Shadow Slave

The next day, Effie appeared on the deck of the Chain Breaker, carrying her baby. She was still recovering, and in truth, it would have been better if she stayed in bed for a few more days… but time waited for no one.

Luckily, Effie was an Ascended, and possessed a body that was much more robust than that of a mundane woman — or pretty much any other Master, really. So, even though she looked tired and drained, her vitality was returning at a frightening pace.

Perhaps she would indeed be ready to fight by the time they reached Verge.

The Chain Breaker was traversing the abyssal void, with the radiant ribbon of the Great River surrounding it like a twisting ring. The seven suns revolved around it, making the inconceivable flowing realm shine. There were no stars in the impenetrable darkness of the false sky, but the light of the river was enough to illuminate the vast expanse of silent darkness.

Holding the baby, who had just woken up, Effie smiled.

"Look! That is pretty impressive, right? Nothing like a boring medical ward in NQSC. Leave it to a child of mine to arrive with such style…"

Frightened by the howling of the wind and the coldness of the void, the baby opened its mouth and let out a shrill cry. Soon, the sound of his voice drowned out the wind. At the same time, the leaves of the sacred tree rustled a little louder, as if concerned for the tiny human..

Sunny stared at them for a while, then shook his head.

'That kid… is bound to have a very unique life, I guess.'

Sunny's own birth was rather unusual, considering that it had happened during a solar eclipse and on a winter solstice. But being born in a Nightmare taking place inside a pyramid built by a daemon from the corpse of an Unholy Titan? That took the cake.

had to conquer the Nightmare first, for Effie's

a sigh, Sunny went to keep Effie

traveled closer and

horrors of its own, but it was truly and utterly empty. The members of the cohort spend time training, meditating, and hanging

all he could do was sleep, cry, and suckle on

short, the baby was

not hold it against him. Everyone had their faults, after all. Plus, while the infant himself was a bit of a letdown, watching how everyone reacted to

soft side, which had been hidden behind the mask of composure for so long that few people remembered what it looked like. ?ìg??օ???w????~?օ?. Jet seemed to be in the same boat as Sunny, but she

was holding

bewildered, and slightly mortified when Effie forced her to hold the infant. Which was a

He did, however, seem a bit fascinated by the whole thing.

to the newborn. The battle for Verge was approaching, and so, everyone was concentrating

Breaker returned to the Great River. This time, they did not pass above one of the Edges, landing directly in the middle of the vast flowing expanse, under the

the seven suns were

here at the dawn of time, the air

Spell — then these distant waters, situated very close to the misty Source, corresponded to the earliest days of creation… the Age of Gods, when the six deities battled against the remnant abyssal beings across the newly born world, aided by the

to feel a bit of awe at simply being near such mythical

hard not to