Ascension

Elijah

Lorelei stormed out on me. I felt bad and it was probably my fault she left. If only I hadn't been such a goddy trot I wouldn't be in this mess right now.

I had to leave. I walked out of the star chart room and walked down the hallway. I needed to leave this ship immediately. The walls seemed to be closing in on me. There are too many memories aboard this ship. Some like dreams fading away and others like sharp knives dug deep into my soul.

When I step off the Darkness the wind feels crisp. The air feels cooler than it had previous. That's what I have been noticing lately. The land has been cooling off a bit. It is a good change but the temp has just been slowly dropping and it has gotten me wondering about what if it doesn't stop dropping.

What would we do? I stumble around in the night for a few minutes before I found myself on a hill. Muffled sounds come from the top. I quietly walk up the hill hoping not to startle the person. When I reach the top I see Lorelei staring up at the stars.

"Do you need something?" She asks me.

"No. Just doing the same as you. Trying to get away." I explain.

"Well I'm not trying to get away. I'm researching." She tells me.

I don't believe her for a second.

"How is your research going?"

"I don't know." She sighs.

"Let's go." I tell her, pulling her up.

"Where are we going?" She asks.

"We are going to eat because by the looks of you, you haven't eaten."

I also haven't eaten a bit but that's besides the point. Lorelei is quiet when we go inside the ship again. I get the feeling of claustrophobia again as I walk inside.

Lorelei tenses up beside me. I can tell she isn't happy about being here either. She sure isn't entirely opposed to eating but she isn't happy about eating with me.

Don't know how I feel about that. Anyway Lorelei and I get to the cafeteria and sit down. It has been about an hour since lunch and there are only scraps of food. We end up with a bite of potatoes, half of a roll and a bunch of genetically altered vegetables.

It was a wonderful meal. Lorelei picked at hers, not really eating it.

"Come on Lorelei, I don't want you getting an eating disorder." I tell her.

She looks at me like I'm insane. She makes sure I'm watching and takes a giant bite of the altered vegetables. I smile at her. She rolls her eyes.

"Listen I was out of line earlier and I'm sorry." I told her.

She doesn't talk. She can be like that. It's not my place to judge her and her actions.

"I wish you would talk to me."

Nothing.

I look back to my food suddenly not very hungry.

"Goodbye Lorelei." I told her getting up from the table.

Then Alarms and pitch black. Our auxiliary power didn't kick in until I was face down on the ground after getting knocked over. No one really noticed because they were all to busy trying to get worlds away from the ship.

Lorelei pulled me up and dragged me along. We got into a jeep and were speeding away before the bombs hit us. The message was clear to me. Stay away from the ship. The next few hours on the jeep flew. Before I knew it I was outside of the compound.

Back again, to the place where this whole adventure started. I didn't feel ready to go back inside so I stood there for a minute, surveying the city that got burnt until it was unrecognizable to me.

"Gorgeous isn't it?" A voice behind me says.

I turn and see a girl I don't recognize.

"I don't see it." I tell her.

"That's because you are looking at it from the wrong perspective." She had a smile hint of a smile playing across her lips.

"Tell me. What perspective am I supposed to be seeing it from?"

I am amused by this girl.

"What do you see?" She asks me.

"I see a burnt city that once had life." I tell her.

"Wrong."

"So tell me, what do you see?" I ask amused.

"You are wrong about the city not holding life. You see, The city holds life, what else would you call you and me?" She asks with laughing eyes.

"Other than us, there is no life in this so called city."

"You are wrong again." She tells me bending over to examine something.

She then holds out a small patch of green in her hands.

"Life." She mouths.

"What's your name?" I ask.

"Veronica. And yours?"

"Elijah."

There might have been some recognition in her eyes but she hid it well. She sits down on the roof of the building we were on. The moon catches her Auburn hair and sterling grey eyes.

Her eyes have an intensity to them that I have only ever seen in one other person. Maybe that is what drew me to her but after that I knew that I was a step closer to moving on from Lorelei. Lorelei was the past.

After it had hit 0100 we went inside. The whole set up didn't seem to be as claustrophobic anymore. When I got in my room that night Alaina was sitting on my bed.

"I was going to say welcome back but then you didn't come inside for 3 HOURS." Alaina states.

"Sorry."

"Spill." She demands.

I tell her about breaking up with Lorelei and meeting Veronica. I just don't tell her how it seems like Veronica had the same fire as Lorelei. Alaina purses her lips when I talk about Veronica. I wonder why. Eventually after she gets tired of listening to me try to explain why I think Lorelei broke up with me Alaina leaves.

Finally.