The idea for "Forgotten" struck me a very long time ago, and I actually once wrote an intro for it which I really liked. However, I never continued it from there, so for today I decided to write a portion of the opening chapter. This, again, is a story that I actually have all planned and which I love the concept for, and its on these stories especially that feedback is appreciated. Loves and happy reading!!
Jarron and Railee were sitting by the fire, close enough that there was perhaps a foot of slack chain between them. They didn’t know their names were Jarron and Railee, they didn’t know either of their parents names, they didn’t know where they’d come from, but they knew just about everything else about each other. Railee knew that Jarron preferred cleaning to feeding, and Jarron knew that Railee would rather dance than march. Railee knew Jarron’s favorite meal was the stew and his least favorite was the bowl of vegetables. Jarron knew Railee was younger than him. They knew all this, and yet they’d never spoken a word to one another. They weren’t allowed to, for speaking was strictly prohibited by the Elders in the presence of any of the other Forgotten.
The Elders had many rules for the Forgotten, and when a rule was broken you were taken away. There was only one thing worse, they’d been told, than being Forgotten, and that was being Lost. Jarron had seen fourteen children become Lost. Railee had never witnessed someone become Lost, but it was her biggest fear.
Jarron finished eating and grimaced down into his empty wooden bowl, wishing there was somehow more food there. He knew there were many mouths to feed, but the Elevated always got to eat much more than the Forgotten, so he knew there was at least some extra food to spare.
Railee tapped the bench between them, trying to get his attention. Touching was another activity which the Elders forbade, at least between boys and girls. The older boys and girls were allowed to carry the younger ones on particularly long journeys, but that was about all the physical contact they were allowed. Railee drummed her fingers, looking intently at Jarron until he turned to acknowledge her. He raised his eyebrows at her, and she reached out for his bowl.
Jarron shook his head, confused. What did she want his empty bowl for? Railee began pantomiming setting the bowl down on the space between them, and Jarron warily obeyed, hoping none of the Elevated were watching, for they’d surely get in trouble. Once Jarron’s bowl had been set down, Railee picked it up and began using her spoon to transfer food from her bowl to his. He was much bigger than she was, and she didn’t like the look he gave his bowl each night when he discovered there was no more food in it. It was a mean look, like the way the Elevateds looked at her when she couldn’t keep up on the march.
Jarron accepted the extra food, taking the bowl back readily, and scarfing down the few extra bites, hoping no one else and witnessed the exchange. Chained to his other side, but sitting further away was Gami, a scrawny boy with extremely thick brown hair and angular elbows, but Gami was looking the other way, staring into the trees like they could tell him secrets.
Good, Jarron thought, getting the last bit of what seemed to be boiled leaf, unpalatable but sustenance, out of the bowl with his self carved spoon. Skinny didn’t notice. Jarron had names for everyone now. At first he hadn’t known how to think of the other Forgotten. No one ever called them anything, simply clipped a lead to the cuff branded around their wrist, detached them from the chain, and led them where they wanted them to go. Even the Elders, who spoke to the Forgotten, never specified one of them by a name. They’d simply say, “Forgotten” when addressing one, or all of them as a group.
Jarron hadn’t thought to name the other Forgotten until he’d realized that the words which didn’t make sense to him which he’d heard while listening to the Elders speak were names. Once he discovered they called each other certain made-up words in order to direct their comments to someone, Jarron knew he wanted a name. More than anything, he wanted a name, and he wanted someone to call him by his name, and to know that it meant they were talking to him.
After that day Jarron started naming everyone. He didn’t know what the rules were for names though, or how the Elders came up with the strange words, so he just named people by their attributes. He smiled in appreciation at Railee, Lashes, in his mind, and looked down the line at Red, Scars, Short, and Trip. It was weird seeing Short and Trip next to one another on the line. For months Bright Eyes had been chained between them, but then she’d spoken to an Elevated. Bright Eyes was Lost now. A yank of the chain broke Jarron from his revelry. It was time to clean up, and then they’d be on the march again. It was fall time. There was always the most marching in autumn, because that’s when they’d gather all the new Forgotten. Jarron stood and followed the rest of his line to the stream where they would wash first the shiny, heavy, white dishes of the Elders, then the shiny pewter dishes off the Elevated, and then, hopefully, have time to rinse their own wooden utensils before being let off the Chain and being taken to bed.
Railee hated climbing trees, but it was required of all the Forgotten to know how. She’d been climbing trees for years, but that didn’t mean she liked it. She especially hated it at night time. Hiding during the day when the Elders were worried the Forgotten would be hurt was one thing, but sleeping in the trees at night was another. She hoped that tonight she’d get a low branch, or maybe even be able to sleep on the ground. The Elevated leading her was tall, and pretty. She had a long blonde ponytail and green eyes and hadn’t pulled Railee when she’d clipped the lead to her guide bracelet. When they reached the tree were the girls Railee’s age would be sleeping for the night the Elevated began climbing the tree, with Railee following after her. Railee breathed a sigh of relief when the Elevated clipped the other side of her lead to a branch only about four feet off the ground. Railee waited, hugging the trunk of the tree, while the Elevated jumped down, then slid over to the branch she’d been assigned to sleep on for the night. She lay down and got as comfortable as possible, moving her chain to the side so it hung down off the branch. Sleeping on top of the chain was never comfortable. In a few minutes, another Elevated came by with a blanket, which she laid over Railee. This was the signal that meant it was time for her to fall asleep. There was a rule against staying up at night, unless you had patrol duty. Railee shut her eyes, and let her weary body relax as much as possible, her final thought before she fell asleep was that she hoped she would get the honor of being a Messenger for the next year’s Forgotten. How nice would it be, to see the city?
