Damien followed the hidden tunnel down at a slight slope, the air growing damper and mustier the deeper he went. It stretched on and on for far longer than he would have preferred, but he’d sealed the entrance with a blast of soul force, so it was either keep moving or blast his way up to the surface. He could do it if he had to, but unless he ran out of tunnel he preferred to keep any sorcery to a minimum. Damien didn’t know how sensitive the soul force eaters were, but he figured less power was better.

Jen and Leah were still asleep and the wise one went from conscious to unconscious and back one minute to the next. Though seldom lacking in confidence, as Damien made his way down the tunnel with nothing but the glow from his construct to light the way, he would have appreciated some reassurance that something was waiting for them at the end of the tunnel.

So it was to his great relief when the slope leveled out then went up. He picked up his pace and ten minutes later came to another wall of roots. A faint green glow leaked out between the openings in the wall and he caught a whiff of water. Something glittered through the gaps in the roots.

Damien reached in and shook the wise one until he woke. “I think we’re here. Can you open the door?”

“Help me to the wall.”

Damien guided the wise one’s hand over to the tunnel wall and soon the familiar green glow formed around it. The roots withdrew and Damien directed his construct into an underground grotto. A beautiful blue pool of water dominated the chamber. Green phosphorescence lit the grotto and gave it a sense of otherworldliness. Under different circumstances Damien would have enjoyed just taking in the sight, but for the moment he had business to attend to.

“What now?” he asked.

“Help me out and press my back against the dirt wall.”

Damien lifted the wise one—the old druid seemed nothing but skin and bones—and carried him over to the grotto wall. He frowned and conjured a pair of extra hands. He managed, with considerable muttering, to maneuver him into place. The moment he did fine tendrils grew out and pierced the wise one’s flesh. More vines grew and wrapped around his wrists, freeing Damien from having to hold him. In two minutes he looked every bit as connected to this room as he had to the one they fled, and even his face had filled out more.

The wise one sighed. “Put Leah in the pool. The water will restore her.”

Damien looked from the old man to Leah back to the wise one. “What about her clothes?”

“Take them off. It will be more effective if they aren’t clinging to her.”

“I was afraid you were going to say that.”

Damien stripped her as quickly and methodically as he could, trying in vain to ignore the lean, fit body underneath. When he finished he wrapped her in soul force and slid her into the water before reabsorbing his power. Leah floated on the surface surrounded by a faint emerald glow.

That left Jen, who, as far as he could tell, only required a good long nap. He shifted the box into a couch and set her to one side of the pool. Damien slumped beside the wise one and closed his eyes.

“So what happens now?” Damien asked. “The investigation seems kind of beside the point since we know who’s responsible.”

“I trusted Eleck like a son. I thought one day he would take my place as Wise One. To have him betray me, betray all of us like this is beyond my comprehension. I suppose the task hasn’t changed. We need to deal with Eleck and his followers then restore the ley line to its proper place.”

“Followers?”

“Yes. No druid, not even me, has the power to shift a ley line on their own. He needed a full circle to manage something so powerful.”

“A full circle?” Damien felt like an idiot asking for constant clarifications.

“One experienced druid to guide the ritual and seven acolytes to provide power.” The wise one shook his head. “I can’t believe he found seven others to betray the Green Path. Have I failed my people to such an extent that they’d follow someone as corrupt as Eleck?”

Damien wasn’t quite certain how to respond to the wise one’s sad speech. Pep talks weren’t his specialty. Threats were more his speed. “Maybe Eleck tricked them, like he tricked you. After all you had no idea that he was involved or that he had betrayed you. Perhaps he convinced whoever helped him that what they were doing was the right thing. It doesn’t make much difference to me. They need to be dealt with to protect my home, so I’ll deal with them.”