A Broken Man

Chapter 15: The truth of the Lord of Shadows

Zane looked at Beckham in disbelieve, a Host for the Shadow Lord? What does that mean?

Zane: " A Host?"

Beckham: " Mmhm. All of these people were past Hosts for the Shadow Lord, but he said this one was one of his favorites."

Zane: " ... How does a Host work for him?"

Beckham smiled and hopped up on a bookshelf.

Beckham: " Well, in case you haven't notice or done your research, but the Shadow Lord isn't able to leave the Nether, which is why he sends us out. To be his eyes in the Overworld. The reason why is because he can't leave is because Irene put a curse on him when she stabbed him with her sword and locked him away in this Realm with the Divine Warriors."

Zane: " The gash on his chest. His body is trying to heal it but isn't able to because of her curse."

Beckham: " Mmhm. He's been trying to heal it for centuries, but his Relic is too damage, which is why he absorbs different energy sources to try and see if it will help heal it. But he has to use some of his power to give us our immortality. But, the Shadow Lord has to go get more followers one way that another, an even exchange, become a loyal soldier to become extremely powerful. Anyways, you know that smoke that comes out of his mouth once in a while? *Zane nods* A lot of that will go through the Nether Portal and takes over someone he comes across, becoming that part of him host. We all have it in us because well, it's all over the place down here so we're bownd to breath it in at some point, but whoever he likes the most, he usually picks them as his next Host. That way he can have a physical body and he'll be able walk among everyone in the Overworld, just another mortal to blend in with. But the only problem is that he needs a cane in every Host he had, probably because he's still weak because ya know, he's trying to heal his cursed wound. Did you know this one?"

Zane looked back at the portrait of the formal High Priest who turned out to be one of the Shadow Lord disguises in the Overworld.

Zane: " Yeah... Yes, I knew him. He was the High Priest before me during the time he was in this body and we met when I was a kid."

Beckham: " Oh?! You were that dumb and gullible kid he trained?! No wonder he likes you, you're pretty much his son! Ha! It all makes sense now!"

Zane went quiet, speechless to hear that the man who praised him while he was training with him just so he can use him. Just so he can manipulate him and become the man he was.

 Beckham: " And I gotta say, he did a good job training you. Just about everyone knows you and fears you, just like the Shadow Lord. Keep this up and you'll be his next Host in no time, you lucky Bastard."

Hearing those words felt like a large punch in the gut, his heart dropped. Beckham patted Zane's shoulder before leaving. Zane's legs went numb that made him lose balance for a moment. Zane looked down at his hands, memories of them covered with blood flashed into his mind, people screaming and begging for mercy. Zane started to breath heavily, he grabbed his face and chest a bit, was he having a panic attack? No, he couldn't. Could he? Zane never felt like this before, he doesn't even know how to react to this, making his breathing go faster. Zane ran out of the hallway, grabbed a wall to catch his breath. He then notices everyone with big grins and rushing to the Throne room. Zane saw the Shifter Twins, Mewio and Meowki, and called out to them.

Zane: " What's going on?"

Mewio: " You haven't heard?!"

Meowki: " The Shadow Lord got himself a new body. We don't know if he'll be able to go out with it, but when we heard he decided to get a new Overworld Disguise out of the blue, of course we have to go see it for ourselves."