Jhun Thai O: The Fall Of Thomas Brady

Jhun Thai 0 Chapter 7

The cloak of sweet slumber had fallen on Thomas the moment his head had touched the pillow. He felt himself drifting off to a faraway place, a place that was shrouded in fog. Once again, he found himself alone, running down a path, thick fog all around him. He did not know why he was running, or where he was running too. But he did feel afraid, afraid of what was coming after him in the fog.
He could hear a voice faraway, a woman's soft voice calling to him and he ran to it, always looking behind him as he did. He had no idea what it was that he was running from. All he knew was that he had to get out of this place before whatever was coming for him would find him. He was always use to being strong and fearless. He had never been afraid of anything before in his life, being a fighter in and out of the ring, Thomas had been brought up to be strong in life, and so powerful was his fighting spirit that it made him arrogant, thinking himself to be almost above others. But now, in this place, shrouded in thick fog, lost, with not a clue as to where he was or where he was running to, Thomas felt vulnerable. The only thing his instincts told him to do was follow the voice that was calling out to him.
He heard it again, this time much nearer, and he ran as fast as his legs could manage in the direction. He nearly tripped on a flight of stone stairs which led upwards. Two Chinese stone dragons stood at the bottom of the stairs like guardians. They looked almost life like and they frightened, so he wasted no time in running up the steps while all the time looking over his shoulder behind him. The feeling that someone or something close was following him was so strong that it almost panicked Thomas. He could have just stopped and turned to face whatever he felt was coming for him, after all, he was a warrior, a fighter who had been taught all his life never to fear anyone or anything. But the fear he felt made him realise that whatever he thought was following him was much more powerful than himself and that he was not strong enough to face it.
The steps seemed to spiral upwards and stretch continuously on, and in the fog it looked like they were stretching out into infinity. Thomas felt himself getting tired, almost out of breath, but now again, he kept hearing that soft voice calling out to him and this spurred him on. Eventually, he came to a tall archway that led onto a courtyard. Ahead of him, through the thick sheets of fog, he saw what looked like a magnificent Chinese mansion. The courtyard had what looked like stone Terracota statues of ancient Chinese soldiers and warriors. Every single one of them had an expression on them as if they were ready for war. It made Thomas feel nervous and he hurried on. He could see banners flying high above him, and they flapped in the wind. Somehow, as he neared the mansion, the fog began to lift. There was a front balcony to the mansion and at the entrance, sitting cross legged and looking directly at him, was a small man dressed in a flowing golden kiamo that was decorated with flowers and dragons. He had short whispy white hair and a long white beard that almost flowed down to his belly. His face was lined and quite wrinkly but his piercing brown eye's had a look about him that told Thomas he was a lot younger than his outward appearance.
From behind a pillow emerged a tall woman in a dark dress and long dark hair and high heeled shoes. Thomas recognised her as Tamara and he was surprised to see her in this place of all places. She walked right next to the small Chinese man who studied Thomas's tired and weary form curiously, his eye's narrowing.
He spoke something out in Chinese that Thomas did not understand.
"What do you seek?" Tamara suddenly said, as if translating what the Chinese man had just said.
Thomas blinked once and then took a few deep breaths. He was exhausted from his run, yet still afraid of what was following him.
"What do you seek?" asked Tamara again.
Thomas looked behind him. He could feel another presence, still far away, yet closing in on him. "Sanctuary," he said to the Chinese man and Tamara.
The Chinese man's eyes narrowed even more. He spoke again in Chinese, his voice hard.
"The coward who runs from his own fears will find no sanctuary here," Tamara said in translation to the Chinese man's words. "To find true wisdom and enlightment, you must turn back and face what it is you are running from".
Thomas turned to look back behind him. He could nothing in the courtyard, other than the Terracota stone statues. He looked back at the old man and found Tamara standing right in front of him, the small Chinese man looking on. She leaned closer to him, her perfume of cherry blossoms filling his nostrils. "Tell me what you are afraid of?" she whispered to him.
Thomas shook his head, unsure of how to answer her. "I-I-I don't know," he said, shaking his head. "I-I can't understand why I am so afraid".
"We all feel fear from time to time Thomas," Tamara said to him. She began to circle him, her green eye's studying his vulnerable form. "But we need to understand our fears. Only then can we conquer them".
The Chinese man spoke again, this time more quickly.
"You fear the changes in your life," said Tamara to Thomas. "You fear them because you have for so long become comfortable with the luxuries in your own life. The riches that your success has brought you has made you feel like a king, but this is not your real life Thomas and your real destiny awaits you. Your path awaits but it will mean the destruction of your old life to rediscover the new".
"I don't want this," said Thomas. "I like who I am. I like what I have. I just want to feel safe. You got no right to take what I have worked for away from me!"
Tamara leaned closer again to whisper in Thomas's ear. "All things change Thomas. Change is the only thing that is constant in life". She blew gently in his ear, and before he knew it, he found himself drifting away from the place, far away into the silence of sweet slumber....