Page:Weird Tales Volume 7 Number 1 (1926-01).djvu/99

Rh plodded doggedly on ahead of Taggert. He wondered dully whether he should ever see her again. Well, at any rate, she, was once more safely within her own country. He was thankful for that much. His reflections were cut short suddenly as he sprawled forward upon the ice, tripping up Taggert, who was following him closely. Caught unawares, Robert fell on all fours, knocking the breath out of him.

T'ell!" spluttered Taggert, scrambling up.

As Robert also struggled to his knees he saw that he had tripped over a crevice in the ice. It was the edge of a slightly higher block which sloped upward. The realization came to him suddenly that they had finally reached their first goal!

After some difficulty they managed to clamber up one of the perpendicular cracks between the slippery blocks.

Upon reaching the ground, where the snow had now collected several inches deep, they looked about eagerly but in vain for some sign of the Sphere, or of their erstwhile companions.

"There is nothing for us to do but to plod on against the wind until we reach the point where we left the Sphere," said Robert. "We should be near where we slipped down before."

"Lead on," said Taggert.

more they plodded ahead, keeping close to the ice blocks on their left. The now fine snow drove directly into their faces with stinging force, making it almost impossible to keep their eyes open enough to see.

For half an hour they pursued their way painfully. Only the exertion kept them from freezing in the increasing cold. The fierce wind whined about them hungrily, pitilessly, as if eager to make an end of them, while the eddies and drifts of snow round each depression or rock grew steadily deeper and more nearly impossible for them to plow through as their strength waned.

Robert realized that ere this they should certainly have reached the vicinity of the Sphere, but the snow restricted their view to a radius of less than ten feet. Unless they were fortunate enough to run right up on the Sphere, their chances of sighting it were remote. Even now they had lost touch with the border of ice, and, but for the uniform slope of the ground, and the general direction of the wind, would not have known whether they were still following the shore in the original direction or not. They shouted together many times but got no response. The snowfall and howling wind so muffled their cries that they despaired of being heard. Having continued on for some minutes longer they decided finally to go no farther, as they were convinced that they had already passed the point where they had left the Sphere. A convenient rock, some ten feet high and of about the same breadth, offered temporary shelter.

"If Professor Palmer fired a shot we should hear it here," Taggert suggested.

"I doubt it," replied Robert. "This hubbub and the muffling effect of the snowfall might drown a report within a hundred yards."

Here a startling thought occurred to Robert. What if the Martians took advantage of Professor Palmer's isolation and made off with the Sphere?

"Why the silence and corrugated brow?" queried Taggert. "An idea?"

"An idea, but no good," Robert responded, forcing a grin.

"Well, you needn't grin about it. I don't see anything comical about the prospect of being buried under