Winter covered Southwall and the lands to the north. After defeating the Dark One, the country should have been able to rest easy. Trapped in the mountains, their enemies should be contained for months letting Sebastian and his country relax; but even with the Dark One gone many problems remained to be fixed. With Southwall's southern cities expressing rebellion, the mage returned to New Harbor to fulfill his promise to the prisoners held by the count and his lords. Finding a trap in place, Sebastian is forced to flee to White Hall, his former home. As he recovers from his wounds, the battle mage corps continues to change around him. New ravens take the place of the mentors he has respected for so long making the young mage question his place in the corps. Questioning that future, Sebastian begins to see new possibilities as he travels with Ashleen and gets to celebrate his sister's birthday for the first time. Magic brings new surprises for the girl as the battle mage escapes to the southern islands for fun and finds old friends in need of him once more. Feeling the need to help, Sebastian begins to see other needs among his friends as well. Using his medical leave to travel to Ashleen's home country, the mage finds perhaps the biggest test of his life as he meets his girlfriend's family for the first time. He also brings Kardor, the ally to the west, new possibilities opening up their country with portal magic and it is just in time as a new threat ignores the winter in the hope of conquering the kingdom even as Sebastian and his friends hope to give their gift of magic to them. Brought into conflict with a new enemy because of the Dark One's passing, Sebastian wonders if this is just the beginning of the next era in Southwall's war with the mountain empire.