Things moved fast, life didn’t change much, but there never seemed to be a moment to pause. There was always someone to chat to or laugh with, and you were always close to them, parked up next door or across the road. You could drive somewhere else, but inevitably someone would turn up and then play would resume.
The funniest times were when crews with children turned up, two little rat-bags running around the wild, covered in dirt, but beaming with smiles. It was great to see them play, their imaginations were alive, their toys broken but ingrained with evidence of many stories.
It made me think about our own family, maybe we were all just a bunch of big kids and moving fast wasn’t such a bad thing, maybe it kept our own imaginations alive.
Sometimes I have to tell myself to look around, to stop and appreciate what’s around me. But most of the time I just stare at the rock. It’s hard to look around when your focus is elsewhere. But one day I will, it will probably be too late and I will have missed the chance of a good view, but I promise myself, when I am old and can’t climb as much, I will stop to look around.
Despite promising himself the time to look around was going to be later, Matty was surprised. He was up early at the top of the cliff, he and his climbing partner James had stayed the night on the rocks and were preparing to continue their assent. Dawn was breaking and the light was blue. Matty turned to look at the pitches below him, to seek out the valley floor, but his view was interrupted by the clouds marching in below him.
The valley quickly filled and Matty nudged his mate to wake him. James opened his eyes slowly, sat up on the ledge and let his sleepy eyes dance across the bed of clouds.
‘Wow’ he announced, ‘That’s pretty fuckin cool’.
The two climbers sat in silence breathing in the air letting nature show off in front of them.
Two hours later and the boys were climbing again, making their final push to the top of the cliff, as Matty sat in his harness belaying his friend he thought back to the morning clouds and the excitement they had inspired. Taking his eyes off the rock face he looked to the sky. Above him Vultures circled flying down to his level, swooping below him and then in wide arcs returning up, out of the valley into the clear blue sky. It was a beautiful sound as they passed, huge wings beating slowly, majestically, Matty could almost feel the air they pushed in his direction. He smiled to himself. He smiled back at mother nature.
‘Safe’ James called. The signal that he was secure at the anchor of the pitch. It was his turn to climb.
The boys hid in the reeds watching through the mist. They were pretty certain the hunters had gone, but there was no guarantee that they would not return.
‘So what’s the plan?’
‘We need to get the shotgun cartridges.’
‘How do we know where they are?’
‘We don’t that’s why we have to go and have a look.’
‘So they might not even be in the hut, they could have taken them with them.’
Joseph and Andrew had been set another task, this time however it wasn’t part of the initiation it was part of what they did, causing chaos. Out on the lake there were a series of huts on stilts for the duck hunters. The lake wasn’t fenced so the boys could get to the hut without ‘trespassing’, but out in the open, on the lake, there was a high possibility of being spotted and perhaps shot at, deliberately or by accident.
‘Why do we need the cartridges anyway?’
‘Look it’s not our job to ask questions, you have to wait a few years before you can ask questions. Robin will have a plan.’
‘You think he has a gun?’ Joseph asked, Andrew paused letting the words bounce around in his head.
‘I don’t know’ he answered honestly, thinking about the repercussions of getting shot gun cartridges for a real gun. ‘That’s not for thinking abut now, we got to get what we have been told to get and then… Well then we think about the next…’ He trailed off.
Joseph frowned unsatisfied by the answer, but wasn’t brave enough to challenge any more. ‘Shall we swim?’
The boys took off their shirts, trousers and lowered themselves into the water. It was August, but the lake was still cold, the cold ran through their bodies as they tiptoed into the water, clay oozing up in-between their toes. Taking one last breath Andrew lowered his chest into the water and started swimming. Quietly Joseph followed.
It didn’t take them long to arrive at the hut, they circled the building weaving in and out of the pillars in the water looking for some steps up. The poles were slippery, coated in green slime, but at the back Joseph found some steps, he beckoned to Andrew and they hauled themselves onto the platform.
Shivering the two boys scanned the lake’s perimeter, the mist was thick and their movements seemed to have gone unnoticed. Andrew knelt down by the entrance, pressing his ear to the door checking for signs of activity inside. Joseph flicked his head toward Andrew as if to ask if he could hear anything. Andrew shook his head in response, stood clasped the handle, paused, twisted and burst into the room.
It was empty, well, uninhabited at least. There was a sigh of relief and the boys set to work looking for shotgun cartridges.
‘Anything?’ Joesph asked
‘It’s all fishing stuff, bait, rods, tins of meat, look at this’ Andrew held up a tin of smoked sardines, ‘this box is full, I think whoever comes here has a bit of an addiction. You?’
‘Nope, petrol cans, blankets and cooking stuff.’
‘Any shot guns?’ The boys laughed. ‘Joe hold on, come here.’ Andrew had pulled back an old tarpaulin revealing a crate. Joseph crossed the room.
‘What you got?’
‘Shot gun cartridges’ Andrew replied looking at his mate and then back to a red box with ammunition written on it and a drawing of shot gun cartridges. Joseph reached down picked it up and opened the lid.
The regime was strict, roles and responsibilities were clearly defined and the swarm delivered. There were no complaints and no disobedience, but in time the workers were drawn to the cascade.
‘Have you ever flown between the sticks?’
‘You mean pass the wall between the bombs?’
‘Yea’
‘No that’s crazy, if you get hit with one of them it’s over. You’ll end up spinning in circles in the water below.’
‘Terry did it last week.’
There was a hush around the group as the story sunk in. ‘No way, that’s not true Terry wouldn’t even take on the keeper, he once told me he is scared of the walkers. The honey thieves. There is no chance he would take on the bombs.’
‘He did and he said it was the most incredible feeling ever. Clean wings no gold dust, and when he said clean, it wasn’t just like wiping your antennas, he said he could fly twice as fast, like those dragon flys.’
‘Shut up, are you telling me he flew into some of the bombs? Like they actually hit him?’
‘Yea, he took four or five hits’
‘And he didn’t crash, he was able to handle the weight?’
‘Yea he said it was hard, the force of the water was big, but he said he just held on.’
‘Was he in the air?’
‘Not sure, he was definitely on the stick for a few, but one might have hit him in the air.’
‘Brrrrr..’ Jay rolled his lips shaking his head in disbelief, ‘I don’t believe it, crazy… and he said he could fly twice as fast?’
‘That’s what he said.’
‘Wow’ Jay looked over at the cascade, dreaming of speed.
Money was coming into the town, which was good for the villagers, but meant that they had to put up with the habits of the newcomers, some of which were more tolerable than others. But there were some, who lived alone, that were still not accustomed to seeing new faces. They were known in the village as the mountain people for the obvious reason that they lived in small shacks high in the mountains. They farmed the land and kept livestock so the after affects of the blackout had had little effect on them.
The reliance on the blue vein had disabled many people’s ability to think for themselves but these people still had the old skills and their customs hadn’t changed for many years.
As the newcomers grew in numbers so did their interest in the wider countryside.
James stood in the cave that overlooked the valley his eyes fixated on the three men that were moving down the hillside, they slowly traversed down the earthy goat path making sure not to slip on the loose terrain. He had not seen any foreigners in a long time, but he didn’t want them to see him, so he picked up his satchel and made his way back to the hut.
‘So you want to be one of us?’ Robin announced after a long hiatus, Joseph nodded in reply. ‘Well it’s not that easy you know…’ Joseph didn’t flinch, kept control of his emotions and looked back into Robin’s eyes, not too fiercely, but enough to show he could stand his ground.
‘We can test him first’ Andrew chimed in.
‘Of course we’re gonna test him, everyone gets tested.’ Andrew looked away sheepishly. ‘You think you are up for that?’ he added talking to the new recruit.
Joseph looked up from the floor and nodded, ‘I am fast, what do I have to do?’
The crew nodded at each other. The boys were all sitting in the attic of the ruin at the top of the village, they had transformed it into a base for their crew and met each weekend to organise their next mission. Today was the induction of a new lad, Joseph, who had just arrived in town.
There was some chatter between the crew and after a few moments Joseph turned to the new boy.
‘Okay listen and listen good, I am only gonna say this once.’ Silence fell around the room. ‘First we gonna blindfold you and take you to the centre of town, you gotta find Mr Finlay’s shop and get into the attic, I’ll give you a clue, there is an old fire escape at the back, it’s not solid but if you are quick you’ll get up it.’ The boys all looked at each other, sly smiles emerging on their faces. ‘Then once you are up there you gotta open one of his old chests, I ain’t gonna tell which one you gotta go for, but you gotta find a skull, the bigger the better.’ Robin paused and signalled around the room with his eyes.
Joseph followed his gaze and saw seven or eight large unidentified skulls hanging on a rope high in the room. He hadn’t noticed them before. Robin continued.
‘Once you got the skull you gotta make you way through the alley ways and back to us, but watch out there maybe a few extra challenges on the way.’
‘I want to show you something’ Rachel said ‘follow me.’
Rachel led her sister down the steps to the bottom of the garden. There was no clear definition between the end of the garden and the field but after a few paces the semi manicured layout of nature became more random and wild.
‘Where are we going?’ Rachel’s sister complained.
‘Nowhere’ Rachel replied, knowing the quizzical nature of her response would annoy her sister.
‘For gods sake, I don’t really care what you are going to tell me, I don’t care for another lecture, I just want some internet.’
Rachel didn’t reply, she just kept on walking enjoying the process of navigating through the countryside.
After a while the pair arrived at the crest of the hill and peered down the valley. In front of them a mash of purple, yellow and beige lit up the landscape bringing a smile to Rachel’s face. ‘Now what do you think of that little sis?’
There was a pause as Rachel’s sister looked for her words. ‘Okay I like it, it’s nice, it’s pretty, but thats it, I don’t know why you have to walk me for half an hour across the countryside to see a bunch of fields. I can see them on the internet, if I had reception.’
‘But don’t you think it’s nice to see the colours with your eyes?’
hmmmm… Rachel’s sister sighed and sucked in some air through her teeth making a hissing sound, knowing what she was about to say was going to be controversial, ‘I don’t know… I think I am okay it’s nice but I’ve got better things to do, I don’t really care.’ She turned and looked at Rachel, nervous, fearing retaliation from her sister. But Rachel just shook her head, turned back to the view and let the colours in.
There was a hush around the stadium, all eyes turned from the track to the Clock End. Now fully in the spotlight Gregory paused. He extended his rear legs stretching them till they were straight, then pulled them back towards his abdomen, he repeated the action twice on both sides. Then he raised his eyes to to the bar for one last time. Held his focus for a moment and returned his gaze back to the invisible line of his approach. Lowering his head he brushed his antenna’s with his front legs, he needed every sense available and clear for his attempt. Finally he turned to the crowd his eyes flicking through the faces, nerves, expectation and hope sketched in their expressions. He set off.
Lumbering forwards feet planted precisely on his invisible line, head arcing from the ground to the bar to initiate the momentum for the jump, two more steps and bang… Gregory drove his back legs into the ground drilling them through the surface, then extending, mirroring his warm up, but with ten times the force, he sucked his front legs close to his chest streamlining his ascent towards his goal. The eyes in the crowd lifted as he left the ground, silence engulfed the stadium. Time stood still as the hoppers body neared the bar, rotated and… and… and cleared it.
As deafening as the silence had been a moment before, it was surpassed by the eruption of sound. A new record had been set and in all honesty might never be beaten.
They had been walking through the night and were tired, not only from the lack of sleep, but from the mental fatigue. Hopping from shadow to shadow had taken its toll and the two of them were ready to rest their eyes.
They had followed the gorge for the last few hours and as they rounded the bend they saw the entrance to the cave. James stopped turned to Tom and lowered his hand gently to the floor. Understanding the instruction Tom sank to the ground and crawled on his belly to the rock that James was using for cover.
James pointed at his eyes with a forked fore and middle finger and then pointed at the cave. At the entrance stood a fridge, some chairs stacked on top of each other, what looked like an electricity cable running to the apex of the roof and a beautifully tiled floor.
Tom shook his head and they shrank to the the ground and onto their backs staring up at the stars in the sky.
‘No way’ Tom said
‘I am shattered mate, I can’t keep going and the sun will come up soon, then what?’
‘It’s too dangerous, look at it people live there, it’s not like some abandoned goat shelter, people look like they have made a home there.’
‘Well what do you suggest then? We just keep walking until the sun comes up and we collapse on the road!’
‘James’ Tom said sternly ‘I am not trying to be shitty I am as tired as you are, but you heard what they said about bandits on this road, that, over there looks like bandit territory.’
‘Remember that sign we saw yesterday, with the shot gun holes in it.’ James rocked his head sideways in agreement, ‘well I for one don’t want to be used for target practice.’
James sighed and the pair turned from their eyes from sky back down to the cave.
‘Okay, well I am gonna sleep here then, I can’t go on anymore, you can take first watch.’
There was a loud crack like a stick being broken, then the sound of rocks falling towards them. James and Tom both sat up straight fatigue vanishing in an instance.
‘Were you asleep?’ James blurted out
‘No… yea… I don’t know.’ Tom replied panicking
‘For F*** Sake!’
More stones tumbled towards them and then a deep voice from above. What was shouted they could not comprehend, but they didn’t wait for the translation. The two boys leapt up and bolted down the mountain side. Slipping and sliding, hopping, jumping and falling they scrambled towards the cave. A shot rang out behind them.
‘Which way?’ Tom called out.
‘The cave’ James replied
Crack! another shot rang out
‘No way, the gorge, go downstream. We gotta get to the river. Go go go…’
Joe sat there staring at the lampposts not really thinking about the question.
‘The reflection, it’s pretty isn’t it?’ Clara reiterated just in case Joe hadn’t heard.
‘Yes’ Joe replied softly and then took his eyes from the water and looked at Clara, his heartbeat accelerating. He wanted to kiss her, he wanted to say something cheesy like not as pretty as you , but his throat was dry and he could only muster a low grunt. He cursed at himself cleared his throat and looked back at the ocean. Silence returned.
‘My father always said that good art should make your eye race around the image, following the lines. It’s a bit like a painting really isn’t it?’
Joe didn’t know what to say, he felt so awkward, why did he feel so uncomfortable? They were never uncomfortable, they were always together having fun, but now, now he realised he wanted to kiss her it was different, what if she didn’t want to kiss him? That would kill him, best not to try, he coached himself.
‘I like that, my eyes are definitely running around the lines.’ He cursed himself again, what was he talking about. His words sounded so stupid, just think normally, speak normally.
‘Hmmm’ Clara murmured an air of disapproval in her tone.
Joe leant back defeated, but as he placed his hand in the sand to support himself if fell on Clara’s. He flinched, but she did not withdraw, his heart sped up, their fingers interlocked, his breath quickened. Their palms twisted together and their eyes met. He sucked in some air and leant towards her. Their faces were now close he could feel her breath on on his cheek, their breathing accelerated and harmonised, their lips met, discomfort gone.
Life From the Dirt 