And
the far side did be great miles off, as I did say; and everywhere there
was abundance of rock and lonesomeness. And before me there went the
great and dim length of the gorge, and there were lights here and lights
there, in a great distance, and oft--as it did seem--the quiet dancing
of lights in diverse places; but yet were these gone on the instant. And
ever there was a strong and vacant silence upon that place. And presently, after that I had looked once more unto the mighty dancing
flame, and perceived nowhere any life around it, I went onward down the
quiet gorge. And for a great way as I journeyed was my path lit by the
dancing of the blue flame; and oft should I seem to be going but dimly
among the rocks, and my shadow faint and long; and lo! the flame would
leap, and all the gorge come to a wondrous brightness, and my figure to
shorten, and the shadows to be black and strong. And so shall you
perceive how I went. And oft did I turn me about to behold the dancing of the Great Light;
for it was solemn to my spirit, even amid so much of Greatness and
Eternity, to think upon that Flame, and to conceive that it had an utter
age danced there at the foot of the Mighty Slope, unseen, through
lonesome Eternities. And this I do tell unto you; that thereby may you
have some knowledge of the strangeness and the bitter loneliness of that
place; which, in verity, did seem the expressing of all the lonesomeness
of my wanderings. And all the time as I did go downward of the great Gorge, there sounded
the blast of the roaring, that was presently afar to my back; and the
mountain sides did catch it here and in that place, and sent it offwards
with strange and improper echoings, as of a chill piping, or oddwise as
hushed whisperings of monstrous creatures; so that I did oft stoop to
hide a little among the boulders; for truly I knew not but that some
unnatural thing called from the darkness of the mountain side. And for six hours I walked onward thus, and sometimes did hide, having a
sudden fear, as I have told. And presently, in a great while, the roaring was sunk to a far and
monstrous piping; but in the end to no more than a far and uncertain
whistling, that yet did catch strange echoes in the night. And in the
end there was only a quietness. And yet, as you do perceive, there had
been always a silence in that Gorge, as I have told, and this to the
despite of the whistling. And I do hope that you have understanding with
me in this matter; for it was truly as I have told, and there is no
contrariness of telling in this matter. Now in all this time that I had walked in the great Gorge, I had past
four of the far lights that I did see from the bottom of the Slope; and
the two first and the fourth were blue, but the third was green; and all
did dance and quake, and sent fitful shinings into the belly of the
Gorge. And there came also from them whistlings, and from the second one
a low and strange moaning noise; and I doubted not the gas did come
oddly and with trouble. And I past these things with no great thought;
for truly they were no matters for notice, after that which I had
beheld. Now, as you shall mind, it was surely in the early Third of the seventh
day of my journey down the Mighty Slope that I saw the first shining of
the monstrous gas fountain; and from that time until now had there past
maybe sixteen hours. And, as you do wot, I had eat not in all my travel
since that I had seen the light; so that I was gone to a proper lack
inward; and moreover, it was full nineteen hours or more since that I
had slept; and all that while had I laboured. And I ceased me from wandering, and lookt about that I should come to a
safe and proper place for my slumber; and this I saw very quick; for
there was dry stone and rock everywhere, and no failing of holes and
diverse places to my purpose; so that I was soon in a little cave
between two mighty boulders. And here I eat four of the tablets; for truly so many were my due, and I
had not been violent had I eat more. And afterward, I made some of the
water, and it did fizz up in a moment; so that I perceived that but a
good pinch made a great cup-full. And this I set to the count of the
strong and heavy air, as I have told, which I did think to have a
greater power of chemistry. And presently I slept, having my gear about me as ever, and the Diskos
to my breast. And as I went into slumber, I thought sweetly upon Naani,
as I had done, indeed, an hundred times since I was come to the
hopefulness of the lights of the Gorge. Now, whilst I slept, I dreamed that the Master-Word did presently beat
all about me in the night. Yet, as I do mind, I waked not; and because
that I continued to sleep, I have no sure knowing whether this was truly
a dream, or an Happening. And I minded me upon it, when I waked; but
this was after that I had slept seven hours; and I could have no
sureness anywise of the matter; but only that I was come safe through my
sleep; though heavy within my head and limbs, as that the air did call
me unto a further slumbering, as is like enough. And after that I had eat and drunk, I put my gear about me, and the
Diskos to my hip, for I needed both my hands to the task of journeying
amid the great boulders. And I set forth again down the half-light of
the mighty Gorge, and through eighteen hours I made a strong going, save
when I did pause at the sixth and the twelfth hours to mine eating. And by the eighteenth hour was come, I was very ready to my food and
slumber; and presently I was asleep in a place of the rocks. And that
day had I past three and twenty of the dancing gas fires; and five been
like a white fire; but the others blue and green. And all did dance and
made a strange and uncertain light within the great Gorge; yet was it a
peaceful thing unto my spirit that there was truly light, as you shall
understand. And I slept six hours, and waked, and did want more sleep, as you shall
think. But I eat and drunk and put my gear upon me, and went on downward
of the Gorge. And at the sixth hour, after that I had eat and drunk, I came to a part
where the big gas fires did cease to dance, and there was a certain
darkness upon that place. Yet was it not a proper dark; for there came
the glimmer of a flame here and the glimmer of a flame there, as that
little flames came upward between the stones, and did vanish, and come
upward in another part. And so did light and die out constant and
forever amid the stones and the boulders of that lonesome Gorge; and
made a low-spread light, so that it did seem unto me that strange
shudders of light beat upward through the dark of that place.