After about a couple of days everything went back to normal, men were working in the new mine, which kids weren’t allowed to go in, and nothing of the I.P.L came into the village for a while. I would walk up to the mine and look at the “NO Children” sign hanging up and some men would look at me as they walk out of the elevator.

“What’s down there?” I asked a man carrying a sack of coal.

“We can’t really tell you that, if we do, they’ll take us.”

“You mean the military?”

He nods and starts to walk away fast, I keep walking around the village and I see some people start packing up their stuff and putting it in their carts. Ok never mind, things haven’t been the same since a few days ago. Aunt Calla has been a bit depressed lately for no reason, and my mother doesn’t talk at dinner time. The more I see people not talking and or depressed, makes me sad too, thinking something big is happening.

Then I feel a hand on my shoulder and when I turn around I see the man I saw a few days ago, the one with the gold and silver jacket and the shiny hat as well.

I got a good look at him, he seems to be in his mid 40s and I can see his mustache and beard has gray hair in it, and on a strap on his uniform I see a nametag saying “Tajjit”.

“What’s your name boy?” says the man with a foul liquor breath like no other man.

“uh……uh….ko..kodath sir….” I said hesitating.

“Interesting name, My name is General Nethal Tajjit, I command and lead the I.P.L.” he said with a calm voice, he doesn’t seem like the man people told me, not a murderer, not a crazed man, just a human.

“That’s nice sir, I have to go and help my mother with something.” I lied as I went and hid behind a building as my heart races and my breath goes in and out in uneven takes. The thought of the general talking to me makes me think about myself, why would the general talk to a 13 year old boy like me, a peasant to him, a brat, a no good for nothing kid who messes things up.

As I was grabbing my stuff from the bread shop and locked it up I took a walk around the village to observe the people around, all the men have been working hard and the women have been cooking and taking care of kids, like a peaceful, haven place. But I fear that things this good doesn’t last long. Not even when there’s a city a mile away with giant gates to keep people like us out, Tretopolis, a city I despise the most but most desire what’s inside.

Soon I pass a old building and when I look in it a kid grabs me from behind and takes me inside where a trapdoor on the ground opens and he takes me inside and they close the door without me screaming for a second. I fought back until I realize who it was, it was all the other kids in the village with candles around the room with a map on a small table in the middle.

“Let go of me!” I yelled at the top of my lungs as everyone shushed me as they handed me a cup of juice that tastes so bitter.

“Sorry that we did that, it’s just we need to talk to you.”

“Talk to me about what, what’s going on?” I said as everyone looks around at the tallest kid in the room, his name is Tayler; he’s the son of the toughest man in the village.

“We need to talk about what happened a few days ago and what’s going to happen.” Said Tayler as everyone starts to mutter and then they shift it onto Tayler.

“We we’re told by my buddy who’s a miner that the I.P.L. has been using us for something besides making weapons and such.” Said Tayler as such information was going through my head, I don’t feel like interrupting, I just sit with my knees high as I listen in on what their discussing.

“I know that these are rumors but there is evidence out there where this is true, we believe that what the military gathered in the mine when they entered the village a few days ago was no ordinary rock, they said that the mine was unstable but there was something inside, something rare, like a jewel.”

“This all sound like hogwash Tayler, why would they want a jewel so rare that it comes into random mines to expose itself.”

“Maybe it’s not jewel or a rock, but maybe a resource. I think the only reason the I.P.L. came here in the first place many years ago is so they can, or should I say, we can mine the ground so they can get to that valuable resource.” spoke Tayler as everyone erupted into discussions and arguments. I’m just sitting there listening like a school boy as all this information sinks in my head. I’m just baffled by what I’m hearing, a valuable resource, moving in mines to expose itself, this is either a great story or something big is happening.

“One time my brother and I snuck up into the walls of the city to examine it, we do this every other day cause we get bored, then one day we saw something come out of the ground and it erupted everywhere, it was shiny and sparkling, by the time we saw it, it crashed into a gas tank causing it to explode a part of the city, weird stuff is happening, bad stuff, like a huge fight.”

The thought in my head was screaming “I saw that explosion at nighttime, I saw it!” but I just kept in my excitement.

“So Tayler, there’s a resource underground that’s growing in random places like in the mines and the city, so what?” said a kid with orange hair.

“My older bro told me that the military ordered our parents to pack their belongings by the end of the eighth month of this year, 2 months away, where are they going to take us, what’s happening?” said the little girl asking Tayler a question.

“I’ll tell you what’s happening, we’ll rendezvous back here in two days and discuss what me and the others will see when we get back from spying.”

“Sounds like fun.” said a little boy.

“And you there.” Said Tayler pointing at me, “I want to talk to you when we get back.”