Chapter 1313 Nightmare Within Nightmare

Chapter 1313 Nightmare Within Nightmare

Sunny dreamt of a titanic gate that stood wide open, something boundless and entirely alien hiding in the darkness of its colossal maw. He was a spider with a severed leg, crawling away as broken chains fell to the ground all around him. His mind was consumed by terror, while his heart...

His heart was full of a cold, bitter feeling of betrayal and regret. 'Escape... I must escape...'

Sunny pushed his small body across the stone floor. There were beautiful webs veiling the vast hall of the temple, their silk threads weaved into a grandiose tapestry. A spark flew, and a moment later, the webs were engulfed in fire. They disappeared in a flash, leaving behind only clouds of acrid smoke that obscured the entire world.

At least he couldn't see the harrowing gate anymore. Suffocating, he crawled through the smoke, and slowly, torturously, the terror devouring his soul dissipated. Sunny felt as if he had escaped the immediate danger... however, he was hopelessly lost. There was nothing except for searing heat and the dark glow of spreading flame around him. His body was already starting to grow unbearably hot. He froze for a moment, resting and trying to find the way out of the smoldering inferno. Then, for a moment... he felt a breeze caressing his singed carapace from somewhere ahead. 'There...'

Sunny rose to his seven feet and limped forward as fast as he could. Soon, he left the smoke and the fire behind.

There was a silent expanse of still water around him now. The smoke was gone, but a thick mist took its place. It swirled and moved, flowing slowly past the shivering figure of the small spider. 'Where am I?'

Sunny took a step and discovered that he could somehow walk on the surface of the water — just like he could within the Soul Sea. Advancing hesitantly, he ventured deeper into the fog. Some time passed — perhaps only a few minutes, perhaps an eternity — and he had lost all sense of direction. There was nothing but mist in the world.

...Until something else appeared in the grey void. Sunny trembled. There, ahead of him, someone... something... was sitting on the calm surface of the water, staring down. The figure was dressed in tattered rags, its gaunt body hidden from view. It seemed like a human, or was at least human-shaped. The man's dirty hair was hanging like seaweeds, and his face was hidden from view. A jagged band of dark metal rested on his head like a tarnished crown.

Suddenly, Sunny felt cold. 'The... the Mad Prince?'

It was one of the six Heralds of the Estuary... one of the Six Plagues. The creature in front of him looked rather pitiful, but it was still a Corrupted Titan. He was in dire danger.

The Mad Prince suddenly froze, then groaned and struck his head with a fist. "I can't, can't... can't remember. Ah, but it is also an answer."

His ugly face rippled, as if trying to assume a human expression. "You're... neither. You are an impostor?"

The creature's voice suddenly grew dark and vicious:

"You... murderer..."

An unhinged laugh escaped his lips, and then, the Mad Prince slowly rose. His tattered rags moved, shrouded in mist...

As Sunny took another step back, desperately trying to wake up, the Defiled took a step forward. "How about it, murderer? Come closer... I'll tell you a secret. You deserve that much..."

There was suddenly nowhere to go. The grey mist became solid, blocking all paths to retreat. And Sunny... Sunny was, indeed, curious. Curious against his will.

He was a great lover of secrets, after all...

As he shuddered, feeling his thoughts spin out of control, there was suddenly a presence between him and the Mad Prince. Someone else was standing there, blocking the view of the mad creature with his back. It was a young man in a black tunic, with long raven-black hair and a grim expression on his pale face. The Sin of Solace. 'What is he doing here?'

The wraith seemed uncharacteristically serious as he stared the Mad Prince down. Without turning his head, the apparition said in a voice that was neither snide nor mocking... Instead, it was grave:

"What are you doing, fool? Summon your horse and get out of here! Hurry!"