Page 55 of A Wayward Movement

“You’re right, miss.”

They both glanced up at the cheerful voice, to see that Blair had approached. The liaison had been staying at the site while the rest of the group was in Alton, and had come out to receive them.

“Do you know much about chameleon steel?” Blair asked Alina, once introductions had been performed.

She shook her head.

“Well, it’s an incredible product,” the other man said, his eyes bright. “The ore doesn’t look like much, but when refined in the right manner, it has magical properties that allow it to change hue to camouflage with its surroundings. You can imagine the uses for armor as well as other things.”

“Yes,” said Alina. “No wonder it’s so valuable.”

Blair nodded. “It has to be melted down though, and fire seems to neutralize the magic. So they figured out in Dernan that if you take glass and fill it with the right kind of magic, it can sort of magnify the sunlight, making it hot enough to melt the ore.”

“What are all those dark, stone things next to the glass panes?” Xavier asked.

“Those are the molds,” Blair explained. “They’re made of cobaltite from Carrack, incredibly strong rock. They can be used at least a dozen times before they crack from the pressure of the chameleon steel, which is far better than any other stone has performed. The molten ore has to be poured straight in as soon as the glass and the sun have done their part, which is why the molds have to be out here.”

“I see now why the desert is an ideal location for the refinement site,” Alina said. “A lot of empty space, and near-constant sun.”

“Exactly,” Blair said, warming to the topic. “It’s an incredibly complex process, and they’ve done an excellent job here of setting it up.” His eyes were alight with excitement, obviously enjoying the chance to examine the newly developed process up close. The man always had an exhausting amount of energy about him, Xavier reflected.

“So the Dust from those pennant things is being directed into the glass panes so that they’re ready to manipulate the sunlight?” Alina asked.

Blair confirmed it, and she nodded wisely.

“It makes sense. Wind and heat are both pretty basic elements, it wouldn’t require complex manipulation to redirect magic between them.” Her forehead creased as she looked around. “It would take a lot of energy, though. Where are all the craftsmen who are harnessing it? There must be a dozen of them for this volume of power.”

“They’re just under the shade of the building over there.” Blair inclined his head, and Xavier saw a row of men and women sitting in the shade, their postures tense and their eyes locked on the refinement apparatus. “Too hot in the sun.”

“It’s all very interesting, isn’t it?” Alina commented, as they followed Blair into the building soon after. She lowered her voice. “In terms of our investigation, though, it casts doubt on all the rumors that the disappearances are connected to this project. There’s a huge amount of magic skill being exercised right here. Why would someone involved in this project have to go scouring nearby towns for the occasional barely skilled craftsman?”

“Because these workers would be missed if they disappeared, I suppose,” Xavier said. “Which makes me hopeful that if someone here is involved, it’s not someone in charge, if the perpetrators have to cover their tracks.”

He held the door to the building open for her, glancing fruitlessly behind him for a sign of Zuzu. The bird had taken off when he dismounted, apparently eager to do her own exploration. He wasn’t sorry to be rid of her for a while, but he hoped she wouldn’t get up to too much mischief.

When they entered the building, it was to discover that the Carrackian manager in charge of the project had been called away and wasn’t yet available to meet with them. After a brief rest and some refreshments, Xavier opted to wander around the site rather than sit and wait. Several others accompanied him, including Alina.

They wandered through a large warehouse-style room where people were working with chisels, shaping the cobaltite molds. Xavier stopped occasionally to talk with someone, asking about the work, the conditions, if anyone had seen anything strange. The questions didn’t yield anything of interest. He turned away from one talkative worker to realize that only his guards were by his side. He could see Captain Mitchell speaking with a supervisor across the room, but Alina was nowhere to be found.

“Where’s Alina?” he asked one of his guards with a frown.

“I believe she went outside, Your Highness,” the man said.

Xavier walked in the direction indicated, finding Alina in conversation with a couple of the craftsmen Blair had pointed out earlier. They appeared to have just finished their shift, and both were slumped back in their chairs, exhausted from the energy required to manipulate magic in such volumes.

“Alina.” She looked up at his voice, seeming surprised by his expression.

“Is everything all right?” she asked, moving toward him.

“No, it’s not,” he protested. “You’re not supposed to wander off alone, remember?”

“I’m not alone,” she said, staring at him. “The whole team is on site, and we’re surrounded by people.”

“Some of whom might be the ones snatching people off the street,” Xavier said, his voice low but insistent. “What are you doing out here, anyway?”

“Asking the craftsmen if they all feel safe on the worksite,” she said. “Which, incidentally, they do.”

He ignored her pointed look, scanning the group and raising his voice so they could hear him. “Do you all know each other?”