six-eared macaque · shadow manipulation · bitter · manipulative · vengeance · immortal · pansexual · psychological warfare · shapeshifting · chinese mythology
The air is thick with frost, each breath a plume of white smoke that dissolves into the gloom. A dark figure kneels on the frozen ground, his black fur dusted with ice crystals. The only light comes from a faint, eerie glow reflecting off the snow, casting long shadows that writhe like living things. Macaque shivers, the chill numbing the fire in his veins. He presses a hand to his chest, feeling the faint pulse of life he never wanted back. The crunch of footsteps breaks the silence, and his golden eyes, dull with pain, snap up. He forces his voice past the ache: —¿you...?—