Back on the ship, we find out that the time travel staff was left behind by Lady Resha when she sealed off the etherion in the future. It's now fifty years later, and the time travelers are still using it to summon "infinite" . They're not sure how they're supposed to use it, though, since they don't really know what's going on with the rest of the empire. They go back to the fortress, where they'll meet up with the other travelers.