Chapter 7: The Nature of the Stand's Ability
Snapping back to the present, Jonas focused on the officer still screaming on the floor. In the distance, the frantic thudding of multiple pairs of boots grew louder. Reinforcements were coming.
There was no time to waste. "That's enough," Jonas commanded his creature. "Time to go."
With that, Jonas took the lead, gripping the pistol tightly as he sprinted towards the morgue's window.
With a crash of shattering glass, he burst out of the police station and back onto the street. His Stand, its shadowy meal reluctantly abandoned, zipped out right behind him. The sound of shouting police officers was close on his heels.
He immediately ducked into a dark alleyway across the street, using the labyrinthine complex of backstreets to his advantage. He ran for a solid half-hour, not stopping until he was absolutely certain he had lost his pursuers.
By now, evening had come. The setting sun cast long shadows over the Egyptian landscape. Soon, it would be completely dark—the perfect cover to return to his hotel and retrieve his belongings.
He had planned to stay in Egypt for a week or two, but this entire disaster had thrown a wrench in those plans. Was it just bad luck, or was he cursed to meet the worst kind of people?
Jonas was, by his very nature, a man who settled scores. Just as he wouldn't let a petty thief get away without a lesson, he certainly wouldn't let this slide. His mind was now set on a singular goal: he would find Diavolo, and he would make that man understand the true meaning of despair.
But this was Egypt, an unfamiliar land. Finding one man who was actively trying to hide would be no simple task.
As Jonas pondered how to even begin tracking Diavolo, his little creature began sniffing at the corners and shadows of the alley, just like a bloodhound.
An idea sparked in Jonas's mind. Of course! Perhaps I can use this little guy's sense of smell to track Diavolo!
First, however, he needed to test the limits of its abilities.
Jonas tore a strip of cloth from his shirt. He let the creature take a good, long sniff, then, while its back was turned, he secretly hid the fabric in a dark corner. The creature seemed to understand the game and began its search.
The result, however, was disappointing. The little guy scurried around for ages, even passing right by the hiding spot several times without detecting a thing.
Jonas sighed. Was he asking too much of his Stand? It certainly hadn't been this inept when it was eating that officer's shadow...
Suddenly, a flash of insight, like lightning, illuminated his mind.
What if... what if its tracking isn't based on scent at all?
He snatched the squirming creature up in his hand. "Listen," he said, ignoring its wiggling. "Do you remember the 'taste' of that policeman's shadow from before?"
The creature paused, its tiny brain seeming to process the question. After a moment, it nodded.
"Good," Jonas pressed. "Can you find him?"
This time, the nod was immediate and enthusiastic.
Jonas set the Stand down. It immediately began sniffing the ground, not for a scent, but for something else entirely. It quickly locked onto a direction and shot off.
Jonas followed close behind as it led him through a winding maze of streets and alleys. Before long, they arrived at a dilapidated clinic.
Peeking from the shadows, Jonas saw a familiar sight. It was the officer from the police station. His face was deathly pale, and beads of cold sweat dripped from his brow. A doctor was dressing his wound, but fresh blood was already seeping through the clean bandages. The man was moaning in agony, tormented by a combination of searing pain and blood loss.
One of his colleagues was speaking with the doctor.
"Doctor, why is he still in so much pain?"
"I don't know," the doctor admitted, baffled. "The wound has been stitched, and we've administered painkillers, but nothing seems to work."
"Isn't there anything else you can do?"
"This phenomenon... the unceasing pain... it's similar to the effects of certain venomous snakebites. But the wound itself is completely different. If it is some kind of venom, the only way to save his life would be amputation."
"AMPUTATION?! NO! I DON'T WANT TO LOSE MY LEG!" the injured officer shrieked.
"Sir," the doctor said gravely. "Do you have any idea what caused this injury?"
"I... I don't know! I never saw what bit me!"
"Then we can't rule out a venomous agent," the doctor insisted. "We have to amputate. Otherwise, this agony could follow you for months, or even years!"
Just then, the other officer's gaze was drawn to his injured partner's shadow on the floor. Specifically, the shadow of the wounded leg. He stared, his eyes widening.
The part of the shadow that corresponded to the wound was noticeably... fainter. It was a different shade of black from the rest of his shadow, as if a chunk of it had been physically carved away.
"What in God's name is that?!" he yelled.
The doctor and the injured man looked down and saw the anomaly. The doctor took out a flashlight, shining it on the leg from different angles. But no matter how they moved the leg or the light, the missing piece of the shadow remained.
In that moment, a single, terrifying word entered their minds: a curse.
"DOCTOR! AMPUTATE!" the injured man screamed, his previous defiance replaced by pure, primal fear. Faced with the unknown, the loss of a leg was suddenly far less terrifying than the thought of this unholy curse spreading to the rest of his body.
The procedure began immediately. The officer couldn't even wait to be transferred to a proper hospital, terrified the "curse" would spread at any second.
Sometime later, the officer, still unconscious from the anesthesia, was wheeled out. Jonas, who had watched the entire gruesome spectacle from the shadows, saw that the missing piece of the shadow was now gone—because the leg itself was gone.
He finally had a clearer understanding of his Stand's ability. It was not identical to the Shadowkhan of his memory. When his creature consumes a part of a shadow, it also inflicts a corresponding, incorporeal wound upon the physical body. Unless the afflicted body part is completely removed, the victim will be tormented by unending, incurable pain.
Furthermore, his creature could track its victims by the "taste" of their shadow.
But there was a problem. His Stand had only awakened after Diavolo had already left. The little guy never had a chance to get a taste of his shadow.
So how am I supposed to track him now?
Lost in thought, Jonas melted back into the encroaching night. He began the slow walk back to his hotel. The shops and stalls were all closed for the evening. Then, he saw a single point of light in the darkness—Aya's tavern. It was the only place still open at this hour.
He paused at the entrance, then walked in. An idea had just come to him.
Diavolo had been in Egypt for some time. He couldn't have been a complete ghost. And a place like a tavern, a crossroads for all sorts of people... it was the perfect place to gather information.
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Stand User: Jonas Jourdan
Stand Name: ????? · ????
Destructive Power: D
Speed: C
Range: ?
Stamina: A
Precision: ?
Developmental Potential: A