Shadow Slave: Arcadius of the Forgotten

[... The Darkness within you takes root.] 

[The Darkness within you takes root.] 

Arcadius's first day in the Dream Realm was almost at an end. The sun was yet to move off into the horizon, so he had some time to roast the meat that he had salvaged from the corpses of the Scavengers he'd killed today.

He knew that he couldn't afford to make light during the night, lest he attract the harrowing dwellers of the depths to his branch of coral. Or worse— alert Sunny or Nephis of his presence.

So, he decided to do it while there was still light about and no Dark Sea to respond to the illumination. 

He climbed back onto the same coral branch that he had been sprawled on last night. Upon reaching the familiar spot at the center of the branch, he sat down and summoned the Flameheart Forge.

A compact, metal brazier with a sturdy iron frame faintly engraved with runes wove itself into existence in front of him. At its center, an ethereal blue flame flickered steadily, requiring no fuel and radiating a gentle warmth.

This was a Dormant Memory of the Second Tier that he had managed to claim during his First Nightmare. 

He set the makeshift bag— the one he had made from seaweed back in the labyrinth— down by his side and reached inside it to get some meat out.

He had managed to hunt three more Scavengers by the time he'd decided to return to his humble abode. He had already shattered the soul shards of the abominations that had fallen by his hand.

Since he worked alone, he hadn't really seen the point of carrying the shards around. This meant that currently he had thirty-five soul fragments inside his soul.

Of course, there was the other reward as well... 

He summoned his runes and moving his eyes to the last string, he smiled darkly. Because they read: 

Darkness Saturation: [39%] 

His earlier assumption that the Darkness dwelling within the depths of his soul was being recharged by the corrupted souls of the Nightmare Creatures he killed, had been correct.

It seemed that currently, the amount of Darkness contained within him increased by a single percent for every Awakened Beast he killed. Which meant that one Awakened soul core would increase his reserves of Darkness by one percent. 

At least, for now. 

He had a hunch that as he formed more soul cores, his reserves of Darkness would swell. And then, the amount of Darkness he received would decrease by comparison.

In any case, his priority right now was forming a Monster Core as quickly as he could manage and to fully saturate his Darkness reserves. He had no idea as to what would happen when his reserves finally reached a hundred percent Darkness Saturation.

But since he was a long way from doing that, he decided not to think too much about it.

Forming the Monster Core, on the other hand?

That took precedence over everything else. After all, it was the only way for him to get significantly stronger in the Dream Realm.

However, that did not mean that it would be easy.

As he dismissed his runes, he found himself frowning slightly. He hadn't managed to get even a single Memory after killing four Awakened Beasts. He'd already known that Memories were rare but he had expected to get at least one.

What a shame, he mused. Sunny got the Azure Blade after killing only one Carapace Scavenger and that too was already injured. Not fair! Granted that the Azure Blade would be useless for him because he already had a much better weapon in the Voidfang... but it still stung. 

Placing the meat on the grill top of the Flameheart Forge, he took a deep breath. He wasn't as exhausted as he had been when he'd woken up— at least not mentally.

That was because he hadn't used his Aspect Ability today at all. So, his Flaw hadn't birthed a seething rage inside his mind.

That has to change, he thought, as the roasting aroma of the Scavenger meat filled the air. I can't hope to survive long if I avoid using my Aspect. I have to adapt to it. Somehow. 

With that thought, he picked up the steak that had almost finished roasting and took a bite. He had gotten used to eating monster meat during the month he had spent in his First Nightmare. So, now it didn't really elicit a response from him. It was just bland and tasteless but nevertheless, it was necessary and it was edible.

As the sun came close to setting, he dismissed the Flameheart Forge and settled down to go to sleep.

Tomorrow, he would try and use his Ability to hunt some more Scavengers. 

*** 

Cade's eyes fluttered open at the break of dawn. His slumber had been broken by the gurgling noise of the Dark Sea retreating. He sat up, yawning, and stretched his arms over his head. 

Alright... he thought, groaning lightly. What to do today? 

Cade already had an idea on how he would proceed today. It was quite simple actually— he'd go down into the labyrinth and hunt some more Scavengers.

However, this time... this time he'd do so while using his Ability.

He would have to try it sooner or later and he decided that sooner would be a better option. After all, the sooner he managed to learn to work with his Flaw, the better his chances of survival within the Dream Realm would be. 

But first, he decided to have to some breakfast. He had already eaten the night before and he didn't feel particularly hungry. But after thinking about what he was planning on doing today, he decided that doing it on a full stomach would be for the better.

So, after waiting for the sun to shine brightly enough to obscure the light from his Memory, he summoned the Flameheart Forge once again. And just as he had done yesterday, he roasted some meat, threw it down his throat, dismissed the Memory and got up to descend into the Crimson Labyrinth for the second time. 

Moving through the labyrinth with the Voidfang clutched in his right hand, Cade crouched low at the edge of a clearing, hidden within the chaotic embrace of the coral.

Before him... there were several Carapace Scavengers— five of them, to be exact.

Their scythe-like legs clattered on the uneven stone floor. Their pincers clicked in an unsettling rhythm. They moved as one, circling a pile of dark remains Cade couldn't quite identify but which clearly held their focus. Their pincers snapped intermittently as though in silent conversation. 

Cade knew that he was jumping to conclusions. After all, Nightmare Creatures of the Class of Carapace Scavengers were little more than mindless beasts and as such, they weren't capable of communicating very well, let alone of having a meaningful conversation. 

Cade could have avoided them— hell, he most probably should have. But he found himself strangely reluctant.

I'm out of my goddamn mind, he thought, shaking his head. There's no way I'd be able to take on five of them at the same time...

Or maybe I could...?  

He tried to recall the various confrontations between the trio and the Scavengers.

In one such instance, Nephis had been able to kill two of the Carapace Scavengers at once, without using her Aspect and with nothing but minor injuries on her. She'd had no armor back then either. Even her weapon, the Dream Blade, was inferior to Cade's Voidfang.

And Cade knew for a fact that he was, if not Nephis's better, then at least her equal. He was also wearing an extremely resilient armor and had a better weapon. Adding to that was the fact that he was already planning on practicing with his Ability.

And what better way to hone his Ability and the resistance to his Flaw than to face off against debilitating odds? 

But despite all the advantages, this still wasn't enough to convince him to jump into the midst of five Awakened Beasts.

No, what really drove him forward was something else.

The sight of the Awakened Beasts stirred something primal in him— not fear exactly, but rather... the churning of excitement— the thrill of battle started building in his chest. He found himself longing to step into the clearing and challenge the monstrosities head-on.

If only Sunny were here to see what I'm about to do, he thought, a grin tugging at the corner of his lips. Oh, I can just hear him— 'Are you crazy?!' 

Cade's grip tightened around the black blade at his side and he cracked his neck. "Alright," he muttered under his breath, addressing no one in particular. "Let's see if you lot are as tough as you look."

With that, he stepped forward into the clearing.