11 To the Green Building

CHAPTER 11 To the Green Building After my narrow escape, I felt more helpless than ever. Before I went underground, I was hopeful I would find my machine and return to my own time. But now I saw that the Morlocks were standing in my way. And I saw that they were more like wild animals than humans. It wouldn't be easy to get the Time Machine back.

It sounds odd, but I also began to fear the new moon. That's when the nights are darkest and the Morlocks can roam freely without any light to bother them. I didn't know what they would do under the cover of complete darkness. I realized that as I became more afraid of the black of night, I was becoming more and more like the Eloi. Something else had changed, too. Before I saw the Underworld, I thought the Eloi were like the rich people of our time. I thought they had an easy life with no worries. I imagined the Morlocks led unhappy lives and took care of the people on the surface. But I saw that it wasn't as simple as that. Yes, the Morlocks lived in the dirt and darkness of the Underworld. And, if my guess was correct, they made clothing for the Eloi and fed them. But I began to think that they served the Eloi simply because they'd done it for thousands of years. They couldn't stop any more than a bird

could stop flying or a fish could stop swimming. At the same time, they had become wild animals and probably attacked the Eloi when they had a chance. After all, they were ready to attack me, and I was much bigger and stronger than an Eloi. That's why the little people were so afraid of them. Now I understood why they were so fearful of the wells. The Eloi had easy lives. They didn't have to work for food or shelter. But they had become weak and dull because they had been taken care of for thousands of years. The gentle Upperworlders couldn't do anything for themselves. They were afraid of the night and were too weak to defend themselves against the Morlocks. In some ways, they were like animals. They fled into their buildings at night, and they slept together because they were afraid. At first, I thought the Eloi were the masters of the Morlocks. Now it seemed that the Morlocks

were the masters of the Eloi. But I was not like the Eloi. I was strong enough to fight the creatures. I was afraid—but I wouldn't let fear keep me from finding my machine. I would do what I had to do to survive in this world and return to my own time. The first thing I did was make sure I was safe while I slept. The creatures had probably crept over me at night while I lay in bed, and the thought made me shudder. So I went looking for a building that would be safe. My search was useless. The Morlocks could easily break into any building I saw. I even thought of building some sort of tree house. But after seeing one Morlock climb down the well, I guessed that they were very good climbers. So I gave up on that idea. Then I thought of the green building I'd seen on one of my hikes. Perhaps it could be my new home. So I set off with Weena at my side. As we walked, Weena happily picked flowers.

The pockets of my clothing always puzzled her, but she must have decided that they were for holding flowers because she filled them with beautiful blossoms. The green building was farther than I remembered. Also, I was moving slowly because I was walking in bare feet. I had thrown away my one shoe earlier that day. It was already sunset when we finally saw the green towers in the distance. Weena was tired and wanted to return to the safety of the white building. I pointed to the green building and tried to make her understand that we would be safer in our new home. I could tell she was worried, but she followed me, anyway. The night was clear and still. As we walked, I wondered what the Morlocks thought of my visit. Did they think I was attacking them? I looked at the ground and imagined their tunnels and caverns beneath my feet.

Twilight turned into night. The sky became a dark blue. Stars began to appear, and the trees around us faded to black. Weena was very tired, and the darker it got, the more frightened she became. We walked into a small valley and came to a stream. I picked her up in my arms and waded across. As I carried her up the other side of valley, we passed some statues and buildings. I didn't see any Morlocks, but it was still early and the darkest part of the night lay ahead. We climbed out of the valley and came to a thick black forest. I didn't like the idea of wandering through it in the darkness. It would have been hard enough to find our way through the thick tangle of trees and bushes in the daylight. I was very tired, too, so I decided we would sleep in the open, at the top of a hill on the edge of the forest. Weena had fallen asleep in my arms, so I wrapped her in my jacket and gently put her on the grass. I sat beside her and kept watch as the