Vek's conversation on the cosmology of the universe

"Ah Diego, you ask many questions and none of them simple."

"Lets abandon the order of them, since order is the issue. You ask to be an apprentice but I think you have other allegiances that might make that tricky. Also, you have no idea who I am and what debts I owe and binding yourself to me as an apprentice makes you liable to pay the penalties for those debts should my banker choose to foreclose on them. I am a hunted man, my friend, and it would be an unkind thing to do to a new acquaintance to put them in such risk unknowingly. That said, I'll gladly teach you what I can in the time we travel together. Much of it is talking that can be done at leisure. But in time, you will have to pay your own prices for power. Luckily, I know where the brokers are."

Finishing his cigarette, he fishes out a flask and takes a tug, offering it to Diego. If he takes it and takes a drink he finds a sweet whiskey with an incredibly strong complex flavor and with considerable authority in the 90 percent alcohol range.

"Secondly, there is a game that is played among people in the greater realms. Conversations of consequence are trades. You ask, I answer, I ask, you answer. We finish when neither wishes to continue and when the balance is fair. But I'm not going to make us play that game just yet.. Know that its coming."

"Now, do I understand your transport system? To a degree yes. I can make it or break it. I know its common usage is not to its full potential, though that may be by design. I could activate it to perform functions it is not typically used for but doing so would certainly alert its creator and fair piss him off. So I'll use the system as directed until I'm given permission to do otherwise."

Pointing down to the river gate.

"What you have here is a High Order construct based on an inscription I am unfamiliar with. How ever, if I were to guess, considering how the Jeweled Road arrived here, narrow, and untraveled beyond, and other anecdotal evidence that this construct, and in fact this universe, is based on a Squiggle. A Squiggle is a High Order Inscription and most of them are known to practitioners of the art. This one, is not. It will take some telling to explain this."

Kneeling, he draws a series of lines on the ground, developing an image of rings. Wiggling his finger he creates an illusion to rise from the rings. The colors are vivid but pastel in places. Half is blue& black, the other is gray grainy and bedazzled with concentric circle groups. A heavy black wavy line separates them.

"I'll give you an imperfect allegory and it may conflict with what you have been told in this realm. As the saying goes; Some distances may be greater then they appear in the mirror. Consider this image."

He points to the blue. "This is the sea. This is the realm of Endless Chaos, where form is as mutable as the sea. It is ruled by the High Lord Swayvil from the Courts of Chaos. Its primal beast is the Great Serpent of Chaos. I'll get back to it in a bit. After all I tell you, remember that my primary allegiance is to people and houses that live here. "

He points to the gray. "This is the land. These are the Shadowlands and they are solid to one degree or another. I used the term 'Shadow', and yes it means worlds. The term "Vials" or "Shadowvials" is also used. Whole universes. Trillions to the trillionth power of them and more. A full set of infinity of realms filled with an infinite variety of life forms. "

Pointing to the black wavy line. "This is the Great Abyss. It is the hell that divides the Land from the Sea. Within it is the font of all woe and despair. People live there too"

Waving his hand around, "Everything you see, everything you feel, every place you have ever been here is one shadow or universe. Where its influences lay is the question?"

"Now I will speak of the Land."

Pointing at a set of concentric circles. "These are Primal Places. Great inscriptions created center places and in polar array from each they send out influences that effect each other and are demonstrated in the ways thing work, look and feel, in each Shadow. All the land is a combination of influences and every grain of the land is millions of worlds and life uncountable."

Pointing to the largest in green. "This is Amber, created by Dworkin, where King Random, Son of Oberon, Grandson of Dworkin, rules and leads the family of Amber, also known as House Bariman. It's inscription is the Pattern of Amber. Its Primal Beast is the Unicorn. I am of the bloodline of Amber. I am of the line of Benedict, Son of Oberon, Grandson of Dworkin. But I was born and raised in Chaos."

Pointing to the purple one in the middle. "This is Mandalay, Created by Adrian, Son of Oberon, Grandson of Dworkin, where Adrian rules. Its inscription is the Mark of Mandalay. Its primal beast is the great tree Ygg."

Pointing to the blue one. "This is Avalon. Created by Corwin, son of Oberon, Grandson of Dworkin. Its inscription is the Pattern of Avalon. Its primal beast is the Bear."

Pointing to the red one. "This is Regor. I don't know who created it, but it is ruled by the Czar Nicholas and Czarina Clarissa. It's a squiggle, of less power, then a pattern. Its inscription is called the Sigil of Regor. Its primal Beast is the Tiger."

Pointing to the yellow one. "This is Azcala. I know of its creation but lets pass on that for now. Its ruler is the great fiend Tonacat. It is a Squiggle, its inscription is the Sigil of Azcala. Its primal beasts are the The Jaguar, the Puma and the Eagle. Though its believed the Eagle is the main one and the Jaguar and the Puma just live there. They are villains beyond the belief of even many in the Courts of Chaos. "

"Each of these centers influence countless Shadows between them. You'll here me use the term "Sway" It means a shadow that has influence from primarily one realm. For Example, the Kingdom of Adrela is on a world that is in the Amber "Sway".

"You will also hear a term I use called the Golden Circle or the Black Zone. Most inscriptions that have nations like Amber have associates, or allies that want protection or mutual agreements. Those realms near Amber are in whats called the Golden Circle. T Hose near Chaos are in the Black Zone. Those around Mandalay are in the Green Grove. Regor has no associated realms outside itself. Azcala has none but is conquering those near it. Azcala was sealed from entrance or exit till relatively recently. Avalon has a growing Blue Circle"

"Now.... The Jeweled Road....." He laughs and takes another chug, offering the flask again.

"Think not that these rulers are perfect.... When Mandalay was created it effected all shadow because of how it started. At the time King Random had a infrastructure program; Plumbing, stone roadways, street-lighting, the works. He was installing a roadway not just in the city of Amber but in the cities of Garn, Ober, Yal, and out of Amber on the travel routes to the Golden Circle kingdoms of Thelusia, Diego, and others. So when Adrian forged Mandalay it attached a tendril of whimsy to the stone roadways and dragged their like across shadow and since Mandalay had a 5 color power scheme it painted the stones."

Chuckling, at the follies of rulers and the functions of power.

'Before the Jeweled Road only sorcerers, kings, royals, heroes, initiates of High Order inscriptions, and creatures of might could travel between shadows realms. Amberites and others created some trails that crossed shadow so that some trade and tourism developed. Realms in close proximity might have some exchange of peoples and creatures. But general people didn't have much opportunity to deal in multidimensional travel and trade."

"Suddenly it just took reaching the road. Of course it isn't everywhere, but it crosses from Amber to Chaos and seeks out other realms with side branches. Put your foot on the road and you can find your way to many of the primal realms. That's how I came to this realm."

"That brings us back to Squiggles. These are High Order inscriptions that can create, manifest, and influence realms around them. Some only a few. Some only a few hundred. Some only one. But they are powerful. The gate system you have appears to be a High Order construct and my guess is its based on the power of the Squiggle that created or empowered the realms here. Its a potent inscription but until I see it I won't know how powerful it is. My guess is it will be on a power level similar to Trasidy, Alamond, or Azcala. Less then Regor, and certainly less then Mandalay, Amber or Avalon. That's interesting news. As a practitioner of the arts I thought I knew of all the known primal realms. But I don't feel any shade or lesser realm influences... So.. Yes.. a freshly discovered Squiggle....Pity it isn't like discovering a star. Someone here has probably already named it."

Taking back the flask for another drink, putting it away and lighting another cigarette, the remaining fumes burning in the air around him.

Briefly considering sending an investigative tendril to explore the construct, he changes his mind. He thinks that might be rude and taken as an assault. Changing the tendril a bit he sends it to the nearest point of the construct and firmly taps it, not to effect it, change it, or interfere in it, but to let anyone monitoring it know a sorcerer who knows of them is placing a call. He lets it passively explore the edges of the magic of the system.

"So I spoke of the game... Questions and Answers..Its my turn to ask. Now i have allowed my power to tap on that system and if it has a manager they know i'm here. " Facing him, Vek allows the Sign of the Logrus to become visible, glowing gold and red and green with tiny lightnings rippling it. A little bigger then the flat of his hand.

"I came to this realm and it seems everyone can tell. And suddenly I find myself traveling with someone who has a few twists of his own. Were you sent to find me? Do you have some sense of me in this realm? Have you seen something that would fit the description of a Squiggle? Who was the elf who swindled me? Who is the Dude?"