Contains spoilers for this episode and earlier episodes.
Berek returns to Mordor and finds Isildur alive among the giant spiders. Escaping gives Isildur a chance to reach the survivors, but his journey brings him into danger with Estrid, a young woman whose account of her losses invites his trust. Wild Men steal his horse before Arondir helps them reach Pelargir. There, Bronwyn's funeral leaves Theo angry and unwilling to accept Arondir's attempts to comfort him. Isildur shares the guilt he has carried since his mother drowned saving him, finding a connection with Estrid without knowing she bears Adar's brand.
Celebrimbor and Annatar invite Durin and Disa to Eregion with a proposal to make rings for the Dwarves. Durin distrusts the stranger, yet Khazad-dûm's need gives the offer a route to his father. The king agrees to provide mithril. Elsewhere, Adar recruits the great troll Damrod for his campaign against Sauron. The alliances being prepared for that war depend on people who do not understand how close their enemy already is to their decisions.
In Númenor, grief over the failed expedition becomes opposition to Míriel's coronation. Eärien exposes the palantír and blames the Elvish object for the deaths, while Pharazôn's supporters use the crowd's anger. A great eagle arrives during the ceremony, but Belzagar declares it a sign favouring Pharazôn, and the crowd takes up his name. Back in the Southlands, Theo helps Isildur recover Berek from the Wild Men. Something unseen attacks the camp and carries Theo away, leaving the rescue unfinished.