The Night Land by William Hope Hodgson (best new books to read .txt) π
Description
The Night Land is science fiction ahead of its time. Published in 1912, the book introduces a 17th-century gentleman who loses his wife. He soon discovers himself somehow reanimated in Earthβs far future, millions of years from now, when the sun has died and the Earth has become a hellish waste. What remains of humanity lives in titanic mile-high pyramids surrounded by energy shields to protect them from the abhuman monsters lurking in the darkness.
The human survivors soon receive a distress signal sent by a long-forgotten lesser pyramid, and the narrator embarks on a bloody quest to rescue the maiden of the pyramidβwhich he knows to be his lost love, somehow transcending time and space. On his journey the narrator is beset by countless horrifying monsters, many of them mutated former-humans. These depictions are so singular that H. P. Lovecraft called The Night Land βone of the most potent pieces of macabre imagination ever written.β
The novel is unique in its farsighted depiction of technology. The narrator has telepathic powers and is able to communicate with others over long distances. These powers are enabled by his βbrain elements,β which are possibly surgically-implanted. Telepathic communications may be spied upon by the monsters of the waste, but a βmaster wordβ sent by the caller may verify the integrity of the signalβa description of a kind of early public-key cryptography.
The narrator survives on food pellets and βpowdered water,β predicting a kind of astronaut food. His weapon of choice is a Diskos, a kind of whirling razor-sharp blade that shoots fire and energy. The machines and force fields of the human pyramid monument are powered by βEarth current,β which the narrator worries is slowly becoming dimmer over the years. The pyramid itself is a jewel of imagination: described as miles wide and miles high, each layer is its own city, and it continues deep underground where artificial grow chambers provide food for millions of humans.
Though the novel maintains a sort of legendary status for its grim and imaginative depiction of a monstrous future world, critics acknowledge the work as a flawed masterpiece. The narrative is written in a highly affected style, perhaps meant to emulate 17th century speech, or perhaps meant to be a stylized form of speech used by far-future humans. In any case, it resembles no real style of English, past or present. While some critics praise this style as uniquely atmospheric, others point to it, along with the lack of dialog or proper names, as some of the bookβs more difficult aspects. Critics also frequently cite the bookβs highly repetitious nature, simplistic characterization, and inordinate lengthβnearly 200,000 wordsβas major flaws. But despite whatever flaws the novel may have, the awesome vision of The Night Land remains a marvel to behold.
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- Author: William Hope Hodgson
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And there came a mighty sound of anguish from the Monster; and the Monster did loosen from the cliff, and to crumple, as it did seem, and sink backward. And a great steam of dread breathing to go upward from the Beast, and a reek; and it made again the strange and horrid noise of pain, and the Gorge to be yet full of the echoes of the Rock thundering, and with the noise of the rock there was now mingled the horrid sounding of the death-crying of the Beast. And the Gorge to be filled with dull and dreadful echoings, as that an hundred Monsters died in this place and that of the darkness in the Gorge, and all to be bred of the noise of that mildewed hill a-dying.
And the echoes ceased not for a while, even after that the Monster did be utter quiet; for truly they came presently from far upward and downward of the Gorge, out of all the eternity of the night, and to be as that they came backward very faint out of lonesome miles, and out of the strange deepness of unknown caverns of the world. And so in the end to silence; and the far bottom of the Gorge to be filled with a white and horrid hill, very dreadful, and that did yet quiver to show the slowness of Death. And alway a dreadful reek and stinking to fill all the air, even unto the height, as of the grave.
And I stood upward in that far, high place, and held the Maid very strong and tender; and she to have covered her ears from that dreadful crying; and to be yet shaken with the greatness and horror of the dying of the Monster, and the nearness that she did come unto falling, as you have seen.
And presently she came less to tremble, and did weep very easeful, even as a babe doth weep; and I, mayhap, to be not over-steady, as you shall think; but yet to have a great gladness set in my heart, and a triumph, and an utter grace of thankfulness.
And I held Mine Own, very tender and sure, as I did say; and she very soon to be eased of her trouble, and the shock to be something gone from her. And she lookt up at me, and slipt her arms upward about my neck, and pulled me downward unto her, that she might kiss me.
And we to talk then, of the going down; and surely this did seem a great and dangerous task; for, truly, we had come upward pretty easy in the excess of our fear; but how we might go down, with our blood cool, I did be all in doubt.
Yet, before that we did aught else, I led the Maid upward on to the safe part of the ledge; and we sat there, very quiet and weary, and she did be leaned against me. And we eat, each of us, two of the tablets, and I to scold and coax Mine Own to this end, and she to obey and to be better afterward, because that she had eat. And we drank some of the water, and did rest a time longer.
And presently, our courage and strength was come back into us; and we packt the scrip again, and the Maid set it fast to my back; and we went then to the edge of the shelf, and lookt downward, this way and that; and surely, there did be no way to go, save the way we came; only that we might shape our downward climbing to bring us a little below that place where the dead Monster did be.
And I saw by mine own heart and by the paleness of the Maid, that we should do well that we consider the thing no more; but make to the task.
And I went immediately over the edge of the shelf, upon my belly, and I bade Naani to follow. And we began then that we go downward; and, in verity, we went downward for, mayhap, a great hour; and I gave help alway unto Mine Own, as I could; and she to come after me very brave, and made that she hold back her fear, and come downward of that cliff, that did be oft like to a mighty wall. And surely, even as we came down, I marvelled how we did ever go upward, even though fear did aid us; but, indeed, I do think it doth be easier to climb safely, than to come backward; for this is how I have found.
And we made rest thrice upon ledges of the cliff. And afterward came downward again; and alway very slow and with exceeding heed where our hands and our feet did go, that we slip not suddenly to our death.
And once, as I did see, the Maid was lost of all her strength, and did be going to fall, because that she did be all gone into a sudden weakness of the head in an instant. And she
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