ABSALOM, SON OF JULIAN


My character for the game entitled 'What Truth In Dreams?', run by Jules Davis at AmberCon UK 1996. In the course of the game, Absalom suffered more trauma than he had in a long time, and it turned out that the entire Amber multiverse was in fact a huge (but damaged) virtual reality world, in which Amberites and Chaosites were being born and living their whole lives. We had to decide whether to leave everyone in the Multiverse to live inside the VR world, and eventually die as the simulation crashed, or extract them into the harsh outside world...

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DESCRIPTION

Absalom bears a noticeable resemblance to Julian in face and bearing, and is about the same height. However, he is not as muscular, and his hair is mid-brown in colour rather than black, as well as being cut fairly short. His complexion is pale, and his eyes are the same blue as Julians. His demeanour tends to be fairly quiet and solemn. He wears informal clothing, usually a baggy shirt and dark trousers. He dislikes formal wear, but quite enjoys dressing up as for his circus act (not that he's had much chance for that recently). When in Amber he usually has a cat or a dog following him about.


BACKGROUND

Twenty (subjective) years ago, on a shadow called Bretayne, an itinerant fire and brimstone preacher travelling with a circus in the depths of winter, found the ragged and emaciated body of woman, dead, close by a country road. With her, and amazingly still alive in the bitter weather, was a baby boy.

Bretayne is a feudal-industrial world, with mid-Victorian England-like society, dress and technology. Cities are crowded, dirty and grim in the extreme (for the poor) while the countryside is inhabited by tied tenants bound to the land by harsh overlords. Bretayne is lit by four small suns which oscillate around each other; there are also two moons, one large, and one tiny.

The woman had no form of identification on her body, and the circus people were untrusted by the authorities in any case. They all considered the workhouse no place to leave an innocent child. The preacher ended up giving the child, whom he named Absalom, to a childless couple, Johnathon and Valeria, owners of a performing horse act in the circus. After surreptitious inquiries gave no idea of the dead womans identity or origin, Johnathon and Valeria took Absalom to their hearts and raised him as if he were their own child.

As he grew up, Absalom learnt all about animals from his parents, and soon came to love the horses his parents kept. Unlike many of the other circus people he and his parents cared for the animals in their act, rather than just using them. Needless to say, this also led to his acquiring a small retinue of animals, pets and rescued strays too.

As part of the family act, Absalom learnt all about riding, and trick riding, from as soon as he could walk. He also learnt a lot about caring for animals, and veterinary skills too. Like the other circus children he was given a bit of 'formal' teaching in reading, writing and arithmetic; like them he also picked up various other things from the circus folk - acrobatics from trying out the high trapeze; prestidigitation from card sharps; brawling and knife fighting from some of the older, harder circus folk.

He always enjoyed the circus life, and having seen the alternatives available to the less-well-off on Bretayne saw no reason ever to leave. Life was not without its problems, however. As he got older, it became obvious that Absalom was physically superior to everyone else in the circus. A few of the more credulous and superstitious circus folk began to whisper that he was a 'devils child', sent to destroy them.

Johnathon and Valeria defended him as best they could, but people began to shun Absalom. As this happened, Absalom became friends with some of the freaks that travelled with the circus; like him they were shunned for their strangeness. As he came to know them, Absalom came to realise how little appearance mattered compared to what was inside a person.

Still, not everyone shunned him; he had some girlfriends from among the circus folk, and was still respected for him skills. However, one thing Absaloms superiority allowed was for him to be a truly phenomenal horseman and performer. The family act became very successful, and they became rich, for circus folk.

When Absalom was seventeen he and his parents were at a sale of horses. Among the horses for sale was a beautiful red-tinted black horse with golden eyes and a white star marking on its forehead. It was obviously unbroken, and was being offered at a ridiculously low price because it was so dangerous. Absalom fell in love with the magnificent horse, and had to buy him there and then. Surprisingly, he was able to calm the horse with a touch and, docilely, it followed them home.

It soon became apparent that Absalom was the only one really able to have anything to do with the horse, which Absalom named Zealot. With Zealot, Absalom was able to reach new heights in his performances; Zealot seemed faster, stronger, more intelligent, and overall batter than any other horse; he was to horses what Absalom was to people. The tongues of the credulous wagged some more, and although Absalom found himself further shunned, Zealots presence meant he could almost ignore it.

Then tragedy struck. Both Johnathon and Valeria became ill, of some plague no-one had seen before. Despite the best efforts of doctors and healers; they wasted away and died. Rumours began to circulate that Absalom had been responsible for the deaths in some weird fashion, and this time the rumours did not go away. Even the freaks began to shun him. Absalom became very lonely. Only the animals were still his friends.

Then a hate campaign started, apparently orchestrated by Ezikiel, a past rival of his for one of the circus girls. Several of his animals were killed, in more and more gruesome ways. They even tried (without any success) to harm Zealot. Eventually it all became too much. Absalom confronted Ezikiel. They argued. Absalom snapped, and before he knew it had killed Ezikiel with his bare hands.

Snapped back to reason by what he had done, Absalom fled, taking Zealot and riding off into the night, faster than the wind. Camped, sleepless, in the wilderness that night Absalom wished for somewhere he could be accepted, somewhere he would fit in, and not be a freak.

The next day, as they rode, Zealot somehow seemed to follow paths out of Bretayne into other worlds! At first, Absalom was frightened by this, to say the least, but Zealot seemed to project reassurance, and calmed by this and with Absalom trusting Zealot, they continued on.

After some days they reached a huge, deep forest, different in quality from any Absalom had seen before. As they rode along through the forest, they were challenged by a group of armed and strangely-uniformed men. Being unarmed, Absalom had little choice but to go with them as the locale was free from cover and not good ground for a galloping horse.

The soldiers (Rangers, Absalom heard from their talk), led Absalom through the forest (Arden, apparently) to some kind of command post. There he met an imposing man in white armour, apparently named Julian, and a Prince of some place called Amber. Julian seemed more than a little shocked to see him, and dismissing the Rangers, took Absalom into a tent to talk.

There, Julian claimed to be Absaloms real, biological father. Absalom didn't believe him at first, but Julian was able to provide enough evidence to make it seem that he was right - Absalom was a Prince of Amber too!

Julian explained that he had only found out about Absalom's existence recently. When he had investigated, with the intention of taking Absalom back to Amber immediately, he had found him happy with his life in the circus. Instead, Julian had arranged for Absalom to acquire Zealot, who had been trained to take Absalom to Amber when and if he ever sincerely wanted to leave Bretayne. This was what had just happened. When it was mentioned, Absalom did remember someone of roughly Julians description asking questions about him and watching his act some time ago...

Over the next couple of days, Absalom stayed in Julians camp, while Julian told him about Amber, Shadow, and the Pattern. Then they went to Amber itself, where Absalom walked the Pattern under Julians watchful eye.

Since then, Absalom has explored Shadow a little, but is more interested in staying in Amber for the time being, as it is somewhere he is not a freak. However, he is still uncomfortable with being considered a Prince. Rather than take the quarters he was offered in the palace, he has taken a set of rooms over the Castle stables, where Zealot is housed, and alternates between Amber and Arden where he explores the city and the forest. He has already acquired a number of cats and dogs which live with him...


ZEALOT

A large beautiful red-tinted black horse with golden eyes and a white star marking on its forehead. Zealot is obviously a horse of ultimate quality just in appearance, and is capable of exceeding a normal horse in every way. Absalom cares for him as much as he cares for himself.


POINTS EXPENDITURE

Psyche    : 5
Strength  : 5
Endurance : 5
Warfare   : 40

Pattern                     : 50
Good Stuff                  : 1
Amber Court Friend          : 2

Creature - Zealot (a horse) : 12
 [Engine Speed                - 4,
  Amber Stamina               - 2,
  Double Vitality             - 2,
  Combat Training             - 1,
  Resistant to Normal Weapons - 1,
  Follow Shadow Trail         - 1
  Psychic Sensitivity         - 1]

Points : (5  + 5 + 5 + 40) + 
          50 + 2 + 1 + 12  = 120

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