A golden haired man strides along a typical forest pass with a blood-red spider. At least, the forest pass would be typical if the sky wasn't green and the leaves of the trees weren't blue. The man is from typical as well. Standing at over six feet, wearing a yellow and red plaid kilt with a red cloak, bare chested, sandaled feet, and carrying a spear this man would stand out on most any Shadow. With his psionic capabilities and his partial master over order and chaos, he is perhaps a one in a billion if not a unique individual. "I can't believ you, Ah!" the blonde barbarian berated his spider companion. "'Take this short-cut through this pleasant shadow', you said. 'It'll save time', you said. Bah! That was a slow time Shadow. A year passed by in Amber for the few minutes we spent there. No wonder no Shadow paths cross through there, you moron! Last time I listen to your directions." "Boss!" Ah complained, "How was I to know that was a slow time shadow? You were the one that didn't want to turn right at Albuqurque. And then we got lost. Going thorugh that Shadow was the shortest path through the minimal number of Shadows." "Yeah? and you were suppose to scout out the courts to see what changed. When I made that faux-pas by bringing up the dead lords brother... It will take months before the heat goes down for me the Court of Chaos. And the Amber Lords are actually getting along for once. What am I going to do to keep myself busy? And no, I will not go back to that slow time Shadow." Hoping to divert the topic from becoming painful to himself the blood-spider commented, "Isn't that Generica over the next hill and across the sea?" "Why yes, yes it is. Let's go pay a visit, and see how much has changed in a year." With that said Rathan and Ah set off for the Dragon's Inn on the plaza of Glittering Steel in the city of Generica. [Admin: After a long hiatus and lurking in the shadows I'm back. Searching for a job, moving, and general life makes thing kinda of hectic, but my life should be kind of slow for a couple months so I thought I'd get back to writing.] [Admin2: Call me a lazy writer but I couldn't fit these definitions in the intro of return above. Shadow- the name Amberites give to dimensions, it reveals thier belief that all dimensions are reflections or pale shadows of either Amber and/or the Courts of Chaos Pattern- an oval maze-like symbol that is the physical representation of primal order, after amberites walk this maze (an enduring process which not everyone survives) they can bring the "Pattern" to mind to use as a magical scrying lens, shield thier mind, walk through Shadows, or other nifty effects Amber- the one true reality, or so Amberites believe Logrus- an ever shifting maze that is the physical representation of primal chaos,lying somewherein the Courts of Chaos; after a shape-shifter has walked through this maze they can bing the "Logrus" to mind to use as a magical scrying lens, shield thier mind, pull themselves through Shadow, or other nifty effects Courts of Chaos- ever shifting planes of exitence whose shape-shifting denizens are refered to as Chaosians; the Courts lay "close" to the Abyss where primal chaos lies at the bottom; Amberites consider the Courts to be a "True Reality" as well, though not quite the same as Amber ]