Chapter 227: The Heartwood
The Warden drifted down out of the glowing branches.
The ancient spirit stopped in front of Draven. Its translucent, deep green form was shot through with faint veins of gold. It looked at the small glass vial in Draven's hand.
It did not speak for a long time.
"You hold stolen time," the Warden finally whispered.
"I hold a solution," Draven corrected calmly.
"It is permanent," the Warden warned. "If you force her through decades of growth in a single night, she will arrive fully grown. But she will have no memory of the seasons. She will not know the slow turning of the earth. She will miss her own youth."
Draven looked at the glowing silver liquid inside the vial.
"Will it kill her?" Draven asked.
"No," the Warden replied softly. "But it might make her something entirely different from what she was meant to be."
Draven held the vial.
He felt the heavy, thrumming connection of the soul contract in his chest. He was the Master of the Tree.
