Chapter 29: The Underground City

“Before you is valley of Merope,” says Tambara. “Our city is beneath the hills on the far side of the valley.”

“Does that mean that you live underground?” I ask.

“Most Merope choose to live inside our city and they rarely venture outside. But not all wish to live that way. My duties as a supervisor of children’s outdoor activity education means that I spend about half my time outside of the city. As you saw this morning, all Merope children are educated in outdoor living so that they may make an informed choice about their future when they mature.”

“How many Merope live here?” asks Makareta as we descend into the valley.

“There are just under sixty thousand Merope living in the underground city,” replies Tambara. “Another twenty thousand live outdoors in scattered settlements along the banks of the river and in the hills to the east.”

I do a quick mental comparison. No reliable census has been taken of Thurn’s entire population. However, I doubt our numbers exceed ten thousand, along with a few thousand female elven clones living within Thurn. It’s anybody’s guess as to how many Atenex live in Atene and the surrounding elven lands. Most Atenex live in small tribal groups deep in the forests, so any census is little more than a wild guess. Atene is the largest Atenex centre of population, and it houses only a few hundred Atenex.

As we pass some of the farms, I notice that the fields are tended by huge machines. Some machines appear to operate by magic, while others have a Merope farmer standing on the machine controlling it. I don’t attempt to understand how all this works, but the whole process seems to achieve its purpose.

“What’s that area over there?” asks Makareta, pointing to a large square area surrounded by a solid two metre high wall with nasty looking spikes lined along the top.

“The breeding pens,” says Tambara, leading us in a different direction so as to avoid getting closer to the pens.

“What to you breed?” asks Ikaroa, keeping up our steady flow of questions.

“Merope, of course,” replies Tambara. “Atenex aren’t the only race that can produce clones when mated with another race. Merope women can produce clones of themselves when mated with Atenex, Hrill, and Thurnian males.”

“Umm. Does that happen a lot?” I ask, wondering why the breeding pen is needed, and why it is built like a prison.

“Probably no more often than Thurnian men fuck their Elf Maidens. In Merope, being given the opportunity to produce a clone is a highly sought after privilege. I have already given birth to two girls.”

“But why the prison wall around the breeding pen?” asks Ikaroa.

“Because access to breeding males is restricted to approved Merope women. Our scientists spend a lot of time and expense in ensuring the selected males are suitable for breeding with us. Atenex males need expensive medical treatment to overcome their fertility problems. All the males receive performance enhancing potions. Those males chosen for breeding must be confined or they may attempt to fuck unauthorised women.”

“And how do you select these males?” I probe, getting nervous about the possible trap we have sprung.

“Most are volunteers who come to Merope for the sex,” replies Tambara. “A few are sentenced criminals who have come into our territory and tried to rob or harm Merope citizens. Do not worry, you are perfectly safe while you are here ... providing you obey our laws.”

Tambara’s mention of volunteers wanting plenty of sex reminds me of the Thurnian men who sought out the elven forest communities for that very purpose. However, in the rest of Thurn the sexual liaison is a male dominated arrangement. Here it is a select group of females who seem to dictate the terms.

“What about the two Atenex males you captured in the gorge?” asks Ikaroa. “One of them is my mate.”

“The senate will decide their fate according to Merope law,” replies Tambara.

“Can I see Mikaere?”continues Ikaroa.

“No. Those accused of violent crimes aren’t permitted visitors.”

“Who will speak on behalf of Mikaere and Hone when they appear before your senate?” asks Cassandra.

“They must speak for themselves,” replies Tambara. “That way the senate will know if they are speaking the truth.”

Considering Mikaere and Hone abandoned us, I am ambivalent about their fate. However, I am concerned about the effect it may have on Ikaroa and the others. It is going to be difficult to help the two Atene males without knowing what they are accused of doing.

“I’m not sure that I’m going to like these Merope,” whispers Cassandra to me. “Tambara’s attitude of superiority is starting to irritate me.”

While I agree with Cassandra’s assessment, there isn’t anything we can do at the moment. From what we have seen so far, the Merope technology is far superior to that of Thurn and Atene. If Tambara’s estimate of their population size is accurate, they significantly outnumber us. Regrettably, Tambara’s air of superiority is understandable, even if it is unwelcome.

Tambara leads us along a wide road that has a hard flat surface unlike anything I’ve seen before. In Thurn city our streets are paved with cobblestones, which I had always believed to be the pinnacle of civil engineering. If I could learn how this road surface is made and report back to Thurn’s emperor, then my appointment as Thurnian trade envoy may have some meaning after all.

The road ends at a huge stone arch that leads into a tunnel under the hill. Either side of the arch is a small stone watchtower, with a strange device perched on the top of each of them. A barrier is closed across the tunnel entrance, and a group of male Merope wearing uniforms are checking the horseless carts and wagons of traders wanting to enter the tunnel. Tambara escorts us to the front of the queue of traders and says a few words to one of the uniformed Merope at the barrier. He stops what he is doing and attends to Tambara’s wishes at once.

About fifteen minutes later, after all our names and details are recorded on some strange device, Tambara takes us into the Merope city. The huge city is beyond my wildest imagination. Having seen the underground chambers in the Atene tower, I’m aware that such engineering feats are possible, but not on this scale. The huge dome that provides an artificial sky to the city must mean that the hill above is nothing more than a thin blanket over the city. Why have the Merope hidden their city in this way? Do they fear something or someone that makes then live underground? As much as I would like to ask such questions, I sense that now isn’t the right time.

“It is getting late, so I will arrange for your overnight accommodation and we will meet again in the morning,” says Tambara. “I will know by then whether the senate wishes to meet with you.”

“Regardless, we would like to meet with your senate,” replies Cassandra.

“That will be up to the senate to decide,” says Tambara. “They don’t normally grant audiences to visitors to our city. But your connection to leaders of your races might intrigue them.”