Damien drew in a slow breath and let it out. He strode towards the portal that brought him onto campus and stepped into it before he could do something else to incriminate himself. Knowing what he did of Whisp, she was probably still in the area.

The portal spat him out on plain cobblestone. His nose twisted in distaste shaking his head and pushing the queasiness away. Compared to the long-distance teleports, this one was barely noticeable.

Sylph stepped out from behind a pillar, a small dagger in her hand. It vanished back up her shirt sleeve when she realized that Damien was alone.

“Is everything okay?” Sylph asked.

“As much as it can be,” Damien said, letting out a strained laugh. “She said that we were on the same side.”

Sylph let out a grunt that made it clear that she didn’t believe the Dean’s words any more than Damien did. The two of them wordlessly started back towards their room on the mountain.

“When’d you get a dagger?” Damien asked.

“I’ve always had it,” Sylph replied. “When you run out of Ether as quickly as I do, you need multiple backup plans.”

“Fair enough,” Damien said. “Here’s to hoping you won’t have to carry the knife around much longer, then.”

They reached the room a few minutes later. Mark had finally invested in a curtain in front of his cave entrance, and it was pulled shut. The Gray siblings had done the same. Damien pulled their door open and they headed inside, letting it swing shut behind them.

Henry, do you think…?

The companion unfurled from his self-imposed sleep. Henry didn’t say anything for a moment. Then he let out a sigh. “I was checking if Whisp was in the area. It doesn’t seem like she’s here.”

Good. I think we might need to explain some things to Sylph. She can’t use her Ether anymore.

“Of course, she can’t,” Henry said. “Half of her body isn’t even human anymore. Monsters channel Ether very differently than humans do. They don’t have mental energy, nor do most of them actually cast spells. The Ether flows through them inherently, and it reacts more to their desires than it does to conscious commands.”

Can you shield us from people listening in again? I think it might be time to explain everything to Sylph. We’ve saved each other’s lives enough times, and she’s now in the exact same boat that we are, isn’t she?

“I’m not opposed to it,” Henry said. “She was really ready to die to save your life. I’m new to judging character, but as far as things go, mortals tend to value their life quite closely. Just remember that this isn’t something we can take back. The girl is your friend now, but how will she react to the truth?”

I suppose we’ll have to find out. We don’t owe it to her, but I think she’s done more than enough to deserve to know.

“Very well,” Henry said. “Bring her into the training room. It’ll be easier to keep a single room blocked out than multiple. The less area I have to shield and the farther into the mountain it is, the harder it’ll be for someone to listen in.”

Damien nodded. He looked back to Sylph, who was waiting patiently by her bed.

“Follow me,” Damien said, heading into the training rooms.

“Sounds serious. Sure.” Sylph trailed after him with a curious expression.

When they got to the back training room, Damien’s shadow rippled. Sylph’s eyes widened as it rose up from the ground, strands of darkness twisting together to form Henry’s flickering body.

The Void creature raised his hands. A purple pulse of energy ripped out from him, bouncing off the edges of the room and making a pattern like a rippling lake as they echoed throughout the room. The energy faded, turning to a dull translucent barrier surrounding them.

“We’re safe from prying ears,” Henry said, eyes blinking open and closed across his body.

“Henry?” Sylph guessed.

“Astute. Because Damien has other companions that come out of his shadow,” Henry muttered dryly.

Sylph smirked. “I suppose not. What do I owe this pleasure? I was under the impression that you weren’t a fan of showing your true form.”

“Trust me, this isn’t my true form,” Henry said, laughing. “And I’m here to make an arguably bad decision at Damien’s behest. You’ve died to save his life, so we decided that it would be appropriate to inform you of my true nature.”

Sylph blinked. “Really? You don’t have to – we don’t owe each other anything. You saved me after I saved Damien, so the plate is clean.”

“I think the anxiety is eating him alive,” Henry said. “Humans are just so eager to share their secrets. I must admit that I’m starting to understand the desire. What’s the point of knowing things that others don’t if you can’t lord over their failings?”

“I’m not sure that’s exactly why people like sharing secrets, but that’s good enough,” Damien said, rolling his eyes. “Can you just get on with it?”

“Would you rather do it yourself?” Henry asked, an eye on the back of his head blinking open to look at Damien.

“Nope, sorry. Continue with your monologue,” Damien said, cringing back.

“Thank you. Now, there are a few important things to cover,” Henry said. “First, you’re going to need to relearn parts of how your Ether works. The artifact is still floating around inside you, but its severely damaged. You can probably repair it at some point in the future, but focus on that later. Since I broke it, I’ll take your companions place and show you how to use your Ether.”

Sylph swallowed and nodded, not daring to say anything and interrupt Henry.

“Now, the more interesting part. How much do you know of the Eight Planes?” Henry asked.

“Eight?” Sylph asked, frowning. “There are Seven. Mortal, Stars, Immortal, Fury, Light, Darkness, and Dead.”

“You’ve missed one,” Henry said. “The Void.”

“I’ve never heard of the Void,” Sylph said, frowning. “My schooling was focused on practical aspects, but my teacher was quite thorough. If there are companions in this Void Plane, I would have thought that he’d have told me.”

“He probably didn’t know about it,” Henry said. “As far as I’m aware, I’m the first time a Void creature has ever become a companion.”

“What does that entail?” Sylph asked, baffled. "What is the Void, anyways?”

“The Void is the cracks between existence,” Henry said. “The absence of all things. Nothing can exist within it – except for my kind.”

“And your kind is…?”

“There is no official human name for us beyond Void creatures or denizens,” Henry replied. “However, we fit a few of your folklore legends. It would not be entirely inaccurate to call us the Horsemen.”

Sylph’s face scrunched up in confusion for a moment. Then her eyes flashed with realization. She swallowed, the blood draining out of her face. “You’re a Herald of the End? The monsters that exist to destroy the world?”

“Ding.”

Her eyes widened. Damien could practically see the thoughts shooting through Sylph’s head as she subconsciously took a step away from Henry. She swallowed again, her eyes darting from Damien to Henry and back again. Then she let out a slow breath.

“Well… not that I want to encourage you or anything, but you aren’t doing a very good job of it,” Sylph observed carefully. “Can you not act without Damien’s permission or something? I suppose the companion contract keeps you from doing what you want?”

“Nope,” Henry said, chuckling. “It did at one point, but that is no longer the case. Let’s suffice to say that I have no desire to destroy the world yet. I will eventually – don’t get me wrong. I’m just enjoying it a bit too much right now.”

“That explains the reading choices,” Sylph said, relaxing slightly. It was Damien’s turn to laugh at Henry – a rare occurrence that he made sure to savor.

“How did Damien contract you in the first place, then?” Sylph asked after a few moments.

“On accident, mostly,” Damien said. He wanted to fill her in, but something kept him from mentioning whoever or whatever had been fiddling with his life. Truth be told, Damien didn’t like thinking much about that at all.

“His rune circle had several conveniently placed mistakes that perfectly launched his summons straight into the void, where I happened to be hanging around,” Henry said. “One thing led to another, and now we’re all here. Consider yourself enlightened. You now know a secret that many mortals would burn an entire continent to learn. How does it feel?”

“Like I ate a rock,” Sylph admitted. “Damien, you said you bound your companion early. Have you been keeping this secret since you were…?”

“Thirteen,” Damien finished. “Yes. It hasn’t been easy.”

“I can imagine,” Sylph said, shaking her head. “I’m not sure if I should be horrified or impressed.”

“Impressed is good.”

Sylph laughed and shook her head. “Honestly, I already figured your companion was some creepy monster. As far as creepy monsters go, Henry doesn’t seem that bad. I’ve dealt with worse myself.”

“I’m not sure if that was a compliment or an insult,” Henry said. “But before you get too relaxed, there’s still one more thing you need to know.”

Sylph cocked her head. Henry spent several minutes explaining the Corruption and what the true purpose of the Void creatures was. By the time he was finished, Sylph looked like she was going to be slightly sick.

“I’ve got a monster even worse than you are inside me?”

“The corpse of a monster,” Henry corrected. “It’s very dead. I think.”

Sylph drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Okay. Well, I suppose that’s still better than being dead, right?”

She didn’t sound particularly certain. Damien nodded empathetically. “I’ve done it a few times. Living with a monster isn’t the worst thing.”

“You’ve died as well?” Sylph asked, raising an eyebrow. “I thought I was unique.”

“Yep. Henry killed me,” Damien replied.

“Technically you ripped yourself apart,” Henry said. “And that was Herald.”

“Herald? How many companions do you have, Damien?”

“One,” Damien said firmly. “One companion and one unwanted tagalong that stays firmly locked away. Let’s avoid talking about it, if that’s okay. It’s probably observing us.”

Sylph nodded. “Right. So, back to the evil corpse inside me. I don’t want to sound impatient or ungrateful, but is there any way you could teach me sooner rather than later? I feel naked without my Ether, even if I never had much to begin with.”

“We can do it right now,” Henry said. “It’s not like Damien has anything better to do. The two of you just wander around campus together like a pair of lost dogs if you aren’t training.”

“Hey!” Damien complained. “We do more than that.”

“Sure you do,” Henry said. “Listen, Sylph. This probably isn’t going to be very comfortable. I can’t just tell you how to use the Ether. I have to take the job of your companion, and that means showing you.”

“Okay,” Sylph said. “That’s fine. I’ve dealt with pain before. It’s of no concern.”

“Your head is going to feel like I’m hammering it open with a blunt wooden spike,” Henry said bluntly. “It will be very bad.”

“I’ve dealt with worse,” Sylph said, her tone leaving no room for questions. “Just do it. I need my Ether back.”

“Just making sure you know,” Henry said. “Lie down. I’d like to have done this in your bed, but it’s too close to the door. We don’t need someone getting a glimpse on accident.”

Sylph laid down on the ground in front of Henry. The companion gestured for Damien to join them. “Hold her head. It’s going to jerk around a lot, and I will be very annoyed if all my efforts get wasted because Sylph kills herself by hitting her head on the ground.”

Damien swallowed and nodded. He tried not to make eye contact with Sylph as she scooted back, putting her head in his lap. Henry let out a noise between an annoyed grunt and a laugh.

“Children,” he muttered in a low tone. He raised a hand above Sylph and started to trace runes through the air above her head. A trail of dark purple energy followed his faint fingertip, crackling sparking.

Henry drew for several more minutes before lowering his finger, leaving several interconnected circles hovering above the girl’s face. “Get ready. Screaming is fine, by the way. Sound won’t escape this room.”

Sylph nodded, her face impassive. “Do it.”

Henry didn’t wait for her to ask again. He slammed a hand against the runes in the air. They telescoped downwards towards her, lighting up with bright purple light. Henry’s form twisted and flickered, spiraling through the runes and into Sylph’s head.

Her eyes widened and Sylph gritted her teeth, but she didn’t make any noise. Henry’s rune circles started to spin in opposite directions. Sylph’s body jerked and her back arched in pain. Damien held her head steady as best as he could.

With every passing second, the runes churned faster. More and more of Henry vanished. Sylph’s hands clenched so tightly that blood started to trickle out of her palms where her nails bit into them. Even still, not a single sound escaped her mouth.

The last bit of Henry – and Damien’s shadow – vanished through the runes. They slammed to a halt, the light blinking out. Sylph relaxed and Damien let out a relieved breath. He glanced down at her and nearly yelped in surprise.

Her eyes were pitch black. It was like looking into two bowls of ink. Damien winced, then pulled a small napkin from his travel pack. He leaned over and gently unclenched Sylph’s fists, wiping the blood off before it could get onto her clothes or the floor.

Sylph didn’t seem to notice. Her body twitched occasionally, and her mouth occasionally moved as if she were silently speaking to somebody. Damien watched on nervously, alternating from looking at her to the training room entrance to make sure nobody was watching them.

Damien wasn’t sure how much time passed, but it probably wasn’t more than ten minutes before the darkness started to drain out of her eyes. It trickled out around Sylph, forming a shadowy pool.

Bit by bit, Henry reformed beside Damien. When the last bit of the darkness left Sylph, she drew in a sharp breath, twitching slightly.

“Did it work?” Damien asked.

“As well as I’d expected,” Henry replied. “Maybe even more so. It was a cruel prank for Sylph to be born with such a pitiful core. She’s much more talented than you are. It’s a good thing we were around to right that wrong.”

“Thanks,” Damien said, rolling his eyes as Henry let out a chuckle. “Sylph, how are you feeling?”

“A little dizzy,” Sylph admitted, blinking several times. “It worked, I think. It’s… so different. The Ether feels like it’s a part of me now. Like another limb.”

“Well, that’s good, right?”

“Try moving an arm you don’t have,” Sylph said. “I know its there, and I can actually feel it, which is good. There’s so much more than I used to have.”

She trailed off for a few moments before blinking. “I lost track of my thoughts, sorry. This is a very strange feeling.”

“You’ll get used to it,” Henry said. “It might be wise for you to remain inside your room until you do, though. You don’t want to accidentally use your Ether.”