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Post by Hammett on Mar 11, 2021 13:11:35 GMT
Hammett breaths a sigh of relief that Martin is alright, and lets down on the extra force he was adding to the trump call.
"Sorry. Sorry. But damn, Martin, am I glad you are alive and alright. I've tried reaching you before but without ever any luck." He sombers up when he remembers what started this search, "Have you been in touch with anyone from the castle recently?"
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Post by Admin on Mar 13, 2021 7:16:29 GMT
#s://i~ibb~co/YhnsSCV/e1870449e691d683e27655ec703fd9e2~png "Hell no! I can bet they're all gunning for me in some plot or another. I've already had one relative stab me in the guts, and I sure as hell ain't going to give another one of 'em a free shot."As the image comes into greater detail, Hammett can see the Martin is in a cave of some sort. A crudely carved wall is behind him, and he carries a flashlight. "What is it you want anyway? Are you an agent of one of them?"
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Post by Hammett on Mar 13, 2021 18:14:42 GMT
Oh no. Hammett was afraid of that. He did not want to be the one to tell him, but...
"Martin. Stop a moment. There is... news from the castle." His subdued tone should be enough to warn Martin that it is not good news.
Hammett gets up and while maintaining the connection walks through the door into his private area, and then closes and locks the door behind him.
"Maybe it would be best if you come through and joined me here at the new Wormwood's? I swear upon the unicorn that I mean you no harm and I that I will provide as much security and protection as that I am able."
He raises and offers his other hand, slowly and only slightly, not wanting to spook Martin, but rather letting Martin decide.
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Post by Admin on Mar 14, 2021 4:00:41 GMT
#s://i~ibb~co/YhnsSCV/e1870449e691d683e27655ec703fd9e2~png "Security and protection, huh? Sounds like you plan to imprison me. Who put you up to this? I mean, if you just called for a chat there wouldn't be a free offer of 'protection'."
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Post by Hammett on Mar 14, 2021 5:14:22 GMT
"Martin... I... Damnit, I wanted to do this better. Martin, I'm sorry, but your father is dead. King Random and Queen Vaille were killed in another explosion at the castle. And you are in danger, but not from me. Your Grandmother, Queen Moira, tasked me with finding you, letting you know, and to help keep you safe."
Hammett waits to see how his friend will react to the news.
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Post by Admin on Mar 14, 2021 5:34:51 GMT
#s://i~ibb~co/YhnsSCV/e1870449e691d683e27655ec703fd9e2~png A look of annoyance crosses Martin's face. "I know that, I felt the effect of the death as it rolled across shadow. Why do you think I am hiding out and avoiding everyone? If it wasn't for whatever damn power you are juicing your calls with I would have blocked you too.
"So you are Grandma's dog, going out and doing her dirty work. You think that they really want me safe? Her and Double-Ell want to use me as a bargaining chip to marry off on Eivor or Coral to make me Royal Consort in Amber. The Amber side want me dead 'cause if someone puts me on the throne then they'll suspect I'll use the forces of Rebma to unite the two realms and toss them out into the cold.
"I'm going to be killed off no matter how it all shakes out, so no thanks. Tell dear grandmama that I'm in self-exile and I wouldn't want to be in your shoes when you tell her you've failed at imprisoning me."
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Post by Hammett on Mar 14, 2021 5:59:24 GMT
Hammett lets out a sigh of relief. So he knew and was playing it safe. That was good at least.
"Martin, I'm on your side here. All I did was tell your grandmother that I would find you, deliver the news, and "do my best" at convincing you to return to Rebma. As far as I am concerned, I've carried out my promise to her for saving my life." He motions to the scars on his face, "I was too close to the blast and would have died if not for Rebma's medical care. But I'm not going to try and force you to go back, heck, I took my sweet time locating you to give you time to get far away, and, well, to set up the new Wormwood's. It is a lot safer now, in my own shadow where I control the all the rules, and trust me, I have the deck stacked heavily in my, and my friends, favor. You can keep running, I'm not going to stop you. But if you need to rest for a bit, get some sleep and a drink, somewhere where they can't easily find you and you will have protection, you can join me here. And you will be free to go whenever you wish. And, if not now, then you have my trump so you can reach me at any time. I have also told those that guard my shadow to let you though if you show up here during your travels. So the choice is yours. I am just glad you are alright, and sorry that you had to deal with the Begma ambassador, but thank you for getting him to safety as well."
Hammett will leave it at that, he has done what he could to try and help his cousin. Now it was up to Martin to choose.
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Post by Admin on Mar 14, 2021 6:12:59 GMT
#s://i~ibb~co/YhnsSCV/e1870449e691d683e27655ec703fd9e2~png "Yeah, I heard that you were hurt in the blast. I also heard that you were in the room with Random and Vialle when it happened so you'll have to excuse my not believing that you weren't involved in the murder. So excuse my reluctance to avail myself of your 'sanctuary'. I know this and Moire and Llewella know it too; best to think that the only reason they sent you after me was in the hope that I'd kill you leaving them to take the credit or plausibly avoid blame depending on which way the winds blow.
"It's kill or be killed these days, buddy. Get in my way and I'll drop you."
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Post by Hammett on Mar 14, 2021 11:41:19 GMT
"Damn, man, we've got to do better, hell, be better, then our parent's generation. If we all end up thinking and acting like them, we will never be anything but pawns to them and then nothing will ever change. But I get it, hard to trust anyone right now, I hope you'll change your mind someday, and I'll be here when you do. But before you go on your way, here is some info, free of charge, that might be of help. First, one of the armies that marches on Amber is led by a Lady Varda, from the Courts. Your father was giving me info on her when the explosion occurred. Her troops are shapeshifters, and they want to eat us. She also has a very powerful mentalist working for her, who is able to take over people's minds. Second, the explosion was an accident cause by the ineptitude of our cousin Leonil, he was trying to fix the weather in Amber by making a spell that combined the Pattern with sorcery and contain it in a scroll, It didn't work. Third, another army marches on Amber, not sure who is controlling it, but our cousin Calvera believes that it might be Bleys. I don't know if I believe that, but I have nothing to disprove it either, except a gut feeling. Fourth, our uncle Gerard is dead, killed in Kasaba by Lady Varda's soldiers, and fifth, someone who looks and says they are our dead Aunt Dierdre is out wandering shadow, she stopped by Wormwood's just tonight, but didn't act as if she knew me, or our cousin Edmound. I don't know if that last one has anything to do with anything, but figured I'd mention it just in case."
He pauses and takes a breath, "And with that, I'll let you be on your way. I won't try and contact you again unless the situation is very dire, but as I said, I am always here if you need me. So, good luck and safe travels."
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Post by Admin on Mar 15, 2021 5:31:46 GMT
#s://i~ibb~co/YhnsSCV/e1870449e691d683e27655ec703fd9e2~png "Noble sentiments, bro. They'll read good chiseled into your headstone.
"Here's one for you: Julian has also gone missing. I haven't heard when or how."He breaks off the trump connection.
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Post by Hammett on Mar 16, 2021 18:23:41 GMT
Hammett shuffles Martin’s card back into the deck. Well, that didn’t go as well as he had hoped, but at least Martin was alive and well and being cautious.
He then checked in on Renault to see how he was faring, and found the man fast asleep. That was good. He needed his rest.
Hammett then headed back down to the club to see if business had picked up as the night had went on.
There were a few more people he needed to Trump, but it could wait until the next day.
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Post by Admin on Mar 17, 2021 6:06:44 GMT
The place is half full with a steady stream of people coming and going, with none of them seeming to be out of the ordinary. Pinky sounds to have developed a touch of larengytis or is trying out a Billie Holiday impression.
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Post by Hammett on Mar 17, 2021 14:31:51 GMT
Hammett grumbles to himself, “I thought I told Conrad to keep her off stage.” If he wanted the guests to listen to bad singing he would have opened a karaoke bar.
He could reassign her to the Ceridin office, but who knows what type of trouble she’d raise there without him there to keep an eye on things.
He sighs and returns to his table in the vip area and signals for another drink.
He’d give it another day or so before reporting in to Llewella about Martin, might as well give his cousin as much time as possible to disappear.
And with the Martin situation now off his to-do list, that left Lady Varda and Kasaba as his main focus, with locating Coral a secondary issue, and maybe he should put some feelers out about Julian. Strange that he would go missing at a time like this, with Amber in danger. In fact, now that he actually thought about it, it was maybe more then strange. With one, possibly two, armies marching on Amber, Julian’s defense of Arden would be vital. It was highly unlikely that Benedict would send him on a mission at a time like this, and equally unlikely that Julian would abandon his post without telling anyone. So that would pretty much leave it to foul play... or that Julian discovered something that caused him to need to disappear.
Shame that Edmound has left before Hammett learned this. He might have know what had happened, and if not, he might have been motivated to find out.
Oh well, just one more thing in the list to worry about.
Actually, now that he knew Martin was okay, and he wasn’t under any time constraints, Hammett pondered if it was a good time to return to the castle and speak with Benedict directly. It was risky if the Prince didn’t believe him about the explosion and what had been going on, he could end up stuck in Amber a lot longer then he would like. But if they were going to beat these enemies knowledge needed to be shared.
Well, maybe later. For now he would try and get a feeling of th situation in the castle. He shuffled out Dik’s Trump card and focused on it. Maybe the old man would know how things sat.
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Post by Admin on Mar 18, 2021 6:05:04 GMT
"Eh? What? Eh?" Dik mumbles as the connection is made. "I'll never get used to these things messing with my mind, Hammy," he says.
He looked to have been taking a break from the busy day with his feet up on a table in the servant's lounge, a cup of tea in one hand and a turkey sandwich in the other.
"What's been happening? A whole lot! Why I'm being run off of my feet because, once again, someone new is in charge, and they need everything rearranged, reorganized, and rescheduled!
"Yes, earlier Prince Benedict sent Prince Bleys and Princess Fiona off to somewhere and without missing a beat placed Princess Florimel in charge and then got that horse of his and rode off to who-knows-where. Word around the castle is that it won't be long before the Princess takes the station of Regent and then Queen!"
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Post by Hammett on Mar 18, 2021 6:24:31 GMT
"What? I don't understand? Isn't Amber still under war-footing? Is there any other of the prince or princesses left in the castle, except for Florimel? And what is this I've heard about Prince Julian also leaving or going missing?"
Not that he minded Florimel being in charge, in a general sense at least, but in the time of war he wasn't sure that she would be the best of options.
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