The group follows Anya into her fishing village, Stragyr. She gives them a large blanket that she made. It shows to wolves howling at the moon. Her father, head of her village, has gone missing. She is afraid to go looking because of the wolves that attacked her. Sadly, the people are starving because the fish aren't coming down stream anymore.
Jericho asks Anya if she knows of Loknir. She says he is in the icy castle. They've had to go there before to bed him to have mercy on them and end the winter storms. Isabelle sketches a trump of the village so Natasha can keep an eye on them and make sure they're ok.
Gerhardt asks Isabelle to check him for any psychic influence. She does so and finds Fiona is protecting him from some horrible trauma. She looks further and finds a deep, dark pain. He is screaming and there is blood and fire… For a year he was owned by something… He learned and served, but in the end he gave Mab his heart so she would get him out. Whatever predicated this period of indentured servitude was burned out of his mind.
There is also influence from Dworkin and Celeste. As Isabelle studies it, all she can see is her own reflection. The view from every angle is obfuscated. Isabelle closes up Gerhardt's mind and debriefs him on what she found. He is troubled to learn that his memories are not entirely accurate. (Tahiti is a wonderful place, you know.)
The group takes the Envoy over the mountain, finding massive Caribou atop its peak. Proportionally massive wolves also appear. Most are grey, but one is white with crystalling eyes. It is very cold now, so everyone dons parkas and other cold weather gear.
Lowen experiments with conjuration while on the ship. Silas pops in to make sure everything is ok and that the ship and passengers are safe from whatever is going on.
At the helm, Jericho sees an odd shadow on a passing cloud. Looking up, he sees dragons flying in a diamond formation, trying to keep hidden. Then he notices two more of these formations, brining the total to 12 dragons. Jericho calls Silas to the deck to see the pack of 150' long beasts. Jericho decided to have Lowen change into dragon form and ride him up to met the dragons, hiding his own shapeshifting abilities.
Tolbert, Captain of the Dragon Riters, tosses a gem to Jericho. Suddenly they are able to speak to each other through it. Jericho learns that Loknir is king, but the tribes are independent and don't really need him. Tolbert does know where Stagyr is — frozen with the rest of his travelling party.
Out of nowhere, a white and blue beam with lightning shoots up from the ground. Jericho flies away as nine of the dragons are blasted out of the sky. Lowen flies down to find the source of the beam. As he does, an enormous white dragon rockets up through the clouds toward the remaining Dragon Riders. The beast is about five times the size of the Envoy.
Natasha dives off the ship and drives her sword into the thick hide of the white dragon. Lowen, still in dragon form, spews abyssal breath at the white dragon. It turns out that the white dragon is protecting her two eggs below, each of which is about a third the size of the ship. Submerged in blood and flesh, Natasha receives a trump call from Silas. He pulls her through in all her gory glory back onto the Envoy. All but one of the Dragon Riders and dragons are dead. The white dragon swoops down and grabs the small dead dragons and takes them back to her nest to feed them to her babies.
Back on the ship, Jericho shares what he learned from his coversation with the deceased. The Captain returns on his dragon. "We obviously did not know that was there. We call them Leviathans. Once in a long while they emerge from the depths of the water to lay their eggs." The father stays underwater. The Captain departs to head back to inform his command of what transpired. He advises the group to avoid coming back along this same path.
Godkiller flies up to the merry band of travellers, happily recognizing Isabelle from an earlier adventure. He still likes puppies, but not really in the way he intended. Like Lenny from Of Mice and Men, Godkiller does not really understand his own actions. He says he is supposed to tell Loknir if anyone comes for the Heart of Winter, which they are.
He goes to Loknir and announces the arrival of those seeking the Heart of Winter. Loknir demands to know who dares to try and steal from him. Gerhardt suggests that Loknir could just give it to them without fighting. Instead, Loknir offers a challenge. Three, to be exact. If they win any of the three, they win.
Challenge 1: Eat the whole buffet by morning.
J:6, N:7, I:5, S:2, L:4, G:5