"That hurt."
Valen muttered as he sipped lukewarm coffee, one hand pressed lazily to his chest. He sat slouched on a half-broken bench just outside the police station. The air out here was cleaner, clearer. Or maybe he was just too fried to tell the difference anymore.
Sunny getting infected… that hadn't been part of the plan.
So now, the plan would get changed just a tiny bit.
Afterall, Sunny—his very, very, very close friend—still had potential. All he needed was a halfway decent Aspect, maybe a stable Ability and Valen could start molding him. Grooming hi—ugh, Not like that, He grimaced. Terrible phrasing. More like shaping or crafting. Turning him into something useful. A perfect small and pocket sized helper.
He drained the last of the bitter coffee in a single gulp, then tossed the cup into the side walk.
"Ugh. Needs some milk," he muttered
The ache in his chest hadn't faded.
Persistent little bastard, he thought.
With a flick of his wrist, a curl of essence formed at his fingertips. It shimmered faintly.
It was a stolen memory.
Ripped straight from the Valor's treasury before he left the trial.
He let it hit.
"Ahh~"
His limbs slackened as his spine practically melted into the bench.
Now that was the good stuff.
The aftermath of breaking the soul-bond with Sunny had still lingered.
Crown Bound was cruel like that. It didn't just link minds and emotions—it chained souls. Tearing it apart meant tearing something out of both of them. A jagged edge remained.
He let his body sink deeper into the bench until the world around him began to... tilt.
He began to...smell colors? No, rather it was like he could hear them.
And why was everyone walking backwards?.. No wait it was him that was moving or was it this bench?
"The world seems so bright today."
He smiled vaguely, eyes unfocused, As a young woman in her twenties passed by him, heels tapping crisply on the pavement.
She had short, raven-black hair and icy blue eyes. Her skin, flawless, was smooth, supple and white as snow.
GYATT!
Valen didn't move. His grin remained, crooked and numb.
But her eyes flicked toward him—just for a second.
That was all it took.
His haze cracked.
His fingers twitched at his side.
The smell of colour and sound of weight vanished. Reality clicked back into place for a moment—but her gaze had already moved on.
She passed.
Valen blinked, the corners of his eyes twitching.
"Shit," he muttered "That one wasn't a hallucination."
Which meant he was actually tweaking out in public in front of fine shyt.
Damn it.
***
It had been three days.
Valen?
Still high.
For two days straight, he'd been floating somewhere between reality and whatever memory-infused nonsense lingered in his bloodstream. But finally, the fog had lifted. The world had stopped tilting, and his body no longer felt like it belonged to someone else.
Today, he was clean. And more importantly — Sunny had survived the Nightmare Spell.
Better yet?
He had been reborn.
'A Sleeper… just like him.'
Valen grinned to himself as he drained the last of his lukewarm coffee.
"Perfect."
"Did he grow taller?" he muttered aloud, squinting at the sky. "Welp, guess I'll find out."
Chuckling to himself, Valen stepped back into the military station. An officer standing nearby did a double take as he recognized him.
"Congratulations once again, sir."
Valen blinked.
Does hestill think Sunny is my kid?
"Yeah. Thanks," he replied with a polite nod.
The officer led him through familiar halls, finally stopping at the vault where Sunny had been put to sleep. It had taken some time — paperwork, signatures and a little time waiting for the official business to end.
'Finally.'
"He's inside," the officer said.
Valen gave him a nod that somehow managed to feel both dismissive and thankful. "Appreciate it."
The door slid open with a hiss, and Valen took half a step inside—
—and then froze.
There he was.
Sunny.
Still pale. Still scrawny. His hair looked a little longer now. He sat upright on the edge of a cot, looking mildly disoriented — as expected.
But standing next to him was a woman in a dark navy uniform with silver epaulets. Short black hair. Ice-blue eyes. Pale as snow.
Wait a damn second…
Valen narrowed his eyes.
I've seen her before.
Where? He didn't know. But there was no forgetting a face like that.
He smirked.
Who cares maybe I'll get her number today.
Then, out loud — with a dramatic sigh — he called:
"Hello? Is my baby boy awake?"
Sunny turned his head sharply.
That voice.
It was Valen.
Sunny stared at him, unsure. They'd been close for months — friends. Or at least, that's what he remembered. So why did the sight of him now feel like staring into the eyes of a stranger?
Master Jet also gave Valen a sharp look.
Isn't that the junkie I saw passed out on the bench outside?
"You're late," Sunny said dryly.
She coughed, masking her surprise.
"Is this your father, Sleeper Sunless?"
Sunny looked at her like she'd just grown a second head. "What?!"
"We don't even look remotely related."
Valen held up a hand dramatically. "I'm sorry to tell you this, Sunless. Me and your mom tried to keep it a secret… but you're adopted."
"…?"
Jet stared blankly. What the hell is going on?
Valen, meanwhile, fully stepped inside the room. The air shifted slightly. His presence rolled into the vault. Slow, heavy, and maddening. Jet instinctively tensed. Sunny felt… unsettled.
"So, Sunny," Valen said softly, eyes gleaming with 'concern' "Are you okay?"
Sunny hesitated.
Was that… really him?
His voice, his face — it was all the same. But the aura? The feeling? It was different.
"Yeah… thanks for the advice,"
Valen flashed a smile. "Haha, no problem. Couldn't let my friend die, now could I?"
Then he turned to Jet, tilting his head.
"And Miss… uh?"
"Jet," she replied curtly.
"Miss Jet," he repeated, lips twitching into a knowing grin. "I feel like I've seen you somewhere…"