Two Special Viewpoints

Josh looked back the Doctor, marvelling that he could even make a move. Josh had assumed that the Doctor had a prodigious mind, and had the moves mapped in his mind. But how could he see the moves of the unseen opponent? All Josh could see was a forest of white and black sculpture, and the members of the party. Yet the Doctor simply stared into space, deep in thought, and then calmly called out his moves.

What Josh did not know was that the ceiling and walls of the room were of a special construction. There was a time where woodworkers, to amuse the court, would carve intricate pieces of marquetted wood. From all angles except two, the carving looked like a jumble of wooden strips. But from one of the chosen angles the woodwork would reveal a likeness of the patron, and from the other the work would reveal a likeness of the patron's beloved.

The ceiling of the great chamber was the optical equivalent of the novelty woodwork. The ceiling would look like a dim jumble of rock from all positions except two - the square where the Doctor stood, and the square where the sculpture of the black king stood. Of course, if the kings moved, the ceiling of the cavern would be rearranged so that each 'king' could see the board by looking at the back wall. Of course, at this time, nobody in the party besides the Doctor, perhaps, was fully aware of that fact, as the bright light from the opposition's castling move had distracted them.

Armed with his special ability to see the board in full, the Doctor could make his move. Josh especially felt under threat. There was a nice safe square in front of Susan. He wondered why the Doctor was keeping him out here. However, the Doctor did not change his pattern.

"Pawn to the King's Knight, 4th rank."

Josh could not see the board well. From where he was at, though, he thought that the Doctor had to have something in mind. But sending the pawn up to attack the knight seemed a bit daft. Josh would be captured one move beforehand. Was the Doctor setting him up for an exchange? That was easy enough when you were a safe king, but not so easy when you were on the line. And what was capture? Death? Prison? Being transported to some safe area? He could be transported to a woodland paradise being fed ambrosia by servants that would cater to his every whim, but the point was, that he did not know what his fate would be if captured, and he preferred to avoid it. His mind told him to bolt, but his legs remained rooted to the square, not responding to his desire to leave this unnerving game.

The game:
8 P-KB4 P-QB3
9 P-KN4

1. As Josh feared, the next move was P-Q3.
2. The hidden opponent has a different plan of attack.

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