Before the battle, Rowan had secretly flown from ship to ship among his Whitethorn cousins, telling Endymion, Sellene, and others about Aelin, Erawan, the Wyrdkeys, and Maeve’s ambitions. Rowan begged them to commit treason against Maeve by sparing Terrasen’s armada and attacking Maeve’s fleet instead, even though doing so would cost them their lands, titles, and home.

In the present, the Whitethorn ships fulfill Rowan’s plea. Every cousin Rowan approached turns against Maeve, opening fire on her unsuspecting forces with arrows, ice, and wind. Rowan orders Terrasen’s armada forward, recognizing that although Rowan had no army of his own to give Aelin, Rowan has won one for her through loyalty, love, and friendship.

Lorcan watches in disbelief as a third of Maeve’s fleet attacks the rest. Rowan drives the allied ships into the fray, and Dorian’s magic joins Rowan’s when Rowan’s power pauses. The impossible battle becomes a narrow chance, and the soldiers rally around Rowan’s name as a victory cry.

Then Maeve’s counterstroke becomes clear. Fenrys suddenly vanishes and reappears at Gavriel’s side, then carries Gavriel away again, both of them visibly under Maeve’s command. Before disappearing, Gavriel points westward along the shore. Lorcan realizes Maeve is not on the water at all; her true move is on land, precisely where Lorcan left Elide.

Lorcan abandons the sea battle, orders another soldier to take command, and takes a longboat toward shore because Lorcan’s first promise is to Elide. Meanwhile, Elide waits among the dunes with eight guards, unable to see the battle but hearing its violence. Anneith urgently tells Elide to see, then flees as unnatural clouds cover the sun, suggesting a threat designed to weaken Aelin’s power from Mala. Elide fears Vernon, but the figure who appears on the beach is not Vernon.