FourYesTrumpFour Yes Trump"Now, then" Brandeigh says. "I believe the both of you were interested in trumps." Kieran looks from the remains of his dinner. "Trumps, yes please." "Art and hyperdimensional hyperspatial inflections all at once," Martin adds. "Woot!" Brandeigh and Fiona decamp with Kieran and Martin to a library/sitting room. Kieran will note the distinct lack of servants. "Mother and son are talking more war related matters" Fiona explains. "Percy does have more than a half of a brain inside of him for such matters." "Of course, mother" Brandeigh says politely. The "trump album" turns out to be a beautifully bound book with plastic pockets that the cards rest in. It reminds Martin of his time on Earth and how collectors would store trading cards. The cards appear to be arranged by subject, people, and then places. Some of these trumps Kieran has seen before. Trumps of the family, all by Brandeigh's hand, including some attempts at Brandeigh doing trumps of people she could not possibly have met--Finndo, Osric, and Queen Clarissa, for instance. The section on places are mostly Amber and Keltia based, but a significant section is the reason why Kieran and Martin are here. Trumps of Capital. A number of plazas, a military base, some sort of facility, and a non descript (but high tech) looking apartment are among the cards. There are a number of random intersections and locations. "My goal, and Percy's" Brandeigh says "Was to have a variety of entry points so that if a reliable method of bridging the gap could be found, we could attack and reach multiple points with forces at once. Also, we considered the advantages of spying on multiple locations in hopes of finding optimal locations to attack." Brandeigh says. "Feel free to make copies." she adds. "That one" she indicates the facility "was one of their operations to target their Doors. They have multiple ones. What we don't have, and would be the real prize, is access to their equivalent of the Pattern." "Oh boy;" Kieran says slowly studying (but not attempting to activate) the trumps. "This could take a while. Martin, I suggest you start at one end and I'll start at the other, that way we're not waiting on each other to finish copying a trump." With that, he takes the first card out and begins to scan it into the HTD. "Mom, tell us what you can about these places." He frowns in thought for a moment. "And if these connect to another universe, how are they doing so?" "They aren't connecting well to another universe. Non-reliably, although now that the barriers to Keltia are down, I will have to do some testing." There's shutter clicking sounds as Martin starts taking pictures from the other end of the Trump collection. He's obviously listening, but occasionally murmurs his approval as he sizes up the multitude of debarking points. She looks levelly at Martin and Kieran both. "A technique that is not likely going to come through that well in your copies. And it is not your paradigm, it is something that I developed." Fiona coughs slightly. Daughter looks at Mother. Brandeigh looks back at Kieran and Martin. "It turns out that a trump's power can be boosted by the use of certain materials." She pauses a beat. "Blood. The Blood of someone psychically gifted can act as a boost to a trump if it is used in its painting." "Our early experiments had a very reddish cast to the trumps, but over years, as I practiced, I learned ways to negate that side effect, as you can see." Brandeigh adds. "Its not a sinecure, once Keltia was cut off from the rest of the universe, I tried a blood trump I made of my mother to try and reach her." "I received no call." Fiona comments. "Any road." Brandeigh continues "This is deadly dangerous for a variety of reasons, and your father may be extremely upset at me for telling you of this. There are reasons why I didn't tell you about this when I was teaching you, Kieran." She looks at Martin. "I can imagine, for reasons involving your history, that this sort of magic interests you not at all." Kieran listens as his mother explains about the blood trumps. He glances down at the HTD thoughtfully. Possibilities... potential upgrades occur to him, but he rejects them after some quick, but careful consideration. The idea of blood running through the HTD and causing it to develop true sentience, or something close to it, is enough to turn him away from that option. "Does the person or entity that donated the blood for one of those trumps;" Kieran asks scanning the next one in turn; "know when one with their blood is being used?" "Yes." Brandeigh replies. "If they are psychically sensitive enough" Brandeigh continues "it is even possible to inadvertently contact them in addition or instead of the subject in question. It is a weakness of the design I have not yet been able to solve." "So we may not be able to use these to get to the Omphalos from here, but once we're there, they should work okay?" He looks directly at his mother. "In war, all options must be considered, even if they're ultimately not to be used;" he says. "I'm sure Dad would agree." "Yes" Brandeigh says. Kieran thinks for a few minutes then turns to Martin. "Those five trump power sources we were talking about? Yeah, think those might just have to be other artists, and Valerian. Four to serve as anchors and channel power to a fifth who's using Valerian like a tuning fork to find the correct note or frequency of his old universe so we can punch a contact through." He looks over to Fiona. "Grandmother, he hasn't walked Amber's Pattern, has he?" "He has not to my knowledge." Fiona says. "However, I suspect Random is holding his rights to do that in reserve for a couple of political reasons." Martin shakes his head slightly. "Once I gifted Dad with a trump-powered shaver in Amber. After he turned in on, he almost threw me in the dungeons for trying lese' majesty. Trumps as power sources are... if we try it that way and it doesn't work, you'll probably be short a Valerian." "Let us not kill him off so cavalierly" Fiona smirks. "Then what do you suggest?" Kieran asks. "I may be a little confused," Martin says. "Are you suggesting that the actual trump artist sit at each of these four stations and act as a channel? Or do you mean four people etch a trump into the supports, like I was thinking of doing? Or do you mean, 'let's have four artists etch a trump into the supports using their own blood'? Or something else? Two of these options I don't like very much." "I was thinking of using four artists, one at each station, channeling power to a fifth who's also using Valerian as a sort of tuning fork to reach his old universe;" Kieran says. "I suppose we could substitute sorcerers and or strong minded individuals, though that might take even more power to work," He looks at Martin. "What was your idea?" "Not even use artists," Martin says, "each one with their own variability and potential to go off and do their own thing. Just painting or etching trumps into the supports will work. Unless you think you need an actual person to dampen down the variability in the harmonics. And you don't even need people for that, you can handle that with design or adding a modulator." "We may not have a surplus of fully trained Trump Artists willing to try this." Brandeigh says. Kieran nods his head. "There is that;" he says regarding Martin's comment on the artists. "I would suggest the trumps be done by one artist then, to further reduce error probabilities. And I like your idea of designing and building in a modulator." Brandeigh looks at her mother. "Our techniques may be depreciated." "That is what your sister said when Merlin revealed Ghostwheel." Fiona says. "Tools and technology have their place. But it is only a place." "Not depreciated;" Kieran says. "But in this case, I believe we should be reducing and/or eliminating as many variables as possible." Fiona looks at Martin "How trump-powered is Godfrey. Pity he isn't here to study." "How sentient is he?" Brandeigh says to Martin. "Turing-capable? Sentient AI's is not something that can be developed here, although Kieran is well familiar with a shadow where it is eminently possible." "We have time, if you want to ask Godfrey questions. He is Trump-powered, has some backups if he needs them, and should be functional in almost any environment. I build things to last. As for his intelligence, I'd say he'd pass a Turing test but considering that I had to have used my own brain as a blueprint, I'm a little too close to the experiment." "Some might say that you were cheating a bit." Fiona comments. "However, I believe Ghostwheel had similar design decisions by Merlin. Although he did not mean for Ghostwheel to develop as it did. It just managed to do so." "Did you *intend* sentience, cousin?" Brandeigh asks. Kieran leans back and listens to the conversation. "I suppose I did. I was asleep at the time. Or in a trance," Martin says. "I had the strangest dream in Amber, and I woke up in my lab with wrench in hand, as it were. I prefer to think of it like Godfrey was bouncing around in the back of my head after I walked the Paris pattern, simmering there with design issues and my urge to create. Until I was ready." "So you built Godfrey in a fugue state." Fiona says. "I believe you mentioned something like that when you introduced him in Amber. The creative act as funneled through the subconscious rather than deliberate thought." "Or, perhaps, a side effect or consequence of your visit to Paris?" Brandeigh says. "You haven't had mental side effects from that experience, have you, cousin?" "Besides building possibly sentient clockwork, you mean, daughter?" Fiona says, amused. "My son is trained in some techniques, if you have concerns along those lines, Martin." Brandeigh says, seriously. Kieran nods his head, but makes no other move. "True. I can examine your mind for commands or suggestions you may not be aware of, for false or edited memories, et cetera, if you wish;" he says. "Or not. Your call entirely." Martin smiles a little, and shakes his head. "No thanks," he says. "I decided some time ago that I'll ride this wave and see how far it goes. And even if I wanted an exam like that, which I wouldn't, it would take days to unlock all the death traps I set to protect my psyche after... Brand." "Hmmm" Brandeigh says. "I see" She gives a nod to Martin. "It would not be entirely unexpected that in this area, Martin's practical applications might approach the research I've done in the area of defenses." Fiona says. "Perhaps even exceed" Fiona adds reflectively. "I then hope that there are no side effects that have yet to made manifest, Martin. Curing you might be a hazardous operation for someone who tries." "But perhaps we should get back to the topic at hand." Brandeigh says. "So" Kieran says. "We are agreed on building a special Trump gate to break into the Omphalos realm?" "I'm in," Martin says. "I'll build the structure and get it moved. As it so happens, the troops I'm thinking of aren't too much of a detour for me." "You should speak with Percy, and Deirdre regarding troops, then, when you retrieve Godfrey and before you leave." Brandeigh says to Martin. "They are likely hip deep in numbers of troops, recruitment, and logistics even as we speak, if they haven't moved onto grand strategy. And, when the time comes, Benedict. But then he's reactivated your commission and is expecting you to be proactive in any event, isn't he? Before you take up whatever that position he has for you entails." Backlinks |
