Chapter 21
Helen sprinted over to her computer desk nearly slamming into the small table as her knees almost gave out from beneath her.
She anxiously typed away at a few buttons on her keyboard bringing up a rotating loop of all security camera feeds. Her eyes searched for any movement down the hallways, corridors, and basement corners of her home.
Helen intently analyzed the lone hallways on the first floor of the East Wing as every few seconds another corridor's view switched in scene.
The shaded darkness of sublevel of the Sanctuary sparked with a fiery flare of red light.
Ashley dropped a few feet from midair landing hard on her buckling knees; her hands left to balance her weight on its cold stone surface.
Overhead a subtle hazy glow encompassed the subterranean level like moonlight from the dull morning bleeding through the glass dome high above.
Ashley bit down painfully drawing blood from her lip as she crumpled to the floor in an uncontrolled panic from her once last memory. "Damn it…" she seethed fighting to level out her labored breaths grabbing her sides as she rolled over on her back. Her blue teary eyes widened following the circled dome that led above to the ghostly obscure of the dawn from behind white snow clouds.
The sublevel echoed quietly with the oddities of animal chirps, howls, and barks of the many nocturnal Abnormals still awake in their habitants.
The wild Abnormal calls were familiar and Ashley could recall every species and even the pet names she had given each— even as she struggled to calm her anxieties lying prone against the stone surface.
Squinting her eyes Ashley rolled over onto her side and stared across the dusky circumference. Every tinted glass enclosure stood tall and gloomy in the shadowed light. The soft echoes from each habitat actually seemed to comfort her in a way. For she had captured at least half of them since she was allowed to join her mom on world traveled excursions as her side kick in arms.
And every one captured gave a look into its wonders that she would never forget.
Her back faced Sally's aquarium as her eyes continued to dance along the edges and corners of the large open room. She tried to concentrate her thoughts by letting her eyes follow the rimmed boundaries of each square glass habitat. The glass was dark and blanketed with a gloomy glare that barely reflected in the low light. Each square leaden stone was nearly identical in size from wall to floor. Her eyes followed up to the second level of the sublevel. She remembered when she was ten how she and Henry would repel from the black guard rails pretending their declines were repelling them from the side of a distant mountain.
She also remembered how Helen would always reprimand them for their dangerous escapades. But Helen knew Ashley was just a mini Magnus and it was just the beginnings of a life that she would engage in at full throttle. It was an Indiana Jones way of life for the magical world that they were a part of. And during these times when Ashley and Henry were young; the wonders of the Abnormal world found competition that rivaled their own visionary and yet resourceful imaginations.
Ashley could feel her body staring to relax along with the amount of air she was able to breathe back into her body. The cold stone pressed to her cheek felt refreshing as she tried to settle her breaths and calm her nerves from the waking memory that had sent her materializing in a fiery flash.
Unknowingly Sally had swum to her glass window and watched helplessly as her friend was struggling with her distress. If ever there was a time she wished she had legs, this was it. She peered through the liquid stratum at the one person she hadn't seen in nearly three years.
Ashley.
Her friend.
Ashley's emotions were being read like an open book to Sally as the pain and fear reverberated like waves around her. But Ashley's thoughts were her own as Sally could not read minds as exchanged verbal communication was only capable through touching of solid objects or hand to hand.
Sally placed her palm to the clear glass instinctually although there was no one on the other side to receive her message.
All will be okay.
It was a simple telepathic message and like Helen; she believed that it held the deepest truth now since she had returned home.
A flood of anger suddenly seeped into Ashley's heart as she pictured Dana's face, absent of emotion, and the lunatic smile from that red haired Cabal scientist. She angled her forehead into the cold stone and groaned her rage at not being able to fight back because that was what she was—a fighter, trained to handle the world in which she followed footstep by footstep beside her mother.
Ashley pushed herself upright to her feet unbalanced but steady enough to stumble her way in the direction of the far corridor. She hadn't even noticed Sally in the low light pouring in from above as she floated against the glass.
Keeping her arm cradled tight around her side she entered the darkness of the wide passageway towards the tall stairwell.
Loud bangs against glass caught her attention.
Tilting her head up she saw a dim glow of light illuminating a small area of the corridor from a side habitat about 20 feet from her. As she cautiously walked closer she saw Will pounding on the glass in a black winter jacket.
When he saw that she noticed him he bent over resting his hands on his knees, probably sighing with relief she thought, then leaned back up into the glass waving his arms about.
"Ashley… thank god," were the words muffled from behind the glass enclosure.
Ashley could see his pale face even in the low blue light of the Abnormal's habitat—a habitat that was unrecognized to her.
His expression relaxed as he patted the cold glass with his bare palm. "There was some electrical glitch and the door shut behind me!" She could tell his teeth were chattering from the lack of warmth.
Ashley slowly leaned into the glass wall for balance as she locked eyes with Will. She squinted hard against the spinning of her head, "What?"
"I was checking the environmental systems in the habitat. A power surge caused the door to close behind me. I got trapped in here."
Ashley could see the white fog leave his mouth with every exhale of breath he took. She even noticed the cold tingeing like frost on the edges of the glass wall.
Will pointed to the security passcode machine lining the entry door. "534!"
Ashley nodded and walked to the machine punching in the numbers with her left hand.
A swift beeping sound alerted as the machine accepted the correct code.
Will jumped out of the doorway rubbing his bare hands against his jawlines stepping to stand next to Ashley. "Damn it's cold in there," he fussed in a shudder of breaths.
Ashley patted him on the shoulder. "You okay? How long have you been in there?"
"Jeez," he groaned rubbing his hands together. "About 20 minutes. Henry was going to meet me down here but he had to take care of something last minute."
Will shoved his hands into his black fleece downed jacket and jumped in place a few times, smiling warmly. "Thank you."
"You're welcome," Ashley replied in complete surprise of the coincidence of her timing.
Ashley studied his face with the three year changes that had passed between them.
Subtle but slight enough she could tell his face had stronger features than she remembered. She smiled watching his sharp blue eyes glint as he returned a smile back as he opened his arms reaching to hug her.
She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around her. Ashley was embraced tightly by him and that of the puffy black jacket.
"Welcome home Ashley."
"What a story huh."
"Your mom did nothing short of a miracle," he said pulling back letting a concerned look befall his face.
"So, how are you feeling? Odd place to ask you this I know."
"Ah," she said shyly glancing away from him as she answered, "sort of teleported down here in a panic; I was talking with my mom in her study. Something she said flashed a memory and next thing I know I was down here."
Will raised his eyebrows caringly. "Emotional triggers. I explained to Magnus that memory recall might have some kind of post traumatic effect on you," his voice was soft and aided with a gentle smile." He stepped forward slowly to place a hand on her left shoulder. "Looks like it may be connected to your gift."
"So, the teleporting thing could be triggered every time I have a random flashback." she asked pulling tight to the white strap that had loosened on her shoulder sling.
Ashley was a bit confused. Helen hadn't mentioned that part to her.
"It was just a theory," he added.
Will squeezed her shoulder lightly then took a step back bouncing a couple more times then nodded over in the direction of the center sublevel. "Wanna get outta of here?"
"Mmm," she agreed; after all, the sublevel was still a crippling reminder that still cut deep to the wound still on her heart.
"My mom must be scared half out of her mind right now," she voiced low as she raised her head to stare down the dark corridor leading into the dark center of the sublevel.
Helen's computer screen flashed to the shadowy subterranean level's center foyer. Helen's eyes narrowed as she strained at the two figures walking through the security feed.
Her heart nearly fell out of her chest with a sickening wave of nausea.
"Bloody Christ," she yelled as she opened a side drawer to her 9mm. She pulled out the black weapon releasing the magazine making sure it was fully loaded then slammed the mag back in place.
Grabbing her walkie from her desk she announced her panic as she watched her daughter walking alongside a tall thin green scaled Abnormal.
"This is Magnus; we have a security breach in the Kush habitat. The creature is with Ashley in the sublevel. I'm heading there now!"
A gurgle of static spit back from her walkie. "Doc, it's Henry, I'll meet you at the Sub Elevator. East Wing…"
"Understood."
Will and Henry had set up a temporary habitat in the sublevel until a larger environment could be created in the SHU. A decision Helen regretted instantly—but then again, it was a decision made when Ashley was still just a lingering memory in her heart.