The chapter opens with Violet and Bodhi discovering that Teine, Mira's dragon, is unconscious on the battlefield and cannot be roused. Bodhi notes that Garrick, already exhausted from using Chradh's teleportation ability, cannot help move the dragon. Violet convinces Tairn to carry Teine to safety using the chains wrapped around his torso, despite Tairn's fierce reluctance to leave her unprotected. She appeals to his duty to dragonkind and invokes Mira's safety, and Tairn reluctantly complies, airlifting the unconscious dragon toward the cliffs.

With Tairn gone and Cuir as their only remaining dragon, Violet and Bodhi prepare to face Theophanie, confident that Bodhi's signet—the ability to counter other signets—will neutralize her power. Theophanie emerges from behind a wyvern carcass and taunts them, deflecting Violet's thrown dagger with a casual wave. She urges Violet to submit to a mysterious master, promising mentorship. Theophanie provokes Bodhi about living in Xaden's shadow and hints that a crown awaits him, but Bodhi dismisses her manipulation, affirming his loyalty to his cousin and province.

When Bodhi activates his signet, Violet realizes with horror that it has no effect on Theophanie's power. Violet recognizes that Theophanie is not a lightning wielder as she had assumed—she is a storm wielder, far more powerful than Violet's mother ever was. It was Theophanie who created the tornado, and her storms can sustain themselves once started. Violet urgently orders Bodhi to flee, arguing his signet only works on dragon-bonded magic, not dark wielder magic. Before Bodhi can refuse, Cuir snatches him and flies south, securing Tyrrendor's succession.

Alone on the field, Violet is battered by the escalating storm. A massive tree is uprooted and nearly crushes her. Using the brief cover of the fallen tree, Violet improvises a weapon: she ties a maorsite-tipped arrow to a heavy rock and hurls it at Theophanie. Though Theophanie deflects the projectile, the explosive maorsite arrow detonates nearby, blasting her through the air and temporarily breaking her concentration on the storm.

Violet charges with her alloy-hilted dagger, but Theophanie catches her arm with superhuman strength. Violet manages to stab a knife into Theophanie's thigh before the dark wielder slams her to the ground and pins her. Theophanie taunts Violet, revealing that even Violet's mother knew she was no match and hid behind wards. She points out a horde of wyvern bypassing the city to attack civilians fleeing through the Medaro Pass, urging Violet to reach for dark power beneath the ground to save them.

Violet refuses to channel the dark power despite the desperate situation. She acknowledges she cannot be everywhere at once, pressing her own neck against Theophanie's blade in defiance. Her final internal thought reveals she is placing her trust in someone else—implied to be Sloane or another ally—to handle the crisis she cannot, affirming that she doesn't have to be the solution to every problem.