Ascension Discovery

by Amy Proebstel

  “So you are the Roderick Rockwood I’ve been searching for?” Riccan wanted to make sure of his identity before he went any further.

  “Didn’t I just say so? I’m too old for you to beat around the bush, boy, ask your questions,” he said with a chuckle before he plugged the pipe back into his mouth.

  “I’m writing an accounting of the family legends. I’m told you may have some ideas or facts about a certain crystal skull which had been handed down through the generations. I’m looking to find out where it came from and to whom it was originally given. I don’t care how ridiculous the story sounds, it’s still a part of our history, and I’d like to get it documented while there are still people alive who remember,” Riccan announced.

  “Why would you want to waste your time on such a silly legend?”

  “Like I said, it’s still a part of the family history. Besides, I think it will be a good story to tell my children someday,” he answered as he tried to make light of how serious he took the story.

  “You have children, do you?” Roderick asked.

  “None yet,” he said and glanced across at Amanda before continuing, “But I’m hoping to someday.”

  “Well, since you came all this way, I guess I could tell you what I know. It seems an awful waste of time, but I don’t have much else going on these days,” he began. He took another drag from the pipe and exhaled the smoke before continuing.

  “The story I’d been told, and mind you I think the whole thing is hogwash, is the skull was a gift to my great-grandfather Thomas Rockwood,” he spoke slowly and then coughed as the smoke went down wrong. Once he caught his breath again, he said, “This story could take a while. Let me go inside and get us each an iced tea. The day is far too warm for a long story without refreshments.” He levered himself up using the arms of his rocking chair and ambled to the front screen door.

  Amanda did not want to see the old man try to carry out three glasses and hastily offered, “Let me help.” She stood up and held the screen door for Roderick to lead the way to the kitchen.

  Riccan could hardly believe they may actually have a decent lead on getting to the bottom of where the skull originally came from. Each family member he had already spoken with said they only remembered their grandfather having it, but nothing more. Riccan was on the verge of entering the house to see what was taking the two so long when he heard Amanda laughing as she backed up to the screen door as she held the tray of iced drinks out in front of her.

  Amanda waited for Roderick to be seated before she leaned over and offered him the first glass of tea. She smiled as she turned to offer the second one to Riccan. After both men had taken their glasses, she set the tray down on a small wicker table and took her own glass. She settled herself in her chair again and cradled the cold beverage between her hands.

  Roderick took a long gulp of his tea and smacked his lips together. “Nothing better to wet the mouth than a good tea! Now, where were we?”

  “You said your great-grandfather Thomas Rockwood was given the crystal skull,” Riccan supplied.

  “Oh, yes, yes. It seemed Thomas was quite a philanthropist in his time. He was born and raised in France in 1776. He was always willing to help his fellow humans when he came across a family which was quite destitute. He offered them a place to stay in his barn until they could get themselves back on their feet. Naturally, it caused quite a scandal because of who the guests were. The townsfolk did not approve of Thomas’ decision, and many stayed away from his house until the guests were gone. The family ended up staying for over a year because their littlest one became very ill during the bad winter.

  “Thomas hired a doctor to treat the little girl, and she eventually recovered. Thomas also hired a blacksmith to repair the family’s wagon so they would have a place to keep dry as they traveled.”

  Amanda’s curiosity got the best of her. “Why were the townspeople so against the family in need?”

  “Oh, didn’t I mention that part? They were gypsies, girl. Everyone of that time knew you couldn’t trust a gypsy, so it put Thomas in a hard situation socially. Anyway, eventually it came time for the family to move on and the man of the family approached Thomas with a gift of the crystal skull.”

  “Did you ever hear the name of the gypsy man?” Riccan asked.

  “Well, now, I’m not sure. Let me ponder that for a moment,” he replied as he took a sip of his drink and shut his eyes to concentrate better. He took a couple of puffs from his pipe.

  The smoke drifted toward Amanda making her regret her choice of a seat. She did not dare wave the smoke away from her face for fear she would offend the old man. She had to hold her breath until the worst of the smoke cleared from around her head.

  Suddenly his eyes flew open. “His name was Sampson Scamp! Silly name, I know, but that’s why I remembered it. Let’s see…his wife’s name was Celia!” He smiled triumphantly at Amanda and conspiratorially whispered as he tapped his forehead with his weathered finger. “I’ve still got it going on up here.”

  Amanda grinned back and said, “I never doubted it for a moment!”

  “Do you know if Sampson happened to say from where he’d gotten the skull?” Riccan asked.

  Roderick squinted his eyes as he reviewed his memories. “To the best of my recollection, he told Thomas he had received it in trade from another gypsy.”

  Riccan felt his hope drop with this new piece of the story. He believed it to be difficult enough to locate a gypsy family, but now he had another unknown gypsy to try to locate. Shaking his head at the disappointment, Riccan decided to change tactics. “Did the gypsy Sampson say anything to Thomas about the skull?”

  “Oh, yes, he gave him a great story. He told him there were thirteen matching skulls. He said they contained great power and if they were ever brought together in one place, they had unimaginable power. There was some babble about opening the gates to other worlds and such nonsense,” he scoffed and took another drink of his tea.

  “Can you try to remember the exact wording for the opening of the gates?” Riccan pressed.

  “You can’t be taking this stuff seriously, can you?” Roderick looked intently at Riccan.

  “I just want an accurate account for the historical document on it. Can you recall the exact phrase he was told?” Riccan did not want to seem too desperate for the information because he did believe exactly what the gypsy said to his family about the powers of the crystal.

  “Okay, give me a moment to try to remember.” He lowered his head and puffed some more on his pipe.

  Amanda and Riccan stared at one another for several minutes before Roderick finally raised his head and spoke again. Riccan was beginning to wonder if the old man had fallen asleep and he was thankful he had not reached over to shake his arm.

  “This is the best I can do: ‘When the descendants of the Watchers bring these all together then the gates between the worlds will be open for all to pass through without a loss.’ I told you it was all a bunch of hogwash,” he scoffed.

  “Okay, that talks about all of the skulls together. Did the gypsy say anything about the skull when it was by itself?” Riccan continued his line of questions.

  “Sure, he said it brought luck and prosperity to the owner. He, naturally, did not believe this to be true because of the calamity which had befallen his family after he had taken the skull in trade. His daughter very nearly died, after all.” He lifted his glass and drank until the ice clinked against his false teeth.

  “Can you think of anything else which might pertain to the crystal? Anything at all?” Riccan asked one final time.

  “Only that it’s just a legend. The skull was lost many generations ago if it ever existed at all. It’s getting rather late, kids. I think I might head in for a nap before supper. Feel free to stop by if you’re ever in town again. You can leave your glasses on the tray when you’re done.” He stood up slowly and carried his glass and pipe into the house. He let the screen slam shut behind him.

 
They both only had a couple of sips remaining, so they finished quickly and put the glasses where Roderick had instructed. They descended the stairs and left the yard through the garden gate. The house was well behind them before they began to talk. Both were going over the things which had been revealed.

  “That was certainly enlightening,” Riccan began.

  “Had you heard any of that stuff before?”

  “No, it was all new to me. All the other relatives just scoffed when I asked about it and told me to find something better to do with my time. Just think, if we hadn’t found Roderick today, we might never have heard the story at all. He’s so old; I can’t imagine he’ll be around for very much longer. My guess is he knows even more, but I just didn’t know what to ask for with him.”

  Amanda pondered the conversation and then concluded, “I don’t think he knew any more than what he told us. My guess is he liked to listen to his great-grandfather tell stories when he was young. He was probably the only one who believed Thomas because he was so young.”

  “Maybe you’re right,” Riccan conceded as they continued the walk back to their rental car. As they were driving back to the hotel, Riccan realized they had completed their task for this journey. If he had been smarter, he would have figured out a way to drag the process out longer so he could stay away with Amanda. “It looks as though we’ll be heading home tomorrow morning.”

  Amanda sighed and stared out the window at the scenery they were passing. The old buildings were so stately, and the people were so friendly. She wished this trip could have lasted at least a bit longer. Her mother would be thrilled for her to return early. She thought of a way to delay the inevitable. “Do you want to find out where the vendor got his crystal skull from? He may have a fresher lead?”

  He liked the idea Amanda was proposing, but he was unwilling to risk Amanda’s safety just for some additional information. He finally replied, “It’s just too risky. Those guys coming after us were not going to take no for an answer. I’d rather just cut our losses and head home with another piece of the puzzle in our hands.”

  After another sigh, Amanda had to agree. “I guess you’re right. I still wish this could have taken a little longer. What do you suppose Roderick meant by the ‘descendants of the Watchers?’”

  Riccan shook his head and said, “I don’t know, but you can be sure I’ll try to research it as much as possible.”

  Amanda stayed quiet for the rest of the journey since it did not seem as though Riccan wanted to talk. She went over the interview several times to see if anything else seemed particularly strange. She smiled inwardly that the gypsy’s surname was Scamp. It seemed ironic because of the type of people they were.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  ONCE BACK AT the hotel, they ordered dinner through room service again. Amanda would have preferred to eat in one of the open-air cafés she had seen, but she could tell Riccan wanted to lay low until he had his crystal skull safely tucked into the secret room at his house. She could understand his reticence, but it still did not keep her from wishing it could have turned out differently.

  When the meal was finished, Riccan went to the safe and took the crystal skull out. Once again he set it on the coffee table in the living room. Looking anxiously at Amanda, he asked, “Do you feel any power emanating from it now?”

  Amanda nodded emphatically. She had felt it the moment they had walked back into the hotel room. With it right before her, she could almost see an aura of power surrounding it. Suddenly an idea hit her. “Riccan, can you see someone’s aura?”

  “Yes. Can’t you?”

  “I haven’t gotten that far with my training with your father. Is it my imagination or does this crystal have an aura?” Amanda looked excitedly at Riccan.

  He drew power from his birth crystal and set up the parameters for aura detection. As soon as it was in place, he gasped as his eyes fell on the skull. “It’s as bright as any rainbow I’ve ever seen. It has every color in it, but it also has a shadow of black. That’s odd; I wonder what that means.”

  “Do you think the skull you already have will match this one’s aura?”

  “I don’t know, but you can bet I’ll be checking as soon as we get back home. I’m halfway tempted to try to catch a flight home tonight.”

  “I wouldn’t be opposed as long as you said I could spend the night at your house instead of sending me home,” Amanda agreed with her condition set in place.

  “It’s a deal!” he announced. He jumped up from the couch and pulled out his cell phone from his pants pocket. He dialed up the airline and within a few moments had made arrangements for their tickets to be exchanged for a flight which was leaving in an hour and a half. They did not have much time to pack their belongings, but they did not have much to begin with.

  Riccan checked out of the hotel, and the valet brought the car around. With the baggage in the trunk and the crystal skull in Amanda’s purse, they drove as fast as they could to get to the airport. They checked their bags, went through the TSA checkpoint, and immediately boarded the plane.

  For the first time during this trip, Amanda was truly excited because she was going to be alone with Riccan at his house for the entire night. This was going to be like it was in her dream. They had a new mystery to solve to which she was going to be a part.

  While the passengers were still boarding the plane, Amanda’s phone rang. Naturally, it was her mother checking in. She paused before answering the call because she did not want to lie to her mother, but she also did not want to tell her the truth about their trip. Her conscience got the best of her, and she hit the call button.

  “Hey, Mom.”

  “Just making sure you’re still okay. How’s New Orleans?”

  “Hot!”

  “Have you made any progress finding Riccan’s uncle?”

  “Yes, we met with him today. He had some great family stories to share with Riccan.”

  “Do you know when you’re coming home?”

  “Probably tomorrow. There are a few other leads we want to check out before I come home.”

  “Okay, as long you’re staying safe.”

  “Never better, Mom. Oh, sorry, Mom. I’ve got to go. Love you!” She hit the button to end the call since the stewardess was waiting to take their drink order.

  “Sorry about that,” Amanda said to the stewardess as she gestured to her phone. She promptly requested a tomato juice.

  The stewardess smiled at the passenger and said, “No problem. Just make sure you turn off your cell phone before we take off.” The stewardess noticed Amanda’s bag tucked into the seat beside her and said, “You’ll have to stow that either in the overhead compartment or under the seat in front of you before we pull away from the gate. Would you like me to put it in the overhead bin for you?”

  Amanda was not particularly fond of either option, but she decided she would feel safer if the bag was in the overhead bin. She zipped the top and handed it to the stewardess and said, “Thanks.” She watched carefully to make sure the contents stayed intact and then nodded to the stewardess as she finished.

  The flight was uneventful, and Amanda enjoyed the perks of flying First Class. She and Riccan talked in hushed tones about what they were going to do when they got back to Florida. Amanda was happy to hear he had not decided to send her home after all. She had not believed he would, but there was still a small chance he would rethink the matter and change his mind.

  They made it back to Riccan’s house within an hour of the airplane landing. Riccan carried their suitcases inside and left them at the base of the grand curving staircase. “We can take care of these later. Let’s go to the library,” he said as he hurried down the hall.

  By the time Amanda reached the library door, Riccan had already opened the secret wall and was entering the room behind. She hurried through the opening while she unzipped her purse. When she got to the table in the center of the room, she had not even reached into the bag when she noticed something was wrong.<
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  Riccan had moved to the far wall and was reaching into the niche to pull out the second skull. His hands touched the cold surface causing him to freeze where he stood. There was a power now surging through the stone which had never been there before. Usually, the energy inherent in the crystal would make the hair stand up on the back of his neck and on his arms. This new energy was nothing like how it had always been.

  “Riccan? What’s wrong?” Amanda noticed how still Riccan was standing. She promptly put her purse down on the table and rapidly walked around the table. She touched his arm to get his attention and immediately understood what had him rooted to the floor. She felt the immense power as it surged through him and into her.

  The combined touch lessened the impact of the energy which allowed Riccan to be able to move again. He brought down the carved stone and together they walked it over to the table. Riccan set it down and took his hands away with more than a little effort.

  Amanda was more skittish now as she reached in to pull out the tissue wrapped crystal skull and set it on the polished mahogany surface, careful not to touch the stone with her bare hands.

  Now that the two stones were together in the room the power had not just doubled, but rather it had quadrupled. She could just imagine the feeling of the power if all thirteen of the stones were put into the same room. It was not hard to believe these stones contained enough power to open a gate between the worlds.

  “It’s pretty unbelievable, Riccan. What do you see for the aura of your original stone?” Amanda suddenly remembered to ask.

  “One second,” he said as he prepared himself to see it. “Wow, it’s very similar to the other one except instead of a black band on the outside, my original one has a deep red band. I wonder what that could mean. Do you have any ideas about it?”

  Amanda considered before answering, “Maybe it’s the only way to be able to tell them apart.”