The rest of the family is introduced, Ray learns the history of his family's people, and takes his place as leader of the family. Hope you enjoy. Jb7
Ray's Ring (Part 10 Family secrets; Ray's new role)
PART 10-A (Prologue and introductions)
Ray pulled into the driveway by the farmhouse he shared with his father, Tom, step mom, Carolyn and step sisters, Beth and Amy. Parked alongside Ellen's Caravan was an Explorer he didn't recognize. Ellen was his recently widowed sister-in-law. Her husband had been shot in a Mom and Pop grocery robbery attempt yesterday. Using the powers of an ancient gold and ruby ring, he had identified and apprehended the individual who had shot his brother. After he and Ellen had visited the bank to retrieve an insurance policy Jake, his murdered brother, had kept secret, Ray and Amy, his step sister and fiancΓ©, had taken the one hour drive to Riverton, where Jake had been visiting a resident of the nursing home located there.
As he stopped behind the Caravan, Diane, the resident and his mother, sent him a thought. "Ginny's here." One of the first powers his ring gave Ray was telepathy, not only enabling communication, but also allowing him, when necessary, to actually control the behavior and perceptions of others.
"Wonder if that means Mom and Dad are back, too," Amy responded. Amy had received a ring similar to Ray's only that morning from an elderly gypsy woman who arrived and left in a patchouli scented cloud of smoke. She had spent much of the day mastering the basic powers the rings conferred.
"The only person I sense in the house isn't anyone I recognize," said Ray. "I suppose it could be Aunt Ginny. I haven't seen her since Mom and Dad got married. I meant Carolyn; sorry Mom."
Diane laughed. "Don't worry about it. Of course you'd call her Mom. She's the only one you've ever really known. It will probably be easier if you just call me Diane."
"You sure? It probably will be easier. It's just going to feel strange for a while. I wish Jake had let me know you were there."
"I told him not to. I think Ginny will be able to tell you why."
Ray got out of the car and walked around to open the door for Amy. After she got out and stretched, he opened the rear door of the Cherokee for Diane. As she exited, Ray realized where he got his body build. Diane was tall, like Amy, around 5 feet 10 or 11. Slender, with small waist and hips, flat in the butt area, and with an average B-size rack. She flashed Ray a knowing smile, and he realized he had been caught checking out his mother. He blushed, while she simply put a hand to his cheek and gave him a brief peck on his lips. She sent him a silent thank you for his appraisal. Amy gave him an elbow in the ribs.
He carried Diane's bag up to Amy's room, where she would be sleeping until more permanent sleeping arrangements could be made. By the time he got to the kitchen to join the three women, Ginny and Amy had been introduced and Diane and Ginny were involved in a hot and heavy discussion about what had to happen, and in what sequence. Amy had gone to check on Ellen's children.
Ginny: "You didn't tell them about the conferring ceremony? You know it has to happen right away. He's developing too fast to wait any longer."
Diane: "I know, but we just met his afternoon. It seemed too much to pile on when we had just had our first face to face meeting in 25 years."
Ginny: "But until he has his, we can't do anyone else. It has to be tonight. Tom and Carolyn agree."
Diane: "What would you all have done if I hadn't come with them?"
Ginny: "Gone to Riverton and done it there. It's not place that matters, it is the people involved, and we are all here now."
"Ahem," Ray coughed, interrupting their mental discussion. "You must be Aunt Ginny," he said extending his hand. "Pleased to meet you at last. I think the last time was at Mom and Dad's wedding, but I don't remember much about that."
Ginny looked at the tall, well built, handsome young man approaching her across the kitchen. Although she was just entering her 50's, she felt a surge in her loins she had not felt in several years. She tried to stand to greet him, but her knees wouldn't support her, so she just plopped back in her seat. "Nice to meet you again, too, Ray. I understand from Amy, Beth and Ellen that you have had a rather busy and eventful week." Ginny glanced at Diane, who was smiling at her sister's discomfiture. "You're objecting to conducting the conferring ceremony with him? Have you lost all appetite?"
"I never said I objected. I just maintained that it might be better to get to know him a little first."
"What ceremony is that?" asked Ray.
"The Adepts have developed a ...." started Ginny
"The Who?" interrupted Ray.
"The Adepts, that is what we, what the people of the colonies call themselves. It refers to people who are adept, errr, skilled at mental manipulation of their environment. For some it is precipitated by the acquisition of one of the monitoring rings left here by Krag-on's people nearly 2500 years ago. For others, for most, it is, or was, a set of skills developed partly through training and partly by heredity.
"The conferring ceremony is a combination rite of passage, recognizing the young person is an adult, with adult privileges, and a show, a demonstration of the individuals' abilities. It brings the community together to witness what cluster of skills the individual has been able to master and ties him or her to the colony in which they were raised.
"From the time of their birth they are taught to view their colony mates as close family. People in the same generation are seen as brothers, sisters and cousins. If they are in fact blood related, it tightens that bond even more. Diane and I are, indeed, sisters. I can tell you within 50 feet where she is at any given moment, even though she lives in Riverton, and I'm in Pine Bluff, 150 miles away.
"It is an especially important ceremony when a new alpha male is identified, as they are the only ones who can confer certain powers on women of the colony. But first, he has to go through the ceremony with the adult alpha females of the colony. Right now the only remaining alpha fems are Diane, Carolyn and myself. "
"Just what does this ceremony entail? Is there some sort of bloodletting Diane is hesitant to engage in, or do we go out at midnight and dance naked around a fire in the dark of the moon?"
"Actually, that sounds like fun," laughed Diane.