Chapter Text
"Are you ready, Sunny?"
Sunny looked over his shoulder to see Nephis smiling at him. She had a strange, confident glint in her eyes.
"Of course, after all, if that is our will, who can stop us?"
She laughed softly, and the two of them stood side by side, gazing at the crackling Nightmare Seed. The massive Seed was bursting with energy and overwhelming presence.
"We are ready."
Cassie appeared on Nephis's other side with a slight smile.
Mordret approached Sunny's other side, his eyes filled with intent and determination.
"Perhaps this time, I will succeed in becoming Sacred."
Sunny glanced at his serious face with an amused smile. Nephis took a deep breath and exhaled.
She stepped toward the Seed and dissolved into a shower of sparks.
Each of them followed, one by one, dissolving into sparks.
Sunny was the last one. He took a few seconds to reminisce on his journeys as a Sovereign.
Ariel's game, True Bastion, the Eternal City, and fighting the mad Sovereign Asterion.
He had truly grown so much in the past years. He had collected a myriad of stories, and now he was about to start a new chapter.
He took his final step as a Sovereign.
And entered the Fifth Nightmare.
[Sovereign Sunless! Welcome to the Fifth Nightmare. Prepare for your Trial…]
[Brave one… Welcome to the Nightmare!]
'What?'
Usually The Spell would name the number of challengers entering the Nightmare. In this case it should've been four, but instead, it named only one…
***
"Long time no see… Sunless."
Sunny's body was ridden with weakness, as if he were carrying a mountain on his back. Massive, gaping scars covered his body, making him appear more like a knife sharpener than a human. Blood seeped out of his festering wounds, and his hair was matted with sweat.
He opened his heavy eyes and saw absolute darkness. In the middle of the dark was a man.
He was a man of short stature and had flawless ivory skin. He had long raven-black hair and eyes filled with unfathomable darkness. The darkness seemed to retreat around him, and loyal shadows filled the space instead.
It was Sunny.
Or rather, the Sin of Solace.
"Wha… What the hell?!"
The Sin of Solace let out an arrogant laugh that rang through the true darkness.
'Dammit…'
The room he was in was filled to the brim with true darkness, his natural enemy. He couldn't feel the call of the shadows, and couldn't call upon his full strength. He tried to move, but found that he was completely restricted. Strong, dark arms reached out from the darkness to bind him, grasping his every limb.
'Where am I? Is this the Fifth Nightmare?'
"You bastard… I got rid of you! In the Tomb of Ariel!"
The apparition shook his head with a playful smirk on his face.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk… You really think that was real? Your foolishness almost makes me feel bad for you."
The Sin of Solace took a few steps closer to him, so that they were only a foot apart.
"This entire time, you had never set foot outside of the Tomb of Ariel."
Sunny stopped struggling against the dark hands and stared at the apparition, searching for a hint of deceit.
The Sin of Solace was known for mixing truth and lies to drive him mad, so Sunny had to analyze every word that came from its foul mouth carefully.
On one hand, the Sin of Solace could be useful. In his Third Nightmare, it was what made the Mad Prince's schemes possible, allowing them to escape the Nightmare.
At least, if they had even managed to escape the Nightmare at all…
"You're a lying bastard… Why would I ever trust you?"
The apparition took another step forward, so that their faces were only inches away.
"Oh, I don't need you to believe me. I could stay here for eternity as long as it would drive you mad."
He took a final step forward, placing his foot on top of Sunny's. The mad apparition pressed his forehead against his, staring deeply into his eyes.
"But… Tell me…"
In his eyes, Sunny saw madness, but also honesty. Not a hint of deceit was hidden in the unfathomable darkness of his eyes. The cursed sword's mouth began to move.
"Am I lying?"
***
Sunny gasped desperately as the apparition released him.
He was now certain that the Sin of Solace was telling the truth, or at least, the truth of a madman. But there was another fact that had presented itself…
"You… You can touch me!"
In the past, the apparition had remained simply that. A ghostly figure that had no physical body. But in this room filled with true darkness, he was now fully physical.
The Sin of Solace strolled lazily around the darkness as he began to explain.
"This place is beyond the laws of the universe. Space, time, death… perhaps even fate. Things don't work how they usually do in here."
He stopped for a short moment as he gazed into the darkness.
"In the estuary, you were greatly deceived. While you believed that you had managed to escape the Tomb of Ariel, you were simply imprisoned in a dream all along. All your journeys after the Third Nightmare were false, propagated by a certain Nightmare Creature who caught you."
He glanced at Sunny with a slight smirk on his face.
"Who knew that a hideous cockroach like you would manage to pique the interest of an Unholy?"
Sunny took a moment to comprehend the absurd statement.
"Unholy? An Unholy captured me in a dream?"
The Sin of Solace grinned obnoxiously, spreading his arms out in congratulations.
"Bingo! This entire time, an Unholy Nightmare Creature was hiding in the Tomb of Ariel for… who knows how long! The entire time, it was keeping the Vile Thieving Bird within its clutches, using it as its plaything. But now… you're its new toy!"
Sunny looked around at the true darkness around them. Perhaps this was… the belly of the beast.
The apparition glanced at Sunny's disgruntled and confused expression and began laughing hysterically.
"Hah! Who knew that you'd make a better toy for an Unholy than a friend to your cohort?"
Sunny's face paled as he remembered the consequences of going to the Estuary. He had betrayed and abandoned his cohort, his friends; what happened to them now?
Perhaps the cycle had simply started again without him, since the Unholy seemed to be outside of the bounds of the Tomb of Ariel.
Hearing his thoughts, the Sin of Solace began laughing again, wiping tears from his eyes.
"You really think they're still in this Nightmare? Gods… I thought you were smart."
He continued with a jubilant attitude, like a kid who had just got a lifetime's supply of candy.
"They moved on without you. They managed to conquer the Nightmare without you, while you were here, dreaming peacefully. It's been… who knows how long? Perhaps decades have passed, or maybe just a few months. Maybe they became Supreme while you were gone, or maybe they simply died an unremarkable death. Who knows?"
Sunny began seething, trying desperately to break out of the Unholy's grasp.
"No… that can't be…"
The Sin of Solace lay down in the darkness, enjoying its cold embrace.
"All this time, I've been stuck in this horrid, dank room, watching you sleep peacefully. Simultaneously, I watched your memories, seeing every moment of your dream. The false life that you believed you lived after the Third Nightmare."
"The Throne Wars, Ariel's Game, True Bastion, the Eternal City, Asterion… I've seen it all. It's cute that you think you can get rid of me with two words. But I'm eternally grateful that you're awake; after all, how can I drive you mad if you can't even see me?"
"And now…"
The powerful, dark arms binding Sunny were suddenly sliced apart. The shadows surrounding the Sin of Solace had manifested as sharp scythes, severing the dark arms like butter.
"It's time to reap the rewards of your betrayal."
With that, a Dream Gate appeared, lighting up the darkness with swirling light. Sunny was shook by the sudden display of power; the Sin of Solace had just ripped apart an Unholy! Although Sunny was currently an Ascended, it seemed that the Sin of Solace had a vastly different level of power, at least in the stomach of the Unholy.
The mad apparition stood proudly next to the shining gateway. A wide grin split across his face as he gestured towards the portal. Through it, Sunny could see a blurry view of NQSC, as if it were coated in a layer of mist.
"Here it is."
Sunny walked through.
The Sin of Solace spared a last glance towards him.
"Congratulations, Sunny… you created hell on Earth."
A shimmering display of runes expanded across his vision.
[Welcome home… Saint Sunless.]