The Gorgons transport Lysander by gravBike back into the desert and into the mountains, where he is knocked unconscious. He wakes chained in a cave, soaked and bruised, with streams running beside him and two Gorgon guards at the exit. Nearby, ten other Gold prisoners speak in hushed tones, despairing over torture and their likely deaths.

Listening, Lysander recognizes accents and names, concluding they are allied to Darrow. The group includes Alexandar au Arcos, who introduces Drusilla, Ignacius, Crastus, and Hadrian. Alexandar’s ears are missing and his face is swollen, yet he maintains a leader’s poise and loyalty to Darrow.

When questioned, Lysander assumes the Mercurian identity “Cato au Vitruvius,” offering a plausible tale of surviving Erebos’s devastation. Drusilla probes his background with specific questions, but Lysander’s familiarity with the city lets him pass their tests. Ignacius remains suspicious, while Alexandar tries to keep order among the prisoners.

As they argue over the fate of Darrow and the siege of Heliopolis, Lysander steers the conversation by asking how long they have been held, then asserts that Heliopolis has not fallen. He shares a report that Darrow marched under the storm and struck Ajax au Grimmus during the siege, countering their fatalism. Alexandar seizes on the news with renewed confidence.

By lifting their spirits and maintaining his cover, Lysander positions himself within the prisoners’ fragile community, concealing his true allegiance and gaining time in the Gorgons’ custody.