Aelin dreams that her escape from Maeve was only an illusion and that Cairn is still torturing her on the altar. In the nightmare, Arobynn appears and taunts Aelin with her captivity, her fear of the sacrifice demanded by the gods, and the possibility that Dorian might pay the price instead. Aelin wakes beside Rowan in a shabby inn, shaken but physically free.

Before dawn, Aelin insists on training despite Rowan urging rest. The group has come ashore near the Fenharrow and Adarlan border because storms blocked a faster route north to Terrasen. From the innkeeper, Aelin’s party has learned little except that war is raging everywhere, and Aelin’s guilt over lost time pushes her to keep moving, fighting, and rebuilding her body.

Rowan spars with Aelin in the inn courtyard and notices that exhaustion is making Aelin sloppy. When Aelin refuses to stop because people are dying, Rowan forces the bout to end and reminds Aelin that without food and strength, Aelin will be unable to help anyone. Aelin reluctantly accepts Rowan’s hand and agrees to eat.

Inside the inn, Elide and Gavriel endure the innkeeper’s unpleasant porridge. Elide reflects on Aelin teaching the group Wyrdmarks because the marks helped Aelin escape and may help against enemies resistant to magic. Lorcan briefly enters and leaves, underscoring the distance between Lorcan and Elide since Lorcan became bound to Aelin’s court; Elide chooses silence and self-reliance over seeking guidance from Anneith.

After breakfast, Aelin nearly becomes sick during more training, and Rowan shifts into hawk form to scout their ship at the nearby coast. Aelin, still unsettled by Maeve and by the silence of her own magic, goes to Fenrys, who has been keeping watch because he also cannot sleep. Through their blinking code, Aelin and Fenrys admit they are not all right, and Fenrys speaks briefly of Connall and Maeve before Rowan suddenly dives from the sky, shifts, and points toward something flying above them.