Lord Armond of Amber's Personal
Notes
The Pattern Fall War
Character Diary I
Ambercon 96/ Gencon 96
Childhood: I was born in Westcheter, NY on Shadow Earth , the same one that Corwin was in I believe, and spent all of my childhood there. When I was seven, I beat the hell out of some poor kid who was trying to bully me and my friends (Tom, Andy, and Loren) which would not have been a problem except the kid was several years older and twice my size. This little incident prompted my mother into telling me for the first time about who and what I really am plus a short little lecture on the importance of not using my special gifts to stand out or draw attention to myself. I think maybe she was trying to hide me or, more likely, she doesn't like explaining to the locals how her little kid could possible stay under water for ten minutes (I had no choice they dared me), ride his bicycle on a thin pipe crossing a small ravine (I would have made it if it wasn't for that blasted gust of wind at the end), pitch a no hitter while blindfolded (I had to pay several bets totaling twenty dollars because mom convinced the coach I had a trick blindfold), or do any of the other annoying pranks I pulled as a young kid (I am something of a showoff). However, most of that came to an end when my father died just eight days before my eleventh birthday.
My father appeared to be in his late fifties but was quite fit and showed no sign of age slowing him down. He was a serious man who gave the impression of old European nobility but to be honest I don't know what he was really like. His business, whatever it was, kept him away from home most of the time and even when he was home he treated me kindly but in a rather cold formal way. I do know his death hurt my mother. I could see it in her eyes. Sometimes I still can. Anyway, I stopped my little pranks and turned my attention to excelling at academic activities. While mom was sometimes uncomfortable with my over achievements in that area, she was clearly very proud and supportive. During my teenage years, I was the model child with rare lapses to my more devilish nature such as the time I flattened the judo instructor when his criticisms of my style went a little too far. Also during this time, I discovered I had a talent and an interest for building and designing things which lead to my enrolling at the University of Illinois, at age 16, to study engineering and architecture. At first my mother had been against the idea claiming that I was too young but suddenly changed her mind the day some weird damage occurred to the house which I now believe was caused by Uncle Random's and Corwin's 'visit' to my mom. In four years, I managed to earn a Master's degree in both engineering and architecture plus took up fencing, a sport my dad had tried several times to get me interested in, and won a spot on the US Olympic team but declined when mom seemed really not thrilled at the idea. After earning my degrees, I had planned to take a year off before going for a doctorate but after graduation, mom said she had to take me to Amber, immediately.
The Pattern Fall War: We arrived at Amber, or more specifically my mother's estate near Amber, after a month long walk through Shadow, my first time outside of Shadow Earth. My mother had kept me reasonably up to date on events in Amber and I knew of Corwin's and Bley's attack on Amber, Corwin's imprisonment, Bley's death, Eric's coronation, and that strange forces seemed to be moving against Amber. To combat these forces, Eric was calling up any resources he had available and that included me, a fact that obviously displeased mom. The only reason I hadn't been called to Amber earlier, such as for the coronation, was that mom apparently struck some sort of deal with Eric to keep my out of events until I turned twenty-one which was only a couple of months away. So for the next couple of months, we lived mainly at the estate while I got introduced to Amber and my relatives, specifically Eric, Gerard, Caine, Julian, Llewella, Ian, and Morgan. Mother also began preparing me to walk the Pattern which was to take place the day after I turned twenty-one. I really don't remember a lot about this time except for feeling overwhelmed.
The day I turned twenty-one, due to the time differences in Shadow I suspect they just picked an arbitrary day that was close, there was a formal party at Castle Amber itself to celebrate my 'birthday' and so I could swear allegiance to King Eric, who then announced that tomorrow I would be permitted to walk the Pattern. Normally, I thoroughly enjoy parties but I was still too new to Amber and the thought of walking the Pattern definitely put a damper on my fun. I did get several very nice gifts, particularly, the silvered rapier from my mother, which did strike me as a rather odd gift to get from mom. The next day, under the watchful eyes of mom, Eric, and Gerard I walked the Pattern. It is not an experience I would care to repeat. Once at the center, Eric told me to "Go to Julian and do what he says." Not feeling particularly rebellious at the moment, I did what Eric said.
Julian had been ordered by Eric to give me basic instructions on how to use the Pattern and combat training. Julian was not happy about being ordered to do this. Julian is not shy about letting you know he is unhappy. For the next twelve weeks, Julian beat, sometimes literally, basic combat and Shadow walking techniques into me. I will grant that Julian knows his stuff and that I probably learned more in that twelve weeks than I would have over several years with other teachers, but I still hate him for it and I am not overly fond of Eric for sending me to him. When I returned to Amber, I moved out of my mom's estate and into my own place, the White Manor, in Amber city largely because I was also angry at her for what had happened to my life. Eventually, I realized that mom wasn't to blame, and I still feel pretty bad because I know some of the things I said really hurt her. How does the quote go, "How sharper than a serpent's tooth is the wrath of an ungrateful child".
For the next several years, I was mainly used to move troops through Shadow for Julian or ships for Gerard. At least I get along pretty good with Gerard, who was the first to point out to me that I seemed to have some special talent at manipulating Shadow. He also helped arrange for me to get some formal training in Conjuration which rapidly increased my ability. Also during this time, I began hanging out with Ian and Morgan, who are the closest of my relatives in terms of age but are still several hundred years older than I am. Which kinda makes me wonder why I appear to be a better fencer than either of them and why neither seem to be able to tell that I am holding back. Oh well. They're still more of a challenge then the guards and can drink till dawn or for about three days from what I've heard. However, most of my time was spent herding troops through Shadow which is as boring as it sounds.
At the battle with the Black Road, I was placed in charge of Flora's guard and fought several minor skirmishes with various Chaos creatures which we won handily. I retained this position during Corwin's brief regency which I much preferred to shuttling troops for Julian. Shortly after the battle, I was introduced to Corwin, Random, and Fiona, who took a brief interest in me much to the dismay of mom. Fortunately from mom's point of view, all Fiona did was help point me in the right direction. When Oberon returned, I was sent along with Flora and her guard to the final battle at the Courts of Chaos where I actually was involved in very little fighting as my primary responsible was guarding the archers which included mom. After the battle ended and we had all sworn allegiance to Random, mom and I entered the Courts of Chaos to weather out the impending storm.
Wars End
Character Diary II
Ambercon 96/ Gencon 96
Oberon's Funeral: One of the first things I noticed about the Courts of Chaos was that it didn't seem all that different but perhaps I simply got the tourist's view and there was not much time to look around before Oberon's funeral. I felt a little uncomfortable being in the midst of my former enemies and kept a sharp eye out for trouble that never came. The funeral itself was a very formal affair which was only notable as the first time I have gotten a good look at Dworkin, who seems reasonable normal for our family. Mother and I were amoung the last to leave, and we went to join the rest of the family watching the Storm break at the Abyss. After that, it was a simple matter of sending mom and the guard home which due to the time differential with Amber took a lot more Amber time than I would have preferred. After sending the last guard through, I let out a deep mental sigh as I was finally free. Since I was called to Amber, or perhaps since my father died, I have been on my best behavior doing my duty as the good son, but now I was going to do what I wanted. All possibilities lay before me and with that thought and a smile I stepped through the trump into Amber.
Homecoming: Upon returning to Amber, I visited my mother's estate in the country and we talked briefly about current events and I told her that since the crisis was over, I was resigning my commission as her guard Captain and quickly reassured her that all she had to do was call and I would immediately come to her aid. Mother was a little sensitive about such things. On my way out I leanred that mother was involved with building an avatoir and I must admit to feeling a little bit hurt that she didn't ask for my help. After all, I am a trained architect and engineer. It took me a few more days to realize that mother probabely didn't ask for my help because she knew I needed some time to myself. Being immortal, I wonder if I will always feel like a little kid around her. Anyway, my next stop was Amber herself.
Upon entering Amber City with its rich colors and smells, I knew I was home. For most of my relatives Amber Castle is the heart of Amber but for me, the City is the true center. I strolled leisurely toward the White Manor taking in the ambiance of the one true city. When I finally arrived, my servents were there to greet me along with Red, my aging childhood pet. It was good to be home. Pierre quickly brought me up to date on events concerning the manor and introduced me to his son, John, my newest employee. I signed a few docuements and directed Pierre on a few things of minor importance but to be honest, my servents probabely run the place better without me. However the first thing I did was ditch my military clothes and switch into something more comfortable. I will admit my choice of clothes leave me looking a little like an extra in a three musketeer movie but they work quite well in Amber. With a nights rest, I was off to pay my respects to Gerard, the current Regeant of Amber.
My meeting with Gerard went quite well, and he seemed generally glad to see me but I think he would be much happier if Random returned and released him from his duties. I also encountered Ian and Morgan, my closest relatives in terms of age and more importantly temperament. After a brief bout of fencing and drinking plus a little family gossip, I began to prepare to head out into shadow. Before I could escape, I was invited to one more social event at Amber Castle. The gathering was attended by Morgan, Ian, Llewella, mom, and Gerard plus I met Auric, who I believe to be Julian's son, and a curious courtier named Fitzgan. Bleys made a surprise appearance with someone named Aros in tow and announced that he was a lost son of Oberon. This bit of news caused quite a stir amoung my older relatives but I confess that I didn't find the announcement all that interesting. Once the party broke up, I planned on returnig home with the intention of setting out for shadow next mourning.
On my way home, I noticed a strange light seemed to be following me, but I blamed this encounter on my rather intoxicated state until later events caused me to reconsider. That mourning, I set out into shadow through forest Arden with the intention of locating a suitable place to begin work on Shadow Victoria, but I didn't get far before I had another odd encounter. While stopping at an inn just outside of Arden proper, I was ambushed by an archer, whose initial attacks I managed to evade without much difficulty, but he managed to escape my attempts at a face to face encounter by teleporting away. Fortunately, I had the presence of mind to capture a trace of his magic into a crystal amulet to use as a crude detector for his particular style of magic and that would last for a year and a day. Confident that I had the matter in hand for the moment, I spent the next few days trying to locate a base shadow to begin working on but was interupted by an odd trump contact. I took the contact, my amulet activated, I dove for cover, then my horse erupted into a fantastic display of fire and electricity. After three progressively more dangerous incidents, I had to conclude that I now have a serious, determined, and dangerous enemy, so I put my plans on hold and set off after him. Nobody blows up my horse and gets away with it.
Using the amulet, I tracked my unknown enemy through shadows torn by war and strife, until I located a ravaged shadow that I recognized as being a former battleground between Amber and Chaos. Not wanting to face my new enemy tired, I found a secure place and rested for the night. In the mourning, I was surprized to hear voices and movement in what had appeared to be a ruined city. At first, I thought scavangers had moved in, but when I noticed that their clothes appeared unusually worn and that several of them were wearing uniforms of Amber's military, I began to suspect that their were no real survivers in this shadow. They were all heading in the same direction, and I followed them into a great plaza where a hooded man stood over the crowd raving against the evil that had been done here. I had found my enemy, but before I could act, he pointed at me while accusing me of foul crimes against these people which caused his undead hordes to swarm over me. Unfortunately, they moved faster than I thought they could, and their bodies quickly buried me. After deciding against fighting my way out using my magic, I trumped Ian, who quickly pulled me back to Amber but at the loss of my amulet. This fourth encounter had proved my enemy powerful enough that I decided it was time to ask for help.
I discussed my problem with Ian and his wife, Alis, over dinner. Ian took the situation even more seriously than I did, as he insisted upon informing the Regeant, Gerard plus taking a squad of troops off with us we hellrode into shadow. Personally, I believe Ian overreacted as he lost three men to the hellride before slowing to a slightly more reasonable pace just before tanks attacked us. After that encounter, I managed to get Ian to send the men home, but he replaced them with what appeared to be a large lizard. Eventually, we arrived at the plazza where I was attacked but we could find no trace of my mysterious hunter. Disgusted by our lack of progress, I thanked Ian, who trumped away, then returned directly to Amber to ponder my next move.
Upon arriving at my manor in Amber city, I discover my servants missing and signs of a struggle, but I am unable to find any clues that could tell me what really happened. After ordering the city guard to secure my home, I quickly head to Amber Castle where I inform the Lord Seneschal, Jesper, who already knew more about the incident than I did. Apparently, a blue armored man, bearing a silver peal insignia in the shape of a tentacled creature, attacked my manor injuring Markus, who had tried to fight him off. None of my servants were killed, but they were now residing in the castle. Fearing my mother could be the next victim of my unknown assailent, I ordered a guard captain to despatch a squad of men to reinforce and warn my mother's manor in the countryside. If my opponent wants a war, he got one, but I still hope there is another way. "Assassins, zombie armies, and home invasions. Welcome home, Armond." I muttered.