Alastair appears to be alive after all.  Or someone wants me to
thinks so.  It could easily just be another one of those damned
shapeshifters, after all.  He told me that someone close to me is working
against me, but he wouldn't say who, of course.  I hate this cryptic shit. 
I already suspect half of my family, just on general principle.  Am I
supposed to trust no one, now?  Why is it that he can say I have an enemy,
but not say who?  Bastard.

	Well, at least the information about Caine was helpful.  I knew
he'd be trying to attune himself, of course, but knowing where and when
he'll make one of his attempts enables us to lay a trap for him.  Unless
Alastair is working for Caine, in which case, the trap could be for us. 
It's a chance I'll just have to take.  The Jewel is much too powerful to
leave in Caine's hands, and Caine's been having his fun with us for far
too long.

	Damn, but there's been a run on Pattern attempts today.  Sean's
request is the only one I was willing to actually grant.  He claims some
of Paris' madness leaked over to him, and I suppose it could be possible. 
He was always bitter and arrogant before, but never insane.  Walking the
Pattern might fix this.  It would also remove Caine's commands from him. 
Not that I think this will make him more sympathetic towards me, but
anything that disadvantages Caine is a good thing.

	Paris, on the other hand, pretty much sealed his own fate.  I
might have been willing to let him walk the Pattern, if Fiona had assured
me that he couldn't hurt anything.  The fact that he blocked my Trump call
to her was all the confirmation I needed.  He walks the Pattern over my
dead body.  For all I know, he could teleport himself to the Primal
Pattern and bleed on it, just for the hell of it.  Repairing it the last
time was a huge pain in the ass.  I have no intention of going through
that again, if I can help it.

	Dmitri and Sean are going to have to settle their differences
soon.  I've given Sean my protection until he walks the Pattern, but after
that, he's on his own.  Dmitri does have reason to bear a grudge.  Almost
being ground up in a giant blender is a pretty fucking good reason,
actually.  And not exactly great for Dmitri's pride, either.  I don't
think Sean will find it easy to get out of this intact.

	Fuck, but the timing of this all stinks!  Caine will be making his
move tonight, and where is my best fighter and the man in charge of my
armies?  That's the $64,000 question.  All attempts to find him have ended
at that damn sword of his, as have all attempts to Trump him.  Is he in
there, somehow?  Damned if I know.  Poor Rasa.  She looked quite unhappy
about the whole mess.  This can't be easy for her.  We tried everything we
could think of, but nothing we did seemed to have any affect.  Nor could
we manage to grab that damned teleporting artifact.  Shit.  At least it
made the trip home a bit easier.

	I knew it!  I knew Oberon had to be alive.  And now I have proof. 
Even if he did take Edward's Trump key away, it was worth it just to know
I was right.  Now, if only I could get him to come back and take his damn
throne again.  Dad certainly won't be doing it.  Edward's key proved that,
too.  It found only the skull in Dad's tomb.  Shit.  At least Gerard is
still alive.  I'm going to have to put someone in charge of investigating
that.  After the shit goes down with Caine tonight.