Shadow Slave

Standing on the battlement and peering into the cold darkness beyond, Sunny had a contemplative expression on his face. The wind smelled of snow as it played with his black hair, which had grown a bit too long by now. Pale moonlight permeated the air, failing to reach the ravaged land.

Winter and Dale were sitting nearby, leaning on alloy parapet of the wall and sharing a flask. The two captains seemed calm — one in her usual relaxed manner, the other solemn and staid. As the contents of the flask ran out, Winter sighed and looked at Sunny.

"You seem terribly serious today."

He lingered for a moment, then shrugged.

"Just thinking about stuff."

She did not press, content to rest with her eyes hidden behind the cracked sunglasses.

Sunny felt strangely thoughtful after his conversation with Saint Tyris.

He was not sure that he agreed with her uncompromising views, but there was one thing Sky Tide had said that was unquestionably true.

Life was, indeed, unpredictable.

Take his own relationship with the steely Saint… Sunny did not know Saint Tyris very well, or share any of her principles, but he found himself respecting the stern Transcendent a great deal. He liked Master Roan, too. The three of them even shared some history.

Several years ago, Sunny had held nothing but contempt toward Legacies. He had regarded them as arrogant, dangerous, and hateful people, someone who did not deserve the unfair privileges bestowed upon them by nothing except for birthright. Who would have thought that he would come to value and admire some of them, one day?

Take Cassie, too…

When she surrendered his secret to Nephis on the Forgotten Shore, Sunny had thought that it was the darkest moment of his life. And yet, if she had not made that choice, he would have stayed behind a Sleeper. Sunny had no way of knowing if he would have survived the same journey Changing Star had.

return. If Sunny had not been there to hold back the tide of Nightmare Creature advancing on her school, his sister would

too many instances

fate… except for Weaver, perhaps. Even oracles like Cassie

did it leave

same place where I started, I

fool struggling against something he could not

least, was

Sunny moved strands of hair away from his eyes and sat down near Winter and Dale. His hands were

do we have to wait,

with a smile so faint that it

that this calm

soldiers were acting a bit strange, sticking painstakingly to the better illuminated parts of the battlement and hastening their steps in

He frowned.

"What's up with them?"

turned her head

Haven't you

moment, then shook

"What rumors?"

The Ascended archer chuckled.

your APC more often, you know? Well, anyway… there are a lot of scary stories spreading among the refugees these days, one more nonsensical than the other. The latest story is that

and then added in a

usually easily spooked, but as you can see,

Nightmare Spell infecting

also be a different explanation for the increased number of disappearances. The Terror of LO49 was known to