âIâm so bored, Master.â
âYeah, there hasnât been any other planet in such a long time.â
âMy staffâs becoming rusty, Master.â
âThe previous master wants to gain experience, are you playing meditation?â
âAre you trying to gain experience, too? Let me fly you there!â
I put my fruit down. âFly? How does that work?â
âI can travel anywhere within a tumble.â
I looked at the speaking monkey. âYouâre Third Brother?â
He smiled and shook his cape. âYup. Thatâs me, Master.â
The planet was round and running would just lead us in circles.
Would flying be different?
âThird Brother...â I started.
âYes, Master?â
âAnywhere in a tumble, right?â
âYes, Master! A split second,â he continued, still smiling.
I pointed at the sky. âTumble here. Donât stop until you do a proper one, alright? Remember to tell me when you manage to get out.â
âAlrighty, Master,â he responded before stuffing his staff into his ear.
I looked on in shock as he disappeared in the next second and reappeared on the right end of the space.
He brushed past me a few hundred times within a breathâs time.
I had no way of keeping count. The fast-moving shadows looked as if they were being produced by more than one monkey.
After countless rounds, Third Brother landed beside me.
âAye. Master, what a coincidence!â he exclaimed laughingly.
âWas it fun?â
âI donât know why, but I feel a little dizzy. Itâs probably because I havenât flown in a long time.â
âThanks, Third Brother. Go have fun, I need some time.â
âCan I continue doing this? This place is too small and boring but tumbling is pretty fun!â
âGo ahead. Just donât ruin the ground beneath you.â
âYes, Master!â he replied enthusiastically before tumbling into the sky with boundless energy.
He moved from left to right.
The other monkeys who caught sight of this looked on enviously.
Finally, there was something to keep Third Brother entertained.
âWhatâs Third Brother doing, Master? Can I try that?â another monkey ran over to me and asked.
âYeah, Master. I want to try it!â
âMe too, Master!â
âDonât be biased, Master.â
...
The other 12 monkeys quickly surrounded me and expressed their interest.
I really couldnât blame them because life on this planet was seriously getting dull.
With a smile, I said, âGo ahead. All of you, go have fun.â
All twelve of them started tumbling in mid-air, going in different directions.
Some even collided with one another. They probably wouldâve fought with each other if they didnât see me looking at them.
I was the boss, but these monkeys were naturally competitive.
They had become stronger and if they wanted to, they could easily tear this planet apart.
My recent battles happened because I had to mend the planet that they were practically destroying.
Because of that, I established a ground rule: No fighting.
They seemed to be following it well.
I suddenly thought of something as I observed the monkeys in the air.
âThird Brother,â I called out.
He appeared before me in the next second, making a deep crack in the ground due to his
speed.
âSorry, Master. I was too anxious and forgot about protecting this planet,â he apologized,
scratching his head.
âForget about it. Bring me up. I want to locate the boundary point.â
âWhatâs that?â he asked, confused.
I pointed at the monkeys in the sky. âThere has to be a breaking point up there.â
âI donât get it, Master.â
âWell, if you understood it, youâd have been my master. Come, letâs go up.â
Third Brother flew me up into the air and we stood on his multi-colored cloud.
It became apparent that I had no artistic talent. The monkey king I had in mind turned out
strangely.
At a hundred meters high, I found the boundary.
I could no longer see my body after putting half my head in.
âThird Brother,â I called.
âWhat is it, Master?â
âYour eyes are better. Look behind. What do you see?â I asked.
After turning around and having a look, he replied, âWow, Master, youâre amazing. I see us, but why is there only half?â
âWe might be living in an endless box.â
âWhat do you mean?â
âBring me back down first, Iâm afraid of heights.â
âThatâs understandable, itâs your first time. The previous master had the same fear, too. Is it a common illness of humans?â he asked as he brought me back to the ground.
I took a fountain pen from my pocket and jabbed the tail into the ground.
I drew two boxes with a circle within each of them.
From my side, Third Brother asked, âYou made us take good care of the ground, why are you ruining it now? And what are you drawing?â
âDrawing on the ground wonât tear the planet apart.â
âWhat is this then?â
I pointed at one of the boxes and told him, âWeâre in one of these, and I think that there are hundreds of them. I donât know the order and operation, or how to even get out, but Iâm thinking things over.â
âPlease share,â he urged.
âItâs just a hypothesis. Everyone should hear this.â
âIâll call them,â he offered and I nodded.
âCome down, everyone. Master has something to say!â
âTo say!â
âSay!â
...
The monkeys quickly dove down, disturbing the ground in the process.
âSorry, Master, I forgot.â
âSorry, Master.â
âI forgot, too.â
...
Frustrated, I shook my head. âForget it. Itâs no longer important. I need all of you to listen to what I have to say.â