Nedlog Town

I just got here after a twelve-hour drive. Finally! Thank God I got a great car to drive this far. Nothing fancy, nothing luxurious. I trust my Corolla. It never disappoints me. I do go for work in remote areas and in nature, but I did not see a town, city, or village in the last four hours of my trip before reaching my destination.

I arrived at this place. A small isolated quiet town at the bottom of a mountain with a river passing nearby. I am Fred and I am a geologist. I was assigned by my firm to explore, collect, sample, date, and analyze the earth’s history in that area. My supervisor told me that this town was not on any map. Although, a lot of people had mentioned this location but seems like we never saw them in the flesh narrating their journey. I did not see any sign from the main road leading into this town about its name and its population. That was a little odd.  

I look at my smartphone, and I see no signal bars. No coverage. I park my car in front of a small building with a sign saying ‘’Hotel’’. The town seemed like a Clint Eastwood movie. I felt like I was in 1850. I enter the premises and ask kindly the clerk if I can get a room for three days and three nights. My plan was to leave early Monday morning. 

‘’Can I have a room for three days and three nights?’’, I asked.

‘’Sure Sir. So, for three days and three nights, that will be a hundred.’’

‘’A hundred only? Oh wow! That is a good deal.’’, telling that to myself.

I take out a crisp hundred-dollar bill and hand it to the clerk.

‘’Sir, I apologize. I meant one hundred gold coins.’’, says the clerk.

‘’I beg your pardon?’’

‘’It will be a hundred gold coins or in the currency, you carry, six hundred US dollars. ‘’

‘’Ah, I see. I guess you were just joking.’’

‘’Sir, there is no time for a joke here. We accept normally gold coins only here, and in rare cases, the green dollar from the US of A’s printing machine.’’

‘’Credit card?’’

‘’No…’’

I had no choice. I paid the amount with cash and luckily, that I was carrying some paper bills with me.

I took my luggage and my geological equipment in my room. They gave room 303, and for some reason, it did not have any windows. I am not going to complain. I am here to conduct my scientific work and leave in a few days. Not here on vacation.

On this Friday afternoon, a lovely sunny day, a little breeze, not too hot, not too humid. It was one of those perfect summer days. I drove around the perimeter of the town with my vehicle. I would say it did not take me more than ten minutes to circle it. This town was weird. I did not see any form of a motorized vehicle. Only horses to move around the town. If not, on foot. People were looking at me like I was an alien. Well, I was an outsider but, I was not from Mars. I looked like a human, like them. Clothing wise, I was not that different from them either. The one thing I noticed, I did not see anyone with a cell phone, laptop, tablet, and no television set. It seemed that to me, there was no object using electricity as a source of energy. After inquiry, not even a landline service! 

I noticed that the mountain not too far from the town, at most half a mile away, had a few tunnels dug into it. Mines maybe? When I ask the locals about it, they mentioned to not venture there. That it is not my business. They told me to complete my work and leave as soon as possible. 

None of the locals smiled at me. I felt like I was in another country. To me, it was scary, odd, weird, uncomfortable to be in this town. 

I was doing research, my digging, my exploration, and guess what? I have never seen such a high concentration of the element Au in the soil in one place! After a few days, there was no doubt. This town was rich! Extremely rich earth-wise and moneywise!!! The potential of greatness was right under my feet!!!

My research after a few days was conclusive. My report was close to being finalized. As I return to my room on Sunday evening, I see that my hotel room door is wide open. I did not notice a forced entry. As I bent over to pick up my belongings, I got hit hard by a solid object. I was knocked out…

‘’I am the leader, the chief of this town. You are not welcomed here anymore and we will not let you leave this town with your findings. We are an isolated place and we are happy with that. We have our own way of life, values, habits, and principles.'' I was in front of a mob ready to burn me alive! Woke up after thirty minutes of being out cold. Attached to a wooden pole at the center of the town.

‘’Apologies. I am here on a scientific trip and I am not here to take away anything from your town…’’

‘’Silence!’’

Now, this is the point I was in serious trouble. I was alone against the whole town. Tied up. No cellular coverage, landline service, or any other way to contact and get help. Why did I accept this assignment???

The leader continues, ‘’You have two options. Either you stay with us forever. Become one of us. Or…we end your life. There is no other option and we don’t need to discuss further this matter.’’

I see that my loyal Corolla was burned to ashes or whatever was left off. To live, I had to stay with them and become one of them.

‘’Sir, I agree to your terms and conditions. Please spare my life’’

‘’Please escort our new member of this town to his hotel room for now. We will arrange new accommodation for him and assign him his new role in this town.”

I was stuck, forever perhaps, in this town that they called Nedlog. I found out also, it was a population of 1,004. Where three of them were geologists, and I myself being the fourth one. After a few days, after I got settled and assigned my new role, my new profession as the dumpster of the town. Working six days a week, I did not have time for any socializing time. I got to know the three other people who were prisoners like me. The introduced to me as Henry, Mitch, and Sam. So, we know now what happened to people who came this far to take a peek into this town.

After a few months of living in this town, as a permanent inhabitant, as a citizen, was not easy. Myself with the three other geologists, we had time to meet up, talk a few times, but not for a long period because we were still newcomers and the people of Nedlog were still suspicious of us. Keeping an eye on us most of the time. 

‘’Fred, you know that there are a few tunnels going through this mountain but we don’t know how far they go and where it leads to, ‘’ Sam said.

‘’Gentlemen, I think it is time to find out where those tunnels can lead us…’’, says Fred with some hope in his voice.