Dara must have had limited resources because we didn't run into any trouble on our trip to the wall.  Tevis was quiet and alert, watching for danger.  I thought it better to let him watch.  Goodness knows, I wouldn't have any clue what to look for.  Anyway, I had plenty to think about.  I knew I'd have explaining to do once I got home.
     Home.  Funny that I think of Amber that way.  Of course, I don't have any more attractive options.  So far, I've found it a good place to be.  There are dangers that I don't understand, but it has become home.
     Tevis managed to get me some paper and ink so that I could make Trump sketches.  Unfortunately, the Wall interferes with Trump communication.  I tried Evander and got a sort of vague sense that he existed but no contact.  I suspect that he's imbued the Wall with a part of himself and that that's what I was picking up.  I really can't be sure.  Anyway, pictures of Merlin, Fayne and Luke were just so much paper.
     Then I drew Dara.  I had no intention of talking to her, but I wanted to see what I could find out about what she was doing.  I didn't get anything definite, just intense rage tempered by a fear I couldn't understand.  There are, after all, other people out there with the right blood for destroying Corwin's Pattern, and I'm not particularly impressive as an opponent.
     So I asked Tevis about the politics in the Courts.  He told me that Dara and Jakob use each other which didn't really surprise me.  I'd be interested to watch the balance shift back and forth there.  He also told me that there's a movement to replace Jakob on the throne.  The dissidents reportedly have a candidate they like better and want to get rid of Jakob and not have any of his line rule.  Since Jakob hasn't had any children that Tevis knows about except Evander, I think Jakob and Dara are the only ones they have to get rid of.  Maybe also the uncles I didn't know I had.
     According to Tevis, both Merlin and I could still be considered in the succession.  Perhaps that's why Dara's afraid and why she wants Merlin so badly.  I don't think she can understand anyone not wanting power, and she knows that if she were Merlin she would be scheming to take the throne from Jakob.  I'm still an unknown quantity.
     I am glad that Dara didn't catch us.  I would have given Philomena full freedom to try to save our lives, but I wouldn't have liked even pretending to agree to the bargain Dara would have wanted.  I actually spent a fair amount of time debating what would be a reasonable price to ask for turning traitor.  I didn't want to ask for too little because that would show that I didn't value my abilities and usefulness adequately.  Rose Amber seemed possible if Dara could be convinced to at least pretend to agree.  It had to be more than my life, and I wasn't at all sure that I could bargain for Tevis's life as well.
     At any rate those thoughts came to nothing.  We reached the Wall without incident.  Unfortunately, when Tevis went to scout the breach, he discovered that it had been repaired.  We ended up riding along the Wall to Ygg.  I don't think Tevis had any idea what to do.  I got the impression that he felt we might be in as much danger from the Guard as from our pursuers.
     When we reached Ygg, the door was open.  Tevis unsaddled the horse, and we took what we could carry and went in.  Tevis led the way with his sword drawn.  We thought we were prepared for anything.
     A long corridor with the floor covered in broken glass, large pieces, small pieces, powder.  Empty frames still hung on the walls, and here and there a fragment of glass remained in a frame.
     I turned to Tevis and suggested closing the door behind us.  His response scared me more than anything had in the last few days.
     "I would if it was still there."
     I looked, and he was right.  There was nothing but corridor.  At least we had enough light to see where we were.  We started walking away from where the door should have been.  I think we walked forever.  Nothing but empty frames and the sound of glass crunching underfoot.  I wanted to hold Tevis's hand, just to reassure myself that there was another human being with me, but I was afraid that he would take it wrong.  I don't think I could handle him thinking I wanted more than friendly physical contact.
     After eternityÖ  A voice came from the distance, "Cordelia!  It's Mythos!"
     Tevis dropped to a combat crouch, and I tried to remember everthing Fayne had taught me.  I had an improvised weapon, a largish shard of glass wrapped in rags at the blunt end to give me a sort of hilt.
     Mythos here would be a sort of miracle.  I swallowed hard and regretted having drawn a sketch of Fayne rather than of Mythos.  That would have been an easy way to check.  Instead--
     "What do you call your roommate and why?" I yelled.  Tevis twitched a little in puzzlement but didn't drop his combat readiness.
     "Biscuit because she doesn't waffle!" came the reply.  I've never actually understood the joke there.  Apparently, it's a pun in Mythos's native tongue.  At any rate, it was confirmation enough for me.
     "It's all right," I told Tevis.
     We advanced and found Mythos, Jared and Hannah.  Tevis hadn't sheathed his sword when I told him it was all right, and I wasn't really surprised to see that Jared was also ready to fight, just in case we turned out to be demons or something.  It was good to see people I knew even if they were as stuck as we were.
     Tevis wasn't quite as happy.  Nobody questioned it when I explained that I'd known him before and he'd rescued me from Dara.  I suspect that they were all too busy trying to figure out how to get out of the corridor.  We finally decided to go back the way that they had come since they had entered from the old castle in Amber while we'd come from Ygg on the wrong side of the Wall.  I think that we all realized that there were worse places to be than this gloomy corridor.  At least here, nothing actively threatening had shown itself.  Yet.
     Again, an eternity of walking, but at least we had news to share.  Jared assured me that "my children" were being looked after by Brandon.  Tevis developed a temporary twitch.
     Then we found something odd.  There was an area clear of glass, and on the wall there was a mirror that had been pieced back together.  All of the bits were there.  The cracks showed where the breaks were, but the mirror was otherwise whole.
     Mythos touched it, and her hand went through.  She put her head through and found darkness.  A lantern didn't help matters.  So far as she could see, there wasn't even ground on the other side.  Not an appealing exit.
     Then we saw the figure floating towards us, someone on the other side of the mirror.  It was heavily cloaked and wore a hood.  I suppose that some people might have found it sinister, but I was eager for any sort of end to walking this corridor.  I tried to reach into the mirror to touch the figure, but Mythos stopped me.  Before we had a chance to argue about it, the figure stepped out of the mirror and pulled back its hood.
     We were facing a woman with red hair and an air of not quite being present.  She addressed us by name and said that she was the guardian of time or something like that.  I vented a little of my frustration by saying something nasty about getting on with the mysterious pronouncements.  I'll have to watch that in the future.  It's a dangerous habit to get into; it makes people notice me.
     At any rate, I was right.  Everything she said was cryptic.  Something about the game being almost over and us being important to that.  Destiny about to make her final move, and someone named Harold showing us the way.  She said she was pleased to meet us at last.  She also told me specifically that Dara's not as big a player as she thinks she is and that I should fear the Courts because they're my destiny.  I told her truthfully that I'm not afraid of the Courts but that I do have thoroughly justified fear of my grandmother and serious misgivings about my Uncle Jakob.
     Somewhere along the line, Mythos started inching toward the mirror.  I suppose it's not surprising that none of us noticed; cryptic women who seem to know everything tend to be distracting.  Anyway, we all noticed when Mythos slipped through.  Jared was quite irate.
     The woman assured us that Mythos would be unhurt and would return to us.  She dressed it up a bit fancier than that and then stopped the argument by telling us that the exit would only be open for a short time and pointing out a door.  I'm afraid that at that point, at least from my point of view, Mythos's predicament, whatever it might be, became secondary.
     The door opened into the old castle, and we were able to find the horses that Jared, Mythos and Hannah had ridden on the trip up.  Nobody said anything when Tevis and I took Mythos's horse, but it brought her back into everybody's mind.  Fortunately for our peace of mind, it wasn't too long before she more or less dropped out of the sky in front of Jared's horse.  She said something about having found another Pattern but didn't go into details.  It was pretty clear she was exhausted.  She shared Jared's horse for the rest of the way back home.
     I took time during that trip to Trump Luke.  I figured that he needed to know where Gen was and that there might be a risk to Brandon and Sophie.  From the speed with which he cut the connection, I was pretty sure that he understood.
     When we got to the castle, I insisted that we should make our reports to the king at once.  Maybe an overnight wait wouldn't have been a big deal, butÖ  I think I wanted to get the whole thing with Dara and Gen and all off my chest.
     I talked first, and I skimmed past the whole bit about Tevis and me pretty quickly.  I think Sarah noticed, but she didn't say anything.  I included Tevis's political gossip and my speculations and mentioned that I'd already told Luke where Gen was and that his children might be in danger.  That got me a sharp look.  Perhaps I made a bad political decision from Geraint's point of view.  Tough.
     Then Jared took up the tale and then Mythos.  I was interested to hear what she had to say.  It didn't sound like much, but it was pretty clear from the reactions that everybody else thought it was important.
     After that, the king dismissed us, and we headed for our rooms.  I had to drag Tevis along.  He seemed to be bewildered by what was going on, and I think he wanted to get clear before anything fell on him.
     Russell and Rebecca were wildly happy to see me.  Tevis was not so happy to see them, but he relaxed a little when I introduced them as "my friends."  Thank you so much Jared.
     Russell told me that Brandon's father had called him away not too long before.  From that, I concluded that Luke was pulling his family in and probably wisely so.  Gen's abduction surely concerns her children as well, and bringing them home to talk about it is a bit more subtle than just locking them in the safest room in the castle with guards all over.  Poor Sophie.  She'll hate it.
     Then I tried to Trump Merlin.  No answer, so I cleaned myself up and tried again.  This time I got him.  He didn't say anything, just reached out his hand to me.  I pulled him through and found myself enveloped in a hug.  He really does care after all.  I wasn't sure if I was more than a responsibility to him.
     I told him a carefully edited version of the story, omitting mention of Gen.  He may kill me for that later, but I think she'd go along with it.  Neither of us wants Dara getting her nasty hands on Merlin again.  The woman has a sick mind, unimaginative but sick.
     After he went to his rooms and cleaned up, Merlin joined us for dinner.  He embarrassed Tevis with his gratitude for my rescue.  Tevis in turn cringed over his guilt in kidnapping me.  I suppose it would have been funny if I weren't in the middle.  I managed to turn the conversation to Rose Amber on the excuse that now that I've seen Corwin's Pattern I'm curious.  It's true but wasn't exactly my reason.
     Just a quiet family evening with more secrets than food.
 

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