Shadow Slave

Sunny was anticipating witnessing the endless expanse of the Stormsea. He had been to more deadly corners of the Dream Realm than most people—possibly even than any person—but he had only ever been to the misty coast south of Bastion, never venturing into the nebulous waters themselves.

Apart from the idle curiosity of a retired explorer, Sunny also felt a subtle connection to the Stormsea. These were the remains of the world that Daeron the Serpent King had ruled once, after all. The shadows of Daeron and Wind Flower now rested in his soul, while the Twilight Sea they had failed to save had been consumed by the Dream Realm.

Earth would soon share the same fate, so Sunny felt a kind of curiosity that was both poignant and morbid when thinking about the Stormsea. Regardless of what he had expected, though, his first impression of the nebulous ocean... was a complete disappointment. That was because Sunny could not see anything at all. Everything around the Night Garden was shrouded in thick mist, plunging the world into a beautiful, but ominous twilight. Even when he climbed to the peak of the tallest mast of the massive ship, he still failed to catch a glimpse of the sky.

The Night Garden ceased all movement after passing through the Dream Gate, which had already vanished and left it alone in the boundless expanse of the misty sea. ”There’s nothing much to do. We can’t sail until the mist passes—well, technically, nothing is stopping us. It is just too dangerous.”

While the Night Garden settled to wait for the weather to improve, Jet retreated to her quarters to rest. Sunny emerged from her shadow, deciding to take a break too—his search had not produced any results, so continuing in the same manner seemed meaningless. He had to gather courage before proceeding to the next plan, though.

”What kind of dangers are we talking about?”

Jet gave him an amused look.

”The kind I have no words to describe, and no desire to imagine.”

She crossed her legs, looking at the ceiling with a laidback expression.

”Don’t worry, though. The Night Garden had been drifting in these waters for thousands of years before being claimed by us humans, and for half a century since. Nothing managed to take it down in all that time.”

Sunny smiled faintly.

”Who says that I am worried? Among the long list of my worries, the horrors of the Stormsea are all the way near the bottom.” He found himself a chair and sat down.

Jet chuckled. ”How’s anonymity treating you, by the way? It must be hard, for a lofty Supreme to keep hiding in the shadows. Unable to let his existence be known to anyone, instead of basking in the glory.”

She had contacted Nephis through Cassie to coordinate the opening of the Dream Gate. But really, Sunny could have sent the Night Garden to the Dream Realm himself... only he couldn’t, because his existence was supposed to be a secret.

There was the King of Nothing now, too. The whole world was abuzz with the news of a new Sovereign—the second Sovereign, supposedly—appearing out of nowhere and taking out the Skinwalker. That only made Sunny’s situation seem more unfair.

He smiled.

”It’s treating me fine, actually—I’m used to it. After all, I’ve been hiding the fact of my existence from long before becoming Supreme. As for the fame and glory I supposedly deserve, they were never something I chased. In fact, I spent most of my life avoiding them like a plague... to limited success.”

Jet remained silent for a while, then said in a contemplative tone:

”Yeah. I never thought I’d be where I am today, either. I am the only Saint who comes from the outskirts, you know? The first... and the last. There’s not much left of the outskirts, by now. Most people have already left for the Dream Realm.”

She chuckled quietly.

”Who knew that I’d outlive the outskirts? Well... outlive might be too strong a word. Anyway, just thinking about this stuff makes me feel old.”

The world was changing swiftly around them. So rapidly, in fact, that sometimes it was difficult to recognize it when taking a glance.

Sunny did not say anything at first, looking at her silently.

Then, he smiled.

”Who says you’re the only one? I’m from the outskirts, too. The first Supreme to have come from the outskirts... but, hopefully, not the last.”

Jet glanced at him in surprise.

”You are from the outskirts?”

She studied him for a while, then let out a sigh.

”Damn. And you’re younger than me, too. No, now I simply must conquer the Fourth Nightmare... otherwise, it will be embarrassing...”

Sunny grinned and leaned back.

Jet kept staring at him, a smile slowly finding its way onto her lips.

”I’m glad, though. I... guess we outskirt rats have done well for ourselves, after all. Oh, it also explains why there’s no record of you in any government database. I think I drove several intelligence executives into an early retirement while trying to uncover the identity of the Lord of Shadows. I owe them an apology, I guess.” ṝ𝘈Ꞑ∅ＢÈs̩

Sunny let out a short laugh.

Then, his expression slowly turned concerned. ”Speaking of that... I need to gather some intelligence, as well.”

Jet raised an eyebrow. ”I get it that your search is not going well?”

Sunny shook his head slowly.

”No. And since we are pressed for time, I think I am going to have to do something drastic.”

He hesitated for a few seconds, then gave her a dark look.

”So, I need you to watch over me for a bit. Oh, and if it looks like I am unraveling... knock me out.”

Jet’s blue eyes widened a little.

”What? How am I supposed to knock out a Supreme? One who has seven bodies, no less?”

Sunny grinned.

”Well, you are Soul Reaper Jet. I am sure you’ll figure something out.”

With that, he summoned a Memory.

The familiar cool weight of Weaver’s Mask settled onto his face a few moments later.

It was time to do something that he had been scared of doing for a long, long while... To look upon the world and see it the same way Weaver had.