Creative+Writing

The Newcomers

The air was dense and foggy. I couldn’t see anything but sea for miles and miles, just as it had been for the past few weeks. I grew weary of the sight of sea and wondered if I’d ever see land again at this rate. It was a cold and dank night and I thought it was about time to retire to the warmth and comfort of my bed. The next morning I arose a refreshing sight - finally I saw the sight that I had longed for so much, land. Off in the distance I could see land and I knew somewhere over there my future home awaited. I had anticipated this day since the day I had set off from that dreadful lonely place that I used to call home. I had left there for a second chance and a fresh start yet unknown to me at the time I would get more than I bargained for. For what lay ahead of me in my new home would be nothing like I could have expected, nothing like anyone had ever seen. Unknown now but revealed to me soon enough are the struggles I would face against myself and against my surroundings than I had ever before. Yet all I could think was how I was excited to settle into my new life and forget my old one.

The ship crudely named Big Bertha was only the third ship to dock in the place they called back home “the colonies of America”. There was a sense of excitement and anticipation amongst the inhabitants of the ship, all had come here from Europe to make their new homes. For some it was simply just another adventure yet for others like me it was a chance to escape. Although even though I came here seeking a second chance trying to escape I would wind up getting one too many second chances and possibly regret this life more than my past one. Suddenly I heard shouts from men on the dock, they lowered the bridges from the ship to the dock. People rushed off the boat in great anticipation to escape the Big Bertha’s confining spaces for the first time in weeks. As the crowd grew down I finally got my chance to exit the boat as well. I felt optimistic that life would be better in the colonies yet at the same time I had a feeling. The kind of feeling you get when something in your gut tells you something’s just not right. I had doubts that this was the right decision but at the same time I knew that there was no turning back for me so reluctantly I dismissed the feeling and continued on my way. I was instructed that I was to travel to a colony called Florida, where I get to start fresh in a village called Lakeland. This new place that I was surrounded by was different. It was bustling and there was an air of excitement. Everyone was new and so bewildered at the new sights and sounds that they had never seen before just as I was. After a few moments I got a hold of myself and knew what my priorities were: I needed to hire a carriage to take me to Lakeland. I wondered what my new home would be like; whether full of wildlife and forest lands I assuming that because of its name of course. As I pondered what it would look like I had finally found a carriage for hire. The carriage appeared to be in great shape just as everything in this apparent new world was. The trip seemed to go by fairly quickly as I gazed in amazement at the new wildlife and scenery I was experiencing. The road was rickety and seemed to be mostly untraveled. I felt as if I was almost an explorer at that point knowing that I was one of the first people to live in this part of the colonies. Although I was distracted by the new sights and sounds the thought from the beginning the day still rested in the back of my mind, unresolved.This feeling was like a badger burrowing into my head and wouldn’t go away; and the more I tried to ignore it, the more it made me feel unsettled. Little did I know that this feeling would be more accurate than I ever could have imagined. Two months later I had settled into my new home. It was a good home, a lot warmer than it was back home in England where I had previously lived. It was a log cabin house built from the finest pine money could buy. It was surrounded by trees and secluded from the rest of the Lakeland just as I liked it. As much as possible I try to avoid contact with other people. All my life I have been treated like a worthless bug compared to others, so I have adjusted to the cruelty of others and have learned to live in solitude. I grew bored though of only staying at home all day avoiding contact with other people. So I decided to enjoy the scenery which I still had not yet completely adjusted to and had been so completely overwhelming just a few months earlier. It was a fair morning, not too hot to wear a heavy coat but still I would need a coat I thought to myself. I walked south as there was a slight breeze and I wanted that breeze to be at my back. The sun was just peaking over out of the horizon. It looked as if the sky had been painted; beautiful shades of orange and pink filled my mind. It was one of the most magnificent things I had ever seen. Yet this moment was interrupted by an even more beautiful and sublime moment. As I was walking, the forest appeared to open up as if it was a door. There was a clearing too where the light shone so beautifully. In that clearing was the most bewildering sight I had ever seen - it was a fountain and from the looks of it was old and had inhabited the forest for quite some time. The fountain was covered with a vibrant green moss and had branches of ivy growing up the side. Amazingly the water was as clear as crystals and still flowed through the fountain. But what stumped me the most was the fact that it was in ruins. How could it be ruins and appear to be so old when people just started to settle here and in fact I myself was one of the first? At the time it was a welcome surprise, the sight of fresh water to a weary traveler looked as refreshing as anything. So without a thought I took reached into the fountain and took a handful of the delicious water and pressed it up to my lips. From the moment that liquid touched my lips I felt rejuvenated like nothing I had ever felt before. It was so energizing and refreshing all my worries in the world seemed to fade away, I felt as if I was a teenager again. At that moment I did not truly know that how I felt would reflect an all too real truth which would turn my life on its head. So with my new energy I started on my way back satisfied with my new discovery. The walk seemed shorter in the way back for some reason but the scenery seemed different almost as if it had some how gotten bigger. As I grew closer to my cabin once again I had a bad feeling about something. It was different this time though as if it was more real than I could imagine and I was helpless in trying to reassure myself that things were all ok. I felt almost the complete opposite as I had when I drank the water. In fact I almost felt as if I should have gotten more of the water so I could have some now. As I reached my house I went inside and used the washroom and then all my worst feelings were confirmed and rocked my world. I was young, a teenager is what I guessed at that moment my heart sank and I felt worse than I had ever felt in my life. I could not even begin to unravel the mystery at what had happened but then I realized it must have been the fountain. I had heard rumours in the weeks leading up to my departure of a mystical fountain that was in the colonies. Hushed whispers of a fountain for whomever drank its water would become youthful again and shed years off their age in just seconds. At that moment I realized I had discovered the fabled fountain of youth. The thought of being young again made me want to be physically ill, I had wished for my childhood to be over for almost my entire life. I hated being a kid, especially after what happened to me back in England; the torment was endless. Onslaughts of taunting and jeering endless abuse, I had at the time contemplated ending my life. There was no reason too live when every day was the same to me hell on earth. At least I imagined the devil might have some sympathy.

I realized what I had to do. I needed to go into town for only the second time to find a doctor to get help. I ran into town as fast as I could, running past kids and adults alike. After only a short time, I found a doctor’s office but much to my dismay it was filled with children needing aid as the new diseases in the colonies had plagued their immune systems. I began to feel overwhelmed as countless eyes were staring at me. My peers would look at me whisper something into one another’s ears and laugh dauntingly. I tried to ignore it but it was as if I was surrounded by the sound of people laughing at me, as if there laughter echoed off the walls and bounced back. I had been reduced back to my childhood feelings that I knew all too well. It felt the exact same, as if I was going to go insane. I couldn’t stand the sound of laughter it was as jarring to me as nails on a chalkboard. My heart rate rose I began to sweat I could take no more and ran out of the room in terror. I ran from town back to my cabin and burst through the door as if my house was a safe heaven from the sheer terror that I felt when other laughed at me. I sat in the corner of the room clenching my head with the tormenting sound of jokes and laughter replying in my head. It was as if I was possessed nothing would get the sounds out of my head. I was reliving my childhood all over again. I remembered the feelings all too well and couldn’t bare trying to survive through another childhood. I had only one option, only one thing that could relieve my pain and suffering. And on that fateful day Gabriel once again decided to take a walk. This time though he never returned. Nobody ever saw or heard from. Yet there is folklore in Lakeland that says his tormented soul still guards the fountain. As the water was the only thing that brought him joy.