Shadow Slave novel Chapter 2587

In the end, they reached the Northern Quadrant without much trouble. The voyage took less time and was much less eventful than any of the previous times Sunny had crossed the ocean - most Nightmare Creatures seemed to be wary of the Night Garden and kept their distance, while those who did not were absorbed by the living hull of the titanic ship.

It was quite a chilling sight.

'The living wood was like quicksand, refusing to let go of anyone who touched its weathered surface. The abominations who recklessly tried to assault or scale it would get their limbs caught in its impenetrable bulwark, and then slowly pulled into the hull of the Night Garden, never to be seen again. They struggled desperately as the living wood absorbed them- but to no avail.

A few managed to escape by rupturing and tearing off their trapped limbs, but most only became caught more thoroughly because of their frantic struggles. Whatever scratches they managed to leave on the surface of the titanic ship soon vanished without a trace, with all evidence of its existence gone.

So, the horrors of the depths had a good reason to be wary of the Night Garden... or maybe they were wary of Sunny himself, sensing the vast darkness hiding in his shadow. In any case, there were not as many attacks on the convoy as Sunny had anticipated. Which was not to say there was no danger at all: the battleships following the Night Garden were still vulnerable, and there was also the threat of aerial attacks.

'The Great Citadel did not only carry millions of mundane people, though, it also carried countless Awakened warriors - most of them seasoned veterans of the Evacuation Army. Jet and the Saints of the House of Night were there to keep the situation under control, as well, so every assault on the convoy was repelled with relative ease.

Some of the confrontations with the doomed Nightmare Creatures were more memorable than others, though.

..I'll be damned.'

Shifting his focus away from the search for the traces of Weaver, Sunny looked ahead with a somber expression.

Out there, in front of the Night Garden, the ocean had turned entirely black.

The stain of oily black water stretched in all directions, far and wide, darkening the distant horizon. Tall waves crashed into the bow of the gargantuan ship violently, reaching toward it like the blackened fingers of an unknown monster... it was the Black Water, a mysterious and malevolent phenomenon that haunted both the Stormsea and the oceans of Earth.

Nobody knew what the currents of the Black Water were, really. Some considered it to be a kind of Nightmare Creature, some thought it to be the remains of an ancient Terror who had been tom into thousands of pieces. Some even believed that it was the blood of an Unholy Titan spilled by the gods at the dawn of time.

Regardless of what it was, however, seeing the water tum black often meant death for those who entrusted their lives to the sea.

..But not this time.

Sunny could vaguely sense something about the Night Garden change when it entered the black waters, as if coming awake. Then, the titanic ship crushed the violent waves and continued sailing forward, cutting the ominous darkness with its bow.

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