Chapter Twelve. The Times--They Are Auspicious!

The Times--They Are Auspicious!

Derby fell into a deep trance. Dear reader, to feel the vibration of Umpa's breath, simply make the hollow sound of the wind blowing slowly across an open field. Imagine the early stage of a storm brewing and go ahead now and make the sound. Pucker your lips into a wide whistle shape and slowly exhale that hooooooo sound. Close your eyes and feel the vibration. Alter the pressure and the opening so the sound varies, just like the wind.

It was this feeling which thrust Derby into another space and time. He was peering out from glistening winter leaves on nearly bare trees. He found himself wondering from whose eyes was he seeing the landscape below him. He was looking at the snow covered woods behind his house. He had named it the road to Giverny once, because of a Monet painting a friend had pointed out.

Something different about that trail in the woods though....

"What was it?," he found himself wondering. He pushed down further into the vision. It was an unusually early snow, last year. Right after the election. Obama had been re-elected in an historic battle. It was the 57th quadrennial presidential election. It had been accompanied by thirty three Senate elections and the 113th Congressional elections. There were also eleven gubbernatorial races and dozens of state races.

The republican candidate had been a late arrival on the scene. The obvious contenders all had a contentious run by having their hats in the ring. Impalen had withdrawn early because of the scandal over many of her new business customers and their extreme violence toward the public and democratic officials. Her rifle selling empire had made her very wealthy, especially after she got the new contract with ValuMart. Huckaberry was the next to fall out of the race due to the controversy which had arisen over his influence to get a rapist released from prison, who subsequently raped and killed another victim, Wanda Drummer.

Grinch Neuterhead had only lasted a few months, after his political action group Ransacking the Future had gotten caught with its hand in the pork barrel jar.

Wilford "Matt" Hominy held on the longest from the "Birds of Pale Feathers," as the republican contenders had come to be known by. His comparisons of Muslims to Nazis over the ground zero mosque debate had finally worked against him in his own party, as the tide started turning away from violence and name calling.

Obama's opponent was a son of the South, named Wilson Nathaniel Tallulah Savannah. He had been a hero in the Iraq war and had amassed a fortune as a video game manufacturer. His video game SNIPER had outsold all other electronic games of all times, even though it was just introduced in early 2011. He ran on the slogan, United We Fall which had become the marching song of the Tea Party.

As Derby peered into the woods from "leaf" level, he found himself contemplating the landscape of the fresh snow. He had been hopeful for the future after the election. As trying as the election had been on him, the candidates and the whole country, it had been the flurry of activity around the predictions of Armegeddon which had made December 2012 so pregnant with anxiety.

"What does the discovery of the continued Mayan calendar mean?" As Derby heard himself ask the question, he pictured the ancient invention which had been unearthed near Campeche, Mexico. Its ornate carvings, depicting the Mayan Earth and Moon Goddess, Ix Chel, were illuminated in bright colors, which had survived its burial for 2,100 years. The discovery of the "Hub" as the invention was informally named, also led to the religious movement of invoking the feminine power of intuition.

Suddenly, from his celestial position, his vision of the Hub transformed into the roulette wheel in Umpa's chamber. The wheel was turning and he instinctively knew that the streaking light around the rim of the wheel would soon separate into white and black marbles. As he saw the white marble land into the black compartment and the black into the white, exactly as they had just moments ago, he realized that all of these visions had taken place with the whoosh of Umpa's breath.

"Yin inside Yang inside Yin. Yang inside Yin inside Yang. How well do you know your I Ching Mr. Ripley?"

Umpa was no longer blowing. Derby suspected he was about to be freshly educated by a mystic of great power.

Chapter Thirteen. It Was a Little Bit Frightening

It Was a Little Bit Frightening

"Choose the road less traveled by," she had told Derby. He had been less than gentle with his reference to Republican candidates on a new blog he was writing, called Oats, a sequel to The Children of Zol. Belle was a friend from high school. They had their 40th reunion in 2011.

"Yin inside Yang inside Yin." He pondered the meaning. His thought pattern continued, "The feminine inside the male, inside the feminine. Know the white but keep to the black--and then all of that further embraced by the arms of the Great Mother." Derby knew that the black represented the female and white the male but this concept of one more extension, such as that represented by a white mouse swallowing a black marble landing in a white hole--this seemed outside of the Taoist teaching.

Derby allowed himself to slip out of his meditation and let his thoughts run away with him. "So what of Yang inside Yin inside Yang? The male inside the feminine inside the male? With just one more line in either the top trigram or the bottom, you could go further--black inside white inside black inside white. Hmmm," he thought, "like Chapter 42 of the Tao te Ching--One produces two, two produces three and three produces the ten thousand things..."

At that point, the horse ran free and his thoughts degenerated into a full fledged conversation he had in his mind. He imagined talking to Belle:

"Belle have you ever heard David Attenborough describe the dance of the male Bird of Paradise of New Guinea? He tells us that because of the unique environment of New Guinea, the birds have been able to evolve freely, without fear of survival. They have been able to divert all their evolutionary energies into the mating ritual.

"The male is the one with the spectacular plumage." Here Derby had to emphasize a point. "If you haven't seen this PBS special, you really should find it. It is sooooo amazing!" So out of accord with his meditation was he, that Derby even imagined Belle's response, which was a gesture of kindness. She had either seen the special or would see it, but either way, she wanted to allow him his rant...

Derby continued the imaginary conversation. "Now it isn't only the plumage, which by the way works because of how the male positions himself in the light. Yes, the light. It is critical that the feathers capture the light. The colors are unimaginably beautiful and it is how they reflect the light that gives the impression of precious metals and lustrous, brilliant, iridescence."

Derby continued his long explanation. Belle sat patiently, awaiting the punch line. "Then the male actually transforms himself. Different Birds of Paradise take on totally different shapes. Some have breast plates that swell out like huge glistening shields. Others turn their wings into mirthful or whimsical shapes. And the dances vary between subspecies also. Some hang upside down and vibrate, others make peculiar sounds, some bob, others weave."

Then Derby paused and considered exactly how to phrase his next thought. "This is what I'm getting at though. Attenborough tells us that for thousands of years, often the male will put on his light show just for the universe! Without the female being present!"

He could hardly contain himself at that point in his imagined conversation. He was so overjoyed by the meaning of the observation. As he writes these words now, he giggles to himself, aware of his ability to stay self entertained...

Derby continued to talk in his imaginary voice to his imaginary friend. "Now, of course, the purpose of such tremendous detail being developed into the ritual is finally all about reproduction. You see, the female selects the male with the most impressive plumage and best dance. And then that particular male mates with all the females. In this way, the species has developed the most vivid colors and most fanciful plumage. But even without the mating, the male can't help but put on the show, even when no one is watching!"

Belle finally had a chance to interject. "That is amazing." Her gentle reinforcement was all Derby required at that moment in his imagined conversation. So he was able to continue...

"It just occurred to me, just now, that the male's bright colors and plumage is the first Yin. His doing the dance for the universe is Yin inside Yang. Attenborough telling the story along with a documentary film crew's art form is Yin inside Yang inside Yin!

"But Belle, that section of the chapter devoted to the last election is meant to entertain, not to inflict harm. I am glad for your reminder, and I will change one name from Mutt to Matt and rename the group from rat pack to Birds with Pale Feathers. These changes are made in your honor. I'll also apologize to anyone who was offended by the chapter. You are correct, that names are called. But this whole fantasy is name calling. Besides that, I must protest. I must stand and be heard. It is what I do. I'll die if I have to sit still, when corruption is allowed to be positioned as justice. When brutality is promoted as the American way.

And I ask everyone to be light. For the story is just a dance. And dances are spontaneous. Too much analysis can dull the overture which could trip up the dancer."

Again, Derby paused in his imagined conversation. Then added, "And we wouldn't want that, would we?"

To his surprise (triple surprising because the conversation transpired in the imagination of a character inside a novella), Belle did her best not to hurt his feelings. "Great story, my friend. But that isn't what I meant."

Derby has described these kinds of conversations which have taken place with eyes closed, at times reserved for stillness and control of the mind, as "walking on broken glass." But he was soon rescued by the voice of Umpa.

"Tell me your perception of the passage from Wen Tzu which says

A ringing chime ruins itself giving sound, a tallow candle burns itself out giving light. The patterns on tigers and leopards bring hunters, the quickness of monkeys brings trappers.

Derby smiled because Umpa's question was especially poignent given the imaginary conversation he had just had with Belle.

"Colors blind people's eyes, sounds deafen their ears; flavors spoil people's palettes, the chase and the hunt craze people's minds," was Derby's reply, from the Tao te Ching.

"Exactly!," confirmed Umpa.

Unfortunately there was no time for celebration, as Derby had hoped would be the case, as he awaited more nuggets of teaching from the fat man. Because as fast as lightning, Six Ninja fighters in black attire were surrounding Bai Ling, Umpa, Opie and Derby after the dust of the explosion had splintered the door. Soon they would be Kung Fu fighting.

Ah, the dance continues!

Chapter Fourteen. Mighty Mice

Mighty Mice

He could have been in one of his stories. Explosions everywhere. First at the Peninsula on the morning after Jeninqua (had he spent the night with her?). Then as fireworks at a festival with the Asian people who had named the Year--Snake, who were parading with snake-like dragons. Now with six Kung Fu villains dressed in assassins black and standing in the ready-to-kill attack position.























To cap it off, music arrived, from an unknown source. And what music was it that Derby heard as if from heavenly loud speakers?



But he found there was no easy way to "write" himself out of danger on this one. Faster than he could think, let alone find a computer, he watched Bai Ling rush to spin the Hub, the roulette-like wheel with the black and white marbles on it. She moved with the speed and precise agility of a seasoned martial artist. In one swift movement she flew to a cabinet after her swing had started the mighty wheel, and picked up a dress. She yelled, "It's Jade, protect your groin area. Their aim is deadly."

Bai Ling had flung the wheel with so much power that the velocity was too great to contain the marbles which shot like two rockets, one toward her and one toward Umpa. Within that fraction of a second, Umpa had managed to secure a set of elastic trousers and he was holding them open.

"Hey," Derby thought to himself, "those look like the stretch type of pants that Fredalnte had worn," which  were like no other clothing he had ever seen. The only description he could give them were Super Hero action pants.  They resembled what runners or athletes would wear in the USA, except with the protection of fortified leather.

As the black and white missiles neared their targets (the open dress in Bai Ling's hands and the action pants in Umpa's), Derby and Opie were amazed to recognize the projectiles not as marbles but once again as living mice--Trevor and Jeninqua. As the mice flew into the clothing held by Umpa and Bai Ling, they changed again.

Who or what it was that landed, clothed in the dainty black dress with small shoulder straps and in the white leather-like action pants were the original Jeninqua and a strikingly handsome hispanic man with lustrous black hair and mysterious dark eyes, so brown they seemed black.

Jeninqua, Trevor, Bai Ling and Umpa were tumbling and chopping and slicing the air with their razor blade like limbs. Arms, legs, and their whole bodies seemed like fierce weapons. In spite of all the gymnastics of the good guys, Opie was trembling inside a small cabinet he managed to squeeze into. Derby faired less well. A heavy, spiked, miniature cannonball had been catapulted by a sling from one of the assassins and had hit Derby between the legs with such a crushing force that it threw him up against the wall.

As if one of the other assassins had been waiting for him to be slammed into that position, Derby felt the noose of a synthetic rope grip his neck and drag him out the door. As he was pulled down the stairs by a rope with such violent and chaotic force, he agonized with each bump and flip of his body on the hard metal structure of the stairwell.

One eye had been badly cut and his right arm felt broken. His nose was bleeding and he still suffered excruciating pain from the blow of the spherical weapon. As he was being stuffed into a vehicle on street level he heard scuffling outside the car. While he was clipped and strapped into the back seat, the other back car door opened and a bloody Jeninqua was thrown in beside him.

She was wounded and barely able to hold her head up. She murmered, "Jade fighters are ruthless. We'll be dead soon." And then she was silenced by a black gloved fist of one of the Ninjas. The quiet purr and sleek black body of the Mercedes limo was respected by the crowd, which yielded and parted to let it speed away.

Chapter Fifteen. Oh Give me the Wizard of Oz, Please!

Oh Give me the Wizard of Oz, Please!

"What was it about that roulette wheel? What is the significance of slots which are either red or blue? I see the polar ramifications of white at one end and black at the other, but what about the red and blue?"

These thoughts streamed through Derby's consciousness as he fell into a kind of unconsciousness. The pain of his broken arm and his swollen testicles from the direct blow of the spiked metal ball was so intense that he, more or less, blacked out. But he was able to watch these dream questions, scroll like a ticker tape in his brain.

"Man, I need to be writing some of this stuff down," his thoughts continued."This could be a movie. Am I hallucinating? Mice turning into marbles and then people? What is going on? Great material for a sequel to The Children of Zol. I wonder, will anyone read it?"

In a sort of half waking state and half dreaming, he noticed Jeninqua stirring next to him. He fell back into the questions in his unconscious consciousness. "So Jeninqua is the black marble, in the white slot. She's a Kung Fu fighter and one helluva sexy lady. The cutest little mouse you ever laid your eyes on too!"

He chuckled to himself at this little lapse into lightness of spirit.

"But wait, she's a white mouse!" Derby found himself caught up in a challenging math problem. His thoughts continued, "So is she the black marble or the white mouse? The white mouse swallowed the black marble. She can't be both marble and mouse? Or can she?"

He felt Jeninqua's hand softly nudge his which brought his awareness back to life. "Oh God," he thought. Let me sleep so I don't have to live through this Hell!"

Jeninqua's small thin dress was ripped and smudged. One of the shoulder straps was missing. She had a lot of blood in her hair and she looked bad. He could see bruises on her legs and arms. Her head was down so he wasn't able to see how bad her face was beat up. In spite of her condition, Derby noticed her body. She was practically naked. What was left of the tiny dress was no more than a fragment of a slip.

Her features were small but seemed perfectly balanced. "Who is this?," he heard himself ask himself as he looked at the damaged human who sat coughing and struggling with her breath next to him. He was worried that any touch would hurt her, but he turned so he could lift her chin with his left hand. He couldn't move his right arm at all. It seemed to dangle like a weighted object on his shoulder.

"Jeninqua. Can you hear me? Jeninqua. Hang in there. We'll get out of this somehow." As Derby quietly whispered these words to her, he felt the lurch of the limo thrust into a garage. He heard the heavy metal doors of a warehouse closing behind them and there were lots of voices, both men and women outside the vehicle.

Suddenly the agony of his aching shoulder from his broken arm was multiplied. A hand had grabbed his right arm, from outside the limo and pulled him out of the car as if he was a sack of potatoes. The intensity of the pain was so acute that he felt himself unable to control the nausea.

As he threw up on the legs and feet of the person who had grabbed him, he heard for the first time one of the voices of the Ninja. It was a woman's voice and it had an edge to it which was husky and raspy.

"You asshole!," she yelled. And before she had finished the o-l-e sound, she jammed her knee into Derby's sore groin area. She was able to use such power with the thrust that he was sure he felt his nuts in his mouth. He wasn't able to say a thing. Literally, he saw little dancing stars. There were popping circuits in his head and the lights seemed to be flashing. He could tell there was great activity around him and the limo. There must have been two dozen bodies, busy with preparations for him and Jeninqua, but the whole scene seemed to be on a spinning disk.

"I"m melting. I'm melting," is all he could think to himself before passing out.

Chapter Sixteen. Oh God Derby. You're not going to try to teach me something are you?

You're not going to try to teach me something are you?

It was pitch black. Derby couldn't see a thing. He had regained consciousness and it was COLD! He couldn't imagine where he was but it felt like a dungeon. His left arm was grappled behind his back to his useless right arm. The pain in his groin wasn't as pronounced as the pain associated with his broken arm. But now what was getting his attention was the cold.

As he tried to stand up, he realized that with his ankles also in shackles and without the use of either arm, it was impossible to stand up. He rolled on to his side and as he did he hit his head on the adjoining wall. "How small is this room?," he wondered.

Like an inch worm, he maneuvered himself on his stomach and knees. Whereever he was it was damp. The walls and floor were wet. With his face close to the floor, the first cockroach had managed to climb aboard his cheek and was exploring around his eyes and nose. He shook his head to release the bug, which was huge. It left behind what reminded him of scratchy foot prints on his skin.

He determined that the room was only about four feet by four feet. No sounds except the insects and the occasional drip of some water, coming from he knew not where.

To take his mind off the throbbing pain of his shoulder, Derby decided to explore some more mental gymnastics. "Wait a minute! Jeninqua was a white marble! It had to have been Trevor, the black mouse that swallowed the white marble! So Jeninqua swallowed the black marble!"

This changed the dynamics of the lesson Umpa had started to teach Derby. "So Jeninqua is Yang--White. That's weird! and she swallowed the black marble--Yin. So at that point Yin is in Yang. Falling into the white hole, the nested "holon" of the situation is Yin inside Yang inside Yin."

Courteous Reader:  I know this material may seem rather esoteric, but we're talking about the most basic fundamentals of life and culture, sex and reproduction, arts and science. We're talking about the pairs of opposites. You know...big and small, hot and cold, boys and girls. Let's see if we can make it interesting to read about....

Let's say you're at work and one of your good friends makes a comment that is inappropriate. At first you let it go because this is a good friend. But again later, he or she says something that makes you go "Yuk," to yourself. You don't want to say anything because you've got history with the person. But you start thinking that maybe you don't have that much in common after all. "How can you like someone who feels that way?," you ask yourself.

So what has just happened? You sort of "woke" up to something you hadn't been aware of. Is it likely that it was always like that but you hadn't gotten deep enough into the relationship to allow yourself to be intimately connected to the person? And what does it mean, to be intimately connected? Are chemistry or laws of attraction at play by chance?

Now let's say you're in another position. Let's say you're married but you go out with friends, outside of the marraige. You've noticed this one person, in the group, who is a friend of a friend. The person seems to very subtly make eye contact with you often. Nothing inappropriate has happend but you feel a little "charge." Sort of an electrical stab, which you might describe as a kind of attraction, if you let yourself.

So what just happened? Two members of the opposite sex felt an attraction. That's all. Before the mind games and the guilt, before the analysis and psycho babble, there was a polar attraction. The negative and positive poles had a little transfer of a "zzzzzz."

What transpires in the head after that or in culture is another thing. What is currently a cultural norm or viewed as appropriate behavior isn't something I'm suggesting to take lightly. We should live in the place we find ourselves. Living somewhere else is something that is very hard to do. Not to mention the pain and anguish that can be caused by human behavior when relationships are involved.

No, I'm not talking about anything after the initial "zzzzz." I'm just talking about the charge. Now let's explore this sexual thing a different way. Have you ever watched two male dogs in a yard? Especially the yard of one of the males? What happens? The ancient game of defending the turf is what happens. But with dogs, the extreme violence of the situation can be seen so quickly. Teeth exposed. Very deep growling. Hair on the neck standing up. Walking in circles until one or the other makes an advance.

So what is happening here? Do you think dogs get caught up in cultural norms? Is it about, "Don't you think you can come in here after I've bought her this house and have sent Johnny and Molly to the best schools?"  Probably not. Probably just inbred defense mechanisms. Now as it turns out it actually IS about reproduction and survival of the fittest, but the stimulus comes quick, as if it is electrical. Two male magnets repelling each other.

Now let's take an art form. Perhaps the most beautiful and complex art which exists and has existed for centuries--Ballet. At a glimpse, you see ballerinas, delicately and nimbly dotting the stage with the smallest fraction of their being. The only thing between their toes and the floor is a toe pad and soft leather, canvas or satin material, tied with a whisper of a ribbon around their ankles.

You think to yourself, "Pretty!" Oh, and it is lovely. Beyond description, the movement and grace, the fluidity and music of the flow utterly charms you right out of yourself, and you find you've been transformed by the experience. The male dancers are extremely masculine, usually, with leg muscles pushing their tights out so that the image of the dancers themselves are art. And the ballerinas--pure feminity. The epitome of the female form...or so it seems.

But wait. Watch the dance. Watch the control. The strength required to raise a leg to eye level, slowly and hold it there for the count of one...two...three...sometimes five or more! This is strength that most athletes don't have. I say athletes because I'm choosing a vocation whose members are known for their strength. But far and away more strenth and control is required by ballerinas than our football superheroes or our basketball giants or our million dollar baseball stars.

Years, yes, years, ten, twenty, usually at least are required to refine the form to the level of mastery. And with that, with those long constant hours of practice comes strength. Muscle strength but mental strength too. Because your body will yell at you, "Put the leg down. This hurts. This is too much. Stop." But the teachers over the years have helped you learn to control that chatter. "Why?," the teacher will remind you, "Why is it saying stop? Because it is hard! But who is in control? YOU! Hold it there. And relax into it. Don't fight it. Fighting it is much harder. Find the relaxation in the pose!"

Aha. So what is happening there? The ultimate feminine symbol, the ballerina which appears soft and fluid--That's Yin. The strength and hardness of what is inside, for instance the muscle, that is Yang!

You see, these examples above, are all instances of "nestled" holons. Holons is a word which has been coined to represent something which is whole in itself but part of something both larger and smaller. Everything in life is a smaller part of something larger, isn't it? And everything in life has both the elements of male and female, Yin and Yang.

It is discovering how to balance things which will make the difference when it comes to finding joy. When things are out of balance, there is struggle. When things are in balance, we're in equilibrium. This is when we are able to be still. It isn't automatic. To be still requires practice also. But finally, in stillness, we can find contentment. In contentment, there is true joy. Please don't confuse jubilation and a "high" emotional state that we may refer to as being happy with true joy. True joy is much more rare.

So back to Derby. As he contemplated Jeninqua as a white marble, turned into a white mouse swallowing the black marble (which had shot out of his own mouth) and then fell into a white hole, the sound of a heavy door on rusty hinges put him on alert. The creeking door sound came from a nearby hallway. Some light trickled under a door into his dungeon chamber and he was able to see just how bad things were for him. Cockroaches were swarming the floor and walls. Cracks and grease and dripping water marked the antique concrete interior of the room.

Derby was blinded when the solid door of his cell was opened, but he was able to distinguish the silhouette of a massive figure, raising the butt of a rifle. "This is it," he thought to himself. "Jeninqua was right. We're dead."

What felt like the final blow of the full brunt of force concentrated in the heel of the rifle crushed his cheek, making the cockroach tracks seem like angel kisses.

Chapter Seventeen. Opening a Can of Butterflies

Opening a Can of Butterflies

A jack hammer. It was as if a jack hammer was thumping and grinding a hole through his skull. Someone was talking to him, but the jack hammer was pounding. A non-stop throbbing. Rat-tat-tat-kaboom-kaboom-rat-tat-tat.

"Derby, there isn't much time," the voice was coming in more clear as he started to wake up. The pain and throbbing were hard to not be swallowed up in. There was light. He was trying to open his eyes.

"Listen to me. They'll be here. They are waiting for you to regain consciousness so they'll have the satisfaction of watching you be aware of them killing us together. Now Derby! Now Derby! Wake up! NOW Derby!"

Jeninqua was standing with light behind her but she seemed to also be a source of light. Like Angelic light. The details of the dingy dungeon chamber and its damp greasy walls were starting to come into focus as well.

"Derby. I am what is called "Naive" Yang. Early Yang. I don't even know how I know what I'm telling you. It may be Umpa or something way upstream from me. I'm very very minor. But you have to tune in. We don't have much time."

"My head," Derby complained while he moved his chin from side to side with his hand. It was hard for him to talk after the butt of the gun had fractured his jaw. "It feels like a war zone in my head. Pounding pain. I don't think I can do anything. I need to just close my eyes."

"I'm coming in."

Derby heard her say it but as soon as she said she was coming in, there was clarity and the throbbing stopped. As strange as it sounds, she seemed to climb in through his eye ball.  He saw her talking to him, just as before, when she was standing above him, except now he was watching the scene inside his head.

"Derby. Listen to me now. You have a few minutes in which you can focus on what I'm telling you, without the throbbing pain. Then I'll step back out and you'll have to follow my directions exactly."

Derby wondered if he could talk to her from inside his own head or if a gesture would suffice. He also suspected that he had fallen back to sleep and was now dreaming. Either way, the pain had stopped so he decided to leave things how they were. He motioned that he "understood," to the Jeninqua in his head.  She continued.

"Back at the hotel. From before. In the morning when you woke up in the Peninsula. Derby, are you with me?"

Derby shook his head yes. He remembered the morning very well. Few things seemed as vivid to him as the morning he woke up and watched beautiful Jeninqua, get out of the sheets and walk naked to the bathroom.

Jeninqua continued, "Fredalnte came into the room because you had passed the first challenge of our work with you. You were correct, you hadn't touched me. You never woke up and you didn't know we were in the hotel room. The champagne bottle and my showing you my naked body were both tests. We needed to know that you could overcome your false energy."

"False energy?," he found himself asking the question. Now he knew he could actually talk to the Jeninqua in his head, as if he were physically in the room with her. This thought confused him and she clarified it immediately.

"I'm still outside you Derby. Both outside you and inside you. But this way we can overcome the pain and the throbbing. You'll understand much more later but for now just know that the naive Yang, or "early Yang" is integrating with "mature Yin." These are extremely high energies at work, both very subtle. But there isn't much time. You need to focus on the details of what I'm going to explain if we are to survive this."

Derby motioned that he understood and for her to continue.

"The reason Fredalnte had to burst in suddenly was because I come from a low stream. I function in accordance with other subtle forces. You had overcome false energy but you were getting so confused. As you stood on the balcony and considered escaping, you also were being pulled by physical desires. Upstream powers knew it was time to interfere. Besides that, my own fire had started to merge with some of your water. I know this is confusing. But some of you had spilled into me and I may have eventually become a strong enough force to corrupt your false energy."

Derby understood enough of what Jeninqua was saying to ask a question. "So if I had given in to your advances...if I had come back to bed, for instance, and made love with you. If I had kissed your gorgeous mouth and let myself be wrapped in your sweet embrace, then what?"

Jeninqua was thrown for a loop with the question. She seemed to be looking into the distance or deeply into her self to find words or knowledge. "I don't know Derby. As you ask those questions, I find myself being confused. I feel the tug of desire myself and I picture our bodies entwined with you inside me. I need you to break this spell right now Derby. My energies are extremely subtle and easily co-opted."

Derby flinched and his right eye blinked. A bolt of electrical current seemed to enforce an internal will power and confidence. He felt a much higher presence as he let go of the image of sexual stimulation and as he did so, the glow of genuine affection reinforced the wall of determination which had erupted in him at that moment. He saw that he had exerted a power over Jeninqua. He had dabbled with energy and had tested something, without even knowing what he was doing. But he was so satisfied that something greater was ruling his senses now.

"Everything is going to be OK Jeninqua," he said quietly the first time. "Everything is going to be OK!," he said a second time with much more conviction.

The look of concern Jeninqua had and also the lapse of confusion which she had experienced briefly was gone. She smiled and continued the instructions.

"This is a cockroach's wing," she held up a small object and continued. Normally it would be crushed if you tried to use it to cut anything. But at its edge...at its microscopic edge...it is extremely fine and sharp. You need to imagine that it is a steel bayonet. You will cut my head off."

Derby went from a "can-do" attitude to stunned surprise. He waited for a minute for her to finish the joke or provide the meaning. As if "cutting my head off," was a figure of speech by naive-Yang-low-stream -spirit things. After all, she had tempted him. She had transformed in to a shrieking cat-like banshy. She turned into a white marble. She had been a mouse and a kung fu fighter. Certainly she could have meant any number of things by telling him to cut her head off.

"Derby, focus," Jeninqua continued. "Jade, and whomever they're working for know that they don't want my flesh to be torn. Once my skin is opened, they know that my energy gets absorbed back into the light. They will be in here in a few minutes to kill you but first they'll beat me to a pulp without cutting my skin open. I'll appear dead to you. That is what they want. Then they want to kill you, so that you die  feeling desperate and helpless. That is the only way Zol will vanish. If you die in this way, without hope and without love, they'll have won. And Zol will be no more."

Stunned and worried, Derby motioned for Jeninqua to continue the instructions.

"You must cut my throat cleanly all the way around, like you're opening a tin can. Do you understand?," Jeninqua waited for Derby's affirmative gesture. Once having it, she continue, "inside yourself you'll find a calm. This is what Fredalnte meant when he told Opie for you to act like a cat. You need to find this cat like calm within yourself. This calm will guide you. You will find an edge...a razor sharp edge...within yourself. You'll need to merge that edge with the cockroach wing and use it as a can opener around my neck."

"But cut your head off?," Derby questioned. "Isn't this a bit extreme? Can't I just poke a hole in your side or something? The butterflies seemed to do a fine job when Fred ripped your gut open. Even tearing a hole in your stomach would be better than cutting your head off!"

"NO!" Jeninqua was emphatic. "This must be done like this." Jeninqua reached out with the wing of the insect and handed it to Derby. In his mind, he grabbed the wing and watched her climb back out of his head through his eye. As her body made the transition from inside him to back into the dungeon cell, the thumping jack hammer commenced again and Derby braced himself for what he had to do.

Chapter Eighteen. Bummer

A pervading darkness punctured the atmosphere and an ugly heaviness hung in the air. The "black crud" and ghoulish evil was thick upon the room. Umpa was able to attend the gathering of the "Scontandia"  without being seen.

Derby had only heard the name "Polish Police." Even though he thought he had made up the term for the Children of Zol, there was a reason for the imagery of a ruling power behind the scenes. Jeninqua told him to fear that power and that it was shadowing him so Derby's senses would be acute and on alert. But really the force which was operating as the power to eliminate him was the Scontandia. It was this power and this force which was all pervasive and thick as disgusting sludge in the room where Umpa was present.

Jade, the Ninja fighters were there, and even though they were human, and female, they had lost their Earthly sensibilities such as compassion and respect for others. After years as contractors for the Scontandia, their "good" roots had been severed, and all that remained was a brutish force of hatred and extreme martial fighting skill.

Umpa existed as vapor and his vibration was attuned beyond the abilities of the entities which were gathered to plan the remaining minutes of life for Derby and Jeninqua. The physical form of the Scontandia "bosses" was strangely "other worldly." They seemed to occupy space and were clothed with a black material similar to the Jade fighting attire, but their presence would crackle and steam as if they were a combination of electricity and gas.

"Use the blunt end of the rifle and bludgeon the female. Be careful not to rip her skin! Beat her entire body mercilessly and make sure you hold the human so that he watches every moment of violence."

"Yes Lord," said the lead Ninja fighter. She appeared to be held in a trance of loyalty to the Scontandia chief.

"Use extreme care to pound her flesh until you have reduced her to a limp mound of lifeless matter. You will see the sign of her destruction when thick mucus like liquid is excreted from her ears, eyes, nose and mouth. The human will cry and ache by the sight her demise."

"Of course Lord. We will follow your instructions precisely."

The leader of the Scontandia continued, "This human Derby man--he is weak and stupid. He will struggle and weap. Continue to stab him and brutalize him in every way, during and after the beating of the female. Inflict severe pain constantly to his groin and head. Stab him repeatedly at the same time and aim the slicer where the agony will be the greatest. For instance under his finger nails, on the tips of his fingers, his tongue, his eye lids. With him you shouldn't worry about blood.

After you have eliminated the female and you have extracted the pleas for mercy from the stupid human man, at that point I want you all to divert your entire energy to his pain and agony. Go slow and be methodical. Have fun with it.

This brought a smile to the fighter's face, even though shielded from view by her mask.

"Yes Father. We will enjoy every moment!"

Umpa was not smiling in his being. He feared that Jeninqua had not received enough life lessons to protect Derby. Umpa felt slightly helpless but he rushed away to see if he could exercise any influence in the dungeon cell where Jeninqua was preparing Derby for the next episode of his tragic life.

Chapter Nineteen. White Marble

White Marble

"There's no way this cockroach wing will cut your skin!," Derby exclaimed, as he tried repeatedly to follow Jeninqua's instructions to cut her head off.

"You must find the razor's edge within yourself. That is key. Without that, you may as well be trying to cut a diamond with butter." Jeninqua sat patiently, exposing her neck, as if for the vampire.

"I can't find a razor's edge inside myself! I only see fear and desperation when I look in there!" Derby was shaking and felt helpless and scared.

Upstairs, the Ninja team and Scontandia ghouls were marching toward the cellar prison cell, with visions of death and destruction leading their conviction.

"Remember," said the head Ninja female. "With the blunt end of the rifle, bludgeon the woman but be very careful not to rip her skin. She will escape our wrath if any light from inside of her is exposed. Instead, their white magic will foil our plans!"

Umpa came sliding into the bad guys as if he was meteor re-materializing into the atmosphere and the Ninja were all bowling pins. The head Ninja had avoided the collision and leaped into the air as if rebounding from a trampoline. Her legs wrapped around his neck and her arms were firing like pistons.

Umpa's mighty jaw withstood the beating for the first few seconds but finally he succumbed to the squeezing of her legs around his throat and the rapid punching of her hard fists to his head. By the time the Ninja Banshi had brought Umpa to the pavement, the other fighters had regrouped and had gathered around the fallen Buddha and were kicking him and punching, some using their rifles and bayonets.

Back downstairs in the cell, Derby was still trying to slice through Jeninqua's lovely thick neck with the fragile fragment of a bug's back. "Jeninqua. Please. There must be another way! A piece of glass, a sharp rock. Something! Or perhaps another plan altogether! Perhaps we can overcome them when they arrive. Yes, we can surprise them!"

Jeninqua composed herself and seemed to descend into a trance-like frame of mind. Her voice was soft and deep. "If your skill was refined, you could cut off an elephants tusk with air alone, simply by accessing the sharp edge of your internal power."

She paused and took a few deep breaths. Then Jeninqua continued teaching Derby in the fine art of slicing off the head of a fairy tale princess..."First you must become calm. Find the spherical center of peace near your abdomen. Imagine coming upon a very sharp edge and stopping yourself just before being cut by accident."

Derby seemed to follow her instructions and his breathing changed as he gathered his composure. Jeninqua continued, "Now attach yourself to this edge and see yourself carrying it from inside to out, so that you transfer that cutting razor out through your fingertips and into the wing of the cockroach."

Umpa lay fighting for breath, abandoned in the upstairs corridor and the evil fighting force was just outside the dungeon cell.

After the door openend and the whole force of black sludge came rushing in with rifles raised, there was the dull pounding sound as the butts of the rifles smashed and crushed the skull of the female wizard. Blow after blow beat her mercilessly..."wait," thought the head Ninja as she imagined those moves, "this will result in cuts around the eyes and mouth, which will rip her skin." Such had been the fantasy of the evil Ninja.

So the fighting leader developed a different plan..."After we throw open the door, we'll assemble around the woman and hold her down. We'll aim our rifle butts at her stomach and legs, being careful to pound her like meat on a hook, without breaking her skin! This will be a blast! We'll beat the hell out of her like there is no tomorrow and make the pathetic human watch and squirm!"

Inside the cell, a swirling hurricane of activity was swarming around the open neck hole of beautiful Jeninqua. Her head layed against the wall and from her eyes a blinding light poured out like laser beams. Derby found himself sucked into spinning air and light and electricity and suddenly he was somewhere else.

"Where are they?!"





The Scontandia force was dumbfounded. They had roared into the cell with rifles raised and ready to strike but there was no sign of either Jeninqua or Derby. A plain white marble rocked back and forth with just a hint of one last vibration, laying there at their feet.

Chapter Twenty. Fancy Meeting You Here!

Fancy Meeting You Here!

"Wow," Derby said to himself as he walked outside along the picturesque trail. "This is a nice change. I wonder where I am?"

"Hello Mister," said a little voice. "I've got a big brother named Rumper. He can jump over a fence and he has twelve girl friends!"

Derby looked around to find the source of the cute voice. He found his new friend at the foot of the hedge, which lined the trail with a winding, waist-high natural fence. The voice was coming from a baby bunny, which stopped intermittently to nibble on low hanging berries which dangled from the hedge row.

"I like the fat ones, don't you? Mommy says if I eat too many of them I'll turn into a Goober Pie and be served at a banquet for the Queen. Do you think it would be fun to be served at a banquet? I do!"

Derby was delighted for the change of scenery and didn't stop to consider how he arrived at such a merry place. He dived right into the conversation with his new rabbit friend.

"Well, let's see. You've got a brother named Rumper and you like Goober berries and you think you'd like to be eaten by the queen. All of that makes you a very interesting little bunny. What is your name, my floppy-eared friend?"

"My name is Kinko. I'm the youngest of twenty seven. I've got lots of brothers and sisters and about a million cousins. Plus I've got lots of friends. Do you have many friends Mister? You've got a big nose."

This made Derby laugh. "Well Kinko, it is very nice to know you! And you're right, my nose is a little big for my head. I've got small fingers though. Don't you think?"

"My mommy says that I shouldn't talk to strangers. Especially ugly ones with big noses. Bye!"

And off little Kinko bounced, into the hedge and out of sight. So Derby decided to continue down the trail, to see what other happy adventures awaited, along this charming "Springtime" setting.

Soon, the rippling sound of a nearby stream attracted Derby's attention. He noticed an old wire fence was hidden by the hedge row and he managed to climb over it in search for the creek which beckoned him.

"Glop. Bloop. Watch your step. Gurgle. Plop. You're mighty high out there. Are you a monster?"

Again, Derby was caught off-guard by the sound of someone who seemed to be addressing him. But he wasn't quite sure from where the voice eminated. The sounds of bubbles and gurgling continued...

"Never met a fish I didn't like. Flop, blobber, slurp. Yes sir, fond of fish. Sure am. Fish and flying bugs. Love em both. Goo-gurgle-glop."

The splash alerted Derby and brought his attention to the shallow water near the bank. It was in those waters he noticed the scaly and glistening fish he was now engaged with. To his knowledge, he had never talked with a fish before.

"How do you do Mr. Fish. A fine day to you," said Derby while offering a slight bow to the wiggling swimmer.

"Watch your step there Monster. Glip-glop. Wouldn't want to get your shoes wet. Ever meet a fish you didn't like? Don't think so! Fish and flying bugs. Good as worms. Blub-glub. Sure do like fish. Monsters, not so much. Bye!"

With those last words, the little shining creature splashed the surface as it wiggled its tail and swam away.

"My my," Derby thought to himself. "Sure are lots of friendly animals here." With that he reached up to grab a branch on a nearby tree, and he was struck by the comfort of the sunshine which was filtered by the tree leaves.

"Sunshine, water, trees and grass, a charming trail and beasts with the gift of gab. All the things which seem to bring me perfect serenity," Derby thought to himself, feeling as if he didn't have a care in the world. As he noticed himself start to whistle a tune, a bright reflection of something in the woods attracted his gaze.

Through the thicket of thorny vines and brush he found himself pulled along to an "out-cropping" of sparkling minerals, imbedded in some rocks protruding from the earth.

"Hello Mr. Ripley!," said a voice of distinction. "Welcome to Umpa's Lair. We are Shrinegold, the Spirit of the Vein. At your service! Please sit, there, on the stump, and tell us you are well."

This time Derby didn't have a face or mouth to talk back to. The eloquent speaker was somewhere else, but seemed to be coming from the general direction of the glistening minerals and rocks, which broke the surface of the clearing, and reflected the light of the sun.

"Thank you Shrinegold. Are you the rocks and minerals which shine so majestically, here in the woods?," asked Derby, somewhat at a loss for not knowing who to reply back to.

"We are the Spirit of the minerals. We are the energy in gold, the luminosity of silver, the strength in steel, the healing power of zinc. You may say we are the lungs of the great Earth Spirit. Earth yields to us and we yield to water. We're incorruptible and pure, the source of illumination to all mind. Our elixir enlightens all living beings. Look for us now within your own lungs. Pause now to be rid of your sadness."

As the rock spirit spoke to Derby and suggested that he allow grief to be released from within his lung area, he, uncontrollably, coughed up a hard golf ball-sized mix of phlegm and muccus, which he spit out with an energetic, "Phew!" into the woods.

He felt instant relief, even though he hadn't noticed that he was storing any sadness at the moment. But as his spit smacked the trunk of a nearby tree, he was surprised to hear the ricochet of the splatter in the form of an angry reply.

"Hey, watch where you hawk your wad there bud. These are my woods!," said the disturbed voice of the wood.

"Relax Tim Tum," said the rock spirit. "This is Derby, the Father of Zol. We're honored to have him visit us. Please show him some respect!"

"Well OK then," spoke the tree man, "but he needs to practice his aim with that grief spill. That is some nasty stuff!"

The mellow and refined voice of Shrinegold seemed to extend from the wealth of all knowledge and further explained to Derby, "Mr. Ripley. Tim Tum is just one of the tips of the mighty root. He is wood. Water yields to wood. And he himself yields to the mighty fire. All that is green and flowers descends from his root. Tim Tum and his family are mighty warriors and his Spirit is very ancient. You will learn much from him."

"Well here you are!," the familiar voice echoed in the woods, and seemed to enhance the setting with a layer of peaceful resolve. Derby turned to see Umpa approaching the clearing, sporting a wide smile and a twinkle in his eyes.

Chapter Twenty One. Fifty Questions

Fifty Questions

Umpa came rambling into the clearing with the same ease as Derby had originally witnessed, above the laundry. Again, his shirt was open, with large belly protruding, wearing wrinkled shorts and flip flops. Derby had no knowledge of the fight Umpa had given the Ninja or of the mean spirited instructions by the Scontandia chief. In the most jovial style Derby could imagine, Umpa continued to welcome him--

"My dear Ripley! So good of you to come. Welcome!"

Having just released grief which he hadn't realized he had held inside himself, Derby had no limitation to his gladness. His smile was automatic and genuine. He was authentically glad to be in the woods with the laughing Buddha.

"Thank you Umpa! I'm delighted to be here!"

Umpa quizzed him, "Where do you think you are?"

"Why, I'm in your lair, engaged with the spirits of the wood and Earth!," replied Derby.

"And so you are my friend. How do you suppose you came to be here?," further questioned the fat man.

"Well," started Derby slowly, "I'm not exactly sure. Either I'm dreaming or I'm here due to some magic from Jeninqua"...(he paused slightly with a thought)..."who I've become quite fond of, by the way."

Umpa continued to bait the conversation. "What kind of magic is this then, that can deliver you from danger and desperation to a Springtime glenn?"

"Ha!," resounded Derby. "That is for you to tell me! Since I suspect you are behind the mystery!," he finished.

"Behind the mystery?," tested Umpa. "Behind?," again he questioned and this time he looked over his shoulder and down, as if he were looking for something behind him. "Do you like it when someone sneaks behind you with surprises my friend?"

"I don't mean any disrespect Umpa. I believe Opie was telling the truth, that you have power of wizardry and you know how to use it. What I meant when I said you were behind all of this is that you have controlled it," said Derby, showing great humility and caution.

"You are a man of intellect Mr. Ripley...a man of logic and a student of history. You're no small child, nor are you naive," insisted Umpa. "Give me your account. Take a "stab" at what has occurred."

Derby squinted and flinched slightly at Umpa's request. He fidgeted and shuffled his foot on the leaves beneath him. Then he spoke quietly.

"I remember feeling helpless and scared. I was cold and very soar. My body ached. My arm had been dislocated and my testicles were swollen and bruised. My jaw seemed to have been broken and perhaps my nose also. My cheek had been badly cut and I probably had suffered a broken rib or two."

"Continue," urged Umpa.

Derby sat reflective, struggling with one particular memory.

"In spite of all this agony and fear, I was captivated by the thought of Jeninqua. She was ragged and torn, nearly naked. She seemed fragile to the extreme and dirty. And yet she seemed light and fragrant like a delicate flower in full bloom."

As he spoke Derby seemed to acquire more momentum.

"And what else do you remember?," further prompted Umpa.

"She wanted me to remove her whole head!," blurted Derby.

"How did this make you feel," asked Umpa.

"Surprisingly," said Derby, "not as bad as you might guess. I instinctively understood that this would not hurt her but help US!" Derby acted surprised to hear himself say these things.

"Why do you suppose you felt as if there was no danger or tragedy by her suggestion?," Umpa continued to probe.

"Well," replied Derby, "I had seen Fredalnte tear open her abdomen which opened up some amazing light from within her. From that, a white marble was produced. So when she explained that I had to remove her head, I thought it was for some similar purpose."

This time Derby seemed to be self satisfied, as if things were making sense.

"And this time she asked you to remove her head?," questioned Umpa like a court room attorney. "Is this possible? Do you think this happened?"

"I'm here aren't I," asked Derby, as if that were proof enough.

"Are you?," quizzed Umpa.

"Am I what?," asked Derby.

"Here," answered Umpa. "Here my boy. Are you here?"

As he asked the question again, Umpa opened his hand to show Derby what he was holding. It was a black marble.

Chapter Twenty Two. Flight of Fancy

Flight of Fancy

Back in the dungeon, the Scontandia were flabbergasted by the disappearance of Derby and Jeninqua.

"How have you let them escape?," questioned the chief to the head fighter of Jade.

"We've done nothing Lord," replied the black enrobed Ninja. "There was...there is no exit. It is impossible."


"Had you been careful with her skin? If the slightest rip...even a small cut perhaps, and a wormhole can open. Yes," continued the chief, who seemed to be the creeping embodiment of evil, as he stooped and picked up the white marble, "they're in another world now."


In Umpa's Lair Derby stared at the black marble in the hand of the questioning Buddha. He sensed Jeninqua's presence but he was confused.


"Ah, the black marble!," exclaimed Derby. "You don't happen to have a white mouse in your pocket do you?"


This brought a wide smile to Umpa. "And why do you ask about a rodent? Don't you know that a black marble in the hand is worth two mice in the bush?"


As Umpa continued to tease Derby with riddles, he opened his other hand, which Derby perceived as empty. The fat man leaned into the empty hand and blew a soft breath across it and up into Derby's face.


To Derby it felt as if a gentle and subtle energy sprinkled over him and then he felt the soft touch on his shoulder of a familiar hand. From behind him he heard Jeninqua ask, "Miss me?"


Derby was filled with happiness. Excited, he turned to lay eyes on the mysterious woman who had strangely come to occupy so much space in his mind. She had returned to health and was dressed simply in a hand sewn frock, accented with ribbons. She had a fresh bouquet of white and lavendar to pale-blue flowers in her hair, held in place by her left ear.


As our adventure bound hero swallowed her whole with his measure, it was her smile which utterly rendered him helpless. She seemed to be the picture of innocence and purity. 


"Jeninqua," said Derby excitedly. "You're here!"


"Is she?," interrupted Umpa, again seeming to be holding a secret he wanted to share.


"Of course she is Rabbi!," said Derby to his adopted teacher of the wood. "She's here in the flesh!"


"Interesting that you mention flesh, Ripley my boy," continued the host of the glenn. "Speaking of flesh--have you noticed how your own skin fits you so well?"

"More riddles?," asked Derby, determined not to let the moment of the happy reunion be tarnished by a complicated math lesson.

"Derby," prompted Umpa. "When Howard the driver brought you to the square...What had he explained  was the celebration?"

"He said it was the Festival of the Red Dragon," answered Derby easily.

"Yes," confirmed the smiling teacher. "And what was the theme of the costumes and decorations? Wasn't it all to celebrate the Red Dragon?"

"Why yes it was!," agreed Derby, "and Opie said YOU are the Red Dragon Umpa!" With this Derby seemed intrigued by the new line of questions. "Are you?"


"Am I what?," asked Umpa.


"The RED DRAGON!," exclaimed Derby.


With that, at a speed which surprised Derby, Umpa flipped the black marble into Derby's mouth. It seemed to chip his tooth going in, in the reverse of how he remembered it felt when originally Fredalnte had coaxed the black marble out of him with the swift punch to his stomach, back in the Peninsula Hotel.


Unable to stop it from finding its way to his gut, Derby swallowed and felt the smooth black ball descend his throat. It seemed to land with a splash in the general area of his belly. He gulped and suddenly there erupted a slight explosion as if baking soda had been added to vinegar.


"Hey!," protested Derby. "Can't we just enjoy this chapter without more shenanigans?," he asked, as if he was writing a story as he went along.


But poor Derby wasn't able to wax philosophical for long because a new disturbance was getting his attention in his pants. It felt as if someone had put a monkey or a cat in his underwear. And the animal wanted out!


Slightly embarrassed to do so in front of Jeninqua, but feeling as if he had no choice, Derby pulled down his britches to see what in the world had landed in his sexual region.


Totally out of his control, but oddly connected to him, a scaly red dragon came bursting out of his pants.


"My God man," shouted Derby to Umpa. "What have you done to me now?!!!"


The appendage seemed to be growing and was attached to our bewildered victim, where he once had a much smaller organ.


"Holy Shit, it's my d....," started Derby, surprised, before being interrupted again by the Wizard of Oats.


"Hope you enjoy the ride," is all Umpa said.


And before he could attempt to put his new package back in his trunk, the snapping, slinking red dragon, which seemed to have a mind of its own, was pulling Derby along. Even though he tried to plant his heels to stop it, the dragon took flight with poor Derby dangling like the tail of a kite.


Swooping, soaring, plunging and soaring some more, Derby had a new appreciation for that old Peter Dragon story. Flailing his arms and legs helplessly behind, our hero was now the co-pilot to a junior associate, formerly known as penis. 

Chapter Twenty Three. Ride'm Cowboy

Ride'm Cowboy

The take-off and first few minutes were excruciating. Just imagine what it would feel like to be hung upside down by a body part...especially that body part! Derby wasn't prepared for the experience of having a dragon literally sling him through the air, with what seemed like the "greatest of ease." It was anything but easy for Derby, who fought it until he finally decided to "join" the flight instead of resisting it.

Our aerial acrobat discovered that by grabbing the dragon's body as if he were holding a reptilian rocket attached to his pubic area, the aerondynamics of the pair (technically, they were one entity, except Derby's rocket, previously in his pocket, seemed to be currently in charge) became sleek and fluid.

He actually was enjoying the flight now and Derby found the swooping and climb and plunging again to be exhilirating. As he held on to his red throbbing dragon he found that he could control the maneuvers. Sometimes the dragon seemed to be "at the controls," and sometimes Derby thought he was. Both versions were exciting with the wind at his face and an amazing power extending from his loins.

From high in the sky, through tree limbs and forest canopy Derby was able to see the clearing below where Umpa and Jeninqua were looking up at the flying circus act of a man and his...dragon. With the precision of a fighter pilot, Derby delicately finessed the body of the dragon to turn and swoop toward the clearing.

The plunge took his breath away but he had no fear of danger. The man could fly!

As Derby and his dragon swept down into the clearing, he aimed the dragon's head point blank at Jeninqua's spread legs. "Swoosh," and Jeninqua was face to face with Derby with her arms around his waste, held tight against him, with a warm throbbing dragon pulsing in her most sensitive region.

With speed of a falcon and the agility of a cheetah, Derby's red dragon sliced through the dusk night like a dolphin at play in crystal clear waters. Jeninqua and Derby were pressed up against each other like lovers swept away with abandon, both keenly aware of the touch and ramifications of the throbbing beast between her legs.

Derby felt her breath on his cheek and Jeninqua recognized his trembling as if he were a boy on his first virgin adventure.

"Derby," said Jeninqua delicately. "Don't go too fast. Take your time."

The captain pointed the ship skyward, erect and straight. He held Jeninqua at the waist and felt her arch her back. He punched the dragon to lunge at full speed toward the night sky.

He wasn't sure where it would lead but Derby decided he was going to fully explore the test flight.

Chapter Twenty Four. "I Need You In Me"

"I Need You In Me"

"Are you ok?," Derby asked Jeninqua, not quite knowing what else to say under the circumstances.

Jeninqua's legs and arms were wrapped around Derby and his arms were around her. Derby's legs were in the saddle position around the dragon and the pair were slightly at a tilt to compensate for the speed of the flight.

"I'm fine darling," said Jeninqua sweetly. "How about you? Are you alright?," she asked.

Derby was speaking in a loud whisper because of the wind pressure, but his mouth was just inches from her ear. "Yes," he assured her, "I'm very fine thank you. Do you like my dragon? I mean...is it alright for you?"

"Oh Derby. Yes, I love your dragon. But please be gentle with that thing!," cautioned Jeninqua. "I hope you're wearing protection..."

The idea absolutely dumbfounded the Derb Meister. "My heavens whatever do you mean?," he asked.

"Against the wind in your face," she explained, and then continued. "I can't see a thing except for what is behind us. You know it is strange not seeing a tail on this thing. This beast!," she finished.

"You're telling me," assured Derby. "I hope you two have some more magic up your sleeve or I'm going to need a size reduction operation!"

"Haha," laughed Jeninqua, and then very quietly she whispered in his ear. "Derby, what do you remember about leaving the cell?"

"Ah, thank you," said Derby, as if he was relieved to have this conversation. "Well," he started, "I remember the thud of your head and laser beams shooting out of your eyes. Totally freaked me. Then I remember this swirling energy encircling us. It was a loud wind tunnel."

He stopped to maneuver the dragon because they had flown past some foot hills and were climbing above some mountain peaks. "Jeez, would you look at that?!," said Derby looking down at a mountain pass and a lake below. Never thought my...well, er, what I had before I had a dragon...never thought it would bring me to such heights. Is it ok for you?"

"Yes my dear," said Jeninqua and she slid her hands down his back and grasped his buttocks and pulled him closer. "Now finish telling me what you remember lover..."

"Oh Jeninqua. Be careful. You're going to make this thing point straight up again. Remember what goes up must come down!," said Derby, mistakenly thinking he was being clever.

"Yes Derbs," she stroked him. "Now tell me about the cell. What else do you remember?"

"Well I think it swallowed me. I got small or something. I sort of remember going into your neck," said Derby softly into her ear, while he squinted to himself, trying to make sense of what he was saying.

"So you came in me?," she asked coyly. "Came inside me? Rode the wind tunnel into me?"

"Why yes," affirmed Derby, surprised. "Why yes, I think I did. Did I?"

"Guess what Derby Head?," played Jeninqua with her puppet boy.

"What?," he asked, nervous about what new surprise she was going to lay on him.

"You're still in me. I needed you in me," she whispered with baited breath.

"No!," promised Derby. "I'm not. I mean I couldn't have! I mean...there's barely room for you in there. You're so tiny!"

"Don't worry big boy," teased Jeninqua. "You're not that big. Besides, it isn't what you think!"

"So enlighten me," said the captain of Dragon Flight #1. "How did you get us out of that Hell hole?"

"Well, don't freak on me. But we're sort of still there!," exclaimed Jeninqua in a louder whisper.

Derby had to focus. They had climbed very high and were soaring along the mountain ridge. He decided to come about and he pulled the neck of his mighty dragon appendage back hard to make a "U" turn. Jeninqua and Derby were smoothly sailing on his cylindrical sleigh, riding the night air like some strange streaking beast. If you would have looked up at them you wouldn't quite know what to make of it!

"What on Earth do you mean we're still there?," asked a bewildered dragon master. "We're shooting across a mountain top in some alternative universe! How the hell could we still be back in the dungeon of the ghouls?"

"Well, remember when I fell into a white marble back in the hotel and Fredalnte punched a black marble out of you?," asked Jeninqua.

"Yessssss," said Derby cautiously, not sure he was interested in the moral of the story.

"Well, we're still in the white marble, which is me. And you're in there too. We're both in there," she whispered to him.

Derby kicked the red dragon in the sides, and when he did so he flinched because he learned it was akin to having a dragon get caught in a zipper. "Get up," he said, as if he was sitting atop the Lone Ranger's Silver.

Jeninqua laid her head on Derby's shoulder and he pointed his rocket ship toward Umpa's Lair.

Chapter Twenty Five. And you'll find out...right after the break!

And you'll find out...right after the break!

Back at Umpa's Lair, Derby expressed his demands.

"First things first," he said after he landed and Jeninqua had climbed off his beast.

"I'm ready to go back to just little ole' me, if you don't mind," requested Derby firmly. "And Jeninqua quit stroaking that thing. It is hard to concentrate!"

"Well I'm just petting it," said Jeninqua apologetically as she scratched the chin of the dragon, who almost seemed to be purring. "I think he's cute!"

"Well stop it! Please," demanded Derby. "Enough is enough! And Umpa, would you mind regaining your title of Red Dragon so my own little lizard will fit back in my britches!" As the night wore on Derby seemed to be losing his sense of humor and good nature.

The dragon himself seemed to be in some sort of half-way state between a full fledged being and a confused pet connected to a person, like the front end of a Pegasus. Presently he was looking back at Derby like, "What next boss?"

"And you!," said Derby to the dragon. "Stop looking at me like that. It has been a pleasure flying with you but I've got to take a pee and the thought of using you in that way is not something I want to dwell on!"

"Jeninqua!," said Umpa, like a grandfather to a cherished granddaughter, "where are your manners? Feed the dragon!"

Jeninqua rounded the corner around the dragon with her hands on its neck like a female jockey handling a champion thoroughbred. The dragon's head seemed to swell with a huge smile, and with one powerful lunge of its mouth it swallowed her!

As the dragon raised its head to digest Derby's fantasy lady, like a snake swallowing a mouse, Derby's mouth fell open. "Now this is too weird! I've got a dragon for a d...(never mind), but anyway, my new middle leg just ate my girlfriend!," said Derby confused and frustrated.

"Umpa please. No more bizarre stunts. Dragon, you spit her out this minute!," exclaimed Derby, not knowing if he was going or coming.

"He can't spit her out," exclaimed Umpa. "Besides that, you're in control of your dragon, you just need to learn how to control your muscles!"

Suddenly Derby noticed he had an irresistable urge to cough and as he thought he was going to, he felt his dragon recoil as if it were a whip and he was going to snap it.

"Phew," blew the dragon. A speeding missile or blob of something shot out the end of the dragon. Bewildered, Derby tried to follow the bouncing object as it ricocheted off of trees and rocks. When it had come full circle and landed at his feet, Derby found he was staring down at a black marble. He also discovered he was no longer endowed like Quasimoto on Viagra, but was standing comfortably in his pants.

"I don't know whether to say excuse me or thank you or ouch or whoopie," confessed Derby, "but I'm glad..." and he stopped to hold open his trousers to sneak a peak, "yes...I'm glad my Chief of Staff has fallen back in formation and I can once again suffer the jokes about my little hands!"

After a few minutes of silence and a curious look from Umpa, Derby popped the question, "Where is Jeninqua?"

"Its complicated," began Umpa. He took a deep breath, and right after a message from our sponsor, dear reader, you'll learn what else he had to say about that.

Chapter Twenty Six. It's Complicated

It's Complicated

"Why is it complicated? It is a simple question," said Derby to a thoughtful Umpa. "Where is Jeninqua?," he asked again. "You told her to feed the dragon. She sacrificed herself to the big red lizard who swallowed her whole. My dragon Richard then huffed and puffed and blew out the black marble."

Derby's excitement level was elevating as he seemed a little hot under the collar. He continued. "I've been drugged, tricked, beat up, held as a prisoner in a dungeon, seduced, disfigured, been reduced to stubbed tail of a powerful dragon. Please, just give me a simple answer."

"If you want such a simple answer, then why do you write such a complicated story?," asked Umpa.

"I'm not writing anything," Derby assured the fat man. "There's already too much for people to read. Besides that, people don't really read anymore. They want to watch videos. They want distractions so they don't have to admit their addictions. And their distractions have become another addiction! So please don't insinuate that this adventure is one of my making!," blurted a frustrated Derby.

"And what about Zol?," prompted Umpa. "Was Zol an adventure of your making?"

"Zol was a story about a culture of people who had become addicted to their electronic devices!," answered Derby.

"Exactly!," replied Umpa. "And who was the hero?"

"Derby," affirmed the author.

"And who is Derby?," peppered the smiling Buddha.

At this Derby cooled off. He knew he was no match for his new teacher. Besides, he came to learn, not to argue.

"And the marbles?," asked Derby. "The black and white. They seem to change. One moment Jeninqua is a white marble but then she's a white mouse which had swallowed a black marble. And the energy of them in my hands," he continued to probe. "At one moment when I rub them together they generate heat which I wasn't able to tolerate. Then another time they were cool and made my hands feel as if they were submerged in a spring of fresh running water."

"Shall we take this one step at a time dear boy?," asked Umpa lovingly.

"Yes," agreed Derby. "What happened to Jeninqua?"

"She and you are still in the white marble with Scontandia and Jade," said Umpa simply.

"Then why do I seem to be here, in your delightful forest sanctuary?," asked Derby.

"You are not confined to your body my boy. Did you think you were your body?," taught Umpa. "I assure you that you are not a body of flesh and blood, but that you sometimes occupy that beautiful body. You chose your body. You've manifested your body. Your body is you. But you are not your body."

"I am not contained between my hat and boots!," quoted Derby from Whitman.

"Exactly!," confirmed Umpa. The robust teacher continued. "Now Jeninqua. She's different. But we need to go slowly into this part of the story. This is where things get complicated. But let me tell you this. It is not improper for you to love her. You deal with too much guilt about that my boy."

"How do you mean that Umpa?," asked Derby.

"What?," started Umpa. "You don't admit feeling guilty about your desires for Jeninqua? As a married man. As a family man. You scooping her up with your erect firm dragon so that she and you were one entwined soul, with her breath on your cheek and her legs around you? This doesn't make you feel guilty?"

"Now who is making me feel guilty?," asked Derby excitedly. "Who is painting a picture of lust and deception?"

"You were driving that dragon my boy," said Umpa.

"Then why do you tell me that I shouldn't feel guilty?," asked Derby.

"Thank you," said Umpa. "We're making progress. Because she's not what you think. And that red dragon was more than just your sex wand. Follow me back to the house. I have something to show you.

Chapter Twenty Seven. Lifting of the Veil

Lifting of the Veil

Back in the Scontandia headquarters the Jade fighters were bungling with the white marble. The Scontandia chief had oozed back onto the walls with the other dripping sickness but was observing the Jade females who were frustrated by the invincibility of the little ball.

"Smash it again!," yelled the Jade leader to the one with the large hammer, who had been pounding on the marble to no avail.

"It is impervious to our violence," assured the hammer swinging fighter. This time she had "Dixie," one of the other fighters, hold the white object still.  Her swing landed the hammer head squarely on Dixie's knuckle with the full force of the heavy pounder.

"Ouch," screamed Dixie, pulling back her hand to her chest so she could get a closer  look at the damage. With her automatic reaction to jerk backwards, she lost her footing and tripped over one of the other Jade fighter's legs, who was looking over Dixie's shoulder to view the operation.

Both Dixie and the other fighter fell down and in the ruckus, Dixie landed on top of the other woman and her bleeding finger was shoved deeply into the mouth of the fighter who had fallen underneath her. Quite involuntarily, the other Ninja bit down on Dixie's broken knuckle. This evidently was excruciating for Dixie who wailed in anguish with a high pitched scream.

Both the Jade leader and the fighter holding the hammer covered their ears to shield them from the high pitch screech of Dixie and the hammer went tumbling through the air. It just so happened that the Jade leader was standing exactly in the right position to stop the hammer from hitting the wall because it bludgeoned her exactly between the eyes.

You could almost see little birdies and hear the tinkle of "coo-coo" as the Jade leader staggered and fell backwards onto a nearby pallet loader on wheels. She was unconscious so she didn't realize that she was rolling across the floor headed toward the stack of their weapons.

The crash caused one of the rifles to fire, which in turn guided a bullet to break a beaker of sulfuric acid, intended for further experimentation with the stubborn marble. The sulfuric acid happened to drip off the table onto the leg of the unconscious Jade leader who woke suddenly by the burning activity on her thigh. In a crazed fury, and blinded by the pain, she stumbled onto Dixie and the other fallen fighter. Enough sulfuric acid was on her clothing that it started burning the other two.

Dixie uncontrollably kicked the leader in the groin and jabbed the other fighter in the face with her elbow, which caused a similar chain reaction by the other fighter, who pulled Dixie's hair causing Dixie to trip toward the fourth fighter who had been watching in amazement.

When Dixie's head butted her in her stomach with such overpowering force she vomited, covering the rest of the clandestine beauties with her putrid dark green and yellowish bile, fully transforming the episode into one miraculous comedy.

Derby and Umpa were sipping tea and studying an unrolled map of the Himalayas.

"This is Junpa Village in Quxu County," said Umpa. I received my Red Dragon training in Junpa."

"Did you have a dragon between your legs too?," asked Derby, earnestly.

"We all have a dragon between our legs dear boy," said Umpa smiling. "Some men have learned to control their dragon and others haven't. But this is what I want to explain to you."

"What do you mean all men have a dragon Umpa," asked Derby, looking down toward his lap. "Until you flung that black marble in my mouth I had a very modest Mr. Winkie, thank you very much."

"Yes but the red dragon is not the object but the spirit of the object," explained Umpa. "You see, you're still very controlled by your instincts. Like a small child, you respond to your physical desires," he continued. "Most American's have come to understand a subtle energy in our bodies called "Chi (pronounced Chee)," but there are two other energies in everyone's body, even more subtle and hardly known about in the West. One is Jing, the other Shen. The Red Dragon is the Yang spirit of Jing. It is the human force which has caused the problems of the modern world."

"The problems of the modern world?," asked Derby astounded. "You mean greed, violence, corruption, hatred, bigotry, war, pestilence and ecological collapse? Because these are the problems we have inherited in our world."

"Yes," said Umpa sadly. "All of it. It is rooted in the spirit of the Red Dragon, unfortunately."

Chapter Twenty Eight. Turning the corner

The bright three quarter moon beamed irrepressibly over bare trees in the dark morning sky. The dull pulse of the Earth tugged on the sinews of Derby's physiology to remind him that he too was alive, but something was missing. The usual snap of crisp morning electrons weren't popping with their normal vigor in some distant chain of attraction. The steady crack and rumble of invisible pressure which had pushed him along on other mornings was absent as he searched for the reason to move.

Surely his wife and daughter needed him. Some business or associate would require his input. Leaves hung nimbly on branches with no sign of falling. The light of daybreak fractured the stillness and blinding rays came crashing across the house ("roof" added later, retaining original for flavor until some soon future date) tops, invading the morning with relentless necessity.

No where to hide from the question with no answer to return, "Who are you Derby and why aren't you doing whatever it is you should be?"

A clock was ticking somewhere but there was no tick tock ticking. A river was running somewhere but there was no splish splash rippling. Birds were singing somewhere but there were no tweet tweets chirping. All there was was the mounting crush of desperation. The crippling agony of knowing things and seeing solutions but not finding a soul who was interested.

Slowly Derby stared back at his pathetic impression, having contributed so little to a world with such fantastic needs. He realized everything has added up to exactly what it should. All has been a series of choices and nothing matters except the moment.

"Come on dude. Get a grip," the muffled hum seemed to be cheered from the sidelines. "We're with you buddy. We need you more than you know," came the overture. "Now is the time. Right now. There is no other."

Chapter Twenty Nine. Walking a Mile in Another Man's Donut Addiction

Walking a Mile in Another Man's Donut Addiction

Derby had been left in a chasm. He was alone in a vacuum. Alone except  for endless chatter in the vast space of his mind. He wandered and drifted. He dreamt and pondered. So many stones to look under. So much to uncover. But mostly he realized he had so much to let go of.

It was a temptation to cling to beliefs, this desire to solve the problems, this conviction of the "I, me, mine" which restricted his freedom. "Who is Derby Joshua Clearwater Ripley? To thine own self be true. Without thinking of good or evil what is your original nature AT THIS MOMENT!? Return to the original uncarved block. Simplify.

Remember the analogy about the horse. We sit atop a horse. A horse of great power and agility. The horse will sometimes run. If allowed the horse will fly on the wind at great speed as if totally unencumbered. When the horse runs out of control, it is easy for us to think we ARE the horse. After enough time of allowing the horse to run free, we can even forget that we sit atop the horse with reins in our hands. The horse is not us. We control the horse.

Umpa had downloaded the "value pack"  to Derby of how mankind had gotten to this point. He delivered his "La lecture de la creme" through the night and Derby eventually slept. When he awoke he couldn't find his body. He couldn't find the room where Umpa had left him.

He had everything he always had had. Total recall of his memories, complete control of his mind. But no senses. He sniffed, or tried to, but there was no sniffer and no smells. His taste buds had never deceived him. "I'll discover the flavor of this state of affairs," he told himself, "and know where I am."

So he tried to smack his lips and move his tongue, but he soon found he had neither, nor were there flavors waiting to be tasted, if he could find his mouth. He looked around but quickly realized he had no eyes to see and nothing to lay eyes onto. He reached out to find anything to touch, in case he was just temporarily blinded, but he had no finger tips because he had no fingers, nor hands or arms, and besides, there was nothing to grab onto. He paused to be very very still. "Listen," he told himself. "Surely there is something to hear!" But no, nothing. No drumming and no ear drum. Just a blank sheet. And a mind. He imagined himself falling backwards onto the emptiness of this void. He drifted once again into the space that allowed him to return to a body. He dreamt that he was a man.

"Hello Derby," said the passenger on the train, who sat next to him in his dream.

"Hello," replied Derby as he sized up the fellow next to him. "Are you dreaming too or have I created you?," he asked earnestly.

"Everything is of your own making," said the stranger. "Your reality is a lesson meant for you. You can imagine having influence and you can choose to act nobly. But the reason for your feet is not for the footprints they leave behind but for walking."

"And what of your feet kind stranger?," asked Derby of his dreamed up traveling companion. "Where are they taking you today?"

"Whereever you lead us Derby. I'm with you!," assured the stranger to our hero.

"Well then, to the donut shop!," suggested Derby, who had a craving for a dozen fresh glazed rounds of fried dough.