“If Swayvil is ready to move against us…”

“He is,” she said firmly.

“… then we must move against him first. We will fight as we would have fought against Uthor. Nothing has changed.”

I rose and paced. We would have to prepare ourselves, and quickly. My army numbered, what three hundred thousand? And we had been making allies among the neighboring Shadows. If we ran into trouble, we might be able to field as many as a half-million men.

And, of course, Conner had been approaching more of his “special forces,” as he liked to call dragons, ogres, trolls, and other non-human denizens of Shadow… they, too, would join us. We would meet whatever price they demanded.

We would need to dispatch scouts into Shadow… begin looking for Swayvil's forces as they marched on Amber…

“Please,” Freda said. “Bring Aber back? Before Swayvil tires of him and has him killed—for me?”

I swallowed hard. It pained me, but I had to be firm in my resolve.

“I cannot,” I said softly. “Do not ask me to.” I could never forgive him for what he had done.

“Is that your final decision?”

“Yes.” I could not look her in the eye.

She bowed her head. “As you will… Sire.”

That night, I summoned Conner and my father to a council of war. They listened raptly as I told them of Aber's tantalizing offer… and my refusal. Then I repeated Freda's and my suspicions about Swayvil being ready to move against us.

“Was I wrong to refuse to bring Aber back?” I asked them.

“No!” Conner said.

Dad said, “He would only betray you again. Do not be a fool, my boy.”

I nodded slowly. Having to make the hard decisions of a king sometimes hurt. I would have to steel myself to them. I would have to think not just of my own selfish pleasures—or Freda's for that matter—but make decisions for the good of all in Amber.

So be it. My decision had been made. It would stand.

To Conner, I said, “Have Aslom and the other generals start bringing in everyone from the field,” I said. “We must begin our preparations for war. I want to see the latest troop reports.”

“We can have all our forces in the staging area within the week.”

“Dad? You must bring the scouts into Shadows. Find Swayvil's army.”

“Easier said than done.”

I grinned. “I have faith in you. Just don't let them catch you.” Then I turned to my brother. “You know what to do.”

“Special troops,” he said.

“Right.”

He grinned. “This is the part I have been waiting for!”

“It's not going to be pleasant,” I said grimly. “A lot of people are going to die. Possibly even us.”

“I know. But we're going to win, Oberon. I feel it.”

“I do, too,” I said. A strange calmness came over me. At a time like this, I would have expected to be at least a little nervous. But I wasn't. Everything was coming out better than I'd hoped.

We would field an army unmatched in the history of war. Half a million soldiers marching against Chaos, all under my banner… Swayvil could not prevail.

Chapter 33

Freda always managed to surprise me. I expected news of King Swayvil's pending attack to come from Dad and the scouts he was scattering through Shadows. But it was my sister who came to me in the library and said simply:

“Swayvil's forces are marching now.”

“What! How do you know?”

“Great Aunt Eddarg.” She smiled. “We discuss dinner at the palace nearly every day. Apparently the king neglected to tell her that half the court wouldn't be at dinner last night because they had left on a military mission.”

“And you inferred from this that his men are marching on Amber.” I gave her a kiss on the forehead. “Brilliant!”

She smiled. “Tell Father and Conner.”

“What about Swayvil? Is he joining them?”

“No. By tradition, he will remain in the Courts of Chaos while his generals battle. And… Aber has also left the palace.”

“Why?” It didn't sound like him to pass up life in the palace for a military expedition.

“Great Aunt Eddarg did not know. Our brother is not a fighter; he would not take part in the actual battle. But I do fear another trick… something to remove you from the battlefield …”

“I will watch for him.”

Between the scouts and our father's knowledge of Shadows and the Pattern, they managed to spot the army of Chaos marching through Shadows. Our outriders paced them, keeping hidden, using Trumps to come and go quickly without being seen. I did not think Swayvil's men even knew they were being observed. Dad and I made sure none of the mistakes he and Locke had made in Juniper would be repeated here. We had all learned our lesson well.

Half a dozen times, I watched from cover on nearby mountainsides as the forces of Chaos marched past, heading down a black road conjured by the sorcerers of Chaos. Dad and Conner—and once even Freda—joined me.

Freda brought a large picnic lunch prepared by Great Aunt Eddarg. The irony of it was not lost on any of us. Although I tried not to look too closely at the food, and I did not ask what might be in the sandwiches, I ate six of them. They were quite tasty if you ignored the crunching and occasional squeals.

Below us, columns of soldiers—so small I could not tell whether they were hell-creatures, men, or something else entirely—marched down that black road in columns twenty abreast.

“Is that Aber?” I asked suddenly leaning forward and squinting.

“Where?” Freda asked. She raised herself up to see.

“Directly across from us now.” I pointed to an open carriage drawn by a team of eight slow-moving lizards. Someone sat in the back, high on a pile of golden pillows. Such decadence on the way to war—who else could it be but our brother?

“No…” Dad said, peering through a spyglass. “I believe that is General Droth. He must be in charge of this campaign.”

“A general? Waging war perched on pillows?” I asked incredulously.

Dad handed my his spyglass. I put it to one eye. On closer examination, it definitely wasn't my brother, but an older, more portly man with horns and a long red tail.

“Why not be comfortable?” Conner said with a small grin. “Maybe I should get us all pillows for the coming battle.”

“I could use one now,” Freda said. “I am not accustomed to sitting on the ground while I eat.”

“Is it worth our time to kill General Droth?” I asked. I tried to estimate the distance between us. A thousand yards… an impossible bowshot. But perhaps, using the Pattern…

“Patience, my boy…” Dad chuckled. “Our army is not so far away now.”

“Besides, it would tip them off that we know they're coming,” Conner said. “We do have plans, remember.”

“We should get back and prepare for our ambush,” I said, rising.

“Go on,” Freda said. “I will clean up and return to Amber. Good luck to you all.”

“Thanks,” I said. “We will celebrate our victory tonight.”

Dad pulled out a Trump he had drawn the week before. It showed a valley in the next Shadow, lush and green and surrounded by hills now filled with archers. Any of Swayvil's army who made it through the valley alive would find cavalry and foot soldiers waiting, along with more of Conner's “special forces.”

If all went as planned, it would be a devastating rout for General Droth and his men.

An hour later, I rode the cavalry line, reviewing the troops. General Aslom and his sons, with their golden war-chariots, would lead the Ceyoldar brigade. They looked splendid in their brightly polished armor. Next came the Mong, somber men, small and wiry, who fought on sturdy little ponies with all the fury of berserkers. They wore hardened leather armor and face-concealing helms. After them came forces from other nearby Shadows Dad and Conner had found: Tir-Na-Gath, Mulvia, Jarvoon, Zelloque, and so many more.

As I rode past, they stood up in their stirrups, swords and lances held high, cheering.