Opening Doors/#ThursdayDoors

Hello friends, I am hopping on board the #ThursdayDoors train today, that wonderful prompt hosted by my talented friend Dan Antion of No Facilities fame . If you haven’t done so already you need to follow his blog and get your copy of his new books in the Knuckleheads Dreamers Alliance series. 

I have been woefully absent from blogging lately due to putting final editing touches to my novel manuscript and hopefully getting it published soon. Dan is a wonder being able to write, publish, host a successful blog and still take care of household business. 

While my hubs and I do have personal challenges, a lot of my time is spent enjoying the peace of life in Paradise. We’re not jet setters and excitement for us might be going to the border for some duty free shopping. Joy is sitting on the terrace watching the birds and butterflies and happiness is getting together for a nice meal with friends now and then. 

While I do have some doors to share to keep my post ‘legit’, I also wanted to share an excerpt from my book with you here. Appropriately enough, it is a passage wherein the main characters are summoning an old power to reopen a portal between realms. I hope you enjoy it and that it might inspire you to know more. 

These characters are two among the Circle of Light, special humans created to protect the idyllic world of Domhan. After a devastating blow to this world came a long period of isolation for the humans as they worked to return to a normal life. Alas,  the struggle between the powers that rule Existence cannot rest and they must all return to the reality of their promise…

Excerpt from Forever Never/Dawn of the Dream

Copyright Cheryl Pennington 2022

With a mighty knock 

they will turn the key

and through the doorway

be able to see..

“Where are you going?” Laoch asked when Naofa passed the cottage and headed toward the spring. 

“Just trust me,” she answered.

He followed her across the stream and when they slipped between the cliff and trees, the moonlight was lost.   The torch they’d brought was a blessing as she scoured the ground for something to push back the wall of vines over the entrance.  Suddenly Laoch gripped her arm.

“What?” she asked, seeking his face in the dim light.  He nodded toward the thick tangle of growth, wide eyed.  It rustled and quivered as the living wall lifted of its own accord.  Naofa smiled.

“Well look at Domhan helping us,”  she whispered excitedly.  “This means we’re doing something right.”  She ducked inside with the torch high and Laoch close behind.

She kept it raised as they moved through the passage, illuminating the low ceilings so Laoch didn’t crack his head. Once inside the cavern the Warrior began lighting the other torches. 

“Wait!” she stopped him.  “Only half.  We’ll need the darkness for this,” she advised, ignoring her mixed feelings about what they were going to do. 

Naofa found the items she needed from the ledge and took them to the short wall, skirting the eerily still pool.  Without sunlight filtering in through the cracks, everything looked different.  The water was a silvery black hole where the reflection of light from a single torch flickered on the surface.   She motioned for Laoch to bring the torch and they knelt beside the pool where she placed her things on the rock while he wedged the torch into a large crack behind them.

“What is all this?” he asked.  

“These are the stones and oils I use for the searmanas… the time of ritual and celebration.”  She unstoppered a small flask and tipped it over a hollowed out stone.  Fragrant oil trickled into the depression and when it was full, she touched the edge of the torch to it. Fine sweet tendrils of gray mist swirled into the darkness above. 

“Ah, now I remember.”  he whispered.  Naofa initiated and oversaw every ceremony they had back in the time of peace. He’d been awed by her way with flame and fragrance, movement and prayer, her words floating above their circle into the night like a song.  

The scent of burning oil hung heavily in the great room,  but she wasn’t finished.  She placed a small bundle of dried herbs beside the stone and touched it with the flame, watching as it crackled to life.  She cupped her hands and waved them over the flickering light until the flame died to a red glow.  When she blew against it softly, puffs of smoke rose into the air.  The smell was pungent and sickly sweet, though not altogether unpleasant, yet another nudge to Laoch’s soul memory. 

“Sage,” she stated flatly as she picked it up and waved it through the air, scattering the fragrant smoke around them.  Then she got up and circled the room, smudging her sacred space with the aromatic herb. 

As the scent of oil and smoke mingled, the still air became heavy and intoxicating. Although it stung his eyes, Laoch never took his eyes off of her as she moved through the cavern like a whisper, commanding shadow and light the way she always had. 

When she came full circle, Naofa knelt and dropped the smoldering clump in the stone where it reignited the oil,  sending heady tendrils swirling over their heads.  She untied the cord on a soft leather bundle, letting the corners fall away from the contents. 

The Warrior had seen these treasures before, more times than he could recount. He recognized the gleaming crystals that found life beneath her whispers.  Caressing each stone in turn she chose the amber first, then the crimson one followed by a glittering purple.  Finally, she cradled the long delicately cut clear crystal that was the heart of her power circle.   She put it on the floor near the smoking bowl and positioned each of the others evenly spaced around it, calling to their energy and the forces she sought for help.  

She touched the amber stone and called to its energy in the ancient word.

“For vision to save the essence of Domhan, Glaoimid ar an spiorad ar domhain.” 

 

“We call to the spirit in the earth.”  he repeated.

She tapped the crimson and summoned its spirit. 

“For strength to fight the darkness, Tugaimid go spiorad na tine.”

“We call to the spirit of Fire.” 

She pressed the purple stone and whispered,  

“For wisdom to shine your Light, Glaoimid spiorad mor ort.”

 

“We call to thee Great Spirit.”

 

She turned to Laoch, her eyes falling on the cord around his neck.   When she nodded and held out her hand the Warrior cupped the stones and lifted the cord over his head, handing it to her  Naofa untied the ends and let them slip into her palm, felling the warmth and energy from his body radiating from the precious gift.  The altar was perfect but for one remaining piece.  When she pulled the gem from her pocket, the glimmer of the blue crystal cut through the darkness with a purposeful flash.   

Taking his right hand, she pressed the white stone into it and kept the black one in her left.  With her free hand she held the blue crystal out over the water.  The light from the torch glinted off its delicate edges, reflecting on the wall in a bright cluster.  

Naofa closed her eyes and carefully turned her left hand over on top of Laoch’s and the stones clicked lightly . 

“Close your eyes, Laoch, and look inside your soul.  See the truth within and embrace the light and darkness that struggle there.  Imagine them moving together, side by side, until they become one perfect energy.”  

He let the intoxicating vapors numb his senses as he heard her words.  The Warrior trusted this woman more than anyone he knew and submitted willingly, seeking the dual nature of his soul.  She’d already helped him to accept the perfection there years ago, giving him the cord and stones as a reminder. Now she was his living reminder.   

The Circle of Light made a vow to encourage such balance in all living things in the name of the Realm, for only in this state would humankind thrive in peace.  Their work had been easy until that unholy night when an angry god ignited the skies with the living torch he called Damanta.  Laoch sensed the fear of that nightmare rising within him there in the cavern.  He could smell the smoke and taste the bitter vapors of her breath….

Naofa broke the silence, pulling him back from the abyss of dread.

“By Mor’s love through his children, the god and goddesses of Light, we call upon the Realm in our time of greatest need. The Keeper of Domhan is lost to us!  The world feels this loss and will perish if we don’t bring her back.  Allow us to open the portal of vision once again so we can find M’na’s firstborn.  Amhain searches for his mother and needs our help… and that of Eternity’s Children.  Lead us to him so that together we can return Bandia’s daughter to her rightful place!”  

The Sorceress reached into her soul, awakening the power that was her birthright.   As she denied all judgment she basked in the embrace of unconditional love, for only in this state of perfect love could they awaken the stone’s power and open the portal. She saw her own struggle between love and fear for the unnecessary chaos it was.  Together they reached within, seeking the light of Eternity that sparked their creation until their combined vibration of light ignited the stones.  The blue crystal flickered to life, pulsing steadily as the energy increased. The stones grew hot in their clasped hands but Naofa locked fingers with his, making it impossible to drop them.. 

The gazing crystal surged in ocean hues of blue, green and gold, rolling brilliant waves of light across the pool and up the cavern walls.  At the center of the silvery pool a small vortex swirled to life, sending bright circular ripples to spin rhythmically around their source.  These rings of light raced faster and faster as they rose into a glowing spout above the water.   Sorceress and Warrior were one with the light of the crystal, their figures reflected back on the silver surface as two bright stars. The energy between them radiated, while they held a single thought.

When they raised their voices together, the words echoed through the cavern. 

“Blessed Mothers! 

Lift the veil that hides the truth.  

Open our hearts to accept the truth.  

Guide our steps to protect the truth. 

Open the portal that we may see!”

Biodh solas ann!

Let there be Light!

Let there be Light!

The glowing spout narrowed into a spinning pillar of radiance and the cavern rumbled. They were unmoved when the rock beneath them trembled and the dark water splashed angrily against the spinning vortex that hungrily swallowed it. 

The whirlpool roared to enormity, a massive column of water flowing up into the darkness, then curled like a wave that hung over the empty pool, suspended as though waiting to roll.  Naofa raised her hand to the watery wall and the crystal righted itself, rising above her palm. The tempest of energy tore at their bodies as they stood to face the wave with conviction.

“Where are you, Amhain?,” she called to the light. “We want to help you!”

“We seek Domhan’s first son!” The Warrior shouted. They were Strength and Wisdom, standing at the precipice of Eternity’s light.

A small rift appeared near the middle of the wall, and as the blue wave crackled the rift slowly widened, its energy churning around them.  Suddenly the rift tore open, leaving a black hole in the center.  

Within that dark place a distant speck of light appeared, growing larger and brighter as it moved towards them.  When it reached the edge of the wall, the light streaked from the rift into the blue crystal.  As the stone spun wildly above her hand,  images flickered within it, but they were moving so fast. There was a tree, a stream… wait!  Was that a face?  Animals, mountains, blue sky, darkness… they strained to see but the whirling crystal became a blur and the images, merely a blue green haze.  

When the stone stopped spinning the images were gone.  A complete stillness fell over everything, as though the air was being sucked from the cavern, and the world stopped.  Neither could move or breathe and they looked at one another with uncertainty, wondering what terrible thing they had unleashed.  

An instant later the world breathed again, the deafening roar returned and the wave crashed over the edge of the pool, soaking them.  Their hands remained clasped as they coughed water from their lungs and replaced it with air.  Naofa closed her eyes and pressed the blue crystal to her heart. Laoch gaped at her, astonished, then pulled her close as they stared at the pool in stunned silence. The dark water was back, its shiny surface perfectly still, as though nothing had happened. 

Naofa slipped the white and black stones back onto the cord, knotted it and hung it around the Warrior’s neck.  After she straightened the necklace on his chest she turned her attention to the blue miracle.  The water had doused their torch and incense but the stone still glowed brilliantly.   She curled her fingers around it and ran to the room behind the pool with Laoch close behind.  Naofa jumped onto the ledge and he sat beside her, both of them dripping water down the wall.  

She opened her hand and touched the vision stone lovingly, then closed her eyes.  

“What are you… “ he started, but she shook her head and touched his leg.

Naofa took a deep breath and connected with the heart of the stone before gazing into the mystery.

“Let me see,” she whispered. “Let. Me. See.  By the will of the Goddess, let me see.”   Her heart and mind held only the thought of Domhan’s first son.  

Laoch held his breath and put his arm around her shoulder as they willed the crystal to life, but It seemed to have stalled and they had no idea what to do next.  Naofa opened her mouth to say there was nothing else she could do when the crystal flared to life once more.  She gasped softly, cradling it with both hands.

As they peered into the bright blue light, something inside the light moved.  They watched anxiously as the crystal clouded over with thick gray mists but when the mists receded, she found new hope.

“I need light, Laoch. Now!”  

He fetched the nearest torch and brought it back to his Sorceress, waiting while she positioned the crystal in front of the flickering light.   The vision was vague, but through the haze they could make out a horse. Naofa squinted as the horse moved in and out of the drifting mists, but when they cleared everything became clear.  The beautiful animal ambled down a trail towards them within the blue glow.  

“Laoch, it… it’s a white horse!” she exclaimed.  

“And, look there at her rider,” he added.

As the horse moved closer the rider was plainly visible,  a handsome young man with dark curling hair and fair skin.  Her heart soared as the familiar lump rose in her throat.  

Although no longer the child they once knew,  there was no mistaking the rider as the son of Fireann and M’na.  They’d found him.   

“It worked, Laoch, it really worked.  The power of vision has returned to the crystal.”  She closed her eyes.  “And it means we are once more connected to those in the Realm.  I wonder… “ her voice trailed as she looked at the dark pool curiously.

“Look, Naofa!”  Laoch said excitedly, tugging her arm.  “There’s another horse and rider coming up behind Amhain.”  When she looked into the mystery she saw it too, although this horse was not nearly as spectacular as the white one.  Its rider seemed familiar but who was it?

Her mind groped through the recesses of her memory for something elusive and then she found it… yes!  She knew that chubby man with his scruffy beard, for she’d spent many days in the Village of Cave Dwellers.

“Carraig!”  She grabbed the Warrior’s arm.   “Laoch, that’s Carraig!  He’s with Amhain and look… oh for the love of eternity…”  She squinted into the stone and the scene spun around so that they were viewing the riders from behind.  Her eyes flew to the horizon where  she saw it looming in the distance.  

“Look where they’re going,” she murmured, overcome with dread for her friend’s son.

“Those are mountains,” he surmised. “But which mountains? Wait,”  he added solemnly.  “can you see that dark area there?” She located the ominous black shadow below the ridges and nodded.  

“That is the Bosque Hambriento.  This, this could be bad for them.”  He shook his head.

“The what?” she asked urgently.

“The hungry forest.   Many have gone in, but almost no one returns.”  

“Where is it?” she demanded. “How do we get there and how long will it take?”  She’d been gone too long from the enormity of their world and needed to return to it.  

“Those are the mountains you see from the top of the hill by the sea.  Only a few from Juntos have gone there in search of the beast. The ones who returned were sick of mind for a long time, and even after they recovered they had no memory of what they saw or did there.”  

Naofa watched in dismay as the the light began to fade and the mists enveloped the riders.  Just before they faded from view, the boy turned to look over his shoulder.  Naofa cried out when, impossibly, Amhain looked across the magic through the void and into her eyes!  The shocked recognition that crossed his face crushed her heart, but when he reached out his arm to her she started to tremble.   Raw anger overshadowed her fears as the long suppressed will to fight clawed its way to the surface.  

“Amhain needs us.  We have to find him, Laoch, before A’rtine does.  Only then can we hope to bring her back.”  They watched as the image faded and the crystal grew cold, silently contemplating what they’d seen and done.  

Naofa finally stood up and began putting her things away, stashing as much as she could into one large bag.  There was more to collect from the cottage and they would need everything she had for this quest.   

“Let’s go inside for the rest,” she said, cinching the cords.  “And I want some dry clothes.”  She tugged at the dripping skirt that clung stubbornly to her body.  How she loathed being clothed and wet.  

Naofa was faced with another decision as her thoughts turned to the one thing that could be a problem.  

“Laoch, what will we do about Agean?   I can’t take him on such a journey. It’s too dangerous.  His his wound isn’t fully mended,  even if I dared to consider such madness.” 

The Warrior watched his Sorceress melt into the fretful mother, running her fingers across the furrows in her forehead as if trying to erase the problem. 

“He can’t be with us, Naofa,” he began, dreading the task of bringing the past into the present.  But it was necessary and he reached for her hand,  pulling her down beside him.

“You know what happens when Ar’tine wants to hurt you.  He will use that which means the most to you, making it unsafe for our son.”  The furrows in her brow only deepened.  “We’ll work it out,” he encouraged.  “The Realm is with us and will provide a way. You know I’m right.”  

He cupped her chin and kissed her forehead.  

‘How will he ever know what a comfort it is to no longer be alone?’ she thought.  His touch made her feel invincible and yet so vulnerable.  Such an impossible contradiction! 

“I am beginning to forget how miserable it was to walk alone.”  He spoke the words for both of them, rubbed her chin with his thumb and got up to douse the torches.  

***

Now for the doors I promised..

It’s a challenge to get doors in a land where many restaurants are open air. But the entrance is clear here.

And the food was yummy!

These bright young band students were practicing for a parade the next day. You can see the doors to the school behind them. Psst… I know that drummer boy on the right. 😉

One of the mall areas at the border between Panama and Costa Rica. Some of the doors were already closing when the rains started. 

Our lunch at the border, again open air but with doorways. The beer was extra cold! 

Door to a local business..

We are having to travel often these days and doors like these figure prominently in the airports. Shuttle, shuttle, shuttle…

Doors in our favorite local Fish House restaurant

Doors along the Plaza Terenal Center in David. Lots of good shopping happens here! 

This one’s for you, Dan. The Municipal building in Boquete used to be a railroad station and they left this little car to commemorate it. 

And a lot of time spent this way….