Read Ice and Fire: Chung Kuo Series for Free Online Page B

other children. There was something wild in his nature;
     some part of him that remained untamed, unsocialized. When he sat there at table it
     was
     as if he held himself in check. There was such stillness in him that when he moved
     it was like something dead had come alive again. Yet he was more alive – more vividly
     alive – than
     anyone the T’ang had ever met.
    As he handed Ben the bowl he almost expected to receive some kind of shock – a violent
     discharge of the child’s unnatural energy – through the medium of the bowl. But there
     was
     nothing. Only his wild imagining.
    The T’ang looked down, thoughtful. Ben Shepherd was a breed of one. He had none of
     those small refinements that fitted a man for the company of his fellows. He had no
     sense of give and
     take; no idea of the concessions one made for the sake of social comfort. His stare
     was uncompromising, almost proprietorial. As if all he saw was his.
    Yes, Li Shai Tung thought, smiling inwardly. You should be a T’ang, Ben Shepherd,
     for you’ll find it hard to pass muster as a simple man.
    He lifted his bowl and sipped, thinking back to earlier that afternoon. They had been
     out walking in the garden when Hal had suggested he go with him and see Ben’s room.
    He had stood in the centre of the tiny, cluttered upstairs room, looking at the paintings
     that covered the wall above the bed.
    Some were lifelike studies of the Domain. Lifelike, at least, but for the dark, unfocused
     figures who stood in the shadows beneath the trees on the far side of the water. Others
     were more
     abstract, depicting strange distortions of the real. Twins figured largely in these
     latter compositions; one twin quite normal – strong and healthy – the other twisted
     out of shape, the
     eyes blank, the mouth open as if in pain. They were disturbing, unusually disturbing,
     yet their technical accomplishment could not be questioned.
    ‘These are good, Hal. Very good indeed. The boy has talent.’
    Hal Shepherd gave a small smile, then came alongside him. ‘He’d be pleased to hear
     you say that. But if you think those are good, look at this.’
    The T’ang took the folder from him and opened it. Inside was a single ultra-thin sheet
     of what seemed like pure black plastic. He turned it in his hands and then laughed.
     ‘What is
     it?’
    ‘Here,’ Shepherd indicated a viewer on the table by the window, then drew the blind
     down. ‘Lay it in the tray there, then flick that switch.’
    Li Shai Tung placed the sheet down in the viewer. ‘Does it matter which way up?’
    ‘Yes and no. You’ll see.’
    The T’ang flicked the switch. At once the tank-like cage of the viewer was filled
     with colour. It was a hologram. A portrait of Hal Shepherd’s wife, Beth.
    ‘He did this?’
    Shepherd nodded. ‘There are one hundred and eighty cross-sectional layers of information.
     Ninety horizontal, ninety vertical. He hand drew each sheet and then compressed them.
     It’s
     his own technique. He invented it.’
    ‘Hand drew… ?’
    And from memory. Beth wouldn’t sit for him, you see. She said she was too busy. But
     he did it anyway.’
    Li Shai Tung shook his head slowly. ‘It’s astonishing, Hal. It’s like a camera image
     of her.’
    ‘You haven’t seen the half of it. Wait…’ Shepherd switched the hologram off, then
     reached in and lifted the flexible plate up. He turned it and set it down again.
     ‘Please…’
    The T’ang reached out and pressed the switch. Again the viewing cage was filled with
     colour. But this time the image was different.
    The hologram of Hal Shepherd was far from flattering. The flesh was far cruder, much
     rougher than the reality, the cheeks ruddier. The hair was thicker, curlier, the eyebrows
     heavier and darker.
     The nose was thick and fleshy, the ears pointed, the eyes larger, darker. The lips
     were more sensual than the original, almost licentious. They seemed to sneer.
    Shepherd moved closer and