The cave was super quiet, like another person was in there with us, but not welcome. Lyra was just a dark shape at the cave entrance, watching for trouble; her back was to me. Finn, that Ash-Singer dude, had passed out. He was breathing all messed up, which bugged me. Now, being nice to him felt dumb, like a kid trying to fix grown-up problems. Did I screw us over? Did my being soft mean another valley gets wrecked, another town goes silent?
I couldn't sleep. I sat in the dark, listening to the sounds outside like wind and animal and stuff. Lyra's words kept playing in my head. What's the point of being right if we lose? Can we even afford to be good?
When morning came, light peeked into the cave. Lyra turned around. She looked calm, like last night didn't happen, but her eyes were tired.
Let's go, she said, not showing anything. She didn't look at me when she woke Finn up rough and untied his legs, but left his hands tied. Walk. Try to run, and you'll feel pain that would make last night like a baby's touch. Got it?
Finn nodded, his eyes big with fear and anger all mixed together. He stood up, wobbly.
We left; it was a quiet, sad walk. Lyra went first, keeping an eye out for danger. I walked in the middle, and Finn dragged behind me. The land started changing, rocks turning into a forest with huge, old trees. The Chroma vibe here was different. It was old, like the earth had seen everything. This was the Wildwood, somewhere Lyra talked about like it was holy – one of the last places that wasn't tamed.
The fog stuck to us, making everything quiet. It was hard to sense stuff through it. An enemy could be close, and we wouldn't know it till it was too late.
After walking for hours, Finn finally spoke, his voice low. You can't win. He sees everything. The Chroma goes to him, so he knows all.
Lyra didn't turn around. He can't see here. The Wildwood is old, its own song. Hard to see for him.
Not forever, Finn said back. No place is safe. He wins in the end.
I'd rather fight and lose than just give up, I snapped back.
He shut up after that, but I could feel him staring at me.
As the day went on, the fog got worse. We couldn't see a path anymore. Lyra was guiding us by feeling the land.
Then, Lyra stopped and held up her hand. She was tense. Something's not right.
I tried to sense the Chroma. Underneath it, I felt it too. It was faint, but unmistakable. Like the Blight, but worse.
A Blight? I whispered.
Worse, Lyra said, sounding scared. A Heartrot. Not just on the surface. It has taken root in the middle of a powerful place.
She went a different way, listening to the bad Chroma. We pushed through bushes, and then we saw it.
In a clearing, there was a huge tree. Its trunk was giant, and its branches were everywhere. It should've been full of Chroma, but it was dying.
A black, gross thing was crawling up its trunk. The leaves were falling off. The ground was bare, and it smelled bad. The tree sounded like it was in pain.
An Elderwood, Lyra said, sounding sad. This is bad. If it dies, the Wildwood loses a piece of itself.
Finn suddenly spoke, sounding scared. The Sorrowseed… they said it was just a test… in a spot where nobody lived…
Lyra and I stared at him.
What do you know? Lyra asked, dangerously quiet.
He looked away. I… I planted the seed. They said it would change the Chroma, make the land ready for the Siphons. They didn't say it would be… a living thing. He looked shocked. Hurting a live tree hit him hard.
I understood. This was on purpose, and Finn helped do it. I let a guy who did this walk free!
Lyra was staring at me.
I felt like trash. I was mad at everyone and sad about my own stupidity.
Can you fix it? Lyra asked me, looking at Finn.
I… I don't know, I stuttered. It was too much. It's so deep.
The Sorrowseed is at the base of the tree, Finn said quietly. A crystal. If you break it, it should… stop. Won't fix the tree, but it won't get worse.
I looked at Lyra. Was this the better way?
Go, she told me. I'll watch him.
I walked to the tree. I found the Sorrowseed, just like Finn said.
This was too big to just fix. I had to get close to it, to connect with it.
I thought of the dead valley. I thought of Finn. I thought about how dumb I was.
I put my hands on the tree. I closed my eyes and jumped inside it.
It was awful. The Heartrot sounded like hate, like it wanted to destroy everything. It tried to twist me, to make me bad.
But underneath, I found the tree. A memory of sunlight.
Instead of fighting the bad stuff, I held onto that memory. I used my power.
The bad stuff rushed into me. It hurt like hell. I focused on the tree, using it as my anchor.
There was a crack. The light died. The Sorrowseed turned to dust.
I fell. The tree sounded peaceful now.
Lyra was by my side. Kaelen!
I looked at Finn. He'd forgotten he was tied up. He stared at the tree, shocked. I had saved something.
I looked back at him. I didn't say anything.
The weight of doing the right thing was still there. But now, it was balanced by the weight of the tree, and understanding that some things are worth sacrificing for.