Chapter 47

I gasped and opened my eyes. The dark confines of the cave were gone. Replaced by the bright sunshine of the outside. I felt everyone's hands let go of my back. I inhaled the clean air into me, feeling it clear my mind from our encounter in the cave. I turned around and was pleased to see all three of my companions were accounted for. Most importantly, Sebille still held the head of the Sallow Man. It was time that we made our delivery.

I looked up and whistled. The vines were unfurled down to us. One by one, we climbed the vines, Sebille being the last with the head still in her hand. Before long, we were standing before the Bishop and his dozen guards again. I saw Del was among them now.

"You've returned," the Bishop said.

"And not empty handed," I said. I took the head from Sebille and threw it onto the ground before him.

"Commendable work," he said. "With their leader dead, the Black Ring will be in disarray. It'll make our journey to the entrance easier."

"But that journey will be for nothing if no one knows how to open it," I said putting my hands on my hips.

"You've done your part and I shall do mine," Alexander said. "The entrance to the Council is lined with seven alters for the Seven gods. Each god has an affinity for the sun and moon and the alters need to be aligned accordingly. Rhalic, Vrogir and Zorl- Stissa favored the sun while the other four favored the moon. Once the alters are aligned correctly, there's a lever that only a godwoken can pull once a power source is put into place."

Alexander reached into his robs and produced a glowing grey and blue artifact.

"I have my power source here so I can enter. If you wish to accompany us, you may enter too. Once inside, we can decide who will become the next Divine."

"Very well," I said. "Feel free to lead the way."

Alexander straightened his posture as he addressed his men.

"To the Temple, men," he said. "Divinity is just within reach. Our brothers' and sisters' sacrifice will not be in vain."

The Magisters and Paladins dispersed. They walked across the platform, keeping several bodies between us and the Bishop. But we weren't going to be able to follow them when we turned around.

"Godwoken."

A female elf stood before us.

"The Scion of the Mother Tree awaits you. Please, follow me to the heart."

I'd almost forgotten about the other issue with Sebille. My eyes immediately shot to Sebille behind me. Suddenly, at least half a dozen elven warriors walked out and surrounded us. Alexander's entourage took notice and stopped for a moment.

"The Mother is dying, Sebille," the elf said. "You need to stop running. Please, think about the lives of your people. The mother needs you."

I looked down at Sebille. To my surprise, she wasn't as nervous as I expected her to be. Meanwhile, I was very nervous.

"I-"

"Let's get this over with, okay?" Sebille said. "The sooner the better."

I raised my brow. I looked over at Ifan and the Red Prince. They had their brows cocked in a similar fashion. Eventually, I nodded to Sebille.

I looked over at Alexander.

"We've a small detour to make. You go on ahead. I reckon we'll catch up before you have a chance to open the door."

"By all means do what is needed of you," Alexander said. "Just remember: Divinity won't wait forever, and I don't plan on any more delays."

The Bishop and his guards turned around and left us.

"Please follow me," the elf said.

She turned around and started to walk. We followed her lead before the elven soldiers forced us to follow her. She led us through a series of branches higher into the tree. Eventually, we found ourselves before an archway leading to a small leaf platform. In the center was a large lotus flower on the ground. Flanking the archway where two elven guards holding their spears. As we approached, they pulled their spears apart. The elf turned around and presented the way to the lotus.

"The mother awaits," she said. "Be quick. There is little time left."

She stood aside. I looked at the others and the guards who escorted us. We were in a corner. Our only options were to either fight or go to the heart. When I looked at Sebille, she had the same 'Let's get this over with' face as before. I took a deep breath and lead our party of four to the lotus. I was the first to step onto it. The petals folded up and surrounded me like a large cocoon. I then felt a rather slimy and sappy energy washed over me from my feet up. But before I could fully comprehend what happened, the energy fell from me and the petals folded away. When I stepped off the flower, I realized I wasn't in the tree's canopy anymore. Instead, I was in a wide-open room with roots and leaves sprawling everywhere. High above, the sun shone through openings in the wood. I was inside the base of the tree.

Then I heart a sound. The sound of a massive heartbeat. In front of me was an aisle of a dozen elven guards with spears lining both sides. At the end stood the Scion of the Mother Tree. And behind her was the Heart itself. The Heart was made of wood with glowing patches over its four chambers. It was quite a sight to behold. I turned around in time to see Sebille emerge from the flower followed by Ifan then the Red Prince.

"Godwoken," the Scion of the mother tree spoke to us. "Come forth."

I looked back at the others. Ifan and the Red Prince gave an unsure shrug while Sebille was still surprisingly calm about this. I took a deep breath and proceeded down the line of guards while Ifan and the Red Prince flanked Sebille behind me. When we reached the end, the Scion looked at me intently.

"The Shadow Prince has been silenced, has he not?" she asked.

I reached into my backpack and unfurled the blanket to present the heart I carved out of the bastard's chest.

"He will never again haunt anyone," I said.

The Scion took the heart from my hand. Without hesitation, she dug her teeth into the organ. She ate it one chamber at a time. One. Two. Three. Then four. She whipped the blood from her lips and bowed.

"You are a true friend of the elves, Godwoken," she said. "You shall be rewarded for your service. But there is a more pressing matter that must be addressed first."

Her eyes rested on the person behind me. To my surprise, Sebille brushed past me to stand before the Scion. Ifan and the Red Prince beside me as we watched the scene unfold.

"Sebille," the Scion spoke like a disappointed mother. "Your actions cause great pain to the Mother. You cause great pain to all elves when you run from duty. You cause great pain to yourself. But now you are here. The Mother forgives. It is time for you to fulfill your destiny. You are the Prime scion. You are the daughter of the Mother Tree. You are the one that will replace her."

I felt my heart race in my chest much faster than the Mother's heart.

"Wait!" I blurted out. All eyes in the chamber turned to me. "Are you saying you need her to do this now? We need her help in the Council of the Seven."

"Do not worry," the Scion said. "Sebille will be imbued with the Mother's sap and essence. She can continue to aid you once the ritual is complete. When a new Divine is chosen, our Prime Scion will take root to become the New Mother."

She placed her hand on Sebille's shoulder bringing her attention back to her.

"It is time Sebille. You must fulfill your destiny. The Mother demands it."

The Scion stood aside leaving the way to the heart open. Sebille looked back at the three of us. Her expression was very hard for me to decipher. But she gave us a grin before she turned around and took a step toward the heart.

"Sebille wait!"

I dashed over and took ahold of her arm. She stopped and looked back at me.

"It's okay," she said. She placed her hand on top of mine. "I'm not running anymore. I know what I must do."

I stood there unable to say anything.

"Just…" I said getting my words back. "Just be sure that this is what you want."

"Don't worry. It is."

She winked at me. I raised my brows. She turned around and I let go of her. I felt the Scion gently place her had on my shoulder.

"Please. Let our child fulfill her destiny."

I reluctantly walked back to Ifan and the Red Prince. Sebille was now merely inches away from the heart. A seam suddenly appeared in the middle of it. It opened itself to show a wad of glowing sap within. My heart continued to race in my chest. All Sebille needed to do was to step inside and the Mother Tree would have her. What would become of her?

But Sebille didn't step inside the heart. Instead, she put her hand on the outside. Our eyes widened in confusion.

"What is she doing?" the Red Prince whispered.

Neither I nor Ifan could answer because we were stunned by what happened next. From within Sebille's chest, a flow of source grew.

"NO!" the Scion shouted in horror. "STOP!"

She dashed towards Sebille but she was too late. The Source within Sebille shot up her arm and slammed into the Heart. The world around us shook, causing us to stumble. I heard a horrified scream pierce my ears and echo all around me. Then the chamber stood still, and the screams vanished. On my knees, I looked up to see Sebille still standing before the Heart. But the Heart was no longer beating. Instead it was shriveled and grey. Moments later, the grey from the heart creeped over the branches surrounding us. It continued to spread until the entire chamber was grey and withered. The Scion and the guards were all pale and hunched over, twitching like they were suffering from withdrawal. Sebille turned around to look at us with a rather satisfied face. I got to my feet and ran to her with the boys right behind me.

"What did-"

"No time!" Sebille cut me off. "Pyramid. Now!"

"Wha-?"

"Do it now unless you want to have to kill people you don't want to!"

I twirled around to look at the Scion and the guards. They were slowly getting to their feet, painful rage burning in their eyes. The Scion put her hand on her wand about to draw it. When the shock of what happened wore off, I placed my hand on the Pyramid on my thigh and felt everyone place their hands on my back. I focused my mind on the Red Pyramid.

"MURDERERS!" the Scion roared as she swung a glob of poison from her wand at us. But before I felt it splash on my face, I felt the world around me vanish.


I gasped feeling the world come back. I found myself in the exact same spot we teleported to from the Sallow Man's layer. I turned around to see Sebille pick up the Red Pyramid from the ground. She never picked it up when we teleported here the first time. She kept it here. Did she plan for this?

"Come on, let's get out of here!" Sebille said running ahead. In the heat of the moment, the rest of us could do nothing but follow her. We ran after Sebille through the forest for several minutes until we came to a clearing in the overgrown temples. Sebille stopped and the rest of us did too. I hunched over catching my breath. Once I got most of it back, I looked at Sebille. She was looking off in the distance behind me. When I turned around, I was both in shock and in awe from what I saw.

The Mother Tree, once full of lively green leaves, was now pale with wilting branches. All the life it once had was gone. All four of us stood staring at it.

"What did you just do?" Ifan asked.

We moved our eyes to Sebille. She looked at the three of us with a, at first, conflicted face. But it changed to a more confident one.

"I made a choice," she said.

Her words hung in the air. I didn't know what to say.

"Not that I disagree with this choice," the Red Prince said. "But have you considered that you did what the Shadow Prince wanted to do ever since he enslaved you?"

She stared at the withered tree for a long moment. Eventually, she looked back at us with an even more confident face.

"No," she said plainly. "He wanted the Mother Tree destroyed…"

She brought up a finger.

"…and he wanted to live."

She pulled up her sleeve on her right arm.

"He wanted more than just the Mother Tree destroyed. He wanted his opponents dead. He wanted control. He didn't truly believe in the greater good of Rivellon. If he did, he would have risked his own life to destroy the Mother Tree instead of using me."

She pulled up her sleeve and looked over at me.

"Unlike some people who are willing to put their lives on the line to help others."

She put her hand onto an imaginary necklace that hung on her neck. I put my hand on top of my amulet in turn. I knew she talked about both me and Slane. Her eyes wandered back to the tree in the distance. Even with that speech, I could tell this choice was weighing down on her. I walked to her side and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"But how do you feel about this?" I asked her.

Sebille closed her eyes and sighed deeply.

"Deep down it feels like a betrayal. A just betrayal. I know that many will say I've failed my people, but I don't think I have. Even as I sat on the Prime Scion's throne as a child, watching pilgrims pass by in worship, I could hear her whisper. Much like the Master would whisper. Mother and Master, there was precious little difference between the two. Both of them longed for power so absolute it's no more than an abstract. Yet is that very abstract that causes so much actual misery for those that stand in its way. My heart may be conflicted, but my mind is not. I did the right thing."

I understood the situation she was in. I still loved my family, but I could never go back to the life I had and marry Brell for their sake. Not after what I've experienced. The path I was on now was the life I wanted.

"Well, whatever happens now," I said to Sebille. "I'm happy that you're finally free. From both the Shadow Prince and the Mother Tree."

She grinned and came in for another hug. I returned the gesture. When we came out of it, I noticed Ifan staring at the dead tree with a conflicted face of his own.

"Are you okay, Ifan?" Sebille asked.

He looked over at Sebille and me. He put his hands on his hips and sighed uneasily.

"I…honestly don't know," he said. "The elves were my family. Even after seeing them die from the deathfog, it continues to hurt me seeing them in the world battered and bruised. When we rescued Sahalia from Roost, I had hope that they could recover and overcome the hardships they were facing."

He glanced at the Tree again.

"Now, seeing another tree die like this, I have a terrible feeling in my gut about their survival."

He puckered his lips and his eyes winced.

"But at the same time, I can't believe I never knew about the Mother Tree's true intentions. If the deathfog was never used, if Sebille never ran away, would the Mother Tree have killed me along with the rest of Rivellon because I wasn't an elf? Would my adoptive family have allowed that to happen?"

I could sense another sense of betrayal in Ifan. To have his leader lie to him to murder his entire family was devastating. But learning that his adoptive family's leader was planning on his and the world's demise was taxing on him too. It was an uncomfortable spot for him to be in.

"I guess it shows there's a dark side to every race in this world," Sebille said. "Humans have their Divine Orders. Lizards have their slavers. Dwarves have their Queen Jestinas. And elves have their Mother Trees."

Ifan only responded with silence while staring at the dead tree. Sebille then looked over at me and the Red Prince.

"I guess I owe you two another apology," she said.

"For what?" I asked.

"For assuming lizards were evil in the beginning. My past self really sounds like a hypocrite, doesn't she? I mean, after learning about what my race wanted to do to everyone else, seems like elves aren't that less guilty than all the others, huh?"

She put her hands on her hips and hung her head in embarrassed shame. To her surprise, the Red Prince walked over and placed his hand on her shoulder.

"Well, if you believe you owe us an apology, then I can forgive you," he said. "We've faced many obstacles on our adventure. But the greatest obstacle was humility. And its humility that allows us to admit our mistakes to change ourselves for the better. Since you've destroyed the Mother Tree and spared my kin from her wrath, I'll try my best to free your kind from the Empire's slavers. It may take time, but I promise I will do something about it."

Sebille tilted her head.

"That's sweet of you," she said. She leaned in and gave him a kiss on his check. His eyes widened in surprise. All Sebille did was smile. But before anyone could continue, we heard someone approach. All four of us turned around and all our eyes widened when we saw a familiar face.

"Sahalia?" Sebille said.

The blindfolded elf stood with three other elven guards behind her.

"You did it Sebille," she said. "The Mother is dead. She no longer controls us. Now I see the truth. The elves are free. Free to choose our future."

Her words surprised me. Before she vouched for Sebille becoming the Mother Tree. But now, she was thankful for her demise. It put a smile on my face. But Ifan walked up to Sahalia with a suspicious look in his eyes.

"Will it be a future that won't involve the death of anyone who isn't an elf?" he asked.

Sahalia turned her head in Ifan's direction, not making direct eye contact due to her blindness.

"The elves will be divided for a time. Many will mourn the Mother Tree. But I will not forget the kindness human and lizard have given me. We will unite to fight the Voidwoken alongside those who share this world with us."

Ifan's uncertainty slowly faded. He took her hand and gently caressed the back of her palm.

"If there's anything I can do to help your people, just ask," he said. Sahalia smiled and nodded her head in appreciation. She then wandered over to me. She held out her hand and I took it. Like Ifan, she caressed the back of my palm with her other hand.

"I see the future before you, Mahalia," she said. "You have many challenges and enemies to face. But you will overcome them to become a true force to save our world and make a change for the better."

A grin grew on my face. Though she couldn't see it, I had a feeling Sahalia felt the smile I made.

"Thank you, Sahalia," I said. Sahalia let go of my hand and bowed gracefully before me.

"You must go now and fulfill your calling. We shall depart and make our preparations for the future. I bid you well, my friend."

With that, she turned around and joined her bodyguards to leave for the shore. I looked over at Ifan. He was feeling better from the look in his eyes. Sebille was too along with the Red Prince.

"I suppose the future of the elves is something we don't have to worry about at too much," the Red Prince said.

"Guess not," Ifan said. He then looked up at the mountain. "But we'd better get a move on. I don't want Alexander to enter the Council without us."

My brows rose.

"No time to waste then," I said. "let's go."

With that, we were off.


Author's Note: One thing that always bothered me about Chris Avellone stories is that almost every choice feels like the result has a disgusting catch that makes you say, "What was the point?" For me, Sahalia's conclusion was especially disappointing. Damned if you do, damned if you don't. With the real-world as divided as it is, I feel like we need more stories that tell us we can overcome our problems for a better future instead of constantly being reminded of our imperfections and being slapped in the face to remind us no matter what we do, the world is doomed and all you can do is choose how doomed it is in the end.

Other than that, thank you for reading my story and a review goes a long way. See you next chapter.