The rain falls, gently, in the city, running in small rivulets down hill. It's a warm rain, and yet refreshing, bringing the scent of spring with it, somehow. Amy has returned to the gate area, scowling at that gate. "Do you know what is just on the other side of that gate?" she asks, with some asperity. The gate is closed, locked, impossible to see what's on the other side.

"Uhm, nothing?" replies the gate guard, answering her with unease.

Kyrie occasionally stops by the gate, just to look angrily at the fog for a moment. But, there's other things that inevitably draw her elsewhere. Seeing Amy there though, she slows her step. "Howdy." Her hat somewhat keeps the rain off her head.

Lucafrase runs her whittled staff along the masonry of the gate. "I mean, I can bring down stones." she informs the gate-guard. "... you ever seen a trebuchet? Like... faced one down?"

\

"If there is nothing? Then why are you on guard and why is the gate locked?" Gavin asks as he eyes the gate. "It seems a waste of strategic assets."

The guard looks somewhat bewildered by the comments. "But we always guard the gate. It's open all day, though nobody comes or goes lately," he says.

"That's because there's fog on the other side," Amy points out, with her hands on her hips.

The guard frowns, straining to remember what fog is being spoken of. "Do you want me to open the gate?" he hazards a guess.

Amy smiles to Kyrie. "Hey," she greets. Then to Luca, she blinks. "Are you trying to break the gate?" And then to Gavin, "Hello, handsome."

Lucafrase shrugs? "'Make stuff, break stuff.' It's all in my wheelhouse."

Kyrie smiles to the others, then look with interest at the guaard. "Can you open it for us? We'd be much obliged. I've got some curiosity."

\

"Hello, beautiful." Gavin says to Amy. Then looks to the guard, "I would appericate it. I think the great creator and destroyer would like it too."

Amy moves to give Gavin a kiss on the cheek, and then turns interestedly to look at the guard.

He sputters. "It's open every day at dawn. Why don't you come back then?" he asks, trying to stand his ground. And then he looks at Lucafrase and Gavin, before he gets a resigned look on his face. "Fine, fine. Who do you think you are? The king?" He has a key that he uses, and then a padlock gets undone, chains that are moved to the side.

Kyrie watches the unlocking with great interest. "Just someone interested in exploring." she replies to him. "I'm not from here, after all. And I've never been through the gates. Actually, I don't even know the name of the king here." she muses, then. "I've never asked and I don't much care for palaces. What's his name?"

Lucafrase gives Kyrie a look. "Uhm, obviously. 'Your Majesty.'" She winks, sly.

\

Gaven shrugs, "His brat grandchildren. " He steps up to the gate and push open. "So blame it on me." He looks back at Amy and winks. "Kyrie, you though know where all the card houses are. I feel that your better off for that."

Amy laughs softly at Gavin, amusement showing on her face. The group is by the large door/gate that leads out of Amber, though said gate has been locked up for the night. "That's true - Kyrie knows where all the card games are. And I think maybe all the dice games too. I started clearing out what I think is a hospital, by the way. In case you all want to help." She is watching the guard, though, not really everyone else at the moment.

The guard certainly moved faster the last time Amy was here to catch this gate being opened. Though, maybe that was a different guard. Eventually, he gets to tugging on the large door, which starts to open with a clang and a screech of hinges. On the other side of the gate, there is nothing visible but dark ominous roiling fog.

Lucafrase nods, adding: "I've started defogging some of the upstairs-- boredom, meditation practice. It's both?"

\"I agree." Kyrie replies. "Knowing where the good games are in more important." Once the gate is open, she looks at the guard again. Pointing out, she asks "What do you see? Looks a little foggy out there, doesn't it?" She looks curious.

Danielle comes walking along catching up to the others, blinks as she sees the gate being opened, "Adventuring today?"

\

Gavin stares out into the Fog. His eyes narrowing as he done so many othe times. He tries to get the fog to let up just a bit. "ONe of these days we're going to be about to walk again. Not just clear fog."

The fog is deep and black, but occasionally it seems to thin, providing glimpses of something in the distance if you try to see.

The fog is deep and black, but occasionally it seems to thin, providing glimpses of something in the distance if you try to see.

The fog is deep and black, but occasionally it seems to thin, providing glimpses of something in the distance if you try to see.

The guard looks at Kyrie like she's a little deranged. He turns to look at the gate, and what is out there, only to pause. There's a two foot tall little man dressed in green with a grey tophat and a long beard. "you're not supposed to have that open right now," protests the little man. "This is my tea time you're interrupting you know." He gathers up a small tea pot, some hors d'oevres and a small table, topped with a napkin and puts it all into his tophat which he then puts atop his head. This leaves him with one tea cup, half full. He takes a sip and then shakes his head. "Don't tell me that blasted carriage is coming back? I can't think why else you'd be disturbing me!" The gate guard stares, more than a little bewildered. There really isn't anything else out there, but the fog, right now. Though as Gavin concentrates on it, willing it to back off, there seems to be a current that swirls through the fog. A bit lighter though it then fades back to the same colour.

Amy opens her mouth, closes it, and then steps back. "Uhm, hi?" she offers.

Lucafrase checks with the guard: does he know he was wrong? Does he care? Was he intentional? She just kind of 'indicates the dwarf.' Her face does most of the: "... and how do you explain /this?!/" work.

Kyrie blinks a few times. Well. That's odd. All that she manages aloud though, is "Huh."

\

Gavin looks down at the the smallish figure. If he's as dumbfounded as the others, it's only in passing and quickly hidden behind his smile. He does seem to notice things quickly fast. He smiles, "No carriage, my good sir. Just the curious that have seemed to peer behind the stage curtain. I am Sir Gavin." He gestures around, "Are you the director of this stage?"

Danielle blinks "We are quite sorry to interrupt your tea sir. My name is Danielle. Might I have the pleasure of yours?"

The guard catches Lucafrase's expression and indication of the dwarf, and he just shrugs. He knows nothing. Nothing. NOTHING> That's his story and he's sticking to it. The dwarf looks to Danielle and says, "Politeness might get you places you don't want to go, missy. Call me Eineg." That said, he then smirks at Kyrie and looks at Gavin. "Me? Director? Such promotions will get me dead, but probably you first. No no, not at all. I'm part of the audience, if anything. And - I think you are incorrect about the carriage. But then, you all seem so short sighted." He raises his cup, sips once, and then upends the tea on the ground, tilts his top hat and stuffs the cup inside it as well. "Toodles!" he exclaims cheerily before he simply vanishes.

Amy just says quiet now, gaze going from one person to the next to the next. then she shakes her head and shrugs, taking a step towards the gate and the fog, curious to look out.

Kyrie is silent a long moment longer, then again "Huh." Then "Audience. So, there are minds behind this, like watching rats in a maze. Seeing what we do with all of this. Or something. Huh."

Lucafrase shakes her head, 'also bewildered.' I what. "He seemed to think the carriage would return," she observes. "... perhaps we should wait until it does?"

Danielle hms "I suspected there was intelligence at work but I did not expect our dwarfish friend in the slightest. i again wonder if this is some manifestation of our minds but if so who would imagine such a thing

\

"Well then. I think we learned something. Though I don't know." He looks at the others, "I wish some of our other magically minded folks were here. So we could get their advice. Though maybe we can bring them?" He stares out into the fog and pushes it back again. "Take care, Eineg."

Amethyst rolls with advantage 0 at difficulty 15, using athletics.
The result is a success.

"Make way! Make way!" comes a shout. This time from in the fog. "Make way I say!" the voice calls once more, before there's that same carriage, this time with windows open, empty, no driver, though that voice calling out "Make Way" continues. Amy, who has her cane in hand, wide eyes and dives out of the way, into a somersault, and then to her feet, wobbling a bit, due to her almost fully healed ankle. The carriage comes screaming through, not stopping for anything. It seems to have all 4 wheels.

The guard stands to attention, and just waits.

Lucafrase just flattens herself against the arch!

Kyrie also moves fast out of the way of the oncoming carriage, an unladylike word or two passing her lips, though she also tries to get some glimpse of either driver or passenger.

Danielle backs out of the way as quckly her leggs mighy carry her but like kyrie tries to peer witgin

\

Gavin trusts Amy to get out of the way. He does the same thing moving out of the way. He shakes his head and pulls his feet up. "Maybe not going to come visit if the carriage keeps showing up.

There is no visible driver in the carriage and no passenger. As it comes through the gate, it seems to become more and more ghostly, until it disappears halfway up the road.

There is no sign of Eineg.

The fog simply sits there, dour and dark.

The guard looks at the disappearing carriage, and then the fog. Then he slams the gate shut, locking it up again. "You all can go out tomorrow. The gate is closed for the night," he decides.

Amy listens to everyone, looking around. "I don't know," she says, though what she's answering, who can say?

Lucafrase asks: "Out? What's he mean by 'out?'"

Kyrie just shakes her head slightly as the carriage disappears. "We're all mad here..." she murmers.

Danielle hms "pardon, but do you expect the carriage will return to the palace" she asks the guard as if this were the most natural of questions

\

Gavin raises an eyebrow, "It seems to be some type of hell ride. It'll be back at the Castle."

Amy looks over at Lucafrase, and then she laughs. "Luca - most people request a gate be opened so they can go through it, right?"

The guard nods emphatically. "T'ain't natural, that short fellow," he says. "Nor the king's carriage coming back empty like that. I've got a bad feeling about this." He looks to Danielle, and says, "Oh aye, sure the carriage horses will return to their home. But where did the king go?"

Lucafrase eyes Amethyst, skeptical. "Through to where, though? Can he just ignore the fog? Can the carriage reach somewhere we can't? I doubt the gentleman whose name is 'genie' backward is-- gonna be-- real forthcoming with easy-to-parse answers."

Kyrie notes "It's odd that it just happened to come through while the guard opened the gate for us." She looks at the guard again and says "What did you say the king's name is, again?"

Lucafrase stays quiet, this time. No sass. She starts whittling her stick again, _scrape, scrape._

Maggie comes down the road from above, her expression curious. Lifting a hand, she waves to the others, "Hi. Did I really see an empty carriage heading up the way there? Where did it come from?"

\ "Either our new friend triggers it or the opening of the gate triggers it. it's a reactment of something." Gavin shrugs, "Everyone knows Oberon is the king. One of his sons may play at king or be regent. In the end it's Oberon's throne."

Amy shrugs to Luca. "I don't know where to. just somewhere I guess?" She shrugs, and then says, "What's outside the city then?"

The guard looks over to Kyrie and frowns. "Why it's King - king ... " the words trail off, and he then returns to his position, not bothered by the fact he seems unable to remember who is the king.

"Hey, Maggie. The carriage came from outside, and nearly ran us over on the way in."

The guard frowns at something, but doesn't add anything further, just standing at attention now.

Kyrie looks like she doesn't recognize the name 'Oberon'. "Oh? Seems like people who know Amber seem to remember it a little differently from each other, so how can you be sure he's the king?" Then her attention goes back to the guard as he has his moment, and she focuses on him. "No, don't let go of that." she says to him, encouraging. "Don't let it slide away. Let it bother you. It's important."

Danielle blinks at Lucafrase . For the first time looking startled. Then recovers and says to the guard "I was hoping a look inside the carriage might provide us some clues as to his majesties whereaboutds. Barring that the short fella might be negotiated with"

Lucafrase frowns, mouth twisted into a disapproving but thoughtful knot. "So much is unclear, still. 'To be assumed.' I'm not a fan."

Maggie moves closer to the group, her expression fading to one of concern, "Wait. So, the carriage came through the gate, but is empty. It is the King's carriage, but there is no king." She glances at the guard, then back to the others, "Okay. If the King here is Oberon and if the Oberon here is the same Oberon where I'm from, he used to disappear whenever the mood struck him. Why is this any different? I mean... Other than that he had been missing for ages and ages where I'm from..."

The guard is now just ignoring the conversation, though he does give Kyrie a brief glare.

Amy shrugs. "I don't know the answer," she says softly. "I am not at all sure what it means, or what that Eineg fellow was talking about. I also don't know why his head isn't soaked with hot tea, but that's another story."