When last we met, Erin, Kira, Ronan, Elio and Maladin were in Dalena's house, plotting and planning. Dalena has excused herself to find Galen.

Kira asks if the imps from the Abyss might be used by Brand to spy. The answer is … maybe. Elio decides to take the imp out to a shadow near his Sanctuary, a place with a lot of livestock and wildlife for it to feed on.

Kira and Erin then head back to Amber to talk to Flora about the assassinations. Kira wants to know about the location of the bombs, who could have planted them, etc. Flora says that one of the bombs had been placed in the tower near Benedict's own office, and that the people who had known where to place it were engineers, and well, they're all dead now. Killing them off was the second round of assassinations. The odd thing about those people is that they were all "new" servants, and Flora didn't have any information on them. Flora doesn't have anything more to tell Erin and Kira, and asks if they know anything about the current vying for the throne. They say, "No." With a lack of information mutually shared, the women leave their mother, and head off to do other things. Erin wants to go to the Church, and wants Kira to stay in trump contact with her. Erin tries to trumps Merlin, and finally gets him. He says, "I'm busy," in a whisper. "I'm in a bedroom. Man, she's hot."
Erin tells him that she needs him.
"Duuuude," is his response.
"No, not for that. For sorcerer stuff."
"Oh, dude." Disappointment is paramount.

Five minutes later, Merlin is somewhat dressed and trumps her back and is pulled back to the Castle. Erin then trumps Ronan, and asks if he wants to come along for the Church investigation. Ronan agrees. Merlin also says, after much whining, that he will come to the Church as well … and they all walk into the Administrative Offices of the Church of the Unicorn. Erin tenders her Letter of Inquiry, and Ronan does as well. "Oh, my! Let me get the Inquisitor!" Soon said Inquisitor arrives with two guards who are wearing priests robes and trying not to seem too much like guards.

The Inquisitor asks questions regarding where Erin and Ronan were three nights ago, the night of the murders. The basic questions are asked and answered or evaded. The Inquisitor isn't happy with Erin at all, and thinks she's involved with the murders, though he has no idea how she's tied in … she just IS. He doesn't like Merlin, and he can't figure out why Ronan was called in at all. The Inquisitor doesn't want Erin involved in the investigation, in fact, he doesn't want her help at all. Erin mentions that she knows that one of the victims of the Church assassinations was a sniper, and she was the one who had been sniped. Also an engineer was also killed, and an engineered was the one who had set the bomb which killed Benedict. Erin mentions that the last murder, the killing of the Archbishop, is different; that one was personal and had anger behind it. The Inquisitor is not swayed, and tells her that he will take her information under consideration, but still doesn't want her involved. Privately, the Inquisitor is every so delighted that Erin's theories (Dark Brotherhood) are heretical, and thank you so much for condemning yourself. Polite, insincere thanks are given and everyone adjourns - Erin being one step away from being burned as a heretic. Ronan and Erin decide to then go to Bleys' manor.

Dalena talks to Galen about the possibility of the Wave Disrupters being deployed around Helmwind, as she believes that Brand will try to keep the Oleai from aiding Maladin. The Disrupters would effectively keep the Oleai from getting out of Helmwind quickly. Galen doesn't think that Brand would commit genocide, although Dalena isn't so certain of that. Galen is going to send out squads to patrol the perimeter of Helmwind, to take care of any Chaosians setting up or maintaining Disrupters. She also suggests that a couple of squads be moved into Vitae and held in reserve. With that being set in motion, she heads out into Vitae herself.

Kira and Elio trump back and forth a while, and eventually Elio finds Maladin to relay a connection with Kira. They talk a while about getting the Family together for the discussion between Brand and Maladin. The King Presumptive comes through to Amber, and Kira lets him know that she'll be around, if he needs her, then heads off to get an appointment to talk with Gerard. Maladin and Elio decide to head to Arden to visit Julian, but don't take off immediately.

Erin, Ronan and Merlin make a stop by the Cho's city residence to visit Miranda. Erin asks her if she has any trumps of high Church officials. Miranda says that church is boring, so why would she? Erin tells her to head to Church and make some trumps … and after Miranda goes to church, Erin will take her to her very own Shadow so she can get out from under her Daddy's thumb, and she can even pick it out. Miranda agrees, and Merlin stay to "help her."

Kira gets an appointment with Gerard for the morrow. Maladin finds her again, before he leaves, and they talk some more about Julian. As Kira says she has nothing better to do at the moment, she agrees to come with Elio and Maladin to Arden. Maladin trumps first to let Julian know he's coming for a visit. They Tune over.

Julian restates his unwillingness to be involved in Amber politics, regardless of what is stirring. Kira tells him about the issues with the nobles and the Church, and Julian says that whoever becomes King can deal with the problems with as heavy a fist as they want; that's the way it's been done for the last ten thousand years, and that's most likely the best way for it to be done now. He has no interest in showing solidarity, to save the Familial "Face" to the Church and Nobility, and is not willing to get involved Amber's politics. He suggests that the Family grow up a little bit. He says he's had a thousand of years to decide what is important to him, and he's making certain that what is important is being protected, i.e. Arden. The rest can hang. Maladin suggests that right now solidarity among the Family is what's important, as the Family is under siege. Julian does offer the opinion that Brand will not negotiate unless he feels he can win; Brand is a Might makes Right sort. Julian has no ideas on how to keep Brand and Maladin from entering into a protracted military engagement, except for Maladin to back down. In the end, Julian says that he'll come to Maladin's little Family meeting, as it costs him nothing to attend. He doesn't see that anything will come of it, but he'll attend.

Erin and Ronan make it to Bley's country house, and she asks him to go ask the servants if they can take a tour (setting him up as decoy). Erin turns herself invisible then scoots through the door as Ronan and the servant talk. Ronan gets permission to dig through the house as part of the investigation into Bleys' assassination. They find what they would expect to find in a fabulously appointed town house, as well as a couple of doors which radiate Pattern and Magic. Erin fiddles around a little to see if she can find out how it works, but with no immediate results, she decides a shorter cut is due. She trumps Merlin, who was just in the middle of running away from some of the guards of the Church of the Unicorn (no, really … don't ask). He comes through and begins to dismantle the wards on the doors. Erin sets him on the big, heavily warded one, naturally.

Dalena sits in a Wave and hangs up a Do Not Disturb sign on her patch of it. She takes a comfortable seat, and begins to meditate; setting aside attachment to outcomes, the throne of Amber, what may happen with the Oleai, all of it, letting the thoughts come, then letting them go. Once her mind is empty of outcome, she brings up the image of the Dragon as she's seen it twice, and waits. Eventually she realizes that the images she's meditating is not imagined but before her, and It is present. They talk about avatars and tools, the Unicorn and Serpent and how the "powers" manifest, and the nature of potential. She asks the Dragon to ask his counterpart if He has a "paintbrush" … a way the Abyss's powers manifest. The Dragon agrees and fades out. Dalena hangs out a bit to see if He will return, then decides to come back later … goes home to dinner rather more enlightened than she was when she left.

Meanwhile, at Bleys' house, Erin and Ronan are eating a leisurely dinner themselves, when BANG TWIST SLAM! Erin feels Pattern warp a bit, then settle back. Merlin has been blown through three walls and a window. The tree slowed him down, and he's out in a field. Ronan figures it was electrical damage … owie. Erin does some checks and realizes that the space which had been originally between the two rooms is now missing … hmmm. Erin leaves a note for Merlin and tacks it onto his trump of her, then heads back to Amber.

Elio, Maladin and Kira tune their way to Argent. At the crossing between two realities, the Vitae shifts flavors. Elio knows he can tune in but isn't sure he can tune out again, as the Waves don't seem to come back out. Maladin takes out the Jewel of Judgment and tries to look at the change through it - his mind flips a bit, then he gets a huge headache, then he passes out.

Erin trumps Dalena, and she and Ronan head off to work on "the plan." Dalena sits down in the Pattern room, waiting, gathering the Possibility of Erin and Fiona making it though this alive and whole (and including the possibility of them failing as well, cause it has to be in there, too) while eating the pie Galen packed for her. Erin and Ronan head up to the infirmary to "visit" Fiona. They get permission to see her, and sit for a while.

Back in Argent, Maladin comes to in an hour-ish. Elio plays with the new-flavored Vitae, which seems to work pretty much as the old-flavored variety did. They continue on to Argent City

Down in the Pattern Room, Erin joins Dalena. Eventually Ronan trumps Dalena and passes Fiona over. Thus begins The Plan. Erin takes Fiona, and beings to walk the Pattern, pushing Fiona along it in the hopes that the Pattern will have stored memories of Fiona as she was when she last made the Walk, and will thus imprint them back on what's left of Fiona's brain. They make the first veil and it's hard going but they make it through. As they continue on, Erin sees that some bits of Fiona's memories stick, but 95 percent just sieve through the Swiss cheese that is the Princess' mental matrix. At the second veil they get stuck, though Erin is able to push through, and loses more and more of her own structure/integrity/humaness as she does so. At the third veil, they stick entirely. Ronan goes forward to help push them forward, pushing them with his TK shield, imposing order on Erin's form which is losing cohesion. They continue on, until the fourth veil … and again, everyone stops. Ronan doesn't respond to a shout and is himself fading.

Dalena opens up the possibility of them succeeding … and the Dragon shows up to say that the possibility is, currently, that they'll fail. Dalena asks that the possibility be opened that they succeed. He asks her if she's willing to take on the responsibilities that come along with that possibility? Yes, she says. Done! The Pattern flashes green, solidifies, the four of them stumble through the last veil and into the center, then the Pattern flashes blue again. The Dragon fades away fast. Beyond the Pattern, the Unicorn appears, and she is pissed, Her eyes flashing red. Dalena, pissed herself, says, "Then you take care of your scions, bitch!" The Unicorn flips into an utter rage, and Dalena hops into a wave to get the hell out of there. In the center of the Pattern, Ronan checks to see how the women are doing … and they're both alive. Fiona's brain is new and minty fresh. Erin is tired and even more metaphysical than she used to be. They head to Helmwind to talk, and to give Fiona back some memories. Eventually, Erin and Fiona head off to the Land of the Milk-Fed Boys for more memory attachment and recouperation, and Ronan and Dalena talk about the Dragon and the Unicorn and Possibility, and lines of probability.

Elio, Maladin and Kira are in Argent having a good, long confab with Corwin. They bring Corwin up to speed on what's going on in Amber, especially regarding the status of the run off between Maladin and Brand for the throne. Corwin says that he'd much rather see Maladin on the throne than Brand, and while he won't/can't leave Argent, he'll help Maladin with his bid, even going so far as offering supplies … to whit the jewelers rouge to make ammo that goes boom in Amber. The Unicorn's heir apparent is a mighty happy camper.

And that's where we leave off … with Elio, Kira and Maladin in Argent, Ronan and Dalena in Helmwind, and Erin in the Land of the Milk-Fed Boys with a brand-spankin' new Fiona.

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