Chapter One — Shadow Truth
Shadow Psycho Killer
Chapter One — Shadow Truth
Author: Abhay Shadow Ruler
The world had always felt wrong to Keko.
Not broken.
Not cruel.
Just… empty.
Even as a child, he understood something others didn’t — people smiled with their faces, but their shadows told the truth.
And shadows never lied.
Keko was seven years old when he realized he was different.
His house was quiet, but not peaceful. Plates touched the table without warmth. Voices spoke without affection. His family looked at him the way people looked at something defective.
A mistake that continued breathing.
His mother avoided his eyes.
His father spoke only when necessary.
Love was never missing.
It simply never existed for him.
One evening in 1987, everything changed.
Rain fell softly across the streets as Keko walked home alone.
That was when the van stopped beside him.
The door slid open.
A man stepped out — smiling too widely.
Before Keko could react, rough hands grabbed him and pulled him inside.
The door slammed shut.
Darkness swallowed the outside world.
Inside the vehicle were other children.
Some were crying.
Some shaking.
Some silently praying.
Keko did none of those things.
He simply watched.
The kidnapper sat across from them, humming happily, as if this were a normal day. His clothes were stained, and his shadow stretched unnaturally along the floor.
Then the man suddenly grabbed one of the children.
The screams filled the van.
The other children shut their eyes in terror.
Keko didn’t.
He stared directly at the man.
Not at his face.
At his shadow.
Inside that darkness, Keko saw emotions twisting violently — hatred, rage, fear, and something even deeper.
Madness.
For the first time, Keko understood:
Humans hide lies in their expressions…
but their shadows reveal their truth.
The kidnapper noticed the boy watching him.
“You’re not scared?” the man asked, confused.
Keko tilted his head slightly.
“No.”
And it was true.
He felt nothing.
Suddenly, sirens echoed outside.
Red and blue lights flashed through the van windows.
Police.
Chaos erupted. Officers forced the doors open and rescued the surviving children.
Hands lifted Keko out into the cold night air.
Someone wrapped a blanket around him.
His father arrived shortly after.
Relief filled his face — but only for a moment.
Keko looked down.
Behind his father, stretching along the ground under the streetlights… was his shadow.
And within it—
Disappointment.
Anger.
Hatred.
Not happiness.
Not relief.
Hatred that Keko had survived.
The boy silently stared.
At that moment, something awakened inside him.
A quiet understanding.
A curse.
Or perhaps a gift.
Shadow Truth.
From that day onward, Keko stopped trying to understand people.
Because he already knew what lived inside them.
Darkness.
And someday…
his own shadow would become darker than all of theirs.
— Author: Abhay Shadow Ruler
The story has just begun.
Look closer at the shadows
I'm not sure Keto's gift is a curse. For him, perhaps. He sees truth. Most don't want to hear or see...the truth. I blame his parents, of course. A child deprived of human warmth, touch and love is a child of darkness but in Keto's case, he is making the best of a bad situation.
Interesting premise, well executed with a modicum of drama and pathos. I like your writing style. Very eloquent and fluid. Of course, I empathize with such a young man having to cope on his own. I hope he finds whatever it is he is looking for. When, he figures out what that is, exactly. Good, solid story, excellent beginning!
Very interesting plot! He understands other people with the help of their shadows. Keep up the good work :-D
Poor Keko.. my heart breaks for him 💔💔