The Shadowman (⌭)

The Shadowman, his real name unknown, is the main antagonist of the ⌭Saga, and can also be considered one of the main antagonists of the larger Bola Parasola, being the one to set the events of the series in motion. The Shadowman was once a member of the Keepers, an ancient species and order that sought to protect the powerful artifact known as the Summoning Key, but he, alongside many other Keepers, was corrupted by the energy released by the Dark Aether and corrupted into an Apothicon. Prior to the fracturing caused by his expulsion from Dr. Monty's "perfect world", the Shadowman raged war against Dr. Monty and the four Primis warriors, and sought to destroy their dimension.
The Committee of 300, the Bola Parasola's overall main antagonistic force originated as a cult who worshipped the Apothicons as deities. The Shadowmanrecognizes their complete devotion to him, being the sole surviving member of the species
== Physical Appearance ==
Though he is most often seen as a human being, The Shadowman is a member of the Apothicon race, and his appearance is likely very similar to most other humanoids of that species. In his true form, The Shadowman's head becomes a mass of pink tentacles, with only a large mouth filled with spiked teeth remaining on the small head off which these tentacles protrude; it is unknown how he sees. His entire body becomes a pink colour and gains a rubbery texture, and his hands feature three long fingers with the middle one being larger in width. During the final battle of Call of Duty: Black Ops III, The Shadowman wears an intricate full-body robe with the Apothicon symbol "ozzoth" ("Apothicon") marked in an orange glow on his chest. In addition, he also has a number of orange marks running down his arms.
In his human form, The Shadowman appears as a male whose most prominent features are his white beard, small white gunslinger moustache, and his black fedora adorned with a purple band. Matching the latter, The Shadowman is often seen wearing a long black coat over a purple button-up vest (marked with yellow lines) and a white dress shirt; he also wears a purple tie. In addition, he also wears black leather gloves and similarly-coloured pants, as well as black dress shoes. On the right side of his jacket he also wears a bronze pin that bears resemblance to the Apothicon symbol "lorozzor" ("blood").
== History ==
The Shadowman can be considered the main antagonist of the Bola Parasola, as many of the events in the series are directly or indirectly caused by his actions. For a complete overview of the Bola Parasola chronology, see here.
=== Prior to the Fracturing ===
:See also: the Call of Duty Wiki's page regarding The Shadowman
Long before the events of Omen 76, The Shadowman was actually an acquaintance of Dr. Monty's, though would eventually be turned by the Apothicons and corrupted into their harbinger. Alongside his Apothicon brethren, he fought against the Keepers in a war, and was sealed away in the Aether after the Keepers came out victorious. Somehow, many millennia later, The Shadowman was able to escape his prison and travel to Morg City in order to track down the Summoning Key, taking on the disguise of a human by the name of "Mr. Rapt" while he searched. After enlisting the help of a reporter, who eventually did discover and retrieve the Summoning Key before being killed, The Shadowman trapped four individuals in an alternate version of Morg City in order to coerce them into assisting him; this eventually fails, and leads to him being trapped within the Summoning Key itself.
After Primis, who had obtained the Summoning Key after he had been sealed within it, managed to collect their four souls and send them into a "perfect world", The Shadowman telepathically convinced Dr. Ludvig Maxis into releasing him into this world, and he quickly summoned a large Apothicon and their army to destroy the dimension and exact his revenge on Dr. Monty and the Keepers. After being weakened by Monty, Primis manage to defeat him, and te former expels him and the Apothicon army out of his world and, presumed by Monty, out of existence itself. This however causes an event in which the multiverse is fractured.
=== Omen 76 ===
Despite not appearing directly in the game, The Shadowman has an important, albeit minor, role in Omen 76 that sets the events of the game, and in-turn the events of the ⌭Saga and the Bola Parasola itself, in motion. The Shadowman, having somehow survived his expulsion though at the cost of most of his power, summons a crazed version of Edward Richtofen - his Ultimis counterpart - whom he uses as to assist in his plans. As The Shadowman goes off in order to absorb power from weaker dimensions, he orders Ultimis Richtofen to cause chaos and destroy those who may pose a threat to his plans for revenge in the future.
=== Tome 57 ===
The Shadowman appears physically for the first time in the canon of the Bola Parasola in Tome 57, where he serves as the game's main antagonist. Aiming to restore his power, The Shadowman travels to many different worlds and destroys them, absorbing the power it releases in the process. Unknowingly, these actions also serve to spur on a rebellion led by a young sorceress named Lana, who aims to defeat The Shadowman in the hopes of restabilizing the multiverse.
Though he does appear to the heroes of the game many times, and fought by them a great number of times as well, The Shadowman mainly uses some of his preciously-limited power to summon other beings in order to stall and defeat them, having sensed the great power that many of their members show. His most important appearance is near the end of the game, where he is fought solely by Lana. Though the sorceress manages to weaken The Shadowman a fair bit, she is unable to defeat him completely, and he corrupts her with his own power. As Dr. Monty and Lana's other allies arrive to assist her, The Shadowman uses up most of his expendable power in order to completely tear this universe in two, and is left behind as the others escape to the land of Elchea.
=== Ruptured Sect ===
Though The Shadowman does not appear directly in Ruptured Sect, he is the reason the bubble universe in which the game takes place exists at all, as it was formed due to the excess energy expended by the Shadowman as he fought, and corrupted, Lana. Some of his quotes from the final battle of Tome 57 can also be heard, albeit garbled, on the title screen should one wait long enough.
== Trivia ==
* Originally The Shadowman was not meant to be the main antagonist of the Bola Parasola, and was only meant to appear in Tome 57 (which, during early production, was meant to cover the events of that the first three titles in the ⌭Saga that the game would later be split up into), with that game ending in his death and entire expulsion from the universe. This idea was changed when the idea to turn the Bola Parasola into a multiverse that included the Rose Warriors that was being worked on at the same time.
* Somewhat humorously, it was briefly considered to have Dr. Monty reveal that The Shadowman's real name is Carl. The idea was scrapped very early on, as to not distract players from his powerful demeanour with a very lame joke.
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