There was a fire, something was burning, and Jael could hear piercing screams. The smell, scream, and bright light hit him all at once. Jael didn't understand what he was looking at, and it took Mauve's voice to break through. He rushed forward to where she was on the ground, her hands on her stomach, as he watched the source of the fire skid around.
"Jael," she whimpered. He picked her off the floor, carrying her in his arms. There wasn't any time to waste; the fire was spreading. He needed to get her out of the trees and, at the same time, find a way to stop the fire from spreading.
It was hard to process all this information at once while also trying to figure out what could have started the fire suddenly—and the clear fact that the Paler had been burning. Getting Mauve out of there was far more important than anything. She coughed, and Jael started walking out to the field.
"Hang on," he said.
