Shadow Slave

The surface of the cursed sea seethed and boiled, then exploded into the skies. Following the disappearance of the gargantuan tentacle, six others appeared from beneath the black waves. They rose and loomed above the marching colossus like twisted mountains, blocking the clamor of the storm for a fleeting moment.

Sunny gritted his teeth and stared at the terrible image, trying to comprehend the scale of the approaching battle.

How were tiny humans supposed to survive the fight between titans?

A second later, the tentacles collapsed from the skies to assail the stone giant. Because of their size, it seemed as if they were moving in slow motion. However, Sunny knew that it was just an illusion.

Four of the arms of the unseen leviathan submerged back under the water to coil around the legs and the torso of the colossus, while two remaining ones slithered toward his hand.

The ancient statue continued to walk south, seemingly unperturbed by the furious assault of the terrifying dweller of the depths. It batted one of the tentacles away, and allowed the other to wrap around its wrist.

"Hold fast!"

Sunny didn't register whose shout that was, but followed the advice and grabbed onto the Stone Saint even tighter.

'Curse it all!'

In the furious roar of thunder and blinding lightning, the stone giant suddenly staggered and slightly careened to the side. The tentacle that was coiled around his wrist had tensed, trying to pull the hand down.

oily, bulbous flesh was so harrowing that several cracks appeared on the surface of the ancient stone. It almost looked as though the wrist of the colossus was going to snap

the tentacle, then squeezed

of the stone giant in return. For a few moments, it wasn't clear which creature was more devastatingly powerful. But then the fingers of the colossus slowly submerged into the black flash, sending rivers

was torn to shreds and had

see through the black waters of the cursed sea, but he could vividly imagine two of them coiling

seemed to have worked. The pace of the walking statue slowed, as if it had to struggle against an unimaginable weight that was dragging it back. The colossus staggered once more,

'Not good…'

the vibrations running through the ancient stone. The giant was trembling, as if straining to move his colossal body with all

enormous creatures. The hurricane wind crushed into the cohort, pelting them with rain and seawater. The thunderclaps merged into one continuous, deafening roar, and the flashes of lightning were surrounding them like a

ancient statue shuddered and changed its angle. It was almost as if… as if the colossus was bending his waist and

instinctively understood what was

wasn't the only

his command and fell to her knees to thrust a hand into a crack in the stone, Nephis

going under! Hold

'Here we go again!'

the colossus leaned forward and dove under the turbulent

cohort was once again in the cold embrace of the cursed sea. Only, unlike the previous day when they had to cross the canyon, this time they were being pulled deep into the void of darkness

on for his dear life and waited. If

of the black water grew heavier and the cold of the lightless void seeped into his bones, the circular platform suddenly stopped and swayed lightly.

'Gods, gods!'