Shadow And Bone Season 2's Shadow Monsters (Nichevo'ya) Explained

Although most of the Small Sciences in "Shadow and Bone" behave according to physical laws of reality, there are some individuals who are able to blur this distinction, like Alina Starkov (Jessie Mei Li) and the grimly intelligent General Aleksander Kirigan (Ben Barnes). Alina and General Kirigan, better known as the Darkling, are essentially two sides of the same coin — Alina is able to summon and manipulate pure light, while the Darkling is able to control darkness and shadow. It's the Darkling who is able to create the Nichevo'ya through a Small Science known as "merzost," which is a word that means both magic and abomination.

The Nichevo'ya do not exist of their own free will, and are created and dispatched by the Darkling in order to achieve his goals. They make effective soldiers for the Darkling, because they are able to disperse themselves when confronted by normal weapons like firearms and swords. Meanwhile, the bites from their lamprey-like mouths inflict lasting pain, and the wounds they inflict don't heal normally. However, there are some limitations on the Nichevo'ya, both for the creatures themselves and the Darkling who utilizes them.