Part two of the KouDranathou series. It is set in Kentytii and has spoilers for the Drao series (which is unnamed as of yet). This was written as an experiment in an alternate POV from the main one (Drao's) and how the Kenverites viewed their ordeal. It is rather old, so the writing is not the best!

KetEreto was the Leader.

Of course, he had known that ever since the Ravan had dropped in and scared the scales off of all of them with his creepy, 'Kentytii is fallen' thing, but that was different. Then, he was only Leader by the Ravan's proclamation. Now, KetEreto was officially the Leader.

KetEreto gazed out of the large windows from the top of the Highest Spire, watching the clouds—tinged in a gloriously bloody crimson—drift past. The quiet howl of the wind murmured above him, singing the wordless tune that all winds possessed. Splendour sprawled out behind him, adorning the orange walls with glittering black veins that contrasted with the smaller gold and silver ones.

Elegant tapestries reclaimed against the walls along with beautiful weapons. Exotic pieces of furniture stood upon elaborately woven rugs that nearly covered the entire span of the vast room. It was majestic. It was glorious. It was maybe a bit opulent, but it was nothing like those dingy caves he had been stuck in for the past few months. Ah, at last, he was home.

"Do not let elegance blind your mind."

KetEreto turned, frowning at the Ravan. "What point are Shadows if they don't tell you when someone arrives?"

The Ravan smiled—a thing he had never thought it would, or could, do. "The Ravan never comes announced. It is creepier that way."

KetEreto snorted, striding towards his dark angowood desk. "So you admit to purposely being creepy."

The Ravan cocked its head to the side, much like the bird it resembled. "Perhaps. However, you have to admit the reactions are quite...amusing."

He shot the Ravan a look, shuffling blank parchments into a neat stack. "So the Ravan has humour." Humour that involves scaring people and probably killing them, exactly what one would expect from the Soul Snatcher. He set the parchments down and picked up a quill, making sure it had ink.

He was no longer concerned that the Ravan would stab him in the back. The Ravan was...well, the Ravan had proven it valued his life, for whatever reason. He looked up at the spirit in its dark clad strangely-human form, tapping the tip of the quill against the ink pot. "What brought you here so late? You would have been useful several days ago."

The Ravan drifted closer to the desk, gazing pointedly into the far left corner of the room.

KetEreto glanced over at the corner. Right, the First Shadow was still here. He waved a hand at the figure tucked into the shadows. "You may go, First Shadow. I will not be needing your presence." When the Shadow had left, he turned back to the Ravan, studying it.

It stared right back, dark eyes glowing slightly in the sunset's light. Whenever it stared at him like this, he always thought of deep water at night; dark and unreadable with unknowable depths. The sun dipped lower, pouring its full glory through the vast windows and into the Ravan's bottomless eyes. Bottomless, blue eyes. Blue? Not black?

The Ravan turned its head away from the sun's direct rays, and its eyes were black again. "You are more than capable of ruling Kentytii, KetEreto. You no longer need my presence."

KetEreto frowned. "What do you mean, Ravan? You will always be useful to me."

The Ravan lifted its hand to its beak. "From this day forward, the Ravan is no more," it intoned, pushing back the hood and undoing the feather clasp at its throat. The cape fell from its shoulders and landed with a click on the ground. The Ravan placed the feather clasp on the desk with finality.

KetEreto stared at the face now revealed before him. The human face. The familiar face. The Leader's face. No, no, no, this could not be possible. The Leader was dead. He was the new Leader. The Ravan had said so.

But the Ravan was...the Ravan was the Leader.