Chapter 2
Chapter Two
“Did you see Arlo anywhere?” Jordi shouts over his shoulder, nearly colliding with Lenora.
My mentor presses her back against the wall and lifts the cage in her hand over her head. The small white owl inside tilts its head to eye us curiously as we rush past them.
"What's going on?" she calls out.
“The Shroud!” I shout back. “There's a loose raven with a bandaged wing in room four!”
Panicked gasps follow us as we crash through the front door.
We skid to a stop on the sidewalk. Thick clouds swallow the afternoon sky, and fog has already descended on the streets, turning everything beyond a few feet to shadow.
Somewhere ahead, a shriek splits the air.
The four of us look in every direction, then bolt left toward the road at the edge of the forest.
“Did you see Arlo anywhere?" Jordi repeats as we run. "Arlo the Undefeated, Master of—”
“Bow and arrows. No, we didn't,” Blue says. “A woman with a House of Justice patch screamed for us to get help. There was a guard on the ground. He looked…”
“Lifeless,” Mara finishes.
My stomach hollows. Arlo trains new guards at the border in the afternoons. If anything's happened to him, I'll kill the Sages myself. They're the ones who sent him and Cas to the Dueling Estate. They're the reason our friends wear the Council's uniform now.
“Margot went to the … Sages,” Mara pants.
“Where did you see the fallen guard?” Jordi asks.
She points a shaky finger ahead.
“Near the Noxbridge Library!” Blue shouts.
I stumble when I spot movement in the fog. Jordi throws out his arms and halts. We crash into him just as a blur of Lunarian green and Veritas maroon breaks through the haze, storming toward us.
Their fear hits me first. Then their panic. A wave of it, slamming into my chest before I can brace myself. I fist the back of Jordi's cloak, squeeze my eyes shut, and fight to keep it out.
It's not your fear. It's not your panic. It's not your fear. It's not your panic.
It's rare for me to lose my grip like this. But with this many people, this much terror, and without an amulet to keep my gifts contained, I shouldn't be surprised. My mind snags on that last thought for a beat. We’re stepping into the Council’s territory and I’m not wearing my amulet.
The consequences of that are nearly as terrifying as whatever we’re running towards.
The thought vanishes as people run past us screaming.
“Run!”
“A Shroud demon took a guard!”
“We're going to die!” Mara's cry near my ear makes my eyes fly open.
I turn, grab Mara's shoulders and tune out everyone else. “Do you have water on you?”
Her hands shake as she pulls out a glass container. I address both students. “Take off your amulets. Wet your hands like you learned in class. If anything tries to grab you, channel your water.”
“What about compulsion?” Blue asks, yanking off her purple amulet.
“No. No compulsion. No serephony. Not with these things.” I hold her gaze. “We don't know if they can use it against you.”
She nods rapidly.
I set a hand on each of their shoulders and squeeze. “Go.”
“Professor,” Mara whispers, wide-eyed. “What about the two of you?”
“Don't worry about us. Get back to Veritas and make sure everyone stays inside. Go!”
They give a sharp nod, turn towards the fleeing crowd, and run. I let out a shaky breath and turn back to Jordi.
“Deny it all you want,” he says as we rush down the sidewalk. “You make a good professor.”
I scoff. “That siren's hair turned blue two weeks ago during my truth serum lecture. She still hasn't figured out how to go blonde again.”
The sound of footsteps makes us freeze. We slam our backs against the brick wall and watch two men in labor uniforms sprint past. I'm about to push off the wall when a cold breeze skates down the back of my neck. I go rigid. Yank Jordi back when he tries to move.
“Wait,” I hiss, staring at the darkening fog.
I watch it spread slowly, creep closer, and nearly jump out of my skin when Jordi’s hand closes around mine. I squeeze back, the way we used to when we were children, when the dark felt like something that could swallow us whole. In front of us, the fog ripples. A dark shape moves within it.
I can't make out what it is, but I swear I see wings. We don't breathe. We don't move. We just watch as the Shroud creature drifts past us.
Once it passes, Jordi slides along the wall, pulling me with him toward the edge of the sidewalk.
He lets go when we reach the light post at the corner, and I press my palms against it, trying to draw heat from the metal.
I don't know what my fire could possibly do to those creatures, but I’d rather be overly prepared than not.
“The fog looks different here,” Jordi says. “Does it feel different to you?”
Something in his tone makes my hackles rise. I press my hands harder against the warm metal. “I don't know.”
“Maybe you can just check to see which way it's moving?”
Everything inside me stills. I gape at my brother and cross my arms to contain the shiver that rocks through me.
“Jordi.”
“At least try to see if you can sense where Arlo is,” he pleads.
I turn to the fog. Toward the Shroud that pulses somewhere beyond it. The thought of reaching out with my serephony. Of letting it sense me back—
I shake my head and look at him. “You don't know what you're asking.”
“I'd do it myself if I could!”
The sigil on my chest burns. “Of course you would. You're reckless!” I jab a finger toward the fog. “Those things are attracted to emotive gifts like serephony. What if I open myself up and they sense me?”
He scowls. “Only one person made that claim! He didn't even explain why.”
I look away. “Let's just keep walking. Maybe we'll find them.”
“And if all we find are more Shroud creatures?”
I shut my eyes and exhale.
“I'm not asking you to channel those things.” His voice softens. “I'm asking you to find our friends and pull back. That's it.”
“Gods.” I uncross my arms and shake them at my sides, trying to loosen the tension coiled in my muscles. “This is the stupidest plan you've ever had.”
His eyes brighten. “I'll be right here. If you start acting strange, I'll shake you until you open your eyes.”
I shoot him one last glare before I close my eyes and try to center myself. He wouldn't ask this if he truly understood. Everyone in Lunaris loves to act tough when they talk about the Shroud. But that’s all it is.
Talk. None of them actually walk into the pit of darkness. Most won’t even get near the Shroud mushrooms.
That’s the thing about darkness. We’re all drawn to it. We like to look at it, talk about it, and wrap ourselves in the safety of its mystery. But few are willing to fully immerse themselves in it.
Myself included. Especially when it comes to the Shroud, because it’s not just the darkness that makes it terrifying. It's not even the creatures. It's the lack of life.
The silence. The stillness. The kind of stillness that people fear more than the darkness itself. On my next exhale, I let Jordi’s energy fade.
I picture myself drifting down the street, searching each corner and alley. Nothing. I reach further. Still nothing. The only thing I sense is the Shroud’s void. Its quiet hunger, lurking just beyond the edges of my awareness. Waiting.
All at once, I stop drifting. I’m standing at the edge of the darkness, right beside the Shroud mushrooms that grow just outside of it. The damned mushrooms that are partly responsible for the stagnant state of my life.
A whisper curls through the darkness. A gust of cold wind hits the back of my neck and slithers down my spine. I turn my head in that direction. Nothing.
The whisper comes from my right this time.
Closer. Heart in my throat, I turn my head again.
Still nothing. I shake it off and try to focus on finding Arlo’s calm, steady energy, but there’s another sound.
Waves crashing against the cliffs. I decide it’s enough.
If this is happening anywhere near the cliffs, it means the creatures are moving in the opposite direction. I start pulling back, and then … there.
Something ripples in the darkness. I follow it to its source and find myself staring into a pair of glowing eyes. A burst of warmth rushes through me, chasing away the cold. My body starts to shake.
My eyes fly open. I’m back on the sidewalk. Jordi’s face is inches from mine.
“Ada!” He shakes my shoulders. “What happened? Look at me!”
I sag against him on the exhale. He catches me, both arms tight around me.
“Goddess strike me. You’re shivering!” His voice is rough. “What happened?”
I swallow. “I couldn't find him. But the creatures … I think they're moving toward the cliffs.”
His arms tighten. “Gods. This has never happened before! I didn't think … did they … did you—”
“No.” I pull back enough to meet his eyes. “Nothing happened. I'm fine.”
He starts to apologize, but a shriek cuts him off.