Roman is forced forward with Dacre’s soldiers through the emerald-lit tunnels toward an imminent attack. Panicked and physically overwhelmed, Roman begs Lieutenant Shane to let him out of the line, explaining that Roman has no weapon or training, but Shane dismisses Roman’s fear and insists that Roman belongs there as an underling correspondent. Another soldier tries to reassure Roman that their group will enter the city from the outskirts, but that does little to calm him.

When the line emerges aboveground, Roman realizes the soldiers have come up inside a house rather than onto an open battlefield. Roman nearly collapses from fear and nausea, and Shane steadies him before assigning him a task that keeps him out of the main fighting: Roman must search the upper floor with a torch, check every bed and wardrobe, and report back. Although Shane tells Roman to take anyone he finds captive, Roman understands that he has effectively been given a harmless errand because he is useless as a soldier.

Upstairs, Iris hears Dacre’s soldiers moving through the house and tries to escape through a stuck window. When she sees a torch beam approaching in the corridor, Iris abandons the attempt and hides in a wardrobe with a wrench, choosing a position from which she can ambush the intruder if necessary. Terrified but determined, Iris prepares herself to strike quickly, knowing she may have to seriously injure or kill whoever finds her.

Roman enters the room and searches it methodically, first looking under the bed and then approaching the wardrobe. When Roman opens the door, the torchlight reveals Iris poised to attack with the wrench. Both freeze in shock. Roman instantly recognizes Iris, and the chapter ends with the two of them finally face-to-face after being separated and pulled into opposite sides of the war.