336 Greener Grass (1/2)
Ashdale had dark clouds hanging over it. Not stormclouds, though. It was smoke.
When Alani and her friends arrived, every city on the great isles was hard at work putting up factories and coal power plants. Entire convoys of the black stuff were being carted around from port to port, supplying every major metropolis with the fuel. The Pegasi escorting Alani and company were particulary irked to see so many horses put to the cart and the whip for the sake of the wagons filled with black.
Even as they went looking for their contact, some Deutero officer named Charlie, Alani fell into fits of coughing. ”We need to get those face masks the locals use. I'm not sure we'll survive the trip otherwise.”
It had been odd seeing people walking around with cloths tied over their faces and nobody screaming for the police to catch robbers, but with all the smog over the city, it wasn't hard to figure out why.
But while face masks in the smog made sense, the existence of the smog itself baffled them.
Jamie asked it first. ”Why are they doing this? Why are they burning the black stuff? Isn't that precisely the thing Remian wants to avoid?”
”Yes it is.” Alani nodded. ”And it's not hard to see why. I would hate to have all this smoke over my home.”
They rang the bell at an old, vintage mansion, and a maid came out. Jamie asked for Charlie, and the maid brought them in and had them wait at a stone garden table.
”It's a nice garden.” Juni commented idly.
”Yeah, too bad it's half-dying under all this smog.” Gary snorted.
”So, who's this Charlie?” Jamie asked.
”An old friend of Remian's. Should be an Ashdalian guy about his age. Wind Mage, I think?” Alani thought back. ”He works for Deutero.”
”Right. So a young man, then.” Jamie nodded sagely.
But instead of a young man, a woman greeted them. Jamie jumped. ”M-Mandy?!”
Back when they were orphans with the Circling Ravens, she was the one taking care of them. That is, until they got sold off as slaves…
In their group, only Alani (and the terrapin in her hands) hadn't been one of the Ravens orphans. She instead, knew Mandy only by reputation, and as far as she could remember, this Mandy was, in fact… ”Remian's ex-wife!”
”What?!” the others yelped.
”She left him! Left the Wildlands!” Alani snorted, glancing around. ”For THIS!”
This left them all bewildered for a moment, and Mandy's face turned red.
Juni repeated the words slowly, as if he couldn't understand them. He looked around at the country completely covered in smog, broken off from the mainland, barricaded against Wilds, widows and orphans everywhere begging in the streets after the world war. ”Mandy… you left Remian, left us and the Wildlands… for this?!”
At that, Mandy's jaw dropped. Her face turned white.
”Come now, it's a nice house…” Jamie tried to speak on Mandy's behalf.
”It's not hers.” Alani shook her head.
”It's not?” Juni repeated again, frowning, as if uncomprehending. ���Then whose is it?”
”It's Charlie's.” Alani explained.
”Why is Mandy living in Charlie's house…?” Jamie asked suspiciously.
Meanwhile, Juni's eyes lit up in understanding. He started rubbing his fist. ”This Charlie… now I really want to… meet… him.”
”Forget it.” Alani said shortly.
”But…”
”Just forget it.” Alani turned back to Mandy and handed her a thick envelope. ”Where's the parts?”
Mandy closed her mouth, bit her lip, and checked the envelope. At last, she handed out a slip of paper. ”Airport warehouse. Hand this over to the warehouse staff. They'll load the crate directly onto your airship.”
”Thank you.” Alani said a bit curtly, and then turned and left.
The others followed her, some frowning, some giving Mandy curious looks, others simply not looking at her any more.
Only Gary hesitated for a moment, then quietly advised Mandy. ”You shouldn't have left us. This place… it really doesn't seem worth it.”
He left with that, leaving Mandy shellstruck and looking at the smog-filled sky, left only with memories of the endless green of the Wildlands.
***
”They're heading back.” Mindy reported to Remian, based on what Carrie said. ”It seems they didn't want to look around Ashdale after all. They'll be camping out at the Neutral Zone with the Storm Pegasus Lord tonight.”