While the people of the convoy were settling in to rest, Sunny observed them with a dark expression on his pale face. Finally, he winced and headed back into the Rhino.
There, the Irregulars were waiting, unsure what to do. It was not like he had answers, either, but Sunny had to decide what their next steps would be.
He hesitated for a few moments.
"Luster, Samara, and Dorn. Go to sleep and report our situation. Perhaps Army Command has some idea about what we are dealing with here."
Despite the ominous nature of the dark tunnel, things weren't as bleak as they seemed. The convoy was cut off from the First Evacuation Army in terms of actual support, but information still flowed between the cohort and their superiors.
Somewhere in the government databases, there had to be a hint on how to escape the endless darkness. Even if no one had ever encountered its source before, people would have clashed against something similar in the past.
…If not, Sunny would venture into the Dream Realm himself and seek out Cassie. With her powerful divination abilities, she was his best bet. More than that, he could transport food and other resources from the Ivory Tower with the help of the Covetous Coffer, so his people were not going to starve.
For now, time was not their enemy. They just had to find a way to solve the puzzle, and escape.
He sighed.
'Unless something changes for the worse…'
In any case, there was no point in panicking yet. Sunny watched as three of his soldiers climbed into the sleeping pods, then sent the rest to keep watch over the refugees.
The oppressive veil of darkness that muted his senses was still there, grinding on Sunny's nerves. He was tired, too.
'At least there is no Call here.'
In fact, this was the first time in a long while when Sunny did not hear the Call at all. Everywhere else in the Antarctic Center, it kept whispering quietly into the ears of Awakened, but here in the dark tunnel, the whispers were gone. He was not sure if that was a good sign or a bad omen.
'We'll see soon.'
Ordering his shadows to observe the temporary camp, Sunny climbed into a sleeping niche himself. Things were going to get better after he slept… if nothing else, his reserves of essence would be somewhat replenished. That alone was enough to make him feel more confident.
***
That night, Sunny had a nightmare. He dreamt of the ditch that he had crawled into after being gutted by the Forsaken Knight, and of cold, overflowing darkness. That was an unpleasant surprise, since he had grown accustomed to sleeping peacefully — ever since the Kingdom of Hope, his dreams were usually guarded by Nightmare.
If a bad dream appeared, it was promptly destroyed or subjugated by the shadow steed.
But now that Nightmare was himself slumbering after receiving wounds, Sunny was left without his protection.
'...Too bad.'
Feeling less rested than he would have preferred to, Sunny went to the command suite of the Rhino and studied the monitors to get a glimpse of the convoy's camp. Everything seemed to be in order… the shadows would have woken him up if anything happened, but it was nice to make sure.
He lingered for a while, then walked over to the kitchen area to brew himself some coffee. Some time later, carrying a steaming cup, Sunny returned to the living area and leaned on a bulkhead. With nothing else to do, he simply stared at the closed panels that hid the sleeping niches.
The Awakened he had sent to the Dream Realm were going to return soon.
Finally, when his coffee was almost gone, one of the panels slid away, revealing the insides of the pod. There, Luster slowly opened his eyes and looked directly at Sunny.
Then, the young man flinched back with a startled expression on his face.
"C—captain? What are you doing here?!"
Sunny silently brought the cup to his lips and took a sip.
"I am drinking coffee, fool. What does it look like I'm doing?"
Luster opened his mouth, then closed it. He seemed to be very confused.
"No, I mean, what are you doing in my Citadel? How did you get here? That doesn't… wait…"
He finally looked around, realizing that he was inside the Rhino. However, Luster's confusion only grew.
"That… is not my Citadel…"
Sunny frowned, studying the young man's expression.
"Why would you think that you are inside a Citadel?"
Luster blinked a couple of times.
"...Well, that is how things work, right? You go to sleep in the real world, and are sent to the Dream Realm."
'Don't tell me…'
Sunny closed his eyes for a moment.
"So what you are trying to say is that you did not return from the Dream Realm? You fell asleep in the waking world, and woke up in the real world?"
Luster let out a nervous laugh.
"Ha! That's impossible. Awakened don't stay in the real world when we sleep. But also… yes? The last thing I remember is settling inside the pod… sir."
The corner of Sunny's mouth twitched.
It seemed that the impossible had just happened. An Awakened fell asleep without being transported to the Dream Realm.
Luster's soul had remained in the dark tunnel.
…So did the souls of Kim and Samara. When they woke up shortly after, the result was the same — they had been confused and startled. None of the three had managed to reach a Citadel.
'That is not good, not good at all…'
Without saying much, Sunny reached within himself and tried to sense the familiar pull — the pull of his anchor in the Dream Realm. Usually, as long as he concentrated on the anchor, he would initiate the process of traveling across worlds.
However, this time, there was nothing. No matter how hard he searched, his soul seemed devoid of the Dream Realm's pull.
His connection to the Ivory Tower was gone, just like the Call.
Suddenly cold, Sunny glanced at the sea of darkness surrounding the fragile island of light where hundreds of refugees were trapped, shivering as they slept.
'...What the hell is this place?'