But what was that creature? It definitely wasn’t a rat. I’d never seen something so aggressive. Its silence was more terrifying than the roar of any beast I’d ever heard. Its body was covered with small, greenish scales, which explained the spiked clubs and awls. A knife would be useless against natural armor like that.
“What is that thing?” I repeated my question, turning my head. And realized why no one had answered... The whole herd stood huddled about ten steps behind me. They slowly, carefully began to move forward again, whispering animatedly. I perked up my ears and caught a frequently repeated word. ‘Plux’.
Plux...
This word meant nothing to me... I looked at the dirty plastic box and the dark green trail it had left. Dirt and... blood? Green blood?
Plux. Scaly. Silent. Fast. Agile. Green-blooded.
That was plenty of reliable information.
I tried my hardest. I even wrinkled my forehead. But what was the point? I didn’t have a single memory of pluxes, whatever they were. When I thought about scales, I remembered snakes. When I thought of creatures living in walls, I remembered rats. But pluxes...
“Closer!” The man in the coat shouted, interrupting my musings.
There was not much space behind the raised doors, but I could see the filthy edges of some mysterious mechanisms.
Then came a second order.
“Put the loops over your shoulders and chest! Get to it!”
I sighed in relief. Shoulders and chest! I wouldn’t have to use my lame left arm or tired right arm.
We were rudely and unceremoniously split up, like horses being put in teams by experienced drivers that can tell how strong they are at first glance. I was placed somewhere in the middle — another stroke of luck. Being in front was no good, because everyone would be looking at you. And being last was bad, too, because you’d get too much attention.
“Don’t pull randomly! Only on the count of three! And don’t turn around — that won’t move this metal bastard any faster! Keep your eyes forward and pull in sync. The faster you drag it here,” the man pointed at his feet with a stately gesture, “The faster you’ll get your reward and get to leave! Don’t panic if it doesn’t move right away. Just focus on getting it started, and then it’ll get easier. When you hear the command, lean into the shoulder strap with all your strength, plant your feet against the floor, and pull! Just don’t stop! If one person stops, it’ll make the whole thing stop! So don’t complicate your own life, goblins!”
The man in the coat had to raise his voice quite a lot for us to hear this explanation, since he was now standing about thirty steps away from us. Was that a lot or a little? It didn’t seem all too far, but I had no idea how heavy the mechanism behind our skinny backs was.
“Goblins! Don’t look at your neighbors, either! Don’t get worked up — it’s not a contest! If you throw your backs out, we won’t pay your medical bills.”
“You wouldn’t even give us a sip of water, stingy son of a bitch,” came a barely-audible, familiar voice behind me.
I couldn’t help looking back. Ninety-One stood strapped in behind me.
“Are they really that stingy?” I asked just as quietly as she had spoken.
“Just wait ‘til you see what they give us for this, nullbie. You’ll get it if you’re not stupid. Now turn around — your ugly face makes me want to puke.”
“Fine.” I nodded and turned my back to her.
I didn’t even think of being offended. Ninety-One was in a bad mood, and would have snapped at anyone who spoke to her. To be fair, if I had such a bruise like that covering my face, I definitely wouldn’t be glowing with happiness either.
“Get ready! On the count of three! Okay... One... Stop! Are you idiots? Hey! Goblin! Yeah, you! I said on the count of three! Again! One... Two... Three!”
We pulled. The strap squeezed my shoulder and ribs in a vice grip, and the breath hissed out of my chest. We barely even moved a quarter step forward. Suddenly, these thirty steps seemed like an unconquerable marathon.
“Three!”
A strained creak behind us was proof that we had moved it. About a third of a step.
“Three!”
We pulled.
“Three...”
