Argosy All-Story Weekly — "The Purple Limited" — page 122: what you’re looking at

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

688 _~ We stood in a shadowed chamber. The light that filled it was translucent, and oddly enough with little of the bluish qual- ity I had expected. Crystalline it was; the shadows crystalline, too, rigid—like the facets of great crystals. And as my eyes accustomed themselves I saw that what I had thought shadows actually were none. They were slices of semitransparent stone like pale moonstones, springing from the curving walls and the high dome, and bisecting and intersecting the chamber. They were pierced with oval doorways over which fell glimmering mefallic curtains— silk of silver and gold. I glimpsed a pile of this silken stuff near by, and as upon it we laid our burden Ruth caught my arm with a little fmghtened cry. Through a curtained oval had sidled a fig- ure. Black it was and tall; its long, gnarled arms swung apelike; its shoulders were distorted, one so much lower than the other that the hand upon that side hung far below the knee. It walked with a curious, crablike mo- | tion. Upon its face were stamped the countless wrinkles of an incredible age; its blackness was less that of pigmentation than the weathering of unbelievable years, the very stain of ancientness. And about neither face nor figure was there anything to show whether it was man or woman. From the twisted shoulders a short and sleeveless red tunic fell. Incredibly old the creature was—and by its corded muscles, its sinewy tendons, as incredibly powerful. It raised within me a half sick revulsion, loathing. But the eyes were “not ancient, no! Irisless, lashless, black and brilliant they blazed out of the face’s carven web ot wrinkles, intent upon Norhala and filled with a flame of worship. ‘It threw itself at her feet, prostrate, the inordinately long arms outstretched. “‘ Mistress!” it whined in a high and cu- riously unpleasant falsetto. ‘ Great lady! Goddess!” She stretched out a sandaled foot, touched one of the black taloned hands, and at the contact I saw a shiver of ecstasy run through the lank body. “ Yuruk,” she began, and paused, regarding us. “The goddess speaks! Yuruk hears! ARGOSY-ALLSTORY WEEKLY, The goddess speaks!” It was a chant of adoration. ‘““Yuruk! Rise! Look upon the stran- gers!”’ She took up the sentence she hac! broken. This creature she named Yuruk —and now I knew what it was—writhed, twisted, and hideously apelike crouched upon its haunches, hands knuckling the floor. By the amazement in the unwinking eyes it was plain that not till now had the eu- nuch taken cognizance of us. The amaze- ment fled, was replaced with a black fire of malignancy, of hatred—jealousy! ““ Augh!”’ he snarled; leaped to his feet; thrust an arm toward Ruth. She gave a little cry, cowered against Drake. _ - “None of that!” He struck down the clutching arm sharply; dipped and drew his automatic; covered the threatening fig- ure from his hip. But not more quickly than I. ““Yuruk!” There was a hint of anger, of mercilessness in the bell-toned voice. “Yuruk, these belong to me! No harm must come to them. . Yuruk—beware!”’ “The goddess commands? Yuruk obeys.” If fear quavered in the words, be- neath was more than a trace of a sullen- ness, too, sinister enough. “ That’ Ss a nice little playmate for her new playthings,” muttered Drake. “ If that bird gets the least bit gay—I shoot him, pronto!” He gave Ruth a reassuring hug. ‘Cheer up, Ruth. Don’t mind that thing. He’s something we can hahdle.”’ - Norhala waved a white hand; Yuruk sidled over to one of the curtained ovals and through it, reappearing almost instant- jy with a huge platter upon which were fruits, and some curdy white liquid in bowls of thick porcelain. “‘ Fat,” she said, as the gnarled black arms placed the platter at our feet. “ Hungry?” asked Drake. Ruth shook her head violently. “T’m going out for the saddle-bags,” said Drake. ‘‘ We'll use our own stuff— while it lasts. I’m taking no chances on what the Yuruk lad brings—with all due respect to Norhala’s good intentions.” He started for the doorway; the eunuch blocked his way. TA 6)(0)O) @) (Cl @) KS im (C(O) nn