In the deepest depths of the world, chained to an altar crafted by the gods themselves, the most dangerous man in history stood silently.
His eyes were fixated on the images that flashed by in his magical mirror, which transcended the dimensional barrier.
Whether it be the Dimension of Endless Sun, home of the Sun God, or the most dreary dungeons in the Great Beyond.
No matter the location, he could gaze upon it.
And on this early October day, this elder finally changed the image back to the place that attracted his attention the most.
Aaron Grimstall, a boy whom he had watched since birth and the one chosen by him to wield that specific Ghostship.
The last time he had seen the boy was when he had communicated with him personally in their hasty conversation.
"Do you hear this, friend?!"
His voice boomed outward with a supersonic force, but the pitch-black abyssal water remained unmoving even as he continued.
"My boy lost his leg because the watchman didn't do his job!"
Anger filled his shouts as he called to something lurking at the edge of the altar, just barely out of sight, yet still pulsating with strength.
While it did not respond to the Old Man's words, an emotion passed through the waves, entering the elder's mind and telling him everything he needed to know.
"Eh? You let the mist down for him?"
There was a brief pause as the ocean groaned heavily, a pressure so dramatic that even Apex terrors stayed away exploded from the pit.
"Nidhogg stirs… If he is fully released from his seal, will you actually fight against him?"
Curiosity oozed into the man's words as he addressed the darkness, the emptiness of the abyss his only prize for his question.
"If you unsealed me, then I would hunt him for you, and this entire problem would be dealt with. Haven't I served my time?"
Pleading with all his heart, the elder begged the creature lurking in the sea endlessly, a lifeless silence once again following.
"Stingy old god… Can't even crack a joke anymore…"
Sighing heavily, he turned his gaze back to the mirror, the sight of Aaron speaking to the monster still shown on the screen.
"Eh? How is he…?"
Furrowing his brow in confusion, he nearly gawked at the scene of the boy and the Great One communicating quietly.
Then, out of that blond boy's mouth came the words that the elder never thought he would hear.
"Have you heard of the God Slayer, perhaps?"
…
The creature's ice-covered lip quivered for a moment as it stared at the boy firmly, every molecule of air freezing instantly.
"What…?"
The word spoken by the powerful being echoed through the space, twisting the dream into a torrent of darkness.
Instead of a room bathed in abyssal mist, a campfire appeared in the middle of a snowy field, with both men sitting opposite each other.
High in the sky, the moon shifted oddly, its shape unfamiliar to Aaron as it formed a crescent appearance.
Staring at the previously shirtless terror who had adorned a heavy winter coat, he watched his mouthhouse move again.
"Do not deceive me. Heaven's Prisoner remains in his crushing seal that far surpasses my own. No mortal could think of descending to reach him."
With a smile creeping across its face, it looked at the blond boy confidently, certain in its words, which, to any sane individual, were true.
However, as he was the one and only Aaron Grimstall, he could rebuke the terror with confidence.
Opening his mouth again, the boy spoke quietly, responding to the creature's provocation.
"Your senses must have really worsened with age. I was told my very existence was laced with his own, and yet a being of your strength can't sense one elderly man?"
Speaking in a condescending tone, the blond boy berated the impossibly powerful being, taunting him to no end.
Feeling the air tighten in response, he raised his hand in front of his face, making one last comment before the creature could reply.
"You can't even kill me here, so why bicker? This is my dream after all, and you're the visitor."
Relaxing onto his wooden stool, he gazed at the icy creature whose eye twitched unnervingly.
Gusts of freezing cold wind blew through the field, dimming the firelight and submerging Aaron into a frosty winter; however, as the terror spoke, the boy stared through the chill.
"You are a brave human… Perhaps the bravest of this era to speak to me like this…"
It paused, thinking carefully before speaking again.
"I will dig through your memories to check this information. You will begone after I get my fable from your own—"
The blond boy interrupted him, speaking over his rant.
"You do not want to do that."
There was a deafening silence as a blizzard ensued around the campfire, a flicker of rage burning behind the man's eyes as he gazed at the insolent boy.
"You are a mere human. Do you think you have any authority to order me around?"
Without waiting for his response, the terror split its subconscious into a pair, sending the separate fragment into the boy's mind.
Reciting what he was seeing aloud, the man addressed the pale-faced Aaron, who could feel something amiss in his head.
"Why are humans so secretive about their memories? Are they sentimental about times long passed? Do they wish to forget? Or is it the secrets buried within that shall never be brought to light? Let us see what category you fall under."
Forcing his secondary figure deeper into the boy's mind, he noticed two odd blotches engraved into his consciousness.
"You possess pieces of an ancient Naelith that lived through my era… This is how you have been communicating with me, human. I see now…"
Delving into the secondary presence that it had detected inside the boy's mind, the being attempted to further approach it.
Reaching out with its astral projection's hand to touch the strange spot in the mindscape, it felt a wave of energy wash over it from a different direction.
Slowly turning its gaze away from the presence before it, the ice-covered creature felt odd beads of sweat dripping down its spine as it stared into the depths of this child's head.
"Hmm? What is that lurking back there…?"
Squinting slightly, the ancient terror dug through the mental fog, meeting the eyes of what waited beyond.
Two impossible to describe pupils stared back at it, the presence of the divine washing over its astral form.
Frosty black sludge seeped from its lips as it took another step forward, attempting to approach the odd being that threatened to eliminate it.
"What are you—"
The terror's voice didn't have the chance to come out, its body instantly seized by horrific black pustules that sizzled like fire.
Then, in one spine-chilling thud, its entire figure exploded, black blood, organs, and bone flying in every direction.
Aaron, who took a step back in horror, gulped silently, realizing that whatever that thing had seen inside his head had killed it instantly.
Throughout his skull, an aggressive headache drilled its way to his temples, forcing him to groan.
As he waited for the dreamscape to dissolve, he noticed an odd twitching coming from the mangled corpse that lay sprawled on the snowfield.
Is it…
Bones rattled as they drew closer to each other, an otherworldly force acting like magnets attaching them into a humanoid skeleton.
The terror's skin peeled from the snow, melting away layer after layer until every last fragment of flesh had been returned.
Refitting itself similarly to that of a leather coat, the drapery attached itself to the man's skeleton, reshaping its form in a heartbeat.
Black goo began to seep from the creature's body; however, that was in no means a concern for the ancient being, whose life was restored in a flash.
Frowning slightly, the bluish-white haired man stared daggers into the boy, examining his appearance to the extreme.
"We are done here. I made a mistake bringing one of you into this realm. How infuriating… The only lead I had on Madness and Izmania was washed away by your foolish Ghostship…"
Uttering words beyond Aaron's comprehension, all the boy could do was back away under the monster's gaze.
Not eluding the beast in the slightest, he watched as it spoke for one final time, its figure morphing into something odd.
Its head split into fifths, its body ripped apart, and replaced with a massive torso similar to that of a dragon.
Icicles clung to its underside, the black goo swirling around inside each pillar of them, waiting patiently for its victims.
The man's voice was no more, replaced by the horrific and dangerous voice of the creature that had spoken to him previously.
"When your world burns to ash and thousands more crumble along with it, I will make you my pawn. If I do that, then I will remain safe… Yes… That would work…"
Speaking silently to itself, the creature waved its hand, the projection of snow trodden fields vanishing in an instant, the deafening silence of darkness encompassing the world.
Aaron himself vanished from this void, returning to his warm bed where he slumbered until dawn.