Alaric’s Diary part 12: Rinaldo – Excommunications – Hall of Mirrors – Rebellion

In The Doom that Came to Amber

27^th Bull 3658 - afternoon

If confession is good for the soul then I wish I still had mine. This day – perhaps the longest in my life, continued where my last thoughts lay.

After some half-hour of shock I stirred myself from my thoughts and Trumped Aylwin. I interrupted his abuse enough to determine that my Mother still lived (albeit in a serious condition) and was in Bleys’ care. I can think of no better place for her to be.

I closed my contact with my ineffectual brother/cousin and removed immediately to my chamber in Castle Amber, taking only my Trump of Groombridge, Anne’s sketch and my own sword. I left from there to find Paolo.

I informed Paolo that not only was Aylwin continually ineffectual but that he had also betrayed us to Prince Julian. A service of excommunication was held there and then.

That done, I determined to face up to Julian. He needed to know about Clarissa’s plans, Dark’s involvement and Benedict’s whereabouts. He received my Trump call immediately and cut straight to the chase. It was clear that he already knew something and when he invaded my mind he became aware of much, much more. I was mind-raped. I knew of the probability and Julian put it well into practice. I managed to hide only Paolo from his probing. He knew who had said the word and he knew then whom he wanted killed. Me!

He broke the link eventually, having traced the When and Where – but I still do not know the How. Lyon Abbey was the key and maybe my problems centred from it. But it was I who said the N-word and foolishness is no excuse for my actions. Deidre’s involvement was also plain to him. I knew more than anything that he really wanted to hurt me then and there. Unable to do this, he contented himself by condemning me to death immediately. Leaving me with a fleeting impression of my imminent disembowelling, he then released me. Damn them and their arcane laws.

Now released, I turned to Paolo, telling him that we would need to leave immediately. I asked him to collect what he required and Trumped Mira. Mira was already deep in conversation with the old man I’d overheard her speak with in Mirabeau.

The Old Man told her that she had made the wrong choice in Prophet and that she was to sacrifice me immediately and it seemed clear that he was aware of what I had done in Amethyst. She refused him adamantly and he responded that she liked me too much and that she saw too much of herself in me, and this had blinded her to my faults. She said that she had invested too much time and training in me, and that she liked me [hmmm – makes a change]. He insisted that my soul was tainted and that Mr N was a thing just like the Unicorn. This news stunned me – what the Hell has been going on. What are the implications? Who the hell was the Old Man and was the Dwarf of Mira’s past my Great-Grandfather?

Their conversation concluded, I spoke with Mira who refused me access to Mirabeau outright. I was to support Deirdre’s campaign. Nor would she permit Paolo to leave me saying that I was clearly in need of religious guidance. I looked across to Paolo. Paolo is my rock and my friend and there was no way that I would knowingly leave Amber without him.

My mind spun. I was as guilty as Hell with no chance of survival should Julian catch up with me – and if I had no chance then Paolo had even less. I had about 10 minutes before Julian located me so I trumped us through to my Sanctuary. Again, I had left my passenger behind me so I returned to him and together we trumped to the Tower just outside Mirabeau. I located two horses and we hell rode towards the City.

Then something went terribly wrong. My shifting simply failed. I slowed down my horse in a state of agitation. Had my skill with Pattern vanished? This was too deliberate an act. Paolo Trumped Mira and again asked her to bring us through to Mirabeau. Again she refused. I joined the conversation and pleaded with her to at least take Paolo through. She refused me for a third time this day.

Paolo and I were on our own. I took my Trump deck and had a careful look at the Trump of my chambers in Castle Amber. My room had clearly been searched and it looked safe – or at least from my angle of view. If I chanced to go through there I ran the risk of being surprised by the guards who were doubtless awaiting such an eventuality just inside my door.

My sudden inability to access the Pattern removed my freedom to travel around some of the other Shadows I had Trumps of. A refuge in Paris did not sound like the sort of place I had in mind. And there was Paolo to consider. Groombridge it would have to be then. I unscrolled my Trump and took Paolo and I through.