NOVEL NEXT Chapter 8: The First Defection
The smoke came first.
Thin tendrils curled through the canopy, carrying the scent of scorched sap and burning bark. It wasn't an attack — too slow, too measured. But it was intentional.
Riku stepped out onto one of the upper vine paths, scanning the treeline. Thirty meters down-slope, a caravan emerged: weary, blackened figures wrapped in singed cloaks, carrying packs of emberstone and smoking wood, their eyes glowing faintly orange from days of fire exposure.
They came in peace. That made them dangerous.
Thalya appeared beside him without a sound. "Flame-walkers," she said. "Emberfolk."
"I figured."
"Strays do not walk this far unless hunted."
Below, a tall woman in cracked flameplate stepped forward and raised her arm. Her voice was raw from smoke.
"We request audience with your Sovereign. We come bearing nothing but fire and shame."
Riku descended the rootway. The grove shifted — not quite welcoming, not quite hostile.
He met her near the Dreampond. The Lorian gathered at a wary distance.
"I'm Riku Yamada," he said. "Sovereign here. Speak."
"I am Alna of the Emberfolk Third Cinderspire," she said. "We refused the Purge Doctrine of our former Sovereign. He branded us traitors and lit our shelters from within. We've walked through ash and frost. All we want is a place not built on cinders."
"You want to live here?" Riku asked.
She didn't blink. "We want to serve again. To survive through structure, not fear."
Juran stepped forward, voice hard. "Their kind boil roots to test loyalty. Let them find other soil."
Riku ignored him.
"How many of you?" he asked.
"Thirty-one," she said. "Eleven combat-trained. Five are firewrights. The rest are wounded or carriers."
The Fold shimmered.
[Merge Opportunity Detected – Unclaimed Tribe Seeks Integration]
Eligible Fold Targets:
– Manpower (x31)
– Combat Unit Class: Emberfront (x11)
– Specialist Class: Firewright (x5)
Would you like to Fold an Integration Target?
[YES] [SELECT] [DELAY]
He tapped SELECT and chose Emberfront Units (x11).
[FOLD: EMBERFRONT INITIATED]
Effect: Base Unit Type Multiplied 2x
Result: Combat-Ready Emberfront Units: 22
Trait Bonus: Folded Units retain battle scars as resistance traits
New Passive: Burnline Discipline – Does not retreat unless unconscious
Ascension Score +190
Fold Multiplier Increased: x5.0 → x7.2
Riku's head pulsed as the Fold effect cascaded across the new recruits.
The Emberfronts staggered briefly. Then straightened. Their eyes flashed — and their backs aligned with identical posture. The Lorian murmured. Even Juran stopped mid-scowl.
The Fold hadn't just increased their number — it had disciplined them. Sharpened them.
"Your warriors," Riku said to Alna, "are now twenty-two. Formally inducted. You serve under my chain of command. You answer to my warlord, Juran."
Juran stepped forward, half in disbelief. "You just—"
"They'll make up half the defensive perimeter. That's final."
Riku turned to Alna. "You're staying. You've earned the shelter. But know this: betrayal ends in roots and silence."
She nodded. "We expected nothing less."
That night, the Emberfolk were housed in the outer ring of the settlement. The newly Folded soldiers began patrol rotation without instruction. They marched in unison, reacted to sound like a drilled squad.
Riku watched from the overlook, stunned at how clean the Fold had worked.
Tangible. Measurable. Effective.
No one else saw what he did.
But the difference was undeniable.
The Lorian whispered that the Emberfolk must have trained underground for years. That no unled group could move like that. Some called it divine purpose. Others suspected forbidden rites.
Riku said nothing.
And when he returned to his sleeping den, the system gave him one last message for the night:
[Next Eligible Fold Targets Queued]
– Firewright Specialists (x5)
– Basic Housing Units (x16)
– Tribal Inventory: Weapon Cache (Small)
[Continue Building?]
He didn't answer.
But he was already thinking about the next step.