Shadow Slave: The Blessing of Fate

'A... a Cursed Terror...'

Horrified, Sunny took an involuntary step back.

And just as he did, a pair of round, utterly insane eyes pierced him with a demented look.

A terrible pressure crashed into him, making it hard to breathe.

The Cursed Terror that had been hiding behind Oblivion's grave... was a giant, mad, and unmistakably vile bird.

'D-damnation!'

Sunny took a step back, but at the moment, the vile bird lunged forward, its demented eyes igniting with avarice and greed.

Before he could even react, he was drowned by its loathsome shadow. And then, its talons plunged into his chest.

Sunny gasped.

However, the talons did not rip his flesh apart. Instead, they dove much deeper, finding their way into his very soul.

Though he was experiencing an unimaginable agony, Sunny dived into his Soul Sea and was shocked at what he saw.

A hill-sized creature, one more terrifying than any Nightmare Creature he has ever encountered was sinking its horrid talons into a shining silhouette made of countless strings.

'W-what...'

The shape of the silhouette was unmistakably similar to something that he has known for a long time.

It was a silhouette that was shaped just like his very own body. The strings making up the shape were very well known to Sunny. They were strings of Fate.

On the outside, they surrounded him like the strings that were holding up a marionette.

But on the inside, they made up a shape that looked just like his body, it was like they were making up his entire being.

And now a horrifying terror was messing them up.

'Y-you bastard!'

Sunny tried to open his mouth, trying to scream at the abomination, but no sound came out of his mouth. He was almost completely paralyzed by the agony it was inflicting on him, its presence had terrified Sunny to his core.

Nonetheless he had to do something - he couldn't just let it do what it wants. But how?

How is he supposed to stop something like that? He couldn't imagine ever fighting a being so terrible.

He used every drop of strength and clarity he had left, though it wasn't much... it was a laughable effort to be honest, but he still tried. Desperately manifesting a tangible shadow that looked something like a javelin, Sunny threw it with all that he had at the abomination.

The javelin swooshed through his Soul Sea, its course aimed directly at the giant Terror.

The giant Terror didn't even flinch, seemingly undisturbed by the shadowy shape flying straight at it, he was still plunging his talons into the shining silhouette, grasping onto its strings and tearing them apart, like he was searching for something...

And then perhaps by some miracle, the javelin hit the mad bird right into one of his eyes. It didn't damage it whatsoever, but it didn't need to. All that was needed was a flinch - a blink... anything...

The mad bird turned his head a little, peering up curiously at Sunny. And then...

The vile Terror was ejected out of Sunny's Soul Sea, releasing his grip on the Strings of Fate making up the silhouette.

Although torn up and and very damaged, the silhouette still stood.

Sunny had no time to study it however, because he was disturbed by a whisper into his ear.

[Your nightmare... is... your... over... nightmare is...]

'What... just what the spell is h-happening?!'

And then, everything disappeared.

The heart of the Estuary was gone. The beautiful tree and the sarcophagus resting beneath its branches were gone, too.

The harrowing bird plunging its talons into his chest was nowhere to be seen.

Sunny found himself in utter darkness.

...And then, he heard a familiar voice whispering into his ear.

[Aspirant! Welcome to the Nightmare Spell. Prepare for your First Trial...]

'... What?'

Sunny looked around him and saw a very familiar scene. He was walking, shackled by chains, on a mountain path located on a jagged and lonesome mountain. The mountain's very peak seemed to cut the night sky, surrounded by a mountain chain and with temperatures so cold, that anyone would shiver. Such a cruel environment, could anything even survive here? Bound to the chains in a long line were dozens of people, their eyes as hollow as they can get, looking as though they had given up on the idea of even surviving.

'Just... how... what the...'

Consumed by utter confusion, Sunny lost his balance and stumbled, pulling on the chain with the weight of his body. The familiar guy behind him, the shifty-looking guy looked just like Sunny remembered.

"Whore's bastard! Watch where you're going!" Shifty screamed out.

Sunny didn't mind the idiot's scream and insult, he knew he was going to die eventually anyway, so why bother with someone like him. Instead he was dying to know about something else.

His runes.

Sunny summoned his runes and looked through them, he couldn't feel any of his cores, so he didn't even bother checking his rank and core status, but what he saw below was something so shocking, that he almost stumbled again.

***

Name: Sunless.

True Name: -

Rank: Aspirant.

Soul Core: Dormant.

Memories: -

Echoes: -

Attributes: [Fated], [Spark of Divinity], [Child of Shadows].

Aspect: [Slave of Fate].

Aspect Description: [Slave is a useless wretch with no skills or abilities worth a mention, but anything with affinity to Fate is incredibly special. The chains of Fate around you are supposed to be tighter than around anyone else, but due to being damaged by a horrible abomination they seem to be loose instead.]

'It... it changed?!' Sunny was confused beyond belief.

'And still a slave, just of different kind?! Curse you world!'

As he was looking at his runes he noticed something peculiar. The [Fated] attribute seemed to be.. grayed out?

'What the hell does that even mean...'

[Fated] Attribute Description: "The strings of fate wrap tightly around you. Unlikely events, both good and bad, are drawn by your presence. There are those who are blessed, and there are those who are cursed... but rarely both."

[This attribute is currently inactive.]

'Inactive... is that due to the damage, that the stupid bird dealt to the strings?'

[Spark of Divinity] Attribute Description: "Every fire starts from a spark. Somewhere deep within your soul, a radiant spark shines with divine light."

'Wasn't this... supposed to be Mark of Divinity? What caused the sudden change?'

'I wonder if it's due to the affinity to Fate that the changed aspect has...'

As Sunny was contemplating the various reasons he was suddenly disturbed by a shout.

"Stop the caravan! Prepare to camp!"

Following the head soldier's order, the slaves, including Sunny of course, stopped and fell to the ground. Most of them shivering and exhausted. The small clearing where the road widened was somewhat protected from the wind by a protruding mass of rock, but it was still too cold to rest with ease.

Well it wasn't that hard for Sunny, the things he went through so far were infinitely more painful than some stupid freezing weather. Looking seemingly undisturbed by the cold, he became the center of attention of another familiar slave, a man with a scholarly vibe around him suddenly spoke up to him with curiosity.

"You don't seem to be affected by the cold much, child... are you alright?"

'Who are you calling a child, damn you... you bastard, I was whipped the first time around because of you acting as though you are a gentle and noble person and now you are asking me if I am alright?!'

"Oh, it's definitely cold, but I went through worse." Sunny answered with an emotionless tone to his voice.

"Do you mind me asking, just what a child like you could have gone through?" Scholar asked.

"Well..."

'Wait hold on... what is this feeling? It's like something is missing...'

'The pressure to answer... I haven't yet received my Flaw!'

"Well, I mean. I am an incredible person after all! My kindness and humbleness know no bounds. Forged through endless torment, I've achieved the state of absolute peace with my very being. Ever heard of meditating? You should try it! I once meditated for a week straight without being disturbed in the slightest!"

"Oh... I see, incredible indeed." And with that, the Scholar lost his interest in Sunny and went back to minding his business.

'What? Don't believe me?' Sunny laughed inwardly.

With the bonfire blazing. The stronger slaves tried to find their way closer to the fire, while the weaker ones were forced to sit at the outer end of the circle, with their backs freezing in the cold. Of course, any movement was encumbered by the fact that they were still shackled to the chain. The broad-shouldered slave, that once walked in front of Sunny, ended up just where he started despite all of his efforts to get closer to the flame.

'Damn Imperials!'

"Damn Imperials!" he hissed, clearly irritated.

'Yeah, same as before.' Sunny chuckled inwardly.

The soldiers walked among the slaves, giving them water and food. Sunny, just like everybody else, received a few sips of icy water and a small piece of rock-hard, moldy bread.

'It'll still probably be tastier than the rotting insides of an abomination playing the role of a chest though...'

Sunny ate the moldy piece of bread and drank the water hastily, wanting to get back to studying his runes, while he still has a chance.

Close to him, Shifty looked around in anguish.

"By all the gods, they used to feed me better even in the dungeons!"

'Boohoo, cry me a river...'

He spat on the ground, desperate.

"And most of us innocent men in the dungeon were there waiting to visit the gallows, too!"

Around them a scattering of bright-red berries was growing from the snow. Sunny already knew about the Bloodbane berries and he knew they would be crucial to his survival.

"I would advise against eating those, friend."

...

Sunny channeled the conversation out of his mind, he already knew all about it, so there wasn't any need to listen to them. Instead he summoned his runes yet again and studied them thoroughly.

***

Name: Sunless.

True Name: -

Rank: Aspirant.

Soul Core: Dormant.

Memories: -

Echoes: -

Attributes: [Fated], [Spark of Divinity], [Child of Shadows].

Aspect: [Slave of Fate].

Aspect Description: [Slave is a useless wretch with no skills or abilities worth a mention, but anything with affinity to Fate is incredibly special. The chains of Fate around you are supposed to be tighter than around anyone else, but due to being damaged by a horrible abomination they seem to be loose instead.]

'Come to think of it, why do I still have [Child of Shadows]? I am not a temple slave anymore...'

[Child of Shadows] Attribute Description: "Shadows have noticed a being that was like themselves, yet different. This being seemed to be lost and without anyone to turn to, so they decided to recognize the being as one of their own."

'Oh... it changed. Well it figures that I remind them of a shadow, since I was a divine one after all...'

Sunny, disturbed yet again, stopped looking at his runes and put his attention to something else.

The Mountain King was coming.