Still trapped in the flooded grotto, Alaric and Talasyn retreat to opposite ends of the rock shelf while rain and thunder worsen outside. Alaric watches the rising water and considers bringing down the ceiling as a possible escape route, trusting Talasyn to shield them from debris if necessary. When Talasyn says Alaric is not like Gaheris and would never hurt his own child, Alaric realizes she expects anger from him and chooses humor instead, defusing the moment by teasing her about heirs and absurd baby names.

Talasyn, embarrassed and irritated, tackles Alaric. The joking struggle becomes intimate when Talasyn ends up pressed against him, wearing his tunic, and both become aware of their attraction. Before they can act on the tension, a fresh wave surges into the grotto, soaking them and forcing them apart as the waterline rises but then steadies.

Cold and frustrated, Talasyn tries to make a fire with Alaric's kindling and flint, using the futile task to avoid thinking about their near-kiss. The damp grotto prevents the fire from catching, and Talasyn's repeated failures leave her hands scraped. Her frustration turns inward as she thinks that the rebels may be right to call her a traitor because of her desire for Alaric and her divided loyalties.

Night falls, leaving the grotto completely dark and freezing. Alaric lights a bronze lantern powered by the Firewarren and insists they share his bedroll for warmth. Talasyn resists, but Alaric frames it as his need to survive long enough to help stop the Voidfell, so she joins him under the blanket, where they argue softly over watch shifts before Talasyn begins to drift off in his arms.

As Talasyn falls asleep, the Firewarren's red light triggers another vision: a red sun, the Eversea below, scaled coils moving over the water, a gnarled hand reaching upward, and a thunderous roar. When Alaric notices her reaction, Talasyn explains that she has been seeing memories or visions that may not be her own. Alaric says he has never heard of such visions among the Shadowforged and suggests they may be a Lightweaver trait, which leaves both of them silently confronting the fact that Kesath destroyed the people who might have known the answer.