"Not the welcome I was expecting."

I’m fleeing Caer Beatha and the water lobe. I’ve shifted a sack that allows the knocked-out Random to breath and trail him behind me. Shifting through the seas of Rebma, I avoid both Matthan’s and Gennit’s troops. Once I’m out of the water lobe shadows, I try to trump Gerard. He’s not answering, so I try the great hall.

I make a grand entrance between Bleys and Edward. Edwards screams like a woman. Water gushes in after me as I pull the bio-sack through. I open the bag and sling Random over my shoulder. I say hi to the observers and head for the infirmary. Edward calls out "Meg" I turn around and Edward just leers says "Thank you." I turn back and waggle a bit as I walk down the hall.

Gerard is not in the infirmary. I put Random down and check the drug cabinet for sedatives. I send one of the servants off to clean the hall and another to clean Random. Deirdre arrives with Brea.

"When did you get this wild hair?"

"I left just after Ander’s ships arrived."

"Did you just decide this on your own?"

"Uncle Gerard asked me."

"Oh did he… How was he when you found him? I assume he didn’t have this bruise."

"I thought it would be easier this way. He had another personality overlaid upon him."

"By who?"

"Your sister of course."

"I suppose that I should talk to Gerard but, he’s in Aretia getting his legs regrown. I think that he is unconscious. Do you have a trump of Theseus? He and Miriel are watching Gerard."

"I don’t have either of them."

"How about Quinn?"

"Nope."

"I think that I have a trump of Miriel. I’ll get it for you."

Deirdre turns to Brea who is getting bandaged. "Feel better now that you have showered?" Brea sarcastically replies "Yeah, all better." Deirdre ignores the sarcasm and says "Good, then let’s go sign some papers." And drags Brea off.

I stay and watch Random. Deirdre returns with the promised trump. She wants to know what I plan to do with Random and if he needs to go to Aretia for medical attention. "I don’t know what his mind will be like when he wakes up. Being this far from Rebma may be all he needs. I was keeping him drugged because I thought that Gerard should be here when he wakes up." "Do you want to stay here and watch him? That would be best but, you should check with Miriel."

"What do you do with a drunken sailor - I am phytoplankton hear my roar."

Random goes straight for my throat, pushing me back into Fiona. He delivers a series of rapid punishing blows. I catch his ankle and toughen up a bit. We roll out into the hallway and back again. We are actually pretty even until we crash through the window and land on the inner parapet, fighting until we both pass out.

I wake up in the infirmary with my hand in a cast and my face all puffy. Random is in the bed to one side looking how I feel. Fiona is in bed on my other side and Bleys is at her side. "Good job! A bit over the top at the end." My uncle says. I shift some to fix my face. Deirdre comes in. "How are you?" "OK" "You do know that you owe me a couple of chairs and a cobblestone. I don’t want to know how."

The family parade continues with Vaughn. "You look like something the cat dragged in and slammed in the door a few times." "I love you too." He introduces me to Wagner the ships captain for the Allegra. He looks like Grendel.

Mom is ok. She was just resting. She leaves shortly after the others. I accelerate my healing and I’m ambulatory in a couple of hours. I try to avoid mom and end up running into her in the library with Vaughn and Wagner.

Fiona pats the chair next to her and I join her. "So, you brought Random home. Gerard will be happy. Is there something I should know?" I look around the library and its occupants. She puts a couple of fingers on my head and says in my head "Is this better?" I describe the trip to Rebma and the invitation to the palace. I talk about the blank spots and the pattern sphere. "So you attuned to this ‘pattern’ "Well yeah." She grills me about the blank spot. When did they start? Before and after I took the pattern. I try to explain Llewella nice nice spell and how it was hard to say what was missing and why. I also talked about the flashes of clarity. When I had finished my mother calmly says to me, "Please don’t take this the wrong way but, there are a lot of supernatural things happening around you when they normally don’t. I mean the Unicorn doesn’t hang out with people like you, more like…" "People of Power." I finish.

"Meg sleeps it off."

"Family"

I wake up with my face in a book, feeling well rested and refreshed. My healing has been working overtime and I am starving. I jump up and head off to find something to eat. What I find is Vaughn and Wagner at the all you can eat Amber Family Buffet. "So what are you doing?" "Same thing that you are - Carbo loading." I load my plate and join them.

"So are you here for the big naval offensive?" Vaughn asks.

"I’m up for it. So, we get to use the cool new ships?"

"Yeah, and take on the Baron."

"I can do that."

"So I heard."

We eat in nothing approaching quiet. Wagner is somewhat freaky but, no worse than some I’ve seen. "When are we going?" I ask. "I don’t know. When Ander gets back. There is a family meeting in Aretia sometime soon to discuss plans."

When we finish I go change out of my hospital gear, meet Vaughn and Wagner, and escort Wagner to the ship. He carefully ascends the gangway up to the ship as if he is afraid it will break. "Wagner doesn’t have much trust in things that are mot himself." Vaughn comments.

We meet Deirdre, Julian, Caine, Flora, Victor and Bleys. Deirdre trumps Quinn and we all go through. Theseus, Lysander, Quinn, Fiona, Gerard, and Miriel are already there. Gerard has legs! "Sorry about not being there when you returned." He says. "If you had been there it might have saved Deirdre a cobblestone." Food abounds and everyone sits. I avoid Fiona and Theseus. I don’t need to see THAT.

Quinn begins "The war in Tir is over. Mom is now the Queen of dreams in a very real way." … He shows scenes of final battle, Anax as a big dragon, Osric as a big organic consuming blob. Anax wants back in. He goes on to describe what went down with Brand, Osric, Anax and the Baron. Quinn then goes on to make the case for Anax’s return.

By the way shape-shifting doesn’t work here.

So if you have anything to add or find out anything about the blob I’d appreciate hearing.

Deirdre continues "Yes, but now I would like to hear from Megan. I understand that Random is back. Would you fill us in?" Many eyebrows are raised. 1) Random was in Caer Beatha, previously known as Rebma. He was held under compulsion. 2) Queen More, Llewella and the rest of the Caer Beatha page are still there. They are mighty pissed about that whole 2000 years of mental servitude. They have a strong navy, tight borders but are not ready to take the battle to Amber yet. Any Amberite straying there would probably get the same treatment that Random got.

"I’ll take the destruction of The Baron for 500, Alex."

Gerard is wheeling himself towards the buffet and a take over pushing. "So Uncle, mom may be looking for you. I had a bit of an adventure while on your errand." "Oh?" "Well I walked the water pattern, was mind controlled by Llewella and had a big fight with Random in the infirmary." I say casually. I have never seen Gerard’s eyebrows so high. Gerard apologizes and I say it’s ok. He leaves to go talk to Fiona to make sure that it is really ok.

I fill my plate and chow down. Stay out of mom’s way. Quinn and I talk about the Mori and how to fight them He has a holo-training program that I’ll try after dinner.

I find Deirdre and ask if I’ll be needing Ander’s trump for my part of the sea offensive. "You don’t have it?" "No, not one I have. Do you think I need it?" "Yes. Let me see if I have an extra." She digs into her purse and gives me one. She then excuses herself to try to trump him. The sea planning forces will meet later tonight at Castle Amber in the library.

I head towards the holo-suite and run into Theseus in the hall. Lysander is already inside. We womp on mooks for a while then move up a level. I take a few hits then figure it out. Lysander has obviously been through this part before.

We move to the lieutenant level. I watch Lysander to see what it takes to deal with the fades. We womp more butt. The unit won’t let us move to the commander level one on one. We opt for two on one and have at it. We both get whacked some but we also both got a hit. I would not like to go up against that alone. I think about how the would fight on shipboard and what forms would be most effective against the Mori. I can’t try any here. I can’t even shift my bruises away.

We head for the showers. The atomic showerheads help pound the bruises away. I find some clothes and return to the dinning room. I discover that even when I eat I do a lot of unconscious shifting.

"Altar Megan"

Meg the froze fire of Kolvir, High Priestess of the Unicorn and mother four.

Brea is such a fool. Theseus is a lame wimp. I’ve forgotten more than he will ever know. I wish that I could use Vaughn but, he doesn’t like me anymore than he likes Brea. Flora has identified two of my children and thinks that she has identified three others. There is so much possibility there.

The most recent note from Gerard gave the final go-ahead on the attack plan. Brea plans to send Quinn as bait and the trump some of the new ships in with Vaughn. Edward will lead the ground troops. Bleys will lead the Arden troops and the Holy conscripts.

Meanwhile back at the temple… I continue to spread rumors about Edward and Brea. I also peach some pointed sermons about the evils of incest and promiscuity.

"One down, so many left to go."

News come that both Theseus and Bleys have been shot. They have been taken to the Castle infirmary. I send my personal physician to see to them.

A missive arrives through the usual channels. He requests that I have a half-dead outrider arrive with news that Gerard’s troops have been seen in the Shadow of Skerry. The rider should arrive in two days. I see to the preparations. A loyal rider who has been in the field the last few days is chosen. He is recalled in secret. His mind is fixed and the correct horse and supplies are provided.

Two days later, during Bleys' funeral, said rider arrives and is cut lose from his horse. Theseus steps up to try to shift the sadness of Bleys' death into anger, to fight this threat.

I send my tactician with Brea, Theseus, Edward, Flora and the messenger to discus the deployment. I retire to the docks and bless the outgoing ships. At the same time I add Scrying crystals to the ships that don’t have them yet. The ships set out.

I increase the Holy Patrols in City Amber and in the near-by areas of Arden. I do this to improve the safety of the street in these troubled time. I also circulate rumors of virgins walking the streets at midnight and old men safely traveling with sacks of gold. Even the docks area is improved.

The scrying crystals indicate that the flagship "Unicorn" was attacked magically and had to return via trump to Amber. The remainder of the fleet continues on into the island chain.

I scry on Ander’s B&E of castle Amber and his encounter with Vaughn. When I see Vaughn injured and Brea sending him to the infirmary, I fly over in large bird form to see if I can take advantage of the situation. I land and shift to servant form but am denied access to the infirmary. I create a inner pouch and fill it with toxic gas, shoot a tube under the door and let it rip. Brea makes it to the door and knocks out a window at the end of the hall, then motions the infirmary staff to get Fiona, Vaughn, and Random out. They get part way in and collapse. Brea has all the doors opened but by the time anyone can get in, Vaughn, Random, Fiona and the staff are all dead.

Quite rewarding.

Brea falls down and pretends to be dead. Scudamore takes her off to her quarters and announces that she is dead. Julian goes to her there and tells her that someone has walked the Pattern.

I remove Ander’s backpack from the infirmary and return to my sanctum.

I learn that Flora has walked the Pattern to go after Ander. Vaughn’s lieutenant is being sent to investigate. They have spies in the Church hierarchy (no names). My movements are all accounted for. Vaughn has been trying to implicate me for years without luck.

Gerard has been captured.

To Do:

"So close!"

I arrive in the dungeon in guard form. Before I can get into the cell, Edward trumps in. No time for subtly. I shift into attack form and impale Edward twice from behind. I use him as a human shield against Brea but before I can attack her, Edward blesses Brea and leaps off the spikes. Brea gives me everything she has but I’m ready for her. I’ve designed this form just for her. The lightening and bullets knock me back. I go for her as she fumbles for a new clip and…