Shadow Slave

It was already morning by the time Sunny made his way to the dormitory tower where Professor Obel was staying. The cold had gotten even more oppressive, and the wind was like a sharp knife that cut ruthlessly against his skin.

It was rather strange. Soon after the news of the Winter Beast’s inevitable attack spread through the city, the whole population seemed to have gone marl. Fear, panic, and desperation were like a wildfire that spread through the siege capital, throwing it into utter chaos. For a while, it was as though Falcon Scott had turned into a wounded, frenzied beast.

...But now, a strange calmness permeated the snow-covered streets. Even near the port, the mob had become meek and docile. A few more ships arrived, and a few more millions of people were taken away.

The rest either surrendered themselves to fate, or gave up completely.

As soon as they let go of hope, their fear disappeared. Their panic subsided, too. Sunny walked through the city, he saw different people coping with the merciless reality of the situation in different ways. Some seemed numb and lethargic. Some seemed serene and at peace. Everyone found solace in their own way.

He even saw groups of people climb to the roofs of the highest buildings, carrying chairs, portable heaters, and food. They were going to watch the arrival of the titan, and meet their ends together.

Others were trying to get as deep underground as they could. A siege capital like Falcon Scott had plenty of durable subterranean shelters... however, if anyone thought that they could hide from the approaching doom there, they were sorely mistaken. No amount of frozen soil and layers of mundane defenses were going to stop a Corrupted Titan.

There had been shelters in Erebus Field, too, but no one who had entered them survived. And Goliath was in no way a match for the Winter Beast.

As for Sunny himself... he had not given up yet. He still had some will to fight left in him.

He had spent these hours trying to come up with a way to if not defeat the abominable horror, then at least tie down and stall it. Sadly...

Sunny saw no way to win, no matter how hard he looked.

The enemy was just too strong, and his bag of tricks was all but empty. There was no time to prepare anything, and even if there were, he was not sure. that he would have been able to pull another miracle out of thin air.

Killing Goliath was already an astonishing feat... in the past, before the Transcendence of the first Saints, it had taken all of clan Valor decades to slay a Fallen Titan. But Sunny destroyed the dreadful stone colossus in a single second.

...If he had been a couple seconds slower, the city would have probably already been destroyed. That was how terrifying titans were.

The further one walked on the road of Ascendence — or Corruption — the greater the distance between individual steps. There was a vast chasm between a Terror and a Titan, and an even more boundless abyss between a Fallen and a Corrupted one.

Sunny had not come up with a single good idea. His own strength was insufficient, and there was no one stronger around to borrow it from.

’Is it really hopeless?’

Despite it all, he was reluctant to accept that fact. And yet, a shadow of doubt was weighing on his heart.

As Sunny was approaching the dormitory tower, his thoughts wandered to Gere and Carin. His mood turned dark as he remembered all the people he had brought to Falcon Scott, and how much effort had gone into preserving their lives.

Where were they now? The nameless Sleeper, the kid who had called him ”Uncle” once, the brave soldier who had lost his arm to the Devouring Cloud...

Had they been evacuated! Or were they still out there, somewhere, within the doomed city? Most of the two hundred million people had already been evacuated, so... the chances of that weren’t high...

Standing in front of the entrance to the dormitory, he looked at the piles of snow on both sides of it.

The man who had been so happy to give him a sandwich... was he and his wife safe?

And countless others...

With a deep sigh, Sunny entered the tower and made his way to Professor Obel’s apartment.

The old man met him with a calm smile.

”Master Sunless. Come in, come in...”

By now, there was no one inside the apartment except for the old man. The two of them remained silent for a while. Eventually, Professor Obel sighed.

”I wanted to thank you. Some time ago, I made a request of you... to not choose to save my life over someone else’s. Back then, you didn’t agree- I am glad that you changed your mind.”

Sunny looked at the old man with a bleak expression. He remembered that conversation. Back then, he had foolishly proclaimed that he would not have to choose, because he would simply save everyone he decided to save.

Technically, Sunny had kept that promise. The convoy had made it to Falcon Scott, and although there were some casualties, he never ended up having to put Professor Obel’s life over that of other people.

Who could have known that their woes would only grow more calamitous after reaching the distant siege capital?

Sunny pursed his lips, and then said in an even tone:

”I am not going to lie, Professor... I am unhappy with your decision. After all the effort I’ve put into keeping you alive, you still chose to stay. It makes me feel as though all those struggles of mine were meaningless.”

They had not been, of course. Tens of thousands of people — and maybe even millions — were alive because of what Sunny had done. But millions of people were faceless. To him, Professor Obel had long become somewhat of a personification of all the mundane humans the First Army was meant to save him and Beth.

The old man smiled wistfully.

”I knew that you would feel that way. People who are as principled as you, young man, are a rare breed.

They can’t help but feel responsible for the entire world. However... the world is too vast, Major Sunless.

You can‘t defeat it all by yourself. And you shouldn’t be forced to, either.”

Sunny looked at him with surprise.

’Now, that... is very amusing.‘

He couldn’t help but snort.

”Principled? Me? Professor... you are deeply mistaken. I have no principles to speak of. I am just stubborn, spiteful, and a little bit mad. That’s all there is to me.”

The old man laughed.𝚗𝑜𝚟𝐞𝓵𝓊𝑠𝕓.𝑐𝗈𝓂

”If you say so, young man... anyway, you must be really busy. I won’t keep you. However, I do have one last favor to ask... would you mind escorting me to the communication array? My work schedule is technically suspended, but a bunch of us old engineers decided to gather there. Who knows, maybe we’ll even manage to restore function to the whole thing. In any case, it will be an extremely interesting problem to solve! I already have a few ideas...”

Sunny stared at him for a few moments, then silently nodded.

Together, they left the dormitory tower and ventured through the streets of Falcon Scott, chatting idly as they did. Time seemed to slow down a little.

Nevertheless, they eventually reached the base of the communication array complex, where a dozen or so old men and women were standing waiting for the latecomers to arrive. Some of them waved to Professor Obel, calling out to him with boisterous voices.

The old man waved in response, then turned to Sunny and smiled.

”We’re here. Thank you very much, young man... for everything. ”

Sunny felt as though a lump was stuck in his throat. He lingered fora few moments, then forced out a few words:

”Don’t mention it. And... thank you, too, Professor. Please, stay safe.”

Professor Obel patted him on the shoulder.

”You must survive, Major. Don’t hesitate to save yourself, when the time comes. Farewell.”

With that, he smiled one last time, then turned away and headed to the other old engineers. They welcomed him with friendly greetings.

Sunny remained motionless for a While, then turned away too.

’Damnation...’

Grilling his teeth, he shivered in the cold and started walking.

The shadow weighing on his heart had become heavier.

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