[Prepare for appraisal….]
Will was floating in a similar space to the orb that brought him to this world. Only this time the countless strings that made up the tapestry were silver instead of black. So whatever the 'Shadow' made was on the level of the whole spell since this silver light was the inner working of the Spell. Both were on unimaginable levels of complication, an inconceivable net of nodes and constellations. He didn't know how to put it but it was exactly what Sunny had said.
It was breathtaking.
Will knew many secrets the spell held unlike Sunny when he ventured through this scene of the end of the Nightmare.
All he could in this moment was the last scenes of his First Nightmare.
Hana's sacrifice. The battle between the Tyrant, a human, a drake, and a Gnat. Ending with somehow out of all creatures surviving: the Gnat.
He had been able to survive only through the grace of the two people and the scaly lizard's help. His luck had turned up, to give him two strangers who decided to put everything on the line to keep him alive. Just because he looked like someone they knew. Maybe luck was looking just like that man, Gelt.
[You have received a Memory: Royal Egg]
Will's thoughts of the Nightmare were put on pause. What the hell was this memory? It came from an awakened demon so it was going to be fairly powerful for a mere sleeper.
He had been incredibly fortunate to get two awakened tier memories as a dormant human. The Tattered Sash would be a great help now that he could use his own essence. Now with this from another awakened creature it had to be of the same rank at least. Not to mention the Sort-of-Sharp could've been as well, Will guessed he would never know.
What this new memory would do would have to wait till after because a voice had spoken to him.
Not coming from any direction it was as if it came from everywhere. This whole space was speaking to him. This universe that made the Spell.
[Aspirant! Your trial is over.]
[You have defeated a dormant human, name unknown.]
[You have defeated a dormant beast, Rapid Blazetail.]
[You have defeated five dormant beasts, Torch Pixies.]
[You have defeated an awakened tyrant, Rune-Smith Golem Gelt.]
[You have defeated an awakened demon, Royal Meteor Drake.]
[You have achieved the impossible!]
[Final appraisal: Glorious. The world should prepare for a new calamity.]
None of that could be good news… Will was ecstatic that he was rated so highly. But every word mentioning what he did in the Nightmare and what would come of his survival were spoken as if a truly harrowing creature was born.
Which one of his actions had been what defied fate too much to allow him the rating of Glorious?
Killing something? It couldn't be that human right? Or had simply survived was the cause of such a high evaluation.
[Dreamer Will, receive your boon!]
Despite all the ominous wording he couldn't help but smile. He really did it.
[You have been bestowed a true name: Typhon]
What the hell?! His eyes shot open reading those words. He never knew if the feat of a glorious appraisal meant a true name was gifted or if one was given even for lower ones but he really had been lucky enough to receive one as well.
If Will remembered correctly, Typhon was something from the Greek mythos. He was an insanely powerful serpentine giant. Son of the earth, Gaia, and the abyss that all monsters and evil beings were sent for torment, Tartarus.
There were tons of myths about him, like most ancient mythos, but he felt like the stories of many dragon heads and being the father of all monsters along with his wife Echidna were the main things most people even knew him for.
[Your aspect is ready to evolve. Evolve your aspect?]
Will almost instinctively said yes out of excitement. But something stopped him.
Those things the Spell said about him and about how the would should react made him hesitant. Could taking this upgrade be what doomed the world? Would his new power be the calamity it spoke about or was his fear pushing him to deny the power be what dooms the world? Because of his uncertainty making him too weak to help with what's coming.
Like any other time he read stories where people enter a world they're not a part of, when that someone shows up and interacts with the world they make waves. Those waves slowly build up, resulting in major changes in the world.
Will's hesitation only lasted a few moments more. He made his decision.
"Yes" The words echo in a solemn tone as Will was sentencing himself to the gallows.
[Awakened Aspect Abyssal Kinship is evolving…]
[New Aspect acquired.]
[Aspect Rank: Divine.]
****
Those words sent a shiver down his spine. He didn't know if it was fear or excitement.
[Aspect Name: Abyssal Dominion.]
This is it. If he lived up to the power of a divine aspect, he would become a powerhouse in this world. That also scared him, with everything the spell said, a single thought crossed his mind.
Could this all be planned and expected by someone like the Weaver?
Was their plan hinged on this decision here? He could either be dooming or saving the waking world.
He summoned his runes to inspect the changes.
Aspect: [Abyssal Dominion.]
Aspect Rank: Divine.
Aspect Description: [You are marked by the touch of the abyss. Gifting you powers, but nothing is free. Be careful. He who fights with monsters should look to it that he himself does not become a monster. And if you gaze long into an abyss, the abyss also gazes into you.]
That last line he recognized from a popular saying but the line preceding it, he never heard. It probably had something to do with more things like inner demons and monsters but in this world, those inner monsters are painfully real sometimes.
Innate ability: [Runes of the Abyss]
Ability Description: [Your body is marked by the infinite emptiness. You can store things inside it, just make sure it won't eat you alive.]
It feels like the spell is trying to warn him. Everything about his aspect and abilities always comes with a warning of some sort.
Will was now one of the four known wielders of a divine aspect. Although parts of it did give him some worry, he was nonetheless very excited to test it out. How should he act once he got the waking world, he wasn't very sure.
Will was of the mindset that he should try to make as little waves as possible early on while he was weaker than most people. There were too many people who could just snap and delete him. Even just meeting a real Awakened would spell the end for him, much less anything even higher than that.
Taking a deep breath. The least he could hope for is a good spawn during the winter solstice. As amazing as the boons and experiences would be, if he went to the Forgotten Shore with the rest of the cast, there was a very high chance he would lose his life in that place.
He would also have to figure out all of his innate abilities. Sunny was straight forward at the beginning. Although he hated it and never used it till the end, or rather it was used. He never discovered the boons that came from being a proper shadow.
So maybe everything is fine at the end, and he was just being a worry wart.
Regardless, the Spell Spoke to him again with that same feeling of unending vastness. But for some reason Will felt like the unfeeling, not truly alive, Spell seems to speak at him with more purpose. His new divine aspect or the Abyssal Dominion itself seems to elicit a vaguely different tone.
[The First Seal is broken.]
[Awakening dormant powers…]