A Knight at the Opera pt1

A personal report to Julian from his daughter, Constance, pt 5

Whereat the day includes observations on the binding of demons and the nature of faith. News is received of the passing of a Prince of Amber who leaves us some stark warnings. Knightly Orders are distributed and we receive invites to a ceremony in House Zigo and to attend a ridiculous and potentially invidious Night at the Opera. Constance and William go exploring and she suffers stage fright when she finds they are sharing centre stage with the shade of Prince Brand. Dreams and portents are shifted and Arden is revealed as the infinite forest. Dworkin sets Havelock about a task.

I awoke. Gently and softly with no screaming and in fact no whisper of dream at all. I collected my thoughts and quietly prayed for the well-being of Amber and spoke the familiar litany as I have done every morning of my life. Such familiarity gives me comfort. I washed, dressed, met with Ariel and broke my fast. Ariel, the ever androgynous asked me about my activities. There was little to tell him as the excitement of the Duomo was already known and I did not think that he would be interested in the number and style of dresses in Princess Flora’s wardrobe.

Ariel asked about the Lady Dara and whether it is true that she had walked the Pattern of Amber. Oh she has – and Our Lady knows how many people died in order for her to achieve it, but it not a matter for discussion with a House in Chaos. I smiled in response and Ariel looked knowingly at me and we agreed that it is obviously not a matter that may be discussed at our level.

Ariel passed on an invitation from Lord Mandor to meet with him at our earliest convenience. Taking Sorashi’s warning to heart I asked Ariel if Podaga was sufficient escort given the recent attempt on the Lady Sorashi. Ariel’s response was that Podaga was a demon with more martial qualities than that provided for Sorashi.

Ariel enquired about Sorashi’s acquisition and counselled that she will need to acquire the means to secure it, namely Sorcery and Demons. I do not know the details of the bequest to Sorashi, but Ariel told me more of the nature of Demons and their bindings in the Courts. The nature of the relationship between Lord and demon is complex and entirely one way. Demons are often treated poorly but some Demons show great loyal to house or master. The relationship is defined by the wording of the Binding – and that is the tricky thing, as most overtly state what demons can or cannot do. These can take some time to read out during the Binding ceremony. It seems at face value to be a one way affair, but viewed differently can the Houses exist without the Demons? Surely with their great Sorceries they do not require such servants? I shall speak to Sorashi about the need for Bindings and to my cousins more generally about the nature of Demons.

Ariel also spoke of Sorcery. I acknowledged that I had a very little Magic. House Pheon has a fascination with conflagration and therefore its demons are Salamanders. Podaga’s name means literally ‘slave’. Servants hold secrets, I mused to myself. Ariel continued to say that some Lords have a very close relationship with their Demon. Ariel said it was rumoured that Countess Larsa cried at the recent death of her demon. I thought also of William and DeLambre.

I broached the subject of my devotions and if by my adherence to them, I caused offence to the House. Ariel replied that the religion of the Courts was that of the Serpent and that the Unicorn was anathema. I observed in return that I had noticed and joined the Household in genuflecting at the Wheel in the entrance. Ariel explained that there was more than just the Serpent worshipped in the Courts. I asked if my simple devotions were tolerable and as I looked into his eyes for a response something seemed to click behind them. Ariel paused and asked what I was doing with the rest of my day and I asked if I might be shown more of the sites of the Courts. He recommended that I see the Opera House. How very curious given later events.

Podaga escorted me to Woodstock as my first errand of the day. Mandor smiled and greeted me as I entered. Dara’s smile turned glacial when she saw me. Mandor told her to leave if she couldn’t be civil. She put her wine glass down rather more forcibly then required and left us. Mandor inquired after my new accommodation and I thanked him for his choice of host as the House suited me well. We were joined by the rest of my cousins and Mandor bade us make ourselves comfortable. Margrath gave us the sad news of Prince Delwin’s passing.

Taking advantage of Mandor’s hospitality, Havelock poured bubbling wine for each of us. Mandor said he’d called us to inform us that as a result of our actions at House Zigo and in the Duomo, we were being rewarded with the membership of one of seven Orders of Knighthood. Mandor offered it as an opportunity to meet people from all the Chaos Houses away from the formality of their Lords and their Houses. He is a member of the Middle-Aged and Lackadaisical Order of the Brash Extremity. The Knightly Orders and our choices were as follows:

Constance - The Interminably Lacrimal Order of the Deniable Moth

Darig - The Middle-Aged and Lackadaisical Order of the Brash Extremity

Dirk - The Superannuated and Disingenuous Order of the Invidious Blade

Havelock - The Illustrative and Insinuative Order of the Inconscient Brush

Margrath - The Mature and Interesting Order of the Loquacious Nettle

Sorashi - The Seasoned and Crapulous Order of the Undulating Thing

William - The New and Innovative Order of the Lugubrious Vendetta

Some of us were called to our choice – but with so little information I leant towards a less considered decision. I hope I do not live to regret it.

There was a knock at the door and Lord Hector of House Zigo was admitted. He had come to invite us to the Ceremony that would see the promotion of a new Lord [in this case Lady] of his House. This invitation was tempered firstly by the news that those killed in the Duomo would be buried in order of precedence and all funerals would wait until after the official funeral of King Oberon and secondly, by the news that His Majesty had ordered an opera to be performed in our honour.

It was this second piece of news that left Lord Mandor looking wrong-footed. Not angry, I have seen him angry. He, annoyed, spat out that Opera is a ridiculous and potentially invidious form of entertainment. My more-travelled cousins explained what an Opera is, but that in itself did not explain Lord Mandor’s reaction. Besides, an Opera of Chaos style might be (as so much else has proven to be) demonstrably different from opera in other Shadows.

It involves music and song and speech and the occasional involvement of the audience in the action. If a fight to the blood is plotted then it is carried out in these performances and the use of Sorcery during performances was forbidden. The title of the Opera is to be ‘The Resistible Rise of Magnus Matricide’. We were advised to bring provisions with us as previous audiences had, on occasion, starved to death. I made a note to include extra for the Warden should such a warning not reach him and his host House be as meagre with provisions as House Spectral.

We shared information. We have made little progress. I shared House Unman’s demand for an alliance to gain their support. I corrected Dirk’s assertion that no one had been in contact with Prince Julian as I had both seen and spoken with him and that another such visit was possible but there would be a payment in return. Dirk says Princess Llewella told Caine that Chanicut have turned colder but at least she can still communicate.

Havelock had obtained a list of Rimlord and minor houses together with their numbers and voting rights but statistically set a little in the future, perhaps. But it raised points about the minor houses we have yet to make contact with such as Jensen and Alhazred. Both are serious players at the Courts and ones with which we younger Amberites have not had contact with. Havelock said he’d like us – presumably through Princess Flora and House Zigo – to host a Ball on our terms with invitations so we could reach and influence the people we wished to. This sounds like a very good idea in terms of audience. We need to pursue it with our Elders. I mentioned the pressing need for Sorcery and Demons to Sorashi as, without either, her House will deteriorate to nothing.

We again discussed Option-A: we are just not sure that it can be achieved. William was able to overhear a conversation between princes Benedict and Caine where they debated the option-A choices. Benedict cannot achieve the aim with only one arm and he will not order another to do something he is unable to do himself. He feels the loss of his limb keenly I fear. Of us all, Darig has the greatest chance of success. Caine and Bleys are not quick enough, Havelock not strong enough. Margrath, Sorashi and I were neither interested nor fit. William is an unknown quantity.

I raised the option of longer ranged weapons but Dirk told me there was a glass ceiling of some 8 feet within the buildings he had tested in Chaos. I could not get a killing shot without sufficient angle – and with the King surrounded by his guards such a shot was risky at best. I mused on the Bindings on his Demons – perhaps they can be turned a little.

Margrath made reference to a message from our uncle, Prince Delwin, who spoke to him in his sleep last night. My sadness at the news of his passing was tempered by the warnings Prince Delwin gave Margrath during his sleep. He bade us not to give in to temptation to change the past. He warned us that something bad was coming and it would cause a crisis worse than the last one - things were walking and talking that ought not to be doing so and finally that our prejudices are standing in our way.

I raised my concern about Princess Deirdre being an example of changing the past but Margrath kindly pointed out that she was not dead when raised from the Abyss. Her removal was not, therefore, an alteration of the time line. Her spirit, detached from her body, has yet to be located. Prince Brand’s body was also retrieved. It was very definitely a husk and his spirit, unlike that of Princess Deirdre, has been seen in various locations in Chaos. Which raises the question of where exactly is her Spirit?

We left Woodstock and decided collectively to visit the building where the Opera would take place. I tested Dirk’s glass ceiling scenario. My stone did not find any sort of ceiling. He noted my actions and observed that it was outdoors.

Why do we limit Plan A to the Throne Room?

We divided ourselves up for our self-guided tour of the Opera. We were in two pairs and a trio with at least one competent swordsman in each group. A doorway and stairs led to the box in front of us, it was identified as the private box of one of the Rimlord Houses, which Darig and Havelock investigated. Sorashi, Margrath and Dirk took the routes around the outer edge of the building.

William and I went the other way to seek the stage and area under it. William drew his massive sword and I offered him my substantially smaller weapon to use in the narrow corridors. He looked at me dismissively and said that he had no need of it and that his sword was jealous. Never, never get between a man and his sword! I suspected that he’d be deadly with a bunch of flowers in any case.

We heard something or someone moving ahead of us. I caught a glimpse of someone in black and we followed the figure’s suspected path through a barely open door and down into what proved to be the under-stage. A little magic failed to illuminate the matter further. We looked about us at the equipment and began our explorations.

Then we heard it: a squeak above our heads, a squeak that clearly came from the stage. William indicated a contraption for us to stand on. He knocked a cap off an arm and a weight nearby dropped to the floor and counter-levered our platform swiftly up to stage level.

There we were – centre stage. William referred to the stage as being ‘in the round’. There was a large open space surrounding it. There was the tiered seating similar to that of the Duomo with a series of boxes above all and clearly having the best view of the stage. The tiered seating would appear to be for the Lesser Houses and the open spaces for the Demons.

We could see Havelock and Darig in a distant box and we could see the scenery about the stage. William waved out to the audience and a figure in the box waved back. There was a tree near the centre of the stage and some rocks beyond. We walked forward to apprehend or locate a something or someone and I was increasingly aware of a growing sense of foreboding within and about me.

He appeared before us, the something yet walking that should be dead – in short, Prince Brand! The Prince who’d almost brought Amber to her knees. The dead Prince with the forethought to rewrite history. The brother of whom the Warden had said he would trust less than a Wyvern. The man (or spirit, or something in between) who now stood in front of us was garbed in black and not quite physically there or here.

He did not know William. He greeted me pleasantly by name and then referred to me as ‘Julian’s secret in the woods’. My heart took a long pause between beats. Prince Caine had called me that – almost endearingly. From this Prince it sounded as a threat. How had he known of my existence let alone by that name? He told me that I had featured in his past plans but that Martin had been easier to reach. Mentally, I blessed the Warden’s care of me. I asked him why he did not rest in peace and he replied ‘Where is Hell and why am I not in it?’ I replied ‘no’ but repeated my desire for his spirit to be at rest.

I asked how he came to be here. The attempt to rewrite the events of the Battle had caused his reality to coalesce with ours but as that failed he had used the Jewel of Judgement to enable himself to remain here. Reality had been rewritten just enough for him to take his first step of his return. I asked what he wanted and he replied that he had desires but would not state them now.

He enquired as to our progress in leaving the Courts. I gave him a polite non-answer and then, following his silence (I am a poor liar), I gave him a report on our lack of ability to win hearts and minds and, after prompting, admitted to have personally only won over a single house. I offered that I was only a Ranger and not practised at politics. He looked at me and said that my part was yet to come. As a bleeding corpse on a Pattern, I wondered?

For a ghost, Prince Brand was well aware of the current situation and I suspect he had long been a player in the politics of the Courts. He was disarming. It never occurred to me that I should just run him through and that thought was probably tempered by the certainty that if he had thought I was a threat, then he would have already have dealt with me. Or maybe he was just in a benign humour - whatever that means for a ghost?

Prince Brand gave a clear account of the actual problem of winning the Chaos votes. He spoke of how certain houses have a familiar architectural look to them. They have a similar look and feel as houses and they are all linked to an original splintered house. Three houses are linked by a shared originally Egyptian culture. You get the vote of one of these houses and the other two will immediately vote against you. Other houses will appear to look on us favourably but will vote against us at the first opportunity.

The safest way forward with this course of action is to buy the votes of the houses (in the same way the loyalty of Demons is bought, I wondered) and even then they can be trustworthy. But, he added, how many prices could we afford to pay? We are few and the houses many. Yet another plug for Plan A?

He left. Faded in front of my eyes. I felt something unwholesome walk through my spirit and I will admit for the first time in my life that I had been truly frightened. How was Prince Brand accessing information? Did he still have allies in the Courts – or among his siblings? Was he able to use Trumps in some way? Did he even need to use Trumps at all?

William waved at our relatives to join us on the stage. Havelock and Darig had clearly heard the conversation with Prince Brand from the box they were investigating. Margrath, Sorashi and Dirk had met what turned out to be the janitor and he, Hugo, used an actual bucket and mop whilst cleaning. No magic in here, indeed. We discussed Prince Brand. Dirk, Darig and William went about their messages. Sorashi briefly discussed a card spread with Havelock as she required his experience in interpretation.

I then accompanied Havelock and Margrath to House Hierophus that specialised in Divination and Dream. We were admitted to the Archdeacon Gelion (well he answered to that name) and Havelock had to remind him several times that he was attending a prearranged meeting.

We were all introduced and we discussed the nature of dreams, specifically my dreams connected to home. My home – the Forest of Arden. They had started during the first time I slept in the Courts of Chaos and have been with me up until last night. I can understand the cause of the dreams of that first night – I was in a place of madness and my sleeping mind was trying to redress the balance. But as to the others, the dreams related to my bond with Arden, are they a manipulation by persons unknown or are they portents?

There was much discussion, firstly on the size of Arden herself – never mapped and a place far greater than I had really questioned, with echoes beyond her boarders with Amber and across all Shadows. So perhaps I had seen another City in my dream that simply looked like Amber? Perhaps? But no! I knew in more than an imperative dream way that I was viewing Amber and I had that sense of foreboding and seen the airships and described them to Darig (I’m glad he hadn’t asked me to draw one) and that they are the creations of the Technocracies of which I had no previous knowledge. Arden was calling me home. She was under threat and so was Amber. My intuition and all of my years of training told me – even whilst I slept.

This fact gave weight to the portent theory over any suggestion of dream tampering – although such actions are possible and Mandor would be a leading possibility and Prince Brand another. Gelion asked if anyone had my Trump because a dream could be influenced with a Trump of the subject and sufficient skill in manipulation. I said ‘no’ with certainty – but on reflection, maybe yes? Martin was attacked by Prince Brand via a Trump portrait. Prince Brand was not known to have personally met Martin yet through conversations with others he was able to develop a sufficient understanding of him to create a working Trump.

There was a rumpus outside of our meeting room. It was Dworkin! He acknowledged the Archdeacon as Damien – but what’s in a name when you are Dworkin’s age? We were introduced and he looked at me briefly and said that I must be Julian’s as he could smell the leaves of Arden on me.

Dworkin got quickly to his business. It was Havelock he wanted to see – although we told him that we’d met with Prince Brand on the stage of the Opera. He merely exclaimed that Brand had nearly driven him mad as a student but described him as his favourite student.

He handed Havelock a trump of Prince Benedict and then tasked him to get into Benedict’s head and sort out the issues he was having with his missing arm so we could get on with Plan A. Havelock’s face flickered with concern. He’d been set a task to get into mental conflict with the best strategist in Amber. Perhaps we can collectively assist you with power cousin but – good luck with that.