Jacks Life On A Gold Field

• Ben Kngshott, Grade 8
• Short Story
• 2015

Jack lived on a gold field, in a separate country to his parents. Jack told his mum he wanted to be a miner, 20 years later he found a big stash of gold ore, but was never happy, Jack constantly cries to himself “Why did I ever leave my loving family?”
The coming day he awoke to the sound of gunshots ‘bang, boom’ .It was foot soldiers invading their claim! Jack reaches for his recently sharpened pickaxe, he runs out into the open swings his pickaxe around clueless in fear, he soon gave up for he was tired, which led him to flee with his mining equipment and memories. He was being chased by foot soldiers with the intention of capturing and holding him as hostage, but there was a big problem which brought him to a halt. There was a thick chunk of forestation so Jack the trooper he is pulls his shiny machete out and starts chopping the thick brush.
The foot soldiers couldn't keep up with Jacks pace they were puffed and struggling for air. Jack didn't care about the dangers that lie in the dark forest that could strike at any moment. There were cougars, snakes, spiders, wolves you name it. Later that night Jack conjured a hammock with 2 trees and with a whole lot of leaves & vines. After eating his “dinner” made up of worms and all sorts of critters, he started to daze off in his makeshift hammock. He awoke again to what he believed to be his wife speaking “Hello Jack” she said in an eerie voice, “C-Caroline is that you? Hello?” Jack whimpered, in utter desperation jack springs out of the makeshift hammock and tries giving Caroline a big hug but she puffed into a cloud of dust and blew away in the forest breeze. Jack lays back down while weeping to the picture of his family.
After Jack awoke from his slumber he wasted no time packing his bags and searching for civilisation. After a while of hard and the excruciating pain of trekking the forest, which seemed to be a giant loop, Jack could see a small clearance through the thick branches in front of him, jack ran as fast as his body would let him as he was running with an empty fuel tank. When Jack reached the edge of the clearance he flopped on to the rich soil of a town called “Knives Edge” and judging by the name this didn’t sound like a friendly neighbourhood.
Jack slowly hobbled into ‘Knives Edge’ he found a grocery store owned by a feeble old man. Jack runs in with the intention of stealing some mutton, since he was just raring to eat anything, he swoops the mutton bags, shoves it in his rags and dashes off with his remaining energy.
Jack was wanted for a bounty for a long time, all the while he was finding his old home-town with his family.