Page:Weird Tales v15n01 1930-01.djvu/75

tom, or at zero, it attracted no vibration, was not in operation. Moved up to the wave-length of the cosmic ray vibrations it attracted those vibrations, drawing them inward from a tremendous region of space to concentrate them in a great sheath of intensified vibrations upon all the earth, penetrating through all its seas.

"Already in those seas, I knew, the cosmic ray vibrations, millions of times intensified, would be beginning their work, would be forming great masses of protoplasm in inconceivable quantities out of the inorganic sea-silt's elements. Days more would loose those gigantic tides of death upon the earth, I knew, when they had been developed by the rays to a certain stage, and I raged with despair in my prison while outside the four exultantly watched their work. Striving to escape from my prison, knowing that if I could but smash or turn off the great condenser I might yet prevent the loosing of those protoplasm floods, I worked desperately with the bars of one of my windows. They had been hastily set into the concrete wall with cement, and now with odd bits of metal left to me I chipped and scratched at that cement, endeavoring to loosen one of the bars. But I could do little with it, and one by one the days passed, until I knew that today would see the protoplasm tides rolling out upon earth, knew that by then they would have reached a stage of development and life to enable them to do so.

"The four outside—Munson and the others—knew, too, for I saw them exultant, and so, hours ago, I gave up in utter despair my work at the bar, lapsing into sleep from which I was aroused by an uproar in the clearing. I saw then that you had come to this island of hell unheeding, and that the four madmen outside had seen you at the condenser, had with mad fury at the thought of harm to their work knocked you senseless, thrusting you in here with me. And now, in these hours that you have lain unconscious, I could see the work of Munson and the others coming at last to its completion, could see in the starlight, as you have seen, the first protoplasm floods rolling out from the sea onto the island's sands. They can not reach the great cone's summit, of course, since Munson had our laboratories built upon the summit so that any work we desired could be carried out unhampered on the sands below. But they are not only pouring out over this island, they are pouring out over the shores of all earth's seas, while we talk here, through the great cities and over all the lands of earth. They will roll on, new gigantic tides of protoplasm formed unceasingly by that great condenser outside and loosed upon earth, until Munson and the others have swept man and all the races of men from earth, until the protoplasm tides themselves have been destroyed by them and there is left a lifeless world over which the life-masters shall rule supreme!"

Ralton sat unmoving, unspeaking, when the whisper of Mallett's voice had ceased. The other had risen, and he felt himself swaying to his feet, looking strangely about the little room, and then into his friend's tense eyes. No sound save the fine, half-heard hum of the great globe in the clearing broke the stillness of the great cone's summit, and as the two stood there it seemed to Ralton that that stillness, that silence, had suddenly become thunderous in his ears.

"Protoplasm," he heard himself saying. "The whole world———"

And then as swift pictures rose in his whirling brain the reality of it all came sharply and abruptly to him. "Mallett!" he cried, in a half whisper. "If I had known when I stood at that condenser-control!"

Mallett's eyes were suddenly eager. "But if there's still a chance!" he