Astounding Science Fiction (British Edition), April 1944 — page 30: what you’re looking at

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

28 soft and comfortable, drained the inclina- tion in him to turn his head and look at the man whose tuneful warbling had aroused him. After a moment, it struck Pendrake with a sharper consciousness that he was alive; and that that didn’t fit with what had gone before. | . But still he lay there. And after a little he found himself frowning in amazement at a lighted cave roof that must have been a mile high. He closed his eyes, shook him- self, then opened his eyes again. But that tremendous roof remained. What had been a narrow snake of a cave had somehow opened out, and here was an underground vastness. The sight quickened his whole being. He grew aware of a thin breeze that touched his cheeks and brought a sweet scent of. growing things, an odor of garden and trees in bloom. Pendrake stirred in a gathering excitement. The movement brought his first awareness that he was no longer arrayed in the space- suit. The movement did something else. It ended the humming. Footsteps sounded. A young man’s voice said: “Oh, you’re awake.” The speaker came into view. He was a slight-built young man with a thin face and bright eyes. He wore a curiously old- fashioned, threadbare coat, and his legs were incased in trousers that were strapped under his shoes. He said: | *You’ve been unconscious for four sleep periods. I’ve been squeezing water and fruit juices between your lips every little while. You must have been lost in the upper caves at least a month. My name’s Morrison, by the way.” “Lost only ten days!’ Pendrake said; and then he blinked, for no words had come, nothing but a hoarse rasping sound. “Better not try to speak yet,” the young man counseled. “You’re still in a bad way. As soon as you're strong enough you’re to be taken to Big Oaf for questioning—that’s why you’ve been kept alive!” The words didn’t penetrate right away. Pendrake lay very still, thinking: He was insane to imagine that, because he had slept ten times, only ten days had passed. The cold, his terrible will to live, must have kept him going for days at a stretch. Ridiculous to think that he had reached such a disastrous physical state in ten days when thousands of less strong men in the war had survived longer exposure in open ASTOUNDING SCIENCE-FICTION boats, in trackless jungles, and on foodless plains and steppes. This fellow, Big Oaf— Big what? He muttered his amazement, and this time managed a husky whisper. The young man grinned at him: “That’s his name all right. Somebody called him that once, and he took a fancy to it; and nobody’s ever dared to tell him the meaning. He’s Neanderthal, you know. Been here a million years, at least, almost as long as the devil-beast in the pit.” A startled look came over the young man’s face. “Oh!” he said in alarm, “I wasn’t supposed to tell you that.” - His panic grew. Gasping, he came down beside Pendrake, clawed at his arm. “For Heaven’s sake,” he whispered hoarsely, “don’t tell anybody that I told you how old we are down here. I’ve done my best for you. I’ve brought you back to life; I fed you. I was supposed to keep you locked up—I’m your guard, you know, and you’re in jail—but I brought you out here and—” He broke off: “Please, don’t tell!” His face was a twisted mask of fear—that changed. Changed to cunning, then to ferocity. Abruptly he jerked at the knife that Pendrake saw for the first time was in a sheath under his coat. “If you don’t promise,” he threatened wildly. “I’ll have to pretend that you tried to escape, and that I had to kill you!” Pendrake found his voice. “Of course I promise,” he whispered hoarsely. He saw instantly in the distorted eyes above him that no simple promise could soothe the terrified creature who crouched over him. Danger made his whisper louder, stronger, as he said swiftly: “Don’t you see, if I know something they don’t want me to know, they’ll kill me out of hand. It’s to my own interest to keep in- formation to myself. You see that, don’t you?” : Slowly, the fear died out of the youn man’s eyes. He climbed shakily to his feet, then he began to whistle softly. Finally he said: “They’re going to toss you to the devil- beast anyway, they take no chances except with the women. But keep my name out of it, that’s all, and anything I’ve said.” “Agreed!” Pendrake whispered the word, and mus- tered the form of a smile, but he was think- ing grimly: Sleep lightly. Watch out for a knife—in my sleep. 7 comiclooks (©)