Shadow Slave

For a few moments, Sunny remained motionless, staring at the beautiful ivory walls of the great pagoda that towered above the world. Although the whole city was being consumed by immolating flame, here at its precipice, everything was calm and quiet.

He couldn't quite believe it.

Solvane, the Saint of War, was dead. The immortal prince encased in the mountain of moving steel was dead. The noble dragon that had dutifully guarded the tower was dead, as well.

They won. The Nightmare… was conquered.

More or less.

From the blood-soaked arena of the Red Colosseum, to the neverending prison of nightmares, to the numinous Temple of the Chalice, to the furious battle for the sky above the Ivory City, to confronting the Prince of Nothing… somehow, he had lived through all of it, and triumphed.

What were the chances of that?

'Just five months... but it felt like a lifetime.'

Of course, there were a few issues left.

Most of the army of the perished Chain Lords was still intact, and on its way to the city. The cohort had dealt a terrible blow to the small part of it, but hundreds upon hundreds of flying ships still remained, carrying thousands upon thousands of soldiers. Now that their commanders were dead, he was not sure what would happen to them, and how they would react.

Noctis was nowhere to be found.

And Hope was still chained, even if not for long now.

With a sigh, Sunny stood up and grimaced as a feeling of sickening weakness overwhelmed him. His soul was terribly damaged… he had never abused it to this degree before, not even during the siege of the Crimson Spire. His body was not doing too great, either. Sunny had given his all to come this far, and now, he was at the end of his rope.

But he was also so close to becoming a Master.

Slowly walking to the edge of the island, he looked into the darkness of the Sky Below for a few moments, summoned the Dark Wing, and then glided down to the last remaining chain holding the Ivory Island in place.

There was not enough essence left in his soul to turn into a swift shadow, and he was too tired to run, so Sunny simply walked forward, using his enchanted cloak to scale the uneven links of the heavenly chain from time to time. It took him a while to traverse the wide chasm of emptiness and climb to the surface of the familiar tranquil island.

The emerald meadow, the calm surface of a clear lake, the peaceful grove of ancient trees… he had been here before, in the distant future. Of course, now, the island did not look exactly the same. There were pools of dragon blood sizzling in the green grass, and wisps of smoke floating in the air, brought over from the burning city by the wind.

He looked at the Ivory Tower and saw the body of a beautiful white dragon wrapped around it, not yet reduced to weathered bones.

Sunny remained motionless for a bit, and then went to find Kai.

The young man was laying on the grass not too far away, unconscious. His armor had melted and disintegrated, and his bark-like skin seemed damaged and scorched. Many of his bones were broken, and his disfigured face was contorted by a grimace of pain.

But he was alive.

conclusion that Kai's life was not in danger. His wounds, while serious, were not enough to kill an Awakened.

under the archer's head as a pillow. Then, he lingered for a few moments, patted Kai on the shoulder, and stood

and stood in front of the dead dragon's head, looking at the closed gates behind

This was it.

The prison of Hope…

he studied the gates, something suddenly rustled behind him. Sunny remained motionless for a few moments, and then

after the battle with Solvane, but he also did not look good. The sorcerer was battered and beaten, his body covered by terrible burns. His elegant garments had turned into

He also looked… different.

sparkling and clear. The sorcerer

this was how he had been centuries ago, before the duty of being a shackle to Desire turned him twisted and weighed down by

at the ivory expanse of the great pagoda,

disheveled appearance. Looks… looks

lingered for a few moments, then offered

that, he faced

What now? This is it? We are

for a bit, then

is one small

from the sorcerer. His voice

said that she can

Noctis smiled.

think that she

then disappeared, leaving

mean

then looked away, at the pillars of smoke rising above the

you ever seen a wolf gnaw its paw off to escape a trap, Sunless? Ah… it's a terrible

a while, and then

meant

again, and the sorcerer turned to Sunny with sparks

finally come for me to request something

palm. Sunny remained silent, refusing to look in

give me

'Goddammit!'

much. He wanted to do

it would have been a wrong and cruel

A betrayal.

sighed heavily, and then faced Noctis. A swirl of sparks appeared

you know? And yes, I