[Jack's POV]
The room fell silent after Orin's story.
No one moved. No one spoke.
Just the quiet hum of lingering magic and the sharp, invisible weight of what we'd just heard.
Ark was the first to break the stillness.
"...I saw Aaron today," he said, voice soft, a little slurred at the edges.
I turned to him immediately. His eyes were half-lidded, glazed with exhaustion and painkillers. Probably something Terra gave him to dull the worst of it.
"He was near the courtyard. I caught his scent—looked like him too. But..." He blinked slowly. "Something was... off."
Terra nodded quietly. "I felt something moving around the greenhouse earlier, too. I wasn't sure if it was related, but... it felt wrong. Unnatural."
I gave them both a quiet nod. "Thank you. That helps a lot. Now... tell me what happened during the attack."
Araki crossed his arms, frustration bleeding into his voice. "We were out in the forest. Gathering herbs and scouting for goblins—some reports said they might be creeping toward the academy grounds again."
He paused, grinding his teeth.
"We stopped to rest. Nothing seemed wrong. Then... out of nowhere, this thing jumped us. Shadowy. Fast. We couldn't see it properly—just streaks of black and purple flashing around us."
Orin spoke next. "I tried to predict its movements. Waited for the rhythm. The second I thought I had it—bam—it countered. Knocked me flat."
Zek let out a breath. "I tried magic. both Fire and Ice." He looked at me. "But it didn't matter. Shadows swallowed it whole."
Araki clenched his fists. "We circled around Ark to protect him as He's the weakest of the group... no offence, Ark."
Ark managed a small shrug. "None taken."
"But the bastard knew. It didn't waste time. Went straight for him."
Terra stepped forward, arms crossed. "I was walking with the twins near the forest. We were talking about the academy's bias against commoners, and how to change it. Then we heard the fight." She looked down. "When we got there... it was gone. Ark was down, and they were trying to help him."
She glanced toward the far wall. "We brought him here through a side gate. It was open—luckily. Didn't want anyone to see. Especially not the teachers."
I frowned. "Why not the infirmary?"
Terra's jaw tightened. "The headmaster fired the old doctor yesterday. The new one... let's just say his priorities line up a little too neatly with the headmaster's."
I raised an eyebrow.
"So far," she continued, "he's treated commoner students with the bare minimum. If that. Noble students? Full recovery potions. Warm beds. Everything." Her tone was acid. "We weren't going to risk Ark."
"Good call," I muttered, shaking my head. "As if anyone would try to be subtle about their corruption and prejudice."
Ms. Cottonflower cleared her throat gently. "This place," she said, "is a forgotten part of the academy. No records. The headmaster doesn't know it exists." She smiled faintly. "I told Terra to bring students here when needed. I know some healing. I make my own potions. It's not much, but it's fair."
I nodded. "Thank you. For watching out for them."
She inclined her head, then stepped back.
But Araki wasn't done.
He took a step forward, fists trembling. "Are we really not going to talk about it? That thing that attacked us—was it really Aaron?"
The others looked at me.
I stared down at my hands—not because I didn't know what to say...
But because I did.
And it was going to hurt.
Zek looked up. "You should tell them."
Araki turned to Zek in confusion and partial anger.
I nodded.
"Aaron's not lost," I said quietly. "But he's not himself either."
Araki's voice sharpened. "What does that mean?"
I looked around the room at the twins, Terra, and Ms. Cottonflower.
"Before I say anything else," I began, "I need to ask. Are you all willing to listen? This won't be easy. It's not about students fighting. Or drama. Or school politics. This... this goes deep. You're not connected to Aaron. You don't have to get involved."
The twins shared a glance. Then they nodded in perfect unison.
"We're not letting some crazed bastard terrorize our school," Jethro said, arms crossed.
Elaina smiled faintly. "We're ranked among the top students. This school needs to change. If helping others is part of that, then we're in."
I raised an eyebrow. "This isn't about student rank. Or ambition. This isn't a rival gone rogue. Nor is it the fault of a student."
They didn't blink.
"Doesn't matter what this is. We know we want to help, and that's it," they said in perfect unison.
I sighed. "Alright."
I turned to Terra. She just smirked.
"You've known me for years," she said. "Do you really think I'm going to sit this out?"
I chuckled. "Fair."
I turned to Ms. Cottonflower.
She shook her head. "I'm an old woman. Not much use in a fight. But if the infirmary isn't safe, this room will remain open for anyone who wants to make this place better."
I bowed my head. "That's more than enough. Thank you."
She smiled again, then quietly stepped out of the room.
I turned back to the others.
"If anyone here has any doubts," I said slowly, "Now's the time to speak. You're free to walk away. I understand. But if you stay... understand this path has no clean end."
The twins stood tall. "We're not afraid," Elaina said. "We've lived behind academy walls for years. We want to know what's really out there."
I exhaled slowly.
I squeezed Ark's hand gently, checking his eyes.
Clear. A little sleepy. But coherent.
I stood.
Raised my hand.
And began to chant. Channelling magic, I knew all too well, into the room.
"Through the silence that binds the breath,
Where forgotten gods whisper death,
From realms beyond where stars forget,
Let none gaze in, nor claim what's kept.
No eye divine, no thought may pry,
This truth is sealed beneath a sky.
Of empty void and shadowed flame,
All knowledge here shall bear no name."
A deep thrum echoed through the room. The walls shimmered. Shadows pulled inward—then stilled.
The air tightened.
Nothing could reach us now.
Not even Brakos.
The others looked around, wide-eyed.
A few were visibly shaken.
"This is an ancient isolation spell I learned years ago, known as [Null Invocation]," I said quietly. "Spirits, Devils, Gods, not even the Primordials can reach us now."
Silence.
Araki swallowed. "You're telling us that—"
I nodded. "Not sure yet, but can't be too safe."
Jethro looked slightly pale. "Why did everything get tense all of a sudden?"
I looked at him. "This is how serious this situation is... Still want to know?"
The twins looked at each other, then back at me and nodded.
I looked at everyone else, and they nodded as well.
No one left.
I let out a breath.
"…I'm not one hundred percent sure what it is yet," I said slowly, "but I believe Aaron is possessed by a shadow spirit." I half lied.
~~~~~~~~~~~
[Aaron's POV]
The trees had long since thinned out behind me.
Now it was stone.
Old stone. Cracked and half-eaten by time, the walls lining the narrow passage swirled with faded runes I couldn't read. I kept walking, even as my feet dragged and my breathing grew shallow.
Each step echoed too loudly.
Tap... tap... scrape...
I didn't know where I was.
That realization sat quietly in the back of my mind. It should've terrified me, but it didn't. I wasn't sure why.
'Where am I again...?'
The thought surfaced, weak and slow.
Then a voice, low, almost a whisper, said ^You're safe, Aaron. Just a little further. You're doing well.^
I nodded slowly, more out of reflex than thought.
"…I'm getting tired," I murmured, my voice barely a rasp. My legs ached. My claws felt heavy.
The voice paused.
Then sighed—almost like a disappointed parent. ^Very well. One moment...^ The tone flattened. ^There's a chamber nearby. Use it. Rest. But not long. We are not alone down here.^
I kept walking a little farther, until I found it—an alcove, hidden behind a half-crumbled doorway.
I stepped inside.
It was small and empty. Just dust, roots crawling through cracks, and the cold press of silence.
I scanned the corners, checked the walls, and sniffed the air for magic or rot.
Nothing.
Good enough.
I sat with my back to the far wall, letting out a long breath.
I looked at my body
My arms were lean. Not weak. But not strong either. My legs were the same. I never had bulk like other leonin; instead, I just had speed, flexibility, and precision.
I curled my tail around myself for warmth, then closed my eyes.
Sleep took me faster than I expected.
-
When I opened them again—
—I was somewhere else.
White.
Endless.
A void of pure nothing, glowing just enough to feel like light but casting no shadows. My paws sank slightly into the surface, even though there was no floor.
"...What the—?" I whispered, noticing my voice sounded younger.
I looked down and froze.
My hands were smaller.
Thin fingers. Short claws. My arms, barely wider than branches.
And my name was... Golden brown.
It hadn't been this colour since I was little.
I blinked and touched my face. "I look like I did when I was... six?"
I turned slowly in place, trying to make sense of it.
'Is this a dream?'
It felt too real.
Then—
*CRACK.*
I jerked around.
The 'sky'—if it could even be called that—split open like glass, a jagged fracture ripping across the ceiling of this endless space.
And from it...
Darkness poured in.
Not black.
Shadow.
Liquid shadow.
It felt like rain and smoke and screaming all at once, devouring the brightness like it had never been there.
"No, no, no—!" I tried to run, but my legs wouldn't move fast enough.
The darkness caught me.
Wrapped around my limbs, pulled through my chest. My body began to *vanish*—not fade, but *unmake*.
My right arm dissolved first.
Then my side.
I screamed as holes were punched through my chest and legs.
I looked down again—my golden mane turned deep purple, strands rotting into darkness.
"No... no, that's not... that's not mine—!"
I tried to call out. For help. For anyone.
But the name in my throat was gone.
And then—
-
I jolted upright.
Back in the chamber.
Gasping, chest heaving. Sweat slicked my back and soaked my mane. My hands trembled as I looked at them.
Whole.
Purple.
Still mine... right?
I didn't understand what that was.
Was it a memory?
A dream?
A warning?
^You've slept long enough.^ the shadow said
The voice came sharp and cold this time, slicing through the haze in my mind.
^We must continue. Your presence lingers too strongly now—creatures may be drawn to it.^
I flinched at the tone, then nodded before I even realized I was moving.
"...Okay."
I stood. My body protested. My joints cracked.
But I didn't stop.
I walked back out into the hall.
The corridor yawned before me, dust coiling in the faint breeze that had no source.
I stepped forward again.
One foot. Then another.
Somewhere in the corner of my thoughts, something flickered—
'...Why am I even down here?'
But the shadow said nothing to that.
So I said nothing.
And kept walking.