Out of Body Universe - Part One

by Martin Chu Shui

  Chapter 17

  There was not a moment to lose if he wanted to stop the fight, but he was thousands of miles away. Even if he was at the site, what could he do? Despite being good at hand-to-hand combat, confirmed by the two fights he was recently involved in, Nathan knew his skills were useless when trying to stop hundreds of armed tribal warriors attacking each other; therefore he had to think of something else, and quickly.

  Since using force to stop the fight was impossible, Nathan had to think outside of the box. His mind wandered back to his conversation with Master Wuwei. Wuwei, as the fundamental principle of Taoism, is to solve a conflict without force and that’s exactly what he needed to do right now. As soon as the idea entered his brain and he started thinking, he turned to Amy. “I need to talk to Vicky’s father right away. Can you organize it?”

  “Yes, I can ring Vicky’s mobile.” Amy dialled the number and then passed her jumper, actually a mobile-like item, to Nathan.

  “Vicky, it’s Nathan, your English teacher. I need to talk to your father. Could you please translate for me?” said Nathan.

  “No need to translate; he can speak English rather well,” said Vicky.

  “Most respected chief, my name is Nathan, your daughter’s English teacher,” Nathan said as he looked at the Zulu chief a couple of feet away from him, although the chief wouldn’t be able to see Nathan.

  “Okay, Nathan; what do you want?” said the chief in an impatient voice.

  “Thanks for talking to me, sir. Could you please kindly advise me as to how I should address you? Please forgive me for not remembering your surname,” said Nathan.

  “No problem; just call me Paul,” said the chief.

  “I appreciate it, sir. Could I please ask what you are intending to do?” said Nathan.

  “Nathan, I don’t know if you knew about or were involved in this conspiracy to kidnap my daughter and use her as a hostage to attack my tribe, but it doesn’t matter anymore because I am going to get them all to pay for it and get what they deserve, right here and right now.”

  “Sir, dare I ask if you have considered the consequences of doing so?” asked Nathan.

  “If you mean that I should worry about the government’s army and police, you are completely wrong. Do you know what, Nathan, my ancestors had wars with your British army and beat them. Our Zulu warriors are afraid of nobody; besides, this is self-defence,” said the chief.

  “Sir, I admire the bravery and fighting spirit of your Zulu warriors very much, and I also think you are right about your decision,” said Nathan. He saw the confusions on the faces of the Zulu warriors. They must be wondering what was going on with the Zulu chief, who was talking to a mobile phone.

  “So you agree that I should kill these bushman tribesmen?” Obviously the Zulu chief was taken by surprise.

  “Sir, it’s not me, actually a Chinese sage said you were right about two and a half thousand years ago; his name was Laozi, or the Old Master in English,” said Nathan.

  “Nathan, you are bullshitting me; how could this old master know me that long ago?”

  “Sir, it’s true that the Old Master didn’t know you in particular, but he said that there is no absolute right or wrong, it just depends on which side you are standing; therefore, from your point of view, you are absolutely right,” said Nathan.

  “I like this Chinese Old Master; Nathan, please stop calling me sir, just call me Old Paul,” laughed the Zulu chief. “So Nathan, you are not going to stop me attacking the bushman tribe?”

  “Okay, Old Paul; the old master also said that, even if it’s the right decision, you shouldn’t do it if it’s not the right time.” Nathan could see the dubious expression on the Zulu chief’s face.

  “Nathan, what do you mean?”

  “Old Paul, please excuse me for digging for a bit more information about your tribe; I understand that two other Zulu tribesmen proposed marriage to your daughter but you refused them, and they were not happy about the result.” Nathan saw the Zulu chief nod, so continued.

  “I have no doubt that your Zulu warriors would be able to beat the bushman tribe today, but you would have losses on your side as well; the Zulu tribe your daughter was supposed to marry into would be likely to refuse the arrangement because of the fact Vicky and James have been boyfriend and girlfriend already. As a result, you would be very vulnerable; if the other Zulu tribes were to attack you right afterwards, you would be in a no-win situation. Besides, the government’s police force and army would arrest you for the conflict too.” Nathan stopped, watching the Zulu chief’s expression.

  “So what’s your suggestion then?” asked the chief.

  “Like the Old Master said, you can understand others better if you are in their shoes; Vicky and James love each other very much, so if you love your daughter, you should know what is best to do. By allowing a marriage with the bushman tribe, not only are you cementing your position as the strongest tribe around, but also thawing any threats from other Zulu tribes without one drop of blood. Old Paul, you are a wise Zulu chief, so you know your best option,” Nathan said carefully.

  The Zulu chief laughed loudly; just as Nathan started worrying whether his efforts had backfired, the chief passed the mobile to his daughter, and then spoke loudly to James’ father, the chief of the bushman tribe, in their native language.

  “My father said…” Vicky tried to translate her father’s words, struggling with her limited English vocabulary. “He said…that he knew…agreed...with the Chinese Old Master…that one should wear others’ shoes…to know them better…I am, no, he is happy that his daughter found her love with this handsome young man, the son of the chief of the bushman tribe…and he…with all of his Zulu warriors…are to send his daughter to marry James today. What? It’s my wedding day today?” Vicky forgot to translate any more. She cried and hugged her father, thanking him, at least that’s what Nathan guessed from their interactions.

  Only then did Nathan collapse to the ground, feeling like he had just used all of his life energy.

  Amy knelt down, holding Nathan up against her chest. “Thanks, Nathan; how did you pull it off like that?”

  Nathan took a deep breath. “It’s called Wuwei, one of Taoism’s fundamental principles. Solve conflict without using force; follow the flow rather than fighting against it. It’s a bit difficult to understand it at first but you will eventually get it if you think about it all the time. As Taoists believe, there is no absolute right or wrong, it all depending where you are standing.”

  “No absolute right or wrong, it all depends on where you are standing.” Amy mumbled the words.

  “Amy, please don’t forget to say congratulations to Vicky and James.”

  Nathan and Amy jointed the tribe members from both the Zulu and bushman tribes, celebrating Vicky and James’ wedding, although nobody could see them. There was plenty of food on the street for everyone to eat; people were dancing and singing in their native styles.

  Nathan enjoyed every moment of it.

  OBUarity sent Amy and him plenty of drinks and food in OBU, so Nathan could invite the chiefs and tribesmen to celebrate in OBU as well by using the mobile OBU helmets provided by the OBU field staff. Old Paul, the Zulu chief, loved OBU so much that he decided that he would attend Nathan’s English classes sometimes, and wanted to know more about this Chinese Old Master.

  After a long day of drinking, talking, singing, dancing, and wrestling, Nathan and Amy returned home, completely exhausted but extremely happy; they had really enjoyed themselves.

  It was Nathan’s turn to make breakfast. After he was all done he called Amy and then turned the TV on, tuning it to a news channel.

  “Nathan, I still can’t believe what you did yesterday.” Amy sat down at the table, picking up the teapot and pouring Nathan and herself a cup of tea each. “Just a matter of a few words and you completely averted a potential blood bath.”

  “Well, as the old say, wisdom is sharper than blades; I merely demonst
rated the point.”

  “You are too humble about yourself, my little brother,” Amy laughed.

  Just then, Nathan’s attention was caught by the news; the reporter said that two lawyers from the US were found dead in Little Amsterdam. The TV camera switched to the alleyway off the main street. Without waiting to finish watching the news, Nathan stood up and dashed to his bedroom.

  He quickly put his OBU helmet on, and used his jumper to dial Gary. Gary didn’t enable the video signal.

  “Gary, have you watched the news about what happened in Little Amsterdam? Yes, two American lawyers were found dead; do you know anything about it?”

  “It was reported this morning actually,” said Gary. “If you watched the whole news, you would know that the police found traces of drugs in their bodies. The deaths were initially suspected as drug-related. Those two thugs well deserved their ends.”

  “Okay, thanks. Sorry to wake you up so early,” mumbled Nathan.

  “Early? Mate, it’s two in the afternoon; I have just finished my lunch,” said Gary.

  Just then Nathan remembered he was living on African time, more than half a day behind Australian hours.

  “Talk to you later.” Nathan hung up.

  “What happened?” asked Amy after Nathan reappeared from his bedroom.

  “I just asked if Gary had heard the news about the two US lawyers’ deaths; you know we were there yesterday.” Nathan didn’t know why he decided not to tell Amy the details of their involvement with the two lawyers.

  “Nathan.” Amy paused and then said, “After work today there will be a party for all OBUarity staff involved in the African regions. The party will be in London, on a river cruise boat along the Thames.”

  “Oh, one of these ‘all for one and one for all’ French-style orgy parties.”

  “Might be, but it’s organized by OBUarity officially, so we have no choice but to attend.”

  Nathan had never been to London before in either OBU or the real world, so it was quite exciting to see the London Eye, Big Ben, the Houses of Parliament, and all the other old buildings along the Thames.

  The cruise boat was quite spacious. Nathan and Amy stood on the upper viewing deck, enjoying the historically significant buildings along the way.

  Beside them, since their journey started, Pierre had been persistently trying to persuade Amy to go to the lower deck so he could introduce a few new friends to her. Lucie was nowhere to be seen. Looking at Amy’s expression, Nathan couldn’t help but grin secretly; he could guess what happened on the lower deck—a sexual feast and large scale ‘all for one and one for all’ orgy for the hard-working colleagues from all over the world. He supposed that the people who remained on the upper viewing deck were the ones not into these comrade-sharing events.

  It seemed that Pierre had finally run out of steam, giving up and walking away.

  “He really tried; I have to give him credit for the effort,” said Nathan. “Maybe you should give him a chance.”

  “He is so sweet, but I doubt that he and I actually want the same thing,” laughed Amy.

  “Excuse me, are you Nathan?”

  Nathan turned around. The voice was from a blonde girl. She was very attractive, five foot ten, with long legs and full boobs; beside her stood a handsome young guy.

  “Yes, I am Nathan. Do I know you?”

  “Not yet, but you will soon, and that’s why we are having this gathering,” the blonde girl said. “Let me introduce everyone. My name is Eve, and this is my friend, Peter. Peter, this is Nathan, the famous old master who prevented the potential tribe war yesterday, and this is Amy, Nathan’s co-worker.”

  “Oh, no, I am no old master,” said Nathan.

  “The young master then. It’s an honour to meet you both.” Peter shook Amy’s hand, and then Nathan’s.

  “Amy, Peter is very knowledgeable about the Thames cruise; you know he has read the famous novel, Three Men in a Boat, many times over,” said the blonde girl. “So Peter, why don’t you show Amy the river you know best?”

  “I’d be glad to. Shall we?” Peter offered his arm to Amy, like a gentleman from the age of Three Men in a Boat.

  “Thanks; see you later, Nathan.” Amy put her arm in Peter’s, and they both walked towards the tail end of the viewing deck.

  “Nathan,” the girl who called herself Eve said, “I would like to have a few words with you in private. Why don’t we go to the lower deck so we can have some privacy?”

  “Well, Eve, you know, I am a bit old-fashioned; I am not into comrade love-sharing parties,” said Nathan awkwardly.

  The blonde girl stared at Nathan intensely; only then did he notice her piercing blue eyes. They were so familiar but he couldn’t remember where he had seen them before.

  “Nathan, have you been to one of these love-sharing parties before?”

  “No and I am not planning to.”

  “Nathan, in order to know the truth, you have to get firsthand experience, not judge based on what you’ve heard. Come on, let me showing you the party, and you will find it’s just another social occasion.” She looped her arm through Nathan’s and started walking downstairs.

  Nathan had no choice but to follow her lead. From the corner of his eye, he could see Amy glancing in his direction.