I had been accustomed to waking up to the sun casting its rays over my face, but when I woke up that first morning in the mansion, there was no sunlight coming through. I arose and approached the window, expecting to be greeted by a rainy, gloomy day, but instead found overgrown trees blocking out the sun, with rare rays of light peeking through in the distance.

I was struck by the clarity of the window. It was pristine, just as the rest of the mansion was. However, from the outside, they had appeared dusty and opaque. I wondered if this was another enchantment.

Not being able to get a good look at the sun’s position, I couldn’t quite tell how long I had slept. Figuring it had been way longer than intended, I hurried to ready myself for the day, lest I appeared to be slacking.

Expecting to begin hunting straight away, I dressed in my armor and prepared before leaving my room, shutting the still-covered door behind me.

As I was descending the stairs, the sound of anxious chattering from the bottom floor reached me before November did. Her soundless footsteps failed to alert me to her impending presence, and her unbelievable speed ensured that by the time I saw her round the corner and processed her appearance, she was already grabbing me by the arms and shouting incoherently in my face.

“Come quickly, Arrow!” She shook me vigorously until I grabbed her wrists and stopped her. “Arrow! We don’t know what to do, you have to help!”

“Would you just calm down! What’s all this about?” I let go of her wrists. “I can’t understand you when you’re like this.”

“Reed disappeared!” she cried.

I recognized the name as one of the beast hunters that Lynx had called out in the meeting. “Reed…disappeared? What do you mean? Wasn’t Blue planning to leave early this morning with a group of other people? Maybe Reed just joined him.”

“No, it’s not like that!” November shook her head hard. “We saw him disappear.”

I puzzled at her statement. “How did he disappear then?”

“Just come look!” She turned and instantly sprinted back down the stairs where she had come from. I hurried down behind her, though I had never been able to keep up with her at full speed.

The chattering grew louder as I approached the bottom. November, who was waiting for me at the opening of the staircase, grabbed me by the arm once I was within reach and dragged me into the sitting room. There, a crowd of people stood around the large fireplace, and the chattering was so loud and so intense that I couldn’t understand any of it. Vember forced her way through, hauling me behind her.

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“Move aside!” November barked as we arrived at the front of the crowd. “Arrow’s going to take a look!”

“And just what is he going to do?” Lynx sighed, turning to face us. “Hasn’t he been scared of ghosts since we arrived?”

Ghosts! What is going on here! The simple response from Lynx immediately filled me with apprehension at the promise of further strange happenings, and indignation that he dismissed my concerns in such a way, and seemed to consider me as some sort of coward.

“He’ll do something, which is more than what you’re doing!” November spat. She shoved me forward, and as I was thrust in front of the crowd, I was finally able to see what everyone was gathered around.

It was a round, white mist that cast an unnerving glow. It was about as large as my head, and hovered just above waist-height. I stumbled toward it, having been caught off guard by Vember’s hard shove, and she grabbed my arm yet again and pulled me back just before I made contact with the orb.

“Don’t touch it!” she shrilled. “That’s how he disappeared!”

“What…” I trailed off, not able to string together a solid sentence. So many questions swirled around my head. How did Reed disappear? What happened to him? What is this thing? What if I touch it? What would happen to me? Was this always here? I stood stiffly, frozen while I stared at the orb, feeling all of my concerns about the mansion as a whole rising to the surface.

“We found the orb this morning.” November finally slowed down enough to explain it to me. “While we were investigating it, Reed touched it, and he disappeared instantly!”

I considered her explanation for quite a long moment, before I finally spoke a sentence I was reluctant to say. "I agree with Lynx. Just what exactly do you expect me to do about it? I don’t have the power to bring him back. Get the mage!”

“I think he was teleported.” Echo’s voice startled me. How long had she been there? “Teleportation magic is very difficult to use. Even if I knew where he was, I couldn’t bring him back myself.” I turned to face her, and saw sincere eyes behind her large glasses. “But I don’t even know where he went. I suppose he may not have gone far, and he could return on his own, but…”

“But it’s already been so long!” Vember finished her sentence. “I don’t think he’s coming back on his own. Arrow, you have to go after him!”

“What!” I gaped at November in wide-eyed disbelief. “You want me to go after him! Are you mad! What if it kills me?”

“Don’t be a coward!” she retorted.

I shook my head incredulously. “This is absurd. Why me? Why don’t you go, Vember?”

“You’re the strong one!” she insisted.

I narrowed my eyes. “You’re no weakling.”

“No, but I’m not as strong as you.”

“But you’re more agile! What if agility is key here? Brute strength may not solve this one.” I was desperate for an excuse not to touch the orb. “Besides, it’s not my fault he was dense enough to touch an obvious specter. Why should saving him be my problem?”

November marched up to the orb, standing inches from me, and took my hand roughly. “Fine. We’ll go together then. Whether we need agility or brute strength, we’ll be covered.” She gave me a hard look, and I knew there was no avoiding this. Touching the orb was now inevitable.

I closed my eyes and took in a long, deep breath, paused for a moment, then let it out slowly. “Fine. On three then. I’ll count us down.”

We both held our free hands over the orb.

“One…” Was I really going to do this?

“Two…” What if I don’t touch it? What if I just let her touch it? Will I teleport anyway, since she’s touching me?

“Three.”

We both touched the orb, and were swept away in an instant.