Chapter 9The Morlocks

"It might seem weird, but it took me two whole days to figure out how to follow up on the new clue - the right way, you know? I felt seriously creeped out by those pale bodies. They were just the half-bleached color of worms and stuff you see preserved in jars at a science museum."

"And they were so, so cold to the touch. I think my hesitation came from feeling what the Eloi were feeling - their disgust for the Morlocks. I started to get it, too. "That next night, I didn’t sleep great. Probably my health was a little off. I was stressed and confused.

A couple of times, I got this intense feeling of fear for no real reason. I remember sneaking quietly into the big hall where the little people were sleeping in the moonlight - Weena was there that night - and feeling a little better just seeing them.

Even then, I realized that in a few days, the moon would be almost gone, and the nights would get dark. That’s when those creepy creatures from below, those white Lemurs, this new kind of vermin that replaced the old ones, would probably be even more common.

I had this uneasy feeling, like I was avoiding something I knew I had to do. I was sure the Time Machine was only going to be found by diving into these underground mysteries. But I couldn't face it. It would have been different if I had someone with me.

"But I was totally alone, and even thinking about climbing down into the dark well freaked me out. I don’t know if you’ll get it, but I never felt safe with my back to anything. "That’s probably what made me wander around more and more.

Heading southwest towards the higher ground that's now called Combe Wood, I saw something far off in the direction of old Banstead - a huge green building, totally different from anything I’d seen before.

It was bigger than any of the palaces or ruins I knew, and it looked kind of Asian: the front had this shiny, pale-green tint, like that bluish-green Chinese porcelain. That difference made me think it was used for something different, so I wanted to check it out.

But it was getting late, and I’d already walked a long, tiring way to find it, so I decided to wait until the next day, and headed back to the welcome and hugs of little Weena.

But the next morning, I realized that my curiosity about the Palace of Green Porcelain was just a way to put off something I was dreading. I decided to go down the well without wasting any more time, and started out early towards a well near the ruins of granite and aluminum.

"Little Weena ran with me. She danced beside me to the well, but when she saw me lean over the opening and look down, she seemed really upset. ‘Bye, little Weena,’ I said, kissing her, and then set her down. I started feeling around the edge of the well for climbing hooks."

I have to admit, I was rushing a bit - I was afraid my courage would disappear! At first, she watched me in amazement. Then she let out this heartbreaking cry and ran to me, pulling at me with her little hands. Her resistance actually made me feel more determined.

I gently shook her off, and in a moment, I was sliding down the well. I saw her worried face above me, and smiled to reassure her. Then I had to focus on the shaky hooks I was holding onto.

"I had to climb down a super deep shaft, like two hundred yards. The descent was tough - there were these metal bars sticking out of the walls, but they were made for someone way smaller and lighter than me, so I was quickly exhausted and cramped. And not just tired!"

One of the bars bent suddenly under my weight, and almost knocked me off into the blackness below. For a second, I was hanging by one hand, and after that, I didnn't dare to rest again. Even though my arms and back were killing me, I kept climbing down the sheer drop as fast as I could.

Looking up, I saw the hole, a tiny blue circle, with a star visible, and little Weena’s head popped up as a round black shape. The thumping sound of a machine below got louder and more intense. Everything except that little circle above was pitch black, and when I looked up again, Weena was gone.

"I was seriously uncomfortable. I thought about trying to climb back up the shaft and just leaving the Underworld alone. But even while I was thinking about it, I kept going down. Finally, with huge relief, I saw a small opening in the wall to my right."

I pulled myself in, and it turned out to be a narrow tunnel where I could lie down and rest. It was about time. My arms ached, my back was stiff, and I was trembling from the fear of falling. Plus, the constant darkness was messing with my eyes.

The air was filled with the throbbing and humming of machinery pumping air down the shaft. "I don’t know how long I laid there. I woke up to a soft hand touching my face. I jumped up in the darkness and grabbed my matches, quickly striking one."

I saw three hunched-over, white creatures, similar to the one I’d seen above ground in the ruins, quickly retreating from the light. Living in what seemed like complete darkness to me, their eyes were huge and sensitive, like the pupils of deep-sea fish, and they reflected the light the same way.

I’m sure they could see me even in that dimness, and they didn’t seem scared of me, just of the light. But as soon as I lit a match to see them, they bolted, disappearing into dark tunnels and gutters, their eyes glaring at me in a weird way.

"I tried to call out to them, but they spoke a language totally different from the people in the Overworld, so I was on my own. The thought of running away before exploring was definitely in my head."

But I told myself, ‘You’re in for it now,’ and, feeling my way along the tunnel, I heard the machines getting louder. Soon, the walls opened up, and I came to a huge open space.

"Striking another match, I saw that I’d entered a massive arched cavern that stretched into complete darkness beyond the range of my light. I could only see as much as the match allowed. "My memory is hazy.

Huge shapes, like giant machines, rose out of the dimness, casting weird, black shadows where shadowy Morlocks hid from the light. The place was really stuffy and oppressive, and there was a faint smell of fresh blood in the air.

Down the center, I saw a small table made of white metal, set with what looked like a meal. The Morlocks were definitely carnivores! Even then, I remember wondering what kind of huge animal could have survived to provide the red joint I saw.

It was all really unclear: the heavy smell, the big, meaningless shapes, the creepy figures lurking in the shadows, just waiting for the darkness to come back for me! Then the match burned down, stung my fingers, and dropped, a tiny red spot in the blackness.

"Looking back, I realize how totally unprepared I was for that whole thing. When I started out with the Time Machine, I was operating under this crazy idea that the people of the Future would be way ahead of us in every way - like, seriously advanced tech."

I showed up with nothing - no weapons, no medicine, not even anything to smoke - I really missed cigarettes sometimes! - and barely enough matches. Seriously, if only I’d thought to bring a camera! I could have snapped a pic of the Underworld and checked it out later.

But instead, I was stuck with just what Nature gave me - my hands, feet, and teeth. Plus, four safety matches that I had left. "I was too freaked out to navigate all that machinery in the dark, and it was only with the last bit of light that I realized I was running low on matches."

It hadn't even crossed my mind that I’d need to save them, and I’d wasted almost half the box just trying to blow away the Overworlders, who were totally amazed by fire.

Now, like I said, I only had four left, and while I was standing there in the dark, a hand touched mine, these long, bony fingers feeling all over my face, and I could smell this weird, gross odor. I could hear what sounded like a bunch of those creepy little guys breathing all around me.

I felt the box of matches being gently taken from my hand, and other hands behind me pulling at my clothes. It was seriously unsettling to feel these unseen creatures checking me out. The sudden realization that I had no clue how they thought or what they were up to hit me hard in the darkness.

I yelled at them as loud as I could. They backed away, and then I felt them coming back towards me. They grabbed at me more boldly, whispering strange sounds to each other. I shivered and yelled again - kind of a panicked shout. This time, they weren’t as scared, and

they made this weird laughing noise as they came at me. I was seriously terrified. I decided to strike another match and make a run for it under its light. I did, and I used a scrap of paper from my pocket to make the flame last longer, and I managed to escape back to the narrow tunnel.

"But I barely got in when my light went out, and in the darkness, I could hear the Morlocks rustling like wind through leaves and pattering like rain as they chased after me. "In a second, several hands grabbed me, and there was no mistaking that they were trying to pull me back.

I struck another light and waved it in their blinded faces. You can’t even imagine how inhuman they looked - those pale, chinless faces and huge, lidless, pinkish-grey eyes - as they stared, confused and disoriented.

But I didn’t stick around to look: I retreated again, and when my second match burned out, I struck my third. It was almost gone when I reached the opening to the shaft. I lay down on the edge, because the pounding of the huge pump below made me dizzy.

Then I reached sideways for the hooks, and as I did, my feet were grabbed from behind, and I was yanked backward. I lit my last match... and it immediately went out.

But I had my hand on the climbing bars now, and kicking like crazy, I broke free from the Morlocks’ grip, and I was quickly climbing up the shaft, while they kept peering and blinking up at me. Except for one little creep who followed me for a bit and almost snagged my boot as a trophy.

That climb felt like it would never end. The last twenty or thirty feet were brutal - a wave of nausea totally hit me. I seriously struggled to hold on. Those final yards were a crazy fight against feeling faint. My head spun a bunch of times, and I felt like I was about to fall.

Finally, though, I somehow got over the edge of the well, and stumbled out of the ruins into the super bright sunlight. I just collapsed face-first. Even the dirt smelled amazing and fresh. Then I remember Weena kissing my hands and ears, and the voices of the other Eloi all around.

After that, I just blacked out for a while.