Starfire Ascension

Chapter 7 - River

Kimberley led Holly and Cyrus out the back of the mansion through the spacious backyard. They followed her as she walked to the end of the yard, and then down the steeply terraced hillside. Kimberley pointed out the terraces. "This keeps the property elevated above the flood line when the Guadalupe River swells in the spring. It also slows down erosion on the hillside." Cyrus took in the river's beauty as they walked down all the stairs carved through the terraced hill face. They passed Willow and Mesquite trees fighting for dominance at the water's edge and walked up onto the very large dock. Halfway up the dock was a massive overhang that covered a huge craft. It looked like a massive ramp of steel grip plate that ascended out of the water gradually and flattened out to a deck just above the water. The craft rested there under an aluminum-framed fabric overhang.

Kimberley showed the way down from the dock through a metal latch gate that formed a stairway leading under the overhang. She then attempted to climb over the edge of the craft throwing one leg up and struggling as she was only five foot four. She almost fell back before Cyrus grabbed her hips pushing her up into the craft. She got into the craft thanking him softly, her cheeks turning a soft crimson. Then Cyrus realized his cheeks had a rosy red to them as well and his heart had started racing. He climbed over the craft easily. Turning about-face he reached over the gunwale and took Holly's arm in a wristlock as she gripped his wrist. He hoisted her small light-framed figure into the craft with ease. They had perfected this technique as kids. It just got easier as Cyrus grew older and more muscular. Kimberly sat in the driver's position, while Cyrus sat next to her on the front bench. Holly sat on the backbench chair behind them her hands draped over the seat in front of her with a rogue smirk on her face that made Cyrus feel uncomfortable. Especially with his heart still racing.

He turned his attention rather to the craft. The craft had a black-looking skirt around the border and a fan that had a netting grate over it in a dome. The fan had blades and a spinner cone like a jet turbine. However, this cone did not move and was rather where the engine mounted to the turbine just beneath it. The outsides of the fan chassis also tapered inwards into the jet-like turbine's inlet forming a contoured air funnel. The front of the craft had two large domed LED headlights that protruded out the front of the craft an inch or so.

Kimberley handed out the sunblock. "Yeah, we better put that on if we're going to be in the summer sun on the water all day." "Good thing I brought my hat," Cyrus said. Kimberly had a beige cream straw sun hat with white frayed fabric around the rim. It also had a white band around the base of the hat. It was slung over her back attached by canvas straps resting on her neck. The trio applied the sunblock to their skin liberally. Then when they were satisfied with their sun protection they put their hats on. Holly however had forgotten her hat.

Kimberly inserted the keys turning the ignition cylinder to the on position. The turbine fan turned on almost instantly sounding somewhat like a loud leaf blower as the craft began to slightly lift off the ground and hover. Kimberly turned to Cyrus with a mischievous look in her eyes as a crooked smile crept across her lips. "Hold on to something," she said. She punched the throttle forward and the craft lurched forward and down the ramp gliding onto the water effortlessly as the engine revved up. It picked up speed quite rapidly as Cyrus held on to the rail next to him while Holly let out a startled shriek. He looked at the display seeing thirty-five miles per hour shown. Then he watched as Kimberley's hand turned the wheel as the boat made a large arcing one-eighty-degree about-turn across the middle of the calm river turning to go upstream. As she straightened out and recentered the craft in the middle of the river she pushed the throttle all the way forward. The craft lurched forward just slightly as it started to pick up speed. Cyrus saw the dash read forty-five miles per hour. Then fifty, then sixty. The craft hit top speed as the willow, mesquite, and all other manner of tree flashed by in a blur on the shoreline.