Chapter 9

Haedeon departs on a dangerous expedition to steal his own Moonplume egg from Netheryn, traveling by sleigh through treacherous snowy terrain despite his family's pleas. His younger sibling helps him pack and notices signs of fear beneath his cheerful demeanor, growing increasingly anxious about his chances of survival given his lack of stealth and elemental sensitivity.

Haedeon leaves early in the cycle to undertake the traditional rite of stealing his own Moonplume egg from Netheryn, a frozen, inhospitable place where towers of ice hold the eggs in mahmi Moonplume nests. He insists on traveling by sleigh and sleeping in snow huts rather than riding on Pahpi's Moonplume, claiming this is how the task has always been done and that he needs to prove himself. His parents attempted to convince him not to go, but he was resolute. While helping Haedeon pack, his younger sibling observes that despite his jokes and cheerful demeanor, Haedeon is afraid—evidenced by his unusual gift of three butterberry chews. The sibling learns from Pahpi that obtaining a Moonplume egg requires climbing high ice towers undetected and stealing from a mahmi dragon's nest while remaining silent and invisible. The sibling reflects on Haedeon's unsuitability for such a task: he is large and loud, his footsteps crunch in snow, his voice is rough and coarse, and he cannot hear the elemental songs. As the chapter closes, the narrator's growing dread crystallizes into a bleak conviction that Haedeon will not return from Netheryn.