Shadow Slave

Returning to the Shipwreck Island felt strange. It was almost exactly the same, but also different.

They followed the remains of the ancient road and crested the hill to see the desolate valley below. The wreck of the once graceful ship was at its center, the dead tree wrapped around its mast. Thick vines were growing out of the breaches in its hull and spreading outward, some laying on the ground, some buried beneath it.

Here and there, piles of wooden debris could be seen — those were the Sailor Dolls, which had yet to assume their humanoid form after shapeshifting to withstand the Crushing.

What had changed, however, was that there was no chain on the other side of the valley anymore. The Twisted Rock had been destroyed and crumbled into the Sky Below, and now, the Shipwreck Island directly bordered the Tear.

Sunny felt as if the air itself was slightly different as the result.

He gestured at the wooden debris and said:

"Those are the Sailor Dolls. In a few minutes, they will assume their usual form, and after one notices us, the others will know of our presence, too. They'll swarm you pretty fast."

The Fire Keepers had already summoned their weapons and were prepared for a fight. The faces were calm, cold concentration burning in their eyes.

Cassie nodded.

"This is it, then. We will see you on the other side."

Sunny hesitated for a moment, then glanced at the members of the cohort. Out of habit, he had wanted to tell her to be careful, but then remembered who she was, and who he was, what they had been through together, and how it all ended.

The corner of his mouth twitched.

"...Give them hell."

Keepers smiled.

is already enough of a hell… you stay safe

shadows. Safely hidden in their dark embrace, Sunny observed as

debris shuddered and started assembling into tall, menacing wooden humanoids, their arms ending

one to lunge at them, and launched an

a heavy bow, and sent an arrow flying. It hit the nearest abomination in the head and suddenly exploded

side of its body in shambled. As it moved toward the humans, a thin crust of ice formed on its limbs, slowing

brought the blade of a heavy axe on its shoulder, severing one of the abomination's arms completely.

Doll was dead, hacked into pieces by the rest of

'Not a bad start…'

that was

were surrounded by a dozen more Fallen Beasts, all towering above them with menacing, bloodthirsty determination. Things were about to turn bad for the Fire Keepers, but at that moment, Kaor — the Artisan specializing in carpentry

a bit sluggish and slow. That made it possible for the members of the cohort to hold against the onslaught

was not

his weapon shine with an angry red glow. It bit into

with a short spear from time to time to keep the enemies from simply overwhelming him with their size and mass. This was the healer of the cohort, so his fortitude and grit came from his physical prowess alone, not from any

a shield, a young woman with dirty blond hair and an Aspect that allowed her to exert vicious strength with each strike of her sword. She fought in tandem with a young man who wielded two great swords… in his four

switching between Memory arrows and mundane ones, which were crafted by Kaor. Her bow was powerful enough, and her aim precise enough, to deal heavy damage to the advancing Sailor Dolls. The carpenter himself was sustaining the strange hex he put on the abominations and covering her with

Keeper possessed an Aspect that allowed him to gift his companions with an augmentation to stamina and endurance, as well as making one of them much more resilient. He wielded a curved sword

there was Cassie herself. Who had turned out to be perhaps the

other, using it to deflect blows and launch an unexpected, quick attack from time to time. The delicate girl wasn't the strongest, nor was she the fastest of the Fire Keepers. However, she fought with confident grace and

not only flawlessly follow, but also control the flow of battle… it reminded him of how Nephis fought, of how deeply attuned she was to the

was able to predict and manipulate the cadence of

a frightening presence on

side a split second before the blade would have sliced her