Chapter 25: What a mad world we live in
The moment the Verdant Archon vanished, so did my strength. I felt weak and faint, almost fleeting, like a dehydrated man running a marathon through a desert. I felt like I was one step away from death.
All the adrenaline and spite that kept me going disappeared with it.
There was no grand collapse. No dramatic last stand like I expected.
I simply... stopped.
My vines slackened. My awareness dimmed. The aching throb of shattered bark and seared roots dulled into distant whispers. The last thing I heard was the gentle chitter of aphids curling around my broken core like children tucking their father into bed.
Then, silence.
No time. No pain. Just the long, endless darkness beneath the soil of my mind as it slipped into unconsciousness.
I slept.
...
I don't know how long I slept.
When I woke, it wasn't with a gasp. It was slow. Gentle. Like a sapling unfurling beneath first sunlight.