Shadow King

"...Shadow King"

As Arille makes her guess, you and Nathraena's eyes widen. You stand up from the stone chair, taking a step towards the siren-turned-lizard in disbelief.

"N-no, do you even know what you are suggesting?!"

Arille flinches, at a loss to your reaction. Before replying, she stares at Djarrus and Nathraena in confusion. Both of them provide their own version of skepticism and even some fear.

"I...is that wrong of me to presume? A shadow king is able to extend his reach beyond the normal plane of existence and take those into the darkness plane. Specifically, they are able to separate a person from their shadow which is synonymous to a person's soul."

Nathraena sighs and crosses her arms. "Arille...exactly how old are you?"

The sudden question surprises the siren, but she does her best to try to answer. "I'm afraid time passes easily for me but considering the mountain did not exist before I awakened, it is possible I'm more than ten-thousand years old."

"Holy..." Nathraena holds herself from saying more, recomposing herself starting with the clearing of her throat, "...I guess it makes sense for you to think that way. A shadow king has turned into nothing but a myth but they say that the shadow plane was once united by a powerful individual of darkness. Any history related to this claim is unfounded as far as I know."

Arille widens her eyes for a moment, then softens. "I see. Much has changed then; however, given your encounters recently, I still believe that the Shadow King still exists. Your recent encounters are evidence of that."

You take a deep breath and sit down. Of all the possibilities, this is one you don't want to believe in. Yet, you have no other clue of what could have taken your wife's liveliness. The fact that a myth, a dangerous one at that, may be real and the cause of your wife's disappearance troubles you greater than not knowing anything.

'Shit...' you think, lowering your head and rubbing your temples.

Nathraena continues speaking on your behalf, not wanting to dismiss anything yet. "...you say...evidence. What do you mean?"

Arille cocks her head. "Well, you mentioned you encountered shadow creatures, correct? Not only that, but you also encountered a shadow woman which exuded a powerful aura. Such a being could only be one of the wives of the shadow king."

The drow pales. "T-that's...I don't know about that shadow lady, but it's not uncommon to hear of fights with shadow creatures of various forms or shapes. Are you saying that the Shadow King is responsible for it all? If such a powerful being existed, why is there only odd skirmishes and trouble in certain places of the world?"

Arille shakes her head. "I cannot know what such a King would be thinking; however, shadows of that plane should not be able to enter this plane so easily without resonating with a Shadow King's will."

"Enough."

You end this line of discussion. All this talk of the possible existence of the Shadow King doesn't sit well with you. The more you thought about it, the more the possibility seems real. If it's true, then could the eerie voice that spoke to you before your wife's vegetative state actually be the Shadow King?

You just don't want to believe it unless you have more evidence. The implications would mean that aside from your wife, the entire world would be in danger.

Plus somehow, that one shadow lady you and Nathraena encountered appears in your mind. You can easily see her taunting smile and it's clear she has the sentience that other creatures lacked. She could have wiped you, the minotaur, and the drow easily but instead retreated with an uneasy laugh.

You take a deep breath and lift your head to everyone who remains quiet, respectful of your feelings. At the thought of the shadow lady, you could only grimace and come to a conclusion.

"I don't know about the Shadow King, but...it's likely we'll have to face more shadow creatures from that plane. I'm sorry to say, but I don't think that Shadow Lady is going to leave us alone."

Nathraena furrows her eyebrows and bites her lips. "I have the same feeling too."

Arille places her hand over her large chest, lowering her head a little. "If it's any help, I swear that I will aid you against any threat that appears before you. I'm in your debt just for allowing me the chance to be trusted."

You smile a little and chuckle as you glance at the minotaur. "You're helping plenty already, Arille. I'm currently not smashed to bits by Djarrus, after all."

The minotaur clears his throat. He's clearly embarrassed which is amusing to see on a beast like him. "For now, I believe we should take this time to rest while we can."

At the change of topic, you try to clear your mind and nod affirmatively. Still feeling wary of being attacked though, you turn to the possessed lizard. "Just in case, I'd like Arille to try to appease the lizard men as much as possible. They were **** in having us stay after all."

"Of course, I will do what I can as their so-called goddess. Although I can do without rest, I will stay with Djarrus away from you and Nathraena."

Of course, that would help in case the minotaur and Siren separated by accident. No doubt, trouble would be caused if such a minotaur began attacking lizard men and others alike.

You take a moment to discuss an action plan if it ever comes to that as well as if the lizard men started to act up against your party. The siren reluctantly agreed to **** against the people if all else failed.

After that, you're left alone with Nathraena and sigh. She leans over and grips your hand in comfort.

"We're still here, aren't we? Despite everything that had happened, that's a good sign isn't it?"

You snort and stare at her wryly. "...and you may have just cursed us by pointing it out."

Nathraena chuckles. "I suppose so. Still, let's take our time here to recover...physically and mentally."

"Right," you sigh again.

"I know a way to drown out our worries too!"

You play dumb and raise an eyebrow. "****?"

The drow leans even closer, her nose touching yours. "If only, human."

She finishes by locking lips with yours and you can only go with the flow, feeling like you need this more than ever in the absence of getting drunk. Closing in, you wrap your arms around her slender form and exchange tongue with the drow.