Herdazian soldiers present their captive, Sheler, to an unnamed general who theatrically allows his own wrists to be manacled. The general explains that Sheler has three choices for punishment. Sheler protests his fifth-dahn rank and demands ransom, but the general rejects ransom as only for men taken in battle, not for those caught robbing and abusing civilians.

The general outlines the options: the sword, which would be wielded by the women Sheler abused; the hammer, which involves breaking Sheler’s limbs and hanging him by the sea; and the “hog,” a wrestling match. Amid betting soldiers and a timing scribe, the general slips free of the manacles, joking that good locks mean little if the cuffs are loose.

Calculating that Herdazians won’t risk killing an Alethi officer, Sheler chooses the hog, expecting public humiliation rather than death. He is dragged through a camp heavy with refugees, chained to a ring near the shore, and doused in a pungent oil.

As a horn sounds, the sea churns. A soldier, noting wagers on how long Sheler will last, retreats up the bank. An enormous claw breaks the water’s surface, revealing that the “hog” is a monstrous sea creature. Sheler’s bid for an easy outcome becomes a deadly spectacle.