Taboo Online

The ground beneath Lauren’s knees rose another inch as silver light spread outward from the young branch. It flattened the grass in a widening circle before sinking into the soil, and the tremor traveled well beyond the cleared perimeter, rattling the portable lights and sending ripples across the artificial lake.

Several heroes adjusted their footing. One reached toward the weapon at his side, but Red Hound raised a hand without looking away from the field.

"Keep your weapons down. We don’t know what the Heartroot considers a threat, and I’m not letting nervous hands start a fight."

Lauren kept both palms wrapped around the destination mark. The two leaves at the top had fully opened, and faint green veins ran through them before disappearing into the thin silver stem.

A new set of system messages appeared.

[Interworld transplantation initiated.]

[Destination root network forming.]

[Source sanctuary preparing for transfer.]

[Both bridge anchors must maintain contact.]

Rhea crouched beside Lauren and watched the roots shifting beneath the grass.

"Can you tell what it means by maintaining contact?"

"I think I have to keep holding the mark." Lauren shifted her fingers slightly, testing whether the branch resisted. "The pressure increases whenever I loosen my grip, and the connection to Luke weakens with it."

"That’s enough for now." Rhea placed one hand against the ground when another tremor passed beneath them. "Don’t move unless you have to. If something starts pulling you in, tell me before you try to fight it alone."

Lauren nodded.

The roots continued spreading beneath the field, searching through the soil for water, mana, and stable ground. Lauren sensed each connection through the branch. They began as faint touches inside her palms, then settled into steady warmth whenever the Heartroot accepted what it found.

One root turned toward the lake.

It traveled beneath the field fast enough to lift a narrow trail through the grass. When it reached the shoreline, green light flashed beneath the surface and spread outward in broad rings.

[Clean water connection established.]

[Destination stability increased.]

Red Hound watched the light settle beneath the water. "Did you know it would spread that far?"

"I knew it needed water. I didn’t know it would claim the entire lake."

"Then we treat everything the roots touch as part of the transfer zone."

He turned toward the emergency crews before Lauren could answer.

"Move the tankers away from the slope and clear every vehicle from the raised ground. Follow the roots and mark their path. Don’t assume they’ve stopped just because you can’t see them moving."

Bureau personnel hurried to obey while Lauren reached for Luke through their bond.

The connection had strengthened since she planted the mark. It no longer felt like a thread stretched close to breaking. Warmth moved through it now, accompanied by the slow rhythm of the Heartroot’s core and the strain of the person holding the other end.

For a few seconds, the field around Lauren faded from her senses.

Damp earth became smooth silver bark beneath her hands. Smoke and blood filled the air, and heat pressed through the sealed walls of a sanctuary surrounded by the burning remains of Lethariel.

Luke was still kneeling beside the Heartroot.

Through him, Lauren felt hundreds of lives waiting for the passage to open.

Cool mana surged into Luke’s palm so suddenly that his arm jerked.

He nearly pulled away from the core before realizing where the strength had come from. It flowed through the terrace beneath him, followed the Heartroot’s living channels, and spread into branches that had already begun drying under the strain of preservation.

Aelira felt it too. She lifted her head as silver-green light moved beneath the blood staining her armor.

"The destination has taken root," she said. The relief in her voice was unmistakable, but she kept it under control. "Water and living mana are already reaching us from your world."

Luke tried to respond, but his mouth had gone dry. His shoulder throbbed, both legs shook beneath him, and keeping his palm against the core demanded most of what remained of his concentration.

"Lauren found somewhere," he said at last.

A pulse moved through their bond.

It carried no words, yet Luke recognized the warmth behind it. Lauren was waiting for him, and she needed him to stay where he was a little longer.

The Heartroot began waking around them.

Silver veins brightened across the sanctuary walls. Fresh mana reached branches that had already started turning gray, restoring some of their color. The improvement was small, but the refugees noticed it immediately.

An elf holding an unconscious child pressed her palm against the terrace.

"It’s drinking," she whispered.

Another pulse traveled through the sanctuary, stronger than the first.

[Destination root network established.]

[Source core unsealing.]

[Prepare all living passengers for transfer.]

Fear rippled through the crowded terraces.

Some elves turned toward Aelira, while others searched the walls for a passage that had not yet appeared. Rootkeepers began clearing the central paths and guiding families away from the shifting outer edges.

Aelira tried to move toward them, but her knees failed before she completed the first step.

The Thornmender caught her under one arm while Iris’s golden lifeline tightened around the Queen’s ribs and flickered across the sanctuary toward Dorian and Kellan.

Kellan sat with his ruined leg extended while Iris’s lifeline held the torn muscle together. Beside him, Dorian leaned against the terrace wall, his hook gone and both forearms still bleeding from the masked woman’s threads.

Iris looked between the three people depending on her.

"Listen before the Heartroot moves again. I can keep the lifelines steady while you’re still, but every sudden change pulls them in a different direction. Tell me before you stand, crawl, or let someone carry you."

Kellan glanced toward the brightening walls. "Someone will have to move me once the passage opens."

"Yes, but not yet."

He looked down at his leg and remained quiet.

Dorian carefully lowered himself beside him. The effort made his injured arms shake, but he did not try to hide it.

"When the time comes, we move together," he said. "Until then, there’s nothing either of us can prove by falling over."

Kellan glanced at Dorian’s hands, then gave a tired nod. "Fine. We wait."