"What happened in there?"
That was the first thing he had to know. Just standing next to the King Of The Dark was enough to make Nero almost go insane. He thought his mind was going to shatter into a thousand pieces just from his presence.
But Epsilon was right next to him too. And not just that, if the creature that was sealed below them, the Nephilim that the spell called it, had a presence just as mind boggling as the king, then god knows what Epsilon felt as he watched the two fight for a brief moment.
"Tell me."
"I saw that Griffin you killed."
Its corpse was burnt to a crisp. Even if you saw the spear lodged into its charred skull, it didn't make sense that an Aspirant could kill it. The only explanation, was that Epsilon had also seen the Echo he got from it. But that also meant he had seen his Divine Aspect and Flaw, while Nero was still in the dark about his.
"It will serve you well."
"Stop dodging my question, what happened to you?!?"
Epsilon raised his head.
"Does it matter? I came back like we planned. All that changed is that my eyes were opened, and I can see everything more clearly now."
"Since when did you start speaking in metaphors? I can't help you if you won't tell me anything."
Epsilon shook his head.
"Nero, you've seen and felt clearly just how strong he was. These worlds are big, so there must be other beings out their which are just as powerful as him, if not, even stronger. Beings like that are lurking in the darkest corners of the dream realm, so what will happen if they decide to leave one day? What will happen if they decide to come for earth, what will we do if they are already here?"
Nero shivered. If a Nightmare creature as strong as the Nephilim or the King of the dark decided to come to earth, they would all die. Would every Awakened and Ascended in the world even be enough to stop just one of them?
No. The answer was no. Just thinking about him now still made him tremble.
"What are you getting at?"
"We were going to send mother to the NQSC so that she could live a good life like dad wanted. But will she be safe? Unless we can kill creatures like that, her life.. all lives could still be extinguished at any moment."
Epsilon then declared,
"I've updated my dream, Nero. I don't just want to send mother to the NQSC anymore. I am going to create a Legacy clan whose goal is to kill unholy creatures. We are going to challenge the 2nd, 3rd and then every nightmare there is, until there is nothing left that can threaten our world."
Immortal flame was a pioneer of the dream realm. He was the first to conquer the second nightmare, but Epsilon was saying he would go even further then that?
"Nero, I need your help to do it. You told me that if I wasn't there, you and mother wouldn't have made it a single day after father died. It's the same the other way round, I wouldn't have been able to survive without you too. And just like back then, I can't achieve my dream without you there with me."
He did not like what he was hearing.
"Nero, join me."
Nero paused. He had thought about challenging the second nightmare every now and then, especially with his flaw in mind. Eventually it would grow to a point where it ask for soul shards that would be impossible to get, and he would have to get stronger to procure them.
But the third nightmare? He would only think of challenging that if he truly had no hope left, and yet his brother wanted to go even above that, and go after every Nightmare there is.
"I'm sorry... but I can't. Your dream is impossible, suicidal in fact. Something like that... is out of our hands."
"Your flaw will force it though."
"But will I even live that long? By the time it starts asking for Transcendent shards, mother would be in the NQSC by then. Even if I die, you will protect her right? When the time comes, I'll happily sit down and die."
Epsilon went quiet. His face contorted and twisted into one of disappointment and disgust.
"That nightmare made you a coward."
Without wasting anymore time, he turned around and left. He would try to achieve his dream, whether Nero was there or not. Even if it was futile, he would struggle, because that was all he could do.
Epsilon had never said anything like that to him before. So hearing it obviously hurt Nero, but at the same time he knew he was right.
In the past, he had risked his life to help him before, and he knew that he was right too. But one thing was different between then and now.
[Fear]
While fear had made Epsilon stronger, for Nero it made him weaker. Not in a physical sense, but emotionally. That encounter with the king had especially done something to his mind, and it continued to haunt him even in his sleep.
'So this is where we start to diverge, huh..'
Nero then summoned the runes from his [Bond] attribute, and checked on Epsilons status.
**
Name: Epsilon
True Name: End Of The Unbound
Rank: Dreamer
Soul Core: Dormant
Soul Fragments: [0/1000]
He stared hard at that 2nd set of strings. Of course he earned a true name just like him. He too had experienced and survived the horrors of that dungeon. He tried to chuckle at that name, it sounded just as cringe as his own, but he couldn't get the laughter out of him. He simply wasn't in the mood.
Memories: [Seras's despair]
'Strange...'
He got a memory? As far as he was concerned, there were no other enemies left in that dungeon apart from those two deities. The only way Epsilon could've gotten one, is if he killed...
Memory: [Seras's despair]
Memory Rank: Divine
Memory Type: unknown
Memory description: [A child was born on the boundary between good and evil, but rather than being embraced by all, she was forsaken by both. Destined for a lifetime of loneliness, she ran away to the Hollow Mountains, but even then, she could not live in peace. After exhausting her strength trying to break free, she was slain by a demon, as well as the key to her jail. Her hatred for the world, and her last wishes, were condensed into a single drop of her blood.]
'...'
Even if Epsilon didn't say it himself, that description told him just what he needed to know. He had killed the Nephilim that was sealed below them. Not in a direct fight of course, but somehow he got the last hit in.
No wonder he changed. He did something impossible, he couldn't imagine how much pain he felt.
But how did he survive afterwards? Did the King Of The Dark let him live once he smelt the traces of weaver on him too? Thinking about it now, the Nightmare spell seemed to be calling him a demon. Rodenaus had called him a demon too. Was this weaver person also a demon? Or maybe a Nephilim instead?
So many questions, but there weren't any answers. At least he had the name of the Nephilim now..
'Seras... and she was a Divine or unholy rank too. Then The King who struggled against her, was also of the Divine rank but perhaps on the weaker end...'
He could see Epsilons point even more clearly, but still, he didn't change his mind. He wondered what this memory did, although he doubt he would get to ask him again. They weren't on those terms anymore.
Echoes: —
Attributes: [Bond], [Yang], [Judgment], [Mark of Divinity]
They were all the same as before, except now he too possessed the mark of divinity.
[Mark of Divinity] Attribute Description: "You bear a faint scent of divinity, after bathing in it during a terrible battle."
Well, being a witness to two deities fighting must've awarded something. Although Nero didn't earn his in the same way. Out of curiosity, he checked his own identical attribute.
[Mark of Divinity] Attribute Description: "You bear a faint scent of divinity, after being touched by it while struck with infinity."
As he thought, the description was different. The way they obtained it was not the same after all. That last part was unsurprising to him though, he could still feel his mind being shaken that day. The fact he survived it was surprising thinking about it now.
Going back to Epsilons runes, he continued:
Aspect: [White Sacrifice]
Aspect Rank: Divine
'No surprise there.'
He had killed a Divine rank creature, while Nero killed an Ascended. Of course he got the highest rank aspect too.
Aspect Description: [You sacrificed your hopes, dreams, and future, only to be left behind by all. You won't ever forget what they did, so when you rise again, you will pass on rightful judgement.]
Aspect Ability: [Light Swarm]
Ability Description: [In you is an infinite well of light? Release it as a tangible force, becoming a calamity wherever you find yourself.]
'What?'
This was a first. The Nightmare spell was confused? Or was it that there was something that even its near omniscience didn't understand. It labelled Epsilon's ability as light, but the question mark suggested something else.
'It's like light, yet different? Is that what it meant?'
Whatever it was, it had no name, and thus it was simply called light while having a question mark attached to it.
Innate Ability: [Witness]
Ability Description: [Sacrifice your future for temporary power.]
This one was the most obvious. He could use his own life span to boost his abilities, although he didn't know by how much, or if he could control the amount used.
Flaw: [Curse of Libra]
Flaw Description: [As you pass Judgment, the greatest sins of those you punish will be engraved into your mind as if they were your own.]