Ascent: (Book 1) The Ladder Read Free Page A

anyone who has ever done so. All they know is that up must be better than down. Enough have tried to make the trip up the Ladder that those below know the consequences. Still, every now and then a few of them feel they must try.
                As the tunnel darkens with the distance between lights growing farther apart, the certainty of the Mines becomes more and more appealing. Bad as they are, at least they’re familiar. For all the tiring work and harsh conditions, the Mines are still home. The teen shakes off the thought and continues up.
                For the most part, the tunnel looks the same all the way up. Rock walls with some stone jutting out. The orange hued light illuminating the wall distorts its real color but farther from the light, it’s easy to tell the dirt-covered surface of the stone is a dark gray mixed with darker patches of red clay. If it wasn’t for the bottom of it being exposed, anyone would think the brown Ladder is black as it all but disappears, blending with the tunnel’s walls between the sparse patches of light.
                As the teen climbs higher, he worries less about anyone coming after him. After all, the Guard has never chased anyone up the Ladder. He’s never had to. But the teen’s speed does slow as he cautiously makes his way up.
                Passing one last light, he looks up to see a green spot on the wall, its light slightly diffused by the swirling motion moving around in line with it. He grabs the cable connecting the lights and shakes it in an attempt to find out what the swirling is. The cable passes through it, harmlessly but the green light doesn’t move at all. It’s a strange feeling to fear escaping what most would call a bad situation.
    The teen looks back down but can only see the lights at the bottom of the tunnel. The tunnel opening has practically disappeared. The teenager presses forward.
                Nearly under the green light, he sees that it is the only one attached to the wall. Structurally, it’s very different from the other lights. The other lights of the tunnel are like those in the bunks, small, singular bulbs that are warm and of an orange hue. If it weren’t for the living conditions, those lights would be rather comfortable and inviting. The lights in the Doctor’s office and in the Gear Halls are a white, piercing illumination. Typically they are long tubes installed in rectangular boxes attached to the ceilings. But this green light looks like a cup turned upside down.
                The teenager reaches for the light and touches it. It is not hot like the bunk lights and it feels sturdier than the lights of the Gear Hall. He looks at the surrounding swirl in which he’s found himself. The smog cloud is a shade lighter than the green of the light illuminating it. It takes little time for his lungs to be affected by the cloud as they try to reject the smog through coughing. It’s a deep cough but it is difficult to expel the swirl of green in which he stands. Deciding it’s better to get above it, he continues past the cloud, discovering that it hangs in only the one spot. It neither rises nor falls.
                The time for investigation quickly grows short as the coughing gets progressively worse and more frequent. If that doesn’t halt the teenager’s climb the sudden onset of vertigo certainly will. It doesn’t help his grip that the world has become a clash of tilting back and forth, in and out. The teenager hooks one of his arms around the nearest rung of the Ladder for fear of losing his grip under the dizziness. He closes his eyes for a moment, trying to concentrate on making the tunnel stop moving.
                Looking back up only reveals more of the lights farther and farther apart. And with the feeling of vertigo, the lights look to be moving even further still. He looks down and notices that even the fog cloud seems farther beneath