Louis glared at Shaw.  "Watch your tongue, in either reprimand or
casual comment, when you have not seen the events yourself.  I did not
let this happen to Mishima.

"Let me assure you that no precautions could have prevented friend
Mishima from being taken by these black hearted schemers!  He was no
more than a few paces from me, when he _vanished._ Do you understand
me?  He was plucked from the earth by..."

He trailed off momentarily, casting a brief glance at Shaka and then
continuing with renewed fervor.  "Maybe it was his Lion God, I don't
know.  But if it was one man or a score, they and I would most
assuredly be dead had they abducted Mishima openly.  I would gladly
relinquish my life, whether it be a temporary inconvenience or a final
rest, to take some of these insidious cowards to their end."

"Were I to reprimand you sir," Shaw replied in an evenly civil tone,
"there would be no doubt in your mind of my intentions. Perhaps you do
not recall, but Mishima's loss takes the total number of disappearances
to six. Each when alone, so when I say to be careful it is for the
good of all, not an attack against any one person.

"Perhaps if you were to spend less time arguing with your comrades and
more time trying to discover the meaning to all this you would feel
less guilt over something of which you had no control." With that,
Shaw turned and stood beside Charles again.

Shaka sets his jaw tightly and spoke; Benjamin translated his words to
the others.  "I have called you ashore because it is pointless to
continue on these separate paths now that we have my people.  Your
bickering about whether this is an emergency or not is pointless,
things have changed and it is time we were rejoined."

"This thing," he pointed to the boat, "is too weak and vulnerable, too
easily cornered and captured, no matter the skill of its pilot.  With
my people, we will be traveling in force, with superior scouts, and
faster than any superior force could coordinate to confront us.  This
is the only smart way."

"Yes, you have a fine army," Ehrich responded. "However, they travel
only at walking speeds, and only on one side of the river.  The boat
will be useful for scouting ahead, as it can travel quickly, and it
can scout both sides of the river.  It will prove to be a military
advantage.  We need only a few people on the boat, so it will not
hinder your warriors if it is used or not.  In any event, it is too
strategic to abandon."

He narrowed his eyes sternly.  "If you choose to go on that vessel,
then so be it, but I will not change my plans anymore for anyone who
does.  If you leave on the boat, our time of traveling together is
over unless we meet through chance.  Expect no aid from me or my
fellows if you are beset."

With that, Shaka turned, walked several paces away and waited.
Charles approached, but remained a respectful distance from Shaka.

"Shaka," he asked, "where are you going, and how do you know that the
forge of the scythe is where you are heading?  Have your warriors seen
this place?  Have you had a vision?  Do you know this path or this
place.  Give me some reason to follow you, as I have given you reason
in the past to follow me."

Shaka replied simply, "I will follow my vision north and I will not
leave my people."

Charles shook his head and motioned the others back to the boat. "We
will meet you at the appointed time and place." Louis and Mandragola
remained with Shaka. Josephine, glancing between the two groups,
pulled Shaw aside and spoke to him in hushed tones.

"Do you _want_ me on the boat with you?" she asked.  "I would like to
be on the boat, but if you aren't comfortable with that, I'll stay."

"Yes," Shaw replied. "I do want you on the boat with me. I need
someone I can trust with me, and not only because of this experiment."

After the whispered conversation, Josephine joined the others on the 
boat.

Sly, his arms folded, watched the exchanges with glazed
eyes which betrayed little understanding. Shrugging, he walked to
stand beside Louis. Mandragola nodded in farewell, but on the whole
the parting was quiet and chilly. The boat set out into the River
again.

Aboard, Jeanne looked curiously at Benjamin's work.

"I plan to use Items from our Grails to make the black Pieces,"
Benjamin smiled, "and carve the white Pieces.  Necessarily the Pieces
will be somewhat crude in Form and Making, but I am hopeful we will be
able to improve on them, so that the Game may not be altered to the
Detriment of whichever Player is most uncomfortable with the unusual
Shapes.  But we must devise a Means to make the Grail Items stand and
be recognizable.  For instance, I will attempt to carve a Base for
this Razor, into which I can insert the nether end so that this
crossward Bar is at the top, but I fear the Base will not be secure
enough.  And we must also contrive a Board somehow..."

He trailed off in thought until he saw Josephine, and then addressed
her. "I overheard your musings about the River flowing in one
direction.  Perhaps it flows a full Circle, ma'am, and joins back up
with itself, the Serpent swallowing its own Tail?  If so, a suitable
Symbol for our Existence in this Place."

Josephine smiled. Benjamin's next words were for Charles.  "Charles, I
do not disagree with your Judgement and will follow it, but have you
considered that the Vision that prompts us to travel north to find the
Scythe Makers, came from Shaka?  Mayhap his Insistence on traveling
by Land is part of that same Vision?  If we have trusted it thus far,
to abandon the Homes we built..."

Shaw was quick to reply. "If the powers that be wish us to travel by
land I would just as soon spite them and go by water."

After a moment of thought, Charles chimed in.  "It is true, Shaka did
visit the lair of the beings holding us here.  Perhaps he does have a
better idea how to return to them.  But perhaps still, he is now one
of them.  Perhaps this is not the Shaka we knew a few days ago."
Another thought struck him. "It sounded like you and Louis were having
words."

Shaw looked somewhat surprised.  "Oh, that?  We were discussing
Mishima's disappearance, there was a small misunderstanding, Louis
thought I was accusing him of being lax. I explained to him that I was
only trying be sure that everyone stayed on there guard. We have lost
too many people as it is."

He looked thoughtful for a second.  "You know, this makes me think. We
should try and teach everyone a common language.  As most of us here
speak English that would be the easiest I think. And Morse code, as
well. But first, if you and Benjamin could take the helm, I would like
to rest before the evening." He followed Freud below, and motioned for
Josephine to join them.

Before she arrived, he nodded to Freud.  "I am going to try again
now," Shaw said in a reverent tone. "I feel as if I am getting close
to unlocking some secret of this place. If it is all right with you I
will find you as soon as I wake after one of these dreams and perhaps
with your help we can make some sense of it all."

"Josephine..." Shaw began, awkwardly.

"I will be trying something which you may find...disturbing. It
seems that dreams are more than just dreams in this place. With
Dr. Freud's help I'm attempting to make some sense of them, and I
believe that I am getting close to unlocking some secret. To do this I
have been experimenting with dream gum."

Josephine's eyes widened in shock, her facial expression one of horror
before being replaced with a noncommittal one as she just stared at
Shaw.  "I don't know what to say.  Part of me wants to shake some
sense into you, another wants to turn my back and walk away. I know
that neither response is the right one, however, so I guess I will
just remind you of the horrors that can come of this and allow you to
make your own decisions."

"I understand that there is a great risk involved," Shaw replied. "I
do not like the thought of my mind being influenced by an unknown
substance, that is why I have asked Dr.  Freud to help. I hope to have
your help as well, especially if it looks like I need someone to shake
some sense into me as you said. It's just that without some risk we
will never understand what is going on here. I will be needed tonight,
so I thought I might try now."

Josephine nodded and clenched her teeth as she watched Shaw chew the
small grey cube she had come to loath. His eyes defocused almost
immediately and he sank to the bed in a pleasant-looking trance. Freud
shot Josephine a look and shrugged.

Shaw felt a comfortable lassitude settle upon him, and then he found
himself seated on a horse and looking across an enormous field painted
with blank and white squares like a chess board. Arrayed on the field
were all the lazari; even the mysterious vanished members of the
company were there. And there were other he did not recognize. The
field shifted strangely, so that the farther he looked, the less he
could see exactly where the others were standing, who the others were,
or what color their square were, though he could see that his was
black. Then a chill came over him as he saw an enormous hand reach
down and move a man-sized pawn two squares forward.

It was an hour later that Shaw awoke, shivering.

Suddenly his suggestion that Benjamin carve the pieces into the
company's likenesses seemed far more serious. And he felt sure that it
was very very important to tell the others of his dream.

			      *  *  *  *