Хребты безумия
III
MythologistshaveplacedLenginCentralAsia;buttheracialmemoryofman—orofhispredecessors—islong,anditmaywellbethatcertaintaleshavecomedownfromlandsandmountainsandtemplesofhorrorearlierthanAsiaandearlierthananyhumanworldweknow. AfewdaringmysticshavehintedataprePleistoceneoriginforthefragmentaryPnakoticManuscripts,andhavesuggestedthatthedevoteesofTsathogguawereasalientomankindasTsathogguaitself. Leng,whereverinspaceortimeitmightbrood,wasnotaregionIwouldcaretobeinornear,nordidIrelishtheproximityofaworldthathadeverbredsuchambiguousandArchaeanmonstrositiesasthoseLakehadjustmentioned. AtthemomentIfeltsorrythatIhadeverreadtheabhorredNecronomicon,ortalkedsomuchwiththatunpleasantlyeruditefolkloristWilmarthattheuniversity.
Thismoodundoubtedlyservedtoaggravatemyreactiontothebizarremiragewhichburstuponusfromtheincreasinglyopalescentzenithaswedrewnearthemountainsandbegantomakeoutthecumulativeundulationsofthefoothills. Ihadseendozensofpolarmiragesduringtheprecedingweeks,someofthemquiteasuncannyandfantasticallyvividasthepresentexample; butthisonehadawhollynovelandobscurequalityofmenacingsymbolism,andIshudderedastheseethinglabyrinthoffabulouswallsandtowersandminaretsloomedoutofthetroubledicevaporsaboveourheads.
TheeffectwasthatofaCyclopeancityofnoarchitectureknowntomanortohumanimagination,withvastaggregationsofnight-blackmasonryembodyingmonstrousperversionsofgeometricallaws.
