Rian and Deet travel through the Breath of Thra, thermal vents from the planet's core, to quickly reach the Caves of Grot to find the Dual Glaive, but find the caves taken over by the Arathim with Deet's family and Maudra Argot among those under their control. Upon learning the Arathim are being attacked by the Nurlocs who went berserk due to the Darkening and revealing the Skeksis tricked them, Rian and Deet convince the Ascendancy to join them against the Skeksis while getting them and Deet's family to the surface. In its last act, the Sanctuary Tree gives Deet the power to extract the Darkening from others. Meanwhile after ignoring Aughra's attempt to reason with her, Seladon travels to the Castle to beseech the Skesis for mercy to the Stonewood. But she instead learns the truth from Skesis themselves and is captured as a mortally-wounded skekMal returns to the Castle with Brea. The Skesis panic as skekSo orders for skekMal's life to be saved at any cost, and Aughra states that she now knows what she must do.
Tropes featured in this episode include:
- The Alliance: The Arathim Ascendancy ends up joining the Gelflings against the Skeksis out of Enemy Mine, after Deet's talk to them and upon realizing the Skeksis screwed them by not mentioning that the Caves of Grot are infested by the Darkening, with Nurloc worms attacking everything on sight.
- Call-Forward: After getting the powers of the Sanctuary Tree, Deet has a vision of the future. It seemingly includes Rian trying to heal the Crystal, and the Garthim War, with a Gelfling woman (Brea?) fleeing a Garthim with a baby (possibly indicating she's Kira's mother).
- Creepy Child: Deet's young brother Bobb'N, after he gets mind-controlled by the Arathim."We no Bobb'N! We Ascendancy!"
- Does This Remind You of Anything?: The Skeksis all laugh and mock Seladon while ripping her clothes from her body as she screams for them to stop, making it feel eerily similar to a gang rape scene.
- Flight of Romance: Deet and Rian's flight through the Breath of Thra has shades of this.
- Hive Mind: This episode confirms that the Arathim Ascendancy do indeed share one. They even feel each other's pain, and when one dies, the whole swarm feel like they're dying.
- Hollow World: There are thermal vents around the heart of Thra, and Deet and Rian travel through them to reach the Caves of Grot faster.
- I Reject Your Reality: Seladon's dedication to holding onto the delusion that if her mother had just compromised, cut a deal with the Skeksis, they would have spared most Gelflings, after how they went out of their way to explain their true nature to her, is truly a marvel to behold.
- I Will Only Slow You Down: Hup is too injured from his fight with The Hunter to go to the Caves of Grot with Deet and Rian. He stays in the Circle of the Suns under the care of The Heretic and The Wanderer.
- Ironic Echo: The Emperor makes reference to the Chamberlain's speech about a wise shepherd not culling an entire herd. "The All-Maudra was a shepherd. Now it's time to harvest the herd!"
- Kick the Dog: The Skeksis go out of their way to reveal their true nature to Seladon in the cruelest way possible, laughing and guffawing at her distress as they spell out what Card Carrying Villains they are, after she bends over backwards doing mental gymnastics to convince herself that they are still reasonable.
- The Needs of the Many: Seladon tries to rationalize that if the All-Maudra (her mother, or herself) would just agree to give the Skeksis a few Gelfling volunteers here and there for the Skeksis to drain, they would be sated and leave the rest of the Gelflings to live in peace.
- Never My Fault: Seladon continues to insist that the Skeksis killing their mother and draining Gelflings is all Brea's fault when they're locked up together, even after the Skeksis revealed their true nature and locked her up to be drained with Brea despite her (increasingly desperate) attempts at compromise.
- "Not So Different" Remark: As the Skeksis themselves point out, Seladon's willingness to sacrifice her own kind to be drained makes her not so different from them. They still tear off her dress and lock her up to be drained anyway.
- Pragmatic Villainy: The Skeksis decide that they must bring the Hunter back, no matter what. This doesn't come from any sort of camaraderie for their equal, but rather, this is motivated by their fear of the Gelflings finding out that the Skeksis can indeed die, and also a little bit by their phobia of dying.
- Sympathy for the Devil: Even after all Seladon has done and is willing to do, Aughra is reduced to tears seeing how badly she's treated by the Skeksis.
- Voice of the Legion: This episode confirms that the Arathim do indeed share a Hive Mind, and mind-controlled Gelflings speak through it.
