The Hunt for Xanadu

by Elyse Salpeter

  * * * * *

  The three monks stood on the edge of the hill, watching Shingen and Kelsey on the small hill. Desmond stood behind them.

  The pair held hands as they overlooked the valley below. Beyond them, across the vale, rose the city of Xanadu, glowing like a giant golden nugget. The garden glen they stood within was filled with flowers and hundreds of butterfly-like creatures, with wispy, fluttery wings edged with cascading tendrils that looked like streamers during a holiday parade.

  Kelsey laughed as they circled her head and gently tickled her chin. She clapped her hands and like a flock of birds, they took to the sky. She chased after them, running across the soft grass. Her feet were bare, her long hair untamed and cascading down her back. Kelsey glanced up, squealing with delight at the spectacle above her. “Look at the sky, Bantu Shingen!” Ribbons of pinks and yellows swirled overhead, moving lazily like a lava lamp. She cocked her head, her face curious. “Do you hear something? Like a thousand voices whispering?” She turned suddenly serious, her hands on her hips and her eyes squinting mischievously. “Where’d you take me, Teacher? This isn’t like our other meditations. Did you put me to sleep and I’m dreaming?”

  The monk with the kind eyes smiled down at her. “No, you’re not dreaming. We’ve gone beyond mere meditation, Kelsey. We’ve traveled deep into your inner mind and have opened your psyche to a secret land we shall call Tedanalee. A wondrous land the monks have been bidden to protect.”

  “Protect? But, why? Is it in danger?”

  “It is, child. We protect this place, because it’s a world sacred to the very fabric of all human existence. This place is the basis of our religion. It’s the place where death and rebirth come together. All of eternity meets in this plane when they die, determining their next samsara, their next rebirth on who and what they wish to be when they come back.

  “Come with me and let me introduce you to it. There are people here, bodhisattvas and arhats, who would very much like to meet you.” With that, he took the child’s hand and together they walked down the small hill into the valley, on their way towards the monastery at the heart of Tedanalee -- of Xanadu.

  * * * * *

  The three monks and Desmond watched them move into the forest.

  “How am I here with you, seeing this?” Desmond asked. He glanced at his clothing, noticing he wore the same clothes he had worn into the monastery. He peered around, secretly wishing to see Dorje.

  The Abbott turned to him knowingly. “Your fedelia isn’t here, Desmond. He’s not even born yet. You’re not actually in Xanadu right now, but deep within Kelsey’s memory. Her first memory of Xanadu. We called it Tedanalee to keep it safe until she was older. And yes, we have astral projected you into it.”

  “I recognize that little girl. I… think I’ve seen her before.”

  The monk remained quiet.

  One of the butterfly-like creatures floated towards Desmond and he raised his hand to the pink and green animal. It passed through his palm.

  “We’re not really here,” Desmond remarked. It was true. He couldn’t smell the scents of the hundreds of flowers filling the glen. He couldn’t touch this world. “You’ve been using Kelsey all along, haven’t you?” He felt his words flowing from him as if they were a powerful emotion, filling his mind along with the minds of the monks with him.

  The Abbott nodded. “She’ll know when she awakens that we used her, but it was for a noble cause. With each rebirth, her will has been in a constant struggle between the good and the evil which permeates it.”

  “And even so you wanted her?” Desmond asked. “Knowing where she came from?”

  “If she can ignore the temptations of Mara just as Siddhartha did, she can succeed. The Emperor and Empress, who are really arhats, saw this potential in her and deemed her soul worth fighting for. It’s why they agreed to take her in and help her heal.”

  “And if the Emperor and Empress decided not to take her?”

  The Abbott pursed his lips. “Then she would most likely have died in this lifetime to be reborn again. But now there’s hope. Hope to conquer the beings coming from the lower levels to invade this world. Beings sent here by her own spiritual father, Mara.”

  “So what is this world?” Desmond asked. “Nirvana?”

  The Abbott shook his head. “No, not Nirvana. It’s one of the four bardos. The third one. The place where souls are reborn and vortices chosen. When people die, they come to this plane and decide what their next path is, what their next lifetime is going to be.”

  Desmond thought about that. “So it’s a resting place?”

  “Of sorts,” the monk replied.

  “And what would happen if Mara comes to this plane and attacks it?” Desmond asked.

  The Abbott stared at him, his expression pained. “If this interval of existence is destroyed, no one will ever be able to choose their correct incarnation. They will all travel straight to the other five worlds, all of which are inferior to the physical world.”

  Desmond nodded in understanding, horror seeping into his thoughts. “I learned this,” he whispered. “So, if this bardo is destroyed, you’re saying no one will ever be able to create new Karma and all chances of spiritual growth or redemption, any chance of enlightenment for anyone, is destroyed with it?”

  The Abbott nodded. “Yes. Dharmata, the essence of all things as they are, vanish not in the light of wisdom, but into nothingness. The Lord of Death will have won for eternity. There would be no physical rebirth for anyone, ever again. The human plane of existence will cease to exist and we will roam within the other five domains, the animal, the god, the hell planes, but never the human plane again. In essence, if Mara destroys this world, human beings as a species will simply disappear.”

  * * * * *

  The chanting stopped and Kelsey opened her eyes, aware of everything. Her mind had been opened and she remembered all that had happened to her. Remembered her first visit to Tedanalee--to Xanadu. Remembered the daily trips the monks made with her to this world while they meditated. Remembered meeting the Emperor and Empress for the first time. The awed stares from the members of the court. She remembered everything with perfect clarity.

  And now she was furious. She turned to the Abbott, livid. “Do you have any idea what it’s been like for me to think at the very edge of my existence, there’s a secret land I’ve visited in my dreams? One I thought was so real I suspected I was losing my mind? And then to think I was damaged because I kept dreaming about the hideous deaths of one girl after another? I believed a part of me was mentally ill and lived with this belief for twelve years. You never thought to tell me the truth and reveal what you were doing with me?”

  The Abbott shook his head. “And what would you have done had you known the true nature of Xanadu or your spiritual path? Would you have believed it? Would it have changed anything?”

  “It would have changed everything! I don’t even know what these people are. Who are the Emperor and Empress, really? Enough deceit – tell me who they are!”

  “They are spiritual practitioners called Arahants or Arhats. In different sects of Buddhism, they represent different things, but they are ultimately the protectors of the bardos who have chosen to dedicate themselves to defending the existence of the human realm rather than traveling to Nirvana. Much like bodhisattvas.”

  Liar. “They’re not Arahants. Every text tells you Arahants don’t feel things and these people do. The Emperor and Empress have strong emotions. They have cravings and desires just like the rest of us. They cared for me and were loving and kind. Again, you’re reaching to make it sound convenient and fit the lies you tell.”

  “Kelsey, not everything in Buddhism is an absolute, nor is one sect of Buddhism the complete truth. The differences in Mahayana and Theravada regarding Arhats are as different as they are in the other sects as well. What people believe is dependent on which doctrine one chooses to follow, but here we follow them all and here we know the truths as they exist.�
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  “Everything about you has been deceitful.” She was so angry, she gripped her hands into fists until her knuckles were white. “And what about me being Tanha? You didn’t see fit to share that bit of knowledge with me?”

  “Better not to know so you could cope after your ordeal.”

  Kelsey turned on him. “My ordeal? How can you speak of it so blithely? You knew my family was in danger and you did nothing. Abbott, you let Raul murder my parents. You might as well have killed them yourself, because you knew he was coming for a year and you did nothing to protect any of us. You knew he was after me.”

  The Abbott shook his head. “That isn’t true. We did try, but we were too late to help them.” He rang the chime again, and relit the incense. “But we were in time to help you. Come, let us show you and you’ll understand.”

  And back into time they went again…

  Chapter 28

  THE SCENE OF THE CRIME

  The Abbott and the monks once more stood with Desmond, watching a vision unfold from the depths of Kelsey’s memory. The scene before them was horrific and Desmond unconsciously moved forward to help, but the Abbott stayed him with his hand. “There’s nothing you can do in this recollection of events, Desmond. This happened a long time ago. Kelsey is a figment of her past here. You can only help her by learning and watching. Each time we bring you back with her, your mind is opened a little bit more. Science is the basis for our beliefs and your brain has the capacity to change itself when it learns new functions and roles.”

  “You’re talking neuroplasticity,” Desmond said. “It’s being written about now in scientific circles of how meditation can literally change the way your brain is wired.”

  “Scientists have fancy words for it, but it’s all the same in the end. Just watch and you’ll see that we’ve always been here to help her.”

  With a deep resolve, Desmond turned back to the tableau, determined to see what needed to be seen, but it was difficult.

  He stood with the monks to the side of the hut. Kelsey’s father, Benjamin, lay in a crumpled heap, his blood pooled on the ground beneath him. Her mother, Margaret, was on her knees, clutching her abdomen. Her face was a picture of agony.

  Kelsey lay on the ground in the middle of it all, her naked body battered and bloody. She wasn’t even crying, but wide-eyed in shock. Desmond saw her try to rise, yet couldn’t. Both her arms and one of her legs were broken. A strangled, miserable cry escaped his throat.

  He watched Margaret begin to crawl towards her daughter, holding onto her eviscerated stomach as she dragged herself forward, inch by inch. Her blood streaked and pooled behind her. When she finally got to her child, she bent down with a smile so radiant it could light up the sun, as if she’d not a care in the world, but there only to bring happiness and comfort to her daughter. She wrapped her arms around Kelsey and together they lay there for hours, until Margaret passed away, though in Desmond’s timeline it seemed mere minutes.

  “Now watch,” the Abbott said.

  Out of the woods a congregation of battered and bloody monks raced into the clearing. They stood next to Kelsey and her family, their faces torn by sorrow.

  “We’re too late!” one of the monks yelled, throwing himself to the ground and sobbing. A cut stretched from his forehead and down his cheek. The blood streaked down his robe.

  Bantu Shingen limped forward and kneeled next to Kelsey and Margaret. His eyes brimmed with tears, mixing with the blood and dirt staining his face. Raul and his men had raided the monastery. The monks had fought hard, but at a price. After they’d taken care of their brethren, they realized the threat must have moved to the Porters. They scrambled to their hut, but it was a mile hike through rough terrain and they were all injured. They hadn’t arrived in time.

  Shingen placed his hand on Kelsey’s heart and looked at the others, hope in his eyes. “She’s still alive. He didn’t kill her.”

  Shojuharu stepped forward, nodding. “And now they have the map. They think it’s all they’ll need. We’re fortunate they don’t know the truth and the extent of our diversion. Come, there’s no more time. We must take her to Xanadu. The Arahants will protect her.”

  Bantu Shingen stared up at him, horrified. “Take her to Xanadu now? She’s critically wounded and needs medical care here in this world, Shojuharu. We can’t just leave her lying in the dirt. She’s not some princess of the Underworld, but a mere human child!”

  Another monk stepped forward, placing his hand gently on Shingen’s arm. “And how do you propose we get her to the local hospital, Shingen? Carry her the two day journey on our shoulders? Mara’s minions slaughtered our horses and destroyed our vehicles and even if we somehow were able to get her there by walking ourselves, she’d probably die along the journey. Mara will have won again. Look at her. If we take her to Xanadu now we can put her body on this plane in stasis. By taking her to Xanadu, we can slow down her physical process here and give her people time to come for her. She’ll be uninjured in Xanadu and it will give the Arahants the ability to work with her.”

  Shingen shook his head, uncomprehendingly. “But who will come for her now that her parents are gone?”

  Shojuharu’s eyes alighted on the transmitter in the corner of the hut and moved over to it. “Benjamin told me often he speaks regularly to his good friends, the Goldmans. He showed me how this works when I visited him a few months back.” He picked up the receiver, punched in a number listed on the side and after a few more seconds, started speaking. Eventually, he hung up the phone and moved quickly back to the group.

  “Help is coming, but it will take time. Let’s do what we can for her now until they arrive. Let’s do what we can for all of us.”

  After covering Kelsey with blankets to keep her warm, the ten battered and weary men encircled her and her mother, sat down, crossed their legs and began to move their fingers in the age old dance. They began to chant. Their voices echoed across the valley until soon the very air began to shimmer in front of them. On and on they chanted, until they suddenly stopped. It appeared as if they all had stilled, as if they had become frozen in time. If a person had come upon the scene, he would have been confused. Ten silent and unmoving monks encircling a horrific murder scene. But if he could see behind their eyes. See where they went…

  * * * * *

  Desmond watched, alone, from the edge of the glen as a new scene unfolded before him…

  Bantu Shingen held Kelsey tightly while she sobbed hysterically for her mother. He watched the sky, waiting for a response to their call. It was early evening in Xanadu, the heavens darkening and thick with deep purple and blue green ribbons, but still light enough to see the army of winged creatures flying to meet them. Like a flock of birds, they streaked in a brilliant pattern, edging closer until they surrounded them in the glen where they stood. Creatures of mammoth size spread and shook their glorious wings in a tremendous roar, as their soldiers jumped to their sides.

  A man and woman leaped off their magnificent steeds and marched towards them. They were regal and ageless, their beauty only marred by the ancient expressions in their eyes.

  The woman moved forward. She was slight and her amethyst-colored robes flowed around her as she walked. Her jet-black hair cascaded down her back and was pinned with diamonds and other precious gems--as if they were nothing more than mere trinkets. The monks bowed low, but she only had eyes for Kelsey. Her expression held a mixture of emotions ranging from horror and fear, to awe and reverence. She turned to her companion, nodding, and he stared back at her.

  “Are you sure?” he asked.

  She beckoned him forward with her hand. “Can’t you see it? Feel it? She’s back again."

  The man moved forward and stood before Shingen, staring down at the sobbing child. Tall by human standards, massive and strong, he dwarfed the monk.

  “Kelsey,” he said. “Look at me.”

  Startled, she glanced up with her red-rimmed eyes and stared into his face. The man flinched ever
so slightly.

  The little girl hiccupped. “Are you… an… Emperor?”

  The man nodded. “If that’s what you wish to call me.”

  Kelsey started crying again, and buried her face back into Shingen’s chest.

  The man glanced at his partner. “It’s her, and her powers have grown. It’s very clear her path changed again. She continues to fight against her urges and she’s stronger than ever before. Mara failed this time.”

  Shojuharu found his voice, and bowed before them. “She’s severely injured in our physical realm. We brought her here to you in hopes to save her.”

  The female Arahant turned to the monk. “We know what happened, Shojuharu. Give her to us and we’ll care for her. It’s her soul that needs saving this time.”

  The man stepped forward, and gently took Kelsey from Shingen. She was like a doll in his arms. In one swift motion, he returned to his steed and jumped on while his mate flew to her own mare. With a call, the Arahants and their army took to the sky, flying back to the monastery at the heart of Xanadu.

  The monks watched until they had disappeared from view and then Shingen turned to Shojuharu. “I hope this was the right thing to do. We’ve removed her from her reality and here she’ll remain. She may not be strong enough to come back. For that matter, what if she chooses to stay?”

  “Our world will beckon to her, Shingen. She’ll come back when she’s ready.” Shojuharu nodded, convincing himself. “And when she does, we’ll continue to teach her and protect her, no matter where she is. In the meantime, we must fight the blackness until we can’t fight it any longer.”