Free Conrad Edison and the Anchored World (Overworld Arcanum Book 2) by John Corwin Page A

ever lonely, think of me, and I'll be there, my dear Conrad." Her body slumped, and the light faded from her eyes.
    "No," I whimpered. "Please, not again."
    "It's time to go, boy," said a flat emotionless voice behind me. I spun and saw Mr. Goodleigh standing in the doorway. Rage burned through the sorrow. I held up my wand and snarled, "I'll never go with you!"
    The room grew brighter and brighter until I had to squeeze my eyes shut against the glare. I staggered back, expecting to feel Cora's bed behind me. Instead, there was nothing. When I blinked away the spots in my vision, I stood in a dim room, empty except for a glowing blue sphere on a pedestal.
    Using the hem of my shirt, I dried my eyes and looked at the room. There were no mirrors or alcoves for anyone to hide in, but I still shouted, "Who's here? What just happened to me?"
    No one answered.
    It occurred to my sorrow-stricken mind that this had been some sort of test. Whoever designed it was sick in the head.
    A new message appeared on the instruction sheet. Report to Gauntlet Room IV .
    My phone functioned once again, so I used it to navigate my way. It took me further down the hallway and up a flight of stairs to a wide circular room with arched open doorways. Several students stood in the middle looking at the numbers over each door. I spotted mine and went down the tunnel.
    The gauntlet room at the end stretched nearly fifty yards wide, divided into sections by stone walls. Other children were already using most of the stations, so I got in a line and waited my turn. It was evident from the candles what I was supposed to do here. When my turn came the parchment told me to ignite and blow out the candle. I quickly did so and stepped away for the next in line to take their turn.
    Go to the upper examination hall.
    Following my phone's instructions, I wended through the passageways and arrived at a large room lined with desks. A tall thin man with black hair, matching robe, and a dour expression handed me a scroll. I recognized him at once. Professor Gideon Grace.
    "Put your name at the top of the exam, complete it, and proceed to your next destination," he said in a bored tone. His eyes narrowed. "Haven't I seen you before?"
    I'd seen him at Chicken Little, a restaurant in Queens Gate. He'd rescued a man attacked by Max's twin brothers, Rhys and Devon. I shook my head. "No, sir, I don't think so."
    "Hmm." He turned and picked up another scroll for an incoming student, so I quickly made my way to a desk near the back before he remembered me.
    Lily looked up from her test and smiled. I returned a half-hearted smile, nodded, and took a desk. The exam was simple enough, asking questions straight from the study guide my friends and I had used. I completed it within an hour and set it in a bin on the professor's desk. Professor Grace was busy handing out scrolls to more students, so I exited the room before he asked me again who I was.
    The instruction parchment handed me the easiest task yet. Go to the dinner hall and eat lunch.
    I went there and looked for my friends, but they weren't anywhere to be found. Someone touched my shoulder. I jumped to the side and saw a merry smile on Blue's face.
    "Are you done?" she asked.
    I shrugged. "I don't know. The instructions told me to come eat."
    "Then let's eat." She sat at an empty table and I joined her.
    "Did you have to take a test?" I asked her.
    Blue nodded. "I had to change into a wolf." She shrugged. "It was easy." Her eyes widened. "There were two felycan kids who changed into big cats. I never met one of those before."
    "Were they nice?" I leaned back as a golem placed covered plates in front of us.
    She lifted the cover and licked her lips at the sight of the juicy pork cutlet beneath. "Oh, they were a little stand-offish, but I've heard felycans are like that."
    I cut into the pork with a knife and savored the first bite. "Were there other lycans?"
    "Oh, yes, a lot." She gnawed on a stalk of asparagus. "Groups of