Chapter 134

Naevira and I stepped into Highstone and made our way toward the Weeping Gallows set behind its tall stone wall.

She paid it little mind at first. The people in town drew her attention more - the movement, the voices, the new faces, the quiet rhythm of life. The wall ahead was just another thing.

I hummed softly, and the stone parted like wet clay. The twisted tree within revealed itself as I stepped inside, the whispers already curling through my mind.

You don’t know what you’re doing. You never did.

You’re guessing - and they’re paying the price.

I pushed them aside as best I could and glanced back as Naevira followed me in.

Her gaze found the small tree.

She moved toward it slowly, deliberately. Her hand rose and pressed against the dark bark. Beneath her skin, something shifted - subtle ripples, like vines adjusting their place.

The tree ignored her. Its branches reached for me instead.

I stayed well outside their grasp. The thing wasn’t large - but that didn’t make it any less unsettling.

“What do you feel?” I asked.

“Calm,” she said softly. “It feels… familiar.”

“What else?”

She shook her head, her hand never leaving the trunk. “I don’t know.”

I stepped back toward the opening and glanced out into the village. Afternoon had settled in - quiet, with most people at work. Even near the marketplace, there were only a few scattered figures moving about. Market day was still two days off.

Then I spotted Torvek.

My oldest son, tall and broad-shouldered, his presence steady in a way that came naturally to him, worked with the guard. At twenty, he was still young, but already respected. I could easily see him leading the village’s protectors if he chose to stay the path.

Beside him stood Ishaan - father to Sszarik, Issa’s boyfriend. A bit taller than his son, scales a deeper green, a spear resting easily in his grip. He wasn’t imposing, but capable. I didn’t know him well, but he seemed like an alright guy.

I waved them over.

“What’s going on, thren?” Torvek asked as they approached.

“This is Naevira,” I said. “I’m making sure she’s… safe.”

He caught the meaning in my tone.

“Good to see you, Ishaan,” I added. “Mind if I borrow Torvek for a moment?”

Ishaan gave a polite bow, confusion plain on his face - but he trusted me enough not to question it. The tree was dangerous and off limits, but he knew my relationship with Skrimma and had probably heard other things through Issa.

I led Torvek back inside the ring.

His hand rested on his blade, not drawn, but ready. “What’s she doing?” he murmured.

“Look at the tree,” I said.

His eyes narrowed. “Why isn’t it reacting to her?”

“Mirri can explain later,” I said. “For now, I need you to step closer.”

He gave me a look of disbelief.

I nodded.

After a moment, he moved - slow, controlled. I circled left as he approached, the branches splitting their attention between us.

“Circle right,” I told him.

He obeyed, careful to stay out of reach.

Before us, the subtle motion beneath Naevira’s skin intensified. The vines beneath her surface stirred more actively, like something waking.

“Ishaan,” I called.

“Yes, sir?”

“Come here.”

A pause. “Sir?”

“I won’t let anything happen to you,” I said. “You have my word.”

He hesitated, then stepped inside.

I gave him a reassuring nod. “Just approach slowly and stay out of range of the branches.”

He audibly gulped, tightened his grip on his spear, and began to inch his way forward.

The closer he came, the more Naevira changed. Her skin shifted - tiny breaks forming as thin vines pushed outward. The movement beneath her surface became more pronounced, more urgent.

The Gallows turned its attention to him. Branches peeled away from Torvek and me, reaching instead for Ishaan.

Through experimentation, we’d learned that a Weeping Gallows could focus on up to four people, give or take, depending on its size and age. Any more than that and it wasn’t sure who to pursue.

There were three, maybe four of us depending on how you counted - and this was a younger tree. I guessed three was its limit.

He fell into line with us, a couple of feet outside the reach of the tree.

“Everyone, one step forward,” I said.

Torvek and I moved. Ishaan hesitated before he joined us.

The moment he did, Naevira’s dress tore apart. Her form unraveled. Vines lashed outward as her body came apart - head, torso, one arm dissolving into bramble. Only her feet and the hand pressed to the trunk remained intact.

I moved instantly, placing myself in front of Ishaan. Torvek drew steel. Ishaan screamed in an unmanly manner.

The vines stopped inches from us.

Not aggressive. They seemed almost confused. Uncertain of what to do.

I glanced between them and Naevira. Her true form had returned - but different now. She no longer had thorns - just rough, dark bark, matching the tree beside her.

I took a step forward.

Ishaan grabbed my shoulder.

The vines pulled back.

I met his eyes. “Stay here,” I told him. “Don’t move unless I tell you to.”

He nodded, barely holding it together.

I took another step. The vines retreated. The branches shifted - not recoiling, not ignoring - parting. Making space.

“Your turn, Torvek.”

He advanced. The vines withdrew from him as well.

Another step. The branches curved around me now, forming a loose ring - never touching, always just out of reach.

“Again,” I said.

Torvek stepped closer. The tree yielded.

“Ishaan, circle left. Don’t get closer yet.”

He let out a soft whimper, but moved. Some of Naevira’s vines tracked him, hovering inches away.

“One step,” I said.

He swallowed hard. Took a step.

The vines shifted back.

Another step from me. Now I stood within arm’s reach of Naevira.

“Torvek.”

He followed. The branches opened further, beginning to form a ring around him as well.

“One more, Ishaan.”

He hesitated.

“I won’t let anything happen,” I said quietly.

He stepped forward. The branches parted for him too.

I exhaled and closed the distance, wrapping my arms around Naevira.

Her vines snaked back, coiling around me - not tight, not constricting. Just… holding.

“Thren!” Torvek shouted, moving in, blade ready.

“It’s alright,” I said.

The vines twisted, reshaping into arms. The hand at the trunk pulled free, folding back into her body. Slowly, steadily, she reformed - bramble into shape. Mycelium bloomed over her until she stood before me once more.

Naked. Whole.

Her face buried in my chest, her arms wrapped around me. She hadn’t turned around - her body just reformed facing me.

“It’s alright,” I murmured, pressing a kiss to her head. “You’re alright. I’m proud of you.”

She looked up, violet eyes bright with tears. “My dress is ruined.”

A brittle, pale-red leaf drifted past my shoulder.

Behind her, the Gallows had changed. Its once vibrant leaves had dulled, dried, and begun to fall - one by one - until the branches stood bare.

Ishaan staggered back, collapsing against the wall, sliding down with shaking hands pressed to his face.

“We’ll get you a new one,” I said softly, smiling at her.

“Torvek,” I added without looking away from her, “Would you please grab a cloak from home?”

I felt the shift of Faith as he stepped away - then returned moments later. I draped it over her shoulders.

“Thank you,” I said, meeting my son’s eyes.

Then I turned to Ishaan. “Are you alright?”

He stared up at me, pale, shaking.

I knelt. “You did well,” I told him. “You were brave. I know it’s little conciliation, but it gets a little easier each time. Next time you’re in a situation like that, your hands will stop shaking a little faster. You’ll react a little quicker. You’ll keep your wits a little better.”

I rose and offered him my hand.

After a long moment, he took it. I pulled him to his feet.

“Torvek - take him home, please. Let Rukkin know he’s off for the rest of the day.”

“Yes, thren.” Torvek guided him out, steady and careful.

I hummed again. The wall sealed behind them as if it had never opened. A breeze stirred, gathering the fallen leaves into a slow spiral above my hand.

The tree stood bare. Silent. Dry.

I turned back to Naevira, rested my arm around her shoulders and stepped home.

* * *

“Wait, so she can kill those things?” Mirri asked, equal parts disbelief and excitement lighting her voice.

The Weeping Gallows were a known danger - at least in the six villages. Beyond that, it seemed the world hadn’t quite agreed on what they were.

“Not directly,” I said. “I think she absorbed its Faith. That’s what killed it. She wasn’t trying to destroy it - she was trying to control it. Stop it from attacking us.”

Mirri waved that off. “Doesn’t matter how. It matters that she can.”

“No,” I said, sharper than I meant to. “It does matter. We don’t know what that’s doing to her.”

I leaned forward slightly. “Her Faith is different. Zelmyra was white and rose - conviction and love. I still don’t fully understand why. But Naevira…” I shook my head. “She’s black and green. Will and survival. That’s not the same thing.”

I exhaled. “For all we know, it could be corrupting. The Faith could be eating away at her. Mortals aren’t supposed to use Faith - you know that.”

My jaw tightened. “You remember what happened to me when Urzan-Brak died. I thought I was going to die with him. I’m not putting her through that. Not if I can help it.”

“I agree with Seth,” Serah said, calm and measured. “We don’t even know if the tree is truly dead. It may simply be drained. It could recover. It could remain dormant and return stronger.”

Her gaze flicked briefly to the door, where Naevira was currently being watched by Torvek and Lilae - though they made it seem like a casual conversation. “And if she stays with us, we need to watch her closely. We cannot put the children at risk.”

“We also don’t know if she could do that to an older tree,” Ashlara added. “The one in town was barely a week old. It hadn’t taken anything bigger than a squirrel - maybe a few birds. That’s not the same as one that’s eaten a person.”

“That means the one in the bailey could be dangerous for her,” I said. “After the war, it consumed bodies before we cleared them. Some of those were Myrddin.” I rubbed the back of my neck. “I don’t even know what it runs on. Lifeforce? Protein? Something else entirely?”

Mirri crossed her arms. “So this tells us what? That she’s still a danger - to herself and maybe to us - and we need to keep an eye on her?”

“Pretty much,” I said.

“Great.”

“Hey,” I added, softer now. “There are no Gallows in the demesne. She’ll be safe there. You can all come and go as you need. If something goes wrong, leave. I’ll deal with it when I get back. I don’t want any of you getting hurt.”

Mirri’s expression softened, just a little. “We don’t want you gettin’ hurt either.”

She leaned back, eyeing me. “And there’s been too many gods dying lately. I’d never even heard of it happening before you showed up. Now? Two dead. A dozen swallowed by Nyssira. Half a dozen new ones born. All in, like, five years”

“I’m not going anywhere,” I said. “Still… it makes you wonder.”

“Wonder what?”

“What comes next.”

I folded my arms loosely. “Urzan-Brak dies, and the bloodchildren appear. Zelmyra dies, and now we’ve got the Gallowborn.”

I glanced between them. “I’m pretty sure humans here came from Earth - we’ve got fossils and artifacts going back tens of thousands of years. But the rest of you? What god died for orcs to exist? Or goblins? Or elves?”

I shook my head slowly. “Are any of the races here actually native to this world?” Silence lingered for a moment.

“I always thought it was strange,” I continued. “On Earth, humans became dominant because we wiped out anything that competed with us. We’ve seen it in other species on Earth as well - only so many resources to go around so someone ends up with the short stick.”

“But here?” I gestured vaguely. “There are so many different peoples, all coexisting. It’s hard to believe that you all evolved naturally.”

Elise tilted her head, thoughtful. “I have never considered a divine origin for the races,” she admitted. “Nor the possibility that humans came from another world. The existence of other worlds is considered a fringe study and purely theoretical… until now”

A faint smile tugged at my lips as I turned to Mirri. “See? I can be smart sometimes.”

Mirri snorted. “Just be smart enough not to get yourself killed.” She stuck her tongue out at me.

I chuckled. “I’ll see what I can do.”