Shadow Slave

Sunny had no choice but to resort to one last, desperate gamble.

He had no chance against the enemy in a direct confrontation, at least not without an advantage. Bloodbane poison was supposed to be his hidden card, but turned out to be nearly useless. Being able to see in the dark did not help that much, too: somehow, Hero was able to perceive their surroundings even without any light.

Whether he was using his sense of hearing or some magical ability, Sunny did not know — not that it mattered now that they had left the cave and were standing under the moonlit sky.

Now he had only one advantage left. The fact that he knew that the tyrant was blind, and Hero did not. Acting on that knowledge, however, was easier said than done.

But what else could he do?

That's why he tried to stay as quiet as possible and rang the silver bell. If the description did not lie, its ringing could be heard from miles away. Surely, the tyrant was going to hear it, too.

Now Sunny only had to stay silent, stall for time and hope that the monster would come. As he did so, Hero's bewilderment slowly turned into anger.

"Tell me right now or you will regret it."

His voice was quite threatening, but still, the young slave did not answer. He just shivered in the cold and tried not to moan despite the pulsing pain in his chest.

"Why are you not answering?"

But Sunny did not dare to answer. He held his breath and watched, horrified, as the familiar colossal figure appeared behind Hero. His lungs were on fire, and his heart was beating like crazy. It was beating so loud that he was even afraid that the blind tyrant would hear it.

But, of course, it couldn't be louder than Hero's voice, who was still talking, turning himself into the only source of noise on this mountain.

At the last second, a hint of understanding appeared in the young soldier's eyes. He began to turn around, his sword rising with lightning speed.

But it was too late.

A massive hand appeared from the darkness and caught him into an iron grip. The bone claws scraped against the armor, pulling it apart. Mountain King dragged Hero back, paying little attention to the sword biting into its wrist. Viscous saliva was streaming from its opened maw.

Petrified by fear, Sunny slowly turned his back to them and took a couple of steps up the old, winding path. Then he darted away, running as fast as he could.

Behind him, a desperate scream tore apart the silent night. Then a hungry roar followed. It seemed that Hero wasn't going down without a fight, even though his fate was already sealed.

But Sunny didn't care. He was running away, climbing higher and higher.

"I'm sorry, Hero," he thought. "I did say that I will watch you die… but, as you know, I am a liar. So go and die on your own…"

***

dark mountain stood

sky with its sharp edges. A radiant moon bathed its slopes in the

pale skin and black hair reached the peak of the mountain. However, his looks didn't match

looked like a

cloak were torn and smeared with blood. His sunken eyes were cloudy and lifeless. His body

chest. Each step caused him to moan, ragged breath barely escaping

over. But most

So, so cold.

to lie down

that the Nightmare will be over once he

Step. Step. Another step.

he had made

vast expanse of flat rock was covered with snow. In the center of it, illuminated by moonlight, stood a magnificent temple. Its colossal columns and walls were cut from black marble, with exquisite reliefs decorating the

was in ruins: fractures and cracks marred the black stones, parts of the roof had collapsed, letting in ice and snow. It's

Still, Sunny was satisfied.

he said in

of his strength, the young slave slowly limped in the direction of the ruined temple. His thoughts were muddled and

'I've made it. You were strong and ruthless, and I was weak and timid. Yet now you are a corpse,

into his lungs. Blood was dripping from his mouth. Dead or not, Hero

to turn cruelty into an art. And as someone on the receiving end of all that cruelty… don't you think I would know more about being vicious than

was getting closer to the

told, you never stood a chance… wait.

later, he had already forgotten. There was only pain, the

it. It's just hypothermia. If you fall asleep,

that were scattered around. These bones once belonged to humans and monsters both.

approached him. It was ready to snuff out the spark of life that was burning weakly in the defiler's chest, but then stopped, sensing a faint, strangely familiar scent

entered

himself in a grandiose hall. Cascades of moonlight were falling through the holes in the partially collapsed roof. Deep shadows were surrounding these circles of silver light, not daring to touch them. The floor was covered in snow

black marble. It was the only thing inside the temple untouched by snow. Forgetting why

just wanted to

altar was dry, clean, and as wide as a bed. Sunny climbed on it

he

was okay

of the temple's entrance. He turned his head to look, not even a little bit curious. What he saw would have sent chills running down his spine if

massive, terrifying and revolting. Worm-like shapes were still moving

and moved

and suddenly clutched his chest, convulsing in a fit

and fell on the altar. However, the black marble soon absorbed