Shadow Slave

Sunny looked at the stream of blood that was getting closer and closer to the cage, then glanced back at the door and waited, wondering if someone… or something… would burst through it and enter the cell.

But nothing did. After that first loud bang, everything stayed eerily quiet. Seconds passed, then minutes. Finally, he slowly turned away from the door and looked at Cassie.

"Do you smell it?"

She lingered for a moment, then nodded.

"...Blood."

Sunny remained motionless for a bit, then walked back to his usual place and sat down. His face was grim. After a while, he said in a dark tone:

"We are going to need to start rationing water."

Humans could survive for a long time without food, but water… water was much more precious. Without it, a healthy human could die in a matter of days.

And there were very few more agonizing ways to go.

Cassie turned her head, then asked somberly:

"Why? Do you think that they are going to just leave us here?"

Sunny opened his mouth to retorn that she was the one who could see the future. But in the end, he held his tongue.

"...Just in case."

As Awakened, they would also be able to last longer without water than mundane humans — especially Sunny, whose body was strengthened by three cores, Blood Weave, and his

that

was no way to

exhaled

gone, it was impossible to tell what day it was. Sunny and Cassie remained in the barely illuminated darkness alone, waiting for something to happen, or slept while shivering

before their water ran out.

...Then, came the thirst.

spending several days — at least he thought that a few had passed —

hurt as if it was being cut, his lips had dried and cracked, and so did his tongue. His head was full of pulsating pain, and his muscles were

this cursed cage like a dog, forgotten and discarded. Maybe one day someone would open the

he could think of to get out of the cage, but nothing he

felt weak and lethargic, and his vision was starting to blur.

Then, it disappeared, too.

became even darker, with only the ghostly, dim glow of the runes illuminating the

'...The oil ran out.'

Sunny closed his eyes.

Was it really hopeless?

he couldn't give

somewhat sane was the fact that

burden of past sins, sharing his pain with someone had made if not bearable, then at least a little easier. Neither of them would have been able to endure the agony and the terror of not knowing whether they were going to live or die, the fear of the unknown, alone. But together, the two of them managed to persevere, somehow. Maybe

oil lantern died out. Time lost its meaning a while ago. All he knew was the thirst, the pain, and the stubborn, spiteful will to hold on just a