This next section was taken from both memory, and from the journals they let us keep…green steno pads.
Dreams fade fast when there’s a stranger yelling in your face.
“GET THE HELL UP! WAKE YOUR SORRY ASSES UP RIGHT NOOOOOOOW!!!!!”
My eyes popped open before I even knew that I was awake. Its interesting how you respond in panic when you’re in a dangerous situation. Its like some animal instinct or something, your body knows there’s trouble and it opens your eyes for you…fast.
“If you assholes want to get food, you’re gonna have to wake up at the ca-RACK of dawn, and I mean CA-RACK! Do you hear me??? Is this clear?”
*mumbles from all of us*
“IS THIS CLEAR? I WANNA HEAR SOME ‘YES SIR!’S!’”
*spoken hesitantly from everyone* “yes sir”
“THAT AIN’T GONNA WORK! IS THIS CLEAR?!?!?!?”
*shouted from everyone* “YES SIR!”
“Thats more like it” he said, normal tone of voice, but with this sickening smirk on his face. “I’m Murdock, and I’m gonna be your Daddy now. You don’t like it? Take it up with this” he spoke, nodding to the shotgun he had resting on his shoulder. It was a quick gesture, that nod of his head to his right shoulder, but it seemed staged, rehearsed somehow. I wondered how many times this ritual had been repeated. I didn’t even want to think about it.
“So you babies thought you were tough eh? You thought you could push your poor parents around? Well you’re NOT! You’re NOT tough. I’m here to show you that you’re worthless…WORTHLESS!”
A few of the boys were crying, pretty much all of the girls. I looked around and saw a bunch of kids, some younger than my 15 years, maybe 12 years old? 13? But the majority of them were my age, I guessed. They all looked scared. Some of the boys tried to be tough. They talked back. They got rocks in their poncho-roll/pack. Big rocks. Heavy. They’d learn soon enough to just shut the hell up.
“Ok,” Murdock continued, “today we’re going to hike 12 miles. There’s water here, in that little stream down there, but there’s no food. Not today. Not for 5 more days. This is called Impact, and you’re asses are at Challenger. Do not try to run, you will be stopped.” He nodded again at the gun, and yeah, it was totally rehearsed. I knew because it was identical to the first one. He loved that move, you could tell. “If you slow down, I’ll kick your ass. If you stop walking? I’ll kick your ass. Try to run, don’t even get me started. The rules are simple. You only do one thing. Walk. No talking, no running, no skipping, no singing, no crying, no laughing and most of all, no leaving the pack…ever. You need to go to the bathroom? You hold it until I say so. You piss your pants? I don’t give a shit. Piss’em, you ain’t gettin’ a change of clothes for weeks. Oh, and by the way, if you’re lucky…you’ll be here 9 weeks. That equals 63 days.”
63 days. I was not going to make it.
Suzy Says:
May 11th, 2005 at 11:20 amVisit Suzy
I hope you are writing this book:)
Liz Says:
December 10th, 2005 at 9:48 amVisit Liz
This Brit seconds that!
Rose Says:
October 23rd, 2006 at 9:42 pmVisit Rose
Hi there well the one I had do this to me was named horse hair he had the rifle and he had a horse and yep he did the identical things he said to us exactly like the storey up above me. I remember throwing up by like the second day with hardly no water only coming from a stream and no food at all but they said we were aloud to eat cactus if we found any that s right no food for 5 or 6 days only water from stream primitive was suppose to be the worse section they would really break ya down or try to . I cant begin to tell you what I was feeling at the age of 15 and being a girl I really can fully never explain it to you unless you experianced it your self umm alls I know is I was praying to a God that I didnt even believe in I was praying our fathers and hail Marys the only chanted prayers I learnt in catholic school .As for today I learnt that not everything that has happened to me is Gods will because people have free will. That gives me lots of insight on alot of things I have been through