Shadow Slave

In another memory, Seishan was sitting on her mother’s throne.

She wore a regal red gown, leaning languidly against the throne’s backrest. The vast hall was illuminated by the ghostly light of dancing flames, and in that light, her pale grey skin made her look like a corpse.

Her scarlet lips were moist, as if covered in fresh blood.

Now, finally, she had reclaimed her childhood home... just like her mother reclaimed it from the traitors who had usurped it once, all those years ago. The Jade Palace once again belonged to a descendant of Ravenheart, as it was meant to.

Two of her Blood Sisters were standing silently behind the throne. Below the throne, Beastmaster stood leisurely, making a report.

”...The Chained Isles are firmly in his hands, but his advance south is slowing down. The Black Mountains serve as a natural barrier, and every mountain pass there is now a battlefield. Here in the West, however, the situation is more difficult.”

She sighed.

“He doesn’t seem to be in a hurry to besiege Ravenheart, but his raids on the cities in the basin of the River of Tears are growing bolder with each passing day. He comes and goes out of reflections, so we cannot give chase. His forces are spread thin, but no matter what losses he suffers in the Black Mountains, Godgrave provides him with plenty of new vessels to continue the invasion. In fact, the number of his vessels is growing.”

Sieshan remained silent for a while, frowning.

”I presume he is still building up his forces while avoiding a direct clash against our lord.”

Beastmaster nodded.

“Indeed. That is most likely the reason why he has not besieged Ravenheart yet.”

Ravenheart was not an easy target even for Mordret. There were too many Saints, Masters, and Awakened here — more importantly than that, committing to this battle would put the besieging vessel army at risk of being culled by the Dreamspawn. The Hunger Domain encompassed most of humanity by now, while the Mirror Domain was still relatively small and weak.

However, it was growing stronger every day. Seishan’s frown deepened.

“There needs to be a decisive battle.”

Beastmaster grimaced.

“It’s not that I disagree, but how are we supposed to force such a battle on him?”

Seishan hesitated. She was not quite sure herself.

But just then, when she felt mired in doubt, it was as if a subtle voice whispered into her ear. New thoughts were instilled in her mind.

Seishan smiled.

“We cannot force him to commit to a battle, true. However, we can invite him to give battle with a proper lure.”

Beastmaster raised an eyebrow.

“What can that slippery man find so irresistible as to abandon caution?”

Seishan did not answer for a while, and a golden gleam seemed to shine in her eyes for a short moment.

”We have his sister, do we not? He already allowed somebody else to kill his father. I doubt that he will tolerate someone else killing his sister, as well. If we proceed slowly enough, he will most likely show up before we finish the job.”

There was a muffled sound, but she ignored it before adding:

“And if that doesn’t help, we will just have to make Ravenheart vulnerable. If he sees a real chance to destroy the city, he will act despite the danger.”

Seishan paused, then smiled and asked in a gentle tone:

”What do you think, Kai? Do you like this plan?”

She looked down, where a man was kneeling beneath the throne, shackled and chained to the floor. He was pale and disheveled, looking at her with a scathing, sorrowful emotion in his sunken eyes.

There was a silk scarf tied around his neck, the white fabric painted rusty-brown and vibrant scarlet by layers of dried and fresh blood.

He stared silently at her, offering no answer.

Well, of course, he didn’t answer. After all, she had torn out his tongue.

At first, Changing Star’s flames had attempted to heal him, but after Seishan repeated the painful process a few times, they subsided. It seemed like Nephis had realized that healing this particular wound would only subject Kai to more torment. Looking at him, Seishan smiled sweetly.

”It doesn’t seem like you like my plan very much. But do not worry...”

She licked her scarlet lips and chuckled.

“Even if Ravenheart falls... it will be for the greater good.”

Kai strained against his chains — but, of course, it was of no use.

In the end, exhausted and dizzy, he tiredly closed his eyes.

...In a different memory, Kai was standing at the gates of the Jade Palace, looking at the entrance to the great bridge in front of him with a tired, but determined expression. Out there on the bridge, bodies littered the ground. Above them, thousands of Awakened warriors were frozen in place, utterly motionless, their hair dancing in the frigid wind.

Some seemed to have frozen midstep as they were rushing toward the Jade Palace, some were kneeling on the ground. Some were brandishing their weapons, while others were reaching for their quivers, ready to knock arrows on the strings of their bows.

They did not move.

They could not move because he had commanded them to cease moving. The power of his voice bound them like an invisible chain, and none of them was strong enough to resist it.

Well... almost.

At the very edge of the great bridge, six women were arrayed like a crescent in front of Kai, looking at him with calm expressions.

”Impressive.”

Seishan offered him a strained, but graceful bow.

”But how long can you keep this up, Kai?”

He gritted his teeth silently, prompting her to laugh.

“This Citadel... it rightfully belongs to me. To us. What right do you have to occupy our mother’s home? To steal our inheritance?”

Shaking her head, she strained a little and then pushed her body one step forward.

”I’ve come to claim what is mine, Kai. Do not stand in my way.”

He frowned.

“Stand down, Seishan. Even if you defeat me and claim the Jade Palace, it won’t belong to you or your sisters. It will only belong to the Dreamspawn.”

As the wind picked up, his eyes glistened.

“Not to mention that you can’t defeat me. Not now, not here — not as long as I am the master of this Citadel.”