Shadow Slave

Sunny remained motionless for a while, looking at the landscape in front of him.

The tower stood on a tall black cliff, perched on top of it like a grey obelisk. There were stone steps climbing down the cliff from its ornate gate, leading to a bridge that arched across the wide moat. Surrounded by the forest from all sides, the tower was like an island in the sea of swirling white mist.

The light in one of its windows was not the only peculiar thing Sunny had noticed, too.

The most striking detail was the moat itself. The water in it was churning and flowing, moving endlessly in a circle. The current was powerful enough to dissuade Sunny from trying to cross it - not he would consider doing such a thing on an island surrounded by a mysterious whirlpool of time.

That made the bridge the only feasible way of getting to the tower apart from flying. The bridge, however...

Sunny's expression dimmed.

The bridge was littered with inhuman bones. There were a few living Nightmare Creatures standing on it, as well - all of them stiff and eerily motionless, as if petrified. Just one look at that scene made Sunny reluctant to go anywhere near the bridge.

He did not need to, anyway. The Guiding Light was pointing past the tower, at the vast expanse of the misty forest behind it. Effie seemed to have landed on the opposite side of the island from Jet.

Still, it was not going to hurt him to observe the tower some more. It was the former citadel of the powerful Seeker who had once lived on Wind Flower, after all - even though investigating it was not the reason why Sunny and his companions had arrived at the island, he had a sneaking suspicion that they would end up having to, somehow.

After staring at the tower for a while longer, Sunny noticed that there were runes carved into the base of the black cliff. They were hard to notice from a distance due to the color of the weathered rock, but he had no doubt that there was a massive enchantment of some sort surrounding the Seeker's citadel.

Perhaps the bones littering the bridge ended up there because of the enchantment.

Sunny looked up and focused on the single illuminated window

what is

business. Not

on the bridge would regain their senses and catch his scent. Throwing

Great Beast... a

not even look like something that should be able to exist on land. How had that thing reached so far inland? Sunny shook

was ready to send Nightmare away when the ground

his ears, making the

rider and his steed disappeared, turning into

the cracking sound had come. Frozen, he watched as a towering figure slowly

'D-damnation!'

slowly straightened and towered above the ancient pines, dwarfing them with its impossible height. The tips of the trees barely reached

is at least

appearance. At first, Sunny had mistaken it for a beast, but then realized that the ragged fur covering its body was merely a crude cloak sewn from

giant... seemed

deep cuts, and gaping lacerations marring her dirty skin, most seeping with rotten puss. Her long hair was matted and wild, hanging down messily to obscure her face.

giantess raised one of her enormous, bruised, painfully familiar hands. In it, a grotesque creature that resembled a massive black octopus was struggling desperately, its long tentacles whipping around with enough force to turn the ancient pines into clouds of dust. A viscous, corrosive liquid streamed from them, dissolving everything it

not seem bothered at all. The black acid rolled from her skin like water, not dealing any damage to it. A few moments later, she brought the struggling horror to

parted, revealing

one eye, while the other burned with madness and indescribable hunger. Watching the enormous octopus being greedily devoured, Sunny finally realized how the decaying leopard had perished, and whom the hand that had killed the members of the cohort

Her thoughts turned cold.