Duke Elric - Michael Moorcock [18]
“Just so,” said Erekose. Together, they shuddered.
At last they approached the likely centre of the place and here was a building which was not ruined. It stood in a cleared space, all curves and ribbons of metal and glowing tubes.
“It resembles a machine more than a building,” said Hawkmoon.
“And a musical instrument more than a machine,” Corum mused.
The party came to a halt, each group of four gathering about its leader. There was no question but that they had arrived at their goal.
Now that Elric looked carefully at the building he could see that it was in fact two buildings—both absolutely identical and joined at various points by curling systems of pipes which might be connecting corridors, though it was difficult to imagine what manner of being could utilize them.
“Two buildings,” said Erekose. “We were not prepared for this. Shall we split up and attack both?”
Instinctively Elric felt that this action would be unwise. He shook his head. “I think we should go together into one, else our strength will be weakened.”
“I agree,” said Hawkmoon, and the rest nodded.
Thus, there being no cover to speak of, they marched boldly towards the nearest building to a point near the ground where a black opening of irregular proportions could be discerned. Ominously, there was still no sign of defenders. The buildings pulsed and glowed and occasionally whispered, but that was all.
Elric and his party were the first to enter, finding themselves in a damp, warm passage which curved almost immediately to the right. They were followed by the others until all stood in this passage warily glaring ahead, expecting to be attacked. But no attack came.
With Elric at their head, they moved on for some moments before the passage began to tremble violently and sent Hown Serpent-tamer crashing to the floor cursing. As the man in the sea-green armour scrambled up, a voice began to echo along the passage, seemingly coming from a great distance yet nonetheless loud and irritable.
“Who? Who? Who?” shrieked the voice.
“Who? Who? Who invades me?”
The passage's tremble subsided a little into a constant quivering motion. The voice became a muttering, detached and uncertain.
“What attacks? What?”
The twenty men glanced at one another in puzzlement. At length Elric shrugged and led the party on and soon the passage had widened out into a hall whose walls, roof, and floor were damp with sticky fluid and whose air was hard to breathe. And now, somehow passing themselves through the walls of this hall, came the first of the defenders, ugly beasts who must be the servants of that mysterious brother and sister Agak and Gagak.
“Attack!” cried the distant voice. “Destroy this. Destroy it!”
The beasts were of a primitive sort, mostly gaping mouth and slithering body, but there were many of them oozing towards the twenty men, who quickly formed themselves into the four fighting units and prepared to defend themselves. The creatures made a dreadful slushing sound as they approached and the ridges of bone which served them as teeth clashed as they reared up to snap at Elric and his companions. Elric whirled his sword and it met hardly any resistance as it sliced through several of the things at once. But now the air was thicker than ever and a stench threatened to overwhelm them as fluid drenched the floor.
“Move on through them,” Elric instructed, “hacking a path through as you go. Head for yonder opening.” He pointed with his left hand.
And so they advanced, cutting back hundreds of the primitive beasts and thus decreasing the breathability of the air.
“The creatures are not hard to fight,” gasped Hown Serpent-tamer, “but each one we kill robs us a little of our own chances of life.”
Elric was aware of the irony. “Cunningly planned by our enemies, no doubt.” He coughed and slashed again at a dozen of the beasts slithering towards him. The things were fearless, but they were stupid,