Shadow Slave

A towering bonfire of pristine flames enveloped both Nephis and the vessel of the Gate Guardian, rising high into the sky. It bloomed like a beautiful white flower, suffused with both brilliant radiance and incinerating heat.

The soul flame burned so hot that, for a moment, Sunny actually felt dreadfully cold, as if he had been transported back to the frigid fields of the Antarctic Center.

With a curse, he staggered back, fell, and rolled away.

'Hell!'

Neph's flames could be warm and nurturing, healing and purifying anything they touched. But they could be ruthless and ferocious, destroying everything in their path.

Sunny knew that he would not survive a plunge into the blossoming bonfire - he might have shared a bond with Nephis, but he did not share the lineage of Sun God with her. Even then, Changing Star was not immune to the destructive fury of the fire - she was only capable of being locked in the cyclic agony of having her flesh burned, restored, and then burned again without dying.

He thought that he heard a distorted shriek escape from the flames, but it was swallowed by the dull roar of the immolating blaze. Nephis and the abomination were in the center of the dire conflagration, their figures obscured by its radiance - he did not know what exactly was happening there, just that only one of them would emerge from the flames alive.

The sand around the white bonfire was already melting, soon to turn into black, brittle glass.

'Curse it...'

Sunny could not allow himself to be concerned about Nephis right now. Because while she had dealt with Master Xu - at least temporarily- there was still another vessel of the great abomination coming after them.

Jumping to his feet, he spun around.

Seishan had both her arms wrenched and cruelly broken, while the extent of Morgan's wounds was unknown. Effie had received a blow from the Gate Guardian, as well, but her shield had protected her from harm - at the cost of being destroyed.

Effie, and Kai were left standing. And

the movement of

[Here it comes!]

flashed across the desert, lunging at them from

the vessel of the Gate Guardian in the chest. The

forward, the crimson stream stretching

however, the liquid was pulled back and reformed into a human silhouette, still a split second away from turning back

half-formed corpse and exploded,

Guardian was

already growing back. Its shattered ribs were assembled from bloodied fragments, and its bared heart grew whole before starting

felt a chill run

'What... what the hell...'

of him was so terrifying that it almost

his teeth, Sunny

his state was terrible. Not only was he utterly exhausted, sapped of all energy by the merciless heat, and

since Sunny had to enter a serious fight without being augmented by at least one of them. Without their familiar enhancement,

It's do

of Solace laughed, amused by his defiant resolve to give it his

no... it's just

arrived near the vessel of the Gate Guardian at the same time. Acting as one, they attacked the creature from different sides. A sword made of darkness and a sword made

to care - her vermilion

a sea of red. Her graceful figure suddenly grew much taller - taller than Effie, even when

pale and somber, drawing the string of his