It took significantly less time to climb back down than up, and as such Will rushed quickly between the silos and into the one they had spent the previous night. Locating Sam’s bag, he snatched it up and went back the way he had come. Inside dead dolly’s tummy was everything Sam held near and dear to her heart. Her brush, her eyeliner, and all the other ooey gooey stuff she plastered on her face. Slinging her pack on his back as he reached the ladder, he began climbing again.
It took less than fifteen minutes to climb up, place the pack on the walkway and climb back down, but when he was done, Will looked up triumphantly. Now it was time to hire some local muscle. Striding confidently across the way to the adjacent silo, Will poked his head inside.
“Hey guys, come with me,” he said, watching as a handful of Tammy’s people complied.
It was super cool that he could make people do stuff, but even cooler that they didn’t have to speak his language. Leading his workforce back to the ladder he pointed at it and gave his orders.
“You guys take this down, there are tools in that shed,” he said, pointing over their shoulders.
Without delay the five men were inspecting the bolts on the ladder and making their way to the shed. Minutes later they were back, and Will sat against the side of the silo for nearly half an hour as the ladder was removed.
“Thanks, guys,” he said as they finished the job. “Just go and toss that in the weeds so my sister can’t use it.”
Off the men went with the ladder and Will was happy to have done his practice for the day. Now it was time for Sam’s.
Chapter Eight
Jack was nearly as frustrated as Sam was with her lack of ability to perform. They had tried everything they could think of, but still she had not managed to teleport even a single inch. Out of the three of them, Tammy was the calmest and most patient, though Jack couldn’t understand how she wasn’t unnerved by the whole thing. Watching Sam try again, for like the billionth time, Jack stood back with his arms crossed, tapping his foot on the ground impatiently. Yawning as again Sam stamped her foot and half growled half screamed out her frustration, Jack almost wanted to rub his own ability in her face. Almost. With her frustration and anger it just didn’t seem like the right time to torment his poor sister, so instead he busied himself picking up small objects about the gravel-paved lot. Tossing a rock here and hitting it with a stick there, he made at playing his own game of baseball, going so far as to set leaves upon the air as bases and making a twig run them as the makeshift ball sailed through the air. With every pitch and swing it was getting easier and easier to control his ability, almost as if it had been a part of him his whole life. Sure, he occasionally dropped a base, or lost control of the running twig man, but all in all he did well, juggling multiple items simultaneously. So caught up in his game was he that he almost didn’t notice when Will came running back from the silos, a giant grin on his face.
Letting his baseball diamond scatter to the wind, Jack watched his brother approach, knowing nothing good could come from the look his youngest sibling had on his face. It was the same look he would give when he was younger right after loading his diaper. That ‘guess what I have for you’ look that toddlers had when they refused to potty train. Turning to intercept his younger sibling, Jack strode back across the overgrown lot to where Sam and Tammy remained.
“What’s up, little man?” Jack asked.
Whether it was from his running or his excitement, Jack couldn’t tell, But Will just paused, shaking his head with an ear to ear smile that spoke volumes.
“What did you do?” Jack demanded.
“Nothing much,” Will smirked.
As Will neared, both Tammy and Sam turned to watch his approach and Jack noted the fearful look in Sam’s eyes when she too registered the devious mask their brother wore.
“Spit it out,” Jack insisted once again.
“I had an idea of how to help Sam,” Will replied. “It was pretty simple really. You used your gift to protect Tammy, and I used mine at first to protect all of us, so I thought what could I do that would make Sam use her gift?”
“Mhmm?” was all Jack could muster, his own smile broadening.
“So I thought… What would Sam want to protect? Obviously she would want to keep us safe. Duh, but then I thought of something else,” Will grinned even bigger.
“What did you do to my makeup?” Sam demanded.
“Bingo!” Will shouted as his giant smile erupted into laughter and he fell to the ground in a fit of giggles.
“Seriously, you little monster, what did you do?” Sam demanded.
Jack began laughing as well, though he tried not to. It really was comical that his sister would be so vain, even after the end of the world. In his own opinion she looked better without it, and that was when it hit him. That was her problem. It was the reason why she couldn’t use her gift. She didn’t wear the makeup to make herself more attractive. Sam wore it as a mask. A way to blend in, not stand out. She didn’t want to be special, she just wanted to be left alone and excluded from all the teenage drama that came with high school and cliques. She donned the whole goth punk image to keep people away. She did it to hide.
“Look up there,” Will said, pointing back towards the silos. “You see the bridge thingy between the silos?”
“Yeah,” Sam answered cautiously.
“I put your backpack up there and had the guys take the ladder down and get rid of it.”
“Why would you do that, Will?” Sam asked with a hurt tone in her voice.
“To help you, Sam,” Will replied, his own smile fading as he picked himself up off the ground.
Though Sam was taking offense, Jack could see the genius behind the plan. If she wanted to keep her mask, she had to go up there and get her pack. If she decided she no longer needed it, then maybe she would realize it was OK to stand out, and then she’d be able to use her ability. It was a win-win situation so far as Jack could tell, but judging by the look on Sam’s face he decided to keep it to himself.
* * * * *
Sam stormed across the lot, her eyes turned skyward, affixed to the very point where her dead dolly pack rested, one leg dangling over the edge of the catwalk up above. She knew her siblings and Tammy followed but was too upset to care. It was rude and uncalled for, taking her pack and stashing it up there. Not to mention that she really wasn’t too keen on heights either. Inspecting both silos where the catwalk terminated, she found no way up to the structure above. It was just like her brothers to go and pull some mean prank on her and think it was funny. No way would she do something like this to them. Sam was so angry she wanted to cry, but she wouldn’t give them the satisfaction. Instead, she would find another way of getting the bag down.
Seeing as it already dangled over the edge on one side, Sam approached it from the opposite side and picked up a rock. If she could hit it just right, it might topple over the side and she could catch it. Testing the weight of the rock, she drew back her arm and hurled it upwards. Appearing right on target, the rock soared and Sam grinned for an instant until it struck the bottom of the catwalk with no effect other than a metallic clang that reverberated from the buildings for several seconds. Reaching down she picked up a second rock, this time bigger than the first, and let it fly. Falling short, the rock missed her pack and the catwalk by several feet to crash loudly into the side of the silo opposite her. Gritting her teeth, Sam bent again and retrieved a rock.
Again and again she threw the stones and again and again she was met by defeat. Every time she missed it angered her more and finally, after several dozen stones, she wiped the tears from her eyes, and looked up into the bright sky again. There was her pack. It was right there, but she couldn’t get it. Refusing to give up and let her brother win, Sam closed her eyes so those watching wouldn’t see her tears, and bent to retrieve another stone. Instead of the ground, however, her fingers met canvas as she opened her eyes once more in confusion.
Immediately she wished she had
kept them closed. Standing atop the catwalk, at least forty feet in the air, Sam’s knees threatened to buckle beneath her as she clung to her pack, pulling it tightly to her chest. The surface she stood on appeared to be little more than woven pieces of wire and she could see the ground and those watching from below clearly. Though some of them cheered from down below, she could take no courage from it, and grasping the handrails she fought the urge to scream. Feeling dizzy, she clenched her eyes closed, lest she faint. Then, as if torn from her grasp, the handrails gave way and Sam was forced to open her eyes as she toppled over to the ground, which she already stood upon. The punk had done it. He had made her use her ability, not once, but twice, and even though she felt that she should still be angry at him, she couldn’t help but smile with tears still upon her cheeks as her terror faded. She knew the trick now. At least she was fairly certain.
Closing her eyes as tightly as she was able, Sam focused on where she wanted to be, pouring her emotions into her desire. Without the terror or anger of her previous attempts, Sam could feel the change when it happened, and opening her eyes, several of Tammy’s people who had gathered oh’d and ah’d as she found herself directly behind her brothers. Reaching up for one, and down for the other, she smacked them each in the back of the head.
“That is for messing with a girl’s makeup, you jerks!” she said mockingly to a growing applause.
“What? Hey, I didn’t have anything to do with it,” Jack protested.
“No? Well you certainly laughed when he pointed out my pack and you sure as heck didn’t use your own powers to float it on down to me, did ya?”
“OK. Fair enough,” Jack smiled.
That was it. Sam had figured it out, thanks to Will’s devious little mind. Shaking her head at them as they rubbed their own, she held up her arms as they gathered into them and they hugged. It was a good moment. Now that they all knew how to use their abilities, it was just a matter of practice.
* * * * *
It was late afternoon when Will joined his siblings and Tammy on their way back to the silos. They had spent the day in the overgrown lot surrounding the structure or in the fields nearby, practicing any number of things. They had learned that Sam was at least as of yet unable to teleport with another person, though she had tried countless times. She had started off pretty slow but now was getting good. She could port herself basically anywhere she could see within a few seconds’ time. Jack’s ability was cool too. He had used it to pick up Will and spin him around through the air like a carnival ride, though Sam had protested frantically. Will didn’t know when he would be able to practice his own power, though supposed he had been practicing it for some time. Having plenty of time to ponder it while the others were practicing, he thought the first time he had used it was on himself, recalling stopping an asthma attack simply by commanding it to stop. All in all, he supposed they were all ready to figure out what it was that they were going to do next. There was plenty of corn and crows to stay here a while, but Will was anxious to leave. If he was supposed to be a superhero, then he’d rather be out doing superhero stuff like fighting villains. For now, though, it was time to eat and his tummy was growling like a polar bear after hibernation.
Sitting down to a dinner of roasted crow, and several concoctions consisting mostly of corn, Will was surprised to find the gathering of Tammy’s people very boisterous. They talked loudly and laughed frequently, and all throughout their meal they nodded to Will and his siblings as if they could understand. Though it was obvious they were excited, Will didn’t quite understand why. More or less he simply stuffed his face with as much food as was offered to him and when he was finally full he sat back and tuned everyone out.
Letting his mind drift, Will daydreamed of a lot of things. First it was old times, back when Dad or Mom would pin him to the floor and tickle him till his tummy hurt and then it was what he imagined fighting the aliens would be like. After some time he noticed the room had become quieter and looking up he saw Jack and Sam both stand in preparation of leaving.
“You coming, little man?” jack asked.
“Yeah,” Will replied, bouncing up to his feet. “Where we going?”
“To our silo, silly,” Sam replied. “Haven’t you been listening at all?”
“Yeah… Well, no. Not really,” he admitted.
“Wow. We’ll let’s go to our silo while Tammy talks with her people and we can fill you in,” Sam replied, looking at him with Mom’s disappointed face.
“Sam?”
“Yeah?”
“How come whenever I do something you don’t like, you open your mouth and Mom comes out?”
Will watched as Sam choked on her reply, pointing one finger towards the door, while Jack stifled a laugh of his own before opening it for them both. Walking outside ahead of his siblings, Will looked up hoping to see stars, but clouds blanketed everything. Oh well. Better luck tomorrow. Skipping ahead, he opened the door to the silo and jumped, nearly wetting himself in the process. There, just inside the door, crouched down to meet him eye to eye was Sam with a wicked look on her face.
“That’s not fair! You scared the crud out of me!”
Will watched, his heart still hammering in his chest, as Sam literally rolled to the ground laughing and Jack joined in too, grabbing and dragging Will to the ground with him. Together all three of them wrestled around on the floor of their makeshift room, pinching and tickling each other until all of them were out of breath. After recovering and dusting themselves off, Jack and Sam sat Will down with serious expressions and told him of their plans for the days to come.
* * * * *
Out of her friends, Tammy alone remained behind with those of her kind. For all she knew it might be the last time she would see others of her race. She wondered what would become of this place after they left. They had plenty of food and water, but lacked any way to really defend themselves. Leaving felt more like abandoning them in Tammy’s eyes, but she knew there was no help for it. Knowing she must tell her people of their plan, Tammy turned to Photus, their leader, and smiled at him sadly.
“We’re going to leave tomorrow, Photus,” she stated simply.
“I thought you might, though wish you could stay longer,” he replied.
“We plan to head south and look for your prophet in hopes of learning more about the star children’s destiny. I’ve never heard what happens to them after whatever event awaits them. I know it isn’t likely that I’ll return, but what of them?”
“I wish I could tell you, child, but I don’t have the answers. You run along now, back to your friends. I’ll tell the others of your plan to leave. May the high prophet protect and guide you.”
“Thank you, Photus. Keep our people safe.”
“I will, child.”
Without another word, Tammy stood from the makeshift table and turned to go. Many smiled in her direction or nodded their heads towards her and she nodded to each in turn before making her way to the door. Pulling it open, she exited the building, pausing outside for a minute alone.
It hadn’t occurred to her until earlier that day that none of them might come back from this. Even little Will might be sacrificed in order to fulfil the prophecy. It tore at her to think of her friends being thrown to their fates at the hands of a prophecy, but she knew there was nothing any of them could do. Nothing but hope and pray. Falling to her knees, Tammy tilted her head back towards the heavens and prayed to the high prophet just as her father had taught her as a little girl. Even enslaved upon a ship, a captive for more than twenty years, he had never given up his faith like so many others had done. Not only had he not given up, but he had raised her in the faith as well, no matter how much her peers teased her about it. Asking for guidance, knowledge and strength, Tammy recited the words her father had taught her when she was barely old enough to walk or talk. Before ending her prayer, however, she asked one more thing--that she could give her own life to spare those of her friends in the days to come. Finished, she aro
se again, feeling slightly less burdened, and continued on to spend their last night here together with those who were closest to her.
Entering the silo, Tammy found Jack and Sam finishing their explanation to Will of what their plans were, and smiling to her friends, she sat upon the only remaining cot, one that until today she had not used. It felt better to be among her friends again, and she looked forward to the following day. The unknown of what was to come was scary, but knowing they would face it together set her heart at ease.
Talking for a while it was decided they should all get a good night’s sleep before heading out and as such, they each curled up upon their cots and drifted off into fantasies created for them by their own imaginations as the night grew dark and cool around them.
Chapter Nine
Jack stared up into the seemingly endless heights of the silo above his cot. So thick was the darkness near the top that it seemed he looked into a portal to some other dimension. Morning had come, given proof by the songs of birds outside that dared announce themselves in the pre-light hours of dawn. He found it peculiar how he noticed things that in his previous life he would have so easily overlooked. Darkness. Birds’ songs. Quiet. Oddly, quiet was both the best and the worst thing about the world the way it was now. Though he had never really noticed just how loud the world had become before the invasion, the stark absence of human activity in the world now made the prevalent quiet all that more noticeable. It was lonely. There was no doubt about it, and this new world had its own qualities of isolation that the previous world didn’t. So too was it amazing though. It made him realize just how important those around him were. Sam, Will, and Tammy’s voices were often the only sounds he would hear in a day apart from their movements or nature. It made him feel closer to them somehow. More reliant on them. More connected.
Children of the After: The Complete Series Page 31