Adolin fights in the dome at Azimir during the singers’ eleventh assault wave. The humans have been holding a defensive ring while the singers use repeated attacks and superior numbers to wear them down, but the enemy has also begun building a larger protected staging area around the central control structure. Realizing that letting the singers expand their foothold is too dangerous, Adolin advances with Neziham and two companies, hoping to destroy the new fort before it becomes permanent.

The counterattack seems to work at first as the singers fall back, but Adolin’s plan to burn the fortification fails when the oil sputters out. He and Neziham discover that the singers have used their stolen Soulcaster to transform much of the structure from wood into bronze. When Adolin charges anyway, sections of the fort open, stormforms blast his troops with lightning, archers fire from cover, and reserve singers counterattack. Because the humans depend on the advantages of defense, Adolin realizes that pressing inward would cost too many lives, so he orders a controlled retreat.

Back at the lines, Adolin meets privately with Kushkam and Neziham. They conclude that the bronze fortress cannot be taken cheaply and will likely have to stand until reinforcements arrive, though Adolin suggests trying dropped rocks through the skylights and looking for ways to build heavier weapons. Once outside the dome, Adolin is hit by crushing exhaustion after his third rotation inside. He asks Kaminah to seek clarification on what legally counts as Odium "capturing" Azimir under Dalinar’s contract, orders Colot to find anyone with carpentry or engineering experience, and learns that the failed assault cost twenty-one dead and many more wounded.

Adolin prepares to hand off his Plate to Reep, his second standby Shardbearer, because Moore is already recovering from an earlier shift. He briefly wonders if the armor itself is reluctant to leave him, then speaks to it as he would to his sword or horse, asking it to protect its next wearer. Still trying to continue working, Adolin is stopped by Colot and by Kaminah, who uses her new authority as aide-de-camp to order him to sleep. Adolin yields, relieved that his officers are willing to force him to rest while the siege continues.

Elsewhere, after organizing Windrunners to take the Mink to Herdaz, Sigzil arrives at the Shattered Plains and formally takes command of Narak’s defense. Surveying the field with Vienta, Ka, Leyten, and Peet, he confirms that the current defense only covers Narak Prime and Narak Two, even as the Everstorm approaches carrying hundreds of Skybreakers and roughly eight or nine hundred Fused. In council with Balivar, Winn, and the other commanders, Sigzil presents a plan drawn from engineering: spread troops across four walled plateaus and deliberately leave one as a tempting weak point, so the enemy wastes time attacking a place the coalition can afford to lose while Narak Prime and the Oathgate remain protected. The generals accept the plan, Balivar takes charge of ground defense, and Sigzil finally commits to leading without doubting himself.