Roman wakes chained on warm stone in the heart of the under realm, surrounded by sulfur pools, steam, shadows, and scattered skeletons. He feels disoriented and numb at first, but the setting quickly tells him where he is: this is where Dacre sends traitors to die.

As Roman studies the iron fixed to his wrists and tries to move, his memories return in sequence. He remembers being with Iris at the Tribune, then facing Dacre’s accusations and questions, and finally answering with honesty as his regrets fell away. That confession has led directly to his imprisonment, and when Roman pulls against the chains, the metal cuts his skin and blood runs down his arms.

An eithral passes overhead, its wings casting a shadow across the bubbling pools and its cry raising the hair on Roman’s arms. Roman recalls Iris once warning him to stay silent and motionless to survive, and he obeys, lowering himself among the bones. As he lies still, Roman fully understands Dacre’s cruelty: traitors are not merely punished or stripped of memory, but abandoned in pain and fed to Dacre’s monsters.