widened. ‘Do it, Emma. If Roland can find any imperfection in your performance of the set, I will be very impressed indeed.’
‘I’m going to do the basic set of moves for one of the more lethal types of Chinese kung fu,’ I said to my parents. ‘But the most effective styles are the least impressive to look at. Don’t expect too much, okay? After I’ve done this for Roland I’ll do some pretty stuff for you. And I’m not a Grand Master, Roland. Call me sigung and I’ll be very cross indeed.’
‘ Sigung ,’ John said loudly. He dropped to the floor to sit cross-legged and pulled Simone into his lap, holding her around the waist.
‘When I am able to touch you again,’ I said, moving into position, ‘old man,’ I flipped my fists and moved into Wing Chun stance, ‘I really am going to beat,’ I punched with my left fist and then my right, ‘the living crap out of you.’
‘Stop,’ Roland said, and I froze. ‘Sorry. Apologies. But you didn’t do a signature.’
‘A signature?’ my mother said.
I nodded, still with my right fist out. ‘That’s right. Each Master adds a small move to the start of the set. All of their students do that move first, to acknowledge the Master who taught them. It’s like the Master’s signature.’
‘But you didn’t do one,’ Roland said.
‘No. She was taught by me,’ John said.
‘Oh,’ Roland said softly.
I worked through the rest of the set, finished and saluted. I was greeted with complete silence.
I looked at my parents; their faces were frozen in masks of restraint. They weren’t impressed at all.
John and Simone smiled indulgently.
Roland grinned like an idiot.
‘Emma,’ John said, ‘show it to Roland at full speed.’
‘Some of it’s meant to be done slow.’
‘Show him the fast bits at full speed.’
‘Okay.’
That didn’t take much time at all; at full speed I moved through the set very quickly. My hands were a blur.
I stopped and saluted again. Once again there was complete silence.
Then, ‘I couldn’t see your hands,’ my mother whispered.
Roland had a huge smile on his face and tears ran down his cheeks. He spun and went out. ‘Don’t go anywhere,’ he called from the hallway. ‘I’ll be right back.’
‘Roland’s seen Michael do energy work. Do some for your parents,’ John said.
‘Okay,’ I said. ‘Do you want to see me throw energy?’
‘What does it involve?’ my father said.
‘I take some of my personal energy and push it outside my body. It’s difficult to explain. Might bebetter if I just showed you. Don’t be scared, I won’t hurt you. If it bothers you, just say so and I’ll stop.’
Both my parents stiffened but remained silent.
‘You sure you want to see?’ I said.
‘Show us,’ my father said, and my mother nodded.
I generated a small ball of chi, only about the size of a tennis ball. I held it on my hands and waited as they became accustomed to it.
‘Okay?’ I said.
My mother nodded. My father didn’t move.
I lifted the chi and floated it around the room. I didn’t move it close to them.
‘Generate another the same size,’ John said.
I hesitated. I’d never tried that before. I put the chi into the centre of the room and left it there, hovering. I held my hands still and concentrated and, to my surprise, managed another one. I moved it off my hands and put it near the first one. Now there were two balls of energy hovering in the centre of the room.
‘Do you think you could produce a third?’ he said.
‘Let me try.’
‘If it gets away from you then drop it,’ John said quickly.
I nodded and concentrated, and produced a third ball. I moved it next to the other two. I tried something; I made them spin vertically around a common axis, like a little Ferris wheel.
‘Cool,’ Simone said softly.
‘Merge them,’ John said without moving.
I pulled them closer together and they joined to form a larger ball of chi.
‘Now separate them again.’
I concentrated
Scott Hildreth, SD Hildreth