Page 93 of The Bone Season

A drop of water landed on my arm. Groping for the lamp, I turned the flame up and squinted at the ceiling. Another drop splashed on to my nose, making me blink.

Of course. First a leaky dreamscape, and now a real leak in the roof. As I moved my bed out of the way, I imagined the water rotting the rafters, collapsing the whole tower on top of Arcturus Mesarthim.

Spring came late in this prison. It brought a watery sun, but no warmth. A few April showers blew in and froze, leaving the cobbles slippery with ice. Tilda took a fall and sprained her ankle.

The ice silvered the lost city. More than once, I got up before dusk to wander on the lawns of Magdalen – to see the copper sunlight on the frost, hear the ground crunch and crack underfoot.

Once I glimpsed Warden from a distance, on a solitary walk of his own. When our eyes met, I headed in the other direction.

One clear evening, Liss made a rare excursion to the outskirts, armed with a basket and a lantern, taking me and Julian with her. We met in the Rookery and walked north on Walton Street.

‘Terebell lets me forage,’ Liss explained, ‘but she isn’t on duty too often. Tilda said she’s there tonight.’

‘Tell me her nickname is Terrible,’ Julian said.

Liss smiled. ‘No, she’s actually quite decent, for a Reph – I’ve never seen her raise a hand to a human. She mostly keeps to Oriel.’

In Port Meadow, Terebell Sheratan stood alone, guarding the sally port. When she gave us a curt nod, we followed the outer perimeter of the ethereal fence, our boots sinking into thick mud.

After a while, we slowed to watch a group of red-jackets running laps in the central arena. Another Reph sent a spool to chase them. The way she was dressed struck me as particularly martial.

‘Merope Sualocin,’ Liss said. ‘Balliol.’

Julian blew into his hands. ‘Dare I ask what they’re all doing?’

‘Group exercise. It’s not just spirit combat they need in Gallows Wood.’

‘Trinity has a gym and grounds. I see people exercising all the time.’

‘Merope does regular drills and assessments to make sure no one is slacking off. You’ll start them with her soon, so she can bring you up to snuff. After that, it’s your responsibility to stay there.’

‘Speaking of which,’ I said, ‘any word on your first test, Jules?’

Julian shook his head. ‘Layla refused to take hers a few days ago. She’s still at Trinity, but Aludra gave her a yellow tunic.’

‘Good for her. In the Rookery, we see it as a sign of courage, not cowardice.’ Liss glanced at me. ‘Still no training, Paige?’

‘Just the once,’ I said.

‘I find that very odd. It’s been weeks.’

‘If they have all the time in the world, why rush?’

Everyone agreed the Rephs were immortal – or more durable than humans, at least. Duckett swore that none of them had aged a day in forty years.

‘Well,’ Liss said, ‘unless they want to retrain us harlies, they need more red-jackets.’

‘Their life expectancy must be short,’ Julian said.

‘The Rephs do try to keep them alive, but you’ve seen what the Buzzers can do. Trinity and Queens definitely need more soldiers.’

‘Can I ask how many people were in your Bone Season?’

‘That’s a layered question. It was chaotic, to put it mildly.’ Liss kept walking, and we followed. ‘After the Novembertide rebellion, the Rephs had no human tributes. From what I’ve heard, Scion rounded up some voyants and Vigiles and sent them to hold the fort, then bulked up the garrison over several years.’

‘That must have unnerved Scion,’ I said. ‘Nashira broke the terms of their arrangement.’

‘I doubt anyone cared. By 2049, it was business as usual. They sent the standard tribute of voyants and amaurotics – a long hundred, including me. That year was the official start of the Bone Season.’

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