The bus stop was normally crowded. But at past two in the morning, Rilian and Yarin were the only souls around. They were sitting on a bench. Rilian's scarf hung loose above his chest, while Yarin's mask rested over her back.
"The aether marks inside the principal's office match exactly with the ones inside Mr. Chavez's house," Rilian said. "Now, we're sure it's him."
"The question is, how are we supposed to find him?" Yarin said.
"And why did he kill Principal Wells? Rilian added. "Mr. Chavez is such a good man."
"It's no longer him," Yarin answered. "He was consumed by a negative emotion, and now the Corrupted Aether is in control. That's one thing I'm sure of."
"Can we still save him?" Rilian asked.
Yarin shook her head. "The closest thing we can do is to destroy the Corrupted Aether."
"The graveyard." Rilian heard an eerie whisper. He jolted, his hand suddenly gripped the bench tightly.
"What's wrong?" Yarin asked, noticing.
"Faceless girl. She's back," Rilian said. "The graveyard… she's whispering… the graveyard."
Yarin stood up and pointed toward the church just across the bus station. "There's a graveyard behind the church, right?"
Rilian nodded.
"Let's go," Yarin said, and started crossing the road.
"Crap… I don't like where this is heading," Rilian whispered to himself. He stood up and followed her.
Within minutes, they reached the graveyard. Rilian followed close behind Yarin as they entered through the iron gate.
"Of all the places… why the graveyard?" Rilian muttered, having goosebumps looking at the tombs.
As they went deeper, Rilian's imagination betrayed him. Every time they passed a tree, he thought that a Corrupted Aether would suddenly grab him by the hand.
After they passed a lamppost, he heard an eerie whisper. "Turn left"
"Whaah!!!" Rilian shrieked, arms flailing.
Yarin spun toward him, ready for action. Finding nothing, she relaxed slightly, though clearly irritated. "Idiot! I almost punched you! What was that?"
"Sorry… left," Rilian said. "She whispered, left."
Yarin turned left, while Rilian hesitated. The path was covered with mist, and her figure quickly faded.
After a deep breath, he followed. He quickened his pace to catch up and when Yarin's figure became visible, he halted.
Yarin was standing still, intently staring at something, then signaled for Rilian to look.
Barely visible through the mist at the far end of the path, a figure knelt, still and silent.
The figure evidently noticed them, stood, and turned to them. "What are you kids doing here?"
Rilian's heart skipped a bit. Although he had anticipated that it was Mr. Chavez, seeing him this way hit differently.
"Rilian?" Mr. Chavez said, recognizing him. "Go home, kid."
"We're here… to help… Mr. Chavez," Rilian said.
"Huh," the teacher snorted. "Help?" As if you could."
"Help," Mr. Chavez continued, his voice starting to agitate, gradually louder and louder, "that word… I hate that word. I begged for help, but Principal Wells…!"
The air around the teacher thickened, heavy and suffocating. His eyes burned a furious red. Arms and legs stretched at eerie angles. Fingers lengthened into sharp claws. His salt-and-pepper hair grew rapidly, turning thick and white, and his body floated, supported only by the tips of his shoes.
"Crap, crap, crap!" Rilian cried in panic.
"Stay behind—might as well hide," Yarin said.
She lifted a hand to the side, fingers clutching a long, glowing aether until it formed into a golden scythe.
The Corrupted Aether moved forward—not walking, but hovering in air, dragging the edge of its feet along the ground.
Yarin didn't wait. She sprinted forward, eyes locked on the now monstrous teacher.
Her eyes widened as the Corrupted Aether smashed its hand through the air.
She pivoted mid sprint. The air where she left off hummed with a thick energy, followed by the sound of crumbling stone. She glanced back—the tombs behind were slashed.
She barely had time to react when another slash came. She leapt to the side—the ground where she stood a second ago was carved with four long gashes.
Yarin sprinted and vaulted back and forth, unable to get close to the Corrupted Aether, dodging its vicious attacks.
"I need to move faster or I won't be able to strike," she thought. Then her eyes flickered behind the teacher. "That's it!"
Yarin sprinted, bursting with speed, gritting her teeth. Dust and fragments of gravestones flew behind her, accompanied by the sharp cracks of shattered stones as the monstrous teacher continued its relentless barrage.
She ran in a circle, weaving between a series of tombstone crosses she spotted behind the monster. The stone crosses shattered as she passed, serving as cover. Then she sprinted faster, leapt off one cross using it as a springboard, vaulted forward, and swung her scythe.
The scythe's blade nearly connected with the Corrupted Aether's head when its clawed hands caught it. The teacher hauled her violently. Yarin tried to pivot in midair for a safe landing, but the angle was wrong—she crashed hard onto the ground.
The Corrupted Aether flung the scythe behind, making her vulnerably disarmed.
Yarin rolled, tumbling on the ground as a burst of violent gusts slashed the ground around her. She pushed hard against the ground and sprang to her feet.
"Yarin!" Rilian's voice called out to her.
She hadn't noticed him following. He was crouched with his back against a tombstone for cover, eyes closed, fingers dancing on the ground as if playing the piano. His whole body glowed with golden aether.
"A shield! Create an aether shield!" he shouted.
Yarin lifted her hand as Rilian's aether streamed toward her. Her fingers weaved rapidly, eyes flicking to the Corrupted Aether advancing toward them. Just as the golden shield solidified, the teacher's barrage slammed into it, sending violent vibrations through her arm.
She glanced at Rilian who wore a trusting smile. He nodded and said, "Go. Finish it."
Yarin sprinted toward the Corrupted Aether, shield leading, groaning as she fought to stay upright against the barrage of gusts.
When she was only a few feet from the teacher, she summoned her scythe back to her other hand, raised the shield, and delivered a sidelong swipe with the scythe.
The Corrupted Aether froze, then purple blood gushed from its chest, and its body collapsed with a loud thud.
Yarin sank to the ground, panting, as Rilian hurried over to her.
The Corrupted Aether's form slowly melted into black goo, peeling away to reveal the body of Mr. Chavez. The goo dissolved into a swirl of purple smoke and rushed into Rilian's chest.
Rilian clutched his chest and whispered, "You did it."
"We did," Yarin corrected him.