Our biggest stroke of luck was finding an empty warehouse that was clearly long abandoned. After a night of experiencing something similar to what the escaping slaves on the Underground Railroad may have felt, avoiding Fernals and wild animals, and just praying we weren't caught, everyone was exhausted. We'd picked up almost my entire class, plus another twelve people. Only Dimitri (who never showed up to school much anyways), David (who was really loud and wouldn't have lasted very long), Cliff (who was more than a little annoying and who I didn't get along with) and Leo (who I got the feeling was only one mood at school- repressed anger or just plain moody) didn't make it, along with the vast majority of their families. We never saw them again.
Now we've got a group of at least forty people, because not all of my classmates' families got out. Half of us are less than twenty-five (I mean the group in total), and yet I'm sort of somehow the leader. That's a job I've never wanted-Timothy's a much better leader than I am. And there you have it. That's how it all began.
...
My first thought about the abandoned warehouse is that we're lucky to be alive at all. My guess is that the Fernals are done massacring people and now they're just enslaving them. It's not much better, but that means there's at least a chance we can save those people. That we can save my brother...
"I'm going to do some recon." I announce. "Everyone else, I want you to unpack and get some sleep. Someone needs to set up a watch shift."
One of my classmates stands up. "Why should we listen to you?" He demands as I walk out the door. I spin to face him.
"Excuse me?" I growl, keeping a cool head but using the intimidation factor to my advantage. This guy is only a 7th grader. I'm in 8th grade, so even though it's not a huge advantage, it's still there and I can use it in my favor.
"You heard me. Why should we listen to you?" He repeats. He points at Marc. "Why not him? He's an adult."
"Yes, he's an adult. But if that's your reasoning, then why isn't Mrs. McCain leading us?" I counter. Pausing, I let out a growl of frustration. "Look, I don't have time for this."
"What, too lazy to defend your leadership?" He retorts. I take a step towards him and get right in his face.
"Let me restate: there is no time to dispute this. My cousin goes to Biola University. My grandparents live here. My father and one of my brothers were in Carpentiria for a track meet at the time of attack. Several of my best friends are out there somewhere, and they are close to being my family. There are also thousands of people who have watched their families die in the past twelve hours, and now they are being enslaved to their families' murderers. Sure, I'm a kid. But I'm fast, and I already have shown how determined I am to get these Fernals back under control. I have nothing to lose now." I glance around at everyone, then return my gaze to him. "You want to be leader? Fine. Go ahead. But I'm doing recon. When I get back, we'll decide whether- if these people die- if their blood is on my hands...or yours."