Shadow Slave

Sunny was reeling from the sudden deluge of impossible knowledge that Wind Flower had so casually shared with him. The relationship between the waking world and the Dream Realm... the vague theories about the Nightmare Spell he and Nephis had discussed... everything he knew was suddenly upturned. He remained silent for a while, then weakly raised a hand, summoned the Shadow Chair, and sat down.

Watching him, the beautiful Saint tilted her head slightly and laughed.

"What an interesting Memory..."

Walking away from the window, she found a chair of her own, then picked up an elegant porcelain kettle and poured fragrant tea into two cups.

Sunny took a deep breath.

"I... I did think that my world - we call it the waking world - was the only one infected by Nightmare Spell. Oh, I was never sure, though."

Wind Flower pushed one of the cups toward him and shook his head.

"It seems that your people are less knowledgeable about the past than mine were. Ah, but we were rather ignorant, as well. Still, we knew that there were many realms before the End War. Some were connected to each other, some were far apart. Some were considered mortal realms, while some were considered divine. Each of the gods had a realm of their own."

She looked into the window and took a sip of tea.

"The mortal realms were where the war between the daemons and the gods took place. By the end of it, most of them had been turned into desolate graveyards. They have become the core of the Dream Realm, where Corruption reigns."

Sunny forced his hand to remain steady as he raised his cup and tasted Wind Flower's tea. It was pleasant and soothing, but left a tinge of bitterness on his tongue.

Of course... it made sense. The Dream Realm had always seemed like a patchwork world, with different regions of it inexplicably possessing different skies, celestial bodies, and even laws. The Forgotten Shore, the Chained Isles, the Hollow Mountains, the Nightmare Desert - they did seem more like different worlds that had been roughly smashed together than natural parts of a single whole.

He took a deep breath.

"...What about the divine realms?"

The beautiful Saint smiled.

mortal ones and each other, as well, and so were left untouched by the spreading Corruption... at

not say anything,

come from was one of those six realms. It is similar to the Great River, actually... a beautiful world covered entirely by water, with countless islands rising from it like gems. A world of storms, winds, and stars. Well... it was, before. By now, it

Sunny's hand finally trembled.

cup to his lips, he lingered for a moment,

do

back in her chair and

not experienced the worst of it yet. What is the Rank of the most terrible Gate that has opened in this Waking World of

He frowned.

Great Nightmare Gate, I

beautiful Saint looked

appear, pieces of your world will begin to be assimilated by the Dream Realm. Piece by piece, your world will eventually be swallowed entirely, becoming a part of the Dream Realm... just like the other five divine realms have already become a part of it. That is why I said that your world will be the last one the Spell ever infects. Once it's gone, there won't

a part... of

Sunny shivered.

Flower described her world? A world of storms, winds, and stars. Didn't it sound like the Stormsea,

once, where mundane people lived and struggled, and where the Spell had appeared one day,

world that had eventually lost to the tide of Nightmare Gates and was destroyed, becoming another one of

Sunny's world share

He shook his head.

why? Why is this happening? Why does the Spell infect different worlds, and why are they being consumed

sipped her

these questions, do you think I would be sitting here, imprisoned in a dream on a cursed island, with all my people gone, and

She chuckled.

world is much stronger than mine was.

lingered for a while. Finally, a hint of