Ascension (The Ascension Series) (15 page)

“So you’ve flown before?” John asked him.

“Yeah,” Andrew answered. “It’s how Dan and I made our escape from the bank. They didn’t stand a chance.”

“Alright,” John said as he raised his hands into the air. “Try and keep up.”

John shot into the air and Andrew followed right after. They sped through the air as fast as a bullet train. The cool afternoon air blew against their cheeks and flushed their faces. John suddenly went faster and veered to his right. Andrew had to quickly make the same turn in order to keep up.

“You’re going fast!” Andrew yelled through the sky.

“I said keep up!” John looked back and yelled. “We’re almost there!”

For another minute they continued soaring through the sky until John quickly came to a halt and Andrew followed suit. They changed the positioning of their feet to firmly land on the ground when Andrew turned to John and asked a question.

“Aren’t we across the tracks?”

“Yeah,” John answered, “The barn isn’t too far from here. Just one more mile away. Something like that.”

They dropped to the ground in an unoccupied area. The ground was gravely and litter blew in every direction. Right ahead of them was the old abandoned train station.

“This is the old train station,” Andrew said.

“Yeah,” John told him. “It shut down about two years ago. Everyone now visits Union Terminal for the train but this is where they use to come. I visit here now and again.”

“Why?” Andrew asked.

“Follow me,” was all John responded.

John approached the door of the old train station and pulled it open. He went inside as Andrew followed behind him. The inside of the train station was old, rusted, and dusty. The only source of light
came from a large hole in the middle of the ceiling. It was enough to light up the entire, albeit small, train station.

“Why do you come here?” Andrew asked.

John walked over to the barrier that led to the lowered train tracks. It was similar to a New York subway.

“Because this is where my life changed forever,” John said. He sighed before speaking further. “My life use to be pretty decent, believe it or not. My dad was an O-8 major general. It’s a pretty nice title. He was stationed in the Afghanistan War for a while. By all accounts, he was a brave man who’d have given his life for his soldiers. One day, when he was
over there, his truck drove over a field mine. It blew his left leg off.”

“Wow,” was all Andrew said.

“Yeah,” John agreed. “Difficult crap to deal with. Major General Alexander Ahern. He was given a purple heart and sent home. But when he returned to us, he wasn’t the same. He suffered post-traumatic stress. He could never get to sleep, he couldn’t interact with people, and it got so bad that he refused to leave the house. He began to ask where his leg was.”

Andrew listened to every word that John was saying and looked at him with heavy eyes. John continued speaking as he stared at the train tracks.

“You see, he blocked out the day his leg was blown off. He could never remember it. He forced himself to forget it. The whole experience. So he wake up every morning, screaming, when he saw his amputated knee. That’s when he became an alcoholic.”

“I’m so sorry to hear that,” Andrew said with a lowered voice.

“Heh,” John said. “That’s only the beginning. Things only got worse from there. My mother was named Josephine. She always cared for me, even when things with dad began to worsen. She was my rock. I was so inseparable from her. I looked to her for everything. But as my dad got worse, so did she. Mom began to see things that weren’t there. She complained of voices. But she said the worst part was the visions. She said she had a vision of a bright light that was going to kill her.”

Andrew placed his hand on John’s shoulder. John continued looking at the train tracks with his head lowered as
he spoke further.

“Mom went to the doctor and she was diagnosed
as being mentally illness. She was given medication and almost returned to normal. Almost. She acted okay for several months. Then she refused to take anything the doctors gave her. She said the doctors were only prophets of the light whose job was to see that she died. Funny, most people are afraid of the dark. Mom was afraid was of the light. See, my whole life she was afraid of flying. When she was a kid she watched as a plane crashed near her neighborhood. That made her terrified of planes. But she loved trains. Trains were relatively slow and always touched the ground.”

John looked around the old train station that he and Andrew were standing in and he spread his arms out.

“This was the old Cincinnati train station that mom always used. Until she got ill. Just as dad became an alcoholic, mom swore that the light was after her. She said it came after her every day and wouldn’t stop until she was dead. Then one day she said she couldn’t take it any longer. She said she couldn’t outrun the light. She swore all she could do was embrace it and let it take her away.”

“Here?” Andrew whispered.

John nodded. “So she came here. It was the last time a train ever departed from these tracks. Right before everyone moved to the new Union Terminal. As the final train was pulling up, she jumped onto the tracks and embraced the light.”

“I’m so sorry,” Andrew said in a lowered voice.

“The city didn’t want to draw attention to it in the wake of a new terminal so they kept the story as quiet as they could. Most of the kids found out that my mom had died but they didn’t know how. And I’ve never told this to anyone before. Not even Charles and he’s been like a brother to me.”

“Thank you,” Andrew said. “For telling me your story. I know it must be difficult.”

“Yeah…”

“But John,” Andrew asked, “Why do you come here if this is where the incident happened?”

“Because I feel her here,” John said. “I can feel my mother’s spirit here.”

Andrew looked at him strangely but John didn’t notice as he returned to staring at the train tracks.
So Andrew placed his arms around John and hugged him.

“Thanks for sharing this
,” he said to John.

CHAPTER 7

Across town later in the evening, near Union Terminal, Clark and Sarah were darting through the sky, hand in hand. They soared together in laughter and smiles. Right behind them were Chloe and Donny who also flew hand in hand. Lastly was Charles who was flying through the sky and while doing flips and assorted tricks.

“Wooooooooo!” Charles yelled out. “Look at me! I’m flying! I’m on fire, baby!”

They flew to great heights before heading downward and gliding lower. Clark and Sarah got so low to the ground that they were able to touch a field of grass before soaring upward. The others followed their lead and did the same.

“I’m on top of the world!” Charles shouted through the sky.

Finally they slowed down, floating above the sky and enjoying the sights. Charles was doing cartwheels in the air while the others were feeling more tender.

“This is the most romantic thing I’ve ever done,” Chloe said to Donny as they kissed in the air.
Their lips met with a passion beyond Donny’s own comprehension. After kissing her, he opened his eyes and exclaimed his love for her.

“Alright, you two,” Charles laughed. “Get a room! Or an unoccupied cloud!”

“You see them?” Sarah said to Clark as they looked to Donny and Chloe.

“What a pairing, huh?” Clark chuckled.

“It’s romantic,” Sarah said. “Wish you were that into me.”

“What?” Clark laughed, “I am. I totally am!”

“Prove it!” Sarah said.

She let go of Clark’
s hand and flew far away from him.

“Come on!” Clark laughed.

“No,” Sarah yelled, “Catch me and prove your love!”

Clark darted after Sarah as she flew away from him.

“Come back!” Clark yelled. “I’m gonna catch you sooner or later!”

Sarah flew upward and downward, to the left, and to the right. Clark did his best to catch up to her as she tumbled around and headed back toward Donny and Chloe. Just as Sarah was heading towards Charles, Clark swooped up and grabbed her by the legs. She yelled and laughed.

“Got ya!”

“You win!” Sarah said.
“I give up!”

Clark grabbed her by the waist as they flew back toward their friends.

“One day,” Clark told her. “We’ll put on really heavy coats, pack our bags, and soar all the way to Paris, France. Just you and me.”

“
Promise me we’ll fly to the tip top of the Eiffel Tower and kiss,” Sarah said.

“I promise.”

“Guys!” Charles yelled. “It’s getting cold. Let’s drop!”

“Okay!” Clark yelled back.

“Good idea,” Sarah said. “The sun’s going down.”

“I’ll keep you warm,” Clark said as he held her in his arms
while they slowly lowered to the ground. They landed in a grass field near a set of train tracks.

Charles went over to Chloe and Donny and began flirting with Chloe. Donny objected. Clark jumped in and sided with him. Charles, continuing the jokes, told Chloe that she could do much better than the school’s biggest geek.

“How about hanging out with a real superman, baby?” Charles joked. “You’ve had your fun with the geek.”

“Charles, quit it
,” Clark told him.

“I just want to give the girl a choice,” Charles said arrogantly. “A different option, so to speak.”

Out of nowhere, Donny raised his fist and punched Charles in the face. Charles fell to the ground like a losing boxer in the final knockout. He jumped up and used his powers to exert a blast, similar to a gust of wind, toward Donny. Donny fell back but quickly made it to his feet.

“I’ve had enough of you
, Walsh,” Donny told him.

“Gimme your best shot, kid
,” Charles said arrogantly. “I’ll break a tree across your freckled face.”

Suddenly, they both went airborne. Donny and Charles shot toward one another at incredibly fast speeds but failed to meet. Clark was using his powers to stop the two of th
em. He had created a barrier, a sort of force field that separated them. Finally they lowered. Clark went over to Charles while Sarah and Chloe met Donny.

“Come on, Charles, stop this crap,” Clark said.

“I was just joking around,” Charles said. “He was the one who threw the first punch.”

“You started this,” Clark told him.

“Look, if he wants to start a fight with Charles Walsh, I’ll be happy to finish it.”

Chloe was brushing grass out of Donny’s red hair when she asked him to calm down.

“Please, don’t fight,” Chloe said. “Charles is being a jerk and I don’t want to see anyone hurt. Especially not you.”

Donny sighed. He agreed no
t to touch Charles as long as Charles left Chloe alone.

“You’re the one that had to make this physical, man,” Charles said to Donny as he brushed his jacket off.

The sound of the train was getting louder as they moved away from the tracks.

“How about
you stop being a jerk?” Donny said.

“Me?” Charles scoffed. “I’m just being myself.”

“Yeah, that’s kind of what I mean,” Donny said.

The train became
louder as Sarah grabbed Clark by the hand and suggested they leave.

“Yeah, I think it’s about time we get out of here,” Charles said. “That’s the best advice I’ve heard all day.”

“Look!” Chloe shouted.

Ahead of them, the train was moving at a frightening speed. They looked closer and noticed that the train’s wheels were creating sparks against the rails.

“It’s not stopping,” Sarah said.

The train’s conductor blew the loud horn multiple times as the train continued speed
ing at an alarming rate. The five of them stood in the grass, not sure of what to do. Suddenly, one of the train’s wheels blew off and came flying towards them. Clark reached his hand out and the iron wheel stopped in midair before it could hit any of them. Seconds later, the train dived off the tracks and derailed. Debris went flying everywhere as the train began to tip over.

“Focus!” Clark yelled.

The five of them all placed their arms into the air. With all of their strength, they were psychokinetically preventing the vast train from tipping over. Though dust and debris prevented the five of them from seeing anyone aboard the train, they could hear the passengers within the train screaming.

“Now push!” Clark yelled to his friends.

The five of them stretched their hands out even further as the train was just shy of falling over. With all of their concentration in use, the train tipped back onto the tracks. They each put their arms down and stopped focusing. They were breathing heavily as if they had lifted far more than their strength allowed.

“My god,” Charles said as he stopped to catch his breath. “Remind me to never do that again.”

“The dust is settling,” Clark said. “We can’t let these people see us.”

“Let’s get out of here,” Sarah suggested.

They looked at one another and nodded. As debris and dirt stirred around the train, they shot off into the air and flew home.

Charles went in one direction, Donny and Chloe in another, and Clark followed Sarah.

“Your house is in the other direction,” Sarah said to Clark as she noticed him flying behind her.

“I wanted to see that my girlfriend gets home safely,” Clark said. “Lots of dangerous things out there. Although statistically
speaking, flying is still the safest way to travel.”

Sarah smiled as they found the perfect spot to land, as not to be seen. Then Clark
walked with her the rest of the way. When they got to her apartment, he kissed her goodnight.

“I’ll call you,” Sarah waved to him as they parted ways.

“Bye,” Clark waved back. “Hope your parents aren’t too pissed that you were out.”

“They’ll be fine!”

Clark walked away as Sarah entered her apartment building. He ran behind a tree, pretended to rip his shirt open and virtually shot into the air at the speed of light. The sky was finally dark and minutes later he arrived in his own neighborhood. Clark encircled an area that lacked a lamppost and made his descent. A minute later, he was on his family’s porch knocking at the door.

“Who’s there?” his mom yelled.

“It’s me, mom. Clark!”

His mother opened the door.

“Clark, where have you been?”

“I was out with Sarah,” he answered as he walked into the house.

“Boy, you better tell us the next time you’re going to be out till it’s dark,” his dad said as he got up from the dinner table with an empty plate.

“Sorry, dad. I just sort of lost track of time.”

“And why are you so filthy?” his mother asked.

“I fell into some dirt.”

“And answer your phone the next time I call you,” said his mother.

Clark pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and noticed several missed calls labeled “Mom.”

“So sorry, mom. Crazy evening.”

“Well we’ve already finished eating,” his mother said. “I put y
our plate in the microwave. Go clean yourself up and eat when you’re ready.”

“Thanks, mom. You’re the best. Thanks dad,” Clark waved to them as he
sprinted upstairs.

Cla
rk entered his room and shut the door. He reached around his shoulder looking for his backpack and remembered that he left it in Charles’s car after they all agreed to go flying together. So Clark kicked his shoes off and fell onto his bed. He was so exhausted and tired he could barely keep his eyes open. He lied down as his mind continued to replay the train derailing and how they quite timely saved so many lives.

After several minutes
of lying in bed, he ran his hands through his hair and realized his head was covered with dirt from the scene of the train accident. So he hopped up, slapped himself awake and went into the bathroom. The shower nozzle turned on without being touched when Clark reached his hand out and concentrated his mind on the shower. The bathroom became fogged as Clark undressed and got into the shower. Still tired, he stood in the shower with his eyes closed for several minutes. All he could think about were the lives that were spared because of his acts.

When he got out of the shower, he mentally made the water turn off and dressed in a fresh set of clothes. Then, when his parents were in their bedroom, Clark went downstairs to grab his dinner plate. He turned the microwave on and looked around for the remote to the small television in the kitchen. He grabbed his hot plate of food, turned the television on, and ate. Just as
he began to take his first bite, the local news came on.

“Breaking news,” the newscaster said, “We are on the North East side of Cincinnati where just one hour ago a train derailed.”

The television flashed to the area where Clark and his friends had just come from.

“A rusted wheel led to this 100-passenger train derailing,” the newscaster said. “But all individuals are in good condition with only minor scrapes and cuts after they claim they were saved by several individuals.”

The newscast brought an older woman on the screen and handed her a microphone.

“It all happened so quickly,” the woman said. “The train wouldn’t stop and the conductor blew his horn
over abd over. Then our train nearly flipped until we were saved by several strange figures. There was a lot of dust in the air so I couldn’t tell who but it had to have been angels.”

The newscaster thanked the woman and allowed a man to speak
after her.

“I know it sounds strange,” the man said. “And I’m a skeptic by and large. But we were saved by an act far greater than the capacity of any normal human being. The
train was about to turn over but it just stopped in mid-air. I saw several shadowy figures and then they just disappeared. Angels or not, I couldn’t say.”

Clark’s jaw dropped as he
ate his meatloaf. The newscaster then spoke to the train’s conductor.

“I don’t think they were angels,” the conductor said. “I only got a so-so look at them but I swear it, they looked like kids.
Like a bunch of fifteen year olds. They stopped the train from tipping over. It was the most amazing sight I’ve witnessed in all my sixty-two years.”

Clark continued eating his food without thinking. He was staring at the television so hard that eventually he placed his fork in his mouth and bit down on nothing.
He pulled out his phone and immediately called Sarah.

“I see it!” Sarah said first, as if she had read his mind.

“Channel Five?” Clark asked.

“Yeah,” Sarah said. “That was us. They’re calling us angels.”

“That was the most incredible thing we’ve ever done!” Clark exclaimed. “There were a hundred people on that train. And
we
saved them.”