Adolin steels himself for the palace assault, reflecting on his bond with his Shardblade and the guilt of killing Sadeas. He dons Kholin colors and joins Elhokar, Azure, Kaladin, Shallan, Skar, and Drehy to finalize the plan: storm the palace, claim the Sunwalk, then try the Oathgate while Kaladin extracts the queen and heir if needed.

Drums signal a citywide attack, forcing immediate action. On the march, an enormous stone monstrosity tears at the walls and hurls a boulder; Kaladin rises, redirects it with Lashings, and then—with Skar and Drehy—lifts to distract the Fused and contest the Sunwalk. At the palace, Adolin, Elhokar, and Azure cut the doors, then fight into the entry hall through shield walls and choke points. Azure’s strange Blade kills without burning eyes, while Adolin leads a flank-shield push to break the interior defense.

As Azure’s forces grind down a deadly corridor held by crossbows, Adolin discovers the palace garrison locked from the outside. Inside are starved but loyal guards led by Captain Sidin, imprisoned for resisting the queen. Adolin releases them as reserves, heartened that not all the palace served the darkness. Amid the din, he senses a whisper—“Passion. Sweet passion”—hinting at the Unmade’s influence.

The defenders fall back to the eastern gallery doors, which open to reveal Kaladin blazing with Stormlight. He reports the gallery and Sunwalk secured; Shallan’s illusions of fallen bridgemen helped drive off the flying enemies. The force splits: Elhokar, reinforced by loyal guards and guided by Kaladin, heads for the royal chambers to confront Aesudan; Adolin takes Skar and Drehy to escort Shallan toward the Oathgate.

Outside, Kholinar buckles: the gate is smashed, parshmen flood the streets, and the stone monster devastates the walls. Azure secures routes across the Sunwalk to the monastery. Pushing past the King’s Chapel, Adolin and Bridge Four scatter the last defenders and reach the Oathgate control building, now overgrown with a throbbing black heart and veins. With Azure’s men holding the approaches, Shallan steps forward to attempt to counter the Unmade’s corruption.