Shadow Slave

In the morning, Sunny was woken up by the gentle rustling of leaves. Opening his eyes, he saw rays of sunshine falling through the scarlet crown of the Soul Tree, painting the world in soft shades of pink. The sight was beautiful and tranquil. It felt as though none of the dangers and terrors of the Dream Realm could reach him here.

A soft breeze touched his skin, bringing with it coolness and the smell of fallen leaves.

For the first time in a long while, Sunny felt at peace.

'Is this what a vacation feels like?'

If so, their decision to have one was the best decision ever.

He sat up with a yawn and lazily looked around. Cassie and Nephis were already awake. Seeing them put a smile on Sunny's face.

'Why the hell am I grinning?'

Shaking his head, Sunny put on a serious expression and said:

"Good morning."

The girls greeted him. Then, Nephis slightly tilted her head and asked:

"Hey. Do you remember why we didn't leave anyone to keep watch last night?"

Sunny blinked. Indeed, why hadn't anyone guarded the camp?

"Uh. No. I guess we were too tired? Plus, it's so safe here. Why deprive ourselves of sleep?"

She frowned. Sunny expected Changing Star to berate them, but, unexpectedly, she just shrugged.

"...I guess."

'Huh. That's not like her. Am I not the only one in a great mood?'

To make Neph feel better, he pointed down and said:

"Don't worry. My shadow would have warned us if anything had happened ."

She seemed to have forgotten about her question already, returning to whatever she had been doing before. All three of them were easily distracted these days. Sunny sighed.

"So… what are you guys going to do today?"

Cassie turned to him with a smile and answered in a teasing tone:

vacation, remember? So we're just going to rest and

a plan. Speaking about

Cassie scowled and said with a comically

Sunny! You are not allowed to plan, plot and scheme.

scratched the back of his

"Alright."

felt as though

But what?

at Nephis, Sunny hesitated

why did you climb the Soul

at him

remember. To get the

smiled at the mention of the miraculous

'Yeah. That makes sense…'

***

Sunny, Nephis and Cassie spent them idling away, not

and minds needed

and sat around the fire, talking or simply soaking in the warmth. Sometimes, they would play games or engage

for most of his life, so these past few weeks that he had spent side by side with other people, without

the island was large enough for the three of them to stay

that it happened

first, he had expected that lazing around doing nothing would very quickly grow boring, but surprisingly, it did not. He felt perfectly fine simply laying on the ground and staring at the gently swaying branches of the Soul Tree, caught in a blissful reverie. In moments like these, he would lose track of time, often realizing that entire hours had passed only when

days they had spent on the peaceful island. He was pretty sure that it was less than a week, but couldn't remember

catch himself straining to remember details

delicious and refreshing the magical fruits were, how pleasant it

and generous. It protected them from the cursed blight of the crimson labyrinth, kept the monsters away and provided nourishment both for their bodies and for their soul cores. Sunny was becoming increasingly convinced that finding the majestic Soul Tree was a true

of leaving its gifts behind and returning to the horror of the outside world seemed

leave when they were

at least two of them

as Sunny and Cassie in the beginning, as time went by, she grew strangely despondent and gloomy. It seemed as though she had reverted back to

western edge of the island alone, staring into the distance with bleak eyes. Sunny had

her. Not even the frequent, insistent lapses of memory managed to

from pain. For some reason, he kept forgetting the reason for this visit on the way

wanted to

of the western edge, gazing into the distance. Sunny climbed onto the ridge and sat down, looking at her

"Hey, Neph."

indifferent expression was back, making any attempt to understand her true

was clear that she was

"Hey."