The battle for Portage is won, and the Wilders and their Portagean allies are triumphant; the Boeruinese forces retreat. Cuinn seeks out Milena's second-in-command, and a man named Sir Valin steps forward. Cuinn asks what he would have done with Khorien; he shrugs and says the more important matter is to determine who will replace him.
The Fulcairns barely stop to catch their breaths; they gather a handful of soldiers and advance on Portage's keep to apprehend Geoffrey Khorien. They meet little resistance; Khorien is in the throne room. Cuinn entreats him to stand down; he refuses, sipping wine from a decanter, and he sneers at her, stating that the Fulcairns, too, had been allied with Boeruine. At the surprised looks from the Wilders and Portageans, she calmly agrees, stating Boeruine had indeed appealed to them, but in the end they had decided that independence was not worth the price of betraying the other houses of Taeghas, nor of exchanging the Imperial yoke for the Boeruinese, and denied him, proving their allegiance with swords and blood. Cuinn then baits him, referring to his tantrum at the Council of Stormpoint and the rejection of his claim by the noble Houses, combined with his defeat at the hands of the Fulcairns and his own people; goaded, he has another outburst, angrily yelling that the seat was his by right, and that he alone will dictate what happens next. Cuinn realizes what is happening too late-- Khorien has taken his own life by the poison in the wineglass. She urges Aerona to reach him and magically cure the poison. They rush forward, but one of Khorien's bodyguards obeys his master's orders and runs him through before they can reach him.
They begin the search for Khorien's wife and child, and make a sad discovery indeed-- Lady Khorien and the child are also dead, though at whose hand they cannot be certain. Cuinn is horrified and saddened, but Sir Valin is moved to tears. They promise to reconvene on the morrow, and leave him alone with his grief.
Aerona tends to the wounded of both Portage and Wilder's Gorge, and Mara happily reunites with the young mage Dorian, thanking him for his valor.
The next morning, they meet with Sir Valin and remind him of their agreement with Milena-- that they would help the Portageans drive out Boeruine if they, and their newly chosen leader, back the Fulcairns in their quest for the rulership of an independent Taeghas. Sir Valin states that he had many disagreements with Milena, including many concerning her distaste for nobles, and then reveals that he is in fact Sir Valin of the exiled House Ukko, one-time rulers of Portage. He states he would bid for the countship of Portage, if the people and the land itself would have him. Together, the Fulcairns and Sir Valin address the gathered people and soldiers. Aerona tells a parable of Cuiraecen, and bids the people choose their ruler accordingly; Cuinn affirms her support of Valin. Valin puts himself forward, on the grounds that the investiture succeeds and that the people and land accept him. The ceremony is held; according to tradition, a dead branch from a Portagean rosebush is given to him. It blooms, showing that the land itself has chosen him. Ukko moves that their newly forged coalition be a union of equals, and bestows the title Countess on Cuinn. House Fulcairn pledges its support to the newly re-established House Ukko of Portage, Valin reciprocates, and they hail the cheering crowds together.
Cuinn decides to leave for Bayside to attempt to solidify its membership in their newly minted coalition, and possibly give the coalition's backing to one of the two noble Houses who seem most likely to assume leadership. She asks Sir Valin to send a representative for Bayside; he sends his sister, the scholarly Lypilla. Cuinn, Lypilla, and a bodyguard leave for Bayside.
Mara and Dorian leave for the cave that contains the magical Source of Portage. They carefully edge their way down the cliffside to reach the spectacular seaside formation, and settle in for a long winter's sojourn as Mara reclaims its magic.
Aerona leads the Wilder armies back to Fulcairn Keep; it is a difficult winter journey, but the warriors' spirits are high.
Cuinn and Lypilla arrive in Bayside and meet with Lord Erendus Tychon and Lady Muriella Oswin. Cuinn attempts to assess both of them as potential rulers. Tychon is unequivocally in support of independence, wishing to drive the Avanese out at all costs and send a strong message to both the Empire and Boeruine, whereas Oswin favours a more temperate approach, seeking non-martial solutions if possible. Cuinn, finding much to admire in both claimants, and not wishing to leave the sort of dangerous power vacuum that allowed both Thaliere and Caron Duene to be installed, somewhat hesitantly decides that the coalition will back Tychon's claim.
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