Shadow Slave

Summoning the Dark Wing and the Prowling Thorn, Sunny jumped off the edge of the stone balcony. In the next second, his dagger pierced the darkness and bit into a fractured coral branch high above. With a sharp pull, Sunny sent himself flying upward, the transparent cloak turning into a blur behind his back.

All around him, the interior of the Crimson Spire that remained unchanged for thousands of years was shifting. The ancient tower continued to shudder and quake as it endured the calamitous consequences of the battle between Changing Star and the vessel of the artificial sun.

Vast coral roots were shattering and plunging down, drowning the echoing expanse of the Spire with deafening clangor. As massive slabs of coral collided against lower branches, they were pulverized in turn.

Moving through all this destruction, Sunny struggled to stay alive.

Before he could even reach the root he had been aiming for, it was obliterated by falling debris. The mass of coral then rained down, threatening to bury Sunny under its deadly weight. Not phased, he twisted and hurled the Prowling Thorn sideways, then flew out of the way of the collapsing coral. Just a second later, Sunny hit the side of an intact root and pushed himself off its surface, continuing to ascend.

He spun and twisted, using the Prowling Thorn and every surface he could reach to dodge the falling slabs of coral, avoid being cut to pieces by deadly clouds of flying splinters, and soar higher and higher.

As he did, the shadow jumped from one root to another, searching for Caster.

The Legacy was much faster than Sunny, but was chained to the ground and didn't have the advantage of being able to see in the dark. Sunny was certain that he would be able to catch up to him before too long.

And after a few torturous minutes, he inevitably did.

Emerging from a cloud of coral dust, Sunny left a crimson trail in the air as he landed on a wide root in a nimble roll. A moment later, he jumped to his feet and stood silently in the darkness, waiting for Caster to appear.

Up here, at the highest levels of the Spire, the chaos was not as pronounced. Those branches of coral that were going to break had already fallen, and the few remaining ones were relatively stable. That allowed Sunny to predict which route the Legacy was going to take.

The cool polished wood of the Weaver's Mask rested comfortably on his face, hiding his features.

Sunny wasn't sure what resources and connections the Han Li clan possessed, so he chose to be extra careful. He was wary of someone tracing Caster's death back to him with the help of a prophetic Aspect Ability or some strange and powerful Memory… a vengeful Legacy clan was the last thing he would want to deal with after returning to the real world.

And by now, he was sure that one of the two of them was going to die here, in this cursed and dreadful tower.

This confrontation was long overdue.

He was also wary of Caster himself. The proud scion was many things, but a fool was not one of them. There was a chance that he had long guessed Sunny's Flaw.

The mask was his insurance against that eventuality.

'Let's see which one of us is better… let's see which one of us deserves it more…'

For Sunny, this fight was not only about defeating Caster. It wasn't even about defending Neph.

It was about defeating the world itself.

A lifetime ago, when he and Caster had first met in the Academy, they were on the opposite sides of humanity.

One was on the top, and the other was on the bottom.

One was strong and surrounded by a circle of admirers, and the other one was weak and alone. One had the best education, the best mentors, the vast resources of his powerful family, the inherited arsenal of Memories, and plenty of soul shards to propel him forward to future success.

The other had nothing.

Sunny had always had nothing. No family and no home, no place to call his own, no one to care about whether he lived or died, no opportunity, no chance… no future.

Thrust into the same hell as Caster, he clawed and fought, suffered and endured, survived and bettered himself through will, intellect, and countless brushes with death. And now, a year later, he was ready to claim his rightful place.

By defeating Caster, he was going to prove once and for all that he wasn't lesser than anyone. That he wasn't some inconsequential nobody to be discarded and forgotten, to be lost on the pages of history. That he mattered as much as those "real" humans did.

That he was as exceptional as the best of them, despite the fact that he wasn't born into wealth and prosperity.

…Much more so, even.

As Sunny waited in the darkness, a light of a Memory lantern swiftly approached from below.

***

Caster was rushing to the pinnacle of the Spire, using his incredible speed and training to avoid being killed by the falling debris. He was already getting close when, suddenly, the light of his lantern fell on a motionless figure that stood in the center of a wide coral root, barring his way.

Dark armor weaved out of soft fabric, with lusterless black leather protecting vital spots. An austere blade held lightly, its tip turned to the ground. The wooden mask that resembled the face of a fearsome demon was new, but still, he had no problem recognizing who was in front of him.

Slowing down and stopping a few meters away from the hateful little vagrant, Caster gritted his teeth and spat:

"It's you."

Hidden behind the mask, Sunny smiled.

"No, no. You are mistaken. Actually, it's not me."

Then, tilting his head, he stared at the proud Legacy and said, his voice full of surprise:

"Oh! Hey, Caster. What a coincidence, to run into you here of all places. So unexpected! Ah, it must be fate…"