After your haunting standoff with Samar, the air around the chai stall shifts. The monsoon pauses—unnaturally. Raindrops hover mid-air like a held breath. Chiku stares wide-eyed at the sky. "Timeline anomaly," he whispers, "and it smells like saffron."
Inside nani's old spice tin, you discover a folded paper steeped in orange-yellow hues. Recipe number four:
"Saffron Mirage"2 strands of saffron, crushed rose petals, a secret someone told you in confidence.
You hesitate before brewing. So many secrets. But one rises to the surface: the day you overheard your father say, "She isn't from this time... is she?"
The tea shimmers golden. As you sip, you're pulled into a desert bazaar at twilight — camels, neon hijabs, the scent of rose and rust. It's a version of India split by desert timelines, stitched together by wandering tea monks.
There, you're mistaken for the Oracle of Steam — a mysterious figure said to know which memories are real and which were planted. As you're brought before a caravan leader, a familiar figure waits beside him.
Samar.
Only this version... he wears no shadow. No bitterness.
He says: "You once told me saffron meant safety. Does it still?"
You don't know what to say. Because maybe… yes?
Before you can answer, Chiku flaps in in full panic. "They've found the next recipe. You're not the only one steeping truths anymore."