The chap­ter opens with Lin­den and her com­pan­ions strug­gling to sur­vive a treach­er­ous riv­er jour­ney. The mud­dy, chaot­ic water sick­ens Lin­den, while the cold saps her strength and tempts her to sur­ren­der. Despite the harsh con­di­tions, the First, a Giant, sup­ports both Lin­den and Covenant, though her wound caus­es Lin­den sig­nif­i­cant pain. Lin­den uses her heal­ing abil­i­ties to numb the First’s injury, focus­ing on this task to dis­tract her­self from the relent­less cold and the storm’s fury. The group endures the ordeal until evening, when they final­ly reach the river­bank, exhaust­ed and bat­tered by the ele­ments.

Upon land­ing, the group’s phys­i­cal and emo­tion­al states are laid bare. Covenant, pale and cold, insists on build­ing a fire, while Sun­der, grief-strick­en, tends to Hol­lian with heart­break­ing care. Pitch­wife man­ages to ignite a small fire, pro­vid­ing min­i­mal warmth, and offers dia­mon­draught, a potent liquor, to revive the group. Covenant attempts to con­sole Sun­der, but the Grav­el­er remains incon­solable, lost in his sor­row. The scene under­scores the group’s col­lec­tive weari­ness and the emo­tion­al toll of their jour­ney, with each char­ac­ter grap­pling with their own pain and guilt.

The arrival of Vain and Find­ail intro­duces a moment of super­nat­ur­al inter­ven­tion. Vain appears dam­aged, his arm with­ered and his body marred by wounds. Find­ail, an Elo­him, con­fronts Vain with a mix of dis­dain and fear, yet heals his arm in a dis­play of extra­or­di­nary pow­er. This act stuns the group, reveal­ing Findail’s capa­bil­i­ties and hint­ing at the Elohim’s poten­tial to heal the Earth. Lin­den is par­tic­u­lar­ly struck by the impli­ca­tions of Findail’s pow­er, ques­tion­ing whether the group should relin­quish their quest to the Elo­him. How­ev­er, Findail’s refusal to aid Sun­der high­lights his reluc­tance to inter­vene fur­ther.

The chap­ter clos­es with the group set­tling into a tense, somber night. Pitch­wife pre­pares a mea­ger meal as the fire dwin­dles, while Lin­den, Covenant, and the oth­ers hud­dle togeth­er for warmth. The events of the day—the river’s bru­tal­i­ty, Sunder’s grief, and Findail’s enig­mat­ic actions—leave the char­ac­ters emo­tion­al­ly and phys­i­cal­ly drained. Linden’s reflec­tions on Findail’s pow­er linger, adding a lay­er of doubt about their mis­sion. The chap­ter cap­tures a moment of respite amid ongo­ing strug­gle, empha­siz­ing the group’s resilience and the uncer­tain path ahead.