Chapter 57 Owls, Rats and Perfume
Warden Voss
I felt it before I heard it—a disturbance in the air. The tower windows trembled slightly as the wind shifted, the currents moving in a strange rhythm, like waves striking the shore. Slow. Heavy. Powerful. Then came the sound: the beating of wings. Not the light flutter of ravens or pigeons that sometimes wandered too far into Dust. These wings were enormous. Each beat pressed against the tower walls like a pulse.
I quickly rose from my desk. The torch beside me flickered violently. Something large was flying over the district. Very large.
I crossed the stone floor of the tower and pushed open the narrow window overlooking the district. Cold air rushed in immediately, carrying the sour scent of smoke, rot, and damp stone that always hung over Dust. My eyes lifted to the sky. At first I saw nothing. Then I saw it—a shadow. Something vast moved across the rooftops below, its silhouette gliding over the thatched huts like a storm cloud.
The shape drifted closer to the tower. I stiffened. My tower was the tallest structure in the Dust District. If that thing lost control of its flight, this would be the first place it struck. I braced myself against the window frame, waiting and watching.
The shadow grew larger. For a moment I was certain it would crash directly into the tower. But the impact never came. Instead, the wind spiraled around the stone walls, swirling violently past the window before fading.
I narrowed my eyes. Movement flickered near the rooftops. Something small darted through the air—black against the night. A bird.
Not just any bird. An owl.
A black-banded owl glided past the tower window before disappearing into the maze of rooftops below.
My brows furrowed.
Owls did not fly in Dust. In fact, they never flew anywhere inside Aetheria. Owls frightened ravens, and ravens were the Empire’s messengers. Owls were not simply birds. They were scouts. And scouts meant spies.
Someone was inside my district.
I pressed the insignia pinned to my breast. The metal warmed beneath my fingers as the signal activated.
A knock sounded immediately.
The door opened. Darrick stepped inside first, followed by three other Collectors.
“Warden,” Darrick said. “You called?”
“Yes.” I turned back toward the window. “I saw a black owl fly near the tower.”
Darrick frowned slightly. "An owl?"
“That’s not all,” I continued. “Before that, I saw a shadow hovering in the sky. Something large enough to darken half the rooftops.”
Ballard, one of the older Collectors, shifted uneasily.
“You believe someone entered the district?” Darrick asked.
“I know someone did,” I replied calmly.
“Do you think Sera Bale is here to rescue her brother?" Darrick crossed his arms thoughtfully. "If so, that was quick. On foot it usually takes at least a week to travel from Ember to here.”
“It might not be her,” I said. “But we need to check the streets.” I reached for my cloak. “All of you follow me.”
Darrick glanced around the room. “Where’s Lloyd?”
“He is currently doing something for me,” I replied. “I will summon him when needed.”
Ballard had moved toward the window. He was staring toward the distant sandy hills beyond the district.
“That is strange,” he murmured.
I turned toward him. “What’s strange?”
Ballard startled slightly before turning back toward me. He hesitated, choosing his words carefully.
“A black owl in the district,” he said slowly. “Owls are more common in Acaris. Bringing one into Aetheria is contraband.” He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Owls scare ravens, and they’re intelligent scouts. Perhaps the owner simply let it stretch its wings tonight. Yet I would think the owl would fly over Ashwood Forest to hunt.” He paused, his gaze sharpening slightly. “Perhaps you are right. Someone from beyond the outer districts is here.”
I folded my arms. “What’s your point?”
Ballard met my eyes. “Rebels, Warden.” The word hung in the air. “The bird must be a scout for the rebels.”
I nodded slowly. “The girl, Sera Bale, is believed to be conspiring with the rebels.”
Ballard exhaled thoughtfully. “And there are boys in cages... in the old factory,” he said. “They must be the reason—”
I turned sharply toward Darrick. “What is Ballard talking about?” My voice hardened. “Why are there boys in cages?”
Darrick shifted uncomfortably. “Ah… Warden… the Imperial Enforcers said they would release the boys if Magnus Ironside gave the word.”
I rubbed my temples. There was always something. Always another problem.
“We will deal with that later,” I said. Then I looked at all of them. “Right now we scour the streets and the alleys and find whoever is inside my district.”
I touched the orb at my neck. The world twisted.
A soft popping sound echoed as I reappeared beside the empty market stalls in the center of Dust. One by one, Darrick, Ballard, and the other Collectors appeared beside me.
The streets were silent. Except for laughter. A shrill, broken laugh echoed through the square.
Felix.
I found him beneath a sagging awning across the street. The old man rocked back and forth as he laughed. He was bald except for patches of white hair circling his head. His gray eyes bulged wildly, and when he laughed his single yellow tooth showed clearly.
“Felix,” I said, as bread appeared in my hands. “Tell me, what have you seen?”
Felix pointed wildly toward the lower alleys. “Rats running away from a big black cat!” he shouted before bursting into laughter again. “Over there!” He pointed toward the ruins of the Bale shack.
“What else? What have you heard?” I pressed.
“Footsteps!” Felix cried happily. “One small, one heavy, and one who knows the alleys!” He leaned closer. “And the moans near the brothels!”
Before I could stop him, he began mimicking the moans drifting from the Mistress’s brothel, his voice rising and falling in exaggerated imitation.
I cut him off by thrusting the bread into his hands.
The old man fell silent at once. Then he clapped gleefully, snatching the loaf as though it were treasure.
I wasted no time. I turned and strode toward the alleys leading to the Bale shack.
The smell of Dust thickened as we moved deeper into the district—rot, smoke, and waste. But beneath it was something else.
I inhaled again.
Lavender. Chamomile.
Perfume.
A woman was here. Someone with very refined taste.
I followed the scent through the alleyways until I reached the blackened remains of the Bale hut. The smell ended abruptly.
I stepped forward slowly. “I swore I smelled perfume,” I said, my gaze sweeping across the ruins. “But it’s gone.” I gestured toward Darrick.
“Darrick.”
“Yes, Warden?”
“Knock on their doors. They must have seen or heard something.”
Darrick stepped toward the nearest shack and began pounding loudly. “Open up!”
Finally the door creaked open. Stanley stepped outside. His belly strained against his wrinkled shirt as he squinted at us.
“Why you banging so loud, Darrick?” he grumbled. “We were asleep and I’ve already paid—" Then he saw me. “Oh. Warden Voss.” He bowed awkwardly. “How can I help you?”
I ignored him.
“Darrick,” I said coolly, “bang on the other door. If Stanley here was asleep, perhaps his neighbor saw something.”
Suddenly squeaking erupted between the shacks.
My head snapped toward the sound. “What’s that?” I asked, stepping forward. “Illumina—”
Before I could finish the spell, a black cat darted from the narrow space. Rats exploded outward. Dozens of them.
They ran directly toward me.
I shrieked instinctively and stumbled backward as the filthy creatures scattered across the street.
“Damn these rats!” I snapped. With a flick of my wrist, a burst of magic hurled them aside. “Continue knocking,” I said sharply. “I need answers.”
Darrick pounded on the next door. The door creaked open slowly.
An elderly woman stepped out wearing a nightgown and nightcap.
Isemay.
“Stop your banging, Dust hound," she grumbled. “You’ll wake the dead.”
“Isemay, did you see anyone here?” I asked.
The old woman nodded. “A young girl. A young woman. And a man. They looked like they had coin.”
“Did you hear anything they said?” I pressed.
“Not much,” she replied, scratching her chin thoughtfully. “The little girl said she saw an old woman take little Lio.”
My eyes narrowed. “Was the little girl speaking to Sera Bale?”
The old woman shrugged. "I couldn't tell. They had cloaks on."
I pulled a small pouch of coins from my pocket and handed it to her. “Perhaps this will help your memory.”
She snatched the pouch eagerly. “The little girl said to follow the map,” she said quickly.
“Map?” I repeated.
“Don’t know where it leads,” she added.
“Anything else?”
She paused. Then nodded. “The girl asked the man to save her brother.”
My jaw tightened. “Where is her brother?”
“In the factory,” she said. “Caged.”
I turned toward Darrick. “Raise the alarm.” The Collectors straightened instantly. “Whoever entered the district,” I said coldly, “will go to the factory.”
I looked toward the dark buildings looming in the distance.
“And when they do…”.A slow smile spread across my face. “We will be waiting.”