Learn to identify the wrinkles, and you will be able to guide your District to success. Watch for those who flaunt their skills or for those who do not understand what it is they do with their talents. It is your duty to protect even those who do not deserve it. Remember your calling.
Excerpt from the Elder’s Instructional Guide
Chapter One
AMANDA STEL WAS finally able to sit down in her living room and put her feet up on the coffee table. The house was quiet since she had just returned from dropping off her daughters, Juila and Jena, at their grandparents’ Residence in Tuala. Amanda planned on spending a few days alone with her newly wedded husband. There had been so little alone time together since they had been married only five months earlier. It felt as if a lifetime had passed at least.
It was hard to believe that this time last year she had just come out of a seven-year coma. Since then, she had discovered she had lived another life in a different dimension called Tuala, and she had found and married her husband, Riccan. As if that were not enough she had then met with Jehoban, the creator of the universe, and discovered He had chosen to raise her two daughters because they had been so talented with their use of the elemental energy through their birth crystals.
If anyone had told her that at twenty-six years old, she would be married and the mother of sixteen-year-old twins, she would have told them they were crazy. Yet this was exactly as her life had turned out and she would not change a thing. The important people in her life knew what had happened, and they were very supportive of her, making her life perfect.
To any outsider, they would assume the twins were her step-daughters because she was only ten years older than them. The truth was even stranger since they were her birth-daughters. She had slipped through time and dimensions when she had been sailing with her fiancé in the Bermuda Triangle. She had been eighteen at the time, abducted, impregnated against her will, and ultimately helped back home by the same woman who rescued her daughters.
Her husband had also been raised in Tuala. He had literally been a man of her dreams since she had actually dreamed about their relationship while she had been in her coma. Riccan had never even met her when she introduced herself and told him all about his family. Their relationship had been based on trust in one another and an instant bond or recognition because they truly were soul-mates.
Riccan was due to come home any minute. They would be able to enjoy one another’s company unlike they had since before they had found the twins and brought them back. Amanda had several ideas for what they could do together; it all depended on what Riccan also wanted to do with their private time.
Right on time, Riccan came through the kitchen door from the garage. He spotted Amanda sitting in the living room and lengthened his stride to get to her faster. When she turned her head and smiled a welcome, his heart almost melted with pride because she was his wife. He had waited a lifetime to meet the perfect woman, and Amanda exceeded his expectations on every angle. She was not only beautiful and smart, but she also challenged him to do better for himself and his family. He was certain his effort had not gone unnoticed since she seemed as besotted with him as he was of her.
Amanda rose from the couch and rushed forward to embrace her handsome husband. She loved how tall and muscular he was as she held him close to her. She breathed in his clean, masculine scent and it made her change her plans for their evening. They would definitely be staying in tonight.
As if reading her mind, he asked, “Are we alone? Did you take the girls to my parents’ house already?”
Amanda nodded her head and asked, “What are we possibly going to do with all of our alone time?”
“I can make a guess,” he answered as he swooped down and picked her up in his arms.
She squealed with delighted surprise and continued to laugh as he carried her up the stairs to their bedroom. They made short work of undressing one another, and soon they were tumbling across the bed. It was nice to have the house to themselves and not have to worry about being quiet or having someone walk in on them. Soon all considerations were forgotten as they rediscovered one another with their caressing and kissing.
The darkness overtook the room as they remained entangled together on the bed. Riccan rolled over slightly to flip on the nightstand light so he could see his bride’s beautiful brown eyes while they continued to talk about their plans for the future.
Unfortunately, with the return of light, they seemed to come out of their dream state, and they began discussing strategies for finding the remaining four samaras. It was incredible to think they had located the first nine in such a short amount of time, which also led them to believe the timing was right. They both wished to have them all found so they could move on with fulfilling the prophecy.
For once in their relationship, it would be delightful for them to have nothing to do and nowhere to be except for what they planned themselves. As it was, their time was being taken in every direction until they no longer felt like they were in control. They wanted to experience the hectic life as two parents of teenage daughters instead of being in charge of Jehoban’s prophecy.
“Do you think it’ll be over soon?” Amanda asked with a long sigh.
“I’m not sure if I want it to,” Riccan replied with a shrug. “We don’t really know what’s going to happen once the prophecy is fulfilled. I imagine it’ll be a good thing since it is Jehoban’s idea and Lucinden is opposed to it. The only thing which worries me is how it will all come together.”
“I know what you mean.”
“Do you ever get the idea that Juila and Jena know more than they’re telling us?”
“What do you mean?” She had an idea of her own, but she wanted to see how Riccan’s view differed.
“Like when we found the first samaras. The girls already knew the history of them. There’s probably more stuff they learned as students of Jehoban than we’ll ever know. I just hope if there’s anything important, that they’ll trust us enough to tell us.”
“I think they will. Look how easily they’ve adjusted to living on Earth and with us. It had to be a great deal of transition, yet they’ve made it look easy.”
“That’s because they’re amazing, just like their mother!”
“Maybe they get it from their father. You learned to live on both worlds, after all.”
Riccan raised his eyebrows at her comment. He still could not believe the twins were his biological children. They were everything he could have ever hoped for, and he was so proud to say he was their dad.
They laid quietly and listened to one another breathe. Riccan inhaled and said, “I set up the messaging system for the group today. Hopefully, we can all use it to keep one another up-to-date on any news or theories. It might make it easier for us to finish the prophecy, don’t you think?”
“You’ll have to show me how to use it,” Amanda said as she snuggled closer to Riccan’s side. “I’ll be grateful when all of this is over so we can have a peaceful life together.”
“I know exactly what you mean.” Riccan put his arm around Amanda and pulled her closer to him. He never felt as though he got enough time with Amanda and wished he could devote all of his time in being with her.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ahn had had a hard time letting go of his samara. Even though he had never been one to want power, the existence of this extension to his own power created a craving inside him, unlike anything he had ever felt before. He wondered how Barla had been able to keep hers a secret from him, especially since he had felt his own.
He was still amused at the expression Elder Debbon had on his face when he saw the samara being pulled out of the towel. To be fair, it was probably the same expression he, himself had worn when the samara had suddenly appeared in his hands. He had no idea where it had come from, but once it materialized in his hands, he felt as though his whole life had been turned inside out. There were so many unanswered questions which only spending time with the samara could answer.
Once again, Captain Ahn carefully explained how the samara had come to be in his possession. He knew the Elder was asking him with the hopes of figuring out how he could acquire his own samara. With the addition of this samara, they now had located nine of the thirteen samaras. As soon as they were all located, they assumed they would be able to complete the prophecy. They were all anxious to do their part in making it come to pass.
Elder Debbon sat back in his chair and closed his eyes. He tried to imagine the feelings Ahn had described to him. He pulled elemy around him hoping the added power would draw his samara to him. After several exhausting minutes, Debbon had to release the elemy and allow it to seep back into the earth under him. There had to be something more to the calling of the samara than Ahn was telling him.
Because he knew it was possible, based on the evidence in Ahn’s hands, he would continue to try without having an audience present. He could not appear weaker in power than Captain Ahn, so he would wait until he was alone. “You have certainly given me a lot to consider, Captain Ahn. If I have any other questions, I’ll let you know.”
“Thanks,” Ahn replied lamely. Barla was pulling on his arm to get them to go back home. He knew he was stalling, wanting to be with his crystal for only a little longer. Realizing there would never be enough time to gather all of the answers to the millions of questions he wanted to ask his stone, he hastily set it down on the table in front of him and pushed his chair back to stand, all at the same time. “It’s late; I guess we should be getting back home.”
“I will put your samara with Barla’s in the warded room,” he said as he also stood, but did not make a move to walk out with them. He did not want to leave the samara unattended for even a moment until it was safely guarded in the room with the Ascension Gate.
“We’re sorry to come so late, Elder Debbon. Thank you for seeing us,” Barla spoke with a shy smile on her face. She continued to hold onto her husband’s arm as though she could feel his reluctance to leave the precious new object behind. “Do you think we could set up regular times to be with our samaras?”
“Certainly. I think it’d be wise for all of us to be intimately familiar with these objects. From what I hear, they contain enormous amounts of history. We might even find out what we should be doing to help with the prophecy. Come as often as you like. You know the way to the Ascension Gate, right?” He waited until he saw their nods before he continued, “You will both be able to pass through the ward in the room. I would suggest you don’t leave that room, however, so you can be assured of the most privacy possible.”
“Thank you, Elder Debbon. You are most considerate.” Barla tugged once again on Ahn’s arm and began walking toward the door to leave.
“Maybe I should take my samara to the room for you,” Ahn suggested hopefully.
“That won’t be necessary,” Debbon replied hurriedly. “After all, I didn’t have any trouble putting Chelesa’s or Barla’s into the room. Rest easy, Ahn, no harm will come to your new prize.”
Ahn’s expression altered little as he realized he was leaving without the samara. He let his wife lead him through the Residence and back to their telepod. His mind was racing with ideas of how he could shift his workload around so he could return the next day.
“Take us home, honey,” Barla requested.
“I don’t know why we had to come over here tonight,” Ahn replied petulantly.
“Keeping the samaras safe is our first priority, Ahn. Now focus on the home coordinates and take us there. I’m exhausted and ready to go to bed.”
With a shiver of fear at the idea of something happening to his newfound samara, he began tapping the startup procedures on the panel of their telepod. The process took longer than usual since he had to keep reminding himself of each step as none of the familiar routine was coming easily with his mind so torn. After he had fumbled with the controls for the second time, he glanced over toward Barla to see if she had noticed. Of course, she had which only compounded his frustration. With a new resolve, he pushed all thoughts of his samara from his mind and concentrated solely on getting them both home safely.
Barla nodded in satisfaction when she could see the shift in her husband’s mindset. She had been worried about the transfer home with Ahn being distracted. The very last thing they wanted right now was to be lost in the space between during the transfer. They had heard stories of people being lost, and she loved life too much to want to squander it away on a single, inattentive moment.
Chapter Two
VALENTINA HELD HER arms across her chest and realized she was shaken to her core. She had never expected to feel anything for another man after what Grobin had done to her. When Willian had touched her arm, she felt an electrical current course through her whole body. Nothing like that had ever happened to her before, and she doubted it ever would again.
She did not want to admit anything even to herself until after she had spoken with Jena. After all, Jena and Juila were her best friends as well as the only other people her age she knew who were from Tuala. She had a feeling she was going to be causing a huge problem when she told Jena what had happened.
Wracking her brain for a reasonable explanation, she came up with nothing. She had hoped to catch up with Jena when her last class of the day let out even though it was only noon. Since winter break was officially begun, she would have the next two weeks to figure out what had actually occurred with Willian. Surely she had overthought the event, and it would amount to nothing.
She had hurried to her locker to try to get outside before the twins left. Unfortunately, she was too late and had seen Jena and Juila leaving the parking lot inside Sofia’s car. She belatedly waved to catch their attention but soon gave up when she realized none of them was looking her way. Now she would have to wait until almost the end of winter break before she would be able to talk to either girl since they were going to their grandparents’ house as soon as they got home.
Now she sat in her room and wondered what she should do next. Surely she was putting too much meaning into the innocent meeting in the hall at school. When they all returned to school in a couple of weeks, everything would be back to normal, and she would not have to worry about any awkwardness. She had managed to convince herself of this just when her brother came to her bedroom door and announced she had a visitor.
She frowned over at Behn and asked, “I’m not expecting anyone. Who is it?”
Behn raised his hands as he shrugged his shoulders, “Beats me. Mom just told me to tell you as I was passing through the living room.”
More curious than anything, Valentina scooted off of her bed and brushed past her brother as he remained standing in her doorway. She did not have many other friends than her brothers, the Stel twins, Sofia, Luke, and Ryan. Surely Behn would have mentioned it if it were any of those people, so she had no idea who could be coming over to see her without calling first.
She turned from the hallway to the living room and only stared in shock as she saw Willian sitting in her living room chatting with her mother. How had he found out where she lived? What was he doing here? What was she going to say to him? Her steps slowed down as she tried to figure out what she should do next.
Willian turned slightly and saw Valentina enter the room. With heightened senses, he had felt her energy before he even saw her physically. He immediately rose from the couch and turned to face her as he said, “I hope you don’t mind my dropping by without calling first. I didn’t have your phone number; otherwise, I would have. I’m sorry.”
Valentina clasped her hands in front of her and finished walking toward the couch. “How did you know where I lived?”
“I asked a few people at school.” He turned to Valentina’s mother and thought she looked nothing like her daughter. “I wanted to apologize to Valentina for running into her in the hall at school today.”
“That’s very kind of you,” she replied. “I’ll leave the two of you alone.” She stood up and left the room with a smile o
n her face. This was the first time a boy had ever come to the house for Valentina other than the school dance. She was curious to see where this would lead.
Valentina watched her mother’s hasty retreat and then whispered harshly, “What makes you think you could just show up here? You should be concentrating on spending time with Jena before she goes to her grandparents’ house for the break.”
Willian frowned slightly at the idea of Jena leaving again but then realized it was perfect timing for him to get to know this mysterious girl before saying anything rash to Jena. “She has a life of her own. Besides, I would like to get to know you better.”
“What about your betrothal contract? Don’t you think you should be honoring that?” Valentina was more than willing to seem rude if it would only get Willian out of her house. Even though they had not touched, she could feel the energy coursing from him, and it made her feel things inside her which she was scared to acknowledge.
“I’m already here. Can’t we talk for a while?”
With an exasperated sigh, Valentina sank onto the chair across from the couch. “Fine. Whatever.”
Willian smiled and resumed his seat on the couch. It already felt as though he had won the first battle by getting Valentina to spend time with him. Unfortunately, he had not thought this through and found he had no idea what to say to her.
Valentina raised an eyebrow at his continued silence. Finally, she accused, “I thought you wanted to talk.”
“I did. I mean, I do. I just don’t quite know what to say. It seems as though you found out more about me than I did about you, so you have an advantage.”
“Hmph.” Valentina was not going to make this any easier for him. She sat back in the chair and crossed her arms. She was going to remain silent as long as he did even as she could not help but appreciate his chiseled features and admire his good looks.
Ascension Vision- The Levels of Ascension Box Set Page 29