Page 165 of Court of Aether and Shadows

We reached the classroom doors just as reality began to flicker around us, time struggling to restart its natural flow. The effort of maintaining Liam's shield while running through the frozen chaos had drained me more than I wanted to admit. My legs buckled, vision swimming with exhaustion.

Cypress caught me before I could fall, his elemental energy steady and grounding. "I've got you, Star Girl."

"Sparrow?" Nyx's galaxy eyes filled with concern as she moved closer. "You're pale as moonlight."

"Are you alright?" Solaris added, his sun-bright power reaching out instinctively to offer warmth and support.

"I'm fine," I tried to wave off their concern, though the room wouldn't stop spinning. "Just need a moment to—" My words cut off as I lifted my head to look into the classroom. Through my spirit-sight, something was terribly wrong with the energies flowing through the space.

Where the academy's normal magical current flowed in organized patterns of teal and white, the classroom's energy signature was... distorted. It moved against the natural flow, creating discordant ripples that made my newly awakened senses scream in warning. Even worse, what should have been Lord Helios's blindingly bright aether energy was somehow muted, wrong, like looking at a sun through muddy water.

"This isn't right," I murmured, the snake-turned-fox shifting restlessly against my skin. "The energy patterns are all wrong. Even Helios doesn't feel like himself."

"What do you mean?" Nyx asked, trying to peer through the doorway with her void-sensitive vision. "I mean, yes, something feels off, but..."

"I can't explain it exactly," I frowned, watching the corrupted energy patterns twist in ways that defied natural law. "It's like... imagine sheet music where all the notes are slightly out of tune. Everything looks correct at first glance, but when you actually listen..."

"The harmony is wrong," Solaris finished, his own power flaring as he tried to sense what I was seeing. "But without your spirit-sight, we can only catch glimpses of the discord."

Liam's energy pulsed against my shield, and I could feel his frustrated concern. He couldn't speak through the barrier, but his shadows managed to convey his meaning well enough: something was very wrong here.

The white fox unwound itself from my wrist, dropping gracefully to the floor. Its ruby eyes shifted to that haunting cyan teal as it looked up at me expectantly. A quick glance at my enchanted watch showed barely a minute left before even the grace period expired.

"We have two choices," I said, straightening despite my exhaustion. "Either we go into that classroom where something is clearly wrong with both the energy patterns and Lord Helioshimself, or..." I gestured to where the fox was already padding down a different corridor, "we follow my mysterious friend here and probably get in serious trouble for missing class."

"Oh please," Nyx snorted, her galaxy eyes sparkling despite the tension. "Like there's even a choice. I haven't survived this long by ignoring void-touched instincts."

"Following the magical fox down the suspicious hallway it is," Cypress grinned, his elemental tattoos shifting into more alert patterns. "Though maybe we should move fast? Time magic isn't exactly stable."

"We're really doing this?" Solaris asked, though he was already moving to follow the fox. "Deliberately skipping Lord Helios's class to follow a shape-shifting spirit guide?"

"Would you rather walk into whatever mess is waiting in that classroom?" I countered, feeling Liam's energy signal reluctant agreement through our bond.

The fox looked back at us, its ethereal eyes somehow managing to convey impatience. Around us, the frozen time was beginning to crack, reality pushing to resume its natural flow.

"Forty-five seconds," I noted, already moving to follow our guide. "Anyone who wants to play it safe should probably head into class now."

"And miss whatever chaos you're about to cause?" Nyx fell into step beside me, void energy swirling excitedly. "Not a chance."

"Where you go, we go," Cypress added, still helping support my weight as we moved.

Solaris sighed dramatically but kept pace. "The things I do for pack bonds."

I could feel Liam's frustrated acceptance through our connection. He didn't like this – any of this – but he understood the wrongness we were sensing. His shadows curled protectively around my shield, adding his strength to the barrier.

The fox led us deeper into the academy's winding corridors, each turn taking us further from the designated classroom. My spirit-sight showed cleaner energy patterns this way, untainted by whatever was corrupting the original room.

"Thirty seconds," I muttered, watching reality continue to fracture around us. "Please tell me you know where you're taking us?"

The fox's only response was to pick up its pace, leading us toward what appeared to be a dead end.

"Um, Sparrow?" Solaris called from behind us. "I don't mean to question your spirit guide, but that's definitely a wall."

The fox sat down before the solid crystal barrier, its eyes shifting back to ruby red as it looked at me expectantly.

"Twenty seconds," I whispered, feeling power pulse through the skull mark on my wrist. "I really hope you know what you're doing."

Time resumed its natural flow with a sound like shattering glass.

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