Crimson twilight flashed through the windows . Falling on enchanting white marble floor.
Restless footsteps could be heard as Cassie paced back and forth . Tension flashing on her beautiful face .
A disaster had been bestowed upon fate. As an accomplished seer of the current Era, she had naturally sensed it.
She had seen the distant future . The promised future that the fate endowed. Various events, happening whether good or bad had been seen by her.
Yet no such occurrence had ever been recorded in any visions of hers.
Naturally she used her aspect to delve into the vast tapestry. However what met her was chaos with embedded gaping voids rapidly growing .
The promised future was breaking down . Very Soon no string of fate would make decisions on behalf of the world.
She knew what had happened.
'For Fate had been broken'..
The event she had been tirelessly working for ever since returning from forgotten shore had occurred right in front of her eyes; outside her control.
It had occurred so suddenly that she was left in disbelief.
She did not have any definite guesses to how it could have happened . But there was maybe only person who held the power to do so .
'Sunny'
She also felt fear . For she did not know what could now transpire in the near future . After all she had made a mistake. She had betrayed sunny .
Only after returning to the waking world did she realize the extent to what she had done.
Yet fate held mercy for she saw a way to mend her mistake. And it happened to coincide with her goal of breaking fate and preventing the horrific future.
So she had to do it . Even if it meant manipulating sunny to be a weapon against fare.
And Now it lay bare. Even though fate had been broken. If shadow bond was still there can she still break it ? After all there would no fate to support her anymore.
Would she forever remain helpless. She felt lost and guilty.
Footsteps broke her thoughts. It was Nephis coming to her imposingly. A misguided person may think of her as angry but she knew better.
Nephis was bad at expressing herself. A result of her childhood. All innocence had been stricken deep by the wallows of betrayals, attempts at her life and terror.
****************************************
Nephis's feet landed on the magnificent marble hall .
Cassie stood there, watching her silently.
She immediately took to her questions
" Something has happened to Sunny , do you know about it ?"
The blind seer ceased and then immediately followed " What happened Nephis?"
Her urgently approaching her and directly asking about Sunny could only mean something significant had happened. There were many guesses in her , and knowing more could isolate the truth.
Nephis gaze wandered through the hall and then she answered slowly. " I lost contact with him "
She knew the intricacies of the connection between Sunny and Nephis. It meant one thing . Shadow Bond had either been isolated or broken. It coinciding with the destruction of fate meant something she had hoped to accomplish had now really occurred .
Immediately joy bloomed on her face. But then came the terror.
The world was Merciless and cruel after all. Never did good came without consequences. She could only helplessly dread at what could've occurred in the faraway lands.
Sensing Nephis's intense gaze. She truthfully answered her question.
"Something big occurred, fate is in shambles and I couldn't divine anything." She spoke softly.
Lying to Nephis meant no benefit here.
Nephis showed a look a understanding . Then spoke"We need to know what happened in Antarctica"
*********************************************
Weary footsteps echoed in a white marble floor.
Two listless bodies silently walked in tandom.
Kai had a grevious expression as he took heavy yet weary steps. The usually enthusiastic and energetic Effie now looked on grim eyes.
Yesterday Cassie and Nephis had asked of him to do an inquiry about the recent happenings of Antartica. He had been told that it was very important and related to Sunny.
He and Effie had naturally already signed off for the Second Evacuation Army.
Unlike the hastily organized first evacuation army , the second evacuation army was far more organized and strategic.
Naturally,They had been givens lessons on military strategies, and military leadership skills for what was to come.
He was already a master plus It became good propaganda for a former celebrity to go the Frontline. So he naturally was treated special and made connections.
Despite joining it , Cassie and Nephis seemed too reluctant to rely on anything from valor. So the task for inquiry fell on him.
What met him though was only grim and grimmer news. Massacre and fall of entire cities . Destruction of large refugee caravans.
The sinking of entire ships carrying millions.
His Flaw had molded him to accept the true nature of the world yet it felt that thorns were prickingling his heart.
It was all death and destruction. Every that could go wrong was going wrong.
Yet one news seemed to echo above others. Falcon Scott being abandoned with the 20 million people that still lived in its protection.
A corrupted titan, which even Saints , the strongest mankind could offer had fled from became their hopeless deaths.
Sunny had been there and did not return.
Four masters had led a desperate charge against the corrupted titan with the remaining awakened and military personnel .
After that Falcon Scott fell silent . Never being heard from again .
'Sunny had been a part of them'
He had not thought of Sunny as a righteous person . Yet here he had been , standing up and fighting with his life on the life for strangers.
Back then when he had been infected with the Nightmare self , he was scared . He had thought of himself to die a renowned singer . But then came the Spell, burdening him with his first nightmare. His flaw , even when he recieved , he felt joy for it not seemed like the despair that was circulated throughout the world.
Only after suffering through it , did he realize himself .The world was cruel while he, "Pathetic" ,he waa after all,too naive, too innocent . He lived in a world of lies , deluding himself.
Only after getting his flaw did he realize how the world was . The wolf lurked in sheep's clothing . All those he trusted only ever lied to him . His relationships, his friends it all turned to be a facade leaving him with nothing.
Soon he was sent to the Forgotten Shore. There no fame, no career, no night angle mattered . Only survival brought through brutality. One day the brutality met him , he was locked in a cellar well , poised to be exploited and then mercilessly discarded and killed .
But Sunny came and saved him . If there was anyone he was the most grateful and indebted to . It would only be whom he considered his best friend. "Sunless".
Despite imagining the worst of consequences , he held onto desperate hope that Sunny would back again come back and tease him about his ridiculous adventures that somehow always turned out to be true.
Though Desperate ,He felt Hope.
************************************************
Effie walked in pale steps . She had heard about it from Kai. First she had felt disbelief thinking that the news must be exaggerated.
But it was a facade her mind created to not accept it .
In childhood, she had contracted a disease . Her physical condition only continued to worsen until she was put in a wheelchair.
Her world had become full of sickness as her condition continued to worsen. It was a certainty she would endure her entire life trapped in that cold metal wheelchair. Showered with pity and no respite . No end to her suffering. After all nothing could cure her sickness . Her parents had poured in their everything to try to find a cure for her. Going as far as to hire an extravagant Awakened healers who could cure any injury . His efforts brought a temporary relief but he told it himself that even for a magical awakened . Her condition was too intricate and could not be healed . There the last of Hope of hers was shattered.
She was indebted to her parents too much and wanted not to be a burden anymore. So she prayed , prayed to whatever could answer her in this dying world.
But the dead gods came to listen . She was infected by the Spell. Many feared the first nightmare thinking of it as a death sentence.
Yet she felt Hope. Awakened possessed unnatural powers , maybe by Awakening her new strength and vitality could cure her.
Ever since she was sent to the Forgotten Shore. Her ways and mind had changed . Her mind found joy and excitement even in the living hell of the dark city. Where other found themselves trapped in hell , despairing to get out of it . She felt free , unbound and not burdened by her true physical form.
Upon returning to the waking world,her world was once again bound and constricted. Even as a awakened she had to be in an wheelchair.
Only by becoming a master could she be truly free. But the chances were either slim or nonexistent.
But in that time of despair , Sunny had come and asked of her to be a part of his cohort.The slim chance has been given to her by him.
She was grateful to him for that . In fact she was grateful to him for many things . He had protected her from Gunlaug in the forgotten shore . In the crimson spire , she knew without him the chances of her returning would be even negligent. Maybe she would not have been one to made it out.
Then he helped her become a master . She was proud of him as her apprentice . Indebted to his actions and Cared about him as a Friend.
She wished to tease him about his antics one again and then maybe see his angry or embarrassed face . She wanted to see him alive and well again.
She felt Hope.