Part Two: Shaft Of Light
From atop the ceiling, held together by more shadow goo, Samuel lay in the cage. He stared upon the parchment's template, puzzled by its apparent irrelevance. Of all things, it had to be diving gear, and not something integral to their world.
He heard the Shadow Crawler approaching, the robed Raposa hiding the page in haste. Into the cage, the Crawler dumped two Banya stalks and three Kori.
"Eat up, you picky thing!" He snarled at the prisoner. Samuel looked, hiding his expression.
"I appreciate that it's not fish."
"How was I supposed to know that it had to be cooked?" Scoffed the Crawler. "You're lucky that Wilfre wants to keep you alive. Do you have any idea how scarce these are nowadays?"
Samuel waited for the Crawler to leave before eating. The Kori was easy enough, but he still had to shell out the edible parts of the Banya stalks.
Life remained in this manner, for quite some time. Then, strange things began to occur, but it was only picked up on by the Crawler's words.
The Sun came back. It rained today. Banya is easier to find. The Moon reappeared. It was a clear, starry night.
At last, one day, Wilfre arrived. The Crawler went down to talk to him. Samuel paid close attention to the conversation.
"I am tired of all the interference. It's bad enough that Frostwind failed me." Wilfre said.
"Frostwind... The dragon?" Samuel muttered.
"Prove that you won't. Ravage that Village with all of Deadwood's mighty roots. I will let you know when the deed is done."
"... As you wish." The Crawler responded. When Wilfre left, the Shadow being took direct control of Deadwood, unleashing quakes. Samuel held onto the bars of the cage.
"Oh, Deadwood..." He mused to himself, forlorn, "This must be what you spoke of. No matter what happens now, be it suffering or inner peace, I forgive you."
After a while, the quakes stopped. Then, Deadwood roared, "Meddlesome Hero! The time of Shadow is upon us!"
"... Hero?" Samuel murmured. Although he could not see, he heard; a battle took place outside. Sounds of a weapon firing, wings fluttering, shadow creatures' painful cries, paint chipping, and Deadwood roaring and groaning. He could swear he heard a second voice somewhere, but he wasn't certain.
Deadwood's mouth opened. Samuel looked down. Entering the tree was a wooden mannequin, armed with a gun, and bearing magnificent, white wings. The robed Raposa could barely comprehend the sight.
The mannequin looked up, catching eyes with him. The Crawler appeared next to Samuel, before dropping down from the ceiling. In response, the mannequin began to fight the Shadow creature.
It was going in the Crawler's favor. Unsure of what else to do, Samuel desperately prayed to the Creator. He felt something appear in his paws. He looked to see a warm, red heart piece. It ballooned in size, almost as large as the robed Raposa himself.
Then, something told him to throw it away.
When it landed, gracefully, the mannequin's attention was drawn to the heart piece. The Crawler was avoided, as the item was grabbed. There was a flash of light, Samuel and the Crawler having to cover their eyes. Once it cleared, both looked upon the mannequin again, the Crawler shrieking in terror.
The mannequin had golden, spiky hair, a completed face, and a whole outfit of red, gold, and blue. He gave Samuel a smile, before turning back to the Crawler.
"Alright, you fiend! This ends now!" He declared. The fight continued, this time with the drawn mannequin keeping up with the Crawler. With some more acorn explosions and another paint chip-off, the Shadow being eventually disappeared in defeat.
The part holding the cage to the ceiling broke apart, Samuel falling with it. The mannequin caught him in mid-air, his wings gliding them down to the ground. It was here that he got a good look at the mannequin, who was at least a third taller than he was.
"Are you okay?" He asked. Samuel was speechless, only able to nod. The mannequin set the cage down, before ripping off some of the bars. Samuel got out, as the prison itself disintegrated.
Deadwood spoke up, this time back to his old self. "Thank you for ridding me of the Shadow..."
When outside, while they all took in the sunlight, the mannequin introduced himself. "I'm Drew, a Creation Hero drawn by the Creator, to save the Village! It's nice to meet you!" There was a pause, the prophecy's true meaning finally clicking in the robed Raposa's mind.
"... I am Samuel. I owe you my life."
Editing help by CirciFox!