Dusk and Dawn

Six people stood on the dark shore, a golden rope tied around their waists. Pieces of cloth and melted wax covered their eyes. Sunny held the rope and, using shadow sense, moved with the skill and agility of someone who could see.

Sunny led the staggering cohort members to the boat. After they boarded, he untied the ropes fastened to the stone pillar. Once the ropes were untied, he grabbed the oar and pushed the boat away. Soon, the cold fog covered everything.

The further they advanced into the fog, the more they felt like they were leaving one world and entering another. A world darker, more terrifying, and much older. No one spoke, and the silence was only broken by the sound of the oar striking the water. Sunny limited the shadow Sense to the boat and a small area around it. He didn't want to alert anything sleeping here.

After some time that Sunny couldn't count no matter how he tried, he felt something solid in the void ahead of him as he moved forward further. The bottom side of the boat scraped against solid ground. Then Sunny jumped from the boat and started tying the rope around the stone pillar. Through the shadow sense, Sunny felt another boat floating next to theirs. It was the boat of the First Lord's cohort, where they had met their end.

After tying the pillar, he helped the cohort disembark from the boat. And after turning his back to the dark river, he led the cohort by pulling the golden rope and stepped forward, followed by the cohort into the tunnel. A shiver ran down Sunny's skin as he entered the tunnel, then he spread the sense of shadows a bit more and sensed the features of the tunnel.

The shadows here were ancient and very old, as was the shape of the tunnel. It seemed it had emerged from something different from humans or natural processes, as if they were inside a living creature itself. An ancient one.

The long tunnel turned into another maze. Ahead of him, he felt it… he felt a human shadow. Sunny pulled the golden rope, making the cohort stop. He felt the emptiness and indescribable sadness emanating from the shadow. His heart softened for it, then he spoke in a low tone to it.

"Come, you poor shadow. You lost your master and could not find solace and oblivion in the shadow Realm. So I hope you find it within me."

The shadow turned, frozen by the sudden command that carried authority recognized even among its kind. The shadow moved on its own toward Sunny with reverent yet lost steps at the same time. Sunny sensed its emotions: despair, hope, confusion, sadness. Then, when it got closer to Sunny, the shadow looked at him reverently and extended its hand. Sunny took the shadow's hand, then heard the spell's voice:

[Your shadow grows stronger.]

Sunny moved after giving the shadow the solace and peace it deserved. He traveled through the maze, and even with his memories, he couldn't find the right paths, so he stumbled several times. But he found the right way and along it three shadows to whom he gave solace and peace.

Sunny felt someone pulling the golden rope. When he turned his head, he found Cassie pointing her finger toward one of the tunnels. Sunny moved in the direction she pointed, and soon the sound of flowing water reached his ears.

After some time, they reached another shore. Sunny knew they had not been going in circles but rather that this was an entirely different river. What gave him this certainty was the bridge that existed instead of the dock and boats.

Without hesitation, Sunny led the cohort to the bridge. The cohort walked across the bridge, leaving behind the dark maze. And they felt the fog around them gradually lessen. The silence was broken only by the sound of their footsteps on the bridge, their labored breaths, and the sound of flowing water.

The fog gradually diminished and then disappeared. They crossed the river without any problems and stepped once again onto solid ground. Sunny spoke in a hoarse voice:

"We've made it. Take the clothes off your eyes and remove the wax."

After removing the wax and cloths from their eyes, the cohort found themselves standing on a rocky shore inside a vast cavern. Through it flowed the underground river without obstruction. And some distance away from them, the cave wall fell away, revealing the mouth of a wide tunnel within it.

Sunny turned his head and realized that just a few meters behind them sat a human skeleton upright, its back facing the river. This was the remains of the First Lord of the Bright Castle. Sunny was overwhelmed with sadness and pity upon seeing the First Lord of the Bright Castle dying alone in this cursed place. And worse, he had died after witnessing the death of his friends.

Sunny stepped forward, and Nephis followed beside him. When they stood above the human skeleton, Sunny spoke:

"Your nightmare is over. We'll finish what you started. I hope you find solace in this."

The cohort gathered around the First Lord's remains and stood there for a period of silence in respect for this man who had given all he had to bring hope to the other Sleepers. Sunny sighed as Nephis turned her head to him, pointing at the thin crown resting on the First Lord's brow.

"Take it, Neph. This memory is of no use to me, but with you, you'll use it better."

Nephis frowned, wanting to argue, but Sunny waved his hand in refusal. Nephis extended her hands and gently lifted the thin crown from the skeleton.

Countless sparks of light burst around the cohort, then quickly vanished as they were absorbed into the Soul essence. This was the Dawn Shard. The cohort turned their gaze to Nephis, then to the First Lord. They all spoke in one voice:

"Your nightmare is over."

After the cohort moved a little distance away from him, Sunny summoned a storage memory and placed the remains of the First Lord inside it. As he rose, Sunny went over to the cohort, where Nephis was talking about the final statue located here. His arrival:

"This memory was one of the goals of our journey, but it's not the entire goal. Somewhere ahead of us lies one of the seven statues, guarded by a warden who might be strong. So, if you want, you can withdraw from this, and I'll go along with anyone who wants to go and kill it, then return… But if you come with us, don't deliver the finishing blow to the creature until you touch the statue first."

They moved toward the tunnel Nephis was looking at, and upon entering it, it took them some time to reach a vast cavern large enough to contain the Bright Castle. In the center of the cavern was a massive pillar of dark stone. It was easy to distinguish the silhouette of the giant statue. Sunny summoned [promise of Solace] and also Crab.

And in the darkness, a silhouette moved and lunged forward. The creature was a strange mix between a lion and a raven, its body pale like a corpse, with multiple limbs extending from its body. And its entire body was covered in feathers, with a massive body larger than a Crab in size. But that didn't matter.

Sunny wrapped himself in five shadows and ordered Crab to restrain the Spire Messenger while he touched the statue. Power surged through Sunny's muscles as he dashed forward, dodging the claws of the Spire Messenger while Crab and the Messenger grappled with each other. The cohort members moved and used their weapons, with Effie throwing her spear forcefully and striking one of the Spire Messengers' wings, while another black arrow pierced through. Caster moved and barely avoided being crushed by the two battling creatures.

Sunny quickly touched the statue, then ordered Crab to press the creature down firmly and pin it. Crab's pincers seized the Spire Messenger's wings while one of its scythes struck the raven's beak and split it in half. The Tower's Messenger let out a pained and terrified roar due to its desperate situation. It tried to fly, but Crab's weight pressed it down and pinned it to the ground. Its limbs burned and were severed by white flames, while its wings were shredded and in a pitiful state due to the pincers.

Sunny reached the Spire Messenger and, with a swift motion using [Promise of Solace], inflicted a deep wound across the Tower's Messenger's neck. His blade passed through the Spire Messenger's neck as if slicing paper. Something strange happened after making the deep cut across the Spire Messenger's neck—it wasn't supposed to sever the neck, but it did. The sound of the spell rang in Sunny's ears, announcing his victory:

[You have slain a Fallen Monster: Spire Messenger.]

[Your shadow grows stronger.]

[You have received a memory: Dusk Shard.]