Chapter 1096: 1095: The Queen of Shadows

Rain kept falling.

It poured over the open sea in heavy grey sheets, hissing as it struck the water. Above, the storm clouds had been torn apart in a long, curved line where the black moon had passed, and pale light leaked through the wound in the sky.

Below, the sea was scarred.

A deep crater was still slowly filling where Nine Hells Descend had struck. Broken stone pillars jutted out of the waves like the bones of some drowned giant. Black mist drifted over the water, the last remains of a shadow army that no longer existed.

Even the space around them hadn’t settled. It rippled faintly here and there, like the surface of a pond after a stone had been thrown into it.

And the air still trembled with remnant energy. Traces of shadow, lightning, wind and black flame lingered everywhere, crackling quietly in the rain.

In the middle of it all, Simon and Ilvara stood on the sea.

The Chaos Blade was buried in her chest.

Ilvara coughed.

A mouthful of black blood spilled over her lips and down her chin.

Then her hand shot up and grabbed Simon’s wrist.

Her grip was weak, but her eyes weren’t.

There was no fear in them. Only hatred, killing intent and coldness.

"This isn’t over," she said hoarsely.

Her fingers tightened around his wrist.

"I won’t die… until I’ve avenged my younger brother."

Simon stared into her dark eyes for a few seconds.

Then he closed his eyes.

"It is."

His free hand closed around her neck.

In the same motion, he ripped the Chaos Blade out of her chest and threw it.

The blade spun through the rain toward a patch of empty sea a few meters behind her.

Ilvara’s pupils widened.

A second later, she screamed.

It tore out of her throat, raw and agonized. She clutched her head with both hands, her whole body convulsing against Simon’s grip.

Simon looked down at her.

His eyes were utterly cold and indifferent. Above them, his third eye emitted a chilling silver glow as it stared at her.

Then he calmly turned his head toward where he had thrown the Chaos Blade.

It stood upright on the surface of the sea.

Around it was a shadow.

It had the same shape as Ilvara, from her long hair to her long coat, and it was twisting and writhing on the water like a fish caught on a hook. The tip of the Chaos Blade had pierced straight through its chest, pinning it in place. Black flames were crawling across it.

"I wasn’t certain before," Simon said calmly. "But now I know."

He looked back at her.

"You’re a Shadow Walker."

Ilvara froze.

Despite the pain, she lifted her eyes to him, and they were filled with disbelief.

"The moment my blade burned your Chaos Flame, your shadow tried to leave your body," Simon continued. "You grabbed my wrist to buy it time."

His voice didn’t change.

"You’re not the first Shadow Walker I’ve encountered and fought."

Ilvara’s pupils trembled slightly.

Her lips parted, but no words came out.

"Do you know Sunless?" Simon asked.

Her pupils trembled again.

Then she let out a weak, broken breath that might have been a laugh.

"How could I not know Sunless?"

Blood dripped from the corner of her mouth.

"I was the one who suggested that Thorgan learn from her because he was still a demon. He hadn’t become a full Daemon yet."

Simon frowned.

"Why would you suggest that?" he asked. "He could have stayed in The Dominion. He would have been safer in your organization."

He studied her.

"And from what I’ve seen, you were more than capable of teaching him yourself. You’re not weaker than Sunless."

For a moment, Ilvara simply stared at him, stunned.

Then she laughed.

It was a loud, cracked laugh, and it shook her whole body despite Simon’s hand around her neck. Blood sprayed from her lips with every breath.

"Compare me to Sunless?" she rasped. "How could I be compared to a shadow that great? How could I compare myself to the Queen of Shadows?"

Simon’s expression became solemn.

"What do you mean by the Queen of Shadows?"

Ilvara’s laughter faded into a wet, rattling chuckle.

"If Thorgan had the potential to become the King of Shadows… the Monarch of Shadows…" Her dark eyes held his. "Then Sunless is the Queen of Shadows."

Simon’s expression became even more solemn.

He opened his mouth to ask more.

But he could feel it.

Ilvara’s Chaos Flame was flickering out. With her heart burned by the Chaos Blade and her shadow pinned and burning on the sea, there was nowhere left for her to flee. Her time had been running out from the moment he stabbed her.

Now it was almost gone.

Ilvara seemed to know it too.

She smiled.

It wasn’t the stretched, mocking smile of her clone. It was small and tired, and somehow colder than anything she had shown him before.

"I don’t know what happened between you and Sunless," she whispered. "Or how you survived her."

Her fingers loosened around his wrist.

"But you should know this, Blackmoon. The Queen of Shadows is a terrifying being. Even the Abyss Sovereign would have to take her seriously."

"What do you-"

Her hand slipped from his wrist.

Her head fell to the side.

Simon’s eyes narrowed.

"Ilvara."

He shook her.

"Ilvara. What did you mean? Wake up!"

Nothing.

He shook her again, harder, but her body only swayed in his grip. Her dark eyes stared emptily past him at the rain.

On the sea behind them, the shadow pinned by the Chaos Blade stopped writhing. The black flames finished consuming it, and it faded away into nothing.

She was dead.

"Damn it."

Simon looked up at the torn sky for several seconds, letting the rain fall on his face.

Then he released a deep sigh and looked back down at Ilvara’s corpse.

He touched her body, and it vanished into his spatial ring.

Then he turned toward the sea where the ram-horned Daemon had fallen. His Seed of Pride stirred one last time, and the Daemon’s corpse rose from beneath the waves, dripping with seawater. It disappeared into his spatial ring as well.

Simon stretched out his hand.

The Chaos Blade tore itself free from the sea and flew back into his grip. He looked at it for a moment, then sent it back into his heart.

Then his legs gave out.

He dropped down onto the surface of the sea and sat there.

He drew his knees up, rested his arms across them, and let his head hang low. His chest rose and fell heavily. Every breath came out ragged and slow.

Slowly, his hair and clothes became wet.

Ever since the battle began, the rain had never truly touched him. A thin layer of demonic energy had always surrounded his body and clothes, keeping every drop away.

But now, with his reserves nearly empty and his body exhausted, even maintaining that thin layer had become a strain.

So he let it go.

The rain soaked through his white hair and his robe. It ran down his face and arms, mixing with sweat, and slowly washed away the blood that covered him.

Devour stirred, and his Seed of Gluttony answered it. Thin red strands of demonic energy drifted out of the air, from the rain and the remnants of the battle, and slowly flowed into him.

Simon sat there in silence.

A few minutes later, he raised his head and looked toward the horizon.

In the distance, Vhal-Sar was a thin golden curve against the storm. Columns of black smoke were still rising from it.

Simon released a deep sigh.

"This mission is a lot more difficult than I expected."

He wondered if the Abyss Sovereign had truly predicted how dangerous this would be. Or perhaps this was simply what it took to become the Sovereign’s disciple.

Ilvara alone could have defeated at least three of the protectors. If not all of them.

And the worst part was that she wasn’t the strongest enemy in Vhal-Sar.

He was certain of it.

He could feel it.

Simon exhaled deeply.

Then he reached into his spatial ring and brought out the coral-jawed Daemon’s corpse. It lay on the surface of the sea before him, its head resting beside its body.

Simon looked down at it.

His eyes glinted with a cold light.

"If my enemies are stronger than this," he said quietly, "then I’ll just have to get stronger too."

He placed his hand on the corpse.

"Devour."