Adventure Magazine Cover — page 168: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

158 beneath the skin. This voice was calm, cool, imperturbable. “Thanks very much,” it said. “Oh, the devil!” exclaimed Day. “Not at all,’’ returned the voice. “‘Kil- gore.” With a violent movement Kilgore flung off the stiffly clinging skin. Then, swiftly, he clapped both hands to his face. The brilliant sunlight was blinding. “Quite all right in a moment or so,” he murmured. Davy stared at him with fallen jaw. The change in Kilgore was terrible beyond words; the trim Canadian was scarcely recognizable. Not by reason of the bearded face alone, but by the frightful pallor of the entire torso. Hooded from all touch of light and air, the man’s skin had become livid, a dead and colorless white. “That you, Day?” asked Kilgore, at- tempting to peep between his fingers. “T say, what’s happened? Where are we?” “Dashed if I know,” answered the Ameri- can. “Somewhere near Esrun, I guess. Here, get up and take my arm! You get out of this sunlight, or you’ll be parboiled in ten minutes.” Kilgore nodded and rose. Day led him beneath the trees and halted in the shade. By degrees Kilgore was able to perceive their situation and to observe Day. “You are a rum-looking beggar!’’ he said dryly. “I imagine I’m equally handsome, what? Hello, are we free?’’ “Free among the dead,” grunted the other. “Don’t quote from Scripture—just yet,” and Kilgore chuckled. “You hit it right, old man—this is the lake of singing fishes, where Esrun lives. See here, what’s be- come of Severn and Fandi Singh?” » “Ask Esrun, not me,’’* returned Day. “My late entertainers rode up and left me here beside you. I got one of ’em, at least! They had orders not to injure us.” Kilgore rose to his feet, a trifle unsteadily. “Come along,” he said, removing the few rags that clothed him and blinking at the water. ‘May as well die clean, eh?” “Die?” exclaimed Day. ‘Why, they’ve turned us loose, man!”’ The visage of Kilgore broke into a pallid caricature of his.old smile. “Come, come, my dear fellow!’ he said gaily. ‘“‘We’re perfectly helpless and have been left here as a sacrifice to Esrun. We shall probably be tortured scientifically, Adventure and then dropped into a rift among the rocks—fire and brimstone and so forth.”’ Day swore angrily and his eyes bit around the valley. Already the strong soul of him was revived by this touch of freedom, this contact with Kilgore; his unquenchable spirit was surging pugnaciously. ‘We're not lost!” he exclaimed. ‘There are dromedaries—we can——” Kilgore clapped him on the shoulder - with a ringing laugh. “Guards at the entrance, and prohably a rifle or two trained on us this moment! No, we must ‘preserve our dignity, old chap . We dignity! lives!” Kilgore burst out laughing. “Come along, Yank! Let’s bathe.” Day followed him to the water’s edge, comprehending, yet stubbornly contesting, the fact that there was no hope for them. When they had bathed and returned to the shade of the trees, Kilgore was some- thing more like himself again. He had noted the beds of saffron, which now were in full bloom, and he sent Day for a blossom. He examined the petal with keen interest. “Saffron,” he said, a retrospective look in his sunken eyes. “Comes from Kashmir— I was there as a child. My father was stationed there.”’ : “That’s where you first knew Fandi Singh?” queried Day shrewdly. Kilgore nodded. “Quite so. He’s a rajah, you know. We grew up together in the palace. My uncle, Sir Cecil Kilgore, had quite a bit to do with the Government in the old days. Ho, hum! It’s a far cry to the waters of Kashmir!” “There’s a boat,’ observed Day ab- ruptly. They fell silent, watching the lake. A few words from his companion had apprized Kilgore of the manner in which the Mongols had communed with Esrun. Knowing that he had destroyed the ten priests, that I’d sooner preserve our “Fandi Singh had destroyed five of the novices, he could only conjecture why none of the remaining five were on hand. They had, in effect, been destroyed by Sheng Wu; but of this Kilgore knew nothing. Since the Mongols had communicated with Esrun, however, it was evident that Esrun still existed. Ergo, Severn had failed to kill the master of mystery. (EO) 0)(00)|;< (EO) im