Chapter 001: Family Banquet

      It took me completely by surprise. I was enjoying a quiet evening with Suzanne in some bar in Soho, when suddenly I felt the faint pressures of a Trump contact building in my mind. Although I recognised it for what it was immediately, I really didn't have that much experience with Trumps, since I regarded them as something of an emergency communications system instead of an equivalent of the Shadow Earth's telephones. Aunt Fiona gave me a couple of them when I first left Amber and I knew she drew one of me too (she made me pose for it for quite a few hours - I got to choose the pose, though), but I hadn't really used them more than once or twice.

      More or less expecting it to be Fiona I concentrated on the contact, only to be even more surprised when the features of King Random took form before my eyes. He was seated behind his desk in his study in Amber, and although he looked a bit tired he seemed happy to see me.

      "Ah, Dorian, there you are!"

      Through my surprise I managed a feeble reply.

      "Well, hello, um... Majesty."

      "Oh, there is no need for such formalities. Just call me Random. I called to invite you to dinner. We're holding a special family party on the occasion of your Uncle Corwin's return and I decided it's also a good time for relatively new family members like yourself to be introduced. It's this evening, a bit at short notice I guess, but I really hope you'll join us."

      "Why, of course I'll be there."

      "Good. Then I can bring you through now?"

      I suddenly realised Suzanne was giving me very strange and concerned looks from across the table. And indeed it must seem very strange to see me staring at something undefined whilst softly talking to myself. Better not make a scene by disappearing before her eyes...

      I concentrated on Random again.

      "No, thank you, but I've got some business to take care of first, so I'll come a bit later."

      "Alright, no problem. You can use Flora's Trump when you're ready; she's in charge of the whole event. See you later."

      I barely managed a goodbye before he broke off contact. Somewhat disoriented I glanced at Suzanne, who was beginning to look a bit worried.

      "Dorian, are you alright?"

      "Um, yes, I think so... Look, I just remembered something and I really have to go."

      I saw her worry turning to anger.

      "What? You have to go? Now? And we only just got here! Oh, Dorian, sometimes you're such an airhead!"

      "Um...Yes. I'm really sorry, but this is very important."

      "And I'm not? Is that it?"

      Oops! Wrong thing to say.

      "Look, I'll explain it all later."

      But it was already too late. She had grabbed her coat and was heading for the door, looking rather furious. Some people were glancing in my direction, which made me feel even more embarrassed.

      Damn! Congratulations Dorian, you handled that really well! And at precisely the right time too, when you still feel a bit uncertain about her feelings for you...

      I sighed, put on my coat and started walking towards my appartment. Still, hopefully this family event wouldn't take to long. I would try to make amends when this was over.

      I guess I just was too confused by the Trump call to be more tactful. I had met Random only once before, when my father had decided to reveal my mother's identity. He was very nice to me, but at the same time he was very busy, for he was still just at the start of his reign, so our meeting was very short.  As I said before I had expected Fiona to call, but it seemed logical of course that she had made a copy of my Trump for Random (I mean, he is the King and all that). I found it a bit strange though that he had called me personally, since he had indicated that Aunt Flora was supposed to be in charge of the party. I mean, a family party isn't that big a deal, is it? So would you expect a personal invitation from your King?

      Anyway, whilst musing a bit on these peculiarities I reached my front door. Wylde looked up when I entered, surprised to see me return so early, and I quickly explained what had happened. She said she was looking forward to visiting Amber again. I smiled; I know she's not too fond of Shadow Earth with its pollution and heavy traffic.

       Quickly I gathered those few items that I felt I shouldn't leave behind, like my deck of Trumps and the small dagger which used to belong to my mother, and after being only a few minutes inside I closed my front door behind me. Out on the street I beckoned Wylde to stay near. Here in London I lacked the right wardrobe for a family banquet in Amber and although I could easily obtain some clothes from my father's house once I had arrived at the castle, it was more fun to simply do a bit of Shadow Shifting and change the clothes I was already wearing into something more appropriate. Besides, it was good practice.

      Nocturnal London started to change slowly around me as I began concentrating. It took me only a few shifts to reach the right Shadow. In the glow of the Wenritch lighthouse I stopped and stared at my reflection in a polished silver wall: blue trousers, grey shirt with wide sleeves, black boots, black cloak and black leather belt. My long brown hair bound back in a tail with a black ribbon. I regarded myself and was pleased.

      Wylde's voice entered my mind: "And they say cats are vain!"

      My laughter rang out through the night and stirred some grey-and-yellow-spotted creatures that weren't exactly rats. I quickly picked Wylde up before she had a chance to go after them. With my other hand I found the right Trump and I concentrated on the image. Contact came almost instantly.

      "Dorian, how nice! How are you? I was hoping you would come. I already arranged a fine suite for you on the third floor. But won't you come through, dear?"

      "Yes, thank you Aunt Flora. I'm fine, how are you? You're looking as beautiful as ever, if I may say so."

      That certainly wasn't a false compliment. As I clasped her hand and stepped forward, I marvelled at the way that seeing her would lighten even my darkest of moods. I put Wylde down again, and she immediately went off exploring, while I bowed and kissed Flora's hand. She gave me one of her warmest smiles and started gossiping while leading me to my suite.

      Yes, Uncle Corwin had finally returned. He had been a prisoner in the Courts of Chaos all this time and when Merlin (his son who hails from those parts) had found out about it he had immediately delivered him from his prison. It seemed that Merlin had been busy lately: according to the latest rumours he was to be the new King of Chaos. I wondered what that would do to the relations between Amber and Chaos. Could be an improvement.

      When we reached the third floor I thought for a moment that the castle had been subject to an I.R.A. bombing. Several rooms and parts of the coridors and balcony had been destroyed and although restorations were in full progress, it was plain to see that it take a lot more time before things would be back to normal.

      Flora caught me staring and quickly supplied me with the tale of how a clash between the Pattern and the Logrus (a Chaos equivalent of the Pattern, as she explained when she saw my incomprehension) had caused all this devestation. Again it had something to do with Merlin's adventures, for he had been in the middle of it all when it happened. Curiouser and curiouser. I admitted becoming eager to meet this adventurous cousin of mine and hear his stories, but sadly Flora told me he wouldn't be able to attend tonight. Pity...Coral would, though.

      ...

      Blank look from me.

      Glad to enlighten me, she told me that Coral was officially the daughter of a high ranking Begman diplomat. Semi-officially however, she was the illegitimate daughter of the late King Oberon, a rumour which she had proven to be a fact by successfully walking the Pattern.

      There seemed to be some other new family members too, but Flora couldn't tell me much about them. I would have to wait till the banquet to satisfy my curiosity.

      The two room suite was more than adequate for my needs. When she had assured herself that I was comfortably quartered, Flora quickly departed in search of some servants to make more arrangements for this evening. As I had a few hours left before the party was supposed to begin I decided it best to get some rest and avoid being Shadow-lagged. After a couple of minutes on my bed I dozed of to an untroubled sleep.

      A soft purring and a warm pressure on my chest slowly brought me back to the land of the living. Wylde's emerald eyes were looking contently at me as I opened my blue-grey ones. From her mind I caught glimpses of her chasing rodents in some rarely used part of the castle, followed by a quite satisfactory meal. As a reaction my stomach rumbled, although I must confess not being too keen on raw mice.

      I scratched Wylde behind the ears, which increased the purring. She had been my companion since I had met her in Telgan. As a matter of fact she more or less adopted me. Although she looks like a normal black cat, she is far more intelligent. Indeed, she is even able to speak - she seldom does though, preferring instead the direct communication between minds which some people call telepathy, but which is somehow more and different. I remember she even joined me in a song once, but cats don't like loud noises very much. I guess it's just their nature. Pity though, because she has a lovely singing voice.

      We remained lying there for a few minutes, until I decided that I'd better see whether the party had started yet. I refreshed myself and quickly made my way downstairs with Wylde trailing behind. Almost immediately I ran into Flora, who was making last minute arrangements. Her stress showed only a little bit; she was in her environment, doing the things she did best. Something had crossed my mind on my way downstairs and I asked her whether my Father had also been invited.

      "No, Dorian dear, it's only Family tonight."

      The way she said it you could hear the capital F. Well, I could have guessed as much. Still, I knew Dad would like me to drop by if I had the chance. I communicated my thoughts to Wylde and asked her to go to the house and tell him I would visit him as soon as I had the time. She agreed, saying she wouldn't enjoy this Family Banquet anyway. I smiled, for although she didn't admit to it, I knew she secretly had become quite fond of my old man. I opened a window for her and she quietly slipped into the night.

      Most of my family was already gathered in the dining room, sharing aperitifs and gossip. I exchanged greetings with those few I had met before and spied quite a few unknown relatives. Aunt Fiona was talking to some young man with light brown hair, whom she introduced to me as Vincent. She told me that he was a relative, but she hadn't be able to trace his exact origins. Quickly she also pointed out the other new relatives to me.

      Coral was a lovely young woman, whose features were marred by an ominous black eyepatch. Another result of Merlin's little get-together with the Pattern and the Logrus, or so I'm told.

      A big, smiling man with red hair, who was called Rinaldo, was regarding the rest of us from across the room. He seemed likeable enough, but Fiona told me he was Brand's son, which didn't exactly give me much reason for liking him. A brief image of Brand pulling my Mother with him into the Abyss crept into my mind, but I quickly pushed it back again. No sense in being melancholy at a time like this.

      Near Rinaldo (but not so near that they would be able to strike up a conversation) sat a man with a dark countenance. He wore his short, black hair combed backwards and sported a black goatee. His clothes were black too, with a red lining for contrast. He radiated an almost sinister mood. He was called Murlas and Caine had been his father. I had heard rumours about my Uncle Caine's death and Fiona confirmed them, saying they hadn't been able to reach me in time for the funeral. I had never met him personally, but he had been a well-known public figure and I must admit having some respect for his reputed skill as a sailor.

      Off in some corner sat a remarkable figure: a young man dressed in tattered and torn trousers and an old leather jacket with a Mohawk hairdo that wouldn't look out of place at a Sex Pistols concert. I was very surprised to learn that this was my cousin Martin, son of King Random and (probably) Heir to the Throne. I had seen him about town a couple of times, but I wouldn't have recognised him like this.

      The last two strange faces belonged to Alexander and Adrian, two sons of Corwin. From what I gathered later they were full brothers, but the way they occasionally glanced at one another made it perfctly clear that there was no love lost between them.

      They were quite different in appearance:  Alexander had short black hair and a little black moustache. He was dressed in black jeans and matching shirt (not quite appropriate, but it gave him a sense of casualness). A rapier and small stiletto hung from his belt, but they didn't seem to restrict his movements in any way.

      Adrian, on the other hand, was very tall (a good 6'5" or even more), with blonde, curly hair. From the way they acted it was clear that he was the younger of the two. His clothing was also somewhat unconventional, for he was wearing an original black and white tuxedo with a silver pochet. He even managed to look comfortable in the damn thing too.

      I chatted a bit with Fiona, telling her about my travels, until finally King Random and Queen Vialle entered. The man between them wore black and silver, and although he looked tired and his face was a bit gaunt, I recognised my Uncle Corwin. He seemed surprised by the presence of his sons and went to talk with them both. I don't know whether anyone expected an emotional reunion of father and sons, but that couldn't be much farther from the truth. One could almost feel the tension in the air when Corwin first exchanged a few words with Alexander and then with Adrian. Really loving family, that one...

      Random broke the tension by anouncing that dinner was ready to be served. Flora had arranged a seating order indicated by small name tags set beside the plates, with Random and Vialle at the head of the table, along with Corwin. She had however made the mistake of putting Alexander next to Adrian; they didn't speak to each other throughout the whole dinner. I found myself flanked by two ladies: Coral on my left and Flora on my right.

      The table was an exquisite sight: numerous dishes of all sorts of regular and exotic foodstuffs, crystal decanters of both red and white wines, and in the middle a beautifully crafted statuette of the white Unicorn of Amber.

      After the first few minutes, during which everybody was too busy enjoying their food to talk, Random took advantage of the silence by making a speech, wherein he introduced each of the new faces with their pedigree. I felt my relatives' inquiring gazes upon me as I was introduced as Deirdre's son. I smiled, though thinking of her was still painful.

      Random especially thanked Rinaldo for ending the vendetta. I later heard he had murdered Caine to avenge his father, but had decided that enough was enough and that he would rather be at peace with the rest of the family.  Random called upon Fiona to explain Vincent's case. She told basically the same tale that she had told me, but expanded upon it by telling us that although Vincent had never met his father, he had been given a description of him, which could almost have been a description of the late Oberon. The strange part was that according to Fiona's calculations of the time differentials Vincent had been born after Oberon's death! I wondered a bit about that. Still, I didn't recall anybody ever mentioning that they had actually seen Oberon's body...

      Tabletalk resumed soon after that. I made some conversation with Coral, who was quite nice despite the eyepatch, and I told Flora about some of the things I had been doing on Shadow Earth (it had been her stories that had made me want to go there in the first place). All in all I was enjoying my self quite a lot.

      About half an hour later a short break was announced, during which there would be a performance by a group of artists from Telgan known as the Inner Circle. I was pleasantly surprised, for I had heard about these guys when I was in Telgan. They were supposed to be the best all round performers, selected by a series of tests covering every form of artistry and performance. Although my interests lie in all possible forms of artistry I had declined from trying these tests, since there were still other things I wanted to do and other places I wanted to go. Being with a group like that would have bogged me down too much. Still I was eager to see how good they really were.

      The lights dimmed and the players entered. There were three musicians playing ancient Celtic instuments and three dancers, who started performing some very old myth I faintly remembered from a book I had read years and years ago. Although they certainly lived up to their reputation, my relatives didn't seem very appreciative. Most of them dislike displaying strong emotions to outsiders and after the performance they applauded only pro forma, while I was one of the few to show a bit more enthusiasm.

      During the break servants had resupplied the table with food and drink. While everyone resumed their meals I noticed one of the musicians (the harp player) returning and joining us at the table. Random, who was already looking a bit tipsy by that time, joyfully introduced him as Algoniet, Flora's son.

      While performing he had been wearing a strange suit of shimmering and changing colours, but in between he had changed into a black suit with a harp symbol of the same shimmering substance on the front. It didn't diminish the air of flamboyance that hung around him. I found myself a bit fascinated by him and turned towards Flora.

      "Why Aunt Flora," I said,"you never told me you had a son."

      "I know, dear," she sighed. "I'm not too proud of him. I mean, look at him," she said indicating Algoniet, who apparently wasn't happy sitting between Gerard and Murlas. He had taken his seat and had moved it to the other end of the table where he had started a casual conversation with Random. It seemed as if they were on pretty good terms.

      "Absolutely no sense of protocol! And don't think I didn't try to teach him. I tried my very best to make Algo into a sensible adult. But no, he wants to perform, to be an artist with that little group of his."

      I felt she was judging him maybe a little too harshly, so I decided to put in a good word.

      "I must admit I rather liked his peformance. I have heard about his group before and it has a very good reputation; deservedly, I judge by what I have seen tonight."

      Flora still looked a bit sceptical, but I felt her anger had been toned down a bit by my remarks. She wanted to say something then, but suddenly all the lights went out.

      The room was pitch dark save for the statuette of the Unicorn, which started to glow and pulsate with a strange green light. At the same time I felt a slightly tugging feeling inside, as if something was being pulled away from me. I didn't have the faintest idea what was going on. Next thing I knew the green pulsating light illuminated the whole room, but when I looked at the table I saw that the Unicorn had turned totally black. I glanced around the table and saw that the others were just about as worried as I was. When I looked at Coral I got another surprise: an eerie red glow was coming from beneath her eyepatch, pulsating in time with the green light. Stranger and stranger...

      As suddenly as it has started, things returned to normal again. Well almost, because most of the others seemed pretty shocked by what had happened. Only Vincent and Algo looked as if nothing was wrong.

      I felt an certain loss, but I couldn't quite put my finger on what it was that I was missing. I shivered and took a sip of wine, which steadied me a bit.

      Algo had come to his mother's side, showing more concern for her than I had expected. I glanced at my left. The red glowing had also stopped and Coral seemed to be alright, although she was looking rather strangely. I noticed several people had moved from the table and were standing around talking in excited voices. Fiona had gone to speak with Random and subsequently they had both left the room.

      I picked up snatches of coversation and the Pattern seemed to be the topic of discussion. From the remarks I gathered that the thing I and most of my relatives had lost was the ability to use Pattern. The only obvious solution to this problem was to essay the Pattern again.

      I felt slightly apprehensive at this prospect. Although I had successfully walked the Pattern once, it hadn't exactly been a piece of cake. I still had the occasional nightmare from the experience. Yet, without Pattern I would't be able to walk through Shadow anymore.

      When most of the conversations suddenly died down I looked up from my musings. A small, hunchbacked old man was striding into the room, closely followed by Random and Fiona.

      "What the hell has happened, Dworkin?" I heard Random ask.

      Dworkin didn't reply, but muttered something under his breath and walked towards Coral, with whom he left again, leaving us in our confusion.

      So that was Dworkin. I don't know, but from what I had picked up on religion I had somehow expected a more awe-inspiring figure. Random and Fiona seemed to put a lot of faith in him though.

      A servant entered and handed Random a message. He read it, cursed loudly and called for Bleys, Benedict and Julian to follow him. Adrian also followed them. Just being curious, I guess.

      I moved towards Fiona and asked her what she thought had happened here tonight (since she's the expert on arcane matters).

      "Well I don't know exactly, but it seems to have been some sort of attack directed at the Pattern. As a side-effect most of us have lost their control over the Pattern."

      "You didn't lose it?" I asked.

      "No, I concentrated very hard and was able to fend of the attack on a personal level. Mind you, you didn't really lose Pattern, it's just that you can't use it anymore. I can still see the difference between someone who hasn't walked it and someone who has and now has lost it. It may only be a temporary effect."

      "But is the Pattern itself alright, or has the attack damaged it somehow."

      "I don't know. I think it is unharmed, but it might be a good idea to go and see whether it is."

      I decided to accompany her. After all, it's better to do something other than just wait around for things to happen...

      We quickly made our way towards the chamber of the Pattern, which is located deep in the dugeons below the castle. There seemed to be no obvious damage as far as I could tell. Fiona spent a lot of time observing it from various angles and she was still looking a bit doubtful. The longer I stared at the Pattern, the more ill at ease I became. Was it just my imagination, or was the glow really a bit duller than it had been before? I couldn't say for sure. I asked Fiona how she felt about it.

      "It has been hit," she said,"but not too badly. It's already recovering. I'm sure it will be alright again in a few days time. Your power over Pattern should probably return at about the same time, although walking it again will almost certainly make it return sooner."

      I thought it best to wait for it to return by itself. No sense in going through the ordeal again if it wasn't absolutely necessary.

      We left the Pattern and climbed the stairs back to the main keep. We stopped by at Random's study to tell him about our findings. He was just finishing his conference with Bleys and came with us to the dining room where he asked Adrian, Alexander, Murlas, Vincent, Algo and myself to join him.

      Back at the study he told us there had been an attack of an as yet unidentified army on Arden. The enemy banners had an emblem of a black Unicorn. Coincidence?

      Random said that several of our Uncles had already been dispatched to Arden to lead Julian's defending force of rangers. Since he needed most of the others for the immediate defense of Amber itself he wanted us to investigate the things that had happened here this evening.

      Algo started to object at this point, but Random cut him short by pointing out that this thing was a threat to Amber and any threat to Amber was a threat to all family members, us included. We had a duty towards Amber and he wouldn't accept any refusals from our side. He seemed pretty much pissed off by it all.

      I mentioned that we had lost our power over Shadow and that it would take a while for it to return, but he indicated that speed was of the utmost importance; we just had to walk the Pattern again. Great! I already loved working for the Crown.

      Another thing occurred to me. If we were to work together on this we would need some means of communication, i.e. Trumps. I didn't know about the rest, but I only had a couple of Trumps for some of my Aunts and Uncles. Random agreed with me, but he only had one complete Trump deck to spare, which didn't include Trumps for any of us.

      Algo then surprised us by saying that he would be able to draw some Trumps for us and copy the ones we already had, although it would take a lot of time. Random wanted to know where he had learned this art. Now it was Algo's turn to be surprised, because he said he had learned it from someone called Galoran, to whom Random (whom Algo kept calling Uncle Mike) had taken him from Shadow Earth. Random said that he didn't know anyone by the name of Galoran and that he couldn't remember taking Algo away from Shadow Earth. Strange. They argued a bit about it, but the matter couldn't be resolved.

      Anyway, I remembered that Fiona had drawn my Trump and Vincent told us she had drawn his too, so I used her Trump to ask her for them so Algo could make some copies.

      "But I can make a few copies myself, if you like" she said. "They'll be ready in two days. If you have any others you want copied just send them to me."

      I thanked her and told the others. This would buy us some time, since Algo would only have to draw Trumps of Adrian and Alexander. Algo gave me his own Trump to pass along to Fiona and Murlas was busy trying to reach Julian, who had one of him. He didn't succeed in contacting him however.

      We decided that we would get a good night's rest and essay the Pattern in the morning. That is to say Adrian, Alexander, Murlas and I would walk the Pattern again; Algo and Vincent had not yet walked it and had no desire to try it at this time. Algo made an appointment with Adrian for one o'clock tomorrow afternoon, so he could start working on his Trump. By that time Adrian should have completed his Patternwalk and Algo should be awake (he mentioned going downtown with his fellow performers). I said goodnight to them all and started towards my suite.

      First I stopped by at Fiona's appartment though. She was in and still awake. I handed her Algo's Trump and told her about Random's orders.

      "I might be able to be there tomorrow to help you through the Pattern again, but I can't make any definite promises. I want to take a look at the Primal Pattern first thing tomorrow and I don't know when I'll be back."

      "Where are you going?" I asked, not quite understanding.

      "The Primal Pattern. It is the Higher Reality, one level beyond Amber. I'll take you there one time if you like. For now stop worrying about tomorrow. You'll do just fine. You made it through the first time around, didn't you? No reason for you to fail this time. Just be well rested and remember: once you have started just keep walking."

      "Yes, thanks Fiona. Good night."

      Wylde was back in my suite when I entered. She told me Dad sent his regards and I would be welcome to drop by at my convenience. Good.

      I told her everything that had happened. She listened attentively, but she didn't have any suggestions as to how or where we would be able to find the required information.

      Just before I drifted off to sleep I reflected on the day as a sort of Grand Opera, complete with alarmums and excursions and a Deus Ex Machina of sorts (only this one came in at the beginning of the play instead of the end). I chuckled. Enter messenger; Random and Fiona exit, stage left. Real life imitating art and things like that. Suzanne had once remarked upon that.

      I suddenly realised that I probably wouldn't be returning to Shadow Earth for quite a while and my smile vanished. Damn! I had to find some way to let her know, to apologise. Maybe Aunt Flora would know. I'd ask her tomorrow.

      I would like to say that I slept soundly that night, but no such luck. I dreamed about my Mother again, although the scenery was different this time. In my dream I was looking in a mirror and instead of my own reflection I saw Deirdre. She looked anxious and she was trying to tell me something, but although her lips were moving I couldn't hear her voice. Her hands were reaching out to me, but when I tried to touch her my hands only touched the glass. Very frustrating.

      The next morning I felt fairly rested despite my dream. I even had the feeling that my power over Pattern might already be returning. Couldn't say for sure though.

      I washed, shaved and got dressed. Wylde was off catching her breakfast and I moved downstairs to the kitchen to get mine. Although I know it's not necessary for me to cook with all those servants running around, I frequently do so just for the fun of it. I like messing with food and I'm usually able to think more clearly while I'm doing so. Also when I'm working on some painting or song or something else my day-night rhythm gets pretty messed up and I end up eating lunch at 2:30 in the morning.

      Anyway, the cooks and servants here in the castle are more or less used to our eccentric ways (I'm not the only one with odd habits), so they weren't surprised when I entered the kitchens and started baking a few eggs and gathering some other stuff. While working I mused a little on my dream. I couldn't shake the nagging feeling that it was important to find out what my Mother was trying to tell me. There might be a way, but I wasn't prepared to try it. Just wasn't desperate enough yet.

      I still felt a little unsure about our Patternwalk, but I decided to not let it upset me anymore. We had to go ahead - Random had told us to make haste, so we would.

      When I had finished my breakfast I went off in search of my Uncle Jaro. He's my Father's younger brother and he is an officer with the castleguard. I found him in a guardroom and we talked a little bit about this and that. I asked him to send word to my Father that I probably wouldn't be able to make it today. He said he would and told me there hadn't been any changes in Arden. The strange forces were still held at bay by Julian's soldiers. Jaro didn't seem very worried about the whole affair, which eased my worries a little bit. Uncle Jaro had taught me the skills of warfare and although he's no Benedict he's still a fairly good swordsman. He taught me well too.

      Some time later I bade him goodbye and asked some servants for the whereabouts of my would-be companions. They quickly located Murlas and the brothers for me. They had also taken their breakfast and were waitng for me to join them. I led them down into the dungeons. On our way through the dark corridors I mentioned to the brothers that their father had been a prisoner in these dungeon's at one time. They didn't know the story so I told them the bits I had heard about it, until we came to the Pattern chamber.

      The Pattern lay seemingly unchanged before us. I had the feeling though that it had regained its normal bright glow, but that may have been only a trick of my mind. I hesitated a little, trying to work up my courage. Actually walking the Pattern is always harder than just thinking about it.

      Murlas mentioned that this morning he had felt as if his power over Pattern might be returning and he wondered whether we shouldn't postpone walking it and wait till it had fully returned. We would have to wait anyway for the Trumps to be finished.

      I admitted having felt the same thing, but nevertheless I thought it best to try it now, for we had no way of knowing when we would have to use our powers again. It might be sooner than we thought.

      Meanwhile Alexander had quickly tired of our discussion and had just started walking. The three of us observed him as he followed the bright, curving trail, but everything seemed to be alright. I noticed that the time he needed to complete his walk was far less than the time I had needed when I had walked it the first time. Or was it just that walking the Pattern royally screws up your sense of time? Could be...

      Alexander arrived safely at the end and immediately teleported away, probably to his quarters to get some rest. With a look of "what he can do I can do better" on his face Adrian also stepped upon the Pattern. I waited for him to make his way through the First Veil and then I followed him. Meanwhile Murlas was trying to reach Julian again, but I guess he just wasn't taking any calls.

      Blue sparks shooting up around my feet. Keep moving. Resistance rising and falling. Adrian up ahead, moving faster than me. Don't worry. Don't get distracted. Know I can make it.

      Scenes from my early childhood fluttered before my eyes. Laughter. Joy. Bright scenes. Lovely smells. Summer in Amber, nothing can quite compare.

      I continued walking and, although it wasn't easy, I made good progress. Murlas had also started and was moving at almost the same pace as me. Adrian had already finished and left.

      Curve, line, curve, curve. Final Veil. Sweat dripping from my face. But almost there. One more step. Then another one. And I'm through.

      Taking a deep breath I looked at Murlas's struggling figure. He would make it too, I knew. I actually felt that it had been easier this time. Could just have been optimism, could have been real. I don't know. With a final look at Murlas I willed myself back to my suite.

      Wylde was waiting there for me. I splashed some water on my face and told her to wake me after an hour or two. Sleep came immediately. This time there were no dreams.

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