Synopsis

Life for Lenny and Alex is not pleasant. It’s the 27^th century, and they are living in an orphanage with thirty other boys like themselves. They are labeled Defectives. They don’t fit the accepted mold for the appearance-based society. They also live in an underground city like the rest of the world’s population. Humans were driven there by tracliodytes, cockroach-like creatures who attacked and took over Earth in the 22^nd century.

Because the boys are defective, they will be sent to work when they turn twelve, digging tunnels. For the rest of their lives. With this bleak future in front of them, Len and Alex decide to make a bold escape. They travel through the city’s ventilation system to the Earth’s surface. They are captured by a tracliodyte patrol. So begins a new life for Len and Alex.

Being held captive is not so bad for the two boys. The tracliodytes have evolved into a benevolent and peaceful society. For the two friends, it’s a life far better than the two ever imagined, especially compared to living underground.

When word of their escape reaches the orphanage of defective girls, Kyla and Fae, the two of them also escape to the surface. Their escape is an affront to Supreme Commander Botta. He vows revenge and plans are made to bring both the girls and Len and Alex back to face trial, torture, and a final hideous fate.

With an army from underground led by Botta, he stages a surprise attack on the peace-loving tracliodytes. The stage is set for an epic confrontation that will determine the fate of not only the young Defectives but the future of life on Earth.

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Excerpt

They climbed out of the duct into the land of the tracliodytes. They looked around, their eyes wide with wonder. “Wow!” They both exclaimed at the same time.

Based on the reading he’d done, Len expected to see decimated land, brown, rocky, and dusty terrain, and no life at all due to the devastation of the last tracliodyte invasion in the 22nd century. What was before him wasn’t like that, not even close. This land was lush and green and appeared to be full of life. There were plants and trees. Birds were singing, and the air was scented sweetly with the aroma of blooming flowers. Off in the distance, a lake shimmered blue under a bright yellow sun. Snow-capped mountains were in the distance. There was color everywhere.

Len looked at Alex, and they both grinned.

“This is great!” Len exclaimed.

Alex echoed him. “No kidding!”

Then they both jumped in the air, whooping and hollering. They started dancing and giving each other high fives, burning off nervous energy. They’d done it! They’d escaped. And what they’d escaped to was better than they could ever have imagined.

After a few minutes of joyful celebration, the boys calmed down. Alex said to Len. “Say, where are those bugs, anyway? Those tracliodytes?”

“I have no idea,” Len shrugged. “I’m not too worried.” He looked around. “Heck. Let’s forget about the tracliodytes.” He spread his arms wide, taking in their new surroundings. “What do you think about our new home?”

Alex smiled. “I like it.”

Len grinned. “Me, too.”

“Shall we stay?” Alex pointed to the grate and the air ventilation system behind them, winding his friend up a little. “Or go back?”

Len punched his buddy playfully on the arm. “We stay!”

“Alright!” Alex pumped a fist in the air. Then he thought for a moment before asking, “What about food? Shelter? How are we going to live?”

Len grinned and started walking toward the lake. “I don’t know,” he said. “We’ll figure something out.”

Alex grinned and fell in step next to him. “Sounds good to me.” Then he started running. “Race you!”

“You’re on!”

And Len took off running after his friend.

***

Off in the distance, five tracliodytes on patrol were hiding in the trees, watching. The leader’s name was Zud. Captain Zud. He pointed. “More humans,” he said to his companions. “Seems like more and more are escaping and showing up here.”

The second-in-command was Arix. “What do you want to do with them?”

Zud sighed. “We’ll capture them and take them in. They’ll go before the judge, and he’ll probably end up putting them to work.”

“With the others?”

Zud nodded. “Yes, with the others.”

Through intricate compound eyes, the squad leader watched the two humans as they took in their surroundings. They were looking around in awe, laughing, obviously enjoying having escaped the confines of their underground existence. Upon closer inspection, Zud saw that they were very young, lots younger than the other human escapees they’d captured over the past few years. And small, too. Much smaller than the tracliodytes.

In the five centuries since they’d overthrown Earth, the tracliodytes had healed the wounded planet. Gone was air and water pollution. The soil had been rejuvenated with organic material and plants had flourished. There was more than enough food for them to eat and they too, like the plants, had flourished. They’d evolved to become larger than their predecessors. Zud and the others stood nearly eight feet tall and walked on their hind legs. They were smarter than the humans. They cared about and had respect for not only the land but each other. They were a formidable race.
Zud turned his head to the sun, and his mandibles formed a smile. He couldn’t blame the two young humans for being so happy. He also loved his life here on Earth.

Arix and the others made a move to follow his orders, but Zud put out an appendage to stop them. “Hold it,” he said. Then he turned to the others and smiled. “Let’s give them a taste of freedom.” He paused and then winked a compound eye at his companions. “At least for a little while.”

About the Author

Jim’s stories and poems have appeared in nearly five hundred online and print publications. His collection of short stories, Resilience, is published by Bridge House Publishing. Chapeltown Books published Short Stuff, a collection of flash fiction and drabbles. Periodic Stories, Periodic Stories Volume Two, Periodic Stories Volume Three – A Novel, and Periodic Stories Volume Four are published by Impspired. Dreamers, a collection of short stories, is published by Clarendon House Publishing. Something Better, a dystopian adventure novella, and the novel The Alien of Orchard Lak is published by Dark Myth Publications. In the fall of 2022, his collection entitled Holiday Stories was published by Impspired, as was his collection of poetry, Haiku Seasons. In February 2023, Periodic Stories Volume IV was published, as was his collection of poems, The Alchemy of Then, both by Impspired. In June 2023, a collection of flash fiction, Dancing With Butterflies, was published by Impspired.In July 2023, his YA novella The Battle of Marvel Wood was published by Impspired. The Zodiac Press nominated his short story “Aliens” for the 2020 Pushcart Prize. His story “The Maple Leaf” was voted 2021 Story of the Year for Spillwords. He was voted the December 2022 Author of the Month for Spillwords. He also reads his stories for Talking Stories Radio and Jim’s Storytime on his website. He lives in a small town west of Minneapolis, Minnesota.

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