Boz stepped into the warehouse and walked to the pile of clothes. “Everyone grab a uniform and assemble in the hall! Make it snappy!” The newcomers and residents alike rushed the pile. The residents looked healthy enough though their old uniforms were worn threadbare, covered in rips and tears and oil stains. They ran the gamut of ages, all wearing the same tattered overalls. The crowd ravaged the clothes pile. Val said she put one of these boxes in the machine once a month, a quick bit of math made me realize that was almost two years to them. This tiny cube was smaller than her big toe, yet it sustained them for that long. I joined the crowd of freshly clothed newcomers as they streamed out the doors.
It was the largest indoor space I’d ever seen. Light streamed in from small holes that covered outer surface of the higher levels. I hadn’t even noticed them at my old size. We were at the far end of the box, near the back wall. Gazing into the distance I realized it was almost a mile and a half long, and nearly a mile wide. Most of the center portion was occupied by a long series of what looked like tubes buried halfway into the floor. They loomed over a vast complex of simple rectangular buildings that extended into the distance on either side. The tubes seemed to interlock with each other like huge gears, leading in a long line to a vast wheel far above dwarfed everything. It meshed with the last tube in the line and seemed precarious on its long axle. Attached to the wheel’s outer rim was a long thick steel rod that connected to another via a hinged joint far above. That last rod extended clear out to the opposite wall and out of the complex through a large hole. The light that shown through the ring looked like a solar eclipse. I shuddered a bit, that was the bar that was topped with that monster of a cock. Looking down below me I realized the floor was a grate and still more of the inner workings were obscured in darkness far below.
“Welcome to our community!” Boz bellowed to the new crowd, bringing us to attention. He was a broad man, a wall of muscle. “Know that we live to do one thing, drive the Machine and keep the Beast outside at bay. Contribute to that and we will do what we can to make your life comfortable. Refuse to work and you’ll find yourself banished to the deep dark below. Now follow me!”
He led us on the long walk down the length of the facility. The tubes loomed high above, even though only half of their bulk was peeking through. Each had a walkway running through it, with a long conveyor belt running down its center. I noticed the buildings we passed were split into large blocks, small towns in themselves, each lining up with a tube. Looking down the length of the tubes I could see it was mirrored on the other side. Boz finally brought us to a halt at one of the buildings. They all looked identical, similar in make but lower than the warehouse we came in on, probably mass produced when the machine was made. This one had the number 402 emblazoned on the side in stenciled red lettering bigger than us.
“This is your new home. You will eat, sleep, and recover here. Come, follow me” He stepped inside. There was no door, just a large opening like an aircraft hanger. In the center of the space was a long table with an equally long bench on either side. Small grey bricks sat on the tabletop in orderly rows. “Take a seat, quickly now! You’ll need to eat. The beast always strikes soon after newcomers arrive.”
We all filed in, a crowd a thousand strong, each taking the next space on the bench. I sat crammed between a young woman and an older man. They both picked up the grey bricks eagerly and began biting into them. I didn’t even recognize it as food. I picked up the brick and looked at it for a moment. It had a consistency similar to a thick gelatine. I took a timid bite and cringed. There was barely any flavor.
“Something wrong? You smell funny. You sick?” the older man had been watching.
“No, its nothing,” I replied anxiously as I forced the bland slimy lump of grey down and took another bite. I had forgotten that Val’s scent was still on me. I must’ve looked like a mess. I took a moment to look around the space, trying to get my mind off of the food. There were no beds. The floor on either side of the table seemed to be covered in some kind of thick padding. It didn’t seem privacy was much of a right here either. At the end of our building was what looked like a long trough. I was trying to figure out its purpose when the whole room shook, causing many people to tumble off the bench. Boz seemed unfazed, riding the tremor out with ease.
“Alright! That’s all! Stand and line up! Move! Move! Move!” Boz picked a long rod from near the door. He was sprinting down the line smacking slackers with it. Then he sprinted back up the other side doing the same. “Let’s go!” he said, waving us to follow as he sprinted out of the building. Most of us struggled to keep up with his pace. As we ran across the huge floor I saw hundreds of thousands of others doing the same, all making their way into the tubes. The light from the outside was cut off as we passed under the rim. The inside was ribbed. Ridges like long stairs ran the length of it. Boz had us line up on the edge of the walkway where it met the wall of the tube. Crowds streamed past behind us, from other buildings in our block I presumed. There were poles attached to edge of the walkway to my left and right.
“The beast draws near. Grab your hand holds firmly! When you hear the signal step on the ridge like you’re climbing and push with all your might! Walk with the rhythm!” Boz was walking up and down the line screaming. Another line of people was forming behind us, but they were experienced. They sat down and relaxed against the conveyer belt. Another tremor, the whole building was being moved. “Fuck,” I thought, finally letting it all sink in, “She’s lining it up. This is it.”
One long loud note blared through the facility.
“Now!” said Boz, as he started pounding the rod against the floor in a long slow rhythm, “Step! Step! Step!”
I put my foot on the cold metal ridge and strained. It was barely moving. I held tight to the poles next to me and bared down. Looking down the line I saw others struggling as well, but the whole enormous tube was slowly rotating around us. The mechanisms groaned like a sinking ship. The entire structure shook with an impact and above all the straining metal and massive machinery there was a clear extended, deep moan. I couldn't help but picture the vast dildo slipping into her cunt.
“Do not be afraid! The beast cannot get in while the Machine defends us! It will cry! It will growl! It will scream! But we will not stop! Step! Step! Step!”
The steps were easier after the machine started moving. I settled into the work, one step at a time. I allowed myself a sad chuckle.
“They have no fucking clue.”