The Problem With Immortality Ch. 20

The Problem With Immortality

Chapter 20

By Gary LM Martin

Chapter 20: The Monks of Ju Chi

"Judy!" Jennifer cried, reaching out to hug her daughter. "You look marvelous, dear! Let me look at you! You're blonde now, you've grown your hair long, the bags under your eyes have mysteriously disappeared, your breasts look two times as large-"

"Three times, mother," said Judy smugly. "I'm a D cup now. You look like you've grown some in that department as well!"

"Yes, well, that's a story," she looked at her daughter. "You look so beautiful! But... it looks like you've put on some weight."

"I have, Mother. It's called a baby," said Judy.

"A baby!" Jennifer cried, hugging her daughter tightly. "Judy! Why didn't you tell me? And who's the father?"

Jennifer had gone to pieces after her last encounter with Anson. She didn't know what to do. The rational part of her mind said that she should stay with Carl. But after the mindblowing sex she had had with Anson, she realized that giving up Anson would mean giving up a whole set of mental feelings and physical sensations she couldn't experience anywhere else. Was her love for Anson simply something that wasn't replicable with anyone else?

So she had turned to her daughter for advice, flying to Pittsburgh to see her. She was surprised to find Judy living there, but even more surprised to find her formerly modestly endowed daughter with enormous breasts and a growing belly.

"It's Tom," said Judy, as they sat down by her coffee table.

"Tom?" said Jennifer, looking confused for a moment. "Tom, your first husband?"

"Yep," said Judy.

"But... I thought you haven't seen him in nearly 200 years."

"I haven't. Until a few months ago."

"Judy, what happened?"

"I evaluated my life, Mother. And I realized that Tom was the best thing that ever happened to me. So I went out and I claimed him."

"You claimed him?" Jennifer asked. "Was he seeing someone else?"

"Yes. But that didn't matter. I wanted him, and I took him."

"And did Tom agree to be... taken?"

"Eventually, yes." She gave an enigmatic smile.

"That's why you got the boob job. You were gearing up to capture Tom."

"If you want flies, you have to spread around some honey," Judy grinned.

"So... the two of you, back together?"

"Yes, we're moving in together next week."

"And Tom's significant other?"

Judy shrugged. "He can keep her as a lover, for all I care."

"You don't care?"

"Our love for each other is too powerful to be broken apart by anyone else. In fact, I told Tom that I am going to insist that he take a lover from time to time. So am I."

"You both are?"

Judy nodded. "We were married for almost over 80 years, Mother. Do you know the statistics on that? 77% of couples are divorced by then. They can't stand each other. It's too much of the same old, same old. This time is going to be different."

"It is?"

"Yes. We're both going to see other people. But we're not going to go behind each other's backs. In fact, we'll tell each other all about it. It will keep our relationship fresh, and healthy."

"But what if Tom find another woman he likes better?"

"There is no woman Tom could ever prefer over me," said Judy, and she said it with such certainty that Jennifer had to believe it. "Trust me, mother, this will save our relationship. Each time Tom gets tempted and plows into a little chippie, he'll realize how empty and stale she is compared to the real thing. It will make him all the more eager for me. And at the same time, I am reinvigorating my professional life. 120 years as a psychologist is more than enough, thank you. As you know I just finished medical school, and I am training to be a psychosurgeon. I'll start practicing soon after the first baby is born."

"The first baby?"

Judy nodded. "We're going to have several."

"Does Tom agree to that?"

"He'll have to, if he wants to keep putting it in here," said Judy, pointing to her vagina.

They both smiled and laughed.

"But what about you, Mother, what's happening with you?"

And that opened the floodgates. Jennifer told Judy about her experiences with Carl, and her experience with Anson, and how torn she was.

"So let me get this straight. Carl got a giant, thick, sausage sized penis with all the whistles and bells, and still, after all that, you still like sex better with Dad? Is that correct?"

Jennifer nodded miserably.

"Come here, Mother. Let me hug you."

And Judy did just that.

"I understand your anguish, Mother," said Judy, when she pulled back. "You feel Dad betrayed you. But he didn't, not really."

"He left me!"

"After 311 years. Do you know how many marriages survive to the 300 year mark? Do you, Mother? No more than a handful. They don't because the human mind was not meant to endure such sameness for such a long time. We're just not biologically built that way. I tell you again, Mother, it's amazing your marriage lasted as long as it did. I would bet big money that any other man--and I mean this--if you had been married to any other man, he would have left you before the first century mark. He would have had to. He would have gone crazy from the sameness of it. But Dad held on. Not for a hundred years, not for two hundred years, but three hundred years. He held on when no one else would have. Instead of viewing it as a betrayal, you should view it as a tremendous achievement. No other man on the planet could love a woman so much as to spend three centuries with her!"

And then Jennifer, realizing the truth of Judy's words, started to cry. Judy patted her on the shoulder. "There, there, Mother."

"But... what do I do? Carl says he loves me. Carl says he wants to spend the rest of his life with me."

"Fuck Carl," said Judy. "What do you want, Mother?"

Jennifer paused, but only for a split second. "I want Anson," she said softly.

"Then go to him, Mother. He'll thank God and take you back in half a second. You know he will."

"I know he will too," said Jennifer, and she started crying again. "But... if he left me again, I couldn't take it, Judy! I just couldn't live with myself if he left me a second time! I can't risk such pain!"

"Mother, look at me! Look at me!" One set of blue eyes reluctantly stared into another. "Life and love is all about risk. If you never took any risks, you never would have married Dad in the first place. You can never be afraid to take a risk, otherwise you'll always be afraid to love."

"I can't, Judy, I can't! I can't take that risk," Jennifer cried. "Carl is the safer option. Carl couldn't hurt me nearly as much if he left me. Carl is an idea I can wrap my mind around."

"Listen to yourself. Mother. You're looking for the safer option," said Judy, curling her lip contemptuously. "Look at me. I dropped everything I was doing, even my career. I decided what I wanted, who I wanted. I didn't ask Tom if he wanted me back, I told him I was taking him back! I ruthlessly seduced him until I got what I wanted. That's the way you should be."

"I know... I know... but I'm not you. I can't be you," said Jennifer, sobbing.

"Then go back to Carl," said Judy. "Go back to Carl and have your safe life with him."

"I can't do that either," Jennifer whispered. "When I'm with Carl, I think of Anson. Even when we're having sex, I think of how much better it is with Anson, not just the physical part, but the feelings, inside of me."

"Poor Mother," said Judy mockingly. "You're like the donkey starving to death with a large pile of hay on either side of you."

"If I could only forget your father, or at least drive him out of my mind."

"You will, Mother, you will. You've only been with Carl for what, a little more than a year? You were with Dad for well over 300. Give it time, Mother, just give it some time, and gradually your brain, which is filled with Dad stuff, will become filled with Carl stuff."

Judy's words, which were intended to soothe her Mother's anxieties, somehow only heightened them. But she put a brave smile on her face and changed the subject, talking about how excited she would be to finally be a grandmother.

**********

"Chipmunk. You have returned."

Master Pho was just as Anson remembered him. He wore the same orange robe the other monks wore. He was as old and bald looking as ever--he had frozen his cosmetic age at 55, a rarity in this day and age, but one that made sense for one who called himself a Master. And he had his walking stick. And of course, he had the cataracts in both his eyes.

But while Master Pho may not have changed, the Monastery of Ju Chi had. There was rapid construction work going on, as the Monastery seemed to be building not one but two new wings. And there were strangers, white people from the west, who seemed to be residing in the Monastery in large numbers. Anson wondered what was going on.

But his first question was more immediate. "You recognize the sound of my footsteps, even after all this time?"

Master Pho laughed. "Chipmunk, I would remember the sound of your footfalls until the end of time. But come, sit down with me. Tell me how you have been."

They sat on the ledge by Master Pho's favorite fountain, which gave off a gentle tinkle of water from the vagina of an elaborately sculpted statue of a naked Chinese woman. The fountain was filled with lilies and small, brightly colored fish. It was a pity the Master could never see them.

"Why do I have the feeling that you already know why I'm here?" said Anson.

"It is your woman, is it not?" said Master Pho. He saw, or seemed to register the slightly surprised look on Anson's face. "It is not so difficult, Chipmunk. I always keep track of my favorite students. You are in pain, and have been trying one thing after another to dull the pain, have you not?"

"Yes," said Anson, amazed that Master Pho had gotten to the point so quickly.

"Ah, Chipmunk. After all these years, you still have not learned that women are women are women."

"What does that mean, Master?"

"That you need not be wedded to one female for life. There are many women who can pleasure you. Let me speak to the Whoremistress of the village. She will show you this to be true."

"No, Master. I want only Jennifer," said Anson. "But she will not have me."

"The mind wants what the mind wants," Master Pho sighed. "Why, then, have you come to me?"

"I thought... with all your wisdom... you could suggest a course of action.... I noticed a lot of Westerners in the Monastery...."

"Yes, we too are cashing in on the booming business of treating the depression of immortality," said Master Pho. "People come to us from all walks of life. They are tired of having tried everything. They have enjoyed every fruit from the tree of life, and know well every taste."

"So, what do you do for them?"

Master Pho laughed. "Why, we take their money, Chipmunk! Have you seen the two new wings under construction? With all the revenue coming in, the Monastery could soon double in size. And we are going to remodel the entire east wing with classical Tibetan furniture from the late 22nd century! It will look simply fabulous when it is done, so I am told."

"That's it? It's just another fraud? I wouldn't expect that from you, Master!"

Master Pho looked at him. "People come to us looking for answers. But answers come from within, Chipmunk. You should know that."

"You do absolutely nothing for them?"

Master Pho held up a restraining hand. "Well, I exaggerate. We do try to rekindle their interest in life through deprivation. We have them shed their worldly garb and wear simple robes. We give them three full meals a day, but of very plain rice, bred, and water."

"I know someone who would love that kind of diet," said Anson, thinking of Andrew Covell, the super taster.

"We have them scrub floors, do simple, repetitive work, and offer no entertainment of any kind, besides the company of each other."

"Wait a minute," said Anson. This was sounding suspiciously like the Monastery of Schlong Aus. "Do you deprive them of sleep? Do you drug them?"

"Sleep deprivation? Drugs? Who do you think we are, Chipmunk? Of course not," said Master Pho. "We simply deprive them of nearly all the pleasures of life, except the absolute necessities. And then, after a few days, it starts."

"What starts?"

"They may get a piece of celery in their oatmeal. Oh, how they chew on it slowly, and savor the taste! After that, bits and pieces of flavorful food are gradually reintroduced to their diet, but slowly. They love it. They feel such joy!"

"Because they've suffered deprivation."

"Exactly," said Master Pho. "Then we show them light shows. Very short light shows, at first. Things that would only entertain a young child. But having been totally starved of entertainment, they love it. Gradually we show them more, like a painting or sculpture or a single piece of classical music. They eat it up, and want to hear it again and again, because they are so starved for stimulation. You should see them, Chipmunk. After their work period has ended, they can spend hours talking about a single painting. And it's not just about the painting; our visitors bond with each other, and become friends. Do you see that anymore in present day Earth?"

"No," said Anson.

"And then finally, after a few weeks of this, we introduce the last phase. Sexuality. As you know there are no women here, Chipmunk. In this final phase we start to bring whores from the village."

"To have sex with your visitors?"

"No!" Pho was emphatic. "To smile and flirt with the men. There is no sex of any kind! Oh, they wear tight clothing, and they are beautifully dressed, their hair is perfectly combed, with makeup on to accentuate their features. But all they do is smile, and talk. The men love it. They go crazy for it. In a society where sex has become the most boring thing of all, we have brought back the art of flirtation between the sexes. After being deprived for even a few weeks, the men love it."

"So... you do offer a real service," said Anson. "Why did you tell me that this is a sham?"

Pho looked at Anson, and gave him a sad smile. "Chipmunk. What will happen to these men when they leave here, and go home?"

"Well, they'll appreciate food, and entertainment, and women more than they have in the past."

Pho came over, and actually slapped Anson on the face, but gently. "For how long, Chipmunk?"

"For a little while... then they probably will return to being jaded and bored with everything again," said Anson.

"Precisely. What we have cannot be taught. It must be learned on one's own, or not at all," said Master Pho. "For me, tonight I most look forward to the spoonful of honey in my rice, to sitting on the soft cushion on my master's chair, and perhaps, later this evening, sucking on Madam Wang's nipples in the village brothel. But that is because I have trained my mind to appreciate these small things. Most people cannot, or will not. It is, as you say, in one ear and out the other."

"So happiness has to come from within."

"Always."

"How did you come to be this way, Master? Were you always like this?"

"Always?" Pho chuckled. "No, not always."

"Tell me Master. Tell me how you, became you. Tell me how you achieved this perspective on happiness."

Pho looked at him cautiously. "It is not a story I tell often, especially to outsiders."

"Please, Master?" said Anson.

Pho nodded, and then laughed. "Very well, Chipmunk."

********

Pho Fu Yung was born to a rich family in Sichuan province 437 years earlier.

"You may think I was born to a poor family, because of my current circumstances, but that would not be farther from the truth. My father was a quite wealthy industrialist, and he wanted me, his only son, to follow in his footsteps. While most children would have obediently done so, something in my, my character, compelled me to resist. So at the tender age of 16 I ran away from home, and made my way west, deeper into the heart of China."

"Very soon I was living like a beggar on the streets. Remember, this is before the time when the World Government even existed, much less provided Fabricators and robot servants to every household. I begged on the streets for scraps of food. Then one day, a high class woman looked at me, and offered me two yuan if I would help load groceries in her air car. I eagerly did so. When the job was done, she offered me another two yuan if I returned to her home with her and unloaded them in her kitchen. Again, I readily agreed."

"Her home was a large mansion on the outskirts of Lhasa. I was amazed by the size and opulence of it. When we arrived I saw she had every manner of servant, and wondered why she would need me to carry her groceries. But I did as I was bid, and carried them to her kitchen."

"Then the woman offered me an additional four yuan if I would lower my pants. I had to think about this. But only for a moment. With four yuan, I would have enough money to eat for two days. There really was no choice. I lowered my pants."

"The woman stared at me with a queer smile. Then she handed me a small jar."

"What is this?" I asked.

"Fill it, and I will give you twenty yuan."

With my pants at my ankles, I started to shuffle towards her sink, but she stopped me. "No, fill it."

"And then I understood. The woman wanted to watch me fill the small jar."

"And you did?" Anson asked.

"At the time, 20 yuan was a princely sum for a homeless beggar boy," said Master Pho, stroking his beard.

"So what did you do?"

Master Pho smiled. "I filled the jar."

"After that other women started to hire me, for similar services. I began to fill their jars as well, so to speak. I found I had an unnatural skill. I could fill one jar after another after another, without a rest. That was the first inkling I had of my special abilities," said Master Pho. "These abilities, as well as my youth and handsome looks, made me much in demand for a while. I became relatively well off and could support myself."

"As a male prostitute?" Anson asked.

Master Pho wacked Anson with his cane. "As a virtuous sex worker, Chipmunk. Get with the times! Anyway, where was I? Ah, yes, the sex work. I enjoyed it, for a time, but as with anything else, it became boring. Filling one jar soon became like filling another. And then, one day, when I was working at one of the most respected brothels in all of Lhasa, we were paid an unexpected visit from the local crime lords."

"I first learned of it when I saw rough men visit the brothel one day. They demanded money from the Madam. She refused. They smacked her. One of the girls in the brothel attempted to intervene, and they smacked her as well. Everyone was terrified, but I did not like this. I went to the ruffian who had hit the girl, and punched him. He looked surprised, and then yelled out, and two of his men came and held my arms. Then he stepped forward to give me a beating. Only he didn't."

"I tossed the men holding my arms away like flies. I grabbed the arm of the man who punched me, and threw him against the wall. This was the second time I learned I was different, that I had abilities that others did not."

"Did you... practice this?" Anson asked.

Pho shrugged. "Never. I simply had these skills when I needed them. At the time, I wasn't in a position to critically examine my new abilities. The other ruffians drew weapons, but their leader barked a command, and they lowered them. Their leader looked at me in wonder and said, 'How do you do these things? How are you so strong, and so quick?' And I answered honestly that I did not know. And then he said, 'Come and work for me'. And I said, 'Why'. He asked how much I was paid, and I told him. He laughed. He told me that he would pay me ten times that. That I would be respected, given a luxurious apartment, and be provided women who would be sincerely kinder to me than those who simply wanted me to fill their jars. I accepted his offer on the spot."