Random finds several of Edan's Knights of the Lamp, by the method of asking around for them. Under direct orders, they follow the King, although they seem wary. Ash's stables provide two suitable horses. Random outfits the knights with red cloaks matching the ones he and Folly are wearing. "All the rage next season. Keep them," he says.
The ride up the trail is easy and the horses well used to it. It is enough exertion and there are non-family members present, so Random does not continue his conversation with Folly on family matters. They speak of the gig, and songs, and some things he hopes for Xanadu, but nothing that should not be said.
"Shall I announce you, your Highness?" says one of the Knights.
"Best not, I think," replies Random.
He turns to the stables and dismounts outside of them. Handing his reins to a stable hand. "Morning Donovan, any comings or goings today?"
"Your Highness, Prince Martin and Lord Edan left this evening. And Lord Marius, but he didn't take a horse." Donovan knows it sounds odd, but he's used to that. He calls for more stablehands to take the additional horses, although the Knights of the Lamp all insist on taking care of their own horses, at least briefly.
Though she is visibly relieved at the update from Donovan, Folly's brow furrows as she considers what else -- if anything -- he might know about what happened to Martin and Edan, or their plans. What she asks is, "Martin and Edan -- they seemed well? Were they planning to go far, do you know?"
Donovan looks to the King and then back at Folly. "No idea, My Lady. They didn't say. The rode out to the west."
Folly nods her thanks for the information.
"Come along, knights!," says Random. "You ready?," he says to Folly.
She adjusts her cloak for maximum dramatic billowing, and then nods. "Let's see how much they tidied up before they left." She pauses, thinking, or maybe listening. "Throne room?"
"Donovan, my greets to my Lord Privy Secretary and he is to attend me at my earliest convenience in the Throne Room." He pauses. "Big Throne, not little one."
Random sets a march tempo and makes bombastic brass instrument sounds as the group moves into the castle. Folly notices a stableboy running for a side door as she, Random, and the two Lamp Knights (Skander and Haytham) approach the castle.
"This is ridiculously cinematic. I wonder who'll play us in the movie?" the King says, as he takes the steps to the palace.
"Invariably they'll be at least six inches too tall," Folly opines, "because the sorts of people who decide those things don't seem to believe normal-sized people can contain this much awesome." She's being extra-stompy with her boots, a drumbeat to match his brass.
"We are both larger and smaller than life, I'll probably end up looking like Eric. He always did know how to lead with his beard."
They stride the length of the ante-chamber and reach the open doors of the throne room. It's a grand hall, designed to allow many people to see and be seen by the King. It also serves for banquets, concerts, and (theoretically) weddings.
At the far end, by the throne, are three people. Gerard in his chair, his wife, and Brij.
"Hello, Ger!, anything of I should know about?" says Random.
Brij is smirking. Or maybe that's what she calls a smile.
Folly points to Random and flashes a thumbs-up sign in case his return to his usual self isn't already blindingly obvious. "We brought backup, in case we need it," she says, gesturing to the Knights. "Also dramatic cloaks, but we might be willing to trade those for snacks. Hullo, Mum."
Gerard looks Random up and down. "Random, feeling more yourself? Do you still have an oath for all of us to take this morning?"
"Aside from 'Ha, ha, that wouldn't even be anything any of you would consider binding for 3 seconds after I was gone', I've reconsidered that plan, and it's off. I need someone to tell me about the Moonriders and what happened to Vialle."
Gerard nods. "I had hoped you'd abandon that plan. I haven't heard all the tale of the Moonriders, but Hannah will be back shortly and she knows it."
It's at this point that Signy walks in, fresh from the road to town. On her heels is Gilt Winter, looking warily at Random.
"Or maybe these folks have news," Folly says, turning toward the newcomers and adding for their benefit, "The king is feeling much more himself, but we just got back to the castle and wonder what happened with the Moonriders. And Vialle." She looks particularly to Gilt on that last.
Signy offers an inward sigh and sneaks a surreptitious look to see if there is something, anything, which might be even closely related to breakfast as she makes her way to the larger group, though she keeps a bit of distance between herself and Random and Gerard as she gives a serviceable bow towards both.
"Your Majesty, Uncle." she says, speaking just loud enough for the group to hear. "My night was quiet, and little happened at the foot of the Stairs where I was posted. The morning was a bit more eventful, however." She starts to reach for her pouch, before thinking the better of it and leaving it closed. "I met a Moonrider on my way back to Xanadu in a clearing, The Marshall's Shield. He came to have a message taken to the King to ask what it would take to ransom the Marshall's daughter, First to the Fray, who apparently was taken as part of whatever happened last night."
She pauses, before adding "He also gave me a token for when someone came back with the King's response. It doesn't appear to be magical, but I also didn't have time to investigate it thoroughly."
She hopes that this close to Reality that anything sorcerous is inoperable, but that may be more wishful thinking than anything else.
Hannah walks back into the throne room, baby on back, and watches Signy's face. "Food's coming," she says quietly. She stays to the side as well, with a happy grin for Folly.
"Well, OK, so yeah, I am in theory willing to negotiate for a hostage Princess, but I'm also happy to have a 'let's have a truce for a bit while we negotiate the terms' reprieve. Do we want to put 'What to do with the captive foreign princess' on the table now, or just add it to the list of things we haven't gotten to?
"Signy, can you ask Fiona about that token? I don't want to mess with it until she clears it." He frowns. "Anyone seen her this morning or is she having a bit of a lie-in?"
Gilt nods. "She hasn't been down, according to the staff."
"Well, send her a note and invite her to join us, if she's still in residence." Gilt steps out to attend to the task.
"That still leaves me with lots of Moonrider questions, like what were the circumstances where we even ended up with a hostage? Is hostage-taking going to be a thing? Do we have any others? I'm not real big on it, but if it's becoming fashionable, I think I ought to at least know about it.
"Also, Hannah, congratulations, we'll need to coo at that baby later, and probably protect it from Scrofula with our royal touch or something."
Hannah smiles her thanks at him.
"And third, I assume that everyone who isn't here had really good reasons, and that some of those are crises I need to do something about. Anyone have a crisis checklist to hand?" He looks around, and settles on Gerard.
Gerard waits to see if anyone else volunteers.
Folly rummages under her cloak and comes up with a small pad of paper and a pencil. She flips it open to a blank page and starts scribbling as she talks. "Well, Hannah has already checked off 'we desperately need food', so thank you for that." She grins at Hannah, then continues, "I think the hostage is the one I told you about, that we got because she volunteered, and I think the first step in negotiating her return is actually talking to her, for a whole bunch of reasons, not the least of which is 'most of our immediate crises are Moonrider-related and she might be able to help us figure out how to avert them'."
She considers the implied first part of his question and adds, "Last I knew, Brennan, Jerod, Ossian, and Benedict's kids had gone to Avalon because there was a Moonrider attack there, and Brennan's next plan was to escort three Moonrider commanders back to Ghenesh. Vere and Robin and Brita are guarding the volunteer hostage. Paige was off organizing the troops in Broceliande in case we needed them. Garrett took Lark to Rebma to keep her safe from the danger in the castle here, and I assume Martin and Edan's departure is related in some way to that as well." She gives Random a pointed look as she gestures in the direction Gilt went, reminding him that the person he just sent for could be part of that danger.
"The only other big crisis thing I know about, not related to Moonriders as far as I know, is the zombies. Not here, but out in shadow -- in more than one place. Possibly the result of Klybesian experimentation to try to unlock the secret of our family gifts. But I don't know that anyone is following up on that at the moment. Martin brought a, er, tissue sample we were hoping Fiona could analyze, but when we figured out there were more pressing matters to attend to we asked Edan to aggressively neutralize it so no one here would get infected. Which reminds me, I think we've got some evacuees from one of the affected shadows in the castle at the moment." She looks to the rest of the group to see if they have any other crises to add to the list, or know the whereabouts of other family members.
"I have some minor insight into our hostage-princess's intent based on prior conversations with Edan. They are prior acquaintances." Hannah bites her lip over a grin. "I do think this is pretty much family in-residence, though. There was so very much happening at once last night. Do you want us to contact people for updates while we eat?" Hannah asks, her mind never wandering far from the food.
"OK," Random says, "In reverse order of importance: zombies can wait a bit, I hope. That sounds like a good mission for the Red Lamps, since Zombies are undead, but not yet. Sir Haytham and Dame Skander, you're temporarily assigned to myself and Lady Folly, so I hope you don't have a kettle on back at the Chapterhouse.
"Second, we'll ask her about it. Who knows how that will go?
"As for 'C', I guess we need to bring her in for a chat. Do we have a trump of any of our guardians?
"And number four, food." As he says the last, the side doors open and four young men in livery come in bearing trays full of traditional breakfast meats, fruits, and incredibly sticky sweet pastries. Random looks at the spread as it's delivered. "Someday, I will get a breakfast taco in my own castle. Today is not that day."
"...Unless you buy into the idea that you can replace the bread in any fast food item with a doughnut and it's somehow still the same thing, but extra." Eyes twinkling, Folly takes four pieces of bacon, puts them on a breakfast pastry, folds it in half, and takes a big bite.
"You're only saying that becuase we would never let you stop at Donut Taco Palace III in Nashua. Trust me, no amount of probability manipulation could've made it passable."
Random reaches for her bacon-pastry-taco and asks for a toll-bite.
Folly offers it up with a grin.
"Anything else? Feel free to eat and talk, but not at the same time."
Folly only just swallows enough of her mouthful of bacon-doughnut-taco to mostly obey that request before she says, "Vere's card, and probably Brita's, and most of the other cousins who were in Amber during the recent war, should be in the trump booth. In my own collection, in case we need them, I've got Martin-Paige-Ossian-Brennan-Garrett. Also Celina, but that one hasn't been tested yet." She glances over at Gerard and Corvis and offers with a gesture to fix them each a plate of food if they're interested. Then she continues, "I'm happy to call any of the above, or anyone else we need to reach, once I've washed the maple-bacon-not-taco off my fingers. Do we want to wait until we've all eaten, or invite anyone else to breakfast?"
While Folly is working on her breakfast, the young men have been serving Gerard and Corvis, and they're working their way through their food as everyone talks too.
"I want Storytime with Auntie Fiona first, and anything else I need to know about on the table. Signy, can you tell us more about the moonrider who was handing out favors?"
Signy collects some of the meats and manages a couple of quick mouthfuls before needing to answer.
"He seemed...reasonable." She shrugs, knowing that doesn't quite help. "No threats, though I found it a bit weird that he apparently had deliberately chosen that point to meet me. I'd love to know how they know about me."
She takes another bite, chewing thoughtfully before swallowing and conitinuing. "He was open to me coming and learning craftwork from them, and talked of my father, though there he was known as 'Voland'. He seemed genuinely open."
She shrugs, feeling that this all still seems very scant to go on.
"Well, we'll be reasonable right back. In broad strokes, they need to stop attacking us and stay out of Tir. Those seem like a good starting point for negotiations. I'm sure they'll be 100% happy with those terms."
"He chose that point in space, or in time, or both?" Folly asks, eyes narrowed as she thinks through those implications.
Signy gives Folly a tight smile. "Both things worried me about that encounter. That he knew who I was and that he could meet me there."
She pauses, before addressing the King. "And he said not returning the token would be considered an insult."
Random rolls his eyes. "Knightly code of honor bullcrap. It sets up a fake conflict over a trinket to allow fake offense and the possibility of de-escalation. But we'll honor it, so they don't have a cause to hunt you, personally. "
Gilt returns. "Oh, good. Send someone to get the trumps we put in the cabinet. Vere, Brita, and Robin, at least."
He looks at Hannah and Solange. "Is there anyone else we need to bring in and chat with?"
Gerard says, "Someone ought to let Corwin know what's going on, and Caine as well."
Random agrees. "Good thinking, Ger. Can you trump Caine? Also Julian. He probably should know that there are Moonriders tiptoeing through his tulips."
"I probably owe Corwin an update," Folly offers. She looks at Hannah, seems to re-think what she was about to say, and instead asks, "How're you doing? Have you had a chance to sleep yet?"
Hannah swallows and sets down a piece of bacon. "I'm feeling quite well, and I've slept, thank you for asking. Now that you two are here I am much happier as well. Raven here is called Heckle, Heckle, this is Folly and Signy and that's King Random. Over by my Uncle Gerard is Folly's mother, Brij."
Heckle looks at Random and says "Caw."
Hannah glances at Random and shrugs. "Probably we should check in with the Queen of Rebma, but we can do that when Folly's ready for Lark to return, if there is nothing pressing."
Random looks over at Folly. "Let's get a good sweep of the place and get things firmly back in hand before we put our eggs back in one basket. Unless you need Lark back immediately."
"No," Folly says. "She's in good hands, and it's only been less than a day; I doubt that's enough time for her to have staged a coup yet." She sounds like she's joking, mostly. "And I'd rather make sure it's good and safe here first. Especially after the... weirdness... I saw in the family wing." She shudders at the memory.
Then something seems to occur to her, and she looks around at the assembled group, particularly Hannah, Signy, and Corvis. "Are any of you particularly good at... unmaking wrongness? Like, sort of magical ritual wrongness in particular."
"Cleansing rituals, I know, but they've never worked on things like curses or locations of... mass casualties. How wrong is wrong, and have you checked again since he's been more himself?" Hannah cocks her head at Random and gives Folly an eyebrow.
Gerard shifts in his chair. "Why do you think the Moonrider chose you, Signy?"
Signy frowns thoughtfully. "I think maybe in part because I was by myself, and in part because of my father. He seemed to be a heroic figure to them."
Random looks surprised. "Wow, I hope he doesn't know that. He's got a big enough head as it is."
Signy grabs a mug of something hot and steaming, before continuing. "I think they may know a lot more about us than we may have suspected. I wonder if they've seen futures and are chasing those outcomes?"
Random listens and nods. "That's important like 'deal-with-the-invaders' important, but we also need to deal with the important like 'bad juju in my castle' important thing. Hmm. Folly, can you take Hannah, Corvis and Caw up to inspect it?"
"Heckle!," objects the talking bird.
"You said 'Caw' the first time, I guessed wrong..."
Folly nods. "As soon as we're done with breakfast. Although...." She looks at Hannah, and at the bundle on her back. "Given the nature of some of what I saw, you may want to leave the little one here while we go." She glances around the room to make the request of a suitable babysitter, but quickly realizes that decision -- and request -- would best come from Hannah.
If you don't feel comfortable taking him up there, Ger and I can watch the baby. It's not our first rodeo. I'll send Gilt for the baby-sized saddles."
Hannah can't help grinning at the image this invokes. "He can stay with his great-uncles - and Solange can 'watch' all of you. Heckle stays with the baby, I'm afraid, but yes, since," her eyes shift to Folly, "you're hesitant to have the baby up there, I'll trust that instinct."
Folly nods. "You'll know what I mean when you see it. Assuming it's still in the same state it was when I left it."
Hannah focuses on finishing said breakfast. "I'll feed him too, so I'm not worried about him getting hungry.
Folly takes that as her cue to get a little more breakfast for herself, too. She settles cross-legged in the floor and digs in with enthusiasm. She's keeping half an eye on Hannah's progress and will be ready to go whenever she and Corvis are.
Hannah gets herself fed and gets the kid fed. Before handing off the baby, she takes him over to introduce him to the Knights of the Lamp who are present. It seems rude not to. "Hello again sirs. It has been a busy night, yes? I wanted to introduce you to Edan's son." She taps on the baby's nose to wake him up. "Open your eyes a moment and meet your father's knights. These are the people he trusts to help guard the realm." She holds him so they can see, and only hands him off if one of them seems to want to hold him. She doesn't really understand the ways of the Land of Peace.
"I just felt that if Edan were here right now, he'd want to introduce you. I don't know what he's doing, but I know it is important or he'd be here right now."
She drops the baby back off with her uncles and follows Folly to the stain.
When the investigative team takes off, Signy and Solange remain behind with the uncles and the baby. Random is holding the baby and looking at Caw. They don't look to be on good terms, but no one has been pecked and no one has been smacked by a floating rock, so there's that.
Gerard turns to Signy, "I heard from Caine that your Father came up in the context of Gateway. Seems he was there, settling scores with the people who attacked your brother. Have you talked to him recently?"
Signy tenses slightly. "I... have not. We weren't exactly on good terms when I left the Plane of Towers."
She looks at Gerard and Random. "I don't know much about my father, but if there's something you'd know, I will answer as best I can."
Her tone turns slightly bitter. "It appears he knew about my brother well before I did."
"I'm sorry, lass," Gerard says. "I didn't mean to make things worse; I just hoped he'd've spoken to ye."
Signy shrugs. "There was a lot that he didn't tell me, he tended to keep his own counsel unless it suited him otherwise."
She pauses for a second to reset. "So, I had no idea about any of this," she says, a broad sweep of her arm encompassing both the Family members present as well as the Pattern. "He somehow was in contact in some way, since he was aware that he had a son, and that he should go to Gateway. Was there anyone that he was close with in the Family, that he might have continued to communicate with them?"
Gerard grunts. "Wouldn't have to be family. One thing I found when I was Regent of Amber was how many of the staff had been discreetly providing information to Princes who were not in residence."
Random laughs. "The enterprising ones were on multiple payrolls, but yeah, I'd like to know who was chatting him up."
"It wasn't our lot," says Fiona from the inner door. "He never liked us. Probably because of Bleys, but I never knew for sure."
Random smiles at her. "We probably ought to send someone to have a chat with him, if he's taking an interest in his kids. Nice to see his paternal/vengeful streak is finally developing."
Gerard gestures to the trays. "Remains of breakfast for you. Are you quite yourself?"
Fiona nods. "Terrible migraine this morning. We need to see how we can fortify the castle and the King.
Random nods. "Yeah. I'm going to want some explanations, but I think we should wait for Folly and Hannah to come back."
"I'll do what I can. Is that Hannah's?" she gestures to the baby.
"Unless Dworkin is a better shapeshifter than we know..." replies Random.
"He is," says his sister.
"Of course he is. We'll just tentatively call you 'Baby Dworkin' until Hannah and Edan make up their minds." He gestures towards Signy with half a pancake, which 'Baby Dworkin' watches intently. "Signy met a moonrider near the Grove. Called himself The Marshall's Shield."
"He was at Jones Falls. You should send Benedict to chat with him." Fiona blinks and turns to Signy. What did he say he wanted?"
Signy puts her hand back on her pouch involuntarily. "He wanted to know what it would take to ransom The Marshall's daughter back, and gave me a personal token to bring back when I had an answer from the King."
She hesitates, before also adding "And forgive my asking, but how is Weyland related to the Family?"
Fiona sighs. "Dworkin knows. Weyland knows. But there are swords he's known to have created that are older than Benedict. He may be the oldest one left. We'd have to ask. I've never heard of anyone asking that and getting a clear answer, but he doesn't make it easy to ask questions.
"So the answer to your question is probably 'he's either related directly or he's a cousin by way of Chaos'. But we don't know."
Signy nods, and it's clear that "Visit Dworkin" is now an item of at least serious consideration for her.
She pauses, before nodding towards her belt pouch. "I looked at the token that I was given -- it's certainly novel and unique, and didn't appear to have anything untoward about it. Is that sufficient, or do we need to investigate it further?"
"With the King's permission..." Fiona starts. Random nods. "I can look at it, but it's best not in here, because every single person in this room, including the baby is enough to prevent clear astral investigation. May I take it to the King's chambers behind the throne room?"
Signy nods, and walks towards Fiona.
Hannah and Folly, with Corvis and Sir Skander (following Robin's lead, Xanadhavian Knights are all 'Sir', regardless of gender) climb the stairs to the family wing. Folly things that the staff hasn't been here since the assault, and they walk into Random's suite and see scorched floor and a lot of water damage, as well as some damaged furniture and a spot on the floor that used to have a rug on it.
Through the door they see the magic circle on the floor, and the furniture, which in daylight looks as if it was made from a child's drawing.
"Goddess protect us from the Dark Mother..." says Corvis, making a sign at the doorway.
Similarly, Skander has a bracelet on that she is moving through her hands repetitively.
"...Yeah, it's still here," Folly says with a visible shudder. "What do you make of it?" she asks the other women. "And more importantly, any ideas how to un-make it?" She gestures particularly to the magic circle.
Hannah's lip curls. "Well..." she says slowly, "looks to me some pale witch did this. I... hm."
Hannah goes through to skirt around the edges of the circle. "How'd you get past it? I would have expected the furniture to come alive and stop you." Hannah kneels down next to it to hold her hand over it and see if it tries to interact with her.
It doesn't attack Hannah, or influence her directly, since she's not actually touching it. It's like a jigsaw puzzle piece from another puzzle, stuck in this puzzle by brute force.
Skander looks at it. "al-Mahdi should return to cleanse it with holy fire," she says. "Twice."
"I don't disagree," adds Corvis, "as long as we don't burn our home down. This is wrong and doesn't belong."
Folly thinks it's slightly different than it was yesterday, but she's not 100% sure what's different about it.
"Killing it with fire was my suggestion as well," Folly says, "although I wasn't being entirely literal. I'd rather not burn down the castle, either."
"We'll smudge it. Just have to figure out how to do it here. It's... fire and earth, together. Cleanse and also realign." Hannah touches the tiny spot on her forehead and the star between her collar bones and looks very sure about this.
Folly moves to join Hannah. "I was careful not to touch anything--" and it's obvious she's still being cautious in her movements, "--and I didn't spend too much time examining it because I was on another urgent errand, but it seems... different, somehow." She tilts her head and narrows her eyes as she stares at the glyphs of the magic circle. "I'm trying to decide if those bits seem reminiscent of the family tracery, and if so, whether they're more or less so than yesterday." She shoves her hands into her pockets and fidgets a little with whatever's there.
It's warm to the touch. Folly recalls the story of how Corwin destroyed his Cenotaph by calling lightning using the Jewel of Judgement. It's something she could do, she thinks.
Under her breath, Folly lets out an awed expletive.
Hannah takes a deep breath, and then tries to use the pattern to see if the awful furnitures are actually connected to this working, or if they're just their very own tragedies. "Lady Corvis, does it look to you like it's feeding from something here?"
It's not so much that they're "connected" as maybe "influenced". Or "tainted".
Corvis raises her hands and chants. "My magics are not able to overcome the powers of your family, not in your seat of power and so far from my Goddess." She looks distraught and tired. Unlike the young staff and the tireless Amberites, this day has taken a toll on her.
"Is it keeping something out or something in? Circles are either gates or borders, traditionally. What if eradicating it is exactly what we should not do?"
Hannah stops what she's doing to think about this, and go grab a chair from the outer room for Corvis to have for the doorway. She insists her good-aunt sit. "Rest and give us your wisdom only. I should have realized how the 'family tracery' would be too bright for much else."
She sighs. "I am blessed amongst women and Priestesses to be touched by the divine and to come be with my husband in his home, but it is the role of the Priestess to intercede with the divine, which burns through people like unto a candle left too close to the hearth."
She looks at the thing again. "I just... " Hannah makes a frustrated noise in the back of her throat. "I don't know who or what else she was trying to control - or if this even has anything to do with that. If she is insane and not just very different, my best guess would be this is her way of trying to enforce her reality on everyone else... everywhere else. If this is a tumor, it is part of the body, and it often has grown veins and nerves into other parts of the body. Some tumors would not just use that energy to keep themselves alive, but to also corrupt more cells into becoming part of its structure, growing in size and gaining more power and growing in size... you get the idea. Or in a less terrifying way, it's like a tree's roots having gotten into the walls and they're compromising the foundation. If may not be safe to just pull out the tree. That could bring the walls down. This may require pruning before chopping and building supporting structures to be able to get the last pieces out.
"Random built something special here. I want to protect it, keep it. So yes, I'd like to be cautious. But this may be what made the moonriders able to get here at all? This seems to have happened before they appeared." Hannah grins grimly. "I always have more questions than answers. Folly, is it wrong like an infection smells wrong? Wrong like a bullet hole looks? Do you... have a sense of that?"
Folly frowns, thinking. "When I was here before, I noticed two distinct but probably related wrongnesses. The first was a... smell, sort of, but more like a feeling... like that sharp sort of musty tang in your sinuses when a place is on the verge of getting all mildewy but hasn't quite, yet. That was out in the hall, after we came into the royal wing, so it would've been about..." She thinks, and points. ...there. Lark noticed it too."
Folly kneels on the floor a short distance from the circle. "That was during the family dinner last night, which would have been before the Moonriders appeared. Finding this--" she gestures around the room "--wasn't until much later, after we were all in the Grove. But it's probably been here for a while. It was wrong in a different way from what I felt in the hall, and a much worse way: I knew the king was in that room--" she gestures back toward the suite "--but I could get no sense of him at all. Which might not seem like much -- but for me, in this place, it's like I had suddenly gone deaf."
She presses her palm to the floor and closes her eyes, the same pose of listening and feeling that she had in the Grove last night, before the Unicorn appeared. "Today I can tell it feels different," she murmurs, "but I'm not sure if it's because it has changed, or I have. Or both."
Folly thinks it's less active, perhaps it's dormant now. It is an extension of someplace else, like a natural shadow path. There's nothing natural about it, though.
"So it smelled like a really old place that's been closed up a long time?" Hannah asks.
Folly's eyes widen, and she taps her nose. "I think you might be onto something. I suspect Fiona will know more -- if she hasn't spent her whole time dominated by the Queen." She shudders.
"I think it feels... less active now, but I definitely want to get rid of it if we can do it more-or-less safely." Folly hesitates, puts her hand in her pocket again, and looks at Corvis. "I want to try something. I think it will be a gentle passive thing rather than a bright explosive thing, but maybe you should move a little out of the doorway and cover your eyes just in case...?" She doesn't seem quite as worried about Hannah -- probably she thinks Hannah won't be as affected by whatever it is -- but she waits a few moments for both women to reposition themselves as they will.
When they're ready, Folly pulls a black pouch from her pocket and withdraws from it a red jewel on a chain. She's breathing fast. "I think I could call down lightning with this thing, but I don't want to blow the roof off the castle. I just wanna see how it reacts, and if I can see anything else...." She holds the Jewel up several inches from her face so she can observe it and look through it at the magic circle -- although, knowing what's inside and what effect it could have, she's careful not to stare too long or too intently. She has the bag open and ready to stuff the Jewel back into if she needs to.
"Please do refrain from lightning while indoors. And be careful not to feed this thing." Hannah tilts her head to the side and watches Folly.
Folly looks through the jewel of judgement and the room is a deep, rich red and very hard to see through. In some ways the jewel seems like a polarizing filter: if you turn it some ways the room is sharper, in other directions, it's as if it's interfering with itself.
The circle seems to be a different polarity. It's not wrong, it's just not in sync with the rest of the room.
Folly feels as if she could step through the gem and into it, as if she had walked the pattern.
Folly nods, closes her eyes, and puts the Jewel back into its pouch. She tucks it back into her pocket and looks at Hannah and Corvis. "What I'm seeing is not inconsistent with the 'portal to elsewhere' idea, but I'm interested to hear what Fiona has to say about it. Shall we go back and see if she's joined the group yet?"
Skander is apparently ready to go. "How shall we seal the room, M'Lady? It doesn't look safe for the unwary."
"I'll stay. I want to just sit with it for a bit. I won't do anything esoteric, so I can guard it too." Hannah smiles grimly, and helps Corvis back up so she can go back with the others.
"You don't need me to tell you it's time for you to try sleeping, do you?" she asks Corvis quietly.
To Folly, she says, "If you will, stop by my room on the way back and grab one of the satchels of willow bark. They're in the cabinets on the south side of the room - everything is labeled. Unless Fiona has some of the bark of Yggdrasil. But... who has that around? Note to self, start of community of bark collectors... perhaps using Edan's tree network."
Folly opens her mouth to ask about this 'tree network', but decides maybe that's a story for another time. Instead she asks, "On the way back here after I've talked to Fiona, or do you want me to run get it for you now?"
"I thought you'd be bringing her back - after you talk to her. But do try to bring her back if she'll come. I'm thinking about looking at this from the spirit world, and she'd be a good anchor on this side for us to go do that. Assuming she's not in thrall of the thing. I should still have another hour and a half before the baby should need me. Or, I should say, I'm willing to make him wait that long. I suspect if he gets mad enough someone will bring him to me."
"The legendary lords of reality ought to be able to keep one tiny baby occupied that long," Folly says with a wry grin. "And yes, I do plan to bring Fiona unless it seems unwise to do so once I've heard what she has to say. Among us, we should hopefully be able to kind of... triangulate what this thing is and the best way to get rid of it. I'll try to be back soon."
As the door to the back room closes, Folly comes in to the throne room. Neither Signy nor Fiona are there. Random looks up and smiles.
When he finds out she's back to talk to Fiona, he sends her to the back room.
She thanks him, but before she goes she leans over and says in a low voice, for his ears alone, "I think your rock can unmake the thing, but I want to hear what Fiona says about it first. Then maybe we can figure out a way to fix it without also blowing the roof off your castle."
Random reaches out and touches her, as if he want reassurance that she's there. "We'll throw it into the sun. Possibly into someone else's sun. But we can always re-roof if needed. The promoter has insurance."
Folly grins and gives his wrist a gentle squeeze. "Good to know, in case the explosive method is our best option. I'll see what I can find out." She heads to the back room to find Fiona.
Fiona walks back to the King's retreat, a room Signy has seen, but may not have spent much time in.
She clears a space on the long table and gestures towards the cleared spot. "This is going to be interesting. We haven't really had a good opportunity to look at their technology, but it's similar to the Altamareans. I wish could consult with an Altamarean knight about this, and not your Uncle. They'd have a very interesting take on it."
Signy follows Fiona, and at her gesture steps over to the cleared spot, pulling the Moonrider token from her pouch and places it in front of her Aunt.
"I looked at it briefly. It doesn't appear to be given any special power, but it certainly is a magnificently crafted piece," she says, a hint of joy creeping into her voice.
"And while talking, he seemed very receptive to my being able to perhaps spend some time with them and learn how they're made." The note of joy becomes slightly more guarded, while she waits to see what Fiona has to say about that.
Fiona listens, but seems half occupied by the token. "Hmm? I imagine they would. They have very different ideas of time, and what spending it means."
She looks at the object, and then at the table. "Signy, can you find me something to make a circle with? Threads, salt, diamonds, rags, soot ... anything I can cast on and won't be missed."
She clears a spot on the table. "If you decide to go, make sure you have a clear understanding of how long it will be for you and for everyone else before you return."
Signy winces inwardly at Fiona's remarks, torn between kicking herself that she did not anticipate that particular wrinkle and wondering if she can use the Moonriders to allow her to spend a decade learning their techniques in the span of a week, and worrying that it might just be the reverse.
Glancing around the room, she moves over to the fireplace where she scoops up a double-handful of ashes from whatever fire had burned in there last.
"Will these do?"
Before Fiona can answer, a voice calls out from the doorway: "Hello? I hope I'm not interrupting." Folly enters, only looking a little sorry about the interruption. "I have some questions for Fiona about what's been going on with Vialle."
"Come in, and close the door behind you, says Fiona. "You're only interrupting if I allow it, in which case it's nothing to apologize about. Signy, those are just fine. If you would arrange them in a closed circle around the device?"
Fiona does something to it. It's not flashy magic, but it wasn't supposed to be. "I'm not sure it will help, but it will at least give anything that wants to use it for a sending an exponential entropic slope to crawl up. Bleys would've done something flashy, but I prefer to do something that's 'enough'."
She frowns at the device. "Quite well made, and tricky, I'd say. This circle is also a trap, of sorts, or perhaps a honeypot. It doesn't seem to be activating and it doesn't seem to be trying to reach out to anything, but it may not be that kind of an object.
"I think you're probably safe with it, other than the insult of not returning it that you mentioned."
Fiona turns to Folly. "You have questions, you say?
"Yes, many," Folly says with a small smile, "but I'll start with the two that to me seem most urgent. First, what happened with my husband, Edan, and Vialle after I departed with the king? And second, what is the nature and purpose of the magic circle and nightmarish furniture in the nursery?"
"Edan and Martin subdued Vialle and left with her," says Fiona. "She was wrapped up in a carpet to keep questions from being raised. Not that anyone thought they weren't carrying a body, but no one had to admit they knew whose."
From her expression, Folly's reaction to this lands somewhere between darkly amused and mildly appalled, but she lets Fiona continue:
"They did not volunteer nor did I ask where they were going. They could be in the Library for all I know, or one of Caine's less comfortable shadows. I suspect they intend to stay far away to keep the former Queen away from the King."
She brushes a non-existent strand of hair away from her face.
"I think the circle was a power conduit. The furniture was a side-effect of whatever reality-bending she had to do to get the circle here. And what that was, was something to do with the Queen of Air and Darkness and Random.
"I'm not sure if it's the right thing to do, but I'm going to recommend to the King that he have her executed for treason."
Folly looked like she had more to say, or ask, about the circle, but at that last her demeanor changes: she stands up straighter, with an air of formality, as though she is speaking by proxy for the king, or for Xanadu. "Because you feel that's the appropriate punishment for any treasonous act of this scope? Or because you think that's the best way to keep the realm safe from future threats from her? Or something else?" she asks.
Fiona looks closely at her, as if noticing her connection to the city for the first time. "As a traitor myself, I'm all for clemency and happily took advantage of it, so not the former," says Fiona. "But the latter is key. I can't think of any other way to free Vialle of Maeve's influence."
Folly gives her a sad smile. "My fear says you are probably right," she says. "But my hope believes there is another path, even if we can't quite see it yet."
She looks from Fiona to Signy and back again. "...And it suddenly occurs to me that you might not yet know all the context for why I think so. Fiona, I don't know if Signy told you we've got a volunteer Moonrider hostage, whom Edan has apparently met before and who is currently under guard by Vere, Robin and Brita. But Signy, I'm not sure you've heard yet how that came to pass: When the Moonriders appeared near the stair, Conner and First-to-the-Fray, who identified herself as the Marshall's daughter, fought a duel that was broken up by the Unicorn, who arrived and placed her horn on their crossed swords. First ceremonially lost the duel and then offered herself as hostage. Some of us take the Unicorn's appearance, and her actions, as a sign that there is a path to peace that doesn't involve violence. But we'll have to risk trusting each other to find it."
Signy offers an inward sigh, trying to keep track of everything that happened on all the different fronts.
And the possible execution of the Queen.
She looks at Folly. "I think the Moonriders may be thinking the same thing. They gave me that token and a request for what the King's terms were for ransoming the First, so it sounds like they're willing to talk through this, at least right now."
Fiona thinks for a moment. "I know it seems to many people that the family history is one of violence, upheaval, and constant war, but that's just what gets recorded and remembered. There are literally generations who were born, lived, and died while there as peace. And war hasn't always meant war like the war in Chaos, where quarter was neither asked nor given." She applies some additional ashes to the circle, not making any noticeable change to it.
"They are old adversaries, and they have their ways. If we are going to deal with Moonriders, we probably should get an Altamarean on staff. Maybe Conner's father or the one that wanted to marry Paige."
Signy watches her Aunt work with the ashes and token.
"I remember the trip we took to rescue the Queen," she muses quietly. "As part of that, we fought the Marshall, or something that was supposed to be him, and when all was said and done we returned with the Queen and a magical chain that had been used to secure some...one? Thing? That looked like the King."
She pauses, before focusing back in on her Aunt.
"Brita had the chain, and I took it to look at it, and I'm pretty sure it's still in my quarters. Do you think that it's worth looking at now?"
Folly holds up a finger. "Before you do that, I have another question that might be relevant." She looks at Fiona. "I understand you accompanied Vialle and Random on their recent trip to Rebma. Can you tell me where you went, what happened, and what was the purpose of the trip? Random only has vague memories of it."
Fiona glances at Signy. "Yes, I'd like to see it." She turns back to Folly.
"I was called to look into Random's fevered state, and to make sure it wasn't going to affect the pattern. While Vialle, or Maeve I believe, watched, I investigated and tried to cure him. It was a trap, and I was attacked by surprise while in the midst of a very complex ritual. Fortunately, I was in contact with my brother at the time, and he helped me... withdraw isn't the right word, because I was still there. Protect myself. I was ensorcelled, yes, but not completely and I very vexatiously continued to resist and keep Maeve occupied. She had to divide her energies between Vialle, Random, and myself. The King's resistance was quite strong, but Vialle had access to him at his most vulnerable. How did you break the spells on him? I checked and he seemed to be himself, moreso than since this began."
Folly hesitates, brow furrowed, as she figures out the best way to answer; she says, slowly, "When I worked out the outlines of what was going on and who was behind it, I figured my best shot was to try to remind him of who he is, his essence, after you strip away anything to do with Pattern, which she could manipulate. That's what I was trying to do, anyway." She hesitates again. "What I actually did was marry Xanadu. Your brother even sent a wedding present, although I'm not sure he knew it was that at the time, regardless of what he claims." She smiles wryly.
Fiona nods. "Your cousin Celina talks the same way. It's not an idiom that we used in our generation." It's about as close as Fiona is likely to come to saying she doesn't understand something.
"Interesting," Folly says. "I suspect we don't mean it precisely the same way, although the results may be similar." She taps her chin, clearly making a mental note to talk with Celina about this later.
Fiona breathes in and continues talking about the Queen of Air and Darkness.
"I'm sure she was quite annoyed that I didn't destroy Martin and Edan sorcerously as she wanted." She looks a bit concerned. "We need to make sure that Edan and Martin don't end up controlled by her. That would be a problem."
"That would be an understatement," Folly says. "Here's what I propose: I think we're at a point that we can begin calling our kin to update them on the situation here. I've got Martin's card; hopefully he'll be able to answer and we can figure out what their status is. I'm also very interested in an update from my cousins who guard the Moonrider hostage. And I'd like to rid the castle of that magic circle in the royal suite, if we can do so safely from a metaphysical standpoint. Accidentally blowing the roof off the castle, okay; accidentally melding Xanadu and Tir, not-okay. If you have insights on that, I'd welcome them -- with the caveat that I'll take everything you tell me with a grain of salt, knowing that your recent proximity to the Queen could have left you vulnerable to some influence even if you've successfully fought most of it off." She holds her hands out, palms up, in a 'cards on the table' gesture, figuring there's very little to lose, but might be something to gain, from being honest about her concerns.
"I've seen it. I think it's a side effect of the spells she was using, not a planned manifestation or the main goal of the exercise. Not that that means it's not dangerous, nor does it mean that it's not worth symbolically destroying. I'm not sure it's dangerous, though. And we might want to just watch it for a while to make sure it doesn't act as a barometer to detect if Random relapses."
"An interesting thought," Folly says, nodding. "Hannah's examining it now; I'll be curious to see whether her particular skill-set turns up additional clues as to its nature and effects.
"And speaking of which, I should probably rejoin her," Folly adds. "Not just for the update on what she's found, but because I suspect she'll want to know how Edan fares if I'm able to get through to Martin." She regards Fiona and Signy a moment, and asks, "Would the two of you be willing to help with trump calls to update some of our family on the current situation?"
A page arrives at the door, holding a small pouch that was retrieved from Signy's room. Signy takes it, and then the page steps back from the door and it swings shut behind them.
Signy turns, holding the bag, but doesn't immediately hand it to her Aunt, waiting for her to decide how to procede. "So, this is the Chain. We also used it to bring back a knight from the other end, Sir...Firambrass, I think?"
Signy glances at Folly. "I'd be happy to help, though I don't actually have any Trumps of anyone, so I'd need to borrow some."
"The king has sent for the ones we've got in the Trump Booth, which should include some of the guardians of our hostage," Folly says.
Fiona nods. "I can as well, although the King will need to tell us what message he wants us to send." She turns back to the table where the ash circle previously held the Moonrider token. "Since I have a circle to hand, place the chain within and we'll examine it as well."
Signy steps forward, opening the pouch and pouring the chain inside into the middle of the circle, careful not to disturb the ash circle.
Folly looked like she was about to depart, but she waits and watches carefully to see what happens with the chain, and what Fiona has to say about it.
Fiona puts her hand to her temple and closes her eyes, breathing deeply. "It's old, that's clear. Ancient, by most reckonings. And it has been infused with Order for many years, and connected through shadow to something. It's also had magics done on it for a sustained period. I'd think it was designed to keep a prisoner from using sorcery, at the very least." She opens her eyes. "I'm not sure if it would bind the Queen of Air and Darkness, but it might've been useful for that if we'd had it eight hours ago." She pauses. "Unless it's hers in the first place."
Signy shakes her head in the negative at her aunt's last statement. "I would not trust it, and would highly object to trying that. It came from the Queen's rescue, which I'm starting to think was more of a setup than an actual rescue. I expect it was hers, and I wonder if it was another piece she was putting into place for this time?"
She pauses, before continuing. "I wonder if the person we rescued was a captive, or if he was another plant...."
Folly arches an eyebrow. "Then you might want to talk to Brennan, who last I heard was with Sir Firumbras. I've got his card, if you want to borrow it -- after we check in with the king."
She gestures for the other two to join her, and -- if they're ready -- returns to the throne room.
Fiona joins Folly, adding, "Whoever speaks with Brennan can pass along those concerns. I normally expect him to be fine, having survived his father, but none of us should face the possibility of the Queen of Air and Darkness's machinations alone or unknowing."
Signy follows the other two out of the room, pausing to collect the Moonrider token and the chain. As she moves towards the door the token gets tucked into a pouch, and she pours the chain back into its bag and ties it off before starting to put it into another pouch as she steps through the door.
Hannah looks at the construction of the crib and things. Are there screws? Is it... molded or sculpted or something? Does it feel like a natural material, or a man made one?
It's hard to describe. Hannah would guess carved, or magicked. It's as if someone with no artistic ability drew furniture and then it was manifested in the real world by someone who didn't have any idea how to make things or what it might be used for.
Hannah attempts to break a rib off the crib, holding the top rail and wrapping a hand around the rib to snap it off where it should be weakest.
Hannah breaks it off, but not cleanly. It looks like a marbled composite. Parts of it look like wood and are wood-grained and parts of it seem like it has some sort of veins or conduits in it. It doesn't bleed, but a bluish powder spills out. It smells acrid.
"Well, that's... huh." She sets it down to dig around her boot nooks to find a vial, which she uncorks with her teeth. She tugs a feather loose from her medicine bag with her free hand and carefully uses it to sweep some of the stuff into the vial. She stoppers it and tucks it away again. "Do not taste it. At least look at it before you put it in your mouth," she self-commands, quietly, and tries to obey.
She picks the thing back up, knocks it off the crib to try to make sure all the blue powder is out. One end, then the other. Wiggle waggle. She makes her way around to the other side of the magic circle, moving quick as she's just a little worried this creepy furniture will try to take revenge on her. She sits down in the floor and leans her hand over the design again. "Why did she make you? Hm? To bring her people in here? Or is it a distraction? A target? Is this where she was sinking Random's energy? How deep are you?"
The circle remains obstinately quiet. The best Hannah can think is that it doesn't belong here, or here doesn't belong wherever it is.
"If I was making this," Hannah closes her eyes, "from inside the body of a blind woman, I'd have an awfully hard time making a clean circle. But if I could somehow see, I wouldn't be magicking up stardust cribs all out of proportion and sense. Unless Vialle made the crib... for Rebma... No...There is no way they use cribs down there. Baby would bounce right out. Would a uber powerful monarch make a crib at all though? I mean... why? You'd tell someone else to do it. But even Vialle could have told someone else to do it. But I made the cradle with my hands, with art, with intent, because I wanted to out of love and the desire to keep the idea of a baby coming real, Real. Focused. To support the reality of seeing the baby born safe who would use these things - the cradle board, the rattle, the amber teething ring, the little clothes, the useless baby shoes. And for me, to look like the mother of this child, a woman of means and education and art and of the people who go against the current, a medicine man and honored woman. So new clothes with new art, new cabinets for experiments and potions, equipment and toys, and many more bookshelves... Two is many more than none."
She laughs at herself and gets herself back up. "So there should be more here. More preparation for a child." Hannah leaves this room to wander through the rest of the suite, looking for clues as to Vialle's state of mind on motherhood, or... well, whoever's.
There's not any more preparation. Not even a single partially knit baby bootie. There's very little to indicate that Vialle even lives in this suite. It's more like a stage-set than living quarters. The inner chamber looks like Random's, somehow. Perhaps the unmade bed or the bongo drums beside the bed are the key. It's hard to tell how long ago it was used, though.
"Ah, I bet he sleeps in the studio most of the time. And she's... damn, I need her maid. I do *not* want to do that." Hannah sighs and kicks the edge of the bed halfheartedly. To procrastinate having to talk to... Ember? No, that's just a mix up of Rebma, isn't it?... Hannah searches for hidden doors in the suite. Maybe this is just the clean set of rooms, and the other rooms are hidden in the back.
There's a side door which leads to what looks like servants access and another that leads to the sitting room. It's all very much set dressed rather than lived in. As if it was supposed to give the appearance of someone living in it without the messy reality.
It's odd, because a few weeks ago, Random and Vialle were living here. Or apparently so.
"Oh," Hannah says quietly. "Oh no."
She slowly walks back, closing doors behind her.
When she's looking at the circle again, she thinks about what Folly said. And about Moonriders and time hopping or... whatever they do. "You're the door I can't open and walk through, because I had a child and I owe it my presence." She looks up at the ceiling for any signs of movement. The way a gust of wind or a change in air pressure might cause all the cobwebs to suddenly shift in one direction. She doesn't think the servants have been cleaning in here. "We're always trying not to repeat our parents mistakes, even if those mistakes are a blessing."
No one has been cleaning but it's not like anything in here needed cleaning, particularly. The bizarre furnishings don't have any dust on them, although there is some elsewhere in the room.
Last modified: 20 April 2020