Ascension (Powered)

by Zachary Stone

The tall doctor motioned for me to walk over to an examination table.

  “I know all about what has happened with the queen and Sarah,” he said. “We need to hurry and run some tests on you.”

  I sat down on the examination table.

  “Do you remember how to draw blood with a syringe?” he asked Cathy.

  “Of course,” she said.

  I watched as she walked over to a glass case and prepared a syringe to take a blood sample.

  “So where were you bitten?” the doctor asked me.

  “On my neck when I was first attacked,” I said. “Then, when I was locked in the basement with Sarah, I had her bite me twice on my wrist and again on my neck.”

  “That should have killed you,” he said.

  “That’s what everyone has been saying,” I said.

  “It’s true,” he said. “Sarah comes from a strong blood line so her poison is especially potent. You should be dead.”

  “How is his transformation coming along?” Dr. Mills asked Cathy.

  “He’s progressing fast,” she said. “He can already walk on walls and can run as fast as I can.”

  Cathy proceeded to take a blood sample. Even though there was no way I could get an infection, she swabbed my arm with alcohol. Then she pushed down the plunger, and tried to stick the needle into my arm. It broke.

  “Your skin is hardening fast,” she said.

  “Go get a syringe from my desk,” the doctor said. “They’re made of an alloy that shouldn’t break.”

  She came back with the biggest needle I’d ever seen.

  “I'm sorry, Eli,” she said. “But this is going to hurt. Hold out your arm.”

  She stabbed my arm with the needle and took a blood sample. I watched as the syringe filled.

  “Take his blood pressure, temperature, and pulse rate,” the doctor said. “I'm going to take a look at the blood sample.”

  Cathy proceeded to wrap a band around my upper arm and take my blood pressure.

  “I didn't know you were a nurse,” I said.

  “I'm not. I just have some medical training,” she said.

  She pumped the small rubber ball and I felt the band around my arm inflate.

  “173 over 120,” she said.

  “Is that normal?” I asked.

  “Our blood pressure always runs higher than humans,” she said. “But it doesn't hurt us. Our tissues are stronger than humans’.”

  She then put her hand to my wrist and checked my heart rate. The touch of her hand was soothing.

  “Twenty two,” she said.

  “Is that low?” I asked.

  “No,” she said. “Vampires have very strong hearts and they don't need to beat as fast to provide blood to the entire body. Now, open your mouth.”

  She stuck a thermometer under my tongue. A minute later, she took the reading: 102.

  I didn’t ask about the reading. I guessed that it was normal.

  The doctor returned and asked Cathy for the numbers. She told him the doctor looked at me.

  “I just took a quick look at your blood under the microscope,” he said. “Your cells don't look quite right.”

  “What do you mean?” I asked.

  “Your mitochondria seem to look different,” he said. “I also noticed that you have a few organelles in your cells that I cannot recognize.”

  “So what’s going on?”

  “You’re not just a vampire,” he said. “You’re something more.”

  “What are going to tell me now? I'm a werewolf or something?” I asked.

  “No, I know what werewolf cells look like,” he said.

  I sat in shock. Not just vampires – but now werewolves existed.

  “What are the possibilities?” I asked.

  “I don't know,” he said. “There are a lot of different creatures that have walked the Earth. Vampires are only one of them. The extraterrestrials that created us tampered with the DNA of humans in other ways as well. It's possible that you have latent DNA of some other species, and the virus that’s turning you into a vampire is activating those genes.”

  “So what do I do now?” I asked.

  “I’m going to have Cathy run a few more tests and I’ll study the results. I’ll also do a DNA analysis,” he said.

  For the next hour Cathy performed a series of tests on me. She performed X-Rays, a biopsy of muscle tissue, and took a skin sample. When they were complete, she gave me an injection – with an even larger needle – of amino acids that would assist in my transformation. I was also told to take a handful of vitamins.

  “I’ll call you when I get the test results,” Dr. Mills told Cathy.

  As I rolled down my shirtsleeve as we were getting ready to leave I noticed a tremor in my hand. I couldn’t button my cuff because of the trembling. I started to shake throughout my body uncontrollably.

  “Cathy,” I said, feeling very alarmed. “What's happening?”

  “You’re having a growth spurt,” she said.

  “What?”

  “Stay calm,” she said.

  I could suddenly feel my body starting to burn. Looking at my hands, I could see that my claws were out and my skin was pure white.

  “Oh God,” I said.

  “Don't worry, Eli,” Cathy said. “It’s just part of becoming one of us.”

  My senses somehow became extremely acute. I could hear everything around me: carts being pushed down the hall, the elevator, and the heartbeats of everyone on the floor. Every little vibration sounded like thunder. I put my hands over my ears and shut my eyes.

  “Take a deep breath,” she said.

  “Don't yell,” I whispered.

  In an instant, everything went quiet. I looked at my hands, and they were skin tone again.

  “That will probably happen a few more times before you’re fully transformed,” the doctor said. “However, in my two hundred years of practicing medicine, I’ve never seen a vampire only a few days old transform like that. For all I know, you may be almost fully transformed.”

  I looked at Cathy, and she’d transformed into her vampire form. Her brown hair was now totally black, and her face was white. I could see her fangs as well. She didn’t look ugly in her transformed state but she looked very different.

  The doctor walked away.

  “So do you like the way I looked now?” she asked.

  “Yes,” I said.

  “If we dated, you’d have to get used to this face appearing from time to time,” she said.

  “You’re saying you want us to start dating?” I asked.

  “Maybe,” she said.

  My heart raced.

  “What about the girl you like so much?” she said. “Are you willing to give her up?”

  I liked Cathy. I was attracted to her. She was beautiful, intelligent, and smart. But I still loved Candice.

  “I have to be honest,” I said. “I am attracted by you. I also like you very much. But I don't know if I’m in love with you. I do know that I love Candace.”

  “I see,” she said.

  I thought about my situation. I did need to settle the issue with Candace. The fact was that I was turning into something unique and amazing. I needed to know if Candace wanted to be a part of my life, or not.

  “Can we go see her?” I asked.

  “No, it would be putting her in danger,” Cathy said.

  “Why don't you call her,” she said.

  I pulled out my phone and called her number. The phone rang twice.

  “This is Candice.

  “Hello Candice,” I said.

  “Hello Eli,” she said. “How are you?”

  “I'm actually doing very well. My life is a little complicated right now, but I'm doing okay,” I said.

  “What are you doing?” I added.

  “I'm just here doing some laundry,” she said.

  “Well, I need to talk to you about something very important,” I told her.

  “Okay,” she said.

  “Look, I
have to be open with you, and I’m sorry to be so blunt. I love you Candice. I’ve loved you for a very long time, and I need to know if you’re willing to give the two of us a chance,” I said.

  “Eli, I don't think we should talk about this over the phone,” she said, sounding a bit uncomfortable.

  “I’m sorry, Candice,” I said. “But I need to talk right now.”

  “Well, okay. Eli, you know I really like you, but I just don't think it would feel right to date you as a boyfriend,” she said.

  “Why do you say that?” I asked.

  “Because you’re such a good friend. You have always been there for me. I don't know how many times you have helped me when I needed you, listened to my problems, or brought me food when I was sick. You’re like a best friend to me,” she said.

  “Don't you think it would be a good idea to date your best friend?” I asked.

  “I don't know,” she said.

  “Look, I'll be blunt here. Since I’ve known you, you have dated at least a half dozen guys. None of them have worked out. I promise you that if you give me a chance I’ll make it work out,” I said.

  “Eli,” she said. “You’ve told me this before. I just don't know.”

  “What the heck is wrong with me? Why can't you date me?”

  “There’s nothing wrong with you. I just don't feel for you in that way,” she said.

  “Is it because I’ve never tried to sleep with you?” I said.

  She went silent. I knew I’d asked the right question. Although I was as passionate as any man, I was taught from my youth to respect women. It bothered me that by trying to be a gentleman and not jump in bed with a woman I wasn’t even yet officially dating, much less married to, that I may have doomed my chances with Candace.

  “I love you, and I want to be with you for the rest of my life,” I said.

  I started to cry.

  “I swear to you that if you give me a chance I’ll not screw it up, and when we get married I’ll work like a dog to support you,” I said.

  “I just don't know what to say,” she said.

  “I'm sorry if being a gentleman is not something you want in a man, but it’s how I was raised,” I said.

  “Look, I do have feelings for you, but I can't decide right now,” she said.

  “I need an answer now. I’ve been waiting for years,” I said.

  “I can't give you an answer right now,” she said.

  “Please give me a chance, Candice. You mean everything to me,” I said.

  “You’re such a good guy,” she said, as she started to cry.

  “If I’d slept with you that time you asked me to lie down in bed with you, would you have given me a chance?” I asked.

  She went silent.

  “I want you to know that I’ve thought about that night almost every day for the past two years,” I said. “I walked away because you’d already told me that you only wanted me as a friend and couldn’t date me. You’d already broken my heart, and if you didn't want to date me I couldn’t understand why you wanted to sleep with me.”

  “I'm sorry,” she said.

  “Can we please just try to start a relationship?” I asked.

  “I just don't know what to say, Eli.”

  “Well, this is your last chance. I’ll always be there for you as a friend, but if you don’t give me a chance now I need to move on,” I said.

  She began to sob and cry on the phone.

  “If you have any feelings for me, please give me a chance,” I said.

  “I can't,” she said. “I really, really like you, Eli, but I just feel for you as a best friend,” she said.

  “I’ll always be your friend,” I said. “But I'm sick of this.”

  “What?” she exclaimed.

  “I feel like you don't appreciate me,” I said. “I love you and I always will, but I can’t go on hoping any more. I give up.”

  I hung up the phone.

  All of the new strength was gone from me. I was broken. I sat with my face in my hands. My heart felt like it had hit the floor.

  “Eli,” Cathy said. “I'm so sorry.”

  I didn’t respond. All the hoping and working and trying to win Candice had been for nothing – I’d wanted to be with her so much. I sat for a long time saying nothing, but my mind was in turmoil. As I sat thinking over my situation I gradually came to a new decision. I sat up and looked at Cathy.

  “I'm yours now, if you want me,” I said.

  Chapter 8

  I stood there trying to calm down when Cathy embraced me. She’d transformed back to her human state, and I could see that she was crying.

  “I want to go out with you,” she said.

  “You do?” I asked.

  “Of course. I heard everything she said,” Cathy told me. “You’re obviously a great guy.”

  “But women don't like nice guys,” I said. “At least that’s my experience.”

  “You’re right, especially when it comes to younger women,” she said. “But remember, you’re talking to a woman who’s a lot older than you.”

  “So you won't just throw me in the friend box because I try to form a relationship with you before taking you to bed?” I asked.

  “Of course not,” she said.

  I suddenly felt hope enter my heart. Not just some weak idea that maybe I would find love, but the strong sensation that it had found me. My heart raced and I felt the melancholy that had plagued me for so long melt away and a new sense of joy replace it.

  “Your heart is beating faster,” she said, still embracing me.

  “I’ve needed to cut Candice out of my life for a long time,” I said. “You are responsible for freeing me.”

  “How do you feel?” she asked.

  “Liberated,” I said.

  “Good,” she said. “Let’s go.”

  “Where are we heading now?” I asked.

  We don't have to meet my family until tomorrow morning. I think you deserve to have some fun.

  “Want to go and have lunch?” she asked. “It could be our first date.”

  “Sure,” I said.

  “Let me just say bye to Dr. Mills,” she said.

  “Where is he?” I asked.

  “I don't know,” she said.

  “Let’s just go,” I said. “He’s probably in the lab somewhere.”

  “Alright,” she said.

  We crawled out of the window onto the balcony.

  “I wonder . . . ” I said.

  “You wonder what?”

  I looked around, saw no one was looking, and I jumped off the balcony.

  Amazingly, I landed on my feet.

  Cathy did the same, except I caught her. She didn’t feel heavy at all.

  “Shall we go back to your car?”

  “No,” she responded. “There’s a great Chinese restaurant around the corner. I'm hungry.”

  I stood for a moment looking into her beautiful brown eyes saying nothing.”

  “Are we going to go eat, or not?” she asked.

  To try and impress Cathy, I reached deep down into my soul and drew upon all the power I could gather.

  An invisible bubble of power started to surround us. I saw her eyes widen as she felt the mystical energy as well. Then I felt something new – she started activating her power. It was like electricity was flowing through my body, but I felt no pain. I could see what looked like an aura of white light start to form around her face.

  “You’re glowing,” I said.

  “You are too,” she said.

  “Is this normal?” I asked.

  “No,” she said, looking very surprised.

  I looked around and saw that a few people were standing around looking at us.

  “Oh shoot,” I said.

  I ran out of the hospital parking lot with her in my arms. With both of our powers combined, I was at the Chinese restaurant in an instant. Lowering her to the ground, I started to reduce my power level. Her face was no longer glowing with the white
aura.