The PureLights of Ohm Totem (21 page)

Nova slowly shook her head. “Only when you're around. You enhance that ability in him.”

Coda's eyes widened, “Really?”

“Yes, really. Now, Zoey, I want you to close your eyes and focus on your heart,” Nova continued.

Zoey closed her eyes. She felt anger welling up inside of her, but with a couple of more breaths it slowly started to fade away. She focused her thoughts on her heart, and felt it pumping and pulsing blood through her veins.

“Do you feel that?” asked Nova.

“Feel what?”

“Your heart.”

“Yes,” replied Zoey, keeping her eyes closed.

“What do you feel?”

Zoey shrugged, murmuring, “Um... it's pumping kinda fast.”

Zoey could feel Nova nod, prodding her to explain more.

“I think...” she tightened her eyelids in concentration. “Yeah, I feel the blood flowing to my wings and stuff.”

After a brief pause, Nova spoke. “Concentrate a little more.”

Zoey squeezed her eyes even tighter.

“Take a slow, deep breath,” instructed Nova.

Zoey slowly inhaled, and on the exhale, her eyelids eased up, relaxing the rest of her body. Zoey could feel her brother and friends around her watching with intense interest. She pushed that feeling away, realizing it was taking her away from feeling her body. Then she took another deep breath, and as she let it out she felt the blood coursing through her veins, down to her feet. But, it didn't stop there. She felt it flow from her toes into the ground, like roots reaching deep into the earth and soil. There she followed cracks in the earth's crust, going down, deeper and deeper. Then everything opened up.
Clouds?
She was floating downward, descending slowly through a mist of clouds.
Where am I?

Passing through the clouds, she could see that the sky was blue all around her. Beneath her was a beach. The ocean slammed waves against the shore. Peering down, she noticed an object lying on the beach shining a golden light back at her.
What's that?

Instantly, her vision expanded, showing her what it was—The Golden Opus.

She now knew where she was. In the heart of Ohm Totem.

Zoey glanced around as she continued to descend, and felt the wind lightly touching her feathers. It felt good. “Look up!” she heard a voice say.

Zoey looked up, but saw nothing but clouds and more blue sky. Then she noticed something peculiar off in the distance—a stairway!

The stairway was set against a large red cliff, built out of the cliff's own rock. The cliff was so immense that the clouds hid the top of the stairway from view. Below, the stairs vanished into the canopy of lush forest that went on for miles. A large patch of snow covered a thicket of brush and trees way off in the distance as well, reminding her of the snow dream with Lao last night.

Why am I here?

With that thought, a rush of energy went through her and she inhaled sharply. She opened her eyes, and there standing before her were Chev, San, Coda, and Nova. Coda looked a little concerned.

Zoey blinked her eyes several times, asking, “How did I get down there?”

“Get down where?” asked Coda. He looked at Nova. “Is she okay?”

“Yes. She just went to another place.”

Coda had no idea what Nova meant. Zoey gawked at everyone, and then stammered, “H-how did I do that?”

“It's called listening. Many spirit animals take thousands of moons to learn what you just did in one attempt. You have the ability to listen to all of life. And, you do so by listening to your heart, and then expanding your awareness outwardly. It's an ability within everyone. However, you just know how to do it, without practice. It’s quite amazing.”

“Oh,” replied Zoey. She didn't know what else to say.

“Your ability doesn't stop there, Zoey.” Nova's blue eyes shone, lighting up her beautiful fur. “Your voice is enchanting, but you hide it. Why?”

“Enchanting?”

“It's delightful, with a touch of magic.”

Zoey replied while covering her mouth, “I don't know about that.”

“Maybe some day you will know,” replied Nova. “Until then, I must get back to the students. We'll be splitting up. The Wings will go to the Sihu Forest and the Paws to Deer Meadow by the Large Boulder.” She licked Zoey on the cheek. “Thank you for allowing me to help you today.”

“Sure,” Zoey muttered. She didn't know how any of that helped. She felt very uncomfortable. She felt as if something was being expected from her. But what? It was something that she felt she didn't have.

Why do they care about how I talk, anyway? Who cares!
A wave of frustration overcame her. She suddenly just wanted to be left alone.

Nova gestured for Coda to follow her. “Come with me. I'll be training the paws today.” Coda nodded. “And Zoey, I'd suggest taking the day off. Go back and rest in the Spruce Hollow, if you feel you must.”

Zoey liked that idea and nodded.

“Stay and train with me, Zoey!” San was standing with her wings pointing to the sun. “We can train together. We can be training partners.”

Zoey shook her head no. She wanted to be left alone. She wanted to think.

San persisted, “Come on, Zoey, I need a partner.”

Zoey looked at Nova for approval. Nova tipped her head to the left, indicating for Zoey that it was okay if she left the training. Zoey looked down and twisted her foot back and forth in the dirt. “I'm sorry, San, but I just want to go back to Spruce Hollow. I'll be your partner tomorrow maybe?”

San's wings sunk and her head dropped. “Okay, I understand.” She sulked off toward the Sihu Forest for Wing Training.

Zoey felt bad. She wanted to help her friend, but she also felt she should do what Nova suggested. She watched San disappear into the crowd, then turned back toward the Spruce Hollow. A pang of sadness spread through her. She suddenly missed her mom, her toys, her dad, and watching her brother build Lego cities. She missed everything that was familiar to her.

She turned around and watched Coda. He stood proudly next to Nova. He seemed to be in his element, and was strangely interested in this Art of Defense. He was interested in Ohm Totem, a world she knew nothing about. They did everything so differently here. They talked to her like she was equal to them. They could move things with their thoughts.

Turning back around, walking toward the Spruce Hollow, she heard Nova bellow, “Wings, follow Kaya! Paws, follow me!”

Coda landed hard on his back. He twisted to his left, dodging a swipe. A thud sounded next to him, telling Coda that the bobcat missed, but was inches from hitting him. He slowly backed away from his opponent and crouched low, waiting to spring at any moment. The bobcat swiped at Coda's face. Coda ducked, and put up his paws to block the next swipe, only to feel the bobcat gently slap him on the side. She was tricky and fast.

“Stop!” called Nova.

The students surrounding Coda and the bobcat took several steps backward as Nova wove her way through the crowd of students, stepping between Coda and his opponent. “Coda, you're fighting. The Art of Defense has nothing to do with fighting. It's a dance.”

She circled around him, saying, “Remember, the tactics in a fight are linear.” She brought one paw up in front of her, moving it forward in a perfect line, indicating 'straight ahead'.

“The tactics in a fight are clawing, tackling, wrestling, biting, and blocking, none of which are the Art of Defense. When you block an attack it interrupts the force of your opponent. That may sound like something you would want to do, but that's not so.” She moved her paw in a circle to demonstrate. “The Art of Defense is circular. You want to use the full force of their own movement against them.” She put her paw down. “When they come at you, dance with their movement. Help them move past you. Do what we've been practicing.”

She nodded her head to the bobcat. The bobcat nodded back and Nova crouched slightly, readying for an attack. In a flash, the bobcat dashed at her, extending her claws for what looked to be a quick and deadly strike. As the force of the attack came toward Nova, she moved to the side, circling both front paws down upon the bobcat's swiping paw, sending the bobcat somersaulting forward at twice her attacking speed.

Coda couldn't help but join in the “whoas” coming from the rest of the students. That was amazing, he thought. Before he could form another thought, the bobcat leaped at Nova with her claws out, teeth bared. Nova quickly moved backward, circling to her left, letting the bobcat land on nothing but grass and weeds.

Determined, the bobcat twisted, jumping at her again, but Nova was ready. In a crouched position, Nova waited until the bobcat was almost on top of her before she fell softly onto her back, allowing the bobcat to pin her front legs on the ground. Before the bobcat could plant her hind legs on Nova's belly, Nova let the full weight of the bobcat's front paws land on her before kicking the bobcat’s hind legs toward the sky, hitting her just under the belly, flipping the bobcat onto her back.

In what seemed to be faster than a blink of an eye, Nova was now standing on top of the bobcat, holding the bobcat's forepaws against the ground.

Nova turned to the students, and then at Coda. “At this point, I'd use an advanced technique to stun my opponent.”

Coda furrowed his brow.
Stun the opponent?

“You haven't learned how to stun an opponent yet. That comes later,” Nova said.

Nova looked around the clearing at the many students waiting their turn to spar. “The Art of Defense is fluid and powerful, much like a whirlpool,” she instructed them.

Coda remembered when he and his sister had walked around the edges of a swimming pool, doing their best to create a whirlpool. He quickly realized that analogy didn't help him.
How can a whirlpool defeat anyone?

Nova climbed to a higher position a few yards in front of the Large Boulder. “Now, begin your practice!”

They practiced holding a low, balanced stance and moving out of the way when the opponent attacked. If the opponent attacked left, the defender dodged right. If the opponent attacked right, the defender dodged left. It was simple. Basic. They were taught to avoid the attack, rather than block or fight back. To Coda, it all seemed the opposite of what you're supposed to do. You're supposed to fight back and stand your ground. But not here with the PureLights. This all seemed too wimpy. Cowardly. He wanted action. He wanted fun.

Nova eyed the bobcat from her high position. “Muna, your act as a Dim is excellent. Keep it up.”

“Thank you, Nova.” Muna bowed.

Coda had learned that Muna was also a teacher. Today, she was helping Nova. Nova said that Muna was one of the best defenders in all of Ohm Totem, a master at the Art of Defense. Coda wanted to prove Nova wrong.

Coda came back to the moment when Muna's indigo crystals brightened and she scuffed the grass with her claws, ready for another sparring practice with Coda. She was the opponent, acting as a Dim and he was the defender. This is how it had gone all day.

He looked into her eyes and Muna stared back intently. He could see anger in them, and even though it was only an act, it was still intimidating.

She growled, and then leaped. Coda's stomach about fell out and his eyes practically popped out of his head from fright. He jumped to his left, spinning around as she passed him. Surprised that she missed, and even more surprised that he was quick enough to move out of the way, Coda swiped with an outstretched paw, glancing the bobcat's nubby tail.

Muna spun around, narrowing her eyes. “Do that again and I'll be feeding you to Crepus!”

“Huh?” stammered Coda. The words were cruel. He never thought PureLights talked like that. It caught him off guard and Muna jumped at him, pummeling him to the ground, pinning his forepaws above his head. She growled at him, showing her sharp, white teeth.

“Stop!” Nova ordered, as she strode over to them. She studied Coda as he lay pinned on the ground. “Do you see what's happened?”

Coda nodded a yes.

“You're fighting again. You danced for a moment, but the moment didn't last. Swiping at Muna used your energy against yourself. It slowed you down. It helped take your focus off the opponent’s moves, onto your opponent's words.”

She glanced at Muna. “Thank you for the demonstration. You can release him now.”

“Oh, yeah,” replied Muna. She grinned at Coda. “You're a tough one. Once you get this down, everything else gets a little easier.”

“I hope so,” Coda said with uncertainty as he slowly stood up, shaking the grass and dirt from his fur. He took a deep breath and sat on his hind legs.

Nova addressed all of the students. “The Art of Defense is not about strength. The smallest bird who has mastered the art can take down a bear with a single move. Keep in mind that it's about controlling your opponent and, inevitably, about controlling the situation. If the situation is out of control, then violence can occur.

“Coda, please join me for a conversation. The rest of you, please keep practicing.”

The students nodded and Coda padded toward Nova with his head hung low. He was a little ashamed. Why couldn't he just dodge and duck instead of fight? He was quick, but his reflexes became reactionary. He seemed to punch and block, without doing it on a conscious level.