Investigate, Shore Up, Stabilize, and Secure and Secure

Giselle and Flora left to backtrack Benedict’s trail prior to his apparent suicide to see if they could discover any clues or at least find the restaurant where he last ate because the left-overs were delicious.

Gregory slept with his hostility, then reported to the King in the morning. He got the semi-official non-pronouncement go-ahead to begin giving orders in Arden. No formal ceremony was planned.

Raj hunted through shadow for Osric’s army, but couldn’t find it. Maybe they all spontaneously combusted. What are the odds? It could have happened. Raj began shifting toward Osric’s realm instead.

Magni and Aedan put in the obligatory appearance at the Breakfast Nook. Gregory showed up just in time to hear the deal they wanted to offer Searlas: give us the Greatsword and we let Osric live in Amber. Right! So Magni and Aedan went to get Martin’s go-ahead. He had already left for the Church (his ceremony begins at ten o’clock). They tracked him down there while Gregory put on his armor.

Magni and Aedan interrupted Martin’s rehearsal with the High Priest, whose last name is Balin, and who is from Kashfa, but whose first name is forever lost. Martin didn’t give them the go-ahead. Instead, he explained that he had already dealt with the problem and did Aedan think that he would be fitted for a robe and practicing his lines with Father Balin without having already handled the 7000 troops that were looming? No, not really. Aedan apologized and King Martin said that he knew it was Magni’s fault.

Giselle and Flora backtracked Benedict’s trail and discovered that he had left a secret nasty surprise for any Fae who happened that way. Since they were both part-Fae, they both got sick. It seemed like the flu, which Amberites don’t get. They trumped back to Amber where Dr. Gerard told them to get plenty of bed-rest and watch soap operas.

Aedan checked security arrangements at the church. They appeared secure. He double-checked.

Osric is a Very Busy Man

Magni trumped Raj and went with him to investigate Osric’s realm. They got Aedan to agree to trump call them every two hours and pull them out if necessary. They scouted around the edges of Osric’s realm and learned that Amber’s gunpowder doesn’t work there. However, they didn’t learn if it still shined jewelry. They discovered a large rain of arrows camped on the plateau above the walled city and a horde of shaggy rug-like people who tried to sell them time-shares in the tropics. Raj and Magni were allowed into the city per Osric’s orders. However, they couldn’t see him right away as he was busy.

The ceremony at the Church went off exactly as planned. Bleys, Corwin, Gerard, Gregory, and Aedan were the only Amberites to see Martin anointed. After the event, Corwin and Aedan rode off up the coastline together. After an hour or so, Aedan rode back to Amber. He had dinner with Gerard, spoke with Deirdre, re-racked a few spells, turned in his overdue library books and meandered around the castle for a day.

Osric was busy, so Magni and Raj ate yummy food and got massages.

Giselle and Flora visited Avalon looking for General Fulke. They found him. Well, they found most of him. It seems he’s missing a leg. Have you seen it? They got sicker, so Flora returned to Amber and Giselle went to that other place. None of us really know what happened to her there, but there’s an interesting quote involving Merlin that seems to indicate that something happened.

Magni and Raj bathed and waited for Osric, who was busy.

Gregory visited Arden and got a report on recent activities. Yes, he’s still wearing his armor (except the helm—it’s only 75% finished1).

Osric was still busy, so Raj and Magni circulated in the city.

Mandor visited Giselle in her hotel suite. He redecorated the place and told her some things she already knew and a few she didn’t. He cured her of her disease and told her to practice her stretching exercises.

Osric was really, really busy. So Magni snuck into his office and tried to break into his desk drawer with a simple, ordinary, non-magical knife. Boom: desxplosion! Magni picked the simple, ordinary, non-magical shards of metal out of his face. He grabbed the whole cabinet of drawers and went through via Raj’s trump to the stables. They rode around until Aedan trumped them and pulled them through.

Osric would have chased them, but he was really, really busy.

Magni, Raj, Aedan, and Corwin discussed furniture. Aedan told Raj and Magni his Unicorn theories (Hey! Gabriel wasn’t around). They laughed, then went back to Amber of Gerard’s trump. Gerard opened the drawer with a key. In it, they discovered a metal cuff similar to one Magni said he had seen before2. Raj and Gerard investigated the site of Osric's Trump gate.

Meanwhile, Aedan had returned to the long journey with Corwin. They hellrode for too long, encountered the Seraph, followed the yellow brick road, experienced the freaky on a very personal level, and fought the Evil3 Unicorn beast.

Plans for Next Time

Giselle is going to get a lesson of the sort taught only in Chaos.

Gregory is going to the Fey Realms to speak with Lugh.

Raj and Gerard are going to talk to Bleys about the sealed-up shadow where Searlas, Osric, and the 7000 Samurai now reside semi-permanently.

Magni and Aedan are going to talk with the King about the dead body in Magni’s rooms.