An ex-guerilla soldier running from the horrors of war, Yifan tries to deny his humanity, convinced he is nothing more than a monster as he flees into the forest, seeking the solitude and safety the shadows therein can give him.Lost, deprived and alone, he nearly forgets who he is until he stumbles across the innocent and practically oblivious Yixing near his home village located in the same forest Yifan has taken refuge in.  Fearing contact with other humans but yearning for it at the same time, Yifan grapples with his inner demons as he watches over Yixing and his closest friends from afar, appointing himself their unofficial guardian.He is determined not to mar their quaint paradise with his stained and soiled presence until something happens that leaves him with only two choices:Remain the monster hidden in the shadows,or...Embrace the monster within once again. - When you have nothing left to live for, you have nothing left to lose - ForewordReviewed by Rhapsodos at the Love Reading Review Shop - 47/50  Recommend?  YES YES.  EXO stans should read it.  Hell if you like cute stories, read it.  If you like violence... read it.  If you like badass Kris and derpy Lay READ IT :DReviewed by Aiyana from The Queens Classroom Graphics and Review - 87/100 DAMN RIGHT IT WAS ENJOYABLE.Reviewed by eunhyuksgal from Forbidden Dreamers Poster Shop. - 97/100  I love it and everyone should read it; its short and interesting; a comfortable read.Reviewed by SouthWest from *☆*The New Library*☆* REVIEW SHOP. - 94/100 I really liked this story and I thought you did a really good job with it.  I definitely recommend checking them out if youre looking for a solid, in-depth review!  ^_^ Poster done by Asphyxy at Beauty Lies Within Graphics.  They are definitely worth checking out if you need a poster!Poster done by s3xyangel at Exotic Dreamers Poster Shop. Original poster:                 Endless solitude was far better than the madness and treachery of the fields of slaughter where he had stained his hands permanently red with the blood of countless enemies.  Maybe some allies too…  The lines of sight became blurry in the fading rays of light; when all you had left was the desire to draw one more breath and you couldn’t recognize the visage of the man before you...~~~~~~                Drawn by the melodic quality of a soft tone moving in the easy cadence of one humming to himself, the bedraggled ex-soldier crept towards the sound that emanated from near the stream he frequented for water and food...~~~~~~                But now, even when he had another nightmare of mutilated corpses, the innocent visage of the happy young man pierced through the awful memories and gave him a strange sense of peace...~~~~~~                 He couldnt let this happen.  Not in the paradise he had found a measure of happiness in.  But... he was only one man.  What could a single ex-soldier do now?  Very little.  And yet, Yifan wasnt just an ex-soldier.  He was a monster drenched in the blood of the fallen.  His eyes narrowed dangerously, glinting with a predatory hunger as he bared his teeth in a feral grimace.  Maybe... just maybe... it would be enough.  I get inspiration from the strangest things (I heard a character in a movie I was watching mention something about shadows and this came to mind).  Originally intended as a oneshot, it has quickly developed into a four part arc with epilogue.  The words kept coming and they needed a little bit more development in the middle.  hahaOn a side note, the first updates will be pretty tame but there will be a fair bit of violence in the fourth part and some macabre imagery in the fifth.  Potential trigger warning as rape is mentioned later but not shown as well.  Just a heads up and all.  Happy reading!  ^_^ Submitted to The New Library of recommendation fics.