Small Favor - Plot Points Introduced

Plot Points Introduced

• Harry's mysterious future: The final confrontation between Harry, the Denarians, and the Knights of the Cross takes place on a mysterious and haunted island that is strangely familiar to Harry. Harry begins to recognize landmarks and highly personal details about the island that he knows, despite having never been there before. Luccio informs Harry that he, as a wizard approaching the full maturity of his talents, is experiencing the prescient capabilities of his Wizard's Sight and that it has recognized the island and its contents as being of particular importance to Harry's future.

• Lasciel: Nicodemus and the other Fallen were not aware of Harry's resolution to his possession by a spirit of Lasciel (the Fallen who inhabits the coin he touched in Death Masks). Harry convinces Michael that he has resolved the matter. As a result of this, Harry has apparently been favored by the archangel Uriel to wield Soulfire, a counterpart to Hellfire.

• The Fae Courts: Harry performs one of his favors for Mab, leaving one to go. He again refuses to become the Winter Knight (third refusal). Harry finds out that the silver leaf pin bestowed upon him by Lily is being used to track his movements. He uses up his favor from Summer (earned in Proven Guilty) in order to both prevent Summer from assassinating him and to allow him time to escape from the Denarians. Harry learns (or rather, guesses) that one of the Fallen, Thorned Namshiel, attacked Arctis Tor. Harry also becomes more fully aware of the possibility that some kind of madness is affecting Mab. Mab intimates that, should Harry refuse the mantle of the Winter Knight (or die), she may pursue Thomas instead as his replacement, stating that if he died then Thomas would be motivated by revenge. When Harry has the thought that, before, all Knights have been mortal, Mab says that Thomas's love makes him mortal enough for her.

• Johnny Marcone: He is kidnapped and tortured by Nicodemus. This is originally thought to be because of his status as the first human Free Lord of the Unseelie Accords, but it is later determined to be a blind in order to set events in motion to allow Nicodemus access to the Archive in order to capture and convert her to his cause. However, with the many layers of plots that are held in the story, all of the above could be true. Harry figures out that Helen Demeter is the person who gave away the location to Marcone's panic room so that he could be kidnapped. He confronts Demeter with this though he does not reveal her complicity, declaring that not only does he want to see Marcone eventually brought down, but that he can use Demeter for information should the need arise.

• The Council: Capt. Luccio assists Harry in battling Nicodemus and protecting the Archive. Harry lies/misleads her about the threat posed and Mab's interest to get her help. Luccio and Harry become romantically involved.

• The Black Council: It is learned that Nicodemus is not on the same side as the Black Council, and that most likely either Tessa or Roseanna, of the Fallen, has split with Nicodemus and gone over to the Black Council. It was one of them who gave Thorned Namshiel the order to attack Arctis Tor.

• The War: Currently enjoying a lull due to the White Court's cease-fire.

• The Knights of the Cross: Harry figures out that Shiro gave Harry his sword, Fidelacchius, in order to have some type of leverage to use against Nicodemus. Harry also determines that the current Knights of the Cross are each directly if distantly related to various kings (Shiro to Shō Tai (the last King of Okinawa), Sanya to Saladin and Michael to Charlemagne) and that this might be a pre-requisite to finding another to take Shiro's place. Michael and Harry come to grips over both Mab and Lasciel's interference in Harry's mind and renew their friendship. Sanya and Michael assist Harry in recovering Marcone from the Denarians, in which Michael is critically injured. Murphy is revealed to be a candidate for Knighthood after using Fidelacchius to repel the enraged Denarian, Deirdre, after Harry escapes from the island. Murphy refuses to take up the sword, citing her pre-existing responsibilities to the city of Chicago, and returns Fidelacchius to Harry. Sanya also states that they managed to take an additional six coins in the combat with the Denarians. It isn't explored whether Murphy has any connection to a royal blood line.