She sat there thinking about the previous encounters and she had an idea. Pucket seems to be teleporting only in areas he can easily access. This tree is no such thing. I keep it locked down when I'm not here so it's not like he can walk in any time he wants. So...
She got up and locked down her tree once more. It just made it easier to safeguard her research. The importance of the tree being sentient was she could give the tree permission for certain people to access it while locking everyone else out. Duff had not been given this access yet. She trusted him but not implicitly yet. Their relationship was still too new.
In the open, she decided to kill two birds with one stone. A certain sexy blond liked her apple cider so apple trees it was. She made it look like she was practicing the month's topic. She made really nice apple trees because she needed the apples but she pretended to suck at others making it look like she needed to practice and that was why she was not under her willow. The school's apple orchard was out of season so she couldn't liberate some from them.
She was informed someone was approaching and provided a description. She didn't look up, just continued to grow crooked and deformed orange trees. She heard the crisp sound of an apple being picked then it being bit into. "You really are good at making apples," Pucket said. "What is that wretched thing you are trying to grow?"
"Oranges." She still refused to look at him. She didn't need to. She had her overlay in front of her again. There were two red dots, not one. This meant the trees could sense another presence. There was a green dot approaching quickly, more approaching quickly behind that one. She needed to stall.
"How much is Duke paying you?"
"He's not paying me in credits. You are the payment."
"What makes you think I'll go quietly with you?"
"Oh, you will. This little cat and mouse game you've been playing has been fun but our time is running short. I have a special place prepared for us."
She could hear his steps approaching slowly as if he was savoring the moment. She could also see that green dot almost there. Just a few more seconds…
"Is the place as cold and desolate as your heart? You used to be a good person. We were even friends at one point. How could you let them corrupt you against our friendship?"
Green dot was next to Pucket. Then she felt arms around her waist while a hand grabbed her shoulder and she was gone.
Leaving an invisible enemy to attack her group.
She had closed her eyes, afraid to see where they were going but she opened them now as she could feel a breeze. She also heard:
"What the hell? Where are we? How?" Pucket was obviously confused.
Suddenly an earth pillar went straight for his head like she had never seen. Pucket was knocked out and bleeding. Lana quickly tied him up with roots and gagged him with a vine.
"Sil, the invisible boy was there. My team is in trouble if they can't see him.'
"You can?"
"Oh, I guess you were sleeping then. The trees can give me an overlay that shows me what they see. Essentially, they all send me information at once and it shows on a map."
"Okay." She saw the sleeping captive lift into the air then felt an arm around her waist. They were suddenly back at the agricultural department.
Sil whispered in her ear, "point me to his area."
She saw the red dot then a moment later she didn't need to point it out to Sil. He created an earth box and squeezed it in, making it smaller and smaller.
"Cancel your ability or I will crush you."
"DONE!!!"
Sil cancelled his ability as well and Lana wrapped the other boy up as well in roots.
Lana looked her people over. She had only been gone a few seconds so they could not have been there long enough to get really injured.
Lana asked the others to stay on lookout. "Duff, bring your camera."
"Where do you want them?" Sil put Vorden back in charge for now. Sil didn't fight more than he needed to anyway. As long as he had strong abilities, it was easy for him to win. So far, anyway.
"Up against the trunks of these two trees." Lana pointed so her back would be toward the willow. "Just in case."
Vorden moved them then she firmly tied them in place with roots. Since the invisibility guy was awake, she decided to start with him.
"What does Duke know and what does he want with me?"
"Who are you?"
"Right…" she looked at his watch and had the camera record his information. "Crow. You don't look that intelligent to me. I guess your parents had high expectations for you. Are your parents named Slug and Worm?"
"Eat shit."
"Oh, I see. Your parents didn't love you enough. I think you need a hug." She sat across his legs then activated her spikes just where there was contact. The camera didn't catch them because they were under her. Crow screamed. "Tell me what I want to know, yes?"
"Truedream is mad at Duke for losing those students. Duke hopes if he can give Truedream a good ability, he will stop being angry with him."
"There now, that wasn't so hard now was it? Has he promised me to Truedream yet?"
"No, it was to be a surprise."
"What does Pucket want from me?"
"To torture you. He gets his pleasure through forcing himself on others. The more she fights, the more it excites him. You specifically, he wants to ruin so no man will ever want you and you won't be able to have kids."
Lana sat up a bit then dropped herself back on him. "Who is he working for really? Is it Duke or is Duke a middle man?"
"AAHHHHH Middle man… middle man... I don't know who but he wears a white lab coat, number 4."