Shadow Slave

After returning the silver blade to Nephis, and failing to say anything meaningful to her, Sunny did not have much to do. He spent some time with Kai, Effie, and Jet, enjoyed a good night of sleep, and then assumed his usual spot under the branches of the sacred tree to meditate.

Everything that could have been done was already done. They had prepared as best they could… at least he thought they did. Now, all that remained was to clear his mind and prepare himself mentally for the coming battle.

Sunny and his companions spent the rest of the time the Chain Breaker was traversing the empty void clearing their minds and steeling their hearts. The battle they faced promised to be a dire one…

But, honestly, Sunny did not find it hard to calm his mind and get ready to face whatever it was that would come.

There were only so many times he could feel nervous to the point of losing sleep before a decisive battle. He had experienced so many bloody clashes in Antarctica that anticipating another one had long become an ordinary event. Preparing for one mentally was not only a skill, but also a habit.

So, Sunny found himself feeling strangely calm. He slowly went over his experiences in the Tomb of Ariel, consolidating his insights and shoring up his fundamentals. Rapid growth was most welcome, but failing to digest his many gains properly could leave him unstable.

He had to eliminate all instability before reaching Verge.

Others were doing the same, each in their own fashion. While Sunny meditated under the sacred tree, Nephis practiced with her new sword, getting used to its weight and powers.

Jet had found a hammock, somewhere, and was comfortably asleep in it. Effie was enjoying the snacks she had prepared for herself. Kai was practicing a strange, outwardly inefficient form of archery while absentmindedly humming a song. Cassie was steering the ship, which seemed to calm her down.

Mordret, morbidly enough, was inspecting his collection of bodies. Those of them that had belonged to Awakened each possessed their own unique powers, so he was probably coming up with plans of when and where to use them best.

«That guy… is such a creep.»

Sunny shook his head, and then went to inspect his Shadows... which were created from the dead creatures he had killed. Not creepy at all, surely.

Everything seemed to be in order. Everyone was ready.

…But before they could return to the Great River, an unexpected event threw a wrench into their plans.

Sunny was on his way to the bow when a loud boom resounded from below the deck, and the entire ship suddenly shook. Gritting his teeth, he immediately stepped through the shadows and appeared at the galley, which seemed to have been the place where the booming sound originated.

He had expected to see some harrowing Nightmare Creature that had come from the void and infiltrated the Chain Breaker, or perhaps Mordret trying to kill one of the members of the cohort… but nothing like that was happening.

Instead, he only saw Effie standing near the bulkhead, hissing curses. Her fist had crashed through the durable wood, splintering and cracking it. Her other hand was resting on her belly.

Her face was pale, and twisted by a grimace of pain.

happening, Kai and Jet appeared at the doors. Cassie was not

it necessary to show up, but was definitely watching through the reflections. Nephis, meanwhile, remained on the stern,

«What happened?»

to them and forced out a smile. The sight of it was familiar, but Sunny was unnerved by the

a deep breath and

I think… that was

moment, trying to comprehend the meaning of what

hoped to end the Nightmare before Effie was due. No one knew what would happen to her baby if it was born here… would it be Riverborn, or an Outsider? 𝐥ìg𝚝𝔫օ𝑣𝓮𝓵w𝓸𝓻𝐥𝓭~𝙘օ𝕞. Would it become infected by the Nightmare Spell the moment it was born? Would it survive the

the Tomb of Ariel as soon as possible, and it had seemed like there was enough

though Effie had not been pregnant for nine months

different perspective, though, she had been carrying her child for close to two years now. So, if anything, its birth was

«...Sorry, everyone.»

Sunny frowned.

he said in a

more. We need to traverse this bottomless abyss, so, you know, it would be really inconvenient if it fell apart around

members of the cohort. Jet and Kai looked extremely worried, while Cassie maintained a calm

need to get Nephis

nothing if not irregular. Sunny had very little idea about how to deliver

and most of her body vaporized. Certainly, making sure that both Effie and the baby survived the delivery would not be

from his mind, he shifted into problem-solving mode

go… give the

at Cassie, he

know

nod from the blind girl, he led Kai

walked over to the stern of the ship and

lingered for a

labor. Go,

face, and she left the runic circle without saying a word. Soon, Sunny and Kai

But not for long.

had appeared from somewhere,

exciting. Can't say

done talking, Kai suddenly turned and raised a hand. It seemed as if he had wanted to grab Mordret by the collar, but managed to control himself, and simply put

were shining with a cold and furious kind of