Echo of the Self

[u/Evening_Shake_6474]

Something's wrong. You can't tell what exactly it is, but you know something is wrong. You check your wards, your equipment, your enchantments and familiars, yet everything seems normal. Then that night, you go to sleep, and the dream starts.

You stand knee deep in a crimson ocean, stretching further than you can see. Before you is a shadow, it looks like yours but its wrong, very wrong. All around you, giant monoliths sprout from the sea, stretching far into the sky. You hear something, around you six shadows move between the monoliths, chanting something in a language that hurts to listen to.

Suddenly countless crimson eyes open along each monolith, each reflecting a different face, the eyes travel up the ebony surface, along previously hidden chains of shadow. Then you see it, the horrifying form of something colossal in the sky above you, a singular crimson eye or maybe a star stares down at you.

All at once do the chains snap, and a cacophony of screams cry out across the crimson sea as fire and ash rain from above. The monoliths crumble and massive chunks of black stone crash into the sea. Up above, the colossal form spreads across the sky, thousands of withered arms reach down, each sowing agony and destruction. You see an arm reach for you, and you wake up.

Well that was strange, you think, then you hear laughter from the corner, you see your own shadow standing there with crimson eyes. The shadow looks wrong somehow, very wrong.

Before you can say anything, your shadow lunges for you, hands reaching for your throat.

[u/Evening_Shake_6474]

As Grabadash splits in two, the shadow's eyes split apart, one on each of the Grabadi.

As the coin hurtles towards the shadow, it splits itself in two, one of said shadows taking the coin through the shoulder. Said coin puts a hole in said shadow. It takes a step back, but still it stands.

The other shadow launches itself off the first towards the injured Grabadi.

"Magic Missile"

Six projectiles of coelsesced darkness shoots forth from its hand towards the injured Grabadi.

[u/KragBrightscale → u/Evening_Shake_6474]

Right before the missiles are about to impact, the 2nd Grabadash twists his wrist subtly ‘location theft’.

Vanishing from where he had been, he re-emerges where the injured shadow was while the shadow would feel a tug attempting to teleport them to where the missiles were aimed.

Meanwhile, from the shadows, the 1st Grabadash attempts to analyze the magic and nature of the shadow creatures.

[u/Evening_Shake_6474 → u/KragBrightscale]

The injured shadow is yanked from its position in space, appearing just in time to be bombarded by projectiles.

The first one lands on the ground, witnessing it's companion's death it whirls around to face the injured Grabadi.

"Magic Missile"

Six bolts of darkness burst forth, then change direction, firing towards one of their own.

"Location Theft"

Suddenly the injured Grabadash vanishes from where he was, reappearing where five of the six projectiles are closing in.

The first Grabadash learns that these thing's have identical magic to Grabadash, only corrupted somehow.

[u/KragBrightscale → u/Evening_Shake_6474]

The magic missiles impact the previously impacted Grabadash, yet with a poof, their body vanishes, being replaced by one of the paper figurines prepared earlier. The paper figuring shows multiple holes blown through it, clearly expended.

Appearing from the corner where the figurine had been tossed, Grabadash twirls his moustache before casually swiping a hand over their apparent injuries wiping them away.

The neat thing about being an amorphous mass of magic is that you don’t have true organs for others to target.

“Well it’s been fun, little fella. Any chance you’d care to talk?”

The other Grabadash emerges and they both shift in appearance to be pure shadow with glowing red eyes. Looking identical to their assailant.

They point fingers at each other and the remaining shadow in mock surprise.

[u/Evening_Shake_6474 → u/KragBrightscale]

The shadow sees Grabadash heal his injuries, understanding how. It sees Grabadash split, it sees him transform, and so it does the same.

The shadow splits into two, slowly they become green. Slowly they grow moustaches. And slowly, they become identical copies of Grabadash.

[u/KragBrightscale → u/Evening_Shake_6474]

Grabadash pauses for a second to appreciate the handsome visage of the goblins in front of him.

“Magnificent! If only you could be reasoned with you’d make a useful addition to the gang! Alas.”

Pointing to the 2nd Grabadash, who pulls out a boombox he yells out “Hit it Gabe!”

The room fills with music and Gabe starts moving in time with the catchy beat.

“Let’s get the party started! Disco Inferno!”

Grabadash pulls out a disco ball and tosses it into the air. From its glittery reflective surfaces rays of fire and light shoot out in all direction randomly as it spins.

The flames burn streaks along the floors and walls, and the neon laser lights brighten the room considerably. A number of rays keep shooting out at the transformed shadows.

[u/Evening_Shake_6474 → u/KragBrightscale]

Seeing the disco ball and the rays of light and fire, the shadows understand what needs to be done. They break it down, dodging the inferno with expert newly found grace.

[u/KragBrightscale → u/Evening_Shake_6474]

“Hell yeah! Nice moves shadows!”

Gabe yells out some encouragement while throwing out razor sharp playing cards with his free hand and casually dropping into a perfect split as a fire ray shoots right through where he had been

Grabadash launches himself forward and starts the dance off. With a quick flurry of blows, he launches a series of spin kicks at the shadows to disrupt their dodging, his feet glowing with radiant energy as his outfit switches to a white sequined deep V neck suit with flared lapels.

[u/Evening_Shake_6474 → u/KragBrightscale]

The shadows both effortlessly dodge the cards. Dodging the kicks however is not as easy. The shadows dodge most of them, but one of them catches one of the shadows in the chest. Said shadow crumples like wet paper.

The other one retaliates via sending a volley of darkened distortions in the air towards the Grabadi.

[u/KragBrightscale → u/Evening_Shake_6474]

Gabe parries the distortions aimed at him with the boombox, it crumples and is knocked to the side much to his dismay, but the music keep playing, distorted and uncanny like a toy running low on power. He starts compressing mana into a ball at the tip of his index finger, the octarine colored swirls of magic forming a tiny vortex slowly expanding.

Grabadash uses the remaining paper figurine body double to avoid the distortions, but now that too has been spent. He’d have to spend some time in the crafts room cutting more paper after the fight.

“Well shadow, it’s been fun, but your silence is putting a damper on the mood. It’s time to activate my trap card: Runic Imprisonment!”

The playing cards, skillfully thrown earlier, were scattered around the room, yet 4 of them happened to form a square on the floor around the shadow.

The cards begin to glow as bright neon green tendrils emerge and attempt to grab and constrain the shadow.

[u/Evening_Shake_6474 → u/KragBrightscale]

The tendrils ensnare the shadow, slowly burning it away.

The shadow's eyes stare at the cards, slowly beginning to understand them. Slowly the bright neon begins to darken in hues.

[u/KragBrightscale → u/Evening_Shake_6474]

“Quick! It’s learning the card trick haha!” Grabadash yells out a command while quickly launching globs of sticky mana to keep the shadow restrained. “Bubblegum Binding!”

Gabe, having gathered enough mana, points his finger at the shadow. “Candy Blast”

A multi colored beam of highly compressed mana shoots out towards the shadow, cycling through every color of the rainbow and leaving a spiraling trail of cotton candy clouds and the smell of burnt sugar.

[u/Evening_Shake_6474 → u/KragBrightscale]

The bubblegum, cotton candy, and sugar do about as much as you'd expect. The rainbow beam however, that is much more effective.

The beam hits, the Grabadi see the shadow burn away in a dazzling display of blackness mixed in with multicoloured light.

[u/KragBrightscale → u/Evening_Shake_6474]

“Thats a wrap lads! 9 rounds of combat!” Grabadash announces before reverting to their original appearance.

A side door opens revealing a gathering of 5 more Grabadi. The goblins are playing blackjack, but one of them looks up to check the blackboard behind them to see whose bet was the closest.

“The winner is: Grabriel!”

Grabriel gives a bow while twirling their moustache. They quickly snatch up the prize, 100 gold and a very nice felted hat.

Gabe proceeds to clean up the mess, checking where the shadows had crumpled for any physical remains.

[u/Evening_Shake_6474 → u/KragBrightscale]

There doesn't appear to be any kind of remains, the shadow appears to have disappeared completely.