(Author's note: If you guys want to vote for the ship or just like hang out, then join the Discord in the comments.)
***
Lec was currently gorging himself on the finest food in the world, a good ol' chili dog. Truth be told, he was becoming a bit obsessed. But who could blame him? The brilliant marriage of savory, smoky, and tangy flavors, combined with the hearty goodness of a charred hot dog with a rich, spiced meat topping, was perfect.
No words could describe his joy at being able to eat this once more. Before his first nightmare, he was a bit disappointed at having only just discovered the food of the gods, before what he thought would be his death.
He and Master Jet were supposed to have been eating in the station's cafe, but Lec's incessant whining had forced her to get him something better than the slop they were going to serve him. She honestly didn't know why she complied.
Scarfing down the last of the chili dogs, Lec couldn't help but pat his stomach as he leaned back into the park bench. Both he and the beautiful Ascended were currently sitting on a bench across the NQSC police station; in the past, this would've been a rather comical sight. A scrawny short kid sitting next to an almost ethereal-looking woman.
But Lec had changed quite a bit after his first nightmare. Going from a scrawny and short dude to a lean and...short dude. 'The damn spell could increase every other aspect of my appearance except my height?' Perhaps he was just cursed to be eternally short.
Well, that detail didn't matter much. What did matter was his hair. Due to being asleep for almost two weeks, his once short and spiky hair had grown just a bit, reaching past his ears in a mangy mess, which he'll probably fix at a later date.
But that wasn't the weird thing; the weird part was the fact that he had somehow gained red highlights. Lec didn't mind it all too much; his hair looked amazing in any color, but he didn't like what it was insinuating. Becoming a stronger awakened was supposed to clear your body from all imperfections, but if that was the case, then didn't that mean the Spell thought his hair was an imperfection!?! 'Or maybe I'm just overthinking this, and the change in appearance is tied to my Aspect...or my flaw. Or something along those lines.'
Lec didn't really want to think about his rather debilitating flaw right now, so he decided right there that he'd stop zoning out and listen to what Master Jet had been talking about for the past few minutes.
"....No matter what traumatic experience you have encountered, there is no shame in asking for help. Your mind is as important as your body — it's only right to keep it healthy. Are you interested?"
"H-huh? What?" Lec blinked a few times as her words registered for him. The master could only sigh at this, clearly not liking having to repeat herself. "I was asking if you wanted therapy for any traumatic events you experienced during your first nightmare."
"Nah, I'm good. I received all the therapy I could have wanted during the nightmare anyway." The Ascended just tilted her head before simply nodding. "As you wish." She stayed quiet before asking a single question. "Was it hard?"
Lec wasn't too sure how to reply. 'Was it hard?' He really didn't know, so he just decided to say it how he saw it. "It was rather easy, physically, I mean. It was hard mentally, I suppose."
She nodded, seeming satisfied with that explanation.
"Very well, I won't pry any further. Us outskirt rats are way more resilient than people think."
Lec looked at her, surprise evident in his face, before nodding. 'So she grew up in the outskirts as well.' He'd glance at her insignia, a subtle look of pride appearing on his face before he swiftly got rid of it.
"So, what comes next? Anything else you've got to say?"
"That's pretty much it. There are some additional hurdles to jump across, mostly having to do with your family, but… well. I've read your file, so that doesn't really apply. The only thing left is to decide how you will be preparing for your first journey into the Dream Realm."
At that, Lec froze. He finally understood something: he understood that it might be over for him. Jet watched his face slowly descend into despair before she sighed. "You must have realized at this point, huh? I must say, your luck is exceptionally bad; you barely have a week until the winter solstice."
Lec tried his best not to groan, which he immediately failed at. With that little time to prepare for the winter solstice, he was as good as dead. He hoped that he'd be able to get a somewhat decent start at combat before he began, but he had completely forgotten how long he truly was in the Ark.
Before he could continue wallowing in his own despair, Jet continued talking. "This late into the year, you won't be able to learn much, if anything at all. But it's better than nothing. More importantly, you will get acquainted with most of the people who will enter the Dream Realm with you. Some of them might become your companions for life."
"So, what do you say? Do you want me to take you to the Academy?"
Lec stared blankly for a few seconds before replying. "Yes, of course I do. If I don't, I'm almost guaranteed to be dead, and if I do...Well, I'm still kinda guaranteed to be dead, but I could maybe hope to delay that death."
Nodding, Jet responded with a smirk. "Very well then."
***
Lec stood in front of the massive, seemingly indestructible red gates of the Awakened Academy. The Academy was, in fact, a city within the city. It was built like a fortress, with a high wall made of hard alloy, a deep moat, and numerous large-caliber turrets which were placed in certain positions to create a deadly air-suppression dome.
No Nightmare Creature, not even colossal titans, were supposed to be able to break through its defenses.
It was a legendary place. Actually, many of the most popular webtoons, youth dramas, and novels he had read took place right behind that wall. Lec always imagined himself standing here eventually. It was unfortunate that he wouldn't be staying for long.
As the gate began to open, Lec thought back to Master Jet's parting words. 'Alright, so don't tell them any info about your first nightmare, take the stupid Wilderness Survival course, and make friends.'
Lec originally had zero intentions of listening to anything the beautiful Ascended had said, but the more he thought about it, the more it made sense. He knew almost nothing about truly surviving in the wilderness, so if he was dropped in an extremely cold area of the nightmare Spell, he'd probably die.
Though he wasn't too worried about anything biological threats, as one of his Attributes,[Living Cure], basically made him immune to most things.
Still, it'd probably do him some good to learn about what it took to survive in the wild. As for the other pieces of advice, Lec thought that the third one was a given. Why wouldn't he try making friends? As for the first piece of advice, he honestly wasn't too sure.
The whole reason he was so excited about waking up was becoming rich, famous, and living the good life. If he hid stuff away, would he even be able to accomplish any of that? So Lec resolved that he wouldn't say anything too noteworthy about his first nightmare except for the fact that he received a true name.
'Two birds with one stone! Pffft, I'm a genius.'