Alfred is given an audience by the Sartan Council. Orla occasionally disagrees with Samah and he refers to some past incident where she resisted obeying him. Samah asks Alfred whether any Sartan on Arianus heard the call for help that was sent out by the Sartan Council, and is shocked to hear that thousands of years have passed since then, whilst the Council have been in stasis, and that all the other Sartan on Arianus are dead. Alfred also tells Samah that the Labyrinth, far from being a fairly simple test for the Patryns, ended up being a deadly place of torment for them, teaching them to hate the Sartan. Alfred also tells them that some Patryns have now escaped from the Labyrinth, and that Haplo has come to Chelestra. Samah is horrified, and assumes Haplo has been sent on a reconnaissance, which is indeed Xar's purpose in sending him.