A Thing of the Past. John Russell Fearn
Читать онлайн книгу.
BORGO PRESS BOOKS BY JOHN RUSSELL FEARN
1,000-Year Voyage: A Science Fiction Novel
Anjani the Mighty: A Lost Race Novel (Anjani #2)
Black Maria, M.A.: A Classic Crime Novel (Black Maria #1)
The Crimson Rambler: A Crime Novel
Don’t Touch Me: A Crime Novel
Dynasty of the Small: Classic Science Fiction Stories
The Empty Coffins: A Mystery of Horror
The Fourth Door: A Mystery Novel
From Afar: A Science Fiction Mystery
Fugitive of Time: A Classic Science Fiction Novel
The G-Bomb: A Science Fiction Novel
The Genial Dinosaur (Herbert the Dinosaur #2)
The Gold of Akada: A Jungle Adventure Novel (Anjani #1)
Here and Now: A Science Fiction Novel
Into the Unknown: A Science Fiction Tale
Last Conflict: Classic Science Fiction Stories
Legacy from Sirius: A Classic Science Fiction Novel
The Man from Hell: Classic Science Fiction Stories
The Man Who Was Not: A Crime Novel
Manton’s World: A Classic Science Fiction Novel
Moon Magic: A Novel of Romance (as Elizabeth Rutland)
The Murdered Schoolgirl: A Classic Crime Novel (Black Maria #2)
One Remained Seated: A Classic Crime Novel (Black Maria #3)
One Way Out: A Crime Novel (with Philip Harbottle)
Pattern of Murder: A Classic Crime Novel
Reflected Glory: A Dr. Castle Classic Crime Novel
Robbery Without Violence: Two Science Fiction Crime Stories
Rule of the Brains: Classic Science Fiction Stories
Shattering Glass: A Crime Novel
The Silvered Cage: A Scientific Murder Mystery
Slaves of Ijax: A Science Fiction Novel
Something from Mercury: Classic Science Fiction Stories
The Space Warp: A Science Fiction Novel
A Thing of the Past (Herbert the Dinosaur #1)
Thy Arm Alone: A Classic Crime Novel (Black Maria #4)
The Time Trap: A Science Fiction Novel
Vision Sinister: A Scientific Detective Thriller
Voice of the Conqueror: A Classic Science Fiction Novel
What Happened to Hammond? A Scientific Mystery
Within That Room!: A Classic Crime Novel
THE GOLDEN AMAZON SAGA
1. World Beneath Ice
2. Lord of Atlantis
3. Triangle of Power
4. The Amethyst City
5. Daughter of the Amazon
6. Quorne Returns
7. The Central Intelligence
8. The Cosmic Crusaders
9. Parasite Planet
10. World Out of Step
11. The Shadow People
12. Kingpin Planet
13. World in Reverse
14. Dwellers in Darkness
15. World in Duplicate
16. Lords of Creation
17. Duel with Colossus
18. Standstill Planet
19. Ghost World
20. Earth Divided
21. Chameleon Planet (with Philip Harbottle)
COPYRIGHT INFORMATION
Copyright © 1953 by John Russell Fearn
Copyright © 2003 by Philip Harbottle
Published by Wildside Press LLC
www.wildsidebooks.com
DEDICATION
To the memory of Ian Dick and Joseph Storm
CHAPTER ONE
THE FISSURE
The monstrous face of the basalt cliff lifted outwards under the impact of the explosion. Rocks and subsoil flew. Small boulders flashed to the zenith and rained down amidst a cloud of choking dust. On the hot summer wind a rumbling died away into silence and all was quiet.
“That seems to be it, Mr. Brooks,” the field engineer said, cuffing up his steel helmet and mopping his face. “That’s the last of ’em. Clearance is complete, or will be when the mechanical navvies have finished.”
Clifford Brooks nodded. He was the mining engineer in charge of the whole operation. For six weeks now throughout the unusually hot summer he and his band of iron-hard men had been at work removing a basalt area so that the ever-spreading environs of London could spread even further.
“Better take a look at it, Dick,” he said briefly; “Make sure everything’s as it should be.”
The field engineer nodded and, with Cliff Brooks by his side, he strode across the busy mining area, picking his way amidst the equipment whilst the men lounged around waiting for their next orders.
After a while the two engineers reached the summit of the rubble mountain that the exploded gelignite had ejected. They looked around them in the dust haze. The whole mass of the basalt cliff that had formerly stood in their way was now completely levelled. Once the rubbish was moved, there would be a flat area around here many square miles in extent, in prime condition for laying the foundations of a new building scheme.
“Satisfactory enough,” Cliff Brooks said, nodding. He was a tall, rangy man, rather like the popular conception of a Western hero, his skin a burned-in brown, his eyes blue, his face lean-jawed and extremely determined.
“Hear something?” asked the field engineer after a moment, frowning, his head cocked very slightly.
“Nothing more than usual. Bits of rock dropping, sound of the wind in niches....”
“No, no, a sort of buried rumbling. Listen!” The field engineer held up his brown hand urgently, and now Cliff Brooks heard it too. It sounded like a train at the far end of a very long tunnel. Somehow there was something vaguely frightening about it, an odd suggestion of deep, buried power.
“Sounds like thousands of tons of rubbish going down a deep mine,” the field engineer said. “Where the hell’s it coming from, anyway?”
They began moving again, searching around them in the ruin of debris and rocks, then presently they both halted on the edge of a hole. They looked into it, then at each other. The noise was coming from inside the hole. Down there was a shaft, but what its depth was they could not imagine. Standing there on the edge of the hole, the noises that came from below sounded a thousand miles away.
“Must be some kind of old fissure,” Cliff Brooks said finally. “Certainly not a new one, or a volcanic root, else we’d have had lava and God knows what raining on us by now. Get the boys to bring the tackle. I’m going down to see what it’s like. We’ll probably have to fill it in.”
The field engineer turned away, and then hurried down the slope to give his orders to the waiting