Shadow Slave

Sunny stared at the footprints for some more, then frowned.

'How does this make any sense?'

The Obsidian Tower had been sealed before he opened its gates. After he did so, the magic that had preserved everything inside was dispelled, which meant that those doors had not been opened in thousands of years.

It wasn't that easy to gain entry into the pagoda, to begin with. Not even mentioning the fact that one had to travel through the Sky Below and find the only rift in the boundless ocean of divine flames, there was also the fact that the gate had to be open by pouring essence into the weave of diamond strings beneath its surface.

Sunny could only see the weave and understand its meaning a little because his eyes had been transformed by the drop of Weaver's blood. He assumed that there were other Awakened with similar abilities, but there had to be very, very few of them… and what were the chances that one would find their way to the dark island beyond the immolating sea of stars, which was hidden in the depths of this endless void?

And how would they enter the pagoda without causing its seal to break?

'Just who was it that snuck into the Obsidian Tower unseen? And when?'

It had to have happened long before today. Sunny knew for a fact that Saint would not have let anyone come and go without waking him up. Neither would his shadows: even when he slept, they were aware and vigilant.

So… it could have happened at any point in the thousands of years since the tower had been abandoned by its rightful owner.

For now, he had no answer.

little apprehensive, Sunny approached the pile of broken dolls and studied them for some time. Saint came closer, too, and stared at them silently. Then, she poked one with

care too

replicas of her kind. It had been the same with the Black Knight, and even with the walking colossus of the Forgotten Shore. Sunny clearly remembered how unimpressed his Shadow had been

lined with massive glass vessels. Some were whole and some were broken, but all were empty. The glass was black and opaque, covered with a thick layer

'...Weird.'

underground level, he returned to where he had started and rested for a while, drinking water from the Endless Spring and trying to suppress

is so…

black tower stood at the edge of an endless void of darkness, empty and abandoned, with everything inside of it made out of nothing by an inhuman mind. It was not a very welcoming place... at least not for humans. Sunny stared at the ancient walls that surrounded him,

up and cautiously headed for

Sunny set foot on it, though, he instantly felt that something was very, very

anything he had known before… with the exception, perhaps, of those few moments back on the Forgotten Shore when the walking colossus had lifted the giant three-eyed skull from the depths of

even more dire, even

'What… what is this…'

like the underground level, this one consisted of only one great hall. The black walls rose high into the darkness, creating a magnificent and solemn atmosphere. At the center of

took a

of the ancient tower, turning it into a semblance of repulsive, black, pulsating flesh. The silver brazier was infected by the terrifying growth, too, its metal somehow becoming a part of it. It seemed as if everything would become absorbed and transformed by the spreading corruption as long as it was touched by the harrowing growth… entire

slowly spreading from the ancient brazier felt

slightly. He was looking

the very center of the brazier, blackened by the flames that must have raged in it once, lay