by Guy d'Armen
With a few more gestures, the Comte started the strange orange light that would make the monster grow even bigger, while he kept sending electric shocks into the cage to drive the beast into a frenzied state.
“Yes, ideal,” he laughed.
CHAPTER XVIII
Attack of the Tarantula
As Kyzyl Kaya had predicted, at the end of the week, both Ardan and Suleyma had reached the size of ten feet—a little more for the young man—and had been relocated to a larger cell with a much taller ceiling. Food was lowered through a strong glass window in the ceiling.
Even though they could feel that the mysterious process had had some impact on their mental acumen, they remained, however, sufficiently sound and alert in spirit to look for a possibility of escape. Alas, they had found none so far. This time, the Red Wizard had left nothing to chance.
“What is he planning to do with us?” asked Suleyma, for the umpteenth time.
“Strive to remember,” replied Ardan, aware that their memory was the first faculty to have been affected. “He wants to force me to work with him, and he is the only one who can restore us to our original size. Even if we could escape, we would surely be hunted or killed by the Russians or the Chinese.”
“Ah, yes, that is so,” said the young woman, passing her hand over her brow in a sign of lassitude.
Ardan sighed. He was well aware of the gaps in his own memory—but was powerless to counter the effect of Kyzyl Kaya’s diabolical process.
Just then, a wall panel slid open and the Red Wizard stepped into the room.
“You’re quite a big boy, now, eh, doctor?” he snickered. “I say ‘doctor,’ but I’d bet that you’d be quite unable to acquire that title in your present condition, am I right?”
Ardan knew that the Comte was correct. Some of his hard-earned knowledge had now slipped beyond his mental grasp.
“No need to respond,” continued Kyzyl Kaya. “Your silence speaks volumes. Right now, you could barely beat a 12-year-old at chess—and that is only the beginning. I think you’re strong enough to withstand another week of my process, at the end of which, you’ll be quite an imbecile! Ha! Ha!”
In the depths of his soul, the Red Wizard wasn’t so certain of that fact, but his present plan consisted in trying to sap as much of the morale of his enemy as possible.
His task accomplished, he left the room as he had come, and began implementing the second phase of his diabolical scheme.
Inside the cell, another trapdoor, located on the opposite wall at floor level, slowly began to slide open.
In its place stood the black tarantula—as big as a donkey.
The arachnid began to move slowly into the room on its hairy legs.
Ardan and Suleyma backed away from the monstrous beast. The young man remembered that tarantula seize their prey with their legs, paralyze it with venom, and then kill it with their fangs. They can also crush the prey with their strong jaws.
His back to the wall, he had no choice but to fight—and hope to prevail.
Ardan tore straps from his already torn shirt and got Suleyma to tie them around his fists like an ancient Greek wrestler
Suddenly, they heard a diabolical cackle coming from above. They looked up and saw that Kyzyl Kaya was spying on them through the glass plate in the ceiling. They thought he was there to take a sadistic delight in their deaths, but in reality, the Red Wizard only wanted to frighten them into utter submission, and intended to activate one of his mysterious weapons if his tarantula actually threatened the life of, at least, Doctor Ardan. He couldn’t care less about Suleyma, whose only usefulness was as a means of putting pressure on the young scientist.
Meanwhile, Ardan gestured to the young woman to stand behind him and stepped forward, both fists raised, ready to tackle the monster.
The tarantula raised one of its hairy legs to strike its intended victim with its claws, but Ardan nimbly sidestepped it and used his increased strength to grab the limb and tear it off!
A foul-smelling liquid poured out of the wound onto the stone floor.
A whistling sound not unlike that of a punctured tire, but higher and louder, came out of the beast; its fangs kept moving in a circular pattern like a mechanism out of control.
Ardan then leap-frogged over the giant spider, which could not turn around in time to prevent the young man’s next attack.
With his two hands, he tore another leg off the tarantula, which then collapsed to the floor, incapable of moving.
Then, using the limb as a club, the young man hammered the arachnid until it was dead.
The smell in the cell was nauseating, and Suleyma had already thrown up, when her companion unveiled the third prong of his plan.
Still holding the spider leg as club, and climbing on top of the arachnid body to raise himself up as much as possible, Ardan used his powerful leg muscles to jump up in the air, straight towards the ceiling’s glass window.
Not afraid to use his own head as projectile, and risk being concussed, he hit the window with the top of his skull with all his power—and the glass shattered!
The Red Wizard, stunned by the death of his tarantula, had not anticipated Ardan’s sudden counterattack. When the window exploded into shards, he was dazed by the shock.
Ardan had managed to grab the frame of the window with his free hand, and struck at Kyzyl Kaya with the spider’s leg, drawing blood.
But now the villain had recovered from his surprise, and kicked Ardan’s hand, forcing the young man to release his hold.
Ardan fell back into the cell, fortunately on top of the spider’s body, which cushioned his fall. He was covered with small cuts from the glass fragments, and the top of his head as already showing signs of giving birth to an egg-sized bump—but he was otherwise unharmed!
Meanwhile, Kyzyl Kaya had fled and was nowhere to be seen.
The first thing Ardan did was to close the trapdoor from which the spider had come. He didn’t want the Red Wizard sending any more monsters after them. Also, knowing that it only led to other cages, he didn’t think it was a safe way of escape.
The only practical way out of the cell was through the glass opening in the ceiling. And they had to move fast before the Red Wizard returned or sent his Tartars to eliminate them.
Ardan explained his plan to Suleyma, who nodded. Then, he grabbed the young woman and threw her high into the air towards the opening.
The first couple of times, she failed to grab the frame, but fortunately the young man was there to catch her on her way down.
The third time proved successful. Like Ardan before, Suleyma was able to grab the window frame and raise herself up and into what appeared to be some kind of observation gallery from which visitors could watch the specimens in the cells beneath their feet.
Once Suleyma was in the gallery, she looked for a way to help Ardan get out. Fortunately, each cell came equipped with a small mechanism, like a miniature dumbwaiter, which had been used to lower food to them. Suleyma disabled it, removed the chain, tied one end to a post and let the other end down into the cell.
Minutes later, Ardan had joined her.
The gallery appeared deserted; there was only one door at the end of it.
Because it had been designed for normal-sized humans, they had to almost bend in half to reach it, and lay down on the floor to take a peep through the keyhole.
Much to his surprise, Ardan saw that the other side of the door was guarded by the same two giants who had recaptured them previously.
He thought that Kyzyl Kaya, anticipating that they might escape from the cell, and fearing they might easily defeat his Tartars, had deemed it wise to entrust his security to the two colossuses, the only beings whose strength could thwart that of Ardan and Suleyma.
Ardan reported what he had just seen to Suleyma in a whisper, concluding:
“...And they’re still carrying their clubs, but we are unharmed, and they’re still bigger and stronger than us. Yet, we have to go past them
to get out of here. We need some kind of weapon...”
They looked around but at first glance, could not find anything useful. The observation gallery was devoid of any tools.
Then Ardan was hit by an idea:
“I used one of the spider’s legs as a club against Kyzyl Kaya before... Maybe I can do it again. In any event, it’s better than nothing.”
He crawled back to the opening, and used the chain to lower himself down into the cell.
The leg he had used previously was smashed, so he tore two more off the arachnid’s body—which had already started to decompose—and threw them to Suleyma.
Then he climbed up the chain again back to the observation gallery.
“Here is what we’re going to do,” he explained to his companion, still in whispers. “I’ll kick the door down, and we both attack them simultaneously. Club them with this end,” he added, pointing at the claws. “There may be some venom or something toxic in it. Besides, they’re not very smart. We should have the upper hand. Are you ready?”
“Yes!”
CHAPTER XIX
The Waters of Black Lake
Ardan lay on the floor, his feet against the door, and silently mouthed a countdown. When he reached “zero,” he kicked the door with all his strength.
The panel of word shattered into a million shards under the blow.
The dull-witted giants were not prepared for what they faced next.
On the other side of the door was a large, tall space—perhaps, a gymnasium built by the Red Wizard to train his colossal watchdogs?—and Ardan had room to maneuver.
He rolled into a ball and delivered a sweeping blow to the leg of one of the giants with his improvised club. This time, its power was such that he clearly hard the bone crack, and saw the giant collapse to the ground, bellowing in pain.
The second giant rushed forward, to attack or help his comrade, but was met but Suleyma who tried to deliver a blow to his face—but missed when he deflected it with his own club.
However, Ardan had not remained idle.
Grabbing the fallen giant’s staff, he threw it with impeccable aim into the legs of Suleyma’s attacker, causing him to trip and fall.
Then, it was child’s play for the young woman to bludgeon her enemy.
But in the meantime, the first giant, despite his broken leg, had managed to balance on his knees and grabbed Ardan in a bear’s hug.
The two rolled onto the floor and around the room like two mad wrestlers, kicking at the walls and trying to injure each other.
Ardan clawed and bit his foe, but he could not break free from his hold.
Suleyma understood that her companion was at a disadvantage and she had to act immediately to help Ardan.
Despite the fact that in her current mental state, she wasn’t as clear-minded as she would have been normally, she did not hesitate.
She grabbed one of the giant’s legs, pulling him backward.
The monster, taken by surprise, released his hold, ever so slightly, but enough for Ardan to elbow him down.
Then the young man got up, sat on his enemy’s back, grabbed his neck and, with a merciless chokehold, cut off all blood supply to the brain.
The giant twisted and writhed on the floor, trying to shake off the young man, but in vain. He quickly grew weaker and weaker, and eventually passed out.
Ardan stood up, wiping the sweat off his brow.
“Not a minute to lose,” he said, panting. “We’ve got to get out of here!”
They saw a door at the other end of the gymnasium, but upon examination, discovered that it was made of steel and bolted tight.
No matter what they tried, they could not open it.
Suddenly, Ardan noticed something new: there now was water on the ground—where there had been none before!
It was only a very small puddle at first, but careful observation showed that it was rising, very slowly, but steadily.
“My feet are wet,” said Suleyma. “What’s going on?”
“I’m wondering about that, too,” replied Ardan. “We must look for the source of that infiltration. Perhaps it will lead to another exit.”
They began to search the gymnasium carefully, inch by inch, and finally discovered a hidden panel which let in a rivulet of water, seemingly greater as the minutes passed.
“That’s where the water is coming from,” said Ardan. “Look here: I kicked that bottom corner there when I was fighting with the giant...”
“What should we do?” asked Suleyma.
“We could use one of the clubs as leverage to force that panel out, but then I fear all the water will rush into the room and we may be carried away or even drowned...”
“What do you mean, all the water?”
“We’re too far for the Yenisei. I think that passage—more like a conduit, really—leads to Black Lake, and my theory is that it was built as a last resort safety device by Kyzyl Kaya in order to drown all his devilish creations should they escape en masse and threaten him.”
“But if we stay here and do nothing, we will drown too,” said Suleyma, with common sense.
“You’re right—but we must be careful. If we let in too much water, too fast, we shan’t be able to resist the flow.
During this conversation the level of water had increased and, despite the size of the gymnasium, already reached their ankles. Ominously, the sound behind the wall panel was now more like that of a cataract, indicating that more and more outside water was rushing into the breach.
Ardan sighed.
“We have no choice. Pass me that club—and stay right behind me!”
Ardan used the club to twist and enlarge the gap—letting more water in—while being careful to stand behind the panel, which served as a shield.
When the space was sufficient for them to slip through, he took a peek behind the panel.
Despite the water rushing in, he could see that the conduit was not unlike the inside of a factory chimney, with a metal ladder bolted into its side.
Grabbing Suleyma by the hand, he stepped under the cataract of water and started to climb the ladder, making sure that the young woman was right behind him.
By chance the water was falling mostly on the other half of the giant pipe, making their ascent not too arduous.
As they climbed up, they passed what was obviously a valve, the purpose of which was to keep the water out, but which had been remotely opened. Ardan theorized that it was Kyzyl Kaya who had opened it to release the lake waters, but somehow, kicking the wall panel at the bottom, had prevented it from opening entirely, and saved them from drowning.
They eventually reached the top of the tunnel, which was a U-shaped bend that Ardan thought lead straight to the bottom of Black Lake.
“Wait for me here,” he told Suleyma,
Then filling his lungs with air, he plunged into the bend. As he turned the corner he saw that the opening was blocked by a giant grate.
He returned to the top of the tunnel to report what he had just found to the young woman.
“There is a grate between us and the lake. I’m not sure how to open it, however. And it’s all underwater. I may have to make several trips...”
Filling his lungs with air once more, Ardan swam to the grate, and carefully examined how it was secured into the rock. He spotted several weak points, where metal bolts appeared to be loose.
It took him several trips, but, ultimately, using his new-found strength—five times that of an ordinary human—he was able to twist a section of the grate into a space large enough to let the two of them through. Had he remained a normal-sized man, he reflected, he could never have escaped that way!
Now the remaining question was, how deep under Black Lake were they, and would they have enough air to make it to the surface. Again, their lungs were now much larger, but would that be sufficient?
They didn’t have much choice, and had to chance it.
On his last trip back to Suleyma, Ardan explained the situation c
arefully to the young woman.
Then, they plunged into the water.
Reaching the grate, Ardan quickly swam through it, but when he turned back to check on his companion, he immediately realized that Suleyma’s clothes had gotten stuck on a piece of twisted metal and the young woman was struggling to get free.
He immediately rushed to her help, tore the fabric, and, taking her in one arm, he kicked against the grate with all his strength to propel them upwards like a rocket.
Their heads broke the surface with a splash.
At last, they could breathe!
They drew long, delightful breaths of fresh night air—for it was dark outside!—before swimming towards the shore.
Behind them, Ardan noticed a small eddy that was the only outward evidence that the waters of Black Lake were being siphoned off towards Kyzyl Kaya’s underground city.
A few minutes later, they were no longer swimming but, as their feet touched ground, walking towards the shore.
CHAPTER XX
A New Threat Arises
As Ardan and Suleyma walked towards the shores of Black Lake, they felt something itching on their legs.
When they emerged from the waters, they saw that it was caused by a bunch of voracious crabs that been trying to nibble—mostly to no or little effect!—on their lower legs and feet.
Retrospectively Ardan shuddered at the thought of what their fate might have been had they been normal-sized! No doubt they would have been devoured by the crabs before they could swim ashore.
After cleaning their limbs of the crabs still clinging to them, they stretched on the bank of the lake to rest. There were still a few hours of night time ahead of them and Ardan felt it was prudent to get some rest before they embarked on the next leg of their journey.
They slept peacefully until they were awakened by the sound of a gunshot.
Ardan raised his head to see what was going on.
In the distance, amongst the tall grass and reeds, they saw a lone Tartar, holding a lantern.
“It must be a hunter,” whispered Suleyma. “The bravest ones come to hunt near the shores of Black Lake, but most stay away because of the legends of Abuk Khan and his giant warriors...”