Shadow hissed in pain as he tightened the bandages around his wounds, blood already soaking through. After his victims had escaped, he had collapsed, and fallen unconscious for a while. After waking up, it occurred to him that he had lost a lot of blood, and so he had to treat his wounds immediately.
God damn it... Shadow had thought to himself as he cleaned the injuries. This is why you should have learned healing magic... Though, if you had, I suppose you might not be as powerful when it comes to the magic you do know...
Shadow didn't actually know any healing magic. He had spent most of his magic studies learning about other types of magic, and his request to skip the unit that went over health and healing magic when he still went to magic school had gone through and been accepted. Let's just say that he was beginning to regret his decisions.
They've escaped... All of them... Shadow thought to himself, as he continued muttering. He had lost Hide, and Spirit, who had been right there in his clutches, had escaped as well. As he continued tending to himself, he felt his rage simmering inside him. He had lost another battle, and he had lost it badly.
"I'm going to kill her..." He growled, his fury growing stronger and more prominent. "I'm going to end her pathetic, little life, and then... who will be there to stop me...?"
Shadow finished tying the bandages around him, as the fire of his rage continues growing hotter and hotter. He knew what he wanted to do, but he also knew that he can't exactly act on it right now. And despite how much he wanted to, killing her would only make his situation worse, given the things he knew about her. Still, the desire for bloodshed was still there, and Shadow needed to tame it.
Shadow stood up, and limped around his little secret floor. He had managed to hide the existence of this area pretty well from Glitch during the hotel's construction, and had been able to do many things he knew Glitch would have never approved of without him knowing.
Of course, Shadow had never actually killed anyone. Most of his time down here had been spent practising the dark magic he excelled so much in. He still had all of the old spell books and instruction books in his office, most of which he had stolen from the Archives, which was where forbidden magic was locked away and hidden from seeking eyes.
Shadow, of course, had somehow managed to break in and steal countless artifacts, which gave him the abilities he has now.
Of course, he hadn't wanted anyone to know they had been stolen, or else there'd be a massive manhunt for him, and he couldn't have that. Not with his ambitions.
So, using a duplication spell he had crafted himself, he had left the original, ancient texts in the Archive, and took the just as powerful copies with him.
Shadow knew they didn't have any healing spells. Otherwise, he'd have used them by now. So all he could do was give himself strength (using magic), and heal like a normal, non magical human would.
The thought disgusts him.
Shadow stood up, pain searing in his side, before walking back into the room he slept in. He didn't dare call it a bedroom; it didn't have the level of comfort that a real one had. It was pretty much just his office, where he conducted magic and used his enchanted artifacts.
He creaked the door open, and stepped inside. It was an absolute mess, but Shadow had grown used to it. He pulled one of the dark magic books off of the bookshelf, and sat down on his not-exactly-a-bed, opening it. He flipped through it looking for something to ease the pain and give him strength, as he muttered to himself.
Eventually, he found it. A spell that would allow him to move and maneuver easily with no pain, and it would keep him fully energized for a while. Closing his eyes, he uttered the words of the spell, and felt a darkness growing inside of him. He felt cold, as if all of the warmth had been sucked from his body, before the spell worked, and he felt warm again.
Shadow set the book down on the table, and stood up, walking around a bit. He felt no flares of pain as he walked, so he would probably be okay.
Shadow exhaled softly. He sat back down, staring up at the ceiling for a moment.
What would he do now?
Surely the others wouldn't be so foolish as to think he was defeated. He knew they were smarter than that.
So what can I do...
He had that thing he had enchanted to answer any question he asked truthfully, but he didn't really know what to ask of it at the moment. He didn't really feel like kidnapping anyone, especially not in the state he was in. Sure, he had strengthened himself, but that didn't necessarily mean that he could win any fight he fought.
Shadow's mind flicked to the scrying spell; the one he never used, despite just how useful it'd be for him. He knew the risks, but... it would be quite useful now. Of course, there was still the off-chance that he'll get pulled in too deep and become trapped in another's consciousness, but those were fairly standard risks for scrying. Shadow would just have to be careful and spend little time using it.
Shadow walked over to his desk, opening the drawer at the bottom. He pulled out a dark obsidian sphere, and, after whispering the activation words, the sphere became a shiny orange-yellow color. The only question now was who Shadow should spy on.
It did also depend on whoever was awake. He knew that it was now fairly late at night at that point, so most entities would be asleep. Unfortunately, he had no way to know who would still be awake. He knew they had watches in rotations, but it would be impossible to determine who would be on their shift at that time.
Unless...
Shadow pulled out another book, and opened it. It was completely blank, but that was the idea. Grabbing a pen, he wrote a question into it: Which of the entities are currently on their watch shifts?
Shadow watched as the ink faded before disappearing entirely, and then watched as new words started appearing on the page.
Two entities are officially on watch; Eyes and Halt. However, their shift just started, so Glitch, Hide, and Guiding Light are still awake.
Shadow, satisfied with the answer, discarded the book, before grabbing his scrying sphere again. He closed his eyes, knowing who he wanted to watch. When his eyes opened, he was in the main hall. He was sitting on a desk, and Halt was sitting beside him.
He was currently viewing the world from Eyes' perspective.
(Mind you, this did not mean he was controlling Eyes; it simply means that Shadow is watching what's happening from Eyes' consciousness)
"So, how are you feeling?" Halt asked, turning to him.
"...What?" Eyes' voice asked.
"I mean, Shadow did capture you," Halt said. " What did he do to you? How are you feeling?"
"Well, other than gagging me and throwing me into a cell, he didn't do much," Eyes said after thinking for a moment. "I'd imagine he would have done more, had you not come down right away. But I guess he never really got the chance."
"Huh," Halt murmured. They sat in silence for a little bit, before Halt spoke up again.
"You know, it was kind of terrifying just seeing him grab you like that," he sighed. "Like, one second we were just talking, and then suddenly Shadow was there, and he grabbed you, before you were both gone."
Eyes laughed slightly. "Sorry to concern you. But I suppose it could have been worse."
"Hey, don't say sorry to me," Halt said with a small smile. "It's not like it was your fault. Personally, I don't want to hear you say that again unless it's actually your fault."
"Oh, I'm sorry your highness, but when was I required to listen to you?" Eyes joked, nudging Halt playfully.
"Hey, I'm just trying to make sure you don't blame yourself," Halt shot back, pushing Eyes slightly.
"I don't, loser," Eyes laughed. "Everyone knows that everything is actually your fault."
Halt gasped in mock offense. "How dare you! You know what, you're exiled from the kingdom!" Halt then shoved Eyes off of the desk, and he landed on the floor, laughing.
"Hey, can you guys please be a little quieter?" They hear Hide's voice say.
"Yeah, your adorable banter is literally making me sick," Glitch teases from where he lies.
"Sorry," Halt says with a small laugh. He offers a hand to Eyes, helping him up, before they sit back down on the desk.
The rest of their watch was incredibly boring to be a part of. They just whispered to each other, and they didn't say anything useful.
Until they neared the end of their shift.
"So, Eyes, what did Seek say to you when you went to retrieve him?" Halt asks.
"Didn't I tell you already?" Eyes questions.
"You might have, but I guess I wasn't paying attention," Halt said wryly.
"Well, he pretty much just screamed at me, telling me to go away," Eyes said. "So I did. I'm pretty sure he'll be spending the rest of the night in his own room."
In his own room? How interesting... Shadow thought to himself. He had heard all of the information he needed. With minor difficulties, he released himself from Eyes' consciousness, and was back in his office.
If he's alone and doesn't want anyone near him, then I can catch him again... Shadow thought to himself. He stood up, and began pacing around the room.
Though, perhaps I should wait... If I take him now, they might not know about it, but he's still likely upset about how easily he lost, knowing him. He'll try to ensure it never happens again. I need to wait until he's cooled off. Or...
Until he's too weak to fight back...
Shadow was not above foul play. He'd absolutely use his magic to weaken Seek if it made him easier to capture.
Then I'll just have to wait... I can take the time to go through the texts for anything that might help me, and then there's no chance he'll beat me.
I just need to bide my time...