What happens after...

[seanham]

I was thinking, what happens after BAT? Assuming the "good" guys win and the outsiders are defeated, what happens with the Winter Court? The primary purpose of the Winter Court is to guard the Outergate. For this, they need hundreds of thousands of soldiers. What happens when they are no longer needed? Soon there would be an overpopulation on Winter in both the mortal and Fea realms. In the mortal realm, this would lead to Winter killing more mortals with the potential for a return to the Dark Ages (i.e., humans being afraid of the dark) or an all-out war between magical beings and humans.

[Arjan]

I think the outsiders are never really beaten and will always be there just outside and they always want in. It is just that when the stars are right they are far more dangerous.

[bigdangmoose]

And even if they are defeated, who's to say that the Winter army won't be severely decimated. It may not be an imbalance anymore, or a imbalance where Summer is now stronger.

But my guess is that another changing of the guard is upon the Dresdenverse. And while Mab is wanting Harry for multiple reasons, I think one is to try and stay in power over the guarding of the gates. But history has shown that it doesn't happen that way and Winter will survive while another power takes over. Though, my guess is the power of the Queens will not survive. It will move on to the new defenders of the gates.

[b4utoo]

All things balance.....who said Fairy would flourish after...they could go dormant until needed

[LostInTime]

The fae were sponsored to be the primary guardians of the Outer Gates. The sponsor set up the courts. Once their purpose is fulfilled, the sponsor will withdraw their sponsorship, most likely. Or it will end having fulfilled its purpose. I expect to see the courts dissolved, although the fae and the Never Never will continue to exist. I don't think the queens, kings and knights will continue. The people wearing those mantles will most likely continue, assuming they survive the BAT.

[Arjan]

The fae were sponsored to be the primary guardians of the Outer Gates. The sponsor set up the courts. Once their purpose is fulfilled, the sponsor will withdraw their sponsorship, most likely. Or it will end having fulfilled its purpose. I expect to see the courts dissolved, although the fae and the Never Never will continue to exist. I don't think the queens, kings and knights will continue. The people wearing those mantles will most likely continue, assuming they survive the BAT.

I don’t think their task will be completed. The outsiders will always there and their danger only temporarily lessened. There might be a change of guard or a reorganisation but the task of guarding the gates still has to be done.

[Snark Knight]

The fae were sponsored to be the primary guardians of the Outer Gates. The sponsor set up the courts. Once their purpose is fulfilled, the sponsor will withdraw their sponsorship, most likely.

I kind of figured the deal there was Hecate was that sponsor, and she kept the Mother Winter mantle for herself when spinning off the others. If that's the case, I'm not sure it's a revocable action ... what was meant to be divided, and all that.

[Yuillegan]

I don’t think their task will be completed. The outsiders will always there and their danger only temporarily lessened. There might be a change of guard or a reorganisation but the task of guarding the gates still has to be done.

Agreed. I don't think the Outsiders can be destroyed entirely any more than the Outside can. I think that's the whole point. But I imagine Dresden will slow them down for a time, perhaps even shore up reality's defences for a while longer than normal. Who knows? I doubt even Jim does.

I kind of figured the deal there was Hecate was that sponsor, and she kept the Mother Winter mantle for herself when spinning off the others. If that's the case, I'm not sure it's a revocable action ... what was meant to be divided, and all that.

Well, one of them. I think she was the main one, but I think several pantheons contributed. The Stone Table had Norse runes, Egyptian hieroglyphs, Greek letters and more. I seem to remember that there was a WOJ about the Fae being the agents of beings that were losing power in the world...so Gods of multiple pantheons seems to fit.

Is it confirmed that Mother Winter is Hecate underneath the mantle? I agree though, not sure you can put back what was meant to be separated. Not even sure why anyone would want to.

[KurtinStGeorge]

I think the outsiders are never really beaten and will always be there just outside and they always want in. It is just that when the stars are right they are far more dangerous.

Assuming the Outer Gates can never be sealed off, permanently, you are correct.  If there was a way to seal off the gates, perhaps someone or a lot of someone's; like most of Mab's army, could get stuck forever on the other side.  Not a good place to be, but from Mab's perspective a reasonable sacrifice in order to save the world from the Outsiders and do so for al time.

[TheCuriousFan]

Assuming the Outer Gates can never be sealed off, permanently, you are correct.  If there was a way to seal off the gates, perhaps someone or a lot of someone's; like most of Mab's army, could get stuck forever on the other side.  Not a good place to be, but from Mab's perspective a reasonable sacrifice in order to save the world from the Outsiders and do so for al time.

And it might even be a good end from the Outsiders' pov considering they're invading because creation is constantly disruptive to the outside and the two being completely sealed off from each other could stop that.

[seanham]

Even if the fight subsided, ends, or there is a changing of the guard that doesn’t mean much personally to me (in regards to my OP). Sure all or many of the warrior class will be dead or gone but the support structure to keep the recruits and supply lines in tact is massive. Yes not all of these individuals are fighters but it’s Winter so everyone is at least a little dangerous. Also the different species/tribes won’t stop reproducing immediately it’ll probably take a few years or more before the population truly begins to decide. Winter is a lot more then just the Gates.

[Snark Knight]

Is it confirmed that Mother Winter is Hecate underneath the mantle?

No, just my WAG. Could easily be wrong - maybe the original Hecate persona either sacrificed herself to accomplish the division, or left the game after giving away the bulk of her power to the Sidhe.

But if a goddess of dark witchcraft was going to hang on to any of the queen mantles for her own, the biggest one of Winter is a really good fit. She's basically only legs on her hut away from Baba Yaga. And drive to carry on the purpose for which she split her power would explain not retiring to match the previous Mother Summer who grew tired of her role and abdicated the Mother mantle to her Queen.

[Mira]

  I don't think the evil ever goes completely away, if you read the "appendices" at the end of "The Return of the King," you will find that even though Sauron was defeated and much evil went with him when the Ring was destroyed, Aragorn along with the sons of Elrod continued to fight Orcs that remained and threatened Middle Earth.  Yes, Elrod went into the West, but his sons chose to remain along with their sister.

[KurtinStGeorge]

  I don't think the evil ever goes completely away, if you read the "appendices" at the end of "The Return of the King," you will find that even though Sauron was defeated and much went went with him when the Ring was destroyed, Aragorn along with the sons of Elrod continued to fight Orcs that remained and threatened Middle Earth.  Yes, Elrod went into the West, but his sons chose to remain along with their sister.

Yes, the evil doer may be dealt with, or get terminated with extreme prejudice, but evil itself doesn't die or even disappear.  Of course Shakespeare put it more eloquently in Anthony's funeral speech for Caesar, "The evil that men do lives after them; The good is oft interred with their bones." 

But of course without future threats and futures evil doers, we wouldn't get any sequels or spin off series..   

[BrainFireBob]

I rather think the series ends with a reorganization of Harry's world- Mab is preparing to retire by preparing a new Guardian.

Things I have thought may happen:

1) Demonreach is used to imprison/rehabilitate warlocks and bleed off their "taint"- possibly in conjunction with the Blackstaff
2) Harry will use the Blackstaff and the circle on the island to "nom" him some dark god power without dark god darkness to rebuild the outer gates
3) His fatherhood will be important to his motivation to do this.
4) Mab and Titania will leave the world as they entered it- together
5) The White Council will become an educational institution, not a political one.
6) We will find out that Langtry has the world's most amazing bottle cap collection, and that old wizards have been using that phrase in a completely different way than young ones heard it
7) The Za Lord will become an actual lord of Faerie, and this will make Harry immortal (like the Erlking or Kringle) on its own- and this is what Mab was referencing in Battle Ground. Related: The dewdrop faeries actually have a form of intellectus.
Martha Liberty freaked out in Battle Ground because she knows #7. I can see a fun plotline where she knew there was this new Wyldfae mantle forming around someone called "the Za Lord," and that it was dominion over the Little Folk, but did not know it was Harry. She thought it was Toot.

More later. Out of time.