Shadow Slave

The Dreamspawn must have sensed that Cassie had a way to escape his trap. So, he sent his most fearsome thrall forward alone, commanding him to stop her.

Nightwalker descended upon the Ivory Island like a flood of starlight, a vague shape of a colossal, eerie, alien beast vaguely formed by the ethereal currents of the pale radiance.

The flood of starlight seeped through the defensive aegis protecting the flying island and washed over it, causing the ground to tremble from the devastating force of the impact. The runes engraving the defensive array into the soil were destroyed, shimmering out of existence in a silver flash.

Just a few seconds before, Cassie had sent Rain forward to the portal arch gazebo. Now, she waited while Nightwalker descended from the darkening sky to kill her with a somber expression.

As Rain rushed away, her only source of sight disappeared as well, leaving behind only nebulous darkness.

‘How come?’

How come the old monsters of the First Generation were always out to kill her? First Jest, now Nightwalker… Cassie only had to survive a death battle against Wake of Ruin to complete the collection.

Her silent attempt at gallows humor did nothing to lift her dark mood. Cassie sighed heavily, and then did something that she had been neglecting to do thus far — she summoned her Memories.

Two golden bracelets wove themselves out of light on her wrists. Both were charms, one capable of augmenting her attacks, the other of protecting her body. A long parrying dagger appeared in her hand. Finally, a third charm — a pristinely white triangular stone — manifested into existence, hanging on a thin golden chain around her neck.

That one was a Supreme Memory capable of vastly enhancing the material properties of objects.

Shifting slightly and turning her torso so that her shoulder faced the direction where she thought Nightwalker was, Cassie waited patiently, her world consumed by darkness. There was no one here to share their vision with her anymore, so she was completely and utterly blind. Light, meanwhile, had no smell and made no sound. It couldn’t be touched or tasted, so she had no way of knowing where Nightwalker was or what he was about to do.

All she could do was wait for the second he tore into her flesh, her consciousness split between the present and the future.

Then, however, she heard the sound of soft footsteps and deduced that Nightwalker had dismissed his Transcendent shape and had become a human once more.

“You should really consider surrendering voluntarily, young lady.”

His voice was free of tension, sounding jarringly relaxed in Cassie’s battered, tired mind. However, it also betrayed his precise location, so she was happy to hear it.

Cassie turned slightly, facing Nightwalker, and raised her dagger slightly.

“I don’t think I will.”

Her voice sounded calm and even.

Unlike the sound of her voice, however, Cassie was tense and fearful, feeling small and vulnerable in the boundless darkness of her lightless world.

The being hiding in the darkness was none other than Nightwalker — one of the deadliest Saints in existence… and quite a strong contender for the title of the deadliest, no less.

Funnily enough, Nightwalker’s Aspect was not a combat one. Instead, it was a Utility Aspect that drew its power from a high affinity to divination, similar to Cassie’s own.

She briefly hesitated, weighing the risk of marking him against the benefit. In the end, she had to grit her teeth and remain blinded by darkness. Creating a mental link between herself and Asterion was far too dangerous, especially if she were to clash with someone as powerful as Nightwalker.

In this battle, the smallest disadvantage would prove fatal — and being unable to see was a smaller disadvantage than not being able to trust her own mind.

“Aren’t you ashamed of yourself, Saint Nightwalker? That man betrayed you, killed you, and left you to suffer decades of terrifying agony in the Eternal City. But now, you serve him — you have put your life into his hands once again. Don’t you know what they say? Fool me once, shame on you. Full me twice…”

Nightwalker seemed to smile.

“Oh, yes. I have to admit, I used to be quite angry about that. But look how it all turned out: all my contemporaries are dead and buried, their legacies destroyed. Warden, Immortal Flame, and the rest of them… but I am still alive and kicking. All thanks to that kid, Asterion. So, in a sense, I should be quite grateful instead.”

Cassie’s expression darkened when he spoke the Dreamspawn’s name aloud.

“Surely you must know that you are under a mental hex. This thought might seem like it belongs to you, but in fact, it has been put into your head by the very man you wish to thank for stabbing you in the back. How do you like being a thrall?”

Nightwalker chuckled.

“Actually, I like it quite a bit. He handed my ship back to me and kept my son alive… I know that I am a deadbeat dad, but that doesn’t mean that I don’t care.”

Cassie smiled coldly.

She knew that this conversation was pointless — after all, the first thing Asterion took away from the people he enthralled was the ability to think critically, especially so about their mental state and actions. About their nature as his thralls.

There was a quiet rustle — Nightwalker’s clothes shifted as he moved, stretching.

“That said, I am a bit indignant at the moment. I really don’t know why Asterion cares about taking you off the board so much — enough to send me to deal with you personally, no less. Soul Reaper is one thing, but did he really need to mobilize someone of my caliber just to deal with Changing Star’s secretary?”

Cassie’s smile widened a little.

“I am going to enjoy crushing you.”

Nightwalker laughed quietly, seemingly enjoying their conversation.

“Oh? Are you done trying to buy time, young lady?”

Instead of answering, Cassie silently unleashed the Crushing upon him.