of fine grazing land, - north of town, together with a sturdy house, from J. P. Spivey of - Elsby. Mr. Bram will occupy the home and will continue to graze a - few head of stock. Mr. Bram, who is a newcomer to the county, has - been a resident of Mrs. Stoate's Guest Home in Elsby for the past - months. - -"May I see some earlier issues; from about the first of the year?" - -The librarian produced the papers. Tremaine turned the pages, read the -heads, skimmed an article here and there. The librarian went back to -her desk. An hour later, in the issue for July 7, 1900, an item caught -his eye: - - A Severe Thunderstorm. Citizens of Elsby and the country were much - alarmed by a violent cloudburst, accompanied by lightning and - thunder, during the night of the fifth. A fire set in the pine - woods north of Spivey's farm destroyed a considerable amount of - timber and threatened the house before burning itself out along - the river. - -The librarian was at Tremaine's side. "I have to close the library now. -You'll have to come back tomorrow." - -Outside, the sky was sallow in the west: lights were coming on in -windows along the side streets. Tremaine turned up his collar against a -cold wind that had risen, started along the street toward the hotel. - -A block away a black late-model sedan rounded a corner with a faint -squeal of tires and gunned past him, a heavy antenna mounted forward -of the left rear tail fin whipping in the slipstream. Tremaine stopped -short, stared after the car. - -"Damn!" he said aloud. An elderly man veered, eyeing him sharply. -Tremaine set off at a run, covered the two blocks to the hotel, yanked -open the door to his car, slid into the seat, made a U-turn, and headed -north after the police car. - - * * * * * - -Two miles into the dark hills north of the Elsby city limits, Tremaine -rounded a curve. The police car was parked on the shoulder beside the -highway just ahead. He pulled off the road ahead of it and walked back. -The door opened. A tall figure stepped out. - -"What's your problem, mister?" a harsh voice drawled. - -"What's the matter? Run out of signal?" - -"What's it to you, mister?" - -"Are you boys in touch with Grammond on the car set?" - -"We could be." - -"Mind if I have a word with him? My name's Tremaine." - -"Oh," said the cop, "you're the big shot from Washington." He shifted -chewing tobacco to the other side of his jaw. "Sure, you can talk to -him." He turned and spoke to the other cop, who muttered into the mike -before handing it to Tremaine. - -The heavy voice of the State Police chief crackled. "What's your beef, -Tremaine?" - -"I thought you were going to keep your men away from Elsby until I gave -the word, Grammond." - -"That was before I knew your Washington stuffed shirts were holding out -on me." - -"It's nothing we can go to court with, Grammond. And the job you were -doing might have been influenced if I'd told you about the Elsby angle." - -Grammond cursed. "I could have put my men in the town and taken it -apart brick by brick in the time--" - -"That's just what I don't want. If our bird sees cops cruising, he'll -go underground." - -"You've got it all figured, I see. I'm just the dumb hick you boys use -for the spade work, that it?" - -"Pull your lip back in. You've given me the confirmation I needed." - -"Confirmation, hell! All I know is that somebody somewhere is punching -out a signal. For all I know, it's forty midgets on bicycles, pedalling -all over the damned state. I've got fixes in every county--" - -"The smallest hyperwave transmitter Uncle Sam knows how to build weighs -three tons," said Tremaine. "Bicycles are out." - -Grammond snorted. "Okay, Tremaine," he said. "You're the boy with all -the answers. But if you get in trouble, don't call me; call Washington." - - * * * * * - -Back in his room, Tremaine put through a call. - -"It looks like Grammond's not willing to be left out in the cold, Fred. -Tell him if he queers this--" - -"I don't know but what he might have something," the voice came back -over the filtered hum. "Suppose he smokes them out--" - -"Don't go dumb on me, Fred. We're not dealing with West Virginia -moonshiners." - -"Don't tell me my job, Tremaine!" the voice snapped. "And don't try out -your famous temper on me. I'm still in charge of this investigation." - -"Sure. Just don't get stuck in some senator's hip pocket." Tremaine -hung up the telephone, went to the dresser and poured two fingers of -Scotch into a water glass. He tossed it down, then pulled on his coat -and left the hotel. - -He walked south two blocks, turned left down a twilit side street. He -walked slowly, looking at the weathered frame houses. Number 89 was a -once-stately three-storied mansion overgrown with untrimmed vines, its -windows squares of sad yellow light. He pushed through the gate in the -ancient picket fence, mounted the porch steps and pushed the button -beside the door, a dark panel of cracked varnish. It was a long minute -before the door opened. A tall woman with white hair and a fine-boned -face looked at him coolly. - -"Miss Carroll," Tremaine said. "You won't remember me, but I--" - -"There is nothing whatever wrong with my faculties, James," Miss -Carroll said calmly. Her voice was still resonant, a deep contralto. -Only a faint quaver reflected her age--close to eighty, Tremaine -thought, startled. - -"I'm flattered you remember me, Miss Carroll," he said. - -"Come in." She led the way to a pleasant parlor set out with the -furnishings of another era. She motioned Tremaine to a seat and took a -straight chair across the room from him. - -"You look very well, James," she said, nodding. "I'm pleased to see -that you've amounted to something." - -"Just another bureaucrat, I'm afraid." - -"You were wise to leave Elsby. There is no future here for a young man." - -"I often wondered why you didn't leave, Miss Carroll. I thought, even -as a boy, that you were a woman of great ability." - -"Why did you come today, James?" asked Miss Carroll. - -"I...." Tremaine started. He looked at the old lady. "I want some -information. This is an important matter. May I rely on your -discretion?" - -"Of course." - -"How long has Mr. Bram lived in Elsby?" - - * * * * * - -Miss Carroll looked at him for a long moment. "Will what I tell you be -used against him?" - -"There'll be nothing done against him, Miss Carroll ... unless it needs -to be in the national interest." - -"I'm not at all sure I know what the term 'national interest' means, -James. I distrust these glib phrases." - -"I always liked Mr. Bram," said Tremaine. "I'm not out to hurt him." - -"Mr. Bram came here when I was a young woman. I'm not certain of the -year." - -"What does he do for a living?" - -"I have no idea." - -"Why did a healthy young fellow like Bram settle out in that isolated -piece of country? What's his story?" - -"I'm ... not sure that anyone truly knows Bram's story." - -"You called him 'Bram', Miss Carroll. Is that his first name ... or his -last?" - -"That is his only name. Just ... Bram." - -"You knew him well once, Miss Carroll. Is there anything--" - -A tear rolled down Miss Carroll's faded cheek. She wiped it away -impatiently. - -"I'm an unfulfilled old maid, James," she said. "You must forgive me." - -Tremaine stood up. "I'm sorry. Really sorry. I didn't mean to grill -you. Miss Carroll. You've been very kind. I had no right...." - -Miss Carroll shook her head. "I knew you as a boy, James. I have -complete confidence in you. If anything I can tell you about Bram will -be helpful to you, it is my duty to oblige you; and it may help him." -She paused. Tremaine waited. - -"Many years ago I was courted by Bram. One day he asked me to go with -him to his house. On the way he told me a terrible and pathetic tale. -He said that each night he fought a battle with evil beings, alone, in -a cave beneath his house." - -Miss Carroll drew a deep breath and went on. "I was torn between pity -and horror. I begged him to take me back. He refused." Miss Carroll -twisted her fingers together, her eyes fixed on the long past. "When -we reached the house, he ran to the kitchen. He lit a lamp and threw -open a concealed panel. There were stairs. He went down ... and left me -there alone. - -"I waited all that night in the carriage. At dawn he emerged. He tried -to speak to me but I would not listen. - -"He took a locket from his neck and put it into my hand. He told me to -keep it and, if ever I should need him, to press it between my fingers -in a secret way ... and he would come. I told him that until he would -consent to see a doctor, I did not wish him to call. He drove me home. -He never called again." - -"This locket," said Tremaine, "do you still have it?" - -Miss Carroll hesitated, then put her hand to her throat, lifted a -silver disc on a fine golden chain. "You see what a foolish old woman I -am, James." - -"May I see it?" - -She handed the locket to him. It was heavy, smooth. "I'd like to -examine this more closely," he said. "May I take it with me?" - -Miss Carroll nodded. - -"There is one other thing," she said, "perhaps quite meaningless...." - -"I'd be grateful for any lead." - -"Bram fears the thunder." - - -III - -As Tremaine walked slowly toward the lighted main street of Elsby a car -pulled to a stop beside him. Jess leaned out, peered at Tremaine and -asked: - -"Any luck, Jimmy?" - -Tremaine shook his head. "I'm getting nowhere fast. The Bram idea's a -dud, I'm afraid." - -"Funny thing about Bram. You know, he hasn't showed up yet. I'm getting -a little worried. Want to run out there with me and take a look around?" - -"Sure. Just so I'm back by full dark." - -As they pulled away from the curb Jess said, "Jimmy, what's this about -State Police nosing around here? I thought you were playing a lone hand -from what you were saying to me." - -"I thought so too, Jess. But it looks like Grammond's a jump ahead of -me. He smells headlines in this; he doesn't want to be left out." - -"Well, the State cops could be mighty handy to have around. I'm -wondering why you don't want 'em in. If there's some kind of spy ring -working--" - -"We're up against an unknown quantity. I don't know what's behind this -and neither does anybody else. Maybe it's a ring of Bolsheviks ... -and maybe it's something bigger. I have the feeling we've made enough -mistakes in the last few years; I don't want to see this botched." - -The last pink light of sunset was fading from the clouds to the west as -Jess swung the car through the open gate, pulled up under the old trees -before the square-built house. The windows were dark. The two men got -out, circled the house once, then mounted the steps and rapped on the -door. There was a black patch of charred flooring under the window, and -the paint on the wall above it was bubbled. Somewhere a cricket set up -a strident chirrup, suddenly cut off. Jess leaned down, picked up an -empty shotgun shell. He looked at Tremaine. "This don't look good," he -said. "You suppose those fool boys...?" - -He tried the door. It opened. A broken hasp dangled. He turned to -Tremaine. "Maybe this is more than kid stuff," he said. "You carry a -gun?" - -"In the car." - -"Better get it." - -Tremaine went to the car, dropped the pistol in his coat pocket, -rejoined Jess inside the house. It was silent, deserted. In the kitchen -Jess flicked the beam of his flashlight around the room. An empty plate -lay on the oilcloth-covered table. - -"This place is empty," he said. "Anybody'd think he'd been gone a week." - -"Not a very cozy--" Tremaine broke off. A thin yelp sounded in the -distance. - -"I'm getting jumpy," said Jess. "Dern hounddog, I guess." - -A low growl seemed to rumble distantly. "What the devil's that?" -Tremaine said. - -Jess shone the light on the floor. "Look here," he said. The ring of -light showed a spatter of dark droplets all across the plank floor. - -"That's blood, Jess...." Tremaine scanned the floor. It was of broad -slabs, closely laid, scrubbed clean but for the dark stains. - -"Maybe he cleaned a chicken. This is the kitchen." - -"It's a trail." Tremaine followed the line of drops across the floor. -It ended suddenly near the wall. - -"What do you make of it. Jimmy?" - -A wail sounded, a thin forlorn cry, trailing off into silence. Jess -stared at Tremaine. "I'm too damned old to start believing in spooks," -he said. "You suppose those damn-fool boys are hiding here, playing -tricks?" - -"I think." Tremaine said, "that we'd better go ask Hull Gaskin a few -questions." - - * * * * * - -At the station Jess led Tremaine to a cell where a lanky teen-age boy -lounged on a steel-framed cot, blinking up at the visitor under a mop -of greased hair. - -"Hull, this is Mr. Tremaine," said Jess. He took out a heavy key, swung -the cell door open. "He wants to talk to you." - -"I ain't done nothin," Hull said sullenly. "There ain't nothin wrong -with burnin out a Commie, is there?" - -"Bram's a Commie, is he?" Tremaine said softly. "How'd you find that -out, Hull?" - -"He's a foreigner, ain't he?" the youth shot back. "Besides, we -heard...." - -"What did you hear?" - -"They're lookin for the spies." - -"Who's looking for spies?" - -"Cops." - -"Who says so?" - -The boy looked directly at Tremaine for an instant, flicked his eyes to -the corner of the cell. "Cops was talkin about 'em," he said. - -"Spill it, Hull," the policeman said. "Mr. Tremaine hasn't got all -night." - -"They parked out east of town, on 302, back of the woodlot. They called -me over and asked me a bunch of questions. Said I could help 'em get -them spies. Wanted to know all about any funny-actin people around -hers." - -"And you mentioned Bram?" - -The boy darted another look at Tremaine. "They said they figured the -spies was out north of town. Well, Bram's a foreigner, and he's out -that way, ain't he?" - -"Anything else?" - -The boy looked at his feet. - - * * * * * - -"What did you shoot at, Hull?" Tremaine said. The boy looked at him -sullenly. - -"You know anything about the blood on the kitchen floor?" - -"I don't know what you're talkin about," Hull said. "We was out -squirrel-huntin." - -"Hull, is Mr. Bram dead?" - -"What you mean?" Hull blurted. "He was--" - -"He was what?" - -"Nothin." - -"The Chief won't like it if you hold out on him, Hull," Tremaine said. -"He's bound to find out." - -Jess looked at the boy. "Hull's a pretty dumb boy," he said. "But he's -not that dumb. Let's have it, Hull." - -The boy licked his lips. "I had Pa's 30-30, and Bovey Lay had a -twelve-gauge...." - -"What time was this?" - -"Just after sunset." - -"About seven-thirty, that'd be," said Jess. "That was half an hour -before the fire was spotted." - -"I didn't do no shootin. It was Bovey. Old Bram jumped out at him, and -he just fired off the hip. But he didn't kill him. He seen him run -off...." - -"You were on the porch when this happened. Which way did Bram go?" - -"He ... run inside." - -"So then you set fire to the place. Whose bright idea was that?" - -Hull sat silent. After a moment Tremaine and Jess left the cell. - -"He must have gotten clear, Jimmy," said Jess. "Maybe he got scared and -left town." - -"Bram doesn't strike me as the kind to panic." Tremaine looked at his -watch. "I've got to get on my way, Jess. I'll check with you in the -morning." - -Tremaine crossed the street to the Paradise Bar and Grill, pushed -into the jukebox-lit interior, took a stool and ordered a Scotch and -water. He sipped the drink, then sat staring into the dark reflection -in the glass. The idea of a careful reconnoitre of the Elsby area was -gone, now, with police swarming everywhere. It was too bad about Bram. -It would be interesting to know where the old man was ... and if he -was still alive. He'd always seemed normal enough in the old days: a -big solid-looking man, middle-aged, always pleasant enough, though he -didn't say much. He'd tried hard, that time, to interest Tremaine in -learning whatever it was.... - -Tremaine put a hand in his jacket pocket, took out Miss Carroll's -locket. It was smooth, the size and shape of a wrist-watch chassis. -He was fingering it meditatively when a rough hand slammed against -his shoulder, half knocking him from the stool. Tremaine caught his -balance, turned, looked into the scarred face of a heavy-shouldered man -in a leather jacket. - -"I heard you was back in town, Tremaine," the man said. - -The bartender moved up. "Looky here, Gaskin, I don't want no trouble--" - -"Shove it!" Gaskin squinted at Tremaine, his upper lip curled back to -expose the gap in his teeth. "You tryin to make more trouble for my -boy, I hear. Been over to the jail, stickin your nose in." - - * * * * * - -Tremaine dropped the locket in his pocket and stood up. Gaskin hitched -up his pants, glanced around the room. Half a dozen early drinkers -stared, wide-eyed. Gaskin squinted at Tremaine. He smelled of unwashed -flannel. - -"Sicked the cops onto him. The boy was out with his friends, havin a -little fun. Now there he sets in jail." - -Tremaine moved aside from the stool, started past the man. Soup Gaskin -grabbed his arm. - -"Not so fast! I figger you owe me damages. I--" - -"Damage is what you'll get," said Tremaine. He slammed a stiff left -to Gaskin's ribs, drove a hard right to the jaw. Gaskin jack-knifed -backwards, tripped over a bar stool, fell on his back. He rolled over, -got to hands and knees, shook his head. - -"Git up, Soup!" someone called. "Hot dog!" offered another. - -"I'm calling the police!" the bartender yelled. - -"Never mind," a voice said from the door. A blue-jacketed State Trooper -strolled into the room, fingers hooked into his pistol belt, the steel -caps on his boot heels clicking with each step. He faced Tremaine, feet -apart. - -"Looks like you're disturbin the peace, Mr. Tremaine," he said. - -"You wouldn't know who put him up to it, would you?" Tremaine said. - -"That's a dirty allegation," the cop grinned. "I'll have to get off a -hot letter to my congressman." - -Gaskin got to his feet, wiped a smear of blood across his cheek, then -lunged past the cop and swung a wild right. Tremaine stepped aside, -landed a solid punch on Gaskin's ear. The cop stepped back against the -bar. Soup whirled, slammed out with lefts and rights. Tremaine lashed -back with a straight left; Gaskin slammed against the bar, rebounded, -threw a knockout right ... and Tremaine ducked, landed a right -upper-cut that sent Gaskin reeling back, bowled over a table, sent -glasses flying. Tremaine stood over him. - -"On your feet, jailbird," he said. "A workout is exactly what I needed." - -"Okay, you've had your fun," the State cop said. "I'm taking you in, -Tremaine." - -Tremaine looked at him. "Sorry, copper," he said. "I don't have time -right now." The cop looked startled, reached for his revolver. - -"What's going on here, Jimmy?" Jess stood in the door, a huge .44 in -his hand. He turned his eyes on the trooper. - -"You're a little out of your jurisdiction," he said. "I think you -better move on 'fore somebody steals your bicycle." - -The cop eyed Jess for a long moment, then holstered his pistol and -stalked out of the bar. Jess tucked his revolver into his belt, looked -at Gaskin sitting on the floor, dabbing at his bleeding mouth. "What -got into you, Soup?" - -"I think the State boys put him up to it," Tremaine said. "They're -looking for an excuse to take me out of the picture." - -Jess motioned to Gaskin. "Get up, Soup. I'm lockin you up alongside -that boy of yours." - -Outside, Jess said, "You got some bad enemies there, Jimmy. That's a -tough break. You ought to hold onto your temper with those boys. I -think maybe you ought to think about getting over the state line. I can -run you to the bus station, and send your car along...." - -"I can't leave now, Jess. I haven't even started." - - -IV - -In his room, Tremaine doctored the cut on his jaw, then opened his -trunk, checked over the detector gear. The telephone rang. - -"Tremaine? I've been on the telephone with Grammond. Are you out of -your mind? I'm--" - -"Fred," Tremaine cut in, "I thought you were going to get those state -cops off my neck." - -"Listen to me, Tremaine. You're called off this job as of now. Don't -touch anything! You'd better stay right there in that room. In fact, -that's an order!" - -"Don't pick now to come apart at the seams, Fred," Tremaine snapped. - -"I've ordered you off! That's all!" The phone clicked and the dial tone -sounded. Tremaine dropped the receiver in its cradle, then walked to -the window absently, his hand in his pocket. - -He felt broken pieces and pulled out Miss Carroll's locket. It was -smashed, split down the center. It must have gotten it in the tussle -with Soup, Tremaine thought. It looked-- - -He squinted at the shattered ornament. A maze of fine wires was -exposed, tiny condensers, bits of glass. - -In the street below, tires screeched. Tremaine looked down. A black car -was at the curb, doors sprung. Four uniformed men jumped out, headed -for the door. Tremaine whirled to the phone. The desk clerk came on. - -"Get me Jess--fast!" - -The police chief answered. - -"Jess, the word's out I'm poison. An earful of State law is at the -front door. I'm going out the back. Get in their way all you can." -Tremaine dropped the phone, grabbed up the suitcase and let himself out -into the hall. The back stairs were dark. He stumbled, cursed, made it -to the service entry. Outside, the alley was deserted. - -He went to the corner, crossed the street, thrust the suitcase into the -back seat of his car and slid into the driver's seat. He started up and -eased away from the curb. He glanced in the mirror. There was no alarm. - -It was a four-block drive to Miss Carroll's house. The housekeeper let -Tremaine in. - -"Oh, yes, Miss Carroll is still up," she said. "She never retires -until nine. I'll tell her you're here, Mr. Tremaine." - - * * * * * - -Tremaine paced the room. On his third circuit Miss Carroll came in. - -"I wouldn't have bothered you if it wasn't important," Tremaine said. -"I can't explain it all now. You said once you had confidence in me. -Will you come with me now? It concerns Bram ... and maybe a lot more -than just Bram." - -Miss Carroll looked at him steadily. "I'll get my wrap." - -On the highway Tremaine said, "Miss Carroll, we're headed for Bram's -house. I take it you've heard of what happened out there?" - -"No, James. I haven't stirred out of the house. What is it?" - -"A gang of teen-age toughs went out last night. They had guns. One of -them took a shot at Bram. And Bram's disappeared. But I don't think -he's dead." - -Miss Carroll gasped. "Why? Why did they do it?" - -"I don't think they know themselves." - -"You say ... you believe he still lives...." - -"He must be alive. It dawned on me a little while ago ... a little -late, I'll admit. The locket he gave you. Did you ever try it?" - -"Try it? Why ... no. I don't believe in magic, James." - -"Not magic. Electronics. Years ago Bram talked to me about radio. -He wanted to teach me. Now I'm here looking for a transmitter. That -transmitter was busy last night. I think Bram was operating it." - -There was a long silence. - -"James," Miss Carroll said at last, "I don't understand." - -"Neither do I, Miss Carroll. I'm still working on finding the pieces. -But let me ask you: that night that Bram brought you out to his place. -You say he ran to the kitchen and opened a trapdoor in the floor--" - -"Did I say floor? That was an error: the panel was in the wall." - -"I guess I jumped to the conclusion. Which wall?" - -"He crossed the room. There was a table, with a candlestick. He went -around it and pressed his hand against the wall, beside the wood-box. -The panel slid aside. It was very dark within. He ducked his head, -because the opening was not large, and stepped inside...." - -"That would be the east wall ... to the left of the back door?" - -"Yes." - -"Now, Miss Carroll, can you remember exactly what Bram said to you that -night? Something about fighting something, wasn't it?" - -"I've tried for sixty years to put it out of my mind, James. But I -remember every word, I think." She was silent for a moment. - - * * * * * - -"I was beside him on the buggy seat. It was a warm evening, late in -spring. I had told him that I loved him, and ... he had responded. He -said that he would have spoken long before, but that he had not dared. -Now there was that which I must know. - -"His life was not his own, he said. He was not ... native to this -world. He was an agent of a mighty power, and he had trailed a band -of criminals...." She broke off. "I could not truly understand that -part, James. I fear it was too incoherent. He raved of evil beings who -lurked in the shadows of a cave. It was his duty to wage each night an -unceasing battle with occult forces." - -"What kind of battle? Were these ghosts, or demons, or what?" - -"I don't know. Evil powers which would be unloosed on the world, -unless he met them at the portal as the darkness fell and opposed them." - -"Why didn't he get help?" - -"Only he could stand against them. I knew little of abnormal -psychology, but I understood the classic evidence of paranoia. I shrank -from him. He sat, leaning forward, his eyes intent. I wept and begged -him to take me back. He turned his face to me, and I saw the pain and -anguish in his eyes. I loved him ... and feared him. And he would not -turn back. Night was falling, and the enemy awaited him." - -"Then, when you got to the house...?" - -"He had whipped up the horses, and I remember how I clung to the top -braces, weeping. Then we were at the house. Without a word he jumped -down and ran to the door. I followed. He lit a lamp and turned to me. -From somewhere there was a wailing call, like an injured animal. He -shouted something--an unintelligible cry--and ran toward the back of -the house. I took up the lamp and followed. In the kitchen he went to -the wall, pressed against it. The panel opened. He looked at me. His -face was white. - -"'In the name of the High God. Linda Carroll, I entreat you....' - -"I screamed. And he hardened his face, and went down ... and I screamed -and screamed again...." Miss Carroll closed her eyes, drew a shuddering -breath. - -"I'm sorry to have put you through this, Miss Carroll," Tremaine said. -"But I had to know." - -Faintly in the distance a siren sounded. In the mirror, headlights -twinkled half a mile behind. Tremaine stepped on the gas. The powerful -car leaped ahead. - -"Are you expecting trouble on the road, James?" - -"The State police are unhappy with me, Miss Carroll. And I imagine -they're not too pleased with Jess. Now they're out for blood. But I -think I can outrun them." - -"James." Miss Carroll said, sitting up and looking behind. "If those -are police officers, shouldn't you stop?" - -"I can't, Miss Carroll. I don't have time for them now. If my idea -means anything, we've got to get there fast...." - - * * * * * - -Bram's house loomed gaunt and dark as the car whirled through the gate, -ground to a stop before the porch. Tremaine jumped out, went around the -car and helped Miss Carroll out. He was surprised at the firmness of -her step. For a moment, in the fading light of dusk, he glimpsed her -profile. _How beautiful she must have been...._ - -He reached into the glove compartment for a flashlight. - -"We haven't got a second to waste," he said. "That other car's not more -than a minute behind us." He reached into the back of the car, hauled -out the heavy suitcase. "I hope you remember how Bram worked that -panel." - -On the porch Tremaine's flashlight illuminated the broken hasp. -Inside, he led the way along a dark hall, pushed into the kitchen. - -"It was there," Miss Carroll said, pointing. Outside, an engine sounded -on the highway, slowing, turning in. Headlights pushed a square of cold -light across the kitchen wall. Tremaine jumped to the spot Miss Carroll -had indicated, put the suitcase down, felt over the wall. - -"Give me the light, James," Miss Carroll said calmly. "Press there." -She put the spot on the wall. Tremaine leaned against it. Nothing -happened. Outside, there was the thump of car doors; a muffled voice -barked orders. - -"Are you sure...?" - -"Yes. Try again, James." - -Tremaine threw himself against the wall, slapped at it, searching for a -hidden latch. - -"A bit higher; Bram was a tall man. The panel opened below...." - -Tremaine reached higher, pounded, pushed up, sideways-- - -With a click a three by four foot section of wall rolled silently -aside. Tremaine saw greased metal slides and, beyond, steps leading -down. - -"They are on the porch now, James," said Miss Carroll. - -"The light!" Tremaine reached for it, threw a leg over the sill. He -reached back, pulled the suitcase after him. "Tell them I kidnapped -you, Miss Carroll. And thanks." - -Miss Carroll held out her hand. "Help me, James. I hung back once -before. I'll not repeat my folly." - -Tremaine hesitated for an instant, then reached out, handed Miss -Carroll in. Footsteps sounded in the hall. The flashlight showed -Tremaine a black pushbutton bolted to a two by four stud. He pressed -it. The panel slid back in place. - -Tremaine flashed the light on the stairs. - -"Okay, Miss Carroll," he said softly. "Let's go down." - - * * * * * - -There were fifteen steps, and at the bottom, a corridor, with curved -walls of black glass, and a floor of rough boards. It went straight -for twenty feet and ended at an old-fashioned five-panel wooden door. -Tremaine tried the brass knob. The door opened on a room shaped from -a natural cave, with waterworn walls of yellow stone, a low uneven -ceiling, and a packed-earth floor. On a squat tripod in the center -of the chamber rested an apparatus of black metal and glass, vaguely -gunlike, aimed at the blank wall. Beside it, in an ancient wooden -rocker, a man lay slumped, his shirt blood-caked, a black puddle on the -floor beneath him. - -"Bram!" Miss Carroll gasped. She went to him, took his hand, staring -into his face. - -"Is he dead?" Tremaine said tightly. - -"His hands are cold ... but there is a pulse." - -A kerosene lantern stood by the door. Tremaine lit it, brought it to -the chair. He took out a pocket knife, cut the coat and shirt back from -Bram's wound. A shotgun blast had struck him in the side; there was a -lacerated area as big as Tremaine's hand. - -"It's stopped bleeding," he said. "It was just a graze at close range, -I'd say." He explored further. "It got his arm too, but not as deep. -And I think there are a couple of ribs broken. If he hasn't lost too -much blood...." Tremaine pulled off his coat, spread it on the floor. - -"Let's lay him out here and try to bring him around." - -Lying on his back on the floor, Bram looked bigger than his -six-foot-four, younger than his near-century, Tremaine thought. Miss -Carroll knelt at the old man's side, chafing his hands, murmuring to -him. - -Abruptly a thin cry cut the air. - -Tremaine whirled, startled. Miss Carroll stared, eyes wide. A low -rumble sounded, swelled louder, broke into a screech, cut off. - -"Those are the sounds I heard that night," Miss Carroll breathed. "I -thought afterwards I had imagined them, but I remember.... James, what -does it mean?" - -"Maybe it means Bram wasn't as crazy as you thought," Tremaine said. - -Miss Carroll gasped sharply. "James! Look at the wall--" - -Tremaine turned. Vague shadows moved across the stone, flickering, -wavering. - -"What the devil...!" - -Bram moaned, stirred. Tremaine went to him. "Bram!" he said. "Wake up!" - -Bram's eyes opened. For a moment he looked dazedly at Tremaine, then -at Miss Carroll. Awkwardly he pushed himself to a sitting position. - -"Bram ... you must lie down," Miss Carroll said. - -"Linda Carroll," Bram said. His voice was deep, husky. - -"Bram, you're hurt ..." - -A mewling wail started up. Bram went rigid "What hour is this?" he -grated. - -"The sun has just gone down; it's after seven--" - -Bram tried to get to his feet. "Help me up," he ordered. "Curse the -weakness...." - -Tremaine got a hand under the old man's arm. "Careful, Bram," he said. -"Don't start your wound bleeding again." - -"To the Repellor," Bram muttered. Tremaine guided him to the rocking -chair, eased him down. Bram seized the two black pistol-grips, squeezed -them. - -"You, young man," Bram said. "Take the circlet there; place it about my -neck." - - * * * * * - -The flat-metal ring hung from a wire loop. Tremaine fitted it over -Bram's head. It settled snugly over his shoulders, a flange at the back -against his neck. - -"Bram," Tremaine said. "What's this all about?" - -"Watch the wall there. My sight grows dim. Tell me what you see." - -"It looks like shadows: but what's casting them?" - -"Can you discern details?" - -"No. It's like somebody waggling their fingers in front of a slide -projector." - -"The radiation from the star is yet too harsh," Bram muttered. "But now -the node draws close. May the High Gods guide my hand!" - -A howl rang out, a raw blast of sound. Bram tensed. "What do you see?" -he demanded. - -"The outlines are sharper. There seem to be other shapes behind the -moving ones. It's like looking through a steamy window...." Beyond the -misty surface Tremaine seemed to see a high narrow chamber, bathed in -white light. In the foreground creatures like shadowy caricatures of -men paced to and fro. "They're like something stamped out of alligator -hide," Tremaine whispered. "When they turn and I see them edge-on, -they're thin...." - -"An effect of dimensional attenuation. They strive now to match -matrices with this plane. If they succeed, this earth you know will lie -at their feet." - -"What are they? Where are they? That's solid rock--" - -"What you see is the Niss Command Center. It lies in another world -than this, but here is the multihedron of intersection. They bring -their harmonic generators to bear here in the hope of establishing an -aperture of focus." - -"I don't understand half of what you're saying, Bram. And the rest I -don't believe. But with this staring me in the face, I'll have to act -as though I did." - - * * * * * - -Suddenly the wall cleared. Like a surface of moulded glass the stone -threw back ghostly highlights. Beyond it, the Niss technicians, seen -now in sharp detail, worked busily, silently, their faces like masks -of ridged red-brown leather. Directly opposite Bram's Repellor, an -apparatus like an immense camera with a foot-wide silvered lens stood -aimed, a black-clad Niss perched in a saddle atop it. The white light -flooded the cave, threw black shadows across the floor. Bram hunched -over the Repellor, face tensed in strain. A glow built in the air -around the Niss machine. The alien technicians stood now, staring -with tiny bright-red eyes. Long seconds passed. The black-clad Niss -gestured suddenly. Another turned to a red-marked knife-switch, pulled. -As suddenly as it had cleared, the wall went milky, then dulled to -opacity. Bram slumped back, eyes shut, breathing hoarsely. - -"Near were they then," he muttered, "I grow weak...." - -"Let me take over," Tremaine said. "Tell me how." - -"How can I tell you? You will not understand." - -"Maybe I'll understand enough to get us through the night." - -Bram seemed to gather himself. "Very well. This must you know.... - -"I am an agent in the service of the Great World. For centuries we have -waged war against the Niss, evil beings who loot the continua. They -established an Aperture here, on your Earth. We detected it, and found -that a Portal could be set up here briefly. I was dispatched with a -crew to counter their move--" - -"You're talking gibberish," Tremaine said. "I'll pass the Great World -and the continua ... but what's an Aperture?" - -"A point of material contact between the Niss world and this plane of -space-time. Through it they can pump this rich planet dry of oxygen, -killing it--then emerge to feed on the corpse." - -"What's a Portal?" - -"The Great World lies in a different harmonic series than do Earth -and the Niss World. Only at vast intervals can we set up a Portal of -temporary identity as the cycles mesh. We monitor the Niss emanations, -and forestall them when we can, now in this plane, now in that." - -"I see: denial to the enemy." - -"But we were late. Already the multihedron was far advanced. A -blinding squall lashed outside the river cave where the Niss had -focused the Aperture, and the thunder rolled as the ionization effect -was propagated in the atmosphere. I threw my force against the Niss -Aperture, but could not destroy it ... but neither could they force -their entry." - -"And this was sixty years ago? And they're still at it?" - - * * * * * - -"You must throw off the illusion of time! To the Niss only a few days -have passed. But here--where I spend only minutes from each night in -the engagement, as the patterns coincide--it has been long years." - -"Why don't you bring in help? Why do you have to work alone?" - -"The power required to hold the Portal in focus against the stresses -of space-time is tremendous. Even then the cycle is brief. It gave us -first a fleeting contact of a few seconds; it was through that that we -detected the Niss activity here. The next contact was four days later, -and lasted twenty-four minutes--long enough to set up the Repellor. I -fought them then ... and saw that victory was in doubt. Still, it was a -fair world; I could not let it go without a struggle. A third identity -was possible twenty days later; I elected to remain here until then, -attempt to repel the Niss, then return home at the next contact. The -Portal closed, and my crew and I settled down to the engagement. - -"The next night showed us in full the hopelessness of the contest. By -day, we emerged from where the Niss had focussed the Aperture, and -explored this land, and came to love its small warm sun, its strange -blue sky, its mantle of green ... and the small humble grass-blades. To -us of an ancient world it seemed a paradise of young life. And then I -ventured into the town ... and there I saw such a maiden as the Cosmos -has forgotten, such was her beauty.... - -"The twenty days passed. The Niss held their foothold--yet I had kept -them back. - -"The Portal reopened. I ordered my crew back. It closed. Since then, -have I been alone...." - -"Bram," Miss Carroll said. "Bram ... you stayed when you could have -escaped--and I--" - -"I would that I could give you back those lost years, Linda Carroll," -Bram said. "I would that we could have been together under a brighter -sun than this." - -"You gave up your world, to give this one a little time," Tremaine -said. "And we rewarded you with a shotgun blast." - -"Bram ... when will the Portal open again?" - -"Not in my life, Linda Carroll. Not for ten thousand years." - -"Why didn't you recruit help?" Tremaine said. "You could have trained -someone...." - -"I tried, at first. But what can one do with frightened rustics? They -spoke of witchcraft, and fled." - -"But you can't hold out forever. Tell me how this thing works. It's -time somebody gave you a break!" - - -V - -Bram talked for half an hour, while Tremaine listened. "If I should -fail," he concluded, "take my place at the Repellor. Place the circlet -on your neck. When the wall clears, grip the handles and pit your mind -against the Niss. Will that they do not come through. When the thunder -rolls, you will know that you have failed." - -"All right. I'll be ready. But let me get one thing straight: this -Repellor of yours responds to thoughts, is that right? It amplifies -them--" - -"It serves to focus the power of the mind. But now let us make haste. -Soon, I fear, will they renew the attack." - -"It will be twenty minutes or so, I think," said Tremaine. "Stay where -you are and get some rest." - -Bram looked at him, his blue eyes grim under white brows. "What do you -know of this matter, young man?" - -"I think I've doped out the pattern; I've been monitoring these -transmissions for weeks. My ideas seemed to prove out okay the last few -nights." - -"No one but I in all this world knew of the Niss attack. How could you -have analyzed that which you knew not of?" - -"Maybe you don't know it, Bram, but this Repellor of yours has been -playing hell with our communications. Recently we developed what we -thought was a Top Secret project--and you're blasting us off the air." - -"This is only a small portable unit, poorly screened," Bram said. "The -resonance effects are unpredictable. When one seeks to channel the -power of thought--" - -"Wait a minute!" Tremaine burst out. - -"What is it?" Miss Carroll said, alarmed. - -"Hyperwave," Tremaine said. "Instantaneous transmission. And -thought. No wonder people had headaches--and nightmares! We've been -broadcasting on the same band as the human mind!" - -"This 'hyperwave'," Bram said. "You say it is instantaneous?" - -"That's supposed to be classified information." - -"Such a device is new in the cosmos," Bram said. "Only a protoplasmic -brain is known to produce a null-lag excitation state." - -Tremaine frowned. "Bram, this Repellor focuses what I'll call thought -waves for want of a better term. It uses an interference effect to damp -out the Niss harmonic generator. What if we poured more power to the -Repellor?" - -"No. The power of the mind cannot be amplified--" - -"I don't mean amplification; I mean an additional source. I have -a hyperwave receiver here. With a little rewiring, it'll act as a -transmitter. Can we tie it in?" - -Bram shook his head. "Would that I were a technician," he said. "I know -only what is required to operate the device." - -"Let me take a look," Tremaine said. "Maybe I can figure it out." - -"Take care. Without it, we fall before the Niss." - -"I'll be careful." Tremaine went to the machine, examined it, tracing -leads, identifying components. - -"This seems clear enough," he said. "These would be powerful magnets -here; they give a sort of pinch effect. And these are refracting-field -coils. Simple, and brilliant. With this idea, we could beam hyperwave--" - -"First let us deal with the Niss!" - -"Sure." Tremaine looked at Bram. "I think I can link my apparatus to -this," he said. "Okay if I try?" - -"How long?" - -"It shouldn't take more than fifteen minutes." - -"That leaves little time." - -"The cycle is tightening," Tremaine said. "I figure the next -transmissions ... or attacks ... will come at intervals of under five -minutes for several hours now; this may be the last chance." - -"Then try," said Bram. - -Tremaine nodded, went to the suitcase, took out tools and a heavy black -box, set to work. Linda Carroll sat by Bram's side, speaking softly to -him. The minutes passed. - -"Okay," Tremaine said. "This unit is ready." He went to the Repellor, -hesitated a moment, then turned two nuts and removed a cover. - -"We're off the air," he said. "I hope my formula holds." - - * * * * * - -Bram and Miss Carroll watched silently as Tremaine worked. He strung -wires, taped junctions, then flipped a switch on the hyperwave set and -tuned it, his eyes on the dials of a smaller unit. - -"Nineteen minutes have passed since the last attack," Bram said. "Make -haste." - -"I'm almost done," Tremaine said. - -A sharp cry came from the wall. Tremaine jumped. "What the hell makes -those sounds?" - -"They are nothing--mere static. But they warn that the harmonic -generators are warming." Bram struggled to his feet. "Now comes the -assault." - -"The shadows!" Miss Carroll cried. - -Bram sank into the chair, leaned back, his face pale as wax in the -faint glow from the wall. The glow grew brighter; the shadows swam into -focus. - -"Hurry, James," Miss Carroll said. "It comes quickly." - -Bram watched through half-closed eyes. "I must man the Repellor. I...." -He fell back in the chair, his head lolling. - -"Bram!" Miss Carroll cried. Tremaine snapped the cover in place, -whirled to the chair, dragged it and its occupant away from the -machine, then turned, seized the grips. On the wall the Niss moved -in silence, readying the attack. The black-clad figure was visible, -climbing to his place. The wall cleared. Tremaine stared across at -the narrow room, the gray-clad Niss. They stood now, eyes on him. One -pointed. Others erected leathery crests. - -_Stay out, you ugly devils_, Tremaine thought. _Go back, retreat, give -up...._ - -Now the blue glow built in a flickering arc across the Niss machine. -The technicians stood, staring across the narrow gap, tiny red eyes -glittering in the narrow alien faces. Tremaine squinted against the -brilliant white light from the high-vaulted Niss Command Center. The -last suggestion of the sloping surface of the limestone wall was gone. -Tremaine felt a draft stir; dust whirled up, clouded the air. There -was an odor of iodine. - -_Back_, Tremaine thought. _Stay back...._ - -There was a restless stir among the waiting rank of Niss. Tremaine -heard the dry shuffle of horny feet against the floor, the whine of the -harmonic generator. His eyes burned. As a hot gust swept around him he -choked and coughed. - -_NO!_ he thought, hurling negation like a weightless bomb. _FAIL! -RETREAT!_ - - * * * * * - -Now the Niss moved, readying a wheeled machine, rolling it into place. -Tremaine coughed rackingly, fought to draw a breath, blinking back -blindness. A deep thrumming started up; grit particles stung his cheek, -the backs of his hands. The Niss worked rapidly, their throat gills -visibly dilated now in the unaccustomed flood of oxygen.... - -_Our oxygen_, Tremaine thought. _The looting has started already, and -I've failed, and the people of Earth will choke and die...._ - -From what seemed an immense distance, a roll of thunder trembled at the -brink of audibility, swelling. - -The black-clad Niss on the alien machine half rose, erecting a -black-scaled crest, exulting. Then, shockingly, his eyes fixed on -Tremaine's, his trap-like mouth gaped, exposing a tongue like a scarlet -snake, a cavernous pink throat set with a row of needle-like snow-white -teeth. The tongue flicked out, a gesture of utter contempt. - -And suddenly Tremaine was cold with deadly rage. _We have a treatment -for snakes in this world_, he thought with savage intensity. _We crush -'em under our heels...._ He pictured a writhing rattler, broken-backed, -a club descending; a darting red coral snake, its venom ready, slashed -in the blades of a power mower; a cottonmouth, smashed into red ruin by -a shotgun blast.... - -_BACK, SNAKE_, he thought. _DIE! DIE!_ - -The thunder faded. - -And atop the Niss Generator, the black-clad Niss snapped his mouth -shut, crouched. - -"DIE!" Tremaine shouted. "Die!" - -The Niss seemed to shrink in on himself, shivering. His crest went -flaccid, twitched twice. The red eyes winked out and the Niss toppled -from the machine. Tremaine coughed, gripped the handles, turned his -eyes to a gray-uniformed Niss who scrambled up to replace the operator. - -_I SAID DIE, SNAKE!_ - -The Niss faltered, tumbled back among his fellows, who darted about now -like ants in a broached anthill. One turned red eyes on Tremaine, then -scrambled for the red cut-out switch. - -_NO, YOU DON'T_, Tremaine thought. _IT'S NOT THAT EASY, SNAKE. DIE!_ - -The Niss collapsed. Tremaine drew a rasping breath, blinked back tears -of pain, took in a group of Niss in a glance. - -_Die!_ - - * * * * * - -They fell. The others turned to flee then, but like a scythe Tremaine's -mind cut them down, left them in windrows. Hate walked naked among the -Niss and left none living. - -_Now the machines._ Tremaine thought. He fixed his eyes on the harmonic -generator. It melted into slag. Behind it, the high panels set with -jewel-like lights blackened, crumpled into wreckage. Suddenly the air -was clean again. Tremaine breathed deep. Before him the surface of the -rock swam into view. - -_NO!_ Tremaine thought thunderously. _HOLD THAT APERTURE OPEN!_ - -The rock-face shimmered, faded. Tremaine looked into the white-lit -room, at the blackened walls, the huddled dead. _No pity_, he thought. -_You would have sunk those white teeth into soft human throats, -sleeping in the dark ... as you've done on a hundred worlds. You're a -cancer in the cosmos. And I have the cure._ - -_WALLS_, he thought, _COLLAPSE!_ - -The roof before him sagged, fell in. Debris rained down from above, the -walls tottered, went down. A cloud of roiled dust swirled, cleared to -show a sky blazing with stars. - -_Dust, stay clear_, Tremaine thought. _I want good air to breathe for -the work ahead._ He looked out across a landscape of rock, ghostly -white in the starlight. - -_LET THE ROCKS MELT AND FLOW LIKE WATER!_ - -An upreared slab glowed, slumped, ran off in yellow rivulets that were -lost in the radiance of the crust as it bubbled, belching released -gasses. A wave of heat struck Tremaine. _Let it be cool here_, he -thought. _Now, Niss world...._ - -"No!" Bram's voice shouted. "Stop, stop!" - -Tremaine hesitated. He stared at the vista of volcanic fury before him. - -_I could destroy it all_, he thought. _And the stars in the Niss -sky...._ - -"Great is the power of your hate, man of Earth," Bram cried. "But curb -it now, before you destroy us all!" - -"Why?" Tremaine shouted. "I can wipe out the Niss and their whole -diseased universe with them, with a thought!" - -"Master yourself," Bram said hoarsely. "Your rage destroys you! One of -the suns you see in the Niss sky is your Sol!" - - * * * * * - -"Sol?" Tremaine said. "Then it's the Sol of a thousand years ago. Light -takes time to cross a galaxy. And the earth is still here ... so it -wasn't destroyed!" - -"Wise are you," Bram said. "Your race is a wonder in the Cosmos, and -deadly is your hate. But you know nothing of the forces you unloose -now. Past time is as mutable as the steel and rock you melted but now." - -"Listen to him, James," Miss Carroll pleaded. "Please listen." - -Tremaine twisted to look at her, still holding the twin grips. She -looked back steadily, her head held high. Beside her, Bram's eyes were -sunken deep in his lined face. - -"Jess said you looked like a princess once, Miss Carroll," Tremaine -said, "when you drove past with your red hair piled up high. And Bram: -you were young, and you loved her. The Niss took your youth from you. -You've spent your life here, fighting them, alone. And Linda Carroll -waited through the years, because she loved you ... and feared you. The -Niss did that. And you want me to spare them?" - -"You have mastered them," said Bram. "And you are drunk with the power -in you. But the power of love is greater than the power of hate. Our -love sustained us; your hate can only destroy." - -Tremaine locked eyes with the old man. He drew a deep breath at last, -let it out shudderingly. "All right," he said "I guess the God complex -got me." He looked back once more at the devastated landscape. "The -Niss will remember this encounter, I think. They won't try Earth again." - -"You've fought valiantly, James, and won," Miss Carroll said. "Now let -the power go." - -Tremaine turned again to look at her. "You deserve better than this, -Miss Carroll," he said. "Bram, you said time is mutable. Suppose--" - -"Let well enough alone," Bram said. "Let it go!" - -"Once, long ago, you tried to explain this to Linda Carroll. But there -was too much against it; she couldn't understand. She was afraid. And -you've suffered for sixty years. Suppose those years had never been. -Suppose I had come that night ... instead of now--" - -"It could never be!" - -"It can if I will it!" Tremaine gripped the handles tighter. _Let this -be THAT night_, he thought fiercely. _The night in 1901, when Bram's -last contact failed. Let it be that night, five minutes before the -portal closed. Only this machine and I remain as we are now; outside -there are gas lights in the farm houses along the dirt road to Elsby, -and in the town horses stand in the stables along the cinder alleys -behind the houses; and President McKinley is having dinner in the White -House...._ - - * * * * * - -There was a sound behind Tremaine. He whirled. The ravaged scene -was gone. A great disc mirror stood across the cave, intersecting -the limestone wall. A man stepped through it, froze at the sight of -Tremaine. He was tall, with curly blond hair, fine-chiseled features, -broad shoulders. - -"Fdazh ha?" he said. Then his eyes slid past Tremaine, opened still -wider in astonishment. Tremaine followed the stranger's glance. A -young woman, dressed in a negligee of pale silk, stood in the door, a -hair-brush in her hand, her red hair flowing free to her waist. She -stood rigid in shock. - -Then.... - -"Mr. Bram...!" she gasped. "What--" - -Tremaine found his voice. "Miss Carroll, don't be afraid," he said. -"I'm your friend, you must believe me." - -Linda Carroll turned wide eyes to him. "Who are you?" she breathed. "I -was in my bedroom--" - -"I can't explain. A miracle has been worked here tonight ... on your -behalf." Tremaine turned to Bram. "Look--" he started. - -"What man are you?" Bram cut in in heavily accented English. "How do -you come to this place?" - -"Listen to me, Bram!" Tremaine snapped. "Time is mutable. You stayed -here, to protect Linda Carroll--and Linda Carroll's world. You've just -made that decision, right?" Tremaine went on, not waiting for a reply. -"You were stuck here ... for sixty years. Earth technology developed -fast. One day a man stumbled in here, tracing down the signal from your -Repellor; that was me. You showed me how to use the device ... and with -it I wiped out the Niss. And then I set the clock back for you and -Linda Carroll. The Portal closes in two minutes. Don't waste time...." - -"Mutable time?" Bram said. He went past Tremaine to Linda. "Fair lady -of Earth," he said. "Do not fear...." - -"Sir, I hardly know you," Miss Carroll said. "How did I come here, -hardly clothed--" - -"Take her, Bram!" Tremaine shouted. "Take her and get back through that -Portal--fast." He looked at Linda Carroll. "Don't be afraid," he said. -"You know you love him; go with him now, or regret it all your days." - -"Will you come?" asked Bram. He held out his hand to her. Linda -hesitated, then put her hand in his. Bram went with her to the mirror -surface, handed her through. He looked back at Tremaine. - -"I do not understand, man of Earth," he said "But I thank you." Then he -was gone. - - * * * * * - -Alone in the dim-lit grotto Tremaine let his hands fall from the -grips, staggered to the rocker and sank down. He felt weak, drained of -strength. His hands ached from the strain of the ordeal. How long had -it lasted? Five minutes? An hour? Or had it happened at all...? - -But Bram and Linda Carroll were gone. He hadn't imagined that. And the -Niss were defeated. - -But there was still his own world to contend with. The police would be -waiting, combing through the house. They would want to know what he had -done with Miss Carroll. Maybe there would be a murder charge. There'd -be no support from Fred and the Bureau. As for Jess, he was probably -in a cell now, looking a stiff sentence in the face for obstructing -justice.... - -Tremaine got to his feet, cast a last glimpse at the empty room, -the outlandish shape of the Repellor, the mirrored portal. It was a -temptation to step through it. But this was his world, with all its -faults. Perhaps later, when his strength returned, he could try the -machine again.... - -The thought appalled him. _The ashes of hate are worse than the ashes -of love_, he thought. He went to the stairs, climbed them, pressed the -button. Nothing happened. He pushed the panel aside by hand and stepped -into the kitchen. He circled the heavy table with the candlestick, -went along the hall and out onto the porch. It was almost the dawn of -a fresh spring day. There was no sign of the police. He looked at the -grassy lawn, the row of new-set saplings. - -_Strange_, he thought. _I don't remember any saplings. I thought I -drove in under a row of trees...._ He squinted into the misty early -morning gloom. His car was gone. That wasn't too surprising; the cops -had impounded it, no doubt. He stepped down, glanced at the ground -ahead. It was smooth, with a faint footpath cut through the grass. -There was no mud, no sign of tire tracks-- - -The horizon seemed to spin suddenly. _My God!!_ Tremaine thought _I've -left myself in the year 1901...!_ - - * * * * * - -He whirled, leaped up on the porch, slammed through the door and along -the hall, scrambled through the still-open panel, bounded down the -stairs and into the cave-- - -The Repellor was gone. Tremaine leaped forward with a cry--and under -his eyes, the great mirror twinkled, winked out. The black box of the -hyperwave receiver lay alone on the floor, beside the empty rocker. -The light of the kerosene lamp reflected from the featureless wall. - -Tremaine turned, stumbled up the steps, out into the air. The sun -showed a crimson edge just peeping above distant hills. - -1901, Tremaine thought. _The century has just turned. Somewhere a young -fellow named Ford is getting ready to put the nation on wheels, and two -boys named Wright are about to give it wings. No one ever heard of a -World War, or the roaring Twenties, or Prohibition, or FDR, or the Dust -Bowl, or Pearl Harbor. And Hiroshima and Nagasaki are just two cities -in distant floral Japan...._ - -He walked down the path, stood by the rutted dirt road. Placid cows -nuzzled damp grass in the meadow beyond it. In the distance a train -hooted. - -_There are railroads_, Tremaine thought. _But no jet planes, no radio, -no movies, no automatic dish-washers. But then there's no TV, either. -That makes up for a lot. And there are no police waiting to grill me, -and no murder charge, and no neurotic nest of bureaucrats waiting to -welcome me back...._ - -He drew a deep breath. The air was sweet. _I'm here_, he thought. _I -feel the breeze on my face and the firm sod underfoot. It's real, and -it's all there is now, so I might as well take it calmly. After all, a -man with my education ought to be able to do well in this day and age!_ - -Whistling, Tremaine started the ten-mile walk into town. - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's The Long Remembered Thunder, by Keith Laumer - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE LONG REMEMBERED THUNDER *** - -***** This file should be named 52844.txt or 52844.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/2/8/4/52844/ - -Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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