“Of course, you do.”
“I am s-so sorry for your pain. Truly, I am…”
“You wereneverthe cause of it, child,” Titania whispered, “and I know your life has not been easy either. But…I still cannot do this. It is too much, and…I do not want to make it worse…”
“Make what worse?” I asked. Titania turned and motioned behind her, to the grove of trees just beyond her perch on the post oak. I had not even looked at it before, but now I saw the creeping darkness covering the ground. Every tree in the grove had been consumed by the Rot, to the point where I could not even tell what species they were—every tree, that is, except one.
In the center of the grove grew a silvery, bent-backed weeping willow, much like the one at the heart of the Arden. This tree, and the grass immediately around it, were free of the Rot, somehow, and I took a few steps toward it, squinting to see something large at the base. It appeared to be a stone bench at first, but as I got closer, I realized what it actually was: a sarcophagus. A stone tomb, with an intricate relief carved onto the top.
“Lyric?” I asked, looking to Hippolyta instead of Titania, who seemed frozen as she stood behind me, her eyes averted.
The Commander nodded sadly and answered, “This was her grove, where she was born, whereyouwere born, and also where she…died.”
I swallowed and turned my attention to Titania. “This is where the Rot began, isn’t it?”
She just nodded.
“Oberon thinks that it began because of Lyric,” I said, “because she was part of the Arden. I came here to ask what you think it is, and how it might be healed.”
Titania’s eyes shifted to meet mine and she shook her head. “It cannot be healed.”
“Why do you believe that?” I asked gently.
“Because I am the cause,” she answered, “and I cannot heal myself.”
I did not know how to reply, but a well of bitter fury grew in my stomach again, and I clenched my fists. “Would you really doom the entire Arden because you do not want to let go of your grief? What good does it do you to hold on this way?”
“It is not a matter of wanting…” Titania murmured, turning away and wrapping her arms around herself. “Icannotlet go of it…of her…”
She crumpled, as if injured, and Hippolyta held her as she sank to her knees and rocked forward. I opened my mouth to speak again, but my words were drownedout by a strange sound—like cracking river ice, or the snapping trunk of a falling tree, followed by a hollow, whistling howl.
“No!” Titania cried out. “No, no, no! You must leave, please!”
Before I could ask why, Hippolyta glanced behind her, and I followed her gaze.
The Rot was spreading. Like rivulets of rainwater cutting through dry earth, it crept along the forest floor toward us, climbing the tree trunks—a swarm of hellish insects consuming everything it touched. Hippolyta lifted Titania to her feet and pulled her past me.
“We must go,” she barked. “Now, Marina!”
“No!” I whirled to face her. “Oberon said it can be stopped. We can do it together!”
“Oberon is a fool!” Hippolyta snarled. “If their combined power cannot stop it, then what do you think you can do?”
“I cantry,” I hissed. “I can stand and face it, instead of running!” Without stopping to think, I faced the Rot again, fell to my knees, and slammed my hands into the ground. My shadows spread across the grass, then plunging into the dirt, searching for the Arden’s magyk currents. But I found the river of power sapped, flickering like a candle. While sweat dripped from my forehead, I poured myself into it, pressing back against the suffocating cold. The Rot went straight for my magyk without mercy, testing it, tearing into it, looking for a weak spot.
“Please!” I called, not even knowing if Titania was even still there. “I need your light!”
There was no answer except a strangled sob, but then she appeared beside me. Her hands moved like a pair of dark, graceful dancers, weaving beams of light together and sending them bouncing across the forest floor toward the tendrils of Rot. With tears wetting her cheeks, she pressed her palms into the grass beside mine, and the suffusive glow of her magyk engulfed us both.
But it was not enough. The darkness pressed on, bringing death with it.
Chapter twenty-nine
Reason & Love
Iclosed my eyes,throwing everything I had into the earth, my arms shaking violently.
“We have to leave!” Hippolyta shouted, and Titania wrenched her hands up.
