Shadow Slave

After a while, he regained enough composure to continue the conversation.

Sunny and Teacher Julius chatted for a while, discussing the exact process of publishing the report, what changes would have to be made, and how they would work together to bring the project to fruition.

All of it, of course, was going to have to happen only after Sunny had settled in the Dream Realm and found a Citadel to anchor himself to. Right now, he did not exactly have time to work on an academic paper.

Teacher Julius also shared some of his knowledge about the human settlements in the Dream Realm and his views on how to decide on a proper Citadel. All his advice, however, could be described in one sentence:

"Find one with good plumbing."

Sunny wasn't sure what to make of it, but judging by the pained expression on the old man's face, it was indeed an important factor.

Finally, he managed to turn the conversation toward the things he really wanted to learn about.

"Speaking of that… I am really unclear on one thing. While exploring the Dark City, I found a few places of worship. However, the deities they worshipped seemed to be different from the ones I heard about in my First Nightmare. Did the native humans of the Dream Realm all have different gods?"

Teacher Julius looked at him and smiled:

"Ah! The gods. That is an interesting subject indeed."

He thought for a few moments, then said:

"Yes and no. The gods worshipped in different regions had different names, but from what we can tell, those names all described the same entities. The current consensus is that the "gods" of the Dream Realm were, in fact, actual beings, perhaps creatures of the Divine rank."

Sunny nodded.

where are they

The old man sighed.

They seem to have been alive in the time periods of many of the Nightmares, but the ruins we have encountered and explored mostly describe them as

a bit,

about the gods. For example, how many of them there

Sunny smiled.

"Let me guess… seven?"

Teacher Julius chuckled.

were only six gods. Their most common names were Sun,

Sunny raised an eyebrow.

"Really? How so?

mentor rubbed his chin, then said

to be described with one word. Take the Goddess of War… oh, yes, their gender seems to be very mercurial… the War God is supposed to be the deity of warfare, and in a sense, he — or she — is. But he is

'Uh… what?'

it make

The old man smiled.

of War can also be called the Goddess of Life. She

in his favorite

as well as hunting, carnal desire, blood, beauty, and the cycle of birth and death. The Sun God is also the Lord of Light, a manifestation of fire, passion, creation, and destruction. The Storm God is also the god of the depths, of

Sunny coughed.

what about

The eccentric instructor shrugged:

far as gods go, Shadow is not very prominent. Well, as a shadow should be, I guess. He is sometimes called

for a few

see. Hard to imagine that only six entities were responsible for all that. Were there perhaps any other divine