“It’s fine,” Damien said, rubbing his leg. “Sean bailed my ass out before I got hurt too badly. It barely even hurts anymore.”

Henry let out a hiss within Damien’s mind. His true voice slipped through the cracks, the drone of dozens of overlapping voices filling the boy’s head before Henry got himself under control.

Sylph bristled, her cold glare burning into Jayce’s battered body in the corner of the arena. Sean followed her gaze and stepped in between her and the fallen boy.

“Don’t think about it,” Sean warned. “Striking a wounded student can be grounds for serious punishment.”

Sylph gritted her teeth but nodded, forcing herself to turn away from the boy. Damien gave her a grin and rolled his shoulders.

“It’s fine, Sylph. I’m okay.”

“And you gave him a run for his money,” Nolan said, a note of wonder in his voice. “He was a second year student, but you made him actually go all out to fight you. That’s very impressive.”

“Your friend is right,” Sean said. Jayce groaned from his position on the ground and the boy’s friend edged towards him. Sean pierced him with a glare that froze the boy in place before he resumed talking. “Taking on a Year Two and holding your ground… well done. Stupid, but impressive.

“That’s me,” Damien said with a small smirk.

“Indeed,” Sean said, patting Damien on the shoulder. “Look, it’s been great meeting up with you again. I hope we can do it again under better circumstances. However, I’m still technically working. I’ve got to take care of him.”

He jerked his head towards Jayce. The other Year Two let out a relieved sigh as Sean stepped away from the group and walked over to the crumpled boy. A ray of gold light shot out of Sean’s hands and enveloped Jayce.

There were a series of pops as his bones snapped back into place and his nose corrected itself. Jayce groaned and pushed himself upright. His gaze snapped to Damien, seething with hatred.

“There,” Sean said, barely hiding his disgust. “Are you feeling healed?”

“Yes,” Jayce spat. “And I’m rea–”

Sean’s fist crashed into Jayce’s jaw, snapping his head back. Yellow sparks of light danced around Sean as he reared back and drove his fist into the other boy’s stomach. Jayce doubled over with a grunt of pain.

The Year Three boy swept Jayce’s legs out from under him and kicked him violently in the side. Damien grimaced as he heard the distinctive snap of ribs breaking.

“I’ve called a healer for you, shitbag,” Sean snarled. “Don’t ever let me catch you trying to kill someone in this school again. Don’t forget you’re getting off lucky. I don’t think I need to explain what the professors would do to you if they were in my position.”

Jayce groaned into the sand. Sean curled his lip up and stalked back to the group. Jayce’s friend paled and scampered away as the furious boy’s gaze landed on him.

“The four of you might want to train somewhere else for a little,” Sean suggested. “That kid looks like a blockhead. He might be stupid enough to get revenge. I’ll report this to the faculty and they’ll take care of it soon enough.”

“We can do that,” Nolan said, glancing at Jayce’s body. “Not that I object, but didn’t you say you couldn’t strike an injured student?”

“I did say that,” Sean said, giving Nolan a sage nod. “That’s why I healed him first. You heard him say it himself. He was doing fine, so I was once again within my rights to hit him.”

They all chuckled as the tension started to seep away.

“Thanks, Sean,” Damien said. His chest still felt a little heavy and his thoughts danced aggravatingly at the edge of his mind. “I do feel a little loopy, though. Do you know why?”

“That’s my bad,” Sean said, rubbing the back of his head with an embarrassed grin. “I’m not as good a healer as the professors. My magic ends up using a lot of your body’s energy to restore you. You should probably get some rest. I’ll let your professor know why you’re missing – what’s their name?”

“We’ve all got Professor Delph,” Sylph answered for Damien.

“Ah. Damn it,” Sean said, grimacing. “That man is a pain to track down. I suppose his methods must work, though. I’ve never seen a Year One do that well against a Year Two. Sylph, could you walk Damien back to your dorm? As for you two – would you accompany me for a short while? I’d like some witnesses for when I report to the Dean.”

Nolan and Reena nodded.

“Great,” Sean said with an award winning grin. “Hold on. I’m going to use a teleportation spell. Stay safe, Damien. I’ll drop by sometime tomorrow to make sure everything’s going good on your end.”

He reached out and grabbed the Gray siblings by the shoulders. A pillar of light enveloped them and the three students vanished. The entire arena was looking in their direction now. Damien couldn’t hear what they were saying, but he wasn’t a fan of that much attention.

“Let’s get out of here,” Sylph said, mirroring Damien’s thoughts. “Can you walk?”

Damien took a careful step. His movements were a little sluggish, but it wasn’t nearly as bad as some of Delph’s lessons had left him. He nodded to Sylph and the two of them headed out of the arena and back towards their room.

Each step Damien took seemed to draw more and more energy. He managed to make it about halfway back to their dorm before his vision started to fade in and out before him. The rune on his chest burned, but his mind could barely register it.

Sylph wordlessly slipped under Damien’s arm, looping her own behind his back, and helped him the rest of the way to the mountain. By the time they arrived, Damien’s thoughts had slowed down to those of a snail.

“I think… I should go to bed,” Damien said. His lips were like two slabs of unresponsive meat. Sylph gave him a worried smile and helped him on top of the mattress – which still didn’t have any sheets.

“Goodnight,” Damien slurred.

He never heard Sylph’s response. His mind flicked out like a snuffed candle and he fell into a deep sleep.

Had things gone his way, Damien wouldn’t have thought a single thing until the following morning. However, that would have been rather boring and a waste of good sleep, so such a scenario was doomed to never come about.

A field of stars painted over a chasm of infinite darkness swam into view around Damien. He blinked, then let out a groan as his mind caught up with his location.

“Do we have to do this now, Herald?”

“There is no good reason not to do it now,” Herald said. The eldritch creature’s starry body formed from the shadows before Damien, its face as impassive as ever.

“Yes there is. I’m tired. I want to sleep.”

“There is no weariness here. Your body is sleeping,” Herald said. “Your rest will not be effected by our talk.”

“It’s not the same,” Damien replied. He glanced down at his glowing body and grimaced. “How about we get this over with quickly, then? What do you want?”

“You wished to discuss the purpose of the rune I placed on your chest with… Henry,” Herald said. There was no discernable change in emotion when it said Henry’s name, but Damien thought he might have detected the slightest hint of a delay before it.

“I did,” Damien replied, matching Herald’s neutral tone. “What about it?”

“I can answer your question for you, although you’re welcome to confirm with Henry. I am creating a Greater Containment rune.”

“For the part of your soul that’s locked away?” Damien asked.

“Precisely. It will enable you to draw on a portion of my – your – powers. As the circle progresses, you will likely notice small fragments of memories or power becoming available to you.”

“I see,” Damien said slowly. His chest throbbed as if something were carving its claws into him. “That sounds convenient for me. Why are you doing it? You aren’t the type to give something away for free.”

“Because you will need to become stronger if you are to stop the Corruption. I will not attempt to convince you that Henry is not on your side. I have calculated the possibilities, and it is almost certain that you will listen to him over me. Therefore, I will take a different approach.”

“Which is?” Damien asked, grimacing through the pain.

“I will give you the tools to see the Corruption. When you seek out the other eldritch creatures, observe the world. Seek that which does not belong and gaze upon it. Then, when you have witnessed it, we will speak again. Your opinions will have changed.”

“Enough that I’d want to destroy my own world?”

“Enough that you would do anything to see it reborn,” Herald corrected. “We will speak again soon, boy. Do not dally. The Corruption will tear everything apart if it is left alone. If you wait until it is obvious, then it will be too late to save anything.”

“How long will it take you to finish the runes?” Damien asked.

Herald raised a hand and pointed at Damien’s chest. The stars in the sky started to blink out. Darkness encircled Damien, crawling up his feet and chilling him to the bone.

“Soon,” Herald said. The last star vanished.

***

While Damien slept, Sylph watched over him. Her eyebrows were knit together in concern, which made it exceedingly difficult for Henry to slip away without her noticing. The eldritch creature muttered angrily within Damien’s mind.

Several hours passed and the day turned to dusk. Sylph remained the entire time, not looking away for an instant. If Henry didn’t know better, he would have suspected that the girl was meditating.

His opportunity finally came when Sylph pursed her lips and stood up to go to the bathroom. The moment she pulled the curtain shut behind her, Damien’s shadow tore away and Henry hurtled out of the room.

He shot from shadow to shadow, his senses sweeping out over the mountain as he sought a particular human out. There was no guarantee they’d be there, of course. However, Henry’s years of research had given him more than a slight insight into how the short lived creatures acted.

Henry settled at the base of the mountain and waited. An hour later, his patience was rewarded. A boy wearing a heavy cloak that covered his face slipped through the streets.

He glanced back and forth, checking to see if anyone had noticed him before heading up the mountain. Henry bit back a laugh at how ridiculous the act was. It wouldn’t have been possible to look more suspicious if he’d tried.

Henry followed after the boy. He didn’t need to see the boorish face hidden within the shadows of the cloak to know who it was. He’d marked Jayce’s presence the moment the boy had attacked Damien.

Jayce reached the edge of the plateau where Damien’s room sat. That confirmed he was there looking for either Damien, the Grays, or Mark. It wouldn’t have been possible for Jayce to arrive at the rooms without visualizing one of their inhabitants.

Henry slipped across the ground. He rose up behind Jayce and drew on his magic. Then he reached out and touched the boy’s foot with a shadowy tendril. There was a pop of magic. Jayce and Henry both vanished.

Jayce reappeared in a small clearing. Large trees surrounded him on every side, and the only light came from the dim moon far above them. He screamed and spun, raising his hands defensively as his flaming armor roared to life around him.

“Show yourself!” Jayce cried out, his eyes wide with fear. “Who are you?”

Henry rose from the ground, shadows twisting around him and forming into a humanoid body. Jayce’s eyes widened and he took a step back, trembling.

“Who are you?” Jayce asked again, his breath coming in short gasps. “What do you want with me? Are you a professor? I swear, I was just going to apologize!”

“So many questions,” Henry said, his voice a hoarse whisper. “And yet you still manage to lie.”

The flaming sword flared to life in Jayce’s hand and he pointed it at Henry. “I don’t know who you are, but you can’t scare me. Send me back.”

“And so demanding,” Henry mused.

“You’re no professor. Professors don’t kidnap students,” Jayce said. His sword doubled in size and he bared his teeth. “What are you, then? A companion?”

“If you want answers, you must give something in return,” Henry said, his form growing more solid. Sparks of white lightning seemed to crackle throughout his body as he slowly grew closer to Jayce.

“Stay back!” Jayce screamed, pointing the sword at him. “I’ll kill you!”

“Let’s see,” Henry said, cocking his head as if in thought. “I believe I’ve shown myself. That answers your first request.”

A blade of darkness ripped out from the shadows behind Jayce. It carved across his back and sliced into his hand, chopping off several fingers. Jayce screamed in pain and clutched his hand, his eyes going wide in horror.

“The next question, then,” the eldritch creature said. “I am Henry.”

A blade of darkness erupted from the ground beneath Jayce’s foot. He screamed again and ripped himself free, staggering and falling onto his back. He crawled away from Henry, but the shadow drifted after him at a leisurely pace.

“Only a few left,” Henry said. His right arm morphed, growing long claws that raked through the ground behind him. “What do I want with you? That one’s simple. You have annoyed me.”

Jayce slammed into the ground with a pained grunt as the world seemed to grow a thousand times heavier. His flaming armor flickered and died out as he desperately tried to gasp for air. His body felt like it was being crushed under the force of an entire castle.

“Am I a professor?” Henry wondered aloud. “No. I am not.”

The bones in Jayce’s legs crunched and turned to powder. The boy couldn’t even open his mouth to scream.

“Ah. That’s all of our questions,” Henry said. The force pressing down on Jayce suddenly lessened. He drew in a ragged breath.

“Please let me go,” Jayce begged.

Henry cocked his head to the side. For the briefest moment, a smile made of faint light passed over the shadow’s face. A spike of darkness erupted from the ground beneath Jayce, lifting the boy into the air as it punched through his heart.

“No,” Henry said. Jayce didn’t ask any more questions. A strong wind blew through the clearing, rustling the trees. When it faded, Henry had vanished.