Shadow Slave

The caverns were a Corrupted Terror's territory.

A Corrupted Terror... it had not been that long ago that Sunny would have shuddered from a mere thought of fighting a creature like that. He was still apprehensive, of course, but not nearly as much as a wise person would have been.

An abomination of that Rank and Class was not something a lone Master should have the ambition to kill - or a cohort of them, really. Sybil of the Fallen Grace, for example, had not only wiped out the entirety of LO49 and the enormous battleship sent to rescue its personnel, but also almost ended the lives of Sunny, Naeve, and Saint Bloodwave at Falcon Scott.

A Corrupted Terror was a walking disaster of chilling proportions.

...Of course, just like all people were not the same, Nightmare Creatures weren't either. One Terror could be much more dreadful than another, even within the boundaries of a same Rank. How one's Aspect countered the creature's powers, or was countered instead, also played a large role.

Sybil of the Fallen Grace, for example, had been a harrowing being even among Terrors. She had also possessed an especially insidious kind of power - the power to twist minds and subjugate living beings.

The creature hiding in the caverns of Wind Flower was entirely different.

This Terror did not possess powers that allowed it to play with its prey's mind. Neither could it destroy the prey's soul. Instead, it was viciously strong and covered by nearly impervious armor.

Or maybe it was not nearly, but absolutely impervious. At least Sunny had not been able to break it yet.

As for powers...

He wasn't sure, but it seemed like the incredible toughness of the creature's hide was a part of them. Sunny also suspected that the very existence of the underground caverns had something to do with the Terror.

If not for the fact that time on Wind Flower only encompassed a single day, who knew... perhaps, in the near future, the whole forest would have been swallowed by the growing chasm beneath it. He could also imagine entire cities turning into ruin as they collapsed into the maw of devouring earth... continents, perhaps, given enough time.

the Cavern Terror. There

it was also without an army of minions. Things would have been much more dreary if the system of caves was flooded with hundreds, or even thousands,

countered the most threatening trait of the powerful Terror. As long as they lived long enough for her to deliver several strikes, they would

meant to buy them that

into the caverns, Sunny explained all these points to his

not to kill it too

at

"Why?"

silently pointed

kill this Terror now, we'll still have to face it again in the future revolutions.

for a moment, and then added

fact, in your place, I would have brought Cassie with me everywhere. To learn about every abomination on this

Nephis for a while, then turned to

'Actually, she's right.'

along would have

would die over

being cruelly killed, watching his

and over again, she was still the weakest of them. And he... deep down inside, he still saw her as someone who needed

and unassuming, so it was not easy

and lowered his

to involve her, regardless. My progress is too

they entered another large cavern. The darkness here seemed especially deep and oppressive, barely retreating from

the shadows moving ominously