((Hooray for others being up at a ghastly hour! XD))

Hm, this forest looked a little boring, at least at first. Hardly any entertainment value from something that seemed so...serene! But, ah, to his luck, it seemed that there was more to this little corner of the globe than first thought! It was getting more and more decayed and decrepit, and with it the intrigue of such a gloomy locus rose. Hm, now what could be the cause of all this? Ah, well, best just to follow the path, and see where it ends up!

Oh! Now what do we have here? A magician, and not of the white sort, either! Oh how amusing! It had been a long time since he had seen one of the archaic mages, or so this man looked like. Well, 'looking' wasn't quite the right word...Presently, all he could do was sense auras and pulses and the like, and create semi-accurate images from them. Ah, but that's for mythical biology class! So, the Shadow made his way towards the man. It was night, making darkness abundant, and so the Shadow traversed smoothly along the ground as a large patched a darker pitch than the natural shade, before finally reaching the man's feet.

Normally, a shadow stays behind its owner, especially with what little light there was in the morning, but this one literally TURNED to face the wizard, before elongating to links you might see at sunset, far too long for the dead of night. Then, the shadow began to 'rise' from the earth, and take a simple form. It was a featureless man, all dark and anonymous. The Shadow made a deep bow in front of the black mage, before 'speaking'. However, the sound of his smooth, suave voice was not heard outdoors, but rather INSIDE the man's mind.

Ah, why hello there, dear sir! You wouldn't happen to know anything about how this piece of art came to be, would you?

Midnight hadn't really paid any heed to the shadow until it changed shape by itself, and then rose. At that, no darkmage couldn't Not look. His yellow eyes glowed brightly as their sights fell on the shadow who had penetrated his mind to speak.

"This art is a work of my own, oh creature that lacks skin and bone. Why are you here this night, come to gaze my wonderful blight? Come to see this marvelous sight? Why are you here this night?"

(Ryhming hard! I feel like a bard, or perhaps a re-tard!)

Hm, interesting...He had been with a few dark mages, and their works were similar, but such signs of death at THIS large a range were...uncommon, so to say. The Shadow was interested, very interested indeed by what he could see around him.

Then my compliments are to you! As for my reasons, I simply wander through the darkness, and have stumbled upon this wonderful piece! Now, you must tell me, how did you do it?

Midnight looked at the shadow for a moment, then reached into his pocket very carefully, figuring that a shadow couldn't steal is it wanted do, and even if it did steal the bell, then he could easily get it back with his magic. Midnight found the bell and removed it, careful not to let it ring.

"I did it with this little thing, it only takes a single ring. Every living thing holds inside, but this forces it to no longer hide. A ring of the bell and all who hear, their smiling face will turn to a sneer. The forest heard its melodious call, and now inner evil is consuming all. Soon the whole forest will look like this here, and that much beauty and evil would bring your eye to tear."

(tear as in a teardrop, crying)

He 'looked' at the bell, knowing not to take it for two reasons. For one, he was a Shadow, one who was never a leader, only a follower and servant. That way, when all falls, he can always make his escape quietly, much like king's advisers. Second reason would be that, well, he was intrigued by the idea of what this mage would DO with such an object of power.

Ah, interesting...Do you plan to bring this bell elsewhere, and let it peal? If so, perhaps I may accompany you, as a humble servant, like all Shadows...My name is Umbrac and, if it is your will, what is yours...master?

A willing servant? Well, every darkmage needed a servant but what use was a mere shadow to him?

"My servant you can be, but of what use shall be seen. Can you carry, can you steal? Can you cook an edible meal? The bell effects all, but those already exposed can resist its call. If a servant to me you be, resistance to the bell is a must, you see. What skills do you own, creature with no bone?"

All three of those and many, many more, mage. Allow me to demonstrate...

With that, he chuckled, before receding back into the ground, then seeming to shrink down INTO the mage. The Shadow took hold of the body, allowing for his rather...unique help to show through. As a symbol of his presence, the straw yellow hat turned a pitch black, and another cloak was added to his form, this one wispy and barely noticeable, like the web of a spider. Once these changes were complete, he began to show the many things he could do.

First, the mage became invisible, able to move without a single sound, and not an eye in the world could see them. Next, he transported them throughout the dark forest, appearing randomly in spots covered by thick shadows. After that, he changed them into the form of a wispy, 3-D silhouette of a crow, allowing them to fly for a short period of time before regaining for, explaining that it was simple shapeshifting. Then, he allowed the mage to 'see' as he saw, along with many other states of vision only available when Umbrac was merged with another. He could detect life, see through darkness, sense auras and pulses, and pierce through many glamours.

These and many, many more smaller uses are available to you, if you accept me as your servant...I can also kill and devour at your command, should you so choose, and I am sure that I can perform many of the tasks you care to think of, mage. As for this resistance you require, I will show that I am indeed capable of withstanding it!

((Must go for the night. D=))

Midnight closed his eyes and with the sheer force of his dark aura, repelled the shadow creature from his body and back onto the ground after witnessing his abilities.

"A word of advise, my servant so bold. Don't do such things unless you are told. I had nearly decided to destroy you, but then I thought, what would a destroyed minion do?

(Hit enter too soon XD)

Midnight stared down at his new servant, but then laughed.

"You will be of great use to me. With your power, twice as great shall I be. Before we move to a new area to change, let us allow the spell to consume the full forest range. Scout around and bring forth a few creatures, that will complete the dark forest's features!"

The darkmage lifted then put the staff back down, making a clicking noise against the wood, a sign telling his minion that he was dismissed.

He allowed himself to be repelled but mimicked the black mage's shadow as he was spoken to, listening intently.

Of course, master, I merely felt that actions would speak louder than words. And what sort of creatures do you wish to inhabit this forest? The average fauna, or perhaps something a little bit more...unorthodox, from my own realm? Many creatures made of shadow-flesh roam where I once dwelt...And you have yet to tell me your name, master.

Midnight looked at the shadow, slightly irritated at the minion for questioning him rather than doing what he was told, but he supposed that a new minion was better than none.

"I am called Midnight, the darkest time of night and the hour of fright. I call for ordinary creatures to perfect my pictures! The bell hungers for more souls to sunder!"

With that, his staff was clicked against the log once again, but this time Mdnight's eyes glowed brighter, and black flame enveloped the orb on his staff.

"Now!"