TRISTAN'S DIARY

Tristan played by Keith Grainge.

"And you may as well know - I still intend to deal with Finndo one day. When I've learned enough."

That was almost the last thing she said to me before she left Amber for the Girasol side of the Universe. And as soon as I saw the Bubble I knew that day had finally come.

Strange really, all this time that I have known that Beltaine would try to take revenge on Finndo, I've been expecting that she would fail and I have been trying to think how I might keep Chalice safe afterwards. I've always assumed that Finndo's age, his secrets, his powers and most of all his horrifying level of shear nastyness would be the telling factors in any confrontation. I've always been a little naive (as Damien never tires of reminding me) and I have definitely underestimated Beltaine in a big way. Perhaps because I still prefer to think of her as the child she used to be.

So what now? Some dark part of me that I usual manage to quell shouts "Good Riddance!" before I force it back to sleep. But what would happen if we did manage to rescue Finndo? I have little doubt that he would want to neutralise any further threat and, having seen Beltaine's power, I predict he would recruit others into helping him. I can easily see the whole Family been torn into two factions who would wage war across the entire Universe - probably the most serious threat to Amber for millenia. No, though it sickens me to say it, it is best if he stays trapped in his Bubble. For the good of Amber. I'm sure he would appreciate the irony.

I wonder what the others are making of this? I guess that Damien has his suspicions, but is working on the principle that "we don't leave our people in there". Ibrahim is probably suppressing the idea that Beltaine could be behind this by force of will, at least until there is some concrete evidence. Phoenix doesn't have the necessary first hand experience to be sure about the situation and may well be surprised that no-one has made the obvious suggestion. And I'm sure that the only reason that Tamarind isn't dancing a jig of joy is that he didn't get the opportunity to murder Finndo himself, watch his spirit fizzle into nothingness and cast his head into the Abyss.

Anyway, I guess this is all this talk of rescue is rather hypothetical since I suspect that we have don't a chance of freeing him. Beltaine was only released after years of effort and I don't think that anyone is sufficiently well disposed towards Finndo to put in that kind of effort, let alone those with the power to actually achieve it. No one, that is, apart from two worrying possibilities. First, there is Dad and I doubt anyone can predict his motives accurately. Second there is the chance that Finndo has split himself in two and part of him is still free. In which case we will have a war anyway.

So, I have decided to stay silent and let a guilty man suffer for his crimes, despite the fact it should be my duty to help him. And I grieve for the lost child that I once loved and hope, now that her revenge is done, she will not turn into a true monster.