Bryce orders Cormac to teleport the group away from Ydra, but Cormac explains that a gorsian bullet shattered inside his shoulder and is suppressing his magic until he can be surgically treated. As the Hind's forces close in, the group argues over escape options: Bryce tries and fails to focus enough to teleport, Hunt cannot safely take to the air because of enemy snipers, and Tharion warns they cannot outrun the pursuing boats. When Tharion suddenly senses danger and orders everyone into the sea, they jump just before a torpedo destroys their boat.

Stranded in open water, Bryce, Hunt, Ruhn, Cormac, and Tharion face three approaching Omega-boats and the Hind's speedboat, which also carries Pollux and the Harpy. Because Hunt's lightning would electrocute his allies in the water and Bryce's powers could expose her identity, they settle on a desperate plan: let the enemy come close, have Bryce blind them, and seize a boat. Before they can act, the Hind breaks away alone on a wave skimmer and approaches them to talk while the larger forces hang back.

The Hind taunts the group, notes Tharion's presence, and openly identifies Ruhn and Cormac as Fae princes, with Ruhn also being the Starborn heir. She says she already has what she wants: proof of their treachery. Then she produces a small white stone, says she showed one like it to Sofie Renast before Sofie died, and drops it into the sea, confirming that she truly killed Sofie. With an Omega-boat closing in behind her, the Hind offers Hunt and Bryce a choice between surrender and death on the seafloor.

Hunt's control begins to break under the threat to Bryce, and his power turns visibly primal and overwhelming. Just as Bryce prepares to unleash her light, a massive vessel rises beneath them and lifts the entire group out of the water. It is not imperial but marked with two entwined fishes. While the Hind retreats and Tharion raises a wall of water to hide them, the strangers aboard shout for the group to get inside, and the ship submerges almost immediately after they descend through the hatch.

Inside the bright, orderly vessel, armed mer wait in an air lock while Hunt remains dangerously charged with lightning. A commander named Sendes assures them they mean no harm and explains that their Oracle sensed they would be needed nearby and that Bryce's light served as the call that led them in. Ruhn privately tells Bryce that Hunt's near-feral protectiveness means they are true mates in the deepest Fae sense, with their scents and souls joined. As Sendes warns that an Omega-boat is still following them, she reveals their refuge: the Depth Charger, one of the Ocean Queen's six hidden city-ships Beneath.