Shadow Slave

...Sunny waited for a moment, then slowly straightened and looked around.

The Chain Breaker was laying on white sand, tilted awkwardly. It had shattered the side of a black cliff and was now leaning on it, preventing the ship from turning over. They had gotten lucky despite the blind landing.

The fog was still there, obscuring the world, but it had become less thick. Sunny could make out the figure of Saint standing still on the bow of the grounded vessel, as well as more cliffs rising high above them. It seemed that Nephis had guided the Chain Breaker to a small sand beach at the very edge of the island.

Neph herself was leaning heavily on the steering oars, drained of essence. Sunny grimaced.

'It was inevitable, but we should be careful not to receive any serious wounds. She won't be able to heal us any time soon.'

Nephis, meanwhile, had already regained her composure.

"I'm fine. I can still put up a fight."

'Well, of course you can. I have no doubt about that.'

After exchanging a few words with them, Cassie used the Guiding Light to make it point in the direction where Effie supposedly was.

'Or her lifeless body... or something else entirely.'

Sunny couldn't suppress his anxiety anymore. He scowled and took a step forward, ready to leap down to the beach.

'That gluttonous woman... she'd better be alive. Or else... or else I'll be very cross with her.'

Jumping over the railing, he plummeted down and landed on the sand. A moment later, Nephis was by his side. Saint and Fiend landed with a bit more noise than the two of them, and lastly, Nightmare leaped from the deck of the ship, carrying Cassie on his back.

The six of them remained motionless for a few moments, listening to the silence of Wind Flower.

There were no sounds around them, no movement. Only the soft white sand and the black cliffs faintly visible in the fog. A piece of rock fell from the shattered crag and rolled down, the noise both dampened and made louder by the mist. It echoed, making them tense.

Feeling very uncomfortable because of how suppressed both his vision and shadow sense were, Sunny took a step forward.

...As he did, a human figure suddenly revealed itself from the murky veil of the fog.

He flinched and tensed, ready to attack, but then froze.

Black eyes, porcelain skin... the Sin of Solace looked at him contemptuously and spat:

"Gods. This again! I'm so sick of it..."

Sunny gritted his teeth and walked past the damned sword wraith...

he lingered for

a strange sense of déjÃ

'Huh...'

the Sin of Solace was supposed to

head, Sunny ignored the loathsome apparition

was writhing on the ground, overwhelmed by unbearable agony. His lightless

one knee,

'No, no, no...'

a ghostly blade

Sunny died.

***

moment, then slowly

white sand, tilted awkwardly. Nephis was leaning heavily on the

careful not to get wounded until she

and said in a tired

fine. I can still put up a

you can. You're Changing Star of the Immortal

them in the direction where Effie

she'd better be alive. Or else... or else

the swirling mist, he scowled and

revealed itself from

ready to attack, but then

skin... the Sin of Solace was glaring at him without even trying to

a pathetic, odious, revolting coward. Just die

damned sword wraith, heading for the cliffs.

what did

damnable sword wraith from his head, he

after, a ghostly blade pierced his

Sunny died in agony.

***

moment, then slowly straightened and

tilted awkwardly. Nephis was leaning on the steering oars, utterly

down to the beach and headed to the cliffs. As he did, a pale apparition

Sin of Solace

fun at the start, but now I've

walking. He was suddenly overwhelmed by a strange sense of déjà vu but

his soul was destroyed by

***

moment, then slowly