Kai barely had time to react as the massive creature lunged forward, its shadowy form blotting out the world around him. Its monstrous maw gaped wide, filled with darkness that seemed to devour even the light of the academy's distant torches. His body was still aching from the fall, his muscles sluggish and weak, but he couldn't afford to hesitate.
The ground shook beneath him as he rolled to the side, narrowly avoiding the snapping tendrils that followed. Dust and debris rained down from the collapsing tower above, choking the air. Lysandra, just a few feet away, stumbled in her descent, her hand reaching out for balance as the creature's monstrous bulk barreled toward them both.
"Kai, move!" she shouted, her voice strained with effort.
Kai forced himself to his feet, adrenaline surging through his veins. Every muscle screamed in protest, but the sight of Lysandra's desperate struggle snapped him into action. He could feel the flicker of shadows inside him, weak but present, the bond still fragile. With his powers so unreliable, all they had left was speed and instinct.
Lysandra dodged another lashing tendril, her movements quick but frantic. The creature's form seemed endless, its massive bulk twisting and writhing as it pursued them both. In a split second, Kai realized that they couldn't outrun it forever. The courtyard was littered with rubble, and there was nowhere to hide, nowhere to escape.
"Lysandra!" Kai called out, his mind racing. "We need to get out of the open!"
Her gaze met his, wide with fear, but there was a sharp understanding in her eyes. Without a word, she nodded and began sprinting toward a half-collapsed wall to their left. Kai followed, his breath ragged as he fought to keep pace, his body moving on pure survival instinct. The creature roared behind them, a sound that rattled Kai to his core.
They dove behind the crumbling remains of the wall just as the creature's tendrils slammed into the ground where they had been standing moments before. The impact sent shockwaves through the earth, cracks spiderwebbing out from the creature's weight. Dust billowed around them, obscuring their vision.
Kai leaned against the wall, gasping for air. His mind raced, trying to think of a plan, but the reality of the situation weighed heavily on him. This thing was beyond anything they had faced before, and without his full shadow powers, they stood no chance of stopping it.
Lysandra, crouched beside him, wiped the sweat and dirt from her brow. "That thing… it's not just a shadow beast. It's something else," she panted, her voice tight with exhaustion.
Kai nodded, his gaze locked on the writhing mass of shadows on the other side of the wall. The creature was massive, its form constantly shifting, its tendrils stretching out in every direction as if searching for them. But it wasn't just its size that unnerved him—it was the sense of malevolence radiating from it, as if it were an extension of something darker, something ancient.
"What did Albright say before he—" Lysandra hesitated, her voice faltering at the memory of their fallen mentor. "Before he was… killed?"
Kai's mind raced back to the professor's last words. He had been trying to explain something about the creature, something crucial. His voice echoed in Kai's mind, fragmented by the chaos of the moment. *It's drawing power… from the core of the academy… the shadow is feeding…*
"The courtyard," Kai muttered, realization dawning on him. "It's drawing power from the courtyard. That's what he was trying to tell us."
Lysandra's eyes widened. "The core beneath the academy? But how? It's supposed to be sealed!"
"I don't know," Kai admitted, "but if it's using the core's energy, that means we need to cut it off from the source. If we don't, this thing will just keep growing."
Lysandra clenched her fists, her face determined despite the fear that lingered beneath the surface. "But how do we get close enough to stop it without being ripped apart?"
Kai didn't have an answer. The courtyard was swarming with smaller shadow creatures, and the massive entity at its center was almost unstoppable. Without his full powers, there was no way they could take it down directly. But they couldn't just sit there and wait for the creature to tear through the academy, destroying everything and everyone in its path.
He looked down at his hand, the tendrils of shadow still faintly swirling around his wrist. They were weak, barely responsive, but they were there. The connection wasn't completely severed. He could still feel it, deep inside him, the shadows waiting to be called.
But it wasn't enough.
Kai's mind flashed back to the ritual—the moment he had lost control of the shadows, the moment they had turned on him. The memory was raw, painful, but it held a clue. The shadows weren't just a power to be controlled. They were alive, sentient, and they had rejected him because he had tried to bend them to his will.
Maybe that's the answer,* Kai thought, his heart pounding in his chest. *Maybe I need to stop fighting the shadows and start listening to them.
The creature roared again, its tendrils slamming against the wall, cracking the stone and sending dust cascading down around them. They didn't have much time.
Kai closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. He reached out with his mind, searching for that flicker of shadows inside him, the connection that had been weakened but not completely severed. This time, he didn't try to command them. Instead, he listened.
The shadows stirred in response, a faint whisper in the back of his mind. It was like a voice, but not one made of words. It was a feeling, a presence, dark and ancient. It was cold, but not hostile. It was waiting for him, watching.
Kai's breath hitched as he realized what he had been missing all along. The shadows weren't just a tool—they were a part of him. And he had to accept them for what they were, not try to shape them into something they weren't.
He opened his eyes, and the shadows around his wrist flared to life, stronger than before. They curled and twisted, responding to his thoughts, his emotions. The connection was still fragile, but it was growing stronger with every passing second.
Lysandra stared at him, her eyes wide with surprise. "Kai… what are you doing?"
He didn't answer. There was no time to explain. Instead, he stood, his body still aching but filled with a renewed sense of purpose. The shadows swirled around him, faint tendrils curling at his feet, but they were growing stronger, more confident.
"I'm going to cut it off," Kai said, his voice steady despite the fear that still gnawed at the edges of his mind. "I'm going to stop it."
Lysandra's brow furrowed in confusion. "But how—"
Before she could finish, the wall behind them exploded, a massive tendril slamming through the stone and sending both of them flying. Kai hit the ground hard, the breath knocked from his lungs, but the shadows cushioned his fall, preventing serious injury. He rolled to his feet, his gaze locked on the massive creature as it loomed over them.
There was no time left.
The shadows inside him surged, stronger now, more responsive. Kai could feel the power building, growing with each passing second. But it wasn't enough. Not yet.
The creature roared, its tendrils snapping toward him with deadly precision.
Kai took a deep breath, his mind racing. He had one chance. One shot to make this work.
He raised his hand, the shadows swirling around him, and whispered a single word.
"*Now.*"
The shadows exploded outward, lashing toward the creature with a force he hadn't known he possessed.
But as the shadows connected, something went wrong. The creature recoiled, but instead of being repelled, it twisted its form, its massive bulk shifting and contorting in ways that defied logic. And then it surged forward, faster than before, its maw opening wide
And Kai felt the pull.