She performed a series of knocks before a heavy wooden door was heaved open.
There was a small gatherin g of people inside and the doors clunked shut behind us. Camille took my hand and led me to a long, rectangular table around which stood several men and women engaged in debate. When one person at the table spotted me, many more joined in, all of them staring as if they couldn’t believe their eyes.
I heard the whispers, ‘Seraph Maddon. Seraph Maddon. It is her.’
These were the voices of folk who were either grateful or shocked to see someone such as myself in that place. Soon the noise became deafening. They all gathered closer, both those at the table and others milling around the edges of the hall. I noticed their clothing. It wasn’t better than anybody else’s on the streets.
An elderly man eventually greeted me, ‘Seraph Maddon, welcome.’
‘In the flesh,’ I breathed my words slowly, kind of amused and perplexed. They were all making me nervous with their stares.
Thankfully Camille stepped in.
‘Please, ladies and gentlemen. Calm yourselves. Listen, I brought Seraph here for a reason. Philip,’ she gestured, nodding at the old man who had addressed me. ‘Come, spar.’
He walked up to Camille and they sparred, swiping and ducking playfully. He threw his foot out over her head and she caught his ankle, squeezing it until he succumbed.
‘Camille, please,’ he begged, his face turning purple.
She laughed and freed him, winking in my direction. ‘Apologies. Sometimes, I cannot help myself.’
They all continued laughing as if no danger existed beyond the walls of their conference. The idiocy stifled me.
‘Camille, what is this place?’ I said, cutting into her display.
The Frenchwoman sat on the table, crossed her long legs and swung them underneath her. She played with a nail and looked at Philip.
‘Tell her,’ she ordered.
‘Camille trained us. We trained others. We police this city to a certain extent. York is not as badly off as a lot of other places, Seraph. You may not think it but resources in New York are plentiful compared to what the average city here or elsewhere has. You need to realize… Eve’s presence in this city somehow stopped them wrecking it completely. She had influence even we don’t yet understand and probably never will.’
‘Say what now?’ I had an instinct there was something unique about York but I was starting to think these people were part of a crazed cult. ‘What were those sons of bitches doing here if she saved the city?’
Philip remained close while everyone else pulled into the background to observe our exchange from afar.
‘For years Officium thought there was something wrong with this place. Maybe they put it down to the geography or the constant flooding, or perhaps it’s simply the case that a city this old may be so old that nothing works like it should. You see, Eve knew a lot of ways of blocking their signals. We don’t know how she knew, but she did. This city has been left relatively untainted by Officium because their comms don’t work here. Before Eve died the only way they could direct their emissaries here was via primitive radio signals and anyone can hack those.’
It got more ridiculous.
‘My aunt knew how to block them? Block their communications here? How did she know? Forgive me, but she was a dressmaker first and foremost. Sorry if I sound a little nonplussed, but she didn’t exactly go to spy school, did she?’
‘She just did. We don’t know all her methods. The Operator at her very best.’
‘Camille,’ I huffed, ‘I’ m tired of all this mad nonsense. I need plain words. I’m strugglin’ to entertain all this.’
I still couldn’t quite believe it!
‘Seraph, quite simply… this once-fair isle of your heritage is a wreck. York is about the best of the bunch, as your aunt would say. Officium are here but not as starkly as elsewhere. The emissaries are only brave now that her online presence has
There was a small gatherin g of people inside and the doors clunked shut behind us. Camille took my hand and led me to a long, rectangular table around which stood several men and women engaged in debate. When one person at the table spotted me, many more joined in, all of them staring as if they couldn’t believe their eyes.
I heard the whispers, ‘Seraph Maddon. Seraph Maddon. It is her.’
These were the voices of folk who were either grateful or shocked to see someone such as myself in that place. Soon the noise became deafening. They all gathered closer, both those at the table and others milling around the edges of the hall. I noticed their clothing. It wasn’t better than anybody else’s on the streets.
An elderly man eventually greeted me, ‘Seraph Maddon, welcome.’
‘In the flesh,’ I breathed my words slowly, kind of amused and perplexed. They were all making me nervous with their stares.
Thankfully Camille stepped in.
‘Please, ladies and gentlemen. Calm yourselves. Listen, I brought Seraph here for a reason. Philip,’ she gestured, nodding at the old man who had addressed me. ‘Come, spar.’
He walked up to Camille and they sparred, swiping and ducking playfully. He threw his foot out over her head and she caught his ankle, squeezing it until he succumbed.
‘Camille, please,’ he begged, his face turning purple.
She laughed and freed him, winking in my direction. ‘Apologies. Sometimes, I cannot help myself.’
They all continued laughing as if no danger existed beyond the walls of their conference. The idiocy stifled me.
‘Camille, what is this place?’ I said, cutting into her display.
The Frenchwoman sat on the table, crossed her long legs and swung them underneath her. She played with a nail and looked at Philip.
‘Tell her,’ she ordered.
‘Camille trained us. We trained others. We police this city to a certain extent. York is not as badly off as a lot of other places, Seraph. You may not think it but resources in New York are plentiful compared to what the average city here or elsewhere has. You need to realize… Eve’s presence in this city somehow stopped them wrecking it completely. She had influence even we don’t yet understand and probably never will.’
‘Say what now?’ I had an instinct there was something unique about York but I was starting to think these people were part of a crazed cult. ‘What were those sons of bitches doing here if she saved the city?’
Philip remained close while everyone else pulled into the background to observe our exchange from afar.
‘For years Officium thought there was something wrong with this place. Maybe they put it down to the geography or the constant flooding, or perhaps it’s simply the case that a city this old may be so old that nothing works like it should. You see, Eve knew a lot of ways of blocking their signals. We don’t know how she knew, but she did. This city has been left relatively untainted by Officium because their comms don’t work here. Before Eve died the only way they could direct their emissaries here was via primitive radio signals and anyone can hack those.’
It got more ridiculous.
‘My aunt knew how to block them? Block their communications here? How did she know? Forgive me, but she was a dressmaker first and foremost. Sorry if I sound a little nonplussed, but she didn’t exactly go to spy school, did she?’
‘She just did. We don’t know all her methods. The Operator at her very best.’
‘Camille,’ I huffed, ‘I’ m tired of all this mad nonsense. I need plain words. I’m strugglin’ to entertain all this.’
I still couldn’t quite believe it!
‘Seraph, quite simply… this once-fair isle of your heritage is a wreck. York is about the best of the bunch, as your aunt would say. Officium are here but not as starkly as elsewhere. The emissaries are only brave now that her online presence has
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