Chapter 102: Harsh Truths

"Yes, I've been waiting such a long time

Just for something to ring true

Now I'd rather taste the old wine

Than mess around with something new"

Waiting So Long - Supertramp

            After we had seen Caine and Julian Trump off, the latter taking the captured renegade Rangers with him, Janice and I took a stroll down the road to the village. Here we found Aliane and all the castle staff waiting at the local tavern, much as I had expected. Aliane veered up and rushed towards us when we arrived, glad to see that we were still in one piece. She anxiously explained about the strange soldiers that had come to the castle claiming some higher Amberite military authority and ordering an immediate evacuation, leaving her no time to come and warn Janice and me. I reassured her, saying that we were alright and that the matter had been dealt with, without going into any details. I also mentioned that I thought it unlikely that something like this would happen again, and that she and the others could safely return to the castle.

            Aliane was a bit disappointed to hear that we had finished what we had been working on and would, therefore, be going back to Amber, as she would have liked to have me around a bit longer. In a sudden burst of her old characteristic forthright demeanour she told me to come back soon and perhaps spend some time to get to know the locals, since she felt that the people would actually like to get to know their Duke a bit better too. I smiled wistfully and said that I would certainly return, but there was no saying when that would be. Taking her aside for a moment, I impressed upon her the need to stay here in Ayland, for the good of both her and her son. Things could be getting very ugly in Amber and I didn't want her caught up in it. And since she brought it up, I honestly couldn't rule out the possibility of the situation developing into something very similar to the days of the legendary strife between my uncles Eric and Corwin. She nodded grimly and wished me good luck.

            Before I Trumped Random, however, I had one final go at reaching Fiona. She was still not taking any calls. Even though I more than half dreaded coming face to face with her after the things I had put her through, I realised that putting this confrontation off would in all likelihood only make things worse. Still, if she continued not to answer her Trump calls, there seemed to be little I could do, and for now I had another awkward confrontation to contend with.

            Unlike Fi, Random was taking Trump calls as usual, and it could just have been me but he didn't seem too surprised to see the both of us. With the more or less characteristically friendly smile he helped us through the contact into his study, then poured us a drink while watching me weave a Pattern shield around the room.

            "About Fiona," I began once we were all seated, "I'm afraid I have to admit right away that I don't really know what condition she's currently in."

            "How far did you proceed with her treatment?" Random asked. "No, what happened, exactly?"

            "Well, it's fair to say that we got precisely as far as the critical junction, at which point she took off, using quite a lot of Pattern Power to do so."

            "So you managed to stir something up inside her in any case, didn't you? If she's using Pattern she must more or less be back to her old self." He smiled.

            "More or less, yes," I said, a little less enthusiastically. "Either it has been a complete success, or things are now even worse than they were before."

            "So what else is new?" Random smirked. Was it just my imagination or was there something a bit strained about his manner? "Alright," he continued, "I don't suppose there was anything else you could have done, so thanks very much in any case. We'll just have to wait and see when she decides to get in touch with us again. In the meantime, we'll simply have to Trump her regularly until she replies."

            "I've already tried that, to no avail so far. She could have gone somewhere where she can't be reached by Trump. After all, she left in quite a state." And it might be something she would do almost instinctively, I thought. It was a pity that I had never really got around to visiting any of her Shadow homes. Well, except for Quendor, that is.

            "Well, I realise the treatment may have been rather tough on her," Random said with a slight shrug, indicating that we had known this all along. "Was there any indication at all before the final incident of something of Fiona's usual persona resurfacing, or was it just this Eugenie Lablanche right till the very end?"

            "There were some flashes, but nothing conclusive. That final moment was the real turning point, I guess, but we didn't have any opportunity of really determining what the outcome had been. Still, if you like I will continue to try and Trump her regularly myself." After all, as far as I was concerned she remained my resposibility until there was some clear evidence that she was back to her own self.

            "Yes, do so," Random said with a nod. "And let me know if you hear anything at all from her."

            "There was something else…," I began hesitantly. He gave me a blank and innocent look, and I recalled how much he was reputed to like the game of poker. Slowly I continued: "There doesn't seem to be an easy way to say this, but my castle at Ayland has been under attack."

            "Oh?" Random somehow contrived to look quite surprised, and my stare couldn't break through his facade. "By whom?" he asked casually.

            "I don't rightly know who they were," I said, "but they were wearing the uniforms of the Arden Rangers."

            "You don't say…" He looked pensively for a moment, then said musingly: "I wonder how Julian knew about all of this. You didn't tell him, did you?"

            "No, I didn't tell anybody but you," I replied rather sharply.

            "Quite peculiar," he said calmly, completely ignoring my tone and its implications.

            "It was rather a good-sized company too. Must have been around and about forty men in all."

            "Yet you managed to beat off their attack?"

            "Fortunately, yes." I smiled calmly. "I could never have done so alone, of course."

            "You had some help." It was not a question, and from the way he said it I could tell that his mind was already racing with the possibilities. He casually got up to refill his glass, yet he didn't return to his seat behind the desk. Instead he remained on our side and started rummaging

unobstrusively around through the scraps of paper, drawing out seemingly innocent doodles with one of his pens.

            "I must say that I find it rather disconcerting to have such an attack take place, and right in the heartland of Amber too. On top of that, our mission had been extremely top secret." How much did I have to press the issue before he would come clean with me, I wondered.

            "Yes, yes, it's all very strange," Random replied absentmindedly as he scribbled away. "You're quite sure, though, that you couldn't have been followed?" He casually nudged the scrap of paper closer to me. I glanced down quickly, but its message momentarily made me falter. In his hurried, rather uneven scrawl it read: "How secure is this weave?"

            "Well…, no, I don't see how," I said slowly. "I mean, we took the most direct route possible." I assumed he knew what I meant.

            "And no one could have followed that trail?" he insisted, but his eyes were on his written question.

            "Oh, I suppose there are a few people who would be capable of doing something like that…" Only a few, though, and Fiona had been with us at the time. Slowly, casually, while Random continued to scrawl on some other piece of paper, I reached out for a pen and wrote quickly: "Secure enough, I hope." He looked at my answer for a while, frowned, and sighed. Suddenly his demeanour was as serious as I had ever seen.

            I sat back in my chair and gave some closer consideration to my weave. How secure was it, anyway? I was aware of the possibility of the more adept Pattern users being able to tap into it, but that wasn't really what we were worried about, was it? Carefully, I extended my focus a bit, trying to gauge whether anyone was actually trying to listen in, and I immediately felt the pressure. Yes, we were being observed, or at least someone was attempting to do so. However, whoever they were, they didn't appear to be using the Pattern, and I estimated that my weave had probably kept us from being overheard so far. It wouldn't be too hard to increase the power flow a little bit and shield us from any prying eyes as well, I realised. As I did so, I was dimly aware of Random following my every move. Once I had finished, he nodded gravely.

            "I'm sorry," he said, "but it was inevitable, I guess. By now you must realise that something is seriously wrong, and I'm afraid I'll have to keep this short, for they won't be amused at you having shut them out like this." As he spoke he nervously started pacing around, but suddenly he stopped and gave me a frightfully direct stare.

            "There's no easy way about this…," he began hesitantly, halting momentarily to take a grip on himself. "I would greatly appreciate it if you could see your way clear to remove me from the Throne of Amber, preferably in some not altogether unpleasant fashion."

            Ouch! Not quite unexpected, I guess, but I realised some part of me had refused to take Caine's suggestion seriously. After all, Random was my King, the Unicorn's Chosen and all that. There was a tiny part of me that still wanted to address him with "Your Highness" or something in that vein. Still, this was a direct order…

            "Okay…," I mumbled, but he was too ill at ease to let me come to terms with his request in my own time.

            "It's a huge gamble, I know," he said, starting to pace again. "But then I've always been a gambler. On the other hand, it may very well be that I've effectively signed your death warrant just now. I can only trust you to stay out of their grasp."

            "Well," I managed, "they were already aware that I had become aware of them anyway, so that's no great harm done."

            "That's what I had been betting on too. Still, be careful."

            "I always am. So, my next question is: when? When do you want me to act?"

            "Soon," he replied with a sad frown. "It must be soon. Something has to be done, and I cannot act. Up till now they've just been forcing me to remain passive, but that may change all too soon."

            "I'm afraid to ask," I said softly, seeking his gaze, "but how is it that they are able to force you to do anything?"

            Infinite sadness filled his eyes, yet he refused to let his grief take full rein. "Have you ever truly loved anyone?" he asked in return. Embarrassed for not having seen the obvious, I turned my head away and listened as he softly continued. "It was really an impossible choice. Everyone's always saying that Amber should always come before anything else, but it's simply not that easy. It's been a great deal of give and take for me lately, although I've naturally tried to resist them as much as possible. But their pressure on me is increasing steadily, and shortly they will want me to join their side actively. That's simply something that I cannot be reconciled with.

            "So, someone else will have to take the Throne, no strings attached. That seems the best course to me. They are unable to control Amberites directly, but they've penetrated far too deep into Amber as it is. They have both Vialle and Ruby under their control." He sighed. "Again, I would greatly appreciate it if you could see to it that no harm comes to them.

            "It galls me that they were able to find my weakness so easily. Yet, when you're forced into something like this, you always tell yourself there is some line you will not cross, and I have reached that line.

            "I don't really know how much the others suspect about this, and it's better if you don't tell me. Undoubtedly, they're already quite busy with the usual plotting and scheming." He smirked wryly at this. "I can't say that I really care who takes over from me either, but it has to be done in such a way that I don't seem to be abdicating voluntarily, or else I fear my wife will have to pay for the consequences."

**

            A brief silence fell as he quickly emptied his whiskey glass, and I finally managed to get a word in. "Is there anyone else who knows about all of this?" I asked.

            "I haven't told anyone," he replied, "but I wouldn't be surprised if someone at least had drawn their own conclusions which might come close enough to the truth." Another reason not to tarry too much. After all, Caine and Julian were sufficiently aware of the situation for them to decide to spring into action, so it wouldn't be too long before everyone else would follow suit.

            "And now there is something else that I must ask of you," Random said. "This won't be easy, but I think you'll be up to it, which is part of the reason why I decided to tell you all of this in the first place. I want you to erase all memories of this conversation from my mind."

            Oh yes, that was just about perfect! First he tells me to organize a revolution, preferably quick and bloodless, and then he doesn't want anything to do with it himself! Which, of course, left me with no one to fall back on but myself. Well, nearly…

            Random slowly turned his gaze on Janice, who was squirming more than a little uneasily in her seat. He didn't have to say anything for me to get the implication: she would have to be my responsibility, now more than ever. Janice herself, meanwhile, wasn't very happy with this state of events either. She looked from me to Random and back again, but there were no easy solutions to be found. Finally, she burst out angrily: "Okay, you might as well take care of me as well, when you're at it."

            "If that is your choice," I said, just barely keeping my disappointment from showing through. I would much have preferred her as a knowing ally in this.

            "Oh, I hate being in this position," she snapped, "you know I do. But I'm not getting myself killed over this. No way! This is your problem, so you deal with it!"

            "It was never my intention to get you involved in this at all," Random said, "but I saw an opportunity that was simply too good to pass up on."

            For a moment she looked as if she was going to say something, but she was able to keep her feelings in check and merely shook her head instead. "Just get on with it," she sighed. I couldn't really blame her, I guess. In her shoes I might have done the same. Well, maybe.

            One crucial aspect of this particular task that Random had sprung upon me which we all skirted around, as it were, was whether I would be able to edit their memories in the way he wanted. I had had some experience, yes, but not with fellow Amberites or other mentally capable folk, so this was rather a huge gamble Random was taking. I couldn't allow myself to dwell on this, however, for it would certainly lead to further thoughts on how desperate he actually had to be to take this step to confide in me in the first place.

            Knowing what was on the line, Random put up no resistance whatsoever, which both gave me a little extra nudge of confidence and at the same time somewhat unnerved me too. I realised that wiping their memories would leave me completely unable to confide in anyone else, for without them to corroborate my story who would believe me? Worse even, should everything go according to Random's command, I wouldn't even be able to tell him about all this, for how would he be able to trust me not having wiped or altered anything aside from this conversation?

            As for that… Yes, I was tempted, briefly, but I managed to suppress the urge. The fact that Janice was watching and that this was all rather on the spur of the moment helped to keep me in line, I guess. Still, Amberite blood is thicker than most known liquids…

            Janice wasn't as compliant as Random had been, for she couldn't get over her anger at being forced into this. Yet, at the same time she had some sense of pragmatic aquiescence, for if the King of Amber would trust me with this, who was she to disagree? She did warn me in the strongest terms not to tamper with anything beyond what had been discussed, though. As with Random, I left her with a memory of a frustrating conversation, during which I had got steadily angrier at the King's unbudging resolve not to clarify anything.

            As they both snapped out of their haze, I also dropped the weave, and immediately walked off with an angrily muttered goodbye. Best not to stay too long near Random, lest he decide that he needed to confide in me… again!

            Janice followed me outside, but I straightaway indicated that she'd better meet up with Caine in the city if they were to complete their scheduled research. Before we parted I did have the presence of mind to give her my Trump, feeling certain that she would be able to use it effectively.

            My frustration upon taking my leave from Random had only partially been feigned, I realised as I walked back to my own chambers, and not even Ysabel's cheerful presence there helped to lighten my mood. Random had really put just about the weight of the entire Realm on my shoulders, and I must admit I just didn't have a clue how I was going to keep not only him, but also Vialle and little Ruby safe through all that was to come. The knowledge that no one else knew about this task he had set for me, meaning that no one might actually blame me if things went wrong, was only cold comfort. In the end I would know, and that would be enough.

Sensing my troubled state of mind, Ysabel thought it wiser not to entice me with any of her usual distractions, but instead she sought to regale me with some of the rumours flying around the castle. For instance, I had probably not heard about the Lady Boadice's latest act of treachery, had I? When I curiously replied that I had indeed not, she told me all about how Boa was supposed to have fought her way down to the dungeons, killing five of the guards and leaving many others severely wounded, all to spring the prisoner who was said to be the Prince Brand himself from his cell! No official statements had been issued, of course, yet I had the sneaking suspicion that there was more than a grain of truth in this story. I couldn't quite believe the bit about the slaughtered guards, though. I was uncomfortably reminded, however, of the fact that we still didn't know who Boadice's real father was supposed to be. And with her sister already firmly on her own path of rebellion, this sudden show of Boa's true colours couldn't have come at a more unfortunate time.

            On the other hand, who knows what reasons Boa may have had for setting Brand free? Being an Amberite, it was not impossible that she had simply taken him from his cell in the castle only to imprison him in one of her own choosing, either as a valuable future asset or to torture him slowly to death as payment for some obscure personal slight, or whatever. Wearily I decided to put the entire thing from my mind. No doubt others were already working on retrieving Brand and getting Boa to account for herself, and ultimately the whole matter seemed to pale besides the thing that Random had just set into motion.

            Where to start, though? The most obvious course of action would be to contact Caine or Julian and declare my support for their cause, if they would agree to some terms of mine. However, the three of us, formidable as we were, wouldn't add up to a full-scale revolution yet. We needed other supporters, other schemers, and we needed to move quickly before some other relative of ours might get the bright idea that he or she would look good wearing the Crown of Amber.

As I was musing and mentally lining up the Family in ranks of possible supporters and rivals, I was flicking through the small amount of mail which Ysabel had dutifully saved for me. There were a couple of the usual invitations from hopeful Amber nobles in an attempt to add some status to their parties or gatherings, one or two of which I might even have gone to given the time and inclination. One invitation stood out from the others, and though at first I was reluctant to go because of a quite strong sense of disaproval, I also realised that it would offer the best opportunity I could think of for getting in touch with quite a number of different people. My attendance could be construed as me condoning the whole situation, but that just couldn't be helped, and somehow I didn't think this would keep anyone else from making an appearance. Also, the invitation was a personal one, so I wouldn't be going as an official Amber representative, and when it came right down to it we might as well all acknowledge the fact that Lothair's people had now established a firm foothold in Galoria.

            Even though Ysabel assured me the oblong white envelope announcing the official opening of the Archai embassy in Galoria had only been delivered that morning, I found that the event was to be that very night, leaving me only a few hours to make myself presentable. So, an hour or so later, looking still a little strained but otherwise my Amber best, I Trumped through to Alexander. He too was all dressed up in his by now usual Galorian state uniform of silver and blue, and he too looked a little haggard, though he took pains not to show it. He had only a few moments to spare, since he was also expecting others to be using his Trump as their mode of transportation, but there was something that had happened here the night before which he felt he should impart to me.

            Apparently, his guards had awoken him in the middle of the night with reports of strange occurances in one of the guest wings that was already occupied. Arriving on the scene, Alex had discovered a strange sort of mist covering the corridor floor, which had somehow seemed to drain the colour and texture from the Shadow stuff around it. He had tried to figure out the nature of the phenomenon, but strangely enough the Nexus had got him nowhere. The thing did react to his use of Pattern, though. Alex had also tried walking into it without any Power defences, which had somehow caused a dark figure armed with a sword to manifest itself, only to disappear again at the moment when Alex started to draw on the Nexus once more.

            The whole thing didn't sound like anything I had ever heard of, and if my agenda had not already been quite as full as it was, I would have liked to stay and see whether it would turn up again. Alexander, meanwhile, had his own possible suspect aready figured out: the guests in that particular wing mainly hailed from various Shadow nations of little apparent significance, apart from the delegation from Kashfa. Their new general Alcazar did not seem to be capable of something like this, but Alex had the strong suspicion that the lady Jasra, former Queen of Kashfa, might be among the delegation under some elaborate disguise. Anything was possible, I guess, but when Alex asked me about the Keep of the Four Worlds I could only tell him that as far as I knew it had been destroyed in the backwash of Primal Chaos, and while I had never really been there it didn't sound like the sort of place that could easily be rebuilt. Still, if I would come across anything that might shed some light on his story, I would be sure to tell him.

            The ostentatious building where the new embassy was to be housed was also the main location for the opening party, and while it seemed the second largest building in Galoria next to the Royal Palace, it was packed to capacity. What struck me right away was how many people from Shadow locales appeared to have been invited. This could be a dangerous trend, keeping in mind what had happened in Quendor.

            My various relatives were easily spotted in the crowd, however: Murlas in his usual red and black, surrounded by a House Ysarn retinue, which also appeared to include Samal, Justin, a sole, unofficial representative from Sherwyn in a striking black and white tartan, Caine, sharp as ever, with Janice on his arm, and Julian close by with a young an rather subdued noble woman called Sianna, whom I remembered as a former schoolmate, as his lady for the occasion, Bleys, seemingly unaccompanied, but in the course of the evening dancing with all kinds of men and women alike, and finally Deirdre and Benedict, both without partners too and both more restrained than their redheaded brother. There were also quite a number of delegations from Chaos Houses present, some like the aforementioned House Ysarn consisting of a whole entourage and others merely of one or two individuals, like House Ornach which was simply represented by Taureth accompanied by my daughter Diana. Apart from Myrthe, however, none of the heads of state of the other Major Powers were there.

            As for the Enemy, or the Archai as they appeared to be calling themselves, I recognized Lothair, Sonia, and Aurelia of course, and there was a seemingly older man with rather oriental features who was called Asuo and who, as I learned from the various rumours that evening, had been in charge of the military operation the Archai had conducted when they had been based in Sherwyn. One other member of their group was presented publicly as the new ambassador who would take up office here in Galoria. This was a younger man by the name of Hugo, with slender, handsome features, dark hair and dark eyes. Strangely enough I found he rather resembled Samal, not so much in his physique, but more in his arrogant stance and strong presence. I was happy with the great number of guests that had been invited to this party, for the crowd enabled me to keep my distance from all of Lothair's crew. I really didn't want to take the chance of inadvertedly betraying my knowledge of Random's predicament to them.

**

            Hugo's appointment was the only officially scheduled part of the evening, so with that out of the way everyone could commence with their regular plotting and scheming, all whilst sampling some of the delicacies or taking a turn on the dance floor. This was where I ended up with my mother Deirdre, my first in what was to be a long and intriguing string of conversation partners. She seemed to be doing fine, and she hinted that Taureth may have made some progress in his research. Shelving this for later, though, I quickly addressed the current state of affairs back in Amber. She had already heard, of course, for Caine had been quick to call on her for her support, nominating Julian as Random's most obvious successor. She seemed to be prepared to go along with this, considering Bleys was the only apparent alternative. When I cautiously voiced my doubt as to whether the most suitable of the Julian and Caine duo would end up on the Throne, she firmly asserted that the most suitable would be pulling all the strings in any case. Julian had a pronounced stubborn streak, that was true, but he also knew that he would be no match for Caine in certain matters, so he would always remain open for advise from his elder brother. Deirdre thought they might even do very well between the two of them.

            And as for Bleys… Well, he was the only other obvious candidate, apart from Benedict that is. Still, Deirdre felt that Benedict would only step in if someone were to convince him to take up a Regency, and then only 'till the moment when all the problems with Random had been resolved, which she doubted very much would be possible in any case. I told her that since I wasn't sure I would be speaking to either Julian or Caine that evening, I would like her to inform them of my support, on one condition: Random was to remain unharmed. She smirked and said that that would also depend on Random's own actions, but she quickly added that she understood me all too well. It was always quite problematic having to break one's oath sworn to the Unicorn…

            As we quietly danced our dance till the music stopped, I thought about her last remark. Maybe, just maybe, there was a positive side too to this mess that Random had just dropped into my lap. It all depended on how strictly these oaths were interpreted, but it might just be that Random's Royal Command to relieve him from duty effectively countermanded my oath of loyalty to him, shielding me from any repercussions that might follow. Still, I would have to wait and see about that, and in the meantime I could hardly let such matters hamper me in my endeavour. Things had gone completely wrong, possibly because someone had made a huge mistake, and we all would have to pay the price.

            I was in the process of getting myself a fresh drink while contemplating who to talk to next, when Justin resolved the matter for me by suddenly turning up right at my side.

            "I was looking for you," he began, walking with me towards the nearest bar. "I have been meaning to thank you." When I gave him a blank look, he added: "I've been getting more acquainted with Charles." Ah, his long lost brother. Well, it was about time, and Sherwyn could certainly do with some extra defenders.

            "I didn't do all that much, though," I replied truthfully, but he simply shrugged my modesty away.

            "You did what he asked you to and it all worked out alright, so thank you." We traded a smile. This was more or less like old times with Adrian. Perhaps Justin really incorporated my late cousin's best side. "Listen," he continued, "I was talking to Murlas just now, and he hinted that a particular person whom we have both sworn allegiance to ought to feel quite at home at this party. In fact, according to him they should be quite happy with this new turn of events."

            "I'm sorry, but you've lost me," I sighed. This was going to be a long night.

            "You know, his royal R-ness." Oh. Random. Right. "Murlas implied quite a bit, I must say. What can you tell me about the current situation in Amber? And what about our dear mutual friends here, who have so gracefully invited all of us to their little party?"

            "Well, our dear friends, as you call them, have wormed their way into many places," I said, adopting his own roundabout turn of phrase, "and our mutual friends within our Family no longer seem to be on such good terms with one another." Now I had lost him, his frustration plainly showing on his face. There wasn't that much I was prepared to discuss out loud with him, though, not here where our 'dear friends' could so easily listen in on us. Yet it would be for the better to keep him and Sherwyn informed, so perhaps there was another way.

            In the meantime we had made our way through the multitude towards a quiet corner at one of the bars, and before he could do so I ordered us both a glass of wine. I took them both from the servant and while handing Justin his glass I made sure to touch his hand in order to establish a brief mental contact. He had somehow anticipated my move and didn't try to block the incoming messages. There were two of them: "the Kreel is in Amber" and "the Throne war has started".

            His reaction was quite unexpected, though, for he stumbled and I could only barely support him to keep him from falling down. Thus, the mental link, which I had meant to be quite brief, was not severed, and in return I got some flashes back from him. These seemed to be flashback images, not from Justin's own memories, but from Adrian's. There was an image of Llewella, tied up and alone in a room with Adrian, and I realised that this must have been just after her attempt on Ruby's life. Then a memory of a voice, eerie and unearthly. Then something entering Adrian's mind… The Collective! The Kreel! He had taken them from Llewella and carried them to safety… leaving them to take over some poor castle servant! My mind reeled and for a moment I struggled against the overwhelming dizziness myself. Adrian was entirely to blame. Just about the one I would least have expected it from.

            Feigning a casual air, I leaned against the bar, taking a rather large sip of wine to regain my composure. I also had to try and repress my immense rage at him having done this with complete and utter disregard of the consequences, for it had been Adrian and not his current incarnation who had done so. Knowing Justin, he was probably blaming himself more than anyone else could.

            Justin's sudden flashbacks had ended, although I sensed that this was something he had experienced more often when some particular memories of Adrian's were triggered. Having snapped out of this stretch, however, he decided to use the still existing mental link to communicate some further information to me: Llewella had been taken over by the Kreel after she had entered what had appeared to be some strange kind of Nexus Gate that was very close to Rebma. I darkly sent a mental reply that this seemed to confirm my information on one of the Crystal Spires being very close to Amber itself, at which his face fell even further.

            When Justin tried to find out how the Kreel were exactly controlling Random himself, however, I decided it was time to end the contact. I didn't much like it, but there wasn't anyone that I trusted with the information on Vialle and Ruby. People might well get the wrong ideas. Justin didn't appear to mind too much, though. This brief exchange had already given him plenty to think about, and with a silent nod we agreed to postpone the rest of our conversation till later.

            After Justin had drifted off, I remained there in a haze of anger and confusion. There was little I could do about it all: Adrian had already paid for his crimes, in a manner of speaking, and as I said before, I could hardly hold Justin accountable. Even though the knowledge I had gained helped to clarify a few matters, it was hardly something I would be sharing with very many other people, for if I was any judge of my Family, there would be plenty of my relatives who would have no trouble blaming it on either Justin or Sherwyn as a whole. That kind of useless grudges we could well do without.

            As a way to take a step back and let myself come to grips with the things I had learned, I decided to seek out Taureth and Diana and see what Deirdre had been hinting at. Both of them were looking well and were happy to see me. Taureth told me that he had tried to Trump me a couple of times, and when I hadn't answered they had begun to worry. I assured them that I was as well as could be and that being incommunicado had only been a temporary thing.

            Taureth really had made some progress, he told me, and he wanted me to come back with them to finalize some kind of treatment which could help the less severe cases completely and might lessen the strain on the severest ones. I hesitated for a few moments, but then agreed to go back with them to the Courts the following morning. I knew it would constitute a delay to the order Random had given me, but I figured that Taureth's treatment, if successful, would increase the potential of everyone involved in the upcoming conflict. Aside from that, there was a darker consideration which I left unvoiced. The problems in Amber were serious enough for me to realise that some of us might not survive them, and if anything should happen to me I wouldn't want to leave the Curse as a legacy to my children.

            When I had a moment alone with Taureth, I saw an opportunity to put another matter to him which had been weighing on my mind as well. I needed him to arrange a meeting between his father and me concerning his plans to marry Diana. He silently assented, fortunately refraining from asking me about my reasons for this request. I must say that with all the things that had been happening lately, I didn't really know myself anymore what to think of their possible marriage. On a personal level I wished them all the happiness they could find, but the political ramifications were becoming ever more difficult to fathom. Perhaps if I could try to find out what Ornach's thoughts on the matter were, it would help me to make the right decision.

            Meanwhile, some thoughts had been forming at the back of my mind that prompted me to find Aexander once again and inquire about the exact implications of Galoria's new neutrality. He frowned at first and asked me whether I would not rather discuss this privately, but I said that I was only looking for the official reading here, not the possible loopholes. With a shrug a explained that Galoria would from now on not interfere in any business outside its own borders, which was the only way that they could remain an independent, sovereign nation. This also meant that if any of the other Powers tried to settle their differences on Galorian soil in any other way than verbally, the Galorian government would be forced to step in.

            If my next question on the official Galorian policies for granting people asylum caught him by surprise, he didn't show it. He said that anyone who would be granted asylum would be  considered as a guest of Galoria, so if anyone else, for instance Lothair, were to try and harm that person in any way, Galoria would see this as a violation of their treaty. I didn't remark that Galoria might not have much to say in these matters, having been forced into this arrangement in the first place, but instead I asked him whether the same also applied for all the other Powers. Of course it did, he assured me, though he quickly added that I should not infer that they would simply grant asylum to any and all, citing Flora as a possibly doubtful case. I didn't think she would try to apply anyway, or she would already have done so in the past, but now that her name had come up I remarked on the fact that she appeared to be absent from the proceedings. Between the two of us, Alex and I could well think of several reasons why she might have decided not to come, not the least of them being the possibility that her erstwhile allies might simply not have invited her. It would be good to find out where she was and what she was doing, I noted mentally, for I realised that she still had not been officially accused of anything in Amber and that, as such, she could well play a role in the upcoming struggle for the Throne. We might have lost sight of her, but I doubted whether she would so easily lose sight of Amber.

            Unfortunately, Alexander chose that particular moment to bring up the whole Amber situation. I decided not to be as forthright with him as I had been with his brother, for Sherwyn was still a very strong possible ally, while Galoria had more or less been forced out of the running. So, I tried to keep matters vague and general, saying that the internal conflict he had heard about was only to be expected given the Family's history of strife and infighting. Alex openly deplored the situation, though, saying that it would be so much better if the whole Family were to stand united behind one strong candidate for the Throne, at which I rather scathely remarked that that would only occur if the Unicorn herself were to turn up and appoint someone again. Alex didn't quite agree, saying that Benedict at least would be able to count on the entire Family's support, but while I might have believed so myself in the past, I wasn't so sure about it anymore.

            Just at the end of that conversation Alex proved to be annoyingly observant by addressing exactly what I had hoped to leave undiscussed until it would actually come to that. Of course it would be no problem to arrange asylum for someone like Random, he said, adding with a sly smile that this was only speaking hypothetically after all. Everything is, I replied, silently thinking that this would always be true until we decided to take action.

**

            After having talked to both Justin and Alexander, Murlas seemed like a logical next step, especially considering his position as the new Chaosian foreign minister. He had been rather busy that evening, though, spending most of his time with the lady Margot of Baccaran, with whom he was rumoured to be negotiating for a possible marriage. If Samal's expression was anything to go by, this rumour was quite likely to be true too. I knew the lady myself, but that's another matter altogether. Aside from this, Murlas had not been shunning any direct confrontations with our hosts, having had a quite open, though brief discussion with Lothair and even having spent some time on the dance floor with Sonia. I had just about given up on getting my chance to talk to him that evening, when he came looking for me himself.

            "So," he said, "I see you have returned to public life, or is this just a temporary occurance?"

            "No, I'm back, I guess, and I will be taking Trump calls again."

            "Good. Now, I am rather curious to know whether you have been to see Random in Amber lately?"

            "I have," I replied realising as ever that I would have to be just a bit more careful talking to Murlas than I had been during the earlier conversations with our two cousins. If Alex could be annoyingly perceptive at certain times, Murlas tended to be so most of the time. On top of that, he was sensitive enough to gauge my moods, as well as I tried to mask them, and therefore better able to read between the lines.

            "As far as I can tell," he continued, "Random appears to be under the direct control of the Enemy." He didn't even bother to wait for me to deny it, but concluded: "This is not good."

            "No, it isn't," I replied rather lamely.

            "It is only going to get worse once people in the Courts learn about this," he said, adding with a dramatic sigh: "and I am no position to keep this a secret." Great, just what we needed. Not only was Amber in the middle of a possibly bloody succession, not only was Amber up to its neck in Kreel, but the Courts of Chaos were going to poke their collective noses into it as well.

            "I think," I said urgently, glancing around to see just how openly circumstances would allow me to speak, "that it would be a lot better if the Courts could practise some patience and wait for the Amberites to resolve the matter between themselves."

            "That is all very well," Murlas said darkly, "but the Courts are with their backs to the wall as it is. And if they are to go down, they will not do so alone."

            "I quite understand, but you remember the saying about too many cooks, don't you? Look, people are aware of the trouble in Amber and also of the fact that it extends quite a bit further than was thought until recently. Just this evening some information turned up to illustrate that the problem is indeed much and much bigger than it was believed to be and has been allowed to spread for far too long." I made no attempt to hide my anger and frustration from him at this point, for the emotions were still far too raw. The more I thought about it, the more I blamed Adrian not for turning the Kreel loose in the first place, but for keeping quiet about it afterwards.

            "Personally," I said, "I hope and think that the struggle for power in Amber will run a lot quicker, simply because everyone is aware of the other problems that will have to be dealt with. Interference from outsiders will only cause more, possibly fatal delays."

            "Yet it would be foolish to think there would be no interference at all," Murlas asserted.

            "Then let me rephrase that," I replied. "Unstructured, unguided interference will most assuredly be fatal."

            "Oh, I am certain that Lothair will interfere in the most structured and guided manner."

            "He is already there, interfering as it is."

            "… And he will undoubtedly not be moved."

            "Oh no, I don't agree."

            "I have seen his methods in the Courts, earlier," Murlas said with a sigh. "Random is under his thumb, and I expect at least one of his possible successors to be so too. And that is just how he wants things to be in Amber."

            "Random is under his control, yes, but…" He didn't give me time to finish, though.

            "… But not quite. I know. I know Random still has some free will left."

            "And there is no way he can be exerting the same kind of control over the present two possible candidates for the Throne," I said.

            "He does not need to. Ultimately, he only has to keep Amber minding its own business and keeping out of the main conflict."

            "Yes," I said, with just a hint of exasperation, "that is why the whole struggle in Amber has to be resolved as quickly as possible." Meaning without the help of the Courts, how well-intended it might be.

            "By the right candidate," he inisted, "otherwise the resolution will be pointless."

            His gaze drifted away from me for only a fraction of a moment, and curiously I glanced around. Ah yes, although Murlas was quietly ignoring them, I could see Samal engaged in a rather animated conversation with Hugo, the new ambassador. Samal had positioned himself in such a way too that Murlas couldn't help but see them. Apart from that one casual glance, however, he was now studiously ignoring them, as if he was impervious to pangs of jealousy. Of course, Samal was doing it on purpose, from which I gathered that the rumours about Margot of Baccaran were quite true and that Samal was just a little less politically-minded than the various members of House Ysarn.

            "I hope you realise we are under tremendous amounts of pressure in the Courts," Murlas said calmly, bringing me back on track.

            "Of course I do," I sighed.

            "You do know what the real reasons for this conflict are, do you not?" Oh, that arrogant, condescending tone of his. Sometimes he could really get on my nerves. Still, I had to admit…

            "Well, yes and no," I said. "I've been told the real battle is supposed to be between Lothair and Ornach, but as far as the why and wherefore is concerned, I really couldn't say."

            "They both hail from outside this Reality," Muras explained. "Ornach has been here for quite a long time, and Lothair has now come for him. The plain fact is that their struggle could well end up destroying our entire Reality, and Ornach is already in the middle of sacrificing the Courts for his own cause. Unfortunately, the Courts have no choice in the matter: Ornach cannot be extradited, so Chaos will be forced to take up arms in his name. And they will not be able to make it on their own…"

            "I see…" Well, not entirely, but the mess they were in was plain enough.

            "Of the other Major Powers," Murlas continued, "only Sherwyn would at the moment be in a position to act freely, but I am afraid their might does not amount to very much of anyhing yet."

            "Okay, I see your point. In that case, I'd suggest that if the Courts were to get themselves involved in the Amber succession, they'd better offer their clear and unanimous support to one of the two present candidates. And under the circumstances, I'd think that Julian would be the better choice of the two."

            "Oh, you do, do you?" Huh? That sneering remark was just about the last thing that I had expected from him. As far as I knew Julian and Murlas had always been fairly close, to the extent that Murlas was close with anyone, and I really didn't think he would rather support Bleys instead. There must have been something that I missed here.

            "Regardless," he said, wryly, "I take it the matter is going to take a while to be resolved? Knowing how things in Amber usually go, that is."

            "This time things may be different. I've been told that this particular change of the guard had better be a fast one too. So that will be what we're going to try and achieve as well." He nodded his approval.

            "What about the race between the two candidates? Is is already run?" I shook my head. "Well, then," he said, "in that case I do not think the Courts will be able to afford expressing their overt support for anyone yet. What if the bet were to be placed on the wrong candidate, so to speak?"

            "Look," I said, exasperation almost getting the better of me, "from what I've heard Julian is a possible candidate, with Caine and Deirdre and myself as his supporters, and Bleys is the other one. You do the math."

            "Would it really matter if the Courts were to support anyone?" he asked, still unconvinced. "I can also imagine a scenario which has the Courts keeping their distance until the dust has settled. It would be one guaranteed way of getting some action."

            "Oh, there's going to be quite a lot of action anyway, I'm telling you."

            "But you would prefer no action of the Chaosian type, am I right?"

            "No, I don't want to see any Courts interference in Amberite affairs. We already have bigger problems, and we can only tackle them by ourselves."

            "I quite understand," Murlas said. "Unfortunately, the mandate I have been given states that I am to take explicit action in Amber, and it would appear that everyone's patience is running rather low. However," he added, seeing my expression of frustration, "I will let them debate this issue of which of the two candidates for the Throne they are to support. That will buy you some time to settle the matter with all due haste."

            "It will have to do," I sighed. "The quicker, the better. Anyway, could you explain why it is that the Courts have no choice in fighting for Ornach?"

            "It is quite simply because he had managed to gain Major House status before anyone could realise what the ramifications were going to be. If one Major House is under attack from outsiders, the entire Courts of Chaos are supposed to come to their defense, as is now the case. It is not done wholeheartedly, of course, but there is no other option."

            Yes, that was rather awkward, and it also helped to explain why Ornach had decided to stay in the Courts after his release. He must have known that Lothair would be coming.

            "On a slightly different, but related matter," I said hesitantly, "it has not yet been publicly announced, but some time ago Taureth asked for my permission to marry my daughter Diana."

            "Really?" Murlas said, looking a bit more intrigued. "Is this reason to congratulate you, or not?"

            "That is something I've been wondering about as well," I admitted.

            "Well," he said, "should you feel the need to learn more about your prospective inlaws, you should come and pay a visit to Ysarn Ways. It is quite an interesting family, I must say."

            "Thank you," I mused. "I may take you up on that offer, sooner rather than later." He smiled.

            "Now if you'll excuse me, I still have to introduce someone to our cousin Alexander." He nodded and walked back to his House's delegation.

            Well, I hoped his report to Reys would buy us enough time before the Courts started making an even greater mess of things in Amber. Hopefully he realised that if the Courts could not survive on their own, they would need a strong Amber to do so, and not one under their own thumb.

            His offer to give me some more information on Ornach and his family sounded very tempting, though. I didn't know what he might have learned from Samal, but given his rather awkward relation with his father he might have told Murlas some things that were supposed to be secret. And my own information was rather sketchy, especially since I didn't want to upset my relationship with Taureth while we still needed his research on how to deal with the Curse. Perhaps I'd better talk with Murlas before having the conversation with Ornach which Taureth had promised he would arrange.

            "Lost in thought, are we?" Bleys had suddenly appeared next to me, grinning slyly whilst proffering another drink.

            "There's much to think about," I replied casually.

            "That depends, of course, on whether one's mind is already made up on certain isues, or not." You didn't have to be a mindreader to know what he was getting at.

            "Oh, you can always try me," I said. "I do try to keep an open mind."

            "Alright, in that case I ask you to consider who it is that you're currently supporting and what he really stands for. Now, I myself tend to be a flexible kind of guy, with little to no prejudices and quite a creative state of mind, but can the same be said for my dear brother Julian? I think not. I would even go as far as to say that you'd be hard pressed to find anyone in the Family who is more rigid and inflexible in their thinking. Now, ask yourself whether those are really the qualities you think should be important in a King of Amber."

            Clever, uncle, clever. And he did have a point, too. Yet there were other reasons for supporting Julian, which I thought were more important. "I can't say I entirely disagree with your personality assessment," I said, "but unfortunately that's not the issue. In light of the current situation, I think it would be best to find ourselves a new King both as quickly and with as much Family support as possible."

            "Quite true, quite true," Bleys mused.

            "Well, if I may be so bold then, how much support have you gathered so far?"

            "Ah, that would be telling, wouldn't it? But rest assured that there are those who favour me over Julian, and let us leave it at that. I can see that your mind isn't as open as you pretend it to be."

            Oh well, let him have his way then. But now that I was talking to him there was something else. "Listen, could you do me a favour? If you see your sister, would you ask her to Trump me as soon as possible?" I didn't have to specify which sister I was talking about.

            "Sure," he said with a shrug, though I could see that he was trying to figure out what this was about. "I must say that I haven't seen her in a while."

            "No, I hadn't really expected you had," I said, "but you may again soon." With that I turned away, leaving him with some mild confusion for a change. It is a bit petty, I know, but it's nice to be able to turn the tables on one's elders once in a while.