Terror of the Shadow

CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT

Dim, silver light streamed down from above, illuminating the steps leading out of the dungeon. Laban's mind was too distracted by escape to really wonder how the world had gone from day to night in only a few moments. Though his legs were weak, he crawled up the stairs and out onto the sand above, where the city of Ura-chan was engulfed in absolute chaos.

Fires raged and fumed all across the city. The air was thick with black smoke that made Laban's lungs burn and his eyes itch. There was shouting and screaming somewhere in the distance, mixed with the sporadic popping of gunfire. The sand around him was stained red with blood; dozens of bodies, War'ack and Malkuth, lay in broken and contorted positions, slowly rotting.

A bell rang somewhere in the city. The gunfire stopped, and the crisp night air erupted with the sound of distant cheers.

The battle was over.

"This... this isn't how it was supposed to go," spoke the voice of his mother.

Laban turned. She stood, looking up into the star-studded sky of night.

"Mother..." Laban said, wishing that she were real. But he knew it wasn't. She was dead. She always had been. Nothing had been real. His dreams, his visions—all a farce. He had been made a pawn of the Shadow Man's wicked schemes.

"Leave this place, devil," Laban said. "I don't want to see you anymore."

"I'm afraid that is no longer possible, my friend," said the voice of his mother. She smiled. Her twisted grin matched that of the man in the black mask.

"The War'acks have failed me," she continued. "I will have to try something a little stronger this time."

"What do you mean?" Laban said.

"You have one day, my child," said his mother. She stretched out her hand and cradled his face in her palm. She looked into his eyes. He couldn't see any of the love and kindness that was there before. There was only darkness and evil desire.

"A shadow will fall over all of Malkuth. The day will turn to night in an instant. And then... my child... you will finally be mine."

*****

Smack.

An open hand blew across his face. A snicker moved through the crowd of elders.

"Tell us again what you saw," one of them commanded. Their faces looked like ghouls in the dim light of the electric torches. The beautiful stained glass windows of the council chamber had turned black with the night, making the room seem cramped and dark, like the inside of a cave.

Laban hurled a wad of bloody spit at their feet; with his arms and legs chained, it was the only attack he could make against these elders-turned-monsters.

"I saw the Shadow Man," Laban said. That apparently deserved another slap. The elders all laughed again.

"Blasphemy!" one cried.

"This boy prophanes the name of our Gods," said another, the derision thick in his voice.

"Does he think himself some sort of prophet, that he can see something that we elders cannot?"

"He knows nothing of our religion. He is a child of the Outland. He is not Malkuth."

"He is a servant of evil. He is possessed by the spirit of the Shadow Man."

"You can beat me all you want," Laban said. "But I cannot deny what I saw. I'm not crazy. You need to listen to me. The Shadow Man is here. If you think that the War'acks are the worst threat to Ura-chan, then you need to think again. Something horrible is coming—"

One of his captors kicked the back of his knees. His legs crumpled and his kneecaps smashed into the hard stone ground. Someone threw a cloth bag over his head. He felt a sharp blow to the small of his back. He fell over, smashing his head onto the floor, unable to catch himself.

"Prophesy for us, then!" the elder shouted. "Who is he who has struck you? If thou knowest so much of Those Above and their plans, how is it that you cannot anticipate our moves?"

"You can all go to Hell," Laban coughed. "You think you're all so much better than the War'acks. But I can't tell much of a difference right now."

"We have heard the blasphemy from his own mouth. What further need have we of witnesses? The boy Laban is to be banished from Ura-chan and from Malkuth. If he returns, he will be met with swift and public execution."

"Hear, hear!" the rest of the elders echoed.

"Fine. Throw me out," Laban said, "That doesn't change the fact that you'll all be dead by morning unless you listen to me. You need to evacuate the city. You need to get everyone as far away as possible."

"We have won the battle, child," said an elder. "The War'acks have retreated back into their holes. We won't be seeing them again for a very long time."

"The War'acks are not the real threat. They never were. The Shadow Man told me—"

"What exactly did he tell you, boy? Let us hear it."

"He said... he said that a shadow will fall over Ura-chan. He said that day will be turned to night. He isn't planning on leaving anything alive."

"Well, then, little prophet, we will have to wait and see if your prophecies will come true. We will test it. If this... shadow appears tomorrow by midday, you will walk free. If not, you will not set foot in Ura-chan for as long as you live."

"That's a bet I am willing to make," Laban said. "But only because I know that I'm right."

"We shall see. The Kannebore will return tomorrow morning with the remainder of our citizens who fled. That is good. There will be a large audience to witness your failures. I hope you are not afraid of crowds, Laban."

"I have some bigger things to be afraid of," he said. "Listen to me. It's not too late to—"

"I've heard enough, child. Take him to the city square. Tonight he will sleep bound to the pillar."