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Nazi Lady-Boys of Shadow Moro

Notes : Session 2.5


Recorded for Posterity by Iain Walker.
Notes typed up by Jane Winter.


Session 2.4   Index   Session 2.6


118 PPF


In the empty hospital word in Flora's shadow Earth, Random concentrates on the Jewel of Judgement as he attempts to close the 'hole' through which dead memory-spirits are escaping from the land of the dead. Tristan watches through the spyglass.

Random says that can sense the hole through the Jewel (which helps!).

Tristan sees the hole begins to shrink. A couple of memory-fragments emerge from the hole as it shrinks, but Tristan slices them apart with Ibrahim's Pattern blade.

Tamarind and Beltaine sense memories dying away. They seem to be those of an oriental peasant woman. Only very simple, blurred memories are sensed from the other memory fragment.

Eventually Random shrinks the hole down to nothingness, but he thinks there is still something there. When he backs off and stops concentrating on the Jewel, the hole gradually opens again, though only to a size ten or twenty times smaller than it was before.

At Tristan's urging Random tries again, but when he stops the hole recovers again, and does not seem to have shrunk any further. Hmm. So it would seem that the problem can be reduced, but is not fixable at present.

However, Random uses the Jewel on the other holes in the ward until all are at the smallest size they can be. No matter how big they were originally, they all end up at the same size. Random is now tiring, and says that that is enough for now.

Tristan orders this ward closed permanently. A combination of Pattern power and cold hard cash means that this will indeed be done.

Random says he will go and reduce the hole in Eric's tomb.

Various people wonder whether there have been any Cold Babies in Amber, which have not been reported. We speculate that perhaps Amber is Real enough to resist the effect.

Random says he will need to talk to Brand about this.

Tristan notes that Bleys should be consulted too, since he knows where Fiona came back to.

Ibrahim notes that Caine seems to know a lot about the movement of spirits between bodies - perhaps this is something he could help with.

Damien comments that even if he did, Caine probably wouldn't tell us anything, just go and do something and present us with a fait accompli afterwards.

Random considers this, and says that he also intends to ask Gerard where 'Caine' - the Caine who returned as a blob - was buried at sea so that that hole can also be sealed as far as possible.


Tristan (with Random and Ibrahim in tow) leaves to check the neighbouring Shadow.

They shift away and quickly arrive in a version of the same room, containing Shadows of Damien, Beltaine and Tamarind (who appear to be FBI agents or something similar). Tristan produces a Secret Service pass and quizzes them. They do not comment on our anachronistic clothing or the fact that we are all wearing swords. It transpires that Cold Baby syndrome does exist here, and the hospital holds someone who has recovered from it - a ten-year-old boy. He is being kept here for his own safety while he is investigated in the hopes of finding a cure.

Tristan peers at him through the spyglass and sees no overlaid black skein. He then goes and checks a girl with the syndrome. She also looks clean.

Apparently only a Shadow of the affliction exists here - probably as a virus. Tristan decides that it is probable that a cure will soon be found, and that this will also happen in all the other neighbouring Shadows. This induced change spreads outwards on waves of Pattern energy...

This done, Tristan, Random and Ibrahim Trump off to Amber.


In the original hospital, Beltaine, Damien and Tamarind go to Reception, summon Dr Morgendorfer and go for coffee in his office.

Tamarind tells him the ward is ideal for the research we want to do, although there are certain requirements - such as the complete non-use of electricity in the area. The complete relocation of most of the current facility will also be required, and we will provide funds for this.

Tamarind decides we (or the Flaumel clan, at least) own a new facility which has just been completed nearby, so the hospital can move to there with a minimum of hassle.

Dr Morgendorfer is referred to Paxman, Cornwell and Rand, Flora's lawyers, who can expedite the proceedings.

As the others talk, Damien wanders about the office, making it likely that Tamarind's financial inducements will suffice. Greed quickly overcomes inconvenience, and Dr Morgendorfer agrees to our terms. That done, the three of us leave the hospital.


Tristan, Ibrahim and Random appear back in Amber. They are passed out of the arrival courtyard, go to the stables, saddle up and ride out of the Castle towards Eric's tomb on Kolvir, escorted by a troop of the Royal Lifeguard.

After a while we reach the three tombs - Corwin's, Deirdre's and Eric's - high up on the slope of Kolvir. A detachment of the Lifeguards check the place out before we arrive, and find it safe, and deserted. They deploy themselves around the tomb and keep watch as we do things inside. Tristan uses the spyglass and finds a reality hole in the sarcophagus. As he watches, a memory fragment flies out and off, visibly fading away as it goes. After 200 yards, it's gone, dissipated away into nothingness.

Random uses the Jewel to locate and irradiate the aperture, shrinking it as far as it can go.

Tristan watches this, then reports the limited lifespan of the sparks and the fact that they appear to entirely fade away after about 200 yards.


On Shadow Earth, Tamarind asks whether we are done here.

"We need to inform Flora's lawyers of the hospital arrangements," says Damien.

We set out to drive back to Flora's mansion.

Beltaine is behind the wheel. "It doesn't look too hard," she comments!

En route Damien phones Paxman, Cornwell and Rand.

At about the same time, Tamarind has an epiphany and realises how he can memorise Trumps.

We quickly arrive back at Flora's mansion. We leave the car in the garage, and Tamarind Trumps Ibrahim.


Tristan and Ibrahim go to ride back down Mount Kolvir.

Random Trumps directly back to Amber, since he needs to talk with the Lady Legislator. Before he goes, he instructs the two of them to talk to Brand about this, but not to do anything without telling him.


As they ride down Kolvir, Ibrahim gets a Trump call, and takes it. It's Tamarind. He, Beltaine and Damien go through the link to up on the side of Kolvir.

Tristan tells them that Random has advised speaking to Brand.

Beltaine is un-enthused at this prospect, and asks if they couldn't instead speak to Caine, who seems to know about "souls and stuff."

Ibrahim suggests speaking to Caine first, then having him sit in on their talk with Brand.

Tamarind Trumps Flora and when she takes the call returns the Trump of her mansion on shadow Earth.


After a bit we ride back into the Castle, and Tristan enquires after Caine. The guards say they aren't cleared for that kind of information. We stable our horses, find ourselves a nice sitting room, and then Tristan Trumps Caine, who takes the call and comes through to us. Beltaine orders refreshments.

Tristan explains about the 'soul holes' on shadow Earth, in the process mentioning that they seem only to affect the Shadow they are actually in. He asks whether Caine can help. Specifically, whether he can think of a way the problem could be curtailed.

Caine says that he is not sure; he would really need to visit one of the affected sites to learn more. Eric's tomb is the nearest, so he says he will probably go there.

Tristan then asks for his help in talking to Brand.

Tamarind asks whether Caine has any idea what the fragments are. He explains that they seemed to be just fragments of memory, with no associated life force.

Damien suggests this could be a natural phenomenon, with the memories just following the flow of life force back to the land of the living.

Tamarind notes that in that case the Land of the Dead must be a tremendous reservoir of knowledge.

"Oh, yuck," says Beltaine, looking revolted.

Tamarind denies that he has any intention of ever exploiting this resource. Caine, less convincingly, says much the same thing.

Beltaine suggests to Ibrahim that some of Eric's life force might remain in the Jewel, since its draining effect on him supposedly contributed to his death. There is some discussion of legislation relating to the Land of the Dead. Tristan tells the others that a dead King now has three months to return and claim his throne, so Eric could not now claim the throne even if his life force was restored. This law was put in place some years ago.

Tristan says he will happily study the Jewel through the spyglass for traces of life force if Random will allow it.

Caine says he thinks he might be persuaded to allow this.

Damien asks Caine if he has any idea of the limits of binding spirits with magick. He is thinking of wardings to contain the escaping sparks, which seem to be made of the same stuff as normal spirits.

Caine says that he thinks this is not a bad idea.

Beltaine asks whether she can speak to Caine later on an unrelated topic. He agrees to meet her later.


We all go to the infirmary to talk with Brand.

En route, Caine says he has finished examining the bodies of Nurse Ratchett and Nurse Winstanley, and they can now be released for burial.

Beltaine says she hopes Nurse Simmons will be executed - not just as a matter of justice for her treason, but because she knows far too much about the children for exiling her to be a safe option.

Tristan is in favour of a proper trial, and exile.

Apparently, says Caine, Nurse Simmons' luckless fiancé, Boris, was found dead in a house in the City.


Arriving at Brand's hospital room, we knock on the door and are invited in. Beltaine hides behind Damien.

"Oh. It's you," Brand says when he sees us. He sounds decidedly un-enthused, though he gives Beltaine a smile.

"We have questions," says Tristan.

"You may ask," says Brand.

Tristan tells Brand that there are tears in the fabric of Shadow where people have returned from the Land of the Dead, which seem to lead back there, and the memories of the dead are escaping through them into the land of the living.

Brand says he did not know about this, although he did wonder if the various people returning would weaken the barrier between the lands of the living and the dead. He says that he thinks the problem can probably be fixed, but that this would require a trip to the Land of the Dead.

Damien comments that this does not surprise him.

Brand theorises that the memories are following the flow of life force.

Damien agrees, adding that they may only be able to latch onto undeveloped minds, hence only affecting children.

Brand then suggests that the life force, when flowing back to the land of the living, is spread out so finely that any minds following it or 'riding' in it cannot normally go with it through the barrier into the land of the living.

"Think of the barrier as a very fine-meshed net..." he suggests.

"And we've enlarged some of the holes," finishes Ibrahim.

"I'm afraid that without a Pattern-blooded body, I won't be much help..." begins Brand.

"Stop it!" admonishes Tristan.

"Well, duh, whose fault is it you don't have one?" mutters Beltaine.

Brand says he could do some research, if we could return his notes.

Tristan looks dubious. Damien suggests copies might be made.

Beltaine says that if they are asking for Brand's help, he should be provided with the means of providing it. "Either trust him or don't," she comment.

Brand gives her a grateful look; she looks down at the floor.

Tristan gives in and says that the notes will be provided. We head for the exit.

As we leave, Brand is heard asking for pen and paper from a nurse.


Beltaine suggests that we now search for Anurerishkigal's original servant, Su-Chan of the Mera.

Tristan remembers that he had set researchers on the job of finding out more on this subject, so we all go to the library.


Upon arrival there, four or five researchers are discovered poring over tomes. When asked, they say that they have, so far, found no reference to 'Su Chan of the Mera'. However, the word 'Mera' does crop up in some very old Shadows where the local language is not a shadow of Thari (that is, shadows which possibly pre-date the drawing of the Pattern) and seems to mean 'Enemy' or 'Conqueror' or something of that general nature.

Damien sends one of them, Seth, the youngest, down to the Museum with a message for Mr Giles, the Museum Librarian, to look there for references and to check with the translators of the Chaos books which he brought back following the mass suicide of the Courts.

When quizzed further, another researcher tells us that they have not found any references to Anurerishkigal as such, but that 'Erishkigal' is the name of an ancient death goddess from Flora's Shadow Earth, and that there are similar tales of deities with similar names - and associated death cults - in other Shadows. However, he continues apologetically, they have so far only reviewed 20% of the possibly relevant material in this library.

Tristan wants everyone to rest for tonight, then to go to find the place where Brand and Deirdre were brought back.

There is some argument about whether or not to talk to Bleys first. Both Damien and Beltaine are sceptical that he will reveal where Fiona returned to life.

Damien explains his current theory: Anurerishkigal may have latched onto Fiona because she still had a link to the Land of the Living. The dead Caine, he notes, had a not dissimilar link. He is suspicious of the timing of events - the Caine-shoggoth's reign of terror so closely followed by the Fiona-Anurerishkigal gambit with Abraxas and the children...

He also recalls that it was Brand and Altair who rescued Fiona from her catatonic state; they forgot to ask Brand about that.

Tristan objects that the question might tell him too much about the overall problem.

An argument develops over how much Brand should be told.

Beltaine says he should either be given full information or not asked to help at all.

Damien says, just give him what he needs in order to help. Then decide how much to trust his conclusions.

"And how do we know what's relevant and what isn't?" Beltaine wants to know. Fair point.


Tamarind, having had enough of this, goes off to shadow Haven, and begins to memorise Trumps. He also draws a Trump of the shadow where we brought Brand and Deirdre back from the land of the dead.


Ibrahim and Tristan go off to Random's office and, upon being admitted, report our various conversations to Random. They also raise the possibility that some of Eric's life force might remain within the Jewel of Judgement.

Random allows that Brand may have his notes, under certain conditions (copies of them are also to be made first), then he says that he will allow Tristan to inspect the Jewel through the spyglass. He goes off and returns wearing the Jewel.

Tristan looks at it through the spyglass. It is very bright, but has no life force. Random asks to be kept informed of any further developments and Tristan and Ibrahim leave.


That done, Ibrahim goes off to check in on his staff, then looks in on the children, who are asleep. He then checks his spells and retires for the night.


Tristan goes out into Shadow to the fortress where the other 126 nippers and assorted beloved zombies are held in stasis. He takes Isobel out of her stasis and moves her off to an equally safe Shadow, away from the one where the babies are being kept.


Beltaine asks Damien if she can stay the night at the Priory, as she doesn't want to stay in the Castle.

Damien has no objections to this. He Trumps Sebek and asks if he remembers how to play the Trump game - can they come through?

Sebek wonders what's in it for him. Do they have dormice and beer?

Damien tells him Beltaine has a music box, and he has a story.

Sebek brings them through (not that they couldn't easily have forced the contact had they wished to...).

Beltaine plays the music box for Sebek, who is pleased with his new toy.

Then Damien tells him the promised story, in which evil villains steal Sebek's voice, and he has to hunt them down and get it back. The story is titled 'Raiders of the lost 'Ark''. [Groan!]

Afterwards, Beltaine sings Sebek to sleep.

That done, Beltaine is shown to a guest room with a sea view, and quickly falls asleep.


Tristan ensconces Isobel in a Trump-barred Shadow some way from the other 'stasis' Shadow. He places her in a high-tech fortress with guards, and recasts a stasis spell on her. Then he goes to a fast-time Shadow to rest.


Asleep in bed in the Priory, Beltaine dreams of playing with a fluffy, bouncy kitten. But it runs off...

She follows it down a corridor and through a door. As she goes through the door she feels the dream shift to the Tir-Na Nog'th-feeling she knows so very, very well. She finds herself on a balcony overlooking a crowd of people in a vast room that fades off intro darkness, the people fading from sight off into the distance too. In the background, a black shadowy presence is moving - Anurerishkigal? In the group of people closest below her she recognises Tamarind and Deirdre, Altair, a female version of Damien (distinguishable from him only by the presence of breasts) and Bleys. Overlaid on everyone she can see is a ghostly image of Fiona, much like the image she saw overlaid on Telemachus/Evander in Tir-Na Nog'th years ago. There are other people she doesn't recognise in the crowd - what looks like a young adult version of Eleanor stands some distance back, and perhaps adult versions of the other children. She can also make out other elders, Tristan, Ibrahim, and the real (male) Damien further back in the crowd.

"What's happening?" Beltaine asks down to Deirdre.

"This is all your fault," Deirdre responds. "You saw the vision. You made it so."

"You made it so," repeat all the other figures in perfect synchronisation. They repeat this, their voices rising with each repetition to a thunderous roar, as Beltaine backs away. "You Made It So. YOU MADE IT SO. YOU MADE IT SO. YOU MADE IT SO."

Beltaine backs out of the door from the balcony ... and wakes.

She curls up tightly under the bedclothes, shaking.


Some time later, Damien wakes up, and is relieved to find that Sebek is not playing the organ. Damien orders him fed, and has coffee sent down to the Velocidrome. He then heads for Beltaine's room, since she had asked to be wakened if she didn't appear for breakfast.

Entering, he finds her still curled up in a ball beneath the covers. He opens the curtains letting in the morning sunshine.

"Sebek's expecting us for coffee!" he says, brightly.

"Don't care," mutters Beltaine, without emerging.

Damien sits down on the edge of the bed.


In shadow Haven, Tamarind gets up. He has breakfast then briefly shadow shifts away from Haven to check that his new memorised Trump of the place. It does. He also has Beltaine's Trump memorised (these are both normal Trumps, not super-Trumps). That done, he uses a 'normal' Trump and Trumps back to Amber. Upon arrival he heads for the breakfast room.


Tristan also Trumps back to Amber and goes down to breakfast. He meets up with Tamarind on the way.


Ibrahim gets up and goes the lifeguard armoury to find some armour for Beltaine (as she has been rather too much for comfort recently). This done he also goes to breakfast.


"Bad dreams?" Damien asks Beltaine.

The only response from beneath the covers is a muffled, "My kitten ran away...and they said it was all my fault..."

Damien pats the Beltaine-duvet construct, and assures her that kittens can look after themselves.

"No," she snuffles, emerging from her cocoon, "they said the other thing was my fault..."

Damien points out that Beltaine is the one who has always warned him against taking Tir-Na Nog'th visions literally.

She tells him about the rest of the vision.

"You can't make things happen just by looking at them?" she demands, not sounding too hopeful.


The others arrive at breakfast. Caine, Deirdre, Vialle and Random are already there.

"It's a lovely sunny morning," smiles Caine, who is eating kippers. "Though doubtless the forces of evil are gathering somewhere in the universe to destroy us."

"Unless you gave them the day off," agrees Ibrahim.


Beltaine and Damien go to see Sebek. Coffee is had. Beltaine, still very unhappy, asks Damien if he knows of any drugs that can suppress dreams.

He tells her he that none he has found are completely reliable. Damn.

Beltaine frets about the dream, and about being responsible for Fiona's death.

After a while, Damien seems to persuade her that taking the group to Tir-Na Nog'th was a good idea, and that she's not to blame for what happened later. He says it's from her that he learned to treat visions with respect - which means questioning them.

She hugs him and dries her eyes.

Sebek gives her a flower.

Damien manages to hide his shock - Sebek is learning to share??

"By the way, I've been worrying about something else," adds Beltaine, and shows Damien how she can now fade to the extent where she can walk through solid objects.

They decide to return to Amber, and Trump Tristan, who is in the breakfast room. When he takes the call he brings them through.

"Did you sleep well?" enquires Random solicitously.

Beltaine says little. She refuses food, but drinks a lot of black coffee.

"One of your bad dreams?" asks Vialle sympathetically. Beltaine nods.


After breakfast, we meet up to talk.

Seth, the researcher, has by this point arrived back from the Museum with a report from the translators there. Damien sends him off to co-ordinate the efforts of the two research teams.

We then find a quiet balcony, and Damien reads the report aloud.

Translation of the Chaos books is still in its early stages, it says. However, first impressions seem to indicate that one of the books is about mythology or history or religion or some combination of these subjects; precisely which (if any) of these is actually the case has yet to be determined. Certain symbols seem to indicate 'Mera', others 'Su-Chan'. The first of these is some kind of collective, the latter a person.

Another set of symbols seems to mean 'the ancient of days', as if the events (or whatever) described in the book were considered very, very old when it was written. And this book is very old - it has been dated to some two million Amber years old. It therefore pre-dates the Pattern by a very long time.

Tristan gloomily notes that the only people who might be able to help translate old Chaos stuff are the Redheads...

The rest of the report is more detailed and technical, but basically does little more than expand on the summary we have just read. It is signed by Wallis Budge, of the Museum.

Tristan thinks the research effort in the museum should now take priority.

Damien agrees - in his opinion Amber Castle's library is not much of a research resource. He sends a message that two more castle researchers are to be sent down to the museum, and the staff of the Faculty of Antiquities are to be put on it as well.

Ibrahim gives Beltaine the armour he's found for her (in the lifeguard colours of black, red and white). He also offers to enchant the swords that Damien has found for her.

She thanks him in rather subdued fashion.

We then use Tamarind's new Trump of the Shadow where Brand and Deirdre came back from the land of the dead. When the link opens up Tristan attempts to peer through it with the spyglass. He can't see through the link, but does realise that Trump has some life-force in it.

A brief diversion to investigate this occurs, the result of which is that all Trumps have some life force in them, places more so than people. The Soulstones also have life force, but Pattern blades do not.

Then Tristan goes through the Trump link. Through the spyglass he can immediately see dozens of black memory sparks flying about. He tries to influence their trajectories using the Pattern, so they aren't heading for where the rest of the group will appear. This takes time, especially as he has to dodge while concentrating on the Pattern.

Through the link, the others watch him concentrate, and occasionally dodge.

Tristan finds it is harder than he would have expected to affect probability here. The Shadow seems to have become more Real since they were last there. But at last it is done, and Tristan waves the rest of us through.

There is no one about. Tristan explains there are dozens of the sparks, and the place is more Real than before. Everyone else can sense the latter.

Tristan peers through the glass again, and sees that the hole to the land of the dead here is huge.

"Is it large enough for entire individual minds?" asks Damien.

Tristan doesn't know, without slicing one of the sparks.

The longer they are here the more Tamarind and Beltaine can sense something hugely wrong about this place.

They retreat back from the hole, and Tamarind Trumps Random, who takes the call and, once things have been explained, comes through with the Jewel.

Various people begin to warn him that...

"I can tell," he says.

He concentrates on the Jewel. Tristan suggests not doing this all in one go; the hole has been here for five years.

"We could go through it," says Beltaine, who has had way too much coffee. Again. No one seems keen to take up this suggestion.

Random radiates Jewel power at the hole. And as he does so the hole fades down to nothing. When Random relaxes, it has turned into a miniature hole, just like the others on Shadow Earth, but again does not vanish entirely.

Tristan wants to see what damage has been done here.

Random turns to Damien. "You're good at spirit magick, right?" he says.

Damien says he was planning on warding this point.

Random says that he is in favour of investigating the area first. He tells us to keep him informed, then Trump back to Amber.

As before we are between the construction site of what looks like a half-completed large modern hotel, and a small country inn, called the 'Foetus and Plastique'. We go to check the inn. From the decay and plant growth it appears to have been deserted for ten years or so (Tristan estimates that this Shadow runs at about three times Amber-speed). The tavern door has a flyer attached to it - an evacuation order, by order of the Government of Moro, sending people to a designated relocation area.

We go in. A search turns up newspapers and a lost diary, thanks to some judicious probability manipulation. It is noticeably hard to affect probability here.

"The plague continues to affect the children of Moro Province," say the papers. It reports that nearly all children seem to be affected by the plague, which seems to affect children in the womb. From what the ten year old newspapers say, the plague first appeared five years previously, that is, not long after Brand and Deirdre were brought back.

The diary includes a map of the area, thoughtfully marked with an arrow saying 'we are here' in what looks like a child's handwriting. It contains a mixture of the tavern's business information and personal reflections.

"Check for unusual visitors," suggests Damien.

This is done. The diary mentions someone who is clearly Tristan (with Brand in the driving seat) showing up in the first couple of years after Brand and Deirdre's return. Tristan remembers this happening. Also someone of Fiona's description, asking about strange diseases, events and sicknesses. This would have been about six-and-a-half local years after Brand and Deirdre's return, or about a year before the evacuation order was posted.

Brand (not occupying Tristan) also showed up about six months after Fiona.

The last diary entry is panicky in tone: 'The lorries are coming tomorrow.'

Beltaine feels a sudden sense of coldness - "Oh!" - then it's gone.

With the spyglass Tristan catches the end of a memory spark shooting off through the wall on a trajectory which have taken it from the hole and through Beltaine. "That was close," he lies.

Damien volunteers to stay and ward the hole.

"Someone should stay with you," says Ibrahim. "This is a portal to the Land of the Dead, after all."

Tamarind volunteers.

Perhaps a little too quickly, Damien asks if someone else could stay.

Ibrahim says he will - and he can help with the warding, too.

Tamarind appears hurt, and gives Damien A Look. Damien smiles brightly.


As the others shift shadow off to the nearest city shown on the map in the diary, Beltaine tries to convince Tamarind that Damien only suggested this because the two of them would be too tempting a target for Bleys. He doesn't seem to be buy this, however.

After a short while we shift back into the shadow, crest a hill, and are looking down on the nearest city, Sirocco. It is a roughly circular settlement on the plain below. The place looks largely abandoned, with a few streams of smoke rising from it, and signs of battle damage obvious even from this distance. Tamarind suggests the place has succumbed to anarchy.

We shift Shadow off towards another city in the same world, but much further away. Again, we crest a rock, grass and heather covered hill and see a city spread out along a wide valley which runs left to right below us. However, unlike Sirocco this one is clearly occupied. Cars are visible moving about, and also refugee camps outside the city, spread further along the valley in each direction.

We are near a rather ill-maintained main road, with occasional cars going past. A quick use of Pattern and a rather dilapidated-looking taxi pulls up by us. We seem to have been expected. We pile in and tell the driver to head for the city centre. This he does. As we go the driver asks if our papers are all in order - the city has checkpoints, and he doesn't want any trouble. Tamarind calls on the Pattern and produces passes, ID cards and money.

Driving towards the checkpoint, Tamarind engages the taxi driver in conversation. He tells us that this is the city of Travu. We asks about the Cold Babies, and are told that the Cold Babies are now being culled - resources just do not stretch to taking care of them.

We reach the checkpoint, a chicane of concrete-filled oil drums with barriers and machine gun emplacements, all looking rather old. A soldier checks our passes, and does a double-take on seeing Tamarind. When the passes are returned, he has written his phone number on the back of Tamarind's pass...

We are driven on towards the main city library, that seeming to be the best place to find out more about the local situation. As we go through the shabby, litter-strewn city streets, Beltaine suggests instead going to a bar and finding journalists to talk to, as they may know more about what is going on than is contained in official accounts. Everyone agrees that this is a good idea, so our driver changes course towards the print district.

There seem to be gun emplacements and road blocks at road junctions all over the city. Martial law appear to be in place in a big way. Fascist-style flags are also very much in evidence; in design they seem to be a stylised globe of the world (which we recognise from the maps in the diary we examined earlier) with black continents on a white circle, all on a scarlet background.

In the main newspaper district, most offices seem to be boarded up and/or burnt out. We have the taxi stop outside a bar named 'The Typesetters' Arms'. We pay the driver, and off he goes.

Beltaine wonders who is in charge here, and that perhaps this place has become more Real because one of the Family has taken up residence here.

Tamarind notes that if the babies are being culled, we could watch this culling to see what happens to the memory sparks when the babies die. This suggestion is met with general disgust.

We go into the bar.


Elsewhere in the same shadow, Damien finishes casting his warding spell about the hole to the land of the dead. It should trap spirits, stop magick getting out, and warn him if it goes down while he is in this Shadow.

That done, Ibrahim Trumps Tamarind.


In the Typesetters Arms, Tamarind feels a Trump call coming on, and hurries to the Gents, where he takes the call. He tells Ibrahim what they have found out so far, and recommends that they come by the same route everyone else took through Shadow - they are not dressed appropriately and will need passes and so on. Ibrahim relays this to Damien.


The Trump link drops. Tamarind returns to the others, and tells them Damien and Ibrahim are on their way.

On Tristan's instructions, Beltaine approaches a table of unkempt and bitter-looking journalists sat over by the bar and the main window, who look as if they might be prepared to talk if suitably encouraged. They seem pleased to see her, especially when Tristan sends them over a round of drinks.

"It's cherry brandy, isn't it?" he says to Beltaine.

"In a pint glass," she agrees.

He provides.


Ibrahim and Damien shift Shadow (by way of the 'Foetus and Plastique' inn) to join the others, picking up clothes, passes and so forth en route.

They come out of the Gents and join the rest of us the bar.


Beltaine asks the journalists about the plague, while Tamarind watches a man who seems to be a police spy who is sitting in the corner watching the journalists.

It seems that the disease - on which all current social ills are blamed - grew up over several years. At first it was very rare, but eventually the vast majority of babies born were Cold Babies. "You must be one of the few exceptions," Beltaine's new friends tell her.

As it became clearer and clearer that there would be no next generation, Law and Order fell apart and the military took over to hold things together as much as they could as people saw less and less reason to carry on. The Church collapsed; it couldn't cope the facts that the sickness seemed to prove the existence of reincarnation and other worlds. In its place have grown up lots of smaller religions, fringe cults, death cults, the Cult of Rebirth, and so on.

Tristan asks about the 'really bad Death cult'.

"Oh," replies one journalist. "The Children of Anarakis? They were all wiped out, both by the government and by their own members committing suicide; that's the problem with these death cults, always killing themselves off..."

The government is now promoting homosexuality, the journalists continue, since heterosexual relations only lead to babies that have to be killed.

Tristan decides that politics and society here will return to what it was before, once the disease is controlled.

Beltaine (now getting thoroughly drunk on the cherry brandy Tristan keeps supplying) asks who is in charge.

"General Barisios," the journalists tell her.


Tamarind sees that the police spy over in the corner appears to be about to leave, so he goes to the Gents, does a quick Trump sketch of the man, and then follows him out of the bar. The spy heads for a public phone box.

Tamarind catches up with him and says he has information - he's been with people who were talking subversively and wants to turn them in, for a reward. He persuades the man to join forces with him, leads him off through Shadow, knocks him out when he starts to get suspicious, and ties him up in a room he finds.

He then Trumps Ibrahim.


Meanwhile, Damien asks who is in charge of the research efforts into Cold Baby Syndrome.

Professor Branarien, he is told. A woman. Who, from her description, sounds like an older-looking version of Fiona. We are told that she has to live under guard, since people get angry at her continuing lack of success in finding a cure - there was a car bomb attack on her just yesterday.


Tamarind gets through to Ibrahim on the Trump. They bring each other up to date with no vocal component to their communication.


"Oh, I've just thought of something horrible," says Beltaine to Damien. "If you'll remind me later, I'll tell you," she concludes. "Hic!" she adds.

"I lost my kitten," she burbles, reaching her cherry brandy limit, and bursting into tears.

One of her new journalist friends comforts her, and tries to cop a feel in the process. Damien 'helps' him off his stool and onto the floor, so Beltaine weeps on Damien's shoulder instead.

From what the journalists say, someone answering the description of Brand apparently turned up here too, posing as an investigative journalist, then disappeared. Perhaps it was the real Brand, or perhaps it was just another Shadow, and not the real Brand at all.


Elsewhere, Tamarind interrogates the police spy. The spy tries to bluff and bluster, but soon cracks and tells all.

Tamarind finds out much of what the others have learned, and also that Cold Baby Syndrome began in the Province of Moro, then spread out from there after the population was evacuated. Tamarind asks whether there is a concentration of cases near where Cold Babies are culled, to see if the memory sparks continue in Shadow after the body they are in dies and get passed on to new hosts. The spy is not sure, but says he doesn't think so.

The spy also says that he has had to work against some of the cults, including the Death Cults, as part of his duties, and so Tamarind learns more about these from him. None sound at all nice.


In both locations, informants run out of information to pass on (or they pass out, in the case of the Typesetters' Arms).


In the bar, we thank those journalists who are still conscious, and leave.

Outside, we discuss whether or not to investigate Professor Branarien.

Damien thinks she is a placeholder for (or Shadow of) the real Fiona, since the car bomb attack came after the real Fiona died. He also notes that if Branarien is a Shadow, maybe the real Fiona has not been here, but in a neighbouring Shadow, which may be more Real than this one. He suggests they Trump Tamarind, to get his opinions.

Ibrahim does this thing.


Tamarind takes the Trump call, but before he goes through the link tells the spy he is going to leave him here, so he can't shop the journalists, but will come and collect him some time when it's safe to do so. He then goes through to Ibrahim.


Information is exchanged.

We set out to look for Professor Branarien at the University. We shift off through Shadow and back to gain military uniform and so on. Damien changes his coat to black leather, and becomes Gestapo Man. Beltaine finds a bedraggled stray tortoiseshell kitten as we go, and tucks it into her black leather coat.

We march up to a gate in the wall surrounding the University. Guards check our papers, then let us in.

We make our way across the run-down-looking campus. En route, Tristan finds a bottle of milk on a faculty doorstep for the kitten, hoping to shut Beltaine up.

We reach and go through another checkpoint. Damien checks the list of comings and goings. The Professor is apparently still here, working.

At the reception of the building where the Professor is working, out passes are checked again and we gain an escort of armed soldiers. The receptionist (also a soldier) phones ahead, and learns that Professor Branarien is expecting us. We are escorted down into the basement, via more checkpoints, to a huge, thick bank-vault-type door which leads in to a large warehouse-sized underground research facility. [Not unlike 'The Initiative' base, from Buffy the Vampire Slayer.] The door leads out into this space near roof-level, at the top of a set of metal stairs that lead down to floor level.

Spread out below us we can see a hospital ward with pregnant mothers, and a lab area, with what looks like an office area in between; none of these spaces are roofed other than by the overall roofing of this space. Tristan can sense that some of the things here are very Real. A wire mesh - which is warded with magick - covers one hospital bed a little way apart from the others.

In the office are desks and computers. Lots of people are moving about everywhere, many in military uniform, most of the rest in lab coats. Including a Fiona look-alike, apparently in her forties, wearing an immaculate lab coat over a military uniform. She welcomes us as we descend the stairs, but is soon annoyed by our insistence on a private conversation. We can, by this point, tell that she is not Real.

We ask if she has made any progress. "No," she replies.

Beltaine senses that she is lying, and says so.

No-one is impressed with the Professor's denials, and the guys attempt to strong-arm her in their best fascist bullyboy manner. She stonewalls, apparently not in the least intimidated.

Tamarind 'takes notes' (he's really making a Trump sketch).

We suggest that she is about to be closed down. She reaches for something in her pocket.

Damien puts Dashwood to her head. She stops reaching for whatever it is.

Tamarind, with Beltaine's help, uses his Trump sketch of her to overcome her mind (which is very strong for a Shadow-dweller) and freeze her in place. She stops moving.

Tristan and Ibrahim then search her. It appears that she was reaching for a panic button. They take this, and her gun.

Over the Trump link, Tamarind can sense her thinking. "What's going on? I was given complete autonomy! Mustn't tell them about the results..."

Beltaine casts a Charm spell at the Professor, to encourage her co-operation. The professor bursts into flames.

Ibrahim touches her with his Pattern blade, but although magick triggered the flames, they themselves are not magickal and do not stop.

Tristan tries a fire extinguisher, with no result.

We can all tell that she is in severe pain. Mainly by the screaming.

Tamarind tries to force her to reveal her results, to little effect.

"Aren't they written down somewhere?" asks Beltaine.

The Professor, through her hideous agony, thinks briefly of that computer.

Tamarind points it out to Damien as alarms go off and the sprinklers kick in. Damien sticks a desk over the computer to shelter it from the sprinklers. Good thinking.

Tamarind grabs the Professor and tries to Trump to Amber, where hopefully whatever (technical rather than magickal thing) is causing the flames won't work. As he touches her his hand bursts into flames. Ouch. But after a moment he makes contact, and goes through with the burning scientist.


The flames do stop as they arrive in Amber, but the Professor is dead on arrival. Also, Tamarind's hand is severely burned.

He sends the body off to a Trump-barred cell, says no one but the King is allowed to see it, and sends a message to Random explaining this.

Then he Trumps Ibrahim.


Meanwhile, in shadow, armed soldiers burst into the lab, guns at the ready.

Tristan tells them all is under control, and sends them off to check the perimeter. They go to do this thing.

Damien begins to check out the computer indicated by the Professor. Beltaine (and the kitten) stay to help him.

Tristan and Ibrahim go to check the Real artefacts present in the lab area of the base.


The lab turns out to be very well-equipped for biological, medical and magical research. There are a lot of magical items on the benches, but Tristan and Ibrahim head straight for the three Real items, which turn out to be:

  1. A life force-detecting spyglass, not unlike the on Brand made, in the form of a small lens on an arm attached to a headband, so it can be flipped down in front of the eye while leaving the hands free. Unlike Brand's spyglass, though, this one seems to be usable by non-Advanced Pattern initiates, and indeed by non-Amberites.
  2. A spirit-magick-related thing with some Trump present, perhaps something for extracting, immobilising and dissecting spirits. It also incorporates a spiritual life-support facility which appear to be for keeping spirits alive during vivisection.
  3. A spirit trap, with a black memory spirit contained within it.

At this point, Ibrahim feels a Trump call coming on, and takes it. It's Tamarind. Ibrahim brings him through and explains what we have found so far. Tamarind examines the partly-Trump artefact.


In the office area, Damien 'luckily' guesses the password for the computer. He begins to look through the data stored on disc, searching for, and quickly finding, recent research notes.


Tristan returns to tell Damien and Beltaine (and the kitten) what they've found.

Beltaine suggests that if Fiona knew she had a black blob, it's understandable she would research ways of getting rid of it. Even she doesn't sound entirely convinced, however.

Tristan thinks it more likely that the equipment is for isolation and storage.

The first file that Damien opens deals with an experiment that exposed babies in the womb to the black memory-blobs. It seems that there is a window of one to five months after conception during which the imposed memories 'take'. Before and after that, babies seem to be immune.

"Um, this doesn't sound much like an attempt to cure it," says Beltaine.

"It's an experiment into controlling it," agrees Damien.

Beltaine suggests looking for the project files. They do this.


Tristan leaves the office area, finds some scientists and gets them to describe the procedures they followed with the Real artefacts. This does not take very long, and results in him being told the following:

Tristan calls a halt to any further dissections, and confiscates the items.


Ibrahim examines the enchanted cage affair, and discovers that it is much like Damien's anti-spirit warding. There is a bed and monitoring equipment inside, but nothing else as far as he can see.

Further examination shows that the warding is based on empowerment rather than sorcery. It seems to be beyond mere Shadow sorcery, that is, to have been done by someone with an awareness of cross-Shadow magick, if not necessarily a practitioner of such. Ibrahim enters the cage via the wire-mesh airlock (which prevents the continuity of the cage being broken when someone goes in or out) and studies the warding more closely.

After a bit he emerges and asks a scientist how the cage was made. He tells Ibrahim that the Professor built it. She knew far more about magick than anyone else on the project. The chamber was created to contain memory fragments for study.

This scientist seems less inclined to stall than the Professor. He tells Ibrahim that he is involved in capturing and analysing the memory fragments themselves, and the memories they contain. It seems that the memories come from what seem to be lots of different worlds, with no obvious pattern between them. They represent all ages, all backgrounds, some living to be thousands of years old, some not human (although still sentient). But all the memory-sets end in the death of the person whose memories they are.

Having a sudden attack of paranoia, just in case, Ibrahim begins to checks for demolition charges and so on around the lab.


Tamarind looks for other Trump-related items, but he finds none. He does find out who the research team leaders are, though.


On the computer, Beltaine and Damien find a project schedule. Four lines of research seem to have been being pursued by the project:

Each line of research is further divided into many sub-sections.

The research seems to have been going on since Fiona first arrived in this Shadow, or within a year of that time. There has clearly been no attempt to conduct research into a cure. They could have warded the site of origin, but didn't; it would have interfered with the research.

The computer also details past projects.

Damien wants a copy of all this data. He finds a printer, connects it and starts printing everything out.


Tamarind debriefs the research team leaders. He finds that they can report on their own projects, but don't seem to know how all the research fits together; everything seems to have been very compartmentalised. They do not know where the devices came from - they say that the Professor brought them with her when she took over the project, and as far as Tamarind can tell are not lying about this.


Searching the base, Ibrahim discovers demolition charges, napalm, poison gas, and all sorts of other unpleasant things - the whole place is rigged to go sky-high at the flick of a switch. The switch not being here, however, but as far as he can tell somewhere else, off the base.

He informs the rest of us of this, then set about disabling all of the wiring controlling the charges.


After a while, everyone meets up in the Professors office and shares information.

Apparently, from what the researchers have told Tamarind, the small spirit-container could be connected to a volunteer, a memory fragment would be sliced open and the volunteer would receive its memories and then report on them.

At Ibrahim's suggestion, Damien begins to search the computer databases for mention of Fiona. And a few other things, too.


While the search takes place, the rest of us discuss whether to take over this research and direct it, or shut it down. Certainly this research does not seem at all ethical...

As we discuss this, we have all of the project staff assemble outside.


On the computer, Damien cannot find references to any of Su-Chan, Mera, and Anurerishkigal (or phonetic variants thereof) in the database of stored memories.

He does find a couple of references to someone called 'Fiona', though:

Damien is now searching all files, not just the memory database, for references to all of the Amberites.

Beltaine is feeding her kitten more milk.


All the research personnel have now assembled. We agree to shut the whole place down.


From his overall file search, Damien collects the following references to names we know:

The above are only a tiny fraction of the total records; most of them seem to be from a random selection of shadow dwellers.

Damien narrows enquiry about the Courts of Chaos down to the names of individual Chaos Families, which seems to help. However, it appears that all the volunteers went mad when trying to describe or assimilate the Chaos memories.

The name Vathek does crop up in the search, but 'volunteer went mad'.

By this point all of the data has been printed out. All the print-outs are collected up, and we go to see the nervous research workers, who snap to attention as we appear.


Ibrahim addresses them. He thanks them for their hard work and research. He is pleased to note their successes, but disappointed that information has not been passed on to the correct quarters. The containment device will now be erected over the newly-discovered point of origin of the problem. Standard non-disclosure clauses apply to all of this - they must talk to no one of it.

They are all dismissed.

Tamarind calls over the scientist who was analysing spirits for one or two last procedural details.

"Miss Kitty is hungry," says Beltaine, plaintively. "She's finished all her milk."

Damien takes charge of the 'other' life force spyglass.

Tamarind borrows it to check Trumps and people. From looking through it, it seems that people have thousands of times more life-force than a Trump. He returns the glass to Damien.

Ibrahim is keen to take over this Shadow to make sure it gets fixed properly [it's nothing to do with the prevalence of black leather uniforms, you understand...].

To facilitate this, Tristan 'decides' that the General is ill and fading fast...

Beltaine remarks that she has lots of life force, and would be happy to share with anyone who's lost some by day-tripping to the Land of the Dead.

Damien advises against this. "You never know when you'll need it," he points out.


We shift off through Shadow.

Tamarind suggests Trumping Random to give him the artefacts we don't need. This is agreed, so he, Beltaine and Ibrahim Trump Random and, when he takes the call, go through to him in Amber.

Tristan and Damien go to check on how Damien's wardings are holding up at the hole from the land of the dead.


In Amber, Beltaine gives Random a slightly off-balance hug, and introduces him to her new kitten friend. "Who needs fish," she adds.

"You've been at the cherry brandy again," notes Random.

"You're nice. I love you," replies his ward, collapsing into a chair. Random is given Miss Kitty to hold.

Tamarind explains what they have been up to.

"Now I've got two of them killed," wails Beltaine, on learning that the Professor is dead.

Random is given the spirit dissector and spirit trap, plus all of the notes (a very large stack of paper).

Ibrahim reports that a warding exists to block any more of the memory-spirit things from contaminating the rest of the shadow.

Tamarind mentions that Trumps seem to have sentient life energy in them.

The upshot is that we seem to have a reliable means of blocking the memory blobs from leaking into the Land of the Living. At least in places where magick works.

Random orders his butler to bring some fish and cream for Miss Kitty.

At this point, Tamarind disappears with no visible use of a Trump.

"Wha..?" goes Beltaine, who didn't hear him say he was leaving. "Tamarind just, like, disappeared." She frets that he has been kidnapped.


Arriving in shadow Haven, Tamarind picks up some bottles of useful stuff, then Trumps Beltaine, again spurning the use of a Trump card.


In Amber, Beltaine feels a Trump call coming on, and takes it, but is suspicious. "Why don't you have a card?" she demands aloud.

Ibrahim and Random join the contact on hearing this.

Tamarind comes back through and explains he's learned how to make Trump contacts without cards. They decide that he isn't Fiona, and decline his offer to have Caine examine him.

Random tells them that Julian has reported an (unsuccessful) attempt on the life of Princess Felicia of Aretskya. She is, of course, a Shadow of Fiona...

"That was the ... bad thing ... I thought ... of ..." mutters Beltaine.

Ibrahim offers to heal Tamarind's burned hand, if he can have some time in Shadow Haven.

Tamarind, still in the sharing mood, notes that he is also researching the creation of Trump gates.

"Well, I can make sugar dormice out of moonlight," says Beltaine helpfully.

"And walk through walls," she adds, which gets a little more of a reaction.

All three Trump off to shadow Haven.


Upon arrival at Tamarind's villa, Beltaine makes coffee, and is also given a bottle of 'pick-me-up stuff' by Tamarind. She swiftly goes from being horribly drunk to high on caffeine and energy.

Over he course of half an hour or so, Ibrahim casts his healing spell on Tamarind, and restores him to full health.


In Moro, Tristan and Damien arrive at the 'Foetus and Plastique' inn and check Damien's warding. Black sparks can be senses ricocheting about inside it, but it seems that they cannot get out. They seem to be fading sufficiently fast that the warding is showing no signs of breaking under the pressure of a myriad trapped memory-sparks.

Tristan is satisfied that we have done what we can.

Damien points out we are still just sticking their fingers in the dyke. "Which is another word for dam," he adds, hastily, remembering this Shadow's particular habits.

Tristan wonders if he could seal this bit of Shadow off, cutting it out to make it a Shadow of its own...except that he can't. Yet. Though he has a vague idea of how it might be done.

"Well, it's contained for the meantime," says Damien.


In Haven, Tamarind's burnt hand is healed. That done, he does a quick Trump sketch of Flora's mansion, then goes there are finds one of Flora's secretaries, by the name of Lydia, to help him photocopy the large pile of printouts. This takes some time.

Once it is done he picks up the two vast piles of paper and Trumps back to Haven.


Ibrahim Trumps Damien, who is currently hanging spells in Moro.

Just as Damien finishes hanging his first spell, he feels a Trump call coming on, and takes it.

Ibrahim and Beltaine go through to Damien.

Tristan leads them into the tavern, then shifts us all out of the Shadow, then back in, to General Barisios' palace.

The heavily armed guards let us in - Colonel Nazir (Ibrahim) is expected. Tristan decides the real Nazir in this Shadow is in fact marooned on a desert island and will never be found...

We are ushered into General Barisios' sick-room. The General is an elderly, hook-nosed man lying in a bed attached to several life-monitoring machines. He looks up as we approach, and greets Ibrahim as Colonel Nazir.

Ibrahim tells him that Professor Branarien was holding back. She had taken the project off at a tangent, but has not revealed a means of containment. He describes how to set up a warding over the source of origin. The General is not happy at the first part of this news. He gives Colonel Nazir full authority to deal with it, then is wracked by a huge fit of coughing. He is really not well. He says that he realises he's not long for this world if he doesn't relinquish command and take a real rest. "But that you, Colonel Nazir, have proved yourself to be a worthy successor."

Assorted lawyers, flunkies and minions are called in and General Barisios passes all command to 'Colonel Nazir'. All is signed, sealed and as legal as it can be in a fascist dictatorship.


Meanwhile Tamarind returns to shadow Haven, only to realise that everyone else has left. He Trumps Random again and when he takes the call hands him both sets of printouts.

Random looks slightly bemused, and says he will probably give one of the copies to Caine.

Tamarind breaks the Trump link and Trumps Beltaine.


The rest of us leave General Barisios, who is looking better already, now that the burden of command has lifted. Oh, and that Tristan is no longer concentrating on making him ill...


Tamarind gets through to Beltaine on the Trump. She waits until we are all out of sight of the guards, then she brings him through.

Ibrahim goes to the General's staff office, with the rest of us in tow, and takes over.

The General Staff is summoned, and when they are assembled he orders the end of the culling of Cold Babies. And the secure transportation of the warded container to Moro province for placement over the hole to the land of the dead. He announces an imminent end to the Cold Baby syndrome. For this he gets a standing ovation.

The staff disperse to their various tasks, filled with new confidence.


At Beltaine's prompting, Tamarind tells Damien and Tristan that he can now use Trumps without needing actual cards.

"Congratulations," says Damien.

"Use your power wisely," admonishes Tristan.


Tristan wants to try to find out where Fiona came back to when we rescued her from the land of the dead, five years ago. Which means contacting Bleys.

Ibrahim wants to stay in Shadow Moro and be Generalissimo for a bit, to set them off on the right track.

Tamarind says it would be a Bad Thing for him to go and see Bleys.

Damien feels the same, though he isn't keen on the idea of Tristan and Beltaine going alone, either.

In the end, Damien goes to Haven with Tamarind, as he wants to hang more spells, mostly spirit wardings to seal off the other apertures from the land of the dead.

Ibrahim goes off to Do Some Good.


Tristan and Beltaine head off into Shadow. After they are some way away from Moro they Trump Bleys. It takes quite a long time, but eventually they make contact.

The situation is explained, and Bleys invites them to go through. They do this thing.

Tristan tells him that people coming back from the Land of the Dead have left holes through which the memories of dead people can come back and cause damage to new-borns...

"You are concerned about where Fiona came back, aren't you?" interrupts Bleys.

Tristan agrees this is so. He then looks at Bleys through the spyglass. Bleys appears to have an odd double life-force, one of which has a Fiona-style black blob in it (not a diffused skein like that which a Cold Baby would possess).

"Tristan, that's very rude..." says Beltaine. Obliviously.

Tristan contains his 'ulp!' He explains to Bleys how to ward against the memory-sparks getting out.

Bleys says the Shadow where Fiona returned is not accessible to us, but that he will take care of the hole there himself.

Tristan thanks him and tries to engineer a quick exit.

Beltaine protests that she wants some of the coffee Bleys has just ordered.

"Sorry, must go," insists Tristan.

Bleys kisses Beltaine's hand in farewell.

Tristan fights down panic.

He concentrates hard on the Trump of Amber, and when he makes contact takes them both through to the Amber Arrival Courtyard.

"Oh shit, oh shit..." he mutters. He tells Beltaine what he saw.

She Trumps Tamarind while Tristan Trumps Random.


In Haven, Damien is hanging spells.

Tamarind is memorising Trumps. He is interrupted by Beltaine's Trump call.

"Come back," she says, urgently.

Tamarind calls over Damien, whose half-hung spell fizzles away, and explains the situation. They go through to Beltaine in Amber.

Beltaine explains to them what Tristan saw.

Damien swears.

Tamarind Trumps Ibrahim (the card-less way), gets through, and with Ibrahim's permission brings him through to Amber too.

Tristan makes Trump contact with Random and we all go through to him.


In the royal sitting room are Random and a cleaned-up, very well-fed-looking Miss Kitty.

Tristan explains the Bleys situation to him.

"Told you," mutters Beltaine to Damien, referring to her vision. The crowd with Fiona's face superimposed. She is reluctant to repeat it again, but doesn't mind if Damien does.

He fills everyone else in on what Beltaine saw.

Ibrahim asks whether Bleys' life force had dropped.

Tristan realises that it had, and says so. Bleys has clearly been back to the Land of the Dead to get Fiona.

Tamarind checks the Trumps. Active are Caine (as usual), Esmée and Margot, Llewella and Bleys.

Tristan Trumps Caine, who answers at once and comes through.

Tamarind asks him whether Bleys and Llewella are having a conversation.

"Yes," says Caine, checking his deck.

"Your Majesty, state of alert?" suggests Damien.

Random orders a one-step-short of full mobilisation level of alert to be put into place. Very serious.

Caine says he cannot overhear the conversation without revealing himself to the conversationalists.

Tamarind doesn't think he could either.

With Random's permission, Tristan Trumps Benedict, who reluctantly comes through. He is told that Fiona is back, in Bleys' body, and that Bleys is chatting to Llewella. As Benedict comes through, Tamarind feels Bleys and Llewella's Trumps cease to be active.

Damien describes Beltaine's vision to Benedict, leaving out the, 'You made it so...' ending (which Beltaine adds anyway).

Benedict asks what the plan is.

"Group Trump?" suggests Tamarind.

"Yeah, that worked out so well last time..." sighs Beltaine.

"Could you extract Fiona from Bleys?" Tristan asks Caine.

"Possibly," he says. "But I don't think I could then contain her."

Beltaine notes that Bleys could have killed Tristan and herself when it was obvious that Tristan had worked things out, but didn't.

"I wish you'd warned me, by the way" she adds to Tristan. "I wouldn't have let him kiss me goodbye..."

Damien looks appalled.

Benedict, on discovering there is no plan, gets out a Trump and tells them to call him if he's needed.

"Oh, get a life," mutters Beltaine.

"Not as useful as he used to be..." sighs Random, though he actually waits until Benedict has left before opening his mouth.

Another argument breaks out over the uselessness of Benedict.

Tamarind begins to talk of restraining Bleys and Fiona.

Tristan is sarcastic at him regarding the likelihood of this.

Damien is trying to Trump Julian and not getting through. Well, it is late. Perhaps he's asleep.

Tristan arranges to lift his little finger as a signal if anyone who is Trumped in is Bad (or at least has a black blob in them).

Ibrahim Trumps Margot, who comes through, in a red-black shot-silk dressing gown.

Tristan peers at her through the spyglass - she's clean.

Tamarind Trumps Esmée, who is, it turns out, in a loud night-club. The situation is explained and somewhat reluctantly she slips off into the Ladies and comes through.

Tristan peers at her through the glass - Damien tenses slightly - but she's clean too. Also very skimpily dressed. Caine grins appreciatively.

Beltaine Trumps and brings through Caleb, from a beach party. He's also clean when viewed through the spyglass. He too is skimpily dressed, in a swimming costume.

Tamarind takes over trying to contact Julian, and Damien tries Gerard instead.


Beltaine goes into the Royal Bedroom next door to introduce her kitten to Vialle. While Vialle pets Miss Kitty she fills Vialle in on things, and Vialle comes to join the group in the living room.


Tamarind is not getting through to Julian.

Margot volunteers that she has a Trump of Castle Arden, and Trumps off there to wake Julian up and bring him here (or find out what is happening in any case).

Beltaine Trumps Flora, who's in her quarters in Amber. When the situation is explained she puts on a rather fetching embroidered dressing gown and comes through.

Tristan continues to check all new arrivals. He has detected no black blobs so far.

Tamarind brings through Deirdre.

Damien brings through Altair from the Morningstar. Then he Trumps Brand.

Margot and Julian Trump through to Esmée. Julian proves to look rather good in a white silk dressing gown.

Damien brings Brand through.

Esmée brings in Owen.

Tristan explains that the group has been repairing tears in Shadow, and that when warning Bleys of the situation he saw that Bleys had a second spirit, which in turn was possessed by the same thing that had been possessing Fiona. Appropriate conclusions are drawn.

Tamarind adds that Bleys and Llewella were recently in contact.

Tristan wonders if we might want to contact Llewella.

Julian says that Bleys came to him after the memorial service. "He wished to recruit my assistance in certain undertakings..." he says. He looks significantly at Tamarind and Damien. "Revenge was mentioned." Apparently Bleys was not much more specific. Julian says he declined this offer.

"Was anyone else was approached?" Tamarind asks the room at large. There is a mass shaking of heads.

Random gives us permission to Trump Llewella, along with assurances of safe passage and so on should she require them.


We step out into the corridor and concentrate on Llewella's Trump, Damien triggers his clothes to shift into something more presentable at the same time.

Llewella takes the call. She is seated on the throne of Rebma dressed in the traditional Rebman scaled Trunks and little else besides jewellery.

Tamarind thanks her for answering and asks if she would join us at an important conference. He adds that Random has given appropriate assurances of safe passage and so on. She considers this for a moment, then nods and comes through to us in Amber.

Tamarind lends her his coat. She thanks him.

Tristan, after some prompting, looks at her through the lens. She's clean.


We go back in to join the gathering.

Tristan and Tamarind give Llewella a quick précis of the situation, after which Tristan asks whether she has had contact with Bleys?

Llewella considers this.

While she does so, Caine breaks in to inform people that in Fiona's Shadow there were a number of stored bodies, Shadows of her, but not of the Blood. They all suffered tragic incineration accidents.

Llewella grudgingly admits that Bleys was in touch with her, requesting her assistance in some unspecified matter. He promised rich rewards. But she turned him down. She does not, after all, trust the redheads she says, glancing at Brand, and, briefly, Damien.

"Did Bleys seem his normal self?" asks Tamarind.

"No," says Llewella, "something was amiss...possibly as if another entity were present."

"I tell you this as part of our treaty," she adds, to Random.

"I thank you for it," he replies.

"Is Amber on alert?" asks Llewella.

This is confirmed. Llewella says she will return to Rebma and do the same. She concentrates on a Trump and, when she gets through, returns Tamarind's coat before vanishing in a purple Trump rainbow.


"What shall we do now?" Beltaine wants to know. "Read all the notes?"

"And check the results of our other research projects," adds Damien.

Tamarind suggests a group effort to Trump Bleys/Fiona from near a Trump-proof cell.

Random agrees, and gives permission for Tamarind to sketch said location. He does this thing, opens the link, and we all go through.

Despite sarcasm from Tristan and Beltaine ("Show some respect!" growls Gerard. "Explain to us why," they say.) Tamarind Trumps Benedict and brings him through.

The plan is explained to him. He doesn't immediately leave again, so presumably he approves.

Tristan suggests he should Trump Bleys by himself and invite him to come through for a chat. This is universally voted down.

"Not after last time," adds Damien.

Tamarind gets out his Trump Frame. Random returns Brand's Frame to him. Trumps of Bleys are placed in the frames.

Everyone concentrates on the boosted Trumps - and, even pushing at full strength, don't get through.

Beltaine suggests that everyone should not tire themselves out, in case that's what Bleys and Fiona are waiting for.

Damien mentions he was thinking exactly the same thing.

We continue to concentrate. Still nothing. Tamarind thinks there's a block or jam of some kind in operation.

Owen, clearly tiring, withdraws from the link. Followed by Tamarind, then Caine. Other people start to follow suit.

Brand perseveres for a while, then stops. He says he doesn't know if someone was blocking, or if the barrier is a Shadow feature.

"Could Fiona be blocking Bleys' Trump?" wonders Tamarind.

Another attempt is made, with one group made up on Damien, Caine, Tristan and Tamarind using Bleys' Trump and another made up Brand and Beltaine using Fiona's.

Unfortunately, this is no more successful than before.

Caine says that he thinks it is a question of a barrier, not someone blocking.

However, Beltaine does not stop trying until she literally passes out for exhaustion. At this point the attempt is abandoned.

Random thanks everyone for their efforts, and we all Trump back up to the Arrival Courtyard.


Tamarind suggests the following approach: that everyone stays quite close together, the Trump Artists scan Fiona and Bleys's Trumps, and if they become active, we can all quickly get together again for another group effort. Random agrees that this should be tried, for a while at least.

Benedict Trumps off again, followed by the usual sarcastic comments. Beltaine, conscious again by now, contributes to this.

And we settle down to wait...


Session 2.4   Index   Session 2.6

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