The Riser Saga

by Becca C. Smith

  I could feel all eyes on me. I wanted to disappear from sight. I stared at the surface of my desk, hoping Mr. Alaster would break the tension by finishing his boring lecture on the history of paper. Instead I heard the grating voice of my worst enemy a few seats back: Jill.

  “Maybe Chelsan would like to share her feelings. Losing your mom must be excruciatingly painful. Why don’t you tell us about it?” Jill sneered.

  I tried to rationalize how anyone could be that mean. Some kind of trauma? Horrible parents? Massive insecurity? Or just plain evil. All of the above probably.

  Ryan turned around in his seat and gave Jill a look that silenced her immediately.

  Mr. Alaster stepped forward so he was in direct eye contact with Jill. “If I hear one more crass and vilely inhuman comment out of you again I will be requesting your leave from this establishment! My job be damned, I will not tolerate your archaic, bullish behavior in my class again!”

  Whoa.

  Jill froze. She was completely stunned.

  I had never seen Mr. Alaster that angry before. It was one thing to hear Jill say horrible things to me, I was used to that, it went into my “Jill filter.” But when Mr. Alaster put her comment into perspective on how mean it really was, it suddenly made the loss of my mom too real at that moment. It’s like when you get hit in the head by a ball and you’re in kind of a shock until everyone comes up to you to ask if you’re okay. And the floodgates open. And that’s exactly what happened. I just started to cry.

  Apparently, even Jill didn’t have anything snide to say about that which was almost a disappointment. If I could just get angry, I could stop crying! This was so embarrassing! I covered my face so no one could see me, but mostly so I couldn’t see them staring at me. My mom was everything to me. I still couldn’t believe she was gone. With all the danger and excitement of the last few days I was able to shove back most of my anguish over losing her to simply survive. But hearing Jill and Mr. Alaster put it out there, I felt so bare and dirty almost. Like I needed a long shower to wash away my feelings of being exposed to the public about something so personal. It was hard enough that my mom died.

  I felt Ryan and Nancy huddle around me like a protective circle of hugs. It felt nice and I started to calm down. “I’m okay.” I found myself mumbling through my hands.

  “Take your time, Chelsan,” came Mr. Alaster’s sympathetic voice. He’d probably be fired when Jill’s father heard about what he said to his daughter. But I’d always be grateful to him for standing up to her.

  I took a deep breath and pulled my hands down away from my face. “I’m good.”

  Ryan and Nancy tentatively sat back down in their seats, their worried eyes still on me. The class was silent, watching. I looked up at Mr. Alaster imploringly. Please start talking about something that doesn’t involve me, I begged him in my head.

  He seemed to catch my drift because he cleared his throat and continued his lecture on paper. The minutes dragged by painfully. Part of me wanted class to be over so I could get away from the stares, and the other part of me didn’t want it to end because I’d have to brave the press corps that was pawing at the door waiting for me to exit.

  The bell finally rang and I felt my heart leap into my throat. I could hear the rustling of reporters outside. Jill stood up first followed closely by Joan. She hadn’t said a word since Mr. Alaster basically told her to shut up, and surprisingly didn’t appear all that upset by it. This, of course, made me worry. She was up to something. I had known her long enough to know that.

  Jill and Joan were out the door and swallowed whole by the crowd of reporters. The rest of the class slowly started to file out as well, leaving me, Nancy, Ryan and Mr. Alaster staring at the doorway with trepidation.

  “Assembly time.” Mr. Alaster said what we were all thinking.

  “Yup,” I said as I tried not to make eye contact with any of the screaming news people.

  Ryan grabbed my hand and locked his fingers tightly with mine. “We got your back.”

  Nancy wrapped her arm around mine on the other side of Ryan. “We won’t let him touch you.”

  “Chelsan, I’m here if you need me. And if those screaming monsters are too much for you, you can always sneak in here for protection. They can’t enter a classroom under any circumstances. Okay?” Mr. Alaster managed a small smile of encouragement.

  “Okay, thanks,” I replied shyly. Who knew Mr. Alaster could be that cool?

  “Yeah, thanks, Mr. Alaster.” Nancy was genuinely grateful, too. “Actually, we need a few moments. Before we go out into that.”

  “Of course. I’ll leave you three alone.” Mr. Alaster didn’t even blink. He headed straight for the door. “Move aside! Move aside!” He shoved his way through the press, pushing a little bit harder than he probably should have. He turned around and gave us a quick wink.

  Ryan and Nancy both turned to me, game faces on.

  “You ready for this?” Ryan asked though I could ask the same of him. He looked petrified.

  “We could always duck out the back,” Nancy suggested, but we all knew that was impossible.

  “I’m good. Let’s do this.” I tried to sound as pumped up as possible though it was the complete opposite of what I was feeling.

  “So, no plan?” Nancy crinkled her nose in concern.

  “Nope.”

  And with that I charged ahead, Ryan holding my right hand, Nancy clinging to my left arm.

  I felt as if I could dive on top of the reporters and they’d carry me to the assembly hall like I was at a rock concert it was so crowded. They were all screaming at me again and I tried to keep my head down.

  “Over here!” I heard Bill’s voice above the rest and I tried to find him in the crowd.

  That’s when the sea of people parted before us like a human pair of scissors except instead of blades it was two lines of men in dark suits and sunglasses. The reporters shoved up against the wall of men, but their defenses held strong. At the end of it all was Bill with a silly grin on his face.

  He half ran over to us and nodded to the men in suits. “Money comes in handy sometimes. When I told Dad about how the press was hounding you, he sent a whole team of his best body guards over here.”

  “Wow. This is just what I needed. Thanks, Bill.” I let go of Ryan and Nancy and hugged Bill as hard as I could.

  The reporters were still yelling, but at least they couldn’t touch me. The guards barely flinched as the press tried to tear them apart to get to me.

  Ryan pulled me away from Bill by clasping my hand in his again. It made my heart pound knowing how jealous he was, but Bill had really pulled through and I wanted him to know how grateful I was.

  Bill shrugged at Ryan’s obvious territorial behavior and motioned us forward. “They’ll get us to the assembly hall.”

  The men closed ranks forming a twenty-man circle around us and we made our way comfortably toward the assembly hall.

  “I didn’t want to show you this, but I think you should know.” Bill turned to me cautiously.

  “Just show us, Bill.” Nancy was having none of it. She was in one of her get to the point moods.

  Bill pulled out his cell phone and popped up a holo-video for us. It was me in Mr. Alaster’s class, crying like a baby. Uuuggghh!

  “That’s why Jill said what she did. She was trying to provoke you for this video.” Ryan shook his head angrily.

  “Yeah, well, I was dumb enough to fall for it,” I groaned.

  “Dumb? The most horrible, horrendous thing that can happen to a person happened to you, two days ago! I think there would be something wrong with you if you didn’t cry!” Nancy appeared more outraged at my response than about the video itself.

  “Turner probably told her to do it. It’s all about the story and spin for him. He’ll make sure that everyone knows you’re too distraught to be a reliable witness, and with your step-dad gone, no one will believe you about the green smoke. He’s just covering his bases,” Ryan said and t
hen kissed my cheek. It instantly made me feel better.

  We arrived at the assembly hall without incident. The room itself was the biggest in the school. The ceiling was forty feet high and made out of a solar frosted glass that adjusted to the light outside, keeping the assembly hall the same day-like brightness no matter what time of day it was. Painted yellow walls complimented the dark-stained brown of the stage and fold out chairs placed out in neat rows for all the students. The main focus of the room was the stage that made up the entire back wall and came up about five feet off the ground. Maroon velvet curtains normally framed the theater like a picture, but today they remained closed, probably hiding my grandpa behind them.

  The press was only allowed in the back of the room so we were safe as soon as we sat down in our seats. After making sure we were okay, the bodyguards stood against the wall waiting for us to finish so they could keep vigil once more.

  Bill and Ryan sat on either side of me while Nancy took the aisle next to Bill.

  I could see the holos of me crying on almost everyone’s phone. It was completely surreal. The only part of the video I could stand to watch was when Ryan and Nancy hugged me. I gripped Ryan’s hand harder and he stroked my hand with his thumb in response. My toes tingled in delight and it made waiting for the assembly to start more bearable.

  Bill leaned down to my ear, “My dad said you can have the guards as long as you need them. Turner won’t be able to get to you.”

  I wanted to tell him that if Turner wanted to get to me there was absolutely nothing any of us could do about it, but I didn’t want to say anything to upset him. Especially since he’d gone through all the trouble to bring his dad’s bodyguards here.

  Ryan squeezed my hand to reassure me and kissed my shoulder.

  “You don’t have to prove that you guys are dating. I get it.” Bill was fuming. Apparently he wasn’t as cool with Ryan as I had hoped.

  “Are you sure about that? You seem pretty set on the fact that you still have a shot with her.” Ryan turned to Bill, just as angry.

  “Guys, please don’t do this.” I tried to calm them down, but neither one of them was hearing me.

  “Here we go,” I heard Nancy groan. “Boys.”

  “Well maybe that’s because I’ve been friends with Chelsan publicly for three years now! I wasn’t the a-hole that was afraid of what people might think!” Bill’s nostrils were actually flaring.

  I sat in the middle of the two of them holding my breath.

  “You’re so rich no one cares what you do!” Ryan’s hand squeezed mine to the point of pain.

  “Ow,” I said, but he couldn’t hear me.

  “Nancy isn’t rich and she didn’t care what people thought!” Bill roared.

  The people that were already staring were now staring even harder. Even the press was trying to take pictures of this feud.

  “Don’t bring me into this,” Nancy chimed in, but she knew it was a futile effort.

  But Bill’s comment worked like a slap in the face to Ryan. His grip loosened on my hand and his body slumped in defeat. “You’re right.”

  And to my surprise, Bill actually looked sorry. “Forget it. I’m just jealous.”

  Neither one of them could look at each other.

  Nancy rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. “You two are idiots.”

  “Can I say something?” I wanted to clear the air.

  “No,” all three of them said in unison, which made them all smile.

  “Fine.” Maybe letting the two of them have it out was enough. I’d probably make it worse anyway.

  Principal Weatherby walked up to the microphone in the center of the stage. He was a bald portly man who had the thickest handlebar mustache I had ever seen. His face was always a rosy pink color, which gave the impression that he was forever embarrassed. Weatherby appeared to be in his late twenties, but everyone knew he was one-hundred and sixty-seven. He helped build this school. It was his pride and joy.

  More nervous than usual, Weatherby’s shaking hands grabbed the microphone stand in front of him. “Quiet down. Quiet down.” He cleared his throat as everyone in the room stopped and gave him their attention. “It is my honor and privilege to introduce the namesake of our school, Vice President of Population Control Geoffrey Turner!” He yelled the last bit since the room had already exploded in applause.

  I think we were the only four who didn’t move a muscle. We were all waiting in anticipation of what would happen next.

  We didn’t have to wait long. The curtains behind Principal Weatherby began to part. I had been right. Turner was waiting on stage behind the curtains, probably watching me. He walked toward Weatherby with a plastered smile on his face. Some of the students oooh’d and aaahh’d, not just because they were seeing the most powerful man in the world, but because he actually looked old. Age-pro was invented when Turner was in his fifties and not many people of that era were very public. It was one thing to see the Vice President on the holo-tv, but entirely different to see him in person. He had wrinkles around his eyes and creases on his forehead, his body seemed normal, but his hands had brownish spots and blue veins that you could literally see from where I was sitting. It was a bit of a shock for everyone. Old was worse than poor for the general public. Being poor myself, I might have had sympathy for the old guy, but I knew what he was capable of. I tried to block out the images of him slicing his arm open or of his wife and the boa constrictor oozing out of her mouth. Aaaah, my grandparents. No wonder I could raise the dead, look at my genes.

  Five others followed after him and I craned my neck to get a better look at them…

  “I’m dead…” I croaked.

  Nancy, Ryan and Bill all looked at me for something more, but I couldn’t utter another syllable.

  “What’s wrong?” Ryan asked anyway.

  I was breathless with disbelief.

  Standing behind Turner were five people…

  …Five dead people.

  Their black swirling holes mocking me from my seat.

  “His staff…” I tried to keep the squeak from my voice.

  “What about them?” Nancy was talking to me like I was four to get me to calm down.

  “They’re dead. They’re all dead.” I could literally hear and feel my voice shake.

  My three friends had no words. Their eyes opened in amazement and they watched me as if they were waiting for me to say I was kidding.

  I wasn’t.

  Someone else could do what I could do. Maybe a lot more than someone, maybe lots of someones. My mind whirled and whirled until I thought I was going to puke on Ryan’s lap.

  “Chelsan!” Ryan turned my head to his with his hand. “They’re calling you up to the stage.”

  Everyone was gawking at me. I took a deep breath. I seemed to be taking a lot of those lately. Worst of all, I peered up at Turner, curious and horrified all at the same time. His eyes bore into mine. I could feel the hatred emanating there, boiling, in fact, so much so I had to turn away. I had no doubt in my mind; he knew exactly who I was and he wanted me dead. I tried to rationalize in my head how I could ever get out of this mess. There was a count down happening and I had no control over when it was going to hit zero.

  I stood up on shaking legs and made my way to the stairs on the side of the stage. The most important thing I could do was to keep a clear mind and try and think of a plan. First things first, if someone was keeping these corpses alive and kicking, I need to find out if I could take control of them myself? I walked as slowly as I could so I could experiment. I concentrated and tried to link myself to the dead man closest to me who was typing something in his reader.

  Nothing. He kept typing.

  Okay.

  Again. Maybe I was nervous. Of course I was nervous! Concentrate.

  Nothing.

  But I sensed something new this time. It was as if there was an invisible wall completely covering his black hole. It was literally a barrier of some sort and I had no idea how to break
through it.

  This was not a good sign.

  I found myself on stage standing in front of Turner and his zombie staff.

  His smile was forced, but no one noticed.

  Turner held out his hand for me to shake and I obliged cautiously. His hands were soft but firm in their grip, his eyes found mine, his smile cunning and cruel. My head was churning again. I thought I was going to pee my pants in front of the school. (The world actually, considering all the cameras were focused on us.) This guy really had a hold on my fear button and he was pressing it over and over. That’s when he went in for a hug.