'Lord of the Flies' Alternate Ending

The Last Look at Light

Piggy cannot see the boulder rolling down the hill toward him. He holds the conch in his hands, trembling at what was going on. Ralph hit Jack, sending him to the ground, and stumbled, running to Piggy. Piggy closed his eyes, ready to take the blow, but Ralph pushed him aside and jumped into the water just in time to miss the boulder.

Jack got to his feet and glared at the water. Piggy and Ralph come back up for air and Jack froze in place.

"Our defense…they survived it…" Jack muttered, flabbergasted. Ralph swam to the rocks and helped Piggy out first. They saw the dust and shattered pieces of the conch.

"The conch," Piggy murmured. Ralph was too busy facing Jack to care about the broken shell.

"You tried to murder Piggy! Wasn't Simon enough you, savages?" Ralph shouted. Jack jumped down to Ralph and stared close in his face. He smelt of rotting meat.

"Don't forget Ralph…you're to blame too. As chief, you were supposed to protect the boys, but you joined in, thinking he was the beast too. Just like the rest of us! That makes you a savage!" Jack said. Piggy stood up and held out whatever pieces he could salvage.

"I've got the conch…Ralph is not a savage. He's my friend! He just saved my life," Piggy said. Jack laughed hysterically.

"The conch doesn't matter anymore! It's broken."

Before Piggy could disagree, Ralph stomped off with Piggy following close behind. The tribe laughed at them until they were out of sight.

When Ralph and Piggy got away from Castle Rock, Ralph kicked a bush and threw a stick as far as he could, making a troubled grunt.

"Jack said I'm a savage…I'm not a savage!"

"Of course not," Piggy said, sitting down on an overturned log. "Jack is trying to put you down."

"Well it's working, isn't it?" Ralph yelled, hitting a tree before doubling over in pain from his punch.

"Ralph, why did you save me from the boulder? If you think of me as your friend, then you're not a savage," Piggy said calmly. Ralph stared at Piggy and then looked away.

"How should I know? I wasn't really thinking when I pushed you…I just don't want anyone else to die," Ralph said, wrapping his arms around his knees. "I'm so confused! How has everything turned out like this?"

Piggy licked his lips from the dry air.

"Jack; he's the reason we're all in this mess, but besides that, I have a conclusion to your questions, Ralph."

"Ralph looked up and played with the beach's sand with one hand. "What that?"

"Remember when we first came to this island?"

"Yeah, I've regretted it ever since."

"Well, remember when we elected a chief? Everyone chose you. Even the second time we all voted on you! Why do you think we did? It's because we saw you were a good leader, and you still are! You're not a savage! If you say you are then I'll annoy you on purpose for the rest of the day," Piggy threatened. He didn't do a very good job of threatening Ralph, but he appreciated the attempt.

Piggy was going to polish his glasses but realized he didn't have them anymore. Ralph smiled and ruffled Piggy's hair.

"Thanks Piggy. I'm glad you're still on my side."

"Why would I want to join Jack? He made fun of me!" Piggy pouted. Ralph sat down beside him.

"Then why don't we get revenge?" Ralph asked. "Just you and me! We can bring his tribe members over to our side one by one until Jack's alone, then we'll catch him and keep him captive until a rescue crew comes for us!"

"Wow! I like that plan! When we bring back the littl'uns, they'll love that!" Piggy said smiling. With that, Ralph planned to kidnap each member one by one and try to talk sense into all of them.

A few days later, Piggy and Ralph had most of the tribe members back to their side. Some attempted to attack, but they had eventually given in. Jack and Roger were the only two left. Ralph stood before all the members.

"Jack and Roger refuse to join us, so they will be captured and held captive until we're rescued," he said. All the boys shouted and whistled with excitement. Piggy stood to his feet and touched Ralph's arm.

"We're all together and not in his tribe! We feel better eating fruit than eating meat. To eat meat, you have to kill innocent animals. Ralph and I agree that if Jack chooses to sharpen the stick at both ends, then so be it, but we'll be waiting for him!" Ralph nodded and smiled mischievously.

"We'll catch him!"

After everyone planned out their actions, they set out to find Jack and Roger. Ralph and Piggy turned a corner from behind a tree and hid immediately. Jack and Roger were kneeling down in front of the old pig's head on a stick; the pig they used as a sacrifice and for their barbeque. Roger stood up before Jack and studied the pig's head. It was starting to rot and flies crawled on every inch of it.

"Jack, are you sure the beast wants this head? It's been sitting here for days."

Jack turned his head after finishing his 'tribal' prayer.

"Are you mad, Roger? The littl'uns believe in such stories, not us. Besides, we used the 'beast' as a cover-up to murdering Simon! There's no going back. Never again will we boys be innocent. Every single one of us has to live with such a burden on our shoulders."

"I know Jack, but they still believe in the beast!"

"Don't be so sure. Not all of us believe in such a thing. If they do believe it, then let it be," Jack said closing his eyes. He opened them after a few moments and stuck a finger in the rotting pig's blood, dripping from the neck to the stick. He smeared the blood whatever else came out onto his face and body. He stood to his feet with a sly grin.

"Come on Roger. We've got hunting to do, and I'm not talking about pigs. I'm talking about a traitor!" he said. Roger grabbed their spears and followed behind him. When they were gone, Piggy gulped loudly. A lump formed in his throat.

"I hope they're not talking about us," he squeaked.

Ralph nodded and said "I think he is." He stepped out from behind the tree and faced Piggy.

"We won't be killed Piggy! I promise you that."

"Okay…" Piggy said, just barely whispering. Before Ralph could turn around, a sharp stab paralyzed him. Jack pulled his spear from his back and laughed.

"You're easier to hunt than I thought!"

Ralph hit the ground and clenched his fists. Piggy fell from fear and shook.

"Piggy! Run back to the beach and don't stop until you get there! Hurry up!" Ralph screamed.

"Piggy nodded and stumbled to his feet. He ran out of sight as fast as he could. Roger was going to run after him, but Jack stopped him.

"Leave him. Ralph is the one we want," he said, grinning. Ralph screamed in pain when Roger stabbed his leg. Jack pushed Roger away.

"Ralph is mine! Go hunt the others!" Jack ordered. Roger scurried off into the trees while Jack lit a piece of wood. He put the flame close to Ralph's face.

"I'm not going to burn you alive," Jack whispered. "I'm going to burn down the forest. If I burnt you to a crisp, hunting you wouldn't be fun! Being trapped on this island was the best thing that ever happened to me. It helped me realize my true nature and destiny!" Jack paused for a moment.

"The pig told me this is my destiny," he said.

"You're crazy! Pigs can't talk, especially dead ones!" Ralph shouted.

"Ahhh…but that's where you're wrong. You see, this pig is my master. Satan tells me what to do and when to do it!" he said. Ralph's face turned hot red with rage and punched Jack in the stomach until he landed on his back.

"You're the craziest person I've ever met! You're sick, disgusting, and completely insane! You've completely lost your mind!" Ralph yelled. He was scared, really scared. He knew he'd die anyway, but he wanted to buy time for Piggy to get away, Piggy was his closest friend on the island.

When Ralph punched Jack, the flame caught the leaves and burned them until they were black. The flame travelled up a tree and burned the wood into red hot embers. The tree exploded and sparks flew everywhere. The sparks caught onto the other trees and smoke rose to the sky, all black and misty with very little air remaining. Jack jumped up and hit Ralph in the head.

"You're the one who's crazy…" Jack said.

When Piggy arrived in the beach area, the littl'uns all bundled a naval officer. Piggy ran over as tears welled up in his eyes.

"When did you boys get here?" he asked, surprised from how many kids were surrounding him. "We saw the smoke. Is anyone injured?"

"Someone was killed…two to be exact…but you've got to help my friend, Ralph! He's trapped and he's terribly injured! He might die!" Piggy cried. The naval officer nodded and called his soldiers to join him in the burning forest.

Ralph cried when his stomach was slit by Jack's spear. Blood rushed down his skin like a river.

"I'm not a savage. I never have been. I just saw the light and you people remain in the dark!" Jack exclaimed.

"That's not true…!" Ralph protested. "A savage is a sick traitor! The dark is where you're headed!"

"Oh, really? Stop living like an adult Ralph, because you and I both know that you aren't an adult. Not even close!" Jack said, spearing Ralph's arm and stomping on his head.

"Living as a kid is fun and when there aren't any grownups, the world is fun and with no rules means even more fun! Why don't you see that, Ralph?"

"You wanna know why I don't see it? It's because I don't hunt people! I don't murder and stab for the fun of it! I haven't even tried to kill someone. Ever since Simon died, I've realized that it really was an accident in my case, but with yours…oh my goodness…with you, it's a whole other story! I can't even bare to look at you!" Ralph exclaimed. Jack clenched his fist and grit his teeth. Ralph was about to yell at him again, but he cut him off.

"Shut up!" Jack screamed, lifting his spear and aiming for Ralph's heart. Before he could stab Ralph, one last time, a naval officer jumped in from the trees and pulled Jack away by his waist. Jack struggled, but he held a strong grip. Another officer pulled Jack's spear away and approached Ralph, briefly wrapping bandages around his injuries. He picked him up and carried him out of fire.

"Let me go you imbeciles! I won't leave this island!" Jack screamed when he was brought into a rescue boat.

"Don't be stupid, kid! A boy has already been killed and you expect to stay here?" the naval officer said. Jack calmed down for a while, but when they got to war ship, he looked at the burning island. The officer pulled him onto the ship. After they all got onto the ship, it headed farther and farther away from the island.

"Satan…save me…" Jack whispered into the wind.

I'm here…go back…go back Jack… a voice echoed back. The voice repeated the same thing over and over in Jack's head. Without hesitation, he jumped overboard. He started swimming to the island as hard and as fast as he could.

"Even if it means to burn alive, I want to be with you!" Jack yelled. After swimming for ten minutes, he lost his agility and sunk down beneath the waves. The water pierced his skin like ice. He looked up towards the surface. He tried to swim up, but his arms and legs went numb from the cold.

Satan…help me…protect me…

Ralph sat on the ship's deck and looked out at the sea. Piggy found him and walked up beside him. He sat in a chair and tugged at his crisp white clothes.

"I'm sorry we couldn't stop him Ralph…he was lost and there was no going back," Piggy said.

"I know, but I just can't believe he jumped when he could've been saved. He could've been sane and happy again," Ralph said.

"He really loved that island, but I just don't see why he would."

"Well, let's just say that Jack was the beast all along. He got the littl'uns to believe in his sick ways, bringing them down with him. Jack killed Simon because he was the beast in the first place."

Piggy nodded slowly and looked at the water.

"Yeah, I guess I can see why that is."

The End