ThisIsProbablyAMistakeIndex | Time Under Chaos | Game Logs | This Is Probably a Mistake Continued from Left Behind in the Castle Jurt carried Tasha into a sitting room filled with dark woods, a small window opened to let in the evening breeze. Several couches filled much of the space along with a low worktable and Jurt's desk. On the desktop there was half a pack of cigarettes, a silvered flask chased with a roseleaf motif, an open inkwell, and some spilled silver wax. He set her on one of the couches of supple leather and rose to pour her some water from the small bar beneath the window. "Do you know what happened?" "We were having dinner... And..." She shivered and put a hand to her forehead and winced. There had been something with the feeling of the Logrus, hadn't there? "No, I can't remember. But my head really hurts." Tasha took the proffered glass with a grateful smile. "I've some white birch tablets here someplace. The Orderly folk seem to swear by them for headaches," he suggested. Jurt produced a small glass vial and handed it to her. "Seems there was a Logrus based attack on the Queen, a riverboat of sorts, in the city." He turned and poured himself a stiffer drink and sat in the chair nearest her head. "White birch," Tasha nodded and thought of her Gram and her concoctions with a touch of sadness. Gram would have known what to give her for a headache. She shook out a tablet and swallowed it, though the headache was already beginning to clear. "A riverboat?" Tasha tried to focus on what Jurt was telling her, "Someone used the Logrus to attack a riverboat." She pushed herself up and turned to look at Jurt more fully, "Is that the same boat that Chadwick mentioned... Where there was that fire this morning?" Jurt nodded. "What is so important about this riverboat that it is such a focus of all this attention," Her blue eyes were wide and curious. "Well, it's someplace the King spends a bit of his time as well as being the property of a scion of Amber that is figuratively in bed with the Chaosians, hence a wonderful target for the Resistance," he explained. "But an attack of Logrus energy would suggest someone other than the Resistance or that they've gained new allies." "The... Resistance? What are they resisting?" Tasha shook her head, which thankfully was clearing. "Chaosian Rule of Amber?" Tasha offered and continued seeing confirmation in Jurt's eyes. "So this Resistance had a Chaosian ally who is helping those who do not want Chaos to rule? This doesn't make any sense to me, I'm afraid." "Politics. Perhaps they just don't want Sawall rule, so the Resistance are convenient allies of the moment, or perhaps it's just an attack to make us focus on the Resistance, or perhaps none of the above." He leaned over to examine her face a little more closely, specifically searching her eyes. Tasha's heart melted as she gazed deeply into Jurt's eyes. She enjoyed his attentions and smiled, wishing that he might lean in a bit more and kiss her. Just as she was sure he was about to kiss her, he pulled back a bit and spoke: "If you're feeling better, perhaps we best join the others. Safety in numbers and all that," he suggested. "Oh, yes, of course." She felt her cheeks flare to a bright pink as she realized she had really hoped that Jurt might kiss her, since he had obviously taken her to somewhere that they would not be disturbed. "Unless you'd care to rest here," Jurt offered. Tasha blinked and stared into his eyes a moment before she realized that he had spoken to her. She murmured dreamily out a response, "Oh, rest. No, I'm feeling much better. In fact, I'm fine. I don't need any more rest." She smiled up at him and fell silent. He leaned in closer, mere inches from her, smelling of honeysuckle and the gardens, the aromas of the dinner mixing with his own earthy scent. "What do you need?" Need? Tasha shook her head, unable to clear it. His closeness caused her heart to race and befuddled her thinking. She asked the question aloud since she couldn't formulate an answer. "Need?" She looked at him with longing, but unsure of what it was she needed to do. "You suggested that you didn't need rest," Jurt answered quietly. "I was thinking about our carriage ride and that perhaps there was something I might be able to do to help prevent your slipping." He traced his hand along the side of her face. A shiver ran up her spine at his touch, and she wanted to melt into his arms, but shaking herself out of it, she changed the subject to the conflict on the Queen, "Jurt, I need information. I don't know what just happened to me back there, but ..." She paused, as if she were changing the subject, "But I'm fine now." He nodded, looking at her eyes again. "That slipping too, I suppose. The Sight must've almost hurt when that attack happened," Jurt allowed, not moving back. "But I don't truly know much more. While I might be able to help with shifting, I'm fairly certain that your studies with Suhey were more involved than any I might've had." Tasha shook her head, "No, I can't ever recall something like this happening before, and... you think it was the Sight? But I can't remember anything and it felt..." She shook her head. "I really don't know. But I've lost time before..." She looked concerned. That does make him slide back a little. "Long periods?" Tasha shrugged, "I'm not exactly sure. There are snatches of... sounds and..." She swallowed unable to say 'tastes' which was what she was thinking, and rushing past it she said, instead, "and it feels like I'm in a dream." "When did they begin?" he asked. "A few years ago, when I came to Chaos... I mean... when I went to Chaos," She managed a small giggle, "Since I'm not in Chaos anymore. But they usually happened at night, but Gram wouldn't ever let me out at night back home, I mean in Darkmoore." She squeezed her eyes shut for a second trying to regain her equanimity. "You think you can help me with this?" "If I can't, we can find you someone that can," he reassured her with more confidence than he might've felt. "I'm not too familiar with the interaction between Logrus and shapeshifting, any more than I am with Merlin, but he's a different case as he also contains a Pattern imprint." Tasha nodded and leaned in to whisper, "Yes, my Mother warned me about that. To tell you the truth, I was very nervous to come here, to Amber, because of the effect of Pattern. But you have been here a long time... you don't have any ill effects from being here?" Jurt shook his head. "No, but I'm not as immersed in the Logrus as my brother was," he admitted. "But, I do know who we might discuss it with discreetly. Are you feeling alright?" "I'm feeling better, now. But you mean am I feeling alright overall? I haven't been in Amber all that long." She frowned in thought, "Your brother is 'immersed in the Logrus'... And he has ill effects from Pattern?" "No, not that I can tell..." Jurt answered before stopping himself. "Wait, which brother are we speaking of?" "Oh, your brother, Mandor, of course." Tasha answered. "Lord Despil is still in Chaos -- and that was a lovely dinner party, wasn't it? And the King -- as you said -- is a special case. So, I meant Lord Mandor as he's the one who invited me to come to Amber -- to further my studies." "No, as I said, none that he's ever betrayed to me." Jurt replied again, after a moment's consideration of the incongruous comment on Despil's dinner. "For now, perhaps it's best if we find the others." He stood and offered her a hand. "Yes, of course," Tasha smiled and took his hand, rising gracefully, and unknowingly offering him a splendid view of her bosom in the process. "Where do you think they have all gone?" "There aren't as many places to hide here in the Castle as one might think," Jurt answered, a wry smile at losing such a wonderful opportunity. Fidelity was almost too much of a sacrifice, he considered. Taking her arm he led her out into the hall and headed back toward the guest wing, expecting that Florimel had them likely in one of the salons often used there for receptions or small gatherings. [EOT]
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