Shadow Slave

Eventually, Sunny and Nephis ended up in his underground dojo. Changing Star looked around, her gaze lingering on the racks of training weapons and the deactivated sleeping pod that stood forlornly in its alcove, all but forgotten by its former occupant.

After a few moments of silence, she asked:

"Do you make use of all these weapons?"

Sunny glanced at the training equipment, lingered for a moment, then shook his head.

"Yes and no. In the past two years, I did expand my repertoire to include all kinds of sharp implements. But I practice with something better."

He was still most confident when wielding swords akin to Azure Blade, Midnight Shard, and his serpentine odachi. His proficiency with spears was also quite high, and he was steadily improving his archery skill. However, while Sunny had learned enough to feel comfortable with other types of weapons as well, he had a long way to go before truly mastering them.

Nephis nodded thoughtfully.

"Do you use the... Soul Serpent?"

Sunny stared at her for a moment, then looked away.

"Yes."

He was reminded of the Shadow Bond that connected them. Beyond its main function, it also allowed Sunny to peer into some of Changing Star's secrets. However, she was able to learn a lot of his, as well.

Sunny had suspected that this was the case from the very start, but now those suspicions were confirmed.

He remained silent for a few moments, then suddenly grinned.

"Were you surprised?"

Nephis looked at him, hesitated for a moment, and said:

"I was. Very... very much."

She sighed, sat down on the floor, and crossed her legs.

"I always knew that you were extraordinary. I just didn't… didn't think that you possessed a Divine Aspect, too. To be honest, I thought that I was the first."

down opposite her

of us was the first. It was Mordret, instead. He is older than us by four or five years, and had his First Nightmare when he was twelve. So… he received a Divine Aspect when

paused, and said with a

time my mother died. Oh… your mother is fine, by the way.

on Neph's face, she

"...Thank you."

for a moment and

telling me where the Divine Memory in

Sunny smiled darkly.

cathedral in the Dark City, on an ancient corpse that turned to

tilted her

you mind telling

He laughed.

I'll tell you... it can reverse one's

the dark chamber. Nephis looked at him, a hint of longing and pain reflecting in her

you have to do is to say the word. It's not like I can

at him for a long time, then silently

Sunny's grin turned somber.

such things… chances are, the new curse would be more terrible than the old. Right now, you have to burn yourself alive every time you actively use your Aspect. With the help of the Mask, you would most likely be burning without reprieve, forever, unless you were

grew silent, and

It is… too powerful to be used lightly.

for a few

is fine. I don't need to be liberated from my Flaw. I don't need a powerful Memory to uplift me. I… I

her,

year of despair would

him, remained silent for a while, and then smiled with the

however, her eyes remained calm

been desperate for much longer than that,

sigh, then looked

Song, Vale. They

silently, prompting him to

just knowing these words can get a person killed. However, I went ahead and did some digging of

looking at him intensely.