Shi was a dimension of light in the cosmos of Pa. It was in the inner ring along with Sho, Mil, Tre, Orb, Lem, and Tae. Lem, Orb, and Sho were all shadow dimensions while the rest were of light. This is not to say that no Shadow beings would go to light dimensions or no beings of light lived in shadow dimensions it was just a type of dimension. Shadow dimensions were generally dark or naturally shadowed. They tended to have dark suns that were in reds, blues, and greens and dark moons that did not truly illuminate the night skies. Each dimension had its own culture some were modern while others had a more ancient feel. Some were dominated by humans others beastkin. Shadow dimensions had different types of shadows from inert to highly intelligent sentient beings.
There were seven rings with seven dimensions each and the dimensions of a ring always overlapped with each other at least once.
Shi was a modern light dimension filled with beastkin. There were mostly bipedal beastkin but they could have four legs as well, depending on the species of the kin. Even the small towns and villages here have electricity, running water and more modern forms of transportation. Most of their cities were very crowded and it was an industrialized dimension with factories and a greater reliance on machines and animals were generally food or domesticated.
Although Shi was of light there were a few remote Shadow cities within the dimension. Yana stayed away from them as much as possible because shadow entities would see through her disguise quicker than a being of light could.
Yana sat at a table in a bar sipping a strong drink she forgot the name of. Her familiars and pets were either sitting and drinking with her or in her soul. She had already had to inform a few men that she was not for touching. She thought she would get thrown out but the management was tolerant of large groups of paying customers and even offered to move her to a private room. When she said no the owner merely shrugged and made sure that she and her group were always happy.
Just as Yana was about to leave a group of very grown men came in throwing a child around. She sat back down with a frown and held her glass roughly.
"Must you bully him like this?" One of the men rounded on her and yelled and spit in her face.
"This is the runt whose parents let that Shadow fiend free. Now he is begging good folk to help his parents. Idiot."
Yana spoke through clinched teeth. "Please back away from me and if you spit on me one more time I will render your mouth useless."
The man looked at her in confusion for a moment then slowly backed away while wiping his mouth. Yana pulled the boy to her table and looked him up and down. Poor but not incredibly so. Hard worker and probably didn't attend school but seemed very smart.
"Explain what's going on." He looked around the table, at her companions, and nodded.
"My family saved a long time to buy a piece of property so that we could work our own land and not someone else's. They were clearing the fields when they came across something that they did not understand.
"My parents are not educated if me or my sister were home we would have told them it was a warden cairn but…" He shook his head and was lost in thought for a moment. "I don't know if you know what those are." When she didn't respond he explained.
"A warden cairn essentially is a prison for shadows well My parents didn't know and the person" at this point the boy's eyes fluttered to the loud spitter. "who sold them the land did not inform them that the thing was there.
"Now they are arrested and sentenced to death unless they recapture the thing."
Yana frowned. "Do you know what kind of warden cairn it was or what kind of shadow it is?"
The boy shook his head. "I wasn't there and my parents don't really know how to identify the different types of shadow let alone the kinds within the different types.
"People are saying it is a Shadow beast of some kind. Unfortunately my parents were so scared by it all they didn't pay enough attention to it to give a good description. As far as the cairn is concerned it is sitting in front of the jail hoping someone would be able to recapture the thing."
Yana looked at the boy. He was scared, honest, pure of soul, and ready to do anything to protect his loved ones.
"I'll help you."
Tasha rolled her eyes and groaned. "Boss this kid can't pay and this sounds like a difficult case."
Yana shrugged. "I'm taking it. You can stay here and wait." When she stood they all stood. "What's your name and where are you and your sister staying."
He looked at Tasha before he spoke "We still live in the house no one will take us in and technically we still own it."
Yana nodded. "I am going to send Amber with you to make sure that you are both okay."
Amber stood and chugged the rest of her drink and went behind the boy.
"I will go see the cairn then come to the house to pick up the trail."
The boy nodded. "thank you ma'am and we will pay."
Tasha scoffed as she followed the others out. Amber put a hand on the boy's shoulder. "Don't mind Tasha. The boss is probably not going to charge you anything. Let's get to your house and make sure that your sister is okay."
Yana stood across from the city's jail. It was a large twenty story building with a high electrified fence moving off either side of it and going around the property. The cairn set just inside a small fenced in area to the side of the main building. It was the size of a small hill and looked as if someone had just freshly dug it up. Yana shook her head as she looked at it. The owner had to have known that thing was on the property. If that spitter was the owner like she suspected she was going to make sure he had nightmares for a long time to come.
"Someone is walking up to you on your six." Yana nodded to acknowledge Alisha's warning. She felt these two as soon as they started following her from the bar.
"Shadow girl..." The man whispered but she still reflexively grabbed his throat and squeezed. It almost took her too long to calm down and he sputtered and took in hard ragged breaths when she finally let go. DD looked to her and nodded.
"I'm busy." She turned her back to them and slowly walked away.
The field at the boy's home was a mess. Yana had followed Amber's presence to find the place. They all set on the property fence looking at the massive hole in the main field.
"I still think it is a Draco Shadow beast." Yana shook her head.
"Spitter really should die."
The children's eyes went wide as they heard DD. Their parents probably would have been killed if that Shadow was fully awake when they encountered it. The boy knew they would not be able to pay these people now.
"I don't think I have enough to pay you ma'am." He handed her a dark crystal. "This is a family heirloom and it should be enough for just getting that information for us."
When she didn't take the crystal he put it on her lap and a spark ran from it into her. She almost kept it. She gave it back to him.
"Do you see what you do Tasha?"
"I'm sorry kid. The boss is going to help you for free. It's her way."
The boy frowned. And he tossed the crystal to Yana just as he and his sister jumped down and hurriedly walked away. Yana smiled.
"Jasmine can you track this?"
Jasmine didn't respond. She merely went on to the field and looked. Yana felt her shy away from the main portion and focused on a second disturbed area. Jasmine shook her head and then she touched the disturbed earth.
"It is underground." As soon as she said this she jumped back and they were all tensed and battle ready.
A huge canine Shadow burst out of the ground, it's eyes were red and crying blood.
Yana moved forward. She felt sorry for the Shadow. Draco shadows look horrific, and, for the most part, they were. But they were creatures totally driven by the whims and emotions of their masters. The problem was if they had no master they slowly fell into an irreversible state of insanity. Yana clearly saw the insanity in this creature's eyes and in his very being.
She took her staff and tapped it lightly on the ground. It twirled in her hand effortlessly, as if it were moving on its own and she was merely a spectator. It came down hard on the Draco shadow's head and the shadow beast dropped dead instantly. Yana shook her head once more and turned.
Her staff was extended forward and pointing to a shadow on the other side of the large field. "Come! Now! I do not like being spied upon." A tall billowing shadow, a Wao it would seem, moved from the darkness. Wao were naturally graceful shadows and its stiff movements told her he was fighting her control. She released him and he flew backwards, showing just how hard he had been fighting her. "What do you want."
"Forgive my intrusion Mistress. My employer wants to speak with you about taking on a job."
She turned her back and began walking to the house. "I am not for hire."
"It could be very lucrative for you mistress."
No reply. His boss will only be more intrigued. The shadow melded into the darkness around him and was gone.