Death’s Shadow:
The Birth of Deus Umbra


He walks through the small camp, soundless, not leaving the smallest trace. He walks to each body, stooping at each one, touching them lightly and only for a moment. It is a primitive camp compared to the other civilizations he has seen.

He makes his way towards the center of the camp. Only a few more before he is done. He steps into the clearing of beaten dirt and smoldering cook fires. He circles the clearing before making his way to the central cook fire, the latest in the clearing. He moves to recover the soul when what he thought was the person's coat jumps at him and growls. He then senses that this person, this child's soul was not ready to be collected. The child was still breathing and dog had been keeping the child warm.

He looks at the dog and realizes that it was the dog's soul he was supposed to collect. The dog shows no signs of willingness to leave the child. Death knees by the pair, “You have risked your life to protect this child, but do not worry; come dawn this child will rescued.” Death says in a quiet soothing tone, trying not to wake the child. The dog whimpers, pleading in his eyes. Death after a few moments signs, “Okay, you can stay with the her till dawn, than we must go.” The dog's tail wags and lays next to the child again, trying to keep her warm next to the dying embers of the fire.

As the sun comes over the horizon there are voices, shouts, and cries. As the hunting party comes back to camp to discover that their clan has been attacked and wiped out. Except for the girl, whose life was saved by her best friend. A dog who was not big enough to be with the hunting dogs and was left with girl.

The men find the girl next to the central fire, still alive despite the cold morning. Her companion sheltering her from the worst of the weather. They have to roll the dog away from her, for he did not survive the night, not with the wounds he had taken to save her from the invading clan.

Death and the dog stand away from the tribesmen, standing in corporal, and the girl, who has woken up to find her best friend dead and cold, her crying echoing in the air. The dog whimpers knowing this is farewell. Death rubs his ears, strangely feeling sympathy for the dog, the first time in millennia . As the dog and Death turn to leave the girl cries out “I will miss you and love you forever Shadow!” The dog howls his cry back, not knowing it will never reach her ears.

Death turns to the mostly black dog, noticing that his wounds have turned to scars, three slashes a crossed his left shoulder, and one slash a crossed his left eye. The slash having strangely turned the left eye a deep green. “What an odd pairing, the left dark green and the right a light blue.” Death thinks to himself.

As they walk the world fades to a white fog. The dog, Shadow, staying close to Death, fearing getting lost in the fog. Eventually, the fog gives way to a starlit, night sky. The pair walks up a gravel path to a walled in courtyard. Death pushes open the wrought-iron gate, stylized with flowers, to a garden with flowers in full bloom, showing off every color imaginable, filling the air with so many scents that Shadow sneezes.

There is a stream that weaves its way through the flower beds, pass trees gently swaying in the light breeze, finally ending at a pond in the middle of the garden making a soothing trickling sound that almost puts Shadow to sleep. Death sits down on a bench by the stream. “Time to rest these old bones.” Shadow sits down next to him on the bench. “We will sit here for a minute before we go into the house and give you the grand tour.” Shadow barks his agreement.