In the Asteri palace dungeons, Hunt, Ruhn, and Baxian hang from chains, battered after Pollux dislocated Hunt’s shoulders again and beat Ruhn. With Pollux temporarily called away, Hunt pushes Ruhn to use the brief opening to try to reach a nearby rack of weapons and tools.

Ruhn swings himself toward the rack while Hunt endures fresh agony to kick Ruhn farther, but the iron poker remains just out of reach. Realizing force alone won’t close the distance, Ruhn proposes a desperate solution: if he swings into someone, they should bite off his hand so he can reach farther, trusting Fae healing to regrow it.

Hunt refuses to do it, but Baxian—calm and resolute—volunteers to take the burden. As they steel themselves for the act, Hunt acknowledges Baxian’s devotion by telling him he was a worthy mate to Danika, and Baxian orders Ruhn to prepare without screaming.

Elsewhere in the palace, Lidia uses the excuse of her cycle to gain privacy and reconsider her risky plan and fragile trust in others. Pollux intrudes anyway, euphoric as he washes off Ruhn’s blood and announces a major development: Rigelus and the other Asteri have managed to fix the Harpy.

In the Prison in Prythian, Bryce stands on the central eight-pointed star and triggers a burst of light that forms a hologram of Silene. Nesta crosses the warded threshold with ease, and Azriel notes Silene resembles Rhysand’s sister. Silene’s message pulls them into a vision revealing that the Daglan enslaved the High Fae for five thousand years, enforced a yearly Tithe of power, and that an Asteri received that stolen power—before the vision identifies Silene’s mother as Theia, who served at the monster’s side for a century.