And the Earth-Current then to begin to fail; and though they laboured
through many thousands of years, they came to no better resource. And so
it was they ceased to have communication with the Great Redoubt; for the
current had a lack of power to work the instruments; and the recording
instruments ceased to be sensible of our messages.
And thereafter came a million years, maybe, of silence; with ever the
birthing and marrying and dying of those lonesome humans. And they grew
less; and some put this to the lack of the Earth-Current, which dwindled
slowly through the centuries of that Eternity.
And once in a thousand years, maybe, one among them would be Sensitive,
and abled to hear beyond ordinary; and to these, at times, there would
seem to come the thrilling of the aether; so that such an one would go
listening; and sometimes seem to catch half messages; and so awaken a
great interest in all the Pyramid; and there would be turning up of old
Records, and many words and writings, and attempts to send the
Master-Word through the night; in which, doubtless sometimes they
succeeded; for there was set down in the Records of the Great Redoubt
certain occasions on which there had come the call of the Master-Word,
which had been arranged and made holy between the two Redoubts in the
early days of that second life of this world.
Yet, now for an hundred thousand years, there had been none Sensitive;
and in that time the people of the Pyramid had become no more than ten
thousand; and the Earth-Current was weak and powerless to put the joy of
life into them; so that they went listlessly, but deemed it not strange,
because of so many aeons of usage.
And then, to the wonder of all, the Earth-Current had put forth a new
power; so that young people ceased to be old over-soon; and there was
happiness and a certain joy in the living; and a strange birthing of
children, such as had not been through half a million years.
And then came a new thing. Naani, the daughter of the Master
Monstruwacan of that Redoubt had shown to all that she was Sensitive;
for she had perceived odd vibrations afloat in the night; and concerning
these she told her father; and presently, because their blood moved
afresh in their bodies, they had heart to discover the plans of the
ancient instruments; for the instruments had long rusted, and been
forgotten.
And so they builded them a new instrument to send forth a message; for
they had no memory at that time that the brain-elements had power to do
thus; though, mayhap, their brain-elements were weakened, through so
many ages of starvation of the Earth-Current, and could not have obeyed,
even had their masters known all that we of the Great Redoubt knew.