Nezani woke up some time later, feeling well rested and rejuvenated. Climbing down from the cozy loft she prepared herself some nourishment in preparation for the training ahead. It was the first time since coming to Katria that she had been responsible for feeding herself. While grateful for the break in the responsibility, there was something relaxing about being able to put her own meal together.

She gathered some fruit and bread from the table, and opened the fridge to find an assortment of cured meats and cheese.

“That’ll do” she said out loud deciding that having a little bit of everything would ensure balance in her meal and nutrition.

Nezani spent the next week or two, she’d guessed, locked up in the arboretum. She knew eventually she would need to leave and go face Madame.

She hadn’t spent the time fiddling her fingers, she practiced every moment she was awake harnessing her mana into various shapes in her hand. After her first day she was able to gradually increase the size of the opening for mana to escape as well as control the speed at which the mana was released.

It wasn’t as calm and beautiful as Henri’s but “you’ll get there” Henri had assured her several times.

This particular day she had trained hard and was hoping Beaux felt like having company tonight. She walked around the forest humming his song. The reflection of the mana river on the wall of the inner dome caught her eye again.

There were times were she thought she saw a small light moving between the trees. She assumed the light was just some free mana bouncing from tree to tree. Reaching the wall.

Beaux doesn’t seem to want to hang tonight, I’m going to take a peak at the inner dome!

Nezani walked through the trees to the glass wall of the inner dome. She took in the sight before her, the wall of this dome just as massive as the outer dome she encountered her first day there. She popped up on her tippy toes and and leaned her body on the curve of the dome wall. Cupping her hands around her eyes to help her see she stared into the dark grove beyond the glass.

In front of her she thought she spotted what she thought might be a tree moving toward her.

It wasn’t until she saw two large brown eyes looking back at her that she realized there was a person on the other side of the glass.

“What the F**k!!” Nezani yelled falling hard on her butt onto the grass.

Fear coursed through her body as the man on the other side of the glass continued to stare deep into Nezani’s eyes before cracking a soft smile and awkwardly raising his hand to slowly wave it.

Freaked out by the interaction Nezani quickly got up and began to run back to where Henri was outside of her cabin.

“Henri! Henri! There’s a man! A man!”

Awakening the tree Henri’s soul shifted quickly into Sprits body.

“Woah woah woah, slow down, what are you talking about?”

“There is a man in the inner chamber! There’s a man! I saw him!”

Nezani grabbed Henri’s hand and ran her through the grove back to the spot on the wall where she saw the man.

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Not seeing him right away Nezani scanned the wall. Seeing movement, she hid behind Henri as the man approached the glass again.

Henri chuckled “Winston?!”

She ran to the glass and placed her hand on the glass.

“What are you doing in there?"

The man placed his hand on the wall and replied yelling.

“I was locked in when we were attacked, and the arboretum was put on lock down. I didn’t know how to get out without damaging the space, so I’ve been here, waiting for Anne to come back and break the protection spell. Where is she, who is this child?”

“She is here in the grove now” Henri said quietly to the man.

“This is her baby girl Nezani, she has come back to train and take over the care of the arboretum. Like you, I was chosen to be her basal instructor”.

The man stared blankly at Henri through the glass before falling to his knees. Tears began to flow down his face.

“I must find her; she must be so confused and scared”.

Henri and Nezani stood while Winston processed the news he was given. It was weird for Nezani to watch someone she didn’t know, mourn her family.

“And you, this all must be…..a lot for you to do without your mom.” He said looking deeply at Nezani again.

“It is” She admitted, glad someone had understood the weight of what was happening to her.

“Who are you to my mom?”

“Anne is, was, my great niece. Her grandpa was my brother. She and I worked closely together taking care of this place” he said placing his hand on a nearby tree.

“She was an amazing arborist and Guardian and had managed this arboretum the best that it had been managed in years. She surely is here with roots in the ground. With as much knowledge as she held, she is surely in the inner chamber. It will take you awhile to build your mana to be able to reach that part of the arboretum, but you will get there, and she is waiting for you”.

“I assume the protection spell is nullified?” he said holding his hands out in front of him gathering mana in his palms.

“Meet me at the door” he said.

Henri grabbed Nezani’s hand and led her over to the entrance of the inner dome. Stopping a few feet from the path they stood waiting.

Waiting Nezani felt mana rush under her feet to the other side of the door.

“Coming out!” Winston yelled.

BOOM!

The doors of the inner chamber flew open, a blast of wind zoomed past Nezani and Jupiter and hit the entrance to the arboretum also slamming those doors open.

“Woah” Nezani let out.

“He’s one of the most powerful arborists in our family, you can learn a lot from him. I thought everyone was wiped out when we were attacked, the fact that he was locked up in here is of great help to you” Henri said holding Nezani’s hand as they walked toward Winston.

They reached him just as the large doors were slamming behind him.

“20 years” he said getting emotional.

“20 years I spent in that chamber, I’m so happy to be out, thank you so much!” he said rapidly shaking Nezani’s hand.

“To show my appreciation, I will assist Henrietta in your training in this chamber and beyond.”

“You know I thought it was odd Beaux kept telling me that he had a new friend, but I just assumed he was starting to make things up seeing as we were locked in here for so long with no new visitors” said Winston.

“Nope! I’ve been here” Nezani exclaimed and started to tell Winston about the small quarters that Henri had built for her.

“Ahh the cozy cove, I remember spending time in there like it was yesterday. I usually only used it though for long term stays. Are you staying long term inside the arboretum?” he asked.

Nezani stared at her feet trying to find the answer to his question but came up empty. She watched as Henri and Winston exchanged looks. Henri widened her eyes and motioned toward Nezani.

“Er uh, so how about a walk outside it’s been a while since you left right. Maybe you could walk me to the hotel, I fear so much time has passed I may no longer know the way”.

Afraid to leave but feeling obligated Nezani agreed, telling Henri she would be back the pair walked out of the Arboretum toward Madame’s hotel.

“So, why ARE you holed up in the arboretum? Is something the matter?”

Pausing for a moment to consider how much she wanted to reveal, she decided in the moment to be honest with him. Considering the fact that he was all that was left of her moms family, maybe

“Well, this all has to do with how my parents and brother passed away. Someone, some thing murdered them while they were on the way to my high school graduation.”

“I really have no idea who or what it is but Madame took me to her lab where she had a piece of it trapped. When I touched case it was in I saw how it killed my family, every detail, as if it was taunting me. I ran out of Madame’s lab and right into the arboretum where I felt safe”.

“That day…I had no idea what was happening. I was in an inner chamber reading some ancient text I had found. I heard lots of screaming and loud noises, but as I was making my way out everything shut down and locked around me. It wasn’t until new souls started appearing in the grove did I learn what had taken place.”

He stopped walking and turned toward Nezani.

“I can not imagine what you must have felt witnessing something as horrific as that. I’m sure it must have been a lot to process in the moment, and I probably would also run to our sacred space.”

He paused as if he wanted to say something.

“As hard as it may be to see, I think you should try to see it again. We have to beat this thing, and if we can gather any information from your vision, your dream, it could help us figure out how to defeat it. Would you be okay if we went back to Madame’s lab? Maybe tell her what you saw so we can get her help?”

This was all too much for Nezani to consider at the moment. She hadn’t expected to be faced with telling Madame about her vision right now, she wanted more time.

“We don’t know when it will be back, or if its stronger. It is your duty as a Guardian to protect our family arboretum, the leylines and mana. It is hard no doubt! But! You could save lives, we have little time to spare” he barked at her as if she was in the military.

“To be honest I felt a bit relieved, no one would tell me what happened to my family and it seemed no one had the answers. I have the vision every time I sleep, and I wake up at the same part every time. I never thought to observe what was happening too closely. I’m willing to go to Madame, will you go with me?”

“Of course I will, lets just stop by and see Otis, I’m dying to have something that didn’t come off a tree branch”.