Chapter Seven
Contains spoilersOverview
At dawn on the Bone Quarter’s steps, Bryce refuses and is refused Danika’s public Sailing, choosing a private farewell instead. Hollowed by six sleepless nights, she abandons the living world’s clamor for the silence of the dead. As the mist deepens and chills, an ancient presence approaches the gates.
Summary
Before sunrise, Bryce kneels on the obsidian steps before the towering bone gates of the Bone Quarter. Mist muffles the city behind her, and a rotting black boat waits by a moldy rope—the fee paid so it will linger. She has left all mortal possessions behind, seeking silence and a final goodbye.
For six sleepless nights in a hotel room shared with her mother, Bryce ignored messages until an audiomail from Ithan told her not to attend Danika’s Sailing. While her mother slept, she slipped out, unable and unwelcome to face the public rites. She comes here instead, hollowed by grief, to give Danika this last thing.
Kneeling, Bryce bows her head beneath the leviathan-bone gates as the mist thickens and the air turns colder. The river trembles when the creature dwelling in the fog emerges. Bryce lifts her gaze to meet whatever has come, poised for an encounter at the threshold of the dead.
Who Appears
- Bryce Quinlan
Grief-numbed protagonist; skips Danika’s Sailing and kneels at the Bone Quarter to say goodbye.
- Danika Fendyr
The deceased friend; her Sailing at dawn prompts Bryce’s private farewell at the gates.
- Ithan
Sends an audiomail warning Bryce not to attend the Sailing, reinforcing her isolation.
- Bryce’s mother
Shares Bryce’s hotel room; sleeps as Bryce slips out before dawn to the Bone Quarter.
- Mist-dwelling creature
Ancient presence of the Bone Quarter; emerges as Bryce kneels, making the river tremble.