The Dragon Nimbus Novels: Volume I: Volume I

said he . . . he was es . . . escorted out of the city, Your Grace. By his own men, sir,” the servant stammered. “At least, his wife and family were. No one remembers seeing his lordship with them.”
    Darville couldn’t make the liveried man look him in the eye. “When? When did they leave the palace? And did they have the dragon throne with them?” Darville straightened his back but refused to sit.
    At least his cousin hadn’t been able to take the Coraurlia as well as the throne.
    “Before dawn, Your Grace. His suite is empty. Empty of everything, even the carpets and wardrobes.”
    Angry heat swelled Darville’s face. The messenger backed away from his king’s wrath, but was stopped by a glowering Fred.
    “He can’t have gone far with that kind of load, Your Grace,” Lord Andrall spoke soothingly. “Mounted troops will overtake him with ease.”
    “Rogue magicians transport goods from place to place, Lord Andrall,” Darville reminded his oldest supporter. “My cousin has finally stepped outside his carefully constructed disguise and revealed himself for a magician. I’ve been telling you for moons of his power and you ignored me.”
    “But the witchbane, sir!” Another lord protested.
    “And the people in his entourage. Magicians can’t transport people.”
    “Krej has found an antidote to witchbane,” Jaylor announced from the doorway. Clothed in his master’s cloak and new trews and tunic, Darville’s friend looked older, more mature and confident than the new king was used to seeing him.
    Jaylor strode to Darville’s side, his massive body stirring the air in the closed room. Power radiated from him. He seemed to glow with the remnants of yesterday’s spirit journey with the dragons. The lords leaned away from his presence.
    Darville stood eye-to-eye with his childhood companion. “How?” he asked simply.
    “The references to witchbane that I found stated there was no antidote. The book was older than the Great War of Disruption. Magicians from Hanassa, Krej’s mother among them, have had three hundred years to work on the problem.” Jaylor shrugged. The breadth of his shoulders and the drape of the jewel-toned cloak only hinted at the energy glowing behind his eyes.
    Darville wondered if Jaylor had been indulging in the Tambootie. After the events of the last two days, the man should be fainting with exhaustion.
    “The magic border between Coronnan and Hanassa was the first to be breached when Krej destroyed traditional magic.” Jaylor paced behind the place where the dragon throne should rest. That was his place now in the Council Chamber. He was Senior Magician and adviser to the king.
    “Lady Janessa’s family hailed originally from Hanassa, before they married into the royal family of SeLenicca. Lady Janessa was Lord Dratorelle’s second wife, a political alliance. The brother of our king and the first cousin of theirs. Rumors have abounded for years of her bizarre religion and secret trips into the mountains. Who in Coronnan knows where she retired to upon the death of her husband? My guess is Hanassa, with the other rogue magicians.”
    Jaylor drummed his fingers on the tabletop, betraying his level of anxiety.
    “You knew he had the antidote!” Darville accused.
    “He made me swear on Brevelan’s life not to reveal it,” Jaylor excused himself, never dropping his eyes from confrontation with Darville.
    “What made you break such an oath?” Darville breathed harshly through his teeth. His stomach lurched, and his heart beat faster. There was trouble ahead. A lot of it.
    “He swore never to use his powers against the kingdom. I believe he has broken faith with all of us. Therefore, I am free to reveal all I know of his activities.”
    “How do you know for sure he has broken faith?” Lord Jonnias demanded.
    “I just encountered another messenger in the hall. The witch Janataea has escaped. Krej is the only one who could have helped her.”
    “He was there in the cell when she was punished with the witchbane,” Jonnias countered. “He helped administer the dosage.”
    “He could as easily slip her the antidote at the same time. If so, then my cousin has committed treason.” Darville breathed heavily.
    “Isn’t that a bit hasty, Your Grace?” Sir Holmes spoke from behind Darville.
    “Hasty?” Darville whirled to face his aide, certain now where the man’s loyalty lay. “Hasty?” The list of Krej’s crimes played over and over through