A Savage Tale: Memoirs of a teen society

A Savage's Tale



(Memoirs from a Teen Society)


By: Rebekah Gordon
Prologue


Throughout history, the rights of young people have been severely limited, because of what we teenagers believe to be fear. The adult fear, that we might grow into responsible human beings on our own, and no longer need their guidance. Adults fear us and our might. We hold the power of the unknown. They themselves once wielded this power, but surrendered it for society's rules and regulations.

Please bear in mind that we were not in a society somewhere, but we had to create our own, however flawed it may be. I believe that you will see the truth behind most all society laid bare before your very eyes. It is shocking to find our self-evident truths become unraveled and dismembered by children, but yet wisdom comes from the mouth of babes.

This series of journal entries were written by myself when undergoing a perilous journey in which my classmates and I were stranded on an island without any adult supervision. These entries document, in full, the truth behind and occurring from an entirely teen society. I leave you to make your own deductions from these events.



Journal Entry #1

Monday 11/15/07
My English classmates and I were on a trans-Atlantic flight to England to study their great writers, poets and philosophers up close. One week ago, our plane crashed on the shores of some island that we didn't know existed, and we are now struggling to make things work in some semblance of order. Both of our teachers somehow missed the flight, and the only adults with us; the captain and flight attendant, perished in the crash. Not counting the aforementioned, there have been ten casualties to date.

 Fred Benson
 Ambrea Eddinic
 Joe Lefors
 Bria Patterson
 Charley Pixley
 Ian Princivali
 Allana Rivera
 Kristen Rue
 Casey Smith
 Imani Walker

All of these died when the plane went up in flames, with the exception of Casey Smith. He died three days ago from a deep gash in his upper thigh where we could not stop the bleeding. In a matter of about an hour, he bled out and died.

I am to keep record of these things such as deaths and supplies etc. since I have been voted temporary "chief" until rescue. In our stores we have :

 42 potatoes
 29 Radishes
 37 fishes

There are ten of us gathered together here, and we have given the others up for as lost. I refuse to assume so many of my peers have not survived. Surely they must be here somewhere, maybe they have found shelter elsewhere on this island. That is what I pray. For information's sake, and to help me to keep hold of my sanity, I have listed below the remaining ten of us.

 Nick Cornillier
 Brittany Davis
 Ethan Dudenhoeffer
 Austin Edmonds
 Dylan Findley
 Rebekah Gordon (me)
 Hamza Hamdan
 Robyn Mahoney
 Alex Ringling
 Marcie Veit

Later I will tell of our going-ons, but light is dwindling, seeing as I have neglected this chore until dusk, so I must end here for tonight.

Journal Entry #2

Wednesday 11/17/07
Today we began to build shelters of Pine wood. At least, I think its pine. Hamza’s boy-scout training has really come in use here. With his knowledge of where moss grows on trees etc. we have made a makeshift map of the island with cardinal directions included.

We are now having some disagreements, where in the first week, I was a benevolent dictator because I was the only one with my head on straight. Nick is beginning to have problems with just about everyone. He is the only one of us who is very strong, so he has to do most of the work, because the rest of us are weak. I think its bothering him that he has to be the physically strong one. He hasn’t actually said so; but he’s been so irritable and grouchy lately, one can only assume.

Luckily, we have a fresh water waterfall that comes from an above-ground spring, so we will not die from thirst, but the waterfall is located in the center of the island and some members of our group want to move closer to it. But if that happens, we won’t be able to be seen from shore. This is, however, the least of our problems.
I think we may be losing our childhood. Being here for this long has caused some people to mature slightly quicker than they might have otherwise. Dylan and Marcie have always been close, but here lately something has changed. He is guarding her, from the other boys, and he goes with her now into the woods to protect her from the unknown. He is growing up more than I ever expected. And yesterday, Austin killed a bird with a slingshot and he plucked and prepared it to eat. It seems that his animal instincts are mixing with his natural politeness. He kills so crudely, yet is ever the gentleman with the others. I am worried, but perhaps I read too far into things too soon.
Robyn is ever the nature/animal lover and refuses to eat meat; still. She’s a vegetarian, but there are no protein supplements here. She needs to eat meat, but she won’t. I suppose when time and weakness take its toll, she will. Until she does start eating like she should, we’re keeping her plenty busy. She is our sketch artist. She is sketching plants and animals and such for when we reach society again so that we can look back on this experience. She is a great asset. There is only one of us who has not changed at all.
Alex. She’s completely crazy, as usual; yet somehow her normal abnormality is keeping the rest of us sane. If that makes any sense. Alex has always been a little nut, but that’s why we love her so much. I’m just glad she’s here to lighten up the mood.
Food is good, and the rainbow fish that swim along the coast in the warm waters are delicious eating. I am getting particularly good a grilling at our daily fish fry. I suppose how yummy the food is probably isn’t important to this log/journal, but if I spend no time at all recording my thoughts, I might become completely selfless, and that is so not me. So I guess I’m done writing in this log/diary thingy for now.


Journal Entry #3
Friday 11/19/07
Oh-k. So now we ARE having problems. Brittany has gone missing! I have no idea where she went or even when she went missing! I’ve searched everywhere with the rest of my group on this half of the island. We can’t go too far from the shore, for fear of getting lost in the woods. But we can’t find her anywhere! She’s not in the forest, or the caves, on the bluffs, or the beach. She’s gone, and its all my fault! So today I’ve laid down some new rules for everyone to ensure the safety of everybody in our group.
• 1 No one leaves the Shelters at night unless to use the bathroom, and if you do have to leave, take a buddy with you.
• 2 During the day you can be alone, but only if you stay away from the woods.
• 3 We need a place to meet, so we will build a shelter as a town hall.
• 4 Everyone must do an equal share of all work, so a rotated schedule will be created for everyone to work from.
These are the rules that we have for now; but they can be changed or added to as necessary. These rules probably aren’t the most specific, and I can guarantee that we are definitely going to need more, but this is what we have for now and these are the temporary rules we’re living by.
Yesterday I caught Marcie and Dylan trying to sneak off, and I think we may need some rules about proper conduct. I mean come on! How are we supposed to focus on work and things as measly as survival, if there is a huge love-fest going on?! This is not good for the group dynamic.
And I HATE sounding like somebody’s mother, but we have to have order. When we get back to society, we won’t want to have lost the few social graces we had to begin with.
And the weather is getting cold. If we crashed somewhere along our flight path like I think, it could up and snow any day now because we should have the same weather as mid-America. With four seasons and everything. All I have to say is that if it begins to snow, we are going to have problems in a huge way. I’ll have to close for tonight, Nick says he has a surprise for the group, I’ll write about it later.

Journal Entry #4

Sunday 11/21/07

Brittany has not shown up, and to be honest, we’ve stopped looking for her. We need to take care of ourselves now. Perhaps she’s with the others who are not here; wherever they are. Or maybe she’s… well never mind. I won’t even entertain that thought a moment longer.
Nick’s surprise turned out to be wonderful. He made desert! He said he pulled Maple extract from a tree (where the sugar/sweetness comes from), and mixed it with some ground up flowers and nuts. It turned out to be a thick sticky chew, kind of like eating caramel candy. He said he named it Marcie, because it was so sweet. He said if we stayed here much longer, everyone would have their own personally named desert! Alex thought it was funny to have people-named foods, and Austin just glared. I guess with all of the baking and everything, Nick was honing in on his territory. Either way, it was a pleasant surprise.
We have the walls put up for our “Town Hall” and the fires we’ve been lighting to cook with are creating some smoke; so perhaps we’ll be seen. What I want to know is why we haven’t been spotted by a flying aircraft or something yet. I’m beginning to wonder if things may not be exactly as they seem.
Ethan has become really withdrawn. He does his share of work, but he rarely eats, and never speaks. I am really concerned about him. Granted, he isn’t my favorite person in the world, but I hate to see him hurting this way. Its just no good to see someone in pain and not be able to help. Like watching Casey die from bleeding out from that shrapnel wound. The blood seeped through the bandages before we could do anything to help stunt the bleeding. Life is so fragile, almost futile. I wonder if anyone else feels this way.
And now, of all things, Marcie is questioning my authority! She has not yet publically attacked me, but she asked me today why I was trying to keep her and Dylan apart. She seems to think I’m jealous or something. I don’t know what to do. I honestly do think its best to keep out relationships strictly platonic though, more drama is exactly what we DON’T need right now. Nick has been following Marcie like a love-sick puppy, but I won’t embarrass him by broaching the subject first.

Journal Entry #5

Tuesday 11/21/07

Today it snowed and we were utterly unequipped. Marcie, Dylan, and Nick were caught outside when the snowstorm hit with a vicious ferocity. Dylan tried to carry Marcie back to the shelters, but he got too tired and left her with Nick while he ran ahead to get help. Nick carried her in a fireman’s carry the rest of the way, and arrived at camp slightly behind Dylan. She was unconscious when they arrived. Nick was near tears. It was heartbreaking.
Dylan looked completely lost as we put warm rags made of woven tree bark over Marcie. It was important that she warmed up gradually. As Marcie slowly regained consciousness, Dylan ran out of the room. I left to go find him.
When I caught up with him in another shelter to see if he needed to talk, he was a wreck. With puffy eyes, and a completely helpless expression on his face, I could tell he’d been crying. I sat down next to him and asked him what was wrong. He said, “I failed her Rebekah. When she needed me, I couldn’t be strong enough. I want to go home!” Then he began to cry again, shedding hot and heavy tears of pain. Still so much a child, despite the circumstances thrust upon him. I sat and listened for the better part of an hour, then we went to go check on Marcie.
When we found her, Nick was helping her sit up, feeding her some warm water with potato. It is as close to broth as we can make. She was sipping weakly, but looking up at him and smiling. She had her protector, her rescuer, and it was obvious Dylan had been replaced. I looked over to see how he was taking this. He was all cried out, but he looked so sad, like he might never smile again. As Alex, Robyn, Hamza, and Austin were all trying to help Marcie; Dylan and I stood to the side. Ethan was nowhere to be found.

Journal Entry #6

Thursday 11/23/07

Its still snowing, and Hamza’s come down with pneumonia! Our shelters keep out the wind, but not the cold. We are sleeping 4 and 5 to a set of worn blankets salvaged with the wreckage. This weather is not good for body or soul.
However, the necessaries must be done, and we still must use the bathroom away from our lodgings for cleanliness’ sake. I woke up early to use the bathroom, and let Alex know where I was going, to come and get me in ½ hour if I wasn’t back. She made some wise crack about me needing that long to go, but I didn’t quite catch it. After all, I was preoccupied.
I went to the bathroom near the water, and then began on my original intent. The group may have lost interest in finding Brittany, but I hadn’t. She was my friend. So, in the middle of a blizzard where I could barely see, I went in search of Brittany. About two yards into the woods, I saw a figure standing tall. Too tall to be Brittany. Who was it then?
As I drew near, I saw it was not someone standing at all. It was Ethan, hanging from a branch by his belt. His body was blue from cold and swinging in the wind. Yes, Ethan had taken his own life. Why? Why had I not spent more time helping him through his problems? Why hadn’t I listened, or made him tell me?
I left him there and ran back to camp. I had no concept of time, only the strong feeling of fear embedded in my stomach. I woke everyone back at camp, but I was so hysterical by that time that no one could understand a word I was saying. Austin sat with me while he tried to calm me down.
Finally I managed to choke out the words, “Its Ethan! He… He’s… dead! I saw… saw his body… he hanged himself!” Austin let go of me and stepped back searching my face for the truth. Apparently he saw it.
All he said was, “I’m sorry.” I assume he told the others, because the body was gone when I went back later, and no one speaks of it to me. For just today, everyone is at peace with each other.

Journal Entry #7

Saturday 11/25/07

As quick as the snow came, so it has melted. Unpredictable November weather. We must have hit mid-50’s by noon yesterday. What’s happened to Ethan is over and done. I refuse to speak of it anymore.
Today Austin speared more fish and prepared them wonderfully with some sort of parsley he found in the forest. It was delicious, and any sign of jealousy he had towards Nick is gone now. He’s almost all grins when it comes to his job in our society, as pitiful as it is. (The society, not his part).
Nick and Marcie are getting awful cozy. He brings her wildflowers and even made her a beautiful shell necklace, though its anyone’s guess when he had the time. She is much better now, but she is basically still being treated like royalty, and loving every minute of it. Don’t get me wrong, I think they really do love each other, it just seems that Marcie gets the better end of the deal. However, I’ve tried to tell them they have to break it off for our group’s (Dylan’s) sanity, but they won’t listen. I suppose I shall have to cross my fingers and hope for the best.
And I hadn’t noticed it until yesterday, but at night there is a warm glow from the other half of the island. Perhaps cannibals or beasts, the fear of the unknown and our own preservation instincts keep us away from there now. Perhaps later, someone braver than I will explore, but I wouldn’t recommend it.
Robyn got sick today, probably from the lack of protein in her body, so I put some fish in her “soup” and made her eat it. She gagged a lot, but her strength seems to be returning; which is good.
Hamza’s not completely better, but he should be in three or four days. We had to keep him upright to keep him from choking on the fluid in his lungs, but now I think all he has is a slight cold and some chest congestion.
Alex is as cheerful as ever, but something doesn’t seem quite right with her. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but something tells me to be on my guard. And Dylan, well, somehow, after two days, he says he’s over Marcie. I guess he’s as fickle as I assumed him to be from the start. First impressions are seldom wrong I suppose.

Journal Entry #8

Monday 11/27/07

I knew something was wrong with Alex! She’s gone slap happy on us. I can’t tell if maybe the 23 days of Isolation are getting to her or what, but she’s hysterical. She keeps laughing and we can’t seem to shut her up. We’ve bound her to a post inside the now finished town hall and gagged her to keep her quiet. We’ll have to come up with a way to fix her problem.
And Nick has come up with a new “Stranded on an island-named after survivors desert”. This one is called Dylan. It has crushed berries in a cold leafy salad type form. Its good, but to be honest its rather bitter. The berries make you want to pucker.
Austin and Nick work together on meals now. We are not starving because we have the rainbow fish and the fresh fruits etc. I suppose we aren’t that bad off, but that incessant glow is beginning to bother everybody. It has almost a mocking air about it. Not much else is going or went on today.

Journal Entry #9

Wednesday 11/29/07

Well, Hamza’s all better. He’s helping us move camp. Although it is still cold, there is no sign of snow again, so I think we are all safe from weather threats. We are moving camp because we are too open. We have moved to a cave near the spring where the 7 of us fit comfortably. The only structure we kept was the town hall, everything else was destroyed fro kindling. We are now closer to the evil glow, but we are in a more defensible position.
Last night Alex broke the post in a fit of lunatic rage. She then ran off screaming towards the light, and we could neither stop her, nor keep up with her. Everything else is going well. There is no drama, we are all coexisting nicely now. Occasionally I catch Dylan glaring at Nick, but I suppose that’s fine as long as no one gets hurt.
Robyn feels terribly guilty for all of the meat she has been eating, (like the delicious fox from last night), but I am no longer giving her an option. I am flexing my proverbial muscle and MAKING her eat meat so she’ll stay healthy. We can’t afford to lose her now, we have already lost so many.
Hope is dwindling, and the moral of the group is low. Though we are now living in relative peace, missing the others and the familiarity of home is beginning to sink in. We women have many a sleepless night in the town hall we now call home, while I’m sure the guys have the same.

Journal Entry 10

Friday 11/31/07

We have now been on the island for 27 days, almost a full month, and so much has changed. Even the simple things from home have become luxuries to the memory. Like forks and knives, pet fish, coil mattresses, etc.
Austin, who I have always considered a friend, has now betrayed me and tried to tell the group to abandon me. He has attempted to overthrow me, saying that I was getting us no progress, because we weren’t being rescued. Well, no one would leave me, so I guess that showed him. He is still with our group, after spending one day tied up with no water. I couldn’t let his actions go completely unpunished, but we need him. He words are starting to rankle. After all, we should have been rescued by now. Why haven’t we been? Surely an island this big isn’t completely undiscovered!
And that light! Every night it grins and jeers at us. As if withholding some vital knowledge. It is almost enough to drive one to the brink of insanity.
And speak of insanity! Nick had proposed to Marcie! And she said yes! We’re freshmen! What in the name of Sam hill do they think they’re doing?!?!? Of course Marcie told me, because I’m her best friend on the island. The second he proposed she came bursting into the town hall to tell me.
She said when he proposed he actually got down on one knee and said, “Marcie I love you. I have from the day I met you, and being here in this place with you has made me realize how precious you are to me and how I need to be able to protect you forever. I know we’re young, but our love has survived here in this God-forsaken place, it will only bloom in the `real world`. Please Marcie, I’m begging you! Will you marry me?” Ick. What a schmuck. All of this stupidity, this… well its ludicrous!!!
I tried to tell her not to say she’d marry him, I tried to tell her to wait, anything! But she wouldn’t listen. And Dylan completely lost it. He became furious to the point of punching Nick in the mouth and storming off. Of course, Marcie rushed to help her… fiancé. So that left me to find Dylan. I couldn’t. Now he’s gone too. And he’s taken Hamza with him.

Journal Entry #11

Sunday 12/2/07

Its funny the things you think of when you have all of the time in the world. I woke up this morning, and the first thing I thought of was “ Its 23 days until Christmas!” I guess I thought this because at my house, no one ever fights on Christmas. On Christmas Day, everyone was always in perfect harmony, and wishes came true. My one wish for Christmas is that I’m home by then.
Now my group of 10 has shrunk to 5! We are ½ the number we were, not to mention the 20 or so people never accounted for! Our society maybe intact, but it isn’t protecting or satisfying people; obviously. But I don’t know what to do. I’m only 14 years old! How can my responsibilities be this heavy? The weight of the world is very heavy.
My clothes are ragged, and my hair matted. My teeth haven’t seen a toothbrush in over a month, and my personal hygiene is at an all time low. My God is good, but where is he? Why am I to be tested like Job? I just want my life back. With acting, and youth group, and parties, and grades. Even the stress of near-due large stories in English class would be welcome now. I can do no more for anyone. I have given this my all, and have failed.
Today, I elect Austin to be our new leader; I can’t handle it anymore!

Journal Entry #12

Tuesday 12/4/07

Austin still wants me to keep this log, he says it’s a therapeutic outlet. This is my one responsibility. I no longer have to worry over everyone, or care for them. I am no longer the planner, merely the scribe.
At campfire tonight Austin says we should meet the light face on. He says tomorrow night we will find its source, and stop fretting like a bunch of old women. He is strong; I trust him.

Journal Entry #13

Thursday 12/6/07

I am writing this by lamplight in a warm soft bed. Ah! Civilization at last!
We followed the light to its source, though it took the better part of the night. Guess what we found! A city! We are in the land of Caspara! We were camped on the Northern tip and it is uninhabited because of the fierce ice storms that sometimes reign here. The dim glow we saw at night was the glow of the city.
When we came upon the city gates we were stopped by some burly guards. They wouldn’t let us within the city until a wealthy lady passed by and bribed them. We are at her house now. As we told our tale to her, everyone of us cried at one point. As it turns out, Alex, Dylan, Brittany, and the others are already at home safe and sound.
When we told her of Ethan and the others who died, she took down the names and made a phone call. When we asked why the others who had already went home did not call a plane for our rescue, the lady said that Caspara's location has remained secret for thousands of years and that they were allowed to leave only on the stipulation that they tell noone where they had been. She then reserved a plane for us for tomorrow, where we will be dropped off at a location near our homes. Look out America; I'm comming home!

Journal Entry #14

Friday 12/7/07

We leave for our plane soon! The Lady Errowin has given me a dress to wear and clothes for the others as well. We now look presentable to all, and I can’t wait to get home. I don't think I will ever tell anyone what happened to Ethan, it would hurt his parents too much. The other survivors and I have agreed to tell everyone that he died instantly when the plane crashed. I'm sorry about the bad news we're bringing, but I can't wait to get home into my nice warm bed, and to take a shower with actual shampoo! I miss my Dad, and mom, and pesky little sister. Here comes my plane now. Yesssss! I'm going home!


Epilogue
Nick and Marcie never did get married. The scumbag ditched her the minute he saw another “hot chick” at Mc Cluer North High School. As it turns out, Dylan WAS the one for Marcie, and they were married Christmas Day 2016. Robyn went on to be a famous photographer, single yet content; Hamza became CEO of Boeing industries, and Austin became a famous soccer player/chef. Nick dropped out of college, and lives with his parents to this day. Me you ask? Why; I’m a famous authoress! Haven’t you heard of my work? I wrote that fictional story called "A Savage’s Tale: Memoirs of a Teen Society".