Chapter 42

Join the movement

While I keep seeing my family happy and somehow hurt in some ways, I couldn't look at them. I was trying not to look on the painful side but I don't have any choices that it will always gonna take me there no matter what decisions I have been made. All I need is to take a leap and all our hard works will be paid off someday. And I know that 'cause I'm not giving up for my family.

"My son," my Mother called me, we're on the living room in our little slum house in the Waste Land. We just don't care how this world would put us into despair and let our ways choose our path. I'm just happy that I'm with my family and I think that's all that matters. I stood up from slouching and walk towards her.

"What is it, Mom?" I asked. And look at the table she's been at, she's preparing for our lunch.

"I don't have any potatoes here if you don't mind, would you buy me some?"

I nodded, "of course, Mom."

"I'll be right back," I said but she stopped me before heading out.

"Here's some money."

I shook my head and rejected the money on her hands. "No, I still have some on my pocket, Mom. It will do. Save that up." And she smiles as she responded on me. "I gotta go now."

"I wanna come!" and my little brother immediately runs to me, but I laugh to his excitement. "No, no, little buddy. You gotta stay inside. You might be hurt when you get out, it is not a playground for kids like you."

He pouted, as if, pleasing me with his kindness that I should have him come with me but I know the world out there isn't safe for kids. There is so much terror, pain and things that will wreck and I hope he wouldn't experience that. 'Cause walking into that path wasn't good.

When I finally left off my little brother inside the house, I immediately run away for him not to follow where I would go. I slow down and stopped from running when I notice I'm already far from home. I took a deep breath to keep me hanging and exhale it after. The next thing I did were finding the store where some vegetables could be bought.

While heading to the stores, I found some people who are having some gossips and I have heard some words they're uttering. It is like 'movement' was the word they were exchanging into the conversation. But that didn't bother me after all and continue to do what my Mother asked me to do.

As I reach the store, I immediately pick some good potatoes and buy it. But when the vendor gives the plastic bag to me, he started to ask me a few things.

"How old are you, kid?" he asked.

"18 years old, why do you asked that?"

He nodded, "oh, so you're going into the next year process of rebirth?"

"Yeah, I hope so." I smirked, "thanks." I said as I grab the plastic from his hands.

"Wait!" he called me out, and I looked back into him. "I have heard some people that they are recruiting some people to join their movement. If you would like to see what's inside there, have this." He handed over a piece of paper saying the name of the place where the movement takes place.

"I don't think I would," I said, declining his offer.

"You're doing a wrong decision, kid. Do you want a better life, have this? There's no harm in knowing what's inside right?"

"How do I know that this isn't scamming?"

"Then see it for yourself."

I shrugged off my shoulder leaving the store. I don't know what just happened there and what he's talking about. I look back into the paper he gave unto me and I was torn between knowing it and throwing it away. But then I had the guts to wander around the movement they were talking about.

Heading to the place written on the paper were in a bit peaceful. I don't see some people walking around or that's what I just thought. As I keep walking and searching for the blue door as the landmark of the place. And when I found a stained metal blue door at the far corner, I just think I found the right place 'cause I'm on the right street where it will be held.

As I reach the blue door, I examined it and there's nothing special to it. It is filthy.

When I'm about to knock on the metal door, someone from the inside slide the peephole. The eyes of the person were the only visible.

"What do you want?" he asked. I looked both sides finding some answers and when I look back into him, I winced couldn't figure out what's happening. "Go away!" he said as he was about to close the peephole but then I stopped him to do that. "Whatever you need, you don't find it here."

"I think I do," I said and showed him the paper the vendor gave it to me. He just looked into it and shut the peephole. I sighed that it doesn't come as my entry to go inside what's behind the metal door. When I'm about to leave, I've heard the creaking sound of the metal door and when I look back, it was opened for me.

"You can come inside." He ordered.

"T-Thanks... " I stuttered.

As I walk the hallway, from the outside that shows silence and peaceful and in the inside were far from the actual what's happening. There's a lot of it actually. The noise of voices was getting loud and louder as I came closer to another doorway. As soon as I step my foot inside the gathering hall, I saw every face of young people in filling every corner of this place.

"What are all these people doing?" I murmured but I didn't know someone heard it.

"They're all wanting to have a better future by destroying the High Council." He said, he's like older than anyone in here 'cause he got an almost white beard, creased skin and missing tooth—I don't know why I'm seeing that he's just basically older than us.

"How would they do that? You can't fight against the High Council." I reasoned and I think whatever they could reason too, High Council is powerful enough to be taken down.

He laughed as if I was telling a joke, "that's when you are a wrong kid. I wanna asked you something, do you wanted to finish Rebirth and be given a new life with your legal name?"

"Of course, everyone does." I said, "who wouldn't want that anyway?"

"I understand your eagerness, everybody wants that kind of life and happiness but not everybody likes to go on the same process that has been killing everyone just to get a better life. And you know what, this movement is here to save the future."

I shook my head, "no, we make our future. We shouldn't be against it."

"But how do we make it better when you already see that there are too many things that would stop you from getting that, huh? We'll make our future today and we'll see how it's gonna work in the hands of the movement. Believe me..." he patted my shoulder and left me with questions.

As I keep trying to understand the purpose of the movement, I'm still in the dark. I roam around and ask some people whose at the gathering just ignore my existence and so I keep myself in the corner and know what happens next.

Not that long when they introduce the speaker of the gathering. They give him a round of applause as the speaker walking up the stage. My eyes widen as to recognize that he was the person who's talking to me earlier. Did I just talk to the person whose in-charge of this movement?

"Good afternoon everyone, I hope all are good 'cause we're about to start something better." And when say those words, the crowd goes wild and I don't even get into the hype. Or it is just I don't understand where this movement is coming from. "Before I start my message to everybody, I just wanna welcome the new recruits of our movement and for those hesitated to move forward of joining the movement. It is your choice. We don't have a grudge on it. It is your life, your choices that matter. So, I'll start..."

The speaker introduced himself as Barry. He was one of the first members who established the movement against the High Council. From his words, the High Council has been established before but throughout the years they fail and fail until there are no longer participants who wanted to fight for their rights instead follow the rules given by High Council. But then Barry take an action to revive the falling movement and he started it by recruiting new participants every year but the members who joined doesn't always reach the end. Some may do but forget about their purpose to the movement.

Barry didn't lose hope that someone would be an inside man against the High Council and when that happens, the defectors will begin to own their rights.

"This time, I'm hoping that someone would step a foot in the Noble Land and will do the purpose of the movement and to have a better future. I hope everyone does."

After a long talk, everyone was really sure that they would join the movement and fight for their right but I just walked away and headed home as I remember the potatoes my Mother told me to buy. And as when I got home, she asked me where did I go 'cause I was gone for too long but I didn't tell anything. I keep it myself.

Movement. Defect. Join?

"You left the gathering and then how did you come up to join the movement?" I asked my brother, based on the story he tells there's still many things lingering around my thoughts but I could still remember the day he was home late and we ate our lunch so late.

"Remember that I sneak out that night?" he questioned but I just shrugged off my shoulder, "anyway, that night I get to meet Barry and join the movement. And after our talk that night, I told to myself that I would do everything to get into the Noble Land for the purpose of the movement and my family."

"I don't see any changes you did, brother. You've been here for what, six years? And still, the movement is still recruiting members... or you also abandon them?"

He smirked, "Is that what you think I did all this time, buddy?"

"That's what I see."

"Then you are seeing wrong," he said. "I didn't abandon anyone or my very own family. Why would I do that? I made promises that I wanted to make happen and I don't want those promises to be broken. It takes years to establish what I have here on the Noble Land and I'm doing the best I can to give some support to Barry on the Waste Land even on the field. That's why I'm trying so hard to end the High Council but even you're still in the inside all of your moves are being watched."

"Then how did you manage to send messages to me while you're being watched?"

"I'm still the Technology supervisor and sometimes I'm not being watched that's why I got the chance to contact you. At first, I thought you would understand the messages I'm decoding for you until Barry said it, you just know that someone has been guiding you. I'm also helping you to keep you safe but this time I didn't..."

My eyes narrowed when he said those, "what do you mean?"

"The High Council found you're active therefore tracker on a suspicious building. I supposed to hide all your information and your tracker locations but someone ratted me out. And he's out there, once he tells the High Council l whose protecting the defectors, I'm gonna be dead. So I keep you safe here, no one knows this room. I made some modifications that's why they won't find this room. For now, you'll be staying here, a buddy and once everything is now clear, you'll be getting out into the Noble Land."

"Wait... are you saying that I'm in the Noble Land right now?"

He chuckles and nodded, "you are a buddy, they didn't notice that you are a participant because I put the military on you and they didn't find out."

"If you brought me here in the Noble Land... what about my friends? Cha, Brighid, Barry and those members... does anyone survived?"

He took a deep breath, and exhale out of the heaviness he's carrying. "Many of them didn't survive... about some of your friends... I don't know. I have no news about them. And Barry?" he sighed, "he died right there, buddy..."

I cursed in my head when he said that. I couldn't believe it.

"That's how the cruel world works and we'll gonna stop them, are you with me, buddy?"

I nodded with determination, "for those people who we lost... I'm gonna fight for what's our right, brother."

And this is how the real battle against the HighCouncil starts... destroying them from the inside.