Chapter 22 – The Whispering Jungle
Ilin slept until the light shifted. In the Inverted Sky the "day" is just the glow of the clouds below us dimming and brightening. She woke with her head on my shoulder, her staff's blue glow steadier than it had been after the Sunken City.
"How's your head?" I asked.
"Still dizzy if I look down," she said, managing a small smile. "But I'm okay. No pain."
Ael was already at the portal platform. "The next Anchor lies in the Whispering Jungle. The trees there listen."
Mara rubbed her arm. "Trees that listen? Great. I love being eavesdropped on."
"It means the jungle is aware," Ael said. "The Guardians are the Rootborn."
Garrick hefted his chipped crowbar. "Sounds cuddly."
I helped Ilin to her feet. She leaned on me, but her steps were firm.
We stepped onto the platform. Ael touched the stone; the symbols lit blue, and the oval doorway opened onto humid green air thick with the scent of wet leaves and flowers.
Ilin took my hand. "Ready?"
I nodded. "Ready."
We stepped through.
The jungle was dense, the canopy so high the light filtered down in green-gold shafts. Vines hung like curtains, and every leaf seemed to rustle, even where there was no wind. The air was warm and wet, and the ground was soft earth covered in moss.
The trees really did whisper — not words, just a low murmur that brushed the edge of hearing, like a conversation just beyond comprehension.
Ilin's staff pulsed in time with the whispers. "The Memory Core says the Anchor is at the Heart Tree, in the center of the jungle."
Ael nodded. "The Rootborn will test your intent."
We moved forward. After ten minutes the whispers grew louder, and the vines shifted, opening a path.
The first Guardians appeared.
They were massive, half-tree, half-humanoid, their bodies covered in bark, roots trailing from their feet into the soil. Their eyes were amber, the same color as the Lumenwood.
Three of them.
Garrick raised his crowbar. "Here we go."
The first Rootborn swung a root-arm at Garrick. He blocked with his crowbar; the wood cracked but held.
The second swung at Mara. She ducked, swung her rebar, and the metal bent against bark.
The third came at me.
I dodged its swing, rolled, and drove my blade into its side.
The blade sank in, but the Rootborn didn't fall.
It grabbed my shoulder — the same shoulder Ilin had healed eight times.
Pain flared.
I twisted, drove my blade into its throat.
The Rootborn shuddered, roots retracting, then collapsed into a pile of wood and leaves.
I turned to the first Rootborn. Garrick was back on his feet, crowbar in hand, blood on his forearm.
Mara was getting up, her arm bleeding from a scrape.
Finn was circling the second Rootborn, pistol empty.
I ran at the first Rootborn, jumped, and drove my blade into the base of its neck.
It collapsed.
I turned to the second Rootborn. It raised its arm to strike Finn.
Ilin stepped forward, staff raised.
"Ilin, no!" I shouted.
"I have to," she said.
She directed the blue light at the Rootborn.
The creature slowed, its amber eyes dimming.
I ran and drove my blade into its chest.
It collapsed.
Ilin dropped to her knees.
I was at her side in two steps, catching her.
"You used healing," I said.
"Only a little," she said, voice weak.
"You said you wouldn't," I said.
"I couldn't let it hit Finn," she said.
I lifted her and carried her to a patch of moss at the base of a huge tree.
"You're done," I said.
"I know," she said.
Garrick sat beside us, holding his arm. Mara was wrapping her arm. Finn was catching his breath.
Ael stood, looking at the center of the jungle where a tree unlike the others rose — its trunk black, its leaves a deep violet, and at its center a crystal pulsing with violet light: the Anchor.
"The Anchor is there," Ael said.
I carried Ilin the rest of the way.
The Heart Tree was enormous, its roots forming a natural chamber. Inside, the crystal pulsed.
Around it stood four Rootborn, larger than the first three.
Ael's voice was quiet. "The Heart Guardians."
I set Ilin down on a root seat.
"We do what we've been doing," I said. "Hold them off while I reach the Anchor."
Garrick nodded, wincing. "Just don't die."
Mara spat blood. "No promises."
Finn nodded, gripping his broken pistol.
The four Guardians moved at once.
Garrick met the first, crowbar striking its arm. The bark cracked, the Guardian backhanded Garrick, sending him to the ground.
Mara swung her rebar at the second. The rebar bent, and the Guardian knocked her aside.
Finn went for the third with his pistol, smashing it across the face. The Guardian grabbed his arm and lifted him off the ground.
The fourth came at me.
I dodged its swing, rolled, and drove my blade into its leg.
The blade sank in.
The Guardian grabbed my shoulder — the same shoulder Ilin had healed nine times.
Pain flared.
I drove my blade into its throat.
The Guardian collapsed.
I turned to the first Guardian. Garrick was back on his feet, crowbar in hand, blood running down his arm.
Mara was getting up, her arm bleeding.
Finn was still in the Guardian's grip.
The first Guardian charged Garrick.
Garrick swung, the crowbar cracked the Guardian's arm, the creature hit him again.
I ran and jumped onto the Guardian's back, driving my blade into the base of its neck.
It collapsed.
I turned to the second Guardian. Mara was on her feet.
The Guardian swung. Mara ducked, swung her rebar, and cracked the Guardian's leg.
I ran and drove my blade into its chest.
It collapsed.
The third Guardian was still holding Finn.
I ran and drove my blade into its back.
It collapsed, releasing Finn.
I looked at the Anchor.
Ilin was on her feet, staff in hand, the crystal glowing faint blue.
"I can weaken it," she said.
"Ilin, no," I said.
"I have to," she said.
She raised the staff and directed the light at the Anchor.
The Anchor pulsed, the violet light flickering as the blue light hit it.
I raised my blade and brought it down on the crack.
The blade sank in.
The Anchor pulsed, the violet light flickering, then dimming.
A low sound resonated through the jungle, like the trees sighing in relief.
I hit it again.
The crystal shattered.
The violet light went out.
The whispers faded, and the jungle's green-gold light grew brighter, warmer.
Ael placed a hand on my shoulder. "The Anchor is destroyed. The rift in the Whispering Jungle is closed."
I looked at Ilin. She was swaying.
I caught her before she fell.
"You did it," I said.
She opened her eyes, smiled faintly. "We did it."
I carried her to a patch of moss and sat with her, her head on my shoulder.
Garrick was sitting nearby, holding his arm. Mara was wrapping her arm. Finn was catching his breath.
Ael stood, watching the now-peaceful trees.
Ilin squeezed my hand. "We did it."
"We did," I said.
She smiled, tired but genuine.
I leaned in and kissed her forehead.
"You rest," I said. "I'll be right here."
"I know," she said.
She closed her eyes and fell asleep.
I stayed, watching her, listening to the gentle rustle of leaves.
The rift in the Whispering Jungle was closed.
Ael had said there were many worlds.
I looked at Ilin's peaceful face.
We would rest here, and then we would find the next passage.
Whatever came next, we would face it together.