Shadow Slave FanFic [Missing Piece]

There Are Many things that one can learn if only looking close enough. The world was a place full of wonders and miracles. Some of them caused by Chance and some of them Forced by one's will to Survive.

After days of accumulating everything they had about Sunny, one thing became clear. Sunny was someone who's will to survive changed the Turn of events wherever he went. They had realized just how powerful he has always been and that his growth was exponentially with each Core he formed and Rank he rose.

Despite being from the outskirts he has achieved far more than most Legacies had in their life. In fact Sunny was a calamity bound to change the course of Fate like Cassie had wanted him to.

In the Depths of Despair he had decided to live. Not just for the sake of living of Cause, but to spite them all. That he, a kid from the outskirts, would show them just how spiteful and Adaptable he was. In the end they had figured out a lot about him. Not that they didn't know him at all, but far less than they had expected.

"So we have covered basically everything he has been doing since Awakening. Any chance we missed someone who could know anything more?"

Jet has pulled every piece of Footage she could find from Antarctica that included Sunny, there wasn't much though. So additionally she had found Luster, Kim and Quentin, 3 of Sunnys Subordinates that had served in the Southern Campaign under his command and survived. Unfortunately Quentin and Luster weren't available today.

"I think you're missing something very important here, Saint Soulreaper Jet."

Kim said while Raising a hand.

"And what might that be? We need Everything we can get, so tell us, please."

Kim nodded and Gestured for the Image the projector was showing in Nephis Mansion. It was a picture of Sunny, well not really since he was wearing Weavers Mask but what's Important was not him actually, but where he was.

In the Middle Of a Battlefield, staring down the frenzy In front of him. They could not see his Face. But his body showed enough emotions. He was tired, not just physically, but mentally instead. She sighed and said evenly.

"His Psychological profile of course. The captain has been from one Battlefield to the other as you said. The difference to you all is that he didn't really have a choice now did he? I'm sure you all know what incredible things he has done in Antarctica. After all he was the Only captain who's team wasn't completely wiped out by contributing arguably the most."

Everyone listened to Kim with an intense look on their Faces. They didn't really understand what she was trying to say. Effie, who has even stopped stuffing her face with food in an effort to concentrate better, tilted her head slightly, showing her confusion.

"What are you trying to say here? That he's broken? That he has left because he needed a break?"

Kim nodded while her lips were pressed together tightly.

"I don't know, but I'm sure that I would need one. The things he has been through are…exhausting to say the least. The Captain is strong, sure, but there are limits to how much a single person can handle before breaking apart. I think he reached his somewhere in your 3rd Nightmare and decided To bring an end to his suffering."

What she said was true, at least to some degree. It's not like Sunny has been constantly on the Run fighting the enemy's way above his league and surviving against all odds. He had Peaceful Dreams…well…kinda, but the amount of Nightmares were just far greater.

For some of the things that happened there was Noone else to blame but himself of course. But the Majority has been caused by his Attribute [Fated]. Every decision he made was the Result of his biggest desire though.

"To be Free again."

Nephis mumbled under her breath while she thought about the reason why he had left them at the end of their 3rd Nightmare. Cassie had told them as much, in fact they all knew exactly how their Conversation in Ananke's Boat went since Cassie had shown Them her Memories.

'But why did he just Vanish after getting rid of [Shadow Bond]? Does he think he's better off without us? And what would that say about us?'

Nephis wasn't sure. But even the fact that she considered Sunny thinking that way was Alarming.

"So what now? We know that he went into the Heart of the Tomb of Ariel to get his Freedom back. He clearly Achieved that by breaking the Bond with Nephis. What could be his next Goal?"

That's what everyone was asking themselves. Seeing Kai so frustrated was a rare sight too. Sunny vanishing from the face of the earth had changed them all. Some of them More and some less. Suddenly Nephis realized something and her eyes lit up. She grabbed her head and let out a frustrated growl before taking a Deep breath while burying her face in her hands.

"How Did we not think of that? He got rid of the Bond between me and him, right?"

Everyone was a little surprised by Nephis sudden change in mood but that's what they needed right now, so no one dared to interrupt her of course. She made sure that everyone was listening again before she continued.

"So in theory the place of his Master should be free again, but what if that's not the Case? What if someone has said his true name out loud and Enslaved him again after getting rid of his bond to me? And now that person is preventing him from seeing us. That person is using him as a Weapon to do whatever they want with him."

Her theory was plausible of course. The only question is who could it have been? Cassie nodded and even smiled full of excitement, something that has become rare those last few years. Only Her smile froze and dimmed again when she realized several Flaws in Nephis train of thoughts.

"That's a possibility. But who could it be? First of all there aren't many people who know that Sunny even has a True Name and even less who know it in detail. The only other person than us I can think about right now is Mordret, but that Monster would not just use him to kill a couple of Saints and the Winter Beast. He would use Sunny's strength for far more than just that."

She was right, the Prince of Nothing wouldn't waste Sunny's strength on some errant Saints and a Corrupted Titan. He would probably use him to break down Valor piece by piece. Sunny would be perfect for the Job after all. But even that didn't make a lot of sense. The prince of Nothing didn't need to control Sunny. Instead he could just steal his Body and use it along with his Aspect, Shadows and Memories himself.

So if it wasn't Mordret? Who else knew Sunny's True name instead? The list of people was small, In fact all of them were sitting in the same Room now.

"So we made progress, I guess. At least we have an idea of what Might have happened to him. We shouldn't have wasted 3 years just Searching for him instead of Figuring out what other reasons for his absence there might be. But what's done, is done."

Together they would now have to find out who it was that might Enslaved sunny. But before That happened Jet's Communicator flashed up. She picked it up and answered The Call.

"Soulreaper here…."

"Yes"

"Aha"

"No we don't."

"WHAT? WHERE? TELL ME NOW!"

"YOU GREEDY BASTARD ...I ALREADY PAID YOU DAMMIT. NOW TELL ME OR WE FIND YOU AND PULL THE INFORMATION OUT OF YOU WITH SONG OF THE FALLEN."

"THAT'S WHAT I THOUGHT. Now tell me where he is."

"You can't be serious! What? Your…you're joking ...."

"Ok we will be on our way."

That's when the Call ended. Of course Everyone was looking at Jet expecting an answer to the question everyone had on their minds right now and didn't need to be asked. She put her Communicator away and let out a relieved sigh before the Corners of her mouth curled upwards.

"That…was an Informant of mine. A shady guy but his information is reliable. I'm paying him Thousands of Credits each week after all. He has just told me that he might have found Sunny."

Her Words exploded in the Room like a bomb and started a Chain reaction in their Minds and Hearts consisting Of Excitement, Relief, Happiness but also doubt. What were the Chances that some informant of Jet had found Sunny while they couldn't?

But they Also didn't care about their thoughts right now. Instead the only thing they cared about was the Location where Sunny has presumably been found.

"WHERE?"

Nephis screamed, clearly showing her Excitement.

"Somewhere in the Dream Realm Between Bastion and Godgrave on a Small Mountain Chain. A group of Masters have found a Citadel on Top. An enormous Dark Temple. When they entered though, a Man wearing the same Mask as Mongrel greeted them and threatened to kill them if they didn't leave immediately. One of them retaliated and almost got killed by him. They said he has Powers related to Shadows but couldn't say anything more since he didn't speak much."

Nephis couldn't believe what she was hearing, Noone could actually. But there was no Time to waste on Details. For now they had one Target only and that was to get over to that Citadel as fast as they could.

"OK then what are we waiting for? Let's go!"

They instantly Vanished in a whirlwind of Sparks. Kim had decided To stay behind though. She would have enough chances to talk to her Captain once they brought him back.

The exact Location was somewhere between the Mountain Tops on a small, by snow Covered plain. It would take them a Day to get there but if Sunny Was really there it would all be worth it.

Seconds later they all appeared in the Ivory Tower. Quickly they made the Chainbreaker Ready for departure and informed some of the Firekeepers of their Departure and their Destination. They all knew Sunny of course and wanted to come with them but for now they would leave with just the Core Members Of the Changing Star Cohort to retrieve their Missing Member.

A Day later somewhere above The Chain of Mountains Kai could be seen landing on top of the Chainbreaker beside Cassie who Was standing behind the Steering wheel.

"I found the Temple a couple of Kilometers South. We can make it over there in about 10 Minutes if we make a Turn now."

Kai and Nephis were the only ones who could Fly on Their own with incredible speed nonetheless. So the two had been scouting the Area ahead since the Description of the Citadels location wasn't that accurate. Cassie gave him a nod and said with a wide smile.

"Good, look in that direction so I know where to fly exactly. I will call Nephis back in the Meantime."

Kai did as he was told while Cassie contacted Nephis and turned the Chainbreaker.

[Kai found the Citadel 10 Minutes South from our Current Location. We are already on our way.]

'That's Great news Cass, I will catch Up with you, don't wait for me.'

Like she had said Nephis landed a couple Minutes later on top of the Chainbreaker, her Radiant white wings dissolved into a stream of white Flames.

When they broke through a cloud Kai gestured for Cassie to land. They had reached the area where he found the Temple. Cassie Landed the Chainbreaker gracefully On the snow Covered plain and they all jumped from the deck. It was bitter cold so High up in the Mountains but nothing that would affect Saints of course.

They all looked at the Temple with awe written all over their Faces. Nephis was the first one to say something after the first wave of amazement washed over them.

"I think I know this place. Sunny told me about his First Nightmare once. He mentioned snowy Mountains and an Ancient Dark Temple Where his Nightmare ended. There is a High possibility that this is the very same Temple he told me about. If so then he came back to claim it as his Citadel. What a coincidence that The Spell turned it into one."

She was right of course, the Spell worked in unfathomable ways after all. Sometimes even appearing To be sentient when the Description of a Memory was perhaps a little too fitting. She liked to remember The Crown of Twilight Sunny had received after killing the Great Sea Serpent. Its Description contained Sunny's exact words before the Fight after all.

There was no way to predict such a thing so the Spell had to be aware of what was happening in the Realms and act accordingly. Something that went beyond what just an Intelligent design could achieve.

"Let's just hope that he's Inside. I'm excited to see him again."

Together they walked in the Direction of the Temple. They found Building Materials scattered around it as if someone had repaired it to Bring it back to its former greatness. Ascending the Stairs of the Temple was an easy task, looking into the Giant entrance on the other hand…wasn't.

"Am I the only one who feels like we should turn around and never come back? This thing is giving me the Creeps."

Effie said while taking an Involuntary step back.

"No you're not. If I had to guess it has something to do with the Temple itself. Maybe some sort of Protective Barrier."

Cassie explained when suddenly the Dreadful aura dimmed and Then disappeared completely.

"I guess he has turned It off."

Jet said while she shrugged with her shoulders. Inside the Temple it was Dark, not a source Of light in sight, which made sense. Sunny could perfectly see in the Dark after All. But his Friends couldn't so they all summoned Luminous Memories to make their way through the Temple more easily. But Even with several Sources Of light the Ceiling was still shrouded behind a seemingly impenetrable wall of Ancient Shadows.

It took them a while to reach the end of the Hallway, but when They did 2 Statues appeared in front of them standing on each side of an enormous Door. A female Stone Night with Ruby colored eyes to the Right and a Tall Ogre made out of Black Silver and Giant Claws on his Hands to the Left.

They knew the two Shadows of Sunny all too well. Although Fiend has drastically changed in Appearance Cassie could still see his Runes to make out his name.

"Seems like Fiend and Saint have evolved since the last time we saw them. The two look like they could pick a Fight with at least one of us if they wanted to. Happy to see you two again."

Jet said with a Chuckle. Saint turned her head to look at her and struck the rim of her Shield with her Fist. Fiend on the other hand Ignited his Incandescent Red Flames to make an even more fearsome impression.

For a second They thought the Giant would attack but instead the Two Shadows grabbed each one of the Handles and opened the Door for the 5 Saints.

They all walked though and gave Sunny's Shadows a small nod while doing so. When they crossed through the Doorway the Shadows became much deeper though. As if they were attracted by something in the Room, perhaps the Ruler of this Citadel whose powers concentrated on the Element of Shadows was Responsible for this phenomenon.

In the end Nephis had to summon her Flames since their Luminous Memories turned out to be insufficient for the Purpose of pushing away the wall of Shadows.

"He's here, he has to be here. This place has his Auro written all over the Place."

Kai said while trying to peek through the wall of Shadows when suddenly a Throne came into view. On it Sat… Noone. Instead a figure with Raven Black Hair and a Mask Of A horned Demon with pitch Black Armor that looked like to be made from living Stone stepped from behind the Throne.