Almost at the same instant, a grisly apparition glided forth amid the dimness of the side-gallery. I say apparition, for, although it was solid flesh and blood, it flashed upon me like a ghost—worse than a ghost!—like the phantom of death himself! Imagine a man-sized figure, robed from head to foot in black, and with a sable hood, the shape of a fool's cap! Imagine a face of spectral, chalky white! Imagine a toothless mouth leering with wide-gaping jaws; imagine the creature starting forward with black-gloved hands extended, and with that hideous shriek still shrilling from its lips; imagine—
But I did not take time for further observation. Despite all the strain I had endured, my legs retained their vigor. Not for nothing had I been on the track team at college! But alas!—as I rushed like a hounded deer along the main gallery, I was dashed to grief. I do not know what betrayed me—perhaps a crevice in the floor, perhaps only a pebble; at all events, I pitched ingloriously head over heels and came painfully to a halt.
Hastily picking myself up, regardless of a bruised shin and aching knee-joint, I was about to resume my flight—when I found my pathway blocked. All about me, at distances of from ten to twenty yards, were dozens of beings so strange that they might have been dwellers of another planet.
They were riding cross-legged on curious low cars of about the size and shape of children's coasters—little wheeled vehicles, three or four feet long, a foot high, and a foot wide, which, with a buzzing of motors, darted back and forth nervously, frequently colliding with one another in their haste. This it was which explained their rapidity in over-taking me.
But more astonishing than the machines were the creatures themselves. For a moment, as they ringed me about in a gaping crowd, I had the uncanny sensation of being imprisoned by phantoms. Like him who had started me on my flight, they were all black-clad from crown to heel; they all had faces which, snowy white, seemed scarcely human in their bloodless pallor. Their hair, protruding in long tufts from beneath their cone-shaped hats, was either paper-white or gray; their eyes, narrower than those of most men, gave the impression of being not fully open, and were curiously pink or salmon-colored; their noses were flat and stubby, their chins weak and almost unnoticeable, while their narrow chests were so stooped and pinched that I could have believed the whole lot of them to be consumptives.
Had it not been for the latter features, I might have mistaken them all for women; for they wore long skirts which came down well below the knees. The impression of femininity, moreover, was re-inforced by the V-shaped slits in the backs of their costumes, and by the black pencilling of the eyebrows, which were overlooked by little snake-like curves, painted as if for artistic effect.
But at the first horrified glimpse, I did not observe all these details. I merely noticed how the creatures surrounded me, keeping at a distance of not less than ten yards, while rolling restlessly back and forth in their little cars; I noticed how several of them carried long dragon-shaped banners of green and vermilion, and how others bore little pistol-like implements, from which every now and then a forked lightning-shaft flashed toward the ceiling. And as I gazed out at the strangers, every other thought was lost in the despairing sense that I was trapped.
Yes!—I was trapped as completely as though they had me in irons. The circle about me was unbroken, and there was no way of escape!
Several minutes went by, during which nothing of importance happened. The creatures stared at me, almost glared at me, with every expression of interest; some of them jabbered to one another in those peculiar high-pitched voices so unpleasant to my ears; others pointed at me with curious gestures that may have indicated surprise, derision, or anger; one of them even stepped forth a little and addressed me in particularly loud and rasping tones, of which I could understand not one word.