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“Edgar!”
Kallos’s voice drowns out all the others. My eyes fling open and I take a steadying breath. Lucina, Vinnie, and Corvus are gawking at me with fear burning their eyes. Disgust and terror morph their frowns into expressions reserved for monsters.
Before me stands Sully, a boy with a skull in his hand, and blood is smeared across those beautiful windows that Kallos opened, painting the room red. There’s tension in the air, deep and dark and awful, yet no one dares to breathe or move a muscle.
My breath catches in my chest as I realize everyone can finally see it as I do. Sully smiles, grins so widely that its dry lips split and bright, fresh blood sheens. Iron fills my senses. If fear has a scent, this is it.
“Kallos—what do I do now?” I whisper it so quietly I’m unsure if he hears me.
The professor’s golden eyes are wide with shock. “You lied to me, Edgar. You know this Shadow’s name as well as I do.”
Sully’s decrepit smile fades as its eyes widen. All of a sudden it’s no longer a boy. Its eyes spread off in each direction slowly as if it’s being pulled apart. The skull drops to the ground and it splashes, flicking black liquid at my white cloak.
Kallos is in front of me before anything else can happen. In a blur, he washes me with a veil of golden light.
“Sully,” Kallos whispers at my Shadow with gritted teeth.
How did he know its name? Sully. The name thrums against my inner walls. I can feel the room spinning. The Shadow lets out a cackling laugh that seeps into the marrow of my bones. I can almost see the form it’s taking behind Kallos’s golden cloak, but I can’t quite make it out.
“Sully, leave,” I shout and shut my eyes fiercely.
The blinds shut all at once as screams and golden light burst through the classroom. Darkness moves like black sand, weaving and snuffing out the glittering wisps of Kallos’s light.
I can’t see anything.
Feathers tickle the back of my neck and whirl around me like a tornado. I’m breathless. Before my mind can settle on any of the rushing thoughts, it stops. It all just stops, and silence ensues.
A moment later the room returns to normal. The blinds open and natural, un-reddened light filters in and dapples the desks. Kallos’s hair is mussed and the students are out of their desks, pressed to the floor, scattered and hiding.
I look at Kallos. He takes a long, relaxing breath as he runs his hand over his head. “All right… Who would like to try next?” I tremble as I stare at him, waiting for him to address what just happened, but he only whispers, “I need to see you after class,” looks at me briefly, then nods for me to head back to my seat.
The rest of the class is a blur to me. Only thoughts of my Shadow and how terrifying it is trickle through my mind. How does Kallos know its name? He speaks as if he’s encountered it before. Is that possible?
I remain in my seat as the others gather their things and leave the room. Vinnie and Lucina spare me a look before I wave them off. “I need to speak with the professor,” I mumble.
Vinnie’s eyes narrow. “Are you all right, Edgar?” I raise my shoulders and drop them. He nods in understanding. Lucina smooths her hand over my shoulder wordlessly and the two of them leave. Corvus lingers after everyone else is gone.
Kallos approaches and sits on the desk before me. The sun emblem brooch at the center of his gold cloak is bright. “Edgar, Arthur has told me much about you and your Nova sibling, Terra. However, he forgot to mention that your Shadow is Sully.” He looks at Corvus and studies him for a moment before nodding. “Thank you for cutting in when you did. I was a bit too surprised to handle that situation as well as I should’ve.”
Was Corvus responsible for the feathers?
I struggle to meet Kallos’s eyes. I’m not even sure what to say.
Kallos goes on: “Sully is a Shadow I met a long time ago. I’m not sure we’re taking the right precautions with it. I’m sorry, Edgar, but I will have to place a cast on you to keep it in control until you’re ready to handle such power.”
My pulse thrums loudly in my ears and my heart clenches tightly as if Sully is squeezing it with rage. I choke out a breath. Kallos seems to know already that my Shadow is rejecting his words; he raises his hand and golden light emanates from his palm.
Sully speaks low in my head, its voice scratchy and eerie. Let him cast the power that I give you. See what it costs, boy. My muscles twitch involuntarily.
By the time the light fades. Sully feels like a small tumor, balled up and contained like a heavy lump of coal in my chest. Its power is locked away and out of my reach. A trickle of blood flows from each of my eyes, dripping onto my desk and painting the surface red.
“Gods, what did you do?” Corvus says with a shaky voice and comes to my side to inspect me.
Kallos cradles his hand as if placing the cast on Sully physically hurt him. “Help me get him to the infirmary and then head to your next class, Corvus. Not a word of this to anyone. I’m only trying to help.”
Corvus gives Kallos a wary look, but seems to trust him enough to give a firm nod. I groan as they lift me from the desk and guide me out into the hall and down to the second story.
Kallos tries to keep me conscious as my head bobs from left to right with each step we take. “How old are you now, Edgar?” he asks.
