Page:Doughty--Mirrikh or A woman from Mars.djvu/175

 intertwining leaves. Without exaggeration I should place the longest dimension of this enclosure at a mile.

Suddenly my gaze was drawn from it and I looked around for Maurice and his companion. To my horror I discovered that I had fallen behind.

Then I saw them settling down toward the roof of this mighty temple; for an instant they rested there, and  seemed to me to vanish through it as though it were nothing,  and were gone.

“Maurice! Maurice! Oh don’t leave me, my friend!” I shouted, when, as with the wave of an enchanter’s wand,  all had vanished and I was back in the chamber, staring  into the inky blackness of the bowl, with the Doctor beside  me, Walla at my feet and old Padma starting up with every  expression of terror overspreading his wrinkled face.

At the same instant a wild, piercing cry echoed through the enclosure, and following Padma’s gaze, I saw Ni-fan-lu come dashing down the stairs.

“Dshambi-nor!” he was shouting. “Dshambi-nor!”

“Great God!” gasped the Doctor, seizing my arm with trembling hand; “this is sorcery with a vengeance! I don’t know what you’ve been about, Wylde, but I have been to  the planet Mars!”

I could not answer him. Old Padma had his ear before I was able to speak, and was uttering hurried words.

“Dshambi-nor! Dshambi-nor!” yelled Ni-fan-lu, as he came rushing up to us.

“For mercy sake, what is it?” I gasped; a vague sense of uneasiness creeping over me, for I could read something  of the truth on the Doctor’s face.

“Brace up, old man! Pull yourself together!” he answered hastily. “As near as I can make out we are in danger of flood. A lake has broken loose somewhere in the mountains behind the lamasery, and a few million gallons  of ice water are about to be dumped upon us—that’s all!”

By this time Ni-fan-lu was grovelling at Padma’s feet, repeating his cry. I flung myself toward the altar and had one arm about Maurice’s body as it came.

“Dshambi-nor! Dshambi-nor! Dshambi-nor!”