Ascension by Christopher De Sousa Page B

and the blackboard until it had ceased. Once the tremors were over, the students reclaimed of their seats, and Ms Hawthorne re-commenced the lesson as though nothing had happened.
    Katherine would often find herself, like many others, curious as to why these tremors were so frequent. What had made this even more perplexing was that Anabasis resided on no clear fault lines; nor were any neighbouring areas affected in quite the same manner.
    With her sketch seemingly ruined, she squinted up at the blackboard at what Ms Hawthorne had written. There were three ancient civilisations she’d drawn up on the board in bold chalk: Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Atlantis.
    â€œThe first civilisations of humankind are widely accepted to have originated within these three realms. But which one came first? Is there even an answer to such a question?” Ms Hawthorne asked, as she guided her finger from one word to the next. “As we discussed yesterday, there were spiritual leaders whom watched over the peaceful Lumerian populace before the great divide. Do we remember the title given to these divine protectors? Can we recall any of their individual names, and of the regions that they controlled? Miss Munroe?”
    Katherine had only been half listening at this point, and remained immersed in her own sketching. Ms Hawthorne promptly wandered over to where she was seated, and confiscated the sketching pad out from beneath her palm.
    â€œYou can have this back after class Miss Munroe, but while we are here you must pay attention.”
    As she groaned at Ms Hawthorne in protest, she heard a light beeping pulse coming from toward the front of the classroom. It came from where Blake was seated; she observed the young man prod away at what appeared to be a wristwatch.
    Blake rose from his chair and headed for the door. “To answer your question Ms Hawthorne, there were numerous divine leaders who existed during this ancient era of history. But the three names you expected to hear from us are those of the sun god Ra, the moon god Thoth, and the sky god Anu. And now Ms Hawthorne, I have to be elsewhere.”
    â€œVery well Blake. At least some of you were paying attention,” said Ms Hawthorne, sharing a disgruntled glare with Katherine.
    â€œNot all students are made equal,” Blake proclaimed, as if it were a penultimate truth. “In fact, some are simply incapable of producing anything of worth.”

Chapter 5
    With the day’s first period having ended, Katherine stormed down the hallway and toward her locker. She could sense her temper starting to seethe from deep within, and she sought to hide her emotions by bowing her head, sustaining prolonged eye contact with the gold and red chequered vinyl floor that ran along the school’s corridor.
    â€œHey Kat, wait up,” shouted Naomi, as she hustled after her.
    â€œWhat’s his problem?” Katherine questioned, her fists tightly clenched. “It seems as though he’s had it in for me since the first day we were unfortunate enough to meet.”
    Naomi rubbed at her forehead. “Blake clearly has some kind of superiority complex. I don’t believe he can really help himself.”
    â€œBut what is it that makes him think he’s any better than the rest of us?” She asked, upon reaching her locker and working away to unlock its combination. “He’s short, looks as though he’s never heard of a good skin moisturiser, or of an acceptable hairstyle for that matter, and what’s worse is that there’s nobody in the school who likes him. The guy is nothing more than a loser.”
    She glanced back at Naomi, hoping that she’d laugh along with her at such a brash description of Blake. But Naomi only looked back with her eyes narrowed and with a shake of the head.
    â€œDon’t give me that look,” Katherine snapped. “It’s not like he’s ever had any problem calling me stupid or