in which a young man named Rush goes to the capital to take care of his father, and Empress Kasia shows mercy to those involved in the rebellion

in which it is told what kind of fish Emperor Inan caught from the stream

in which a small barbarian competes with the chief sorcerer of the empire in archery, and in which First Minister Rush argues with Abbot Dattam about the nature of financial transactions

in which Emperor Inan talks with an insidious ghost

in which the young Varkh king raises his sword against the entire ecumene, and in which Dattam meets Idassi again at the Suspension Bridge