Nephis woke up with a start. Her breathing was ragged, and the world around her took its time to come into focus. Her vision was blurry, and a high-pitched, almost unbearable ringing echoed in her ears. It was a strange, artificial sound—like her body was reacting to an invisible threat her mind couldn't yet identify.
But the most unsettling part was the sensation in her head.
Just moments ago... she had been dreaming about something.
About what?
Why couldn't she remember?
Nephis was not forgetful—especially not with her dreams. She usually remembered them with surgical clarity, particularly when they carried an emotional weight. But now... it was as if the memory had been ripped out at the root. As if a dense shadow had cloaked her mind just as she tried to hold on to the last fragment of her subconscious.
Nothing remained.
Only the echo of an emotion.
A horrible, indescribable feeling.
As if something was terribly wrong.
As if she were forgetting something important. Something she shouldn't forget. Something her mind—whether out of cruelty or self-preservation—refused to show her.
It felt like a betrayal from her own brain.
And the only thing she could compare it to...
Was the raw instinct of a wounded animal cornered by death. Skin prickling, breath sharp—like she'd just stared into the abyss itself.
But it wasn't the fear of a child. It wasn't like when she was eight, fearing that assassins would break into her room to finish what the enemies of the Flame clan had started. It wasn't even like those old nightmares where she dreamed of a happy life, only to wake alone in that cold, hollow mansion.
No.
This was something else.
More primal. More absolute.
A fear that came not from any tangible threat, but from something deeper. Something abstract. Something she couldn't understand.
A nightmare?
Maybe. But even her worst dreams had some kind of logic. An origin. An image. Something.
This time... there was nothing.
And that terrified her.
Sunny's echo hadn't reacted either—which was even more disturbing. He was always there in her dreams. Sometimes as a protective shadow, sometimes as an anchor that stopped her from falling too far.
But this time?
Nothing.
And if the demonic steed, that shadow-born echo from the essence of nightmares—a creature feared even by Saints and First Circle horrors—if he had felt fear...
Then whatever had visited her dream hadn't been just a nightmare.
It had been something worse.
Nephis sat with that feeling for what felt like forever, trapped in silence as the remnants of something forgotten pulsed faintly in her chest.
Slowly, her mind began to settle.
Empty explanations drifted in, like whispers through mist: Maybe it was just a sad nightmare, she told herself. Or maybe it had been a beautiful dream... so perfect that its loss now ached like a fresh wound.
That had to be it, right?
And while Nephis wasn't the ice statue everyone thought her to be, she also wasn't exactly skilled at processing deep emotion. She wasn't prone to sentimentality... but no one could blame her for that, not with the childhood she'd endured.
Still, even if she didn't see herself as emotional, there was no denying the truth: she had changed since becoming a Sleeper. That much was obvious.
But more than that—everything had changed the day she met Sunny on the Forgotten Shore... over three years ago now.
Sunny had been many things to her. A comrade. Her first student. An ally in the darkest depths of her first Nightmare. And eventually, a friend—though at first, a paranoid and reluctant one.
But... wasn't that exactly how she had treated him?
They had forged each other in that hellish year.
From the moment they met, both their worlds had begun to shift. Like two stars in opposite orbits pulled together, they slowly aligned through patience, pain, and perseverance. They had learned to trust each other.
They saw one another's flaws with no filters. They saw each other's shadows... and the light they tried to protect.
They clashed. They argued. They drifted. But they also respected each other. Not out of duty, but out of the weight of their shared strength, of their determination to survive.
Those fights—some foolish, some necessary—shaped them. Not just as warriors, but as people.
Similar pasts. Parallel destinies. And yet, as different as day and night.
A boy who just wanted to survive, who had only ever walked alone, found something to fight for—someone. Thanks to her.
And a girl with a dream so cruel and impossible learned to trust another with her hopes. Learned she didn't have to carry everything alone. Thanks to him.
How cheesy, she thought, a small smile tugging at her lips.
But she didn't deny it.
With that thought, the nightmare began to fade.
She told herself that if it had already been forgotten... maybe it wasn't that important after all.
And in that moment—for the first time in what felt like an eternity—she exhaled.
She allowed herself to breathe.
And if it was important... what's the worst that could happen?
An innocent question.
A dangerous one.
Because what Nephis didn't know...
Was that she should have remembered.
She should have fought to hold on to that dream, to understand what it showed her, what had been stolen so quietly.
Because what was forgotten... was not just a dream.
It was a warning.
A fracture.
A glimpse of a future on the verge of breaking.
And now, lost in the mist of her mind, only one truth remained—one she hadn't yet realized:
She had made a mistake.
And the price of forgetting... would be steep.
⸻
Hours had passed in a slow but comfortable silence, and finally, the sleeping prince —or rather, the sleeping princess, Nephis thought with amusement— had awakened.
And that moment... was glorious.
Nephis hadn't slept entirely. Even after her strange nightmare, she had adamantly refused to miss the opportunity to witness Sunny waking up. It's not every day you get to see a feared Ascended open his eyes slowly, only to find himself being held like a giant teddy bear. Or a human pillow.
And this time... this time, Nephis had gone further than ever before.
Of course, she had an excuse.
The sleeping bag, while large, wasn't made for two. At least not for two athletic warriors. So, by logic —or so she told herself— it was necessary to sleep pressed together to avoid the cold.
But the truth... was that she wanted it that way.
Sunny didn't complain. He didn't say a word. Probably too embarrassed to do so. Being in the arms of such a beautiful woman, feeling the warmth of her body, the curve of her waist against him... yes, it was embarrassing. But if Nephis didn't bring it up, he certainly wouldn't either. It was a silent agreement.
Still... Nephis wasn't naïve. She knew Sunny would get his revenge. Sooner or later. He always did. But she wasn't going to make it easy for him.
But first...
"I'm hungry," Nephis said, stretching like a cat under the sun.
Sunny nodded, still half-asleep. With a simple motion, he summoned his Memory: the Covetous Coffer. A figure of shadows and metal appeared between them, opening with a soft, mechanical click. From inside, Sunny pulled out a perfectly preserved cut of meat wrapped in black waxed paper.
"What's on the menu today, Chef Nephis?"
"Meat," she replied solemnly. "And fire."
They lit a small improvised fire in a clearing sheltered by rocks. The air was cold, but the crackling flame quickly became a cozy center between them. Nephis took the meat and, with surprisingly deft hands for someone carved from marble, cut it into even portions.
She placed it on a flat stone fashioned as a skillet —a trick Sunny vaguely remembered from TV— and held it over the fire with a thick branch.
Soon, the aroma filled the air. Lightly seasoned meat, juicy and sizzling on contact with the hot stone. Sunny watched in silence, captivated not so much by the cooking process but by Nephis's focused expression. She looked peaceful. Almost happy.
"You're good at this," he said suddenly.
"I can kill dragons, Sunny. Cooking meat isn't that hard."
They both smiled.
When it was done, Nephis handed him a piece. They ate in silence, savoring each bite. There was something magical in that moment, something that didn't need words: the warmth of the fire, the taste of a shared meal, the comfort of each other's presence.
And just as the last bite disappeared, Sunny knew the time had come.
Nephis had relaxed.
Her guard was down.
It was the perfect moment.
His revenge, carefully calculated, was within reach.
Everything... perfectly planned.
Nothing could go wrong.
—
Everything went wrong.
Nephis looked on with amusement as he flopped to the ground. She had no idea what exactly he was trying to do, but whatever his plan was —it had failed spectacularly.
She wasn't even sure what the revenge was supposed to be.
And that made it even funnier.
She dropped to the ground, trying not to laugh. She knew it was rude to mock her boyfriend like that, but honestly... how could she not?
Sunny had always been clever. Sharp. A natural strategist. And this? This had been... a glorious disaster.
Next to her, Sunny lay on the ground, confused. His face was a mess of barely contained emotion: furrowed brow, bitten lips, and narrowed eyes like he was trying to solve the mysteries of the universe.
Nephis watched him with quiet fondness behind her barely suppressed laughter.
"You okay, 'great avenger'?" she teased.
Sunny mumbled something unintelligible as he got back up, his pride bruised but intact.
Nephis, radiant with laughter, thought to herself... yes. Life, even in the middle of a nightmare, could have perfect moments.
But then, to her absolute horror, Nephis saw Sunny's smile widen.
Not a regular smile.
A malicious, slow, predator's grin. The kind a feline gives when it has finally caught its prey.
And she... was the prey.
A traitorous shadow —that's what Sunny was. Always had been. But this time, he had taken it to a new level. From the start, everything had been part of the plan. The clumsy fall, the confused expression, the frustrated gestures... all an act. A perfect performance worthy of a standing ovation.
Nephis swallowed hard as a chill ran down her spine.
She turned.
Slowly.
Very slowly.
Dread creeping over her like ice.
But it was too late.
Lost from Light had won.
Sunny, her favorite shadow and now sworn nemesis, lunged at her without mercy.
Nephis didn't know what to expect. Maybe a joke, maybe a shove... but not this.
Tickles.
Tickles.
The attack was brutal. Unrelenting. Sunny struck her side with surgical precision. His long, slender fingers glided over her skin like feathers, and the result was immediate.
Nephis burst into laughter so sudden and pure, it didn't even feel like her own.
"N-..." she gasped between giggles, trying to resist.
But it was no use.
Sunny had found her weakness.
And he showed no mercy.
Nephis tried to roll away, to fight back —but her body refused. Every light touch sent waves of uncontrollable laughter through her like jolts of electricity.
Her warrior's muscles, trained to endure pain, were utterly unprepared for this.
The tickles were too much.
And the worst part... the absolute worst part... was that she couldn't say a word.
Shadow Bond.
Any word, any phrase, even a breath misinterpreted as a command, could be taken as an order. If she told him to stop... he would have to. But Nephis wasn't going to sink that low. No. Her pride wouldn't allow it.
So... she endured.
Laughing.
Suffering.
In silence.
Her back arched, Sunny's fingers now trailing to her belly with his cursed, unconventional war tactic. Every motion felt amplified, as though the nightmare spell itself had heightened her sensitivity.
Her skin bristled like a cornered cat's, and for a moment, Nephis feared her dignity would die right there, among giggles, tickles, and the triumphant grin of her damn boyfriend.
She tried to elbow him. Weakly. She tried to grab his wrists. Failed.
The attack was ruthless.
You... you... bastard, she thought, unable to form actual words.
And Sunny, of course, knew.
He knew everything.
Which is why his smile remained —unchanged. Larger. He was enjoying every second. Every failed defense. Every choked laugh Nephis tried and failed to hold in.
Sunny was meticulous. Cruel. But elegant.
And now... a master of revenge.
Nephis knew the only thing she could do was survive.
And later...
Claim her own vengeance.
Because if Sunny thought this would end here, he was very, very wrong.
But for now, in the middle of desperate laughter, bristling skin, and the silent battle to avoid triggering a command, Nephis realized one cruel truth.
Sunny didn't need a weapon to defeat her.
He just needed to know where to tickle.
End of chapter.