POWERS THAT BE

"At Diego's touch, the wall gave way, and a soft, eerie light from within sent a shaft to meet them. He pressed forward into the room, where flame-colored liquid bubbled up in a central pool and the walls glowed with phosphorescence. Roots and rock formations twined and curled into strange designs in the elongated rough shapes of animals and men. And there was a humming so loud, so perfect, so beautiful that after a while Diego thought he must be hearing the voices of the angels he had once read about - and they were telling him things. He listened so closely he could not hear his father screaming."