"Then there was Benedict, tall and dour, thin; thin of body, thin of face, wide of mind ..... He seldom laughed."

Corwin was only about half right. Not so much dour as reserved-at least publicly-and his laughter is saved for more relaxed moments. If he wants to talk to you, he will. Otherwise, don't hold your breath.

Benedict sought out to find a place to heal, meditate and relax. What he found was Atlantis, a place that was everything he was consciously seeking and perhaps something he hadn't realized he needed. For there he found a woman who would treat him, not like a legendary warrior, not like a Prince of Amber, or, indeed, anything more special than an interesting man.

There he found Thera; the woman who would, without even trying, win his heart and eventually a place at his side as his wife after she completed her Crystal Initiations.

Her first trip into Shadow was for her introduction to the family, something that came as a surprise to most of his siblings when he brought her to Amber for the first time so she could see what she was getting into before they got married.