Title sponsored by Mr_Runic1
.
Sunny rushed at Nephis first, his two shadows augmented his body boosting his strength further, Nephis was augmented by her flames as they clashed.
The weight of their swords sent tremors through the ground, Sunny slashed his sword at Nephis and she countered efficiently, they didn't move back or hesitate as they continued their round of exchange.
'Heavy'
Sunny gritted his teeth under the weight of Nephis' sword.
'Is this the power of a demon… Merlin was a titan and he wasn't this strong… unless…'
His thoughts were cut short as Nephis' sword breached his defense and went straight for his eye.
He shifted his head on instinct but the sword still cut through his cheek, the wound had a faint red but he didn't bleed out thanks to blood weave.
He stepped back and adjusted his stance, up until now he had been using the Immortal Flame battle tactics, but now he changed to one only he and Merlin knew, the Stone Saint style, he immediately changed and charged right in.
Nephis was only slightly surprised by the change, but she quickly adapted, she focused on defense, trying to read his movements so she could counter.
'That's your game huh… well let's see how you'll do with this'
Sunny changed back to the way of Immortal Flame, but only for a second, Nephis was about to counter but then his sword adjusted mid swing, his slash bit into her shoulder causing her to hiss through her teeth.
They both stepped back and Nephis' wound began to heal.
"You've changed Sunny, you're stronger" Nephis said with a strained voice, the pain of her flaw still evident in her voice.
Sunny didn't reply, he didn't acknowledge her praise, he simply moved, he changed styles between the two, but he knew that she would soon see through his method.
And she did, as he was about to change again, she parried his sword and slashed at him, a bloody gash opened on his chest, Sunny hissed from pain but still drove his sword into her shoulder causing her to step back.
He was at a disadvantage, both in strength and technique, coupled with the fact that Nephis could heal herself while he couldn't, but he still had a chance.
The strain from her flaw was slowing her down, biting into her stamina and strength, every wound he delivered weakened her, it might have been healed but the damage was still evident.
They moved again, swords clashing and blood splattering, their fight was way more bloody than the one they fought with Merlin, mostly because the latter was good at dodging and defending, also if they ever dealt a severe attack he couldn't block, he would simply replace himself with a paper figurine and their efforts would be in vain.
So as a result, they settled for pushing him to the gateway through combined efforts, but deep down they knew that he was still holding back, Merlin didn't use any invisible attacks, he didn't use flame jumps, he didn't use illusion, he didn't use paper daggers, nor did he use freeze, shock, flash, tumble or wind.
That's equal to not using any of his abilities at all. The feeling of it left a bad taste in Sunny's mouth, but that was a story for later, right now he had to focus on beating Nephis.
Sunny raised his sword to block as Nephis brought her sword down, the weight of her sword bent his own and her sword slashed into his shoulder, he used his free hand to summon the prowling thorn and immediately threw it at Nephis, she didn't react in time as the ghostly stiletto stabbed her in the thigh.
They separated again and stood apart.
'This isn't working at all… what can I do'
Sunny thought for a while and immediately changed his perspective, he was going to shadow Nephis, use the insight brought by the shadow dance to mimic Nephis' fighting style and use it against her.
He lunged forward again, this time he moved on the defensive while watching and tracking her movements through her shadow, the change cost him slightly as he received multiple injuries from Nephis' sword, but in the end it was worth it.
'So that's how it is…'
He had finally gotten some insight from observing her shadow, the shadow of Changing Star seemed eager, eager to tell a story through its movements, and Sunny listened, as he did Nephis' movements began to open up to him, he began to understand the battle art called the Immortal Flame Style, then he adapted.
Sunny moved immediately after, his instant switch from defense to offense startled Nephis a little but she immediately regained composure, but that composure didn't last long, not in front of Sunny's onslaught.
Sunny moved with precision, accurately predicting her sword movements and reactions, He didn't give her any time to adapt as he forced her to defend, defend against the same style she had once taught to him.
Slash after slash, counter after counter.
Sunny pressured Nephis, at some point her wounds has stopped healing and the flames she used to augment herself had died down, Nephis was finally at her limit, and so was he, but that didn't stop him, it didn't stop him in his first nightmare, it didn't stop him in the labyrinth and it wouldn't stop him here.
He continued the flurry of attacks, Nephis had already adapted to it and was now delivering her blows, but without the augmentation of the flames, those attacks were easily blocked and parried, only a few made it past his sword to deliver a wound.
After many minutes of fighting, he deflected Nephis' sword and kicked her in the shin causing her to fall to a knee, he slashed with his sword sideways and as she blocked he threw the moonlight shard he had summoned earlier at her sword hand forcing her to release the sword at the dagger stabbed her.
Sunny immediately kicked the sword away and kicked her in the gut sending her flying backwards.
"It's over Nephis… You lost"
Sunny said with trembling hands, his body was already weak as walked forward slowly, Nephis struggling to sit upright, and as she did, she turned up to face him.
Her eyes became solemn as she whispered.
"I'm sorry Sunny" then she turned to his approaching figure and said with a solemn voice.
"Stop, Lost From Light"
The words echoed in the ancient citadel, but Sunny… he didn't stop, he kept walking forward slowly, his eyes were already blurry but he walked closer to Nephis' bloody figure.
Nephis was utterly shocked, the true name didn't work, she tried to figure it out then she saw it, right on Sunny's wrist, a silver bracelet shone in the darkness, Siren's Bracelet.
[Mute: When worn the wearer is immune to all sounds.].
'Damn you Merlin' Nephis cursed.
…
One day ago…
"Sunny, do you trust me?" Merlin asked as he turned to Sunny.
"...Yes, I do" Sunny answered after a slight hesitation.
Merlin nodded and touched Sunny's shoulder transferring the Siren's Bracelet to him, Sunny looked surprised a little, and after reading the runes and enchantments he turned to Merlin.
"If by any chance you and Nephis are alone in the crimson spire, summon this memory and don't try to listen to anything she says" Merlin said seriously as he stared at Sunny.
Sunny stared back for a while then nodded.
"Alright I'll trust you"
…
Sunny walked forward to Nephis and as she started to get up, she paused blankly midway, Sunny took the opportunity to rush at her and gave her a back hand chop to the neck as she fell unconscious, he lifted her up and moved towards the gateway, as he arrived he sighed and threw her through it.
"Huu… that's settled… why don't you come out now...Merlin"
Sunny dismissed the bracelet and turned towards a dark corner, immediately a black curtain shimmered and Merlin walked out of the darkness.
"Yo… Sunny" Merlin said as walked out.
"How?" Sunny asked.
"Just before I was about to go through, I flame jumped away and used an illusion to make it seem like I went through" Merlin explained as he walked to Sunny.
"Huh… I see" Sunny said as he sat on the ground, his legs weak.
Merlin approached him and used damage transfer to send all Sunny's injuries to his left hand, then sat beside him.
"Rest up Sunny, we still have to settle things on our side"
"Alright… I know" Sunny chuckled and laid down with Merlin doing the same by his side, beside them the ancient citadel was still slowly falling apart, they sat like that for a while until Sunny was well rested.
As they stood up, Merlin brought out a pen and paper from his pocket, wrote a few words and handed it to Sunny.
Sunny stared at the paper for a while, nodded and tucked the paper in his armour, then he turned to Merlin and asked.
"So how are we going to settle this?"
Merlin smiled and took two steps back and answered.
"Well, a good old fist fight… just like old times"
"Like old times indeed" Sunny chuckled as he got into stance.
Merlin did the same as they moved.
Sunny threw a punch, Merlin blocked his fist and countered with a kick.
Sunny blocked but the force opened his guard, Merlin took the advantage and sent a Jab.
It landed hard_
Sunny's head turned sharply, his balance breaking for a second, Merlin surged forward, throwing a flurry of punches, forcing Sunny to defend instead.
Left, right, jab, hook, relentless pressure_
Sunny blocked the first three, the fourth hammered into his ribs causing him to stagger, but Sunny adapted fast.
Sunny pushed forward and grabbed Merlin's wrist during the next swing, and drove a shoulder into his chest, they crashed together, both losing footing, then they stepped back to balance themselves.
'He's adapting using shadow dance, I shouldn't let this drag'
Merlin rushed forward and threw another punch, Sunny ducked under it and answered with one of his own, the punch caught Merlin's jaw.
Blood spilled instantly_
For a moment, everything froze.
Merlin's eyes narrowed slightly as he stared at Sunny, the latter looked exhausted too, bruised jaw, knuckles torn open, neither of them had much left.
'Time to end this'' Merlin made up his mind.
Then the the fight changed_
Merlin advanced again, slower now but more deliberate, Sunny met him with his force.
Punch.
Counter.
Miss.
Hit.
Their movements were rougher, heavier, driven by instinct more than technique. Sunny landed a punch shot to Merlin's temple, he staggered backwards as his vision blurred.
Merlin stumbled sideways_
Sunny stepped in, not giving him any rest, but Merlin was prepared too.
Merlin saw the opening hidden inside Sunny's attack and he took the chance.
As Sunny threw the punch, Merlin slipped inside instead of dodging or countering, Sunny's fist scraped past his shoulder as Merlin ducked and drove a short, precise strike straight into Sunny's stomach.
Sunny folded immediately and fell to a knee, he stared up at Merlin, and Merlin smiled and offered his hand.
"That's your loss Sunny"
Sunny took the hand and stood up, legs still shaking.
"I guess it is…"
Merlin helped Sunny towards the gateway and stood, watching as Sunny limped to the front of the gateway, as Sunny was about to go through he stopped, without turning back he asked.
"What about you, will you be safe?"
"Trust me Sunny… I'll definitely survive" Merlin smiled.
Sunny nodded and replied.
"I'll be waiting for you you, Merlin"
And with those words he went through the gate way, as Sunny passed, the gateway shimmered then dissipated as the citadel began to rumble.
Merlin stared at the now empty gateway with a solemn look, then immediately the spell resounded in his ear.
[Ritual Confirmed!!...]
[...Register Ritual?]
'Yes'
…
In a room inside the academy, a pod held a sleeper with pale skin and black hair, the sleeper looked peaceful, the only disturbance was the beeping sounds of the machine confirming his vitals.
Then the next moment, the boy's body glowed slightly, then he disappeared from the pod.
"Damnation!" Sunny yelped as he found himself outside the pod, he looked around trying to wrap his head around his awakening, then he noticed he was naked.
Sunny immediately summoned the puppeteer's shroud as a nurse came into the room immediately after.
"Awakened Sunless sir, you're awake" the nurse said, startled by his presence.
'Awakened huh…'
"Yes, I'm awake, please can I get a set of clean clothes?" Sunny asked with a light smile.
"One moment sir" the nurse replied and scurried away.
..
.
About an hour later, Sunny finally finished his interview. A world wide awakening of nearly a thousand sleepers had put an immense pressure on the world, but that wasn't even half of it.
His interview felt more like an interrogation after the interviewer had found out that he had been part of Changing Star's main cohort, their fame had undoubtedly spread far and wide.
But in the mouth of every sleeper that left the forgotten shore, one name echoed with respect, one sleeper was always mentioned, Attendant Of Mysteries Merlin.
The sleeper that killed more than a thousand nightmare creatures in ten seconds, a feat even most saints couldn't achieve, and one sleeper did it.
Sunny's interview was 30% about him, 10% about the forgotten shore and 60% about Merlin, and Sunny answered honestly, he highlighted Merlin's deeds that were unknown to the other sleepers as a way of appreciation for his friend.
..
.
Sunny was currently walking down the academy, he was heading to Merlin's pod quarters, as he arrived, a crowd was already formed there, sleepers from the forgotten shore who stayed in the academy and other spectators who heard Merlin's deeds.
"Guys look , it's Sunny, make way!" A sleeper that recognized him shouted.
"Hey Sunny, thanks a lot!" a sleeper shouted
"Thank you Sunny and Lady Nephis!" another sleeper echoed.
The sleeper thanked him as they made way for him to pass, Sunny smiled outside, but deep down he knew that the one who deserved their praise was still on the forgotten shore stranded.
He walked through and stopped in front of the closed door, then shadow stepped and arrived inside the room.
Inside were two other figures, Cassie sat near the window, her eyes were red from crying and Nephis stood beside Merlin's pod, staring at his sleeping figure with a complicated expression.
Sunny walked forward to the two and stopped in front of Merlin's pod, the figure inside looked nothing like the battered sleeper he fought on the forgotten shore.
"How did he do it?" Nephis asked not looking up.
"Well… it's Merlin we're talking about here, of course he pulled one big trick on us… he used an illusion and flame jumped away, he waited for us to fight to the end before he came out" Sunny said as he shook his head recalling the battle in the crimson spire.
"He did it… he changed the vision, but he sacrificed himself instead… it's my fault" Cassie said from behind, her voice cracked from crying.
"Your fault… no, it's not, Merlin knew… he always knew, everything that was and probably will happen in the future he already knows… so trust me when I say this was definitely part of his plan, he has always been good at those…" Sunny said as he comforted Cassie.
His words left both Cassie and Nephis shocked, then he guessed that Merlin hadn't told them yet.
'Well cat's out of the bag… sorry merlin'
Nephis looked him in the eye and asked.
"Merlin knows the future?"
Sunny shrugged and replied.
"Yeah… he told me himself, normally I wouldn't have believed it, but after watching his movements and things he did, I knew that those didn't come from insight…" he sighed then continued.
"So when I say Merlin will survive, I know he will".
Nephis took many seconds to digest it and Cassie didn't ask anything either, after spending a while in the room and talking about a few other things, Sunny finally left.
Sunny returned to his room provided by the academy and laid on the bed, then his mind went back to the contents of the paper Merlin gave him, he immediately said the words out.
"Child of Change
The Wandering Miracle Magician
Blessed of the Spirit World
Dreamer Cloaked in Mysteries
Soul Traveling through Dreams and History"
After Sunny repeated the words, he stayed silent for a few seconds, then immediately a familiar voice sounded in his head.
"Yo, Sunny…"
.
{End of Volume I: Child Of Mysteries.}
.
.
A/N: I will be taking time off to rewrite the first nightmare and also fix the spelling errors in previous chapters, thank you for staying this long with me, the forgotten shore ark is finally over 🎉🎉.