To Rule in Amber

Turning, I raised my arms. Instantly the crowd hushed. From this height, I gazed across the whole of the city, from the distant riverfront wharves to my left to the sprawling palace behind its whitewashed walls straight ahead to the crowded tenements on the right.

Though I knew many thousands of men, women, and children had assembled to see me, I was unprepared for the sheer numbers of them. People jammed every street as far as I could see, and they packed rooftops, windows, and balconies. I had never seen so many at one time before… there had to be hundreds of thousands of them.

I cleared my throat, suddenly nervous. It was one thing to address troops before a battle. It was quite another to talk to so many strangers, all of whom believed I was their god.

“Good people of Ceyoldar!” I called.

Criers took up my words, spreading them quickly across the whole of the city.

“I am Oberon!” I told them. “I am here to lead you into battle on a great cause!… We must defeat the foul hell-creatures of Chaos, who even now are preparing to march against Ceyoldar!… If they prevail, all who live in this city and in these lands will be slaughtered!… From the youngest babe to the oldest crone, none will be spared the sword! I say to you now… to all able-bodied men… go home and get your weapons!… We march at dawn tomorrow! … We will fight the hell-creatures, and we will prevail!”

Hundreds of thousands of voices began to cheer. The sound struck me like a physical blow. I raised my arms triumphantly, then sat back in my throne.

Girls in white robes appeared from somewhere within the pyramid, and they began to fan me with the broad green leaves of some native plant. Others approached with trays of delicately spiced meats and succulent fruits.

I waved them away. Stretching out my legs, I half closed my eyes, basking in the morning sun. This was the good life, indeed. The cushion felt just right.

That night, in the palatial suite King Aslom gave up for my use, I lay back panting and spent for the moment. A dozen beautiful naked women reached out to caress and massage me. Ah, the powers of a god! If only I had the time to properly enjoy this world! If not for the coming fight with Uthor's forces, it would have been easy to dally here, taking my pleasures and reveling in my new-found position. People didn't worship me nearly enough back home. Especially beautiful and willing women like these…

Still, duty called. It had been far too long since I had talked with Freda and Dad. Best to check in with them in case something important had happened.

“Leave me now,” I said with a reluctant sigh.

“Great Oberon…” purred Kelionasha, whose nymphlike pleasures I had enjoyed twice already that night. She seemed to sense my approval. Her small, delicate breasts brushed gently across my chest as she trailed kisses up my neck, sending a new shiver of delight through me. “Have we displeased you?”

“Not at all.” I smiled and traced the line of her jaw with one finger. “The business of a god calls me now. I must tend to it.”

“Can it not wait?” Her tongue traced a light pattern through the hairs of my chest, around my nipples, and then strayed lower. Her hands began to caress and stroke gently. As I shuddered with pleasure more of these beautiful women reached out, a dozen hands massaging scented oils into my shoulders, neck, and legs.

As Kelionasha swung around and straddled me, I pushed all thoughts of Amber from my mind. Another hour wouldn't matter one way or another.

“For you,” I whispered, pulling her mouth down to mine, her long black hair falling in a cascade across my face, “even the gods will wait.”

Hours later, completely drained, I managed to persuade the still more-than-eager women that I needed them to leave. It was a struggle. They didn't want to go, and somewhere deep inside, I very much wanted them to stay.

Finally, half pouting, they rose and began to file from the room, taking an assortment of veils, incense sticks, aphrodisiacs, perfumes, and bottles of scented oils. Kelionasha lingered at the door, her lovely eyes lingering on my face.

“Shall we return later?” she asked in that sultry voice.

I laughed. “Even gods need to rest. But maybe, just you, in an hour…”

She smiled and darted off.

Alone now, I pulled out my deck of Trumps, flipped through it quickly, and pulled out Aber's card. I raised it and concentrated on the image, and almost instantly I reached him.

“Oberon!” he said, sounding altogether too cheerful for his own good. He had been sitting at a worktable painting a new Trump. “You look exhausted. How are things going with the army?”

“I am tired. But things are going well here.” Briefly I told him of the progress I had made in raising an army in Ceyoldar. “It looks like I'll be bringing back tens of thousands of warriors. What's happening there?”

“The weirdest thing,” he said, shaking his head. “Dad came back without any troops and without Freda. He wouldn't tell me what happened, except that he ran into problems. He retired to his workshop.”

“Without Freda?” Mental alarms went off. This definitely sounded like trouble. “Where is she? Did you contact her?”

He shrugged helplessly. “I tried, but couldn't reach her. I don't know if she's busy, or…”

Uneasy now, I began to pace. “What else did Dad do?” I asked. “Could he have been a spy from Chaos? A shape-shifter, perhaps?”

Aber hesitated. “No… I'm fairly certain it was Dad.”

“How?”

“He, er, went out of his way to insult me. Called me a layabout and a worthless piece of horseflesh. Among other things.”

I chuckled and relaxed a bit. That did sound like our father.

Aber continued, “But then he asked where you were—he didn't seem to remember you all left yesterday. Like I said, it was strange. He seemed confused, but he wouldn't admit it. I thought his concussion might be bothering him again, or…”

I nodded thoughtfully. “Hmm. But with an imposter ru

“I left him in his workshop fifteen minutes ago.”

“What was he doing?”

“Damned if I know. I didn't feel like hanging around and getting insulted, so I left.”

I frowned as another possibility occurred to me. “Maybe you should get Doc Hand again…”

He shrugged. “If you ask me, Dad could use a few more blows to the head. Maybe it would knock some ma

“Okay. Keep an eye on him. I'm going to try to reach Freda. Maybe she knows what happened to him.”

“All right. For all we know, his mind started to go again, so she sent him home.”

I nodded. “Do me a favor—post a guard on his workshop. Watch him. Let me know if he tries to leave Amber.”

“Okay.”

I covered his card with my hand, breaking our co

“What is it, Oberon?” She sounded half asleep. “It's past midnight here.”

“What happened to Dad?” I asked. “Did you send him home?”

“What are you talking about?” She blinked and yawned. “I didn't send him anywhere.”

“I just talked to Aber. He says Dad just got back to Amber, and he's acting strangely. He can't remember anything.”

“Impossible. Wait a moment.” She rose, turned up an oil lamp, and went into the hall in her dressing gown, carrying the Trump. “We are both staying in a comfortable i

I waited impatiently while she pounded on his door. Then Dad whipped it open, bare sword in hand. He had a wild look in his eye. Leaning out, he glanced up and down the hallway.

“What's wrong?” he demanded.

“Oberon says you just returned to Amber,” she told him. “Have you left your room tonight?”