Shadow Slave

Sunny remained silent for a long time, looking at Noctis with a grim expression. Finally, he shifted and drew several runes, the onyx claw of his armored gauntlet moving through the ash with swift precision:

"Fortress. Danger. Inside?"

The sorcerer laughed.

"Danger… of course there is danger. But don't worry. It is nothing that you won't be able to handle. Uh… I think. Believe, even! Regardless, there's no one in the entire Kingdom of Hope better suited for this task thank you, Sunless. So… hurry up. Time's a wasting…"

Sunny scowled, unamused by the fact that Noctis avoided the question. Unwilling to let go, he growled and pointed to the runes again.

The sorcerer sighed wistfully.

"It's not that I don't want to tell you, Sunless. It's just that there's no point. You won't remember, anyway… but this will benefit us both, trust me. This fortress once belonged to a friend of mine. He was one of Hope's shackles, just like me, and a shadow, just like you. Do you see now why I think that fate itself has brought us together?"

Sunny held his breath.

'So, I was right. Noctis is indeed one of the immortals.'

And, more than that, one of the original seven had been a follower of Shadow God. Only five wardens were still alive, and none of them held dominion over the south… so, it was safe to assume that this Shadow Lord was dead. Suddenly, the sorcerer's comment about this island being someone's resting place made more sense.

If so… maybe there were some relics that the Transcendent of Shadows left behind in the fortress?

That changed things... a little...

Sunny hesitate for a while, and then gestured to his chest.

Noctis smiled.

"What? Surely, you are not doubting my skill! Rest assured, Sunless, I'll create a wonderful new heart for you. I'll even replace the fingers you seem to be missing, as a bonus. Unless not having fingers is your preference, of course..."

sighed and stood up. Picking up a bunch of grapes, he glanced at the eccentric sorcerer one more time, and then headed south, toward the

it, anyway… I wonder what the hell

***

flowers growing here and there among the emerald grass. The closer to the fortress he came, the more of these flowers there were. Despite the fact that it was the middle of the night,

appeared

'These flowers…'

for a hint of where he

was an island in the eastern reaches of the Chained Isles, not too far from the Sanctuary of Noctis, covered by a vast and beautiful field of such white flowers. Everyone, even

As soon as a

to that desire, none ever

Sunny silently cursed.

bastard trying

far easier ways to kill an Awakened, let alone someone as tired and weakened as him. There was no need to go to such

had said must have been true, or at least close to it. He believed that

What could he do that even a

connected to Shadow God, as the previous owner of the fortress had

dark thoughts, he crested another hill and saw the familiar silhouette

in much better condition than it had been in the future. In fact, it almost looked whole… if not for the moss covering

built of grey stone rose high into the night sky, and the massive gates were closed shut. The ancient fortress was bathed in

Sunny grimaced.

'...Not ominous at all.'

menacing stronghold. Its walls had not crumbled yet, so the path he had taken to get inside

claws into the ancient stone and started climbing. These walls were nothing compared to the great wall

human. He was a

of the wall and crouched on its lip, looking down into the empty courtyard. Here, the signs of abandonment were more pronounced — there were dust and dirt everywhere, with weeds growing through the ancient cobblestones. The fortress was desolate and hollow, devoid

his shadows away to explore the stronghold. If there

stronghold, through its

find, however,