Admiral Ironsides reviews the casualty lists from the day’s battle and handwrites letters to the fallen pilots’ families. Cobb interrupts to yell at the admiral for the increasing dangers of her recent changes, such as lowering the testing age for pilots and sending cadets into dogfights. She dismisses his concerns and resolves to protect the Defiants at any cost. When she notes Spensa’s delayed arrival to the fight, Cobb reminds the admiral that her actions have forced Spensa to live in a cave. He insists on giving Spensa a radio so that she will never be out of reach of her flightmates again.

Admiral Ironsides tells Cobb that the sensors in Spensa’s helmet show that she may very well have “the defect,” an as-yet-unexplained trait that the authorities have been looking for. Cobb states that the defect is not yet fully understood and that asserts that the doctors are biased; he questions their determination to judge a talented cadet like Spensa based on a few stories and confusing events. Ironsides refuses to let someone like Spensa into the DDF if she has the defect, reasoning that the girl’s presence would be a distraction and a blow to morale. Cobb accuses Ironsides of being a disgrace to the DDF, but she still refuses to give Spensa a bunk.