'This has to be Jet…right?'
In the novel, Jet was the first awakened Sunny had ever met and she became not only one of his closest friends, but behaved as a mentor of sorts for him. She later even joined Nephis' cohort and her and Sunny fought alongside each other in the third nightmare, as well as the Antarctica campaign.
For some reason Nathan could clearly remember Jet's description in the novel and the woman in front of him met all the criteria. It was safe to assume this was Jet. There was also what she said earlier about being in a similar situation. Nathan knew she was referring to Sunny and his infamous "Your breasts." moment.
Responding to her previous congratulations, Nathan replied wearing a smug look.
"Ah thank you. I didn't do much however. I practically had it done for me."
Jet raised her eyebrows at this.
"Really? I guess you got a pretty comfy role then?"
"I was given the comfiest of roles. I was a king."
Jet let out a snort that was a mix of approval and a grunt.
"That's not unheard of. The Nightmare Spell is a trial after all, not an execution. Most Aspirants are given advantageous positions such as a leader role like yours."
'Yeah I do remember something like that being mentioned in the novel.' Nathan thought to himself and inwardly chuckled at how terrible Sunny's luck truly was.
"Do you happen to know anyone that was a slave in their first nightmare?"
"No. Anyone with luck that bad is probably dead anyways."
Internally, Nathan laughed again at the irony of that statement.
Jet stood up from her seat and quickly removed the restraints that were binding him to the medical bed.
"I am Ascended Jet. You can call me Master Jet. These past three days, I was on watch duty, looking after another Aspirant who woke up not too long before you. He's currently waiting for me in the cafeteria."
Glad to finally be free of that medical bed, Nathan sprang up despite his rusted joints and performed some stretches to shake off that dormant feeling.
Jet watched this with a slightly amused look and turned away towards the exit.
"Go take a shower, you reek of nightmare."
Nathan sniffed himself, slightly hurt.
"When you're done, make you're way to the cafeteria and find me. There are a couple things I need to tell you and that other Sleeper. Don't keep me waiting."
That last part was added in a particularly threatening tone, and Nathan wasn't going to be the Sleeper who pissed off Soul Reaper Jet!
"Yes Master Jet!"
His own tone sounded almost reverent. It was strange what fear could do to the mind and body.
Left alone in the Vault, Nathan took the opportunity to finish looking at his Runes and the one lonely Memory he had had in his possession. The quicker he understood his limits and what he was capable of, the better he could plan for the future.
He entered his Soul Sea like it was second nature to him, despite only having done it once before. He was once again surrounded by the vast expanse of stars both above and below him.
He summoned the [Marauder's Love] and in his hands materialised a white sun-bleached glove that resembled nylon but not quite. The part of the glove around the wrist looked frayed and extended out into long ropes. It reminded him of the hand wraps that martial artists would use.
Focusing on the words "Marauders Love", runes shimmered into existence and he studied them.
_____
Memory Type: [Garment]
Memory Description: [ A leather Smiths son once wore these gloves, his fingers learned the trade out of duty rather than desire. But when the vile bug came and slid behind his eyes and into his hands it continued the work. Replacing the beauty that he stitched with cruelty instead, the gloves became a tool fit for Avarice.]
'How…morbid.'
Nathan shivered at the thought of having his own body being taken over and forced to be a prisoner of his own skin.
'I wouldn't wish a fate like that on my worst enemy…'
He most definitely would but he couldn't admit that to himself. After all, now he was a divine miracle as proclaimed by the Spell. Hatred wasn't befitting of his noble status.
'There's also mention of a bug. Is it referring to the Nightmare creature Yoru killed?'
From what Nathan could infer based on the Memory description and the Spells summary of the Nightmare, The Plague Father had been the foe Yoru had to defeat in order to conquer the Nightmare and it seemed to have parasitized the kingdom, inhabiting their bodies and stripping away their free will.
Nathan wished he could take a look at the Memories' enchantments but that option was only available if he acquired Blood Weave on the Forgotten Shore. As of right now, he had no intention of taking it away from Sunny so the ability to read enchantments was off the menu.
But if he had to guess, the glove obviously had something to do with stealing. That much was evident. Stealing what exactly? Nathan was unsure.
He decided to move on to his attributes.
[Tyranny] Attribute Description: "Your conviction is realised through others and the world not only kneels but accommodates your will."
[Cherished] Attribute Description: "You cherish every wish. No matter how great or small it is precious."
[?#"£$%] Attribute Description: ???
The [Tyranny] Attribute sounded cool but Nathan had no idea what its actual function was.
'If it accommodates my will, maybe things go in my favour more often. That would be useful.'
The prospect of having the world work in his favour as an attribute sounded very appealing, so for now, that was what [Tyranny] was.
[Cherished] however came across more as a Flaw than an Attribute. What if someone's wish was a great crime against humanity? The idea of finding a wish like that precious was incredibly distasteful.
And finally there was the last attribute, whatever the hell it meant. Usually if the Spell refused to translate something, it was probably related to the Void or the Unknown. And anything to do with the Unknown or the Void had to do with the Forgotten Dream God. These were the kind of thoughts Nathan would rather not touch but reluctantly had to confront.
But he had already spent a decent amount of time sitting in his soul sea and he'd rather not keep the Reaper waiting.
Once again pushing thoughts of the Forgotten God to the back of his mind, Nathan walked out of the vault and made his way to wherever the police station showers were, using the signs as a guide.
****
After exiting the shower and immediately getting changed into a police-issued tracksuit, Nathan stood at the entrance of the cafeteria and immediately found who he was looking for. An ascended beauty like Jet wasn't hard to find in a room full of mundane officers. Sat opposite to Jet was a pale young man with dark hair. He was so short that most would definitely mistake him for a child but Nathan knew that wasn't the case.
He wore a smile as he approached them for two reasons. Firstly, it would be his first time meeting the protagonist of this story and he was strangely excited to meet him after having spent so long side by side, reading all of his experiences. Now, Nathan got to meet the one and only face-to-face. Secondly, he had caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror whilst he was showering and glorydamn did he look good!
His build wasn't particularly muscular but it was well-defined and it looked as if there was some real strength behind his body. His face could only be described as angular, sporting pronounced cheekbones and a jawline some would actually kill for. His warm ebony skin glistened and his hair was thick and coarse and pulled into rough locks that dangled past his eyes. But the most remarkable feature was his eyes. His sclera, now pitch black, contrasted beautifully with the countless stars of white light that gleamed within. He didn't even have pupils anymore! Which was quite uncanny but breathtaking nonetheless.
Nathan was a very self-aware individual and he knew too much self-love could be harmful if left out of control. Reigning in his narcissism, he pulled a seat out and sat next to Sunny.
With a wide grin, he extended a hand and looked at Sunny.
"Nice to meet you but it's much more of a pleasure meeting me. I'm Yoru, but you can call me the "Divine Miracle", Or "Genie" or even "King." The list will go on…probably."