Chapter 10

After witnessing a brutal public execution by Moltenmaw in the Ditch, the protagonist returns home to the Shade side of Gore, reflecting on the kingdom's descent into tyranny under King Cadok. She observes the sky of fallen Moonplumes and finds solace in her favorite small, malformed moon, which offers her a rare moment of peace and hope despite the darkness surrounding her.

The chapter opens with the protagonist leaving The Curly Quill and traversing the crowded Ditch marketplace. An adult Moltenmaw suddenly appears overhead, breathing dragonflame and drawing the crowd's panicked attention. The feeding bell gongs, summoning a swarm of Moltenmaws to the coliseum, where someone is staked for execution. The protagonist watches in rage as the victim—likely someone who resisted the Crown's oppressive regime—is killed and devoured. A victorious Moltenmaw carries the remains westward toward Bhoggith, the spawning grounds, to feed dragon young. The protagonist reflects on the kingdom's former glory and current degradation under King Cadok's militaristic rule, noting the mandatory screening of children for magical gifts and the king's indifference to human suffering. She acknowledges her powerlessness to act alone against the king, who is heavily guarded. She then traverses a runed wind tunnel to reach her home on the Shade side of the wall, removing her formal clothing and sending it down a chute. At the tunnel's edge, she looks out at the snow-covered plains and the sky filled with the fallen, petrified bodies of dead Moonplumes—moons that provide a poetic reminder of loss. Among the distant moons, she identifies her favorite: a small, malformed adolescent Moonplume called Hae's Perch. She refuses to learn its tragic story, preferring to imagine it lived happily, and finds genuine comfort and hope in viewing it each dawn.