(Sunny's POV)
"It's... this isn't..."
The words just wouldn't come out of my mouth.
I couldn't muster up a defense, couldn't conjure a complex web of deception.
All I could do was stare at the sleeper standing in the doorway and wait for the inevitable judgment coming my way.
A pair of purple eyes bore down on me, the gravity of what I had just done and who I had just done it in front of not lost on me.
Silence ensued, a silence loaded with a thousand questions.
"Why?"
Audun looked at me not with judgment or fear, but with pure confusion.
I swallowed down the vomit building in my chest, trying my best to summon a calm nonchalance that I didn't possess.
"Why? ... The bastard was asking too many questions."
I desperately tried to control the subtle tremor in my voice.
"He was a spy sent by Tessai... I saw him making a report to the Castle Guards earlier this morning..."
My heart beat against my chest like a drum, each thump echoing in my ears like a thunderclap.
"He... got me drunk and asked me questions about Neph. Do I know her well? What's her aspect ability? How did she get her True Name?... Y'know, stuff like that."
Audun silently scrutinized me, his expression absolutely unreadable.
"Do you... not believe me?"
My thoroughly emptied stomach began to sink rapidly with anxiety.
I watched as a bitter smile spread across his face.
"Believing... not believing... What does it matter? I'm just concerned- Maybe even a little afraid that you all are turning into people I no longer know..."
He continued, albeit with a somber tone.
"I heard everything, Sunny. I know that you're hiding something from me, that Harper touched on something that he shouldn't have..."
An inexplicable feeling wormed its way up my spine as he continued.
"I... I want to help you, Sunny. I really do. But I'm tired of all the lies, tired of all the deception, and most of all, tired of being constantly left in the dark."
He looked sad, almost hurt.
"I'll help you hide the body, I'll help you clean up this mess... but tell me the truth. Just... be honest with me for once, honest about whatever the hell is going on, and I swear that I'll do my best to help you through it."
Pure goodwill. In response to my gruesome murder, he gave me pure goodwill.
A hoarse croak got stuck in my throat, transforming into an incredulous question.
"But why?"
Audun simply chuckled.
"Because I have nothing in this world except you three. You, Cassie, and Nephis. You three are all that I have."
He leveled his gaze with mine.
"Please just... let me help you."
----------------------------------------------------
(Audun's POV)
I watched as Sunny slowly stood up and wiped his bloodied hands on a piece of seaweed.
He walked over to one of the fallen chairs, propping it up before promptly taking a seat.
Sunny's obsidian eyes locked onto mine as silence overtook the hut.
I waited patiently, waited as he seemed to come to a decision.
A weak sigh escaped his chest as he groaned into his hands.
"Would you, uh... mind closing the door?"
I shrugged, but complied.
With the door now closed, the only source of light in the hut was a few candles Harper had lit before getting shanked.
The dim candlelight lit up Sunny's face with warm hues, the orange glow filling the space with an indescribable feeling.
"You wanted to know why I actually killed Harper?"
I nodded as Sunny let out a small laugh.
"It's a long story... You sure you want to hear it?"
A small smile spread across my face.
"If I didn't, you think I'd still be here?"
Sunny shrugged.
"Just wanted to make sure."
He hesitated for a moment before a question worked its way out of his throat.
"Do... Do you still remember your first nightmare?"
I nodded with a small sigh.
"It truly sucked."
Sunny scoffed.
"Mine didn't just suck, it was borderline impossible."
He smiled bitterly as he continued.
"When I got sucked into my First Nightmare, I woke up as a slave, but not just any slave... I was a temple slave of the Shadow God, and I, along with a bunch of other slaves, were being moved down a mountain by a slave caravan."
A hint of resentment crept into his hoarse voice.
"And, since slavery wasn't enough, the spell also decided to graciously gift me a blood thirsty awakened tyrant to complete my trial package."
Sunny shook his head tiredly.
"To make a long story short, I managed to come out of the ordeal alive, but the aspect I was given as a result of my efforts came with a shitty innate ability."
He hesitated for a moment, but pushed on with a hoarse voice.
"I guess the spell was intent on making me a slave, cause, well, if anyone were to recite my true name, I'll become bound to them, forced to serve them till one of us kicks the bucket."
A frown tugged at the corners of my mouth.
"So when Harper-"
"Yep, I accidentally let it slip that I had a True Name, and I wasn't about to offer up my freedom to a creepy bastard like him. If I were to serve a master, they'd be a bit taller, curvier, and- uh... never mind."
Sunny coughed into his fist lightly and turned his gaze to the floor.
I let out a chuckle, but a question still flared in my mind.
"Couldn't you have... y'know, lied? Isn't that you're whole shtick?"
Sunny grimaced.
"You wound me, Audun. I'm the most honest person in the world-"
I raised a brow.
"Ok, well, I've never actually lied to anybody... uh, not since my first nightmare at least."
Sunny sighed.
"I can't lie. My flaw won't allow it."
I could do little more than stare at Sunny incredulously.
"My flaw prevents me from lying, but it doesn't stop me from not telling the truth. With a bit of fanciful wordplay, I can still be dishonest while not necessarily telling a lie."
A teasing smile spread across my face.
"I see where Nephis gets it from now."
Sunny gave me a baffled look, but I shrugged it off.
He sighed.
"Well, the cat's out of the bag. Happy now?"
I nodded.
A bout of silence ensued as Sunny got up from his chair and gestured awkwardly at the corpse lying on the floor.
"So uh, what should we do about..."
I shrugged.
"What else?"
I raised my hand and called forth my twin stars, using a wave of starlight to chase away the smell and wash away the blood.
Reaching into my soul, I pulled out two shovels, tossing one to a bewildered Sunny.
"Let's start digging."
......
.....
.....
..
.
By the time we finished disposing of Harper's corpse, it was dark outside.
The two of us walked side by side as we returned to the lodge, a shared burden weighing down on both of our shoulders.
Well, it wasn't really a burden, more like a minor oopsie that we'd be keeping under wraps.
Sunny and I made steady small talk, but as we neared the lodge, his voice took on a more tentative quality.
"Do you... know what Nephis is planning?"
I shook my head.
"Nope. She refuses to tell me, and Cassie, the only one willing to share stuff with me, has been avoiding me like I contracted the bubonic plague."
Sunny winced.
"That uh, sucks."
I shrugged and jabbed him lightly with my elbow.
"Woman, am I right?"
Sunny cracked a smile and chuckled, but there was still an underlying seriousness in his demenour.
"What... What if Neph was going to kill them? Kill all the people that she's trying to help."
I paused.
I conjured a veil of starlight to hide us from prying eyes.
"What do you mean?"
Sunny hesitated.
"Do you remember Cas's prophecy?"
I frowned.
"The rivers of blood, righteous flames, and copious amounts of death? Uh, yeah... Why?"
Sunny gazed at the lodge a few meters away.
"The castle drowned in flames and blood, a corpse wearing gilded armor, a flying archer, and a woman armed with a spear."
He turned his attention back to me.
"During the last hunt, when I saw Effie's spear... everything just clicked in my head. I could finally make sense of Cas's cryptic vision."
A hint of dread crept into the hoarse whisper that escaped his lips.
"It wasn't a vision of the past... it was a vision of the future. Neph is going to usurp Gunlaug's throne and raise an army to-"
I grasped Sunny's shoulder, squeezing it firmly.
"That's not something that you have to worry about."
I shook my head as I leveled my gaze with his.
"The more you focus on cryptic visions of the future, the more certain they become."
I sighed and continued.
"Never, and I mean NEVER, speak in absolutes about prophecies. They are a possibility, not a reality."
I turned my gaze towards the lodge, towards the home I shared with my companions, and scowled.
"Even if the grim future that Cassie foresaw truly is our reality, all YOU have to worry about is becoming strong enough to weather the storm."
I returned my gaze to Sunny and gave him a solemn smile.
The two of us fell silent, but soon, a laugh escaped my chest, shattering the idealistic deadlock we found ourselves in.
I patted Sunny's shoulder a couple of times before dismissing the veil I had conjured.
Sunny let out a sigh, his posture relaxing slightly.
A sarcastic smile crossed his face.
"Easy for you to say, Mr. Star of Solitude. The rest of us mortals can't just evaporate their problems with a sword."
My expression contorted into a pained smile as I grasped my chest playfully.
"Don't call me that... Whenever someone says my true name, I take soul damage..."
Sunny rolled his eyes.
"Alright, man. Whatever you say."
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(A/N: Once again, my fault for the late upload.
School starts next Thursday for me, so I've been cramming the summer homework I've been ignoring while trying to fix my sleep schedule.
It's going well, but since I've been sleeping at a reasonable time, I've had less and less free time to write...
Well, when school starts next Thursday, I'll probably have a bit more free time since it's my last year and all I gotta do is pass to graduate.
C's get degrees, y'know?
Whatever
Anyway, I hope you like the directioin I took with this, and I hope you'll enjoy what I have planned in the future.
Drop some comments and possibly write up a review if you appreciate what I do, and I'll see you guys next time!)