Shadow Slave

The was no one in the room besides the two of them. Well… Nephis wasn't really there, either. In a sense, Sunny was alone.

In more senses than one, really.

There were two small tables standing on both sides of the sleeping pod, each bearing a vase with fresh flowers. Sunny only ever changed flowers in one of the vases, while Cassie tended to the other. They had yet to bump into each other while visiting Neph after that first fateful day, though, which suited Sunny fine.

He didn't really want to see the blind girl now… or ever again.

Glancing at Changing Star, Sunny sighed and kept his mouth shut. He didn't know what kinds of recording equipment were installed in the room, so his one-sided conversations with Nephis had to happen in the safety of his mind.

'I've just returned from the Dream Realm. Spent a whole three days there, exploring ruins and hunting down a few Nightmare Creatures. My shadow fragments… well, you already know. I've been working hard to not let you leave me completely in the dust. Oh… I met a Master from the White Feather clan yesterday. He seems like a nice enough guy. You would have liked him, I think.'

He paused for a few moments and wondered if this was considered crazy behavior… talking to a person that wasn't really there, pretending that they were. Maybe it was. But despite how much Sunny hated to admit it, he wasn't as fine and stable as he pretended to be.

He was angry, guilt-ridden… and lonely. He missed Nephis much more than he had ever expected. Out there on the Forgotten Shore, she had somehow become a fundamental part of his life. It was strange to exist without her occupying a place in the same world as him.

…Painful.

He missed Cassie, too. Or rather, the version of her that had lived in his mind before everything they had turned to ashes. He missed their friendship, their camaraderie, their trust in each other... things that had been broken and lost.

Sunny sighed.

'You know, these days I often think about the time we spent in the Labyrinth. The three of us. It was a… a simpler time, don't you think? A wonderful time. It seemed so terrible back then, but now… now, I miss it a lot. I wonder if you do, too.'

then

I bought is ready. Kai and Effie are doing fine. They are both very busy, though. I… hear that Cas is doing well, too. She had become the leader of those Forgotten Shore Awakened who remained independent. People are calling them the Fire Keepers.

a while, gathering his

didn't like the thought of her being alone, so I went to see her. She is fine,

around,

us that you wanted to dye your hair? You won't believe it, but I actually bought a little Memory that allows me to change the color of my hair at will. Not because of you,

lifeless in the white glow of the sleeping pod. He gritted his

hurt? Are you fucking happy?! I imagine that you would be, free of everything, with

his fists, then remained still for a long

'Are you... coming back?'

There was no answer.

by Changing Star's side for a while, staring at her still face. Then,

see

that, Sunny turned

***

a bit, then turned

how they used to, back when he and Nephis walked through them sixteen months ago.

an altar to

the real world, their story spread like wildfire and captured humanity's attention for a few weeks. Both the independent media and the government propaganda machine added fuel to

course, was the protagonist

apostles, after all. In their hearts, she was their savior. They were also under the impression that Changing Star

soil. Nephis already had the established mythos of the Immortal Flame clan to raise her into the spotlight of glory, and with her extraordinary accomplishments on the Forgotten Shore, it only grew brighter. The thing

loved nothing more than