The Tree of Souls is a magical tree created by the first king of the Magnificent North, Wolfric Valor.
Description[]
The tree is dotted with spiky burnished red leaves and full of red branches the same color as the trunk. Some of the untamed branches crawl up toward the sky, while others grow outward and downward the ground.
The branches of the Tree of Souls are filled with blood. Anyone who drinks its blood can become immortal in exchange for the life of the person they love the most. The tree has a heart and its heartbeats can be heard. It is located in a cavern on the other side of the Cursed Forest. A quicker way to reach it was through an Arch in the Merrywood Forest.
Plot[]
A Curse for True Love[]
A seed of this tree was given to Wolfric Valor by Serenity, a princess from another kingdom. She gave it to him as a thank-you for saving her life. He planted the tree and tended to it, requiring him to feed it his blood every day. It was only when the tree was fully grown that he learned the truth. Serenity had actually given him the seed of the tree in the hopes that he would plant it and that his wife would die as soon as he drank from the branches. As soon as he learned this he regretted ever planting the tree and thought of it as evil.
Centuries later, Apollo Acadian sought out the tree and was able to find it. Seeking immortality for himself in order to kill Jacks, he wanted to drink from the tree. Wolfric Valor stopped him by warning him of the sacrifice the magic of the tree required. He said he would stay from it, but wasn't able to resist drinking from it after he saw his wife Evangeline and Jacks together.
He drank from the tree even if it meant the life of Evangeline. He became immortal for only a brief moment as the tree almost immediately started to take his life. Ultimately the tree grabbed him. The trunk split open like a mouth and trapped him inside for eternity. The payment the tree required was the life of the person one loved most, and Apollo loved nobody more than himself.
Known trapped souls[]
- Apollo Acadian
- Unnamed Prince (former)
Trivia[]
- In the Waterstones alternate ending of A Curse for True Love, Evangeline goes to the Tree of Souls and writes a prophecy with the Truth stone that Honora Valor had let her borrow. This prophecy stated that only the spilled blood of Apollo's true love would be able to free him from the tree. Jacks added a timeline and a curse to the prophecy. Evangeline wanted to give Apollo another chance but Jacks wasn't feeling so inclined to be charitable. The alternate endings are not considered canonical per the author's note.
- In the Owl Crate alternate ending of A Curse for True Love, Aurora goes to the Tree of Souls intending to drink its blood in hopes that in exchange for her immortality, it would take Jacks' life. She can't bring herself to do it but finds the prophecy intended to free Apollo written by Evangeline and Jacks. On a whim, she spills her blood to see if it would free Apollo but another young man, presumably a prince is freed from the tree instead.