（外文电子版资料）TITAN-JohnVarley_ch20_ch.docVIP

CHAPTER TWENTY The stairway emerged from a great heap of sand at the upper- most border of the glass castle and went straight as an arrow until it could no longer be seen. Each step was a meter and a half wide and forty centimeters high, and appeared to have been carved into the face of the cable. After Cirocco and Gaby had followed it for a time, they began to think it might actually do them little good. It was curving to the south, toward the drop-off. Before long it would surely he impassable. But the steps remained perfectly level. Soon they were walking on a terraced shelf with a huge wall rising m one side and a sheer drop on the other. There was no handrail, no protection at all. They pressed close to the wall, and trembled with every gust of wind. Then the shelf began to turn into a tunnel. It was a gradual thing. There was still open space on the right, but the wall had begun to curl over their heads. The path was curving under the cable. Cirocco tried to visualize it: always rising, but corkscrewing around the outside of the cable. After another 2000 steps, they were in pitch blackness. Stairs, Gaby muttered. They build a thing like this, and they put in stairs. They had stopped to get out their lamps. Gaby filled hers and trimmed the wick. They would burn one at a time and hope there was enough oil to get them out the other side. Maybe they were health nuts, Cirocco suggested. She struck a match and held it to the wick. More likely this was an emergency measure, for a loss of power. Well, I’m glad theyre here, Gaby admitted. They were probably here all the way but down lower theyre covered with dirt. It means this place has been unattended for a long time. The trees up here must be new mutations. Whatever you say. Gaby held the lamp high and looked ahead, then back where she could still see a wedge of light. Her eyes narrowed. Look, its like were at an angle in the road. It curves along the outside, then it cuts to the left and goes straight i