The idea of directly involving another person sat like a stone in Conri’s stomach for the next three days. It was a risk that he had decided to take and he didn't want to back out now. So when his phone lit up on the fourth day, a text from Landis, he opened it immediately. The previous unease feeling had become eager anticipation. Landis and Conri finally had matching days off and they'd set out to fulfill a plan that hadn’t been completely realized yet. 

The next morning, Conri met Landis on the sidewalk across the street from his building. He felt at ease seeing Landis out of his uniform, now supporting an open button up layered over a graphic tee with cargo shorts and sandals. The most striking feature was the soften halo that appeared when the sunlight touched his hair. Conri chose an ashy brown pair of jeans, a faded graphic tanktop, sneakers and a small backpack which held a sweatshirt just in case. 

“Morning,” Conri started as he went to stand next to Landis. “Hope I didn’t make you wait too long.” 

“Of course not.” Landis’ tone sounded the same as his customer service voice. It made Conri wonder if this was how everyday Landis spoke or if he was putting it on for him. “I know its odd circumstances, but I think this is the first time I’ve seen you not in a button up and vest.” 

“Yea, guess it is.” Conri started to regret his attire choice. Maybe he’d need to put on the sweatshirt sooner. “Odd circumstances are right, but it beats sitting around and waiting for Dalton to find me.” 

“I’m relieved I’m not going alone.” He gave Conri a thumbs up. “Would it be ok if we revisit where he first attacked you? I wanted to get a closer look at the scorch markings then I have another spot I think we should check out.”

“Are you saying you’ve found a lead already?” That was way more than Conri had come up with.

“No, but I have a hunch that you might be able to help me confirm a suspicion.” He gave a quick glance down to the ground. “It would require the use of your talent.” Another look down. “No pressure though I promise.” 

Conri’s mouth parted, but said nothing, unsure how to respond. His ears suddenly felt weighed down by his piercings and his eyes started locating colored items for his grounding technique. He was looking for a new focal point other than Landis. 

“I’m sorry if that's a lot to ask.” Landis apologized, his words sincere, but still holding a hint of determination. “I haven’t forgotten your concerns from the other night, but if you can put your trust in me, I'm positive I can help you better understand it while we look for Dalton.” 

Finally closing his mouth, taking his gaze and putting it back onto Landis, Conri nodded in agreement.  

_

They had a full day ahead of them and wasted no time as they walked in the direction of ‘The Drip’. Landis insisting they take an alternate route so they would end up a block away in order to avoid getting spotted by any of Conri’s coworkers. At first they didn’t say much as they walked, Conri didn’t really know if it was right to start an open conversation about the weather or what they enjoy doing in their free time since their free time was now being spent cryptid hunting. The two walked parallel to each other, Landis’ attention was always forward while Conri’s couldn’t help but wander. He was looking out for any signs that he entered his personal void. 

“I’ve been thinking,” Landis' words interrupted Conri’s quiet search. He heard Landis as well as their surrounding day life. Car engines rumbling, the yelp of magi familiars, group of pedestrians of all kinds surviving another normal day. “Apart from your independent reading, have you ever tried alternative studying strategies? Or any sort of study aid?” 

“Can’t say I know where I’d start if I wanted. Most aids I know of are only available to proper students. My grandparents follow a scripture and that seems to be enough for them, but since I have no interest in becoming a man of the cloth, seems counterproductive in this scenario.” He scoffed. “The idea of substances had crossed my mind, however, considering most are illegal, figured I'd pass. Plus the chances of ending up with a pseudopod in your head are higher than most people realize.” 

He couldn’t tell right away, but Conri thought he heard Landis either cough or chuckle. 

“While those options are available, your grandparent’s scripture isn’t the end all be all, using it as a reference to get started wouldn't have hurt. Did your parents have anything? Have you thought about learning from others who aren't shifters?”

“‘Fraid not, my folks were the undisciplined free spirited types.” He huffed at the phrase he’s heard his grandparents overuse. “Whatever they knew they learned from being nomads only occasionally sending letters to check in with my grandparents. Growing up I was limited on where and when I could shift. Grandpa and Grandma's belief system bled into their personal lives too much.” Just speaking about it gave Conri the itch to shift and to feel in control of some kind of power.

That put a pause to their conversation as they continued walking, stopping at the occasional crosswalk. The trip felt much longer than usual to Conri, then again he was so used to traveling on all fours. When Landis observed the next street sign, Conri noticed him briefly put his hands together in an odd motion. He too turned his attention towards the street sign only to recognize their location and knew where they were about to arrive. He felt himself starting to pick up speed to keep up with Landis whose strides elongated. Landis stopped at the end of the block and looked to his left. Conri returned to stand parallel to him, following his gaze to the familiar open park across the street from The Drip. 

He felt his breathing deepen as he stared at the scene, his mind filling in the space with the afterimages of the attack. Looking both ways, Landis took a step towards the park. Conri’s hand jerked out and grabbed Landis’ foreman, it felt solid and his hand couldn’t wrap all the way around it. 

“We can’t just walk into it.” 

Landis’ brow arched and blinked, looking between the park and Conri. 

“Why not?” 

“You’re serious?” Conri’s eye directed toward the park towards the same blue ring that was cast by Deputy Chief Sunleaf. “Do you not see the warding ring?”

Landis’ expression evolved from confusion to mild interest. He looked towards the area once again. He saw no visible ward. 

“Do you mind if we try something?” Landis sounded almost excited. 

“Depends, is it going to get us in trouble?” 

Landis shook his head. “No, but I want to see if maybe the ward also appears in that blank void you mentioned."

Conri swallowed hard. “I can’t just turn it on and off. I don’t even know what triggers it.” 

He watched Landis put his hands up in front of them. 

“I understand, and heres where I need you to trust me, ok?” Landis’ hands came together in a similar odd motion that Conri had seen previously. “This technique is something some Giants use to call upon arcane, almost like a beacon. The shapes we trace act like instructions to utilize specific attributes of it.” Landis’ right index finger ran down the tip of his left middle finger all the way down to his palm. “I’ll be right here if you need me.” Then took the same middle finger and traced a curved line from the top all the way down his right palm.  

Yellow light illuminated from the shapes in Landis’ palms before he clasped his hands together. Conri found comfort in the now softened bronze light that flickered from Landis' now colorless hands. He felt his pulse quicken, his breathing sharpen as his vision blinked into gray once again. His own voice echoed in his ears just like before. 

Distorted Spaces

Hidden by time

Phase through clouds

Come Ferd into clarity

From behind Landis, a billowing blue light shined onto his desaturated body. It clashed with the light he held between his hands. Conri's voice started once again, this time broken like it was speaking through static filter on a loop. 

Alert -- space

...

E--ras--

Vast -- soundless -- 

C-sume -embrace

...

Devour -- chime 

He wanted it to stop. Conri took a step back, raised his head and stared at Landis' eyes, their warm amber now a deep black that blended into his pupils. 

Retreat into darken overcast!

Conri felt his intention become his once again as the blue light receded, dimming as if a flame being snuffed out. One of Landis' hands now held Conri's forearm while the other was placed on his upper back, preventing Conri from falling backwards. They stared at each other while Landis began to pantomime taking deep breaths: his nostrils expanding when inhaling then his mouth opening on the exhale. Conri caught on and joined in. The warm sunset color returning to Landis' eyes with each exhale. His rosy cheeks followed then his ginger mane.   

"You're ok, I'm right here." Landis's words hummed softly in Conri's ears. "One breath at a time, do you need to sit down?"

Conri shook his head as a calming sensation dripped down his body as sound and color were returning. He counted down from five, starting in his head, then finishing aloud, his voice under his control one again. 

"How did you know that was gonna work?" Conri straightened himself up and was relieved that Landis did not remove his grip as he did.

Landis smiled apologetically. "I didn't. I'm sorry I should've waited until you said you were ready. However, it sounds like it was successful enough. I created a rune and as it filled with arcane, your body naturally was drawn to it almost like a moth to a flame." Through the apology, Conri noticed Landis started sounding proud of this theory. "I believe you've been unintentionally cutting yourself off from the world around you and the magic that fills the spaces we can't normally see. The current relationship is strained so much to the point that you've been theoretically living in a state of starvation."   

Conri felt Landis grip loosen before removing from his body. His mind processing Landis' theory: this draw to active incantations, the fear when he was thrusted into the blankness, but the rejuvenation that followed once he returned to reality and the power he felt when his words commanded the unseen.

"If it was self-inflicted, why didn't I ever have a choice on when or how this instinct kicked in?" He backed up and leaned against the closest building, out of sight from the park and The Drip. 

"I can't answer that unfortunately." Landis took a spot next to Conri and stared up toward the sky. "Some choose to follow the opportunity, others feel they're fine letting it go. If you always felt like following the call, my guess is that you once had a much stronger anchor that is no longer around. A constant resource at your disposal that made connecting to magic feel as easy breathing. Can you think of anything it could've been?"

"I don't have anything." Conri's brow furrowed as he stared at the ground. "The textbook sure, but  you saw how limited my understanding is, its not even mine so that 'bond' seems unlikely."

The two continued to look in their respective directions as they thought silently. Conri's legs began to fidget, his knees bouncing back and forth. Another lead that had another dead end. Digging through memories brought him back to Dr. Bromley's office, sitting in that arm chair, sharing bits and pieces of his broken mind just hoping to form a clearer picture within a picture. A sour taste grow in the back of his throat as he heard Dr. Bromley question, reflect and analyze his pattern of distorted thinking. Exposing invisible scars that made his ears ache. They were uncomfortable sessions to relive, but he was always thankful to be allowed one headphone throughout it. It was a temporary relief towards the trauma. 

"Avoidance." His legs stopped fidgeting. "I keep refusing to give into it because my anchor was-"

"A person?" Landis finished his own thought aloud. 

"Yes," Raising his head to the sky, matching Landis posture. "someone whose no longer around, supposedly."

Conri's expression morphed into defeated acceptance at the possibility about confronting his trauma  without Dr. Bromley present. If his previous anchor was a person, it left him with two choices and only one possibility left him feeling reassured. The likelier possibility was stirring the darkest corners of even his colorless world.

"I guess the good that came from this experiment is that if I anchored to you, I'm not limited to one anchor." He thought about those at the academy who his will snaked into. Reversing could be useful like he did with Dalton's curse, but applying it to benefit others felt dangerous as he thought about Sirene's construct. "Attaching myself to someone to manipulate their incantations seems to be the easiest label I have for it."

Conri couldn't see Landis smiling towards him as he began thinking aloud, it was a series of light bulbs starting to go off like a series of falling dominos. Reverse. Amplify. Assist. Nullify. Emmett's family was right after all about him. Yet, as the memory of their faces spewing hard truths across the dinner table, twisted his guts into guilty knots. He shivered as he thought about jumping to bite back against those phantom faces.  

"Landis?"

The giant's head tilted toward Conri.

"You said you had somewhere else you wanted to look into right?"