The PureLights of Ohm Totem

by Brandon Ellis

Coda’s eyes widened. “Oh yeah, Nova lifted me onto the Large Boulder. It was a little scary.”

  “She's one of the most enlightened Beings you'll ever meet. Consider yourself very lucky,” Honani said solemnly.

  Coda thought for a moment. “But, I can't lift anyone with a thought or a sound.”

  Honani winked, “Perhaps one day you will. Most spirit animals in Ohm Totem can no longer do this. It's become a lost art. Imagination, with an unshakable confidence in what you're doing, is key in this process. It allows the spirit animal to move objects, or to do incredible feats with thoughts and/or sounds. Imagination is everything.”

  This was something very new to Coda. “VioletLights are probably the only ones who can move objects with their thoughts, right?” asked Coda.

  “Every being is capable of doing this, but as I said, most have forgotten. The VioletLights have not forgotten, though. Neither have some of the spirit animals with indigo crystals,” explained Honani. “Some of the Dims can, too. Otherwise, it does take a lot practice to perfect this ability.”

  Honani walked forward and gestured with his head for Coda to follow. “You'll learn all about this stuff soon enough. Let's continue to your room, now. I think you'll like it there.”

  The tunnel continued along a slight decline, going even deeper into the earth. Coda thought for sure he was fifty feet underground by the time they stopped, when in front of them stood a large marble disc surrounded by a solid wall of dirt. It blocked them from going any farther.

  “This is the door to the sleeping quarters of Marble Burrow,” said Honani. “To open the door, you need to slowly blow onto it. It will record your scent, allowing you to open it each time you blow onto it. However, I must give it permission to record your scent.” He turned his head toward the door. “You ready?”

  Coda didn't know if he was asking him or the door, but when Honani looked back at him, Coda realized that Honani was talking to the door. Honani smiled. “The door is ready for you.”

  “Ready for what?” asked Coda, doubtfully.

  “For you to blow onto it.”

  Coda took a small breath in and exhaled at the door. He waited and waited. And, waited. But, nothing happened. He looked at Honani, who simply nodded. “My friend,” he said, “it has been recorded. Now, blow again.”

  “Oh,” replied Coda. He looked at the door, wondering what was behind it. He curled his lips and softly blew.

  The door silently shuddered, then slowly rolled to the left, causing a coating of dust on the ground to fly up.

  Coda could see bluish-white light curling around the door and filling the tunnel. Within several more seconds, the door was fully open and the light from inside was so bright that Coda squinted and looked away. When his eyes adjusted, he saw the source of the light.

  Lighting up the gigantic room was an immense, glowing crystal. It was by far the largest crystal he'd ever seen. It must be a hundred feet wide and a hundred feet tall! Coda wasn't great at measurements, but he knew this crystal was huge. It stood in the middle of the room, surrounded by marble ceilings, marble walls, and a marble floor. It was beautiful. It was magical. It was like a picture from the most gorgeous of paintings.

  Honani giggled. “I know. It's quite unique, isn't it? There's no other place like it in all of Ohm Totem. It was here before we arrived. Someone created this room long ago, but we don't know who.”

  “Really?” asked Coda. His eyes widened with curiosity. “You don't know who?”

  “We don't know. There's a large tribe of Yeti on an Island to our east. We've always wondered if they built it. They're a mystical race, with magical abilities much like our own. They may have created this long ago.”

  “You mean, Big Foot?”

  Honani frowned, “Big Foot? I don't know Big Foot. Yeti have big feet—if that's what you mean.” He gestured toward the opening in the large room. “Shall we go inside?”

  Coda bobbed his head up and down several times enthusiastically. Stepping through the entrance, he could see spirit animals of all sizes walking around, talking amongst themselves. A tiger, having a conversation with a deer, nodded his head at Coda, calling out, "Hey, young one." Coda happily nodded back, and then stared at the large crystal. It was hard to keep his eyes off of it. It came out of the ground like a giant iceberg thrusting out of the Arctic Sea. It had to be several stories high. It peaked like a mountaintop, just below the large, marble domed ceiling.

  Honani brushed his shoulder against Coda's leg to get his attention. "Are there crystals like that where you come from?”

  “I don't think so. That's huge!”

  Honani pointed with his nose to a hallway in front of them. “You'll be staying in a room down there. This is where new students live. You'll be sharing a room."

  Coda walked into the hallway and saw zytes lining the walls. To Coda's left and right stood several more disc-like doors.

  “Your room is right here,” said Honani, stopping in front of a disc door that had a glowing, translucent 9 at the top.

  "Are you ready?" asked Honani.

  Again, Coda’s thought was that Honani was talking to him, but he quickly realized that Honani was speaking to the door.

  Honani turned to Coda. "Now, blow."

  Coda blew and nothing happened, which he expected this time.

  He blew again, and as before, the door shook and rolled to the left, slowly revealing what was inside.

  A squirrel sat on one side of the room. A pale, reddish color emanated from the it’s crystals. He seemed to be in deep thought. His face was screwed up in worry until he glanced at Coda. He gasped and clasped his paws over his mouth.

  Did I startle him? worried Coda.

  The squirrel skillfully recovered from his start and dropped his paws. Honani entered the room, gesturing for Coda to follow.

  "Sorry to disturb your thoughts, Skint." Honani twitched his ear in Coda's direction. "This is Coda. He'll be your new roommate for a while." The badger smiled. "Coda, this is Skint.” Suddenly the badger paused, looking off to his left as if something disturbed him. He nodded and took in a deep breath. “I'm needed in the main hall," he said matter-of-factly. Honani whispered to Coda, “You have a lot to teach him.” Honani walked out and the door rolled shut behind him.

  Teach him? What could I possibly teach him? Coda looked around the room. It was silent, but Skint's stare nearly screamed at him.

  Skint's mouth seemed permanently fixed in a drooping frown, but Coda sensed the squirrel was more shocked than sad. Why would he be shocked at seeing me? Coda shuffled his paws, not knowing what to do next. Was he supposed to make polite talk? He didn't want to, but the silence continued and so did Skint's stare and frown.

  Coda looked up. "Hi.”

  “Hi,” replied Skint.

  “I'm Coda."

  “I-I-I know,” Skint’s body tightened. “I mean, I-I-I know 'c-cause he j-just t-told me.”

  “Oh.” Coda felt a strange nervous energy pulse through him. It wasn't his nervousness, so it must be Skint's. Something was amiss with this squirrel. Coda nosed around the small, round room, doing his best to hide how uncomfortable he was starting to feel.

  The room was covered in marble, just like the main hall. The ground, though, looked like soil, but felt like soft cushions. Coda sat on his haunches and studied his paws. He forced a smile and conversation. “Nice to meet you.” But as he spoke, his stomach felt like he had just fallen ten stories.

  "N-n-no. D-d-don't feel that w-way." Skint stood up and smiled, but something didn't seem genuine about it. "I used t-to be a D-d-im. S-s-so I have some things t-to get over."

  “Oh,” was all Coda could manage to reply. Truthfully, though, Coda didn't understand at all.

  Coda furrowed his brow. Hey, how did Skint know what I was feeling?

  All was silent again, and Skint blinked his eyes a couple of times. Then he yawned and lay down, curling up into a ball. He closed his eyes, and to Coda's amazement, the squirrel fell fast asle
ep.

  Coda felt relieved and continued his inspection of the room. Zytes hung from the domed ceiling, lighting the room. Next to the zytes was a green blinking light, pale like Skint's crystal, being reflected off of the marble ceiling. Coda stared curiously, wondering what it was, or better yet, where it came from. He searched the walls, but couldn’t see anything that would explain the source of the mysterious blinking light. Then, on the dirt floor, he noticed a long, rectangular depression with something gray in the middle of it. In the depression, a green hue blinked off and on. Coda wondered what it was, and then jumped back in fright.

  The gray object in the depression had suddenly risen, and now Coda could see the source of the green light. A blinking green emerald, about the size of a baseball cut in half, sat embedded in the middle of a gravestone-looking thing. As it reached its peak and stopped rising, the emerald stopped blinking, radiating a solid green color.

  Coda paced around it, wondering at its purpose. He sniffed it, which was odd since he'd never felt the urge to sniff anything before. He sat down in front of it. Nothing happened. Curious, he blew on it. Again, nothing.

  Remembering that you have to blow twice, he blew on it again.

  Still, nothing.

  He twitched his whiskers and shrugged his shoulders. Giving up, he yawned and went over to the opposite corner from Skint. He lay down, comforting his chin on his black forepaws. He peered around the room again. Nothing was happening. It would be good to have a TV about now, thought Coda. I'm bored.

  He sighed. Nothing to do.

  I guess I'll lie here until I close my eyes and fall asleep.

  “I'm bored, I'm bored, I'm bored, I'm bored...” he said in a soft voice. He stopped when he heard Skint make a slight movement. Good, thought Coda. I'll talk to Skint.

  Skint, however, only had an itch and fell right back to sleep.

  He looked around again until his eyes came to the gravestone-looking thing. He stared at it for several minutes, until an idea popped into his mind. He stood up, and after a long, deep stretch, strode over to it. Tilting his head, he touched the green emerald with his paw.

  Coda flinched as a green light shot toward the ceiling, hovering several feet above Coda's head. The light turned into a map. It was a map of an island in the middle of a vast sea. Underneath the island read, 'Ohm Totem'.

  Coda wondered where he was on the map and instantly the green light zoomed to a portion on the right side of the map that read, 'Marble Burrow'. He sat on his hind legs, curiously surveying everything. He saw where Spruce Hollow was, and the Large Boulder. To the left was a hut labeled 'Yellow Hut', which must have been the golden hut that Nova lives in. He then noticed that the portion of the map he was looking at was called the 'Sihu Tribe'.

  Oh yeah, Nova told us that we're in the Sihu Tribe, thought Coda.

  Again, the green light responded to his thoughts, and in the matter of a second, words formed in the light, displaying more information:

  “The Sihu Tribe arrived in Ohm Totem 9,363,213 moons ago. The Sihu Tribe maintained a population of 1,800 spirit animals until a change occurred. The change occurred 187,264 moons ago. Since then, the population of the Sihu Tribe has been decimated to 801 inhabitants. The Sihu Tribe is known to be the home of Nova, a highly evolved VioletLight and the wisest, most accurate interpreter of The Great Spirit. The Sihu Tribe's goal is to maintain the balance and harmony of all life, and to live under the PureLight Order. They are in service to all. The Sihu Tribe is one of the two, out of nine, remaining PureLight Tribes left in Ohm Totem. The rest of the inhabitants on the island have become Dims."

  The last of the writing disappeared as soon as Coda finished reading the last sentence. The light continued to beam, but nothing else formed. He wondered what this gravestone-looking thing was and again, words appeared in the light.

  "I am a tablet. I keep the record of Ohm Totem. I record information that passes from moon to moon in order to keep accurate knowledge of the past and present. The future, though, is not set in stone, so it isn't recorded until the future becomes the present. My function is to answer your questions based upon what is stored in my records. I am all-observing and mistake-free. Nothing passes through Ohm Totem without passing through me."

  That's cool, thought Coda. He looked at Skint still sleeping quietly on the soft dirt. He eyed his soft dirt bed longingly. He was tired. He eyed the zytes above him and thought, how am I supposed to sleep with the zytes on?

  The tablet then formed new words: "Zytes will help you sleep. They don't affect or disrupt your sleeping patterns like the sun would, if the sun remained here all day and all night long. Instead, the zytes emit a glow that penetrates whatever cycle is present in your brain. For example, if you're sleepy, then it promotes the sleeping cycle and you fall asleep quickly after you close your eyes. If you're awake, it will energize your wakefulness, giving you more energy throughout the day. The zytes, once sleep has been attained, will lower their glow, or sometimes turn off all together."

  Good, thought Coda. He stared at the green light, waiting for more words to appear. After several moments of nothing, Coda wondered what he should do next.

  The light flashed and words quickly formed. "I'd suggest that you fall asleep. You have a big day scheduled tomorrow. Once asleep, your soul will re-energize your mind and your body. You'll need your energy, because tomorrow you'll start your training bright and early.”

  “Whoa,” whispered Coda. The green light flashed off, leaving the air still and calm. Coda wondered if this place, Ohm Totem, could get any weirder. He walked over to his bed, then walked around it in a counter-clockwise circle three times. With his right paw in mid air, he stopped, perplexed by what he had just done. Walking in circles? I’m just tired, he told himself. That must be why. Letting it all go, Coda lay down and closed his eyes. In one breath, he drifted off to sleep.

  ∞

  The zytes were off when Coda abruptly awoke. A sound in the room woke him and a sudden wave of nervous energy struck him in the gut like an arrow hitting a bullseye. However, it wasn't his nerves. It was someone else's.

  He lifted his head and peered around the room. He could see everything. Unlike home, it was easy to see in the dark here. Maybe because he was a panther.

  There was a sound near the door, taking his mind away from his newly found night vision.

  Skint was up, staring upward, toward the middle of the door. The energy coming from Skint quickly changed from nervous to suspicious. Coda, sensing this, laid his head back down and closed his eyelids into small open slits, giving the impression that he was asleep. And just in time.

  Skint spun around. He appeared upset and angry. He cautiously walked toward Coda.

  Coda closed his eyes completely, once Skint was only a few feet away. He felt Skint sniff him up and down.

  “C-coda?” whispered Skint.

  Coda didn't move or make a sound.

  “He's asleep,” whispered Skint. “I can go.”

  He can go? Where's he going and who's he talking to?

  “Yes. I'm positive. He's asleep,” whispered Skint again.

  Skint walked to the door and Coda cracked opened his eyes, seeing that Skint was definitely the only one there. He blew on the door, and quiet as a mouse, the door slowly rolled to the right. Skint stepped halfway out and checked to the left and right, making sure no one was around. Seeing it was clear, he walked into the hallway and the door quietly shut behind him.

  Coda got up to follow him. He took a step forward and nearly lost his balance as his legs wanted to go back to sleep and recharge. He took another step, and fell on his side. It was a hard fall, but thanks to the cushion-like soil, he wasn't hurt at all. Coda groaned as he pulled himself back to his sleeping area. He closed his eyes, and again, with one breath, drifted off to his dreams.

  Chapter 15

  A knock on the door woke Zoey from a much needed night’s sleep. She heard San yawn and stretch her wings. She looked over at Zoey, saying brigh
tly, “It's time to get up. I'm excited!”

  You seem to always be, thought Zoey.

  Zoey got out of her nest to answer the knock at the door, but stopped when she heard San laughing. “It's just to wake us up. No one will be there.”

  “Won't Taregan be?” asked Zoey.

  “No, it was the Spruce Hollow who knocked.”

  “The Spruce Hollow can knock? How?”

  San pursed her beak in thought. She had never wondered about that before. She grinned and fluttered her wings. “I don't know. It's just what happens.”

  Mystified, Zoey hopped over to the open window. The dream echoed in her mind. She heard Crepus' voice hissing, You don't realize what she's going to do to us, do you? Her feet tingled with fear. Then she realized her feet were sore, bringing her back to the present. She shook them, hoping to relieve some of the pain, but it didn’t help.

  Zoey gazed out of the window to take her mind off of her hurting feet. The sun was rising just over the horizon and the blue sky looked as cheerful as ever. The green grass and foliage below held morning dew and the wind lifted the scent of flowers and herbs to her nostrils. There were animals of all kinds walking north, to who knows where, and birds flying in the same direction.

  “Yup!” yelled San, startling Zoey. She tore her gaze away from the beautiful view.

  San hopped over to Zoey, wrapping a wing around her. “They're off to training,” she chirped, pulling Zoey toward the door. “We've got to catch up with them. We can't miss it. This is amazing!”

  San opened the door and birds of every kind—hawks, eagles, robins, blue jays, and many others—flew from the railings to the beautiful red wood floor. “Follow me,” sang San. She spread her wings, gliding effortlessly toward the ground.

  Zoey opened her wings, then hesitated and closed them. What if I forgot how to fly?

  “I'll catch you if I must,” echoed a voice from below. It was Taregan. He stood next to the entrance with his wings folded in front of him, tapping his foot impatiently against the floor. “Well, what's the hold-up?”