Shadow Slave: Rainy Days

In the stillness of the night, a tall silver haired beauty and a blood stained woman stood in front of each other. A few meters away from them, a blind girl waited intently for the conversation that was about to unfold.

Nephis, still holding her silver sword steady and in front of her, illuminated the area with the white flames flickering around the long blade.

Cassie had assured Nephis that the being in front of her was human, but that didn't mean that she'd let her guard down. Especially because of the large Nightmare Creature that had protected the so-called human.

"Who are you?", asked Nephis with distrust towards the person, not leaving her eyes of the girl and Nightmare Creature.

"Who am I ? I'm your darkest nightmare!", answered Rain dramatically, which to her disdain didn't bring any reaction though.

Nephis continued staring at Rain, her expression unreadable, while her body was still tense and ready to move if things got dire.

"Not a reactive princess you are, eh ? Well, let's start anew then. I'm Rain. And I'm guessing you two just arrived here ? The winter solstice would be just about now, no ?

Nephis didn't answer. She simply stood there, focused and unmoving. The white flames around her sword were still brightening the area.

Rain raised an eyebrow at the silence.

"Also not very talkative, huh ?"

And yet, there was still no response. Nephis just continued analyzing the situation, ready to strike if Rain moved.

Cassie, who waited a few meters behind Nephis found the situation uncomfortable, so she spoke up herself.

"Yes .. we just arrived a few hours ago. And because of your question, I'm guessing that you've been in this place for a little while longer ?"

Rain turned her eyes towards the blind girl and smirked, happy that someone finally spoke up.

"Ah, so at least one of you can speak.", she began.

"And to answer your question, I've been around this place for about a month. Definitely enough time to know that this place is a death trap.".

Rain then yawned and stretched her arms over her head.

"I'm sorry for telling you so directly but you both can give up. There is no way to escape this hellhole, so you can just stay with me. I've been longing for someone to talk to for a while anyways."

After having kept quiet for so long, Nephis finally broke her own silence.

"What do you mean there is no way out ? And how have you been in this place for a month ? Theres only one winter solstice once a year."

Rain broke out into a bitter chuckle, all the pain that build up over the month obvious in her voice.

"Well, I can't escape from this place anyways, but there's also no hope for both of you. I've spent a lot of time exploring this place, and there is no gateway near this location… Actually, there might be one to the east, but that place is a little bit more dangerous than the area around this hill."

"Well, then let's go eas-", Nephis said stubbornly, before harshly being cut off.

"Do you even know how to survive in this part of the Dream Realm ? You can't see it right now, since the water is still high, but there's a huge labyrinth beneath the ocean."

Nephis frowned, as she digested the new information Rain brought. Surviving in a place she didn't know would indeed be pretty hard.

"What's your point ? Should we just give up and live here for the rest of our lives ?"

Rain shrugged.

"I'm not one to give up and I would never tell someone to do, but you haven't seen the horrors of this place yet- especially that stupid tentacle monster. I won't stop you from trying but if you don't want to end up as crab meat, you should maybe stay woth me for a few days before breaking off."

Nephis looked down, a thoughtful expression on her pretty face. She was my no means stupid enough to let an opportunity like this slide and walk off into certain death, but she was also too awkward too ask for help from a stranger. So she simply just stared at Rain, while also disabling her Aspect and lowering her sword.

Cassie, sensing the tension, quickly broke the silence.

"You're talking a lot about how dangerous this place is. Does that mean you've been inside the labyrinth?"

Rain nodded.

"Yeah, a few times at the beginning. But now I just send my pets to do the hunting because it's too dangerous."

Nephis turned her gaze towards the large carapace scavenger, the large but for some reason friendly nightmare creature, looming over the girl.

"With pets … do you mean echoes ? Like this crab thing in front of me ?"

Rain stayed silent. The nightmare creatures she called pets, Cupcake included, weren't echoes. They were a product of her Aspect ability, but Rain didn't want to explain her powers to strangers.

Her Aspect ability, Dream eaters had two ways of being used. The first one was to enter the mind of a creature while they were asleep. Then, she could enter the dreams of someone and control them to her liking.

But that wasn't the most effective way of using her ability.

When she enters the mind of creature that wasn't asleep, a fraction of her consciousness would find herself in a place she called the soul. It was a part of the mind that embodied everything the being stood for. Their emotions, their needs and their mentality.

And if she attacked that soul for long enough, the damage would reach a point where the being's mind would completely break down. And that was how she was able to make nightmare creatures fall into her mind control, basically turning them into her slaves.

"No, they aren't Echoes.", Rain answered simply.

Nephis would've liked a longer answer, but she also knew that asking wouldn't bring anything, so she refrained herself from doing so.

"Nephis… I think staying with her isn't a bad idea. It would give us time to learn about this place , and we would also have a safe place to stay for a few days. In the end it's your choice though.", Cassie remarked.

Nephis struggled with accepting Rain's offer, because she felt like she would stand in Rain's debt then. But Nephis also wasn't someone who was too proud to ask for help, so in the end, she did.

"If you're already insisting …"

"So you'll stay ?"

"No."

'Well, fuck you too."

"Problem,"

'Oh …'

***

Since it was still in the middle of the night, there wasn't much to do for now, so they all just sat in a circle. There was no light, so Nephis and Rain only saw each other's silhouettes, while Cassie didn't see at all, of course.

"You didn't answer my question before.", Nephis whispered. "How have you been in the Dream Realm for one month ? Did a Saint pull you in here ?"

At Nephis's question, Cassie leaned im closer, wanting to know the answer too.

Rain stayed quiet for a few seconds. This reality was one she hadn't fully come to accept yet, so it was a hard topic to speak about.

"No .. it wasn't a Saint. I-It's my flaw. My flaw makes me only able to live in the Dream Realm. My consciousness cannot exist in the real world, so I've been sent here right after beating my First Nightmare.

Nephis narrowed her eyes while Cassie gasped, and moved her hands up to her mouth. Rain's flaw, was in a way, even harsher than hers, and that was something she had never expected to find.

"That's really harsh .. I don't know what to say .. I'm sorry."

Rain sighed and waved her hand dismissively.

"It's alright. If I survive long enough, maybe I can find a human citadel and spend the rest of my life there …"

One more session of full silence stretched out between them.

Cassie hugged her knees and buried her face in them, slowly drifting into sleep, while Nephis kept her eyes glued on Rain- she still didn't fully trust her but she also had no other choice.

After a while, Cassie's breathing changed, signaling that she had fallen asleep. To be honest, Rain had also gotten pretty sleepy, and even though she could order the Carapace Scavenger to protect her while she sleeps, she didn't want to fall into a slumber.

"Hey, Rain."

"Yes ?"

"Don't you want to come with us ?"

"Why do you want me to follow you ?"

"Because it would benefit both of us. You have knowledge over this place and a really harsh flaw, meaning that you also have a strong Aspect, which I am guessing is what also allows you to control Nightmare Creatures. On the journey to finding a gateway, we'll maybe also reach a Citadel where you can live comfortably in. It's better than spending your last days on this hill, isn't it ?"

Rain gazed up at the vast and dark sky. Nephis's offer was definitely not a bad one. In fact, it was probably even the most logical way to continue from now on, but she still had her doubts. There were of course a lot of advantages, like having people to spend time with and a chance for a better life. But there was also one big disadvantage to accepting that offer.

And that disadvantage was the increased danger. She had it pretty safe on this mountain, especially with the protection of her Nightmare Creatures. So for someone like Rain, who valued surviving in general more than the her living conditions, this was a hard choice to make.

"I'll think about it. I'll give you an answer tomorrow morning.", she said simply.