Vietnam or Thailand ? Vote for the TOP Country of the Week !
Updated: June 9, 2025
The light resolved itself into a tiny oblong of mysterious brightness in a huge wall of night. Krag's grim and rocklike features were revealed. "I can't face rebirth," said Nightspore. "The horror of death is nothing to it." "You will choose." "I can do nothing. Crystalman is too powerful. I barely escaped with my own soul."
The face of each figure was clothed in the sordid and horrible Crystalman mask. Corpang cried out and put his hand over his eyes. "What can this mean?" he asked a minute later. "It must mean that life is wrong, and the creator of life too, whether he is one person or three." Corpang looked again, like a man trying to accustom himself to a shocking sight. "Dare we believe this?"
"As long as pleasure is worshiped, Krag will always be the devil." "Here we are, talking face to face, two men together.... What am I to believe of you?" "Believe your senses. The real devil is Crystalman." They continued descending the landslip. The sun's rays had grown insufferably hot. In front of them, down below in the far distance, Maskull saw water and land intermingled.
In what state of mind she had died, he did not know, for her face wore the vulgar Crystalman grin. The whole tragedy had not lasted five minutes. He went over to Earthrid and dragged him forcibly away from his playing. "You have been as good as your word, musician," he said. "Gleameil is dead." Earthrid tried to collect his scattered senses. "I warned her," he replied, sitting up.
Crystalman has had eternity to practice his cunning in, so it's no wonder if a man can't see straight, even with the best intentions. What have you decided to do?" "The drumming seems to be moving away. Will you follow it, Maskull?" "Yes." "But where will it take us?" "Perhaps out of Threal altogether." "It sounds to me more real than reality," said Corpang. "Tell me, who is Surtur?"
Starting in awful mystery, it ended with such a note of low and sordid mockery that he could not doubt for a moment whence it originated. It was the voice of Crystalman. Krag was waiting for him on the island raft. He threw a stern glance at Nightspore. "Have you seen everything?" "The struggle is hopeless," muttered Nightspore. "Did I not say I am the stronger?"
"Surtur's world, or Muspel, we are told, is the original of which this world is a distorted copy. Crystalman is life, but Surtur is other than life." "How do you know this?" "It has sprung together somehow from inspiration, from experience, from conversation with the wise men of your planet. Every hour it grows truer for me and takes a more definite shape." "I believe you, Maskull.
The sphere was still there, but between it and the Muspel-world in which he was standing he perceived a dim, vast shadow, without any distinguishable shape, but somehow throwing out a scent of disgusting sweetness. Nightspore knew that it was Crystalman. A flood of fierce light but it was not light, but passion was streaming all the time from Muspel to the Shadow, and through it.
He felt no immediate difference in his soul, but... Tydomin shed a sad smile on him, like winter sunshine. He half expected her to speak, but she said nothing. Instead, she made a sign to him to pick up Crimtyphon's corpse. As he obeyed, he wondered why Digrung's dead face did not wear the frightful Crystalman mask. "Why hasn't he altered?" he muttered to himself. Tydomin heard him.
He has intelligence, for all his shapes are different, and he has character, for all belong to the same general type.... If I'm not wrong, and if it's the force called Shaping or Crystalman, I've seen enough to make me want to find out something more about him.... It would be ridiculous to go on to other riddles before I have solved these."
Word Of The Day
Others Looking