Ok, fine!  I'll post just so someone else will!

Mattie
walked slowly along the dark hallway.  It was, lit, though, by her
faint glow.  The creature moved along behind her.  She contemplated
trying to run away, but dropped the idea.  She had no idea where she was
or how to get out, or what would happen if she did.  Did the evil
mother impersonator slime machine have a ray gun or something, the way
they did in books and movies?  Did it have super powers?  Would it magically freeze her in her tracks?  How did it
move anyway?  She didn't look back at it.  It was too disgusting.  

"Turn left!" said the creature.

Mattie turned left through a low arched doorway.  The creature seemed to follow - she wasn't looking, but she was pretty sure.

Mattie stopped.  The hall had come to a dead end.  In front of her was a solid wall of the exact same metal as the walls of the elevator chamber.  On either side of it was a large slime machine.  They eyed her coldly.  She shuddered.

The creature behind her hissed something at them, not in English, obviously in their native tongue.  They reached up; each pressed a button by the metal wall.

The wall split in two and slid open, much like an elevator door.

In front of her was an enormous throne room.  A red velvet carpet fringed with gold led to steps, at the head of which was an ornate chair.  Anticipating another slime machine, Mattie didn't look at its occupant; she wondered, however, how slime machines, who didn't seem to have legs, could climb stairs.  She looked around the rest of the room.  On her left, as she faced the slime machine king, was a huge horde of slime machines.  She loathed them already.  She looked to her right.

There were Sammy, Logan, Devon, and Jane.  They looked terrified, though their skin was glowing as hers was.  She screamed their names and tried to run to them, but couldn't.  There seemed to be an invisible force holding her back.  She fought it, and was rewarded with a small electric shock.  She stood, dazed, staring at her family. 

"Now, now, little girl," said the king of the slime machines, "We mustn't get out of line here.  Next time, I assure you, the shock will be twice as bad."

The voice was all too familiar.  Mattie looked at the king, dreading what she would see, and she was right.

It was the "nice" boy from school.  His eyes glowed a murky orange.  He leaned his elbow in the armrest of his throne and rested his chin in his hand.

"You," spat Mattie, barely controlling her anger.  "You're behind all this.  I thought you were nice and cool and awesome.  But all that time you were talking with me, you were just creating a diversion so your evil slime machines could capture my family."

"Precisely," said the boy with the slime machine eyes.  "that's just right.  And," he added, arising from his throne,  "if you'll follow me, I'll show you why."

He stepped down from his throne - that explained the steps, so that only he could get to his throne - and swept past Mattie.  She looked at her family, who had their heads bowed, and followed him, not knowing what else to do, and deciding that compliance was safest for her and her family.  As he passed each member of his court of slime machines, they bowed and made a gesture with their red webbed hands.  He stepped out into the hall.  She followed; the metal doors slid shut.

They went through the low arched doorway and turned left.  "You see," said the boy, "for years, one human at a time has ruled the - er, evil slime machines, as you call them.  Actually, they call themselves the Sters/gunt-si,  so you should stick with that so as not to anger them.  My father was the last king, the king of the kingdom Sters.  Each successive ruler must go above ground and find a mate, a human mate, and their first child is the next ruler.  The child is brought up in the Royal Nursery of the Sters/gunt-si and learns both their language, Sters/ki-ko, and English; his other immediate family goes to the dungeons.  Then when the old king dies or abdicated, whichever comes first, the young one takes over.  Simple enough."

"So that's all I am,"  said Mattie.  "A mate, an unwilling, not yet fertile mate who's going to give you an heir.  Why take Mom and the boys, then?  What good are they?"

"Ah no," said the boy.  "I'm afraid you made a mistake there.  Er, you see - You are the next heiress.  I allowed you and your family to stay above ground this long - you can thank me for it whenever - a very dangerous thing;  you see, you don't speak Sters/ki-ko, you don't know our ways, no, none of what the people want in a new queen.  So you see... if I had kept you above ground much longer, I would possibly have been lynched... the Sters/gunt-si, you know - I guess you don't know - are immune to electric shock."

Mattie's thoughts were awhirl.  That meant that if she and Jane and the boys didn't escape, she'd be a queen of slime machines, and her family, her mother and brothers, who were so dear to her, would go to the dungeons - she didn't like to think what would happen to them there.  No question about it - they'd have to escape somehow.

OREGANO

wants YOU

to post on this really cool and totally super awesome thread and make it even more so!!!!!!!!