At first, Lucien thought Sunless would come back on his own. But then a week passed with no sign of his return, so he ventured into the Dark City to look for him. He spent the entire day scouring the dark city to look for any traces of the boy, but to no avail.
As night fell, Lucien was considering heading back to the outer settlements when an untainted presence entered the vicinity of his storm sense. It was nearby, having just appeared out of thin air.
'It has to be him.'
Sunless was the only person who had managed to hide from his storm sense. Whenever he hid in shadows, it was as if his bioelectricity had been snuffed out. Like he no longer even existed.
Before long, he could see him. Sunless, who had just killed a nightmare creature, was busy extracting the soul shards from its corpse.
As Lucien got closer, Sunless suddenly stiffened and turned around, Midnight shard raised in a defensive stance.
"It's me, Sunless." Lucien announced, wreathing himself in a thin layer of storm, maybe to make him easier to spot, or maybe to run if the worst came to pass.
Sunless squinted at him, "Lucien? What are you-"
He stopped mid-sentence and glared accusatorily at him, "Are you here to bring me back?"
That was bad. How had he already been found? Sunless narrowed his eyes at Lucien. If push came to shove, could he take him on?
"Maybe," Lucien shrugged, the purple glow leaving him, "Why did you leave?"
He scoffed, "You know why. You were there, spying on us."
Lucien flinched and then smiled, "Ah, you noticed?"
"Your lightning isn't exactly subtle, you know," Sunless said dryly, "Why were you spying on us?"
Lucien hesitated for a moment, "I…don't know. I was looking for you to remind you of our hunt, but then I found you and Nephis arguing in that alley."
Sunny stared at him silently before frowning, "What did you make of it? Her plan, I mean."
"You mean the same plan that involves sacrificing everyone in the forgotten shores, all so that she can go ahead and 'destroy the world'?" Lucien scowled and looked away. He glared at the distant castle.
"If it comes down to it, if her plan ends with the people I care about being hurt. Then I will kill her. I swore that on my true name."
Sunless paled. Nephis would stop at nothing to achieve their goal, and Lucien would kill her for that.
Lucien sighed, deciding to change the topic. "Back to the matter at hand. I assume you have no intention of returning now."
"No," Sunless said after a while, before warily raising his blade, "Are you going to make me?"
Sunless was no fool. He knew that if Lucien wanted, he could drag him back to the settlement before Sunless could really put up a fight. That speed of his was unmatched, to the point where he didn't know who was faster, Lucien or Caster.
Lucien shook his head, "No, I'm not going to make you return against your will. You'll just leave again."
"Damn right I will," He paused, "So, what are you going to do?"
"What else? I'll return empty handed and forget this conversation ever happened." He shrugged as if that was the most obvious thing in the world.
"How can I trust that you won't come back with the others?" Sunless asked, willing his shadow to enhance his body. He did not want to face Nephis, not yet.
"Do you not trust me?" He frowned when Sunless nodded in response.
'Trust is a two-way street; I must offer him my trust to receive it.' He sighed. There was only one thing he could say, only one olive branch he could extend.
"I admit I…haven't been fully honest with all of you." He admitted, and Sunless frowned.
He knew there was something suspicious about Lucien. Narrowing his eyes, he said: "What do you mean?"
"I received a true name in my first nightmare," Lucien said, looking him in the eyes, a glint of foreign emotion tingling his words. "Hour of Calamity."
Sunless froze, a true name, like Nephis, like him. The runes for the name visualized in his mind. Hour of Calamity could be read in two ways. Just like how Changing Star was also Star of Ruin. Hour of Calamity was also Cleansing Hour.
"Why tell me this?" He asked carefully, it wasn't as if Lucien too had an innate ability as debilitating as his right?
"Just as a show of trust. No one knows I have a true name, not even my mother." He looked down at his own shadow, "It's a rather ominous name, wouldn't you agree? To be named as the moment of disaster? That's why I didn't tell anyone about it. Why would I brag about such a true name?"
For a moment, Sunless contemplated telling him about the other interpretation of his true name. But Lucien spoke again before he could.
"I'm asking you to trust me. I will not tell the others where you are, I will not even tell them I found you. For all they know, you could be dead. Until the time comes when you willingly return, I will not speak of this."
Sunless nodded apprehensively, "Fine, I'll trust you for now."
"Thats all I ask." Lucien sighed and then turned away. "Farewell Sunless-"
"Sunny," Sunless interrupted, "Call me Sunny."
"Very well," Lucien smiled ruefully, "Farewell Sunny, and good hunting."
Lucien sighed as he entered the bright castle. It had been three months since that day, and their hunts had only gotten more and more dangerous, and yet…
'Of course, I get all the useless memories. That's what I get for killing an Awakened Devil all by myself.'
Well, not all of the memories were bad. He had managed to get his hands on a charm that gave him some resistance to mind attacks. But most of his memories were trash.
But not everything was bad. His mother had managed to return home for a day a few weeks ago and had met his new friends. He couldn't help but smile, thinking back on what happened.
He had just returned from his solo hunt, a few soul shards richer and with a new memory. He was in a good mood.
And then he saw it, his mother standing outside his hut, talking to Cassie. He froze. She was back. He wasn't seeing things right? No, he could sense her bioelectricity. She really was there.
Unbeknownst to him, a wide smile threatened to split open his face as he began walking towards her, his pace increasing by the second. As he approached, the two cut their conversation short, and Aletta turned to him, a smile mirroring his own.
Lucien slammed into her, grasping her in an embrace, and for the first time in a long while, he relaxed. He sank in her warmth, staying like that a while. After all, who knew when he'd get to see her again?
It was a strange sight. There was Aletta, dressed formally as a handmaiden. And then there was Lucien, dressed in dirty clothes stained with the blood of all kinds of nightmare creatures.
Cassie stepped back with a small smile on her face, born of both happiness and longing. She was happy that Lucien finally got to see his mother again, but at the same time…she missed her own mother back in the waking world.
After a few minutes, they finally separated. Lucien couldn't fight off the grin on his face. "How've you been?"
"I should be asking you that. I heard that you joined a hunting party? I was just talking to this young woman here about that."
"Yeah, I have. Effie's with us too, and you've already met Cassie." Lucien turned to the blind seer. "Thanks for keeping her company."
Cassie smiled, "It's okay, she was excellent company. It was nice meeting you, Ms. Aletta."
"The pleasure was all mine, dear." She said, bidding her goodbye.
"She seems like a nice girl." She commented as they walked inside their hut.
"Yeah, she's one of the good ones." He said. Despite having his reservations about each of the members of his cohort, he still considered them good people, even Caster.
…Except Nephis, he didn't know what to make of her yet.
Aletta grinned slyly, "So, do you like her?"
Lucien frowned, "Like her as a person? Sure, I guess?"
"I meant romantically."
"Oh," Lucien paused. He had not considered that at all. After all, who had the time for that in the chaos of the forgotten shores? Did he like her?
'I mean, she is pretty.' A part of his mind seemed to say. But would he pursue her romantically?
No, she was too kind for him. He wasn't worthy of anyone that nice; he couldn't put them through that. Besides, if everything went to plan, they would all leave the shores and him behind. It would only lead to suffering.
He shook his head. "No, I don't like her like that."
"I see," She said, rubbing her chin, "What about Effie?"
"No," He said without skipping a beat. Effie was like a muscleheaded older sister to him; he could never see her that way. He frowned, "Why are you asking these questions so suddenly?"
"Can a mother not ask if her son has someone in mind?" She said innocently.
"I suppose?" He shrugged. Then a grim expression made its way onto his face, "But that's not important right now. There's a prophecy concerning us."
All the mirth left her eyes, and she leaned forward, "What is it?"
Prophecies were incredibly rare and often ominous. Back in her hometown, they had a seer who had told of its destruction in columns of stone. That had come to pass soon enough, and the entire city was wiped off the map. If there had been a prophecy about the shores, it was bad news for everybody involved.
"I don't know the exact words, but it speaks of fire and rivers of blood. A lot of people will die. That is the price we must pay to overthrow Gunlaug."
Aletta remained silent for a few seconds, digesting the information. Then, she looked back up at Lucien.
"And are you willing to pay that price?" She asked, her expression unreadable.
Was he? Was he willing to spill all that blood? Was he really any better than Nephis, whom he had condemned about it? He knew the answer; he had always known the answer. After all, that was how he survived his first nightmare.
"If you, Effie, and the rest of my friends remain safe, then yes. I'm willing to pay that price."
"And if we are the price you have to pay?"
Lucien was silent for a moment. If they were the price he had to pay? No, he would not pay that price. He would never pay that price.
"Then we'll find a different way." He said, staring at her with the same defiance he had shown Effie. "I'll make a different way so that we all survive."
Aletta nodded, "Good, remember that. No matter what lengths you go to, do not abandon your humanity."
With that, she leaned back and relaxed, "Now, tell me what happened in the months I was gone."
And so he spent the next hour or so retelling what had occurred, starting from when he first met the new sleepers.
"You fought a spire messenger and lived to tell the tale?" She asked incredulously.
He nodded, "Most of us did, yeah. It was a tough battle, and Effie dealt the decisive blow and wounded it enough for it to run away."
He then proceeded to explain the conversation between Sunny and Nephis, how Sunny left the settlement, how he had found him in the Dark City, and respected his wish to remain there.
"And this kid is still out there?" She asked, surprised. No one dared to live in the Dark City; it was too dangerous to even consider.
Lucien shrugged, "I'm sure he's fine. He's resourceful, and his aspect is incredibly versatile."
She shook her head, "You've made quite interesting friends."
"I guess that's one way of describing them." Lucien smiled sheepishly, "It's dinnertime, wanna go meet the rest of my cohort?"
"As much as I would love to, I can't," She sighed, "The situation back at the castle is tense. I cannot be gone for long, or else they will notice."
She stood up, fishing something out of her pocket, "I need you to give this to Changing Star. It's from the Blood Lord."
Realization dawned in Lucien's eyes, "This was the real reason you're here, wasn't it?"
She nodded, "Yes, that stunt with Andel has put your entire cohort in Gunlaug's crosshairs. We cannot let him know about your alliance with the Blood Lord. He knows I'm let out every once in a while to see my son, so this is the safest way we can exchange messages." Saying that, she handed him an envelope with the Blood Lords' seal on it.
Lucien nodded; that was the smartest thing to do, but there was still something to consider.
"How are we supposed to send our response?"
"The next time that you enter the castle to sell your memories, find a handmaiden along the path and hand her your response. But be discreet, Gunlaug has become very paranoid. He's got the whole castle under constant watch."
"I'll be as discreet as possible." He said, and then a tired smile fell upon his face, "At least this means we'll get to meet more often."
"That's the silver lining," She smiled, ruffling his hair, "I'll see you again soon."
With that, she left his hut and headed back to the castle. Lucien stood in the doorway until he could no longer see her.
"Goodbye, mom." He whispered and then fixed his hair. He had a message to deliver.
That was why he was back in the castle. He wanted to sell memories, yes, but he also had an envelope containing Nephis' latest response, written in a Caesar Cipher. Or so he was told.
As he made his way through the endless hallways that constituted the bright castle, he found his target. A handmaiden cleaning one of the windows in an empty hallway. His storm sense told him that she was the only one there.
He walked past her, expertly slipping the envelope into her pocket as he passed by. Now, for his next target, the memory market. It wasn't far from there, only a few more turns. On the way, he checked his runes mainly to abate his boredom.
Name: Lucien
True Name: Hour of Calamity
Rank: Dreamer
Class: Demon
Storm Cores: [3/7]
Storm Fragments: [12/3000]
Memories: [Stone Spear], [Storm Blade], [Stone Armorsuit], [Silk Yarn],[Iron Warbow].....[Bone Arrows], [Starlight Pendant]
Echoes: - [Crimson Mantis]
Attributes: [Ember of Divinity] [The Tempest] [Stormborn]
Aspect: Storm Herald
Aspect Rank: Divine
Innate Ability: Wild Hunt
Aspect Ability: Thunder Manifestation
Flaw: Sacrificial Will
He couldn't help but be impressed by the amount of storm fragments he had gained. In only three months, he was able to awaken his third core. Hunting with a group meant he could take more risks and often fight more monsters. Combined with his innate ability, that made for a disgustingly fast rate to gain storm fragments.
He had gotten better with the sword too; he could actually use it in combat without feeling like he was handicapping himself anymore. Things were going well.
The door to the memory market opened as he was walking down the stairs, and he was put face-to-face with an old friend.
"Sunny?"
"Lucien?"