Over the next few days, Sunny explored the extent of the powers granted by Cassie's new lineage. Through her bastard inheritance, she gained an uncannily precise shadow sense. The essence passively suffusing in her body began to shimmer with an ethereal quality, making her elusive and hard to pinpoint—especially when enveloped by darkness.
Along with this change, a profound calm settled over her mind. Even as adrenaline surged and training reached its fevered pitch, a serene stillness cloaked her thoughts, leaving her immune to the disruptive whims of emotion. And yet, one truth remained immutable: Cassie was blind. While Sunny learned through coordinating visuals with his sixth sense, Cassie would receive no such crutch.
Sunny, an expert in shadow sense, had embarked in a journey to master the essence of its application. From the moment he incorporated shadow shells into combat, he shifted away from relying primarily on physical sight. While Cassie lacked vision, she would have a mentor.
He began by challenging Cassie to gauge distances by the presence of shadows around her. Day after day of relentless practice gradually equipped her with the instincts needed for rough, yet effective, navigation.
Next, Sunny introduced her to combat training. He had her execute sparring moves with him deliberately and slowly—each measured step a lesson in learning how a shadow's movement reflected the body which cast it. As Cassie's intuition sharpened, their pace quickened, and intricate drills were added to seamlessly merge her newfound sense with every motion.
Later, Sunny informed Professor Julius that he would no longer be available for classes—a decision that visibly irked the old man. When pressed for an explanation, Sunny's tone hardened as he revealed his disdain for an academy that refused to adequately prepare Cassie—and his resolve to do so on his own. Though the professor grudgingly accepted this reasoning, it was only after condensing weeks of crucial instruction into his last lecture.
Determined, Sunny dedicated every available moment to Cassie's training. Though two weeks of grueling practice could scarcely ready her for the dangers of the Forgotten Shore, they would survive. Just as Nephis had once unlocked his latent abilities, Sunny was committed to honing Cassie's.
In the final week before the winter solstice, Sunny requested that Cassie be granted access to a Dreamscape pod to spar with simulated Nightmare Creatures. Although these fabricated foes lacked the feral instincts and uncanny nature of genuine adversaries, the exercise was designed not for the thrill of combat but to refine her ability to decipher nonhuman shadows. Without sight, Cassie needed to master the art of reading shapes from mere silhouettes—a skill that could mean the difference between survival and defeat.
Every subtle nuance mattered: the width and height of a shadow on a surface hinted at a creature's size, while the angle of the incident light warped the image, distorting it in ways that spoke of its true form. More importantly, the depth of a shadow revealed power—its traits, rank, class, will, and cunning were all encoded in that darkness. These details were lessons she had to learn before authentic fights.
The scope of her training seemed utterly impossible to compress into time period as short as two weeks, but still, she rose to meet the challenge. She was untested and unready for true battle, though that was no matter—Sunny had once been the same. None of this progress would have been possible without the sheer genius of the blind girl. Sunny knew, without a doubt, that she possessed an extraordinary spark. Her original self adapted not one, but two entirely new senses into a unique and formidable fighting style. It was no accident that Morgan of Valor had chosen her as a sparring partner—she was among the strongest of their generation. That talent would not have been latent as a Sleeper; She was exceptional enough to receive a Sacred Aspect during her First Nightmare after all.
Only on the final day before the winter solstice did they grant themselves a brief respite—a momentary pause in an unyielding barrage of training.
***
In a quiet corner of the cafeteria, a mysterious pair lingered—a blind girl and a short, withdrawn boy. Ever since their strange episodes weeks earlier, they'd become little more than ghosts in the minds of their peers, glimpsed only fleetingly during mealtimes as if in a hurried retreat. The boy's flaw used to be the subject of endless scrutiny, but all anyone could ever sense from him now was a grim determination. Nobody truly understood the enigmatic duo, nor did they care to spare them attention when faced with imminent peril of their own.
Meanwhile, Sunny and Cassie shared their final conversation in the waking world.
"I will heed the advice of your alternate self and avoid sharing too much of my knowledge of the future." Sunny declared.
Cassie took a pause from her meal to listen with full attention. "Makes sense. Share what you think is necessary."
With a soft grunt of affirmation, Sunny continued, "When we enter the Dream Realm, we will be placed into an unconquered region. Our immediate objective is to find each other, then travel west until we locate a settlement of Sleepers. I'll share more as needed."
Cassie nodded slowly. "I'll see you on the other side. And... Happy birthday."
***
The Sleepers of the Awakened Academy followed Awakened Rock through a lengthy corridor into the medical wing, where, much as before, they were led to the somber room of Hollows. A hush fell over the group—everyone's eyes furtively glanced at the eerie space—except for two determined souls who shared a silent vow. In unison, their thoughts whispered, 'We will find a way, Nephis.'
Soon after, the Sleepers were escorted to their personal rooms, each preparing to enter their pods. In one room, the blind girl, Cassia, confidently navigated the unfamiliar space. Ignoring the gentle prodding of the nurses, she stepped into the bed with an air of resolute calm, awaiting the cold embrace of the Nightmare Spell.
In another other room, proud Legacy Caster was staring listlessly at the floor. His lips were moving, repeating one strange phrase over and over again. He was trembling.
In the Immortal Flame residence, Changing Star Nephis—the last daughter of an extinguished clan—lay motionless on a soft white bed. The steady beep of life support punctuated the fractured silence, marking the passage of time with quiet inevitability.
In the final room, the fateless Lost from Light turned away from his sleeping pod and cast a pensive glance at his shadow.
"Well? You ready?"
The shadow nodded reluctantly, then shrugged.
Sunny sighed, his voice heavy with both hope and uncertainty. "Yeah, me too." He stepped forward and climbed into the pod.
***
In a land sculpted by living coral, the sun sank slowly toward the horizon. Within a labyrinthine seabed, countless crab-like abominations feasted on the carcasses of fallen leviathans; Their movements both grotesque and mesmerizing.
Rising from a desolate mountain of ash, a towering black tree stood like a solitary sentinel. Its ancient, gnarled trunk sheltered it's chosen guardian, and high among its sparse branches, a nest cradled an eerie egg—its surface swirling with grotesque darkness.
Far to the west, across a yawning chasm, a walled city lay in quiet majesty, crowned by a bright castle. On the throne sat a man resplendent in gold, yet the true rulers dwelled in the darkened streets below. A flawless stone statue crushed any who presumed themselves to be stronger. Deep within the catacombs, a restless mass of living bones stirred, while in a ruined cathedral, a proud knight kept vigil over a passage leading to a masked corpse hidden in the depths.
Along the city's ancient walls, a woman reclined beside a roaring fire, her spear resting by her side as she methodically devoured her prey. In the castle's dim light, a handsome young man sat with furrowed brows, his eyes reflecting the horrors unfolding around him.
To the south, a gigantic automaton marched with unbending resolve to fulfill an everlasting duty. At it's journey's tip lay a mine nestled amid a mist-shrouded mountain chain. In the caves far below, a crown rested—its solitary gem radiating the tender hues of dawn.
Above all, like a lance piercing the heavens, the Crimson Spire soared. The terrifying figure atop—a fearsome amalgamation of human forms and coral—cast its disdainful gaze upon its dominion, as if hungering for the day it might consume the world. Beneath this pillar of corruption, a vast, dark sea churned, patiently awaiting its turn to engulf the land.
When the sun finally vanished, the sea stirred and rose. That night, two Sleepers of Shadow and Fate emerged—harbingers of impending destruction.