Page 47 - Cornice Grade 8

Survival Story

ing until she can’t feel it anymore. Deciding it’s combo; she’d spent around thirty minutes like an
better to just suffer the pain all at once than have idiot, trying to kill birds before thinking that try-
it come slowly, she twists her shoulder back to ing to chase them would be a lot easier. And she
its place with another crack! Making the agony had been right; she’d managed to get a couple of
return with a vengeance. But at least it works, birds and strangle them to death. Doing that had
the shoulder fixes back to its place, and Athena brought her tons of white-hot guilt but she had
removes her bandanna and she ties it tight yet to survive, certain animals would have to be sac-
gently so that the blood circulation doesn’t get rificed in that order. Cooking the meat had been
cut off (we wouldn’t want that now, would we?). another thing on its own as cooking had always
She gently applies a little pressure on her injured been Athena’s losing point, she couldn’t cook to
arm to see how much it can endure, and she’s this save her life.
close to placing her whole body pressure on it
before a stabbing pain works up again, making Then, at midnight, things changed a bit. She’d
her wince. gone back to sleep, however, when her eyes
open, the first thing she realizes is how she feels
Pulling out the pocket knife, she pierces a hole so numb, though the cold air stings sharper
in one of the circular dents on the top of a ripe, than the rest, followed by the realization that
yellow coconut, drinking the liquid from it using someone is carrying her, then followed by an-
her uninjured arm and relishing the way it cools other realization that she’s wet from head-to-toe
her tongue. She should have kept it for later, but and she’s shivering all over. She tries to lift her
she really can’t be bothered about it right now. head, only to gasp in shock when a pounding
Rummaging through the items she’d brought is a headache crosses the back of her head, causing
lighter (looks like someone managed to smuggle a migraine. It’s as if she’d been dumped into the
the thing into airport securities; there will always ocean.
be rebels), and breaking off the lower branches of
a tree and resting them properly, she lights a dry “We’ll be back home soon, girly!” shouts a male
leaf on fire and sets it on the branches. Soon, the voice, though it sounds far away. In her attempt
branches also catch on fire, and, by breaking and to answer, her eyelids start drooping and con-
using a thin stem from the tree, she pushes the tinue to do so every few seconds. The sound of a
coconut into the fire, cooking it all while making chopping helicopter reaches her ears as a woman
sure not to let it catch on fire. That night, she’d helps her up slowly to the helicopter and eases
managed to eat almost all of the coconuts, and her into a seat. She sneezes, still shivering vio-
crawled back to the tent, pulling a sleeping bag lently as people wrap blankets around her. How-
with her and trying to fall asleep. It takes some ever, another emotion breaks through the numb-
time, though, because her persona of fineness ness; excitement. Excitement courses through
suddenly fades once she’s vulnerable inside her her veins, making her feel warm inside though
tent, and she can’t help but let a few tears fall everything still feels as cold as ice. Excitement
down her cheeks. makes her lips tilt up slowly into a small grin as
she refrains herself from bouncing up and down
She misses her mother so damn much. on the helicopter. She sighs in relief at the pros-
pect of being able to go home and see her mother
The next day, Athena starts out again. She finds again, letting herself go to sleep. She’s earned it
out that spears and birds do not make a good after all. Totally.