Shadow Slave

«Mom… moooom… mommyyyy!»

Effie patted Little Ling on the head and smiled.

«What do you want, dumpling?»

She was sitting in a comfy wooden chair, staring at the wooden ceiling absentmindedly. The little boy cuddled comfortably on her lap, hugging her like a little monkey. He looked up at her with his bright eyes and grinned sheepishly.

«Story!»

Effie laughed.

«Story? Which story?»

Little Ling was suddenly very thoughtful. He remained silent for a while, a comically concentrated expression on his face, and then beamed.

«Mommy defeating the giant!»

She hugged him and shifted slightly, then said in a deep voice:

«Alright, alright. Listen then! A long time ago, in a faraway land, six evil Saints imprisoned Hope in a tall tower. Hope was very lonely in the tower, and cried bitterly. So, your mom and her friends decided to defeat the evil Saints and rescue her.»

The image of the damp stone cell under the Chalice Temple flashed in her memory. The smell of blood, the whimpers of the other girls the War Maidens, driven to madness by the Demon of Desire, were slowly «training» to death.

The graveyard of swords surrounding the ancient temple.

She chased the ghastly memory away and smiled warmly.

«Noctis, the Wicked Warlock of the East! Uncle Kai, who was a brave warrior from the Ivory City back then! Aunty Cassie, who was a wise priestess of the Night Temple! And, of course… your mom, who was a little girl! These were the four heroes who ventured to rescue Hope. Oh, and there was someone else, as well. A nameless shadow who had escaped its master and became friends with Noctis…»

Effie only had a vague recollection of the shadow devil who had followed Noctis, but it seemed rude not to mention him.

Her adorable son giggled.

«Huh? What's so funny?»

Ling Ling giggled again.

«Mommy is not little! How can mommy be little?»

She smiled.

«I was a little kid once too, you know! Actually, I was a little kid twice. In any case, after we, the four heroes, met each other and swore to save Hope, the evil Saints learned about it and sent a messenger to scare us. It was a huge giant! As tall as a mountain, with a body made of polished steel… but your mom and her friends weren't afraid at all. That was because the kind priestesses of the Goddess of Life had taught me the secret art of slaying evil giants, you see…»

Effie continued to tell the fairy-tale version of her Second Nightmare, just as she had done a hundred times before. For some reason, this story was one of Ling Ling's favorites… maybe because the very idea of his mom being a little girl excited him endlessly.

She had no idea why, but looking back, it had indeed been a bit exciting. Effie had spent her actual childhood either in a hospital bed or in a wheelchair, so getting a little taste of what it meant to be a healthy kid was… special. Even if it was in the depths of a ghastly Nightmare.

fantastical and exaggerated adventures. Flying ships, eccentric sorcerers, fire-breathing dragons, and a happy ending. The sugar-coated version of the Nightmare of Hope had everything one needed for

a thousand pieces, and the giant fell down, making the ground shake. Auntie was perfectly fine, of course — she had

door opened, and a handsome young man walked into the

smiled at her husband and took and exhaled slowly, trying to maintain a relaxed

«Daddy!»

Ling jumped off her lap and ran to hug his dad. Luckily, this time, he remembered to control

Dad smiled at him and then glanced at

it well, but she could see that the smile did not reach

«It's time?»

looked at the little boy in his

How about you and dad

seemed

mommy didn't finish

His dad laughed.

Or, how about it? Dad has an evil giant story, too! There are really too many evil giants in the world, now that I think about it. This

from her chair and stretched slowly, Then, she followed her husband out

their spacious, sunlit cottage. It had been built from natural wood by none other than him, and had a simple, cozy charm to it. The cottage was the centerpiece of the entire

the emerald meadow opened from

vegetable gardens, barns, and livestock corrals. There were also a few other buildings, some of them hidden

wood, but some included more advanced

all the other essentials of

Farm often moonlighted as a dimensional carrier

«Boss!»

«Boss is here!»

«Attention!»

of soldiers stood at attention. Most were hidden from sight, but some had gone

excitedly, causing a wave

«Uncles are funny…»

the nearest soldier

to be deployed at a moment's notice. We are going to spearhead the breaching maneuver by the Western Quadrant Defense Forces. The mission is just as the briefing said — push the abominations back and establish a fire line. Funnel the civilians, if there are any left, into the designated safe

been under her command from the

the

Effie inhaled slowly.

sending the entire cavalry this time… we'll take

and glared

of Ling Ling, you reprobate, Aren't you

blinked a couple of times,

sorry, boss… I

too sincere, though, no doubt Itching to

shook her head and pushed

«Go get ready.»

to her husband and son, putting

«Shall we go?»

her husband's hand, and a moment later, the three of