The Ascent

Chapter 26

"I think we need to leave this place," Asher said without a prelude after a long silence. "It might not be safe to stay in one place if they keep trying out different tactics. I thought their focus was only on the city. If that's not so, this might not be the best place for us."

"What do you mean?" Jasmine asked, perplexed.

The cave was remote and underused enough to be useless to the aliens. Besides, they had much-needed shelter. It was impossible to know if there was some safe place out there, especially not for the children.

"This might seem secure, but at the end of the day, if they somehow find us, we would be trapped," Asher said, furrowing his brows. "We would have no place to go, no way to fight them off."

Jasmine had never considered that possibility before, but his words did make a lot of sense. In her mind, she saw the cave as this lonely, safe place. However, they were like mice in a trap. If they were ever seen while going out for supplies or by an overeager alien searching for humans, that would have meant disaster for them. The thought was terrifying.

"When do you want us to leave?" Jasmine asked, swallowing hard, unprepared to face the outside world.

"As soon as possible. Maybe as early as tomorrow because some aliens might still lurk around, looking for Raven and her friends. We need to leave the area before they have a chance to find us," Asher said, worry in his eyes only intensifying when his gaze fell on the peacefully sleeping children. "We need to find a better place. Something more defendable but still hidden from sight."

"Do you know a place like that?" Jasmine asked, worried that if they set off without a clear plan, the only thing they would find was death.

"I might know a place," Asher said, thinking hard. "There is this hunting cabin my father used to use. I think it's still there. It's hidden in the forest, and it can be fortified. So, it should be a safe enough place."

It didn't sound like the best of plans, but it was a plan nonetheless, and Jasmine didn't have any better ones, so she chose not to comment on it. She decided not to mention they didn't really have any weapons, no way to fortify anything. After all, she needed something to believe in.

She chose to believe in Asher.

"Get some sleep. We'll leave as soon as possible," Asher said gently.

"I am not really tired," Jasmine said, settling more comfortably on her improvised bed.

The next thing she knew, she was opening her eyes to a cheerful atmosphere and a breakfast distributed around the crackling fire.

"I guess I was more tired than I thought," Jasmine said with a sheepish smile.

Sleeping so tightly during such trying times was unexpected. However, they had no idea what the future might bring, making Jasmine feel lucky she could willingly embrace oblivion without worrying she might never wake up.

"It's understandable, you have been through so much in such a short time, and you haven't had a good night's sleep since I met you," Asher said, full of understanding.

It was strange to Jasmine how for the longest time, she mostly felt apathy, detachment from her feelings. Yet, this guy somehow found a way to break through it and make her feel the sunrays struggling through the clouds to warm her heart.

There was a time when she felt such emptiness in her chest that Jasmine even wondered if she had a heart to speak of. However, now when everyone else's hearts must have been strangled by fear and depression, hers was just starting to wake up from a deep slumber. The good emotions started shining through, allowing her to swim to the surface of the sea of negative ones that had been carrying her on their waves for years.