Disclaimer: I do not own Zener Work's Okage Shadow King or Nippon Ichi Software's Soul Nomad and the World Eaters.

So, a little history you can skip reading: Okage Shadow King was (and still is) one of my favorite games from childhood. Recently, I tried out the game Soul Nomad and the World Eaters, and I fell in love with the characters, Gig especially. The thought of what it would be like if Ari was fused with Gig crossed my mind, the gears in my brain started whirring like crazy…and this fanfiction is the result.

This will all take place in the world of Okage Shadow King, yet the concepts of both games will be used. With all that said, hope you enjoy reading this.

Warning: This fanfiction contains strong language. Later chapters will also have spoilers for Soul Nomad and the World Eaters.

Chapter 1: The Bottle

Ari mentally groaned as he walked down the path to Tenel.

For the third time this week, his mother sent him to pick up bread. As usual, it was supposed to be Annie's job, but she had once again weaseled her way out of the errand, saying that she had "homework" to do. Because of this, it once again fell to Ari. He arrived at the front gate and went through.

The village of Tenel wasn't busy, as usual. There weren't many people in the village, and most of them were working at stores that only the regulars would visit. As the gate closed behind Ari, he noticed someone standing next to it.

That person was Julia. She stood in her usual attire, a white dress with black boots, and gazed out into nothing. Ari had known her since childhood, and yet he could never really talk to her. He calmed his now racing thoughts and approached her.

"Hi Julia." He said meekly.

The blonde continued to stare in space.

"Julia?"

It was as if he wasn't really there. Somehow, no one ever really noticed Ari, and the ones who did usually didn't listen to what he had to say. This would happen even around the ones he knew throughout his whole life. He figured it was because he was a quiet character, but still, this amount of unnoticeability was ridiculous.

He was about to give up on talking to Julia when she suddenly turned her head to face him. She seemed startled and she said, "Huh? Oh, Ari! I was daydreaming, sorry about that."

"That's-."

"Hey, so did you know the circus is coming tomorrow night?"

"Yes."

"So, do you want to ask me out?"

Though Ari could never tell Julia what he was thinking, she was good at figuring these things out. He knew that he could never ask her out, so when she posed the question, he froze in place. He opened his mouth to answer, but no sound came out. However, Julia wouldn't even give him a chance to say a single syllable.

"Sorry, but someone already asked me out."

Ari's mouth hung open. If someone had asked her out, then why did she bother to ask him? This was one thing he never understood about her. He hung his head and muttered "goodbye" before walking off.

"Wait." Julia spoke up.

Ari stopped and turned to face Julia. She said, "Um, sometime soon, I need to tell you something important."

There was a long pause. Finally, she said, "Uh…I have to go. See you." She walked past Ari, leaving him wondering what she was going to say. Still, it didn't really matter. Once more, he had failed to secure a date with her. He resumed his journey to the bakery.

The only people in the bakery were the baker woman and her husband. The baker's back was turned to Ari, as she was tending to the oven. The husband sat off to the side, lost in his thoughts. Ari approached the counter and said, "Hello."

The woman did not hear him. She sang a happy tune consisting of nothing but the word "la". She was obviously engrossed in her work.

"I'm here to pick up the bread." Ari spoke up.

Still, she did not notice him. Knowing that he can't get her attention, Ari placed his arms on the counter and rested his head on top of them. Finally, the baker turned around and saw him.

"Huh? Oh, it's you, Ari!" The baker said cheerfully. "Don't I always tell you? A boy like you needs to speak up. You've come to pick up the bread, right?"

Ari straightened himself and nodded. The baker knelt down behind the counter and came back up with a loaf of bread. She handed it to Ari and said, "The payment has already been taken care of, so here you go. Tell your sister I said 'hello'."

Ari gave a single nod and walked out with the loaf in hand. On the way to the gate, he saw Annie. She approached him and said, "I see you got the loaf."

"The baker says 'hello'." Ari said nonchalantly.

"Let me guess, she didn't notice you again? Well, you're the type of person to blend in someone else's shadow, so it's not surprising."

The type to blend into someone else's shadow, huh? Ari thought to himself. That sounded right. People knew him, but they wouldn't really notice him most of the time. It had been like this for as long as he can remember.

His thoughts were interrupted by Annie saying, "Let's go home already. I'm starving, and I want to know if mom is cooking steak or stew for dinner!"

So the siblings headed for home.

The next night, the family was gathered in the parlor. Two days ago, Ari's father had found an ornate purple bottle while he was walking in the woods. He was, however, unable to remove the cork. Since he found it, he became obsessed with it, trying to figure out its origins and contents by coming up with wild theories.

Ari's father called in his father, mother, wife, son, and daughter to the parlor to host an open discussion about the bottle. He placed the bottle on the rug and started speaking his ideas. The rest of the family quickly lost interest is what he was saying.

"So, this crest," he began, "is…hmm…I think it's…"

The mother chuckled and said to her children, "Your father is crazy about that bottle! He really likes antiques!"

"And so," the father went on, "this coloring…"

"You know the circus is in the field outside of town tonight, right? Why don't you two go have fun?"

Annie jumped at the chance and said, "Alright Ma, see you later!"

She was about to run out of the room when her mother called out, "It's dangerous to go out alone. Go with your brother."

She stopped and said, "Don't worry, I'm going out with Chad tonight!"

Annie left singing a happy tune.

Didn't she say she was going out with Bruce yesterday? Ari thought to himself.

"Oh Annie," the mother said to herself, "a boy is picking you up? You've grown up. I'm so happy for you!"

Ari was about to follow his sister out when his father spoke up, "Ari, wait a minute. I need a word with you."

Ari knew his father wanted someone to listen to his theories again, and he was powerless to do anything about it. He went up to his father and asked, "What is it?"

"Great!" His father became enthusiastic. "Okay, so this bottle…"

"Dad, I want to go to the circus." Ari interrupted.

"Huh, what was that? Anyways, the crest on this bottle, if my theory is correct, is in the shape of the tail of the Rainbow Rat that only comes out by moonlight, namely…"

"Oh boy," the grandfather muttered, "there he goes again."

"Uh huh, uh huh. That's right honey." The grandmother agreed.

"Well, I think I'll go out for some fresh air."

"Uh huh, uh huh. That's right honey."

The grandparents slowly stood up and left the room. Ari wished he could go with them, but he was trapped by his dad.

"Among these ancient rituals," his father went on, "…and the curve of the handle is…foretold by the shoelace weaver…with the proper harmonics…all you need is a little garlic…at 200 degrees for an hour…"

"Oh, that reminds me," the mother said aloud, "I need to put away dinner."

She also exited, leaving Ari and his father alone with the bottle. Ari tried to speak up again, "Dad-."

"No, wait," the father mumbled, lost in his own thoughts, "let me see…then, yes…no, no…it's simple quantum physics, really…"

Ari stood there, not really listening to his father. Two hours passed, and he was surprised he didn't fall asleep while he was standing. His father was losing his voice, so he knew he was about done.

"Therefore…my conclusion is…" The father stopped to take a deep breath. "Do you understand, son?"

Ari said nothing. He knew he had missed the circus, and he wanted to call his dad out on it, but he couldn't. What would be the point? Even if his father acknowledged what he said, he would probably brush it off.

"Oh, hang on," the father said, "the circus is tonight, isn't it?"

Ari's expression became pained.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Go out and have some fun, boy!"

But it's too late. Ari thought.

With his head hung low, he went outside. He didn't know why he was still making his way to the circus. Maybe he was hoping he would catch the last few minutes. Maybe he just wanted to be somewhere other than the house.

When he arrived in front of the tent, he saw that there were no lights. Two people exited the tent: Julia and one of the boys from Tenel. Julia saw Ari and walked up to him.

"Good evening." She said.

The boy by Julia's side asked, "Ari, what are you doing here? The circus is already over! Ha ha, you always miss out, you dork!"

Ari said nothing.

"Hey, let's go, Julia."

The two of them walked past Ari without glancing back. He thought he would one day get used to getting picked on by the other kids of Tenel, but their words always left a sting in his mind and heart. Seeing Julia leave like that also hurt.

Why did I even bother coming? Ari thought to himself.

He was about to leave when he heard someone shout, "Hey! Get away! I told you, get away, you drunk buffoon!"

There was a loud slap and a short, pudgy man in a ringleader's outfit came rolling out of the tent. Stepping out after him was a woman in strange attire. She wore a white outfit and had a rapier at her side, meaning that she was a warrior. What stood out, though, was that she was holding an open pink parasol above her head. Why she had her parasol out at night, Ari could not even begin to guess.

The woman shook her fist angrily at the fallen ringleader and said, "You deserve that!"

Like a ball, the man rolled slowly from side to side, trying to get up. He let out a groan of pain and hiccupped. He said with a slight slur, "What a woman…"

The woman stepped over the fallen man and was about to leave when she saw Ari staring at her. She snapped, "What are you looking at?"

Ari turned his head to the side and said, "Sorry." He turned to leave.

"Wait." The woman went up to him and asked, "Boy, are you traveling by yourself?"

"Yes."

"Don't you know it's dangerous to go out alone at night? You can get attacked by ghosts!"

"I made it here without seeing any ghosts."

"Listen, I'll walk you back. Where do you live?"

Ari felt like this was an argument he could not win. It was true that there were hostile ghosts that roamed around and attacked whoever, but he had never had problems with ghosts. He had seen them before, but he was always able to run to town to get away from them, since ghosts stay away from populated areas. He did not want to start an argument, so he told her that he lived at the big house outside of town.

The boy and the woman were approaching the intersection to the village and house when a scream rang out in the air. They both ran ahead and what Ari saw made his blood go cold. In front of him was a mass of red fog with yellow eyes. It was a ghost, but that was only part of the reason Ari froze up. Below the ghost was Annie, unconscious and pale.

"A ghost!?" The woman drew out her rapier and ran at the ghost.

The ghost noticed her sudden approach and floated off into the woods. The woman stopped just short of the edge and watched the ghost vanish into the air. Ari ran to his sister's side and called out, "Annie!"

"Annie?" A voice called out.

Ari lifted his head and saw his father run towards them. He asked, "What happened?"

The woman sheathed her rapier and said, "A ghost attacked her. It got away…damn!"

Ari's father knelt next to his daughter and shook her. He cried out, "Annie! Annie! Open your eyes, Annie!"

However, she would not wake up.

"Help! We need help!"

It took an hour to tell the family what had happened and to find a doctor who could help. Everyone, including the woman, was in Annie's room, watching anxiously as the doctor examined her. She lay half asleep in bed and said nothing as the doctor looked over her.

Finally, he took a step back and said to everyone present, "I'm sorry, but it looks like she is cursed. There isn't anything I can do to cure her."

He left the room full of now shocked people. The woman lowered her head and said, "I'm sorry. It's my fault. If I had arrived sooner, this wouldn't have happened."

Ari's father turned to her and said, "It's not your fault Miss…?

"Rosalyn. I am hero, but yet-!"

"Please, Miss Rosalyn-!"

They were interrupted by the mother suddenly letting out a painful gasp. The father went to her side and asked, "What's wrong?"

"Annie…" The mother trembled. "She…she spoke, but…"

"Annie?"

The girl blinked slowly and said, "Othermay, hyway am I alkingtay llaay unnyfay?"

Everyone stared at her in a stunned silence. Ari broke the short lived silence by asking, "What was that?"

"It's pig latin." The grandfather spoke. "I remember I used to play around with it when I was younger. The user skips the first letter of the word and adds it to the end, followed by 'ay'."

"I remember you telling me about that." The father said. "You would say stuff like 'oodgay orningmay'."

"Uh huh, uh huh. That's right honey." The grandmother agreed.

"Oh no!" The mother wailed. "This is just too horrible! Now Annie is going to grow up to be a comic relief girl and not a precious, pretty princess!"

"I on'tday antway otay ebay a omiccay eliefray irlgay." Annie shook her head.

Though Ari was worried about his sister, he still couldn't help but feel pained at his mother's obvious favoritism.

"It's a horrible curse," Rosalyn admitted, "but I don't think it's going to ruin-."

"No, no," Ari's mother continued to despair, "my girl's going to become comic relief."

"Hang on." The father spoke up. "I might have something."

Everyone turned their attention to the father. He paced back and forth and started talking to himself.

"Maybe…it could be…yes!" He faced everyone and said, "I think I know how we can save Annie! The answer is in the bottle!"

"That funny bottle?" The mother asked.

"Son, are you sure about this?" The grandfather was skeptical.

"Uh huh, uh huh. That's right honey." The grandmother agreed with her husband.

"I'm positive, father. Now, Ari…"

Ari looked at his father, wondering what he was going to say now.

"We're going to need everyone's help, but being your sister's brother, she might need your help the most. Tell me, son, are you willing to do anything for her?"

Ari did not like where this was heading, but he answered, "Yes."

"Are you willing do whatever it takes, no matter how painful it might be?"

Now Ari really didn't like what his father was saying. He decided he could not be silent on this, so he tried to speak, "Dad, what-?"

"Huh? What was that? Well, good to hear you're on board."

Ari gaped at his father. Rosalyn was also confused and surprised at what his father was saying. However, instead of standing up for Ari, she said, "I would also like to help however I can."

"Oh, Miss Rosalyn!" Ari's mother beamed. "Thank you so much. Your kindness will not be forgotten."

"Now then, everyone," the father announced, "to the basement!"

Ari hadn't been down to the basement in a while, and he was quick to notice the changes. The old furniture and boxes of memories were pushed against the walls, giving the basement a lot more space. Drawn on the floor was a large diagram that consisted of circles, triangles, and unknown writing. Placed in the very center was the bottle. The family was wondering what the father was up to now.

Rosalyn, however, was wondering something else. She stared at the bottle and coldly asked, "Where did you get that?"

"Oh, that?" The father asked. "I found it in the woods a few days ago. After much research, I believe that this is Pollack's Bottle. You see, Pollack is a person who really existed several hundred years ago. The legend goes that he obtained the power to change a person's fate and hid it in this bottle. I drew this ideogram some time ago, so if we can just appeal to that power-."

"You have no idea, do you?" Rosalyn gripped the handle of her parasol tightly, which she was still holding above her head for reasons no one but her knew. "I've seen that bottle before, and what's in it."

"Oh, so you know about Pollack's Bottle, do you Miss Rosalyn?"

"It's not—look, I know you want to save that girl, but that bottle is not the solution."

"I'm afraid I share the young lady's doubts about this." The grandfather said.

"Uh huh, uh huh. That's right honey." The grandmother, as usual, agreed.

Ari also felt the same way, but said nothing. Whatever his father was planning on doing, it did not seem right. He knew that his father had no real clue what he was doing, and though he usually thought nothing of it, he was now afraid of what he might attempt. Looking at Rosalyn, he saw that he wasn't the only one who was worried.

What does she know about that bottle? Ari now thought.

"Well, father, seeing is believing," his father answered, "and you will now see the power that can save Annie!"

The father stood in front of the bottle and started speaking an incantation that he seemed to have made up on top of his head.

"We call upon a power forlorn, to issue forth and be reborn. We beckon you, honored guest, to be present and grant us our request. We before your majesty kneel-."

"No!" Rosalyn cried out. "Stop what you're doing!"

"…Grace us now, your true self revealed!"

It was too late. As soon as the father spoke the last word, the room was engulfed in white light. When it faded away, everyone saw that one more individual had joined them on this night.

It was a white ghost with large horns. It didn't look particularly intimidating to everyone, probably because it was wearing a blue tuxedo. It stood in the circle next to the bottle and glanced at everyone.

"Oh!" He cried out. "At last, at last! The time has come for my great master to revive! Hi everyone, I am an evil butler. The name is-."

"James." Rosalyn interrupted.

The ghost turned to the parasol wielding hero and said with surprise, "Oh, Miss Rosalyn, I never expected to see you again. How long has it been?"

"Not long enough, it seems."

The father hesitantly spoke up, "So, you two know each other?"

"Yes," James answered, "but I will still do the introductions for everyone else's sake."

"Please do." The grandfather sighed.

"Uh huh, uh huh. That's right honey." The grandmother agreed.

"Now," the butler began, "residing in this bottle is the Evil King who presides wickedly over all darkness and malevolence everywhere: Lord Stanley Hihat Trinidad XIV!"

"E-evil king?" The mother sounded worried.

Ari looked at his father. He had really messed things up this time. He said, "Dad…"

The father was genuinely puzzled at what was going on. He murmured, "Huh…this is strange."

"Ahem!" A new voice made itself known.

The voice was coming from the bottle. The bottle hopped up and down as the voice said, "You may call me Evil King Stan. I am a purely evil, Evil King. Let my malevolence and sheer badness awe and terrify you!"

Rosalyn stepped forward and said to the entity in the bottle, "I see you're still in there, Stan."

"You!" The bottle hopped at a faster pace. "You're that bloated pig that released me before!"

"Who are you calling a bloated pig?!"

The father noted, "You really do know each other."

"Oh yes." Confirmed James.

"So, what is it?" Stan went on. "Did you really miss me that much?"

"Like hell I-."

"Hold on." The father stepped forward. He addressed Stan, "It was I who called you. You see, we have a favor to ask of you. Our daughter, Annie…has been cursed by a ghost, and she is on her deathbed as we speak!"

She's not dying. Ari flatly thought.

"Please!" The mother begged. "Save our little girl!"

"Huh, a ghost?" Stan asked. "You mean one of those lower class beings? That's easy! But you must know, in order to benefit from me, the Evil King, one of you must make an evil agreement with me. One of you must serve as my slave, servant, and follower!"

"I knew it." Rosalyn turned to face the family. "Listen, something similar happened to me before, so I must tell you all now: don't agree with this evil being!"

"But what about Annie?" The mother asked.

"Hey!" Stan shouted. "You're not making the decision for them!"

"True." The father nodded. "I appreciate your concern, Miss Rosalyn, but our daughter's life is at stake here."

Rosalyn opened her mouth to say something, but quickly closed it. She backed away from the bottle and joined the rest of the family outside of the ideogram. The family was silent for a couple of seconds, each one thinking about the decision before them.

Ari was with Rosalyn on this one: they shouldn't make any deals with anything calling themselves an Evil King. Yes, Annie will be cured, but one of them would have to serve as this King's slave for who knows how long. It also didn't help that he felt like his family would choose him to be the sacrificial lamb.

"Alright," the father finally said, "if that's what we have to do, then…even if it means selling my soul to the devil ten times over, I'll do it."

"I'll sell mine too!" The mother joined in.

"And me!" The grandfather nodded.

"Uh huh, uh huh. That's right honey." The grandmother was in agreement.

The father turned to face Ari and asked, "What about you, son? Will you sell your soul to save Annie?"

Ari stared at his father. He was being pressured into agreeing, yet he knew the whole thing wasn't right. He may care for his sister, but the curse wasn't serious enough that he would give up his soul. He wanted to say "no", he wanted to say "do you know what you are even saying", but he only managed to say, "I-."

"Great!" His father interrupted him. "Good to see you're willing to sell your soul, too. God, I'm so proud to have such a brave son!"

"You…" Rosalyn was nearly flabbergasted. "You really want to do this?"

"What about you, Miss Rosalyn?" The mother asked. "You said you wanted to help however you can."

"I-I did, but…" Rosalyn paused before saying. "I did say I would."

"Like I would even pick you!" Stan piped up.

"Well, it looks like everyone is in agreement." James was pleased. "Now, if you could all form a single line, we will begin."

Everyone did as they were told. James stepped forward and spoke in a low voice.

"Three hundred years ago," he began, "the Great Evil King Gohma destroyed half the world. However, he was defeated by a hero. Lord Stan, who graces us with his devilish presence today, is the reincarnation and successor to the Great Evil King Gohma."

"Yes, yes," Stan said, "I have waited three hundred years in a bottle due to some deplorable error, but now, at last, my powers of revival have been accumulated! It's all due to my indomitable endurance and effort! Oh how great I am!"

"Oh how indeed." Ari could hear Rosalyn mutter next to him.

"That's my master!" James beamed. He regained his original composure and continued, "However, master's original power is only a fraction of what it once was. Until his complete revival, he needs to borrow a human shadow, which is where you all come in. However, since it is the master haunting it, the shadow needs to be top class. Thus!"

Two ghosts, a red one and a white one, materialized next to James. Everyone stiffened when they saw them appear. James reassured them, "These are shadow experts who will judge your shadows. I have hired them for this very occasion!"

A green ring of light appeared behind the butler.

"Each of you will take turns stepping into the magic circle so that the experts will judge your shadow. The person whose shadow gets the most points will win the contest."

"Contest?" The mother asked.

"Yes, this will be the First Stan Cup Shadow Contest!"

What? Ari thought. He was pretty sure everyone else was thinking the same thing.

James announced, "Now then, everyone, let's start the contest!"

Everyone took their turns stepping into the light. Minutes passed, and so far, there seemed to be no winner. Ari didn't know what these ghosts were even looking for in their shadows. As far as he could tell, there was nothing special about anyone's shadows.

There were now only two people who haven't yet been judged: Ari and Rosalyn. James called for Ari, and he stepped into the ring of light. He was nervous as the ghosts hovered next to each of his sides. Nothing happened for several long seconds, then the ghosts spoke.

"Boo, b, boo!" The red ghost sounded surprised.

"Phshewwww!" The white ghost was also in awe.

Ari had no idea what they were saying, but fortunately, James was there to translate. Unfortunately, what he had to say made his stomach drop.

"W-wow! What a surprise!" James exclaimed. "You won over all the judges! There is no contest as to who the winner is!"

"But I haven't even been judged!" Rosalyn said.

"Yes," the mother agreed, "she didn't get her turn."

"She doesn't need it!" Stan spoke up. "I've haunted her shadow before, and it's one of the worst one's I've ever inhabited! Really, if you imbeciles knew the pain of living in the shadow of someone whose butt sags-."

"Shut up!" Rosalyn snapped. "There's nothing wrong with my frame!"

"A-anyways," James continued, "the winner of the First Stan Cup Shadow Contest is Ari! Congratulations! Congratulations!"

Ari lowered his head. He had had a feeling that he was going to be picked, and he was right. Annie will be cured and be able to talk normally again, but what about him? Was he going to be this Evil King's slave forever? His family's cheers offered no comfort.

"You did it, Ari!"

"I knew you could do it!"

"Uh huh, uh huh. That's right honey."

"Well done, son! I'm so proud of you!"

"No!" A voice next to him spoke up. "Not you!"

The next thing he knew, Ari was shoved out of the magic ring and fell face first onto the floor. He turned around to see who had pushed him. His eyes widened at who he saw.

Standing in the ring was Rosalyn. A dark energy surrounded her body and vanished as soon as it had appeared. Her shadow suddenly sprung off the ground and took on a shape of its own. The shadow had long arms with three fingers on each hand. Its eyes and mouth were yellow and it had pointed ears.

Everyone stared in shock at what had happened.

"No!" The shadow wailed. "No no no no nononono! What have you done?!"

Rosalyn only smirked.

Yes, this is going to be one of many twists in the original story. If you don't like this, you're probably not going to like what else is in store. Next time, I actually incorporate something from Soul Nomad and the World Eaters into this story.