During a turbulent descent to Europa, Lyria slips into the Archimedes’s brig to question the Obsidian prisoner, Sigurd, son of Skarde. He corrects Volga’s name to Volarus and claims she is Fá’s granddaughter, treated as his daughter, and was given her own command on Callisto to build a realm for the Volk. The implication that Volga serves Fá rattles Lyria.

Leaving the brig, Lyria crosses the cargo bay where Aurae reassures rescued Pink children, describing Athena’s fortified undersea “Deep” of six cities carved into Europa’s core. Outside, storms lash the sea. Lyria watches a leviathan breach, a reminder of Europa’s alien power and the precariousness of their refuge.

Sevro approaches, casually discussing leviathans and gens Kalibar’s famed bull, Cyaxares. Tension surfaces as Lyria calls him a bastard for abandoning Darrow and Cassius, and Sevro counters by confronting her role in the abduction of his children. Lyria admits her guilt, recounts witnessing Ulysses’s birth and recovering his body, and says she would have traded places with him.

Sevro presses about Volga; Lyria insists Volga is kind but fears the rumor could be true. Sevro observes that people disappoint. Their talk turns to the Ares mantle; Sevro confesses the helm felt like a prison that consumed him, echoing his father’s burden. Lyria shares how her father’s compromises were a cage he accepted, suggesting a mantle can be a key as well as a prison. Sevro departs, saying they will talk only if she remains useful.