Notes Taken by Samantha and Alastair Beadle.
A few hours before the meeting between Gerard and Finndo occurred Caitlin is sitting on a small ledge above the base when she suddenly feels as if she is moving through shadow, though nothing seems to have changed - everything appears the same but something definitely happened.
After the brief meeting between Finndo and Gerard.
Etienne Trumps Caitlin and tells her the meeting didn't go too well. Caitlin tells Etienne about the shadow movement. Gil says that some of the elder Amberites are more powerful in their usage of the Pattern and can possibly move entire worlds.
Caitlin remains in a Trump link with Etienne for a long time as things are discussed.
There follow many hours of discussion as to who we should support, who should be king and if we should even get involved.
We decide that we need more information. Gil tells us that from what he knows Oberon wanted Corwin to take over, but he refused. Benedict could have easily had the throne at any time because he was such a great warrior, but he didn't want to be king.
It is decided to go to the library and get the book about Finndo Gerard had shown Caitlin previously.
The book is "The History of Finndo, Prince of Amber", a dusty and obviously very old tome. It tells us that Finndo is the oldest son of Oberon; along with Benedict and Osric he is the son of Oberon and Cymnea. He was a loyal son for along time, being studious and also good at the ways of war. He was also arrogant and stubborn - very like his father Oberon.
He betrayed Amber over a noblewoman from the shadow of Begma, and supported Begma against Amber. Finndo then conducted a vendetta against the House Karm (a noble but non-royal family of Amber). He wiped out most of this family, although he still supported Oberon. His brother Osric (Benedict's younger brother) supported Finndo against Oberon's inevitable anger.
Some years later Oberon sent Finndo and Osric off to fight a battle for Amber and it was reported they both died, heroically, in the defence of Amber against some powerful enemy out of shadow. However, the main reason they died seems to be because they had inadequate forces with them. But they did win the war. This was all well over ten thousand years ago.
It is noticed that the book is hardly an unbiased account; there is definitely a leaning in the writing towards 'Oberon was right; Finndo was wrong'.
The book "The History of Gerard" - tells us that Gerard is one of Oberon's younger sons, by him and Rilga. He is known for his strength - there is no-one stronger than him. He is both a loyal son of Oberon and a loyal defender of Amber. He was a fleet admiral for a long time, along with his brother Caine (who died roughly twelve years ago). He has a strong will but is not an intellectual. He has good medical skills. He did sell out Eric for a while (to side with Corwin); he considered Eric the best choice at the time, but Corwin, when he turned up, was considered a better choice by him; he stood aside and let Eric and Corwin's forces fight it out until it was obvious Eric was going to win, when he returned to Eric's fold.
Oberon sent all the other elders down the "Black Road" to the Courts of Chaos, while he walked the Primal Pattern to re-draw it, and he elected Gerard as Regent of Amber. The Black Road disappeared soon after the Pattern was re-drawn, after Dworkin drove Oberon's body off down it.
At one point Oberon had beat up Gerard (while posing as Ganelon, a follower of Corwin) to defend Corwin. Benedict had supported Oberon at all times.
Like the biography of Finndo, that of Gerard is in no way an unbiased account.
Caitlin suggests that Gil should read the Trumps to see who should be king. He does, shuffling and dealing the cards twice and getting the same result both times (in a slightly disturbing way). One card (that of Gils fast Trump drawing shadow, Vitesse) has somehow flipped over both times, showing its unicorn reverse. The cards (according to Gil) imply that whoever should be King 'lies on the unicorn's horn', assuming the reversed card does actually mean the unicorn itself; one card implies it will be an unlikely choice; perhaps a youngster. Gerard's card is not there and there is no card that could be interpreted as being Finndo.
Caitlin asks Gil to teach her how to read the Trumps. He agrees, saying that is something any of the family can learn to do with practise.
The discussions continue. Gil decides to go and do some more Trumps, and goes to Vitesse.
More discussions take place. It is now more of an argument. Arun, Caitlin (via Trump) and Etienne don't think they should support either side. Dolf and Jihx are very anti-Finndo and refuse to accept any option after fighting against him.
Many hours of arguments continue. Arun sways between whether to support Finndo or not intervene. Etienne puts forward arguments on all sides. Dolf and Jihx continue to side with waging war against Finndo. Caitlin thinks they shouldn't get involved and Dolf suggests that she go home and sit on her rock.
Eventually Gil returns. He has finished a Trump sketch of the shadow where the airships are based. It is decided to test it to see if the shadow where Caitlin is. Etienne passes her telescopic magnifying ring to Caitlin so she can keep a close watch on what is happening below in the camp. Upon going through it is discovered that it is indeed the same shadow as Caitlin sees everyone else appear far below.
Etienne checks on her anti-airship cannon and crew. They are still there, though the crew are in a drunken stupor.
It is decided to split up and cover everything we can to get more information.
The group (apart from Caitlin) returns to the castle library to find out more about where they are going. A librarian helps them with maps (more like sets of directions along shadow paths) to Begma and Eregnor. Etienne also borrows a gazetteer of Begma, and a biography of Brand which is passed through to Caitlin.
Etienne travels for several days and eventually reaches Begma. It is a shadow which seems to be nothing but one huge medieval city, though with many parks and the like, supported by urban agriculture. She asks around for local libraries which might have the information she wants, and is directed to either the Royal Library in the Palace (a towering building which looks like a massive version of Liverpool cathedral, probably hard to get into), the library of the local religious leader (also hard to get into) or that of the nearby university (a large complex of buildings in many styles quite close to the Palace).
She goes to the University, and after asking around (and some financial incentives) is directed to a historian, Professor Wujcik. She commissions him to discover the story behind Finndo and the Queen of Begma. Etienne pays the Professor very well, then goes off and wanders around for the hour she has given him to compile a summary of what she wants.
Jihx travels on horseback down the coast to Rebma. Although initially a bit dubious, he goes down Faiella-Bionin to Rebma, leaving his horse on the beach. He tells the guards at the Great Gate that he is a Prince of Amber. They take him through the city to the castle (a mirror image of Castle Amber, it seems, made out of some glassy material and studded with many mirrors) to meet the Queen. Rebma seems to be suffering similar deprivations to Amber; there are signs of disturbances, and significant numbers of troops on the streets; many open areas have had kelp planted in them.
At Castle Rebma, Jihx talks to a chamberlain in an ante-room, then is ushered in to the throne room itself. The Queen, a beautiful woman with silver-streaked green hair, on a turquoise throne, bearing a pink coral sceptre, wearing a white gold circlet on her brow and a crystal necklace with a huge sapphire pendant (radiating power, Jihx notices), and wearing a blue-stoned ring on each finger, is named Moire.
She greets him in her lisping voice, and after Jihx explains the reason for his visit, offers him the hospitality of Rebma for as long as he wishes. They talk further, and Moire tells him that Gerard's rule of Amber has been competent through some very trying years. Finndo has not been seen for so long that they have no opinion of him. Jihx is given free access to the library.
Moire has a private dinner with Jihx that evening, at which she attempts to seduce Jihx. Jihx gives in easily.
Dolf and Arun travel for several days and reach Eregnor. It seems to be a world made up of steppes with occasional clumps of trees, under a yellow sky with a blue sun. All the vegetation is variegated blue and orange. Occasional clumps of ruins can be seem protruding through the (obviously fairly thin and poor) soil.
After hunting around for a while they meet some nomads and ask about the war that happened thousands of years ago. The nomads aren't particularly friendly to strangers in the first place, and from what legends they have which pass for history, seem to think both Amberites and those they fought long ago are two different kinds of devils. When Dolf and Arun happen to mention that they are Amberites, the nomads become hostile and try to kill them. Arun flies off in the form of a dragon, while Dolf gets a few injures and kills some nomads while making good his escape.
They then go in search of some other nomads.
Jihx spends a number of days going through the library of Rebma. The Queen keeps him entertained in the evenings.
He discovers that Finndo was a rebellious son of Amber. Oberon was thought to be generally a good king, and got on well with the Rebman Queen of the time, Moins. Finndo was respected for standing up to Oberon, although he was also disliked because of his arrogance. Problems arose when Oberon decided to marry the Queen of Begma to the lord of the family Karm (who the Queen of Begma detested). Finndo stepped in and broke up the engagement by sleeping with the Queen. The family Karm then set out to try to kill Finndo and he in turn killed nearly all of them. Oberon was not happy with Finndo for this, and so he sent Finndo and Osric to war to die.
Like the Amber accounts, there are biases in the Rebman histories, but they seem to be in different directions to those in Amber.
In Begma, Etienne gets her requested notes from the Professor. It seems that Queen Gillian of Begma was coerced by King Oberon to marry Lord Drax Karm, a notorious violent drunken bastard.
Finndo was looking for a way to get at Oberon, so had an affair with Gillian for some years, which, when it was discovered (or leaked out by Finndo) lead to the vendetta with the House Karm. Eventually Gillian was kidnapped by the forces of House Karm and held hostage. Finndo had the choice of wiping out the rest of House Karm, or rescuing Gillian. He chose to kill off House Karm, and so Gillian was killed. Only three members of House Karm survived (all children under the age of four). Needless to say, the histories of Begma do not paint Finndo in a very good light.
Etienne tells the professor to prepare a full report and leaves after giving him a bag of cash. She can feel from the Professor that he thinks he is getting paid huge amounts for very little work, but she doesn't really care.
Caitlin reaches the top of the mountain above the airship base. The mountain is the tallest in the range and no exit for the tunnel can be seen on its opposite side. She sees that the camp appears to be packing for an expedition. She sits and watches and reads the book about Brand.
From "The History of Prince Brand of Amber", it seems that he is older than Gerard, but much younger than Finndo, the youngest of the three children of Oberon and Clarissa (the other two being Fiona, the oldest of three, and Bleys).
He is something of a manic-depressive; charming, pleasant and persuasive at one time, deep in black depression at another. Subject to occasional fits of rage, and with an unpredictable temper. Somewhat mad.
He was the most studious of the elder Amberites, and the only one who spent long periods of time studying under Dworkin. This seems to have given him powers beyond any of the other elders - he can apparently reach through shadow with his mind, and travel to the places he reaches instantly or bring things from there to where he is.
After Oberon's disappearance, he, Fiona and Bleys formed a cabal to take the throne of Amber (which later caused Eric, Caine and Julian to form a cabal against them). The three of them negotiated some kind of deal with the forces of Chaos, which involved Brands damaging the Primal Pattern in some way (the book is not specific on this) to give them a road into Amber. Then he went to far, and Eric, Julian and Caine became suspicious, and he escaped their attempts to confine him twice. Fiona and Bleys (who also, it seems, thought he had gone too far when he began to plan on destroying the entire multiverse and rebuilding it to his own design) apparently captured him after this, and imprisoned him far off in shadow. Corwin was able to free him by Trump, with the aid of the rest of the elders, but Fiona almost killed him with an un-noticed knife in the side as he was rescued. He survived, though, and after escaping went on with his plans to recreate the multiverse. However, the results of his plotting are unknown, as like the other Amberites he has not been seen since the re-drawing of the Primal Pattern.
It is quite obvious that, like the others, Brand's biography is not an unbiased account. He is painted in a very bad light, but even so it does seem that he was not a nice guy.
Dolf and Arun find some more nomads and get on better with them by not saying they are Amberites. The nomads do have legends of the war, and say that its side effects made the land incapable of being farmed, forcing them into a nomadic lifestyle. Dolf tries to prove that this is not so by finding a farm for them; he does so, but everyone and everything there has been slaughtered, and is rotting. The nomads start to get hostile at this point, so they leave and Trump back to Amber, where they hope to be able to find the remaining members of the House Karm to talk with them.
Etienne, Dolf and Arun meet up again in Amber. They get a message that Gerard wants to see them now and he is not happy.
Through Etienne's telescope-ring Caitlin sees a large black staff car draw up to the lead airship (flying a flag on each wing, one of Finndo's black unicorn, one of the wolfs head symbol) and Lillian board it. The airships seem to be planning on leaving as soldiers board them, with various crates of equipment. Caitlin Trumps Gil and tells him the news. Gil Trumps Dolf and tells him. Arun is sent via the Trump of Caitlin (held by Etienne) to follow the airships again to where-ever they may be going.
The servant looks worried that instead of going to see Gerard we appear to be about to leave, but Etienne and Dolf say they will see Gerard.
Caitlin bids Arun good-bye and he transforms into a dragon and sets off to follow the airships. Caitlin then Trumps Jihx and tells him what is happening (by a fortunate bit of timing Jihx is in bed, but not with Moire, when the call comes through, though her voice does come in from out of sight at the end).
Dolf and Etienne go and see Gerard. He and Vialle are waiting in the same conference room as has been used previously. Gerard is not in a good mood. He wants to know where they have been for the past four days, and what they are doing to combat Finndo. Etienne explains they have been getting information. Gerard doesn't seem to like this. She then explains about where all the others are and how Caitlin had just sent word that the airship fleet have left the camp and that Arun is following them. Gerard says that the army and navy are on full alert.
Gerard is unhappy that we are not spending all our time trying to sort out his problems, and tells us to get on with it. Etienne and Dolf leave.
Etienne Trumps Caitlin and tells her what happened. Caitlin asks them what Gerard had said about the meeting with Finndo, but they say they forgot to ask and Dolf goes back in to ask him. Gerard says that Finndo would not accept anything but complete and absolute control of Amber (as his right) whereas he doesn't feel that Finndo is fit to rule, from his actions, and having met him.
After the Trump call from Caitlin, Jihx gets dressed and wishes Moire good-bye; she seems sorry to see him go. He then Trumps back to the Amber courtyard and goes to meet with Etienne and Dolf, dripping water (but on him it looks good).
The three of them are talking together when a servant runs up to them and tells them "Grave news, there are reports from several shadows in the Golden Circle (the trading shadows closest to Amber) that military coups lead by forces flying black unicorn banners have overthrown their rightful governments"...