Ascension Seekers

by Amy Proebstel

  Feeling relieved, Amanda stood up and said, “I really must get going.”

  “I wish you could stay longer,” Bryon protested as he stood abruptly. “Let me at least give you a ride back to your telepod so I’ll know you got there safely.” He walked around his desk and opened the office door behind her. “Frasnia, can you give me a set of keys for one of the small pods?”

  The red-headed secretary nodded and speedily procured the requested keys. She brought them over to her boss and held out her hand for him to take them from her. The expression on her face clearly said she desperately wanted to be included in this latest turn of events.

  “Thanks, Frasnia,” Bryon said as he closed his fingers over the keys and turned away from her. Together, Bryon and Amanda walked across the outer office and Bryon held the door open for Amanda. “I’ll be back in about an hour,” he said over his shoulder to Frasnia. He could not resist smiling smugly at her as she seethed for an explanation which was not his to give.

  “Frasnia’s not likely to forgive you keeping this from her,” Amanda said as she swiftly glanced over to him as they walked across the business yard to where the company telepods were secured.

  “I know, but what else can I do?” Bryon shrugged and kept walking until they got to the waiting telepod.

  They entered the craft, settled in, and Bryon activated the unit. “Did you park where you did last time?”

  “Yes.”

  “Okay, you know the drill. We’ll be there in about three seconds.” He concentrated on the coordinates and the world around them went blank as they transferred the distance to the landing field outside of town. Bryon set the telepod down, but he did not power it down as Amanda had assumed he would.

  “What’s going on?”

  “I decided to go immediately to Vinia’s house after dropping you off. There’s no point in delaying any longer. Besides, the longer I stayed in the office, the more opportunity it would give Frasnia to keep drilling me for answers.” He chuckled at his secretary’s insatiable curiosity.

  “Maybe we should try to find something for her to get involved with to keep her busy,” Amanda suggested.

  “Probably,” Bryon conceded.

  “Thanks for the ride, Bryon. Good luck with Vinia. Will you contact me to tell me how it goes?” Amanda stood up from the front passenger seat and started to move back through the telepod to leave.

  “Absolutely. I’ll message you once I get home from work this evening.”

  “Sounds great. Thank you so much, Bryon. You have no idea what this means to me.”

  “I think I have a pretty good idea. Now get going so I can carry on with my assignment.” Bryon smiled to take any sting out of his words.

  “Yes, sir!” Amanda teased back and stepped out of the telepod and walked the short distance to her own transport. She waved over to him, palmed the side door open, and stepped into the pod. Even as she watched, Bryon’s telepod blinked out of existence and she was left alone in the meadow.

  A shiver of apprehension passed through her and she hastily shut the cabin door. She settled herself into the pilot’s seat and fastened her seat belt. Amanda rushed through the startup procedures and entered her final destination coordinates of the garage on Earth. Keeping a vivid visualization in her mind, she hit the activation button and sighed in relief as the world went black around her while she moved through space and dimensions to get back home where she felt safe.

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  VINIA WAS MOMENTARILY speechless as she simply stared at the man standing outside her front door. When she had answered the knock, she had imagined it was her neighbor. The continued silence began to become uncomfortable until Vinia stammered, “Bryon! How may I help you?”

  Bryon was equally stunned as he stared at Vinia. The very last person he had imagined seeing was the person who he was now meeting. “Sorry. Hi. I was asked to bring a message to a woman named Vinia. Is she here?”

  “Yes, Bryon. Please come in,” she said as she stepped back from the door to allow her visitor to enter her house.

  Bryon shook his head in wonder as he walked into the house and looked around for another woman. It had been years since he had set eyes on this woman and he had never expected to see her again after the way they had parted ways so long ago. The house was eerily quiet and he asked, “Where are your kids?”

  Vinia waved her hand non-committedly and said, “Please have a seat. We have a lot to catch up on.” As she watched him settle onto her couch she realized how much Bryon resembled Nealan. She had never consciously noted the similarities before, yet now it was patently obvious. She had picked a man who reminded her of the person who had looked after her so well anons before.

  “I really can’t stay long. Where is Vinia?” Bryon asked.

  Vinia sat down on the couch with a weary sigh and answered, “That’s my name, Bryon.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “When we met all of those anons ago, you know I was in trouble and I was scared. I told you my name was Jinya, which is my mother’s name. My real name is Vinia. What is this about a message for me?”

  Bryon wondered what else about the past had been a lie. He shook his head slowly and pulled the note out from his jacket pocket. He held it out toward the woman whom he now realized looked so much like Amanda. Something strange was definitely afoot. “I was asked to deliver this note from wise-woman Copa. It has to do with Nealan.”

  “How do you know Nealan?” Vinia asked with surprise even as she took the proffered note and began opening it. She did not wait for an answer before she started reading the strange message. Her hands began shaking as she took in the meaning of the letter. “I knew it was too good to be true,” she whispered as moisture began to fill her eyes and the world around her began to swim with unshed tears.

  “I’m sorry, Jinya…I mean Vinia. I know this is terrible news…”

  “You knew what this note contained?”

  “Not exactly, but I am aware of what is going to happen.”

  “But it depends upon my cooperation, right? And you’re certain I’ll help? What will I do, Bryon? Where will I live? Who will keep me safe?”

  “Are you still in trouble, Ji…Vinia?”

  “Not like I was before. My circumstances have changed,” she added lamely.

  “It’s just occurred to me that you will have to move when we take Nealan home to Earth. It won’t be safe for you to remain behind for Elder Vargen to question.” Bryon was thinking out loud and failed to see Vinia’s reaction to the news of Nealan being moved to Earth.

  “I want to go to Earth with him,” Vinia stated.

  Bryon shook his head sadly and answered, “I’m afraid that won’t work.”

  “Why not? I won’t help you unless you promise to take me too!”

  “When Nealan crosses over the veil, he won’t remember his time on Tuala. I’m sorry to be so blunt, but he won’t remember you, Vinia.”

  “Surely he’ll remember something,” she begged as she grabbed Bryon’s arm.

  “Nothing, Vinia. I’m sorry,” he replied as he put his hand over hers to try to comfort her.

  She pulled her hand out from under his angrily and said, “Then why would I agree to this crazy plan?”

  “Because you love Nealan. If he stays here, addicted to resh, he will die. If he goes home, he will be cured and won’t have to even endure withdrawal pains because of going through the veil.”

  Vinia stood up from the couch and walked angrily into the kitchen. She grabbed the edge of the kitchen sink and leaned forward with her eyes shut. Even as she denied to herself the idea of being without Nealan, she knew she would help him. She loved him that much. It was really quite simple. If she loved him, she would have to let him go.

  Bryon stepped quietly into the kitchen and waited until he saw her posture change from defiance to defeat. “You won’t be alone, Vinia. Alena and I will be there to help you after…”

  “After I trick Nealan into
leaving, you mean?”

  “After you save his life, Vinia. You know it’s the right thing to do.”

  “I hate you, Bryon. You’re asking me to tear out my heart and stomp all over it.”

  “I wish I could deny the truth, but it’s the only way to keep Nealan alive.”

  “FINE!” she yelled as she turned around and glared up at Bryon and continued, “I’ll do it! I’ll drug Nealan into a stupor and watch as you take him from my life. Does that make you happy?” She crossed her arms over her chest and glared up at Bryon as tears coursed down her cheeks.

  Bryon took the two steps which separated them and put his arms around her stiff body. He stroked the back of her head as he said, “Seeing you hurt doesn’t make me happy. Thank you for agreeing to do the right thing. I’ll make sure you’re okay.”

  Vinia believed Bryon and finally relented. She uncrossed her arms and hugged Bryon’s muscular waist as she broke down into violent sobs of heartache. After a few minutes she finally regained control of herself and asked the next obvious question, “When is this scheduled to happen?”

  “Tomorrow morning,” Bryon responded gently.

  “Oh!” Vinia sobbed as she felt a new stab of heartache at the nearness of the end of her life as she had built it. “Can’t we put it off until the weekend?”

  “No, it has to be tomorrow.”

  “Why?”

  “Because Elder Vargen will be away on business. It’s the only time it will be safe to take him.”

  “Safe? How do you figure?”

  “Okay, relatively safe then. It’s the best we can do, Vinia. It has to be tomorrow. If we wait any longer, Nealan can die from the resh. You know I’m telling you the truth about the drug. I’m sure you’ve seen signs in Nealan.”

  Even as she hated herself for having to admit the truth she nodded. Her mind whirled at the idea of leaving Nealan, the house, the town, tomorrow. The word tomorrow seemed to loom in her mind as she tried to digest everything at once.

  Bryon pulled the bag of resh from his coat pocket and held it out to Vinia. “This is for his morning tea. Copa left you instructions on its use. Be careful, Vinia. This stuff is really potent if you use it incorrectly.”

  “Don’t you think I know that?” She grabbed the bag angrily.

  “I’m sorry, Vinia.” He held out his hands to offer comfort, but realized she was no longer in need of anything from him. “I should probably get going. We’ll be back to get Nealan at half past seven tomorrow morning. Please have everything packed so we can take you and your kids, too. Good luck.”

  Vinia held the front door open for him and glared at his profile as he walked past her. “Call me if the plans change,” she said woodenly.

  “They won’t. I’ll be back tomorrow,” he said quietly to her before he turned and walked briskly back along the path to where he had parked his telepod.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Amanda and Riccan had stayed up late going over their plans for the rescue mission. The task seemed simple and straightforward which was what worried them the most. Everything seemed to be coming together so easily. Bryon had sent them a message in the evening as he had promised. Amanda let out a sigh of relief to hear Vinia would be on board with the plan. She had no idea of the amount of angst she was creating in the woman’s life.

  “Bryon brought up a good point,” Riccan said.

  “Hmm,” Amanda said as her thoughts slowly came around to what her husband had said. She shook her head and looked directly at Riccan and asked, “What point was that?”

  “We need to find a safe place for Vinia and her children so Elder Vargen doesn’t bring her in for questioning.”

  “That was something I hadn’t counted on. Do you have any suggestions?” She still could not keep her full concentration on their discussion. She was worried about what would happen with Neal once she did bring him back to Earth.

  “A couple…” Riccan let the sentence drop off and hoped Amanda would come up with a solution of her own. He knew she was worried about the rescue, yet she seemed even more scattered than usual. “Amanda, what’s going on in your head?”

  “I know what we’re doing is the right thing, but what about what Neal wants? Should we ask him if he wants to stay in Tuala? Aunt Barla wanted to stay.”

  “If he stays in Tuala he will die from the resh. Once he gets clean of it, then you can find out what he wants to do.”

  “That’s just it, Riccan, he won’t remember anything. I know exactly how terrifying it is to wake up one day and find out that years have passed without me in it. What will I tell his family? Certainly I can’t tell them the truth.”

  “Why not?” Riccan challenged. He personally believed the two worlds should be united.

  “Why not, you ask? Seriously?” Amanda threw the covers off of herself and got out of their bed. She began pacing the room. It was late and they only had a few more hours until they had to get up to start their journey to get Neal.

  “Yes! Why not?” Riccan repeated. He watched Amanda from where he remained in bed. He hoped this conversation could soon be over so they could get at least a couple of hours of sleep.

  “Well, let’s see. You want me to go up to the Taivas family and say ‘I found Neal on another world. He doesn’t remember anything, but trust me when I tell you it’s the truth.’ Now who do you think will be the first person admitted to the loony bin? Me! I can’t risk it, Riccan!” Amanda glared down at her husband as she crossed her arms.

  Riccan patted the mattress and said, “Fine. We can go together and tell his parents we received a tip from an informant in Mexico. We’ll say we flew down to get Neal on the promise to not alert the authorities.”

  Amanda rushed back to her vacated spot on the bed and said, “Your idea will work for exactly one day, Riccan. His parents will be so relieved to get him back alive, but then they will start to wonder why he has no memories. They are going to come to us and ask questions we can’t answer and we’ll be forced to lie to them. I hate this!”

  “Let’s not borrow trouble. We’ll take it one step at a time and worry about the details later. We have to go to sleep now. Lie down.” Riccan patted her pillow and began pulling the covers up to cover Amanda.

  “I know you’re right, I’m just worried.”

  “I know.”

  “I love you.”

  “I love you, too,” Riccan replied as he leaned over and kissed her bare shoulder. “Let’s pray about it, okay?”

  Amanda smiled and offered her hands for Riccan to hold.

  “Jehoban, please guide our steps with Neal. I know You have a plan and will keep us all safe. Thank You for watching over us.” Riccan opened his eyes and squeezed Amanda’s hands lightly.

  “Thank you, Riccan. You always know the right thing to do.”

  “Good night, my love.”

  “Good night.” Amanda settled down onto her side facing her husband. She did not think she would sleep a wink. The next thing she knew, her alarm was beeping. For several seconds, she could not place why she was getting up at such an early hour. Realization hit her hard and she groaned at how exhausted she was for such an important day. She hit the alarm to make it stop beeping.

  “It’s time to get up, Riccan,” she said as she turned over and discovered his side of the bed empty. She touched the sheets and noted they were cold. He had been gone for quite some time. Curiosity got the better of her, and she left the bed to search for Riccan.

  After several minutes of searching, Amanda located Riccan in his office. She walked quietly up to where he sat at his patil. With the way he was sitting, she could not tell if he were reading intently with his head resting on his fist, or if he had fallen asleep. She did not want to startle him awake if he were actually sleeping. Instead, she leaned forward to see what Riccan had pulled up.

  Riccan turned his head at the small sound behind him and jumped when he discovered Amanda right next to him. He smiled as he realized he had scared her as much as she had him. “S
orry, love,” he said as he touched her outstretched hand.

  “What are you reading?”

  “I was hoping to have an update from Rasa.”

  “And…”

  “She sent a message saying some of the Elders have already arrived, yet they are still waiting for Elder Vargen.”

  “It’s still early. Maybe he’s on his way.”

  “No doubt,” Riccan agreed. “I’ll be happy to hear when he’s out of his district.”

  “We need to get showered so when the good news comes we’ll be ready to get going.”

  “You’re right, as always,” Riccan said as he turned the monitor off and rose to properly greet his amazing wife. “Have I told you how proud I am of what you’re doing for Neal?”

  “No,” Amanda said as she put her arms around Riccan’s waist and let herself melt against his body. “I thought you didn’t approve.”

  “I wish it weren’t necessary since the risk is so great, but I understand why you feel the need to get closure for Neal’s family. That’s the reason I love you so much…you always think about others.” He kissed the top of her head and held her close for another several seconds. “Let’s hurry up and get ready. I want to be in the telepod by the time we hear again from Rasa.”

  “Good idea,” Amanda replied as she pulled one arm away from him and walked beside him as they went back upstairs to get showered.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Riccan reluctantly sat in the pilot’s seat of Amanda’s telepod. She had insisted he lead the expedition since he was more experienced than she was. He felt as though he were taking over the mission even though she insisted she did not mind.

  He checked all of the gauges to make sure the telepod was operating normally. Now would be a bad time to have something go wrong with the mechanics. After tapping a new sequence on the glass panel, Riccan pulled up the link to his patil to receive any new messages.

  Amanda leaned forward and also waited to see if any news had arrived from Rasa. She let out a small squeal of surprise when the program beeped and let them know there was an unread message. “Read it, Riccan!” she exclaimed in excitement. She could feel her heart begin to beat faster as their plan began to fall into place.