Shadow Slave

Sunny was at a loss for words.

Had he even heard it right?

"You are going to… repair… the ancient, broken, monster-infected ship?"

Well… it made a lot of sense, actually.

Cassie nodded.

"Yes. We are going to cleanse, repair, and make it fly again."

Oh, so it was a flying ship, too!

'Perfect!'

Honestly, Sunny shouldn't have been surprised. All the clues had been there for a long time.

He had already known that the ship depicted on the miraculous coins was, most likely, the very same that lay broken on the Shipwreck Island. The connection was pretty easy to make, considering that they looked alike, and that the coins had come from its treasury in the first place.

Sunny had also asked himself the question of what a sailing ship was doing in the middle of Chained Isles, which had no sea and no rivers for it to sail on. The thought that it had actually been designed to fly through the skies had crossed his mind, among other things.

And finally, on the coins, the ancient ship was shown as having a beautiful tree wrapped around its mast. It had also belonged to the enigmatic person called Noctis. Wasn't it too much of a coincidence, then, that Cassie had come to the Sanctuary of Noctis and ventured on a long expedition to a Desecrated Grove?

The word "desecrated" implied that the burned grove had been sacred once. After all, only sacred things could be desecrated. And a sacred tree sounded exactly like something capable of making a massive ship fly.

…Right?

Sunny stared at the large wooden box with a ponderous expression. After a while, he asked:

"So what's in the box?"

Cassie walked over and gently put a hand on its lid.

"...A sapling. We spent two months searching for a living root in that ghastly place. And finally, deep underground, we found the only one that remained. The wondrous tree which kept the ancient ship afloat in the sky had come from that grove, once. The sapling will grow into a new one."

She sighed, and then turned to the Fire Keepers:

"Shakti and Kaor were Artisans back in the Bright Castle. Shakti is gifted with an Aspect that helps plants thrive, and was Kido's apprentice. Kaor is an Awakened carpenter. We have more people on the way to the Chained Isles, too, to help with the reconstruction."

Sunny remained silent for a while.

So she had been planning to commandeer the ancient wreck for a long time. From before he had come to invite her to challenge the Second Nightmare with him… was it a coincidence? They were going to have to brave the Sky Below to get to the Seed, after all, and here was Cassie, conveniently planning to claim and repair a flying ship.

How much did she really know?

As if hearing his thoughts, Cassie turned to him. Her face suddenly turned somber.

"...With this ship, we might be able to cross the Hollow Mountains. At least… at least that is our hope."

The Fire Keepers grew quiet. After a while, the familiar girl — Shakti — said in a dark tone:

"We have to try, no matter what. Going there on foot is suicide. Maybe flying will be different."

They were all really, really resolute in their desire to find Nephis, it seemed.

And what about Sunny himself?

Well… things were complicated.

He sighed.

"Alright, that answers the question of why you want the ship, and how you might be able to repair it. But how are we going to defeat its current tenant without using fire? No offense, guys, but I really don't think that you can handle that fight. Maybe you can hold on for a while outside the wreck, but inside… it's a death trap."

The Fire Keepers looked at each other again. Finally, their mood turned dark.

Cassie hesitated for a few moments, and then said:

"We are going to kill it the old-fashioned way. Use someone as bait, and strike the monster down while it's distracted."

Sunny rubbed his face.

"Let me guess… I am the bait?"

The blind girl smiled, then shook her head.

"No. We are the bait. You are the blade that will pierce the creature's heart from the shadows."

That sounded solemn and sort of grand, but she immediately ruined the moment by adding in an awkward tone:

"I mean… uh… if it has a heart. If it doesn't, then… well, you know. Kill it some other way."

'Not exactly the icon of eloquence, are we…'

Sunny frowned.

He did like the idea of not being the bait for once… well, to be honest, Neph was usually the bait. Actually, this plan sort of made sense. He already knew that he could survive in the poisonous miasma inside the ship, and that with enough augmentations, the Cruel Sight could damage the vines.

And that had happened even before he infused the [Dark Mirror] enchantment with divine flame. Yes, Sunny couldn't burn the ship itself, but that didn't mean that he couldn't deliver once surgical, immolating strike to the main body of the monster. The bastard was weak to fire, so the result would probably be nothing short of spectacular.

The problem was… would the Fire Keepers be able to keep the monster preoccupied long enough for Sunny to achieve his objective?

He looked at them gravely, and asked:

"Why are you all so sure that I can kill that thing?"

One of the Fire Keepers shrugged:

"You were in Lady Changing Star's cohort, were you not? She wouldn't trust just anybody to have her back. If she trusted in you, then so do we. No one weak survived the Forgotten Shore, anyway."

Sunny barely suppressed a laugh.

'Wouldn't trust just anybody to have her back…'

Oh, the irony! He almost wanted to tell them about how Neph made the person literally sent into the Dream Ream to kill her the second-in-command.

But of course, he did not.

"Yes, I suppose I was in her cohort."

Another Fire Keeper smiled.

"Plus, Cassie thinks that you'll be able to do it. She is rarely wrong, you know."

'Do I ever...'

Sunny scowled.

She wasn't wrong this time, however. In fact, her plan to deal with the thing that dwelled in the wreck was simple, but ingenious. Mostly because it relied on the only Awakened capable of delivering a fatal blow to such a creature... him. Without Sunny, it would have been really impossible.

What a fortunate thing, that he needed her help with something else...

He thought for a bit, and finally asked:

"Are you guys certain that you can survive drawing the monster's attention? Even after everything I told you?"

The young man who Cassie described as an Awakened Carpenter, Kaor, chuckled.

"Pretty certain. As much as one can be certain about anything in the Dream Realm, I guess? All of us survived the siege, so we're aware of what we are signing up for. We have a good combination of Aspects and know how to work together. We even have a healer, which should help against the poison. Point is, we are as ready as we ever going to be."

Sunny stared at him for a while, then looked down at the map, and sighed.

"Alright, then. Let's kill a Corrupted Monster."