FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138   139   140   141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   150   151   152   153   154  
155   156   157   158   159   160   161   162   163   164   165   166   167   168   169   170   171   172   173   174   175   176   177   178   179   >>   >|  
way through all organic matter that stood in their path. Writhing, squirming, all-absorbing monsters that sent out an advance guard of independent snake-like tendrils to capture and hold for the lagging mother-plants whatever of live stock and humanity they were able to find. "Think they'll get over the river, Van?" Bart asked. "Sure they will. Every fugitive who had a narrow escape after being in contact with the things is a potential carrier of the seed. I found several of them sticking to my clothing after we got away. I picked a couple off your coat, but didn't tell you." "Lord! What did you do with them?" "Put them in the ash receiver in my car--like a fool. Wouldn't have to go down for more if I'd kept them." "Well, it can't be helped now. We'll have a job getting some down there now, too." "I'll say so." Van lapsed into gloomy silence. * * * * * They were over the landing field above Tomkins Cove, and Bill turned on the siren whose raucous shriek operated the mechanism of the floodlight switches by sound vibrations. The field sprang into instant illumination, and they circled it once before swooping to a landing. They were but a mile from the advancing terror. The field was deserted, and the three men started off immediately in the direction of the oncoming weed. "We'll have to make it snappy," Van grunted. "We've got about twelve minutes to get the pods and get back to the ship. The damn things'll be here by that time." They scrambled over fences and pushed through thickets. The lighted windows of a deserted farmhouse were directly ahead, and they ran through the open gate and across the fields. Ever, the glow of the weed grew brighter. A terrified horse galloped wildly past them and crashed into the fence, whinnying piteously as it went down with a broken leg. They could see the red rim of the advancing horror just beyond the road. One of the detached tendrils slithered past, each glowing coil distinctly visible. "Lucky the things can't see!" Bart shuddered. "Yeah," said Van. "Have to dodge 'em to get in close enough to one of the plants. Keep your eyes peeled now, you fellows, in case one of us gets caught." A terrific explosion rocked the ground. They had paid no heed to the roaring of motors overhead. The bombers were on the job! Shooting skyward, a column of flame not a hundred yards from them showed where the high explosive had landed in th
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138   139   140   141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   150   151   152   153   154  
155   156   157   158   159   160   161   162   163   164   165   166   167   168   169   170   171   172   173   174   175   176   177   178   179   >>   >|  



Top keywords:
things
 

landing

 

deserted

 
plants
 

tendrils

 

advancing

 

brighter

 

terrified

 

crashed

 

minutes


wildly

 
galloped
 

immediately

 
grunted
 
oncoming
 

lighted

 

windows

 

whinnying

 

farmhouse

 

thickets


pushed

 

scrambled

 

fences

 

directly

 

fields

 
direction
 

snappy

 

twelve

 

ground

 

motors


roaring

 

rocked

 
explosion
 

fellows

 

terrific

 

caught

 

overhead

 

bombers

 

showed

 

explosive


landed
 
hundred
 

skyward

 

Shooting

 

column

 
peeled
 

started

 
slithered
 
detached
 

horror