Kael opened his eyes.
For a moment, he didn't know where he was.
There was no throne.
No crimson light.
No ancient city burning beneath a dying sky.
Only a voice.
Remember.
Then the world came back.
BOOOOM.
The floor beneath him shook.
Kael's shoulder struck the stone as another shockwave tore through the Root Throne Chamber.
He pushed himself up.
The sight in front of him stopped him.
The Crimson Heart fragment was rising.
Slowly.
Violently.
Crimson energy twisted around it as a dark metallic device clung to the ancient containment cradle beneath it.
Cracks of red light were spreading through the chamber.
Every few seconds, another root along the walls lost its glow.
Then went dark.
"No."
Kael's voice barely left him.
AURIXA stood near the Heart.
Or tried to.
One hand was pressed against the damaged containment structure. Thin lines of light flickered beneath her skin, appearing and disappearing as though something inside her could no longer decide whether it was alive.
"Kael!"
He turned.
Elaris was several meters away.
Roots had wrapped around both of her arms.
Not trapping her.
Holding her upright.
Green light travelled through the roots and into the floor.
Her face was pale.
"Keep the city connected!" AURIXA shouted.
Elaris looked toward her.
"I am!"
The roots around her suddenly trembled.
Elaris gasped.
A section of the wall went dark.
Then another.
Xyren stood beside an ancient console.
Both of his hands were pressed against the glowing surface.
Symbols raced across the display faster than Kael could follow.
"Xyren!"
Xyren looked over his shoulder.
"I would love to answer you properly, but I have absolutely no idea what I'm doing!"
The chamber shook again.
One of the massive root pillars cracked.
Stone rained down.
Kael raised Stormfang.
Blue lightning crawled along the blade.
Then crimson followed.
This time, he felt it.
The power waiting beneath his hand.
Wild.
Hungry.
Ready to take everything.
Kael tightened his grip.
"Not again."
The crimson light surged.
For one terrible second, he felt the storm trying to rise through him.
Kael closed his eyes.
Elaris's voice came back to him.
Stop fighting it alone.
His fingers loosened.
Then tightened again.
When he opened his eyes, the lightning around Stormfang had changed.
Blue.
Crimson.
Neither fighting the other.
The commander stood beside the extraction device.
His soldiers formed a line between him and Kael.
Kael stepped forward.
"Move away from it."
The commander glanced toward him.
"You saw something."
Kael didn't stop walking.
"What?"
"The throne."
Stormfang crackled.
"What did it show you?"
The commander's expression remained calm.
But his eyes sharpened.
"Interesting."
Kael lifted the blade.
"Wrong answer."
The nearest soldier moved first.
Kael swung.
Lightning crossed the chamber.
The soldier raised his weapon.
Kael's strike hit it.
The weapon shattered.
The soldier was thrown backward—but Kael pulled Stormfang away before the crimson energy could spread.
The lightning struck the floor instead.
A precise line.
Nothing more.
Xyren looked over.
"Okay."
Kael glanced at him.
Xyren pointed toward the destroyed weapon.
"Much better."
Another soldier charged.
Kael stepped aside.
Stormfang flashed.
The flat of the blade struck the intruder across the chest.
He crashed into a root wall.
A third raised a dark weapon toward Kael.
Before he could fire—
a sentinel dropped from the ceiling.
Its blade drove into the floor beside him.
The intruder jumped back.
Xyren stared at the machine.
The sentinel turned toward him.
Xyren slowly lifted one finger.
The machine lifted its head.
"No."
Xyren lowered his finger.
The sentinel lowered its head.
Kael frowned.
Xyren stared at his own hand.
"I swear I'm not doing this."
AURIXA looked toward the console.
"Your synchronization is increasing."
"That sounds bad."
"It is not necessarily bad."
The console flashed crimson.
Xyren looked at her.
"That is not a reassuring sentence."
The symbols across the screen suddenly changed.
Xyren froze.
Thin patterns appeared inside his eyes.
Gold.
Ancient.
Gone before anyone could understand them.
His hand pressed harder against the console.
His voice changed.
Only for a moment.
Layered beneath his own came another.
Older.
"CORE DEFENSE RESTORATION INITIATED."
Every sentinel in the chamber moved.
Xyren stumbled backward.
The patterns vanished.
He blinked.
Kael stared at him.
"Xyren."
"What?"
"What did you just say?"
Xyren looked around.
"I said something?"
Before anyone could answer—
the extraction device screamed.
The Crimson Heart fragment rose higher.
AURIXA stumbled.
The protective field around her collapsed.
The commander looked toward the Heart.
"Almost."
Kael moved.
Two soldiers blocked his path.
Stormfang flashed.
The first weapon broke.
Kael turned.
The second soldier attacked.
Kael caught his arm.
A controlled burst of lightning sent him sliding across the floor.
But then the chamber shook.
Kael looked toward Elaris.
The roots holding her were beginning to fade.
She gritted her teeth and pressed her palms deeper against them.
"Elaris!"
"Don't stop!"
"What?"
"Don't let him take it!"
Kael looked back.
The commander had reached the containment cradle.
AURIXA moved in front of him.
He stopped.
She was damaged.
Her light flickered.
But she stood between him and the Heart.
"Move."
AURIXA looked at him.
"I cannot."
The commander raised his weapon.
AURIXA didn't step aside.
Behind her, the small fragment of the Crimson Heart pulsed weakly.
The chamber lost another light.
Then another.
Kael started toward them.
A soldier blocked his path.
Kael raised Stormfang—
A wall exploded.
Everyone turned.
Green vines burst through the stone.
Not Virelith's roots.
These were thinner. Wild. Covered in small leaves and pale flowers that opened as they crossed the shattered floor.
One of the intruders barely had time to look down.
Vines wrapped around his weapon and ripped it from his hand.
Another turned toward the breach.
A flower bloomed beneath his boots.
The stone split.
Roots erupted from the crack and dragged him backward.
Pink and white petals spiraled through the smoke.
Elaris lifted her head.
For the first time since the battle began—
she smiled.
Kael did not.
A figure stepped through the broken wall.
Bloomfall stopped just inside the chamber.
Her eyes moved across the destruction.
The dying roots.
The Crimson Heart.
AURIXA standing alone before it.
Then finally—
Kael.
For a second, neither of them spoke.
Bloomfall's expression softened.
"Still finding trouble, I see."
Kael's grip tightened around Stormfang.
"You shouldn't be here."
The softness disappeared from her face.
"Nice to see you too."
Xyren looked between them.
Then at Elaris.
Then back at Kael.
"Oh."
Kael didn't take his eyes off Bloomfall.
"Stay where I can see you."
The chamber seemed to go quieter.
Bloomfall stood still.
A small smile touched her lips, but there was nothing amused in it.
"You still don't trust me."
Kael's answer came immediately.
"You know the answer."
For a moment, Bloomfall said nothing.
Then another enemy rushed toward AURIXA.
Her head snapped toward him.
A vine shot past Kael and wrapped around the attacker's leg, dragging him across the floor.
Bloomfall didn't look at Kael again.
"Fine," she said. "Watch me later."
She moved.
Flowers burst beneath her feet as she crossed the chamber.
Elaris stared after her.
Xyren slowly leaned toward Kael.
"So..."
Kael turned his head.
"Don't."
"I haven't said anything."
"You were about to."
Xyren looked offended.
"I was going to say we should probably deal with the people trying to destroy the city."
Kael stared at him.
Xyren glanced toward Elaris.
Then back at Kael.
"Mostly."
Elaris gave Xyren a look.
Xyren immediately raised both hands.
"Fighting. Definitely focusing on fighting."
Bloomfall reached the roots surrounding Elaris.
She looked down at the fading green light.
"You're connected to this?"
Elaris nodded, her breath uneven.
"I'm trying to keep it alive."
Bloomfall crouched beside her.
For a brief moment, Elaris hesitated.
Bloomfall noticed.
"You don't have to trust me either."
Elaris looked toward Kael.
Then back at Bloomfall.
Another section of the chamber went dark.
Elaris pressed her hand harder against the roots.
"We can discuss that later."
Bloomfall gave a small nod.
"Good."
She placed her palm against the living roots.
Flowers opened.
One after another.
Green energy spread beneath the stone.
Elaris inhaled sharply as the root network responded.
Not completely.
But enough.
Lights flickered back across one side of the chamber.
AURIXA looked toward them.
"Network stability increasing."
Xyren glanced at the blooming roots.
"See? We have flowers now. Everything's fine."
A piece of the ceiling crashed beside him.
He looked upward.
"Mostly."
Kael watched Bloomfall for one more second.
She was helping Elaris.
Nothing more.
Still—
his hand remained tight around Stormfang.
Old habits didn't disappear.
Neither did betrayal.
Then the commander shouted:
"Finish the extraction!"
Kael turned toward the Crimson Heart.
And the battle began again.
AURIXA looked toward the Heart.
"No."
Bloomfall stood near Elaris, her eyes fixed on the restored fragment.
"Good."
She didn't look at Kael.
Neither did he look at her.
Xyren glanced between them.
For once, he wisely decided not to say anything.
Elaris noticed.
Of course she did.
And Kael suddenly found the Root Throne far more interesting than anyone standing beside him.