Sarah and I left the study and walked to the main hall of the manor house. Standing there were a number of people, including Dara, who was chatting with Nessarose and a man of Chanicut whom I did not recognize. Cerridwen also stood in the hall, having apparently just entered through the main doors. The servant taking her cloak looked up as the two of us descended the staircase and nodded to Sarah. Cerridwen smiled at me as we approached, and curtseyed to Sarah, as did Dara and the others. I noticed that Momus was not present, but was not particularly surprised. He was not a Chanicut, after all, so Sarah was hardly going to include him in something like this. Not given the power that was at stake.

"The time grows nigh," Cerridwen began, once all of us had assembled, "and though I hate to rush to events of great import, I fear we will soon lose our window of opportunity if we do not leave soon. Shall we away?"

Sarah smiled in response. "It would appear that supper will have to wait then..." Glancing over to the Chanicut man, she remarked, "Dmitri, summon the guards that will accompany us...we leave."

Dara and Nessarose exchanged a knowing glance at that point, although for the life of me, I could not figure why Sarah's order should have prompted it. There was little time to consider this, however, as we all begin exiting the main hall almost immediately. Walking through the main doors, I could see the Tir silhouetted against the shifting skies of Chaos, its staircase descending to a point near the vineyards, but a quarter of a mile away. As the we approached the stairs, a group of eight warriors followed, armed to the teeth with steel and spells. Sarah nodded approvingly, as did I. A little backup certainly never hurt.

Everyone was silent as they climbed the stairs and entered the Tir. Almost as soon as we entered the Tir proper, I felt the shift...and then only darkness surrounded us. Cerridwen stood on the ramparts and watched the darkness intently. "There is little point in going further into the Castle...we will be there in but a quarter of an hour." Looking to me, she then remarked, "If you would assist me, Melanie, I could use an extra pair of hands for a moment."

I knew quite well that she needed no assistance in piloting the Tir, but I nodded and replied, "Of course." Obviously, she wanted to speak to me alone about something. I was quite curious as to what that might be.

The two of us walked into the main part of the castle, and as soon as we went around a corner, Cerridwen turned to regard me. "The only real problem we have here is my uncle...I need to remove him from Mellisondra, and for that, I'll need your help. When we dock, I'm going to go to him...and bring him here. While he and I are chatting, I want you to pilot the Tir away from Mellisondra, so that he will be removed from his power source. Then, you will pilot it to a Shadow that I have created for my dear uncle...a prison Shadow that resembles Mellisondra in many ways. Once we've deposited him there, we will be free to do as we wish with the Magic Circle."

So that was what she wanted. The only problem was, I did not want Meridian locked up in a Shadow somewhere. I wanted him dead. I feigned a look of concern. "Ah, I had been wondering how you intended to deal with him. Are you not concerned that he will find a way out of this Shadow of yours at some later date, and come looking for revenge?"

"He will never escape...," she replied, her smile confident. "Mother tells me that he wished nothing to do with the family or its machinations; I will merely give him what he most wants...isolation from us for all eternity. His new Mellisondra will keep him busy enough, and though he is attuned to the Jewel, he cannot call upon its powers while floating in the sea of the Abyss." She paused and looked sidelong at me as she began to walk again. "Do you fear incurring his wrath?"

I suppressed a flash of irritation. "Not fear, no. I am merely cautious about what enemies I may make now. A lack of such caution in the past is what placed me in the position in which you found me."

"You make a good point, but there is another reason I do not labor to destroy him utterly, the fact of his death curse," she replied quietly. "I have no intention of being its target, and left alive, he can only dwell in impotent fury."

"True, there is that to consider. Assuming he had the opportunity to voice a death curse, of course," I said, pointing out the obvious.

"It would seem an unnecessary risk, really," she replied, much to my disappointment. "To kill him would be to risk his death curse and later censure by the family...which might prove bothersome in the event that my popularity wanes." She smirked at that thought, prompting me to wonder just how unpopular she was in Amber as she continued, "Imprisoning him only angers dear Uncle Meridian. I'd rather risk his anger than the entire family's. They can be strangely moral when it comes to murder...when it suits their purposes."

"Interesting. Well, you would know better than I, and he is your uncle. I was merely concerned." I decided to let the matter rest with that. It was obvious I was not going to be able to convince her that it was safer to kill Meridian, and I did not want to make my own desire for his death too obvious, lest I give her reason to suspect me should Sarah or I find a way to kill him.

The two of us arrived a short time later in the control room for the Tir, and we set the castle in motion towards Mellisondra. Once we were well underway, Cerridwen took a seat and motioned for me to do the same. "Though I told them we have but a short time before arriving, it will in fact take a matter of some days. For our friends, however, it will seem as if only moments had passed. Sarah understands my duplicity in this...and respects my need for privacy. Here is what I intend. We will dock onto Mellisondra and I will lure my Uncle here to the Tir. We will remain on the balcony, which will help him to feel safe and secure. I will challenge him to a combat of spells...claiming that I would take possession of his Circle. He is not the kind of man who could refuse me," she added, her grin feral. "While we battle, you will pilot the Tir back into the Abyss...which will cut him off from his power source. At that point, I will teleport myself here and trap him like a mouse in a rather large maze. Then we'll shunt him off into an adjacent Shadow, and return to Mellisondra to walk the Magic Circle. How sounds this to you?"

It was much the same as what she had outlined to me before, if a bit more detailed. I could appreciate the desire to ensure that I was clear on the plan, however. It would not do for a mistake to be made because of a misunderstanding. "It sounds like an entirely workable plan. You are confident in your ability to hold him off for the required length of time, I take it?"

"Yes. My uncle has a great deal of raw power...but no finesse. And while in the Tir, there's little in all reality that can harm me," she replied with a wicked grin.

She paused a moment then, and looked pensive. "Melanie...I want us to be friends...but at the present you are still very new to me. Forgive me stating what is probably entirely unnecessary..." She looked at me for a moment, her expression grim, and I knew what she would say next. "If for some reason you decide to throw in with my uncle...to perhaps use this moment of perceived vulnerability as an opportunity...well...there are worse fates than petrification. But let us not linger on such unpleasantries..."

I had to smile at that, for she had said nothing I had not been expecting. Much of this plan hinged on my moving the Tir at the right moment. If I did not, she could easily find herself facing her uncle in his place of power instead of hers, and that could prove disastrous. If I chose to turn on her, I might very well get her imprisoned, or killed. In her position, I would be somewhat wary, as well. With that in mind, I moved to reassure her. "I understand completely. I would be foolish, indeed, to side with a man I have never met over one who has been so kind to me. Besides," I grinned wickedly, "I prefer to back the winner in such matters."

Cerridwen nodded, seemingly satisfied with my answer. "Good...after dealing with my uncle, I will most likely traverse the Circle myself...before the others. I have faith in Sarah, but Dara is another breed entirely. It wouldn't do to place myself in a position where she might snatch that power from me..."

No, no it would not. I was glad to see that her thoughts on Dara mirrored my own. Which brought up another matter... "Do you intend for the two of us to take the Circle before informing the others that we have succeeded in ridding the Shadow of your uncle?"

Cerridwen looked at me speculatively for a moment. "Yes." She paused. "You would like to walk the Circle and keep the knowledge of that fact hidden...?" She smiled. Apparently, the idea pleased her.

"You have my intent precisely. I take it you have no objections to assisting me in this ruse?"

"None at all...none at all," she said quietly. "Time flies...let's deal with that uncle of mine."

Cerridwen walked over to a full-length mirror hanging on the far wall. As she moved in front of it, I noted that her reflection seemed somehow odd, almost as if something were wrong with the mirror. I realized almost immediately that though she approached from the left of the mirror, so did her reflection, though it should have come from the right.

"This mirror reflects my image...always," Cerridwen said, catching my curious expression. "No matter where I stand within this castle, the mirror shows me. Watch over the mirror...you will see when he and I begin our conflict...and then move the Tir away from Mellisondra. It will be child's play from that point on."

She stroked the ornate wrought iron frame of the mirror and frowned...and then tucked a stray lock of hair back into place. I raised an eyebrow at her reaction. "Is there a problem?"

Her smile was obviously strained. "Let us focus on the matter at hand... Remain here and I will deal with my uncle. Watch the mirror, and as soon as I burn him...pull the Tir back from Mellisondra." She looked a touch distracted. "I dare not delay any longer..." And then she walked into the mirror and was gone.

Melanie's Page | Melanie's Journals

All text on this page is © 1998 by Kris Fazzari.

Last modified on December 25, 1998 by Kris Fazzari.