Intro

*Authors note this is a boys love with other important relationships. That includes lesbians and straight. It is a slow burn and has horror elements. The warnings too are not extreme in this but wanted all readers to be aware. I hope readers find this and can enjoy it. Its one of two stories. I hope to put the second on here if this one does well. Thanks for reading 🩵*

A woman of earthy-toned skin lay within a fabric-made bed. Her wrinkly hand weakly grasped at a young man of similar features.

She smiled at him, wide and bright. A song spilt from her lips. Sang softly with a weariness that showed her age.

Oh, my child of midnight sky. See with your gaze of deep sea eyes~

Come ask dear, ask clan Griot your rise,

Questions of all, your magic I cannot deny,

Sea and shadows so deep your subconscious will rise~

You are not from our world, dear child, those kin exiled sky high!

To a land forgotten, by even the gods I do not lie,

Lady of the land, Dear Dea is gone, Erida was here and ashed the land with scorn,

Your father is gone, to a land that never was.

Your mother mourns for you; his shadow was born and will now be alone.

Our Isa, our shadow child of the sea and sky,

You are for so many great things, that I cannot deny.

I see your fate, your battles, your strife,

Oh, I am so proud, so proud to see what you might find.

The truth is scary, so scary, dear child, so stay close!

Your father nears, he nears... But little does he know it is too late. little shadow, too late to reach his fated one.

But he will not leave empty-handed, no, he will not.

Boat in the sky, a kitsune in disguise!

He comes, he comes, so do not cry!

Your home is fast approaching. I see oh, I see with my dear old eyes.

I will miss you, dear shadow, I will miss you oh, goodnight and goodbye tonight,

In your dreams, I will visit you, young one,

When you need me most, I will rise,

I will guide you, dear child, in time of need, so do not cry!

Good night, goodnight, this is my final song,

Dear Shadow, my son, my Isa! Keep your head held high!

For though I mourn your father, I do not mourn our time!

I love you always

My dear shadow...

From the day you opened those ocean blue eyes.~

As her skin greyed out, her body grew limp. Blue eyes stayed locked on her still plastered smile, the elderly woman's face serene. Isa watched calmly and full of love. He slowly lowered himself to give her a final, small kiss on the forehead. "Goodbye... Mother." He whispered.

His voice was forlorn, his heart shattered.

Then he had to move on as all in life must do. But his soul could not quite follow. His memories grew hazy and distant. Choppy even. His voice was faint in the background.

"I remember..."

His deep voice reminisced within his mind.

"I remember that moment so clearly, and how. When she died, I felt something within me tear. A dark feeling I still can not comprehend..."

Everything after that faithful day was nothing more than a giant fog. Isa's body stuck on autopilot. He took over his mother's duties within their sacred temple. Tended to it, prayed to the gods and blessed those who came.

The shadows moved and rolled. The rain in his continent was heavy. The mist and haze within his sacred zone was thick with his grief. Isa sat poised at the sacred summoning ring within his temple. He sat at its centre, legs folded beneath him as he blankly looked at the floor.

The room's air was dense, fogged by the burn of incense. He lost count of how many days it had been like this and focused only on reaching that next morning. The offering table remained untouched with mountains of fruit and bread.

He barely lifted his head. He vaguely thought to accept some of the food offerings when... The image of a tail flicked by his sight?

Weakly, he tilted his head up to get a clearer look.

Black-tipped ears, auburn fur... A fox? A flash of purple passed by, and before he knew it. His barely processing mind shut off and his vision went black. Isa's body felt this tingling numbness. It spread quickly and caused him to fall.

He did not fight as he felt a form tower above.

He heard hurried, panicked breaths. The invader seemed somewhat scrambled. "Where." He heard a feminine voice mumble. "Where is... Zuri Odita?"

Those questioning words were where his subconscious cut clean off.

The world was now silent.