Shadow Slave

'Hope… herself…'

Sunny stared at the seven chains, finding new meaning in their cruel visage and the misshapen, torn remnants of the seven rune-inscribed shackles.

So the Sun God's ire had not been quelled by just destroying her kingdom. He had gone a step further, binding the Demon of Hope at the heart of her decimated domain… for how long?

And how had she escaped, in the end?

He tilted his head.

"So the Demon of Hope was chained here?"

Mordret answered with a hint of surprise in his voice:

"...You know of the daemons?"

A crooked smile appeared on Sunny's face.

"I do... a bit. Why wouldn't I? Although truth be told, there's not a lot of information about them, even among the Dream Realm researchers. So… the ruler that you had told me about was one of the daemons? A lesser deity?"

Mordret kept silent for a bit, then said dejectedly:

"Yes. I am not sure that those two words really go together, though. I also don't know what Hope had done to earn the wrath of the Lord of Light. However, I do know that these seven chains are what holding is the Chained Isles from falling into the Sky Below."

Sunny raised his eyebrows.

"What?"

The lost prince sighed.

had to be broken for the Ivory Tower to become untethered, of course. So, now the islands are linked by the fragments of the original seven chains, many of them severed from

correct the way he used to think about the Chained Isles. The

he turned back to the Seed

of that thing? I guess it contains a Second Nightmare, since you wanted

Mordret answered succinctly:

"Correct."

the Dream Realm, then… but am I suicidal enough to go into the Second Nightmare alone? Whole cohorts of experienced Awakened routinely perish in their attempts to become Masters. What would my chances of survival

Master jet had said, no one survived in the Dream Realm

He scowled.

create a Gate in the real

answered, his voice was almost

But not for a long time… maybe in a few years, or a decade. It has not matured enough to be able

Sunny hesitated.

it can

lost prince did not answer for

can be challenged before it blooms, as well as after. If the Seed is not found in time and a Gate opens, challengers can fight their way through and enter the Nightmare directly. The Gate also disrupts the anchors of those near it,

He paused, then added:

is vast and only partially explored. That's why the Nightmare Creatures are entering

the mass of shimmering darkness,

"Yeah? Why?"

let out a

a Second Nightmare alone is not impossible, but attempting it is tantamount to gambling your life away. The chances of returning alive are very slim. That is why Awakened challenge them as members of cohesive, experienced cohorts. Even then, many don't survive… most, even. But this Nightmare is actually far worse. Entering it is

ears open,

"Unless what?"

prince remained silent for a short

ivory knife. Only those who have shed blood on the altar and received the Memory

blinked a couple of