• My name is Michael Nightridge and I have been living as a shadow for a month now. My shadow is planning something big but I don't know what his intentions are yet.He says he wants to make a world without fear but he is imprisoning souls to do it. I have to figure out a way to get back into my body so I can fix this mess. I have figured out how my shadow is setting the shadows "free" but I hope to only use shadow magic as a last resort. I wouldn't know what spell to use anyway its not like there is a grimoire lying around and I couldn't read it without light. The confusion of not knowing what to do is getting to me and frustration is setting in.

    Hello to the people who are reading this "short story" this is the first shadow speaking.You know I am really starting to get tired of being referred to as "my shadow". I have taken the liberty of choosing my own name and I wish to be known as Erebus. It seems fitting don't you think? Anyway if you don't know who Erebus is brush up on your greek. He was the primordial deity representing the personification of darkness and that is just who I am planning to be. So learn the name you'll be hearing it for the rest of this "story".

    It seems like Erebus wants to be more than just a leader to the shadows he is releasing. Which means he is starting to develop his own ego further separating himself from me. I understand this and actually respect him for it. But no matter what he does he is still going to have me as his conscious as long as I am his shadow.This is my responsibility to try and reason with this prisoner turned monarch. I came across a woman on my nightly stroll who might be able to help me.She is half blind so she can see me but she can also help me do some research into shadow magic since that seems to be the only option that I can think of at the moment. I think she told me her name was Pythia Dodona it is kind of a weird name but I am not gonna be picking at her name if she is willing to help me. Besides she looks beautiful in the moonlight when we have our talks and that in itself is reason to stick around her.

    Pythia is helping a lot with my research and we have nightly meetings to keep each other updated on the situation.She has also helped me keep my sanity through all that has happened to me.It is great to know that she is concerned about me and my well being.She is more than just a research partner she has also been a great friend.She has been a great research partner also. She goes to the library to find books on shadow magic she looks into old newspaper articles to find out if there have been any similar incidents to mine.One of the articles was a case of multiple personality disorder that started and ended in the same year.That article said that the person was constantly arguing with himself to the point that they put him in an asylum and after a few months he was released and completely back to normal.

    Pythia read further into this article and found that the man had committed suicide a week after his release from the asylum so we were back to square one.She did find a psychic who offered to give her a book on shadow magic after she bumped into her on accident and helped the woman pick up her things.To find out if the book was real we looked up the spell Erebus was using to set the shadows free and sure enough it was in there.She also gave her an amulet that would allow her to replace her shadow with that of someone else's however both shadows have to overlap for the amulet to work.This would give us a hole lot more time to do our research in the shadow tole but we also have to figure out a way to do it without Erebus finding out.

    We have decided to take a chance on letting Pythia meet with Erebus to activate the amulet an let me take the place of her shadow.I figured if I thought that Pythia was beautiful than so would he so we decided that the best way for this to workout would be for her just to meet him at the bus stop and talk to him long enough for the amulet to take effect.We would have to be careful not to let Erebus set her shadow free.We just had to figure out a way for not to hear the spell.

    It has been tough trying to figure out a plan but we have finally come up with one.We just have to hope that Erebus doesn't catch on to it.Pythia is finally ready to meet Erebus at the bus stop so now is the time to go through with the plan.She met Erebus at the bus stop and started to talk to him and after a while the amulet started to glow I was in the perfect position to make the swap when he noticed what was going on.I only needed a few more seconds to make the swap but Erebus was starting to pull away.Just when I thought I wasn't going to make it Pythia pulled him in and kissed him right on the lips which put me back into position to complete the spell.After the spell was completed Erebus just walked away dazed with confusion and the feeling was mutual for me too.

    I can't get my mind off that kiss it make my head hurt just thinking about it.I thought we were just friends but this has me second guessing myself.Is pythia attracted to me or was that the only thing she could think of to keep him where he needed to be? Nevermind that the point is the spell worked and we can finally focus on finding a spell that can get me out of this mess and bring things back to normal.I haven't heard anything from Erebus but I am sure he wants to keep an eye on us to make sure we don't mess up his plans.I have noticed other shadows following us around scouting us for any information they can take back to their master.This could cause a problem for us right now so the next spell we need to find is a shadow barrier.This one actually isn't that difficult but it is a powerful spell to have in your arsenal.After we placed all of the candles in place on the windows we began to chant "swodahs lla nrub dna thgirb enihs thgil" this should send any shadows close by back to their bodies.

    The nights have been long Pythia can barely stay awake but we have to solve this problem.With her permission I asked if I could take over her body to give her some rest and she agreed that it would be a good idea after some convincing.While she was resting I found a spell that might work but I won't get her hopes up so I will keep it to myself for now.Erebus still sends his spies I know this because I can hear the screams as they are pulled back to their bodies.I've been trying to stay focused on researching and have been successful so far but there are too many things going on to concentrate.

    I heard a window break letting in the wind from outside the candles were all put out and the shadows all began to rush in each grabbing a limb dragging Pythia's body out of the house she had no idea what was going on while she was resting.I tried to fight out of their grasp but it only made it worse one shadow slipped its hand around my neck making it hard for me to breathe.I was fading in and out of consciousness trying to stay awake so that she wouldn't have to experience the horrors that was going on while she slept.Finally the shadows stopped and dropped me at the feet of Erebus.I had no idea what to do I underestimated his planning and now we're in a bigger mess than before.

    Erebus was only at the beginning of his plan he ordered his shadows to attack and
    I started to feel the same pain that I felt the first night I spent as a shadow splitting pain in my legs only it wasn't my body being tortured it was Pythia's so I had try my hardest to hold on even after the pain I went through being dragged to this place."What did you learn from reading the book?" Erebus roared with anger.I tried to convince him that the book was a bust but he would not listen and he began to release restraint on his shadows more and more trying to get answers out of me.I could not bare the pain anymore and slowly Pythia started to wake up from her sleep.I had to do something so just out of desperation I told him about the spell I found that would allow shadows and humans to live side by side in peace.Erebus agreed to restrain his shadows if I preformed the spell and gave him his own body.I had no other choice but to do as he wished so that Pythia would be safe.

    I fear this might be my last entry into this journal for I do not know what Erebus will do with me once he has his own body.We have set up the ceremony as it was written in the book.My soul has been transferred back into my body as the spell requires the shadows to be outside of the body to work.The next step was to carve a circle into the ground and carve the phrase "mrof eurt ruoy ekat dna ydob ruoy morf deerf eb swodahs" in the center of the circle.The next step was to add the blood of the caster so I cut the base of my palm and squeezed the blood into each letter and the circle.I began to feel dizzy as I felt the hot liquid pour out of my hand but I had to shake it off because the spell was almost complete.The final step was to light the candle around the circle and that would complete the spell.The letters began to spin around the outer edge of the circle and Erebus was slowly pulled into the circle and a pitch black silhouette appeared slowly rising to reveal a body similar to mine.Erebus slowly got up to his feet admiring his new form while the circle was continuing to pull shadows in and turning them into a perfect clone of their host.