Shadow Slave

Cassie smiled, but then suddenly frowned and asked:

"But, Sunny… how do we find her?"

He thought for a few seconds, then shrugged.

"I'm not sure. Follow the sounds of mayhem? This place is not that big. I'm sure we'll manage."

They descended the stairs and entered the slum, with Sunny looking around in search of the distinct tall figure. There weren't that many Sleepers in the outer settlement who possessed an armor-type Memory, so he was sure of his ability to notice Changing Star in the crowd.

Soon, they were surrounded by makeshift hovels and people that had empty, bleak eyes. Some of them stared at them with pity, realizing that the two had just been sent away from the castle, others openly gloated. Sunny paid them no attention.

Once again, he was surprised by the sharp contrast between the castle and the outer settlement. No matter how vile the underside of the ancient stronghold was, people were actually living there, walking around with mostly mundane human worries written on their faces.

Here in the slum, people were merely existing, and barely at that. In their eyes, there was a more dire need and a more consummate fear: the need to find food for the day, the fear of being devoured by some unseen monster in the night. They were all gaunt, cold, and listless.

The only time hope appeared on their faces was when their gazes accidentally fell on the Bright Castle.

'Hope will get you killed, fools. You have it better here than those poor souls in the fortress.'

All in all, it was not so different from the outskirts, with the added terror of Nightmare Creatures waiting somewhere in the shadows.

But then, there were monsters in the real world as well. They just wore human skin.

Sunny was once again reminded of how surprisingly well prepared he was for the trials of the Nightmare Spell, his lack of education not included.

Surprisingly, the was no sign of Nephis anywhere. They walked through the entire settlement before finally catching the glimpse of her.

very edge of the slum, perched precariously above the vertical fall from the stone platform, stood an uncharacteristically spacious dwelling. It was crudely put together out of slabs of stone that had been unceremoniously scavenged from the ruins, with many of them still bearing the intricate carvings left behind

of the entire outer settlement. Perhaps that was why it seemed to be a bit sturdier than the rest of the hovels. The lodge even had a small addition

on its roof with her legs crossed, gazing at the rising sun and the cursed city below. In the

wearing a crude tunic, with a piece of rope tied

landing lightly on the stone

Sunny grinned.

Long

***

austere,

found it. No one wanted to live this close to both the edge of the platform at the threshold of the road, where the risk of being attacked by Nightmare

Looking around, Sunny scoffed.

place surely

very concerned

dirt, so in a sense, even this ramshackle

and warmth he had experienced in the castle. He was even fed delicious fresh food

Speaking of food…

her friend, she had not

brought you something

the bundle with a faint smile and lingered a

do you guys

to a flimsy wooden table that stood near one of the walls and removed a piece

was sizable enough to feed ten people

stared at the meat blankly, then moved

get all this meat? We thought you would be starving here

touched her hair in