Chapter eleven

A few days after he met Nora at the cemetery, Zeke was walking down a quiet street when his eyes fell on a strange sign at the end of the road. At first, he thought it was a road sign, but then he realized it was a sign that read ‘Z’ with an arrow pointing in a direction that didn’t make sense. He followed the sign out of curiosity and discovered a narrow, broken lane that ended in an open field in one corner of the city. It was a cornfield with a wooden fence all around. He was instantly reminded of the magical cornfield and the secret maze with the sign ‘Z’ he had seen in his dreams. A hand-painted board hanging from a small wooden gate read, “Welcome to Zekeland.” He couldn’t help but feel surprised to see his name on the board as his brain tried to think of all logical possibilities.

“Maybe it’s a dream,” he thought. “Or maybe someone’s just playing a prank.”

He quietly stood there for some time mulling over the word “Zekeland.” He didn’t care if it was real or not. He loved it. The word had instantly resonated with him so much that he felt there was indeed a special place for him — a place he had come from, a place he belonged to… somewhere in time. It was as if the universe was showering him with pleasant surprises, constantly trying to communicate, assuring him that it was always there for him. Whenever he needed guidance, he received unexpected help from unexpected sources — from the pages of random books to number plates on cars or some strange street name. He had developed a habit of walking miles and miles alone. He loved finding new places within little Mackinaw City. He would be guided to strange places or drawn to strange situations at certain times.

One day he saw a bumper sticker on a car that read, “Are you still sleeping?” Zeke was so confounded by the question that he kept asking himself all day, “Am I still sleeping?”

As usual, his answer came in the strangest of ways. That night, as he silently sat on his porch stargazing, he saw a barn owl sitting on a tree branch in the orchard next to his house. The moon was right behind its head, creating a strange and mystical halo around it. The moon and the owl, together with the silence and the wind, made the night look very mysterious and even eerie to a certain extent.

Zeke had read a lot about the spiritual symbolism of barn owls and bald eagles by then. Different cultures and religions have always interpreted the presence of owls differently. Some consider it a bad omen, while others think of it as a sign of prosperity. Zeke knew as much. The mysterious barn owl stared him right in the eye. A few moments later, it flew towards the porch and sat on the edge of the guardrail not far from him. He wondered if it wanted to say something and was waiting for the right opportunity to speak, making him feel uncomfortable now.

He made up his mind to ask the owl the question that had been bothering him the whole day, “Am I still asleep?”

Utterly amusing him, the owl answered in rhymes like Ziggy, only it sounded more like a wise old man with a cracked voice.

“You’ve been awakening from a thousand years of slumber. This long and dark night, too, shall pass. Remember, dear boy, age is just a number!”

Zeke felt utterly confused by the words of the owl. He eventually convinced himself it was just his imagination and went to bed. The next afternoon his father was home after many days of being away. He was in his room playing music on an old radio. Zeke didn’t recognize the song, though. Someone with a cracked, masculine voice sang, “You’re still awakening from a deep slumber. When it’s dawn, this long night shall pass. You see, my friend, age is but a number; age is but a number!”

The singer’s voice and words were so like what the barn owl had said the night before that it sent a chill down his spine. A little part of him said that the song, too, was a sign from the universe, but his growing skepticism made him decide he had heard the song before, and the owl had simply been a figment of his imagination.

One day, while in school, Zeke was looking out of one of the windows in his classroom, lost in his thoughts. His mind was wandering; he was thinking about life, and thus, strange questions struck him. “Is this world in which we all live just an illusion? Where’s the real world then?” These questions were all fueled by the original question, “Am I asleep?”

With each passing day, he thought more about life, and he had new questions. But there were no answers. Then one day, he was at his study table when he powered up his computer, and a little message popped up on the screen. It read, “You are protected.” It was a message from the antivirus software on his computer. But his mind told him it meant more than that.

While he was sleeping that same night, he felt someone standing right next to his bed and watching over him. In his dream, he could see the silhouette of an angel with beautiful wings and a sword in its hand, almost encapsulated in an indigo-blue light shining all around him. He felt like he was safe… and protected.

• • •

The next evening, he walked around the city alone, which had become his habit. The sun had just gone down when he noticed a small store he had never seen before. It was named Indigo Children. It instantly caught his attention. He loved the color indigo and always felt drawn to it. He entered the store, thinking it must be a new children’s store. It wasn’t.

It was a store that had a collection of wonderful crystals, beads, statues, paintings, and countless other items that were completely new to him. It also had a section for books on higher knowledge. In one corner of the store, he saw a crystal statuette of an angel with beautiful wings and a sword in its hand. The figurine appeared to have a sparkly indigo light oozing out of it, almost like a halo encompassing the entire body. He was shocked to discover it was the same angel he had seen in his dream the night before.

He went to the storekeeper, a warm and pleasant old man named Mr. Leitner, and asked about it. He said, “It’s the statue of Archangel Michael, who is in charge of the angels protecting and looking over all the Indigo Children.”

Adrenaline shot through Zeke’s body. “Who are the Indigo Children, sir?” he asked.

The old man smiled at him, handed him a book, and whispered, “Dear child, they are the chosen ones.” Zeke just stood there with his mouth open.

Mr. Leitner told him the book contained everything he would need to know about Indigo Children. Zeke purchased both the book and the crystal statue, which he knew were clearly waiting there, only for him. He spent all the money he had saved up, but he had no regrets. That night, he sat at his study table, fully prepared to read the book, but out of habit switched on his computer instead. A strange indigo light came out of the screen illuminating his face, and the same message popped up again, “You are protected.” He chose to ignore it a second time.

Zeke opened the book and there was information not only about the Indigo Children, but also about the Blue Rays, Crystal Children, starseeds and other lightworkers, all of which he knew very little about. Inside the book on the first page, someone had handwritten:

Wisdom is like pearls hidden in shells beneath the sand and water on a sunny beach. They are found in abundance and yet open only to the ones who wish to find them.

Zeke declared to himself, “I guess this means I have to get to work.”