Nightfall

Sheerin emerges from the observatory storeroom, having hidden there throughout the night. He sees the ruin of the building left behind by the mob and is shocked by the heaps of people who cover the observatory floor. He proceeds to leave but finds Yimot, who tells him that he briefly saw the Stars and wondered at their splendor. Sheerin urges Yimot to leave with him for the Sanctuary, but Yimot wants to look for Faro. They spend some time looking for him before Yimot finally agrees to leave the observatory. Sheerin, armed with a hatchet, gives Yimot a club to defend himself.

The novel flashes back to show Siferra leaving the observatory just before dawn. She has survived the assault of the mob and has spent hours in the Darkness searching for the exit. From afar, she sees Saro City in flames. She actively tries to remember her name, then looks up at the Stars. She decides to go retrieve the Thombo tablets as more of her memory comes back.

She walks through the burning campus and finds her way to her department building, which is mostly unscathed. She finds Mudrin dead and speaks to a traumatized Balik in her office, who reminds her that the Apostles have stolen the tablets. Siferra asks for the scans of the tablets instead. Balik, who has lost his reason after seeing the stars, jumps at Siferra to sexually assault her, and Siferra knocks him back with a club. When Balik tries to appeal to their mutual need to survive, Siferra hits him a few more times, killing him. She takes the charts and leaves.

Outside the building, bandits chase Siferra, forcing her to hide in the campus botanical garden and then retreat further into the forest.

Having survived the Darkness and seen Athor lose his will to live, Beenay looks for the Sanctuary, hoping to find Raissta. Entering the inner gate of the hideout, Beenay struggles to recall the password. He eventually arrives at the right one—“Nightfall”—and is reunited with Raissta.

Raissta informs him that everyone else has left to converge with groups of survivors from other universities at Amgando National Park. Beenay is shocked, believing it foolish to leave the security of the Sanctuary. Raissta explains that the people had voted on it, wanting to be in the company of those whom they felt could competently rebuild society. They also feared that the bandits and the Apostles would organize and storm the Sanctuary in a matter of weeks. Beenay tells her about the destruction outside, which momentarily causes him to give in to despair. Raissta consoles him.

In the forest, Theremon encounters survivors who have fallen into varying levels of trauma and aggression. He categorizes them into two groups: the fire-lighters, who seek light out of desperation, and the bandits, who attack others without restraint. Theremon becomes especially cautious with each encounter in the forest, unsure which kind of person he is meeting.

Theremon reaches the Pantheon, a religious temple in Saro also known as the Cathedral of All the Gods. He begins to reflect on his relationship with religion and finds his atheism complicated by the apparent cruelty of the gods. He tries to rescue a priest who is pinned under some debris, but a bandit reaches the clergyman first and kills him for loot.

Theremon also reflects on his relationship with Siferra, regretting the way he turned her against him with his columns. He has recurring thoughts of seeking her out in the world, but he is unsure how to find her. Then, one day, he bumps into someone he knows.

Theremon has found Sheerin, who is heading to Amgando. They talk about the fulfillment of Sheerin’s apocalyptic predictions. Sheerin tells Theremon that he escaped the observatory with Yimot, who was killed by a little girl some days later. He reached the Sanctuary and found nothing but a note from Beenay, which is how Sheerin knew to journey toward Amgando. Sheerin guesses that Siferra may have gone to Amgando as well. He tries to convince Theremon to come along, but Theremon believes that Siferra may still be somewhere in the forest. They part ways so that Theremon can continue searching for her.

Siferra roams through the forest to avoid the burning city. On the fourth day, she decides to look for the Sanctuary and is surprised to discover its gates open. She is confronted by a group of survivors who hold her at gunpoint. They identify themselves as the Fire Patrol and order her to strip so that they can inspect her for incendiary materials. Siferra decides to obey, removing all her clothes. Satisfied, the Fire Patrol leader, Altinol 111, allows her to dress back up. Altinol expresses his awareness that their demand was hurtful. He extends an invitation for her to join their group, which intends to control the fire that has destroyed the world.

Sheerin finds himself exhausted on the road to Amgando. He resents Theremon for having declined his invitation.

He passes through a suburban area. Starving, he tries knocking on each of the doors to see if anyone is there. He then realizes he can simply break into one of the houses. In doing so, he surprises the family taking shelter inside. They pull him in and take his hatchet away. Sheerin notices that the settlers have food, and obliges their questions on whether he is a member of “the Patrol.” They are disgusted when he announces that he is from the university. He tries to assure them that he means no harm, but they do not believe him on account of his affiliation.

It becomes apparent that the settlers have developed the belief that the university scientists used magic to summon the Darkness. They threaten to throw him out of the house, and Sheerin mocks them for their foolish superstitions. The settlers gang up on him.