Chapter Text

Chapter 1: The Ivory Temple

In a distant realm of a dead deity, an enormous battle of titanic proportions was taking place.
The grounds were rumbling, and distant screeches and other horrific battle cries could be heard.

The lands were dotted with dark pillars of mind-numbing heights. At a closer inspection, one could make them out to have once been the trunks of titanic trees, many kilometers tall.

These charred remains had been burned down and ruined in a distant cataclysmic conflict of the past. But now, the once-holy trees were condemned to hopelessly reach toward the heavens in futility.

But the Gods were dead. Well... all but one.

*

Standing on a large rock formation, a man clad in fearsome onyx plate armor, a visible aura of death hanging around him, suddenly snorted in mild amusement.

"How poetic..."

The Demigod was keenly observing the latest battle between the ever-growing Shadow Legion and the dwindling army of the Millipede tribe.

These damned insects had been a major bother to him for seemingly ages now. But it finally seemed that their numbers were starting to dwindle, and their queen — the Great Tyrant controlling these corrupted abominations — could no longer keep up with the losses.

"Well, of course she can't... the Shadow Legion has been growing stronger with every battle. Additionally, my shades can't even die, so death was always inevitable."

The Heir of Death said to himself.

Literally.

Aura farming aside, Sunny was honestly feeling a bit excited. He — or rather this incarnation of his — had been steadily grinding down these millipedes for a considerable amount of time now, and today would be the day the tribe and their queen found their final demise.

The Queen would be a welcome addition to his Shadow Legion because she would be able to take command of his countless shades, easing his already strained mental burden of controlling them.

This incarnation had been observing the Millipede tribe for a while now and made an interesting discovery.
They had claimed this part of the Burned Forest for themselves and made their nest in an underground lair near an ancient Temple.

Sunny had been trying to figure out what kind of temple it was, as well as who and what was being worshiped there... but a certain infestation had to be cleared out with pesticides first. So his inner Explorer and Archaeologist had to patiently wait, much to his disliking.

But Sunny was nothing if not a patient man. He had mastered the skill of patience in his years of being forgotten and painfully watching his closest friends and loved ones zone out as they hopelessly tried to put together the pieces of just who the man named Sunless was.

"As they say... 'Ask the Gods for patience, and they will not hand you the peace you seek — they will hand you a trial to forge it yourself.'"

The shadow looked down and sighed, suddenly in a somber mood.

**

Hours passed, and the destructive battle of the southern reaches of the Burned Forest was over. The Millipede tribe was finally crushed and integrated into the Shadow Legion.

After paying the stubborn shadow named Slayer her blood payments, Sunny took a well-deserved break, while his shades cleared the battlefield and harvested all the soul shards and resources of interest.

Sitting in his Shadow Chair, he observed the remnants of the battlefield with a somber frown. He had been thinking back to the previous battles and hardships of his tumultuous life. But one memory always stood out the most. It was the frozen remains of Falcon Scott... his biggest shame. His biggest regret. Nobody even remembered, but that gave him no solace.

'Too weak... I was too weak to save anyone.'

In this world — two worlds even — weakness was the biggest sin, after all.

**

Time passed and the battlefield was cleared of abominations. Sunny had finally cleared his head again and thought about laying down for some rest...

"...no way. I don't even need a break, I have 7 damned bodies!
I've been waiting so long, I surely earned this. No, definitely!"

Sunny said with a hint of pride and barely hidden excitement.
Indeed, it was finally time to explore the intriguing Temple of the Burned Forest...

——

The Temple of the Burned Forest stood at a humble height... well, compared to those abnormally huge trees, at least.
It had pristine ivory walls and foundations that seemed almost immune to the erosion of time, and its look reminded him of a classical style of architecture he had once studied from the world before the Dark Ages.

Sunny had studied the outside of the Ivory Temple with visible enthusiasm for its unique style.

The only problem was...

"That damned thing practically screams of danger! Damnation!"

The Shadow cursed as he stood near the temple but still far enough to avoid the supposed danger it radiated.

In hindsight, it had always been clear that it wasn't all that safe and friendly to begin with. The Millipedes — while building their underground lair near it and claiming it as theirs — never actually went anywhere too close to it. And one thing was clear to the treacherous shadow.

"When creatures avoid a certain place, that doesn't mean that it's a safe haven — it means there's an even worse danger lurking inside."

Sunny mumbled to no one in particular.

Then, a soft and melodious voice rang out in his mind.

"Wise words."

Right. Cassie was probably just as curious about his little findings as well... he couldn't blame her. It had been a bit monotonous lately.

She continued:

"I know this is really interesting, and you're dying to know what secrets you could uncover.
But Sunny, as strong as you may be, be safe, alright?"

Sunny smiled faintly at her reminder. He knew, of course, just how deadly uncovering a "little secret" could be. He stood up and made his way toward the temple's entrance.

"Yeah, Cassie, I might be."

Of course, Sunny would be lying if he said that he'd be safe. And that he was simply unable to do.

'Well, what's the worst that could happen? I just lose an incarnation...
Wait... NO, NO! I TAKE IT BACK!!'

As he mentally panicked from potentially invoking a curse once more, the blind seer just sighed and said nothing more.

By the time he calmed down, he had reached the entrance of the Ivory Temple. The sense of danger was screaming at his mind, but nothing was happening — nothing except a faint feeling of suction on his soul.

It felt like the temple's defenses were trying to steal his... essence? But the attempt seemed to be in vain.

'Why do I feel a sense of deja vu...? Wait!'

Indeed... hadn't a certain thieving spawn tried that same move once at the Ashen Barrow?

'Huh. I guess the Ivory Temple can't make use of the special Shadow essence I've got either. What luck!'

It was such a nice coincidence... that it didn't feel coincidental at all. Suddenly Sunny felt a bad feeling in his stomach but pushed it down again. There was no point worrying now. He was a Supreme Titan, and a Divine Shadow at that. The strings of fate didn't bind him anymore. Although... Weaver seemed to have predicted this development as well...

'Better not dwell on it. I've got a Temple to explore.'

Sunny carefully made his way up the stairs and observed his surroundings with a watchful eye. Strangely, his Shadow sense seemed... distorted and suppressed by the Ivory Temple's interference. Space-Time bent strangely, and the particles in the air stuttered unnaturally, adding to his wariness.

'This better be worth it.'

Sunless put his hands on the doors and released his Shadow essence into their magical mechanism. It seemed that they accepted his Shadow essence.

"I wonder... does it only accept Shadow essence? But why would there be a Shadow-related Temple in Heart God's realm?"

Walking through the entrance, he was met by a spacious main hall. Ivory pillars held the roof securely, while special torches offered a pale blue illumination that gave no warmth.

He walked further into the hall, his Shadow-made boots not leaving an echo. Sunny's gaze lowered as he observed the marble floor... his eyes narrowing as he noticed something like an insect's leg carved into the stone.

His eyes widened as he followed it back to its origins. He finally made out the symbol — a large spider etched across the marble floor in all directions.

"Spiders...? But that's—" Sunny realized the connection.
"That's Weaver's symbol... so that bastard was here as well."

Sunny didn't know how to feel about this revelation. Why did Weaver claim this temple? What did he do here? Why was it suspiciously accommodating for Sunny? Why... was blood-weave tugging at his mind, trying to take him deeper into the hall...

"Damn you, you elusive bastard, if this is a trap, I'm going to flatten this whole thing."

Following his intuition — guided by blood-weave — Sunny walked deeper into the heart of the hall with caution. It didn't take long for him to notice the lone pedestal that held an Onyx Crown.

The Onyx Crown was shrouded in a dark mist that reached out to him, slowly engulfing him in its influence.

"What is this...?"

He glanced deeper — just for a heartbeat — and instantly regretted it. Beneath its dark surface lay an impossibly intricate weave, threads of essence looping back on themselves in maddening patterns. Pain lanced behind his eyes. He hissed, staggering back, vision swimming.

'Ugh... a Memory?' The truth rang cold. 'It's of the Divine rank as well...'

He knew he shouldn't take the hook... power never came for free, especially so if it came from the Daemon of Fate. But Sunny's greed had other ideas.

'It... it'll be fine. So what if I lose this incarnation? It's a Divine Memory, dammit!'

Steeling himself, Sunny took a closer look at the Onyx Crown.
It was a beautiful dark design with intricate spiderweb engravings, giving it a Gothic touch. It presented 3 Gems of darkness that consumed all the light around them and emitted an ominous, dark nebula, radiating the immense power befitting a Divine Memory of the 7th tier.

"Su...ny? I don't th—..." A faint feminine voice tried to reach out to him, but strained to get through.

"Alright..." He carefully reached his hand out. Blood-weave was going nuts and the Nebula of the Crown deepened around him.

"Don't mind if—"

The crown's mist lunged. The world convulsed. Something tore at his very existence.

Then everything went black.