Mara is plagued by a disturbing dream-- a vision of Cathal and Dolan, haggard, bearded and fur-clad, fallen and barely moving in a snowy wasteland. She tells Cuinn; torn between her anger at Cathal and her worry for him, debates sending men after him, but is counseled against it by Mason Haeming, the new military advisor, given that they cannot spare warriors and that Cathal knew the risks.
A messenger arrives at the Keep from the Empire, with details surrounding Mara's summons to Stormpoint-- she is to become the Magister of Taeghas, with all associated power, equipment, offices, resources, and staff, and is to be granted control of the land magic of Taeghas. Given that she has already wrested control of the land magic from her old master Harald Khorien, this move appears to her to either be an olive branch or perhaps an attempt to save face from him. She is told that Avan means to construct a Magisterium, with a wizard in charge of each of the realms within the Empire.
A messenger also arrives from Boeruine; he bids that within the fortnight, Wilder forces attack Seamist and send agents to harass the Bayside border.
The hour comes to make a decision, and the Fulcairns debate what to do late into the night. But eventually Cuinn decides that Taeghas will only be torn apart by another civil war, that she cannot unify Taeghas by becoming a hated collaborator with a foreign invasion force, with only turncoats as allies, and that Wilder's Gorge cannot stand on its own yet... so for the meantime, they reluctantly decide to support the Empire.
They decide to send Mara to Stormpoint to assume her post and to bring news of the invasion, while Aerona coordinates the defense force from the Keep, and Cuinn leads the Ghosts to scout out the size and direction of the invasion force. They bid each other a heartfelt farewell.
Mara and Laurentius reach Stormpoint. Mara breaks the geas binding her, Cuinn and Cathal to Boeruine's will, then informs Thaliere of the Boeruinese invasion, stating she had glimpsed it in a divination. Thaliere commands her to stay in Stormpoint and aid with divination magics; Mara quickly states they are not her forte and she would be of more use in the field. Thaliere, disturbed, states she needs to make further preparations. Mara leaves to attempt to secure aid from other heads of houses. None seem to be in attendance at their townhouses, but Laurentius claims to have glimpsed Noelen Bhaine. Mara decides to find Bhaine and expose him by magically compelling him to admit his collaboration with Boeruine to Thaliere. But Bhaine is not in his manor, and his servants state perhaps he is at his villa in the countryside. Mara and Laurentius leave to try and find him at the villa. They discover he is not there either, but they demand hospitality from the villa's staff as befitting Mara's station as magister. Mara is suggested that she remain in her rooms for her "safety" by the guards. Late at night, she and Laurentius begin to search the house for anything proving Bhaine's collaboration with Boeruine. They find his office, and Mara attempts to teleport magically through the open keyhole... but terrible misfortune strikes her, and she teleports herself instead into the Shadow Realm.
Aerona, not bound by a geas, writes letters to all the allied or neutral Houses, warning them of the invasion and suggesting they ready forces for the defense of Taeghas. She introduces herself to the men she is to command, and delivers a magnificent, electrifying speech, swearing to defend the land with her sword arm and the wrath of her war god; the fighters' morale visibly swells. Later, the commander of a mercenary band called the Forgotten Sons arrives, answering Cuinn's summons, and Aerona signs their contract, adding a unit of light cavalry and a unit of infantry to the ranks of the Wilder warriors.
Cuinn and the Ghosts scout along the Elfwash river, leaving individual Ghosts to form a perimeter to watch for invasion from the north. They intercept and slay a Boeruinese scouting party, managing only to determine that they were sent to keep watch, but nothing more. They continue westward and cross the border into Portage. There, they find massive supply trains and armed men heading south to the city of Portage and beyond, but are unable to locate the bulk of the invasion force. Cuinn, fearing that forces from Boeruine may be attacking Wilder's Gorge across the eastern border, splits up the remaining four Ghosts, taking Telfyrdd and riding east back home, and sending Adair and Asha south following the supply lines.
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