Before - Chapter 8 Summary

In the chapter titled "Before," a young girl and a young boy, refugee orphans of the border wars, come to live at the estate of the Duke Keramsov, overseen by the housekeeper, Ana Kuya. The children, Alina Starkov and Malyen (Mal) Oretsev, are to learn to read, write, and learn a trade. They spend their days doing lessons and exploring the countryside. In the winter, the Duke leaves for his city house in Os Alta. The Grisha Examiners come. They are practitioners of the Small Science of the Second Army, and keep the country safe along with the First Army, the king's army. The children are to be tested on their abilities, to see if they are worthy of being Grisha.

In Chapter 1, the Shadow Fold, or the Unsea, separates the country of Ravka from the coast, from the...