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Cailin contemplates searching for Cyndia's magical signature, but has never seen it in use. Shannon and Beldin were born long after Cyndia left Cobalt. Cailin yetis and runs to House Swayville to find a Jean. He shows up, and then forgets what he wanted to ask. Jean determines that it must be Cailin. Cailin asks Jean about Cyndia's magical signature. Jean asks the Cobaltians still remaining in the egg place. Cailin explains the Cyndia problem to Jean.
Jean suggests Pattern walking through shadow to Cyndia, but neither Cailin nor Jean know how to do so -- Cailin hasn't learned yet, and nobody has been willing to teach the five year old.
Cailin has Shannon try to Pattern-walk to Beldin. Cailin, Beldin, and Darkstar yeti off into shadow to play with trump, and Shannon gets confused, then cranky when Jean explains.
Jean discovers that Erica is believed to be dead, tells Shannon and Vialle that Erica is still alive, discovers that she's supposed to be believed to be dead, and explains. Shannon asks to visit Erica; Vialle says that she's glad that she ...
Jean whales Shannon to Cobalt. She changes her clothing en-route, and emerges wearing something that looks pretty on her. She greets Jean on this side with a more formal turn of phrase; Jean replies in kind. A saucer tractors her to the picnic on the parapet.
[Local Dworkin, ecto-Suhuy, and ecto-Ilk are building the fishing rod to search for Ingold between the dimensions. Serpent's Apprentice and non-local Dworkin are on the parapet with Erica.]
Out in shadow, a servant comes up to his lord in Castle Cagliosi, wakes him, and tells him that his castle is under attack. The lord prepares his defenses and starts checking for escape routes.
Dworkinetics has progressed. Julian is willing to consider it and call off his attack, but doesn't think that his generals will accept those orders.
His original goal was to reunite Amber under Oberon again with him in charge of Arden. He is now willing to consider that his means might not be the best way to achieve those goals -- conquering all of reality doesn't seem to be working out for him. Misunderstood Benedict doesn't want anyone else to get killed, including Julian's army.
Ilk fills in Marial, who writes up a document describing how to disengage the two armies. Jean fishes the document to Vanir's Wrath, and the Savior of Chaos, in primal form, flies off to the door, picks up the document, gives it to Misunderstood Benedict who looks him up him up and down and says, "Thank you, Jean". Ilk returns to an obscure place and tags Jean with a tiny physical tendril.
Misunderstood Benedict gives the document a read, deems it to be impressive, and hands it to Hamster Dworkin. Hamster Dworkin hands it to Julian, who ponders it briefly, calls it impossible, then states that it might actually work.
Julian returns to the center of his power to carry out the plan. Ilk keeps Marial updated; Marial has poked Amaranth.
Julian begins. Ilk doesn't see a flow of power, and notifies Marial.
Darkstar has finished drawing a trump of Flavius for Cailin. Cailin tries the trump, and achieves trump contact with Flavius. Flavius is confused and thinks that he's insane, then Cailin comes through the contact, leaving Beldin and four assassins behind. The assassins are distraught, and start looking for a Jean.
Cailin and Flavius chat, Darkstar waves, then Cailin trumps Flavius again. Part of Flavius's brain is concentrating on the signature; the rest is convinced that he's insane. Cailin gets the signature. Darkstar trumps Beldin, touches Cailin's flesh, passes Cailin through, then passes himself through before the pocket that he is riding in goes away.
Cailin greets his apprentice. The assassins are already gone. Cailin and Beldin discuss the situation. They aren't going to go through -- they're just transporting the heavy artillery. Don Serioli turns towards Zorro, and they ride off into shadow.
Cailin sends a diguised bird ahead to search out Cyndia's signature. When the bird gets too close to her, it will explode!
Cailin and Zorro go riding off following the message bird. They reach a war-torn place, and Cailin's horse is shot out from under him. Cailin insists that Zorro go on, so Zorro continues tracking the bird. Cailin gates out from under his horse and finds a large gentleman with a sword pointed at him. Cailin yetis and goes off backwards. After a few hundred feet, he finds another in front of him. He changes direction, finds another, and so on. After fifteen or sixteen bounces, he realizes that the large guys are ringing him. Cailin shifts back and gates out of the circle amid a hail of poorly-aimed arrows.
The arrows shift to follow him, so Cailin turns into a roc and flies up. After about two hundred feet, he starts running out of atmosphere. The arrows are falling short. Big army beneath him. It's centered around a small, freshly built fort. Hubert's standard is flying over the fort, and Hubert ...
Hubert looks at the roc overhead, looks over at the army, tells the army that they're outclassed, and shoos them off. The army wanders off. Hubert gestures, and someone comes out with a chair for Cailin. He descends, and sits down. They chat. Hubert has a long tale to tell; they'll talk later. Cailin creates a bird to follow the first bird and rides off. Hubert tosses him a pendant, and the army moves out of his way. Cailin can see that all of the soldiers appear identical.
Cailin catches up with the first bird in time to see it explode near a metropolis.
Julian turns to Hamster Dworkin and Misunderstood Benedict and says, "They have begun it." Hamster Dworkin pats his hand, and Misunderstood Benedict says, "I thought that you wanted to save those lives."
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