Outside Ascension

by Amy Proebstel

  Chris sat in the chair Diane had vacated and smiled at his youngest daughter. She looks terrible, he thought to himself even as he said out loud, “You look wonderful. Are you feeling okay?”

  “I’m fine, now, Dad. I’m glad Momma’s finding out when I can leave. I want to go home so badly it hurts.”

  “I don’t want to put any pressure on you, but Dr. Flores said you couldn’t remember anything about the last fourteen months. Has anything come back to you yet?”

  Amanda thought about it for a few seconds and then quietly said, “I’m sorry, Dad, I don’t remember anything. Dr. Flores said, given time, it might come back to me, though.”

  “Maybe so, maybe not,” Chris reassured her and then continued, “it doesn’t really matter. We’re just glad to have you back. Your mother was scared to have you go sailing with Neal, yet she tried her best not to ruin your first adventure with her fears.

  “And then not more than a week after you had left, we were contacted by the Coast Guard because a mayday was issued from Neal’s yacht. Then we had word from the Coast Guard when they had found Neal, but not you. Your mother was distraught since her sister was also lost at sea all of those years ago. She kept saying it was happening all over again, and she couldn’t bear the loss.”

  “I didn’t know that was how Aunt Barbara died,” Amanda said into the silence.

  “Yes, your mother doesn’t like to talk about it.”

  “I’m glad to hear Neal is okay.”

  “Well, I’m not sure okay is exactly accurate,” Chris began, but then stopped talking.

  “Tell me what happened, Dad.”

  “As best as we could find out, there was a squall which hit where you two were sailing. Neal said he heard the wind rising and went up on deck to check your coordinates. While he was up there, the yacht hit something and Neal called in a mayday. He was on his way back below deck to get you when a rogue wave hit the side of the yacht and launched him overboard. He said he was plunged under the water for a few seconds and then broke the surface in time to see a flash of light. Neal said when his eyes adjusted to the dark again the yacht was just gone. We were sure he meant it sank, however, rescue crews have yet to find it.

  “When he found out you were missing he went berserk. His family hired search parties to cover a vast area of the Gulf of Mexico in search of you. The search and rescue crews looked for three weeks before they finally had to concede you most likely had drowned and were eaten by sharks.”

  “That’s horrible! How’s Neal now?”

  “He hasn’t been the same, but he’s finally moved on. I have to tell you, Amanda, he searched for you for almost a year until his parents forced him to stop. Once they convinced him to move on, he started dating again. About three months ago he met a woman named Angie and they appear to be pretty serious about one another.”

  “Oh,” Amanda replied as she looked down on her left hand and noticed the engagement ring still on her finger extending out from the cast. “I guess it means our engagement is off,” she ended lamely.

  “We’ll see, Amanda. Don’t worry about it right now. You need to concentrate on getting yourself healed so we can get you home.”

  “I think I’ll heal faster if I go home right now!”

  “I’m sure your mother will get it taken care of right away. It’s all she talked about the entire flight over here,” Chris assured her as he stroked her hand and looked lovingly at her face.

  A short time later, her mother came striding confidently back into the room with Dr. Flores in tow. He came forward and looked at Amanda’s chart at the foot of her bed. He nodded, looked up at Amanda, and said, “If you feel up to it, I can sign your release papers right now, and you can go home with your parents.” He raised his eyebrow waiting for Amanda to reply.

  “I can’t think of anything I’d rather do,” she replied with a delighted smile on her face.

  “I’ll have the discharge nurse handle everything right away then,” he said and then turned to her parents. “She’ll need to have her arm checked when you get back home since it was broken pretty badly just below the elbow. Make sure she drinks plenty of fluid, especially on the airplane, and put her to bed as soon as you get home. Her body is pretty beaten up, and rest will be the best medicine.” He waited to see if they had any questions, then when nothing was forthcoming, he walked to the door and said, “I’m glad we were able to reunite your family. Take care.” He opened the door and walked out.

  A short while later a nurse appeared with two bundles and a folder of paperwork. She set the bundles at the end of the bed beside Amanda’s feet and then turned to Chris and Diane while opening the folder. In broken English, she said, “Need here you to sign.” She pointed out the various spots for Chris and Diane’s signatures. She smiled at them as she closed the folder and then she pointed to the two bundles. “Good clothes home for Amanda to wear. These dirty when in she came. You good to leave. Have good day.” She nodded at the family and then left the room.

  Diane shooed Chris out of the room in her haste to get Amanda dressed and ready to leave. She opened the first bundle and removed an obviously Mexican shirt and a plain pair of pants. At the bottom of the bag was a pair of Mexican sandals which were a little big for Amanda, but better than nothing.

  With a little bit of a struggle, Amanda was dressed and sitting on the edge of the bed, ready to leave. She was exhausted, yet she was not about to let anyone know just in case they decided she needed to stay longer. She wanted nothing more than to go home and sleep in her own bed.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~

  The flight home was uneventful and, good on her word, Diane put an unresisting Amanda straight to bed. Amanda luxuriated in the feel of the mattress beneath her, and she breathed deeply of the smells of home. She slept immediately and woke up quite a while later.

  Amanda gingerly pulled herself out of the bed, relieved herself in the bathroom, and then made her way through the house looking for either of her parents. She found them both in the kitchen. Amanda noticed her dirty bag of clothes on the floor by her mother’s feet. She looked up inquiringly at her mother and raised an eyebrow, “Find anything in there to tell me where I’ve been?” She was making a joke of it but changed her mind when she saw the serious look on her mother’s face. “What is it, Momma?” she asked with concern as she ambled across the room and sat at the kitchen table next to her mother.

  Diane was holding a tattered bundle of papers in her hand and she shook her head trying to figure out what to say. “I found this in your pants pocket,” she said as she waved the papers carefully.

  “What does it say?”

  “The envelope said ‘Open this when you get home.’ I opened it and read it to Chris, but we’re having a really hard time believing what it says. Why don’t you read it and tell me what you think.” She handed the papers to Amanda and sat back while she watched Amanda read.

  At first, Amanda was baffled by the story unfolding on the page. She did not recognize the handwriting, yet as she continued to read, she started to see images in her head of the events described on the paper. By the time she read through to the end of the narrative of her time on Tuala with Barla, she remembered her promise to find Barla’s family. She excitedly asked her mother, “There was another envelope with this letter, right?”

  Diane exchanged concerned looks with Chris and replied, “Yes. I haven’t opened it yet. Amanda, can you explain what this is talking about?”

  Amanda was bursting with excitement; she remembered Barla and how she had taught her about Tuala. “I promised Barla I’d find her family and let them know she’s okay,” she announced with enthusiasm.

  “Did this Barla woman write this letter? Are you trying to say everything written here is true? You expect us to believe you were on Tuala which is really on Earth, but a different dimension?”

  “Yes, it’s exactly what happened. Barla told me I wouldn’t remember anything once I passed through the veil because Jehoban placed a protective
barrier to keep us from interfering with their lives. Where’s the other letter, Momma? Barla wouldn’t tell me who her family was while I was there and I’m dying to get started on finding them for her.”

  Diane hesitantly reached into the tattered envelope and pulled out a smaller sealed envelope which read ‘For finding my family’ on it. She scowled as she saw the handwriting, but she handed the envelope over to Amanda.

  Amanda was nervous with excitement as she tore the envelope open. She quickly read the following:

  My name on Earth was Barbara Silnack. I was born on January 21, 1945, in Oconto, Wisconsin, to Sydney and Ellen Silnack. The last place I know of my mother, Ellen, was that she was living in Chico, California. She worked for an egg carton manufacturing plant called Spade Manufacturing. I have a younger brother, named Saul Silnack, who was born on January 19, 1946, who joined the Navy to avoid the draft. I also have a younger sister named Diane Silnack who was born on October 1, 1947. I don’t know if Diane ever married or what her occupation could be since she wasn’t out of high school when I disappeared. I hope this has been enough information to get you started on finding my family. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

  P.S. Please be sure to tell my family how happy I am and also about my son and daughter. My mother will be pleased to know she has at least two grandchildren.

  Love,

  Barla (Barbara)

  Amanda gasped as she finished the letter; it all made sense now. She finally understood why she felt Barla was like her mother; Barla was her mother’s long-lost sister! She remembered Barla’s daughter looking so much like herself; it was because they were first cousins. Her hands began to shake as she held out the letter for her mother to read. “I think once you read this, you’ll believe.”

  Diane scowled as she took the proffered letter. She read the first line and gasped. Chris jumped up and started to read the letter over her shoulder. “Oh, my!” Diane exclaimed over and over as she read through the letter. “This is Barbara’s handwriting! She’s alive, Chris, she’s alive!” She looked up at Amanda with tears in her eyes and said, “Tell me everything about her. What does she look like? Tell me about her husband and her children.”

  “I can’t believe I didn’t see it while I was with her. I even told her she felt like a second mother to me, and now I understand why. Her husband is a wonderful man named Ahn who is the Harbor Master; it’s considered a very high position in their society. Together they have a twenty-one-year-old son named Gravin and a nineteen-year-old daughter named Rasa. I didn’t get to meet either of them since they were away at school, but I saw a painting of them when they were children and Rasa looked exactly like I did at the same age. I even commented on the similarity in looks between us and told Barla it was kind of spooky.”

  Just then the phone rang interrupting their conversation. Chris got up and answered it. He returned quickly and said, “Neal’s on his way over to see Amanda for himself. He doesn’t believe she’s back!”

  “I’m gonna go get myself presentable then,” Amanda exclaimed as she stood up from the chair and tried to hurry back to her room. After fumbling around in the shower, she finally yelled for her mother to come help her wash her hair, it proved too difficult to keep her casted arm out of the water. Diane toweled her hair dry and then proceeded to brush it straight. Amanda paused while applying her makeup and looked up in the mirror to watch her mother’s expression as she applied the brush to her hair. “I’m glad to be back home, Momma,” she spoke quietly into the silent room.

  “You’ve brought me back my sister too, you know,” Diane remarked as she continued to brush Amanda’s hair. “We’re all very blessed to have you safely back in our family. Now, let’s find you something nice to wear. I think I heard Neal’s car in the driveway.”

  They picked a short-sleeved button-up shirt to make it easier for Amanda to get into it. She rummaged one-handed through her drawer until she found her favorite pair of slacks to wear. Her mother put a pair of black dress socks on her feet for her and then she slipped on a pair of black flats. With one last look in the mirror, she decided it was time to go out and greet Neal. For some reason, she was unaccountably nervous to see him. She was not sure if it were because she knew he had moved on and they were no longer going to get married which bothered her or if it were something she almost remembered on the edge of her thoughts.

  She walked into the living room with her mother beside her and saw Neal and her father sitting across from one another. Neal stood and stared at her as though she were a ghost. All at once, Amanda remembered what had been so important back in Tuala; she needed to find Neal to tell him he was a father. “Oh!” Amanda exclaimed startling everyone in the room.

  “What is it, honey?” Diane came closer toward Amanda and held out her arms to hold her up if it seemed necessary. “Are you hurting?”

  “No, it’s just I remembered I had to tell Neal he’s a father!”

  “What?” was the chorus of exclamations from everyone in the room.

  “Eight and a half months after I arrived in Tuala, I had twin girls. They’re yours, Neal!”

  “It’s impossible. I mean…we didn’t…I mean…I don’t remember if we ever…” Neal stammered and stuttered as he tried to imagine being anyone’s father. “How come nobody told me about any kids? Where are they?”

  Full realization dawned on Amanda as she stood facing her family. She spoke with dread as well as resolve, “They’re still in Tuala. I’ve got to go back and get them…”

  Jasmine had been so intrigued by Amanda’s story she forgot to pay attention to the time. She heard the door rattle as the attendant was doing his medications round and she quickly ended Amanda’s session by saying, “Amanda, you are going to awake at the snap of my fingers feeling rested and refreshed.” She snapped her finger just as the door opened.

  “Dr. Medin, what are you doing in here?” the attendant asked suspiciously.

  Without missing a beat, she replied, “I found myself just down the hall from Amanda’s room when I realized it was almost time for her next session. I decided to wait with her until you arrived so we could walk together back to my office. Now, can we please get this taken care of? I do have a schedule to keep.”

  The man seemed to think the doctor’s answer sounded reasonable so he walked forward and handed the cup to the woman on the bed.

  Amanda took the medication readily enough, but she had questions for Dr. Medin. Something was different about this session…she remembered.

  Follow Amanda’s amazing adventures in

  INSIDE ASCENSION.

  Dear Reader,

  Thanks for watching out for Amanda, even if it were a little stressful.

  This may seem like an understatement…until you delve into Inside Ascension. This time Amanda needs to purposefully enter Tuala.

  Although it’s dangerous, Amanda’s need to find her children cannot be denied. It feels like fate has conspired against her. Will she find a way back to rescue her children from the unknown?

  You’ll love this next installment in the Levels of Ascension fantasy series, because the stakes have never been higher.

  Get it now.

  Thanks,

  Amy Proebstel

  P.S. Reviews are like potato chips to authors…we eat them up.

  People

  Ahn – / ah n / – Husband of Barla. Father of Gravin and Rasa. Harbor Master at the Port of Cresdon in Thulen. Former shipping captain.

  Alena – / ah leyn a / – Maiden name: Bellen. Wife of Bryon. Mother of Justan and Kyelon. Trained as a wise-woman.

  Amanda – / uh man duh / – means ‘beloved’. Born September 28, 1972, in Florida. Maiden name: Covington. Daughter of Chris and Diane. Fiancé of Nealand. Mother of Juila and Jena.

  Andera – / an dair uh / – Daughter of Zeka. Betrothed to Justan. First-daughter of Bryon and Alena.

  Angie – / an jee / – Nealand’s new girlfriend.

  Barla – / bahr luh / – Born January 21
, 1945, in Wisconsin. Maiden name: Silnack. Formerly known as Barbara. Sister of Diane. Aunt of Amanda. Wife of Ahn. Mother of Gravin and Rasa.

  Bryon – / brahy uh n / – Surname: Kesh. Husband of Alena. Father of Justan and Kyelon. Manager of Kirma Shipping and Receiving.

  Ceren – / sair in / – Born approximately 3412. Adopted son of Ahn and Barla. Works at the Port of Cresdon for Captain Ahn.

  Chris – / kris / – Surname: Covington. Husband of Diane. Father of Amanda and two other daughters.

  Corva – / kor vuh / – Foster child of Ahn and Barla. Her parents died in a house fire.

  Debbon – / deb uhn / – Elder whose base of power is on Elder Isle.

  Diane – / dahy an / – Born October 1, 1947. Maiden name: Silnack. Sister of Barbara and Saul. Wife of Chris. Mother of Amanda and two other daughters.

  Dr. Flores – / flohr ez / – The doctor treating Amanda in the hospital in Cancun.

  Ellen – / el uh n / – Mother of Barla, Saul, and Diane. Maiden name: Hill. Married name: Silnack.

  Frasnia – / fraz nee uh / – Secretary at Kirma Shipping and Receiving.

  Gatson – / gat suh n / – Personal body guard for Elder Debbon. Main residence is on the Elder’s Islet at the seat of power.

  Gravin – / gra vin / – Born Elul 30, 3421, in Port of Cresdon. Son of Ahn and Barla. Brother of Rasa.

  Hashma – / hash muh / – A prostitute at the Lookout Tavern. Filed a sexual assault lawsuit against Petre. Mother of Petre’s child.

  Issyn – / ih sin / – Shipping captain who rescued Amanda from swimming. Friend of Captain Ahn. Main port of call is Port of Cresdon.