THE SIXTH REALM: INDIGO — Two octaves of one note

Then she remembered the presence that had dragged her away when she arrived.

Something seized a paw.

The stream disappeared. Once again she felt herself suspended, carried through a passage of shadows with the same uneasiness she had felt on her first day.

“Helio!”

“Look at what you were thinking.”

Skyblue recognized the memory. She tried to push it away at once, but fear made it stronger. She closed her eyes, felt her breathing, and called on the calm she knew. The pulling grew weaker. Soon she was beside the water again.

She sat on the bank, with no wish to create anything else for the moment.

“This is the realm of intention and manifestation,” Helio explained.

“I thought I’d learned that in the Turquoise Realm.”

“There you learned the power of the spoken word. Here you’re seeing how your intentions take shape.”

“Wouldn’t it have been simpler to learn it all in one place?”

“From the Green Realm onward, the lessons intertwine. Your heart, your voice, and your vision are all part of the same act of creation.”

“Am I doing all of this?”

“You have a part in it. In the enchanted lands, thoughts, feelings, and actions also take part in creation. But there the effects often take time. They intertwine with those of other creatures, and it isn’t always easy to recognize them. Many call what they can’t understand chance or luck.”

Skyblue looked at the flowers on the bank. Some were still standing. Others had become patches of color.

“What about this realm’s inhabitants?”

“It has no permanent inhabitants like those of the other realms. Every traveler finds a world here that responds to their attention and intention. You’ve come to recognize your power to co-create.”

“Why co-create?”

“Because you don’t create separately from your inner self or from the Source you came from.”

Skyblue remembered the traces her words had left in the Turquoise Realm.

“So far, you’ve known me as a guide who travels with you,” Helio continued. “In time you’ll understand that you and I aren’t separate. We’re like the same note in two octaves. You can still tell one from the other, but a time will come when you hear all the music.”

Skyblue was quiet, trying to recognize that music within herself.

“You’ll need clarity and humility,” Helio added. “Just because you can create something doesn’t mean it’s what’s needed.”

“How long will it take me to learn?”

“As long as you need.”

Skyblue had begun to suspect that would be the answer.

“You’ll know you’re making progress when being of service matters more to you than proving your power,” Helio added. “And when you can respect each creature’s path, even when it isn’t the one you would choose.”

The water kept flowing. Skyblue was grateful that, for now, it wasn’t asking her to prove anything.