Lex followed Cedric through the dark corridors of the palace, his heart pounding, his hand on his sword. The brothers' laboratory was at the end of the east wing, behind a door that had been reinforced with iron bars and magical wards. Guards stood at the entrance, their faces hard, their spears crossed.Cedric nodded to them, and they stepped aside.The laboratory was warm, lit by candles that flickered on every surface. The air smelled of wax and metal and something clean, like the air after a storm. Tables were covered with instruments—magnifying lenses, measuring tools, notebooks filled with the brothers' cramped handwriting.Rendel and Rey John stood at the center of the room, their yellow eyes fixed on something on the table. They didn't look up when Lex entered."We found something," Rendel said.Lex walked to the table. The watch sat there, its face gleaming in the candlelight. But something was different now—a faint glow emanated from its surface, pulsing slowly, like a heart

The roots held Lex tight against the stone wall, their dark bark pulsing with green light that flickered like a dying heartbeat. He struggled, but they only tightened—wrapping around his arms, his legs, his chest, squeezing the air from his lungs.Isagani stood before him, his red eyes gleaming in the green glow, his old face split by that same wide smile. His twisted sword was still raised, its dark blade pointed at Lex's chest."You're stronger than I expected," Isagani said. "But not strong enough. Not nearly strong enough."Lex's mind raced. The mask showed him the threads—thousands of them, connecting Isagani to the forest, to the roots, to the green light that pulsed through the walls and floor and ceiling. But something was wrong. He couldn't quite place it at first, the threads were too thin. Too faint. Like they were connected to something else. Something far away."Not strong enough," Lex repeated, buying time. "Maybe. But I'm fast enough."He looked at the watch on his wris