The Intuitives(59)

“I thought unconscious minds didn’t like basements,” Sam said.

Ammu turned to meet her eyes for just a moment but did not otherwise acknowledge the comment.

“In service of this experiment,” he said instead, “I have brought something that is quite precious to me, and I would ask you all, please, to treat it with respect when handling it.”

Slowly, carefully, Ammu produced a huge tome from a satchel he carried over his shoulder. It was bound in dark brown leather, the edges of each page delicately gilded, with hand-tooled lettering across the cover, painted in gold. The language was so foreign to them that they could not even decipher its letters, let alone its meaning, and it appeared to be printed either backwards or upside down, the binding positioned on the right rather than on the left.

When Ammu opened the book and turned it around so they could see it, Sketch gasped and took a step forward, reaching one hand out toward the page—until he remembered what Ammu had just said. He looked up, seeking permission to touch the illustration he saw there, and Ammu granted it silently, nodding once, allowing Sketch to run his fingers reverently across its colorful surface.

The vibrant picture depicted a creature with the brilliant body and tail of a peacock but the head and forelegs of a wolf. Watching Sketch closely, Ammu turned to a new page, this one displaying a classic gryphon. Its body and rear legs were clearly those of a lion, but its head, wings, and forelegs were just as clearly those of an eagle.

“That’s the picture you showed me!” Kaitlyn exclaimed.

“Almost,” Ammu said. “The picture I showed you in the workshop was very similar. It was created by the same artist, but it is not exactly the same. There are subtle differences, detailed here.” He pointed to more of the unusual writing, arrayed alongside the photo in a column down the side of the page, the lettering aligned on the right instead of on the left, just like the book’s binding.

“That’s Arabic.” Mackenzie leaned forward to take a closer look. “I can’t read it, but I recognize it.”

“Very good,” Ammu agreed. “As I said, the exercise we are to attempt today comes originally from my own part of the world, as does this book.”

“What do you want us to do, Ammu?” Rush asked, and Ammu smiled.

“The exercise is designed to strengthen the connection between the conscious and the unconscious mind. Since each of you commands a different ability through a unique pathway, you will each be performing a different aspect of the whole. To begin, Kaitlyn will set the pattern—the blueprint, if you will—for the exercise. From this image, Kaitlyn, when you are ready, clear your mind and try to see it, as you did in the workshop.”

Kaitlyn nodded uncertainly and stepped forward, lowering her gaze to the book. They all stood in silence for several moments, but Kaitlyn just frowned and eventually shook her head.

“I can’t see it like before,” she said, looking to Ammu for direction.

“Try again,” he said gently. “It will come.”

Kaitlyn nodded and stared at the image again, this time waiting several long minutes in silence before finally giving up.

“I’m sorry, Ammu. It just isn’t coming to me. I’m not getting anything.”

“That’s because it’s not as big as it looks,” Sketch interjected, and Ammu looked at him in surprise.

“How so?” he asked.

“The picture looks like a lion’s body, but it isn’t that big at all. It’s more like a cat. Like this.” Sketch held his hands out in front of him, indicating something closer to the size of a dog. He looked up at Kaitlyn to see whether she understood what he was saying, but she was already nodding eagerly.

“Yes!” she exclaimed. “I have it! I can see it, Ammu!” In her mind’s eye, as clear as day, she could see a circle of glowing runes that somehow, to her, represented the living energy flow of the miniature gryphon.

“Excellent!” Ammu exclaimed. “Both of you! That is excellent!”

Kaitlyn and Sketch both beamed with pride.

“Here,” Ammu said. He pulled a square tin out of his satchel and opened it to reveal several pieces of blue street chalk. Sketch started to reach for it, but Ammu surprised him by handing it to Kaitlyn. “Draw what you see on the floor. About this big, I think.” He held his hands apart, almost as far as his arms could stretch.

“Sure!” Kaitlyn agreed. She knelt on the floor and began drawing a large circle.

“Now, Samantha,” Ammu continued, “You will sit in the middle of the circle. If and when it occurs to you to do something, then do it. Use your sense of timing. If everything goes well, you will know when. Trust your instincts.”

“Yeah,” Sam said, shrugging, “’cause that’s not vague at all.” But she did as she was asked, sitting with her legs crossed in the middle of the chalk circle on the floor as Kaitlyn began to draw strange runes around her.

“Mackenzie,” Ammu said, turning to her next, “I would like you to bless the circle and ‘center’ the ritual through any series of movements that seems fitting. Your unconscious mind can already communicate spatial information to your conscious awareness through your martial arts. Use that ability to perform the movements that come to you.”

“OK,” Mackenzie agreed. “I can do that.”