Part 2: Chapter 16-23 Summary

Severian tries to help Jonas by using the claw but is unable. He looks over Jonas' wounds and realize that metal stretches over a large part of his body. When Jonas wakes he tells Severian he is worried he is going insane and asks Severian to talk to him. Severian reads to him out of the book that he took from Thecla's cell.

When Severian is done reading Jonas just sits. They sleep and Severian is overtaken by Thecla's thoughts and realizes there is a secret passage out of the prison. He takes Jonas and they leave out the door. They go up a stairwell and find a room with mirrors that are portals to other dimensions. Jonas takes one of the passages in the hopes of finding a way to fix himself. He tells Severian to tell Jolenta...