thout conscious thought or volition his legs suddenly churned beneath
him and he lunged forward blindly, desperately, lurching through the
buffeting force of the gale toward the sanctuary of the building where
he had left Halliday.

The rasping, nerve-chilling sound roared about his head and the lashing
screech of the monsoon was a banshee-wail in his ears as he stumbled and
staggered on, driven by the wildest, most elemental fear he had ever
known.

Suddenly the squat structure loomed directly ahead of him, only a yard
away. The door was standing ajar, and, with a broken sob of relief, he
lunged into the lighted interior of the room.

Halliday was crawling dazedly to his feet as Ward staggered blindly
through the door, his breath coming in great choking sobs.

"My God--"

Halliday's voice broke and Ward saw that his eyes were staring in horror
beyond him, to the still open door where the gray swirling fury of the
monsoon was creeping in.

And other _things_ were in the open doorway!

Ward knew that without turning to look. The horror mirrored in
Halliday's face told him that more plainly than could his own eyes.

There was horror and fear in Halliday's face, but the tightness of his
lips did not relax into the flaccid looseness of hysteria.

With superhuman control he was keeping a grip on himself.

"Don't move!" he snapped, through set jaws. "I'll try to get at the
rifle."

Ward's heart was thundering a tattoo of terror. Halliday's words made no
impression on the horror-stunned brain. He lunged wildly across the
room, dimly he heard Halliday's sudden shouted warning.

Without a backward glance he lurched into the small room that served as
a kitchen. Through the fog of terror that swirled about his mind, he
remembered only one thing: Halliday's remark of a refuge built there for
emergency purposes.

His fingers tore open the small door alongside the refrigerator unit. A
black passage stretched ahead of him and he plunged into dark shelter,
jerking the door shut after him.

A light snapped on when the door closed and he saw that he was in a
small, stoutly reinforced storeroom, with bales of supplies and
equipment packed against the walls.

He threw the heavy bolt that locked the door and sagged against a wall,
his breath coming in deep shuddering gasps. There was no sound from
outside. Gradually his labored breathing subsided and he stared with
dull, unseeing eyes ahead of him.

And in that moment W