Shadow Slave

The battered ship fell from the dim red darkness of the sky and, illuminated by the eerie radiance of the crimson moon, crashed into the towering steel colossus. The armored beak of the ship's ram struck the giant's chest with such tremendous force that there was a blinding flash of light, and then a powerful shockwave rolled across the island, violently throwing Sunny off his feet.

The deafening roar of the impact came as he fell.

Rolling on the ground, Sunny was assaulted by the thundering clash of the blast, the rumbling groan of shattering wood, and the booming shriek of heavy metal being ripped apart.

Stunned and disoriented, he rose to his knees, then swayed a little and looked up.

What he saw made him pale.

The sorcerer's ship lay broken on the ground. The fluid lines of its graceful hull were broken and gaped with terrible breaches, wide cracks running through the ancient wood. Its bow was completely shattered, and the damage in the front part of the vessel was especially severe. The beautiful tree growing around its main mast seemed damaged and... dead.

Cassie was nowhere in sight.

At the very edge of the island, thrown back, Sun Prince knelt. The steel colossus was swaying dangerously, clutching at his face with his one remaining hand. At the spot where the ram of the ship had struck, his chest was caved in and ripped open, rivers of molten metal flowing from the terrible wound.

And in the depths of the wound, turned incandescent by the heat, a cage made in the form of a human figure was revealed.

…The cage was slightly broken, too, and a charred hand could be seen clawing at the edges. Under its fingers, the metal was bending like cloth, slowly being torn away.

Sunny shuddered, and then turned his gaze back to the wreck of the flying ship.

'Cassie… where's Cassie…'

He could not see the blind young woman anywhere in the wreckage.

However… Sunny saw someone else.

A bloodied figure suddenly fell from above, bounced off the ground, and crashed into the hull of the ship, causing more cracks to appear on its surface. Raven black hair, pale skin… it was Noctis.

did not look

wounds gaping open here and there. His beautiful face was broken and disfigured, the skin split open and white bone visible

was still alive, though…

pain into the merciful embrace of death

appeared for a split second in front of the

portion of the hull of the ship exploded as Noctis was pushed through it by a vicious strike. Both Saints disappeared into the darkness of the ancient vessel, which

the wreckage of the ancient ship. His

he could not decide

not much

looked

Effie was already on

a grim

groaned, then slowly stood

"Effie… any... any ideas?"

moment, then

it's this

He frowned.

"What time?"

young girl glanced at the wreckage, and

know, that time when, in the movies, someone says

stared at her, not entirely understanding

gaze slowly shifted to the kneeling colossus and, in

me the knife… the Ruby one. I'll deal with the big bastard. You and Kai go and find Cassie, then help the lunatic… in that order. He's not going

shadows veiling his eyes. Sunny had

"Are you sure?"

The young girl laughed.

Relax, doofus… it's just an immortal Transcendent. We better deal with that thing before it escapes