As the Eastern Furnace disgorges wave after wave of filthy, rapacious raiders into Komaru, the armies of the kingdom rise at last to repel the invaders. The first battle is fought in the Royal Family's own lands as the Seneschal's Army rallies to stop the desert serpent attack on the capital. Lucien d'Aramis's army deploys twenty miles from the capital's walls, arraying itself for battle. As the first wave of d'Aramis's cavalry hits the raider flank, the horde turns as one against them. As d'Aramis sends his forces in, a great dust storm whirls up before his army. Shielded by the storm, the horde turns to the north, flanking the Seneschal's army entirely. The Twilight Crux and Komaru generals suddenly find themselves in a race to the walls of the capital. In the confusion, the desert serpents launch a lightning strike against the vaunted Komaru artillery, destroying many of them before they can fire. Finally, within sight of the capital's walls, the Seneschal's army catches the invaders.

When the fog of war finally clears, only a single tattered force of Crux pikemen remain upon the field.

Armed with the reports of the battle in Komaru lands, the Church army and the Royal Guard-backed Sone forces are prepared for the surprising mobility of the nomad forces. In Bellatrix and Sone lands, the Komaran armies prevail by trapping their foes and grinding down their units with a minimum of losses. Finally, all eyes turn to the east as the bulk of the Royal Army, with heavy support from a regiment of Minamet cavalry and engineers, strikes against the serpents in a desperate attempt to lift the siege on the Minamet's fortresses.

By the time the battle ends, the Minamet hold their lands again, but not before receiving a terrific shock: the Black Pharaoh's own forces appeared upon the field, many mounted upon great flesh-eating reptiles. A match for even the Minamet cavalry, these doughty warriors left many nobles wondering at the potency of the war machine beyond the Furnace.

As the Minamet clear away the stragglers, they make a second fearful discovery: the serpents have left a mark upon their lands. In the heart of what once was the village of Sabledown, the Komaran armies discover a great obelisk surrounded by a golden glow. Around it, the earth itself has dried and cracked, giving way to a great sandy dune. As days pass, the Minamet discover that the swath of death around the obelisk is slowly growing.

Meanwhile, a very different invasion occurs in Minamet lands. Spearheaded by the Marquis dos Santos, the Minamet offer the town of Hiyama to a group of disaffected Twilight Crux members led by the Crux Preceptrix Ciarra Lacroix. Lacroix rapidly moves her followers into the town, and immediately implements major changes in the town's physical and political structure. Soon afterwards, she sends a team of mystics to the obelisk to assist the Minamet in their investigation. On their arrival, they introduce themselves as members of the Dawning Star. Within the space of eight days, they succeed in stopping the desert's advance.

Elsewhere in the kingdom, tidings of the Crown Prince's impending marriage to Kimiko Sone spread. Once it becomes clear that the marriage cannot be averted, all of the great families give their grudging approval. Even the peasantry seems content once the Royal Seneschal announces that the wedding will begin eight festival days to be celebrated throughout the kingdom. The wedding, when it finally occurs after a winter of expectation, is a marvel of majestic grandeur presided over by the Principal Light of the Church. Everyone agrees that the bride looks beautiful in her wedding kimono, and refrains from mentioning the groom's amused smirk through most of the ceremony. Gifts include a princess's ransom in jewelry, a matched set of swords and masks, and a military clash in the desert.

By the time the news reaches the capital, the Twilight Crux is firmly in control of the village of Sabledown and the obelisk at its center. The Royal Seneschal, acting in the stead of the honeymooning Crown Prince, declares that the Royal Army has claimed the obelisk to better understand the threat it poses. The Minamet are politely but firmly told that they do not have jurisdiction; the Star occultists are expelled much more forcefully.

As summer rises in Komaru, the kingdom is at peace, still basking in the pleasant mood created by the Royal Wedding. Already, Alessandro's courtiers have begun speculating on when the Princess Consort will bear a royal heir. Furthermore, with Alessandro removed from the picture, many damsels of great prospects within the kingdom have turned their attentions to the pursuit of other husbands. In the spirit of preserving harmony within the court, the Crown Prince has kindly commanded that "the meat market," as he royally described it, be held elsewhere: at, for instance, the Castle of the Sea.

Thus, in the year 209 of Paraceln's Age, the marriage brokers of the kingdom made their way west, there to forge sacred vows before the listening ocean.