Ascension (The Ascension Series) (9 page)

“Hey John,”
Clark waved. 

“What’s up, guys?” John asked.

“Yo! Everybody’s cool,” Charles told him.

“I just saw
Andrew,” John said.

“Great,”
said Clark. “How’s he doing?”

“He’s okay,” John informed them. “He’s doing well.”

“Of course he is!” Charles said. “Like the rest of us, he’s doing brilliant.”

“I was always planning to try out for the football team,” Clark told them. “Now that I’ve got a little
edge, there’s no way I won’t make it.”

“You’re gonna be quarterback,” Sarah
said as she hugged him and planted a kiss on his lips. “Next year we’ll be voted best couple, guaranteed. Then we’ll go off to college and be the best at whatever it is we decide to do.”

“I can raise a drink to that,” Charles laughed. “And I finally caught up with
Big Dan earlier.”

“
Andrew told me he was cool” John said.

“He’s cool as a cucumber,” Charles answered. “He’s lovin’
every bit of his new powers. In fact, after school, me and Big Dan are driving back out to the barn.”

“What for?” John asked.

“Answers,” Charles said. “You joining us?”

“Yeah, sure,” John said.

“I’m in,” Clark agreed.

“I can’t,” Sarah
told them. “Cheerleading practice is after school today.”

“It’s okay,”
Clark told her. “I’ll tell you what you miss.”

“Awesome,” Sarah said. “Ah─ class
time, I’ve got to go. Bye.” Sarah hopped off of Clark and left the student lounge. Clark stared in her direction until she disappeared from sight. His gaze offered just a fragment of his infatuation.

“You still haven’t told me all the dirty details,” Charles laughed.

“And I’m not about to,” Clark said.

“Sarah’s right,” John said. It’s about time for class to start.”

They each left the lounge. Charles extended both of them a slap on the shoulder and walked away in order to flirt with a few girls on his way to class. Clark and John both walked together to their first period history class.

“So when’s the footba
ll tryouts?” John asked him once they made it into the classroom and sat next to one another.

“Tomorrow,” Clark told him.

“Maybe I should try out too,” John laughed.

“Seriously?”

“No way. I don’t even know how to play football. Something about kicking a stitched ball through a goal. That’s all I know,” John laughed again.

“Well find the one thing
that you’re good at,” Clark said. “And now you’ll be great at it.”

“I don’t think
I’m good at anything,” John sighed. “Except brooding.”

“Nah, man. You’re selling yourself short,” Clark told him. “You’ve just got to find something you’re passionate about.”

“Good evening class,” the history teacher, Mrs. Tessler,
grabbed their attention as she walked through the door. “Today’s lecture will be all about our city.”

Mrs. Tessler passed out papers titled, “The Queen City.” She then stood in front of the class and began rambling about the c
ity’s most prominent attributes.

“The cure for Polio was found in Cincinnati. Cincinnati is home of the first professional baseball team
and
America’s first professional fire department. Oh, and seven U.S. Presidents hailed from our state,” the teacher waxed poetically.

Half way into the class, Clark and John turned to one another as the teacher dimmed the lights and played the class a video. John positioned his hands in the shape of a g
oal and Clark used telekinesis to make a paper football jump through John’s fingers. They went back and forth making the piece of paper whiz through the air until the teacher turned the lights back on.

“I’m never going to get use to this,” Clark said with a smile on his face.

“We’ve been chosen, man,” John whispered. “That’s what I think.”

The teacher cleared her throat and looked their way. This forced them to face the front of the room and stop speaking. When the bell finally rang, John and Clark agreed to hang out another time when John went a separate way for his next class. W
ith a huge grin on his face Clark skipped to computer class where he sat next to Andrew.

“So I hear you’ve got it to
o?” Clark asked Andrew. “We were looking for you on Sunday, bro.”

“Yeah,” Andrew laughed. “I’ve become a mutant.”

Andrew looked at his backpack and it unzipped itself.

“You weren’t even squinting,” Clark said. “You
must’ve been practicing.”

“Yeah, I think I’m getting the hang of this,” Andrew said. “But we’ve got to keep this a secret.”

“Definitely,” Clark affirmed. “I’m gonna try out for the football team tomorrow.”

“Nice,” Andrew told him. “That sort of gives me an idea.”

“Like what?”

“Tell you later.”

Donny the Geek was grinning from ear to ear when he walked into the computer class and sat on the other side of Clark.

“Beautiful morning, isn’t it?” Donny smiled.

“Yeah,” Clark said. “I see you’re really happy today.”

“Heck yeah,” Donny brimmed. “The question is no longer ‘what can I do.’ It’s what
can’t
I do!”

“That’s the spirit I’m talking about!” Clark said before turning his attention to Andrew. “See Andrew, you should take a pointer from Donny.”

Andrew gave a tired half smile when the lazy computer teacher, Mr. Kelsey, walked into the classroom and threw his books onto the desk.

“Do whatever you’d like today,” Mr. Kelsey said before plopping into his chair.

Clark took notice when Donny nudged him in the side. Donny smiled as he pointed his finger above his desk and looked at Mr. Kelsey. Donny whirled his finger around and the books and stacks of paper on the teacher’s desk tipped over and fell onto the floor.

“Dammit!” Mr. Kelsey said as he slowly got out of his seat and picked the papers up. Several students began laughing. “What’s so funny? You want extra work? Then get back to your stations,” the teacher said tartly.

“I think I’m gonna try that next period,” Andrew laughed.

“Hilarious!” Clark agreed.

“Thanks guys,” Donny grinned.

“And I was wondering
,” Clark said. “How are things going between you and Chloe.”

“Well I was feeling a little embarrassed once the drinks wore off after your party on Saturday,” Donny told him. “But
we’re still hanging out. I still can’t believe Chloe really likes me. Braces and all. And with these powers, we’ve got something we can really bond over… well, besides trigonometry.”

“I’m
happy for you, dude,” Clark said. “I always know you had it in you.”

“I know it sounds strange but I feel like I needed some kind of help
to get to this point. Alcohol first and now superpowers,” Donny thought aloud.

“
Works ever time,” Clark laughed. “But seriously, that stuff only enhances who you really are.”

“Oh yeah, that reminds me,” Donny said as he took out a piece of paper. He wrote “Want to hang out after school today?” on the sheet and folded it into a paper airplane. Donny pointed his finger at the paper and it levitated off his desk. Then he pointed his finger in the air and the paper airplane followed.
It landed across the room and into Chloe’s lap as Donny had directed it to. Chloe unfolded the paper plane, looked up at Donny, and nodded. When Donny smiled, Chloe blew him a kiss.

“Yes!” Donny cheered.

“Later today I was planning to go with a few of the guys back to the barn,” Clark said. “Guess you won’t be along.”

“And miss an evening wi
th Chloe? No way!” Donny said. “Tell me what I miss.”

During lunch period Clark saw Sa
rah for the first time since morning. Clark was going on about possibly becoming quarterback and MVP of a football team he had yet to be accepted on. Sarah talked about using her powers to become head cheerleader.

“How?” Clark asked
as he ate a slice of pizza.

“I don’t know,” Sarah said
with a mouthful. “Maybe by flipping higher in the air? Or, I know─ balancing on a pyramid with just one foot!”

“You’re gonna take your best friend’s spot?” Clark asked.

“You’re my best friend,” Sarah grunted.

“Yeah, I know that,” Clark said. “I was just referring to Jessica. Your best female friend.”

“If I take Jessica’s spot, so what?” Sarah scoffed. “She’ll live. And how about you? You’ll be taking someone’s spot on the football team. Don’t seem too concerned about that.”

“I’m sorry,” Clark said. “I didn’t mean it like that.”

Sarah folded her arms and Clark apologized again. He took his carton of chocolate milk and poured a small amount of it into the large section of his lunch tray. Then he pointed his finger at the milk and it formed the shape of a heart. “I made a chocolate heart for you,” Clark teased. Sarah responded with a smile.

“Thanks,” she said.

“I love you,” Clark told her. “You’re the best girlfriend any guy could ever have. And I’ll support anything you do. If that means Jessica gets toppled as cheerleading captain then tell her to bring it on.”

Sarah was taking a sip of her juice when Clark said this
. It was enough to make her laugh. She had to use a napkin to wipe away the juice she spilled from chuckling.

“And besides,” Sarah told him. “I’
m pretty sure Jessica’s been sleeping with Charles. That makes her, well, slutty.”

This time was Clark’s turn to laugh. Then Big Dan approached them.

“Clark!” Big Dan said, “Are you on for this evening?”

“You mean for checking out the crystal at the barn again?” Clark asked. “Yeah. I’m in.”

“Great,” Big Dan said. “Dude, I can bench press like a thousand pounds now.”

“Are you serious?” Clark asked him.

“Yeah, man,” Big Dan said. “I woke up on Sunday, freaked out at first when stuff in my room just started moving. Hell of a birthday gift.”

“Oh yeah,” Sarah said, “Happy belated birthday.”

“Thanks,” Big Dan smiled. “I’ll see you two later.”

***

School was over in no time and Clark hopped into the back seat of Charles’s car while John got into the passenger seat. Clark called his mom and told her that he would be arriving home a little late. Then they took off as Big Dan followed in his pickup truck.

“Across the tracks,” John uttered.

“That’s where we’re headed,” Charles told him.

“I hope the crystal’s still there,” John said.

“Why would it not be there?” Clark asked from the backseat.

“I don’t know, Clark,” John said
as he brushed his long hair out of his face. “For the same reason that it appeared there─ maybe it disappeared. There’s obviously a lot of strange crap occurring. After what’s happened to us, if the crystal suddenly disappeared it would be the least strange thing to happen all year.”

“All I know is that I got a plan,” Charles said. “I think you’ll like it.”

“What is it?” Clark and John both asked.

“Ugh, I’ll tell you when we get there,” Charles said.

“Why not say it now?” John asked.

“Cause
you guys might not like it now!”

“But you just said we would,” Clark corrected him.

“What I meant was─,” Charles went on. “You’ll like it eventually.”

Clark and John continued to question Charles but he refused to tell them what he was planning. They asked until the car crossed the tracks into the territory full of gravel and grass.
They made it up the barn and got out of the car. Big Dan was right behind them as he got out of his pickup truck. They approached the barn and opened the door. With daylight shining through the cracks, the interior of the rundown barn was clearly visible. But it was the crystal in the center of the barn that caught all of their attention.

The tall crystal that imbued them with unimaginable powers was in the same spot as it was when they first touched it. But they noticed something different about it. It wasn’t glowing
this time. There was no effervescent aura of rainbow hues exuding from it. The crystal was colorless and clear.

“The color’s gone,” John said.

“Yeah,” Big Dan agreed.

“I think we sapped its colors when we touched it,” Clark admitted.

“What now?” Big Dan asked.

“Maybe we should touch it again,” John suggested.

“NO!” Clark yelled. “The color’s gone. It may do something different if we touch it again.”

“If we touch it, maybe it could make us even stronger,” John said.