Lord Kzuva's Tower
- The group keeps on truckin', heading home as fast as they can (16.1). Talagh looks way different from this direction—it's no longer so powerful, but is "the wounded heart of the Empire" (16.3). Tilja hopes the Ropemaker will pop up in the Pirrim Hills, where they met him the first time, to come grab the ring, but no such luck (16.5). At a way station, an old dude tells them that Lord Kzuva—master to their old friend, the magician Zara—went home to protect himself against the powers loose in the Empire (16.9). He's shut off the entire plain near his home—no one goes out or in. The guy also says that some funky stuff's been going on in the Pirrim Forest (16.13).
- Til and Co. trek upward into the hills and reach the pass to the Valley (16.15), but there's this magicky forest in the way. Calico gets finicky and knocks Tilja over; the pesky horse runs away (16.16-17). When they find her, the horse is wrapped in some strange gray net (16.20), which Tilja dispels with touch (16.22). Meena says it was made out of a poisonous toadstool called bull's-ears (16.24-25). The forest has come alive (16.26)—and Tilja realizes that in order for her to have shrunk the fungus, it must have been made magic… but why would that stuff be in a forest (16.30)?
- After trekking on for a bit, Tilja notices that "a dense fog" is shrouding the forest, keeping it super quiet (16.31). This magic is made magic—Til can hold it back if she tries, but it's still closing in on her and her friends (16.32-33). Tilja thinks that these kinds of magicians were Faheel's BFFs, so she calls out to it in Faheel's name—but no dice (16.34-37). Meena gives it a shot—these are trees, after all—and breaks the power (16.41).
- Tilja isn't worried anymore about the Ropemaker catching up with them (16.44)—after all, he followed them south without anyone knowing, so he must be around somewhere. When they hit a way station near the city of Songisu, Lord Kzuva's guard meets them (16.46). The guard and his wife invite them to dine (16.53)—it's nice to see some order (finally) (16.56).
- As they keep going north, Tilja gets worried that Moonfist has gotten to the Ropemaker before she does, but she tries to keep her head up (16.58). Luckily Til sees a golden cockerel that looks almost gawky enough to be the Ropemaker in disguise... but then a messenger from Lord Kzuva comes up (16.59). This guy asks if they are the same folks that brought Qualif and Qualifa south; when he asks about where the old people went, Tahl says young Meena and Alnor are their cousins (16.68). Tahl says they've got to keep on going because they have a message for Lananeth, but the guard says she's the one who sent for them at Kzuva's house (16.71). Tahl claims the young ones (a.k.a. Alnor and Meena) are they ones with the message, so they've got to come with (16.73).
- When they arrive at the Lord Kzuva's house, they're struck by how grand it is (16.76). The messenger leaves them in a nice room—unlike the last time, at Lananeth's house (16.79-80)—and they see Zara and Lananeth almost instantly (16.81). Tilja doesn't recognize either of them at first—"the change in them both was shocking" (16.82). They are really still and look like statues, as many magicians do, but they both look even more stone-like than before. Huh… something's amiss.
- Zara welcomes them and tells them the forest let them know of the group's arrival (16.83). She and Lananeth move in sync; when they touch Meena and Alnor, the magical duo wonders at the magic that made them young again (16.87-88). "' He has changed time, not you. Somehow he has brought you out of your past and put you into this time,'" says Zara (16.90). Tahl mentions Asarta doing something similar, and talks about the ring (16.91). Zara goes all zombie-like and mentions the ring—people get really uncomfortable when she talks about it (16.92).
- Alnor notes the changes in Zara and Lananeth, particularly that they do everything together and seem to have just one mind (16.94). Tilja thinks something is most definitely up (16.95)—Zara says they joined their powers at Lord Kzuva's request to put a spell on the forest (16.96). Meena asks if they still have individual feelings (16.97); Tilja sees a glimpse of the old Lananeth and kisses the magician on the cheek (16.98). Til feels numbness explode in her body—she's busted up some made magic once again (16.99)—and where Lananeth-Zara once was appears a man dressed in black. Tilja grabs this guy's wrist (16.100). He's super strong, but she fights him and takes Lananeth's wrist to attempt to shut out this guy by bringing herself, Lananeth, and the mystery man into her therapeutic secret lake in her mind (16.101). In her imagination, Tilja jumps into the stormy lake's waters with these people and drags them down, then plops them on the grass (16.102). She returns to this world, and Lananeth and Zara are themselves again—the black-clad guy is dead in front of them (16.103). Meena and the others are picking themselves up from the floor (16.104).
- Zara and Lananeth wake up and tell the group that the man in black was Varti, one of the most powerful Watchers (16.123). Varti was the one who suggested that the two magicians merge their powers—but with Varti himself, as well—in order to fight some mysterious magician who defeated the Watchers. Varti possessed them until Tilja rescued them. Suddenly a cry breaks out—during the commotion Lord Kzuva was crushed by a tower he was trying to build for Varti (16.124-125). Lananeth admits that she and Zara will be blamed (16.127), so everybody's got to go (16.129)—the group makes a run for it (16.131). Tilja tells Tahl that, if he's guessed anything about Asarta's ring, not to say anything to anyone (16.133).
- Everybody gallops away from Lord Kzuva's house (16.135). It turns out Zara and Tahl have an acquaintance in common—Aileth. Zara says that now Kzuva will never become Emperor—every Landholder in the Empire wants that (16.136-141). Lananeth and Zara flee from Lord Kzuva's heirs, who'll blame them and want revenge for his death (16.145). Alnor asks if either of them is the magician they're supposed to meet on the road that will help them, but they deny it (16.149-150). Tilja denies it too, and Lananeth tells them to go to Salata—her hubby, Gahan, is back (16.153) and he will show them the way back to the Valley. Lananeth and Zara touch their noggins to their horses and magic is everywhere—and then the magicians vanish (16.154).