The Hidden depth of Sol mining

Demid pulled the bike to a stop near the first building and patted Luka's arm. "Alright, hop off."

Luka climbed down, adjusting his helmet as he glanced around.

Demid smirked, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Impressive, huh?"

Luka nodded. "It's bigger than I thought."

"And this is just what's above ground."

Luka blinked up at him. "What do you mean?"

Demid gestured toward the four main buildings.

"These buildings? They're just the surface. The real mine,the real work,is underground."

Luka tilted his head slightly.

"How deep?"

Demid chuckled. "Deep enough that if I dropped a rock, we'd be waiting a long time to hear it hit the bottom."

Luka imagined it.

The vast tunnels. The darkness beneath the surface.

A whole world beneath the mountain.

Demid led Luka toward one of the supply trucks, where a group of workers were checking the crates.

A man looked up and smirked. "Brought your kid today, huh?"

Demid grinned. "Figured it was time he saw where I spend all my days."

Luka watched quietly, his gaze flicking between the people and the machines.

One of the robots passed by, its metal limbs clicking softly as it moved.

Luka tilted his head. "Are they alive?"

The workers paused.

Then, Demid let out a laugh. "Not quite, kid. They don't think for themselves. They just follow commands."

Luka wasn't sure why, but something about that made him uneasy.

Machines that moved, but didn't think.

Machines that existed, but weren't alive.

He wasn't sure why... but it reminded him of himself.

Luka had seen robots before.

The hospital had them small, polite machines that scanned his body during checkups, their mechanical voices calm and precise.

For a long time, he thought maybe they had emotions.

But now, standing in the middle of the Sol Mining complex, surrounded by cold metal figures that moved without hesitation, or thought.

Luka glanced around as his father led him deeper into the complex.

The mountain loomed in the distance, its rocky slopes partially carved out by years of excavation. The air buzzed faintly, not just with the sound of machinery but with the presence of security.

At first, he didn't notice them.

Then, he saw them tall, humanoid security robots standing near the entrance gates, their glowing blue sensors scanning everything that moved.

Unlike the loading bots, these ones looked almost human.

But they weren't.

Luka stared at one as they walked past. It didn't move, didn't acknowledge him. Just stood there, guarding something Luka couldn't see.

His father must have noticed his curiosity because he said, "They're here to keep the Noor safe. You don't want people sneaking in and taking something that valuable."

Luka tilted his head.

"Do people try?"

Demid chuckled. "Sometimes. But not often. Nobody's stupid enough to challenge those things."

Luka took one last look at the security bots, then turned his attention back to the four buildings in front of them.

Luka tugged on his father's sleeve. "Papa. What are those buildings for?"

Before Demid could answer, one of the workers nearby laughed.

"Curious kid you got there, Viazemsky."

Demid grinned, patting Luka's head. "Yeah, he's like that."

The worker a broad-shouldered man with oil-stained gloves crouched down slightly to Luka's height.

"Alright, kid. Listen up. See these four buildings? They each have a job."

Luka nodded, watching him intently.

The worker pointed to the largest one first.

"That's the Administration Building. That's where all the important stuff happens,contracts, paperwork, monitoring the mine. The bosses spend most of their time in there."

Luka blinked. "Papa doesn't work there?"

Demid snorted. "Do I look like someone who enjoys paperwork?"

The worker laughed and pointed to the second building.

"That's the Processing and Storage Facility. After we bring Noor out of the mine, it gets cleaned, sorted, and prepared for transport there."

Luka tilted his head. "Cleaned?"

"Yep. Noor doesn't come out of the ground looking nice and shiny. It's covered in dirt and mixed with other stuff. We separate it and store it properly before sending it out."

Luka looked at the building a little longer.

Something so small, so hidden in the earth, holding so much power.

The worker moved to the third building.

"This one is the Equipment Maintenance Center. Everything that moves,trucks, robots, drills gets fixed in there."

Luka's gaze flickered to the last building,the smallest one.

Before he could ask, the worker grinned.

"And that one? That's the cafeteria."

Luka blinked. "…For food?"

The worker chuckled. "For food."

Luka wasn't sure why, but that was somehow the most interesting building so far.

Demid patted his shoulder. "So? What do you think?"

Luka looked at each building again, then nodded. "It makes sense."

The worker laughed. "Smart kid. He's got a good head on his shoulders."

Demid smirked. "He gets that from me."

The worker snorted. "Sure, Viazemsky. Whatever you say."

Luka followed his father deeper into the mining site, past the storage facility and toward the massive open tunnels leading underground.

Near the entrance, several machines and robots were at work.

Luka pointed at a massive drill-like machine slowly making its way toward one of the deeper tunnels.

"What is that?"

Demid followed his gaze. "That's an Automated Excavator. It's designed to dig through rock and find Noor faster than we ever could with our own hands."

Luka watched as the machine stopped, adjusted itself, and began drilling,dust and small bits of stone flying into the air.

It didn't hesitate. Didn't pause. Didn't think.

Luka was still watching the machines when a deep voice called out behind them.

"Ah, Mr. Viazemsky. Did you bring your kid?"

Demid turned, nodding politely. "Yes, Mr. Kravchenko."

Luka froze.

His fingers curled slightly against his chest.

His heart beat faster.

The name.

Kravchenko.

He didn't understand why, but—it made his chest feel tight.

Luka glanced up, his gaze flicking toward the man approaching them.

Short, broad, with a round stomach and a bald head that reflected the sunlight. His clothes were neat, expensive,different from the other workers.

A boss.

And trailing behind him—

Was Petya.

Luka stiffened.

Petya walked ahead, smiling as he waved.

"Hello, everyone! I'm Petya."

The adults smiled back, greeting him warmly.

Luka didn't move.

His heart was still beating too fast.

Mr. Kravchenko grinned. "Ah, Luka. You're here too?"

Luka hesitated.

Then, softly—

"Yes."

Petya's smile widened. "Wow! I didn't know you'd be here. This is great!"

His voice was cheerful. Friendly.

The adults seemed pleased.

They didn't know.

They didn't know Petya shoved him against the wall.

They didn't know he whispered things Luka didn't understand but knew weren't good.

They didn't know the bruises Luka had already healed before he got home.

Luka's hands curled into fists at his sides.

Petya was still smiling.

And Luka didn't know why… but something inside him told him that smile was a lie.