Carl anticipates Amayon throwing him and Samantha away, grabs Samantha’s pigtails, and uses her movement to glide back toward the damaged FOCSA building. They reach Donut and Lazarus on a high metal beam, where Lazarus is preparing to fire an RPG at Amayon. Carl stops Lazarus because Amayon must finish casting his spell, and because firing inside the collapsing building could bring everything down.

Amayon turns away from the crawlers and continues calling into the sky while birds and bats swarm around him. Carl realizes Amayon no longer cares about attacking them as long as they leave him alone. The group’s immediate priority shifts to reaching Imani and Tran, who are trapped several floors below while demon crabs and other possessed creatures pour through the wreckage.

Carl, Donut, Katia, Louis, Dong Quixote, Li Na, Li Jun, and Mongo move downward through broken floors while fighting demons. The danger escalates when crabs drag Author Steve Rowland and then Lazarus through portals into hell, eliminating Lazarus as a totem. Katia asks why the quest has not updated, and Carl guesses they are still waiting for Amayon’s spreading cloud to cover the world.

On a lower level, Bautista, Britney, Elle, and Elle’s summoned totems dig through rubble to reach Imani and Tran. Imani reports that enemies are trapped inside with them, but Imani refuses to flee without Tran and does not trust her remaining totems. Carl offers Phase Through Walls potions, but Elle explains that phasing would make them drop uncontrollably through the building, likely killing Tran.

With escape options failing, Carl tells Donut to burn through her hand until she can access her staff totem and the Hole spell. Donut summons Alpha Carl and Shi Maria, then plays the Golden Combo card to combine them into a single defensive minion that can hold back the demons. As Carl fights, a notification shows that the Scavenger’s Daughter is ready, but Carl decides it is too dangerous to unleash inside the building.

Shi Maria materializes partly outside the structure, too large for the hallway, and immediately impales Alpha Carl through the head before the combo can complete. Because the intended target is incapacitated, the Golden Combo automatically selects the next available minion target: Carl. The chapter ends with Carl being combined with Shi Maria.