by C. S. Harte
Masa did not respond.
She shrugged her shoulders and slipped into the body suit first. Like magic, the suit started to shrink, conforming to her body shape. “What the…” She wrapped the karategi around her body. It also resized as she tied her belt. Clothes that auto-resizes for the perfect fit? Someone should patent this. She stepped out from behind the screen. “I’m wearing fighting clothes. Can we start now?”
Masa finally stood. He pointed his hand to a black line in front of him.
Kayla walked to the line and faced Masa.
He lifted his right hand. “Hajime!”
A person dressed in black faded into existence, standing to the left of Masa. His face, save for his eyes, were covered with black linen.
A ninja? How cool!
Before Kayla could finish her thought, the ninja charged at her. He took two quick steps and jumped into the air, feet aimed directly at Kayla’s chest. Without hesitation, Kayla dodged to the left and used his momentum to slam her attacker onto the bamboo mat.
The ninja faded out.
Kayla’s belt color changed from white to yellow. She smiled and looked at Masa. “I guess I leveled up.”
Jaime was right. This does come naturally.
Masa showed no emotions. He lifted his arm again and said, “Hajime!”
Kayla did not have time to celebrate or rest.
Two ninjas. Again, they rushed her as soon as they appeared.
Ninja One threw an array of strikes at her head and torso.
Kayla deftly blocked each one.
Ninja Two attempted a foot sweep.
Kayla gracefully jumped over the attack.
Ninja One attempted to grapple Kayla.
She countered the hold and threw him into Ninja Two.
They both disappeared as their bodies hit the ground.
Masa clapped once.
Kayla’s belt color changed to red. “Woohoo!” She jumped into the air, laughing with glee. Did I see a smile on him? I’m sure I did.
Masa stared intently at Kayla as if trying to gauge the next difficulty setting. He walked to the weapons wall and picked out four weapons.
Nunchucks.
Sai.
Sword.
Bo.
Masa placed the first three on the ground in the center of the room and tossed the bo to Kayla. “Hajime!”
Three ninjas blinked into the dojo. They picked up the weapons lying before them on the ground.
Nunchucks Ninja engaged first, his attacks and movements faster than the previous round.
Kayla parried with her staff, but his speed left no room to counter.
Sai Ninja joined the fray from Kayla’s right.
They pushed her to the privacy screen corner of the room.
They’re trying to trap me. Kayla fought hard to push back, but the onslaught was too fierce.
Sword Ninja raced toward Kayla. Like a gymnast, he performed two flips, a somersault, and then launched himself into the air. His sword aimed down at Kayla’s head.
Kayla was able to track the movements of the third ninja while parrying the attacks of the first two ninjas. She swiped her bo at the head of Nunchucks Ninja and feigned a stab at the chest of the Sai Ninja.
He blocked the attempt with his weapon.
Kayla used the counter force of the block to flip over Sai Ninja like a pole-vaulter jumping over a bar.
Sword Ninja missed his target, landing where Kayla was.
In a swift counter, Kayla swept the feet of all three ninjas.
They disappeared after landing on their backs.
Kayla’s belt transitioned to black.
She leaned on her bo, breathing heavily. She grinned to herself. “I still don’t know what I’m doing.”
“Instinct is better than thought,” Masa said.
Doesn’t matter what else happens today. I WIN!
Masa walked to the weapon wall again. He grabbed two sheathed katanas, throwing one to Kayla. “Hajime!”
No ninjas this time.
Masa unsheathed his katana. He shifted into an attack stance.
“I don’t understand. Am I fighting —“
Masa advanced on Kayla with the sword raised above his head.
She quickly unsheathed her katana and parried the first attack.
As if expecting the parry, he targeted Kayla’s leg, torso, and neck in subsequent slashes.
Kayla parried each thrust.
Masa somersaulted back and paused. He stared at Kayla as if he was replaying the sequence of the last attack in his mind, examining for weaknesses. “I will win in five moves.” He began his new series of attacks by first striking above her head.
Kayla blocked.
Left arm.
Block.
Right thigh.
Block.
He spun and stabbed at Kayla’s abdomen.
Kayla sidestepped left.
Masa twisted his body to slash at Kayla’s throat.
Kayla failed to block the fifth attack.
He stopped the blade a millimeter above her skin.
The whole exchange lasted all of three seconds.
“Five moves.”
“That was so fast.” Sweat dripped from her brow.
“You were too busy thinking about what you were doing. You need to just do.”
Kayla nodded. “Yeah well, today is my first day.”
“Your training is finished.” He sheathed his sword and walked away.
“Wait, I still don’t know if I learned anything. And when am I going to learn how to use my powers?”
Masa turned around. “You are Telekinetic, correct?”
“Yes. I mean, I think so. I haven’t been able to use my powers since I came here.”
He stared at Kayla and rubbed his chin. After an uncomfortable amount of silence elapsed, he walked to the weapons wall to return his sword.
Kayla did the same.
Masa placed his palm on the wall. “Initus. Kamogawa River, Kyoto, Japan, April 1868.”
The dojo became dust. In its place emerged a river lined with sakura trees in full bloom. An old stone bridge connected the two banks of the river down the stream. Families with their children were out walking along the gravel river path. A soft wind rustled but was occasionally robust enough to lift Kayla’s hair. Sprinkles of sakura blossoms fell gracefully from each tree.
“This is my hometown, Kyoto.” He closed his eyes, letting out a soft sigh.
“1868, you have been here a long time,” Kayla said solemnly.
Masa nodded and made his way towards the bridge. He stopped in front of a couple standing in the center. They had their backs turned away from him, talking and laughing to themselves.
Kayla followed Masa. She stared at him with her eyebrows raised. Are these people important to Masa? There was a striking resemblance between the man on the bridge and Masa. She gasped. “It’s you, isn’t it?”
Masa continued his gaze without answering.
The girl also looked familiar to Kayla. Was that the girl he was sculpting in his room? “Who is the girl?”
He lowered his head. “A faded memory.”
“She’s beautiful.”
With a quick movement, he turned and walked away. “Follow me.”
Kayla followed him in silence, not pressing the identity of the woman further.
They kept to the gravel path along the river until the bridge was no longer in view.
Masa grabbed a falling pink sakura blossom from the air. With his other hand, he made a fist and placed it over his chest. “Our talents come from Chi.” He opened his palm displaying the flower to Kayla. “Chi is like a hand.” He closed his eyes.
Blue swirls of light flickered, tracing his hand, converging around the blossom. “Do you think about closing your hand or does the hand know to close?” He held up the flower for Kayla to see. The blue swirls faded, leaving a perfectly round ice globe with the blossom encapsulated in the center. Masa gave the frozen sphere to Kayl
a.
It was heavy and cold in her hands. The ice bit into her skin. “This is so cool! Um, no pun intended.” She laughed.
He grabbed another blossom and handed it to Kayla. “Make this fly.”
Kayla fixed her stare at the flower petal. Her face was visibly strained.
The blossom did not levitate.
Masa’s eyes narrowed. “You trust that your hand will obey you. Trust that your Chi will obey you.”
Kayla had never been much of a believer in anything. What little faith she had in anything spiritual died when her mother passed. The concept of Chi, or an ethereal power source inside her was nearly impossible to accept. Masa just made an ice globe with his hand. I should be able to make this little thing fly. Kayla tried again. She closed her eyes. I don’t know if it’s working, but I gonna assume it is.
Masa clapped his hands.
Kayla opened her eyes to see the blossom floating above her hand. “I FREAKING DID IT!” Kayla jumped up and down, giddy with her performance. She ran to Masa and hugged him.
His face remained stoic, emotionless.
Kayla released her grip on him. “Oh right, sorry. It’s just, I never knew any of this stuff existed and now so much of my past few months are starting to make sense and —”
Masa held up his hand. His head tilted upwards, looking at the sakura blossoms above him. “Make all the blossoms fall.”
“From this tree?”
“No, all of them. Everywhere.” He waved his arm to indicate all the trees lining the river.
Kayla avoided his gaze. “I don’t think I can. There’s too many to visualize.”
Masa walked to the river’s edge and placed his palm on the water's surface. A small ice patch surrounded his hand. His face tensed. The ice patch began expanding — slowly at first, then in a flash, the entire river froze.
Kayla took a step back. “That was… just wow.”
“There are no limits to a strong Chi. The only limit is in your mind. Now, remove all the blossoms.”
Says the Chi master. How do I even attempt this? Kayla stood still, taking in all the trees she could see.
Masa waited patiently, staring at Kayla like a teacher studying every detail of his student.
A knowing smile appeared on Kayla’s face. Earthquake!
She placed both hands on the ground and closed her eyes. She pictured an earthquake shaking Kyoto. In her mind, she could hear a low rumble, followed by strong vibrations shaking the ground. A few blossoms fell from the tree next to her. Then came an intense pulse rippling through the area. The air suddenly choked with sakura blossoms. Finally, a roar erupted, tearing apart the Earth. Entire sakura trees split in half. The frozen river was pushed high into the air like glaciers.
Kayla opened her eyes, scanning the damage. Large beads of sweat dripped from her nose. Her shoulders released, and she fell flat on her belly, fighting hard to breathe. In actuality, only a few petals had dropped. “I’m sorry, I can’t do it.”
Masa patted Kayla’s shoulder and helped her up. “Good try.”
“Did you expect me to make all the blossoms fall?”
“No.”
21
Kayla was thoroughly exhausted from her training with Masa and headed upstairs to bed. As her mind drifted into sleep, thoughts of Tommy replayed in her head.
Kayla wakes up alone in Kyoto. “Masa?” she calls out. No one answers. A sakura blossom falls in front of her. Kayla catches it in the air and brings it to her nose. “This smells nice.” She hears talking and turns her head towards the source. Is that Masa on the bridge? The young couple from before is still there. She makes her way to them. “Excuse me.”
Silence.
Is that a different girl from before? Kayla taps Masa on the shoulder. He turns around. Kayla’s face lights up as a sudden jolt of shock travels up her spine. “Tommy? Is this really you?”
The girl also turns around. Kayla’s jaw drops as she sees her doppelganger. The doppelganger begins to cry. Tommy’s face pales as fear fills his eyes.
The world rapidly changes to dust as a new transition starts.
Kayla spins around looking for another person. “Anyone else here? Who changed the simulation?” Her skin begins to tingle. Is someone watching me?
A new landscape rises from the ground. Kayla is back in the Wolf Creek Town Center. She sees Tommy holding a stack of papers in his hands.
He’s taping them to telephone poles and giving one to each person he passes.
Kayla sprints towards him yelling, “TOMMY!”
He doesn’t turn around.
“TOMMY! I’m here. I’m right here. Look, I can walk just fine.”
He doesn’t seem to hear her.
Kayla stares at one of the flyers. It’s a photo of her with the header in large, bold print:
Missing
I’m not missing. I’m right here. She makes her way to him and grabs his arm.
Tommy turns around.
Kayla smiles. Finally! Her face blushes. “I miss you, Tommy!”
Tommy doesn’t react. It seems like he’s looking through her instead of at her.
Kayla studies his face — something is off about Tommy. He has stubble on his chin that wasn’t there the last time she saw him. His eyes are red like he hasn’t slept in awhile. She tries to hug him, but her arms go through his body. “Can’t you see me? I’m right here Tommy.”
He walks away.
Kayla reaches for him again, but her hands pass through him like an illusion. “Tommy…”
As Kayla walked down the grand foyer stairs, she saw a familiar trio of housemates. They stared at her as she came down the stairs and started laughing. Are they talking about me?
Jaime got up from his seat and approached Kayla. “How was the training with Masa? We had a bet to see if he would do the ‘five moves’ thing with you. Did he?”
Kayla laughed. “He did, actually.”
“Don’t play chess with that guy either. He’s always like, 'You will lose in eight moves.' I just wanna throw the board in his face when he says that.” He tensed his muscles, suggesting he might.
“Don’t worry. I don’t even know how to play chess.”
Emily’s face soured. “Jaime, we’re in the middle of talking to you!”
He rolled his eyes. “Well, a gentleman never keeps a lady waiting.” He bowed and returned to Emily.
“OK, later!” She waved at him and continued to the front entrance.
Kayla stood at the threshold of the door. One foot was on the inside of the house, one on the front porch. Am I really outside or is this another simulation? She shook her head. I’ve spent too much time in the studios. All the more reason to get out. The sun greeted Kayla with its warm rays as she exited the house. The temperature was pleasant. A sweet smell scented the air from all the blooming flowers — it was a perfect day to be out.
Kayla turned her attention to the garden. A man in the center of the garden was on his knees. Must be the gardener.
Thoughts of escape re-entered her mind. Who could stop me from here? I could easily make it to the gate. She hesitated. Kayla still had no idea where she was in the world and what kind of surveillance system Eden House had. Maybe the gardener will have some answers.
A red-bricked path connected the garden to the house. Manicured hedges lined the walkway, each about a foot in height, outlined the walkway. Behind the hedges were rows and rows of exquisitely planted flower beds.
Kayla had never seen so many different flowers with so many unique colors. Seemingly every color of the visible light spectrum was represented. The Eden Garden was a real life masterpiece with nature as the canvas and flowers as the paint.
Kayla stopped at the first section of the garden and bent over, staring intently at the blooms. The colors are so beautifully vivid, can they all be real? She touched one to certify its authenticity and smiled at the notion of such beauty existing in the world.
There was a weathered iron bench next to where
the gardener was working. It was the only object in the garden that wasn’t new in some way. Kayla took a seat, watching him work.
The gardener continued his planting, ignoring Kayla. He was tilling an empty flower bed and filling them with new flowers, methodically going through the seedlings in his basket.
Kayla fixated on the patterns of color he created. Is he a person or a sim? The gardener was not a young man. Most of his hair was gone. The hair he had left was bleach-white. His skin was splotchy and dark, consistent with someone who spent most of their life in the sun. Still, his movements were quick and tireless. Each flower planted without breaks.
If he’s a sim, he’s outside of a studio which is odd. If he’s a person, does he have special powers? But how do you ask someone if they are a sim or not?
Her curiosity reached a critical mass. “Excuse me.”
The gardener finished with his current seedling before acknowledging Kayla.
“Can I ask what flowers you’re planting? They’re beautiful.”
“Spotted Persicaria and Orchids. I’m moving them from another garden. I think they’ll do better here.”
“The purple in the orchids looks so vibrant.”
He nodded. “Would you like to help me?”
“Sure.” She stood from the bench. “My name is Kayla.”
“I know who you are, Ms. Odachi.”
“Oh, so you’re a sim?”
The gardener didn’t reply immediately. He pushed himself up from his knees and moved towards the bench.
Confused, Kayla sat again.
The gardener was dripping with sweat.
Kayla gave him time to recover before asking questions.
“What do you see?” He pointed at the flowers in front of them.
“Flowers. Lots of them. All different types and colors.”
“Hmm.”
“What do you see when you look at me?”
“A man. A gardener, I suppose.” She laughed a nervous laughter, unsure of what else to say.
“The only difference between illusion and reality is how much one sincerely believes in the illusion of reality.”
Kayla frowned. “I’m not sure if I follow.”
“You are a smart young woman. You've come to accept many impossibilities since you arrived — the grandeur of the house, the scale of the rooms, the simulations of worlds and people in the studios. Things that should only exist in the mind of an illusionist. Why do you think that is?”