From Kris.Fazzari@um.cc.umich.edu Mon Apr 11 21:40:27 1994 Date: Mon, 11 Apr 94 11:24:50 EDT From: Kris.Fazzari@um.cc.umich.edu To: thari@umich.edu Subject: Kris' Campaign Log Chapter Thirty-nine Ghost waits impatiently for Ahab to change into clothes. Ahab suggests Ghost reconnoiter the shadow where Merlin disappeared. Ghost disappears for about 30 seconds. Ahab tries to explain that he'd like to get some help before rushing after Merlin. Ghost is surprised that Ahab can't handle it himself. Ahab explains that his expertise lies in knowing who to contact in an emergency. Ghost says that information wasn't included in his programming. Ahab wakes Kimdyl up and explains the situation. Given the choice between baby-sitting and letting Deirdre watch Nicholas, Kimdyl opts to baby- sit. Ahab knocks on Fiona's door. No answer. No luck with Trump, either. He knocks on Bleys' door next. Bleys answers, looking somewhat bleary-eyed. Ahab explains the situation. Bleys says to give him a moment. Ghost asks if Ahab needs even more help. Ahab asks if Ghost considers Vetch crafty. Ghost believes he is. Ahab says that since he personally is about as crafty as dinner, he's going to need more help. Ahab Trumps Felix next. Felix dreams about Ahab for a while, until he realizes it's a Trump contact, not a dream. Ahab tells Felix what's happened. Felix wants to go back to sleep and deal with it in the morning. Ahab points out that by morning it may be to late. Felix says he needs to talk to his parents. Ghost asks if Ahab's ready yet. Ahab asks if Ghost was programmed with any patience. Ghost says he's programmed to wait or facilitate things. Ahab asks him to wait slower. This confuses Ghost. Ahab knocks on Ariana's door. Kira answers and leers at Ahab before telling Ariana it's for her. Ahab explains the situation to Ariana. She puts on her armor and heads down to the kitchen for some coffee. Ahab goes there as well. Ariana asks who else is going. Ahab tells her who he's talked to so far. Ariana suggests they ask Ariadne, so they Trump her. She's more than willing to join them when they promise there will be violence. Bleys Trumps Ahab and says he's ready. Ahab pulls him through. They discuss how to find Vetch. Ghost tells Ahab maybe he can find Vetch. Ahab tells Ghost to introduce himself. Ghost says nothing. Everyone thinks Ahab is talking to his ring. Ahab explains about Ghost. Ariana finds the idea of a cross-shadow computer fascinating. So does Bleys. Ghost won't talk to anyone except for Ahab. Ariana suggests asking Deirdre to come along. Felix knocks on his parent's door and explains the situation to Gerard. Gerard agrees to come along. They Trump to the Main Hall and get some armor from the armory. Felix Trumps Ahab to find out where he is, and tells him not to move. He and Gerard head for the kitchen. Bleys thinks that walking the Pattern and having it take them to Vetch will work, since the Pattern is usually more powerful than someone's will, no matter how good a shapeshifter they are. Ahab tries to get Bleys to take charge of the group, but Bleys ignores the hints. Ariana asks if Ghost can find Vetch. Ghost tells Ahab he'll try and disappears. Felix notices the ring vanish, so Ahab has to explain about Ghostwheel again. Ahab Trumps Deirdre and tells her what's going on. She opts not to go. Ahab asks Bleys if there are any ways to counter Vetch's shapeshifting. Bleys says there are some methods he can use, which he will when he has the chance. He doesn't share those methods with the others, of course. Merlin Trumps Ahab and says everything's fine now, thanks. Ahab replies that Merlin's pissing him off and says he's going back to bed. He tells the others about the call. They feel it might have been Vetch disguised as Merlin and want to proceed anyway. Ahab asks Bleys to do the Pattern transport. Bleys says he'll need a psychic impression of Vetch. His true form would be best, but even a disguise of his will do. Ariana shares her impressions of Vetch with Bleys. Bleys kisses her hand and offers his condolences. Bleys transports them to a shadow like the Central Plains of the U.S., devoid of anything except long purple grass. There is no sign of Vetch. Bleys figures this is as far as the Pattern can take them. He gets a Trump call from Random, who has a mission for him. Bleys tells the others he has to leave and does so. Ahab wants to try another Pattern transport, so Ariana passes her impressions of Vetch along to Ahab. While they are in psychic contact, she warns Ahab that the others will notice he's using the Rose when he transports them. Ahab figures he doesn't care, now that Bleys is gone. Gerard Trumps Random and tells him what's going on. Random isn't happy about their actions, since they've technically invaded Chaos. Ahab Trumps Random and asks if he has a way to get in touch with Gramble to get the proper permissions. Random hands Ahab Alex's Trump. Ahab Trumps Alex. Alex resists. Ahab asks Ariana to lend a hand. She gladly does so and gives Alex one Hell of a headache. Ahab explains the situation to Alex. He wants permission to go after Vetch's entire house. Ariana tells Alex that Vetch is the only one they're really after. Alex contacts a functionary and leaves a message for Gramble. Alex is Trumped by his mother, who tells him his cousins are causing quite a stir. Apparently they're near the edge of the Abyss and she says the opposition could use the incident to ruffle some feathers. As soon as her contact fades, it's replaced by one from Gramble. Gramble gives his permission for Ahab's group to take out Vetch, but not his house. He thanks Alex for bringing the matter to his attention. Ariana tries to Trump back to Amber, but Trumps aren't working. She warns Ahab of this. They decide it's time to leave. Alex realizes he can't get through to Ahab, so he Trumps Random and updates him on the situation. Ahab tries to bring the Pattern to mind. It's very difficult to do. He's almost done when Ariadne dabs at the sweat on his forehead, causing him to lose the image. He asks her not to do that and starts over. Ariadne pouts and walks out of sight over a hill. Felix follows her and realizes they are right by the Abyss. He shouts the news back to the others. Ahab finally brings the Pattern up and tells the others he is ready, but he can't wait long. Ariadne won't come back. They figure she's from Chaos anyway, so she should be able to get home with little difficulty. When Ahab attempts to transport them to Amber, they are knocked off their feet. They look up and see Ariadne staring down at them. She says they were suspended by some energy force for three hours. The group decides to try shifting shadow. They are able to do this, but shadow keeps getting nastier. Ariadne falls into a trap door. It's quite a while before they hear a splash. While they are calling down to Ariadne, Merlin contacts Ahab with a spell. He offers to bring Ahab and the others out of there, but says he can't hold the contact for long. Ahab makes sure he can find the spot again and tells the others. They don't want to leave Ariadne, but they don't want to stay there either. They reason they can Trump her from Merlin's and go through. Merlin explains that he was in a shadow that was barred to Pattern, which is why Ghostwheel couldn't find him. He says Ghost is pouting in a corner. Ahab asks if Merlin's updated Ghost so he won't make the same mistake again. Merlin claims he has. Ariana is quite fascinated by Ghost, but Merlin says he doesn't have time to explain how it works. Gerard Trumps Random and updates him. Everyone except for Ariana Trumps back to Amber. Ariana Trumps Ariadne. Ariadne is wet, but otherwise OK. Ariana says she'll let Ariadne know when they try finding Vetch again. After breaking the contact, she borrows Merlin's phone book and finds the nearest clinic. She shifts shadow to find some appropriate clothing and then walks towards Merlin to find the shadow again. She goes to the clinic for a pre-natal checkup. The exam reveals her pregnancy is progressing normally. Felix goes back to the summer house with Gerard. Gerard goes to sleep. Ahab Trumps Kimdyl and tells her it was a false alarm. Kimdyl says a word and breaks the contact. Ahab Trumps Felix and gets Ariana's Trump back. He Trumps Ariana and says they should check on Ariadne. Ariana tells him she already has. They plan to get together later on and work out a better plan for taking on Vetch. Ahab goes to his quarters and finds Kimdyl has propped a chair up against the door. Eventually Ahab gets her to remove it and let him in. He takes a nap. Alex looks for Mebd, but no one answers Heather's door. He uses the Logrus to determine that Mebd is in Heather's room and that her brain is turned off. Felix checks on Murine's body, which hasn't started rotting, but still appears dead. He suggests to Foster that they go snorkeling and visit Rebma. Ahab notices that Kimdyl has her spell books out when he wakes up. He asks if she can design a spell to detoxify Murine. She thinks she can, but says it's been mighty quiet since Murine died. Ariana Trumps Gerard, waking him up. She apologizes and says she'll call him back later. She Trumps back to Amber and gets some lunch. Foster is most interested in the natives of Rebma, especially the topless females. They all think he's cute and crowd around him. Foster seems to be going into shock. Felix asks if he's up to lunch in Rebma. Foster says he'd rather eat at the beach house. They quickly leave. As soon as they hit the beach, Foster glares at Felix and complains that Felix didn't warn him the women would be topless. He stalks off. Felix runs after him. Foster asks if he did it on purpose. Felix says he just wanted to get out of the house. Then he adds that he thought it would be educational. Foster is annoyed. He's convinced Felix knew what affect the women would have on him and brought him anyway. Felix tries to convince him otherwise. Eventually Foster says he'll forgive Felix if Felix makes lunch. He surprises Felix by asking for some beer, since he didn't seem to like it the last time. Heather checks on Brand, who's still unconscious. Suhuy broke almost every bone in his body. Heather plays with Mandor's balls (Note: this originally happened during the last session, but things got rearranged. Don't ask.). Ahab goes looking for Fiona, but can't find her in the Castle. None of the pages know where she is either. He goes to see Random, but Random is sleeping and won't be getting up until that afternoon. Ahab Trumps Corwin and fills him in on the morning's activities. Corwin is amused by the fact that the person they went to rescue wound up helping them in the end. Ahab asks how things are going with Corwin. Corwin mentions that Ahab's ghost has been brooding over something, but he won't say what it is. Ahab offers to come through and talk to it. Corwin pulls him through. Ahab notices that the Rose is clarifying. He asks if Corwin is redecorating. Corwin says the Rose is, but it won't tell him anything about it. Ahab comments on how little respect children show for their parents nowadays. This gets a smile out of Corwin. Ahab tells the Rose that it's worn out its welcome with his fiancee. He senses the Rose is disappointed. Ghostwheel appears and apologizes for the trouble he caused. Ahab figures there's nothing he can do about it. Besides he trusts that Merlin took care of it. Ghost claims that Merlin reprogrammed him, but Ahab senses he's lying. He mentions he's looking for his Pattern ghost. Ghost cheerfully brings Ahab's Pattern ghost to him. His Pattern ghost won't say what's bothering him, but complains about the lack of available women. Ariana looks for Ahab in the Castle but can't find him. When she Trumps Ahab, he tells his Pattern ghost he has a woman on the line. His Pattern ghost flips him off. Ahab asks Ariana to pull him through. They discuss Pattern ghosts. Ahab tells Ariana that his is getting desperate for some company and asks if she wants to pay him a visit. Ariana says she'll think about it. She tells Ahab about her encounter with Mirelle's Pattern ghost and what she learned. They speculate about her father and why her visions in Tir-na Nog'th were wrong. Ariana asks Ahab how reliable Tir-na Nog'th's visions are. He says it's not his area of expertise, but he's never put a lot of stock in them. Felix and Foster continue to talk. Felix threatens to grab Foster, causing Foster to revert to Chaos form. Foster wants to go back to Rebma now. Felix points out that not long ago Foster couldn't wait to leave. Foster claims he's gotten over it. Felix tells him they'll have to fix Foster's bathing suit first, since the spikes on his Chaos form have poked it full of holes. Foster says Isabeux can do that. He claims he's winning and grins, showing all his fangs. Felix tells him he has too many teeth. Foster throws a strawberry at Felix. Felix lets it hit him and says he's not amused. He tells Foster to change back to his human form. Foster refuses. Felix threatens to find a relative who can change him back. Foster says he'll find a good hiding place first. Felix gets a sad expression on his face and says if Foster loved him he'd change back. Then he turns around and walks off. Foster follows behind him. They go into the summer house. Foster walks into the kitchen and scares the shit out of Isabeux. He runs and hides. Felix goes looking for him. Eventually Felix finds Foster hiding in a hole underneath the house. The hole is too small for Felix. Felix tells Foster that Gerard is upset with him for scaring Isabeux. For some reason, this fails to coax Foster out. Foster threatens to sleep with Ariana. This upsets Felix a great deal. Foster notices this and decides to continue on the subject. He asks why Felix objects to the idea. Felix claims Ariana is too closely related. Foster disagrees. Felix says he'd rather Foster got involved with Eris. Foster is disgusted by the idea. He says she's too young and it will take too long for her to be old enough. Felix points out that Foster is not old enough for Ariana either. Foster argues that he will be in a couple of years, whereas it will take much longer for Eris. They continue arguing like this for a time. Eventually Foster crawls out from the hole. He suggests they return to Rebma, but go naked this time. Felix doesn't think Foster could handle it. Foster thinks he could do so longer than Felix. Felix disagrees. Foster offers to make a bet out of it. Felix doesn't want to. Foster calls Felix a chicken. Ahab decides to ride out and present his gift to Gerard. Ariana goes along as well, since she needs to talk to Gerard. They approach Felix and Foster just as Felix is agreeing to the bet. They ask what's going on. Eventually they learn the terms of the bet and offer to come along. Foster is willing to let them, as long as they are naked as well. They readily agree. Felix eventually agrees to let them come, though he's not happy about the whole thing. Ahab goes in to see Gerard. Gerard and Isabeux are whipping up some tadpole soup for revenge on Foster. Ahab hands Gerard the gift, explaining that he wants to repay Gerard for all the times he's helped Ahab. Gerard is quite pleased by the gift and gives Ahab a big bear hug. He asks if Ahab wants to spend the night at the summer house. Ahab tells Gerard that he and Ariana are going to referee a bet between Felix and Foster. Gerard asks what Foster has tricked Felix into this time. Ahab explains the terms of the bet. Gerard frowns and mentions that Felix is learning about parenthood the hard way. He asks Ahab to keep an eye on Felix and Foster. Ahab rejoins the others. Ariana asks if they're ready to go. Foster says it's up to Felix. Felix tells them to hang on. He goes inside and tells his parents they're going to Rebma. While he's gone, Foster changes to his Chaos form, which has no genitalia. Ariana observes that's a little unfair. Foster points out he never agreed to remain in human form. They all strip and walk into the water. Ariana openly stares at Felix and comments that this is much better than the time he took off his shirt in front of her. Felix looks a little uncomfortable. Foster chides Felix for flirting with his relatives when he was against Foster doing the same. They swim down to Rebma. Foster shapeshifts to grow some fins. Ariana tries to reassure Felix that Foster's behavior is more bark than bite. Felix remains unconvinced. Foster asks Ariana if she likes what she sees. She says it's not bad. Foster observes that Felix is bigger than Ahab. Ariana agrees, but adds that Ahab just goes on and on. Foster looks surprised and asks if they've slept together. Ariana and Ahab answer that they have, several times. Foster glares at Felix, saying he can't see why they can sleep with relatives if he can't. Felix explains that they're older. Foster and Felix go up to some Rebman women. Foster tells them that Felix has just lost his lover. They look more than willing to comfort Felix in his grief. Felix has trouble turning them away. Eventually he and Foster agree to call it a draw and they all head back for the surface. With his shapeshifted form, Foster easily outdistances the others. Felix is afraid Foster will steal his bathing suit when he gets to the shore. Ahab Pattern transports them back ahead of Foster and they get dressed. Felix wants to remove Foster's bathing suit. Ariana points out that Foster will just remain in Chaos form. Felix decides to leave the bathing suit alone. Foster is surprised that they've left his swim trucks alone. They all go into the summer house where they are invited to stay for dinner. Ariana is amused to note that Gerard very carefully avoids looking at her wet shirt. Felix and Foster start arguing again. Ahab and Ariana throw water at them. Foster locks eyes with Felix and asks psychically what they're going to do in revenge. Felix says he's not going to do anything. Foster throws water at him. Everyone sits down to dinner.