Reed Kinburn, a grave but innocent sailor who has just joined the crew, views the world he has been put into with wonder, but finds himself isolated from the rest of the sailors. This is not helped by his financial troubles, which prevent him from taking part in some of the sailors' ritual activities. As he prepares to sleep, Kinburn is approached by Roach, a fellow sailor, who brings him to the ship's boiler room, where he informs him that they have been tasked to clean the furnaces. Roach asks Kinburn about his life, which prompts him to share more about his experiences as a hospital worker. The two bond over their discussion of the mistreatment of veterans in the US, and the recent decrease in their wages. Roach warns Kinburn that the cleaning work they will do is very difficult, but Kinburn remains confident. The next day, Kinburn returns to the boiler room, where he, Roach, and a third man begin to work. Kinburn finds the cleaning process to be easy at first, but as it progresses, it becomes more and more difficult. Kinburn works as hard as possible, but becomes frustrated when he begins to fall behind the others. The cleaning becomes yet more difficult, until Kinburn panics when he becomes mired in a mass of soot. He persists, though, until the other two have finished. This frustrates him further, especially when he is told he has not cleaned the furnace as satisfactorily as he believes. He throws himself back into his work, refuses all entreaties and even orders to stop, and works well into the night. Once he finally finishes, he notices his skin has been suffused with soot head-to-toe, and goes to clean it off, which is very difficult. While he showers, Flangeface, the sailor in charge of the boiler room, enters, and tells Kinburn that his work was extraordinarily well done. He continues to explain that the furnace Kinburn was cleaning had been used much more than the other two, that he had worked significantly harder than either of the other men had, and that everyone except Kinburn had known that from the beginning. Flangeface helps Kinburn to clean himself, and gives him a prime spot to sleep for the night. Kinburn is very proud of himself, and notices that his previous anxieties are gone.