Ashley

‘This is really good mom.' Ashley splattered with a mouth full of food. 'You once again outdone yourself. This blueberry pancake is delicious!’ She took another lickerish bite.
Grace caressed her cheek with a smile. ‘Thank you sweety.' From one moment to the next her amiable face transformed in a scowl when Grace pivoted her gaze towards the door. 'You hear that Terrance?! I told you that this extra snuff of vanilla extracts would do the trick.’

‘Yea, you keep talking like its your own idea.' Terrance's voice blasted from the living room. 'Our daughter is smart enough to know where this culinary touch is coming from.’

Grace chuckled with disdain. ‘She is certainly smart enough to know that its NOT coming from you.’

Ashley rolled her eyes, smiling and took another bite. Just a typical breakfast at house Crosby on which her parents maintained their endless argues with each other. It never got violent or anything. They always started with a yell, and ended with a kiss.

After her last bite, she cleansed her throat with a cold glass of milk and wept her mouth with the back of her hand. Screeching the chair over the floor Ashley bristled up and bestowed her mother with a hug and a kiss.

‘Thanks mom, I have to go. Schoolbus should be here any minute now. We’re gonna work on that science project I told you earlier. If everything goes well it will definitely boost my chances of getting a scholarship for sure.’

Her mother returned the hug and planted a big wet kiss on her forehead before wiping it gently off with her hand before she ended with an endearing smile.
‘Have a lovely day dear and don’t forget to come back. You know I cannot endure a day without the sight of that wagging ponytail of yours.'

Ashley laughed and shook her haid. ‘Thanks mom, I'll be fine as usual.’ She shoved her chair in place and put her jacket on.

‘I know dear.' her smile curdled. 'It's just that the city is growing more and more restless these days. That awful riot last week near Simpson's plaza was only three blocks far from your school. I guess people find it hard to find a purpose in life being trapped and all. Who can blame em?' Grace gave a deep sigh.

‘When Is that grotesque, sadistic blond friend of yours finally ready to bring us back to Tendaric?’ Terrance’s voice roared again.

‘Sadistic?’ Ashley retorted with dislike. ‘Dad please, Madison is the sweetest girl ever.’

‘The sweetest girl you say?’ Terrance bellowed in derisive laughter. ‘Guess hanging out with Brobdingnagians really does affect one’s ability to judge things clearly. You hear that pops? You we’re right all along!’ His statement echoed through with a patronizing laughter.

Grace shook her head in disapproval. ‘Leave him be honey. When he starts talking to his deceased father, no well-meant word is gonna bring any sense in that blunt head of his.’

Ashley grabbed her backpack before saying good-bye, her dad responded with an indistinct grunt.

Kelvin

Sprawled on his mattress, boringly, Kelvin scrolled through some article on Lilipedia, with his laptop popped open in front of him. His curiosity always had a magnetic pull towards historical occurrences. He clicked and tabbed through ancient events preceding before the giants discovered their race and ravaged their land. It was about a bloody war between two rival lords over some fertile no-man's land. Mousing his way through one link after the next Kelvin ended up reading a certain article about the invention of the bicycle pump.
Between the lines, Kelvin's thought drifted off to the unfortunate event on which his red-headed one-night-stand degraded Claire to tears.
He hasn’t heard anything from Claire since then. It took a few days before he mustered enough courage to undertake some sort of outreach. First, a text message, then another and afresh, another. When no reply occurred, he tried calling her, the phone went over though, but Claire never picked up.
He just knew Claire had read all of his desperate sorry messages, but unfortunately decided he wasn’t worth a reply for the moment.

What was I thinking, God! How could I be so stupid? I knew this girl started to get feelings for me. The way she talked to me, looked at me.
I broke a girl’s heart before, no big deal, they get over it. However, to break the heart of a Brobdingnagian girl? That’s just insanity. This whole city is in danger now because of me, my family is in danger.
I can only hope Claire has a forgiving personality.

He slammed his laptop close, sat straight up and looked out of the window, exhaling a languid sigh.
Abruptly, his phone beeped.
He eagerly grabbed his phone from the nightstand.

‘Claire?’

She had sent him a text message. Relieved of finally hearing something, he was also hesitant to unlock his phone and view the content. For days, he had waited, in agony, waited for a response of Claire. At some moment, he didn’t even care if she was still angry or not, he just desperately wanted to hear what she had to say. However, now that she did, Kelvin felt some reluctance to view her message. Would it be a mere scold? No, that wouldn’t make sense, if she wanted to scold him, why would she wait for almost a week?
Would it be an acceptance of his apology? Would that be too much to hope for?
He so hated this feeling of helplessness. The fate of the whole city depended on the whims of some neurotic teen girl.
Okay, this is it. He just had to watch, had to see what Claire had to say. It couldn’t be that bad, could it?
After a deep grounded sigh, he unlocked his phone with a vibrant thumb, opened the app, ready to read the message. Its content? Something unexpected...

DO YOU LOVE YOUR SISTER?

The words spelled out, all in capital.

‘What the… Love my sister?...’ He scratched his curly covered head with a frown.

Than another message popped up. A picture. He clicked on it, and his heart took a stop.
It was a picture of a tombstone with Ashley’s name on it and today’s date.

Ashley’s at school… She’s gonna hit the school!

Ashley

Ashley held the petri dish in front of her eyes and tapped softly on it with the nail of her index-finger.
‘Hey there little fellas, ready for some family expansion?’ With a giggle, she rotated it in her hand to observe from different angles

Suddenly, Gina, a fellow student of her project group gushed in. A short plump girl with a cynical attitude.

‘Those planarians won’t answer if that’s what you’re waiting for. Here are the magnets by the way.' She plumped the magnets with a clatter on the table. 'Lets get started.'

‘Easy there please.’ Sascha, another fellow student, reacted reproachfull. A young lively boy with a blockhead haircut.
‘That was like an earthquake to those minute worms.’

‘Beats me.’ Gina leaned her hand on the table and casually blew a bubble with her gum, which snapped after. ‘You’ve got the knives?’

Promptly, the muffled tone of some heavy rock song bursts from Ashley’s backpack. It was her phone.

‘Can you put that off please?’ Sascha placed the knives on the table. ‘I mean, bisecting those critters is delicate work you know.' He proclaimed with an now-it-all attitude. 'We cannot use external distraction.’

‘I'm with cube-head, We don't need your phone wrecking up our eardrums with that wretched music .’ Gina reprimanded her.

‘Sorry guys.' Ashley knelt and fished the phone out of her backpack pocket. 'Its my brother. Let me get this for one sec and then I will turn it off.’

She swapped her thumb over the screen, and answered it.
‘Kelv I’m in the middle of something here. Call me later okay?’ Without waiting for an answer, Ashley hung up and put the phone on silence mode.

‘Gosh, I can’t believe these critters are able to duplicate themselves just by cutting them.’ Sascha leaned in close to watch the dozens of crawling planarians in the petri dishes. ‘Wouldn’t it be awesome if I could... You know... cut off my dick so that it would grow into a walking, talking, spraying dick-brother?’ He chortled, all happy with his own joke.

‘You do realize that would make you an eunuch right? Plus, you would die a virgin’ Gina announced in a serious tone.

‘Who says I’m a virgin? And besides, I would never cut off my own dick. I was just joking sheesh.’

‘So who was the lucky lady?’

‘Lucky lady?’ Sascha frowned with confusion.

‘Yeah, seeming your not a virgin anymore, that would mean sex with a girl… or a boy… or an animal maybe. Helping yourself doesn't count by the way.’

‘I didn’t say I was not a virgin anymore, I just said that no one had said I was a virgin.’

‘Soooo, are you then?' Gina continued doggedly. Eager for the truth. 'Because not being called a virgin still makes you one without the proper experience.’

'Will you stop shoveling my private life?' Sascha scowled

‘Can we get back to work please?’ Ashley intereceded with a slight sound of irritation in her voice. ‘I really need this experiment to go well.’

With a soft murmur, they both yielded to Ashley’s request and initiated their experiment.

After delicately bisecting a good chunk of the planarian’s Sascha suddenly shot up, with an inquisitive look on his face.

‘What’s wrong?’ Gina asked.

'You feel it too right?' Ashley looked over at Sascha. He nodded.

'What are you two babbling about?'

'Take a look at your coffee mug.' Ashley pointed.

'Huh?'

They all peeked over at Gina’s full filled mug and saw its dark-brown liquid creating expanding circle waves in a rhythmic motion. They became greater with every turn. Someone was coming.
Wonderingly, Ashley watched the time on the wall.
'Madison's not supposed to be here until three o'clock.'

In a quick synchronic movement, their attention all drew to the window when Madison’s bedroom door flew open, and we’re surprised by the looks who ambled in.

‘Claire.’

Ashley didn’t like the look of this. What is she doing here? She knows that Madison is at school. She hoped that Claire would leave.
In contrary to her own feelings, Gina and Sascha seemed unstrung by the sight of Madison’s big sister standing there in the doorway, and both resumed their work on the experiment, undisturbed.

‘Hurry up Ash. Hand over the next petri dish please? The gal will leave.’ Gina extended her hand, impatiently.

Even so, Claire did not leave. A heavier vibration was felt when Claire's black boot slammed on the floor. It drew the whole city’s attention towards Claire. She was approaching their boxed city with heavy footfalls, like she stomped the ground on purpose.
With her face covered in shadow, Ashley craned her neck to look up in awe at the spectacle above her.
A pair of heavenly sized bare legs extended high up in the air, until they disappeared in the darkness dwelling below a city-sized denim skirt. Arms crossed, Claire’s haughty eyes seemed to meet Ashley’s for a moment. Then, the realization sank in. Claire was about to engage.

‘Haul ass people! MOVE IT! LETS GO!’ Ashley pulled the arm of her fellow students before she scurried through the hallway, all frantic.

Kelvin

He twisted the throttle to squeeze out every bit of horse power from the motorcycle, roaring on the freeway. His half-open blouse and rich mane of curly blond hair waved and fluttered in the wind. The sight of it caught the attention of an overtake carbio crammed with college aged chicks. They all waved and smiled when he shot by, but he gave them no attention, not this time.
With tears trailing from his eyes due to the wind, he weaved and swayed his way through the other snaillike traffic, passing car after car, after truck to make his way to New Oakton’s downtown.
Kelvin didn’t hesitate for one single moment when he realized he wouldn’t be able to warn Ashley in time. He had to get to Ashley’s school, fast.
He bounced down the stairs, yanked up his jacket and keys and blustered towards the garage and started his dad's motorcycle.
Blasting off the lane, Kelvin heard his father’s voice curse and shout after him. It didn’t matter though, all that matters now was Ashley’s safety. He would make up everything, correct his blunder that broke Claire’s heart, even if it meant his own life. He couldn’t bear the thought of little Ashley die because of a mistake, he himself made.
He would make it in time. He had to.
Kelvin’s heart sank when he saw a monolithic Claire entering Madison’s room.
Why does she come with such a haste? Give a man a break. He pondered with agony.

‘Fuck fuck FUUUUCK! I will never make in time!’

The throttle was at its max now, odometer still ascending to ridiculous high numbers. Its handlebar wobbled dangerously.
He saw Claire's looming figure casting a veil of shadow over their land. She crouched down, and her moon-sized countenance came into view.

‘Good lord, how can anyone be so beautiful.’ Kelvin was all rapt.

Claire was just like an identical copy of that stunning mother of hers, only younger. High cheekbones, immaculate skin and full lips accompanied with dimple cheeks, it made it almost an agony NOT to watch her, heck, even her streamlined nose appeared perfect.
A lock of auburn hair dangled in front of those mischievous green eyes while she gazed at the vista sprawled out before her with an expressionless gaze.

Kelvin quickly shook his head in an attempt to lurch away this irresistible urge to relish in Claire’s feminine beauty.
He had always felt weak in the face of cute girls, not being able to think clearly and all, he never mind though, it never stagnated his chances of getting laid with them.
Only now, this urge disgusted him to the core. How on earth could he allow himself to do that? At a time like this? When his sister’s life was at stake?
It felt like betrayal to drown in the appealingness of the one who is about to take his sister's life.

The sound of reverberating thunder jolted him from his thoughts.
Oh my God! She is opening up the lid!

The whole city was in a state of emergency, with wailing sirens everywhere. All over town, millions of people shoved and tripped over each other to get to safety, wherever that was.
Most tried their luck in the underground bunkers, some hid in their own basement and several realized that nowhere was safe and chose to stay out in the open, to observe what their Godlike aggressor would do.
Claire keeled over and commenced her relentless assault on the vulnerable Lilliputian city. Like a massive flying saucer her slender hand floated above a dense part of the city, packed with shiny tall buildings. Her hand leisurely sank until the skin of her palm made contact with the top of some of the highest skyscrapers.
Her unrestrainable hand bulldozed with ease through floor after floor, popping window after window in domino effect. Shards of glass blended with sharp pieces of debris clattered down upon thousands of inhabitants and cars who scurried for cover.
Subsequently, the smaller-sized structures awaited their turn to be compressed to pulp by Claire’s steam rolling hand. For most people who we’re caught up amidst of Claire’s descending hand escape was futile. The safe zone was just too far off, and Claire’s hand came in too fast. They all braced for the impending doom, spawned by the bratty teen Goddess.
Touching the cold ground, Claire’s hand didn’t stop there. Muscle lines manifested on her girlish arm when she leaned in her weight, exerted her triceps and with strength, clawed her hand straight through acreage of pavement and roads.

Its force compelled all soil beneath it to squirt outwards, causing city blocks, which encased her sinking hand to be elevated, like instant emerged hills.
Streets filled with swarms of people and rolling cars, cracked open under the boiling violence who wanted to burst out from within the dirt below. It teared and ripped everything apart. Hundreds of Lilliputians, women and children included, faltered their way into fresh made, mile deep abysses. None survived.

Claire's mole digging fingernails made a raspy sound when they hit the aquarium’s bottom. Then, she clenched her hand in a tight fist and uncorked it upwards. The hole she had left got immediately, partly, slithered up with fragments of wasted parts of New Oakton.

She lifted her fist in front of her impassive eyes and unfolded her fingers, to reveal its compressed content of the captured city blocks. Immediately, chunks of structure began to creak and surf towards the edge of her palm. They slipped over or through the gaps of her fingers, to commence their sky high drop, back to where they came from, the doomed Lilliputian city.
Like meteors, the chunks crashed down to explode craters on still untouched parts of the city, killing dozens with every impact.
Claire swayed her hand even more so the rest of the debris and bodies, alive or death, could follow suit. Like artillery, Pieces of concrete diversified with bodies crashed and plumped everywhere, spreading death and destruction on a large scale. The rain of doom didn't seem to end.
After the last residue, Claire casually clapped her hands clean above the city and stood up to her full height, hands on her mighty hips.

Dashing on his motorcycle, Kelvin witnessed it all with a mixture of awe and abhorrence. Did Claire really just end the lives of thousands of innocents only to make a statement?
He looked up at Claire’s satisfied face who admired her work. Just before her voluptuous legs spun on its heels to leave, Kelvin could have sworn to recognize a slight sign of remorse on her face, but it was all too late, the damage was done.
Kelvin still felt a small hope that Ashley had survived this carnage. She is a smart girl after all, he couldn’t live with himself if she hadn't.
He gave the throttle another twist to make his way towards the ravaged, smoke covered city.

Ashley
Out of breath and in panic, Ashley attempted to make clearance of her surrounding in the darkness, coughing up some dust. The last thing she knew she ran with Gina and Sascha on her tail through the school’s corridors until she heard the sound of crumbles and screeches outside. Despite the fact she couldn’t see outdoor because of the absence of windows, Ashley knew that the city was under attack by Claire.
They darted, zig zag and bounced their way through streams of frightened students, until the crumbles became heavier, and big impacts, we're heard, like dropping bombs, accompanied with horrified screams of terror all around her. The next thing she knew, the whole school seemed to collapse, blanket them all under dust, grit and pieces of concrete.
At that moment, Ashley knew that her time had come, she wouldn’t survive this.
With this thought in mind, she steeled herself for the inevitable.

Miraculously, she was alive and breathing.
The first thing she did was to check if her body was intact. She fumbled around her grit covered limbs and groped her dusty face and torso.

‘Okay. Okay. I’m still whole, no amputated body parts what so ever.’ She concluded in relief.

‘My left foot is stuck.’ With all her strength, she tried to break lose, but the brick which held her foot in place didn’t budge.

‘Crap, how am I supposed to get out. Anyone here?! Gina! Sascha!’ Ashley screamed.

She heard a grunt.

‘Hey! Who is there? Answer me!’

‘Ashley?’ Came Gina’s perplexed voice. ‘Are we in heaven?’

‘Not yet, everything alright? Can you move?’

‘I think so… ugh. Who’s hand is this? I can’t see shit in here.’

Ashley rooted in her backpack pocket and was relieved to see that her phone was still intact.
‘Wait up, I got light.’ She flashed the light on and shone in the direction of Gina’s voice.

‘Gosh, not so bright please.’ Gina complained, stretching out a hand in front of her squinted eyes.

Ashley's face turned into a gaze of revulsion. ‘Oh. My. God. Gina listen carefully. Crawl to me, right now and whatever you do, don’t look to your right.’

‘Wait, what? Why shouldn’t I look to my AAAAAAHH!!!! I… I… Is that S-S-Sascha?’

‘Do not look at it and come to me.’

Gina quickly threw away Sascha’s arm, which lay all over her body. The sight of his comminuted skull and bulging eyes would probably haunt their dreams for all eternity.

‘Can you lift this brick a bit? My foot is stuck under it.’ Ashley asked.

‘Okay, I will try.’ With all force Gina tried to budge the clammed brick. ‘Ugh… Its no use, it's too heavy.

Ashley scanned the place with the light on her phone.
‘Grab that piece of wood over there and use it as leverage.’

Gina grabbed the bord and placed it in position.

‘Okay, on my mark. 3. 2. 1. Push! Nngggghhh! Keep going, I feel some friction. Nnngghh Aaaaahh! Fuck. Me. Bloody. There is my foot.’ Ashley panted.

‘So what are we gonna do now?’ Gina asked with a quivered voice.

‘Lets crawl that way, with a little luck, we will discover some daylight or my phone receives a signal, so we can contact the emergency troops.’

For a while, both tattered girls clambered and climbed slowly through dark ravaged holes consisting of concrete, shards of glass and splintered wood. Knees and elbows all under abrasion.
Two times, Ashley's flashlight illuminated the lugubrious scene of half crushed, inanimate bodies of fellow students. She kept her mouth shut, not wanting to upset Gina. She was surprised by her own ability to keep her head clear in an extreme situation like this. It was not like she had any experience with similar events, with dismembered bodies everywhere. Maybe it was because she felt responsible for Gina's safety.

‘Watch it, it's all glass over here.’ Ashley licked clean her bloody finger. ‘Come, through here.’ She wriggled her way through a narrow gap and turned around to aid Gina.

‘I can’t, its to tight.’ Gina complained. She desperately tried to squeeze herself through, but it was no use. Ashley was just slimmer than she was.

‘What do we do now?’ Gina said all shivering.

‘Wait here, I will explore further to see where this leads to.’ Ashley spun, ready to crawl but felt Gina’s hand grabbing her arm firmly.

‘No! Don’t leave me. Please. Let's go another way.’

'There is none. All dead ends back there. I'll be back. I promise.’

‘At least give me a light please. Its pitch dark without one. My phone is broken.’ Gina begged.

‘I can’t, it’s the only light I have and I need it to see where I go. Stay put, I’ll come back, on my word of honor.’
Ashley quickly wrenched off Gina's hand, hating herself for leaving Gina all alone in de darkness, but she had too. She heard the sound of her soft cries fade away, until she perceived it no more. Only the shoves and shuffles of her own crawls.

After groveling for a while she thought she could hear the sound of faint sirens. She came around a corner, and her heart made a jump of joy when at the end of a burrow. She could discern a small hole of daylight and heard people talking.
She watched her phone and could also see she had a signal. What a relief, it's going to be fine after all!

The first thing she would do when she got out of this mess was to speak to Madison about this. It was not safe anymore for them here. Sooner or later, Claire or her mother would destroy this entire city.
She only hoped Madison would be brave enough to bring them to safety, wherever that was. Even if Madison wanted to, she just couldn’t protect them against her own family. Her mother is her mother, and her sister is, well, her bigger and stronger sister, Madison would lose a direct confrontation against her.
But first things first. Ashley had to get out before she could set things in motion.

‘What the?’ Ashley turned her head, startled. ‘No effing way! My foot is stuck again!' Unaware, her ankle had slid in a split. The more she struggled, the tighter her ankle became. The sharp edges also carved into her skin.

‘Fuck no. So close.' Ashley's hope sank away. 'Wait! I still have my phone though.’
She turned off the light on her phone and was ready to make a call.

‘Fuckin five-per cent battery left! That flashlight drained it sooner than I thought. I have to call wisely now. The phone will die soon.’

Ashley scrolled through her contact list and saw all those missed calls of Kelvin. And some text messages, no use reading those right now.

I bet he knew something was wrong. That's why he called me. He wanted to warn me. Ashley concluded.
Stupid me for not listening to him first.
It would only be wise to call him first, maybe he is already nearby.
Tapping his name, she brought the phone to her ear, and it went over.

‘Come one, pick up, pick up, pick uuuuup.’

You have reached the voicemail box of....

‘You got to be kidding me! Pick up you jerk!’

You have reached the...

‘Noooooo!…Nnnggghhh.... Make!…. God!…… This!…. FUUUUUUUCK!!’ Ashley clenched her fist in frustration.

‘Only two-per cent left? Why is the battery going so fuckin quick all of a sudden?'
Ashley desperately scrolled through her contacts again.

‘Mom! I will call mom!’
She initiated the call and listened. The phone went over.

‘Hello? Honey? Is that you?’ The voice of her mother spoke through the speaker.

‘Mother listen. I'm gonna be quick. My battery is almost dead. I’m stuck under a pile of rubble and… Hello? Hello!’
She watched her phone, it was dead.

‘Nooo no no no no no noooooooo! You can’t let it end like this. You can’t!’ Ashley started to cry and kicked hysterical with her free foot to free herself. It was no use.

Suddenly, she heard a male voice speaking, in the distance. She saw an officer standing there, giving instructions to bystanders, near the open hole which looked out on the street above. If she screamed really hard, maybe he would hear her.

‘HEEEEEELP!! OFFICER PLEASE, I’M HERE!’

But the moment she began to scream her voice got overruled by the sound of a chopper who hovered over. By the time he passed by, the officer was long gone.

All frenzied, Ashley started to sob and scream and kick in frustration, then she heard a loud rumble.

GGGRRUUUUUUUMBLE!!!!!!

The end of the burrow suddenly collapsed, breaking off her only chance of contact with the outer world.

It would take almost a week before Ashley’s body was found.
Lifeless and cold, she lay there on the stretcher, peacefully. With a shattered soul and red moisty eyes, Kelvin, her brother gazed down upon her, holding a purple ribbon in his hand, Ashley’s ribbon.
He would never hear her joyful laughter again.