Chapter 28

The narrator is marched through the Ditch to the coliseum for execution by The Crown, bound to a stake while elementals watch. As dragons circle and the execution proceeds, the Queen mysteriously intervenes by commanding the wind to repel the Moltenmaws, seemingly attempting a rescue. However, a massive Sabersythe descends and captures the narrator, who begins speaking in an unknown language that the beast appears to understand rather than consume.

The narrator is escorted through the crowded Ditch by The Crown's soldiers toward the coliseum for execution, passing faces of allies and creatures they once trusted. Snow falls as they proceed, and the narrator reflects on regrets—never killing Rekk Zharos and missing the freedom Fallon once described. They reach the coliseum's central stage, bound tightly to a wooden stake while elementals gather to witness the execution. The narrator attempts to remain composed despite panic and fear. As feeding bells toll, the Queen arrives in the imperial box and shows visible shock at the sight of the narrator. Two large Moltenmaws approach to feed, but the Queen begins singing to Clode, the wind goddess, creating a cyclonic vortex that forces the dragons away. The narrator realizes the Queen is attempting to save them. This moment of hope is interrupted by the arrival of an enormous Sabersythe—a creature so massive it shakes the coliseum and causes it to crack, killing some nobles who failed to escape. The dragon descends directly toward the narrator. Expecting to be taken to Gondragh as food for the beast's young, the narrator is instead seized by the dragon's claws. A song erupts from their throat in a language they don't understand, and the Sabersythe appears to digest the words rather than consume the narrator's body. The dragon roars with flame, then strikes, its teeth closing around the narrator in darkness as the stake dislodges and the narrator plunges into fear and unconsciousness.