From yu121874@yorku.ca
Subject: [AM] Lost
 
 
Scene: Within a forest
 
        With blinding speed she moved, despite the pain.  Despite the 
arrows, and the trees that threatened to cut off her escape.  The Hound 
howled behind her, seemingly gaining.  No matter where she went, it 
followed.  She had been to ten similar forests, and yet she could still 
hear padded feet thumping against the forest ground, chasing.  Twigs and 
branches snapped at both their passing.
 
        The Hunter was following, she knew, intent on her death.  She 
stumbled, nearly crashing head first to the ground.  Her leg muscles 
tightened, growing numb from the arrow lodged there.  She would not 
last, another method of survival was needed.  The forest suddenly 
thinned, disappearing behind her as she raced into dry desert badlands.  
Still the Hound howled behind her, but it had lost ground.  Ahead trees 
appeared, and she plowed into them, thankful for the protection they 
offered.  But a cold howl, far in the distance, would not let her rest.
 
        Suddenly, a clearing appeared, a sparkling pool of blue water 
before her.  Blood, a deep glistening red, ran down her white coat.  She 
could go no further.  Her dark eyes peered at herself within the water.  
The chase was over.
 
Scene: The halls of Castle Amber
 
        "Laura is walking the Pattern?"  Zachary asked again, quite sure 
he had heard wrong the first time.  But the young guard Kristoff nodded 
his head, having nearly bowled over the Royal on his way up from the 
depths of Castle Amber.
 
        "She came alone, quite a nice young lady, in fact."  Kristoff 
replied.  "But she is new here, correct?"
 
        "Yes."  Zachary said, before another voice softly made it to his 
ears.
 
        "Is there a problem, Zachary?"  Julianna asked, walking down the 
main stairs of the castle.
 
        Zachary nodded.  "Seems Laura has taken it upon herself to 
attempt walking the Pattern."
 
        There was no look of surprise on Julianna's face.  In fact, a 
slight smile came to her lips.  "Our newfound cousins are rather 
impulsive, I see.  Karina had walked the Pattern earlier."
 
        Zachary sighed, making his way to the stairs to the dungeons, 
the other two following quickly.  "Were we ever like this?"  He asked, 
looking at his cousin.
 
        "I know I wasn't."  Julianna said simply, and the three began 
the trek towards the seventh passage, to where the Pattern lay.
 
        "Is Karina still here?"  Zachary asked as they turned down the 
seventh passage.
 
        "I do not know.  She did not say where she would be going."  
Julianna replied.  They soon arrived outside the room, the iron door 
closed.  With a look to his cousin, Zachary opened the door, entering in 
quietly.  If Laura was still on the Pattern, any interruption could be 
fatal.
 
        The Pattern glowed brightly before them, the lantern Kristoff 
had been carrying was put to the side, now useless.  In the center stood 
the beautiful young blond, face contorted in exertion, the final Veil 
the hardest labour of the the three.  Within moments she had passed it, 
an eternity for her.  Catching her breath within the center, she closed 
her eyes and was gone.
 
        Zachary sighed.  "That's two now off to who knows where."
 
        "Could be dangerous if they try things beyond their 
understanding."  Julianna said.
 
        "I just hope they don't attempt to shift to far.  But they are 
too intelligent for that.  If they've left Amber, I do hope they 
remembered their Trumps."  Zachary said worriedly, as much for them as 
for Shadow.
 
        Suddenly, the sensation at the back of his mind, someone trying 
to Trump him.  He quickly opened his mind.  His relaxed his mind, and 
soon the contact was made.  
 
        "It is good to hear from you.  I understand that you have walked 
the Pattern here in Amber."  Zachary replied.  Julianna looked over at 
him with interest, realizing that he had been Trumped by one of their 
wayward cousins.
 
        
 
        "Of course, reach out and I will pull you through."  Zachary 
replied, and reached out with his own hand.  He felt her hand slip into 
his, and then it was gone.  "Karina, take my hand."  He said, before 
realizing that the Trump contact was gone as well.  "Oh dear ..."
 
        "What happened, had she decided not to come back yet?"  Julianna 
asked.
 
        "No, nothing like that.  It seems ... I lost her."  Zachary 
replied, swallowing hard.
 
Scene: The Grove
 
        Karina shook her head, still buzzing after being pulled from her 
Shadow.  She glanced about her, knowing immediately that she was not at 
Castle Amber, or anywhere near it.  All she could see were trees, and a 
calm pond, and ...
 
        Karina's mouth opened slightly in awe, to which she closed it 
again.  The creature before her was ... beautiful.  It stood before her 
majestically, ivory white with jet black hooves.  The silver horn from 
the middle of it's head caught Karina's eye, glinting silver in the 
glowing light of the dawn.  It was then that she noticed the splotches 
of red staining the Unicorn's white hide horribly.  Three dark arrows 
jutted from it's body.  One sank in deep into it's side, a second 
further down pierced it's upper rear leg.  What concerned Karina the 
most was the arrow closest to her, driven visciously through the 
Unicorn's neck.  She gasped again, seeing the wicked barbed arrowhead 
jutting through the Unicorn's neck, the metal tip oddly blackened at 
points.
 
        "Oh, how could someone think to shoot one as beautiful as you?"  
Karina asked.  The only answer was a sad look from the creature's dark 
eyes.  A sudden howl caught Karina's attention as it drifted off, lost 
to the morning's sun as it moved away.
 
Scene: The Library of Castle Amber
 
        Zachary peered down upon the cleared desk, books piled neatly on 
the floor.  He ran a hand through his hair, unaware of the charcoal he 
was smudging through his light brown locks.  'Damn, I should be more 
observant sometimes.'  He cursed himself.
 
        "I cannot find anything within these texts, Zachary."  Julianna 
said from one of the few plush chairs that adorned the Library.  Zachary 
had nearly dragged his cousin to the Library, and after an hour of 
searching, stacked a pile of books before her.
 
        Zachary looked over to his cousin.  "Nothing?  How could I have 
lost contact, just like that?"
 
        "Perhaps something had happened to the Shadow.  A Storm 
perhaps?"  Julianna suggested.
 
        "No ... I don't know ... maybe.  But I don't believe so.  I felt 
her hand in mine, and then ... I can't explain it, a tingle I guess.  
And she was gone."  Zachary turned his gaze back to the paper before 
him.  Taking charcoal in hand, he continued to draw.
 
        "It would have been best for you to look through the books.  You 
are the one who experienced the sensation, not I."  Julianna pointed out.
 
        "And I'm the one who can draw the Trump.  Does this look like 
her?"  He asked, waiting the few moments as Julianna stood and walked 
over to his side.
 
        "A very fair rendition, Zachary."  Julianna commented.
 
        "I hope this works."  Zachary said quietly, and began to 
concentrate.  The sketch before him grew cool beneath his hands as he 
touched the picture.  With no Trump of the new cousins, a sketch was 
their only hope.  Dawn had since risen, as Zachary tried unsuccessfully 
the first two tries at the sketch.  Julianna had taken time to talk to 
King Random, telling him of the recent events of the night before.
 
        Nothing.
 
        Zachary hung his head low.  "I can't get anything.  She's simply 
not there, or well hidden."
 
        "Perhaps we should search Shadow for her.  We could try to find 
her home Shadow, and start from there."  Julianna suggested.  This 
little mystery was becoming intriguing, much more so than anything in 
Amber at the time.
 
        "I would like to try the trump for a while longer.  If a Storm 
is disrupting Shadow, it would be dangerous for us to ride headlong into 
it."  Zachary replied, a charcoal streak on his left cheek causing 
Julianna to smile briefly.
 
        Julianna sighed.  "Very well, I still have a couple of other 
texts I wish to examine.
 
        By late afternoon, they had still not achieved any contact.  
Julianna had tried, but receieved nothing more than a possible glimmer 
of contact.  Whether it was truly Karina or not neither could tell.
 
        Zachary had fallen back in a chair, lost in thought, and 
Julianna had gone to a far bookcase, replacing a text she had taken 
down.  The door opened quietly and Laura walked in.  She had inquired of 
a servant and discovered that Zachary had been in the Library all day.  
According to the gossip, he had been there all night too.
 
        Zachary glanced up and then looked away, rubbing his eyes.  
Laura smiled briefly, but soon sensed that something was wrong.  She 
walked over to Zachary, then the sketch caught her eye.  "This is 
wonderful, Zachary."  She said in a pleasant voice.  "It looks just like 
Karina.  Could you do one of me one day?"
 
        "It would be my pleasure, but right now is not the time.  I 
would like for you to sit for me one day, so that I may do a proper 
Trump of you."
 
        "I'd be delighted."  Laura smiled, "Is this a Trump as well?"  
She asked after a moment.
 
        "A meager one, yes."  Zachary said in a sad tone.
 
        "Do not mind him, cousin.  He is concerned for our missing 
cousin."  Julianna said, emerging from the darkened end of the Library, 
nearly surprising Laura to an exclamation.
 
        "Missing?  Karina is missing?"  Laura asked.
 
        Zachary and Julianna both nodded.  "Late last evening she 
contacted Zachary, but somehow lost contact while attempting to step 
through to us."  Julianna explained.
 
        "Lost contact?  Are the Trumps that unsure?"
 
        "No, the Trumps are not the problem.  Something happened to 
her.  The problem is, we don't know what.  With no proper Trump, I've 
tried to draw a sketch of Karina, but neither of us can achieve any 
contact with her."  Zachary replied.
 
        Laura thought for a moment, then a thought struck her.  "Have 
you tried using the sketch together?  Combining your wills, as it 
were?"  She suggested, remembering a passage in Corwin's chronicles 
about a similar attempt.
 
        "It is worth a try."  Julianna said in agreement.
 
        Zachary rose with new energy.  "I agree, let's give it a try."
 
NRPG: Okay ... things are beginning to happen   Go with this as you 
please.  Will the combined Trumping work?  Will we have to search 
Shadow?  What has Karina done with the Unicorn?  
 
Kat: Though Karina will most likely not know this, this is The Unicorn 
of Amber legend and history.
 
Jason/Judi: So, where do we go from here?  :)
 
Nathan: I'm not sure what's happening with Kyle at the moment, so I have 
left him out for the moment.  If you like, you can bring him in.
 
Krishna: Still waiting for that promised Ivy post!  Come on, we're all 
sitting on the edge of our seats waiting for it ... please! :)
 
                           ///          /// 
                           \ //        /  /           
      Christopher           \ ////   _/  /     Zachary, Librarian of
      Ackney                 \_  ////    /     Castle Amber, son to
                              \___/    /       King Random
      yu121874@yorku.ca       /         \_      
                             /,)-_(  \_   \     
      1Asada20.1700          (/   \\ /\\\\         <\
                                   //               >\
      -===========================((===============>:::(0)//////]O 
                                    '               >/
        "It was a very foul blow, about four