The Last Queen of Lemuria (4 page)

The travelers looked at one another There wasn't really a good explanation.  It was clear to anyone with even a slight understanding of the laws of physics.  But the circumstances were such, that they had to believe. The tourists were standing at the bottom of the Katun. And water, defying the law of gravity, flowed over their heads.

- "Well, what should we do now?" asked Nastia.

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"I know where this tunnel leads," interrupted the pilgrim, who had been silently standing a bit away until that point, "Let's go! I'll show you the way."

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“You know this tunnel?" - came Margo in surprise. "How? It's at the bottom of a river!”

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"Yes, but it begins on the shore," he said, raising the lamp from the ground, "and it seems I know exactly where."

Marina, having heard the stranger's voice, stopped crying.

They all moved down the narrow tunnel. The traveler walked ahead in his white robe, which had dried surprisingly quickly. He lit the road with his lamp. The ground crunched underfoot, and small pebbles fell from above. A spiderweb stuck to someone's face. The smell of bleach filled the air. Their steps made booming echoes. Marina held tight to her husband's hand. Margo and Nastia walked side by side. Andrei, who had kept his camera safe in a waterproof bag, was back to taking pictures. The flash intermittently lit up the dark rocky corridor. Samir conversed quietly with the stranger.

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"How was there a lamp here?" – said Margo in surprise, as soon as she had regained the ability to think. - "It's as if it was waiting there for us."

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"Actually, you were expected," said Samir.

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"Oh yeah?! Who could have known we'd end up here?"

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"We were expecting you," answered the stranger. "My brother and I."

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"Just as I said! I knew it!" – shrieked Marina, "your brother is the Mahatma!"

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"I don't get it," answered Andrei.  "So you've known all along we were going down here?"

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"In a sense," smiled the man in white.

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"How's that?" – scowled Boris, messing up the wet beast of his hair. 

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"Like I said, he deliberately sunk us!" – said Andrei, looking at Samir. - "I saw him!"

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"Soon, it will all become clear, I promise," pronounced the stranger, "but for now, listen…

- The Great Rigden- Djapo was tired. Though that was impossible. Because he was God. He wasn't only God, but the Creator.  But one day, He became tired of it all. He became bored of eternity and timelessness. The planet Milor, his home, ceased to bring Him joy. He changed it frequently. Every minute, something new was born on Milor. Any of God's thoughts was immediately brought to life. Maybe He thought up a beautiful flower, or a monstrosity, everything would appear post haste. And He could destroy it all with the same ease. It was so boring! But there were also times when Rigden Djapo stood as the head of the army of Light, and fought with Darkness. Light, as always, emerged victorious, and drove off Darkness for a long time, and now Rigden Djapo was bored. It was already his two millionth year.

The Angels, His seven sons, often visited their Father. Sometimes they helped him create or destroy. But they too became bored. They would need to think of something new. Strange enough to occupy Him and his sons for the next trillion centuries. And Rigden Djapo began to think. He thought for a long time. How long, no one knows. But it is known that in the end, he invented man.

He gave him everything that He Himself had. Except that, which He considered superfluous. If every thought a person had was instantaneously brought to life, that person would also get bored quickly. No! Rigden-Djapo was a wise God. He did not give to man the powers divine. But in return, he gave man a body. Something not even the Creator had. Of course, a body weighed men down, and took from him some of the freedom that God had. But it allowed man to enjoy food. He smelled smells. Felt winds and sun on his skin. Finally, he could love with more than soul alone, he could love with body.

Rigden Djapo was so engrossed in his new creation, that he forgot about the Angels. And when they flew to see their Father, he often couldn't be found on Milor. He spent all his time with his beloved people. The Angels were saddened A sadness reigned in the Universe. And Man, truly feeling guilt for this, mourned. He looked to the heavens and inquired of his Creator:

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'Why? Why, o Lord have you created me? What is the purpose of my existence? How am I any different from a flower or a tiger? What is this strange languor in my soul that disturbs my sleep? Why do I fly in my dreams? What comes after death? Why do I lose my breath when looking at the stars?'

The Creator understood that he could no longer manage to hide from man his divine origin. And he called the Angels and said to them:

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'My sons! I have created seven new planets. On them are continents and islands, seas and oceans, animals and birds. I have colored these planets in your favorite shades. I have nurtured there the best flowers and trees. I have populated them with bizarre creatures. And finally, I created Man. You know, I loved him like a son. For many centuries, mankind has lived in darkness, ignorant of his purpose. The time for change has come. Fly to the planets and give people the divine fire. With your arrival, man will understand Good and Evil, Light and Dark, Strength of Thoughts and Strength of Will. Let him be like God in everything.

But remember! To bring the Great Truth to mankind, you will have to descend into their world. You will have to be born as people. In earthly form, you can talk to people as with equals. But all trials and temptations will have power over you, as they do over common people. The Forces of Darkness will try to interfere.'

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'Thank you, Father! We will do just as you wish,' answered the Angels, and flew off to their new domains.

The oldest son was named Paul, and he came to the pink planet Pegasus. The second took the name Rufinus, and descended to the yellow star Sati.  The third, by the name Trishna, made for the violet Kogira. The fourth was born on the green planet Orion and was named Shiva.. The fifth chose the name Marowon, and appeared on the orange planet, Alpha. The sixth was born on the red Goro and was named Kariter The blue planet, Oz, was left to the Angel born by the name Lucifer.

Every one of them was born as a king. Six of the Angels endured the test with honor, and brought the Great Truth to their people. People on their planets began to resemble Gods. Having made their planets totally perfect, they began to make new ones. For six of the Brothers, there was no work left.  The angels returned to their Father on Milor. The last Angel, the resplendent Lucifer, did not return to his Father...”

Their guide fell silent. The tired tourists, as if waking from an illusion, blinked their eyes. They didn't even notice, that he had distracted them with his ancient legend.

- "What a great story!" - admired Nastia, "it was like I was really there! What a strange legend, it doesn't coincide the gospels..."

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"Look, there's light ahead!" - shouted Marina, dashing ahead.

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“Oh my God!” came Marina's voice, hoarse from excitement, “oh my God!”

The squinting tourists came out into the light.

The tunnel ended high above the ground, on a stone plateau, from which a fantastic view opened up. In the expansive mountain valley below, the roofs of houses drowned in a sea of blooming treetops. Four white suns illuminated the stone sky. Hot springs steamed down below, and from above cascading waterfalls flowed.  Hanging gardens covered everything around. Only the stone vaults of the sky served to remind people that this heavenly place was located under the ground. The sticky, humid air smelled of flowers. In the center town stood a tower, the top of which went straight up through the middle of the mountain. The streets were empty.

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“Now that's a city!” exclaimed Nastia in amazement.

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“I'll say!”  Marina whispered, “that
city
is Shambhala!”

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“Really?” doubted Boris.

His normally rosy complexion paled and his face grew lean- his jaw line became more defined, and his eyes began to sink. It was obvious that he was having a hard time comprehending what was going on.

-     “Kalapa,” pronounced Samir, his face lighting up with happiness.

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“What's going on?!  Answer!” Margo demanded of the traveler in white.   “Where have you led us?”

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“Olmolungring,” he answered, “is our name for the city. But people prefer to think up their own names. The Land of the Gods, Shambhala, Shangri-La, Kalapa... We don't like those names. They have been defiled by the tongue of man.”

Andrei, without taking a break, started snapping pictures.

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“Teacher?” said Samir to the traveler in white, pointing to the picture-taker.

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“It's nothing,” he nodded, “let him take pictures.”

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“Teacher?” Nastia repeated in an echo, “it seems you've known each other quite a while?”

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“Yes,” admitted Samir.

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“What does all this mean?” asked Margo.  “Explain, already! First we fly over the water, after that we fall to the bottom of a river, now we're in an underground city, what's going on?!”

Samir took a look at the Teacher as if asking for permission to answer. He said:

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“Let's go a bit deeper, there I'll explain everything... “

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“How do we go deeper?”  “Here there's a cliff,” said Andrei, glancing sidelong into the abyss.

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“Wait just a minute,” answered the Teacher, turning around in the tunnel.

A minute later he returned.  He was holding in his hands something translucent, that looked like polyethylene film. It was weakly lit by an electric light-blue color.

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“Protective cloaks,” explained the Teacher. “Put them on.”

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“Protective? What kind of danger could we possibly encounter in Shambhala?” asked Marina in surprise. Her face transformed, turning pink.  Her features softened, her eyes began giving off a soft light. She found exactly what she had been long looking for.

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“You'll need no protection,” the Teacher smiled. “Your bodies and souls have been contaminated with the filth of the world above. Whether you like it or not.  Negative emotions are contagious.  We are very meticulous about keeping Olmolungring free from such influence.  It's a spiritually clean place, and it should remain as such. If a normal person comes here, we are obligated to defend ourselves.”

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“Do you get guests often?” asked Margo.

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“No, but no one that gets here comes uninvited.”

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“Is that so?  Does that mean we've been invited?”

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“Yes.  And you can be sure that we have a very good reason,” said the Teacher, nodding.  “But you won't find out about that until later. For now, we go down below.”

“The Teacher checked the protective cloaks and hoods. He walked up to the edge of the cliff and began to whistle.”

Hot springs, beating downwards, right in front of their eyes began to grow, becoming gigantic geysers. They ascended farther and farther until they finally reached the edge of the edge of the stone cliff, on which the travelers stood.

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"I invite you!" – said the Teacher, and... stepped into the geyser.

Nastia closed her eyes in anticipation of the fall. When she opened her eyes, the Teacher was still there. He stood and smiled as if what he was doing was completely normal – "this is how you keep upright on a stream of water!" The tourists gaped in awe. After the Teacher, went Samir, then Marina, then all the rest.

Nastia,with her hardened heart, entering the water suddenly felt a strong and resilient geyser. It held her easily, gently rocking and supporting like the mother of a newborn. Nastia smiled. It was amazing to feel the strength of the water under her feet. The pleasant feeling was interrupted by a childhood worry that she was breaking a rule. "Just think of it! 'She's breaking the law of gravity!'" laughed Nastia.

The other members of the journey were also laughing, having thawed out, the water was truly washing away their fear and uncertainty. The Teacher pronounced a spell, and the geysers gradually lowered the people to the ground, turning once again into small springs.

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"That was awesome!" exclaimed Margo. "How'd you do that?"

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"It's not hard," answered the teacher, "when you understand the power of the five elements."

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"The five elements?" - asked Nastia

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"Have you seen 'The Fifth Element?'" interrupted Andrei, "water, air, earth, fire."

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"And man," added Marina.

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"That's right," said the Teacher, "only in your film, man is helpless and awaits help from other planets. But here, any person can have control over the forces of nature, as we are the fifth element. Get it?”             

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"I don't get it at all," grumbled Boris.

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"It's difficult for you to understand," sighed the Teacher, "because your world is so helpless before nature. Well, let's go, I'll show you the city."

The tourists walked along the quiet streets of Olmolungring, admiring its beauty. Flowers surrounded every yard. Fallen petals covered the earth in a colorful blanket. The rare passers-by, men and women who crossed their path, were dressed in robes. They smiled, silently bowing to their guests. It was people of various nationalities, but all the same age- around forty.

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“Why are there no children here, and no old people?” asked Nastia in surprise.

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"We all came here at some point from the above world, came as already grown people," smiled the Teacher, "the age is only what you see, we simply don't age."

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"How's that?" asked Boris.

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"We stop time inside our body. Time is an interesting substance," answered the Teacher.

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"How old are you?" asked Margo.

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"I'm 344 years old."

The tourists gasped.

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"That's not the most unbelievable thing," promised the Teacher.  "Let's go, I'll show you our laboratory."

They set off in the direction of the tower. On their way, they were met by several groups of people, occupied with various things. They stood in pairs, one facing another, and each held a concave mirror-shield in both hands. Reflecting the light of the artificial sun, they made the light concentrated, trying to get it into the eye of their partner.  He, in his turn, would also guard himself with the mirror shield, defending himself from the blinding beam of light.

The tourists stopped for some time and watched what was going on.

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"Is that a game?" - asked Nastia.

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"No," smiled Samir, "it's training for our combat art."

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"Combat? Where are the weapons?" cried Boris in surprise.

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"We brothers have no use for weapons in your understanding. We use our enemies' weapons against them. With the help of mirrors. By the way, it's too complicated for you. I hope very much that you will never have to face it."

Chapter 5. The Laboratory

They crossed the city and were approaching the opposite side. The wall had caves dug out of it at various heights. The travelers approached one of the entrances to the underground. They descended into the cave on a wooden ladder.

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"You promised a laboratory," said Andrei, looking discontentedly at the empty stone hole.

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"Well yes, but I thought perhaps you'd gotten hungry," answered the Teacher, "I wanted to invite you to a meal."

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"Is this a cafeteria?" asked Nastia in surprise.

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"In a sense."

He elaborated that they were in the cave Rombu-Var, in which any desire is materialized. "Here you can "order" anything you wish and receive it." The Teacher explained, that the inhabitants of Shambhala tried to use it no more than once every forty days. "They do not need to work every day for a piece of bread. They have learned how to draw energy from the space around them. They only eat to keep their bodies in working condition. This cave serves as their cafeteria."

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"So then, what needs to happen to materialize us some lunch?" wondered Margo aloud.

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"Simply imagine it."

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"Impossible!" said Boris.

Marina elbowed him

- "Close your eyes and form a clear picture in your mind of the color, flavor, smell, amount, and so on. You will have it all.”

They sat right on the ground, and having crossed their legs, they began to imagine. Nastia imagined a tremendous piece of cake with cherry chocolate and whipped cream. She saw it so clearly, that she even felt she could smell it. When she opened her eyes, there was the cake! It was laying right on the ground

- "Come on! It worked!"  Nastia tried to grab it, but it was completely ruined by the sand.

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"One more time, imagine everything, even the little details. You forgot the plate. Try one more time," smiled the Teacher.

Nastia tried again. This time it worked even better. She manifested cake on a plate, a spoon, and a cup of tea. Inspired by Nastia's success, her companions began to imagine again with redoubled efforts. It began to smell of fried potatoes, mushrooms, pickles, and kasha. Andrei and Margo got plates- Marina was eating ice-cream and cookies. Boris continued to sit empty handed with his eyes closed. And suddenly, there came a terrible thunder, and a flash of lightning. A gust of wind extinguished the lamp that was standing at the entrance. The frightened tourists hadn't figured a thing out when the light turned back on. The Teacher looked around the cave with a worried expression. They heard a strange sound They all turned around. In the place where Boris had just been, hovered a black ram.

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"Jesus!" whispered Marina, "Boris, honey, where are you?"  She looked back. She looked imploringly. "Where is he?"

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"I forgot to warn you!"  pronounced the Teacher, frowning.  "I forgot who I'm dealing with!"

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"What? What did you forget?" Margo stammered, beginning to understand what had happened.

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"I forgot to say that the cave will not grant any wish. It allows any wish, except for those which might bring about harm. To any living creature. It didn't even enter into my thinking that someone might ask the cave for meat! Because we never kill living things. But the Spirits that guard this place act instantly.. They turn the asker into whomever he wanted to bring harm upon."