Toxte pursed his lips and then shook his head and Xessa noticed Lilla watching her side of the conversation from his doorway. She pretended she couldn’t see him, but her words were for him as much as Toxte now. ‘I don’t want to start killing Empire soldiers, but I will if I have to. What I do want to do is understand the enemy I’ve trained my whole life to fight. I know I don’t have years of experience like some. But being younger doesn’t mean I’m being reckless with this. I’m not trying to get anyone killed and if it goes wrong, even if we’re a heartbeat away from getting one, we back away and run. It’s a risk, but I won’t add unnecessary risks on top of that. Contrary to popular belief’ – and she waved towards Lilla – ‘I’m not stupid. I just want to know my enemy so I can kill it.’

‘Yes,’ Toxte interrupted, excited. ‘Its armour, for instance. What exactly is it? What can penetrate it? They breed – we think – but we’ve never found an infant. Capturing one probably wouldn’t answer that question, but are there, I don’t know, particularly deep stretches of river crawling with dozens of baby Drowned?’

His hands stopped at that and Xessa felt nausea rise into her throat. Toxte looked just as horrified at the image he’d conjured. He shivered.

‘So, lots to learn,’ Xessa signed briskly. ‘We have a responsibility to protect the city, not just now, but the next generations, and if catching a Drowned allows us to do that … besides, I don’t want to be eja the rest of my life. I have other things I want to do.’ She blushed again.

‘Like what?’ Toxte asked, willing to be distracted.

‘She’s an artist,’ Lilla signed as he wandered back over. ‘And a fine one.’

Xessa winced and held up a hand before Toxte could ask anything else. ‘The point is, there are a thousand of us who took on the duty without regret, but also because someone has to. What if we didn’t have to? What if they were gone? I don’t want ejab like you to risk your lives with the spirit-magic day after day. I don’t want any more to end up broken like my father Otek. And besides, if Tayan weaves a peace, we won’t be at war. Then they can’t argue, can they?’