Following his mental command, Nightmare slowed down, and then came to a halt. Sunny looked around, inhaling the wisps of mist, then sent his steed toward a particular tree.
The ancient pine reached further than he could see, but there, on its bark, was a spot much darker than the rest of it. A bloody handprint, as if someone wounded had leaned on the tree trunk.
He spun in the saddle and finally noticed another bloody print.
That gave him a direction to follow.
...Coincidentally, that direction led back toward the now-distant clearing.
Sending Nightmare into a gallop, Sunny feverishly took in his surroundings. Despite the fact that the trunks of the tall pines were flying past him with terrible speed, he still managed to notice the marks. Sometimes, there were bloody handprints on the trees. Sometimes, there were drops of blood on the ground.
Sunny guided his steed to follow the bloody trail.
And then, finally...
A human figure appeared from the fog, leaning heavily on a tree. She was hunched and pale as a ghost, but her glaive was raised, ready to attack.
He heard a hoarse whisper:
"Come get me, wench..."
It was Jet.
A moment later, the image of an infernal black stallion appearing from the mist reflected in the icy depths of her piercing blue eyes, with a rider in a flying black mantle leaning low in the saddle.
Her pupils widened in astonishment.
"S-Sunny?"
Extending a hand in Jet's direction, he shouted:
"No time to explain!"
Her hesitation lasted only for a split second.
Dropping the glaive to the ground, Jet reached out with her own bloodied hand. Grabbing it, Sunny pulled. A moment later, Soul Reaper was sitting right behind him, clutching onto the folds of Ananke's Mantle.
The glaive disappeared into a rain of sparks.
Sunny commanded Nightmare to get the hell out of the misty forest as soon as possible. As the Shadow carried the two Masters away, Jet leaned forward and asked in a pained voice:
"I'm... not complaining... but... how the hell are you here?"
He grinned.
'What a complicated question.'
"How else? I came on a ship!"