A scrawny boy with ghostly pale skin and grey hair was searching the body of a sleeping thuggish man with his dim yellow eyes and a mischievous grin.
'There, Found it!'
Then he stole a packet of donuts.
No 'stole' was a wrong word, after all how could he do such a thing when he aspires to be a great person like The Lord of Shadows better yet The Sovereign of Death whom he admires so much how could he not when the person literally survived a Death Zone by himself.
If not for that evil treacherous witch Changing Star, he could have very well conquered the world! His tales had reached even the waking world and Aegis, a mundane outskirts rat from the North Quadrant Siege Capital.
This donut he was taking was shoplifted by that boy so it didn't belong to that man and thus not stolen.
Anyways, now was the time to go to the police station. Not to return the donut but due to standard protocol for Aegis was finally infected by the Nightmare Spell at the age of eighteen to challenge his First Nightmare!
Before, Aegis had been worried about not being chosen and remaining mundane for life. Now, He was done bringing justice to this ruffian boy as he turned away, his chest wide with pride.
A frightening scream resounded through the outskirts, scaring the shit out of its last few inhabitants, Aegis included, because it came from right behind him.
As Aegis looked back, The body behind him started was twisted grotesquely which then burst out into an explosion of wind and blood throwing him onto the ground a few meters away
"Oh shit!"
This was bad, very much so, A First Category Gate just had to open right behind him! Was he going to die without even getting a chance?
The very thought made him shudder as he got up and started running towards the nearest police station, it was not that faraway and he might be able to hide from a single Dormant Nightmare Creature or even outrun it, maybe?
'There's still hope!'
The wind howled behind him and a crimson pulp hit one of his legs breaking a bone or two and he fell down then rolled a little with the distant outline of the police station within sight yet far from reach.
'Damnation.'
He could no longer run and he might not be in a Nightmare but he was gonna fight to death instead of dying pathetically and thus he stole his will and readied his mind then looked back at his pursuer.
"Let's see who dares be my enemy!"
It was a large pool of crimson fluid, a moving slithering mass of blood and tentacles made entirely of blood, rose to envelope him.
Aegis struggled against the abomination as he tried to prevent himself from being devoured and dragged himself away, straining against the pain and exhaustion as his own blood leaking from the wound on his left leg, was being absorbed by the abomination becoming a part of its harrowing existence.
Luckily, the policemen had come outside with weapons and the abomination was distracted, but it overpowered Aegis in a short while and devoured him nonetheless…
Being ripped apart and sucked dry of blood and life, he almost felt like giving in to death when a distant memory resurfaced in his mind.
His father had been an Awakened warrior who participated in the Domain War, he narrated and told the achievements of The Lord of Shadows and Lady Changing Star to Aegis before dying in its last battle between supremes after which his only family, his sick mother died shortly and he was expelled to the outskirts due to lack of money.
A single thought made him stand or rather swim in fetid blood. They had not given in to death or its mercy and solace, they had lived every moment in the jaws of death.
Aegis would have died from blood loss but he was drowned in blood instead, he strained his muscle and struggled against the abominable pool of blood when suddenly his hand touched something solid.
'A weakness?'
He made his last stand as he tried to gasp the solid despite having lost all sense except touch and hit it with his punches, his knees, his elbows, all resulting in severe pain but he planned to fight pain as well.
"Die You Bastard!", he attempted to scream but only blood entered into his mouth, ripping him from inside.
He hit the solid object again, it was a glassine sphere.
'Got You!'
He began hitting it with all his mundane might as his body was ripped apart and maimed. Just when death seemed imminent, a cracking sound resounded as the blood stopped flowing and grew lifeless all together.
He gave up to pain and exhaustion falling into a deep slumber as an unfamiliar yet strangely comforting voice whispered into his ear,
[Aspirant! Welcome to the Nightmare Spell. Prepare for your first trial… ]
[You have slain a dormant titan, Blood Seeking… ]
[You have… ]