of
self-preservation caused him to strain at his bonds. And that was the
very last thing he remembered. The whole world blew up in that instant
and he went sailing off into a great void of utter silence and
darkness.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

_Haywire Nerves_

From a long way off came the faint rumble of sound. It grew louder and
louder, and took on the steady, rhythmic beat of powerful engines giving
of their best. Every so often a different sound broke through the
rhythmic beat, but it faded out almost instantly, and the steady beat
continued on forever--and ever--endlessly.

Seconds, minutes, and years dragged by, and then Dave Dawson was
conscious of the fact that the rhythmic beat came from all about him,
and that his body was absorbing the vibration of it. Not yet did it
occur to him to try to move, or even to open his eyes. As a matter of
fact, either of those physical accomplishments was far beyond his
powers. And he continued to remain in a befuddled world of rhythmic
beats, vibration, and darkness.

And then, suddenly, there was light all around him. But a few extra
seconds ticked by before his half frozen brain could grasp the fact that
his eyes had more or less automatically opened and that he was staring
up at a light grey-painted ceiling and walls, and that up off to his
left there was a round window through which light was pouring. He saw
the ceiling, the grey-painted walls, and the round window, and although
they registered upon his brain individually, they meant nothing to him
as a whole.

More years dragged by, and the thought finally came to him to move his
legs and his arms. He did so, but the pains that shot through his
sturdy, youthful body caused him to gasp and groan, and relax completely
to wait for the film of red to pass from his eyes. And when it did he
saw the strained, anxious face of Freddy Farmer bending over him. The
English youth's lips moved, and the words just barely seeped through
Dawson's ears.

"Dave, old man, look at me! Speak to me, Dave! Are you all right? Oh,
blast those devils! Dave! Come out of it. It's Freddy! This is Freddy
Farmer. Your pal. _Dave!_"

A tiny spark was touched off in Dawson's brain, and the flame from it
seemed to start strength surging through him. He licked his lips,
swallowed, and gulped. Hardly realizing he was doing so, he pushed
himself up onto one elbow. Then Freddy caught him around the shoulders
and eased him up to a sitting position.