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[Yesterday...]
Serpent's Apprentice and Kintani are hanging around watching the Dragons' Council discuss Kintani's fate. Kintani mentions that Shiryu was going to return and introduce him to the Serpent beneath this promontory, who was the progenitor of his entire line. They decide to acquire Shiryu sooner rather than later, on the off chance ...
...
Intro to Serpent.
Gives Ilk a message for his brother, who is apparently higher up the hierarchy than he.
Heads off into the Sea to deliver message to our Serpent.
Ilk confuses the Council some more, then fades out and joins Kintani in the Sea. Serpent's Apprentice shows Kintani the way to the atoll, then they return to Chaos and the Serpent's Antechamber.
The Serpent is listening to Kieron read something to him. Kieron is nipped out of time. Ilk delivers the message; the Serpent actually seems pleased, and tells Ilk that he should tell his sister. Kintani delivers his message, and is given another to take back to the Dragon Council. He forms the balloon of Serpent Power that Ilk gave him into a badge of his "Speaker to Serpent" position.
Cagliostro is examining a book of everything-dies.
Serpent's Apprentice delivers the message to Princess Chandra. She claims that she's just been there, just been talking with him. They chat briefly, then Serpent's Apprentice goes off to find Shiryu.
After a bit of confusion, Shiryu leads Ilk to his ways, then takes him "beneath" the Sea, where they are looking up as if through a sheet of glasss at many tiny Kraken.
The Ilk in the tree tells Serpent's Apprentice that he never left, but that he suddenly became unreachable.
Neville shows up at the edge of the Pattern. He slowly approaches the anomaly and begins studying it. Cailin cannot see the anomaly or determine what Neville is doing.
Serpent's Apprentice studies the missing creatures. They don't seem to be dying -- they're elsewhere. Not only are they not going to their proper scales, but their scales are completely empty.
Ilk goes to ask Princess Chandra about this. She's talking with some people, and asks Ilk if he knows of a good interrogator -- her people are rather amateurish at that, and the Torturers' Guild is... out of commission. Ilk mentions Cagliostro's mind-reaming abilities, then the Serpent's Apprentice takes Cagliostro to the Assassins' Guild and introduces him to Princess Chandra.
Cagliostro turns to the Chaos beast, reads it's brain, and finds that he cannot create a gem as a receptacle. He explains the problem. Princess Chandra concentrates, he tries again, and it works.
Cagliostro scans the most recent thousand years of the beast's memories. He ends up creating simulacra of people around a summoning circle. Princess Chandra touches one of the figures, and it dies. Cagliostro wasn't aware that it was alive in the first place...
Cagliostro is thanked and returned to Amber.
Beldin offers Cagliostro some tea, who then starts working on manufacturing animals that might survive in his home shadow.
Serpent's Apprentice returns to Princess Chandra and tells her of the empty scales. She recommends taking the apprentice's briefing book to a senior member of the Beastmasters' Guild and having him extrapolate.
Ilk makes his way into the library of that Guild, and speaks with the Librarian. A senior researcher is assigned to investigate the shadow-wide epidemic of missing animals, and states that he will get back to Ilk in about a color change.
Ilk tells Jean about Jance's report. Jean goes to find Osric. He's in Thelbane with some other people. Jean briefs Osric. Cailin is determined to be responsible for the dragon problems and the failure to deal with the computer.
Jean goes to ask Ferethyn about returning Jance's body to the Philosophers' Guild. Ferethyn asks Jean for the Savior of Chaos. They chat, and determine that Ferethyn should deal with the situation in "Realms Lord time". Ilk and Ferethyn discuss Jance, the marbles, the pyramids, the grey spheres, Mikail, the missing animals, Toram junior, and the alternate Andron/Realms Lord.
The researcher from the Beastmasters' Guild shows up at the tent near Garnath before Ilk warns anyone. Roland is startled, and draws his sword. The researcher looks at Cagliostro and confuses him with an Amberite. The researcher pulls Roland aside to talk.
"He's a Count of Amber and doesn't know it?"
"No... he's a Count from not-here, and doesn't know that he's from here... "
"He thinks that everything that is not his home realm is a magical realm, and not Real."
The researcher pokes Ilk for not informing him of some of the details of the situation. The researcher points out that the ranger-liason is a poor Julian construct. Ilk sends a note to Zack; Zack responds that most of the rangers were constructed by his father. "I've been helping them to grow up."
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