![[previous]](gu-prev.gif){kind=small}
![[next]](gu-next.gif){kind=small}
Back to the index.
Priority 1: restoring the etiquette guild (since there is a bad etiquette guild running around)
- Was Cyndia was named as the head of the warrior's guild by the trojaned guild?
Osric announces that he is no longer taking supplicants, applicants, etc. He leaves Thelbane, and goes to the Abyss. The gate is still there, there are still demons worshipping it. Osric steps through, finds a computer terminal. Everything seems fine on the fringe, it's up to several billion gates, and recataloging is progressing.
Osric travels to the pocket stop, and speaks with the guild. He fills them in - they ask him to take a message for them (which they acknowledge is a switch). The etiquette guild warns him that things are trying to get in from the sea of chance; Osric figures that this is just a property of the pocket stops and how they tend to accumulate things. The etiquette guild talks about 'scoop fields'.
A young etiquette guild member, Moishe, volunteers/is volunteered to accompany the king. He can't change his clothes - which mark him as a member of the guild - and is betting that the new people don't know each other.
As Osric steps onto the pocket stop, he senses some people (demons?) jumping out of the gate. He checks the pylon - they've been in a lot of times, but everything else is locked down. Osric steps out, and locks the door behind him. The demons continue to sing Osric's praises and ask him for the object of his worship towards the gate. He declines to give them the good key, and gives them a lower ranking key.
At the edge of chaos is one of the philosopher's guild. Osric talks to him briefly - he was contemplating the abyss.
Osric enters Thelbane; one of the fake guild members does a secret sign at the new member. The new guy makes a sign back, the fake member looks confused but seems to let is pass.
The fake etiquette guild says there is an emergency at the warrior's guild - they've been compromised. He steps back into Thelbane. Osric checks with Jean - the warrior's guild is fairly quiet; Cyndia's working on another duel.
"They aren't taking over, are they?" There are a series of proclamations - quite a few of them over the past few turnings.
A chunk of path blows up between Thelbane and the Warrior's Guild - a new dead spot is created, and the way is down. Jean talks with Jeremiah, and then informs Osric and the Ways and Means Committee.
Osric speaks with the assassin's guild desk person, and discusses a contract on the etiquette guild. Princess Chandra is not available, and is communing with her brother. The desk watcher says that the Crafter's Guild built the guild house as payment the last time a guild was destroyed. She'll have to bring it up at a council meeting.
Osric passes over the marker from the Etiquette Guild, and the assassins very apologetically decline his contract - there was a prior contract.
The desk person suggests that the etiquette guild member should stay locally or go somewhere outside of her reach. Locally is preferred.
Osric asks about contracts; the desk staff escorts the guild member into a room, and then brings Osric to the records room. The guild member brings the first two volumes over. The first three contracts are on the office of King, and several billion turnings old. The desk guard looks for volume three, which is mostly empty. The end of the second volume also has Osric-specific contracts.
A few of them are people who have a problem with the Hero of House Chanicut. A bunch of them are from people who Osric doesn't recognize but are high-ranking members of various houses and are in the same handwriting.
Osric discusses guild policy with the desk staff - he can't take any records out of the room, make copies, or even shift a photographic record of it. Guild policy.
There are others in the same handwriting - some sworn out by Osric - on various high-ranking house members. All have been delivered by the "Etiquette Guild".
Osric asks about a blanket "kill anyone who puts out a contract in my name" contract. Some of them are covered by other contracts, so Osric can't do that. Osric asks to be notified; the etiquette guild is, however, how the notification method happens. Osric agrees that checking back often is probably a good idea.
Osric also lets them know about the unauthorized assassination attempt on him - they ask about a witness (Jean). They promise to look into things from that angle as well; they have several teams checking into unauthorized assassination attempts.
Osric mulls his options, and decides to go to the Warrior's Guild so he doesn't tip off the Etiquette Guild.
Osric checks in with Cyndia - nothing going on, except she checks around and there are brutalized corpses out front. The corpses are wearing warrior's guild clothing, and one of them appears to be a member of House Xartys. Ordinarily, Cyndia points out, this could have started a pretty big fight - if people hadn't been distracted.
Norton vanishes after talking to Geryon - something about hamstering his prisoner. Last one to talk to him makes it Geryon's fault!
Amaranth says that the next chunk of shield may be too much for her. She has a backup plan, which involves using the magic as a 'rocket' to shoot her
Caelin is concerned - he's filling with power. Ecto-Ilk has found Amaranth, and can't use variable pattern on her. Jean informs Benedict, Caelin, Osric, and the Bear Mage.
Mad howling all across the egg - which starts melting. A scrape against MechaJean, the egg cracks.
Egg cracks - Jean arrests his fall (sort of). "WHO'S YOUR DADDY?" Crunchy bodies, not squishy bodies. Sticklike bodies - like beef jerky.
Caelin becomes a yeti. He writes on the ground - it's blue. The yeti indicates the saucer should increase its altitude. One of the cobalteans reads "I'm magic null in this form".
An explosion behind Caelin - as if there was a crack of lighnting. The yeti speeds up.
Jean sorts through the city - no Erica, nothing 'not broken', particularly after Mechajean's sorting.
The bear mage is hearing Amaranth's voice in his head 'help me'! He gets fished to Cobalt to see if he can help.
[Ilk pulls Caelin - Amaranth is lying in a pool of silver, and some of that silver is molten around her. V. hot. Caelin starts to run in circles ]
Heads of houses start arriving in Thelbane reporting that someone is calling for help through the ring.
Osric and Jean confer - Neville is probably going to help more than these guys. Neville puts his meetings on hold, and starts considering the primal pattern. After considering the blob, he just walks the pattern.
After checking with Ferethyn, Jean asks for a pattern blade and wielder - Janus volunteers (and smacks Martin down), and gets moved.
[Elsewhere - Janus grabs Caelin to stop his circuit. Caelin grabs Janus, and throws him over. Janus stabs Amaranth, who screams and starts trying to pull the sword out. The heat starts to die down. Caelin grabs Janus before he impacts the silver - Caelin gets burned seriously, Janus is also pretty scorched.]
MechaJean is moved by Ilk - Amaranth needs a pressor beam. MechaJean scoops her out of the puddle, shakes the silver out. He knocks the sword out - "Ooops". He puts her down, Janus gets the pattern blade and starts poking Amaranth.
Discussion happens - the pattern net is pattern pattern, not variable pattern (check?) (Is UberMjolnir also v. pattern?)
Benedict joins in poking Amaranth. Jean gives the bear mage a lift to the battlefield. He hates heights - so Jean gives him a lift to the ground. The bear mage helps, pulling the sword of state out briefly, then letting it go.
Caelin remembers about Titania - starts trying to get the amulet out, badly. Jean brings Wixer over, and pulls all the crap out of Caelin (including a blue note).
Amaranth is cured (and a toe is snipped off and skewered) and Cagliostro starts fixing Amaranth and Janus.
Osric leaves Thelbane for a while. Jean sees Osric return to Thelbane and get told by an 'etiquette guild' member of a problem at the warrior's guild. Osric heads to the assassin's guild; an explosion happens in the way to the warrior's guild, creating a new bare spot in chaos.
Jean talks to the assassins after Osric comes out, and fills them in on the unlicensed assassination attempt.
Jean tells the Ways and means committee about the problem (after consulting with Jeremiah), and fills in the king.
Neville: Priority 1: reconstructing Amber - many other loose threads, including the blood feud by Gerard's son and recruiting for positions.
Jean tells Neville that the current head of the mage's guild
Neville gets to the center of the Pattern and trumps Amaranth. Something serpentine and evil crawls towards Neville's brain, then flees, melting. Neville forces the trump through - he sees Janus, he sees Mechajean's foot, he sees Benedict et al pull in.
Neville manifests the sword of state, and considers where to stick it. He aims for the thigh, and stabs the sword of state through. The sword sticks - Janus tries to grab it, and fails. Janus continues using this weapon.
Benedict approaches, confers with Janus using a gesticular language. Benedict assists stabbing, and Neville can tell they're herding it.
Neville realizes that the taint is almost out of her brain, and he's almost in trump contact with Amaranth. A giant stone hand lowers, and the bear mage hops out. The bear mage pulls the sword of state out a little bit - Neville is shocked, Benedict grunts in approval.
"Say when..." "Now". The bear mage lets go, it slides back in, there is a scream. They continue to herd it down, then cut off one of Amaranth's toes with the thing.
The Yeti wants to the center of a pattern - so Amaranth calls him over, and Neville pulls him through. Caelin returns to his base form - an amorphous blob - in the center of a pattern. [Caelin feels no pattern taint.]
Neville teleports out to the center of the pattern, and trumps Caelin. "It's me, doofus." Caelin is pulled through. Neville is distressed at what is happening to the trump deck. [Neville remembers Titania - or is reminded - and starts trying to root the sphere out.]
Wixer starts to root through Caelin - pulls out pocket stuff, a singing sword, a trump deck, a note from Tate that says "Mine!", and a gold sphere. The trumps have run together somewhat. The trumps in the center are fine. (It used to be a standard trump deck.)
Neville leaves Caelin at the center of the pattern (with a book, in his chair) and shadow shifts back to Castle Amber.
Cagliostro follows Natasha for a while through changing landscape, then they arrive at the broken shell and destroyed city.
There is a conversation with the invisible presence, who pulls them through on a chunk of stone with chairs and seatbelts.
Cagliostro starts fixing Janus (silver burned and chelated) and Amaranth.
Back to the index.