Page 2 of Cinder's Adventure: Get Me To the Wedding!

She reached for Iko’s arm to pull her in, but Iko pulled away with a shake of her head, braids swinging. “No time for that, mi amor! We have to go.”

“Go where?” asked Cinder—at the same moment she heard a thundering knock at the bedroom door. Whoever it was sounded impatient. Could it be Torin? Or the attendants sent to wrestle her into the wedding gown?

“Quick, follow me!” said Iko. Then, quick as a blink, she…fell.

“Wait—Iko!”

Cinder looked from the open and empty window to the shut door. The knock came again.

If Cinder should follow Iko out the window, go to Chapter 2.

If Cinder should answer the knock at the door, go to Chapter 10.

Chapter 2

Ignoring the knock, Cinder rushed to the window. A huge tree grew just outside, and she distantly thought that she couldn’t recall a tree being at this window before, especially one with… were those roses? It was far too early in the year for such lush, fragrant blooms.

But she was too distracted searching for Iko to give it much thought, and—there, she caught a flash of fluffy white ears deep in the foliage.

“Iko, wait!” she cried, hauling herself out through the window. She grasped for the nearest branch and had no sooner pulled herself out onto the limb when she heard the tree groan beneath her weight. Then—

Crack.

The branch splintered.

Cinder fell, hitting twigs and leaves and thorns as she screamed, plummeting to the ground so far below.

But she didn’t hit the ground.

Instead, she fell into… nothingness.

Cinder struggled to catch her breath as her descent slowed to a lazy drifting. It felt like being in space before they figured out how to instate artificial gravity on the ships. She was surrounded by nothing but utter blackness and the smell of wet earth. Until, somewhere far below, she spotted a single star.

Expanding.

Widening.

Not a star—a hole.

Cinder tumbled through the hole. Gravity latched on to her again, yanking her the final bit of distance so that she landed on her stomach with a grunt.

“What just happened?” she muttered, pushing herself upward. She felt disoriented, her head spinning like she’d just been put through an engine turbine. Her brain interface was flashing with warnings and system checks, but she dismissed it all to clear her vision as she looked around.

Her lips parted.

She was not on the grounds of New Beijing Palace anymore.

In fact, she had no ideawhereshe was. A meadow of some sort, surrounded by what might have been a forest, but the plants here were like none she’d ever seen. A towering pine tree had needles that shimmered silver in the sunlight like… well, sewing needles. And what she thought might be an ash tree, except its limbs were smoking, and when a breeze blew through its branches, drifts of actual ash were scattered to the forest floor.

And there were the strangest flowers. Polka dot petunias and zebra-striped zinnias and—

Movement dragged Cinder’s gaze to the edge of the meadow.

Iko!

Scampering off into the trees.

“Iko!” Cinder yelled, bolting to her feet and chasing after her. “Iko, come back! Where are you going?”

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