|
Warning: Spoilers This section or article may contain spoilers! |
Shan is a character in Fable: Edge of the World. He serves as a guide and scout to the Hero of Brightwall during his expedition into Samarkand.
Hailing from the village of Sammah, close to the Blade Mountains, Shan initially spoke well of Samarkand. He relates that originally, under Emperor Zarak, the people of Samarkand knew peace and prosperity. Unfortunately, a year after the Emperor went abroad to talk to a foreign King, he returned with a new bride who would come to be known only as The Empress. Shan remembers the next few years as a turbulent time for Samarkand, with Zarak slowly falling into a madness that turned him into a dictator. When he died, the Empress took over, enacting even harsher laws. Under her reign, the Darkness returned in Samarkand, inspiring Shan to leave his home with his family.
Crossing the harrowing Blade Mountains that bordered Albion and Samarkand proved to be a nearly inassailable task. Though the group elected to use the Sakur Pass to supposedly make their journey easier, the fact weighed on the mind of the refugees that no one in living memory ever crossed the Pass even in the bright days of summer, let alone in the grip of the dark winter days. With shadows in near pursuit, many refugees, including Shan's parents, his younger sister, and his infant brother perished. While his eldest sister Lin still looking out for him, she too joined her family when she saved her brother from succumbing to the frigid cold on an icy ledge, a move that proved sacrificial. Taken to the camp of the refugees by Kuvar, Shan woke up to find the forces of the Darkness cut their way through every refugee save Shan. Siezing Kuvar's katana and preparing to sacrifice himself as to spare him from the shadows, Shan relented when he learned that they intended for Shan to live to make it to Mistpeak and warn the Dwellers of their return.
Shan eventually came across Sabine and passed his warning onto him before passing out. Sabine, concious of the dire threat that the return of the Darkness would represent, took Shan to Bowerstone to report to Albion's mighty Hero King. Interrupting his wedding to his new bride Laylah, Shan warns the King about the resurgence of the Darkness in Samarkand. He then accompanies the Hero of Brightwall into Samarkand, offering his services as a guide and scout. He accompanies the King's expedition as they travel through the deadly, exotic desert land.
After a series of harrowing adventures, the Albion Royal Army, supplemented by disgruntled Samarkandians, a group of warrior monks lead by Garth, and a sand dragon named Percival marched to the gates of Zahadar, the capital city. With the Hero of Brightwall entrusting Shan's safety to Garth, the famed Will user initially ordered the young Samarkandian to stay behind him at all times even as he blasted the Empress' soldiers while riding Percival. The demands of battle, however, forced Garth to enter the thick of the fray and take charge, leaving Shan behind in what was perceived to be safe territory.
This assumption, and Shan's safety, was betrayed by the sudden appearance of the Darkness itself, emerging from the River Zaha at the cusp of victory to ultimately launch a decisive counterattack to the Albion Royal Army. Caught up in the middle of the two sides, Shan could do nothing as the Darkness claimed him as it did with so many others. Though Percival, Kalin, and Ben Finn tried to swoop down to rescue him, Shan refused their aid, instead warning his friends of his affliction. Unable to speak afterwards, Shan watched a sorrowful Ben Finn quickly and humanely dispatch him with a single shot to the head, killing him instantly.