Shadow Slave Cinema (reaction fanfic)-Chapter 18: The Dead tell Tales

Beads of sweat glistened on faces, as nobody moved a muscle. The silence was deafening, scraping their brains, but they remained motionless.

Similar to when they witnessed the Mad Prince for the first time, their bodies instinctively screamed in alarm, aware that something akin to an apex predator was near them.

Hands slightly twitched unconsciously from the overwhelming fear.

The most frightening thing however, was the fact that they couldn't see or feel anything.

Around them in the desolate landscape, everything was visible, nothing could hide. And yet, it was like the voice came directly from behind. It seemed Sunny was equally or more so alarmed than them, as his voice croaked, as if speaking for them

"...Who's speaking?"

His other incarnation was similarly tense, ready to shield the original body from danger if need be. There were a few moments of silence, and then the voice answered in a nonchalant, somewhat friendly tone:

"I am."

Sunny blinked.

'What the...'

This time, he was able to pinpoint the direction from which the voice was coming better. It was very close. And low to the ground. His gaze explored the graveyard of serpents, until finally falling on something he had seen before, but did not pay a lot of attention to.

A lone human skull laying amidst the serpent bones, attached to a partially destroyed human skeleton. There was no spark of life in the battered skeleton, and even when Sunny shifted his gaze, there was neither the radiance of soul essence nor the vile darkness of Corruption inside the old bones.

However, as he watched, he noticed a tiny mote of light drifting into the air from inside the gaping black hole of the skull's empty eye socket.

Eyes widened as a flurry of emotions sparked into fruition among the audience, murmurs and gasps ringing out in confusion. Those who didn't speak held their mouths agape or tightly shut in utter bewilderment.

Gazes burned with fear.

Gazes burned with curiosity.

Gazes burned with anticipation.

But one gaze burned hotter than the rest.

Unlike the others, it was not just curiosity or terror that fueled it. No, this gaze was sharper, more piercing—a gaze steeped in something deeper, something raw and unyielding.

It burned with spite and fury.

A will so indomitable, none dared to challenge it.

The gaze of the sole survivor of the Immortal Flame.

The fire of Changing Star.

....

'Eurys of the Nine'

'So that bastard skeleton is still alive..'

How could she not recognise the loathsome corpse? His relentless aggravating comments and berration as she hauled him on her back, while traversing the vast expanse of the Dream Realm. Despite his nature, his information about the Nightmare Seed allowed her to crawl out despite all odds.

But that didn't mean she held him in high-regard, instead quite the opposite.

Her fists tightened on her armrests, straining the leather, causing Cassie to glance at her with concern. Memories of his voice—the loathsome voice—echoing in her mind like a vengeful wraith:

"Abominable Nephilim..."

"I wouldn't mind being dropped in the middle of this desert, at the behest of seeing you mauled by some abomination.."

"If only you could use those flames to cleanse that profane stench!"

Her eyes darkened, flames flickering in her irises.

Ironic, considering that's what he should be as such a talkative skeleton. And yet he couldn't die. The relief she felt when she dropped him near the entrance to the Underworld like he directed, could not be put into words.

Strange....

Thinking back, it seemed illogical how she didn't go insane from his chastising, despite being all alone in that hell.

...

Was there someone or something else that kept her alive?

A flickering flame of hope which she somehow had forgotten about?

Her throat ached as her eyes deepened, a conflicting whirlpool of anger and sorrow deep beneath.

.....

"Was he even connected to me back then?"

"Was.....he helping me?" she whispered. Her voice was a leaf in a hurricane, as it was drowned by the erratic comments and murmurs in the room. It only slightly quelled as the figure and voice rose noticeably higher than the rest.

"I-IT'S.... IT'S A SKELETON!! A REAL TALKING SKELETON!!" Effie yelled, a strange mix of fear, excitement and disbelief in her tone.

Jet raised an eyebrow, "You're in disbelief at a talking skeleton? After all we've seen and been through?"

Effie whirled in her direction, arms flailing up and down as a strange excitement brimmed in her eyes, quelling the fear they had momentarily been held captive by:

"Are you kidding! It's just like a cartoon! How is he even making any noise at all without lungs or a voice box to cause vibrations in the air! How does he even control his speech without ligaments to move his tongue and jaw!" she rambled without pause, having to catch her breath.

Jet was stunlocked by the barrage of information.

Unsure whether to be stunned by Effie's strange anatomical insight and knowledge, or her weird childlike reaction to a talking skull. Her mouth opened and closed, unsure of how, or even what to say in response.

Effie cocked her head, an annoyed look on her face:

"Oh come on! Surely you'd be the slightest bit curious considering, you're als-"

"Enough" Saint Cor hissed, cutting her off.

Jet glared at Effie with dangerous eyes, as her face slightly dropped, realising what she had nearly said in the heat of the moment.

"A new wild card has appeared!" Noctis laughed, ecstatic at the continuation of the reward and the sudden development

"Could....could this then be the friend it spoke of?" Julius murmured, his eyes brimming with equal fire.

Windflower looked at the scene in confusion, as she put down the popcorn bucket, turning to Daeron.

"What do you think abo-"

The words died on her lips, as a shiver ran down her back. Daeron was motionless, staring deeply at the pile of bones, unblinking with full attention. It made her nervously gulp, as she knew the look.

It was the look he had when deciding the lives of people.

It was the look he had when standing before hordes of abominations

But most importantly...

It was the look of warning and slight fear, the look she had witnessed only when encountering the most dire and perilous of situations. Something which rarely betrayed her fathers, valiant face.

"My, oh my! When you look at me like that, boy, I get shy."

Sunny shuddered. The jaws of the ancient skull did not move, but the voice definitely... definitely was coming from inside it. He stared at the skeleton with wide eyes for some time, then forced himself to open his mouth.

"I... know you, don't I?"

The white skull, obviously, did not show any reaction.

"Do you? Goodness gracious! How odd. Never have I imagined being known by such esteemed personas... I am nothing but a humble slave, after all."

Sunny smiled darkly. "Well, what would you know... so am I."

The skeleton laughed.

"No, no... the likes of me can't even be compared to the exalted beings like you. A genuine divine shadow! Who would have thought that even after Shadow God's death, his shadows would continue to roam the world... my, oh my! How despicable."

Sunny narrowed his eyes and remained silent for a while.

Then, he said somberly: "You are Eurys of the Nine."

At the name drop everyone shuddered.

Those who knew of the significance of the Nine, including the cohort, Daeron, Windflower, Noctis and Solvanne, all shuddered. The Dream Realm's history was lucrative and strewn, nothing was clear nor left behind to give a full picture of the past.

But what was found and known was undeniable.

And that was, that the Nine

Were only second to the Gods and Daemons.

Fragments of history left behind, opened brief glimpses into their secrets and accomplishments. It was limited, but it was enough.

Enough to know...

That they could be considered gods trapped in mortal vessels.

Even those who had no affiliation on the matter, had the air in their lungs involuntarily leave. Just his name and title alone seemed to hold some presence that glanced down at them from unknown heights.

"A living legend...in the bones?" Julius gasped, his eyes threatening to pop out of their sockets

"Ancient great warrior, sister?" Morgan murmured, her eyes twinkling with rare fascination. All the other unknowing Saints both from Valor and Song leaned forward, their gazes seemingly demanding an answer.

Nephis held her ground, and briefly nodded, "Of sorts.."

"Indeed", a voice sounded from the middle row, causing everyone to turn.

Noctis held his gaze on the skeleton, his face rarely serious, "Who doesn't know of the Nine in ancient history? Bunch of warriors who rose from seemingly nothing, and challenged all who dared to oppose their motives. Even the greatest of empires couldn't snuff their will"

His gaze shifted as a weird look of content flashed, "Especially that Auro....I would have liked to meet him..."

The air turned razor-sharp as Solvanne shifted, her face twisting into a scowl of sheer venom. A furious hiss slipped from her lips:

"Auro..."

Her rage was like dry leaves catching fire—sudden, scorching, and dangerous. Noctis, ever the troublemaker, turned away slightly, his shoulders trembling with suppressed laughter. Nobody pressed further. No one dared to prod the already volatile War Priestess. Instead, their focus shifted to another who had yet to react.

Daeron.

Daeron remained still, considering his words, "Translations are lost in history, thus I am not confident entirely about what I have come to hear..." he echoed

"But, that is not what questions me the most right now"

His voice trailed off, his eyes narrowing slightly. Then, he spoke again, softer, sharper.

"Because...although formidable he is, or—was—it doesn't change the present. And right now, he seems to be....honored, to be in front of.....Sunny"

"..."

"Possibly slightly fearful" he added with a hint of humility.

....

Heartbeats became audible.

Kai rubbed the side of his head, "You mean to say...that, one of the Nine, is....honored, to talk to him?" he repeated in disbelief.

"A Divine Shadow, he treats him as if he's a walking disaster" Saint Helie said with wariness

"Maybe his title as the "Heir of Death", undermines what he truly is" Mordret said with a tone of amusement.

Heads lowered in humble silence, while others rubbed their heads or fidgeted in agitation.

"This...this is just like when we first started learning about his damn past" Effie mumbled, while play-fighting Ling to distract herself.

"Strange...what actually does it mean to be a Divine Shadow then?" Julius murmured while rubbing his chin in thought.

Daeron glanced at him in deep thought, "You lead at?"

Julius nodded, "Lineages from what I know are inherited through Blood or left behind pieces of sorts, not that the clans would ever let me learn more no matter how much I appealed"

"H-Hey..." Rain stammered uncertainty, grasping at what little logic remained. "This all sounds great and intimidating, but that doesn't mean he's actually connected to them, right? Their history goes back so far..."

The silence that followed only made her confidence waver.

She looked around, hoping for reassurance. Instead, everyone stared at her, their expressions unreadable.

Her lips quivered. "You....you talk about him like he killed one of them or something!"

Again, the room fell eerily quiet.

Ananke placed a gentle hand on Rain's shoulder, her lips curling into a knowing, almost patronizing smile. "Nobody said that, dear."

"..."

"But..." she added, amusement creeping into her tone, "It seems the Nightmare Spell makes many impossible things... possible."

The color drained from Rain's face.

A snort sounded from above.

"Seems like something up his alley," Luster muttered, slouching in defeat, clearly nursing his own insecurities.

The Blood Sisters listened in silence, until they caught a subtle movement from the side. Beastmaster's shoulders twitched—her posture deceptively relaxed, but the hungry glint in her eyes betraying the growing thrill of a predator on the hunt.

Her nature had been very repetitive, rebounding on and off. But it was still building up regardless. And one way or another, some change would have to take place so she could return to her usual callous and charming demeanor.

Though they were unsure how they would do so, everything they saw and did in this space only seemed to encourage her behaviour.

Seishan, turned to her side, catching the gaze of the others.

"We should try and ask for a break or see if a pause of sorts can be given to us" she whispered in a low tone.

Deathsinger tilted her head, "But we don't know if it will comply at all, or if it would only make it worse if we went back to the....Sunphis Lounge"

Seishasn stared at her, "You have a better suggestion?"

The BloodSister quickly shook their heads, coming to a silent goal, as noise sounded from the first row.

"You can't be serious" Rain gasped

Ananke only tilted her head, her lips curling into a confused, but non-offensive smile, "Does this anger or trouble you in some way child?"

Rain's cheeks slightly burned as she gathered what words she could think of, "N-No! It's just....how can...."

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Effie leaned over, prodding her shoulder

"Younger sibling getting self-conscious of the older's achievements? That's a classic" she chortled

Kai frowned as he raised his hand to intervene, but as he did so, the screen shifted once again.

Sunny looked at the weakly struggling archer, then shifted his gaze back to the battered skeleton.

"You said that you wouldn't have killed this thing? Why?"

Eurys of the Nine chuckled. "Oh, it's just a piece of friendly advice, from one slave to another. Think about it, boy... she has been hunting down shadows for thousands of years here, in the realm of Shadow God, instead of quietly succumbing to death. Such a defiant spirit! What do you think will happen when you kill her, and her shadow enters your Soul Sea instead?"

Sunny suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.

He... had not considered that. There was definitely some truth to the skeleton's words. By all accounts, once a shadow traveled to the Shadow Realm, it was supposed to peacefully succumb to the divine will of its creator and be annihilated, turning into pure soul essence — like the shadows of the Awakened soldiers he had seen.

Even the shadow of Condemnation, despite having seemingly retained some of its agency, simply followed the law of the Shadow Realm and attempted the pilgrimage to its supposed center, dissolving into essence in the process. However, the mysterious archer was different...

Not only had they... she, apparently... defied the natural way of things by roaming the Shadow Realm as she pleased, but she had also refused to be annihilated, surviving for thousands of years by slaying other shadows instead.

Sunny had long suspected that his Soul Sea was like a nascent, miniature version of the Shadow Realm. If so, the laws governing it would be much weaker, and much easier to defy, than the ruthless laws governing the Realm of Death. So, what would happen if he killed the mysterious archer?

...Wouldn't he be just inviting a serial killer into his soul?

He shuddered.

Noticing his reaction, the battered skeleton let out a laugh.

"I see you realized the danger. She has become quite feral, hasn't she? Such a shame... my, oh my! The person was so valiant and righteous, yet the shadow is so wicked and vicious."

Sunny stared at the white skull with a frown. "You say it as if you knew her."

Eurys remained silent for a bit, then laughed.

"Why, of course! After all, she is one of the Nine."

Fate was still broken, but in that moment, they all turned to Rain. Their gazes swept her, as if she was in fact a Seer who still had their powers. She could only remain in her spot, her shoulders slightly shrinking.

"Haha! No this is honestly too fun! Keep talking Rani—no...Rain, whatever your name is! Funny things keep happening when you do!" Mordret laughed.

His display humor and....joy, briefly stumped both Song and Valor, causing the severity of the information they had just learned to lessen.

"So...he indeed defeated a member of the Nine" Windflower breathed in disbelief.

"Shadow, shadow of the Nine, or whatever they are..." Luster chimed in, Kim shooting him an angered look.

"I want to see what his Soul Sea looks like, he said it resembled the Shadow realm?" Jet mumbled.

"Shadow Realm...similar to Soul Sea..." Julius's eyes continued to brighten, "Strange...as a Divine Shadow, he's very identical to Shadow God itself?"

"I also wonder what his Soul Sea looks like..." Rain murmured

Morgan looked in Nephis's direction, but she didn't even make eye contact although noticing her gaze. It seemed that she was more tolerable to her unspoken demands. Compared to the start, when the hierarchy hadn't been established and connections hadn't been formed, she had revealed slightly more information.

But now it seemed like the confidence was starting to get to her, as she ignored her poking as if she wasn't going to have to deal and bear the consequences when they left this place.

'Troublesome, it's even more tantalizing how we're supposed to mobilize a force to get the girl, while also pulling him. It will be almost impossible by force, thus a neutral and kindred approach seems more suitable'

She briefly looked up at Song:

'Clearly they are infatuated by his potential and see him worthy as a partner to tie him down, but we saw information that suggests he did side with Valor under his feelings to Nephis. However, since Fate is in pieces, it is unsure whether that outcome is guaranteed'

'What else are we supposed to do to pull him over? Offer herself? As if!'

Her eyes slightly shifted, "Although that old man's synopsis of his resilient skin and bones is quite intriguing, I wonder how it would fare against my flaw..."

Briefly she glanced as Nephis, as the scene from the Sunphis lounge flashed in her mind.

'Well...she may be a Divine, but there are other ways to inflict damage on a person'

On the other side of the row, Nephis felt a brief chill on her back, as she turned to look down the aisle. But Morgan was not looking in her direction, instead focused on the screen with a content smile on her face.

She didn't understand why, but it gave her a growing sense of unease.

Sunny hesitated for a while, then asked somberly:

"You said that if I kill this shadow, it would enter my Soul Sea, just like it had entered the Shadow Realm. So, then... is Shadow Realm what remains of Shadow God's Soul Sea?"

The skull stared at him incredulously.

"Huh."

Eurys paused for a moment, and then said in an amicable tone: "Gods are not like us people, boy. They don't really have bodies, souls, and Soul Seas... it's all the same. So no, we are not inside the Soul Sea of Shadow God." The white skull chuckled.

"Instead, we are simply inside Shadow God. Shadow Realm is his corpse."

For the first time, Sunny and the spectators were united in their reaction. An eerie silence filled the room as blank stares stretched across every face. Minds reeled, thoughts spiraling outward, grasping at understanding and falling into an abyss of revelation.

All except Julius.

Instead of shock, his face was twisted in sheer confusion. Then, slowly, something in his expression shifted, as if a piece of an ancient puzzle had clicked into place—one so vast that his mind twitched between terror and exhilaration.

"If Divine Realms and worlds are the remnants of gods and higher beings..."

His breath hitched.

"...then does this mean we are inside the body of something even greater?"

As soon as the words left his lips, something strange happened. A flicker—like a thread snapping—made Julius flinch. His pupils trembled as his thoughts seemed to scatter into the void. His mind went blank for a single, terrifying moment.

As on the screen, Sunny began moving again.

"What? We're..."

....

'We're inside the Shadow God'

'I am inside Shadow God's corpse.'

The Shadow Realm... the entirety of it... was the sacred body of a god. Which meant that all the other Divine Realms, like Godgrave and Stormsea, were as well.

...And the waking world, too. Gods were vast, after all. Vast enough to encompass entire worlds within them, it seemed.

Sunny struggled with the desire to gulp, his mouth terribly dry.

He lingered for a few long moments, then asked hoarsely:

"If this is Shadow God's corpse, then what killed him?"

All the spectators leaned forward, eager to learn the forbidden truth.

But strangely compared to his usual demeanor.

All the spectators leaned forward, hunger and fear clawing at their chests.

No mocking laugh. No cryptic quip.

Nothing.

The white skull remained utterly, eerily still.

Eyes narrowed as some leaned back in confusion and a mixture of disappointment.

"Why....why is it holding out on information now?" Cassie mumbled.

"Don't tell me it's getting stingy" Revel scoffed.

What seemed like hours seemed to pass, before his familiar voice sounded again. Except, it was not what they had expected to hear. In fact, it sparked quite the opposite of what they had hoped to feel.

And in that moment, every single one of them remembered.

Greed always came with a price.

And all it had to do... was wait.

They had been so consumed by their hunger for knowledge that they had forgotten—forgotten the one thing they should have never lost sight of.

An encounter with.....

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Ngl, I read the Chapters to figure out what to use, but then got caught up and just kept reading

And no, this is not the moment I was itching to write

Wish I had shadows to help me write more.

Originally wanted to do all lore and other stuff I had in mind all in this one Chapter

But then a very tasty burger, smoothie and plate of oranges held me captive (ᵕ—ᗜ—)

Maybe I lock in next Chapter and go 10k+, and write the moment I want 0_0

(maybe)

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