amara brought up cirrus in a visioncrafting , determined to learn this man 's features , to find him and at all costs to kill him for leading the horde against them this day she memorized the shape of his nose and cruel mouth , the steady breadth of his shoulders beneath a thanadent-hide cowl , the- amara caught her breath , staring , and willed cirrus to bring her vision even closer to the hordemaster riding at his hip , through a thin braided twist of cord he used as a belt , was the signet dagger of an aleran high lord , its gold and silver hilt gleaming in the morning sun even as amara stared , cirrus let her see the dagger 's hilt , the crest wrought in steel upon it aquitaine 's falcon `` furies , '' she breathed aquitaine aquitaine himself no one more powerful in the realm save the first lord aquitaine 's knights , then , aquitaine who subverted fidelias , aquitaine who had attempted to gain knowledge of the palace from her , in order to- in order to kill gains he means to take the throne for himself amara swallowed she had to recover that dagger at any cost to bring such a damning piece of evidence before the senate would finish aquitaine and terrify anyone working with him into loyalty again she could prove who the true culprit behind today 's vicious deaths had been , and though she had thought she hated the hordemaster now striding toward the buckling defenses of garrison 's gates , she felt a sudden and furious rage against the man whose ambitions had engineered the events of the past several days but could she do it ?