Cropping at the ferns, with a line of yellowish, hills in the background, was a beast as large as an elephant and of roughly the same proportions as a horse. Yet here the similarly to any beast I knew ended. This creature was a mottled shade of mauve and light green. It had three long, white horns curling from its flat, almost catlike head. It had twin, somewhat reptilian, tails spreading to the ground behind it, and it had one huge eye covering at least half the area of its face. This was a faceted eye that shone and glinted in the sunlight. The beast looked rather curiously at me and lifted its head, then began to move towards me.

With, I suspect, a wild yell, I ran. I felt convinced I was experiencing some sort of nightmare or paranoiac delusion as a result of a fault in the transmitter or receiver.

I heard the beast thundering on behind me, giving out a strange mooing sound, and increased my pace as best I could. I found I could run very easily indeed and seemed to be lighter than normal.

Then to one side of me I heard musical laughter, at once merry and sympathetic. A lilting voice called something in what was to me a strange, unearthly language, trilling and melodic. In fact, the sound of the language was so beautiful that it did not seem to need words.

"Kahsaaa manherra vosu!"

I slowed my pace and looked towards the source of the voice.

It was a girl—the most wonderful girl I have ever seen in my life.

Her hair was long, free and golden. Her face was oval, her white skin clear and fresh. She was naked, apart from a wispy cloak which curled round her shoulders and a broad, leather belt around her waist. The belt held a short sword and a holster from which jutted the butt of a pistol of some kind. She was tall and her figure was exquisite. Somehow her nakedness was not obvious and I accepted it at once. She, too, was totally unselfconscious about it. I stopped still, not caring about the beast behind me so long as I could have a few seconds' glimpse of her.

Again she threw back her head and laughed that merry laugh.

Suddenly I felt something wet tickling my neck. Thinking it must be an insect of some sort, I put up my hand. But it was too large for an insect. I turned.

That strange mauve and green beast, that monster with the fly-like, Cyclops eye, two tails and three horns, was gently licking me!

Was it tasting me? I wondered vaguely, still concentrating on the girl. Judging by the way she was laughing, I thought not.

Wherever I was—in dream or lost world—I knew that I had fled in panic from a tame, friendly, domestic animal. I blushed and then joined in the girl's laughter.