Air Wonder Stories, May 1930 — page 80: what you’re looking at

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

Briefly, then, he recourited for a second time our experiences during 6ur absence, When he had ‘concluded, and had answered a few of Kieth’s questions, Harwood came forward with a suggestion. “Say, Vachell, I think Kieth’s-arrival settles the question as to how. we shall notify the world of our return, He can make a trip back to the States in his plane.” “That's a fine idea,” the scientist replied; then he frowned in thought, “I wonder—by Jove! It would work! What do “you think of this? Kieth will return to North America where the Russian has his headquarters, atid spread the report that we're back. He'll make sure that the-news reaches Demetrio- vich’s ears; When he hears it, he'll naturally rush here to yerify the report; and that will be our opportunity to use our weapons, and rid the world of its menace,” “And at the same time, Kieth,* Harwood added, “you can have some of the officials at Washington. send a number of transoceanic planes to take us from the island, Tf things turn out the way we expect them to, we'll be in a position to sign the World Union Pact in a short time; but our immediate con- cern after getting rid of Demetriovich will be to undo what- ever damage he has dane,” Kieth nodded. “I'll do the best I can about that,” he said, “but Til meet with quite a bit of difficulty, Demetriovich has placed every nation under the direct control of his Russian followers, He quells any disturbances that arise with that ac- cursed cone of his; and-right now, he is completing three: other cones for the use of his lieutenants. Commerce and industry are at a standstill as a result of the Russian’s radical methods. People are starving! And all this damage caused by one man! It’s awful to contemplate!” He was silent for a moment, then exclaimed: “Well, the sooner I get back and start things moving, that much quicker will order be restored.” A New Attack URNING, he moved toward his plane. We followed, and as he soared into the air some moments later, watched his eastern flight until he disappeared in the distance. The rest of that day and all of the following night passed all too slowly and—the night—sleeplessly for most of us on the island. We feared a night attack by the Russian, and kept great beacon lights from the landing field trained upon the sky. The rising sun—received a hearty welcome in the morning. That morning seemed endless, with nothing occurring to break the monotony of waiting. Noon-came—and suddenly a arose from-one of the men appointed:as a lookout, Ee’s coming!” In a moment we had gathered in a scattered group-on the lawn before the Union Hall. While we waited, we looked to our glass ray-filter bands and our rods, to be certain that all was in readiness for Demetriovich’s destruction., A minute of anxious waiting—then the cone‘was above us. We expected to hear the thunderous voice, but no. voice came. Instead, a- blinding, white ray” flashed down upon us. The island seemed to tremble under our- feet. At the same time that he released the ray upon us, a veritable shower of thin, intensely powerful beams darted: up toward the cone from the balls on the tips of our metal rods.. Had it not been for:our Jack of experience in operating our strange weap- ons, and our consequent erratic aim, Demetriovich and his cone would have been blasted into a cinder. As it was, only a few of the rays hit their mark; but so effectual was the work of those few, that the white ray was snuffed out, and the cone staggered! Tt had evidently escaped serious injury, for a second after AIR WONDER STORIES The Invisible Destroyer (Continued from page 1013) our rays struck—indeed, before we could adjust our aim, the cone leaped high into the-air. Our rays followed, and evidently took some effect in spite of the cone’s increased altitude, for, a moment: later, like a frightened hare, it darted away in the direction from whence it had come, “Some of the men began shouting triumphantly. raised his hand for silence. “There’s nothing to shout about,” he frowned. “I feel any- thing. but elated. Although we did escape unscathed from the Russian’s rays, our victory was empty. Demetriovich escaped. And now he knows that. we are able to resist his rays, and that we haye weapons:-with which to fight against him, Who can. tell what he'll do next! “And remember this—although we are unaffected by his:rays, the same is not true of the island. If he returns and floods us with the rays that bring about the travel through the vi- bratory scale, the island will vanish from beneath our feet, and we'll all be drowned!” “The only way out that-I can see,” Vachell said after a pause, “is to send a radio message for help, and leave the island as soon as possible,” In a moment the entire group had started toward the tower that held: the radio transmitter. But when we arrived there, our only hope was destroyed; the radio was useless, The Russian’s rays, although they hadn’t injured us, had left the transmitter burned out, blackened, wrecked beyond all repair. We returned to the Union Building in dejection. Shortly before we reached it, Harwood addressed Vachell. “Leo,” he said, “our position isn’t -so hopeless, after all.’ If Demetriovich does return: with his cone, before he learns that we alone can resist his rays, and that the island, itself, is un- protected, we will have destroyed him. Our aim won't be as inaccurate the second time as it was the first.” “I suppose you're right,” Vachell replied. “At any rate, it seems that all we-can do now is wait. If only we hadn't left our plane in that other world, we could carry the conflict to the Russian, But—we left it!” The balance of the day dragged. by on leaden feet. As night approached, we became restless, apprehensive. Nor were our spirits buoyed up by the discovery that the searchlights that we had used the night before were burned gut, We would have to spend the night in darkness, If the cone returned, we would be unable to-detect its approach, Darkness found us waiting. We were all close to exhaustion, yet we dared not sleep. There was little or no conversation; for some reason we had no desire to talk, Hour after hour passed by. One o'clock came—then two, and without warning four wide beams of violet radiance split the blackness, They. came from the different points of the compass, and converged on one central point, Four cones—could we overcome them? Vachell E centered our efforts on one of them, aiming at the source of the yiolet beam. Suddenly the ray from that cone was snuffed out, and a moment later, a loud crash some distance away told us that one of our combatants was out of ~ the fight, : The destruction of the first cone had taken but a-moment; ~ quickly we turned our attention to a second. A beam of red descended: from this: cone now, a beam that set nearby shrub- berry afire, but that had no effect upon us. We showered our slender rays upon it to such good effect, that it, too, was. snuffed out! Only two cones remained, and we had not been harmed! As we turned toward the third, both cones darted high into the air. Then, twin streams of white leaped from them; the Be ee