Chapter Text
Chapter One: Shitty Day.
The Bright lord sat dead on his throne, blood like flowers coiled around his head sprouting from his eye socket. The terrifying oppression that filled the hall was gone, but every single person stayed rooted to the floor, the shock of the death of the once great ruler of the blight castle had left an imprint in the mind of all present.
it wasn't until Tessai shouted out that anyone moved.
"...What are you waiting for? Kill them all."
suddenly everyone sprang into action, a guard was the first to move but dropped dead the next instant with a kunai in his head. Sunny's eyes were locked onto Caster, the moment he shot forward toward Nephis he pulled his wrist back. Suddenly Caster fell to the floor as he tripped on what seemed like air, Sunny's wrist was dragged forward with him and ached with pain.
Suuny ran to her side, her wounds had already healed but she seemed to be unresponsive on the floor. Sunnys eyes scanned the room and locked onto the large figure with his back to the chaos facing the fallen Bright Lord. slowly the figure turned his hunched body to face the killer, his cold glassy eyes looking past Sunny to Nephis. Rage and anger consumed his features, but Sunny met his gaze with his dark chilling eyes with confidence.
Cassie and Kai appeared by his side a moment later. Sunny didn't even turn to them as he shouted before lunging forward.
"protect her!"
the hunched back Harus took a step forward ready to charge forward, but Sunny slammed into him at full speed before he could build any momentum. the force of the impact sent both of them behind the throne and crashing through a wooden hatch that was there. they both rolled down a flight of stairs into a dimly lit corridor.
Sunny's body ached momentarily form the fall but he shook his head and ignored it, instead standing and glaring at Harus.
"we're finally alone. I've got to say Harus, I've been itching to kill you since I first saw you."
Harus simply looked down at him with a bored expression after being taken away from his prey.
"and it's not because off all the horrible thing's you've done, it's not even because you've tried to kill me. No, it's simply because your existence infuriates me."
Sunny took a deep breath before a wicked and bitter smile slit his face.
"do you know what I've done, what I've sacrificed, just so i can stay free, to keep chains off of my neck? But you! you let yourself live chained of your own free will! your existence disgusts me, your the antithesis of everything I am. And that means only one of us is leaving here in one piece."
Sunny's rant finally got a response from Harus, he scoffed and revealed a mocking, twisted grin.
"And what do you think is the difference, Rat? aren't you a serving that Bitch like a good dog?"
Sunny grimaced.
"no! that's different, she... she actually cares about me."
"oh, she cares about you does she? and she cares about you for nothing to do with what you do for her?"
Sunny bared his teeth, summoning the midnight shard in his hands.
"...so what if I'm useful, that doesn't... that doesn't mean that she only cares about my usefulness."
Sunny wanted to deny it out right, but his flaw wouldn't let him. some small part of him knew that if he was useless, that if they had met after she had made it to the dark city, then she might not have spared him a glace.
"enough talk hunchback, let's get to the important part, who ever wins is right."
Harus smiled like he was waiting to hear those exact words. he extended his arms, and a chain weaved it's self from sparks around his arm from wrist to elbow. Then he staggered forward as he straighten his back as much as he could, turning from someone at Sunny's hight to a towering monster that could rival Tessai in size.
Sunny grunted in mocking displeasure at Harus's choice of weapon, before his vision went blank. in his sudden panic Sunny didn't know what to do, before he knew what had happed his body twisted in an unnatural angle on instinct. But the chain still whipped across his thigh and caused his to fall to one knee, his leg throbbing with pain. The pain cleared his head and he leaped backward while unwrapping his shadow from his body, narrowly dodging another whip just in front of his chest.
Quickly looking through his shadow Sunny saw Harus's massive form charging towards him. He quickly raised the midnight shard and exchange numerous blows with him, but Sunny found himself being pushed back as his strength without his shadow simply couldn't compare with Harus. After being beaten around the corridor for a few more exchanges Sunny made a decision.
Sunny brought his shadow back in and wrapped it around himself. he began to sense the shadows move around him, he'd been practicing for a moment like this for months, to create his shadow dance, he could feel he was close to getting it and it was his only option left. He sensed Harus's fist coming up to his chest and tried to dodge, but his sense was a bit off and Harus landed a heavy impact to his gut. Sunny quickly sucked in a breath and swung his head back as he sense Harus's other fist swigging for his head, the chains on his arm caught his forehead and knocked him to the ground.
Sunny hit the ground with his back and wheezed in a breath. Then he rolled to the side to avoid Harus's foot coming down on his head. He jumped up and refocused his sense, he remembered the slave girl he had seen in his dreams, he remembered the countless spars he'd had with saint and began to copy her grounded fighting style. combined with his shadow doubling his strength Sunny managed to block Harus's next few strikes.
As he quickly backed up he began to feel more comfortable relying on his shadow sense accurately dodge a whip from Harus's chain.
'Damnit, just a bit more.'
Sunny felt his shadow dance was on the brink of completion.
During the next few exchanges between the two neither of them made any ground and remained in stalemate. After being caught by one of Harus's fists Sunny was hit with a sudden burst of inspiration.
'Yes, that's got to be it!'
In Sunny's enlightened state he decisively unsummoned the Midnight Shard and summoned the Prowling Thorn, getting the string to wrap around his forearm. He then rushed forward and met Harus's fist's with his own, he began to copy Harus's movement's using his sense of his shadow.
When Harus punched Sunny would counter with his own punch, when Harus moved back and used his chain, Sunny would also move back a use the Prowling Thorn in the same manor.
Gradually sunny etched out an advantage as his shadow wrapped around his body allowed him to just surpass Harus in strength, leading Sunny to holding the advantage in close-quarters. However, it was still not enough, as every time Sunny got close Harus would move back a bit and use his longer reach to force Sunny back.
As this continued Sunny slowly got engrossed in the fight, his style grew more brutal and angry just as Harus's was. He lost track of time and his body got more and more battered, pain covered most of his body with every move.
But then he saw it. An opening! Not because he sensed it through Harus's shadow, but because he knew what Harus would do next. He would swing his large hand up in an attempt to land an uppercut on Suuny's chin. The Prowling Thorn was behind him after just deflecting a strike from the chain, Sunny gritted his teeth, he copied Harus's brutal style and swung his entire body forward. his right arm pulled the string of the Prowling Thorn hard as his face slammed against Harus's enormous fist.
'y-Yes!'
Just after the collision, the Prowling Thorn stabbed into Harus's left eye at an astonishing speed. It sunk so deep into his eye socket that only the handle was visible!
Harus's body swayed before falling straight onto the ground in fort of Sunny, the force of the impact of his head hitting the floor shot the Prowling Thorn the rest of the way into his skull and the tip broke through the back of his head.
[You have slain a Dormant Human, Harus.]
Sunny took a deep breath as the Spell confirmed his kill.
[You have mastered the first step of your Aspect Legacy]
[You have received the right to claim a Legacy Relic.]
"I... I did it! I finally completed it"
[Your shadow is overflowing with power.]
"What, what does that mean?"
Sunny was stunned at the Spell's new words.
[Your shadow is taking shape.]
Overwhelming pain suddenly consumed Sunny's whole being. He fell to his knee's and let out a silent scream, it felt like his core was bursting from his body.
"C-crap, what is this?"
Sunny endured the pain and opened up his Runes. His eyes scanned all off them until they stopped, he read the Runes in shock.
Shadow Fragments: [1000/1000.]
"Shit!"
Sunny was caught up in the events of the day that he forgot about his Shadow Fragments.
Sunny gritted his teeth and endured the pain. He lost track of time, but he didn't feel it had been long when the Spell announced. He could still hear the not so distant clashes of metal in the throne room from the strongest of the fighters still fighting to gain or keep their status.
[Your shadow is complete.]
"Ah, finally."
The pain eased and completely disappeared from his body, he sat up and took a deep breath before opening up his Runes. His eyes scanned them until he found the two things he was looking for.
Class: Monster.
Shadow Cores: [2/7].
Shadow Fragments; [0/2000]
"Huh, so I'm a Monster now. Two out of seven. out of seven! That means I'll be able to become a Titan on day, a Titan, hahaha. Brilliant! I, Lost from Light, truly am the best of humanity."
'Huh, but wait, what does that do?'
Sunny quickly looked over his body and before is vision locked on the floor below him. Two shadows were looking up at him, Two! Grumpy didn't have any reaction, but the new shadow waved it's arms in the air like it was cheering.
"Hmm, I'll call you Happy."
Happy gave him a thumbs up at the name.
Sunny took a deep breath and wrapped both shadows around him, he felt his strength double and then triple! Sunny couldn't control his face and burst out in a smile.
All the pain in his body eased and his muscle soreness eased with his new strength.
Sunny couldn't hold his excitement any longer. He looked further down his Runes and found what he was most excited about.
Aspect Legacy: [Shadow Dance].
Shadow Dance Mastery Level: [1/7].
First Relic: [Claim].
Second Relic: Unearned.
Third Relic: Unearned…
"Haaa, I actual did it. And it's all thanks to you. If you hadn't taken away my sight I wouldn't have been able to see the way forward."
He patted the back of Harus's head, but he quickly frowned when some brain matter got on his hand. He quickly wiped it off on the Puppeteer's Shroud.
This was it, what he had been training to perfect for months. His own style, just for him, a sign of true skill.
Sunny held his breath and focused on the shining Runes. This was his inheritance, even when his parents died Sunny was left nothing, so it meant a lot to him.
"Claim..."
First Relic: Claimed.
[You have received an Aspect Legacy Relic.]
[You have received a Shadow: Soul Serpent.]
'A Shadow, just like Saint.'
This was unexpected, most Legacy Relics came in the form of a Memory, and only very rarely an Echo. But Sunny had gotten a Shadow, his own unique style of Echo that could grow with it's user.
Shadows: [Marble Saint], [Soul Serpent].
He tried to summon the Soul Serpent, but nothing happed. His brows furrowed as he focused, but still nothing happed.
Slightly panicked Sunny pulled up the Soul Serpents Runes.
Shadow: [Soul Serpent].
Shadow Rank: Dormant.
Shadow Class: Monster.
Shadow Attributes: [Shadow Guide], [Soul Weapon].
Shadow Description: [When the end came, Shadow was the last of the gods to be destroyed. Many have resented him for creating death, but in the end, death embraced all.]
'Huh, so it does exist. But why can't I summon it?'
Sunny pulled up the descriptions of it's ability's.
[Shadow Guide] Attribute Description: "Soul Serpent guides shadow essence as it flows through your body."
[Soul Weapon] Attribute Description: "Soul Serpent can assume the form of a weapon."
His eyes focused on the Shadow Guide ability and silently pondered. Sunny concentrated and tried to do what it said and circulate his shadow essence through his body.
Miraculously he found that even though he was a Sleeper, he could move the meagre amount of shadow essence he had throughout his body.
Sunny's dark eyes sparkled as he came to the realisation that he could finally activate Memory Enchantments.
All of his Memories that had Enchantments requiring essence quickly flicked through his mind. But one stood out against all the others. The image of a fearsome black mask appeared in his mind.
Weavers mask appeared in Sunny's hands from a ball of sparks, he'd been fixated on this mask since he first saw it. A Memory of the Divine Rank, and a tier seven one at that, Sunny could hardly wait to activate it's singular active Enchantment.
Even though the Memory gave no description of it, or even a name, Sunny was still determined to see what kind of ability such a Memory might have.
Sunny put the mask on his face and summoned it's Runes for him to see, he focused on it's active enchantment.
[???]
His shadow essence flowed through his body and into the mask as he focused on the enchantment.
In an instant every speck of shadow essence in his body was sucked dry by and overwhelming force, both of his shadow cores trembled and it felt as if they were about to collapse inwards towards the suction force!
And then it appeared! The grand tapestry of Fate blipped into Sunny's vision, thousands of threads all weaving together and shooting out in all directions. The most eye catching one was a thick rope made of pure white burning flames that wrapped around Sunny's neck like a collar before stretching of and attaching to a clump of other burning white strings not to far away from him. It stayed for a mere fraction of a fraction of a second. But that was enough. Sunny could feel the roar of Blood Weave in his mind before he could even understand what happed. Blood flowed freely from Sunny's eyes, ears, mouth and nose like a fountain. Blood Weave struggled against it but proved useless in front of such catastrophic damage.
When Sunny's mind caught up the pain flooded in like a tsunami, it was countless times worse than the pain of his second Soul Core forming. He immediately lurched over in pain and began tugging at his hair, pulling out large clumps.
"AHHHHHHHHHH!"
His mind was blank, filled only with an overwhelming pain. Sunny's mind was teetering on the edge of snaping completely, the blood covered his entier face and dripped down his chin.
To anyone looking at him now, they would see a screaming lunatic wearing a terror inducing mask that would've caused anyone's legs to shake, with blood dripping from the bottom of it like some demon from hell that had just slaughtered it's way through a battlefield.
"AGHHHHHH!"
The pain wouldn't stop, his howling wail filled the corridor and echoed back onto itself, creating a horrifying harmony of sound.
***
When Sunny finally regained clarity he sat up straight and began to to process things. He had no idea how much time had passed, but considering there was no sound coming from the main hall it must have been at least few hours.
The mask was stuck to his face from all the dried blood and Sunny couldn't be bothered to deal with it now, instead he came to a crushing realisation. He was able to comprehend a small fragment of the tapestry of Fate he saw thanks to Blood Weave.
Sunny breathed heavily at the realisation, because the part that he was able to understand was the thick burning rope that was wrapped around his neck. He knew what it meant, and he knew who it represented.
Sunny knew, that sometime in the next few weeks, Nephis would use his true name against him, and turn him into a slave!
"Haaaaaa, why? WHY? HOW? Was it all for nothing, was there no point to any of it!"
"Hahahaha, FUCK! It's not right, it's not fair. I worked so hard, just for this? Was all my effort form an outskirts rat like me just to make a better slave for the destined one to use!"
"Changing Star of the Immortal Flame, is there anything in this world that you can't have? I guess not even me."
By the end of Sunny's rant against an unanswering Fate his words had turned from a shout to a plead to a soft cry.
Sunny crawled to a dark corner of the corridor as tears flowed from his eyes and mixed with the dried blood. The red bitter sweet mixture ran down his cheeks and off his chin. The blood slowly loosen it's hold on the mask and it fell of his face to the ground.
***
End of Chapter One.