Synopsis

In the 27th century, ten-year-olds Sammy and Cal work digging tunnels beneath the streets of the underground city of Pierpoint. When two huge rats attack them, Sammy is wounded, but their boss refuses to give him any time off to heal. With a bleak future ahead of them and Sammy’s infected wounds getting worse, the boys decide to run away. Their escape incurs the wrath of their boss and his boss, who sends out a team of professional hunters to bring the escapees back. The hunter’s philosophy is to shoot first and ask questions later. It’s only a matter of time before they find the two runaways.

Sammy and Cal luck out. They come upon the Gallantiers, a group of young people from the Earth’s surface led by Rex Zenoline, a former military captain and an escapee from underground. Rex and the Gallantiers have journeyed to Piepoint to attempt to rescue the boys and girls from the deplorable living conditions in that city’s orphanages and bring them to Earth’s surface. They ask Sammy and Cal to join forces with them, and the two boys gladly accept.

The hunters track down Sammy and Cal and find them with the Gallantiers. With their lethal weapons drawn, the hunters begin closing for the final kill. Can Rex and the Gallantiers, along with Sammy and Cal, save not only the boys and girls they came to rescue but themselves as well? By using their wits and their courage, they are about to find out.

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Excerpt

“So what do you think?” Alex asked Len.

“You mean going back underground and rescuing more kids?” Len asked. He shook his head and frowned, pretending to act like he thought his friend was nuts with a capital N. He watched as Alex’s excited look changed from one of excitement to one of concern.

“Well, are you?” Alex asked. Then he waited. And waited. Len just stood there, frowning and acting like he was thinking. Thinking for a long time. Alex became concerned. What was wrong with his buddy? Why wasn’t Len on board with going on an adventure? Exasperated, Alex finally said, “Well, are you?!”

But Len was just joking with his buddy. Suddenly, he grinned. “Of course, I’m,” he said, finally. “I wouldn’t miss it for anything. I’m all for it.”

Alex’s relief was immediate. “Alright!” he exclaimed as he pumped his fist in the air. “Far out!

“But first…” Len said.

Alex calmed down immediately. He knew precisely what Len was going to say, so he beat him to it.“Right,” he said. “First, we need to talk to Lulomen.”

“Exactly,” Len said.

“Well, what are we waiting for?” Alex said. “Let’s go find her.”

Alex started walking. In a moment, Len was right beside him.

“I think she’s with the girls,” he said, walking fast to keep up.

“Probably by the creek,” Alex said.’He started jogging.

“Probably.” Len started jogging too. He was as excited as Alex was.

Lulomen was the work director of Creek Meadows Wildflower Farm. Sure enough, they found her with Kyla, Fae, Abagail, Stephanie, Wendell, and Wally down at the creek that ran through the farm.

Alex ran up to her. “Luloman!” he panted. “Can we talk? I’ve got an idea.”

Lulomen looked at Alex. Then she looked at Len, who grinned. “It’s a great idea,” he said.

Lulomen wiped the water off her appendages. Recently, fish had been discovered in the creek, and she was showing the kids how to catch them. “Well, in that case,” she said. “If it’s a great idea, I’d better hear it.

“Great!”

Alex then told her of his idea to go to a different city, other than Metro Metropolis, to rescue kids. He’d arbitrarily picked Pierpoint.

“I don’t know anything about it,” he said. “But I liked the name.”

Lulomen rolled her compound eyes, which, after all this time, were still a little disconcerting for the boys to see because the sunlight flashed off their lenses in hundreds of directions. “Well,” she said. “I applaud you for wanting to help other kids escape.” She looked at Alex fondly. “You’re a good person.”

Alex nervously shuffled his feet at the compliment. If it wasn’t for his birthmark, his face would have surely turned red with embarrassment. But that was beside the point. He was still getting used to the fact that Lulomen liked both him and Len. Back at The Home where they’d been raised in Metro Metropolis, it hadn’t been like that at all. Not one single adult liked either of them, let alone cared about them. Fortunately, the memories of that horrible life had nearly faded away.

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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