Shadow Slave : A Moment of Weakness

Chapter Summary: Remember kids, throwing rocks at the home of an antediluvian horror is a bad idea.

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Seishan held back a sigh.

As she followed behind Rogar of Sorrow, she couldn't help but wish they were doing this at another time. Preferably never, but she would settle for a week or two of delay, when she wouldn't be on vacation anymore.

Sadly, it had not come without strings attached, and while she could relax, she was also meant to be spying on her new "siblings" while she was at it. It had been a trap all along.

They stopped before an ordinary-looking door, completely unadorned and made of cheap-looking wood. The hallway it was situated in wasn't anything notable either. Anyone passing by would continue without giving it a second glance.

Seishan offered the man a grateful nod and pushed the door open.

At first sight, there was nothing special about the room either. It was small and free of any decoration. Light poured in through an open window of reinforced glass at the far end, and there was nothing to see aside from a simple birdhouse planted right in the middle.

The moment she set foot inside, a tweet emerged from it, and soon enough, a small, Dormant Nightmare Creature resembling a hummingbird emerged. Despite its small size, there was an aura around it, heavy and suffocating, as though gravity had been magnified tenfold around it. If she tried to, Seishan could also pinpoint the faint smell of blood.

She closed the door behind her and activated a privacy Memory. Rogar would keep watch from outside, making sure there would be no eavesdropping, but one could never be too careful.

Another tweet emerged from the Nightmare Creature, far louder than a creature its size should have been able to produce, and it flew up to the top of the birdhouse.

"What is it, little Shan?" the hummingbird asked, its voice sweet and velvety.

Seishan didn't bother beating around the bush, wanting to get it over with as soon as possible.

"I have something to report."

Mother's vessel tilted its little head, eyes alight with interest.

"Go on."

"A rift seems to have opened within Changing Star's cohort," Seishan explained, betraying none of her curiosity about the cause. "Three days ago, they all spoke beneath a silencing Memory. I am yet to find the specifics, but it must have been bad. Raised by Wolves attacked Changing Star and then, along with Nightingale, left the Dream Realm. Sunless' little sister seems to be in a poor mood too, but she's still around, though avoiding the two of them and Elegy of the End."

Mother let out an intrigued tweet and started pacing around the birdhouse in thought.

"What are the chances this is a ruse?" Ki Song asked.

Seishan nodded, having considered that possibility herself.

"Possible, but very unlikely. I saw Raised by Wolves' expression, and there was genuine anger there. If she was acting, then she might very well be the best actress in all the realms. Even Changing Star's inexpressive mask cracked a little."

Another tweet echoed around the room, a pleased one this time.

Looking at the little hummingbird, one could be excused for thinking it had just received the greatest gift of its life. Seishan knew her mother, and just how much she enjoyed intrigue and gossip. To her, this might very well be more exciting than any form of mundane entertainment.

"How... interesting." A small chuckle escaped her. "It seems even my new heirs cannot stop strife from growing within their ranks."

"Raised by Wolves and Nightingale are yet to return," she explained, anticipating the next question. "I have probed Rain, but she won't share any details and claims she's just in that period of the month."

Even with the features of a nightmarish bird, Mother still managed to convey her amusement at such an explanation.

"Have the two of you grown close?" Ki Song asked idly.

Seishan did not allow her expression to shift in the slightest. Mother was the perfect predator, as befitting the bearer of Beast God's divine lineage, and as such could sniff out any weakness and use it against her in the most efficient way possible. She refused to give her any ammunition, even if she was only going to use it to tease her. Or so she hoped, at least.

"I have found her surprisingly pleasant," she admitted. It wasn't even a lie. The young girl was quite enjoyable company. "But we aren't close enough for her to share any sensitive secrets just yet."

Nodding, the hummingbird tweeted again, deep in thought.

"Very well. Do not push, and keep your eyes and ears open," she ordered in the end.

"I will," Seishan replied easily, internally lamenting the fact that her vacation was shaping up to be a lot busier than she had hoped.

The heavy aura around the vessel disappeared at that moment, replaced by something more subdued, almost welcoming. The Sovereign was gone, and now only Mother remained.

It was an appreciated sight, especially given how rare it had become.

Seishan had been among the first to be adopted, back when Ki Song hadn't yet become a Supreme. She could remember her bright smiles, the way she would hug them for no other reason than because she wanted to, and how she insisted on reading them stories before bed even when some of them didn't want to listen.

After she became one, all of those things had become few and far between. Nowadays, it was rare for Mother to do anything without ulterior motives. Her smiles still held love, but they were colder now, more possessive, like she loved the idea of them more than them themselves. Her hugs had grown distant and almost performative. Gone were the days when she would read them a story, and even Revel, whom she had introduced to those trashy novels her sister liked so much, had long since given up on sharing them with Mother. And though she hid it well, even something as simple as a warm look had become a carefully calculated stratagem.

It was, though Seishan didn't like to admit it, something that terrified her. A sentiment her sisters shared as well.

Unaware of her thoughts, Mother spoke in a light tone, sharing the latest news of Ravenheart with her.

Seishan reciprocated, making small talk, exchanging jokes that nobody else could understand, and promised to bring her and her other sisters a souvenir. And yet, as she did so, she couldn't avoid the feeling that she was speaking to a corpse that could just barely remember who it was before death.

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Tap

Awakened Loras was running for his life, the sound of a cane hitting the ground following close behind.

Instead of stopping to open the door before him, he brandished his sword, cut it in half, and plowed right through its remains, not allowing himself to slow down even for a moment. The cement floor groaned beneath him, not fit for an Awakened running at full gallop on top of it.

Tap

They had called him crazy. All of them. And now they were dead.

When one of the mundane citizens the Valor Clan had started ferrying to Bastion disappeared, he had merely informed his superiors about it but hadn't thought much of it. It was the Dream Realm, after all. Even the Awakened weren't completely safe; how could a simple mundane be?

When the newbie, a fresh Awakened who had only found her way back from wherever the Winter Solstice had thrown her just a week prior, disappeared too, he had started getting worried. Awakened couldn't be considered completely safe, but Bastion had long since tamed all but the most innocuous Nightmare Creatures, and even those they hunted down actively. For one to disappear just like that without leaving a trace was worrying.

When yet another Awakened, a grizzled veteran this time, disappeared as well, he had raised the alarm. Everyone had called him crazy. Every single one of them. The higher-ups had even told him to shut up or be punished.

Tap

And now? Loras was the last one left of his unit. He didn't like them much, especially with how weirdly obsessed they had gotten as of late with some random guy, but he also didn't want them to suffer from whatever it was that had happened to them.

In his panic, he accidentally ran into a dead end. Aware that turning around was a death sentence, and hearing the dull sound of the cane getting closer and closer, he did not stop running. Instead, he brought up his shield and charged straight through the wall.

He came out the other side, under neon lights and the smell of feces and urine.

Tap

Unwilling to be the next victim, and realizing that no help would come from the Great Clan, he had fled back to the Waking World and hidden, hoping to wait out whatever was happening. It had been futile, for a mere day later he had been found.

On the other side of the wall, the dirty streets of the Outskirts greeted him. Resisting the temptation to cry in relief, and just barely resisting the urge to gag at the smell, he kept running and dived straight into one of the labyrinthine alleyways, where he would hopefully lose his pursuer.

His luck, or his pursuer's patience, ran out just as that moment, for barely a second after he entered the alleyway, he heard a sharp sound, and something struck his left thigh.

Loras fell immediately, skidding to a halt after painfully hitting one of the walls with his back amid the harrowing sound of his leg breaking.

Tap

Biting back the tears pooling in his eyes, he used his sword as a crutch and got up, starting to limp his way forward.

The hook of a cane caught his healthy leg and pulled hard before he could get any farther. Loras hit the ground once more, more shocked than hurt by the impact.

He would have tried to stand up, but then an elegant shoe landed on his chest, and no matter how hard he pushed against it, the other man did not budge in the slightest.

"Good run, kid." The older man congratulated him. "Thanks for the free cardio."

Looking back at his pursuer, he finally had the chance to put a face to his nightmare made flesh. His blood ran cold the next moment as he realized who he was looking at.

Saint Jest, one of Valor's oldest champions.

"Wh..y?" he stuttered, gritting his teeth against the throbbing pain of his broken leg.

Jest shrugged lightly, as though what was happening couldn't have been of less importance to him. He looked calm and leisurely, not a hair out of place nor a crease in his elegant suit.

"Nothing personal. You just fell in with the wrong crowd," he answered.

"But I'm one of you!" Loras shouted back. "I have been loyal! Served for six years already! Never once have I neglected my duties!"

The older man's eyes grew somber.

"I know, kid. Believe me, I know."

"Then why!? Why!?" he roared, hot tears starting to flow down his cheeks.

Jest shook his head, but said nothing, his cane already raised to deliver a killing blow.

Something vast descended upon him right at that moment. A man. No, a giant. No, a giant did not do that justice. It felt as though a mountain had shoved its way inside his head, pushing him aside gently, yet adamantly.

"You are not at fault here, young Loras. It's me that he wants, after all," a pleasant voice replied.

For a moment, he was confused. The one who had spoken wasn't Jest, and there was no one else in the deserted alleyway. Even the rats had fled when they noticed their approach.

What felt like a deathly cold hand grasped his heart and squeezed, and it was then that he realized.

He realized that the one who had spoken was... him. It was his voice, yet it wasn't. It was his mouth, yet it no longer belonged to him. He tried to scream, yet couldn't. He tried to look aside, yet couldn't. He tried to do anything, yet couldn't.

Loras felt himself straighten up, almost like a puppet whose strings were finally being put to use. With a strength he did not know he possessed, he managed to reposition himself into a more comfortable position that reduced the pressure on his broken leg. The foot was still pressed against his chest, keeping him down, but it wasn't as crushingly heavy as before.

He could feel it. The... thing controlling his body. It was big, bigger than anything should have had any right to be. It felt like a tree of unfathomable dimensions, one whose roots spread so deep and so numerous that it was more akin to a plague than any living being.

Jest's posture grew wary, all traces of leisure gone in an instant. His grip on the cane tensed, already prepared to deliver a crushing blow that would kill him instantly.

"Come now, old friend," Loras -or rather, the thing using him as a puppet- said. "How long has it been? A decade, perhaps? Where is my warm welcome? Will you not spout one of those funny jokes of yours?"

Almost like an outside observer, he was forced to sit still and watch as his head shook itself and a pale smile etched its way across his face.

"Dream Spawn," Jest said coldly, his grip on the cane growing tighter.

"Ah, that's better." Loras' body let out a satisfied sigh. "It wasn't that hard, was it?"

The Saint's arm twitched, a blow about to be unleashed that would end Loras' life in an instant.

Just then, he felt the vast presence's power descend upon the world, freezing Jest on the spot for just a fraction of a second before he broke free, his eyes even grimmer now.

"Now, now." Loras' mouth twitched lightly in faux amusement. "I would appreciate it if you didn't kill this man. It's rare to find such an accommodating follower. Besides, where's the hurry? You haven't even listened to what I have to say yet."

"I don't want to hear it," Jest replied instantly.

The presence inside his mind was not enraged by that answer. Neither was it truly amused by the previous one. It didn't feel alive, nor did it feel dead. It just… was. Like a piece of the scenery or a natural disaster

Slowly, as though Loras' neck were made of rusty gears, his head turned toward his sword, which had fallen to the ground along with him.

"What about you, dear Anvil? Are you not interested?" the Dream Spawn inquired.

The sword remained there, inert like the object it was.

It still remained there a few seconds later. Just as Loras was starting to wonder whether the thing puppeteering him was as crazy as it felt, a voice emerged from it.

"No. Kill him," a cold voice ordered.

The cold hand grasping his heart squeezed harder, the tears flowing down his eyes even more numerous now.

"A pity," Loras' body replied, completely unbothered, the pale smile not wavering even for a moment. "But there is always next time."

The presence left, and like a rubber band snapping back into place, he felt control returning to his body. The sensation was wrong, like his own flesh and bone did not truly belong to him anymore. Like it would never do so again.

Loras did not have any more time to consider this before Jest's cane landed on his skull, and he knew no more.

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The rock hit the surface of the lake and sank immediately without skipping once.

Rain glared down at it until it disappeared from sight, feeling personally insulted by its refusal to behave.

Gritting her teeth, she grabbed another and tossed it, only to see it disappear beneath the water immediately. It was the sixth attempt, and not a single one had skipped yet.

"Are you..." the voice briefly cut off midway, as though unsure whether to continue, "all right?"

Rain whipped around, a scathing reply already on the tip of her tongue.

Tamar was there, having arrived at some point without Rain noticing. She was sitting on the grass while taking a break from training, with sweat covering her and a miniature zweihander resting on her lap. There was a hint of worry peeking through her normally stoic expression.

Beside her rested Serpent, watching Rain attentively, its size reduced to that of a common snake to avoid frightening the other Awakened in the vicinity, like it had happened dozens of times already.

She managed to stop herself before the words poured out. The girl wasn't at fault for what she had found out a few days prior, and it wasn't right to make her pay for it.

"I'm... fine," she said for what felt like the hundredth time.

The Fire Keepers, the local Awakened, Seishan...

Even Tamar was asking now! Why did they insist on asking that when she clearly was!?

At least big bro... Sunny and big... Nephis were leaving her alone, as she had requested -in a perfectly normal volume- when they had first attempted to talk to her.

"You don't seem so," the girl pointed out immediately.

Gritting her teeth to stop herself from blowing up, Rain took a deep breath before replying.

"What makes you think so?" she asked in a calm tone.

Judging by the face Tamar made, it wasn't as calm as she had intended.

"Everything," Tamar replied bluntly. "You look like you're about to explode at all times, keep avoiding everyone, and even your Echo seems worried."

Rain blinked and looked at Serpent, who returned her gaze without shying away. Tamar... Tamar was right. Though it was hard to tell, the Shadow did look concerned for her.

Great! Now even Serpent was feeling bad for her!

Letting out an aggrieved sigh, Rain walked away from the riverbank and sat beside Serpent, lightly patting its head. The shadow hissed appreciatively, but it didn't look any less concerned.

Rain looked away, incapable of meeting its dark eyes at the moment.

"I..." she began, only to trail off immediately afterward.

How could she put it into words? The conflict raging inside her? How angry she was at Sunny and Nephis? The far greater anger she directed at herself?

It had been right before her eyes all along, and she had simply been too blind to notice. Spell, she hadn't wanted to notice!

"I..."

Rain let out another aggrieved sigh at her latest failure. It felt like there was a door between her mind and her mouth, one so narrow that the myriad thoughts swimming inside her head couldn't get through without clogging it as they all tried to squeeze out at the same time.

"You don't have to tell me," Tamar said calmly.

Turning to the girl, Rain studied her expression, wondering if she was trying to play some sort of reverse psychology. She wasn't, or at least, it didn't look like she was.

Recognizing her expression, Tamar continued. "But you need to do something about it."

Rain blinked, surprised by that. "What do you mean?"

"Has sulking helped you in any way?" the younger girl asked.

Rain resisted the urge to pout. She wasn't sulking. She was brooding! They were completely different things!

Utterly wrong choice of words aside, she had to agree with the young Legacy. She was just as conflicted as she had been on the first day, and it didn't look like that was going to change anytime soon.

"Not really, no," she ended up admitting.

"Then you have to change tactics," Tamar said matter-of-factly. "Speak with someone you're willing to open up to, train, study, kill Nightmare Creatures. Do anything but pity yourself." She scratched the back of her head awkwardly. "Or at least that's what Father always tells my brother when he's sulking."

Rain remained silent for a long time, finding herself at a loss for words, all the while complaining internally. The ashen-haired girl was even younger than her. How had she ended up being the one delivering wise counsel!?

The silence stretched on, and the noise inside Rain's head refused to go away, no matter how much she wanted it to.

In the end, she decided to speak, if only so that she wouldn't be the only one who had to suffer through it.

After gathering her courage, Rain finally let it out.

"What would you do if you were told that someone you love dearly has hurt someone else you loved just as much? If they were hurt in a way that couldn't be taken back? Whose side would you choose in that case?"

That was the crux of the question.

Rain loved Nephis as though she were her real sister. How could she not? Nephis had trained her, fed her, protected her. Spell, if not for her teachings, Rain would have died in the First Nightmare. She was dependable, loving in her own way, and everything Rain had ever wanted in an older sister. Not everything was business, either. They would watch movies, play silly board games, and share books. She had even introduced Rain to others whom she had also come to cherish as friends.

Sunny was her brother. Her real one. Even though she couldn't remember their time together before she was adopted, a part of her still did and found his presence as warm and comforting as a blanket on a cold winter night. Ever since his return, they had spent countless hours together, one of his avatars always present whenever she wanted to talk or do anything else. They had shared stories, he had met her adoptive family, and they had made countless other memories together.

And yet... she couldn't choose. How could she? Both had saved her life, both had gone out of their way to spend time with her despite how little free time they had, both loved her in return, and both cherished her as their little sister.

What Nephis had done to Sunny was unforgivable. Rain had been too caught up in the lies and all of her insecurities to think about it properly, but once everything settled in, the horror had fully dawned on her. The idea that someone she cherished as much as she cherished Nephis was holding the leash of her brother was like a knife being plunged into her heart.

The fact that Sunny hadn't trusted her enough to tell her on his own was another. She understood. She really did. It wasn't something he wanted to talk about. But a small, irrational part of her couldn't help being hurt by it.

What hurt even more was the fact that, in a way, he had been right.

"When it comes to choosing between the Sun and the pathetic, worthless Shadow cast by it... why would anyone choose the Shadow?"

His words still echoed inside her mind, refusing to go away. He thought that nobody would choose him, and she... she, his very own sister, couldn't.

How was Rain supposed to choose between two of the people she loved most in the world?

Fortunately, Tamar's answer came before she could spiral any further.

"It depends. Do I love one of them more?"

Rain hugged her knees.

"I... don't think so. You love them equally, but in different ways. One you've known since infancy but only remember a very brief time with. The other you've spent a much longer period of time with. Both mean the world to you."

Tamar made a thoughtful sound. "Did the one who hurt the other do it out of malice? Do they regret it?"

Nephis' face flashed before Rain's eyes. Filled with regret and shame. The way she looked at Sunny was all the proof Rain needed to know that she was sincere.

"I don't think it was out of malice, and they regret it. They regret it a lot."

The other girl asked one final question. "What about the one who was hurt? Are they willing to forgive the other?"

Letting go of her knees, Rain looked up and finally met the other girl's eyes.

"They are."

A moment later, Tamar voiced the thoughts that had started running through Rain's mind.

"Why choose a side, then?" she asked matter-of-factly. "You can be angry about what happened and still want to help mend their relationship. One of them committed a grave mistake, but that doesn't mean you have to forsake them forever because of it."

Put like that, the problem she had been mulling over for so long seemed almost simple.

And Rain... Rain wanted that. She wanted to choose both.

She was greedy like that.

She hadn't forgiven Nephis for what she had done, and she was still hurt that Sunny hadn't trusted her, but she still wanted both of them in her life.

Decision made, she leaned forward, grabbed Tamar's chubby cheeks, and gave them a gentle squeeze, much to the other girl's annoyance.

"It's unfair. How is it that you're the mature one here?" she teased.

"Le...t... go..." Tamar managed to say through her tender ministrations.

Squeezing one last time just to prove a point, Rain let go and stood up, ready to confront the two idiots she called her siblings.

Noticing a rock in her peripheral vision, she made a small detour to pick it up and toss it into the lake. The throw was perfect, hitting the perfect angle with the perfect speed and force, all empowered by her epithets.

It hit the surface and skipped once, twice, and up to seven times before finally sinking. Rain pouted a little. She really sucked at skipping rocks if, even with her Aspect, she could only manage that much.

Pretending not to notice Tamar's accusatory stare as she rubbed her cheeks, Rain stepped away.

"It's rude to throw rocks at someone else's house," something behind her whispered, its voice akin to a thousand men, women, and children speaking at the same time.

Before she could react, Rain felt two hands touch her, and she fell unconscious.

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Sunny hadn't stopped guarding Rain even for a moment.

One of his avatars was always around, making sure that she was safe. So when he heard the stranger's voice, he emerged immediately and lunged even before the pale woman finished appearing behind Rain.

They touched her at the same time, and in that very instant, he found himself somewhere else.

Bathed in the silver rays of the moon, the lake upon which he stood extended far beyond what he could see, its waters so crystal-clear and reflective that he could see nothing but his own face looking back at him.

He was alone; Rain or anyone else nowhere in sight. Alone except for her.

She stood before him, pale as bone, with features that looked as though they had been sculpted by the most skilled artisan in the world. Her white hair seemed to reflect light itself, and her eyes were blue and crystalline, almost like the surface of the lake. She wore a simple white dress that flowed in an invisible breeze.

In contrast to her beauty, her reflection in the lake was easily among the most harrowing things he had ever seen.

"Welcome, Weaver and Shadow's little mongrel," the woman whispered in a thousand voices, smiling softly. "Long have I awaited your arrival, and now... you are finally here."