Shadow Slave

Dusk… Sybil of the Fallen Grace. Sunny shivered. Of course, he remembered who Dusk was. He was wearing a tunic called Shroud of Graceless Dusk, after all — the Transcendent Memory of the Sixth Tier he had received for slaying the Terror of LO49. …That damned horror. If he were to try and assign numbers to the enemies he had faced in Antarctica based on how many mental scars they left him with, the beautiful flower of floating white silk would be squarely placed second, right behind the Winter Beast. Even Goliath, who had literally killed him, did not leave as harrowing of an impression. Of course, Dusk was most likely neither dead nor corrupted yet in the Nightmare. She was still a human, and seemed to be ruling a place called Fallen Grace. Since Sunny and Nephis wanted to reach the civilization of the Great River and find the sybils, this destination was perfect. …It was a little bit too perfect, even. Ananke had answered one of the most important questions they had. The improbable coincidence of them finding her ketch just when they needed it was no coincidence at all. She had come knowingly, expecting to find them. But who was it that had instructed her where to find them? In her dreams, no less? Who was pulling the strings of this Nightmare behind the scenes?

’Is it, perhaps, the last sybil herself?’ Sunny frowned, knowing that he would not find the answer any time soon. The earliest opportunity was probably going to be when he came face-to-face with the Sybil of the Fallen Grace… again. He sighed. ”...Fallen Grace? How far is that?”

Old Ananke hesitated for a few moments. ”It is far. Very, very far. So far that I won’t be able to guide you all the way there.”

She grew silent, her eyes closing slightly. It almost seemed as though she had dozed off. Then, however, the old woman shook slightly, and added:

”But I will take you as far as I can go, my Lord and Lady. Ah… you see, we daemon followers weren’t welcome here, in Ariel’s Tomb, either. They chased us away, and we traveled upstream for a long time before settling down and building Weave. Weave… it’s one of the human cities on the Great River, like Fallen Grace. Or, at least… it used to be…”

Sunny and Nephis looked at each other. Why was it that Ananke was unable to return downstream? Was there some kind of internal strife between the locals of the Great River? Would it be dangerous for her to enter the waters controlled by the sybils?

And what did she mean, that Weave only used to be a city?

Nephis spoke cautiously:

”We wouldn’t want to put you in danger, Grandmother.”

The old woman smiled. ”Helping you is both my wish and privilege, my Lady. Do not worry about me… I am… of the Great River…”

Her speech was slowing down, and her words became slurred. It was obvious that the old woman was growing too tired to continue the conversation.

She seemed to have understood that, too. With a soft sigh, Ananke raised her hands. In the next moment…

Sunny and Nephis both stared in bewilderment as a whirlwind of white sparks appeared in the air.

’She is… she is summoning a Memory.’

This action, which was so mundane and familiar to them, looked infinitely strange and out of place when performed by one of the ancient humans. It was the ability of those infected by the Spell, after all, and no one they had met in all the Nightmares possesed it.

Soon, a wooden box appeared on the deck in front of them. Ananke opened it with shaking hands and took out several items…

A beautifully embroidered tablecloth, a carafe of wine, a painted ceramic teapot with steam rising from its spout, two small cups, and two plates — one full of ripe fruits, the other full of small savory pies. The fruits were succulent, and the pies looked freshly cooked. The items were simple and modest, even worn out a little, yet lovingly maintained.

A delicious smell spread through the air. Ananke carefully placed everything on the tablecloth and offered the food to Sunny and Nephis. ”My Lord, My Lady… you must be tired after braving the horrors of the future. Please, eat and rest. I… I will guide us back to Weave, first…”

She took a deep breath, then slowly rose to her feet and walked back to the helmsman’s bench with effort. Sitting down on it, the old woman tiredly lowered her head and whispered several strange, ineligible words.

In the next moment, the ketch suddenly moved. The midnight-colored sails rose by themselves and billowed in the wind, while the steering oar swayed, turning the bow of the boat downstream. Soon, they were sailing across the sparkling expanse of the Great River, slowly gaining speed. Sunny and Nephis hesitated for a bit. Both of them were completely exhausted and incredibly hungry, but… they still did not trust the old woman.

What if the food was poisoned? What if she was waiting until they fell asleep to kill them?

Sunny glanced at the frail figure of the priestess. She looked too fragile and weak to pose any threat to them. Of course, looks could be deceiving… but he also felt that Ananke had been sincere and treated them with nothing except great benevolence. It was hard to dislike or distrust the kind, earnest old woman.

’Ah, whatever…’

Even if she had done something to the food, he was very hard to poison. Blood Weave made him all but immune to most toxins, after all.

Shaking off the mad desire to devour everything in sight — the faint remnant of the ferocious form of the river serpent — he tentatively picked up a savory pie, still warm from the oven, and took a bite. His hand trembled. ’Delicious… so delicious…’

Not wasting any more time, Sunny sent the whole pie into his mouth and chewed greedily. A few moments later, he raised his thumb and nudged Nephis with his elbow.

She lingered for a moment, then followed his example. They ate and drank like two kids being spoiled by their grandmother, oblivious to everything else. Soon, the entire meal disappeared. They didn’t even spare the wine.

After that… Sunny felt incredibly sleepy.

But it wasn’t the unnatural feeling of having been drugged. It was simply the natural reaction of his abused body demanding some well-deserved and much-needed rest. ’Safe… we’re safe, I think...’

Struggling to keep his eyes open, Sunny looked at Nephis. She was tired, too, and yet she nodded to answer his silent question. ”It’s alright. I’ll take the first watch. You can…”

Before she even finished the sentence, Sunny had already dropped his head on her lap, fast asleep.