Shadow Slave

Kai remained silent for a while, and then let out a heavy sigh. He looked away, picked up his charred wooden mask and stared at it for a few moments, then finally spoke:

"I was sent into the body of a centurion of the Sun Legion, the army of the Ivory City. The city… you must have seen it when we entered the Nightmare, rising from the ashes as the time flowed in reverse. It is a wondrous place… beautiful, peaceful, and full of life, with people who are warm, kind, and care deeply for their neighbors. Dozens of flourishing islands, all connected into a single whole by the aerial bridges and arching aqueducts built of white stone…"

The young man paused, grimaced, and took a sip of honey tea to smooth his aching vocal cords. Then, he glanced at the mask again, lingered for a moment, and continued:

"At least that was what I thought, at the start of it. Looking back, I was terribly naive… but it was so easy to be misled by how the Ivory City, and its people, appeared — especially by the stark contrast between the splendor of that enchanting facade and the barefaced vileness of those who wished to destroy it. The merciless, mad killers... Warmongers."

Kai shook his head.

"The people of the Ivory City are just like those we know in the waking world. They have the same values, the same ideals, the same regard for decency and human life… ah, now that I say it aloud, I realize they might be doing much better than us in that regard. My point is… is that they seemed nice. Their city was like a beautiful paradise... like a place that all human cities should strive to be. Was it so unexpected, then, that in this Nightmare, there was someone who wanted to destroy it?"

His eyes grew dim.

"The followers of the cult of Glory, on the other hand, were exactly like what one would imagine the forces of evil to be. Merciless, cruel raiders that worshipped war, slaughter, and bloodshed, killing simply for the sake of killing. Their perverse fate, their zealous belief that by destroying the lives of innocent people they were delivering the gift of salvation to their victims… murderers and madmen, each and every one of them. So, you might understand why I was blinded to the truth… for a while."

The young man took another sip of tea, then put down the mask and looked at them with a dark expression.

"In my naivete, I came to believe myself to be a hero of a grim fairy tale. A noble warrior tasked with protecting a beautiful paradise from the tide of evil. I mistakingly considered the fate of the Ivory City to be the true conflict of the Nightmare, and so convinced myself that protecting it was what we had been sent here to do. Unable to abandon my duty and reluctant to become a deserter, I remained with the Sun Legion, thinking that, sooner or later, you guys will join me."

Kai looked down and sighed heavily.

"...And so, very soon, I became known as a hero of the Legion."

His disfigured face contorted for a moment, but then the young man restrained his emotions and smiled bleakly.

"I know, that fact might sound surprising. Unlike the rest of you, I have never been a fearsome warrior. I have never been a dauntless leader of men, as well. My only real act of bravery was facing the Spire Messengers in the shadow of the Crimson Spire, and even then, I only survived because of Cassie. So… I was very surprised to find myself gaining fame and renown as a fearless battle commander."

Kai looked at them, lingered for a moment, and then said with uncertainty:

"The war between the Ivory City and the Red Colosseum, you see, has been going on for centuries. Its bloody tides come and go, like those of the sea. Sometimes, only small skirmishes and raids happen for decades, and sometimes, there are terrible battles happening every day. Sometimes, only mundane soldiers and Awakened officers fight each other, and sometimes, Ascended champions appear to sow devastation on the battlefield. Sometimes, even the Transcendent Lords descend…"

He paused for a few moments, took a sip of tea, then continued in a neutral tone:

"At the time, I found myself in the center of a sudden shift from a prolonged period of relative calm to the start of a massive offensive by the Warmongers. And very early on, I discovered an unexpected truth…"

He glanced at them, thought for a second, as though carefully choosing his words, and said:

"You see, I was always under the impression that warriors of this mythical era, when gods were still alive and magic permeated the world, were infinitely more knowledgeable, powerful, and proficient in battle than we, humans of the Waking World, are. But as it turns out, that is not so. Maybe a long time ago, during what they call the Age of Heroes, they had been. But now, most of them are far less deadly than we have become… at least those of us who had been forged and tempered by the Forgotten Shore."

Sunny raised an eyebrow, surprised by that statement. Noticing his expression, Kai tilted his head a little.

"...Nightmare Creatures are nowhere near as numerous here as they are in the future. There is no Spell, no Nightmares, no trial of the Dream Realm, no Gates… unlike them, each of us had been forced into a life of bloodshed and conflict, thrown against unimaginable horrors with no choice to retreat or surrender. The Spell might be a cruel teacher, but its vile lessons seem to be morbidly effective. Grow stronger or die, there is no other way for us. So, most Awakened from the real world would have experienced more strife and battle encounters than an average Awakened warrior of this time period."

He sighed, and then added somberly:

"That was why even I, despite my humble Aspect and lacking battle prowess, was able to stand out. I led my soldiers to victory, keeping them alive through the sudden attack by a large force of the Warmongers. And then, I kept them alive through the rest of the campaign, wreaking havoc on the enemy anywhere my centuria appeared."

Kai grew quiet for a long time, and then added, his ugly voice suddenly sounding especially hoarse and grating:

"And that was how I gained the attention of the radiant Lord of my city… of Sevirax, the Ivory Dragon."