Felcis reopens the unstable Tear and returns the Harbingers to the Arcanium, where they tell Horatio about Whisper, Ernan, and Mathias's anchor-marked ring. Horatio explains that Angela Thedon bore twins with another member of the Siphon Order and suspects Draxus Cale may have been their father. He also recounts the order's collapse: Zyltrix chose Horatio, entrusted him with the light of the Ithelion, and vanished after declaring that the others might never leave Tyve. Draxus, Angela, and their companions demanded that the light be divided, while Horatio fled east and founded Piln. The Harbingers refuse to give Horatio the ring after Ilk identifies it as an artifact forged through malice and deceit. Before leaving, Brill helps Felsis rebuild the Tear by combining runes, liquid, and the principle that water carries memory, making travel to Keph possible once each day.

At Keph, scouts report that approximately one hundred soldiers of the Chain and five Rusticulum golems may arrive within two to five days. The Harbingers debate whether to evacuate the keep, defend it, or recruit the remaining Blood Sorcerers. Torrin's compass unexpectedly points toward Torrin himself. When he wears the seven recovered pieces of the Crystallic, he senses Kypheron's rage and again feels that he could force the dragon god to sleep at the cost of everything within him. A tiny stone hidden among Torrin's possessions then joins the artifact as a concealed central key or failsafe, though two larger pieces remain missing. Elsewhere in the keep, Brill enters a mysterious library and meets Ephastasia, an ancient Blood Sorcerer who tells him that Acuras's death ended the power protecting Keph and directs the group toward Normandy's flame. When the others search for her, the library changes into other rooms and Ephastasia cannot be found.

The Harbingers meet Aeris and Arthas at Belgor'Vrack's summoning pit. The two Blood Sorcerers offer to defend Keph if Acuras is released from Vyr's Ix Crystal, but the group refuses to restore their former master. Nixon instead enters the pit and offers himself to Belgor'Vrack. The Blood God accepts him, fills him with power, and allows Nixon to share that blood with Aeris and Arthas. They kneel to Nixon as the new chosen vessel and agree to help defend Keph before traveling with the Harbingers toward the pirates threatened by Kypheron's dragons. As the forces of Tyve move into position, Mathias tells the Tangled One that the ring has planted its intended seed, Draxus Cale vows to open the Dios Ostium, and Graham arrives at the Twilight Temple searching for Whisper.