Professor Leopold Watson is looking for the lost town of Kilwa Kivinje, an African town that disappeared in antiquity with no clues as to its whereabouts. They unearth a mysterious shard with markings on it. Leopold thinks it's strange that a shard that old could still have markings. Looking at them makes him feel nauseous. He recalls the long hours he spent reading arcane papers in university, replete with creatures of prehistoric folklore that he has since tried to dismiss. He returns to his tent and falls into a troubled sleep, with dreams of ancient times and warriors. Dinga is traveling over a mountain on foot. He is encountered by the Berbers, "wandering barbarians," who are prepared to attack him. He is ready to fight them all on his own, when he is met by Naiteru. He and Naiteru are friends, with Dinga having lived with Naiteru's family, from a different tribe in a different village, since leaving home. Together, they fight the Berbers, though Naiteru is slashed on the side of his belly. They decide to go to AKilwa, a nearby town, to receive treatment for the wound. They walk to the town with great trouble, due to Naiteru's wound, though Dinga thinks it should have closed on its own. When they come to the gates of Kilwa Kivinje, a man demands someone to bring food and drinks for the guests. A woman tends to Naiteru, and they gorge on food and wine. The Chagga, or medicine man, encourages the woman to serve them more wine, though Dinga thinks he sees a warning in her eyes. When Dinga awakes, his arms are bound to a wooden rack. The medicine man tells Dinga it is because they have come to the village to watch their "handiwork" in action. They say Naiteru's arrival was an omen, and that he too has succumbed to Dinga's blight upon them. He says Dinga was the one sent to destroy them. They give him a "Trial by Ordeal," where they poison him on the basis that if he is innocent it will not work. It does not succeed. The medicine man says afterwards that he had to be sure Dinga was not one of the Brotherhood of the Higher Ones. He says Naiteru's wounds are part of their work. Dinga agrees to go to their hut to stop their magic. When he arrives, there are many naked and castrated men tied together and tattooed, with their lips sewn shut. A woman comes out. Dinga kills all the men. He realizes that the woman is not the owner of the hut, but merely its priestess. He kills her anyway. When he returns to the town it is gone, as her will bound the land. He talks with Naiteru, only to realize it is not actually him. Dinga asks who he is, and he says he has been touched by the Old Ones to usher them in when the time comes. The next morning, Leopold wakes with the desire to flee. A man from his dig staggers towards him, clutching the shard. He is wearing a cloth on his head, which falls to reveal his skull has been splintered. He opens his mouth and speaks words with a musical quality. Leopold laughs coldly.