Peeta is horrified by the footage of himself launching Mitchell into the trap. It’s the first time he’s recognized his altered state. The unit refuses to kill him, but he argues that letting Snow re-capture him is crueler. Katniss thinks that Snow wants her to kill Peeta. Gale promises to kill Peeta before he is captured if it comes down to that.

On television, Snow congratulates the Peacekeepers on their victory. He predicts that the war will soon be over. Beetee interrupts the broadcast to play footage of Coin, who gives Katniss’s eulogy and encourages the rebels to draw strength from her memory. When the broadcast is transferred back to the Capitol, Snow announces plans to retrieve Katniss’s body tomorrow. Realizing they will soon be discovered, the group decides to move underground into a complicated system of rooms and tunnels below the city. Peeta again begs to be shot, and Katniss briefly considers it. In the end, he only agrees to come along if he can remain handcuffed; Katniss will keep the key in her pocket.

The following morning, the remaining members of Unit 451 descend into the tunnel system. Pollux is visibly distressed; Castor tells them that Pollux worked in these very tunnels for five years during his time in the Capitol.