And lo! as I stood, trembling and striving not to be tense, which
destroys the receptivity, there came thrilling round and round my
spiritual essence the throb of the Master-Word, beating steadily in the
night, as doth that marvellous sound. And then, with all that was sweet
in my spirit, I called with my brain elements: "Mirdath! Mirdath!
Mirdath!" And at that instant the Master Monstruwacan entered that part
of the Tower of Observation, where I stood; and, seeing my face, stood
very quiet; for though he had not the power of Night-Hearing, he was
wise and thoughtful, and took much account of my gift; more-over, he had
but come from the Receiving Instrument, and thought vaguely to have
caught the throb of the Master-Word, though too faint to come proper
through the Instrument, so that he searched for me, in that I, who had
the Hearing, might listen for it, I being, as I have said, gifted in
that wise.
And to him I told something of my story and my thoughts and my memories,
and of that awakening; and thus up to this present happening, and he
hearkened with sympathy and a troubled and wondering heart; for in that
age a man might talk sanely upon that which, in this age of ours would
be accounted foolishness and maybe the breathings of insanity; for
there, by the refinement of arts of mentality and the results of strange
experiments and the accomplishment of learning, men were abled to
conceive of matters now closed to our conceptions, even as we of this
day may haply give a calm ear to talk, that in the days of our fathers
would have been surely set to the count of lunacy. And this is very
clear. And all the while that I told my story, I listened with my spirit; but
save for a sense of faint, happy laughter that wrapped about me, I heard
naught. And nothing more all that day.
Here let me put down that, because of my memories and half memories, I
would time and again dispute with our learned men; they being in doubt
as to the verity of that olden story of the Days of Light, and the
existence of the Sun; though something of all this was set out, as of
truth, in our oldest records; but I, remembering, told them many tales
that seemed fairy-like to them, and entranced their hearts, even whilst
I angered their brains, which refused to take seriously and as verity
that which their hearts accepted gladly, even as we receive the wonder
of poetry into our souls. But the Master Monstruwacan would listen to
aught I had to tell; aye! though I spoke through hours; and so it would
be, odd times, that having talked long, drawing my stories from my
Memory-Dreams, I would come back again into the present of that Future;
and lo! all the Monstruwacans would have left their instruments and
observations and recording, and be gathered about me; and the Master so
sunken in interest that he not to have discovered them; neither had I
noticed, being so full of the things which had been.