A second fighting-machine arrived at the pit. The Narrator and the Curate (a man who works in a church) were very afraid. They ran away from the hole in the wall. They hid in the scullery (a small room near the kitchen for washing). They feared the Martian could see them from above.
Later, they felt a little safer. The light outside was very bright, but the kitchen was dark. It was hard for the Martians to see inside. But the Narrator and the Curate still felt a lot of fear. Every time a Martian moved, they ran back to the scullery.
Both men wanted to look through the hole. They argued and fought over the small opening. They pushed and kicked each other. They were very close to the Martians, but they still acted like children. It was a very dangerous way to behave.
The Narrator and the Curate were very different. The Narrator hated the way the Curate talked. The Curate said the same things again and again. He cried for many hours every day. He did not try to help or think of a plan.
The Curate was very selfish. He ate more food than the Narrator. The Narrator told him to save the food. He said they needed to wait for a long time. But the Curate did not listen. He ate large meals and then he slept.
The Narrator became very angry with the Curate. Sometimes, the Narrator had to hit the Curate. He wanted the Curate to be quiet and follow the rules. The Curate was weak and very afraid. He did not have any pride.
The Narrator does not like to write about these things. He was very angry and sometimes he was mean. But he was in a terrible situation. Men can act strangely when they are in danger. He wants the reader to understand his stress.
The Narrator went back to the hole in the wall. Now there were three more fighting-machines in the pit. They brought new machines from the cylinder (a large metal object from space). A second handling-machine (a machine with many arms) was now working.
This machine worked with a large container. It looked like a big milk can. The machine made a white powder from the clay. Then it turned the powder into bars of aluminium (a light, silver-colored metal). These bars were very bright and shiny.
The machine was very fast. It made more than a hundred bars in one night. The machines were very busy and smart. But the Martians were slow and heavy. The Narrator watched this for many days.
One day, the Martians brought some humans to the pit. The Curate saw them first and he was terrified. He crawled into the darkness. The Narrator took his place at the hole. It was evening and the stars were out.
The pit was full of green light from the machines. The Narrator heard human voices. He looked at a fighting-machine. He saw a cage on the back of the machine. A Martian reached into the cage with a tentacle (a long, thin arm).
The Martian picked up a man. The man was middle-aged and wore nice clothes. He looked very important. The Martian carried the man behind a mound of dirt. Then the Narrator heard a terrible scream.
The Martians began to hoot in a happy way. The Narrator was horrified. He covered his ears and ran to the scullery. The Curate followed him. They stayed in the dark and felt very sick.
The Narrator tried to think of a plan to escape. He hoped the Martians would leave the pit soon. He thought about digging a hole through the wall. But the Curate could not help him. The Curate was too afraid to think.
On the third day, the Narrator saw a boy die. The Martians used the boy for food. The Narrator was so sad that he did not look out for a whole day. He tried to dig a hole with a hatchet (a small tool for cutting wood).
He dug a small hole, but the dirt fell down. It made a loud noise. The Narrator was afraid the Martians would hear him. He stopped digging and lay on the floor. He felt very hopeless and tired.
The Narrator did not think humans could win the war. But on the fifth night, he heard a new sound. It was very late and the moon was bright. Most of the Martians were quiet.
Suddenly, he heard a loud boom. It sounded like a large gun. He counted six shots in the distance. Then there was silence again. This sound gave him a little bit of hope.