h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

*Kes wakes - and for a few minutes stays cuddled up to Peaceful. Then he stirs, and builds up the fire. Lintilla and sg have gone - footsteps show they are walking the beach.*
That's OK - sb is a good guy - he'll make sure Lintilla is alright.
*Peaceful looks .. just that - peaceful - more so than Kes had noticed previously. He decides not to wake her for a few minutes, and sits, assessing the situation. Out of the corner of his eye, something small scuttles behind a rock.*

*Kes moves slowly towards the rock, hoping it hides something edible. It does (technically), but it's not for eating!*
Hello little crab. How good to see you again. How on earth did you get here?
*Crab waves a claw, and Kes sees a piece of wood wedged in it.*
Ooh - that looks painful, and it'll stop you collecting food. Come here. Now ... *wiggle, tug* .. there - it's gone.
That wood - it's not from a local bush .. looks a bit like the boat.
Oh - I get it - you were on the boat with us. A stowaway crab! Well, I'm glad you got to shore.
Of course, you don't have our problem about water and breathing, do you? You just sink to the bottom and then run like hell for the shore.
Here - have a bit of fish - sorry, we don't have much left, but you don't take much, so that's OK.
*Remembers about Galaxy Babe seeking the crab.*
Hang on a minute - just got to make a call to someone. Oh! You are hungry - alright.. here's another piece.

*The call has been made. When she gets the message, GB will know that Crab is safe. Kes checks on Peaceful - she still sleeps, looking so calm - a calm beauty quite unlike the forceful attraction radiated by ddgb. Crab is busy.*

*Kes watches as the crab goes up to the pile of kindling. The material is mostly small stalks,
which are from a Yarrow bush (though K doesn't know that). The crab is shuffling the stalks around.
The activity looks purposeful, but the purpose is not apparent.
There are fifty stalks. Crab lifts one in his claw, and waves it - repeatedly. Kes shrugs, and takes the stalk.
Crab returns to his work. After a few minutes of passing stalks from one claw to another, then putting them down,
there is a definite pattern.*

What's all this, Crab?
That's odd - you've made six clumps of stalks - a clump of nine, a clump of six,
then nine, nine and nine again, and last a clump of seven.
9, 6, 9, 9, 9, 7 . Just a coincidence, I suppose.
*(There was nothing in the stamp album about the interconnectedness of all things
- that's in a different book.)*

*Crab dances across the cave floor in great frustration.
He has seen humans use this device when seeking advice.
Why doesn't this one understand?*


This comes from another time and another book - The I Ching - The Book of Changes.

The yarrow stalks are cast. 9, 6, 9, 9, 9, 7. The judgement is:

Hexagram 44. Kou. Coming to meet.

Through resolution there will be an encounter.
The Maiden is powerful.
The weak man comes to meet her.
A melon is sweet, but bruises easily,
Unless protected by the strong.


Nice dance, Crab. Here - have some more fish.

*Crab tries again. He matches the image of the judgement with an image from another human device.

If only Galaxy Babe were here - she can hear me.


*Kes is briefly aware of an image ... three figures appear, each ... like a painting or a drawing.
First one, then the next is added, then the third ... like cards dealt onto a table.
First, Peaceful - a powerful woman - dressed in regal gown - holding a sword.
Next, a youth, looking over his shoulder at Peaceful, is about to step off the edge of a cliff.
Queen of Swords can see the youth, can see the danger, but just smiles.
Last, seen for only a moment - in the direction that the youth is walking ....
A girl, enthroned, holds out a gilt cup .. offered to whoever will take it.

The image fades, but will return to haunt.*

*Survival - staying alive - keeping your friends alive - should be the top priority. Kes recalled his earlier assessment of the situation: limited supplies of food, water and warmth, and no prospect of rescue. He could happily have returned to the cave, to cuddle up with Peaceful, but he needed to think about the strange images flitting through his mind.*

Well, I can work and think at the same time.

*The boots come in handy again. Placed under trickles of water coming down the cliff face, they gradually fill. From time to time, K transfers their contents to a large depression in the rocks under the cave. A reservoir of drinking water becomes established.

*Several walks up and down the beach (plenty of time to think - too much time to think) generate a haul of driftwood, and two washed-up coconuts.

*A few brave trees cling to the rockface. The local birds are stripping them of berries. In the process, quite a lot of berries fall to the ground. The resultant "jam" is scraped up and stored in an empty ration tin.

*sg had shown Kes how to build fish traps, but on the beach inside the reef there's little tidal flow. The wind has subsided, so Kes climbs onto the reef, and walks part of the outer wall. A fish is flopping about - trapped in a rock pool. Taken back to the cave and dealt with, it is now cooking on the fire.

*Two and a half weeks ago, Kes could happily have filled whole days just thinking about going home, and what he would do, and wondering what the local girls got up to behind the Scout Hut after the Scout meeting. Now he has far more to think about, and far too much time for thinking.

*The sun moves across the sky - just the usual 15 degrees per hour. Light and warmth reach into the cave.

* Looks like Peaceful's brain processes might be processing again...

* She shivers and looks around. It's warmer in the cave - there's light - but those images reflected in the back of the cave suggest something...

* And the light, gently filtering in - suggest something different too...

* Inside or out? Can there be anything worth finding inside the cave? How big is it, anyway???

* Still looking towards the outside, and trembling a bit, imagining what might be behind the cave... Peaceful wonders if there are any
stalactites and stalagmites back there...

* She gets up, and slowly starts moving towards the back of the cave...

* Much cooler in the back of the cave - it gets too dark to see much, and Peaceful feels something like fear - emitting a very lady-like and elegant * Yikes! *

* She hurries out to the sunny beach, hoping to find Kes...

* Strange,.. on the sand, she notices the crab's claws have formed the 4th hexagram ... one she knows only to well: the teacher tells the disciple not to bother him if he's not ready to learn the lesson... an elegant 'don't call me, I'll call you' of ancient times...

*Returning from another water collecting trip, Kes sees that PE is awake and on the move.*
Hey - Peaceful. Good to see you up and about. What's happening?
*He grabs a burning stick of wood from the fire, and heads into the shadows within the cave , where Peaceful has gone*
Hey - wait for me!

*Thanks to the magic of the simulpost, Kes and Peaceful are together at the mouth of the cave. Kes can't resist a kiss, then asks;*
Hey - do you understand what the crab's doing? Tell me!

* She had hurried back into the cave, upon seeing that Hexagram for the millionth time! It was too much for her! The cave was a better venue for learning, at this stage of her development!

* Also astounded by this synchronicity incident...

No, not that much - unless he shows hexagram 19 which will tell us to beware of the eight month, you know...

What's upset you, Peaceful? Is it something I said? Tell me.

* But that doesn't refer to August, so it's quite all right.

How about searching the cave?

I'm not upset, Kes, I'm just confused by these overlapping universes...

* Do you think the hidden beach has something strange about it? Or is it just that cave??????

* yikes!

You've felt that too?
*He recalls seeing\not seeing her at Peaceful Bay, but wisely decides not to mention it*
Well, we just have to live with it.
Yes, we can explore the back of the cave - probably a good idea.
First - look - I don't know how to say this, but ...
Well, we've not had a smooth time - I've done some stupid things, but the most important thing now is not to fight.
If we fight, we will destroy ouselves - or the island will kill us.
Let's forget the arguments for now, and try to get out of here.
Let's set things straight: I don't understand why I ... well, you know, but I am sorry for hurting you.
Now - anything you'd like to tell me before we go exploring?

* Peaceful decides to wait it out. Either that crab is a magician, of the most powerful sort... Or there is some kind of reflection of time going on... Either the cave or the beach. This had to be investigated... It might be worth a Nobel Prize for someone ...She was an ambitious gal...

* So she didn't thank Kes for taking care of her and Lintilla, or for saving sb some time back... Her words might get lost in the middle of the time-maze thing...

Yes, I have forgiven you - at least for now

And I do think we'd better not fight. Feel like danger is lurking in this beach. Any clue why we landed here -- of all places?

Do you think this is a small cave - or does it lead to others... It could lead underground, you know!!!

Better get an early start... Let's go!!!