Ascension Seekers

by Amy Proebstel

  They made good time back to the telepod. Again, Amanda uncloaked it as they stepped toward it. The door was swiftly closed behind all of them. Amanda sat in her seat, buckled up, and said, “Get buckled. We’re going home as soon as I can program it.”

  “Is something wrong?” Valentina asked. She was starting to get nervous with Mrs. Stel’s attitude.

  “Nope, and we want to keep it that way!” Amanda answered as she completed the startup procedures. She tapped the preprogrammed ‘home’ button on the plascreen. She made one last check to make sure everything was green and ready before hitting the activation button.

  When light once again surrounded them, it was the muted illumination from inside their garage. Amanda saw her hands were slightly shaky as she set the telepod down and turned off all of the power.

  “Will someone tell us what just happened?” Valentina asked impatiently.

  Juila turned in her seat and said, “We went there to pick up an ancient artifact which had been left hidden there. Unfortunately, someone had taken it before we got to it. Mom and I traveled back in time to get it before whoever else got it. Mom wanted to make sure we got back home before anything bad could happen.”

  “Wow!” Behn said. “Can we see what you found?”

  “Sure,” Amanda said as she picked up the box and removed the lid. She lowered the box so the passengers could see the crystal skull sitting inside.

  Valentina’s eyes widened and she said, “The last memory I have of Tuala is our mother holding that thing in her hands! Was it hers?”

  Amanda nodded even as she said, “I’m not sure. A wise-woman I know gave it to a woman who she knew would need to use it. The woman was the caretaker of it until we could get it back. It could have been your mother, I guess. Although I got the impression from Copa that the samara had only been hidden for about a year. How long ago did the three of you come to Earth?”

  “Eight years ago,” Behn answered.

  “Hmm. Copa said she gave it to a woman named Vinia…” Amanda mused.

  “That’s our mother’s name!” Valentina almost shouted in excitement.

  “Then it probably was the one your mother used. Let’s get inside, shall we?” Amanda said even as she replaced the lid on the box and stood up. She reached back to the control panel and hit the door button.

  Just as they exited the telepod, Jena opened the garage door and said, “You guys did it! I could feel the power even from inside house.”

  While they walked into the house, Juila filled in the details to Jena through their mind link. It was a speedy way to share information privately.

  Jena’s eyes widened at a memory.

  “What did you just remember, Jena?” Juila whispered. She hated it when Jena shut her out of her mind so rudely.

  “Did you try to talk to me when you went back in time?”

  “Yes, you know I did. You talked back to me.”

  “I did answer you, but that was way back in October. It wasn’t today. I remember how odd the conversation was back then. I never said anything about it because I thought it was so strange. I didn’t want it to change anything so I kept it to myself. I totally get it now.”

  “Jena, you must promise me you’ll tell me if it ever happens again! It may be important for us to know it for future events.” Juila grabbed her sister’s arm and squeezed to emphasize her point.

  “Ouch! Let go, Juila. I get it! I’ll tell you, okay?” Jena rubbed the spot on her arm where her sister had been holding. She used some elemy to soothe the underlying tissues so she would not bruise later.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  RICCAN ENTERED THEIR home with a spring in his step. Not only was he eagerly anticipating finding out how his wife’s visit with wise-woman Copa had gone, he had news of his own. He thought he would have to find Amanda somewhere in the house, yet he was pleasantly surprised to see her making dinner, by hand, in the kitchen.

  “Something smells good. What’s for dinner?” he asked as he leaned down to kiss the side of Amanda’s neck.

  She giggled and squirmed away from his playfulness. She finished peeling the last two potatoes as she said, “It Thanksgiving dinner, silly!”

  “Oh, yes! I knew there was a special reason I got home early from work today!” Riccan teased. He never really had any occasion to celebrate Thanksgiving before, but now he was very thankful to be with his brand new family for this first holiday.

  “The turkey should be ready in about another half hour. My parents will be over in about forty-five minutes.” She cut the potatoes up and dropped them in the cold water on the stovetop. She turned the burner up to high and went to rinse her hands in the sink. After she dried her hands off, she gave her full attention to her husband. “You sure are in a good mood. What’s up?”

  Riccan grinned and said, “I want to hear about your day first. Are you at a good stopping spot, or should I use a little elemy to move things along?”

  “Too little, too late! Everything is progressing nicely. I have time while I wait for this water to boil. We can go sit down in the living room where I can keep my eye on everything in here.” She grabbed his arm and directed toward their favorite spot on the couch.

  She nestled in close to him, tucking herself under his arm as he rested it along the back of the couch. “My day was almost perfect. I met with Copa and she gave me what I’ll be needing to get Neal back home. It’s even worse than we thought with him since he’s addicted to resh. For Tualans it’s not a big deal, with Earthlings the drug is deadly over time. Neal doesn’t have too much more time before it’ll be too late. I’m really glad I’ll be going to get him in a few days.”

  “I’ll be glad to finish this chapter with Neal, as well,” Riccan said as he caressed her shoulder with his hand. “I think you’ll be able to relax once he’s back home with his family.”

  Amanda was about to admonish him for being jealous until he reminded her of the grief Neal’s parents were surely still going through every day he was missing. She nodded in agreement. Suddenly her mood brightened as she twisted up to look him in the eyes. “I found another samara today.”

  “What! Are you serious? You just went out and found one?” Riccan sat up straight and grabbed both of Amanda’s arms in his excitement. “Tell me everything! Where is it?”

  “Slow down! Copa told me where one was hidden. Apparently, the samara which the triplets’ mother used to send them to Earth was left behind near the Roanoke Colony. Juila, Behn, Valentina, and I went over there and retrieved it.”

  “Just like that? It was really so simple?” Riccan was shaking his head in disbelief at how easy this was for his wife. He had been trying to find the other skulls for over fifteen years and had never come across any. In the short time since he had known Amanda, she had discovered four of them.

  “Of course it wasn’t quite as simple as what you’re saying. Juila and I had to time our travel back to October to pick it up,” Amanda stated simply. She really did not know how Riccan was going to react to her new skill.

  Riccan was still processing the idea of her acquiring yet another samara and did not really consider the idea of Amanda’s unconventional means of travel. “What color is its aura? Did you check? Where is it?” He looked around as though it would be sitting on the coffee table as a conversation piece.

  Amanda chuckled at him and said, “I put it with the others. I haven’t had time to check the color yet, either. Do you want to go and see what it is?”

  “Absolutely!” He stood up and offered his hand to help Amanda up from the couch. “Hey, you just reminded me of my news.” He reached into his pocket and withdrew a piece of paper which was folded into fourths and very creased from being in his front pocket. He handed it over to Amanda and smiled while she opened it.

  Her eyes scanned the contents of the message. “Where did this come from?”

  “My dad sent it to me at work just as I was leaving. C’mon let’s go to the library,” he said excitedly. He grabbed her ha
nd and almost ran down the hall to get to the secret room.

  Amanda giggled again at Riccan’s enthusiasm.

  They wasted no time entering the chamber behind the wall of books. Right away, Riccan could feel the added energy of the newest samara. His eyes were drawn to the niches in the wall where all of them were lined up in a row. Even though they appeared identical to the undiscerning eye, he could tell immediately which one was his own since it appeared to have a shimmer of color surrounding it.

  Both of them concentrated on seeing the aura of the new samara. Riccan was first to confirm the color and he waited patiently for Amanda to come to her own conclusion. When he saw her eyes refocus on the room he asked, “What did you come up with?”

  “A bright sky blue,” Amanda said and then frowned. She looked down on the list of birth crystal colors and their owners which Daven had sent to Riccan. She did not see anyone listed with a blue. “It’s not here, Riccan. Either we’re wrong about the assignments, or this one belongs to Barla. It doesn’t make sense, though. Barla doesn’t have a birth crystal, Riccan. Jehoban said he would give her one. Do you think this means she’s gotten hers?”

  Amanda was bursting to find out if it were true. She wracked her brain to try to figure out a way to find out other than going back to Jehoban to ask. An idea suddenly came to her and she asked, “Can you get ahold of Rasa, Riccan? If you can, then we can ask her if she knows anything about her mother. Maybe Jehoban even asked her to give it to her mother! Riccan, please tell me you can reach Rasa!”

  “Relax, Amanda. I’m sure I can get a message to her. What would you do with the information anyway? Didn’t Jehoban ask you to keep your relationship with Barla to yourself until He told you differently?”

  “This has got to be a sign, Riccan.” She could see he was about to protest when she held up her hands to stall his response. “I’ll pray to Jehoban and see how He answers me. Okay?”

  “It’s the very least you could do. Angering Jehoban is never wise, Amanda. Be careful, okay?” Riccan began walking back into the library so he could go to his office to send Rasa a message on the patil.

  Amanda followed more slowly. She closed the book wall and rested her back against the shelves. With her eyes closed she folded her hands, bowed her head, and spoke, “Jehoban, please hear my plea. Please give me a sign letting me know if now is the time to reveal my relationship to Barla. I believe this samara belongs to her, but I will not make any move to find out if it’s hers until You show me it’s the right thing to do. Thank you for everything You’ve done for me and my family. In Your name, I pray. Amen.”

  She felt a peace flow down over her as though her petition had been heard. With a lighter step, she walked through the library to join Riccan in the office. By the time she entered the room, Riccan was already busily typing out a message to Rasa. Immediately after he hit the send button, a video call came in to the patil.

  Riccan looked up at Amanda quizzically as he hit the receive button to take the call. He smiled brightly when he saw Rasa’s face fill the screen. “Rasa! I just sent you a message.”

  “I know. I saw it come through and it reminded me I needed to call you anyway.” She leaned back slightly from the screen as she readjusted herself in the chair. “Is Amanda around?”

  “Yes. She’s right behind me. What’s going on?” Riccan asked even as he shifted to the side to allow Amanda to view the screen alongside him.

  “Oh, good! Hi, Amanda,” she said as she waved in greeting.

  “Hi, Rasa. It’s good to see you again. Did you read Riccan’s message?”

  “No.”

  “Oh, well I was just wondering if Barla had received a birth crystal yet.”

  “Yes, it’s what I was going to tell you. Right after you left the meeting with Jehoban, He asked me to meet with Him. He gave me a crystal and had me perform the birth crystal ceremony for my mother. My brother and I have been training her to use it. I can’t tell you how excited she was to finally get one! I’m so mad at myself for not asking for one for her before you did. Thank you so much!” Rasa paused to take a breath.

  “I’m so glad to hear she got one. What color was it? Bright blue, maybe?” Amanda asked with a grin.

  “Yes! How did you know?” Rasa’s eyes grew round with amazement.

  “I’d rather not say just now, but it does help to prove a theory of mine,” she said as she looked down at Riccan. “Actually it’s a theory of ours,” she added as she nodded her head down to indicate her husband as well.

  “It sounds very mysterious,” Rasa grinned in reply. She did not want to press for an answer to the cryptic remark since it was not her place.

  “I have another question for you. Jehoban had asked me not to reveal my relationship with your mother until a later date. Do you think the time is now? I have something vitally important to discuss with her and I think it’d be easier if she knew I was her niece.”

  “Give me a second and I’ll ask Jehoban for you.” Rasa closed her eyes and her hand unconsciously came up to hold her birth crystal while she spoke with her mentor. Only a moment later she opened her eyes again and smiled as she replied, “Jehoban has given you His blessing to carry on with your work as you see fit.”

  “Just to clarify, I can tell Barla?” Amanda did not want to anger the Creator over any misunderstanding.

  “Yes. He just has a more eloquent way of phrasing everything.”

  “Is the convocation still set for the first?” Riccan asked.

  “Yes. It has been arranged for everybody to come here to Manzanit to meet with Elder Wilken since he’s the one who is presenting a successor. So far, it appears it will take a minimum of two days. Oh, that reminds me. Are you going to see my mom anytime soon?”

  “Probably tomorrow. Why?” Amanda answered as she leaned over Riccan’s shoulder.

  “Can you let her know that family is not allowed at the convocation?”

  “I’ll tell her. Oh, can you send us a message when Elder Vargen arrives for the convocation? It’s really important.”

  “Sure.”

  “Great! We don’t want to take up anymore of your time. Thanks for calling, Rasa.”

  “Thank you! Have a great day.” Rasa’s picture clicked off as she disconnected first.

  Riccan turned and looked up at his wife and said, “Everything is working out perfectly, Amanda.”

  “I know. I have to tell you, it makes me nervous for it all to go so smoothly.” Amanda sank down onto his lap and draped her arm behind his head.

  Riccan leaned into her chest and found he did not mind consoling her at all. In fact, he was starting to get other ideas the longer she remained so close. His hand began to rub her side and travel upward. He grinned devilishly and began kissing on her neck.

  Amanda wanted to continue, however, dinner was not going to take care of itself. She leaned back and said, “I’ve got to go check on the food. I’m sure the potatoes are probably done.” She stood up and sauntered from the room. She knew Riccan was enjoying the view as she swayed her hips. Amanda looked back over her shoulder and asked, “Are you going to help with dinner?”

  Riccan sighed with disappointment at his failed attempt to be amorous and answered, “We could forget about dinner and go upstairs.”

  “What would my parents say if there weren’t any food for Thanksgiving dinner, Riccan?”

  “I could always whip something up in an instant,” he offered, hoping he might convince her to change her mind.

  “Sorry, Charlie. I’ve put way too much effort into this dinner to let it burn. Besides, don’t they say abstinence makes the heart grow fonder?” Amanda smiled coyly.

  “I don’t think it’s abstinence, my dear,” he said as he crossed the room until he was standing directly behind her. “It’s absence, and I don’t plan on having that, either.”

  “There’ll be time later tonight for your tryst. Come help with dinner. My parents will be here before you know it,” she said as she took his hand in h
ers and led him from the room.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Just as dinner was ready, Riccan casually announced, “I asked my parents if they’d come to dinner tonight. I hope you don’t mind.”

  Amanda stared at Riccan for a moment before she answered, “I didn’t even think to ask them, Riccan. I’m so sorry. It was terribly thoughtless of me. I was so concerned about everything being perfect for my parents since this is the first Thanksgiving since I came out of my coma. Of course it’s okay for them to come, too. I’ve made enough food for an army. I just hope it tastes as good as it smells.”

  Riccan was relieved to hear his wife was not upset with an addition of two to dinner. He really should have discussed it with her before asking. Besides, Thanksgiving was not a holiday celebrated in Tuala.

  “Where will they park, Riccan?” Amanda suddenly asked.

  “I programmed the third bay into their telepod,” he answered offhandedly.

  “What time are they coming?”

  He looked at his wristwatch and said, “They should be here any minute, actually. I told them to arrive at the same time as your parents, but they are notoriously early.”

  Amanda kissed her husband on the cheek and said, “Good, you can wait downstairs for everyone while I go and freshen up.”

  When Amanda came back downstairs, Daven and Nena had already arrived. She gave both of them a hug and welcomed them to the house. They were moving to the living room to sit down to talk when the front doorbell rang. Amanda started to turn to answer the door when both Jena and Juila rushed down the stairs.

  “We’ll get it, Mom,” Juila called over when she saw her mom turn.

  “Thanks,” Amanda called back.

  Diane and Chris greeted the twins with hugs and the four of them came together through the foyer toward the living room. Amanda’s parents had been so consumed with their conversation with the girls that they had failed to notice the addition of Riccan’s parents until they were fully into the living room.