A lonely Shadow

Weeks flew by with astonishing speed, Sunny had managed to create what he considered to be his best piece of craftmanship in the form of a hot air ballon. Although he did not have any allies who could provide the flame needed to cause the balloon to rise, all he needed it for was controlled descent, which allowed him to properly rest as he sunk into the lightless abyss.

Looking downwards, Sunny focused his eyes to attempt to see through the darkness and gain small pieces of information as to where he was descending to. However, the darkness that lingered below was much different than the absence of light Sunny's eyes were used to seeing through.

The darkness below was suffocating, it loomed over the sky below like a cloud of nothingness only being restrained by the sunlight that beamed over the dream realm. 'So that's true darkness, isn't controlling it the Lightslayer's aspect?' Sunny mused to himself, although true darkness was a natural counter to his shadows, he couldn't help but find himself intrigued by the concept.

With a grunt of effort, Sunny threw the hot air ballon downwards. He watched as it slowly descended before ordering the mirror beast to shadow step into the gigantic basket Sunny had crafted to sleep on during his descent. Quickly following the beast, Sunny found himself slowly descending downwards with an amused expression on his face.

Checking his runes, Sunny saw that he was only a few more kills away from his fifth core. His growing strength caused him to smile as he crossed his legs to begin training his ability to manipulate essence. Compared to many other masters, Sunny found himself lacking in that aspect and only making up for it with pure martial arts skill.

Inferiority wasn't a concept that sat well with Sunny.

Closing his eyes to focus, Sunny felt the amplificatory power of shadow essence flow from his stomach to his arms. He tried controlling it at a slow pace initially before quickly growing faster, although his essence control was mere mimicry of what serpent provided him, Sunny found himself enjoying his fast-paced improvement.

A crash shocked Sunny to his feet as he extended his arm and quickly summoned a scythe. With how far down into the sky below he was, Sunny knew that the person who had arrived to disturb his peace had been following him without his knowledge. That idea didn't sit well with Sunny.

Raising his scythe, Sunny prepared to bring it down on the silhouette before noticing their pale white hair. The figure was clad in the starlight legion armour, an armour so distinct and unique Sunny almost immediately knew who it was. That fact didn't stop him from swinging at the figure in anger, the blow was half-hearted yet heavy, sparks flew piercing through the true darkness for merely a moment before dissipating.

Pulling back his scythe, Sunny took a moment to look over Nephis figure before a look of utter annoyance painted itself across his features. His voice came out like a low growl as he narrowed his eyes at the figure who stood before him. Nephis looked slightly haggard, she took in light breathes before making her way towards Sunny.

A low hiss escaped her lips as she grabbed him by the shirt, fury painting itself across her eyes. "What do you think you're doing jumping into the abyss? Are you trying to get yourself killed!?" Sunny shrugged off her grip before his eyes flashed with anger that overwhelmed hers in moments.

"I wouldn't have come here if I knew I was going to die idiot, the more important question here is how did you even know what I was doing in the first place? What, can't this odious slave get even a moment apart from his master?"

His voice came out low and mocking, a jagged smile split his face in two as madness emanated through his eyes. Meeting Sunny's gaze, Nephis was reminded more of a nightmare creature than a human. Sunny formerly only had the calm and collected gaze of a killer, now, it was something much different.

Stepping away from Sunny, Nephis made her way to the edge of the platform before looking downwards. Lighting a small flame in her hand, the light pierced through the darkness for a moment, although it didn't get very far. She didn't bother telling Sunny how she knew what he was doing, lest the same strategy not prove effective the next occasion she decided to follow him.

An uncomfortable silence settled between the two of them as Sunny turned his back to Nephis, trying to ignore her presence by delving himself into the art of controlling his essence. He had half the mind to shove her off the platform and let her fall into the abyss, however that only meant a gruesome death.

A gruesome death not at his hands would never satiate his hunger.

After an hour, Nephis voice tore through the silence, causing Sunny to open an eye upon hearing it. "What made you decide to start killing people for hire? It couldn't have been money, I'm sure you've earned enough of that already."

Sunny slowly turned towards her, a sickening grin settling itself upon his face as his voice permeated through the dark abyss. His response seemed almost jovial. "I enjoy killing people, I've fought enough nightmare creatures for two lifetimes, but people are unique. They all make different faces when they die, and seeing those faces brings me joy."

A sickening laugh permeated through the silence as Sunny remembered his last kill. "The last job I did was against some mundane human who was practicing human trafficking in the outskirts, I strangled him to death slowly. The look in his eyes, the faces he made, they're the epitome of beauty." 

Nephis remained silent, prompting Sunny to continue speaking. Rising to his feet, Sunny rested his arms across the walls of the basket he stood in. Peering into the abyss with an inhuman grin. "In all two worlds, there isn't a single human who I trust. If only people had the same flaw I do, but the time I know when they're being honest is when they're dying. The faces they make, what they feel can't be faked. Maybe it's the honesty that gets me going."

'What have I turned you into.' Nephis thought herself, the grimace that was present upon her face remained unseen as Sunny slid to the floor and closed his eyes. He ordered his shadows to keep watch of Nephis as he allowed unconsciousness to suck him into it's sweet embrace.

Nephis turned around, her eyes scanning Sunny's sleeping form before allowing a smile settle on her face. When he slept, the brutality and madness that overwhelmed his mind were nowhere to be seen. His features were relaxed and at peace, the sight of his chest rising and falling slowly brought her an inexplicable sense of comfort.

"If all goes well, I'll find a way to free you. I swear." She silently mumbled to herself. Although she knew as well as anyone if Sunny heard those words, only a laugh would be given in response as well as a mocking remark. Hours flew by without either party noticing, Nephis could no longer see the blue skies of the dream realm as she peered down into the lightless abyss.

Only a small speck of light pierced its way through the darkness below, Nephis didn't know what it was, but she was quite sure the source of the light was gigantic if it could be seen from this distance. All thoughts that prepared themself to form in Nephis head were quickly erased as a pained shriek escaped Sunny's lips.

His eyes shot open as he placed a hand on his chest, he moved to hit the ground to take his mind off the pain however, Nephis quickly grabbed his arms to stop him from doing so. If his punch had landed, she was sure the platform they stood on would be quickly destroyed under the force of impact.

Grabbing his face, Nephis held Sunny with all her strength as the pained gasps continued to escape his lips for what felt like hours. After a while, his gasps became grunts, and soon silence arrived between the two once more. "You can let me go now." Sunny groaned, as Nephis quickly removed her hands from him, darting to the opposite edge of the platform.

"I just gained a new core." Sunny mumbled to himself, before relaying a mental command to his shadows to quickly return to him. He wasn't quite sure of their condition; however, he made sure his commands forced them to stay safe no matter the consequences.

The faint light emanating from Nephis allowed Sunny to notice the arrival of a new shadow, which stared at him indifferently. Sunny felt stronger, as though he had just gone through metamorphosis. Smiling to himself internally, Sunny fell to his side and allowed unconsciousness to claim him once more.

After all, only with a rested body could he dare face the monster of clan Valor. A man who's depravity may even rival his own. A grin settled itself upon Sunny's sleeping face as he wondered what kind of man Mordret was, and how far he was willing to go to destroy clan Valor.