(66ch) what's Lost from Light?

Little did Sunny know that this day would be etched in his memory forever, a turning point in his life as a hunter. The air was thick with tension as he moved through the narrow streets, surrounded by fellow hunters. Her presence should have been comforting, but Sunny couldn't shake the feeling that something was amiss.

His thoughts drifted to her, the one whose absence left a void in his heart. "If she were here, I'd feel a bit more at ease," he mused, his mind replaying their last encounter a month ago. The memory left a bitter taste in his mouth, made worse by her sudden disappearance and radio silence.

*Rin, are you out there?* he called out through their mental connection, as he had done countless times before. But as always, only silence answered.

The hunting party set out at high noon, their destination the ruins of a fallen lighthouse at the city's edge. Effie led the way, with Sunny scouting ahead, their eyes peeled for danger in this deadly urban jungle.

Their plan was simple, but in the Dark City, simplicity was no guarantee of safety. Everyone was on high alert, ready for the worst. Little did they know, the universe had a cruel surprise in store for them.

Halfway to their goal, a sound pierced the eerie silence. Effie's raised fist brought the group to a halt. Sunny's heart raced as he watched her peer into the fog, her face a mask of foreboding. Instinctively, he moved closer to Cassie, his hand hovering near where the Midnight Shard would materialize.

The silence stretched, taut as a bowstring. Then, in a heartbeat, Effie's eyes widened in horror.

"Scatter!" she cried.

The hunters dispersed like leaves in a gale. Sunny grabbed Cassie and dove for cover, his body moving on pure instinct.

There, in the middle of the street, stood a nightmare made flesh. A massive, winged creature, its pale body and black feathers painted crimson with the blood of fallen hunters. Its beak gaped open, revealing row upon row of needle-sharp fangs.

A Spire Messenger! Sunny's blood ran cold at the sight.

As if to heighten the horror of the moment, a long, red tongue slithered out from the creature's maw, lapping at the blood on its grotesque face. In that instant, Sunny knew that this hunt would change everything, and nothing would ever be the same again.

The clash between the hunters and the Spire messenger was a tale of blood and desperation. It seemed like a hopeless battle, with the hunters' weapons and memories proving ineffective against the creature's might. Yet, their fierce resistance might have been enough to give the beast pause.

In this dire moment, it was Effie who turned the tide. As if in a dance of death, she summoned her weapon and leapt forward with grace and power. Sunny watched in awe as her lithe form moved with deadly precision, muscles coiling like serpents beneath her olive skin. In a heartbeat, she transformed into a living projectile, her attack carrying enough force to cleave a mountain in two.

By some miracle, Effie's weapon found its mark, piercing the Messenger's pale hide and drawing first blood. The creature's agonized scream rent the air as it lashed out in fury. But Effie was ready, a shield materializing on her arm as she braced herself against the devastating blow. The ground beneath her feet shattered, yet she stood firm, a testament to her indomitable warrior spirit.

With a wild grin, blood staining her teeth, Effie twisted her weapon, eliciting another cry of pain from the beast. It was clear the Fallen Beast had not expected such fierce resistance from these "ants," let alone to be wounded by them. In a flurry of wings and fury, it scattered the Sleepers and fled to the skies, taking its fallen prey with it.

As the dust settled and the survivors tended to their wounds, Sunny's elation at their unlikely victory was short-lived. His eyes fell upon Effie's weapon – a beautiful, ancient bronze spear – and a chill ran down his spine. In that moment, fragments of memory and prophecy collided in his mind, painting a terrifying picture of what was to come.

The words of Cassie's vision echoed in his thoughts: "A woman with a bronze spear drowning in a tide of monsters..." With sudden, horrifying clarity, Sunny realized that the apocalyptic future Cassie had foreseen was not a relic of the past, but a glimpse of their own destiny. The realization hit him like a thunderbolt, leaving him reeling as he grappled with the weight of this newfound knowledge.

****

The twilight cast long shadows across the settlement as Sunny stood face to face with Harper. The young man's timid smile and desperate eyes stirred something dark within Sunny, a violent urge he struggled to contain.

"I... I wanted to thank you for inviting me into your home this morning," Harper stammered, his voice barely above a whisper.

Sunny's mind raced, torn between the weight of his newfound knowledge and the immediate threat before him. He knew Harper was a spy, but exposing him now would be a mistake. Instead, he forced himself to remain calm and play along.

"Yeah. We can talk," Sunny replied, his voice steady despite the turmoil within.

As they made their way to Harper's humble abode, Sunny couldn't shake the feeling that they were surrounded by walking corpses. The future he had glimpsed weighed heavily on his shoulders, threatening to crush him with each step.

Inside Harper's crude hut, they sat before a low table. The spy produced a jar of milky white liquor, pouring it into a chipped clay cup with an air of reverence. Sunny downed the drink in one go, feeling a warmth spread through his body, offering a brief respite from his troubled thoughts.

Their conversation danced around dangerous topics, with Harper probing for information about Nephis and her abilities. Sunny carefully wove truths and lies, painting a false picture of his companion's powers. But as the liquor flowed and his guard slipped, Sunny made a critical error.

"Probably the same way I did," he said, when asked about Nephis's True Name.

The moment the words left his lips, Sunny knew he had made a grave mistake. He tried to laugh it off, but Harper, emboldened by what he perceived as progress, pressed further.

"Oh! Of course, of course, Lord Sunless! What is your True Name then?" Harper asked with a grin, unaware of the storm brewing within Sunny.

Time seemed to slow as Sunny stared at the young man before him. The familiar pressure built in his mind, threatening to force out an answer he could not give. In that moment, faced with an impossible choice, Sunny's survival instincts took over.

With lightning speed, Sunny drove the knife into Harper's frail body, lunging forward. 

The flimsy wooden table shattered against the wall, splintering into fragments as it was flung aside. His free hand clamped violently over the young man's face, slamming him to the floor and stifling any sound before it could escape. 

Harper's wide eyes burned with pain and terror, locked onto Sunny's in a silent, deafening plea. 

…Why? 

Hot blood slicked Sunny's fingers as the agony of the Flame finally consumed him. His whisper was ragged, barely more than a breath: 

"Lost from Light… I am… Lost… Lost from Light…"

Harper's trembling fingers brushed his own face, smearing blood that mingled with tears. His weak attempts to push Sunny away faltered his strength was gone. 

Gritting his teeth hard he had caught his lip and drawn blood, Sunny twisted the knife deeper, his own silent plea echoing in his mind. 

'Don't look at me… please, don't look at me.'

Then

stillness

Harper's accusing gaze dulled into emptiness, his eyes unfocused, the frantic pulse beneath his robes fading into silence. 

As if summoned by the act, the Spell's voice slithered into Sunny's ear: 

[You have slain Dreamer Harper.] 

[Your shadow grows stronger.]

His thoughts fractured until the creak of wood snapped him back. 

At the entrance, a woman stood frozen, her dark hair framing a face twisted with shock. 

'Of course.'

She'd been gone a month. He'd wished for her return every day and now, the one moment she reappeared, she found him drenched in blood, his true name spilled like a curse. Her expression shifted:

anger, confusion, devastation, before her voice cracked the silence. 

"SUNNY, WHAT ARE YOU—"

A violent spasm wracked his body. He doubled over, retching, then collapsed to the floor, his bloodied hand still clutching the knife smearing crimson across his face. 

In an instant, she was on him, dragging him to the wall. She moved with frantic urgency, and before he could protest, icy water poured down his throat, a fleeting relief against the fire in his veins. 

Then silence. 

She sank beside him, her gaze flickering to the blade in his grip. Minutes stretched between them, heavy and suffocating. 

"First time?"

Sunny nodded slowly, his face still bloodless as he sagged against the wall. 

"You never forget the first…"

Her voice was distant, but her eyes locked onto Harper's body and it told a darker story. He'd seen her kill before, but this was different. There was something haunted in her gaze, as if she wasn't just looking at Harper, but through him, into a memory she couldn't escape. 

A shiver crawled up Sunny's spine as he studied her. The usual sharpness of her eyes had hardened into something colder, something that made his skin prickle. 

"Who was your first?" 

he asked, voice rough. 

For a long moment, she didn't answer. Then, slowly, her hand rose to her throat, fingers brushing the skin there, light as a whisper. 

"I was eleven, a soldier from a different clan found me…. I used the gun in his holster"

He looks down at his own hands again and looks at the blade, the weight of what he's just done pressing deeper. Rin nudges his shoulder with hers, just once not quite comfort, but solidarity.

Sunny hears her speak flat, but not unkind "It doesn't get easier. You just get better at carrying it."

Sunny swallowed hard, his throat tight as he met her gaze. She stared back, unreadable, before speaking, her voice light, almost innocent.

But the next words were a slow, creeping horror. Each syllable hammered against his ribs, his heartbeat pounding louder, louder—

"Hey what is lost from Lig-