“You must stay centered and inbalance. Take credit for what you do and you will become filled withvanity. Put too much attention on the lower worlds and you’llbecome attached to them, unable to leave. Any lower passion can pullyou down. Step aside with the little self and let Spirit flow throughyou. Be a channel so Spirit can shine through to the world.
“There is no more I can teachyou. For you the School of Eagles was not so much a place of trainingas a place of testing. You were ready to become a master and onlyneeded to discover for yourself what you already knew. You must goback into the world now.”
“I do not feel ready.”
“Life’s experiences will beyour training ground. The negative force will temper and fine-tuneyou and pain will teach you. Finally, you’ll learn to remaincentered no matter what happens in your life. Negative lower worldexperiences will not be able to touch your true self and the darkside of your own nature will not easily seduce you, for you know itspower.
“You are now ready to leave andserve others. Toemeka and Erling need your help. Borko and the freeworld need the three of you. Sit down; it is time for you to enterthe Order of the Masters of the Eagle.”
Michio sat down and went intocontemplation, opening his spiritual eye and crossing through thewindow of Soul into the Inner Worlds. He found himself with theSpiritual Leader of the Order of the Eagles, Master Bakka Utella, anda group of masters all attired in white robes similar to his own.They all held swords. Master Jadock handed him a shiny sword. Itsgolden hilt was embossed in an intricate pattern and the silver bladevibrated with light. The masters formed a circle around Master Bakka,beckoning Michio to join them. When Michio took his place among them,they all lifted their swords into the air and touched them togetherin the center.
A bright light poured from MasterBakka’s sword, rising up and touching the other swords, then itflowed into the world.
Michio felt himself swept up inthe light and pulled upward. He flew over the mountains, looking downover the rugged terrain. Mountain streams became silver-blue ribbons,lakes became pools of glass mirrors and trees became a splattering ofcolor. He soared over it on invisible air currents. Experimentingwith his flight, he discovered by moving one tail feather he couldchange his direction.
Feather?It was then that he realized he had taken the form of an eagle. As heflew he became aware of another eagle flying alongside him. Inwardly,he recognized the vibrations and knew it was Master Jadock.
Youare now a Master of the Eagle, Master Jadock communicatedtelepathically. You are above the bonds and limitations of thephysical world. You can fly with the wind in balance and harmony.While you have greater freedom than you have ever known, you alsohave greater responsibility. Remember, you must continually work atstaying in this state of awareness. It is easy to fall from the sky,back into the spiritual poverty of a sleeping Soul.
After an exhilarating flight,Michio once more became aware of his physical body. He opened hiseyes and saw Master Jadock smiling at him.
Michio was filled with gratitudefor this great teacher and wanted to give him a gift, but he’d cometo the monastery with nothing of value. Then he remembered theunusual stone he’d found and took it from his pocket. It glowedblue with golden rays. “Please accept this gift as a token of mylove and appreciation for all you have given me.”
“It is an aura stone,” MasterJadock said, not taking the stone. “They are very rare and onlyoccur in these mountains due to the unique geology of the region. Thestone turns color depending upon the vibrations of the person holdingit. Thank you for offering it to me, but I cannot accept it. You haveno idea what you are giving me. The stone draws forth the fullstrength of a person. It can be used to fight the negative forces.”
“I have some idea of itsproperties. Its power is more than I can handle and be responsiblefor. If the stone fell into the wrong hands, it would be deadly.”
“The stone only appears tosomeone for a reason. Keep it.”
“But it is all I have to give.”
“Your unconditional love is amuch greater gift and it is returned a thousandfold.”
Toemeka woke with a start whenErling touched her arm. She sat up quickly and looked around, upsetthat she’d fallen asleep instead of guarding Erling and helpingMichio keep the energy bubble intact. Thick jungle foliage surroundedthem and she couldn’t see or hear any sign of soldiers or moncrons.The day was already heavy with heat and humidity and the sun wasdirectly overhead.
“I must have dozed off,” shesaid, yawning.
“It’s hard to stay awake allnight. You should have awoken me so I could have taken a shiftkeeping guard.”
“You needed the rest more thanme,” she said, dismayed to see his bruised face in the daylight.Dried blood smeared his forehead and one of his eyes was swollenshut.
“We’d better find a place tohide until nightfall.”
“How are you feeling?” sheasked.
“Like I’ve been used as apunching bag, but I don’t think anything is broken. I’ll be allright.”
“You don’t look good.”
“You’re not looking your besteither.” He pulled a twig out of her frizzled hair.
“Are you up for walking?”
“I’m fine.”
“You’re not fine.We’ll have to go slowly so you don’t overdo it.” She stood,wincing. Her shoulder throbbed and her bruised hip hurt from sleepingon the ground. She held out her hand and helped Erling up.
They fought their way through thethick foliage, swatting away insects and watching out for theenormous snakes draped from vines and the small poisonous ones hidingin flowers. Above them, furry creatures scampered from branch tobranch, chattering excitedly, while colorful birds sang in the trees.
Before long, Toemeka was drenchedwith sweat and itching from bug bites. She was hungry and exhaustedbut they didn’t dare stop until they were further from the outpost.They didn’t talk as they moved through the jungle, concerned itwould alert soldiers who might still be searching for them. At last,they broke through the trees and found themselves on the edge of
