The root thrummed. No. We heard their dreams. We could no longer feed on soil. We fed on their nightmares. On the diggers. On the prisoners who followed. Their dreams became our nourishment, flowing through our trunk, turning it black, entering our leaves, turning them blue, flying in our pollen upon the wind.

Alina gasped. Her chest constricted. The pollen. Of course. You took the nightmares of prisoners into you. You could not stop it.

The tree seemed to weep. We could not stop it.

Tears streamed down Alina's cheeks. The nightmares rose through you, and you expelled them into the air. You infected the others.

We are sorry. We are sorry. Please make it end.

Alina could no longer bear it. She pulled back from the root, and she fell onto the ground, weeping. Dorvin and Maev leaned over her, speaking to her, but she could barely hear. She whispered, her lips wet with tears. "The Vir Requis do cause the nightmares."

Auben's eyes widened and his cheeks flushed. "That is a lie! We do not—"

"By no fault of your own!" Alina said, lying in her brother's arms. "The roots of the tree. The soil was removed to create this dungeon. The roots were exposed. Lacking soil to feed upon, they fed on your dreams. Do you have nightmares in this place?"

Auben froze. He nodded slowly.

Alina smiled wryly. "In the shadows of a dungeon, most prisoners have nightmares. So did the first prisoners here—thieves and murderers imprisoned before you. The tree fed, and the nightmares spread through its pollen. The king blamed you. He imprisoned you here. But he only gave the roots new nightmares to drink." She rose to her feet. "We must leave this place. We must reveal the truth. We must end this tree's suffering."

Dorvin cleared his throat. "And free everyone. That too. That's also a little important, Alina."

She returned to the roots that enveloped the chamber, placed her forehead against one of the ropey strands, and closed her eyes. She whispered, head lowered, "You can answer prayers. You are good in your core. Free us, Shenhavan. Free us from our bonds and we will refill this cavern with soil."

For a long moment, nothing happened. Alina tugged at her bonds, but the ropes would not loosen. Alina's belly curdled. For many years, she had been able to speak to the stars, to sense warmth and guidance from them. Was her power, the insight of a druid, limited to the stars?

"Please, Shenhavan." Her eyes stung. "Free us."

Silence filled the cavern. Alina lowered her head.

I have failed.

Her eyes stung, and she thought of Requiem and her people—of Jeid, of Laira, of all the others waiting for them. The demon army would reach them, and she would perish underground, bringing no aid to her people. She—

She frowned.

She gasped.

The walls of the chamber were shaking around them.