The Forty Third War: Intro

My name is Antonio Sanchez, and I am twelve. I come from a small town in Central America, and I load bananas onto ships to earn money. I have only gone to school for two years, because I had to work, and help my parents as we didn't have enough money. There is a war going on in my country, between the revolutionaries, and loyalists, and both armies often visit our village to take supplies, and sometimes they come to "recruit" men.

This morning, I woke up early because of a disturbing sound. The unusual sound was of army trucks, which were getting closer to our village. I woke up and wondered what was going on. I went outside, making sure that my mom, and my sister, Alicia, won't wake up. I saw two army trucks parked in the village square. I went outside and stood there watching what was happening. Then I saw twenty army men jump out of the trucks. Mr. Ramirez, the head of our village, was also there. I saw them arguing about something. I went closer to see what was going on. Suddenly I figured out that they were people from the revolutionary army, and they were here to recruit "fighters". I cringed and tried to run, but a soldier had sneaked behind me. He hit me on my stomach, and then on my head with the butt of his rifle. He dragged me across the square to his captain. I could see that my cousin and my fried were already there. Although I wanted to, I decided not to run, because they would shoot anyone who ran.

By now almost everyone from the village was there. The captain shouted to us that he had decided to recruit us in his army. I wondered if I would ever see my family. Soon we were loaded in a truck. The engine started, and seconds later we were driving away form the village.