Shadow Slave novel Chapter 503

Sunny shifted in his seat, a bleak expression appearing on his face.

'A human?'

Why would a Master be hunting down a human? There was police for that.

Unless, of course, that human was an Awakened…

Sunny was aware that special government agents — carriers of the Nightmare Spell themselves — dealt with those Awakened who broke the law, simply because police officers were often helpless against criminals that possessed inhuman strength and wielded bizarre or dangerous Aspect Abilities. It made sense that Master Jet would be involved in that side of government work, too.

But, honestly, he didn't know too much about how these things usually went.

Glancing at her, Sunny asked:

"Is it an Awakened criminal?"

Master Jet spared him a short glance.

"A… criminal? Yes, you might say that."

She remained quiet for a few moments, and then corrected herself.

"No, actually, do not. The man we must find is not a criminal. He is an animal... a rabid one."

Sunny frowned.

"An interesting choice of words."

Master Jet was concentrating on driving the PTV, so she didn't answer immediately. When she did, however, her voice was strangely calm:

"You are not an inexperienced Sleeper anymore, Sunny, so I will be straightforward. You, of all people, should be able to understand. The Nightmares, the Dream Realm… they take a toll. Some people endure, some people break. Some people carry the nightmares back with them to the real world."

A dark expression slowly appeared on her face.

"From what I heard about the Forgotten Shore, you witnessed the worse of what the Spell does to us. Yes, we Awakened are at the top of the world… those who return alive, that is. We have all the privileges, all the money, all the power. But the mark it leaves on us never goes away. After all the pain, blood, and horror… after all the crap we the lucky few are forced to survive, many crack."

Master Jet looked at the road, her icy eyes full of unimaginable coldness.

"...Some crack a little, and some crack a lot. The government portrays us Awakened as powerful and noble, the saviors of the world… but really, most of us are walking on the edge, just one little step away from madness. All that trauma can mess one up really good, you know? It's all a big, big mess. So, when one of the Awakened loses control up and makes that last step… what do you think happens?"

Sunny remained silent for a while, thinking about the damage a deranged Awakened could do in the mundane world. His expression became dark and heavy.

He didn't even want to imagine.

"When that happens... you receive a call."

Master Jet glanced at him and smiled.

"Smart. Yes, when an Awakened goes out of control, I — or someone like me — receives the call. Things like that usually don't get out, because the government doesn't want them to. For obvious reasons. Everything is dealt with quietly, and so, here we are."

Sunny didn't speak for a bit. Then, he asked:

"So, what exactly is going to happen? We find this guy, talk him down or overpower him, and then put him in cuffs? Arrest him?"

What a funny thought that was. Him, making an arrest. Sunny had been on the other side of this equation a few times in the past, and never in his life had he imagined putting handcuffs on someone, and not the other way around.

Master Jet gave him a complicated look. There was almost... pity?

"...No. We are not going to arrest him."