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Copyright © Tony Mitton, 2005.
This work is licenced under a Creative Commons Licence. |
By Tony Mitton, reproduced with Permission
'"We had that argument," she said. "You followed me, drove away Melkin, and we talked. I saw that I was wrong and I went with you to Avalon. There, your brother Benedict persuaded you to talk with Eric. You were not reconciled, but you agreed to a truce because of something that he told you. He swore not to harm you and you swore to defend Amber, with Benedict to witness both oaths. We remained in Avalon while you obtained chemicals, and we went to another place later, a place where you purchased strange weapons. We won the battle, but Eric lies wounded now." She stood and faced me. "Are you thinking of ending the truce? Is that it, Corwin?"'
...
'Her seeing passed through me and focussed. Her face grew smooth, she smiled, started forward. I moved aside and turned, watching her run toward the man who approached, seeing her clasped in his arms, glimpsing his face as he bent it toward her own, lucky ghost, silver rose at the throat of his garment, kissing her, this man I would never know, silver on silence, and silver...'
Ghost-Lorraine talks to Corwin in Tir-Na Nog'th, 'Sign of the Unicorn', Chapter 10
It is the start of King Corwin's Silver Jubilee year. Amber is gearing up for the celebrations which are to be held in nine months time. Already, in the King's honour, the official flag of Amber has been changed to a silver Unicorn on a black background.
Amber is enjoying great peace and prosperity after the years of uncertainty after Oberon's disappearance followed by war and King Eric's brief reign.
The forces of Chaos were defeated during the great Battle of Amber, with the aid of the unusual weapons and soldiers brought in by (then) Prince Corwin from Shadow. Corwin and King Eric planned the battle together and fought part of it side-by-side. The victory was marred, however, by Eric's mortal wounding at the hands of a Manticore. Corwin and Caine were with him at the last and Eric designated Corwin as his heir. Caine swore loyalty at once.
Corwin's strange troops and their weapons are now a familiar sight in the castle and even around the city. Although their presence causes some tension, they are kept under control by General Ganelon and the inhabitants still remember the part the aliens played in saving Amber.
After the defeat of Chaos, the public (and royal family) clamoured for Corwin to be crowned King, but he refused. He had sworn that first he would agree a treaty with Chaos and wipe away the terrible Black Road.
He was able to do this within fifteen months. Most of the treaty negotiations were undertaken by Prince Random and Princess Dierdre. Corwin himself managed the removal of the Black Road. It is said that only he and General Ganelon know the secret of how he did this.
In this period, Corwin's eldest son was born. This is Prince Juvenal (current age: 26), whose mother is Lorraine - a Princess brought out of Shadow by Corwin.
The coronation occurred two years to the day after the Battle of Amber was won and was attended by representatives from as far afield as the Courts of Chaos. Random, Julian, Gerard, Caine, Dierdre, Flora, Llewella and Fiona all renewed their oaths of loyalty to the new King.
After suspicions that the Jewel of Judgement hastened King Eric's death, Corwin keeps it safely hidden and never wears it in public, even refusing to wear it for his coronation. (Although he did wear a replica to keep traditionalists happy).
After the coronation, Gerard was appointed to the post of commander-in-chief of Amber's navy, with Caine as his deputy. Random was granted the Regency of Shadow Florint, with his loving Rebman wife Vialle as its Queen.
A year into his reign, King Corwin married Lorraine and she became Queen of Amber. A year later, she bore them a daughter - Princess Ash (current age: 23).
Princess Dierdre herself married, shortly before the birth of Princess Ash. She wed Duke Cuthbert Anderrs in a private, family ceremony. They went for an extended honeymoon in Shadow and returned a year later with a son - Lord Simeon. King Corwin proved his fair-mindedness by lavishing as much affection on the boy as he did (and does) on his own daughter. He even granted Simeon (current age: 22) the title of Prince on his eighteenth birthday, along with extensive land holdings.
The years of Corwin's reign have been a time of great flowerings of the arts, sponsored by a King who is also a fine composer and poet in his own right. This period was marred only by the arrest of Palace minstrel, Lord Rein, for treason. Convicted and sentenced to death, Rein admitted full guilt and pleaded for mercy. King Corwin showed great magnanimity and merely imposed a sentence of exile.
Rein left Amber with his family. Unfortunately, he failed to pick a safe new home and was killed in a mugging only two weeks after arriving there.
King Corwin vowed to help the rulers of the Golden Circle reduce crime to the very peaceful levels enjoyed in Amber. He kindly sent out crack Amberite soldiers and advisers to assist in this and they set up permanent garrisons in every Golden Circle shadow. Crime throughout the Golden Circle has fallen significantly, although a few misguided individuals in each Shadow had to be executed in order to nip counter-productive and possibly Chaos-sponsored rebellions in the bud.
Prince Caine was appointed to head up the Golden Circle-wide anti-crime measures, a post he still occupies.
The flowering of culture and the arts was matched by a liberalising of Amber's previously over-strict morals. As with most things, the King set an example by introducing a number of mistresses into the palace. Two of these mistresses have born children - Prince Hugh (current age: 20) and Princess Lydia (current age: 15). The Queen, wise to the ways of men, was happy to support her husband in this. She has occasionally taken a lover to show that women, too, can exercise such freedoms.
Of course, things have not been allowed to go too far. Certain perversions, such as homosexuality and relations with shapeshifters are still proscribed.
In the city, the nobles and then the commoners have followed the King's lead. It is almost expected for adults of both sexes to have lovers in addition to their husbands and wives. In the most daring noble houses, women may take their brothers as lovers in addition to this. This seems to be one trend that did not originate with the Royal Family.
And Prince Caine and Princess Fiona have kindly put their skills to use and created Trumps of a number of the top-ranking nobility. This enables the more daring of them to do such things as visit Tir-Na'Nogth in relative safety. They are more likely, however, to view it as a romantic and unusual place for a tryst with a current lover than as a source of visions.
The first book happens entirely unchanged. Corwin flees into Shadow.
Much of the second book is as before. The differences are as if Corwin's vision of Lorraine in Tir-Na'Nogth (which occurs in 'The Sign of the Unicorn') were what actually happened. Corwin actually commits to Lorraine, so she doesn't run off and get killed. Largely as a consequence of this, Corwin also goes back to Amber (with Lorraine) and commits to help Eric. He doesn't swear loyalty, but they do reach an understanding. Julian and Caine aren't happy about this, suspecting Corwin of planning dirty deeds.
Corwin heads off with Ganelon (who neither beats up Gerard nor calls Corwin 'son') and they go off to Avalon. The meetings with Benedict and Dara are much as in the book (Corwin may love Lorraine, but he's still a bastard) as is the later fight with Benedict.
Corwin and Ganelon get back to Amber with guns and troops in time to plan the forthcoming battle against Chaos together with Eric. Benedict doesn't turn up for the battle - he was probably still sulking about losing the fight to Corwin.
The big fight against Chaos is a resounding victory for Amber, with the guns brought into play at an early stage. In desperation, The Courts seem to have been tried a decapitation strike - Eric is killed by the Manticore, Julian is badly wounded by a similar creature and Corwin, too, is hurt. Caine manages to escape injury.
As he dies (Jewel pulsing) Eric instructs Caine (Julian is too badly hurt to attend) that Corwin is to be his successor and makes Caine swear loyalty to him there and then. Not long after this, Corwin and Ganelon rush to the Pattern room in time to see Dara complete it and utter her curse.
The Courts start discussing terms. Random (released from the cells) and Dierdre (back from Rebma) undertake most of the negotiations. Corwin does manage to remove the black road (how he does so is a mystery - but the Jewel of Judgement is never seen again).
Corwin's own troops, with the guns and under Ganelon's command, take over as guards in much of the castle and form Corwin's personal bodyguard.
Corwin is crowned King, with the rest of the family (except Benedict) swearing loyalty to him. Julian has recovered from his wounds by now. Benedict doesn't even attend the Coronation. As before, Brand and Bleys are both missing (presumed dead). Dworkin never appears.
Random gets the Regency he wanted and decamps to Shadow Florint with Vialle. They soon prove to not get on very well at all. After a few years, Random ends up spending most of his time in Amber, leaving Vialle to get on with ruling Florint. She does this very well indeed, imposing a rigid control. After the military clampdown throughout the Golden Circle and the imposition of direct rule, Florint becomes the home of the work camps where political prisoners, dissidents and the like are sent. People are sent there every year but the population of the camps never seems to increase. Nobody ever escapes.
Gerard gets to command the fleet, with Caine demoted to being his deputy. Caine later redeems himself and ends up as virtual 'Minister of Internal Security' by - allegedly - arranging for the murder of Lord Rein. (Rein's 'treason' was suggesting - in a humorous ballad - that Simeon was the product of an incestuous liaison between Corwin and Dierdre). Previously, Ganelon was in charge of security for Amber - the story is that he has been sidelined because Corwin suspects him of a liaison with the Queen.
When Lorraine becomes pregnant, Corwin proves unable to keep his hands off Dierdre. While Simeon's true parentage is common gossip in the palace, everyone now knows what they must pretend.
Dierdre's husband - Duke Cuthbert Anderrs - is a chinless wonder who always loved Dierdre and never stood a chance until she decided she needed a convenient parent for her child. She, Corwin and even Simeon treat him largely with contempt. (Although Dierdre and Cuthbert are occasionally reconciled - she has had at least one child by him since Simeon).
It is common knowledge that Corwin and Dierdre sometimes sleep together, as do Lorraine and Ganelon, Fiona and Julian, Flora and Caine, Flora and Random, and indeed Flora and Corwin on occasion.
These developments are mirrored throughout Amber. Corruption grows, with the rich and noble getting much richer and the very poor becoming more and more downtrodden. This is partly mitigated by the vast influx of wealth to Amber from the Golden Circle. The middle classes benefit significantly and even the serving classes do well. Tax rates in Amber become virtually nil as funds flow in from outside. The population of the city grows as servants (some little more than slaves) from outside are brought in to perform all the menial work. These outsiders are not citizens and have no rights. Crime - of the disorganised, common kind - does become rare as offenders are often never seen again.
Plays, festivals and shows of all kinds become popular diversions for the new, leisured classes in the teeming city. Several (mostly one-sheet) newspapers start up. The proprietors of those that oppose what is going on tend to disappear, while the proprietors of pro-change, pro-Corwin papers are granted influence and titles.
There is some, but very restricted, contact with the Courts. I will admit that Merlin and Martin both exist - but if anyone knows about them they're not saying. Similarly, the existence of the Primal Pattern is either unknown or a big secret.
On to the Silver Unicorn Rules.
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Copyright © Tony Mitton, 2005.
This work is licenced under a Creative Commons Licence. |