Tom felt his breathing judder and his heart strain to push blood through his cold veins.

Something blocked out the red light and the front of his capsule was thrown open and everything was suddenly very loud and crisp in his ears. Clicks. Clank. Clthunk! A shrill hissing of gas. The monster growling at him in something that sounded like a language.

He saw it in full for the first time but still couldn’t tell if it was human. It stood on two legs, tall but hunched, holding a pipe in one hand that it pointed at him like a hose.

‘Stay back. Don’t hurt me!’ Tom shrank away from the thing but he was still strapped tightly in place and could only twist his head away.

It said something that sounded vile and torn. Its tongue not made for speaking. They might not even have been words. Tom’s eyes ran up and down the monster, trying to find out something about the future he had woken up into.

There was a bristle of skin spikes around its eyes and ears, decorated with razors and rusted nails. The only clothing it bore was a loin cloth and a hardshell backpack where a wire curled to the tube in its hand.

The monster pointed the open end of the tube at him. It was about an arm’s length long, thin but flaring out into an abrupt trumpet. ‘Glarble merk farsshenn koc,’ it seemed to say. Tom could make out syllables but they were clogged by its drooly mouth and meaningless to him.

It leaned in very close to his ear. Jaw opening and closing as a horse chewing on a bit. Its breath fetid and warm.

The creature pulled back, grunted, and pointed the trumpet pipe at him. Then with its other hand it struck the belts that were holding him upright, cutting through straps and skin with a gauntlet of sharpened horns.

Tom fell face first to the floor and the monster kicked him in the stomach. He didn’t seem to feel any pain from it. He saw it, like one of the memories in his mind, but his body just bounced and crumpled.

‘Fa opp.’ That sounded like get up.

Obviously he couldn’t stand. ‘Flytt.’ It kicked him again and Tom pushed himself up on his hands. His skin gritted on a grill floor, metal toothed for grip that was like serrated knives on his knees.

The trumpet waved before him, indicating for him to go forward. He felt it smack him on the back and he began crawling as best he could, on all slippery fours, looking up to see, through the dance of red and black, that there were other humans crawling along before him. Naked and moaning. Kicked along by monsters that stood along the blinking walkway before them.

Tom felt his hair grabbed and his head wrenched forward, throwing him into the woman in front of him. When he didn’t get up fast enough, taloned feet kicked until he was moving again, legs now slippery with blood.

He’d seen her face for a moment. Whoever she was, she looked like she’d been fermenting in a deep well. Skin thin to the veins, eyes wide and mouth open in permanent shock. He didn’t know who she was. He hadn’t met her or seen her before.

I must look just like her.

The humans moved until the monsters stopped them. Shoving the ones at the front with their feet, while the last of the group were prodded forward. They were corralled. About twenty of them all looking as water-logged and panicked as the next.

He could see little of the room they were in, as the walls were crowded with the monsters, some standing on half-broken desks and benches, each dressed the same and holding the same weapons. This may have been a reception area once, though there were no windows and every second fluorescent was dark and dead.

‘Wh– Wh– Who?’ one man tried to say. Tom didn’t look around to see what he looked like. He kept his eyes on the monsters ringed around them.

‘Slåss,’ one of them growled. This one looked a little different. It had a more defined brow and its eyes were steadier.

‘Slarsch?’ the same man who spoke before tried to repeat the word.

Another of the monsters moved towards the humans, kneeing Tom out of its path. It grabbed the man who spoke and dragged him before the one who seemed to be their leader. The man screamed and yelled, throwing his body around to get out of its grasp.

He was dropped on the ground where he moaned. The leader, called Slåss perhaps, lifted him up again, a bit more gently, until the man was standing on his own feet.

He looked up at the beast holding him, perhaps seeing the intelligence this one seemed to possess. ‘Slursch?’ He smiled.

Slåss smiled back, lips opening to reveal its fangs to the roots. ‘Slåss,’ it said again and then turned to look at the group of humans. It pointed and one of the monsters around the walls rushed forward to haul out another from the flock.

She was a plumpish middle-aged woman with dark hair. She begged them not to, ‘no no no no no no,’ was all she said. Like the man she was thrown to the ground but the leader didn’t help her up. Instead, it reached to its belt and took out two small knives. It threw them on the ground between them.

‘Slåss,’ it said.

The man and woman looked down at the weapons and then back up at the creature.

‘Slåss,’ it said again.

The woman jibbered. The man continued to look stunned. From the knife to the leader, to the woman, to the knife, to the other humans.

‘Help me,’ he cried and looked around for help. Tom met his eyes. He saw the man reaching towards him him but he couldn’t reach back.

‘Slååååsssss!’ the leader roared. ‘Slåss!’

The other monsters repeated the shout over and over into a chant. Slåss! slåss! slåss! slåss! slåss!

‘No,’ the man said. ‘I won’t.’

Slåss! slåss! slåss! slåss! slåss!

‘No. Stop this.’

Slåss! slåss! slåss! slåss! slåss!

‘Please. Have mercy on us.’ 

The leader pointed his tube at the man and there was a sound. A boiling gurgle of wind. Tom didn’t see anything move, but the man looked suddenly like a candle that had been melted in the middle. He splatted to the floor and his mouth continued to breathe in and out in a rasping painful whistle.

Before any of them could do anything, the leader was pointing at the humans and suddenly one of the monsters had his claws in Tom’s skin and he was being dragged forward.

Tom couldn’t look away from the body of the man that had gone before him. His eyes were still open and moving, crying with pain. Tongue fused to the side of his mouth. Gurgling and wheezing and bloody.

Then he smelt fetid breath and Tom looked up into the face of the creature. This close he could see the patterns carved into its teeth. He could feel its eyes boring into his.

Its voice came out in a long rasp, ‘Slåsssss.’

The leader let Tom go and he crouched down looking dumbly up at it.

Is this really going to be my last moment? Being melted and dying in agony? Or killing a stranger?

Thomas’s heart beat up into his ears Clthunk! Clthunk! The metal monster jumped to reach him. Clthunk! The door burst open and Jack grabbed him. Clthunk! A scar ran down her cheek, from the ledge of her eyebrow to the drop of her chin.

Amber was drawing on the floor, a crayon in each fist. Tom reached out and paused. His arm was plastic. Black metal feet scratched chips from the wooden floor and aimed at him. Tom fired and the killbot shattered into a million shards of glass.

Tom felt his breathing judder and his heart strain to push blood through his cold veins.

Something blocked out the red light and the front of his capsule was thrown open and everything was suddenly very loud and crisp in his ears. Clicks. Clank. Clthunk! A shrill hissing of gas. The monster growling at him in something that sounded like a language.

He saw it in full for the first time but still couldn’t tell if it was human. It stood on two legs, tall but hunched, holding a pipe in one hand that it pointed at him like a hose.

‘Stay back. Don’t hurt me!’ Tom shrank away from the thing but he was still strapped tightly in place and could only twist his head away.

It said something that sounded vile and torn. Its tongue not made for speaking. They might not even have been words. Tom’s eyes ran up and down the monster, trying to find out something about the future he had woken up into.

There was a bristle of skin spikes around its eyes and ears, decorated with razors and rusted nails. The only clothing it bore was a loin cloth and a hardshell backpack where a wire curled to the tube in its hand.

The monster pointed the open end of the tube at him. It was about an arm’s length long, thin but flaring out into an abrupt trumpet. ‘Glarble merk farsshenn koc,’ it seemed to say. Tom could make out syllables but they were clogged by its drooly mouth and meaningless to him.

It leaned in very close to his ear. Jaw opening and closing as a horse chewing on a bit. Its breath fetid and warm.

The creature pulled back, grunted, and pointed the trumpet pipe at him. Then with its other hand it struck the belts that were holding him upright, cutting through straps and skin with a gauntlet of sharpened horns.

Tom fell face first to the floor and the monster kicked him in the stomach. He didn’t seem to feel any pain from it. He saw it, like one of the memories in his mind, but his body just bounced and crumpled.

‘Fa opp.’ That sounded like get up.

Obviously he couldn’t stand. ‘Flytt.’ It kicked him again and Tom pushed himself up on his hands. His skin gritted on a grill floor, metal toothed for grip that was like serrated knives on his knees.

The trumpet waved before him, indicating for him to go forward. He felt it smack him on the back and he began crawling as best he could, on all slippery fours, looking up to see, through the dance of red and black, that there were other humans crawling along before him. Naked and moaning. Kicked along by monsters that stood along the blinking walkway before them.

Tom felt his hair grabbed and his head wrenched forward, throwing him into the woman in front of him. When he didn’t get up fast enough, taloned feet kicked until he was moving again, legs now slippery with blood.

He’d seen her face for a moment. Whoever she was, she looked like she’d been fermenting in a deep well. Skin thin to the veins, eyes wide and mouth open in permanent shock. He didn’t know who she was. He hadn’t met her or seen her before.

I must look just like her.

The humans moved until the monsters stopped them. Shoving the ones at the front with their feet, while the last of the group were prodded forward. They were corralled. About twenty of them all looking as water-logged and panicked as the next.

He could see little of the room they were in, as the walls were crowded with the monsters, some standing on half-broken desks and benches, each dressed the same and holding the same weapons. This may have been a reception area once, though there were no windows and every second fluorescent was dark and dead.

‘Wh– Wh– Who?’ one man tried to say. Tom didn’t look around to see what he looked like. He kept his eyes on the monsters ringed around them.

‘Slåss,’ one of them growled. This one looked a little different. It had a more defined brow and its eyes were steadier.

‘Slarsch?’ the same man who spoke before tried to repeat the word.

Another of the monsters moved towards the humans, kneeing Tom out of its path. It grabbed the man who spoke and dragged him before the one who seemed to be their leader. The man screamed and yelled, throwing his body around to get out of its grasp.

He was dropped on the ground where he moaned. The leader, called Slåss perhaps, lifted him up again, a bit more gently, until the man was standing on his own feet.

He looked up at the beast holding him, perhaps seeing the intelligence this one seemed to possess. ‘Slursch?’ He smiled.

Slåss smiled back, lips opening to reveal its fangs to the roots. ‘Slåss,’ it said again and then turned to look at the group of humans. It pointed and one of the monsters around the walls rushed forward to haul out another from the flock.

She was a plumpish middle-aged woman with dark hair. She begged them not to, ‘no no no no no no,’ was all she said. Like the man she was thrown to the ground but the leader didn’t help her up. Instead, it reached to its belt and took out two small knives. It threw them on the ground between them.

‘Slåss,’ it said.

The man and woman looked down at the weapons and then back up at the creature.

‘Slåss,’ it said again.

The woman jibbered. The man continued to look stunned. From the knife to the leader, to the woman, to the knife, to the other humans.

‘Help me,’ he cried and looked around for help. Tom met his eyes. He saw the man reaching towards him him but he couldn’t reach back.

‘Slååååsssss!’ the leader roared. ‘Slåss!’

The other monsters repeated the shout over and over into a chant. Slåss! slåss! slåss! slåss! slåss!

‘No,’ the man said. ‘I won’t.’

Slåss! slåss! slåss! slåss! slåss!

‘No. Stop this.’

Slåss! slåss! slåss! slåss! slåss!

‘Please. Have mercy on us.’ 

The leader pointed his tube at the man and there was a sound. A boiling gurgle of wind. Tom didn’t see anything move, but the man looked suddenly like a candle that had been melted in the middle. He splatted to the floor and his mouth continued to breathe in and out in a rasping painful whistle.

Before any of them could do anything, the leader was pointing at the humans and suddenly one of the monsters had his claws in Tom’s skin and he was being dragged forward.

Tom couldn’t look away from the body of the man that had gone before him. His eyes were still open and moving, crying with pain. Tongue fused to the side of his mouth. Gurgling and wheezing and bloody.

Then he smelt fetid breath and Tom looked up into the face of the creature. This close he could see the patterns carved into its teeth. He could feel its eyes boring into his.

Its voice came out in a long rasp, ‘Slåsssss.’

The leader let Tom go and he crouched down looking dumbly up at it.

Is this really going to be my last moment? Being melted and dying in agony? Or killing a stranger?

Thomas’s heart beat up into his ears Clthunk! Clthunk! The metal monster jumped to reach him. Clthunk! The door burst open and Jack grabbed him. Clthunk! A scar ran down her cheek, from the ledge of her eyebrow to the drop of her chin.

Amber was drawing on the floor, a crayon in each fist. Tom reached out and paused. His arm was plastic. Black metal feet scratched chips from the wooden floor and aimed at him. Tom fired and the killbot shattered into a million shards of glass.