Shadow Speak
As the mysterious pale man continued to talk about the history of the Shrouded Valleyto his lady companion dressed in elegant and formal robes, a figure from behind followed with interest. If they were in any other city they would look out of place, a hunched back in dirty and ratty clothing. Their nose was so long, pointed and curved it could make the perfect fishing hook. They sniffed heavily and followed the pair through the cramped alleys making sure to keep far enough away to avoid any suspicion. But this was their way of making a living and had gotten quite good at it.
Distance grew between the mystery figure and their targets that doubled when a group of rowdy drunks stomped in front of them. They pushed and shoved and made brash comments to the stranger which forced them into a knee jerk reaction of insulting them back. They squabbled for a couple of seconds before going separate ways. By then, the pair they were following had vanished into the crowds. No chance of finding them now, they thought. Chewing their upper lip, they contemplated the next steps. Turning back to stare down the group of idiots that got in their way and spat on the floor in their direction. They adjusted their scraggy shawl and turned into a nearby alcove.
It was damp and poorly lit. Perfect for writing a message to their employer. The stranger spoke a few ancient words to the shadow covering the back wall of the alcove. Waited and watched as the solid fixed shadow began to drip down the wall, small ripples began to move at a snails pace and was ready to receive a message. The stranger plucked a thin stick from their pocket and poked into the shadow, it reacted leaving a slight residue on the stick. For the next minute the hunched stranger carved various letters and symbols into the liquid shadow explaining their findings. Then took a step back, squinted to read the wispy images they had made and spoke another set of ancient words. The swirling shadow on the wall began to close on itself, enveloping the letters into a small black spot within the shadow. Barely noticeable to most. And then with great speed, the spot zipped up the wall, round the bend of the alcove and raced up the wall of the building.
The stranger washed the stick in a nearby puddle, placed it back inside their pocket and rejoined the crowd of thugs and crooks walking down the street.
Shadow speak is a form of communication designed and performed by Necromancers all over Violem. A written language that derives from the notes of the original Necronomicon. Used to communicate messages over long distances quickly and without the chance of a messenger being caught. Nowadays it’s not the most popular method but individuals still use shadow speak in certain scenarios. To write a message, one must speak the incantation to any shadow. This enables the shadow to become a liquid and malleable material. It is said in this state the shadow looks alive, rippling from a wind that doesn’t exist and showing wisps even darker than the shadow itself. Once a message is written in the material another spell is required to save the message and send it of to the receiver, the liquid state condenses into a small black spot on the wall and races off to find the Necromancer that needs to read the message. The spot can move on its own free will and takes the path of least resistance. The only caveat is that the spot can only travel through shadows. Once it reaches its destination, the message can be open using the same incantation as writing a message.
Mmm, received a message in the shadows I did. Old way to talk. Mmm, wasn’t even interesting, just discounts for pigs blood.
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