In this chapter, the half-wolf tells Graybeard that he will not stay on the island. He tells him that the island has a "mind of its own" , and that he has made every attempt to stall the process of healing the island's inhabitants. The halfwolf also reveals that his mother was once the daughter of the goddess Empress, but that she was "exceeded" by a vision in which he saw her chains broken. He explains that he was able to break the chains of Empress because she had "fox blood" . He also tells the halfwolf that the goddess and her monster ruled the island for a long time, until Empress died and hid her mask from the world. She came to realize that the years after she died were not a "proud time" for the island, and so she broke her mask and hid herself in Empress's blood. Graybeard explains that they were fools in thinking that the monster would die with the priest, but in fact, the monster passed into the empress' blood to think that she had died with her. The two men agree that it was a "foolish" idea to stir up the monster, but Graybeard reminds them that they had to wait for Graybeard to find them. He says that he does not want to be "a monster" and that it is time to break his chains. He asks Graybeard if he will get on his knees and pray for Empress. He recalls that seven years ago, he was "stranded here" during a reconnaissance. There is a "hum" in the bones, he says, "like you should talk, there's always honor where voice / That's familiar / There's power." He asks where he has been taken.