Ascendants of Ancients Sovereign - By Phillip Jones Page 0,75

on one of the mattresses. “First, you must name it, then you must quiet your mind and learn to speak with it. You must learn to feel its power and allow it to flow through you. This can be the hardest part of training for a new sorceress.”

Helga motioned for Shalee to take a seat on the mattress next to the staff. “I’m going to leave and give you some quiet moments to work on this communication. Some women find this experience to pleasurable once they understand what to do.”

Shalee placed a hand to her chin. “So ... all you want me to do is name it and figure out how to talk to it? Sounds easy enough.”

Helga smiled. “Sounding easy and being easy are two different things. There’s one piece of advice I must give you before I go. Make sure you name your staff something simple ... a word with no more than one or two syllables, Child. This is important. One or two syllables only. Don’t forget.”

Shalee watched as Helga left the room. “Well this is weird,” she chuckled. “I’ve never talked to a petrified stick before.”

Shalee studied the room, taking note of every detail. I feel like I’ve been here before, she thought. I know this place. I’ve seen it in my dreams.

Shalee turned her attention to the staff and nudged it with her foot. “Shall we have a ourselves a conversation?” she asked as she leaned forward to pick it up. “I can’t believe I’m talking to a piece of wood. Huh, first things first. I’m supposed to name you. What’s a fabulous one or two syllable name that tickles me pink?”

Shalee thought for a bit and then smiled as she remembered a name that made her feel good inside. She would steal the name of a magical item that she had seen in a movie. The name rolled off her tongue every time she said it. It was the name she had given her favorite coffee cup. No one was here from Earth to object, so why not abscond with it for her own use?

“I think I’ll call you Precious. I like that. How does Precious sound to you, Precious?” She slapped the top of the staff with the palm of her hand and sassily said, “High-five.”

Once the staff’s name had been uttered, Shalee found new admiration for it. “So ... how do I feel your power, Precious?” She giggled at the thought of talking to the stick.

Shalee spent the next considerable amount of moments staring at the staff, waiting for something to happen. She concentrated and tried to feel something—anything. When nothing happened, she fell back onto the mattress, set the staff beside her and then placed her hand on top of it in hopes that her touch would break the ice. All she wanted was the smallest sign or hint that she was doing something right. At one point, she became frustrated enough to sit up and play peek-a-boo with the staff.

Now, fellow soul ... can you imagine a grown woman sitting in a room all alone, covering her face, and then yelling “peek-a-boo” at a large, petrified stick as she peeled her hands away from her eyes? I find Shalee’s playfulness amusing. But enough about how I feel. Allow me to get back to the story. It’s about to get interesting.

Shalee was sure that anyone seeing her display of idiocy would have put her in a padded room and thrown away the key. She had to laugh—she was already in a padded room. The only thing she needed now was a straight jacket. But it better have lace, she thought.

It was not much longer before Shalee took her hand off the staff and gave up. She was tired, so she closed her eyes to get some rest. As soon as her mind quieted, that was all it took for the staff to communicate. It was gentle at first, but the sensation grew as it sent waves of energy coursing through her body. The feeling was awesome.

Shalee sat up. “Lordy, Precious, that was amazing. I want more of that. High-five, little darling.” She slapped the butt end of the staff again.

After placing the staff back on the mattress, she flopped onto her back and concentrated, but nothing happened. Now she was more frustrated than before since she knew what she was missing. What am I doing wrong? She thought as she took a deep breath. Alrighty ... let me think. What was