Page 116 of Bone Year

Fuck, I’m going to be late. I grab my cloak and start walking to class.

What was the headmaster doing with Nella on the tenth floor? Taking samples? I find that hard to believe. If he had anything to do with why the corruption spread so fast, I swear to the gods…

No, I can’t think about this right now, because if I don’t pass my midterms, I might not make it back to Ashwell at all.

I know something is off the moment I walk into Bale’s classroom.

The silver-haired fae stands beside him. The same one who threaded me to Ashwell on my first day. He looks bored, examining his nails like transporting students into danger is just another Tuesday.

“Sit,” Bale commands. “We’re drawing pairs.”

I slide into my seat. Lux is already there, knee bouncing under the desk. She shoots me a look of concern.

“Midterms,” Bale continues, pacing the front of the room. “Two nights. Active fissure zones across Valen. You will be paired at random and dropped at a location with a map, basic supplies, and nothing else.”

Everyone breaks out into whispers. I notice only bone year students are here today. He must have sent blood years to do something else for their midterm since they already completed this last year. I almost wish I could be paired with a blood year. That would have been a great advantage. Well, anyone other than Malric.

“Your job is to make it to the marked site, assist any locals, and handle whatever comes through the fissure. Twisted creatures, possibly crawlers.” His eyes sweep the room. “Some of you won’t make it back. That’s not a threat. It’s reality. This is your first taste of what it’s really like out there, and it will be nothing compared to a large fissure or the cycle, gods forbid.”

The silver-haired fae yawns, and I wish I could be that calm right now.

Bale furrows his brows in sympathy. “I know this sounds harsh, but this is what you’re training for. Every single one of you chose to be here. You chose to become Veilguards, and Veilguards don’t get the luxury of safe classrooms and practice cadavers forever.”

He leans against his desk and crosses his arms. “Out there, people are going to be hurt, and they’re going to look at you like you have all the answers. This is your chance to prove you belong here. Not to me. To yourselves.”

Bale reaches into the leather satchel and pulls out a handful of wooden tokens. “When I call your name, you come up, draw a token, and find your partner. No trades. No complaints. You get who you get.”

A million objections lodge themselves in my throat. We aren’t Vanguards. We shouldn’t have to face down twisted creatures with nothing but a map and a bone saw.

This is madness.

And not all of us chose this. I never applied to Ashwell. Sure, I chose to come after the fact, but still⁠—

“You ready for this?” Lux nudges my shoulder, dragging me out of my own head.

“Not even a little. You?”

She gives me a small smile, the kind that doesn’t reach her eyes, as her name echoes through the room. I watch her weave through the desks and pull a token from the satchel.

“Zuri,” she announces, scanning the room.

Zuri rises, chin high and gray wings tucked in like she’s walking into battle. Not the warmest person I’ve met but solid. Dependable. They’ll balance each other well.

Professor Bale continues calling names, the shuffle of bodies and scrape of chairs filling the silence between each one. I let my gaze drift across the room until it lands on Jace. He’s sitting on the far side next to Killian of all people. I didn’t know they were close.

He catches me looking. I offer a smile.

His expression flattens into something cold and distant, eyes narrowing like I’m a stranger he’d rather forget. Then he looks away.

I deserve that.

But gods I hope we get paired together. Out there, Jace would make me feel safe. And two nights alone might be the only chance I have left to reach him and find my friend buried somewhere beneath all that ice and remind him that I’m still here.

That I’m sorry.

I’m so fucking sorry.

“Maelis Rose.”