Answering Ascension

by Amy Proebstel

  City of Thulen – Major city in the heart of Thulen. A place where Petre has many illegal business transactions. Earth equivalent: Mexico City, Mexico.

  Coral Reef Senior High School – Located in the Richmond Heights Suburb of Miami, Florida. Earth school which Juila and Jena attend.

  Desio – / deh zee oh / – Location where Ninan was dumped off by Petre. District where Copa is the wise-woman. Earth equivalent: Alvarado, Mexico.

  Durseni – / durs en ee / – Earth equivalent: Cozumel, Mexico.

  Elder Isle – Location of Elder Debbon’s seat of power. Earth equivalent: Isla de la Juventud, south of Cuba.

  Florida Middle Ground – Earth’s ocean coordinate off the West coast of Florida.

  Gulf of Thulen – / thoo lun / – Large body of water north and east of Thulen. Earth equivalent: the Gulf of Mexico.

  Ishal – / ish uh l / – Coastal town where Petre conducts illegal trade. Location where Petre dumped the freighter telepod. Earth equivalent: Tampico, Mexico.

  Isla Mivua – / iz law mih voo uh / – Location where the storm transported Amanda to Tuala. Earth equivalent: Cook Island inside the Bermuda Triangle.

  Kendall – Town located southwest of Miami in Florida.

  Kendall District Station – Police station in Kendall, Florida. Location where Amanda is introduced to Riccan.

  Kirma – / kurm a / – Hometown of Bryon and Alena Kesh. Location of Kirma Shipping and Receiving. Earth equivalent: Campeche, Mexico.

  Lookout Tavern – Located in Ishal. Place where the prostitute, Hashma, works.

  Matza – / maht za / – Small town where Bryon seeks healer assistance when Amanda breaks her wrist and is bitten by a beetlesnatch. Earth equivalent: La Isla located south of Cancun, Mexico.

  Mavuno – / mah vun oh / – Location where telepod crystals are mined. Earth equivalent: Villahermosa, Mexico.

  Miami Executive Airport – Airport located in Miami, Florida, where Riccan keeps his airplane hangared. Tower and Ground call sign is Tamiami.

  Old Soul Engineering Facility – A place where they study objects from Earth and reverse engineer them for their own use in Tuala.

  Pantano – / pahn tahn oh / – Home of Elder Daven and Nena. Location where Neal and Amanda started their journey. Earth equivalent: as Boca Raton, Florida.

  Pinecrest – Town located southwest of Miami in Florida where Amanda’s parents live.

  Porino’s Café – A popular restaurant located at the southern port of Cresdon.

  Port of Cerid – / sair id / – Location of the shipment bound for Beewa, but quarantined for a beetlesnatch infestation. Meeting place for Ninan and Petre.

  Port of Cresdon – / krez dun / – Main shipping port in Thulen. Home of Ahn and Barla. Earth equivalent: Cancun, Mexico.

  Reesun – / ree suhn / – The large land mass north of the Elder Isle. Earth equivalent: Cuba.

  Roanoke Colony – A group of 115 colonists from the year 1587 who went missing from Earth and appeared in Tuala. Earth equivalent: Dare County, North Carolina.

  Royal Sonesta – Hotel in New Orleans where Riccan and Amanda stayed in the Presidential Suite.

  Southside Town Deli – Located in the Port of Cerid. Meeting place for Ninan and Petre.

  Tamiami – Tower and Ground call sign for Miami Executive Airport.

  Telepod Engineering Company – / tel uh pod / – Creator and manufacturing facility for telepods. Located in Durseni.

  Thulen – / thoo lun / – Country where Port of Cresdon is located. Earth equivalent: Mexico.

  Trilli Deli – A restaurant located at the main Port of Cresdon. A favorite place for Captain Ahn to frequent.

  Tuala – / to͞o a-lə / – Planet where Jehoban lives. Alternate realm of Earth.

  UFO Museum and Research Center – Located in Roswell, New Mexico.

  Time

  Minggu – / min gew / – Sunday – First day of the week.

  Senin – / sen in / – Monday.

  Selasa – / say law suh / – Tuesday.

  Rabu – / raw boo / – Wednesday.

  Kamis – / kam us / – Thursday.

  Jumat – / joo mawt / – Friday.

  Sabtu – / sab too / – Saturday.

  Nisan – / nee sahn / – January.

  Iyar – / ee yahr / – February.

  Sivan – / see vahn / – March.

  Tammuz – / tah mooz / – April.

  Ab – / ahb / – May.

  Elul – / e lool / – June.

  Tishri – / tish ree / – July.

  Heshvan – / hesh vahn / – August.

  Kislev – / kis luh v / – September.

  Tebet – / te vet / – October.

  Shebat – / shuh baht / – November.

  Adar – / uh dahr / – December.

  Mesan – / may san / – Month.

  Declan – / dek lun / – Decade.

  Anon – / ann un / – Year. There are 365 days and 252 working days in an anon.

  Tuala Anon 3402 = Earth Year 1950 A.D.

  Definitions

  Aquaponics – / ah kwuh pon iks / – A process for growing food floating on water where the water contains nutrients supplied by live fish. The plants filter the water for the fish to survive. Since nutrients are readily available, the produce grows faster and in less space than traditional gardening.

  Beetlesnatch – / beet-l snach / – Black beetle 3-4 inches long, migrates by flying, poisonous bite, lethal to humans and animals.

  Betrothal – A formal union giving children even higher status in the community, approved and blessed by the Elders through a betrothal petition stating each family’s different abilities and what color of crystal each child bears. Only approved if it is a superior union for the good of the society commemorated with a betrothal ceremony along with a pair of matching bracelets or rings with a precious stone. Once the age of majority is reached by both participants, they get married.

  Birth Crystal – A circular pendant containing gem stones arranged as the leaves of a tree assigned to each citizen of Tuala within 24-hours of birth at a crystal ceremony, worn on an ornate chain around their neck. Once in place, the necklace cannot be removed until they reach the age of eighteen. The color of the stone can change with age, friends, or activities. Parents can both see and hear what their children are doing.

  Bruskin – / broos kin / – An alcoholic beverage served cold similar to beer.

  Cessna 182S Skylane – Make and model of single-engine airplane owned by Riccan Stel on Earth.

  Chit – A small electronic disk assigned to respected members of the community. Each is unique to the owner and honored the same as money.

  Clotted Cream – Sour cream.

  Council of Elders – Elders who convene to arbitrate serious matters.

  Crystal Skull – See Samara.

  Deckhopper – Earth equivalent: a pirate.

  Elder – Individual selected and trained by Jehoban in Acaim. Primary role to help/guide the people. Secondary role to protect the Ascension Gates.

  Elder’s Instructional Guide – Several thousand anon old text written by Jehoban Himself and now owned by Riccan.

  Elder’s Instructional Guide’s New Prophesy: From a far-away land, There will come in time, Intuition is in hand, Strange details known, With ties to the people. From one of my own, There will be a sign. Those born to this one, Will transform all. Lucinden will pursue, Elders will fall, Then all made new.

  Elemental Energy – The magnetic energy found in the earth used by the people of Tuala through their birth crystal to create. Slang: Elemy.

  Elemy – / el eh mee / – Slang term for elemental energy.

  Epeny – / ep eh nee / – Drug causing drowsiness and pain relief, an anti-inflammatory. Addictive when used too long.

  Facultas – / fak uh l tus / – Meaning ‘ability.’ A book explaining the Tualan people’s abilities used daily such as: teleportation, telekinesis, translation, deception, healing, amplification. Anything the mind c
an think of, the power can create, without any limitations.

  First-daughter – A girl who is betrothed to a son and brought into the son’s family and raised as a daughter of the family.

  Foxl – / fox-l / – Mammal with fur five inches long, straight when dry, curly when wet, head like a sheep, body size and shape like a cow, herbivore.

  Gania – / gah nee uh / – A measure of distance equivalent to an Earth mile.

  Genero – / gen air oh / – Meaning ‘to create’ or ‘creation.’ A book covering the creation of the worlds, Jehoban and his wayward student named Lucinden, and the beginning of the Elders.

  Glawlet – / glaw let / – A common breakfast consisting of a fresh warm roll filled with a poached egg covered in a sausage gravy.

  Golden Jesisca – 60-foot yacht owned by Nealand.

  Inside Ascension – Phrase to use at a Gate on Earth to get to Tuala.

  Invisibility Shield – A plasma field around an object rendering it undetectable from viewing outside of the field.

  Java – / jaw vah / – A stimulating beverage served hot or cold similar to coffee.

  Kittilee – / kit-l ee / – A miniature feline similar to a common house cat.

  Krumpli – / krump lee / – Edible tuber similar to a potato.

  Ley Lines – / lay / – Concentrated lines of magnetic energy in the land. Ascension Gates are located where multiple lines intersect. Healers use the ley lines and crystals to assist with their talents to treat their patients.

  Life-line – The non-physical core of every living thing which ties into the elemental energy of the earth. Wise-women access a person’s life-line to accelerate healing.

  Lottery Pool – The two lottery pools are called the short list and the long list. Draw from short list if the person declines post-study education. Short list retirement times range from nothing to one declan. Long list used for post-study graduates separated into two lists: one for general arts students where retirement times range from ten to fifteen anons; the other for declared major students where retirement times range from fifteen to thirty anons.

  Master Deceptor – A person who has mastered the skill of making people believe a lie augmented by the use of elemental energy.

  Old Soul – A Tualan name for a person from Earth.

  Outside Ascension – Phrase to use at a Gate on Tuala to get to Earth.

  Patil – / pah til / – An electronic device used for storing/accessing information, making video calls, and scanning/printing documents similar to a computer.

  Pika Juice – / pahyk ah / – A fruity beverage similar to orange juice.

  Plascreen – / plah screen / – A large touch-screen plastic surface on a telepod which maintains all of the controls for telepod flight.

  Plasfilm – / plas film / – An algae-based plastic used to make household items such as plates and cups, also used for making photographs and important documents such as schematics.

  Plasprint – / plas print / – A large design schematic printed on plasfilm. Similar to a blueprint on Earth.

  Post-Study – Advanced education similar to college.

  Resh – Highly addictive drug in Tuala used as a sedative. More addictive to people from Earth than from Tuala.

  Residence – Place of business for an Elder.

  Retirement – The amount of time immediately following formal education where the people are paid by the Elders to not work until their allotted time.

  Samara – / suh mair uh / – Name of the crystal skulls. Twelve skulls were distributed to the descendants of the Watchers while the master skull is held by Lillia.

  Samara Prophesy – ‘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.’

  Shill – Smaller denomination of money, a silver metal coin with ribbons of leaves curling around the edges. Ten shills equal one taj.

  Spetch – To jump over a narrow area such as a creek.

  Sportsman Class – The middle racing class of telepods, with a mid-sized body and crystal drive, achieving decent speed and noise. Sometimes operated with sponsors.

  Steena Tea – / stee na / – Sweet flavor with a minty finish, settles the stomach, refreshing.

  Stock Class – The beginning level for racing telepods, with the smallest body, generally slower because of smaller crystal drives. Some of these racers use expensive technology to enhance the power causing contention among other stock racers. Almost exclusively privately funded by the drivers.

  Supplemental Teaching Guide – Book of instruction inspired by Jehoban to help the Elders understand the way Jehoban wants the world to be maintained.

  Swimmers – Anyone found swimming in need of rescue.

  Taj – Highest denomination of money, a gold metal coin with a rose on the front. The average wage per anon is 350 taj.

  Telepod – / tel uh pod / – A wingless aircraft providing a means of air transportation, powered by a large crystal drive where the color and clarity determined the speed and reliability, operated by mind control, transferred from one location to another telekinetically.

  Tocolas – / tow koh luhs / – A red, corn-based chip colored and flavored by tomato juice, lime juice, and salt.

  Top Sportsman Class – The highest racing class of telepods. The largest telepod body and crystal drive, achieving faster speed and noise. Almost always operated with sponsors.

  Translate – The ability to move telekinetically from one location to another without the use of a telepod.

  Tunic – / too nik / – An upper garment, either loose or close-fitting, and extending over the pants or skirt to the hips or below.

  Unity Song – ‘Crystal around the neck, Follow the next step, Changes today, Changes tomorrow, We all become one.’ Taught to all children of Tuala to sing.

  Water craft – A smaller boat usually operated by one person.

  Wise-Woman – A healer formally trained by an Elder. Giver of birth crystals and officiant of the crystal ceremony.

  SNEAK PEEK AT

  BOOK SIX

  Ascension SEEKERS

  AVAILABLE 2018

  Chapter One

  AMANDA HELD THE samara in her hands as she turned and looked at her mother. She had seen so many visions of what was to come and now she knew what her next step should be on her journey.

  “What is that thing, Amanda?” Diane asked. She had been worried when her daughter had remained immobile for so long while holding the strange clear, crystal skull.

  “This is a samara, Mom,” Amanda said as she continued to hold it in both of her hands, completely amazed because she had found it in the first place. It had only been a hunch she had followed up on from her memories to come to the Cannon Memorial Asylum. She had hoped to find a clue to lead her to a samara; instead, she had found the object itself.

  “What is a samara?” her mother asked with a skeptical expression on her face. She looked up from the strange object to her daughter’s face. Amanda looked positively radiant, healthier than she had looked since before her seven-year coma, in fact.

  “There is a legend in Tuala about there being thirteen of these skulls. Each samara was given to a different individual to hold through time to keep it safe until they would be needed again. We believe with the revelation of the new prophecy that these samaras are the keys to the success of accomplishing the prophecy.”

  Amanda had tried to simplify the complicated task for her mother, but she was sure it would only lead to more questions. At the moment, she knew the stone in her hands was the reason for her coming to this facility. Since she had custody of the object, they should probably leave before someone questioned them. “I think we should get out of here, Mom,” Amanda said as she reached for her voluminous purse which was hanging from her shoulder. She carefully placed the samara in her bag and took a step toward the door to the hallway.

  Diane seemed to think Amanda’s suggestion about leaving seemed a rather perfect idea.
She had not liked the feel of the building since the moment they had parked in the parking lot and looked up at the imposing brick structure. It was hard to imagine people had actually been kept here, both voluntarily and involuntarily, while they were psychologically evaluated or studied. She followed Amanda into the hall and matched her pace as they walked back to the elevator.

  They left their visitor badges with the unfriendly receptionist and walked out the front door. They both took a deep breath of relief as they exited the building and crossed the parking lot to their rental car. There was an uneasy sense which both of them could feel even as they were getting farther from the building.

  Amanda dug the key out of her purse and brushed her finger against the samara as she did so. She received another burst of energy, more intense than a static shock, but not painful. It was more surprising than anything, and she swiftly grabbed the key and withdrew her hand. She clicked on the remote to unlock the doors even as they were still approaching the economy class car.

  As Amanda dropped down into the driver’s seat, she tossed her purse onto the back seat. She put the key in the ignition and started the engine before she even had the front door closed. As soon as she saw her mother’s door shut, Amanda shifted the car into reverse and backed out of their parking space. The sooner she left the premises, the better she would feel.

  She pulled onto the main road leading away from the asylum and drove without any regard for direction for a good five minutes. Suddenly she pulled on the blinker and turned off of the road.

  Diane was shocked at the sudden change and gasped, “What are you doing, Amanda?”

  “I needed someplace private, away from the asylum, to check out the samara a little closer,” she replied even as she pulled into a parking space and turned off the ignition. Amanda had chosen a small playground in which to stop the car. She reached back and pulled her purse into her lap.

  She did not want to risk any further revelations from contacting the crystal with her skin, so she folded the bag down until the sun sparkled on the smooth surface of the top of the skull. Something had been nagging at her mind since she had first touched the stone. If her husband were correct, then she could find out who should be the correct owner of the samara by checking the color of the aura surrounding it.