Feeling the heat in her face, Shalise almost protested. Zoe and Eva were still at the couch, now talking softly to one another while Zoe pointed at the ritual circle. Lynn had already moved on to the backpack that Eva had slung on the floor. She pulled a white feather out of the bag and placed it carefully within a small circle at the side of the larger circle.
No one was paying attention to her.
“Don’t be a creep,” Shalise hissed as she pulled off her shirt.
Despite his words, Shalise couldn’t feel a hint of interest towards herself from Prax. It was just him being annoying again. A way of protesting his imprisonment within her body without angering her too much.
Maybe he wanted her to summon him once they got out.
That wouldn’t happen, though Juliana had offered to summon him back at the prison. If Shalise never interacted with him again, she wouldn’t be too upset.
But he hadn’t been that bad. He did get both herself and Juliana out of the prison safely and with their souls intact.
And the conflicting combination of anxiety and eagerness towards the ritual had Shalise feeling just a little pity for him.
He would be back in his own body, but had Zagan and the dolls to worry about, as he had just mentioned a short while ago.
Setting her folded clothes neatly to the side of the room, Shalise sat at the edge of the circle, trying and failing to cover herself as much as possible.
“Not
Shalise kept her mouth shut. She didn’t want to encourage his antics. He was just as nervous as she was, but his way of relieving that tension did not agree with her.
“Center of the circle, Shal. Remain standing and face me.”
After jumping slightly at being addressed, Shalise stepped into the circle. She moved to her spot, making certain that she didn’t scuff any of the markings on the floor.
Facing Lynn meant facing the door. Her back was to the obelisk.
An assortment of items lay out in an array around her. Sigils and markings were covering the floor, all designed to direct the magic in certain patterns, to make them flow through the objects, and all sorts of things that Shalise didn’t pretend to understand.
Both Eva and Zoe moved to stand near Lynn at the front of the circle, though Lynn moved back as soon as they came near.
Taking a bag of white powder in her hands, Lynn moved around to the obelisk behind Shalise.
Craning her neck to see, Shalise watched as Lynn opened the top of the obelisk and started pouring the powder inside.
As she did, the markings and sigils on the obelisk started to glow. It was a pale, white light that sent a shiver of disgust through her body.
Once full, Lynn replaced the cap of the obelisk and returned to the head of the circle.
“We’re going to start now,” she said. “Try to remain standing. Everything will be alright.”
Shalise took a deep breath, nodding.
As she nodded, she caught sight of her shadow. The light of the obelisk filled most of the room, so it wasn’t unusual that she would have a shadow.
But the shadow looked like Prax. She could see his hooves, his horns, and his muscles. Concerning, as Shalise’s arms were currently her own. No Prax’s muscles bulging through her skin. It was also far taller than it should have been, given the angle of the light.
Glancing up, Shalise frowned.
Neither Sister Cross nor Zoe had any shadow to speak of, as if the light was passing straight through them.
“Huh,” Eva said, back turned to Shalise to look at her own shadow.
Things sprouted off the back of Eva’s shadow. Like oddly angled wings made of bones. Except they couldn’t be bones. They were far too fluid. Liquid dripped off the tips of the bones to rejoin the mass of shadow making up the rest of Eva’s body.
There was more to the shadow. Shalise couldn’t see it very well. Eva’s body stood in the way to obscure most of it.
Without a word or glance at the others, Eva walked out the door and disappeared around the side of the women’s ward. Shalise didn’t see her pass by the window, so either she was walking straight out or she had chosen to rest against the wall.
Zoe started to follow, but appeared to change her mind as she set her eyes on Shalise.
Lynn took a step back. She looked over the circle, double checking everything for the hundredth time. Once satisfied, her eyes lit up like they did anytime she used her powers. She started chanting.
Shalise didn’t recognize the words. They weren’t English. Probably–
“What do–”
Shalise couldn’t get her question out before the pain started.
