Putting his lime green hands flat against the ground, SbUg lifted himself up from his back with a painful grimace. From the wooden shards piercing his back to the dread he felt from the streak of bad luck potentially not being over, SbUg wasn't doing very well. He didn't even get to eat the awful tasting government issued rations! Nevertheless, no matter how hungry or in pain he was, he couldn't be late for work, no matter how terrible he felt.
That was just how it was in the slums. Either you get taken advantage of, or you take advantage of someone else. That was just what it took to survive. And currently, he was being taken advantage of by his boss. At least he got a little bit of copper for it. He was okay with being taken advantage of, as long as he got something in return.
And currently, he was at risk of losing that something. Jobs were hard to come by in the slums. It was honestly a miracle he even scored it, considering his circumstances. Houses were a rarity as well, and he was more fortunate than most in the slums. Even though his living conditions were still terrible, he was happy to be better off than a lot of others; he was a bit greedy by nature, after all.
'Well, time to get to work, I guess.'
After getting onto his feet, he limped over to his front door. Luckily, it still had the handle, so there was no need to kick it open. He twisted the wooden handle—metal was a delicacy for the rich, after all—and after pushing the door open, the smell of built-up trash mixed with rotting rations hit him.
The slums were... quite a sight to take in, to say the least. Homeless goblins littered the streets. Various pieces of garbage and rations—finished and unfinished—painted them in abundant shades of black and brown. It was like the slums were a surrealist piece of abstract art.
Walking into the streets, SbUg became a bright green dot in that painting. He stood out quite a bit because of his color. Most goblins were a darker shade of green, so he was a bit of an outlier.
He started walking toward the mine with pain still coursing through him. Since he was going to have to pass the convenience store next to his house, he decided to go in to check the time. The convenience store was a bit less of a disheveled mess compared to everything around it. It stood out a lot, actually. It was made out of a more distinct concrete, rather than the rotting wood of the other buildings surrounding it. The two who ran it were a good lot as well.
The one currently on shift, Larg, was a dark green goblin of short stature. His short stature was quite misleading, as he was quite a tough gob. Often, homeless goblins would come in to steal food. That was quite a mistake, though, as Larg would either tell them off, chase them, or just straight-up fight them. His tiny hands were conditioned from many fights, as he used to be a sort of 'punk' type in the slums. He settled down long ago to work an honest life, but that didn't quell his love for fighting.
The other worker, and owner of the convenience store, was Plark. Plark was a humble and kind man, a rare sight for the slums. With a kind smile and a light green tinge to his skin—not the kind that SbUg had, but more of a sign of healthiness—it was clear he spent a lot to take care of himself. His origins in the slums led him back to his roots after he made it out of them. Now, he fought for a better life for slumrats. Bringing city food and clothes to his convenience store and giving Larg an honest life were just two parts of his fight.
Whether it be hands-on with the convenience store or politically, such as lobbying for better rations in the slums, he was someone who genuinely cared.
"Hey, Larg, what time is it right now?" SbUg asked the dark green goblin.
"It's around 6:50 right now, why? And shouldn't you be at work? And what's all on your back? Are you doing alright?" the well-mannered goblin replied.
Usually, SbUg left for work at 6:30, and arrived at 6:55, around five minutes early. To say the least, he was going to have to get there a little quicker than usual.
"O-oh! Oh! I have to go, like... 10 minutes ago! And don't worry about all that! See you tomorrow!" SbUg answered while backing out of the convenience store.
The mines were about a mile away, located at the Concrete Pillars—a mountain chain that acted as a border of the slums. So if he wanted to make it in time, he had to start running toward it as quickly as he could.
After SbUg finished talking, he turned around and bolted out of the store completely, reaching his top speed of about 7 miles per hour just as he got to the end of the street.
Dodging the various piles of trash proved to be quite a challenge while also trying to run at top speed with pain coursing all over, but SbUg had no other choice. If he didn't make it in time, his very livelihood would be threatened. He had no moments to spare.
The small houses turned into blurs, and homeless goblins stared at the strange lime green goblin running through the slums. Some were too malnourished to care, while others just wanted anything interesting to do or see. With not enough food to spare, it was a very rare sight to see anyone running, let alone someone with a rare complexion. He appeared to be very strange at the moment, so it wasn't out of the ordinary for people to be staring. It still made him uncomfortable to have the attention of the other slum-dwellers on him, but it wasn't something he could change.
After an unknown amount of time, the mines were finally in sight. Bordering the Concrete Pillars, there were countless hoists, winders, and wooden staircases. There were plenty of tunnels into the mountain chain that were used for storage, but none were as big as the main entrance the workers checked in to. Stepping over the last pieces of trash on the border that separated the slums from the mines, he didn't lose any of his momentum. He had to continue running, no matter what. His lungs were on fire, and he felt like he was going to pass out. His bony back was still on fire with pain from the shards of the door piercing it, but he had to keep running.
He finally got to the main wooden staircase and began running up the steps. After about 30 seconds, he made it to the top. He was at a huge entrance tunnel of the colossal mountain chain. There were wooden supports and ropes bordering it, and minecart tracks running in and out.
With nothing going wrong so far, it appeared his bad streak of luck was possibly over. Out of breath and not slick with sweat because of his lack of fluids, he had arrived at the mines.