Hey guys!Graduated from bootcamp about a month ago and i'm trying to get back in the swing of things with my stories. i'm also creating a new one just for the boredom hahah so stay tuned! :D

Chapter 14. Morlock-King

A few months had past since their landing back on earth. The four Morlocks had ventured far from the time machine that Alana had brought them in. In the last month or so they had given up all hope on finding home again. Maybe Tusker was right and they did land on some other "big island." Their legs had developed sores. Their spirits an all time low.

"I say we just live together as a colony and find a permanent cave to live in. I'm tire of this fruitless travel. I think my legs will snap." Aura complained, dropping her arms lower to the ground.

"I just wish I could see my mother again." Billie answered bitterly, inwardly agreeing with her.

Pip and Tusker haven't developed into any relationships. Rather they became friends but nothing close. The giant had became withdrawn a month after he had lost Alana. Just recently was he started to re-adjust. He wouldn't admit that Pip helped keep the smile on his face during his depressions.

"Well that proves it." Billie nodded finally. "Lets settle down for a new home. I don't smell any Morlocks but I did see a few wild Eloi running off in that direction."

"Yes we need to stay where the Eloi are. Don't want to be eating nasty fruits."

"I think those tiny hairy berries are nice. They're all fuzzy in your mouth when you chew on them." Pip hopped around them. The others had grown tolerable of her silly antics. A few times Aura made it out to punish her but it never seemed to work. Pip would only fall over and start crying. Billie didn't bother to deal with the child. Tusker would kick dirt at her. Their pecking order sorted out with her at the very bottom. Tusker was dominate over her, then Aura and Billie was at the top as the Alpha. He had grown out of the tantrums he would throw to pity himself in the earlier days. The pack followed the trail of the Eloi, hoping to find what they could call home at last.

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If Alana could look back at herself in her bathroom mirror she would believe she was hallucinating. She had not looked at herself in the face since then. She had grown haggard, taking over several characteristics of her subterranean cousins. In some ways her spirit had all but fallen apart. In many more ways she had strengthened and molded into a different individual.

At times she would find herself uttering in half-Morlock to Crog and herself. She had given up keeping a barrier between herself and him. Crog was a young male and she found it easy to shape him into the ideal mate to deal with. She had developed several ground rules.

The first one she created was bathing. The first time took three washes to get rid of the layers of oily filth from his skin using the special fruits. Crog did not enjoy one bit of it but when she crossed the river and refused to return he came in after her. Now at least once an month he has to clean himself up.

The second was cuddling. No hard nipping and definitely no mouth licking. Nobody wants their mouth tasting like road kill after a sweet kiss.

The third was about food. She made it clear that no meat in the cave be left uneaten longer than two days. The place doesn't need to reek anymore than it does.

There were other smaller rules pertaining more private matters. In the beginning Crog argued with her but later forced himself to deal with her issues.

Something else bothered her. Something that dwelled in the back of her mind. When Crog suddenly became much more softer towards handling her she grew suspicious. She finally asked him about it upfront.

"Crog? Me? Different?" She asked the best she could in his language.

"Different? Change yes." He shrugged.

"No. Soft to me." She strained growling those last few words.

Crog though for a second. He nodded as he knew what she was coming across. She had a lot of changes to her. He leaned forward and rubbed a hand over her stomach.

"Not hungry." She sighed in frustration.

"No. Baby."

"Baby?" She had no idea what he was talking about.

"Yes. Baby in here." He pointed at her stomach again and then to himself.

Alana felt the blood drain from her face. That couldn't happen. Not after all the changes she was going through already. How could she handle a child? She thought about little Lini, the adorable Mor-baby. Her baby would probably look like her.

"Maybe it won't be so bad. I thought she was so precious." She looked for a positive side to this. Now that he had mentioned it her stomach was larger than normal. She pressed her fingers into it, seeing if she could feel any signs of movement. There was something solid in there.

Another Morlock nearly out of breath reached over the opening. Crog nearly attacked him. It was only one of his friends, whom appeared with an urgent message.

"More like her outside! They're lurking about the openings!" He gasped, nearly falling.

"Well lets hope these don't have flames." He got up and tossed his head.

"They do actually." The Morlocks passed dark expressions of hate and Crog left with him to further investigate.

The two barely made it outside when they spotted the strange animals snooping about one of the smaller openings. They had flashing lights in their hands.

"They are a danger to us. The others say to dispatch them. We don't need a repeat of colony exterminations." The male hissed. "They are a threat to us. They say leave no one alive."

The two set to work their plan. Sneaking out another entrance to the outside they took their time stalking the creatures in the concealing grass. They were poor at speeding after prey but stealth was their true talent.

Crog was careful where to set his feet. He had no idea how well these creatures could hear. Alana's hearing wasn't the best compared to his but individuality played a role. His eyes locked on the nearest one that stood the farthest from his pack. His back was turned, perfect.

He weaved around the man's feet and stood straight up. With a snap he wrapped one hand around the creature's mouth and one about his throat. Yanking him down he crushed the windpipe. The man struggled in his arms, trying to scream. The killing was taking too long. Crog felt the others would hear his feet kicking at the grass stalks. With his other hand he pushed down on the man's skull, crushing it with his weight.

His friend replayed the same hunting tactic. One by the one the group's number shrank yet none in the front of the pack realized it yet. It wasn't until the last man at the front turned towards his comrades, noticing when he asked them something there was no reply. Not a sound of movement from them. He found himself totally alone as if his followers had disappeared in thin air.

"Hey guys! This isn't funny. Did you guys turn off somewhere?" He called out. "I'm lost out here! Hello can you hear me?!"

He heard a muscle twitch. Something only heard from an immensely powerful animal. He turned his head. There was nothing behind him. Suddenly from the other side there was a strong blow to the back of his head. His eyes rocked in their sockets and his brain seemed to shake inside his skull. He somersaulted on top of the wet grass and lay dazed.

His rifle snapped under the foot of some strange creature. He knew what it was.

The two Morlocks decided to make a game out of their last victim. There would be no one to return his calls. They stood on top of him, increasing their weight on his fragile body. He cried out, hoping at least one of his friends was still alive.

Crog bent down to face this creature. He did look like his mate. Unlike Alana this one was a male and stunk to his opinion. What if she became attracted to him if she ever chanced to cross his path? The thoughts of this made his heart spark with jealousy.

The man held his breathe, not able to suck in that godawful wind the Morlock heaved out at him. The ugly beast glared at him with big red eyes. That nasty pig-grunting he communicated. Disgraceful creatures that didn't deserve to be referred as man's future.

The beast tilted his head and opened his jaws wide. The man didn't even have a chance to scream when monster's jaws snapped shut on his face. With a crunch and twist Crog got rid of any evidence of the man's features. He chewed off the nose like a piece of rawhide and swallowed it whole.

There was one last thing he could say about this nasty group of males that dared to intrude on their homes. Their flesh was disgusting. Unlike the Eloi, who feasted on just fruits. These men obviously had meat in their diets. His kind detested the taste of another flesh-feaster's own. Not interested in further filling his stomach he went to investigating what they had in their pockets. His mate would be interested in their trinkets.

He found a few watches and wallets. These would be suitable enough for her. After he finished feeding his curiosity he made it back inside. With a quick nod to the others to prove he and his friend got rid of the threat.

Excited, he showed the odd items to his mate. She looked them over with hard eyes, especially at the pictures.

"Where find?" She asked, pointing at them.

"Outside. Intruders. Kill." He grinned, hoping for his fine gifts she'd give him something in return. He hugged his arms around her, pleased with himself.

"Killed?" She dropped the wallets on the floor. These men she knew and they were searching for her. They had found the time machine she had stolen. Now they were all dead.

"Yes. Not happy?"

"Happy? How? My friends-they-y-you kill!" She wrenched herself from his embrace and got up on her feet. Her mate was puzzled. He felt he had done something right. They were only bachelor males. In his eyes a threat to his cave and a threat to everybody else.

"They take me home!"

Crog bristled up and stood up tall. He looked down at her with prodding eyes. "No go! You are mine! They don't deserve you! They are lousy. So easy to kill. Not even feel a thing."

"Stop it!" She grabbed the wallets and threw them at him. She buried herself in the sheets, wanting to remain alone forever. Crog picked them up and tossed them out of his cave. They weren't worth keeping if they were only going to start problems.

"Confusing female that doesn't appreciate anything." He said out loud, hoping she would hear. "Upper-worlders always spoiled. Sun spoils them."

"Whatever." She threw one of the watches at him too. "You guys are just jealous you can't see the beautiful sun again. No lovely colors and no nice blue skies."

The male dwelled on these thoughts. "Shuk says at one point we tried to return to the sun after the earth became healthy again. We couldn't go above anymore. The sun shuns us for abandoning it. Now it has abandoned us. Now it only loves the Eloi. It made us jealous."

"I can see why you are jealous." She said in English. "Who the hell wants to linger down in this stuffy damp dark place. Ugh it smells and you always come home sweaty."

The male tilted his head and thumped his chest. "Talk so I can understand you. Your mutterings mean nothing to me."

"Hate down. You always nasty, sweaty." She repeated.

"I work hard. Keep place good."

"Why work? No work anymore."

"Eloi need care. Down here not much air. Want to feel even worse?" He scooted closer to the bed.

"Work all day? That? No need." She nailed him with another watch to keep his distance. The male took notice of it and studied the gears and details working the mechanical device. Immediately he went to work on taking it apart. Despite having huge hangs his fingers pried the pieces apart with great care. He became totally absorbed in the contraption and didn't talk any further.

"I see now. You work, you feel to." She took the other watch for safe keeping. "You are like the Eloi but you don't see it."

"Don't call me no Eloi. They are stupid creatures with no past and no future." Crog grumbled, not peering up from his prize.

Alana rolled over, rubbing her hands over her stomach. She thought about the baby again. Would it be a boy or a girl? She needed to start thinking of names. She decided to change the conversation and asked the male.

"We need to think of naming our baby."

"We will think of one when it is born. That's the way it is always done." He answered, studying the long, gold chain attached to the watch.

"I'm sure it will be able to go out into the sun." She looked up, blinking slowly. "Could name it something to do with the light."

Crog peered out into depth of his cave. "Yes? Yes our child could go to the sun. That would be nice. A bright name to call it."

Now that his mate mentioned it this was a wonderful idea. Perhaps now his kind can see the sun again. He watched Alana stroke her stomach fondly. Was she the key? Her kind? It was right in front of his eyes. Her kind was what they needed to take over the topside again. She was obviously intelligent like him and ate both fruits and meats. Perfect creatures to mix with.

"I should discuss this with the Cadre. They would agree." He smiled lightly.

Alana had no idea what he was talking about. She didn't care, not now that her future was taking another great turn. Crog permitted himself to lay next to her. He wanted to wrap his arms around his hard-earned treasure but held himself back. She curled up into a ball in the sheets, shivering like always. He knew she had thin skin and little fat.

"Tomorrow I let you into the light if you promise to come back down?" He pressed his lips against his fangs.

Alana turned her face towards him. She had no where else to go besides this place. No place to clearly run away to. She had lost any trail of the time machine.

"Really? Of course I would come back down." She felt her chest jolt with excitement.

"If not the others will come after you at dark. You must come back down after the sun starts to go away. I will be waiting. If this works out I will let you out whenever you like."

She felt much better now. With a bright smile on her face she hugged him. The male grunted pleasingly.

The next morning as he promised, he led her to a nearby opening deemed safe and let her out. His mate turned and watched his glowing eyes disappear back into the pitch-black before stepping out into the grass. It was already humid and the sun wasn't even over the mountains yet.

She took care not to walk on any spiky weeds and rotten fruit that littered around the trees. It was so refreshing to be where she truly belonged again. The small Eloi huts were only a mile walk from the Morlock lair. They were so dainty. Their eyes big like a deer's. That's what they reminded her of. Little deer-people. Their long legs gave them a long stride that gave little of their position away in the rustling brush. Her musky scent confused them. She didn't look like a Morlock at all but she brought the death-smell of them with her. They backed away confused, staring hard at her with shiny, blue eyes. Somehow their eyes must be lying to them.

Eventually the Eloi found she did not attack them and grew bored. Their expressions looking sleepy and calm again. The herd went to work on the fruits easy to reach. Alana noticed some of the Eloi were showing disgusted curiosity at something laying in the tall grasses. Leftover dead Eloi perhaps.

She had wished she had not approached it. The bodies of some of the trainers and scientists lay sprawled across the three foot tall grass. The flies cleaning up the dark blood splatters around on them. On one she could not recognize his face but knew the familiar clothing. Holding her mouth, she scrambled out from the messy grave and emptied her stomach on a garden of flowers the Eloi often ate.

She wondered how they could be so stupid to approach the lair like this. They all had many years of experience with these ugly brutes that they could not just all be massacred like this. Then again they all worked with domesticated pets instead of the wild ones. She found them immensely different. The trained ones back at home were used to being coddled and scolded into submission. Becoming a well-experienced trainer she found herself fighting the dominate spot with her so called "mate." Everyday she attempted to over throw him and make the male do what she wanted. Crog came back at her with his own motives that confused her. In general he knew he was much stronger. To stand there and let her beat on his chest didn't impress him one bit. She was giving in and prepared to just let him do whatever he wanted to do with her.

An idea came to her head. The female Morlocks. She never had the chance to study their ways of dealing with mates. The only one she had met was Crog's mother. Even then she noticed she submitted to her bad-tempered husband.

She garnered over these new thoughts as she stalked the Eloi. The babies scattered around her feet and hugged onto their mother's legs. As the sun came up beyond the trees she took to the shade. The other Eloi were taking turns under the trees and in the drinking pools close by. Some of the children snuck flowers into her hair as she rested on a bed of dried grass.

Her thoughts drifted over randomly to Tusker and the two other Morlocks. She hoped they were doing fine, especially her enormous pet. His size should be able to take care of him. She remembered when her father brought him home. He accidentally stuck his spiky claws into her face when she first held him. Over time he grew too heavy for her to carry. Pretty soon he outweighed a large pony. She missed his soft tummy as a pillow.

The sweet scent of the flowers drove the Eloi to sleep. They curled around her body like she was one of the pack. After a while she could not stand it anymore. Everything brought on bitter memories and the heat pushed her decision. She made her way back to the entrance in the earth's ground. She stepped slowly into the cool darkness. The glowing cube around her neck brightened as the place became ever darker.

She found herself desperate and soon totally lost. How stupid it was to come down here already. Down in the passageways she could hear the Morlocks bellowing. It was probably some bachelors fighting each other for higher status in the pecking order. Not a good place to venture. She turned off back the other direction. A loud shriek made her topple backwards. It was a lurking male that had been stalking behind her.

The hair on his shoulders stood on end as he swayed back in forth, challenging her.

"Leave me alone." She spoke to him, hoping he'd recognize she was female.

"Stupid weak topsider." The male continued to strut. "What makes you so special to be spared.

More bachelors caught a whiff of her and turned their attention down towards her. All of them were in the heat of the fight and blinded in their rage to kill. They swayed back and forth. She continued to back up, only to trip over a male. He was already dying, torn apart by the other males. His blood smeared across her legs as she made an effort to slide away.

The males chuckled, gleaming their red fangs at each other. They whispered to each other. It was too fast and quiet for her to pick up.

"Well we devised a plan that would please us very much." The lead male announced to her. The others crept forward eagerly with tongues hanging out. "First of all we like to have the pleasure of a female. Eloi are always nice but they keep dying before we get anything out of it. So if you are good after we rape you, we'll kill you real fast."

Alana kept climbing backwards, not caring if she even fell out into some unknown pit.

"Why don't you be a real male and find a mate like anybody with balls would do." She growled.

"Your petty insults don't move me." His dark eyes glinted. "Just lay there and we'll-"

A huge fist came from the side and pummeled the male's face. There was a loud crunching sound and a scream.

The other bachelors backed off, not willing to fight anymore. The towering figure turned out to be exactly who she wanted to see, Crog. In tears, Alana scrambled to her feet and hugged her arms around his neck.

"You should know better than to come back down here and wander. They would have done dreadful things to you." He scolded her with snarls.

Alana dug her face into his neck, attempting to hide from his ugly glares. She heard the other male whimpering on the ground. His face was swelling up. Blood oozed out from his mouth. His jaw was shattered.

"He wanted to hurt me." She wrapped her hands around his long hair. She was marveled by the power of him. One swipe and her culprit's face was smashed. Recalling the times she had smacked one of them she knew very well how bony their faces were. It was like striking a brick.

Crog feeling very proud of himself, went over to the dying male and knelt down. "You have a lot of nerve trying to harm my mate. Weak bachelor, your face was easy to break."

Alana winced when he lifted his foot and smashed it down on the male's face. There was a yelp and the sound of bones and brains being crushed. She couldn't look at the mess after he was done.

"I want to go back home. I want to go back." She felt sick now from the fresh smell.

"Okay." His nose twitched, breathing in the scent of living blood. She draped herself over his massive shoulders and hung limp. It was becoming hard to do this with her growing stomach. She shifted about as they made their way up to the cave.

"I wish I could find a cave farther down. Pretty soon I won't be able to do this with you anymore until you have the baby."

She plopped down on her bed, feeling at home again. "You could try and trade it with another male?"

"I could try but it probably won't work. Never traded a cave before. Might become wary of me. Caves are hard to earn." He grunted, wiping the blood from his arm.

"Your hand is swollen." She noted his busted knuckles. They were extremely bony but a hard punch could even break them. She grabbed his hand and pressed in the hot places. Crog made an effort not to pull away.

"You broke a finger. Be careful with it." She rubbed his thick hands, noticing some special characteristics. She enjoyed looking over Morlocks as many colonies often inbred, vestige parts would throwback in individuals. Her father had enjoyed collecting individuals with different colored eyes, some that couldn't see in the dark at all, some had extra fingers or teeth. Her mate had still some leftovers of his other two finger nubs on one hand. Their genetics seemed to go in whichever direction. Evolution and genes always absorbed her interest. It was her main reason for being interested in their species. They were so human yet so alien.

Crog on the other hand saw no big deal about it. The only sort of genetics he cared about was if his children would grow up to be as ruthless and strong as him. He shoved his face into her neck as she continued to care for his hand, hoping she was stronger than he imagined her to be.

For a moment a secret display of affection passed through the both of them. She pressed her cheek against his and patted him with her hand. Only he knew how close they were growing together.

"It's time to sleep." He folded his arms under his chest and slept on his stomach. Alana leaned her back against his side. She kept an eye on the entrance of the cave. Sometimes she had seen the staring eyes of the others. Maybe hoping to sneak in and grab her. After a good hour she felt her eyes grow heavy. Like some illusion, as soon as she had drifted to sleep she awoke again feeling very crowded.

Her eyes looked up at Crog. He was staring down at her, coming closer. She wondered why he acted this way. He knew her well enough not to sneak up like this. Her smile turned to a concerned frown when Crog's lips flashed the full length of his fangs. She saw no broken fangs that was like Crog's. This was not her mate.

She lurched backwards. Just as she did she felt a body come forward, shoving her down into the bedding. A screech echoed throughout the small cave, making her ears ring. There was not much of a fight. A shivering Crog bent down low in the bedding. Another large male stood up above him, roaring at him. Her mate's arm dangled, smashed.

This intruder was bigger and more heavily built. He wore bright red clothing and accessories around his waist rather than the dull colors the others normal wore. The way the male carried himself showed he was in a very high pecking order.

Crog snarled at the male, at the same time he showed great submission. The large male continued to stand tall and unmoved by his rival's pleads.

Alana cried out when the male heaved her over his back and carried her off. Crog answered her calls with the same sadness. She found herself moved to an even bigger cave. It was garnered with Eloi skulls dangling from the ceiling and Morlock skulls lined about the corners of the walls. Six other males stood inside, waiting expectantly. Their heads held low, peering up to him with gentle eyes. Their hands held behind their backs. They were all frightened of him.

This was unusual. Her father had always told her that in colonies the only sort of pecking order was within family members and single males. Every single Morlock that came in contact with this special one cowered before him.

The male strutted about, flaring out his mane in show. His face smug and hard. Scars decorated him all over. He was also missing one toe. He stomped his feet and roared at the others before him. She knew he was trying to show off to her, showing what power he had. Enough that he could intrude on any family and take any mate he wanted.

"See? I have claimed myself this sun-dwelling Mor-Eloi you all were talking about. I want MY children to see the ground above and take over the sunny places again. I can do this if I want. She is mine now and nobody can have her. Touch her and I will rip your throats out slowly so you can drown in your own blood." The male shouted with confidence.

The others nodded, passing each other agreeable glances.

"Yes yes only the very strong male should do this. Not some common one."

"Yes I agree almighty Lor."

"Only the mighty Lor can do this and nobody else. Everybody should agree or die." The males agreed left and right. Alana felt herself still. Something told her not to fool with this grand beast they call referred to as "Lor."

She dropped her head when the Morlock-King approached her. He sniffed the top of her head and neck. She held her breath, barely able to inhale his masculine odor. Crog's was like baby-powder compared to his.

"Look at me female." The male barked at her.

Alana lifted her eyes to his. There was nothing friendly about him at all. He was a poster-child for everything nasty in this dark world.