The air was filled with the
perfume I had first smelt in the cave temple of the Hill of Rakh. But
it was not altogether overpowering. It made my pulses throb and brought
a great rush of blood to my head and hands and feet much as would the
scent of amyl nitrate. But it did not take away my senses. Belleville,
protected by his mask, was in no way affected. He quickly unstoppered
the second jar, and added its contents to the first. Then he turned and
approached me, taking off his helmet as he came. The action apprised
me that the wonderful perfume had almost died away. There was now a
healthy and stimulating odour in the room that resembled boiling tar. Evidently the two jars had contained different chemicals. A loud,
seething, bubbling sound was plainly to be heard; it came from the
sarcophagus. Belleville sat down and wiped his forehead with a handkerchief. "We
must give the stuff ten minutes to mix," he said and, taking out his
watch, he glanced at the time. "It's twenty past eleven," he remarked. "You'll begin to mummify at the half hour precisely, Pinsent, so if you
are a religious man you'd best compose your soul in prayer." I am not ashamed to say that I followed his advice. I closed my eyes
and asked the Omnipotent for remission of my sins. And since it seemed
to me that my hour had come, I resolutely put aside my detestation
of the monster who designed to murder me, and I even asked for his
forgiveness, too. Then a great, deep, splendid peace mantled over me,
and for the first time in my life I truly realised the littleness of
man's existence and the majesty of resignation. It was almost worth
while to go through all I had been compelled to endure to experience
at the end that mood of grand, calm dignity. I felt almost sublimely
detached from my surroundings. I opened my eyes at last and said with
perfect calm:

"I am ready, Belleville." He stood up and stretched out his arms, yawning widely. Then of a
sudden everything was dark. "What in Hell----?" shouted Belleville. I heard him rush forward
cursing angrily, then he stumbled and fell headlong to the floor amidst
a crash of glass. In the same instant unseen hands fumbled over me. My
bonds suddenly relaxed and I was free. I stood up, stiff but quivering
in every nerve. There followed a rasping sound, a match flickered into
light, and I saw Belleville rising from the ruins of a broken jar. He
held the lucifer above his head, and it showed standing at an angle
between us the tall frame of the Arab of the cave temple at Rakh. Belleville ripped out an oath. There came a blinding flash of light and
the deafening report of a revolver. I staggered from the chair to the
wall and leaned against it, helpless as a babe. The echoes were still
thundering in rolling waves of brain-dazing sound from wall to wall
when the pitch blackness of the room was again relieved by the glare
of electricity. Belleville had succeeded in turning on the lights. He
stood by the door peering all about him. For a moment I thought all was
up. I was free, certainly, but my muscles were so cramped and tautened
that I could hardly move a finger. I was not fit to contend against
a breath of wind, let alone a burly ruffian like the Doctor. But the
next instant I remembered I was still invisible. I could not see my own
hand held before me, and I had immediate proof that he was unable to
perceive me. "Where are you, Pinsent? are you hurt?" he cried. I did not answer, but, following his glance, I looked at the couch and
there I saw what utterly astounded me. The mummy of Ptahmes lay upon
the couch in exactly the same attitude as when Belleville had flung
it there aside from the sarcophagus. Who, then, or what, had set me
free? I examined the apartment eagerly, but saw nothing living save
Belleville, who with cocked revolver thrust out before him now stepped
forward cautiously into the room, waving his arms about him as he
walked, and muttering, as he walked, through clenched teeth a string of
angry blasphemies. Chapter XXVIII

The Struggle in the Chamber


The advantage I possessed was dangerously minimised by my physical
incapacity, but I hoped, given time, to get back some measure of
strength. The great thing was to preserve my liberty until I had
acquired force enough to use it. I speedily realised that I could not
remain where I was, for Belleville was making towards me and reflection
would soon teach him that weakness would compel me to seek a prop
for my support. But I feared to move lest the sound should betray my
whereabouts. For the same reason I almost feared to breathe. I thought
to myself, "Oh, that he would fire again so that I could move elsewhere
under cover of the noise." Once or twice he seemed to look me in the eye. He made a zigzag to my
chair. There he paused and listened. I ceased to breathe. Only six feet
separated us. But impatience consumed him. "Tell me where you are!" he growled, "or by the Lord when I catch you I'll tear you limb from
limb." I breathed while he spoke and ceased when he stopped. "You can't escape me!" he snarled. "I've only to light my blue lamp
and I'll find you in a minute. But if you put me to that trouble and
make me waste my precious oil besides, well, look out, that's all!" I clenched and unclenched my hands; the use of them was coming back to
me. "Very well," said Belleville. He passed my chair and stalked to the
other end of the room, where he opened a cabinet. I moved slowly
and painfully to the very centre of the room. Then I stood stock
still. Belleville, returning, paused within a foot of me. He carried
a bull's-eye lanthorn. This he put upon the table, and presently he
struck a match. A moment later a round shaft of intense blue radiance
shot across the room and marked a moon-shaped sphere on the wall. It
began to flit along the wall, up and down from the very floor to the
height of a man's chest, until it touched the corner. Then it flashed
back twice over the same path, and afterwards attacked the next wall. Sooner or later it would be bound to encounter and, perhaps, discover
me. But Belleville was only a few feet off. Perhaps if I sank down
the shaft would pass over me without touching. At least I could try. Suppressing a shriek of agony, I crouched upon my hands and knees. Then
came another thought. Slowly and laboriously I began to crawl nearer
and nearer to my enemy. The blue shaft was now shooting right over my
head. I crept behind him and, breathing noiselessly, stood up. If
I had possessed a tithe of my strength I might have reached out and
caught his neck and strangled him with ease. But I dared not risk it. All on a sudden he uttered an oath. The lamp had gone out. "Damn the
thing!" he growled. Putting down his revolver on the table, he opened
the lamp and peered in at the smoking wick. We were now face to face
and his cocked weapon lay within eighteen inches of my hand. I tried
my fingers and found that they were reasonably supple.