I love James Bond and the Mission Impossible movies, but I couldn’t fit a whole story into 300 words. So, this one is just the first scene of something longer.
The prompt is:
Tiny Town
The village looked like a tiny toy town from the camera’s vantage point high on the mountain. If not for the people in the streets, Jenn would have expected a giant boy to appear, looming behind the forest, ready to smash the delicate model houses. Instead, she watched, fascinated, as the townsfolk went about their everyday errands.
“So, what happens next?” she asked the Director.
“Nothing much,” he said. “This village came to our attention because nothing of interest ever happens there.” Jenn looked confused, so he continued. “It’s a stable, isolated community with no industry, or tourism, or just about anything for miles around.”
His explanation only added to Jenn’s confusion. “Then how do they make a living?”
“That is your job to find out.”
Jenn studied the video. “Is that the only road into the town?” She pointed at a curve of asphalt at the back of the town. Director Stills nodded. “Where does it go?”
The Director raised an appreciative eyebrow. “A tunnel through the mountain. Every morning, half the town drives into the tunnel, and every evening they return.”
He paused, waiting for the next obvious question. Jenn obliged. “Okay, where do they go?”
Stills just shrugged. “They never come out the other end,” he said. “Nothing ever goes in or out of the other end. In fact, the road just peters out a mile or so after it.”
Jenn took a moment to process that. “There’s a side tunnel, then. A branch off the main one.” Her brow furrowed. “No, this is the side tunnel. A way for the workers to get home. What do our satellites show?”
Director Stills smiled. “Three other towns, just like this one. And what could be a chopper pad on top of the mountain. That’s where you’ll be airdropped.”
THE END