"Nay, for I found that the place he had for me was that of a groom in the Heavenly Stables! In revenge, I invaded the workroom of Lao-Tzu, the founder of the Way, and stole from him a flask of the Elixir of Life. It was for this that Buddha imprisoned me—but even He had to make my jail the top of a mountain! There He bade me dwell for five long centuries, until a monk should come who could teach me patience and humility. Now that monk has appeared- -a prince who has forsworn all the vanities of this world, and who has been sent by the Emperor of Tang to go to India, and bring back three baskets of Buddhist scrolls. For this he has taken the name 'Tripitaka', which means, O Ignorant Barbarian, 'Three Baskets'. And he has the gall to chastize me for having saved his life!" Monkey leaped to his feet again, reminded of his grievance. "I screamed imprecations at him for his ingratitude; I rushed off in anger. What need I with such a fool for a master? No, I have come back to my Mountain of Flowers and Fruit, and here I shall stay, whether Buddha wills it or not!" But there was a look of trepidation in his eyes as he said it.
Shea did not want that club to start whirling again— but he did want to be able to get out of that cage without becoming the Target for Today. "Sounds as though he was trying to teach you what Buddha wanted."
"What?" Monkey stared at him.
Shea shrugged. "If Buddha told you to become this monk's disciple, he must have wanted you to learn whatever he had to teach."
"To let murdering bandits live!?! How could this be holy?"
"Sometimes you just have to take it on faith," Shea explained. "We have an archetypal story about that, back where I come from—about a man who is famous for patience, but who really ought to be famous for holding on to his ideals."
"Ideals?" Monkey scowled at him. "Whatever are you talking about?"
"Job." Shea settled himself for a long session. "His name was Job, and he was a very religious man who had everything he could want—a beautiful, loving wife, well-mannered children, a fine house, and lots of money. But a, um, demon, tried to tell the, uh, King of Heaven, that the only reason he was religious, was because he had everything he wanted. Take all of that away, the demon said, and Job would lose his faith and curse the King."
"Surely the Jade Emperor would not listen to such foolish speech!" Monkey frowned. "Or is it so foolish?"
"That's what the demon said—and the King of Heaven figured it was necessary to prove that it was foolish. So He gave the demon permission to take away everything that Job held dear—house, money, children, wife. One by one, the demon did just that. First the children were killed by accidents and disease ..."
"Why, what goodness can there be in letting children die?" Monkey demanded.
"Presumably, they went straight to Heaven." Shea shrugged away the objection. "Anyway, it's just a story, to make a concept clear. Then a depression hit, and Job lost all his money. A fire burned down his house. Still, all he would do was to cry out to God to tell him what he had done to deserve all this. Finally, his wife began to despise him, because not only hadn't he kept all these things from happening, he wasn't even complaining about the King of Heaven being cruel."
"So she left him."
"Seen it happen before, have you? Yes, she left him, but Job still wouldn't cry out against the King of Heaven—and the demon acknowledged defeat. He had to admit that human ideals have something more to them than just reward and punishment."
"But what of this Job? Did he learn why he had been so accursed?"
"He didn't need to; the King of Heaven just sent an angel to tell him that sometimes He does things for reasons that people don't understand."
"And that was enough for Job?" Monkey stared.
"That was enough," Shea confirmed. "Once he was reassured that the King of Heaven was there, he had faith that there was a reason. All he really needed was to be reassured."
Monkey frowned at him, then bowed his head so that his chin rested on his chest, and was silent. Chalmers fidgeted in an agony of impatience, but kept his peace.
Finally, Monkey looked up. "There is merit in what you say—and I, who know personally that Buddha does exist, am a blind fool to doubt Him, am I not?"
"There is that possibility," Shea agreed.
Monkey gazed at him, brooding.
Then, suddenly, he leaped to his feet, slapping his thigh. "Come! I will return to the monk; I shall make my apologies. Perhaps, in time, he will convince me of the merits of humility. I doubt there are any, but I will give him his chance to teach me. Let us go!" He whirled about and struck the collection of twigs with his staff; the result was instant toothpicks, and the iron cage disappeared from around Shea.
Chalmers stared, horrified.
So did Shea, feeling suddenly very vulnerable. "You could have done that any time!"
"Why, so I could have," Monkey agreed, "but I was too angry to think of it. Let us go!" He beckoned, and suddenly a cloud swooped down from a clear blue sky.
"Wait a minute, now!" Shea backed away. "What do you mean, 'we'?"
"Why, the two of you as well!" Monkey gestured, and the cloud shot in against Shea's legs, and Chalmers'. They both yelped with surprise as they tumbled onto its surface. Monkey grinned and leaped aboard. "It is you who have inspired me—so you must come to see the fulfillment of your plan!" He looked back over his shoulder, and his grin turned menacing. "If it ends in disaster, so shall you."
"But my wife!" Chalmers cried. "What happened to Florimel?"
"Oh, the barbarian woman?" Monkey shrugged. "I sent her further on her travels. This world was not the one she had intended to visit, so I bade her tell me of the one she sought—a world ruled by a queen without a king—and sent her there. But enough! Come now, away!"
Chalmers moaned.
"Travel by cloud isn't all that bad, really, Doc," Shea said bravely, "once you get used to the idea that it's a magic cloud, and a lot more like an innerspring mattress than a patch of fog."
"Perhaps," Chalmers groaned, "but I didn't think to bring my Dramamine."
Then they were both crying out in alarm, as the cloud tilted down sharply. A few seconds later, Monkey hopped off, crying: "Master! Forgive me!" and the cloud disappeared completely, dropping Shea and Chalmers with a very unceremonious thump. Shea pushed himself upright, massaging an aching sacroiliac, and saw a young man in a saffron robe sitting cross-legged—no, in the lotus position, without the slightest sign of discomfort! He looked a little nervous, and he had a robe of a rich red in his lap, with a matching hat that had a band of gold around its rim.
Monkey was bowing deeply before the monk. "I have erred. Master, in presuming to refute your teaching! If this is the Way of the Buddha, I shall learn it! Only forgive, and be patient with me!"
The young man nodded gravely. "You are forgiven easily, Monkey, for Buddha's mercies are manifold. In recognition of your spiritual progress, I give you this robe and hat, as signs of your advancement."
Shea frowned—how had Tripitaka known Monkey was going to be coming back? He was about to raise the issue, but Monkey caught up the red robe with a glad cry and pulled it on, strutting to and fro. "How well it looks on me! And just the right length, not quite to my knees! Master, you are a genius of observation!" He grabbed the hat and clapped it on. "Now! Do I not look like a king?"
"Like a jester!" Tripitaka's tone was suddenly stern. "You prance and caper with vanity! Really, Monkey, if I had known you would behave so ..."
That was as far as he got before Monkey turned on him with a roar, charging with his cudgel held high.
Tripitaka shouted out some words that Shea could not catch at all.
Monkey stopped dead in his tracks, howling in agony. He fell on the ground, tugging at the cap. "Take it off! Take it off! It binds about my temples like a clamp! It sends agonies through my brain! It will break my head!" The cloth ripped away, but the headband remained and would not budge.