[I struggled with this chapter, I felt like I didn't give the cohort much of a voice, or even let much talking happen at all. I am not a very social person, so I am mediocre at the people parts.}
~*~
"I still can't believe it..." Kai said, his voice filled with awe.
It had been mere days since he had Ascended, his body growing more powerful, his aspect gaining a new ability. And ability he was not sure he even liked.
It imbued his voice with power, giving him power over those who hear him.
As a singer, that was a lot.
It was both something that made him feel proud, and terrified.
Next to him, Effie slouched in her chair.
Across from them, Nephis and Cassie.
Each of them had finally reached Ascension, however they had not returned to the waking world yet.
If their cohort suddenly appeared as Master's, it would raise many questions. Questions they would eventually face, however, Sunny had visited them, asking them to wait.
However, today was the day they finally left the Dream Realm. The day they finally saw Sunny face to face.
As of that day, it had been a month since Sunny had returned.
And even they had barely seen him during the three months they had spent with the talking skeleton he gave them.
Due to this, they had seen Sunny very little during that month.
However, he had sent a message to them via Shim to return.
That was what led to them standing in a circle, the skeleton watching from the corner.
Nephis's gaze swept to her left, then right as she scanned her companions.
Seeing their determined expressions, she nodded.
They pulled on their anchors, the places their bodies had been last, and in moments, they vanished.
~
At the Academy in a small rental building, two sleeping pods rested, both blaring warnings and errors.
However, in the next moment.
"Oof."
Cassie hit the pod, then the ground as she fell from a few feet in the air.
She heard a crash, signaling that Nephis had met a similar fate.
~
In the lavish rooms of Nightingale the singer, a chiche sleeping pod rested, its silver surface integrated directly into the wall.
However, as a charming young man fell on it, it snapped from the wall, crashing to the tile floor.
Instantly, a woman ran inside, her eyes widening as she saw the form of the brilliant young man, his eyes glowing with cerulean, green light.
He smiled awkwardly as he stood, brushing the dirt of his shirt.
However, in the next second, a thundering crash echoed through the halls as Effie wailed in alarm from down the hall.
Kai's smile turned warm and genuine as he walked to Effie's room.
Swinging the door open, he smiled.
"Well, how does it fee-"
Effie stared at him, Kai staring back.
Then, his eyes drifted down a foot.
"Ah..."
He blushed and shut the door at speeds that rivaled his Transcendent self.
He straightened, his face glowing red as he heard the boisterous laughter from the other side of the door.
Kai took a deep breath, and turned, choosing to act like that simply never happened.
~
After returning, each member agreed to spend some time organizing themselves. Then, they would announce their Ascension together.
And that is what they did.
The day after they returned, news articles exploded, the governments records updated, and millions of people had heard the news.
Nephis, the Changing Star and her cohort had Ascended!
They had gone about it in the simplest way, they had informed the government, then let the propaganda machine work its magic.
This was how, the citizens had learned of their Ascension even before those of the Great Clans.
However, the Great Clans were not far behind.
The moment they had learned of this, they began to move. Letters and invitations to parties, talks, balls, tea parties, and more filled their inboxes in mere hours.
Their intention was clear to anyone with half a brain.
They intended to monopolize them, take control of them.
However, this had not happened.
And the reason was simple, in those valuable hours that their special approach had gained them.
They had all received a message. One from Sunny.
It was blunt, only a place and time. Not even any reason or note.
The cohort trusted him entirely, and so, the four of them found themselves standing in front of a random looking building in the outskirts.
It was a large single room, something like a warehouse, however it had been made to cram as many people as possible inside.
Though now it was little more than an empty shack.
Well, that was what they thought.
As they walked inside, they were shocked.
All around the massive room, rows and rows of people stood, all dressed in black armor, their faces covered by a black wooden mask.
As if the walls of the building had restrained them, aura flared across the space, filling the area with the strength of many Awakened and Master's.
At the front of the rows, two figures stood out, the pressure radiating from them much stronger than the rest.
It took Nephis only a glance.
'They are Saints.'
As the cohort examined the force around them, their faces changed in a mix of emotions.
Effie and Kai seemed curious while Nephis felt like a rat caught in a trap.
Cassie however, looked off to her right.
Without vision, she had taken to shadow sense much better than the others, even able to use it similar to Sunny.
That was how she felt the Seven, incredibly deep shadows lurking not far away.
Taking that as his cue, four figures emerged from the shadows.
Three were women, one was short with pale skin and dark hair. Her face hidden behind a mask marked with clouds and lighting bolts, her shoulders drapped in a sort of armor that seemed to warp around her.
The other two stood taller, one had short dark hair, her mask carved with two scythes crossing at the center, crow feathers engraved across the surface.
She was dressed in a military style armor made from the same pure black material, its unnecessary areas replaced with armored plating, allowing for mobility as well as defense.
The last of them stood a bit shorter, her long, dark hair tinted with the faintest trace of crimson. Her face hidden behind a mask just like the others. This one engraved with claw and fang marks.
Her armor was more traditional, a full plate set made for a perfect mix of flexibility, durability, and stealth, its dark plates resembling scales in some places while others faded to cloth for unhindered movement.
And if it had been obvious earlier, this woman all but screamed it.
She was Transcendent. A powerful one at that.
However, they didn't linger on it.
That was because of the fourth.
His body warped from short to towering, thin to thick, human to demonic. Not even a single feature of his body was revealed until he reached for the mask on his face.
Pulling Weaver's Mask from his face, the sound of rustling fabric filled the place as every person in the room followed.
Over a thousand people unmasked themselves, some of the faces familiar, most they had never seen before.
However, it was the two saints at the front that drew the most attention.
The man had short cropped brown hair, his beard scruffy.
None of the cohort members had ever seen him before, so their eyes drifted to the figure next to him. One they knew well.
Saint Tyris stood like a monolith of light in the dark place, however she herself looked like an unfathomable shadow.
Kai turned to Sunny, deciding he would be the first to speak.
"Uhm, Sunny? Would you mind telling us why you brought us here, as well as who these fine people are?"
The cohort turned back to Sunny.
And while they initially looked to Sunny, they simply could not help looking at the three figures recently unmasked.
The one with short raven hair pierced them with cold blue eyes, her pale face both beautiful and regal, almost like a corpse.
The other was even more striking, her beautiful face framed by the crimson-black hair that cascaded down her back in messy waves.
Her pale skin matched the pale moon-like eyes that reflected whatever light they could, her appearance clashing with the dark armor she wore.
However, it was the third that shocked Nephis the most.
"Rain!?"
The girl twitched and raised her chin, something out of character for the shy teen.
"It's nice to see you Nephis."
During the time the cohort had been shocked speechless by the sudden proceedings, Sunny had been silently fighting his flaw.
However, he believed he had given them enough time.
"I brought you here to talk, as for who they are. They are the Shadow Clan."
Nephis tilted her head, she had expected something like that. However, a clan?
Effie laughed.
"Pauper playing legacy! Hahaha!"
Sunny smirked at her.
"Damn right! Can't let spoiled people like Caster grow with everything but not my cute little sister!"
He placed a hand on Rain's head, making her growl at him and swat it away.
A few amused chuckles echoed from the crowd, some giving their leader contemplative expressions, wondering if they had judged wrong.
However, the moment their eyes drifted, they were reminded by the presence of that woman behind him as well as the other two Saints he controlled.
There was simply no way someone weak commanded Saints.
Letting the moment fade, Sunny cleared his throat.
"As much as I would love to catch up, I am here for more than just you."
He turned to the woman with blue eyes, giving her a nod.
Nodding back, she stepped forward.
"As most of you already know, we are preparing for a grueling campaign in Antarctica. One that will push the current forces to the limit, all while the legacy clans wait and bide their time. Awaiting the moment it is profitable for them."
She raised a hand, papers appearing in her grasp.
"As of last command, there will be a Saint from each clan, one to the Antarctic center and one to East Antarctica, while the Saint of clan Night will protect the Convoy Ships."
Flipping to the next page, she started.
"You will all be participating in the Antarctic Center, the place that will be hit hardest, according to the intel acquired by Sunny. The reason for this is simple."
She looked from the papers, her eyes cutting into the crowd.
"The shadow clan's job is to eradicate threats to humanity as a whole, to give freedom to those oppressed, to break limits imposed apon us. And this... is the first step."
She returned to the papers.
"Their current numbers estimate around 100,000 personnel, with nearly 5000 Awakened and a handful of Masters. These are the forces allocated to the Antarctic Center alone."
She flipped the page, a grin appearing on her face.
"Our current roster sits at 1,147, with 1,109 Awakened, 35 Masters, and 3 Saints. Our clan alone is sending more manpower than the so-called Great Clans."
She shook her head, disappointed.
She gestured to the front of the crowd.
"Even a member of those very clans wishes to be a part of our cause, what does that tell you?"
Voices murmured through the building, but were silenced as Sunny spoke.
"This campaign will not be easy, many of you, most of you, will die. However, it that, you will pave a path towards a greater future with your very blood."
He looked each and every one of them in the eye.
"I will not tell you some false promise or appeasing words, all I offer you is the truth... I am the most honest man in two worlds after all."
His gaze was steady as he spoke.
"If you follow me, I will show you why even War feared the Shadow."