They say shadows have a life of their own, quiet watchful things that linger out of sight, and if you’re lonely and desperate enough, one might answer your call when summoned. However, once a shadow comes, it never leaves.

Keegan had been alone for years, his time in the military had made him distant from everyone he knew, and he found it hard to approach new people. A part of him didn’t want to admit that he felt lonely. How could a soldier of his caliber feel loneliness?

One day he saw something that piqued his interest, some kind of ritual to summon a shadow companion, one that would never leave. He wasn’t a believer in the mystical, but with nothing else to do, he tried it. Either something would, or wouldn’t happen.

It was a moonless night he did it. In the darkness of his living room, he sat alone on the floor, before him was a black candle placed in front of a mirror. With the flick of a lighter, he lit the candle, his reflection in the mirror lighting up. It was the only thing he could see in the dark.

The next part felt kind of silly, he had to say his name out loud three times, even though he saw it as nonsane he did it. Then he mumbled, “Shadow hear me. I am alone.” It was all part of the ritual.

Nothing happened for the next minute and he was about to get up, but then the candle flame flickered without going out, a sign that something else was present according to the ritual. The hair on his neck stood straight as a cold breath hit the skin of his nape. Keegan couldn’t believe it, but the quiet ripple in the room convinced him that he wasn’t alone.

In the corner of his eyes, he saw something move in the darkness, a dark figure hiding, you. You had answered, a creature of the shadows, and now he would never be alone.