Moiraine and Lan find help in an unexpected – and unwanted – quarter, as the separated villagers try to find their way back to each other, or at least to refuge. But they all soon learn how far the Dark One’s reach extends, and how few they can trust on the road.

Moiraine and her charges are diverted from their path by an unexpected encounter. This diversion, though, reveals many things — Moiraine’s true goal, Lan’s past, the fractures that have grown in the group, and the identity of the Dragon Reborn.