Not knowing what to expect, she shifted her gaze to the water and waited, and waited, and waited. Remembering his injunction to remain quiet, she resisted the urge to tell him nothing was happening. Then she realized there were small bubbles forming throughout the water. Even as she leaned closer, the water began to move until the bubbles rose and broke through the surface. Steam rose and then she knew he had heated it until it boiled.
“Cool,” she enthused. She shifted her gaze to Jon and saw he was pleased with what he had done. “Why don’t you keep your eyes open? It might make it easier if you can see your progress.”
“You might be right,” he conceded as he reached for the glass she still held in her hand. “I’ll try your idea for this last demonstration.” He put the glass down in front of the now simmering water and stared intently at the liquid which was gently moving. Without missing a beat, he used the movement to increase the activity of the water and drop the temperature at the same time. Much quicker than ever before, he had the water frozen. “You’re right! That was much easier.” He turned and grinned at Sofia. “I can’t tell what use any of these skills are yet, but that’s what I’ve learned so far.”
“Well, as you said, it’s teaching you control of the elemy. I’m sure they have a good reason for the order of the lessons. When you learn more, I know it’ll make more sense. Until then, I must say, I’m very jealous you can do this and I can’t!”
“Maybe you could learn it. Do you want to try? I could try to teach you.”
Sofia held up her hands and said, “Once you learn more, then maybe, but until then, I think I’ll just live vicariously through you.”
“Are you scared?” Jon accused jokingly.
“A little,” Sofia answered seriously.
Jon sobered immediately. “You’re not scared of me, are you?”
“No! Never! I just don’t know if it’d be dangerous for me to try to do what you just showed me without having my own birth crystal. We don’t know what could happen and I don’t want to risk it yet.”
“I guess it makes sense. I’ll talk to Jena and Juila about it when they get home. I’m sure they’d know since they’ve already finished all of the levels of crystal skills.”
“Really? They’ve really learned them all? How many levels are there?” Sofia raised her eyebrows at this new revelation.
“There are twenty-seven known levels, but Jena once said they were only limited by our imagination, so I’m sure there’s bound to be more.”
“Wow, that’s amazing. What else did they say?”
As Jon began explaining, Sofia soaked up everything she learned. She was going to have a lot of questions for the girls when they returned in two weeks. She was so glad she had been on guide duty at the school the day the girls first came to town. Sofia was certain the twins were probably the most fascinating people she would ever meet.
Chapter Nine
THE ARRANGEMENTS WERE made, and Petre found himself in yet another transport. The journey lasted only three seconds as the telepod erupted in the air over Genip proper. He leaned toward the window to see the palatial Residence sprawling beneath the rapidly descending telepod. The pilot remained silent as he efficiently landed the telepod in the designated landing field.
Petre did not even bother to address the pilot as the door opened whisper quiet beside him. He unlatched his seatbelt, stood up and walked out of the telepod. Before he even took two steps away, the telepod was already ascending. Petre scowled at the pilot’s disregard for his own safety and raised a fist in anger. He could almost swear he saw a smirk on the pilot’s face just before the telepod disappeared from the sky above him.
Before his new resolve, he would have planned ten ways to get revenge on the pilot for his slight to himself. Now Petre decided to keep focused on his assignment and forget all about the lowly pilot who would never see such adventures as he was about to embark upon. He marched across the landing field and stood in the short line of visitors to the Residence.
When he was finally at the front of the line, the bored attendant asked, “State your name and your reason for going into the Residence.”
“Petre MacVeen, I’m here to use the Ascension Gate.”
The guard did a double-take at Petre as he recognized the name. “The Gate is by appointment only. You’ll have to come back later. Next!” He leaned around Petre to address the person behind him.
“Wait!” Petre moved to block his view. “I have it on good authority I will be granted permission today. Allow me through!”
“Step aside while I send a request. Next!”
Petre had no other option than to stand in the cold breeze to the side of the guard shack. His patience was wearing thin as more than a dozen other patrons were allowed entrance to the Residence before the guard called Petre back to the shack. Petre could tell the guard had enjoyed keeping him waiting in the cold. He kept his expression blank as he took several steps to be at the front of the line again.
“Permission has been granted. Proceed into the Residence.” The guard barely made eye contact, and he was already busy tapping requests on his patil keyboard.
Unsure of the layout of this particular Residence, Petre asked several people along the way for the proper direction to the Ascension Gate. More than one person seemed hesitant to tell him, so he shrugged and continued on his way. As he suspected, his questions had caused someone to report him to the staff. Before he got too much further into the main hallway, an older man stopped in front of him.
“Are you Petre MacVeen?”
“Yes, Sir, I am.”
“Follow me,” he replied curtly as he turned on his heel and set a quick pace through the expansive hallway. Before long, they were winding their way through narrow, dark corridors.
Petre gave up trying to memorize the path they had taken. He soon realized it was a moot point anyway since he would not be returning through this Gate. Besides, the chances of him ever having to come back to Genip were remote at best.
Each step brought him closer to the unknown destination, and he could feel his palms and armpits sweating. He tried to keep his face drawn to neutrality, but he could feel the tension around his eyes as his fear made his heart beat faster and his breathing became irregular. It would be humiliating to pass out in front of his guide, so he tried to think of something other than the feared Gate at the end of this walk.
“Have you used a Gate before?” the guide asked.
Petre looked over at him sharply, wondering if he had been rude enough to read his mind. He saw only curiosity, so he curbed his reply to, “No, this will be my first. How about you?”
“Sure, it’s one of the perks of working here. My family is from the Telae District, so I make certain to go out to see them several times an anon. I know how you must be feeling, with this being your first time and all. There’s nothing to worry about, you know. Elder Olguin is an expert at using the Gate; besides the journey only lasts three seconds. There’s hardly any time at all to get nervous.” The guide kept his head facing forward to continue navigating the hallways, so he did not see Petre’s look of relief.
This was the first time Petre had experienced someone genuinely trying to be nice to him. It felt pretty good to be on the receiving end. He did gather some measure of comfort from his guide’s advice, and he was also thankful to know how long the journey would take. From what the guide had said, the transfer would only take as long as a telepod relocation, so it did not seem too bad. He felt the constriction in his chest begin to loosen and his breathing became easier and less labored.
“And here we are, Petre. Just go through this last door. Elder Olguin will be waiting for you. Have a safe journey.” He patted Petre’s arm as he moved past him and back up the hallway the way they had come.
Petre looked after him and then turned to face the final door. He felt a chill run through him as he realized this was a one-way trip through the door. How many other people had walked through this same passageway and never re
turned? His thoughts turned darker as he wondered how many people had been lost for all time on their journey.
Shaking his head abruptly, Petre dismissed his last macabre idea and had to believe Elder Olguin knew what he was doing. Besides, the Elder would hardly want to anger Lucinden by sending Petre somewhere other than his intended destination. With this in mind, Petre confidently took the last remaining steps, reached out and turned the knob, and stepped through the entrance.
With his hand still holding the doorknob, Petre was surprised to see how plain and dark the room actually was since it was windowless and only spheres of elemy were used to light the middle. After seeing all of the grand opulence of the Residence, it seemed odd that the most important room should be left unrefined.
“Shut the door and come forward, MacVeen. I’d like to get this transfer finished promptly so my final favor to Lucinden can be discharged.”
Petre jumped at the seemingly bodiless voice since he had yet to see where Elder Olguin was located. Knowing the direction from where the voice had sounded gave him his only clue as to where to look. He promptly shut the door behind him and then boldly looked toward where he thought the Elder would be, only to be startled again when the Elder appeared right in front of him. His eyes grew wide as he tried to control his sharp intake of breath. He hated seeming weak to anybody, especially in front of powerful people.
“This way, MacVeen. Come swiftly!” He plucked at Petre’s sleeve for emphasis before turning and leading the way, confident in Petre’s compliance.
“Why is it so dark in here?” Petre asked as he fell into step behind the short, old man.
“I already know where everything is, and I hate to waste my energy creating more light than is necessary. Step down into the depression, just there,” he said as he pointed several feet ahead of him. “I’m told you wish to go to Winnipeg, Manitoba, on Earth. Is this correct?”
“More or less.”
“MacVeen, this is no time for games. I must be certain of your destination, so please say yes or no.”
“Yes,” Petre answered with a slight rolling of his eyes at how dramatic Elder Olguin was acting. He kept his final destination to himself, as he was beginning to feel as though all of this were a test regarding his discretion. He was not going to reveal anything unnecessarily to anybody. He stepped down into the shallow, dirt hollow. Again, he wondered why the space was left in its natural state rather than being made to look pristine.
“Good, good. Now keep your hands to your sides, you don’t want to lose them in the transfer,” Elder Olguin admonished as he turned to the control panel and began tapping out commands on the plascreen.
“Wait just a minute,” Petre began to protest as his mind registered Elder Olguin’s last words. “Is this going to be dangerous?” He started to raise his arms in protest until his fear of losing them stopped the motion.
With a final tap to his plascreen, Elder Olguin looked up with a glint in his eyes as he answered, “All transfers contain an element of danger. Goodbye, MacVeen.” He smiled wickedly as he could see the fear register on Petre’s face as he hit the activation button to send him on his way.
Petre wished he were anywhere other than where he currently was, yet he was terrified to move a muscle since he could feel the elemy gathering around his body. The sensation was similar to that of a telepod transfer, yet so much different because it was only him. Instantly he began counting in his head, certain he could endure three seconds of the unknown. Panic began to rise faster as he counted five then six seconds. Surely Elder Olguin would not have purposely sent him to his death; the Elder had more scruples than that.
Relief rushed through him as his mind registered full feeling throughout his body again. The transfer had worked, yet he had no knowledge of his actual destination. Supposedly, he had arrived on Earth, yet what it should look like remained a mystery. The utter darkness surrounding him surpassed what he had experienced in Elder Olguin’s room.
Recalling the Elder’s elemy spheres, Petre conjured one of his own in his outstretched hand. He soon discovered he was inside of a cave. He turned around in a full circle before he decided on which direction to attempt to leave. Only two tunnels were leading off of the place where he had been standing.
He had a fifty percent chance of choosing the correct path. Of course, he had chosen the wrong one as he found himself facing a dead end. With a growl of displeasure, Petre turned around and followed his own dusty footprints to lead him back to his starting point. He hated small dark spaces, and this cave was not inspiring any confidence with its seemingly endless twists and turns. He chose the second tunnel and soon found himself outside, facing a vast expanse of forested land and a steep drop off.
Laughing at his own idea of where this Gate would have brought him, he realized the error of his thinking. Civilization was nowhere near. Not only would have to navigate unknown territory, but he would also have to rely solely on his own survival skills until he could ask anyone for assistance in getting to New York City. This task just turned monumental.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Everything came together in a whirlwind of activity. Amanda found herself sitting next to her mother in the first row of the airplane with her father sitting across the aisle. Now that they had the next five hours of travel time to breathe, Amanda’s thoughts returned to her earlier conversation with her mother.
“Tell me what’s going on with Deanna. Earlier, you said she was sick.”
“She keeps fainting at work. She’s been to the doctor several times, but they can’t seem to figure out what’s going on with her. There doesn’t seem to be any rhyme or reason for why she passes out, and, of course, it never happens at the doctor’s office. They’ve run all kinds of tests, but there’re no answers.”
“Does she have any other symptoms?”
“She said she’s tired all of the time,” Diane answered. She sighed and tried to think of anything else her daughter might have mentioned. “She’s also lost weight.”
“Hmm. Anything else?”
“Well, she hasn’t said anything, but there have been many times when I’ve talked to her that she’s forgotten things she said she’d do. When I reminded her, it was like it was the first time she’d heard it. I always thought it was because she had a lot going on, but do you think it could be something more?”
“Maybe. Once we get things squared away with Carrie and the kids, I’ll call her and see for myself.” Amanda closed her eyes. She could hardly believe her perfect, idyllic life could be unraveling so easily. Just that morning she had only to worry about what she was going to do to occupy her time while the girls were on vacation. Now her family was in major crisis mode, and she had no idea how she was going to fix any of it.
Amanda sighed with exhaustion and turned her head to talk to her mother again. Just as she opened her mouth to speak, she realized her mother had fallen asleep leaning against the window. Relieved because her mother was getting the rest she needed, she turned and leaned across the aisle to whisper, “Mom is finally getting some sleep. Why didn’t you tell me everything going on with my sisters?”
“I didn’t want you to worry about them. There’s nothing you could have done, and you had your own recovery to focus on.”
“Still, Dad, you could have said something. I’ve been perfectly fine for the last six months; why not then?”
“You just got married, and then you got your children back. There was nothing you could have done.”
“I don’t have to do anything, Dad, but I can be there to support them. If I had known, I could have made more of an effort to go see them or talk to them on the phone more often.”
“To what end, Amanda? We didn’t even know what was going on with Carrie until it all started to unravel.”
Amanda unbuckled her seatbelt and moved over to the empty chair next to her father. “I wanted to talk to you about Roswell. I called today to ask you about it when I found out that’s where Carrie lives now. Don’t you th
ink it’s too coincidental that my dream had us all going to Roswell to find a way back to Tuala, and now we’re all going there because of Carrie?”
“It is rather odd,” Chris mused. He liked puzzles, and this seemed like the ultimate one. Being personally invested in the outcome did make it harder to figure out, but he was willing to focus his attention on Amanda’s question. “So we’re clearly not needing to find a way to Tuala since you have that angle covered. What else did we learn while we were there in your dream?”
“We met with Shemalla. Do you think she’s also real?”
“I can’t see why she wouldn’t be since everybody else in your dream was real. Maybe we should plan on going to the UFO Museum to check.”
“If nothing else, we’ll be able to see if the displays in the museum are anything like reality.”
“That would be cool.” Having seen, touched, and flown in an actual telepod did take a little of the excitement away from going to look at a display. He was, however, always willing to investigate for any discrepancies.
Amanda smiled at her father’s instant enthusiasm. She usually appreciated his ability to look at the bright side of things, and right now, they needed as much optimism as possible. With the end of their journey being a visit to her sister in jail, they were all going to need to be as positive as possible.
Chapter Ten
VINIA HAD HER work cut out for her with all of the demands from the people of the Roanoke Colony. In the past, they had always been self-sufficient, but with the installment of the patil in Vinia’s house, suddenly they all had specific needs which had to be taken care of immediately. While she had been grateful for their easy acceptance in the beginning, she was starting to feel as though they were testing her to see how much they could get away with before they were told no.
It was not until one of the women insisted she needed a specific type of food to remedy her delicate stomach that Vinia finally put her foot down. “I’m sorry, Agetha, that’s just not going to happen. The patil is to be used for requesting necessities, not for personal pleasure. I’m sorry; I just will not allow this to continue.”
Ascension Vision- The Levels of Ascension Box Set Page 34
