We stood there for what felt like forever, staring at the villagers trapped in bark and roots. Their eyes pleaded silently, mouths half-formed in wooden grins and grimaces.
I wiped the cold sweat from my face.
"Lucen…" I said, through clenched teeth. "You're going to help me fix this."
He didn't resist. Not this time.
"Then command me," he said, eyes hollow.
"Be my ally. Help me save them."
His head dipped.
"I am yours, Yes King."
---
We began with the nearest villager—an old woman. Her body was more bark than flesh now, but her eye blinked slowly, watching me. Begging.
I grabbed her arm gently, trying to find where her wrist ended and the tree began. Lucen dug his fingers around the shoulder with eerie calm.
"One, two—"
"PULL!"
There was a snap. Then a scream.
The arm came off—but the rest of her didn't.
Aelira, standing behind us, recoiled in horror.
Blood. Wood. Bark. Bone.
Her arm dangled in my hand, twisted and wrong.
"NO—NO NO NO—!" I dropped it, falling to my knees.
The woman kept screaming. A horrifying, inhuman sound—muffled by her wooden cage.
---
Lucen moved quickly, kneeling beside the woman.
"It's okay," he whispered, voice smooth, comforting. "You are blessed now. To lose a limb brings great fortune. You are closer to the forest than ever before. You are sacred."
And suddenly…
She stopped screaming.
Her breathing slowed. Her body relaxed.
She looked at me, blood pooling beneath her, and smiled.
Like it was all okay.
I turned to Lucen, trembling.
"What… what did you do?"
"I told her what she needed to believe," he said simply. "I eased her suffering."
I wanted to puke. "You told her ripping off her arm was a blessing."
"And she believed it."
---
I grabbed him by the collar and shoved him back.
"STOP MAKING EXCUSES FOR WHAT YOU DID! YOU DID THIS!"
"She's calm, isn't she? Would you prefer she died screaming?"
"I'd prefer she didn't suffer at all!!"
My voice echoed through the forest like a wounded beast.
Aelira didn't move. She just watched. For once, she didn't tease or interrupt.
---
Lucen's eyes scanned the other villagers in the trees. Some were crying. Some were murmuring prayers. One whispered, "...still growing…"
"They're too far gone," Lucen said softly. "The belief has rooted into their souls. This… this may be all we can do."
I shook my head, eyes burning.
"No. I refuse to believe that."
Lucen looked at me.
A strange smile returned to his lips. "Then tell them otherwise, King."
---
[To be continued…]