The PureLights of Ohm Totem by Brandon Ellis

that feeling.”
    Coda screwed up his nose, something he always did when he was unsure. He looked up and saw the Snow Tree’s branches directly above him. “I d-don’t know, Zoey.”
    “Seriously,” said Zoey, walking over to the Snow Tree and sitting on its knob. “It’s okay. Come and…” she stopped talking and pointed at Coda, her mouth wide open in surprise. “Oh, my gosh!” She was staring at a spot just over Coda’s right shoulder.
    “That’s his spirit animal. It will be with him for his entire life,” said the Snow Tree. “You have one, too.”
    Zoey pointed over Coda’s right shoulder. “Coda, look! That’s your spirit animal.”
    Coda stood perfectly still. He was confused. He had heard a voice talking to Zoey, but where did it come from? He could feel a strange tingling sensation on the right side of his face and ear. He twisted around to look over his right shoulder, but couldn’t see anything.
    “He’s touching you!” yelled Zoey. Her eyes glowed with utter delight. “He's a big black panther!” She laughed, “He's standing on his back legs, with his front paws on your shoulder. He's licking you!”
    What's she talking about? Coda nervously whipped his head from side to side, seeing only the forest around him, not a big black cat leaning on him.
    “He’s purring,” Zoey added.
    “Who’s touching me?!” yelled Coda.
    “Your spirit animal. He's always at your side,” answered the Snow Tree softly.
    Coda froze. He could hear a woman’s voice speaking to him, but only Zoey was there. Still, for some strange reason, he didn’t doubt that the tree was talking and he didn’t doubt that a spirit animal was next to him.
    “He's simply you in another form,” explained the Snow Tree.
    Coda’s eyes squinted as he looked off into the distance. “Me—in another form?” A small breeze ruffled the leaves above Coda as a calmness settled over him.
    “Yes,” replied the Snow Tree. “Your spirit animal will help you with your journey in more ways than you could ever imagine.”
    Coda looked to the ground, scuffing the dirt with his shoes. “Um...okay.” His mind raced as he remembered the voice in his ears from yesterday. It, too, had talked of a journey, but he didn't show any outward sign that he remembered it.
    “Who are you?” asked Coda.
    “I am the Snow Tree. Come and sit next to your sister.”
    Zoey scooted over, and then got up so Coda could have the whole knob chair.
    “Look around,” said the Snow Tree.
    Wide-eyed, Coda looked around, but saw nothing but squirrels playing, birds taking flight, and trees all around.
    “Close your eyes, Coda, and take a deep breath,” directed the Snow Tree.
    Coda wriggled a bit, and then closed his eyes. As he took in a deep breath, he felt a tingling sensation surrounding his body. He began to smile as a sense of joyful energy entered him, pushing away the nervousness he had felt only moments before. He opened his eyes to see a completely different world. A world he thought existed only in cartoons.
    He saw blue, green, white, and purple balls of light floating over and around trees, bushes, ferns, and everything growing in the forest. Some of them were traveling fast, some were slow, and others were stationary, hovering over large and small plants. He noticed that the stationary balls were beaming white light into the plants.
    “Those are the caretakers of the forest,” said the Snow Tree. “They’re called orbs. Now, focus on an orb and tell me what you see.”
    Coda had completely forgotten his objections to Zoey about a talking tree as he eagerly put all of his attention on a green orb a couple of feet in front of him. It was hovering over a strange long-leafed plant with purple flowers. Without warning, the image faded into the background and he could only see Zoey sitting cross-legged next to the plant, her face illuminated with exhilaration.
    As usual, this annoyed Coda and he shook his head. “I don’t see anything