During the celebration, the king is murdered. It appears that Dastan murdered the king because he gave the king a robe that had poison on it. Dastan got the robe from his brother, Tus. Dastan flees the city with the captured princess and discovers that the dagger has the ability to turn back time. The catch is that only the person that is holding the dagger is aware that time has reversed itself. He heads back to the city to try to convince his uncle that he did not kill his father. He quickly learns that it was his beloved uncle who was behind it and neither of his brothers know that it was their uncle, not Dastan, who murdered the king.
During his journeys that take him back and forth from the city to the wasteland, Dastan meets Sheik Amar. He runs an ostrich racing business which Dastan destroys the first time they meet. Amar captures him upon his return from the city and takes him and the captured princess to turn them over to the authorities. He realizes that it would be better to aid Dastan in his attempt to prove his innocence than deal with the government. He escorts Dastan and the captured princess on their travels.