Ascension Seekers

by Amy Proebstel

  Amanda nervously shifted the control slightly to the right and immediately felt the craft roll in the desired direction. She held it in the roll for a moment longer and then moved the control into the opposite direction until they had turned and were facing the direction in which they started. She was starting to understand why Riccan had faith in her ability. His telepod was designed to perform exactly as it was operated. Amanda started to relax. She asked, “What do I need to do to land?”

  “Slowly move the control forward. You will see the ground will come closer, but you will also be traveling forward. To keep yourself from going too far forward, simply press the button on the side of the shifter and you will only descend and not advance. When you get within a couple of feet of the ground, begin to release your forward pressure until you are about a foot from the surface.”

  “I don’t know where the bottom of the telepod is, Riccan. I think you should take over.” She looked over at him with fresh fear showing on her face.

  “Amanda, you need to do this. You won’t be able to help Nealand if you are unable to use the telepod to go get him and bring him home. Remember your goal and land this telepod.”

  Amanda needed the reminder and decided she was going to overcome her fear and set the telepod down as best as she could. She moved the control forward and saw the front of the telepod dip lower. They were about fifty feet above the ground and she did not like how fast the earth appeared to be rising to meet her. She relieved some of the pressure and saw the front of the craft begin to level off.

  Chapter Ten

  WITH ONE SUCCESS under her belt, she decided to try descending without the forward momentum. She pressed the button on the side of her control and again pushed it forward. This time she could feel the difference and could see the evidence out the window since they were getting lower at a slower pace. She liked this feeling much better.

  “Okay, we’re about five feet from landing. Ease up slightly. Good. Okay, let go of the manual control,” Riccan directed.

  Amanda was concerned about letting go altogether until she realized it was programmed to stay level without user input. She smiled brightly over at her husband and said, “Now what?”

  “Now you begin the shutdown procedures. Touch the bottom of the plascreen and select touchdown. Once you feel the brush of the ground, then you hit the main power button right here.” He pointed to a push button located in between the two plascreens which was labeled as the master power switch.

  Amanda followed Riccan’s directions as he gave them. The telepod touched down onto the ground gently. Amanda touched the master switch with a feeling of satisfaction. She had successfully flown and landed and nothing had gone wrong. Surely the operation of a telepod could not be as simple as it seemed. There was hardly anything the operator needed to do except enter the commands. She asked Riccan about it.

  “The older telepods are quite manual. There is no automation of any feature so you have to be very diligent in watching all of the controls to make sure you are staying on course. The biggest difference is the older models rely solely on the directions given by the operator’s brain. Those pilots need to be very focused on keeping a clear image in their heads so they will actually end up in a secondary location.”

  “Why do they even allow the older models? They sound dangerous.” Amanda could not fathom putting so much faith in her ability to concentrate on the coordinates of a location through the blackness of the transfer. She felt certain she would get distracted by some other thought and then she would be utterly lost.

  “They are slowly being phased out. The problem is cost. Most people cannot afford the latest technology. I’m fortunate since I work for the leading designer and I’m able to build them myself. I was able to integrate all of the technology into my own craft to make it safer than anything currently flying.”

  “Riccan, I have a question.”

  “What is it?”

  “If I’m going to be using your telepod to rescue Nealand, then how are you going to be getting to work every day?”

  He tried to hide a smile at her concern and said, “I have a surprise for you, actually. I was planning on telling you after you were done learning to fly, but you have preempted me once again. I have another telepod which I’m going to give to you.” He stopped and let his statement sink in.

  “Wait. What? Give to me?” Amanda clearly had not been expecting such a gift.

  “Now don’t get too excited. The one you will be flying is the telepod I designed and built before this current one. It’s not nearly as large or as nicely painted. I still have to make a few minor adjustments in the software to make sure you have the best navigation and safety equipment, but otherwise I think you’ll find it perfect for your needs.”

  “So it’s not red?” Amanda asked hopefully. She had sort of dreaded flying this telepod because it was so recognizable with its unusually bright color scheme.

  “Nope, it’s a boring grey,” he said sullenly.

  “It’s perfect, Riccan. I want to go unnoticed and it will do the trick nicely. When can I see it?” Amanda asked eagerly.

  “I have it parked in the garage at home already,” he admitted shyly.

  “Seriously? You are so devious. How did you manage to do it? I don’t think even you are capable of operating two telepods at the same time, even with all of your fancy equipment.”

  “It’s not a bad idea, Amanda. I’m going to have to put some thought into it.” Riccan considered Amanda’s comment seriously. He could already imagine several uses for such technology.

  “Riccan! I wasn’t being serious, I was just kidding. Are you going to answer me?”

  “Oh, yes. Sorry. Lana and I dropped it off today during lunch.”

  “Lana? Isn’t she the receptionist at your work?” Amanda pulled the memory from the deep recesses of her brain.

  “Yes…how did you know? You’ve never met her.” Riccan was genuinely intrigued by Amanda’s random knowledge of his life.

  “She was a part of my dream, too,” she answered simply. Amanda was still trying to wrap her brain around the idea of having her own telepod to fly. It was truly amazing. She wished she were able to take her dad flying, but she would have a hard time doing it on Earth. There were too many areas with radar to make it safe, even during cloaking mode.

  “Wow. It’s so amazing how much you learned while you were sleeping. I know you told me the whole story, but I’m sure it’ll be quite a while before I discover all of the nuances you forgot to share,” Riccan said as he shook his head in disbelief. A moment later he realized Amanda had been stalling and announced, “Okay, it’s time to go visit my parents. Show me what you remember about getting the telepod ready to fly. Be sure to say each step out loud so I will know what you are planning.”

  Amanda did as asked and was able to perform each step as it should have been. Again, she was amazed at the simplicity of Riccan’s design. She had entered Pantano as their destination and told Riccan her plan to hit the activation switch. She saw him nod approval and she pressed the button.

  Darkness surrounded them for the three second duration of the flight between locations. Amanda was startled when she realized the coordinates programmed for his parent’s house had them materialize mere inches from the ground. She looked over at Riccan and asked, “Do I just press the side switch and tap the forward control slightly? We’re already mighty close to the ground.”

  “Your instincts are perfect. It’s exactly what I’d do in this instance.” He nodded approval and watched as Amanda did as she had said.

  Amanda landed the craft and performed all of the shutdown procedures. She was very pleased with herself and almost jumped up and down in her seat with her glee. Luckily, her seatbelt was still fastened so she had to contain her enthusiasm. She was certain Riccan would have laughed at her if she had done a happy dance.

  “Let’s go see what my parents are up to, shall we?” Riccan unfastened his seatbelt and watched as Amanda did the same.<
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  They left the telepod and walked across the vast lawn until they got to the stone staircase leading up to the back terrace of the Residence. Amanda suddenly asked, “Why do some of the Elders live in the Residence, while others maintain a separate house for their family?”

  “I guess it depends on the district where the Elder serves, or possibly the preference of the Elder himself. Take Elder Debbon, for instance…”

  “I was actually thinking about him,” Amanda interrupted.

  “His district is quite peaceful now, but it was not always so. He decided to have a separate estate where he could get away from the constant demands of the people. When he is ready to go to work, then he translates himself to the Residence. When he is there, the people know they are able to come to him.”

  “Do you think he keeps a separate place because he’s First of the Elders?”

  “I’m sure it’s part of it. Although he’s only been First for about a declan, he’s been an Elder for a lot longer.”

  They continued to climb the steps as Amanda asked, “How long do Elders serve in their position?”

  “For as long as they desire. In the past, some have been in office for twenty declans. These days, they seem to only serve for about seven declans, though.”

  Amanda had stopped climbing when Riccan had said the Elders had served for two hundred years. Surely she had heard him incorrectly. “Riccan, you’re teasing me. People don’t live for two hundred years,” she laughed at how silly it sounded even as she said it out loud.

  Riccan had taken two more steps before he realized she had stopped. He turned and looked down on her with a serious expression, “I’m not joking, Amanda. Elders are known to live for a very long time. Some think it’s because they are in contact with the elemy so often, but I’m not sure of the real reason.”

  “It seems sort of tragic, really. If the Elder lives so long, his wife would grow old and die long before he would,” Amanda said as she climbed the remaining two steps to once again be beside her husband.

  Riccan smiled at Amanda’s assumption and gently corrected her by saying, “On the contrary, Amanda. The wives seem to age at the same rate as their husbands. Maybe it’s a gift from Jehoban for the service which the Elders provide. Nobody ever questions it, so I can’t say for sure. You sure do come up with interesting ideas. Let’s see if my dad has any answers.” He put his arm around her shoulders and they walked the last few feet to the back door.

  Riccan did not knock, he simply opened the door and gently pushed Amanda into the room ahead of himself. The grand living room was empty so they continued to walk through the room and down the hallway to the private offices.

  They ran into Melba as she came around the corner. The head maid smiled at them as they approached.

  “What brings you two here today?” she asked with a twinkle in her eyes.

  “We were just in the area and thought we’d stop by. Are my parents available? Do you know where they are?” Riccan asked. He had always appreciated Melba’s ability to know where everyone was in the Residence at any given time.

  “Sure, they are both in your father’s office. Do you want me to bring you anything?”

  “No, thank you. We won’t be staying long,” he replied and then started to walk again in the direction of Daven’s office. Riccan stopped outside the door and knocked lightly. He waited until he heard his father’s voice telling them to come in before he opened the door.

  Both Daven and Nena immediately stood up from their chairs as they saw who their visitors were.

  “Oh! Riccan! Amanda! What a pleasant surprise. What brings you here?” Nena rushed forward and hugged first her son and then Amanda enthusiastically.

  Amanda was always surprised with how small her mother-in-law was and how big her personality made her seem. When she hugged her, she had to lean down. It almost felt as though she were hugging a child, she was so small.

  “I was just giving Amanda her first telepod flying lesson. We were in the area and I thought she should know the coordinates to get to your house, no matter what. So we thought we’d come in and say hello before we headed home.”

  “How did the lesson go?” Daven asked as he looked over at Amanda to answer.

  Amanda shrugged noncommittally, and replied, “We’re still alive.”

  Daven and Riccan chuckled while Nena said seriously, “I should hope so. I’m sure you did wonderfully. Riccan, tell us the truth.”

  Riccan looked lovingly over at his wife and said, “She did great. She’s a natural at it. I wouldn’t expect any less of her since she’s shown such great aptitudes for everything we’ve shown her thus far.”

  “I knew it!” Nena exclaimed as she clapped her hands together with glee. “She was so quick to learn how to read a person’s aura. She was bound to be good at this as well.”

  “I thought so, too,” Daven said and looked purposefully at his son. He knew Amanda was not going to wait two weeks before she wanted to start her mission to rescue Nealand.

  Riccan understood his father’s look and nodded his head slightly in agreement. He cleared his throat and asked, “I take it you got my message the other morning?”

  “I did. We should all sit down and I’ll tell you what’s happened since then.” He gestured to the guest chairs across from his own and waited until the women had taken their seats before he sat down himself.

  “What have you heard?” Riccan asked.

  “What are you talking about?” Amanda asked at the same time.

  Riccan turned to Amanda and said, “I asked Dad to help me figure out a way to distract Elder Vargen until you can extract Nealand from his district.” He repeated his question to his father, “Have you heard something which will help?”

  “As a matter-of-fact, I heard something just a few minutes before you two showed up. You seem to have rather convenient timing these days,” he said with a smile to the newcomers. “Elder Debbon has scheduled a convocation of the Elders to be held on Selasa, Adar 1st.”

  Amanda shifted her confused gaze to her husband.

  He translated his father’s statement by saying, “The Elders are going to be meeting on Tuesday, December 1st. He’s saying we’ll have fifteen days to figure out a plan before you can have a safe opportunity to find Nealand.”

  “I see. It’s a little longer than I wanted to wait, but I understand.” She sat back in her chair and started to plan all of the details she could research before she had to leave. First and foremost, she needed to see if anyone could locate where Neal was living specifically. She sat forward and asked, “Do you have any record of where Neal is living? Surely, he’d have a house or something. I can’t imagine Elder Vargen would keep him locked up. Jehoban told me he’s with the Elder, but no other details.”

  Daven turned to face his patil and started to type, “Give me a second and I’ll see what I can find.” He scrolled down the screen and touched a couple of passages before he smiled and said, “I think I may have found him. There’s a man by the name of Nealan who is registered to the work housing for the Old Soul Engineering Facility. The slight change in the spelling of the name would make sense because Tualan men’s names all end with an ‘n’ unless they’ve lost the honor to keep it. What do you think? Is it him?”

  As soon as Daven had started talking about it, Amanda instinctively knew this information was what she needed. She nodded and said, “I’m sure of it. Can you print out everything you’ve discovered so I can use it to help put together my plan?”

  “Absolutely. I’ve already begun,” he said. The papers began to appear below the patil screen. When the last one had finished printing, he tapped the stack together on the top of his desk before he handed the bundle over to Amanda. “Let me know if you think of anything else.”

  “You know I’m going to take you up on the offer!” Amanda said with a foolish grin on her face.

  “I’m hoping it means you’ll come visit more often,” Daven said in a more serious tone. He knew they had
their own lives to live in Florida, but he and Nena wanted to get to know their new daughter and granddaughters.

  “The girls will be on winter break in a few more weeks. Maybe they’ll want to come and spend some time here at the Residence. Do you think it might be possible? I don’t want to mention it to the girls if it won’t work out.” Amanda had realized the girls would be mostly unattended during the break if she were going to be spending her time helping Neal and Riccan was at work.

  “It’s a wonderful idea, Amanda.” Nena clasped her hands tightly in her lap as she tried to contain her excitement. She had considered going to Earth for a visit, but Amanda’s plan was even better. She began to put together a list of things she would like to do with the twins.

  Riccan looked over at Amanda and said, “We should probably head home now. I’m going to have to fly the transfer back to Earth so you will know how to do it.”

  “I can’t wait!” Amanda exclaimed.

  Chapter Eleven

  JENA WATCHED HER parents leave and waited a few more minutes before she talked to her sister about what was really going on in her mind. “Do you want to go to the secret room and hold our samaras?” The last time they had held them, they had received massive amounts of information which was too much, too soon. She hoped repetition would make the messages more clear than they had been before.

  “I don’t know if it’s such a good idea for us to do alone. What if something happens to you again, Jena? I’d never forgive myself for agreeing to do this.”

  “You’re one of the best healers I know. I’m not at all worried.”

  “I wasn’t much help last time, now was I?” Juila still felt bad because she had just sat there and did nothing when her sister had fainted and remained unconscious for several minutes.

  “You were just in shock. Now we know what to look for and we can be on guard against information overload. Come on!”