Chapter 27

Rebecca blushed at my question, "Do you like me?" She pretended not to hear, but I could tell she was flustered.

"Who? Anyway, look, Talon is planning something... And it's big." Wow, way to dodge the question. She blushed at first but brushed my teasing aside.

"Do you know how Talon makes shadows, Steven?" She asked me with a serious look on her face.

I answered with uncertainty, "I assumed it was just one of his powers... Though Shad seems more and more human every day."

She turned quickly and stopped walking. "Shad? Steven... Did you kidnap..." It dawned on her what I had done.

"He's in my garage. He is very nice. Want to meet him?"

We went into my garage, and I introduced Shad to her. "So now that you two are acquainted, let's figure some things out." We stood awkwardly for a moment.

Shad spoke up, "So you're the one who makes the shadows go mad." Oh yeah... Nice segue into that topic. Rebecca glared at Shad, interestedly. "Steven, Shad could be a highly developed spy for Talon..."

I interjected, "Shad has been the most human-like shadow I've ever seen, and he says it's because he's been around me. Maybe my powers are helping? But yeah, I don't know what he is." I gave her a smile.

Rebecca looked dazed and a little caught off guard. "Yes, he is extremely well-spoken and seems to act for himself, but I'm not sure yet if we can trust him." I stopped her. "Rebecca, you were also on Talon's side, yet I've decided to trust you."

She looked hurt, confused, and then she closed her eyes and put her hand on her head, like she had a headache. "I guess you're right..." She began to explain more about Talon's power. "Talon gets more shadows by fulfilling wishes. The wishes give him power to control the wish maker after it is fulfilled."

I gave her a weird look. "And what about the hair? The one he tried to give back to you?" She gave me a shrug. "He asked for a lock of my hair when I made my wish, but he hasn't fulfilled it, so it's not like he can control me. His powers work through this method. Without fulfilling wishes, he cannot gain power." In a way, that makes sense—a great price for a great wish. It almost worked like how our powers worked... Desire.

"What happens when the wish is fulfilled?" I probed further. She looked grim and gave a small shudder. "They become husks or shells of themselves. They kind of forget who they are, and they start taking his orders... Then... They lose themselves."

"Wait a minute... What about all the people Fran beat up? They were shadows too? They disappeared! Did she kill them?"

Rebecca gave a sigh. "When Fran's powers come in contact with the shadows, they are released from Talon's power and are set free again without any memories of what happened. They also return to normal and disperse back to where they came from."

Shad cut in. "Guys... Something's coming."

Just then, a black shadowy figure smashed into the garage between Rebecca, Shad, and me. It was a female figure with long hair. The ground left a small crater, and the figure moved faster than any other person I knew...

"Fran?"