He was sitting in a cafe. Drinking some coffee, he likes it, not to wake him up, but the bitter taste. He was tired, damn tired. Sipping the last drop, he left the cafe and walked to where the government had said. Walking in he talked to the handlers, they took him to the sleeping area. He listed.
"What is your name?"
"Lesser Silverlight"
The man looked at him.
"What a strange name."
Lesser did not speak.
"Do you want me to contact your family?"
"No need, they know already."
"Ok, Lesser. How long can you stay awake?"
"Not long."
He shrugs, knowingly that if he is lucky they won't die the first second.
"Then we don't have time for the full procedure. Try to stay awake as long as you can."
Lesser node.
"How much do you know about the Nightmare Spell?"
Lesser look and gave a creepy smile.
"If one survives, they are given some powers, if they die a nightmare creature is spawned.. Under the first nightmare you are given an aspect, attributes."
"Good you have some basic info, good. Then listen. Once you fall asleep, you will be transported inside your first nightmare spell. The nightmare are trials created by the spell. Once inside, you will meet monsters, sure, but you will meet people. Remember: they are not real. They're just illusions conjured up to test you."
Lesser node, knowing. HIs eyes were harder to keep open.
"Good. A lot of things about the first nightmare depend on luck. Generally, it shouldn't be overwhelmingly hard. The situation you're in, the tools you have at your disposal and the creatures you have to defeat should be within the range of your ability, a–"
Lesser had passed out with his eyes open. The man looked at him, realising what happened, and cured.
[Aspirant! Welcome to the Nightmare spell. Prepare for your first trial…]
***
Lesser dream of a town.
It was ruined, a statue standing broken in front of a broken shake. Then the image moves backwards. It was fast, but Lesser saw it, then it was done. In front of the shake was an old man, a slave and a boy.
Time slowed, stopped, and then resumed its usual pace.
[Aspirant! Welcome to the Nightmare spell. Prepare for your first trial…]
Lesser mind was coming too, but it was too slow for him, because he fell on the ground.
"Hahahah… Old man looked, he fell over nothing."
"Now, now. It is not nice to laugh at others misfortune."
"Ahhh… Fine."
The girl looked at Lesser, who was beginning to stand up. Lesser look at the one that spoke. Their look and voice was more feminine like, her face was covered with a dark veil, a collar was around her legs, arms and neck. The old man had a gray robe, his hair gone. Lesser follow them without speaking.
He had learned that he was an apprentice of this old man, and the girl was a slave, turned apprentice, by her master. Lesser had not had time to look at his runes, the old man was passionate to teach, and the girl was joking and annoying him to no end. So it had taken a whole day before he could look.
Name: Lesser Silverlight
True name: –
Rank: aspirant.
Soul core: Dormant.
Memories: –
Echoes: –
Attributes: [Unfated], [Scribe], [Stringer].
Aspect: [Carver]
Aspect Description: [A carver is some one that carves art for others to see.]
Lesser look at the runes, he was expecting to see something more, but it matched with what he was going through. Lesser the look at his attributes.
Attribute: [Unfated]
Attribute Description: ["The strings of fate wrap around you is unseen"]
'Is my life a joke, is this what cursed my life.' Lesser felt like the 'Spell' was a joke, turning to the others.
Attribute:[Scribe]
Attribute Description: ["Your soul is attuned to the text left behind. The cadence of your heart gives shape to its will"]
Attribute:[Stringer]
Attribute Description: ["Your hand touch stings and form them to your making"]
Lesser sigh. One was more of a spellcaster, and the other was more of a crafter thing. Lesser lies down on the bed, falling asleep.
***
It had taken four days for the old man to die, from a heart attack. Now he was the only carver in town, and no one trusted a kid to work for them. So Lesser had work, slowly carving some statues, and behind annoyed by the slave girl. She was always in the shadows speaking to him. Her words hit him hard, and she knows it.
One day Lesser heard a sound coming outside the shed. He looked and saw a lying statue that had a metal spike sticking through it. He saw it and it was moving, its arm was cut in several places. Lesser decided to tack inside to learn what it was. Later was how the girl said, but he was studying its making.
The slave was joking at him for falling in love with a statue.
The statue was made from stone and diamond stings. It took him days to make his first replica of it. It was ugly and weak.
"Look at that, how is this your best? The old man would rule in his grave if he saw this."
She spoke to him, at his failures. He felt angry with himself. The next statute was more beautiful, but it was weaker.
"At least you made some progress, but it is still nothing to that statue!"
She spoke, her voice sounding in pain, but he did not notice. He was more angry with himself. He broke it, beginning to make a third.
It took a week, it was beautiful and durable. His mind was broken, like his mind was slowly being eaten.
"It is beautiful, but… It is not the same!"
He screamed from his mouth. The statue began to slowly move, but it was too late. He came at it with his teacher's mallet, killing it.
[You have defeated a Dormant Beast: Routh Statue.]
[You have received a Memory...]
He didn't listen. Slowly he was walking to the moving statute, but the Girl entered, not closing the door. The light shining on her. She was wearing a white robe. Her eyes were like the blue sky. She was speaking, but his mind was not there to hear it. She saw him, releasing what she saw, and smiled. Next came a mallet to her head, she was lying on the floor, still speaking. Her last word spoke to him, his eyes widened. Tears fell, slowly finally realising what happened, he walked back some steps.
[You have defeated a Dormant? human?, name unknown?]
[You have received a Memory...]
He knew her name, but did not think about it. Hearing movement coming from the living statue. He turned around and rage entered his mind, 'It was its fount.' was rebeting in his head. He walked up to it, trying to move only to fail. He slammed the mallet on it, then again, and again. Rage was the only thing in his broken mind, and sadness was there too.
'Why was he feeling like this?'
"HAD I ALREADY FORGOTTEN WHY I HATED EVERYTHING!!!"
Slamming the mallet on last time, breaking both the mallet and the statute.
[You have slain an Awakened Monster, Stone Saint.]
[Aspirant! your trial is over.]
[Wake Up, Lesser! Your nightmare is over.]