A great mass seemed to rise from the ocean far away, dim, indistinct, but still plain to the eye.

With the next upward sweep he strained his eyes in the waning darkness and again saw the vast black, threatening, uneven mass.
An uncanny terror enveloped him.

What could the strange thing be that appeared to be rushing toward him?
As far as the eye could see on either side stretched the misty shape.

The sky grew brighter, a faint glow became apparent ahead, spreading into a splendor whose perfection was soon streaked with bars of red and yellow, racing higher and higher into the dome above.

His dull brain observed with wonder that the brightness grew, not out of the sea, but beyond the great object ahead, and he was more mystified than ever.