Sunday night. You are ready to do some work. Scene nineteen has Kassandra and Salamon sitting in chairs on the site watching construction at mid-day.
Scene 19
Kassandra stared out onto the River Styx and beyond. A fair, mild and comfortable day engulfed her. Light blue sky, she thought, white fluffy clouds standing above the horizon. Such a sharp line between light sky and the dark waters of the Styx. White capped waves in the distance but nothing but a light breeze. Waves breaking about forty feet out. She asked, “What is the distance of each bridge span to be?”
“Forty-one feet, arched, with a stone base, wood framed and concrete,” replied Salaman. “The bridge is to be set ten feet above the water line. Some want to set it at twenty feet.”
“Why so high, the River had never flooded.”
Salaman said, “I suggested three feet, waves are never more than two feet at most and usually one or less.”
“Four should be adequate for safety.”
“Safety from what?” asked Salaman dark humoredly.
She laughed, “I don’t know? An automatic response.”
“You ever wonder what makes the waves?” he asked.
“Poseidon?”
“True. We need to appease him in some way.”
Kassandra noted, “Maybe that’s the reason for the height, some are wondering if he could set some rogue waves.”
“Would it not be easier for Poseidon to just lower the river bed?”
She smiled gingerly, “Duly noted.”
“Thales thinks they should just make a viaduct, a long low military bridge,” smirked Salaman.
“Everybody knows best when it comes to bridges.”
He continued, “Mario first thought pillars with bricks, mortar and pozzolana cement would work best with wooden arches.”
“How do we keep going further when the depth of the river will no doubt be lower?”
“This bridge building is better as a symbol of our determination.”
Kassandra asked, “Why did it change? I mean I wanted to really build a bridge but everyone said no, that it was a symbol.”
“Sophia I guess. She has it in her mind that we need to really do something. We need to make the bridge authentic so the gods will see we are for real.”
Her eyes brightened, “Maybe Poseidon will side with us and raise the river bed in our favor. No one would know any better.”
“It is true that Poseidon once took up a plot against Zeus with Hera and Athena. Poseidon never liked to follow his brother’s orders.” He thought, Poseidon also had troubles with both Hera and Athena. He is a misfit, a tyrant worse than Zeus.
“He had an affair with Demeter. Perhaps she could persuade him to side with us,” said Kassandra quietly while attempting to subdue her earlier hope.
“Wild horses to steer the sea god. Doubtful.”
The cynical tone was easily picked up, but she didn’t understand the content.
With resolve, she added, “If we could gain Athena’s help perhaps she would transform herself into a sea bird and tell us what awaits us as we build the bridge further.”
Salaman reluctantly declared, “Clearly, we feel we cannot do this rebellion ourselves, that we will need the help of a variety of gods and goddesses.”
“Sophia and Marios don’t agree with us on this. We are not alone in our thoughts though.”
What about Thales?” asked Salaman.
“I will find out what Thales really thinks tonight,” she replied confidently. This secret River in front of us is the product of the gods not us, she thought with retrospection. We cannot move forward without their help. It will be impossible to move forward without their help. Sophia and Marios should see this themselves. Are they blind to our reality? Mother, it is our Mother’s fault if this transgression fails. Sophia just mimics her.
***
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