703 Way Back

Soon after settling into his new and improved body, Sunny dismissed his Shadows. He expected them to instantly return to his cores, but this time, there was a delay. It seemed that he had to wait for some time before Saint, Nightmare, and the Soul Serpent returned.

And then there were the happy and the creepy shadows… poor guys were going to have to come back the usual way, by gliding across the Kingdom of Hope one island at a time. They were swift and sneaky, so Sunny was not too worried about them… he also knew that the shadows always sensed in which direction to go to return to their master.

Sunny had gained this bit of knowledge a while back, when his experiments with Shadow Step left the gloomy guy outside of the range of Shadow Control. The shadow had swiftly returned, acting even more petulant and moody than usual.

Its mood had only grown worse when Sunny decided to try and repeat the accident a few more times, just to make sure. But as the result, he learned that once separated from him, the shadows would always try to find their way back to their master, somehow sensing where he was.

And speaking of shadows…

The haughty newcomer was still acting cavalier, radiating a disdainful certainty that it was, without a doubt, better and more distinguished than everyone, and every thing, in every way imaginable. Sunny shook his head and silently commanded the haughty shadow to wrap itself around his body, which it did… but not before giving him a look that clearly expressed how utterly beneath itself the arrogant guy considered such a trivial task to be.

The members of the cohort had already collected the soul shards from the slain abominations, so there was nothing holding them on the island anymore. They started the journey back to the Sanctuary, and returned to it at dusk.

On the way, Sunny was trying to get used to his new physique. Sure, the shadowspawn had grown taller and more powerful… but as a side effect of that, he had to relearn how to move in this towering body all over again. The shock was not as dire as when he had first appeared in the Nightmare, but it would still require some time for Sunny to be able to adjust his mindset and battle technique for this new circumstance.

Tired after the day of hunting Nightmare Creatures and traversing the heavenly chains, the four of them separated to go to their rooms. Reaching his own, Sunny fell on the bed… which was not a bit too short for him… and stared at the ceiling for some time, feeling restless and grim.

Today, he had accomplished something that he never thought would be possible in such a short span of time… he had formed the fourth Shadow Core and become a Devil. He was now more powerful than he had ever been, with three mighty Shadows by his side, an arsenal of powerful Memories at his disposal, and even possessing a nascent knowledge of sorcery and weaving.

In fact, Sunny suspected that there had never been an Awakened as powerful as him… except, of course, for Mordret. At least until Nephis returned from being lost in the Dream Realm and Awakened herself.

And yet, he couldn't help but wonder… would that be enough for what was about to come?

And if he survives the Nightmare, would it still be possible for him to hide his strength and avoid the gaze of Sovereigns?

Tormented by these questions, Sunny remained awake for a long time, and then finally fell into the embrace of shallow sleep.

…When the morning came, he opened his eyes and instantly sensed a difference. His heart felt… at ease, somehow. Complete.

His Shadows had returned while he slept.

***

Luckily, all three had survived their task. However, they were not unscathed… both Nightmare and the Soul Serpent bore many wounds, and nestled in the nurturing black flames of his cores, slumbering as their bodies restored themselves. Saint was banged up, too, but to a much lesser extent.

Even though she had not had the company of a shadow, the taciturn knight faired much better than the other two. Well, that was not a surprise… she possessed Attributes that specifically made her tremendously stalwart and durable, after all.

Plus… Saint was Saint. In any case, she was going to heal and recover much faster.

The happy and creepy shadows had returned, as well, and were now staring at their new sibling — the former with delighted excitement, the latter with dark and disturbing fascination. The haughty shadow ignored their stares and pretended that the others did not exist, looking past them with flawlessly disdainful indifference.

'What a character…'

Sunny smiled, then commanded the three shadows to wrap themselves around his body, leaving only the gloomy one on the ground.

Finally feeling like himself, he climbed out of bed, freshened up, and went to find Noctis.

There was a lot they had to discuss…

When he saw the sorcerer, however, the words died on his tongue.

Noctis was not onboard his flying ship, and neither was he on the edge of the island, sculpting his terrible statues. Instead, the immortal Transcendent had returned to his residence, for once. The wooden door stood open, and the Sailor Dolls let Sunny through without sparing him a single glace.

The interior of the sorcerer's quarters… had changed once again.

The floor stood cracked and broken, mounds of stone shards arching upward, as if displaced by something rising from below. The circle of runes was broken, as well, devoid of any essence and utterly empty.

That, however, was not what scared Sunny.

What made him stumble, instead, was that Noctis was not holding a glass of wine, as had been his habit. Instead, the sorcerer was whistling a carefree tune… and brewing himself tea.

Sunny froze.

'Oh, crap…'

What had it been that the sorcerer told him soon after they met?

...Gather the knives, start a war against both the Ivory City and the Red Colosseum, kill all of the Chain Lords, defy the Lord of Light, break the will of gods, release the Demon of Desire out of her prison... and have a cup of tea.

But then Noctis corrected himself… and said… that he should probably have tea first.

Sunny gulped.

'It's starting…'