I guess the second most momentous event in my 129 years was negotiating the Logrus. I say the second most as the pattern, although less traumatic, was still a bigger change for me. I think I was 19 at the time I first walked the pattern. Before the Logrus I could tell you the exact date down to the minute. The Logrus broke up my psyche in some interesting ways. I’ve heard it said more then once that all death is merely a form of change. I wouldn’t know about that, but the Logrus certainly transformed me. A hundred plus years of smooth cereberal operations was blown away in an instant. In some ways I’m still adjusting. I lost the eidetic quality of my memory in most every paramater. I say most, as it seems I can still remember poetry, verse, and songs without difficulty. Must have something to do with rhythmns. There are compensations though to having the Logrus at one’s beck and call, not the least of which being I am now a full-blown lord of chaos. It really does improve your social standing in the Courts of Chaos to have Logrus so they tell me. I look forward to visiting that place again with my newfound power. It should make navigating that puzzle palace much easier.
Right after my exit from the Logrus I had a conversation with Shado. That was certainly a surprise. She wasn’t high on my list of people I wanted to have a conversation with while getting back on my feet. Not that I dislike her, I’m head over heels in love with to speak plainly. No. It had more to do with my being a certified nutcase. I had all my marbles, but the logrus had scattered all over my acre of gray matter. Such things as identity, inhibitions, cause and affect had taken a holiday.
Turns out she wanted to talk to me about all sorts of things. In retrospect I know my father had planned it this way. The conversation between Shado and I was rather bizarre. More my doing then hers. She was lucid enough; I was at turns maniacal and calm. I guess she found out what she wanted to know. I asked for her hand in marriage and she didn’t say no. I’m not certain if I would have asked her without getting my mind scrambled. I guess its necessary for one’s brain to take a vacation if you want the important stuff taken care of.
Regardless, it was a good thing she had said yes to my proposal as we previously became psychically bonded through a unusuall circumstance. I won’t go into the specifics here. My previous journal entries cover the details of those events.
After that I spent a few months in a fast shadow alone with Count Anthony. Amusing that I could become a engaged and then not see my fiance for over a hundred days. Mostly it was a time spent putting myself back together. My foray into the logrus had cost me an eye. I heal very quickly, even for an Amberite so I had hopes of making a full recovery eventually. Sometimes the wound was a distraction. Rapid healing sometimes has unique pains. Not much time did I afford over my loss of vision as my father worked closely with me to round out my skill in shapeshifting and teach me sorcery. Needless to say I kept busy.
As the season in this shadow grew colder, Anthony remarked that Shado had been seen with Clovis. There was some confusion as to what was going on between the two so Anthony absented himself while I contacted Shado via trump.
Shado came over to the Shado I was residing in. Simply put it appeared Clovis was out of the picture. I felt bad for Clovis in an abstract sense. He had wanted Shado’s attentions as much as I had, and somehow I had come out on top. I was a little miffed that he wasn’t able to depart gracefully from the scene though. Seemed he did his utmost to cause some hard feelings with Shado, and even went as far as to spread an ugly rumor. Shado wanted to leave sleeping dragons lie, and reluctantly I agreed. It was probably more a case of a spurned lover retaliating.
Aside from dealing with that one issue, my time spent with Shado for the rest of the day was very peaceful. If not a little heated at some moments. Shado, I was quickly discovering, was not only sharp witted, but very sensual. I was fast beginning to see how Clovis had become so affected.
Once the sun rose and warmed the land we did some horseback riding and enjoyed lunch in a beautiful meadow. Around that time Julian, Fiona, and Anthony showed up and we had some business talking with our parents. I was stunned to discover the wedding was to be held the next day. A logical decision given there were some high level negotiations that were soon to be held between the Courts of Chaos and the Kingdom of Amber. Nobody liked the idea of getting the wedding plans mixed up with the negotiations. The dowries had already been negotiated between Julian and Anthony. I thought they were quite generous. It also looked like Shado and I would be busy consolidating our new holdings. Julian had provided us an estate in the Vale of Garnath, some gold, and some breeding horses. House Sawall had gifted us a portion of ways of Sawall as ways of my own. That and House Sawall had formally recognized Julia as a member of their holdings. I should mention that Julia is the four-year-old daughter of Shado. I had made it no secret that I was adopting her as part of the marriage ceremony with Shado. Having a major house recognize Julia as a member was awesome as it meant she was afforded protection from both sides of the multiverse. Her chances of surviving to adulthood had gone up more then a few percent.
Later that day Shado and I trumped to Arden. Lots of things needed doing and we were scrambling to get them done. I had a conversation with Julia where I explained what was going on. For a four-year-old child she is amazingly perceptive. An attribute that speaks well of her mother’s dedication and diligence. At length Julia accepted the idea of becoming a family. I was pleased my interview had gone well.
Next we journeyed on horse to the Vale of Garnath where we inspected the manor Julian had provided us. Nice place. It was located next to a small river and near to the coast. The land looked fertile and I had hopes of starting a vintyard. Shado, had hopes of raising horses. From my own perspective the two goals would work well together. After all, grapes need manure.
The manor seemed well made and recently constructed. We explored the grounds and rooms. There was a lot of forethought in how it was put together. Shado’s nesting instinct when into high gear, and my own instincts were not that far behind. We stopped inspecting when we came to the master bedroom. Needless to say it was a wonderful afternoon.
Afterwards we trumped to Amber and had a chat with Clovis of all people. Seemed he had gone through his own series of changes and was well on his way toward a cosmic destiny. He spoke and hinted about many things, and wanted Shado and I to acquire and rule the realm of the white flame in order to consolidate a defense against someone in yet another realm. Nice thought, but hardly realistic. I still had to Quintus and such thoughts still make me shudder. Still, it was a conversation that went better then I had expected.
Afterwards Shado and I talked of pleasantries in a nearby smoking room adjacent to the dining areas. I learned that Shado enjoyed playing chess and although I enjoy the occasional game her perceptiveness in all aspects of war far exceeded my own.
We were expecting to dine with Bleys, but from the sounds of servants rushing to and fro there was more then a little suspicion that a formal dinner was being laid out. It was a suspicion that was quickly proven to be correct.
The dinner turned out to be a seven course formal affair hosted by none other then King Oberon himself. Made for a lovely evening in which I had a chance to speak briefly with my Uncle Bleys, and latter with several of my cousins as we lesiurly dined. One thing about Amber, the cooks certainly know how to cook. I hadn’t had a meal like the one they provided in quite some time.
Of my cousins, I had quite a fun conversation with Ryoden. I think I unnerved quite well. Something I maybe should be ashamed of but its amazing how naïve some of my peers tend to be. A moments cruelty at her expense went a long ways to dispell some of her innocence. Between Lisa, and Damien I spent some time conversing freely. It was a conversation that put me dangerously close to being an instructor. Not that I mind such a role, but it does tend to make a person appear overly smug. I hope I avoided such a representation of myself.
Several toasts were made at dinner and at one point towards the end of the 6th course I was tapped to make a few remarks. I recited a bit of improtu poetry that managed to encapsulate my views of the elders. Hopefully I didn’t offend anyone. Though its difficult to say when describing so many people present. I did manage to pass Suhuy’s message along to Dworkin who sat some distance away. Of that I was somewhat proud, but my descriptive praise of the elders I think met with mixed results. Sigh, I can lead horses to water but I can’t make them drink. The lady Ryoden seemed to pick up on my intent, but the Lady Zeta looked disgusted. Everyone else didn’t seem to care one way or another.
I’ve often considered it something of a private duty to pass on what I knew of Amber and its setup to people who were new to this realm. That duty was now discharged one what or another.
After the dinner…