Lysander dreamed of a castle.
Ruined and lonesome, it stood alone in the middle of a desolate expanse, a vestige of a bygone era. A radiant moon bathed its walls in a pale, ghostly light.
Suddenly, the moon disappeared below the horizon. The sun rose in the west, illuminating the passing of the seasons. Lysander understood that he was seeing time flowing backward.
Countless years passed.
Then, Lysander saw a malicious, vile, and corrupting aura slowly converge from the horizon to the ruined castle like a tidal wave, bringing back the desolation of the land that had spread from the ruined castle, finally condensing into an explosion that brought the ancient castle to this state.
Lysander couldn't help but shiver at the sight he had assisted.
The once-desolate ground slowly regained life, as shown by the green scenery filling Lys's view. The ruined castle rose from its slumber, denying its future and regaining its past splendour.
The door of the castle opened, and he was dragged into the depths of the unknown.
Time slowed, stopped, and then resumed its usual pace.
[Aspirant! Welcome to the First Nightmare Spell. Prepare for your First Trial...]
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'I... I can't see.'
Step. Step. Another step.
A searing pain combined with the sound of someone approaching woke Lysander from its slumber. He was in a small, confined space devoid of light, only able to sit against the cold stone walls to rest. His wrists were the source of the agonizing pain he was currently experiencing: iron shackles attached to the stone wall, piercing his flesh. Lys tried to move one of his arms, but pain flooded his mind the moment he did that.
'What kind of twisted nightmare am I in?!'
The young man tried to look around, but with the absence of light, he couldn't make out anything with his eyes, but he could feel flat perpendicular metal touching his feet.
Step. Step. Another Step.
The sound of metallic doors opening and closing slowly sounded closer and closer.
Lysander dreaded the moment when he would face the unknown, for he didn't know what awaited him.
'I-I can't die, not yet!'
Finally, the sound of footsteps stopped in front of his door, and he gulped with fear.
The door opened, and the sudden light assaulted the eyes of Lysander, almost blinding him temporarily. He still managed to perceive a tall man lowering and putting a bowl on the ground, then closing the metallic door.
Then, the sound of footsteps continued their path.
Calming himself, Lysander slowly regained his spirit and began to think about what the old policeman had told him.
'The First Nightmare is a trial, which means that my death is not inevitable. It's like in the slums, except probably ten times more difficult, but I can do it. I must think... Oh! The Attributes and the Aspect!!'
When Lysander thought about his Aspect and Attributes, shimmering runes appeared in the air in front of him. He didn't know the ancient alphabet, but weirdly enough, he could understand the meaning behind the text.
While reading, Lys couldn't help but wonder.
'Is... is it supposed to be this bad?'
*****
Name : Lysander
True Name :
Rank : Aspirant
Soul Core : Dormant
Memories :
Echoes :
Attributes : [Lucky], [True Soul], [Prodigy]
Aspect : [Sacrificial Soul]
Aspect Description : [A sacrifice meant for a higher purpose demands countless souls, each stripped of the right to witness the end they helped create.]
*****
Quite stunned, Lysander temporarily forgot the pain he was suffering and just stared at the runes, trying to see if maybe he was hallucinating.
'How the fuck is an Aspect like that supposed to help me survive this damned trial?!'
He continued to read the description of his Attributes.
[Lucky] Attribute Description : ''You are favored by fortune.''
[True Soul] Attribute Description : ''Your soul remains true to its nature.''
[Prodigy] Attribute Description : ''You were born with extraordinary aptitude.''
'Maybe I am not destined to die, at least not yet.'
Lysander understood a few things with his 'status'.
Firstly, his role in this nightmare is to die to a greater cause, as a sacrifice with the other people in the surrounding cells.
Secondly, his first Attribute, [Lucky], was straightforward and seemed to indicate that he would have fortuitous encounters that would help him in his path, but Lysander also knew that luck alone could not overcome impossible odds. It was just a small push.
He didn't completely catch on what the other two Attributes meant.
[True Soul] was a stranger one. Wasn't his soul already true to himself? How could his soul betray its nature? Lysander decided not to mind this attribute more. Answers to that would be revealed later.
The last one, [Prodigy], was an Attribute that Lys had heard in his life. It was clear, but also vague at the same time. It seemed to indicate that he would have an innate aptitude for learning and growth, but nothing was explained further. The limit and the starting point of his aptitude were not told.
'My Attributes are interesting, but it's still not direct things that I can use in a fight. At least they are not useless like my Aspect.'
Pain originating from his wrists was persisting, but Lysander was slowly getting used to it. He moved his hands to grab the bowl on the ground, all while thinking.
'Right now, I am valuable to whoever is in charge of this castle and the ritual. So, the food is not poisoned, or at least, it will not kill me. I can see that this body is malnourished, worse than mine in the waking world.'
Knowing that, Lys put the bowl to his lips and started to eat. It had a weird texture and tasted like trash, but he had to.
Suddenly, he felt something getting stuck in his trachea, and he couldn't breathe anymore.
Lysander started to panic, feeling his body seeking air it was denied entry to. His chest was tightening, and dizziness was taking hold of his head.
Striking his chest in repetition, he tried to make the damn thing exit his body. After a few minutes of agonization and almost dying, Lysander finally succeeded in regurgitating the unknown object.
Hunched over, taking deep breaths to palliate his lack of oxygen, he slowly regained control of his body and managed to feel in the darkness the cause of his situation. Tapping the ground in search of it, Lys finally caught it.
It was smooth and small, about the length of a finger.
A bone.