Shadow Slave

After Sunny had broken through the mind hex and spent two days rescuing the mesmerized people, saving dozens of lives, the horror hiding in the cold black waves seemed to have left the vicinity of LO49.

The victims had regained their senses, and every person in the settlement was able to see and hear them clearly once again. In the next few hours, no one showed any sign of being under the influence of the hex. The vanishings stopped.

And the Ariadne was supposed to arrive soon.

The exhausted, frightened, and shaken inhabitants of the fortress were tentatively starting to unwind. Their fragile hope bloomed and blossomed.

However, the person most responsible for the positive change - Sunny - did not feel any of their cheer or relief. On the contrary, with each passing minute, his unease and sense of foreboding only grew stronger.

He did not like what was happening, not at all.

Walking through the snowy streets of the settlement, Sunny studied the lively faces of patrolling soldiers with a troubled expression on his own. It was dark and somber.

'...Doesn't make sense. None of it makes any sense.'

Approaching the security center, he placed his hand on the panel of a sophisticated biometric lock. The sensor was supposed to initiate a thorough scan, but as seconds passed, nothing seemed to happen. The damn thing was on the fritz.

Sunny stared at it for a moment, then sighed and banged on the heavy alloy door with his fist. Soon, it was manually unlocked from the inside by a sleepy soldier, who then allowed Sunny in.

Walking inside the security center, Sunny dusted snow off his shoulders, looked around, and headed toward Verne.

"What is the situation?"

off with a list of orders, then looked

The Terror - or whatever that abomination was -

Sunny gritted his teeth.

Nightmare Creature ever

The older Master frowned.

manipulation are exceedingly dangerous, they often lack direct means of launching an effective attack. Maybe it decided to search for easier prey after you proved capable of

a bit, then shook his

probably haven't seen even a fraction

tiredly rubbed his

that the creature's Rank and Class are only your conjecture. We don't really know how powerful it actually was. In any case, how else do you

for

change tactics. Maybe it is gathering power for a singular, overwhelming attack. Maybe it just

away

you want me to do? It's not like I've relaxed the security measures. We are still on high alert and prepared for battle. We are still keeping the civilians locked up and concentrating our defenses on

let out a

saying is that it's not a good time to become complacent. On the contrary, we must be preparing for a rapid escalation

blankly for

can. No matter how small, the possibility that you are right still exists, so we must. That is my position as the officer responsible for the safety of every person inside this facility. But personally...

silent for a bit, then said in a

paranoia has never led me

that, he winced

else are we supposed to do? Until the

feel so disturbed? Why