Tome IX:
Prelude to Closure
Standing at the center of the Pattern, Konrad glanced toward Queen Llewella...with a gesture she caused the currents to carry his clothing to him. He dressed, and in silence contacted King Random via trump. Soon he stood in the throne room of Castle Amber again.
They talked briefly. Konrad confessed that Kianne was in Amber, only to learn that in fact, the king knew...and that she was no longer in Amber. Chadwick had triggered some catastrophic spell which caused the Lighthouse at Cabra to be destroyed. No sign of either of them, save that message had come via Florimel that Chadwick was still alive and had been kidnapped by Ariel and Karl. Angry at this turn of events, and feeling angrier at himself for not warning Chadwick about what resided in the tower, Konrad volunteered to be of assistance. And so King Random directed him to go to Quynn's chambers where Talia, Quynn, and Torrance were preparing to journey to Arcadia, Ariel's home shadow.
Of the rescue attempt, the less said the better. This was Arcadia...Ariel's home base...fortified by Julian and protected by magics that only a trump artist could fathom. In the end, it was Quynn's impatience that ended the attempt, because they simply could not find him within the shadow. And so they returned to Talia and Torrance in Castle Amber.
Konrad went to Random and gave a short recounting of what had happened in Arcadia. Random did not seem surprised by this turn of events, and went on to tell Konrad of a strange discovery. Bones had been found in the garden walls of his home...bones of shadow versions of Waylon. Konrad expressed ignorance of this, and added (with no small sarcasm in his tone) that he couldn't possibly fathom who could be trying to get him into trouble with the crown. Given their earlier discussion of Karl's efforts at harassment, they both understood the situation, though is was not spoken aloud. The king went on to explain that someone was setting it up to look as if Konrad was using necromancy to 'haunt' the Princess Talia with the ghost of Waylon. Konrad expressed his annoyance at being framed for such a trite melodrama.
After his audience with the King, he returned home to find that Cassilda was gone. No note had been left, and worried that perhaps Karl's forces had made some attempt against her, he trumped her. At first he could not get through, but then he reached Cassilda, who was with someone he couldn't perceive over the trump...and at his request, Cassilda pulled him through.
Konrad found himself in the tower of Fiona...a place he had read about in Mandor's library...the same shadow where she had kept Brand trapped, what Random called her 'Prismatic Shadow'. They chatted briefly, Konrad somewhat awed by the strange undertakings of Fiona and Cassilda. They had a large table, and spread across it were a great many trumps. On one side Mandor and Dara, in the middle himself, on another Fiona. Arthur near the Serpent; Arial and Karl together, amidst a host of cards. Nicholas amidst demonkind. It made sense to him only very vaguely. His knowledge of trump scrying was too minor to aid him in understanding such a complex spread. He explained what he knew of Chadwick's kidnapping, and explained that he was trying to rescue him. Fiona asked why he would try, to which he replied "Because I care for him." This seemed to honestly surprise Fiona. Konrad himself was much surprised by her attitude towards him; she seemed much better disposed towards him...no doubt because he had finally walked the Pattern and cleansed himself of the abyssal taint.
Merlin came to speak to Fiona. And then another arrived, who seemed like Merlin's twin. He was introduced as Sam, and seemed quite friendly. He and Konrad talked briefly about Chadwick, and Konrad left the conversation feeling that perhaps Sam would aid him. Unable to trump from Fiona's shadow; Konrad walked through shadow for the first time. It was tiring, but at the same time inspiring...so different from his previous mode of travel. After he reached some distance from the prismatic shadow, he trumped to Amber. He immediately proceeded to Talia's chambers, to pass on to her a message that Sam had relayed. Unfortunately, Talia was not in her quarters, and her serving maid informed him that she was in Rebma visiting with Llewella. Konrad trumped Talia, asking to be brought through to deliver a message from Sam. He explained that he did not feel comfortable speaking over trump.
Talia was in a parlor, lying on a couch with Llewella, seeming quite cozy. Upon arriving, Konrad recognized the intimacy of the situation upon which he was intruding, and so kept his message brief. He relayed that Sam had told him to explain that Merlin would be unable to keep his appointment with her. She seemed annoyed by this, but not terribly so. As Konrad left he noted a painting on the wall which showed a nude Talia posed as a nymph in a mythological setting. Somewhat flustered, he trumped to the Channard Institute.
There he spent a minor period of convalescence. Resting, relaxing, racking spells upon the magic ring he created...and planning for the future. Eventually Quynn trumped him to inquire after Cassilda. Konrad again expressed his reluctance to talk over trump, and so Quynn came through to the Institute. Konrad explained that she was Cassilda, and he and Quynn compared notes about Karl's recent schemes and Chadwick's capture. They exchanged half-joking ideas about how to kill Karl, and after Quynn returned, Konrad spent the next few days racking killing spells with Karl pre-chosen as target.
This story continues in Tome X: Heir to the Throne of Europe.