Shadow Slave: Lost From Sight

[Welcome to the Dream Realm, Cassia!]

The Spell whispered into Cassie's ears, and just moments afterwards, she was no longer in the comfort of the modern sleeping pod, but on the cool surface of a hill, grass trickling her legs as she slowly stood, wobbling slightly. 

Looking up, she saw an empty black sky. There was no moon, no stars, just a dark expanse of repressive darkness. Cassie swallowed down her fear, and tried her best to remember everything that Teacher Julius had taught her about the different areas of the Dream Realm. 

Yet there definitely was a moon that could be seen no matter where one was in the Dream Realm, for the known areas at least.

Was this an undiscovered area?

'That must be a lie!' She thought, 'I can't be this… this unlucky! This must be one of the less explored areas!'

She nodded, that's right, it must be a lie.

…right?

Her Flaw, [Clear Conscience] was damning enough, and her Aspect had all sorts of different restrictions. [Bond of Life] was something she definitely will not risk, as the Spell's wording of it was ominous and harrowing. She could never let anyone find out about her True Name.

'But what if they ask? I wouldn't be able to do anything… My Flaw commands me to tell the truth.'

The combination of her Flaw and Innate Ability fit terribly well, and Cassie had almost wept into tears once she saw their descriptions. Hadn't she suffered enough throughout her life? All she wished was to live peacefully with her parents, and maybe get a decent job, but the Spell just had to infect her.

'Focus Cassie! Focus!'

Returning to where she was, she couldn't see nor hear anything, and she didn't know where she was. 

'Face it Cassie, you don't know what to do…'

Tears gathered in her eyes, before streaming down her cheeks, she wasn't able to do anything, and will have to uselessly accept the help of others again like in her First Nightmare. But she can't see anyone here, and she didn't know how to start finding a gateway in this dark world. 

She was alone in this dark world.

"Was this how Sunny felt while blind?" She muttered, feeling pity for her new friend, "What… what should I do?"

No. There was no use crying, and whimpering, and doing nothing to get out of this situation, she had to do something! Anything!

Cassie sobbed, just a few days ago, she had still believed that there might be a chance of survival, with a Sacred Aspect by her side, but how wrong could she be? Fate must hate her.

The sound of waves crashing against something snapped her out of her thoughts, and she looked around, trying to figure out where she was.

'Could… could I be in the Storm Sea?' Cassie thought, if there were waves it would probably be near one of the Citadels of the House of Night, 'But something doesn't quite add up, why isn't there a moon? And why is the sea so calm?'

She looked around, not that she could see much, but Cassie could vaguely make out the feeling of stone beneath her feet, and how the cold stung against her bare body. As far as she knew, the small amount of land that occupied Storm Sea were mostly beaches of sand, not stone platforms above the sea. 

'This can't be Storm Sea, it must be somewhere completely unknown…'

Just like that, the silver of hope she had held was once again destroyed, as she realized through sheer logic alone that she was truly, truly lost and, even worse than that, completely helpless, and that there was a high possibility that she would not survive.

'It might not be a death zone though…' She thought, 'It could be somewhere perfectly harmless and I just don't know because it's still night.'

Cassie shook her head, she didn't have any evidence to prove her plea, it could be a death zone for all she knew, she just that, for now, she was momentarily somewhere safe, or she was being tricked into this being a false haven.

Cassie shivered, 'It could be something like my First Nightmare for all I know.'

No, she won't be thinking about that, it was time to focus on more urgent matters, like getting to safety from here, where was she going to find somewhere warm enough that she could sleep?

She didn't have any clothes on after all…

Wait.

Clothes?

Wasn't she wearing clothes just mere seconds ago?

It was then, Cassie realized that she was completely naked.

Cassie yelped, and immediately used her hands to cover more private parts. Heat crept up her cheeks. 

'If only I had armor, I would be warm, and not in this totally ridiculous situation!'

Cassie slapped her face, she shouldn't think of such insignificant matters, what about finding a place to sleep? Somewhere warm enough…

With a soft sigh, Cassie habitually looked for her shadow, wanting to send it to scout the area for a safe place. However, due to the total darkness that surrounded her, it couldn't really be seen. She just barely felt its presence.

Besides, something was telling her that sending her shadow out would be a suicidal move, by separating from it so much, and in this abyss where she cannot differ from up and down, left and right, the recuperations from her Aspect would definitely be severe. 

'Not to mention it might hurt gloomy…'

Throughout Cassie's stay in the Academy, she found out that they could communicate with one another through their shared bond. Of course, just because it could, did not mean it would, the shadow was sort of taciturn, mostly because it didn't have vocal cords and could not speak.

Plus, it's temper wasn't that great.

And, it was supremely picky.

Cassie had to negotiate for a long time with the shadow for a suitable name, she can't possibly just call it shadow after all! 

It had rejected her suggestions like star, or fluffy, or third eye, frantically shaking its head. Cassie could understand star or fluffy, it did sound immature now that she thought about it. But third eye was a good name, it allowed her to peek at the combat lessons back then, and she sort of learned how to fight seriously, public schools only covered self defense after all.

However, gloomy was something her shadow accepted after quite some time thinking, and it didn't really look that enthusiastic at its new name. Cassie then told it that if it didn't like it, it could choose for itself from: star, fluffy, or third eye, leading to it nodding frantically for gloomy. Cassie personally didn't get it, gloomy wasn't such a good name, third eye was obviously better.

'Well… gloomy is okay as well, it sounds cute for such a picky shadow!'

Her shadow shivered as if it had just heard something truly terrifying.

Cassie tilted her head in response, 'What? Third eye is always available to switch with gloomy.'

Her shadow froze and did not move anymore.

"It's not like I'm threatening you…" She muttered to no one in particular, her voice echoing throughout the night.

Lying down with a sigh, Cassie closed her eyes, and tried to forget the stinging cold, thinking about warmth and heat. She thought about the scalding soup that her mother used to make her, she thought about a cup of warm chocolate during winter, she thought about sitting near the heater while a snowstorm was brewing outside.

Though these memories made her heart bloom in warmth, her body was still shivering, and it did not make it any easier for her to find sleep.

'Wait… What if I tried wrapping gloomy around my body? Could it reduce the cold?'

Trying this theory, Cassie called gloomy onto her yet felt no change.

'It's not like I was expecting anything…'

After a while, she gave up and simply closed her eyes, listening to the rocking of waves like she would have to a song a few months ago. Soon, minutes merged together, growing into hours, and Cassie was still awake.

After who knows how long, she caught a slight change in the sound of the sea. It was as though something was shifting. She opened her eyes and noticed that one corner of the sky was slowly turning grey. Soon, a glimpse of a pale sun could be seen rising above the horizon.

A new day had come to the starless void.

And with it, the dark sea suddenly surged.

The black and opaque water seethed into the ground, as though a living creature was desperately trying to avoid the pale light of the coming dawn. Cassie immediately stood up from her spot, and carefully took in her surroundings.

She was on a small hill, that was tall enough to be above sea level, like a sole island amongst the boundless ocean, not that she knew how it would feel, islands had long extinguished since before she was born. It was a myth now, but it wouldn't hurt to know more, would it?

Looking down, Cassie blinked and then kneeled to make sure what she saw wasn't an illusion.

The sea seemed to be receding.

Slowly at first, then faster and faster, the water level was dropping. The hill she was in became larger and larger, taller and taller, and now, there were metres of wet rock between her and the restless surface of the sea.

As the sun climbed up, the monstrous ebb tide continued. Soon, beneath her, the rock formation broadened and changed shape. However, from her vantage point, it was hard to determine what that shape was, exactly. 

At that time, the dark surface of the water began to be punctured here and there by sharp crimson blades. As it dropped even further, it was as though a crimson forest was slowly rising from the black depths. The 'trees' were made of something resembling coral, growing chaotically into each other and stretching toward the sky.

They were colossal in size, with irregular protrusions entwining and merging together, looking monumental and eerie in the black and red reality of the sunlit void. The labyrinth formed by this strange reef stretched as far as Cassie could see, broken here and there by protruding cliffs, sudden chasms, and distant natural features.

It was harrowing and beautiful, watching the sun slowly rise, the waves elegantly fall, and the red corals that appeared from within. It was the first time Cassie had ever seen a sunrise, and those were rare to even lay eyes upon, with the air being distorted outside the tall walls of NQSC, the rise of the sun was buried under layers of dust and ash. And even if she did see it, Cassie had a hunch that it wouldn't be as breathtaking as this, the air of the Dream Realm was fresh and clear, not at all harboring the filtered air from back home.

Cassie almost wished that she had been born in the Dream Realm, with that, she could see the sun rise and set every single day.

She shook her head, 'What… what am I thinking of? I have to focus on survival first! Dream later!'

Laying her eyes back onto the water, she watched with bated breath, as half an hour later, the sea was completely gone. Cassie was utterly shocked, if not for the black seaweed left hanging on wet rocks and scarlet pillars of coral, she would even doubt it was ever there.

The night had fully retreated, letting morning finally take its place.

She looked down, and felt her head spinning, just how high was she?

'I'm not seeing things, am I?' Cassie thought, pinching herself.

What the Spell was that? 

The labyrinth had come to life, hundreds, no, thousands, or perhaps millions of moving black and crimson were moving all over the labyrinth, navigating through it with practiced ease. There was something strange though, they were all moving towards a protruding black mass in the distance, seemingly driven with a desperate hunger. Just what was so special there? 

Cassie shivered, there couldn't be danger near her right now, they couldn't possibly escape something, could they?

Yet, despite the sudden disappearance of the dark sea, and the appearance of the moving labyrinth, Cassie was in no rush to climb down the hill and see this… 'place' for herself. She found herself thinking that perhaps the sea might be able to come back as easily as it had disappeared. Besides, who knows what dangers the coral labyrinth was hiding.

That didn't mean she wasn't curious though, in fact, she was suppressing the urge to rush down and see for herself.

Well, unfortunately for that particularly adventurous side of Cassia, Cassie had a condition, and that condition was common sense. She wouldn't allow herself to speed down there for a stupid reason such as curiosity. The price of it could be death after all.

But that did not mean that she wasn't going to explore. 

Sitting back down, she commanded her shadow to separate from her body. Then, taking control of it, her shadow approached the edge of the platform and nimbly slid down. 

Habitually moving from one shadow to another, it began the descent. At this moment, Cassie was glad that shadows had no weight and were not affected by gravity. But she felt something gnawing at her chest as her shadow separated from her, further and further. 

'Damn this restriction!' Cassie screamed in her mind, as pain started to bloom in her chest. Yet she endured, and willed her shadow to continue, ignoring the concerned glance it sent her. 

"I'm fine," She whispered to it, and beckoned it to continue its task.

Enduring the pain, she focused on more easier things, such as the pure light of the sun that shone throughout the earth, and how the warm air blew through this place, and the crimson coral, that was as beautiful as it was harrowing.

Soon, her shadow entered the labyrinth, and a whole new wave of pain crashed down onto her, and she almost collapsed. But she couldn't stop now, so she told it to continue. 

Entering the labyrinth, Cassie found it to be extremely disorienting and convoluted. The paths between coral pillars were sometimes broad, sometimes narrow. They twisted and turned without any logic, often leading to dead ends or even back to where he started. More than that, some paths entered inside the 'coral' mounds, turning into dark tunnels.

The labyrinth was vast and multi-layered, making Cassie's head hurt after multiple fruitless attempts to memorize the layout of the nearest pathways. In the end, she sent her shadow up, forcing it to climb on top of the crimson forest. At this, she and the shadow both clenched their chest, where the location of her core was, and the origin of their pain. 

'So it arrives at this… But that's okay, I've reached this part at the Academy once, and I can endure it again.'

After a while, she finally caught sight of what the moving crimson and black were — a crab-like nightmare creature, yet not a crab at the same time. It had four pairs of long, segmented legs that ended in scythe-like protrusions. At the front, a human-like torso was protruding from the carapace, also clad in thick chitinous armor. The head, if it was even the appropriate word, was situated directly on top of the torso, with no neck in between. It had two narrow eye slits and a vicious-looking mouth with several slimy mandibles. Instead of hands, the monsters had two enormous pincers.

…They were also two and a half meters tall, and Cassie was just short of freaking out.

This wasn't supposed to be faced by a Sleeper, they had an air of power around them, like an Awakened would. She would know, in her First Nightmare, she had to briefly face an Awakened after all.

Cassie swallowed. This fear was almost overriding the pain she was feeling, there couldn't possibly be anything more that could scare her today, could it?

It was at this moment, that a full blown assault spread throughout her, starting from her chest, and she collapsed on the floor, withering in pain. Cassie knew that she had to call her shadow back. She had tried resisting the call of her Aspect once, and the result wasn't pretty.

Answering her call, gloomy rushed towards the hill, climbing with all the speed it could muster, before connecting back with her, and colour slowly returned to her face.

'Phew… That was a close call, I don't know what would have happened if gloomy had stayed there for a second longer,' She shivered, 'This Aspect really is a blessing, and also a curse.'

Lost in her thoughts and the relief from the burden of using her Aspect, Cassie almost didn't notice the shriek of metal being swung, and the feeling of cool metal on her neck. Cassie panicked as a yelp escaped from her mouth.

"Who are you?" A feminine voice rang out, cold and indifferent. 

Cassie couldn't find it in herself to reply, just why was this person she never knew pointing a sword at her? Tears once again fell from her eyes, she didn't want to die. What did she even do wrong to earn their ire?

"Pl- please, I don't want to die!" She shrieked, muttering to herself, "What did I even do wrong?"

"I said, who are you?" They said, their sword seeping into the skin of her neck.

The threat was clear, Cassie had to answer, or else…

Or else she'll die.

Not that she had any choice of not answering, her Flaw would force her to do so even if there wasn't a sword sitting by her throat.

"Cassie," She said, yet the sword was still there. "A Sleeper of the Academy," She hurriedly added.

Her assailant moved the sword a few millimeters away from her neck, "I've never seen you before."

Even though Cassie's mind was in scrambles, she understood the mishap her assailant had made — they basically told her that they too were a Sleeper from the Academy, and that they weren't one to listen to rumors, or she would have known who she was. The crazy girl who spewed lies and the one who chose to be a friend with a walking corpse.

Somehow, Cassie found it in herself to laugh, she must have become insane near death, "Of course you've never seen me before, I only took the wilderness survival course." She paused, "But you must have heard the rumors right? Of a crazy girl and a blind boy?"

Her assailant hesitated, "I do not partake in rumors, but— I know who you are."

"So… can you release me?" Cassie weakly asked, her voice filled with a hope that even she did not recognize. 

"Yes…" They awkwardly stuttered, releasing her from the jaws of their sword, Cassie stumbled as she stood up and turned to look at her assailant. 

They, no, she was tall and lithe, with clear grey eyes, and silky silver hair. A detached look could be seen from her eyes, and it was like she wasn't of this world. 

Instantly, Cassie recognized her.

This was Changing Star Nephis, the last of the Immortal Flame Clan, and the most powerful Sleeper among the batch of them. 

Yet, seeing her fumble awkwardly as she pointed her sword at the wrong person made Cassie smile, Nephis didn't seem as inapproachable as before, in fact, she looked more human being flustered like this. 

But…

'Why did you point your sword at me?' She thought, 'What did I even do wrong?'

"Changing Star." She said, recognition in her tone, before shifting into one of betrayal, "Why did you point your sword at me! If I had said something wrong, would you have taken my life?"

Nephis opened her mouth and spoke without a second of delay, yet there was something different than how she usually spoke, it wasn't as confident and affirmative like she had been back in the Academy. But how would Cassie know what exactly was the difference? It's not like they even talked back then. 

"You seem suspicious." She said, not at all apologetic of her actions.

"...Why?" Cassie weakly asked.

"Your Shadow wasn't there. But when you collapsed, it flickered and connected back. I thought you were a Nightmare Creature."

Cassie frowned, "It's my Aspect." 

Nephis nodded, "Understandable."

"It's alright, I suppose I would have done that too if I was in your place," Cassie sighed, watching as the remaining of her tears rolled from her face. She paused, "Do you want to make an agreement? Of being allies… To survive."

Nephis raised her eyebrows, "Why would you want to ally yourself with someone who had threatened you?"

Cassie shrugged, "It's simple really, who ever said I wanted to? It was a deal I made out of necessity, no one can survive in the Dream Realm alone, and you're the strongest Sleeper out of our batch. Besides, I can't even hold my own against Dormant creatures, what if I stumble across something more terrifying?"

Nephis nodded, considering what she had said.

"Alright, and…"

Changing Star lowered her head, as if in shame, "I'm sorry." 

— 

Sunny woke up to… well, to nothing, feeling disoriented and tired beyond belief. After the Spell had whispered the words of his revelations growing clearer, he had collapsed onto the stone platform, and sleep consumed him whole.

That night, Sunny dreamed of drowning, of being pulled by the waves, and finally, his last breath taken.

As the depths engulfed him, he found himself falling from the sky, a shining star streaking across the earth, leaving hauntingly beautiful destruction in its wake. He saw a broken shadow reaching for the star, the smell of iron and death flowing before him.

Sunny gulped, and the shadow turned to face him, its eyes — or where the eyes should have been — shining with radiant, unfiltered light. The shadow paused for a moment, as if it recognized him, before it rushed and engulfed him, and darkness met his gaze.

Waking with a gasp, Sunny found himself still in the dream. A flickering flame lay beside him, soon growing brighter, chasing the darkness away. Shadows lurked in the corners, dancing with the flame as if pursuing it longingly.

As the scene receded, a window suddenly appeared, snapping shut before him. The last image he saw was of the flames blaring with light, shadows retreating into the abyss that reminded him of his crushing flaw.

Then, Sunny noticed strings extending to the sky, and a porcelain doll with a blindfold holding them like a puppeteer.

Yet, upon closer inspection, he saw the blindfold hanging loosely, its face stained with jewels that must have been tears once upon a time. A broken smile marred its lips, and its limbs were charred as if burned. Sunny gulped as he processed the haunting sight before him. Gathering his courage, he slowly approached.

Peeling the blindfold off, empty onyx eyes stared back at him.

Were they his, or someone else's?

It was the last thing Sunny saw before he was consumed by darkness and saw no more.

…Lost from Light awoke with a gasp. 

—

Sunny was sitting on the stone platform, pondering over the dream that transpired in his mind mere seconds ago.

What was that shining star? And what was the shadow? What was happening between the flame and the shadow? Was both of the shadows the same, or were each of them different?

More questions, and still no answers.

Sunny sighed, 'What did I even expect from these dreams? That string… yesterday, I at least know what's happening and what it was telling me.'

Nevermind all of that, what was that doll in the end? It was so blatantly symbolizing himself, yet he had a blindfold, he was crying, and Sunny could recognise that smile anywhere. It was what he wore for weeks after his parents had died. Why was it appearing once again?

A sound of gurgling awoke him from his splendor, and almost immediately he raised his guard and checked his surroundings, summoning [Wisdom's Rod].

The sea was rumbling, at least that's what the rod had told him. After he woke up, Sunny caught the distant sound of waves crashing against one another, before surging into wherever that was. Panicking, he ignored the urge to check what he had gained after the desperate battle last night — more like a desperate quest for survival — and summoned the silver rod. 

Activating its enchantment, Sunny focused onto it, and what it told him shocked the hell out of Sunny. The dark sea was receding, and at the bottom of it, laid a boundless labyrinth of red coral trees. It also conveniently mentioned that he was on a tall cliff… With a hundred meter drop separating him with the rest of the world.

It was at that point Sunny realized, this wasn't a known area of the Dream Realm.

'Damnation!' He thought, growling as his thought drifted back to the damn spell, 'Fate must really hate me, why else does it keep throwing impossible challenges into my face? First that Nightmare, then the Flaw, and finally this… place! And I didn't even have that much time to prepare for this laborious trial!'

Sunny wanted to cry for god's sake, even though he had sworn on the day he completed his First Nightmare that he would never cry again. 

'Well… It's not like the gods would be able to listen, or the -unknown- mentioned by the Spell.'

After he had finished the Nightmare, the Spell had whispered those seven mysterious sentences.

'More like 7 plus 7 mysterious sentences. Wait, no… there were two more ones of me slaying the Awakened Tyrant, and the disruption…' Sunny mused, his thoughts straying and tapping into the semi-perfect memories he now possessed after claiming his Innate Attribute.

***

When he had climbed onto the altar because of a whim, Sunny was fully prepared to die. Yet at the last second, the voice of the Spell resounded through the dark temple in a baffling whisper.

[You have offered yourself as a sacrifice to the divine.]

[The gods are dead, and cannot hear you.]

[Your soul bears the mark of divinity.]

[You are a temple slave.]

[Shadow god stirs in his eternal slumber.]

[He sends a blessing from beneath the grave.]

[Child of Shadows, receive your blessing!]

Under his astonished eyes, the shadows that had crowded the great hall moved, and tentacles of darkness surged forward, entangling Mountain King's arms and legs. The shadows had dragged Mountain King back, pulling it in different directions. In the next second, its body ruptured, torn apart in pieces.

The great hall turned dark and silent.

At this, the Spell took it as a sign and spoke:

[Yo–You have slain an Aw–Awakened Tyrant, Mountain King.]

Had the Spell been afraid of something? Shadow god? The other gods? Or… it's progenitor? Why was it stuttering? Even through Sunny's still little knowledge about the Spell, the Dream Realm, and the Awakened, he knew this was something terrifying. The Spell had never stuttered ever since its descent into humanity.

[W–wake up, Lost from—]

It was then that the Spell sputter and its voice cut off, leaving Sunny alone in the ruined temple, the world dark and silent.

Suddenly, he had heard the humming of a… something, or someone, and thousands of intersecting lines appeared in his sight. 

The Spell spoke once again, and this time, its voice held power, tremendous power. Making the world bow to its feet. The columns of the temple were shaking, as if an earthquake had erupted all the sudden; the snow outside stop and stilled, before suddenly shattering into a million pieces, turning into a sea of ash which blocked his view; the altar quaked as a crack spread through it, and Sunny yelped as it slowly broke down.

[...You have offered yourself as a sacrifice to the divine.]

[The gods are dead, but who said the -unknown- are?]

[Your soul bears the mark of fate.]

[You are fated.]

[The -unknown's- spawn stirs in their crucial slumber.]

[They send a blessing from beyond the grave.]

[Child of Fate, receive your blessing!]

And at that, the weight that held the world still disappeared as sudden as it had come, and the 'normal' voice of the Spell hummed to life.

[Wake up, Sunless! Your nightmare is over.]

[Prepare for appraisal…] 

***

Sunny shook his head, he definitely does not understand any of this, no matter how much he tried to find. Just what was this -unknown-? And what was this strangeness of his nightmare?

More importantly, what did he do for the Spell to suddenly shudder and change?

Looking back, something had definitely happened that made his previous [Child of Shadows] Attribute evolve into [Bastard of Shadows].

Sunny sighed, 'More like a downgrade than an upgrade though, my shadow perception basically vanished after that… But what about that spatial perception which saved my life yesterday? Could it possibly be [Bastard of Shadows]?'

He pondered on it for a while, but eventually gave up, 'I definitely know too little to come to any conclusion.'

Come to think of it, the wording and tone the Spell had used during that exact moment was inexplicably strange as well. Not only did it suddenly change from the monotone and almost indifferent voice it had, the entire way it carried itself had been strange as well. 

It was almost like…

Something tempered with it.

'And if I had to guess, it was probably the -unknown- again,' Sunny sighed, 'But the Spell clearly said that the gods were dead.'

Oh.

'It never mentioned the -unknown- were…' 

To say Sunny was shocked would be an understatement, who would have thought that just a slight change in wording could imply so much? Definitely not him.

'Are all Divine Aspects like this?' 

He wondered.

"Or is it just mine?"