Ascent: (Book 1) The Ladder Read Free

exam table.
                “What’s up there?”
    Joe just barely hears the Doctor’s question. The Boss only shakes his head. Out of the corner of his eye, he spots Joe, Lauren and Marvin standing, staring at the kid on the table.
                “Get to work, Slingers.” He orders. The three of them quickly walk away.
                Not far from the Doctor’s office, resting on the wall and disappearing into a vertical tunnel, is the Ladder. It is the only way in or out of the Mines. Joe stops and stares at it.
                “I know that look,” Lauren says. “Can we just move on and not go through this, today?”
                If the Boss and the Doctor are the kids’ parents, the Guard is the bully big brother. If he had his way, the kids would all be doing their work while chained to a short leash hooked to the walls. The Boss is the only one who keeps the Guard in line. Unfortunately for the kid the Guard currently holds by the shirt collar, the Boss is preoccupied. Joe sets his bucket and shovel down and approaches the Ladder. He keeps an eye on the Guard.
                “Joe, don’t.” Lauren tries to whisper loudly.
                “Joe—” Marvin starts but Lauren covers his mouth since he’s liable to get Joe caught.
                Joe stands at the Ladder and steps up onto the first rung. He looks at the Guard who is still reprimanding the other kid. He looks higher into the tunnel and steps up onto the second rung. The same lights surrounding the Junction are strung together in the vertical tunnel. They are amassed just inside but seem to get further apart the higher up the tunnel they go. 
                 Joe squints and can almost see something moving in the darkness. He raises one foot to place on the third rung but instead of solid footing he finds only surprise when he is shoved off of the Ladder.       
                Joe hits the ground hard enough to have the wind nearly knocked out of him.
                “What do you think you’re doing?” The Guard walks to Joe and stands over him. “You know the rules.”
                “I was just looking!” Joe yells.
                “Are you raising your voice at me? I should let you go up. Nothing but death up there anyway.”
                “Joe!” Marvin tries to run to him but Lauren holds him back.
                “He’ll be fine. Don’t get involved, Marvin.”
                While the Guard deals with Joe, a teenager rushes the Ladder and climbs up it. The sound of the teen’s foot hitting the wood of the Ladder is unmistakable. Joe turns in time to see the escaping teen halfway to the tunnel. The Guard runs to the Ladder and tries to grab his foot but he just misses.

                As the teenager disappears into the tunnel, the Guard yells up at him. “Doesn’t matter. You’ll be back.” Under his breath, he adds, “Sick or dead.”

Chapter Three
     
                Well away from the entrance to the vertical tunnel, the escaping teenager climbs higher up the Ladder. As he stares up the tunnel shaft, peering as far up as his eyes are able, the light seems to be swallowed by an infinite darkness. The observation would be a fact if it wasn’t for the spots of light that look to get higher and higher yet sparser and sparser.
                The lights inside the mouth of the tunnel only get dimmer as the teen climbs higher. It doesn’t take long for doubt to set in. The conditions of working the mine are dismal at best. Over the years and as the kids grow up, some of them figure out that hard labor is and always will be their life. And while they’ve only seen pictures of the surface and been given the promise that one day they’ll actually ascend from the Mines to the open air of the ground above, none of them can speak of a friend or