Bari felt something stirring awake inside of him. With a sudden jolt, he clutched his chest and stared into the darkness, trying to understand what was happening.
The sensation was neither painful nor unpleasant, yet it was unlike anything he had ever known. It was as though his soul was being shaken from slumber, infused with a strange, foreign energy.
Yet, that energy was not coming from outside. It was rising from within — as if it had always been there, merely dormant, waiting.
The force spread through every fiber of his being. Bari felt his emotions sharpen, becoming clearer and more defined. Then his body began to change as well. It was as though a miniature star had ignited at the centre of his chest, waves of heat radiating outward — first to his stomach and shoulders, then to his arms and legs, and finally to his hands and feet.
Under that heat, his bones, muscles, organs, and veins were rebuilt and revitalized. Bari felt as if he was being reborn — stronger, faster, healthier. The sensation was euphoric.
With each passing second, the transformation deepened. Newfound confidence settled in his heart. With this strength, he would be able to protect his family.
With his powers awakened and his will reaffirmed, Bari knew he had taken one step closer to his ultimate goal: revenge on those who had killed his father.
After some time, the blazing star in his chest finally cooled. The heat gave way to a soothing coldness that washed over him, stripping away every ache and lingering discomfort. The chill spread upward, climbing into his skull and concentrating around his brain and eyes. It lingered there for what felt like an eternity, fortifying and adjusting him with its new power.
His vision expanded beyond comprehension, to a degree that would have overwhelmed any ordinary human. But his mind had been sharpened alongside his eyes, allowing him to keep pace with the deluge of perception.
He could see the void, once filled with scattered stars. But now it was more — a vast, infinite sea, stretching endlessly in every direction. There was no ground, no horizon, no ceiling. Only a boundless ocean of lightless space, populated with impossible geometries and shifting fragments of fractal patterns cascading like waterfalls of movement.
The very air hummed, thick with pressure, though silence still reigned. It was a space that felt both infinite and crushingly near — as if all existence had been compressed into a single moment.
His Soul Sea.
At its center, where a sun should have been, there was instead a black hole.
A cosmic, surreal sight — a black hole burning in colors of impossible beauty. At the very core lay a perfect void, a sphere so dark no light escaped — the singularity itself. Around it, light bent and twisted in impossible arcs, reality itself warping under its incomprehensible gravity.
From the core radiated a breathtaking halo of violet and indigo light, streaked with brilliant whites, pale blues, and faint fiery oranges — as though starlight and raw energy were being devoured into a spiraling abyss. The luminous swirls stretched like ribbons, curving sharply in opposite directions, hinting at the violent turbulence of an accretion disk distorted by unfathomable force.
To say Bari was speechless was an understatement.
"Was this… was this what the soul of a Divine Aspect holder looked like?"
Not wishing to linger, Bari looked deeper into the abyss — and saw it. A lone sphere of light, orbiting around the black hole, trapped in its gravity. A subtle smile curved his lips.
That was his memory, Strider's Earrings. Soon, there would be dozens more spheres here. And if fortune favoured him, echoes too.
The Spell's voice suddenly tore him from the Soul Sea.
[Awakening Aspect Ability…]
"This is it. The moment of truth." Bari thought, eager to discover what his new eyes could do.
Divine Aspect or not, everything depended on his first ability. His role in the Dream Realm would be shaped by it. If it was a combat ability, he would fight on the frontlines against the Nightmare Creatures. If it was tied to sorcery, he might become a devastating but fragile ranged fighter. If it was utility, then he would be invaluable behind the scenes, supporting the Dream Realm's endless struggle.
Utility Abilities were also highly prized in the real world, where the Awakened sustained society in countless ways.
[Aspect Ability acquired.]
[Aspect Ability Name: Insight]
Bari quickly summoned the runes. He wanted to read the description of his ability immediately, but decided to review his status first.
Name: Bari
True Name: Will-Born
Rank: Dreamer
Soul Core: Dormant
Soul Fragments: [60/1000]
Memories: [Strider's Earrings]
Echoes: —
Attributes: [Flames of Divinity], [The Fire], [Unique Being], [Divine Protection]
Attribute Descriptions:
[Flames of Divinity: Your soul is aflame with the light of divinity.]
[The Fire: You have inherited the lineage of Sun God.]
[Unique Being: You possess a uniqueness that all living things instinctively crave. Whether it inspires admiration or hatred is uncertain, but none can remain indifferent to it.]
[Divine Protection: The Eyes of Genesis perceive all truths. Yet not every truth is meant to be witnessed—some would shatter the mind, body, and soul. This protection shields the bearer from revelations too dangerous to endure.]
Aspect: [Eyes of Genesis]
Aspect Rank: Divine
Aspect Abilities: [Insight]
Aspect Ability Description: [You possess a divine perception. You are able to see inside objects — muscles, blood, and essence nodes. You instinctively understand the weaknesses, strength and structure of things your eyes lay upon. You perceive essence flow within living beings, constructs, weapons, and even the Dream Realm itself. You can identify the names of attributes, aspects, memories, and echoes of an opponent at a mere glimpse.]
As Bari finished reading, a new set of runes appeared beneath the rest. At the same time, the Spell's voice echoed through the void:
[All power has a price.]
[You have received a Flaw.]
[Your flaw is…]