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Chapter 1749: Leave It All Behind.
Shadow Slave

The battle had just ended, and the Winter Beast was gone.

The dark ecstasy of having killed the butcher of Falcon Scott had washed over Sunny's heart and receded like a tide.

Leaving it cold and hollow. Dark and utterly devoid of light.

There was nothing binding him to the world anymore. He was banished from the Nightmare Spell, fate, and existence itself. In the whole world… two worlds, actually… not a single soul cared whether he lived or died. No one even remembered that he existed.

Facing the cruel truth of that loss was too painful, and so, Sunny longed to leave it behind.

…He opened his eyes in a familiar hall. Warm sunlight was pouring through the stained-glass windows, painting the ivory walls with vibrant colors. Heavy chains lay on the floor, arranged into a flawless circle. The sky was vast and blue outside.

The Ivory Island floated on the sea of clouds, enveloped by a peaceful silence.

Sunny had not wanted to come here. In fact, he wanted nothing more than to avoid this place at all costs, However, this was where his soul was anchored to the Dream Realm, and so, this was where he had arrived after giving up on the waking world.

Standing in the center of the chain circle, Sunny shifted slightly and dissolved into the shadows.

The Ivory Tower was mostly empty right now — most of the Fire Keepers were still lost in the depths of their Nightmares, while Nephis and the rest of the cohort were too busy to visit it often. Still… he didn't want to be seen by anyone.

They could not remember him even if he told them who he was, so there was no point.

Sunny glided across the floor as a shadow, hiding in the darkness near the gate. Then, he extended his shadow sense outward and froze. On the emerald grass outside the great pagoda, two people were walking toward its gate.

The sunlight suddenly seemed brighter.

He kept himself hidden when they entered the sunlit hall. Nephis was frowning, while Cassie followed her with a strangely lost expression on her delicate face.

Sunny remained motionless as he unwillingly eavesdropped on their conversation.

Are you sure?»

Cassie nodded slowly.

«Yes, I.,, I think I am. The future has grown too… elusive to decipher.»

Nephis halted and remained silent for a few moments.

«Can it be connected to your Transcendence? Or witnessing that thing in Verge?»

The blind girl hesitated briefly.

«That was what I thought, as well. However, I've reached out to several seers in confidence. They all seem to be having trouble glimpsing anything from the future, as well… all over the world.»

Nephis' scowl deepened.

«What can be the reason? An aftershock of the Dream Gates being open? The Chain of Nightmares itself?»

She shook her head and continued walking.

«We will have to investigate it later. Right now, there is too much to do… it is pure pandemonium out there, with so many people suddenly arriving in the Dream Realm. The refugee camp outside Bastion is lacking provisions and manpower, with too few Awakened to guard them against the Nightmare Creatures. At least there is no lack of water, but… all of it was too sudden. The situation can swiftly descend into a disaster.»

Cassie sighed.

«I heard that they are going to build a city on the lake shore, And with the Sleepers of Antarctica having Awakened, there are much more capable warriors now than before

Nephis nodded.

«Still. I am going there to help.»

The blind girl remained silent for a moment.

«I see. I'll go with you, then.»

Sunny hid in the shadows, listening to the news about the tribulations of humanity without Interest. What did it have to do with him? Nothing at all… not anymore.

Nephis shook her head.

«Someone has to stay here to welcome our people once they return from the Nightmares. Plus… you have another important task to accomplish.»

Cassie raised an eyebrow.

«You… you really want to do it?»

Nephis gave her another nod.

«It is time to abandon the Chained Isles. We are too far away from everything important here. I want you to fly the Ivory Island south, toward Bastion.»

With that, she turned around and walked into the circle of chains.

Standing there, Nephis frowned and briefly touched her face. She remained motionless for a while, then said somberly:

Why do I feel like I'm forgetting something?»

Cassie did not answer, simply standing there with a confused expression.

Eventually, Nephis grimaced.

«That other issue… have you been able to discover anything?»

Cassie slowly shook her head.

«No. I talked with Effie and Kai again, Jet too. But it's hard to dispel the fog that's clouding some of our memories. I think… It must have been Torment who had done something to us. But what? And why? And when? There is no answer yet.»

Nephis sighed.

«Keep digging. I'll do some research, too.»

Soon, she was gone, returning to the waking world.

Cassie did not move for a while, standing there with her head lowered.

Eventually, she whispered quietly:

«What has she done to me?»

With that, she turned around and descended into the basement of the Ivory Tower, where the runic controls of the island were located.

Sunny was left alone.

He exhaled slowly and emerged from the shadows, looking in the direction where Cassie had gone.

Torment… did she really believe that her Defiled twin had been capable of doing something like that? The timeline didn't make sense, and Cassie knew it.

Well, it was a reasonable theory to make. Torment's power… Cassie's power… had to do with manipulating memories, after all.

For a moment, a desperate hope ignited in his heart. What if Cassie could restore the memories of him with her Transcendent Ability? What if he could make them remember?

But no… he knew that it was impossible. if it was, she would have already done so, restoring her own lost memories first.

I'm sick of it.»

He gritted his teeth and walked out of the Ivory Tower.

By now, the Crushing was of no threat to him. Sunny wasn't sure if he could endure its terrible pressure, but he also did not need to. The range of his shadow sense had grown enough to reach the distant islands, so he could simply step through the shadows to leave the Ivory Island behind.

He contemplated for a few moments, considering if he should.

What was he going to do, anyway? Live like a hermit in some godforsaken corner of the Dream Realm? Leave to travel the unexplored regions of this dreadful world, away from where any human could see him?

Jump into the Sky Below and try to reach its bottom out of curiosity?

Each alternative was as good as the next one.

Well, jumping into the Sky Below was probably a bit worse than the rest…

Sunny remained still for a while, thinking.

In the end, he did not use Shadow Step to reach the flying island far below.

Instead, he circled the great pagoda and headed toward the graceful gazebo, where the portal to the Ebony Tower stood.

If he remembered correctly, there was a chamber in Nether's scorched tower where the walls were engraved with countless runes.

Sunny had not been able to understand those runes before, or at least retain the understanding of the ancient daemon's words.

After his visit to the Estuary, however…

Who knew what he would be able to learn?

Shadow Slave
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Comments 43

  1. Offline
    Turnc4406
    + 6 ⋅ 0 -
    I want Sunny's Sovereign ability to be creating permanent physical items from Solid Shadows. He can already create temporary structures, so why not permanent ones? You know, like an underworld tower made entirely of a black substance stronger than Obsidian and filled with the remnant of partially woven Shadow Saints, or a pyramid made of the same solid black material capable of withstanding blows from a Transcendent and filled with an artificial domain populated by the dead from the past.
    Read more
    1. Online Offline
      ArMiks
      + 8 ⋅ 0 -
      i think he can technically maintain the permanent physical form of his shadows. his only constraint is the shadow essence expenditure over time of actually maintaining them.
      i'd prefer it if his supreme abilities would relate or give sentience to the army of shadow-souls in his soul sea. i think those are the foundation of his future domain, the same way nephis collects the longing or inspiration of other people to create hers
      Read more
      1. Offline
        Turnc4406
        + 2 ⋅ 0 -
        I just meant to create them and not have to constantly supply essence to them. Just, have them stay after he built them.
        Read more
        1. Offline
          Dummybaron
          + 3 ⋅ 0 -
          It sounds more like Improved version of [Shadow Manifestation] rather than Domain power
          Read more
    2. Offline
      DanielPlay
      + 2 ⋅ 0 -
      And what is the use of this? Eventually he will be able to maintain his shadow constructions indefinitely, like Shadow Step, which he can maintain indefinitely due to the expense being much less than his passive essence regeneration.
      Read more
    3. Offline
      ninja9999
      + 2 ⋅ 0 -
      Winter beast managed to freeze some of the shadows sunny manifested, they became permanently physical without sunny needing to maintain them.
      When Sunny becomes a titan, serpent will be able to transform into the winter beast, and freeze any shadow sunny manifested, that way, he can create perfectly shaped, extremely durable materials to craft memories
      Read more
  2. Offline
    Pro100zver25
    + 27 ⋅ 0 -
    1750: Nothing But Time.

    The Ebony Tower was just like the last time Sunny had seen it — floating ominously in a boundless black void, with a sea of fire burning above it relentlessly.

    The Fire Keepers had established an outpost here, but after the Chain Breaker gained the ability to brave the Crushing, they only maintained a token presence in the Sky Below. Now that Neph's followers had left to challenge the Nightmares, there was not a soul around.

    He stepped out of the black arch on the highest level of the obsidian pagoda and remained there for a while, staring into the distance. Somewhere far away, in a different world, one of his shadows was following Rain… Sunny had to think of a way to approach her openly, but his current mental state was too volatile to try.

    «…I'll think of something later.»

    Nothing moved in the Sky Below. Nothing disturbed the cold silence. Rid of the suffocating pressure of human company, he felt… comfortable, for the first time in a while. Or at least numb.

    There was consolation in solitude.

    Sunny exhaled slowly, then allowed the Onyx Mantle to retreat back under his skin. With his military bodysuit in tatters, he was left practically naked — after hesitating for a bit, Sunny allowed the wild shadows to envelop his lithe body, and manifested them into a semblance of soft fabric.

    Summoning the Endless Spring, he satiated his thirst and left the sixth level of the Ebony Tower.

    The fifth level consisted of one large chamber. It was shrouded in darkness, with countless runes covering the obsidian walls. These runes were the reason why Sunny had chosen to come to this place.

    He stared at them emotionlessly.

    «I knew it.»

    Before, Sunny had been unable to read the forbidden runes. In fact, simply beholding them had almost killed him… but things were different now. Not only had he grown vastly more powerful since his day as an Awakened, but he had also received the revelations of madness from the Sin of Solace.

    Thanks to that, he glimpsed the secrets that Ariel had left behind, and was seemingly inoculated against the power of the forbidden runes by the knowledge of the Forgotten God.

    And so… Sunny did not feel repelled by the runes carved into the walls of the Ebony Tower anymore. All he felt was a slight sense of discomfort.

    Of course, he still had to be careful when studying them — the knowledge of the Void that a daemon was capable of enduring could very well plant seeds of Corruption into his Transcendent Soul, and there was not telling if any of it was mixed between the passages concerning the Forgotten God.

    There was also a bit of a problem…

    Nether had not used the runic alphabet Sunny was most familiar with while leaving the notes on the wall, and since the Spell never translated the forbidden runes, he could not do it himself from memory. After years of wandering the Dream Realm and exploring ancient ruins, he could somewhat decipher the meaning, but a proper translation would take a lot of time.

    Which was fine.

    Sunny had nothing but time, these days.

    He did not get to work immediately, though. What was the rush?

    Instead, Sunny left the fifth level behind and descended lower. He passed the solemn shrine on the fourth floor, the workshops on the third floor, the divine flame reservoir on the second floor where Weaver's arm had once been left to burn, devoured by the harrowing rot — and finally reached the first level of the Ebony Tower.

    That was where the Fire Keepers had established their living quarters.

    The central chamber had been shrouded in darkness once, but now, it was brightly lit by a multitude of enchanted lanterns. Sunny counted them calmly and smiled.

    Each of the lanterns was a Memory belonging to one of the Fire Keepers. They had been left behind here for a reason. For as long as the master of the lantern was alive, their lantern would continue to glow. If they perished, the lantern would dissipate into a rain of sparks, destroyed with the rest of their Memories.

    There was a similar chamber in the Ivory Tower, which could tell if any of them had died.

    From the look of it, the Fire Keepers were doing well in the Second Nightmares. The number of lanterns had not dwindled at all… at least not yet.

    Looking away, Sunny walked over to one of the cots and fell on it heavily. As soon as his head hit the pillow, his eyes closed on their own.

    He was tired…

    It was time to sleep.

    Tomorrow, his new life as an aimless wanderer would begin.

    —— —— ——

    Sunny woke up feeling refreshed.

    It was still strange to him, to sleep while one of his incarnations stayed awake. In such moments, his consciousness seemed to split, one part of it functioning normally, the other drifting in the comforting embrace of slumber. He even dreamed sometimes, while simultaneously observing his dreams from the side.

    In any case, his mental fatigue lessened no matter which incarnation slept, as long as one of them did.

    Rising from the cot, Sunny looked around groggily.

    There was nothing pressing he had to do, so he was not in a hurry. He summoned the Covetous Coffer, took out some supplies, and seasoned some monster meat. While it was roasting, Sunny brewed himself a pot of coffee.

    Then, he took the pot and the plate of meat outside and ate breakfast while dangling his feet above the bottomless abyss of the Sky Below.

    The sea of divine flames above made for a spectacular sky. He enjoyed the views for a while, sipping coffee and not thinking about anything in particular. Eventually, though, Sunny grew bored, and finally returned to the fifth level of the Ebony Tower.

    He looked at the runes for a while, eventually stopping near a familiar section of Nether's writings.

    Out there on the obsidian wall, a strange map had been carved into the stone.

    The Ivory Tower, the Tomb of Ariel, Ravenheart, Bastion, the great vessel that served as the Citadel for the House of Night, the Underworld… and Weaver's Mask placed above the other six landmarks, with a question mark next to it.

    The other six strongholds were only marked by a single rune each.

    Desire, Oblivion, Dread, Imagination, Repose, Destiny… and “Fate?”

    Sunny studied the map with amusement.

    It had seemed a bit strange before — after all, there were no borders, no terrain, no measure of distance between the strongholds. They all seemed strangely disconnected, as if there was no map at all.

    Now, of course, Sunny knew the daemons had built their citadels in different realms, and so, it could as well have been a realm map. It was only after the Dream Realm had assimilated all mortal realms and five of the six divine realms that the daemonic strongholds ended up connected by land.

    Finally, his gaze settled on the carving of Weaver's Mask.

    Nether had not known where his eldest siblings dwelled, or if there was such a place at all.

    Perhaps Weaver had been a homeless wanderer, just like Sunny.

    Smiling darkly, Sunny looked away from the map and turned his attention to the runes.
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  3. Offline
    ZEXOS
    + 32 ⋅ 0 -
    1750. Nothing But Time


    The Ebony Tower was just like the last time Sunny had seen it - floating ominously in a boundless black vold, with a sea of fire burning above it relentlessly.

    The Fire Keepers had established an outpost here, but after the Chain Breaker gained the ability to brave the Crushing, they only maintained a token presence in the Sky Below. Now that Neph's followers had left to challenge the Nightmares, there was not a soul around.

    He stepped out of the black arch on the highest level of the obsidian pagoda and remained there for a while, staring into the distance. Somewhere far away, in a different world, one of his shadows was following Rain... Sunny had to think of a way to approach her openly, but his current mental state was too volatile to try.

    ‘...I'll think of something later.'

    Nothing moved in the Sky Below. Nothing disturbed the cold silence. Rid of the suffocating pressure of human company, he felt... comfortable, for the first time in a while. Or at least numb.

    There was consolation in solitude.

    Sunny exhaled slowly, then allowed the Onyx Mantle to retreat back under his skin. With his military bodysuit in tatters, he was left practically naked - after hesitating for a bit, Sunny allowed the wild shadows to envelop his lithe body, and manifested them into a semblance of soft fabric.

    Summoning the Endless Spring, he satiated his thirst and left the sixth level of the Ebony Tower.

    The fifth level consisted of one large chamber. It was shrouded in darkness, with countless runes covering the obsidian walls. These runes were the reason why Sunny had chosen to come to this place.

    He stared at them emotionlessly.

    'I knew it.'

    Before, Sunny had been unable to read the forbidden runes. In fact, simply beholding them had almost killed him... but things were different now. Not only had he grown vastly more powerful since his day as an Awakened, but he had also received the revelations of madness from the Sin of Solace.

    Thanks to that, he glimpsed the secrets that Ariel had left behind, and was seemingly inoculated against the power of the forbidden runes by the knowledge of the Forgotten God.

    And so... Sunny did not feel repelled by the runes carved into the walls of the Ebony Tower anymore. All he felt was a slight sense of discomfort.

    Of course, he still had to be careful when studying them - the knowledge of the Void that a daemon was capable of enduring could very well plant seeds of Corruption into his Transcendent Soul, and there was not telling if any of it was mixed between the passages concerning the Forgotten God.

    There was also a bit of a problem...

    Nether had not used the runic alphabet Sunny was most familiar with while leaving the notes on the wall, and since the Spell never translated the forbidden runes, he could not do it himself from memory. After years of wandering the Dream Realm and exploring ancient ruins, he could somewhat decipher the meaning, but a proper translation would take a lot of time.

    Which was fine.

    Sunny had nothing but time, these days.

    He did not get to work immediately, though. What was the rush?

    Instead, Sunny left the fifth level behind and descended lower. He passed the solemn shrine on the fourth floor, the workshops on the third floor, the divine flame reservoir on the second floor where Weaver's arm had once been left to burn, devoured by the harrowing rot - and finally reached the first level of the Ebony Tower.

    That was where the Fire Keepers had established their living quarters.

    The central chamber had been shrouded in darkness once, but now, it was brightly lit by a multitude of enchanted lanterns. Sunny counted them calmly and smiled.

    Each of the lanterns was a Memory belonging to one of the Fire Keepers. They had been left behind here for a reason. For as long as the master of the lantern was alive, their lantern would continue to glow. If they perished, the lantern would dissipate into a rain of sparks, destroyed with the rest of their Memories.

    There was a similar chamber in the Ivory Tower, which could tell if any of them had died.

    From the look of it, the Fire Keepers were doing well in the Second Nightmares. The number of lanterns had not dwindled at all... at least not yet.

    Looking away, Sunny walked over to one of the cots and fell on it heavily. As soon as his head hit the pillow, his eyes closed on their own.

    He was tired...

    It was time to sleep.

    Tomorrow, his new life as an aimless wanderer would begin.

    ***

    Sunny woke up feeling refreshed.

    It was still strange to him, to sleep while one of his incarnations stayed awake. In such moments, his consciousness seemed to split, one part of it functioning normally, the other drifting in the comforting embrace of slumber. He even dreamed sometimes, while simultaneously observing his dreams from the side.

    In any case, his mental fatigue lessened no matter which incarnation slept, as long as one of them did.

    Rising from the cot, Sunny looked around groggily.

    There was nothing pressing he had to do, so he was not in a hurry. He summoned the Covetous Coffer, took out some supplies, and seasoned some monster meat. While it was roasting, Sunny brewed himself a pot of coffee.

    Then, he took the pot and the plate of meat outside and ate breakfast while dangling his feet above the bottomless abyss of the Sky Below.

    The sea of divine flames above made for a spectacular sky. He enjoyed the views for a while, sipping coffee and not thinking about anything in particular. Eventually, though, Sunny grew bored, and finally returned to the fifth level of the Ebony Tower.

    He looked at the runes for a while, eventually stopping near a familiar section of Nether's writings.

    Out there on the obsidian wall, a strange map had been carved into the stone.

    The Ivory Tower, the Tomb of Ariel, Ravenheart, Bastion, the great vessel that served as the Citadel for the House of Night, the Underworld... and Weaver's Mask placed above the other six landmarks, with a question mark next to it.

    The other six strongholds were only marked by a single rune each,

    Desire, Oblivion, Dread, Imagination, Repose, Destiny... and "Fate?".

    Sunny studied the map with amusement.

    It had seemed a bit strange before - after all, there were no borders, no terrain, no measure of distance between the strongholds. They all seemed strangely disconnected, as if there was no map at all.

    Now, of course, Sunny knew the daemons had built their citadels in different realms, and so, it could as well have been a realm map. It was only after the Dream Realm had assimilated all mortal realms and five of the six divine realms that the daemonic strongholds ended up connected by land.

    Finally, his gaze settled on the carving of Weaver's Mask.

    Nether had not known where his eldest siblings dwelled, or if there was such a place at all.

    Perhaps Weaver had been a homeless wanderer, just like Sunny.

    Smiling darkly, Sunny looked away from the map and turned his attention to the runes.
    Read more
    1. Offline
      Zrilla
      + 7 ⋅ 0 -
      Ахахахаха представьте как на это реагирует Кэсси, этот теневой чëрт пришëл на их базу как к себе домой, поспал, поел и читает)
      Read more
  4. Offline
    Dummybaron
    + 17 ⋅ 0 -
    Unrelated to the chapter, but I want to say this. Nephis gave Sunny false Ideology, I mean whole this phrases like "We are destroyers. We can only destroy, but somewhere in the world other people can create things and we exist so they can create in peace" are bullshit that applyes only to Nephis.

    Its Nephis who can't create, she can inspire but thats all. Sunny is better than this, he is better than Nephis because he can create things, if he wanted to he would create enchated machines that could create electricity out of Essence or Soul Shards, he could make few Balls with Pocket Space(Like Effie has) for agricultural needs, or put water in few to create environment for Sea products.

    Sunny has a student(Sister) who he teaches how to survive in this world, he raises her to become someone in the future. Sunny also studying different cultures, history, and Mythology of the past, if its not gathering knoledge for future generations and creating the better future then what?

    Sunny is better than Nephis because he is more than her, Nephis limited by her abilities and view on world, Sunny limited only by view on world and Imagination(Both Sunny & Nephis are limited by Sovereigns but that issue will be solved "soon"). Sunny is not only the destroyer of things.
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    1. Offline
      Precious Randel
      + 7 ⋅ 0 -
      Very true
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    2. Offline
      Pro100zver25
      + 15 ⋅ 0 -
      I couldn't agree more. Sunny is really capable of a lot, unlike Nephis, who can only destroy. And at the same time she constantly says what is right and what is wrong. She says: «Sovereigns impose their laws on everyone!» — and what does she do if she doesn’t impose her point of view on everyone? Everyone has their own truth, and to say that someone is doing wrong just because you don't like someone's actions is a incorrect statement. Yes, the Sovereigns may act unfairly, but they also have their reasons. Nephis, from the very beginning of the volume, tries to say: «I’m better than them!» — although she is no different from them, and is also ready to go over heads and broken destinies, just to achieve her goal.
      Read more
    3. Online Offline
      ArMiks
      + 7 ⋅ 1 -
      so true, aside from the main memory weaving, sunny excels in the basic crafts ie black/gold smithing, leatherworking, tailoring, carpentry, etc. he's basically a one man production line.
      i am ofc assuming here that although the valor guys also "Craft" memories, they mostly specialize in a single craft per person, in relation to their aspects. eg anvil-mostly forges metal armor and weapons. others may specialize in leather, cloth, accessories, and others.
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    4. Offline
      Tutengut
      + 2 ⋅ 0 -
      I think he ment his lord of shadow persona
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      1. Online Offline
        ArMiks
        + 2 ⋅ 0 -
        what, please expound.
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        1. Offline
          Dummybaron
          + 4 ⋅ 0 -
          Tutengut, saying that when Sunny said about his motivation to Nephis, he "lied" and told only a part of it that works with his Lord of Shadows persona, but his real motivation is something else.
          Read more
    5. Offline
      Guru
      + 1 ⋅ 3 -
      Give up man, sunny forever be under nephis heel. Whatever nephis wants sunny wants, whatever she thinks he think. Which is not that bad honestly, gotta catch a fish somehow. Game is game.
      Read more
      1. Offline
        Eightsixtwo_
        + 0 ⋅ 0 -
        I don't think so, I've got this feeling that in the end it will be Neph vs Sunny again
        Read more
  5. Offline
    Dheeraj singh
    + 5 ⋅ 1 -
    As the nah I'd win said to (leave it all behind)


    kef
    Continue the cycle
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    1. Offline
      Foggy
      + 7 ⋅ 0 -
      Your comment takes way too much brain power to comprehend
      Read more
  6. Offline
    DanielPlay
    + 7 ⋅ 0 -
    I hope this memory is quick. I'm really interested in the war and Sunny telling the truth.
    Read more
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