Starrising in Aegis, Conrad receives a message from Sam, in which she is being arrested by the Thuldans. The message is over two months old.
The Sparrow lands on Haven 6 and the crew rush to Alloy. After being filled in, he sends them to Haven 23, where Ahab agrees to arrange a meeting with a Thuldan official.
The following day, they meet with Vice-Administrator Abraham Montague Augstine on Filtrane. A deal is struck and both sides get to work. Conrad brings Alan up to speed and asks him to provide a sanitised version of the research data recovered from the lab beneath Islvych.
A day later, the crew return to Filtrane, hand over the data, and eventually leave with Sam and a favour owed to the vice-administrator. Back in chez Gus, they ask So’ledrei to join them ASAP as his name was accidentally dropped by Sam during the handover.
When he arrives, they recount events. He says he will get a new identity from someone he knows. Gus explains that she has taken over Ayla Vych-Taron’s funding of the railroad.
Sam is disappointed when she learns that Conrad is leaving so soon and asks to accompany him as she doesn’t feel safe staying on Bluefall. Mayhem invites everyone out for a meal.