Chapter 52 Burnt Orange
Ryven
I pressed the orb hanging from my neck and the familiar pull of teleportation wrapped around me. Light flashed, the forest twisted, and then the ground returned beneath my boots. The rain greeted us immediately.
It fell hard through the thick canopy of the rebel forest, slipping through the leaves in steady streams that soaked everything beneath. Even the massive trees surrounding our headquarters could not keep us dry.
Jehan groaned beside me and wiped water from his face. “Wonderful. We left one storm only to arrive in another.”
Helga pushed wet hair away from her face. “Stop whining.”
Lightning flashed somewhere above the trees. Thunder followed seconds later.
The huts of the rebel camp stood scattered between the roots of ancient trees. Dim lanterns glowed through wooden windows. Smoke drifted from a few chimneys despite the rain.
Everyone had already retreated indoors.
Jehan stretched his back. “I’m going to get some sleep.”
“Go,” Helga said. “Just try not to snore loud enough to wake the forest.”
Jehan muttered something under his breath and headed toward his hut.
Helga turned to me. “Don’t forget what I told you.”
“Aldo has questions,” I said.
She nodded. “And Magnus wants an update by nightfall.”
Then she pulled her cloak tighter and walked toward her own hut, boots splashing through puddles.
I stood there for a moment, letting the storm soak my cloak before I finally moved. Aldo’s hut sat near the center of camp, its windows glowing softly with lantern light. By the time I reached the door, water dripped from the edge of my hood.
I knocked once and stepped inside.
Warm air met me immediately. The small hut smelled of herbs and tea leaves. Aldo sat at a wooden table with a steaming cup in his hands, several papers and small maps spread out before him. A lantern burned beside his elbow.
He looked up with clear surprise. “Why are you back so early?”
I pulled back my hood and brushed rain from my cloak. “Weather is bad. Low visibility.”
I sat across from him and rested my hands on the table.
“She won’t move until first light,” I continued. “And Helga said you wanted to see me. I decided to come here before I head to my hut.”
Aldo leaned back in his chair and studied me quietly.
“You plan to see her tonight, yes?”
I nodded. “I wanted to tell her yesterday, but I had something else on my mind.” I paused. “What’s this about?”
Aldo set his teacup aside and folded his hands together.
“I have some questions for her,” he said. “Maybe she knows of the Dust-girl Magnus searches for.”
I waited.
“Ask her if she has seen anything extraordinary these past few days,” Aldo continued. “Something striking. Rare.” He tapped a finger lightly against the table. “Ask about the girl’s family. Her parents. Her background.”
He then looked at me more carefully.
“What about you? Has Magnus said why he needs the girl contained?”
I shook my head.
It was a lie. But it was something Aldo did not need to know.
“Magnus doesn’t share his plans with me,” I said calmly. “He doesn’t trust me enough.”
Aldo stared at my face for several long seconds, clearly searching for any hint that I might be lying. I kept my expression steady.
Eventually he leaned back again. “Fine,” he said. He lifted his tea and took a slow sip. “I have other ways of getting the information. Many in Aetheria are sympathetic to our cause. It will be easy for me to gather what I need.”
I nodded once and stood.
“I should head to my hut.”
“Be careful tonight,” Aldo said quietly.
“I always am.”
The rain had not stopped when I stepped outside again. I pulled the hood of my cloak tighter around my face and walked through the dark clearing toward my hut. The camp had grown quieter. Only the sound of rain striking leaves and rooftops filled the air.
When I pushed open my door, warm light greeted me.
Rowenna stood near the small table inside. Two cups of tea waited there, steam rising gently into the air.
“You’re soaked,” she said softly.
“The storm followed us,” I replied as I removed my cloak.
She handed me one of the cups and I sat across from her. The warmth spread slowly through my hands. We did not speak much while we drank. The quiet was comfortable.
Later, after I sent a raven to Magnus, we shared a simple supper of bread and stew while the rain slowly faded outside. By the time we finished eating, the storm had nearly stopped.
A knock came at the door.
I opened it to find Jehan and Helga waiting outside, both already dressed in dark cloaks.
“Ready?” Jehan asked.
I nodded and grabbed my cloak. I pressed a quick kiss to Rowenna’s forehead. “Stay at Cecily’s hut until I get back. I won’t be long, okay?”
She nodded and hugged me tightly. “Keep safe.”
Helga, Jehan, and I stepped into the rain-soaked clearing. Each of us pressed the orb hanging around our necks.
Light flared again.
A moment later we stood beside the gates of Coal.
Night had settled over the district. Lanterns burned along the stone walls and several guards watched the wagons entering through the gate. One wagon loaded with fresh produce rolled slowly toward the entrance.
Helga nodded toward it. “Perfect.”
Jehan slipped behind the wagon first, crouching low behind the stacked crates. Helga followed. I moved last, keeping close to the wooden wheels as the wagon rolled through the gate.
The guards barely glanced our way.
Once inside Coal, we slipped down from the wagon and moved into the darker side streets.
Coal never truly slept. Lanterns glowed in windows and a few workers still moved through the streets. But the farther we walked, the quieter it became.
We headed toward the boundary where Coal met Spark. The houses there were larger and better kept.
Mira’s house stood near the edge of the district.
Mira had been born in Dust. Her parents were fishermen who worked the river stalls, selling their catch each morning before the sun had fully risen. She had grown up helping them clean nets, gut fish, and shout prices to passing buyers. Then came rank day.
The orb had tested orange.
That single moment changed everything for her. She left Dust and found steady work as a rune sweeper. The position paid well enough to live in Coal.
But not well enough to buy the house she lived in now.
Everyone knew that. Ansel knew too. Yet he never questioned it, which was strange.
Mira’s house stood two stories tall and painted a deep burnt orange. A small porch faced the street while a narrow gate led around the side to the backyard. A small garden grew there with a wooden table and two chairs beneath a hanging lantern.
Her bedroom was on the second floor, facing the street.
From where we stood in the shadows, I could see the light burning in the window.
I turned to Jehan.
“Give out the signal.”
Jehan cleared his throat and tried his best. “Cooo… cooo…”
Helga frowned immediately. “You sound like a fucking cunt. Louder.”
Jehan glared at her but tried again. “Cooo… cooo…”
This time the call carried farther.
The light upstairs went dark. A moment later the gate to the backyard opened.
“Move,” I said.
The three of us crossed the street quickly and slipped through the gate. Mira closed it behind us immediately.
She looked at us with clear worry in her eyes.
“Ansel was supposed to see me yesterday,” she said. “Where is he?”
I cleared my throat. “That’s why we’re here, Mira.”
Her face tightened. "What happened?"
“Ansel went into the Cursed Forest under Aldo’s orders,” I said quietly. “And he never made it out.”
Tears filled her eyes almost instantly. “Why?” she whispered. “Why was he sent into the Cursed Forest?”
“Magnus,” I said. “He’s looking for a girl. A girl with red hair and green eyes. Dust rank. Maybe you know of her?”
Mira blinked through her tears. “Sera is inside the Cursed Forest?” she asked in confusion. “Are you sure she isn’t dead too?”
“I can smell her perfume,” Jehan said suddenly. “And the scent hasn’t changed. She’s alive. But we heard the screams of our men and the growls of feral wolves. We believe this Sera controls them.”
“Perfume?” Mira shook her head quickly. “Jehan, Sera doesn’t wear perfume. She’s Dust.”
I raised my hand to stop Jehan from speaking again.
“You’re right,” I said. “Jehan is quite the joker. This is the Cursed Forest. Any scent in that place is probably meant to lure or bewitch." I looked at her carefully. “But that doesn’t change anything. Ansel is gone, and there is no body to bring home.”
“Sera controlling wolves? You almost had me, Jehan,” she whispered. “But she has no magic. I saw the orb turn violet before sinking to red. She’s Dust.”
I felt my body stiffen.
“Hold on,” I said. “Did you say the orb went violet?”
“Yes,” Mira replied weakly. “But I heard it was an anomaly.” She broke into sobs. “Will there be a ceremony for Ansel?”
Helga stepped forward. “In two days. We will celebrate his life as we welcome the Hunter’s Moon.”
Mira nodded slowly. “Prepare his favorite clothes for the pyre,” she said softly. “I will come to oversee it.”
The wind suddenly shifted. Cold air twisted through the yard, making the lantern above the table sway.
Then something moved across the gray sky above us. A shadow. Large. Moving against the clouds.
Mira looked up, her voice barely a whisper.
“What was that?”