Interview with AmbaIndex | Time Under Chaos | Player Characters | Amba | Interview with Amba Question: Your personality and proclivities often seem at odds with the House of which you are a member, and the House of which yours is a Vassal. If you could choose a Major House of Chaos to be a member of, which one would it be, and why? Answer: "It is frustrating at times to be bound by blind honour over expedience- true power is often not wielded openly or directly, but it is difficult to convince others of this. House Helgram not only grasps this concept, but exploits the fact that my house does not very deftly. It is a house that I think like minded individuals would most likely be found. However, House Hendrake made me a part of itself, even in spite of a lack of evidence of my parentage and has claimed me for its own, partially because of this tendency towards straightforward action. It would also seem that I am tailor-made for House Heldt- and perhaps through our efforts, we can turn Hendrake from its need to place honour before all else. With such things in mind, and eternal gratitude, in the end I would choose no other house to be affiliated with." Question: Given your propensity to always believe the best of people, what do you make of the claims that the attacks on Amber, beginning with the Black Road assaults and culminating in the invasion of Amber, was somehow warranted? Answer: "It seems to me that it is important to end a thing properly before a new thing can be created- otherwise the new thing is corrupted. The children of Oberon viewed themselves as somehow greater than that from which they were spawned, and therefore had just as little respect for it as he did. I suppose it is of no fault of theirs- after all, the wellspring of their power was a powerful source. But Dworkin was wrong, Oberon was wrong, and they were wrong- they usurped power that did not belong to them, and a rot grew from within, threatening not only them, but all of reality. They were children playing with something more powerful than they could imagine, to the detriment of all, and corrupted with the idea that the power made them greater than everyone and everything and thus they could do whatever they wanted. They had to be brought back into the fold before irreparable harm was done." Question: What would you say was the most defining moment in your life? Answer: "That's personal," she said tersely in response. Question: What events in your life have caused you to develop a poor self-image? Answer: "Well, I suppose it would make this interview rather pointless if I said that it was all personal, wouldn't it?" Amba looked down, gathering her thoughts, and once she began speaking her tone was rather tentative. "I ... was raised in a very, ummmm, disfunctional environment. My guardian was very strict and very niggardly with any form of praise, driving me hard so that I never had a chance to actually be a child. I never had any friends, nor really any contact with anyone other than my guardian also, so h... that person shaped my worldview. I was a tool, more than an actual person in their eyes, and the way I was treated reflected that." She finally looked up again- there was the hint of moisture in her eyes, but there was also a steel that held the emotions back. "Can you imagine wanting to pleast the only person that you ever saw, and doing things perfectly, only to be cut down anyway? Can you imagine being a *child* and experiencing that? I..." "I'm finished," she said, and it was like a steel door closed over any emotion that she had shown in order to hold back a tide of memories. Question: What does the tattoo symbolize? Answer: "Wow," Amba said as the question was asked. "That's an interesting question." Her brow furrowed as she thought. "It's disturbing that I never asked myself that." Looking down she continued. "I don't really recall too much of what happened while I was painting it, other than a sense of freedom from all of the burdens placed on me, a feeling of confidence - and of power. A feeling that I could make whatever choices I wanted, and not have to please anyone in them. I guess that's what it symbolizes to me- freedom and choice." Question: What would you look for in a friend? Answer: "I don't know, to tell you the truth. I mean I know what a friend is 'supposed' to be, according to books and such, but I've never had one. Well, no that's not the truth- really I've never thought about it. Well, I have thought about it, but it's just too much to sort out. I mean Tatjana says that I can't really trust anyone, but that seems a rather cynical attitude to take into a friendship. I mean, you're supposed to be able to trust each other, right? It would be nice to have someone to talk to about these things- Tatjana is always so busy, and everyone else tries to pretend they are. It's not really their fault- they've been here so much longer than me, and there's so much I don't know. So I guess, really did answer it, huh? Someone I could trust, and talk to." Question: Please tell us the story behind your dragon tattoo. "At one point, my guardian sat me down, and placed me in front of a canvas. Though I'd taken to the art, I could tell that this was a different sort of experience. Then my guardian told me to close my eyes and paint. A rather strange request, don't you think? I did so, and began to hear and see strange things- I still don't recall all of them, and even stranger, I don't really recall placing the brush on the canvas. But when I opened my eyes, the dragon was there. Well, not really... the ... canvas had been replaced with a mirror. And the dragon was on me." She sighed. "It was one of the few times I saw my guardian smile." |