Explore "City of the Living Flame" by Henry Hasse on Textopian. Read with annotations and highlights.
The following day a dozen men ventured up into the city. Spurlin seemed disappointed as they stepped out into the street from their secret building. "Not an ideal day for it," he commented gruffly. And at Jim's querulous look, he explained, "Those emanations seem stronger today. I give us only two or three hours, at the most."
They went into the rocky terrain beyond the city, toward the near horizon where the cave roof tapered down. That was hardly a mile away. Jim found it hard to believe that over their heads was the Polar Cap, vast and desolate. Glancing up, he barely made out the dim contour of their roof; and it suddenly occurred to him to wonder what sustained it, why it didn't collapse under that tremendous pressure of rock and ice!