Chong’s grin never changes. ‘No shoes, please.’
Moments later, a barefoot and impatient Immanuel Gabriel is jogging along a stone path leading out of the atrium.
‘So you’re a Tibetan monk, huh?’
‘You are familiar with the history of the Shaolin?’
‘Just from watching those old kung fu movies.’
Chong slows to a quick walk. ‘Kung fu is just one part of our training. To understand Shaolin means tracing the history of China, which dates back to 2600 B.C., to the age of the Five Rulers. For two thousand years, China remained divided and at the mercy of the invading Huns and Mongolian nomads.’
‘That’s why your ancestors built the Wall, right?’
‘The Great Wall you see today is a result of tourism. The original structure was merely a collection of short barriers. Since it was not continuous, Mongol invaders had no trouble going around it. It was not until 221 B.C. that Emperor Chin finally made strides in uniting China into one nation. Seven hundred years later, an Indian Buddhist monk by the name of Ba Tao came to China to teach Buddhism. The Emperor summoned the monk to his palace and was so impressed by the man’s wisdom that he offered him his own palace to continue his teachings. Ba Tao declined this offer, instead requesting a large piece of land away from civilization where he could build a monastery. The Emperor granted his request, offering him land in the province of Henan on the side of Sung San Mountain. The district was called “Wooded Hill,” which translates to Shaolin in Mandarin. Thus was born the first Shaolin Temple.
‘In A.D. 539, a holy man named Bodhidharma left his monastery in India to spread the teachings of Ch’an Buddhism, what Westerners refer to as Zen. Bodhidharma was described as a bearded wise man with piercing blue eyes.’
‘He was a Guardian?’
Chong only smiles. ‘It is said Bodhidharma traveled hundreds of miles to reach northern China, crossing the Himalayan Mountains and the Yangtze River until he arrived at the Shaolin Temple. Unfortunately, the abbot, Fang Chang, refused him entrance, and so Bodhidharma located in a nearby cave. It is written that the wise one sat in meditation, facing a stone wall until his piercing blue eyes bored a gaping hole through the cliff wall. Visiting monks supplied him with food and water and became so impressed with his depth of knowledge that they invited him inside the Shaolin Temple.
‘Upon entering Shaolin, Bodhidharma, now called Ta Mo by the Chinese, observed that the monks were too weak to meditate. He taught them three series of exercises, which marked the beginning of Shaolin Temple Kung Fu, which means “hard work and perfection.” These techniques were later refined into fighting methods to repel attacks from local bandits. Eventually more temples were built, each run by several Shaolin Masters-experts in training of the mind, body, and spirit.’
‘You’re a Master?’
‘Grand Master. I began my training as a boy in the Shaolin Temple at Sung San Mountain, then began Pak Mei Kung Fu training in the Gwong How Temple when I was twenty. Ours is a style that incorporates both Shaolin and Taoist practices, allowing the warrior to move from a relaxed movement into explosive power.’
‘How long have you been teaching Jake?’
‘Five years. Now Jacob is teaching me.’
They follow a subterranean passage, then turn right into an alcove. A steel door slides open as they approach, revealing a narrow, subterranean flight of stone steps leading below.
Immanuel follows the slight Asian down the spiraling stairwell, which is lit only by an occasional oil lamp mounted on the limestone wall. ‘The decor was your brother’s idea,’ the Tibetan says. ‘It sets the proper mood.’
They descend two stories, the temperature within the stairwell dropping noticeably. Immanuel rubs goose bumps from his exposed forearms. ‘Must be one hell of an air-conditioning bill. Whoa…’
The stairwell abruptly ends, depositing them on the top of a snowcapped mountain. The peaks of the Himalayas loom in every direction, crowding infinity itself. As Immanuel steps off the last stair and into a three- foot-high snowdrift, the stone corridor behind him disappears, camouflaging the entrance to the immense subterranean holo-suite.
‘Jesus, it’s freezing.’ Through teary eyes, Immanuel can see his breath. ‘Okay, now what? Hope you guys created a ski lodge somewhere nearby, my balls have turned blue.’
Ignoring him, Chong trudges through the knee-deep snow across the summit.
Immanuel follows, his lungs heaving, his bare feet numb. After several minutes they come to the entrance of a cave.
Seated outside the cave in the snow, his legs tucked into a lotus position, is Jacob. He is bare-chested, wearing only the bottoms of his black kung fu garb. His eyes are closed.
The skin covering his chiseled muscles is a healthy pink.
‘Is he crazy… never mind, I already know.’ Immanuel’s teeth chatter. ‘Wake him up before he freezes to death. It’s gotta be below zero out here, er, in here.’
‘With wind chill, it is minus eighteen degrees Fahrenheit. Touch his skin.’
Immanuel reaches out and grips his twin’s shoulder-shocked to find it warm, almost hot to the touch. ‘He’s burning with fever!’
‘It is not fever, at least not a fever generated by sickness.’
‘I don’t understand. How long has he been out here?’
‘Just under four hours.’
‘Four hours? How-’
‘It is a form of meditation we call Ta Moo, taught to us by our Shaolin wise man. Using the life force, Chi, we can manipulate our internal functions, overriding our brain’s beta rhythms, redirecting with alpha rhythms. Jacob has raised his body’s internal temperature to compensate for the extreme cold. Now see if you can find your brother’s pulse.’
The dark-haired twin touches his brother’s exposed neck, feeling nothing. Bending down, he presses his half-frozen ear to his brother’s bare chest, Jacob’s flushed skin warming Immanuel’s cheek. ‘There’s no heartbeat. He’s in the nexus, isn’t he?’
‘No. This part of his training prepares him for the nexus. It allows him to communicate with your father.’
‘You taught him this?’
‘Yes, but even my own master was never this skilled. When Jacob remains focused like this, his alpha waves are off the scale.’
Immanuel’s teeth chatter. ‘What about… me?’
‘Let us find out. Remove your robe and sit down in front of your brother.’
Hesitantly, he takes off his top and assumes a lotus position. As if in response, a gust of icy wind blows across the holographic mountaintop, its frigid chill burning into his exposed flesh.
‘Damn!’
‘Ignore the cold and close your eyes. Imagine there are small pipes running through your rib cage. These pipes are red-hot. See the pipes in your mind’s eye. Feel their warmth radiating inside your chest. Feel the heat seep into your arms and legs, into your wrists and ankles, filling your fingers and toes. Breathe slowly through your nose… exhaling softly through your mouth. Each slow breath stokes the hot coals that heat the pipes. Relax into the warmth.’
Immanuel slips into the imagery. The tension in his muscles eases. He is no longer shaking.
‘Good. Very good. Now, I am going to place a sheet over your shoulders. The sheet will feel wet. I want you to focus the heat from the pipes up through your body, into the wet sheet.’
The Tibetan enters the cave. Inside is a wooden barrel, filled with icy water. Reaching inside, he removes a bedsheet, wrings it out, then wraps it around Immanuel’s exposed shoulders.
Manny’s eyes flash open, then close again as he forces himself back into the trance.
‘Focus the heat from the pipes up through your chest and shoulders and back, into the wet sheet. Breathe in through your nose, out through your mouth, each breath stoking the hot coals…’
Immanuel slows his pulse, his breathing all but disappearing. He can feel the burning in his stomach, only
