My fault for disappearing again :P
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Sunny gave Nephis a rather pointed look as he glanced at Cassie's unconscious form.
"She's still not awake, Neph."
The two of them had sprinted up the spire to where they had left the Seer, and lo and behold—
She was still peacefully sleeping in a bed made of the appendages of an awakened titan.
Inky scratched the top of his head and cast his temporary master a sheepish look, though Sunny couldn't have cared less.
The moment he verbally confirmed that Cassie was still snoozing, he turned around to leave, but Nephis grabbed his arm and gave him a stern look.
"Then we'll just wake her up. Don't do anything stupid."
Sunny glanced at the fingers wrapped around his arm and scowled.
"I'm not a child, Neph. I don't need you to baby me."
Still, he didn't completely reject her touch, merely making a displeased expression.
"But ok, fine. Whatever. Let's hurry this up then."
Sunny gestured at the unconscious seer.
"You said that we can just wake her up right? How?"
Nephis shrugged.
"How else?"
Before Sunny could comprehend what was about to happen, Nephis grabbed Cassie by the collar and hoisted her to her feet.
SLAP
The rather sharp sound of a physical rebuke echoed in the air, causing both Sunny and Inky to flinch.
Unfortunately for Cassie, it seemed that a single slap wouldn't be enough to rouse her.
"Hmm, It usually only takes one...."
Sunny's mouth dropped open as Nephis raised her hand once more— but thankfully he woke from his stupor fast enough to grab Nephis's wrist.
"Wh—"
Nephis reacted almost instantly and cut him off.
"Look, do you have any better ideas?"
Sunny sucked in a breath and awkwardly let go, though he summoned a memory after a small beat of silence.
Nephis gave him an odd look.
"... It's better then slapping her at least."
Nephis gave him a brief nod as Sunny stepped forward and tipped the [Endless Spring] towards Cassie's sleeping face.
"You should shake her."
Nephis nodded and grabbed her shoulders, rocking her back and forth rather vigorously.
"....."
In all honestly, it looked more like some advanced form of torture, but neither Nephis or Sunny particularly cared in that moment.
A few moments passed with nothing but the sounds of pouring water and rustling clothes before—
Thankfully—
Cassie woke up.
For once, it seemed, waterboarding an unconscious person seemed to have been the correct answer.
Coughing up water from her mouth and nose, Cassie let out a groan— though unfortunately for her, neither of the two had the luxury of waiting for her to gather her bearings.
Sunny returned the [Endless Spring] back into his soul sea, but Nephis kept shaking the poor seer.
"Cassie."
"... Neph?"
******************
Truth be told, Cassie didn't really have the luxury of time on her side.
Now that she had been freed from the control of the Star of Solitude, she could now remember the visions of the future that had been erased from her memory.
Not that they really helped.
Most of them starred the fresh corpse of her beloved swordsman, with any insight into the events that led up to that grim future being rife with abstract symbolism.
The only thing that she knew for certain was that the Star of Solitude has something to do with Audun's death, which in itself makes no sense.
But,
Rather than focus too much on that, for now, Cassie felt that it'd be better to focus on the most pressing matter at hand.
That being the demonized Caster that Audun was fighting beneath the soul rending sun.
When Sunny had delivered that particular piece of news, Cassie's expression soured quite fast.
Though, thankfully, even with the very little she knew about demons,
It didn't take very long for Cassie to come up with a plan.
Whether or not it was a good plan was honestly up for debate, however.
Sunny gave Cassie a peculiar look.
"Sorry— What?"
Nephis, however, simply nodded.
"It's feasible."
What Cassie had suggested was simple.
If they couldn't kill whatever Caster was now, they simply had to find some other way of dealing with him.
How?
Well, there happened to be an incredibly powerful seal just below them.
The Seven Locks holding back the Dark Sea.
What Cassie had proposed was quite simple— Nephis would join Audun in the battle since she was the most tenacious among them and Sunny would go undo the seal holding back the Dark Sea.
Since Sunny's shadows could act independently, he could keep in contact with Cassie, who would be coordinating the whole thing as she had the only means of long range communication with Audun— and since Nephis would be fighting with Audun, the four of them should have no issues coordinating.
It sounded good on paper, but realistically...
"... What about the other sleepers?"
Sunny frowned.
"If we unleash the Dark Sea, it could tear down the spire— not to mention, there's no way to know if we can even seal the Dark Sea a second time."
"Then all we need to do is make sure that we undo the seal after the other sleepers have exited through the gateway."
Sunny's brow furrowed.
"But then... There's a chance that we'll lose our chance to return."
Nephis nodded.
"That's true, but I'd say our chances of surviving long enough to make it back to the waking world aren't particularly slim."
Sunny stiffened before letting out a sigh.
"... Shit."
Cassie gripped the ring hanging around her neck.
"We can discuss this as we move. I'll take Inky and check the progress of the evacu— "
Before she could finish, a strange feeling nestled shot down her spine.
Sunny and Nephis felt it too.
It was familiar yet foreign at the same time, but it was merely a precursor for the inexplicable phenomenon they were about to witness.
Outside, the gray skys of the Forgotten Shore began to bleed black— with the blinding white light of the soul rending sun being snuffed out by this inexplicable darkness.
Day became night, and at the apex that was once occupied by the sun, platinum light began to coalesce, forming an object that they were somewhat familiar with.
Though, it was far grander than anything they had seen before.
Sunny was unable to contain the incredulous laugh that leaked from his lips.
"Why does everything have to be so damn complicated...."
**********************************
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The Land of the Stars wasn't a realm that relied entirely on the supernatural.
Studies in science and mathematics were encouraged just as much as those of magic; in fact, many mages belonging to the more modern mage towers of the empire came from backgrounds in the sciences.
Unless you were a being that could bend the laws of the world to your will, understanding and obeying those fundamental rules were far more efficient than ignoring them.
That being said, even a mage who had learned everything there was to know about the sciences and magic wouldn't be able to measure up to the weakest constellation in the battleground of stars with that knowledge alone— and even if that constellation was the most unintelligent troglodyte in history, the outcome wouldn't change.
This is due to the existence of 'Stars'.
Now, what exactly is a Star?
They certainly aren't large, luminous gaseous spheroidal celestial bodies located somewhere beyond the sky— nor do they have anything to do with astrology at all.
In fact, the only thing possessing the aforementioned characteristics in the Land of Stars is the literal sun.
The records of the fallen civilization tell of a time when those large, gassy celestial bodies filled the sky— but now, even if one were to spend their life searching, those faraway spheroidal objects would not reveal themselves before them.
And yet, the night sky of the Land of Stars is undeniably filled with 'Stars'.
The 'Stars' native to the Land of Stars are shrouded in mystery.
No one fully understands the process of their creation, and even a constellation, a being whose existence is intimately tied to those 'Stars', only has a vague understanding of their nature.
Yet, despite how little is known about them, every person who has been touched by starlight has reached the same conclusion regarding the fundamental identity of those pearls of light.
A 'Star' is simply uniqueness.
They are the manifestation of personal stories or traits that shine so brilliantly that they pour out light.
They are feats so grand that they have ascended to the zenith of the world.
It isn't for no reason that constellations that have lost their stars bear the moniker of the forgotten.
Stars are the physical manifestation of the uniqueness of an existence— and thus, are intimately entwined with their identity and fundamental nature.
If one were to attempt to 'bury' a Star, or if one were to lose their star in battle, it would be no different from losing a part of what makes you you.
And so—
As Audun heard the spell's whisper in his ear,
As he claimed yet another Star tied to his past in the hopes of turning the tides of this arduous battle,
He could not help but feel bewildered when a Star that he had never seen before began to form in the sky of the forgotten shore.
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A/N: I really don't want to jinx it, but I do think that I have more time to write now.
It feels like every time that I want to start writing consistently something happens and I suddenly get robbed of all the free time I have, but realistically, I think that a regular schedule should be feasible now.
I'm back in the states and instead of taking the gap year I originally planned because of my family situation, and I'm back at college.
I wasn't sure if I'd be able to afford it, but my grandparents did me a solid and covered me for this year.
Ok, to be honest, things always get kind of complicated for me during second semester and the summer, this past year especially, but I can say with some level of confidence that I can start uploading again, more so because my schedule is more predictable and I'll be able to plan everything out better, barring extreme circumstances.
After a week, if I'm confident I'll be able to go through w it, I'll start doing power stone goals again (Though only like 25 for an extra chapter max).
Hope you guys have been well, and thanks for all the support.