By the time Bari came to his senses, his body felt numb. For several minutes, he couldn't feel anything at all. Only when the haze began to fade was he able to sit up and steady his mind.
He had never experienced pain like this before. Combat wounds were one thing, but this was something else entirely —something his teacher, Dax, had once described as soul damage. Even Saints, the supposed strongest among human kind, dreaded it. Having his soul core destroyed and then rebuilt felt like burning alive, not that Bari was certain—that kind of agony was beyond his current imagination. He had never lost a limb, nor been gutted in an alleyway. But then again, who would expect him to have gone through such things? He was only six.
'Whatever. Age isn't a qualifier for strength,' Bari thought grimly. He was proof enough of that. Barely seven, and he had already beaten and rivalled those twice, and nearly thrice his age.
Shaking the thought away, Bari checked his runes to find a hint of the source of the damage. Nowhere during his studies of the nightmare spell had he ever seen a mention of soul cores inflicting such agony during saturation.
***
Name: Bari
True Name: Will-Born
Rank: Dreamer
Class: Beast
Soul Core: [1/~]
Soul Fragments: [0/2000]
Memories: [Strider's Earrings], [Knight Armour 24], [Deceiving Pouch], [Sunset]
Echoes: —
Attributes: [Flames of Divinity], [The Fire], [Unique Being], [Divine Protection], [Strength II], [Limitless]
Innate Ability: [Unique Being]
Aspect: [Eyes of Genesis]
Aspect Rank: Divine
Aspect Abilities: [True Insight]
Flaw: [Oath Keeper]
***
"What..?" Bari muttered.
Something unexpected seemed to have happened after he had saturated his soul core. For one, he now possessed a new set of runes, which classified him as a "Beast", the lowest class a nightmare creature can be, one that possesses only one soul core.
"One out of what?" His confusion only deepened as he glanced further down at the runes.
His soul still ached from the ordeal, leaving him in no mood for riddles.
He wondered if this was simply a boon of his divine Aspect or some hidden benefit of being Unique. But then his eyes shifted, as though correcting him, landing on his new attribute: [Limitless].
Attribute Description: [Limitless: A unique being has its path undefined, its power unknown, its growth undiscovered. As a unique being, your path forward is limitless.]
As Bari absorbed the meaning, a startling realization hit him—there was no ceiling to how many soul cores he could possess.
Scholars of the nightmare spell theorized that the greatest possible existence for a Nightmare Creature was that of an Unholy Rank, and a Titan Class. Everything in the Dream Realm seemed bound by sevens. Seven Ranks, seven classes, and for some worshipers, Seven Gods; even if there were only six confirmed Gods.
But Bari didn't know what it meant for a human to possess multiple soul cores, thus a trait belonging to nightmare creatures, not humans. He further theorised the pain was a cause of its unnatural occurrence.
He tore himself from speculation and glanced outward. He wasn't sure how much time had passed. Pain had overloaded his senses, distorting everything until it finally ended. Through the corals, the sun on the crimson spire still shone bright with morning light, signalling only minutes, had slipped by.
Relieved, Bari recoiled his perception to its normal human degree and stared at the coral with hesitation, then extended his hand, drawing essence once more. While it had hurt, the benefits were indisputable, and if he wanted to have a higher chance of escaping this place, he could not be picky of how he gained power.
His perception slowed as he turned inward, dissecting the difference between who he is now and who he had been before forming his soul core.
He noticed three key changes.
First: his reserves had doubled. While he couldn't yet control essence as a Sleeper, his Aspect allowed him to see it. Now, his pool was nearly twice its original size. It baffled him, but it made sense. Besides aspects, strength was dictated by three things—quality, volume, and control of soul essence. Higher Ranks meant all three improved. A Master's reserves dwarfed those of an Awakened, and Saints surpassed them in turn. His father's journals explicitly described the same progression and difference in power, being one of the first Saints, he had documented anything he felt was important.
At the Saint level, however, control plateaued. Battles between them relied more on aspects and the ability to manage the depletion of soul essence expertly. Even so, Bari quickly dismissed such lofty comparisons. That wasn't his concern for now.
Second: quality. Though his soul hadn't ascended to the next Rank, his essence had deepened in density. The sheer volume had refined it several times over.
And third: strength.
Soul essence filled every Sleeper, Dormant and everything with a soul core alike, even if they couldn't wield it. It defined the body regardless, shaping it to be stronger, faster, and healthier. For Bari, the change wasn't astronomical, but it was noticeable—comparable to the moment he had first ascended from a regular human into a carrier of the spell, body and soul being enhanced, his perception and mind sharpened to match his eyes.
'Speaking of enhancement…' Bari thought.
It took him a moment to realize, but his eyes had evolved as well. The change was subtle—his vision had already been at what he had assumed to be the peak for a sleeper—but when he focused, the difference was undeniable. Clarity sharpened beyond comprehension.
Normally, the world slowed to a crawl when he did not force his perception to speed up to the human level. Now, it nearly froze. What once seemed like time stretched thin, granting him precious seconds, now doubled.
Compared to his past self, it would have looked as if time had stopped completely. In truth, it was just the effect of having his perception increased once again.
The realization made him sweat.
In the past, his brain would have melted under the strain of such clarity, but once again, just as his eyes had strengthened, so too had his mind.
Bari's thoughts kept on wondering, and by the time he had realised his absence of reality, the sun was nearing its peak.
Glancing once more at his runes, Bari shivered in fear and anticipation.
***
Soul Fragments: [1827/2000]
***
He was close to saturating his new soul core. That alone would have astounded anyone else, most Sleepers required months, even years, for such progress. This could all be tied back to his enhanced perception that was unlike any other.
If one were to climb the tallest crimson coral this labyrinth could muster, they would behold an endless sea of red stretching past the limits of sight—an ocean of shimmer and haze where the only break came from the spire's blinding light, lancing skyward beyond the farthest horizon.
But when Bari's gaze swept over the land, his eyes pierced more than just the corals insides, but their whole structure, purpose, and unforeseeable action. His eyes revealed hundreds of thousands—perhaps millions—of nightmare creatures locked in constant slaughter. Every heartbeat spilled fresh blood, feeding the corals with torrents of essence that flowed toward the Crimson Spire like a ceaseless tide.
Bari absorbed only the faintest fraction of that flow, compared to the terror that dwelled within the spire itself.
He was certain that if he stood in the place of the Crimson Terror, he would have saturated his soul core dozens of times over in a single day. The only reason he guessed as to why it had not ascended to Titan, he imagined, was because it shared its essence with the blazing sun suspended above its head, dividing its shares to a measly 1:9.
Bari continued absorbing, watching his Soul Fragments tick upward until he neared full saturation. Deciding to experience the process more directly, he slipped into his soul sea—an endless expanse he rarely visited, the last time being during his academy days.
The moment he entered, he noticed something different. To an outsider, nothing would have seemed amiss. But Bari's eyes remembered every subtle shift, every constant changed that moved in a pattern.
His soul sea was a vast void that radiated a cold and peaceful feeling. Blinding lights reflecting the numerous stars that were scattered around himself. This space brought Bari a unique sense of relief, where as the outside world was in constant movement his eyes were forced to dissect, inside his soul sea, his eyes were no longer burdened with the need to unravel the truth of the world.
Anything he did not see fit to dissect were left untouched by his eyes.
A black hole hovering far in the distance. Yet now, imperceptible to most, it had grown. There was still only one, not two as he had assumed would appear to represent his second soul core.
But in the end, it made sense. If he truly could hold countless cores, then his soul sea could not house hundreds of black holes. That would be… unmanageable.
Before he could think further, pain tore through him. It wasn't just his bones—it was his very soul. Bari collapsed to his knees, his body trembling as agony pulsed through every fiber of his being. He gasped for air, trying to steady his mind, but the pain was blinding. It was sharp enough to keep him conscious, but overwhelming enough to make him wish he could pass out.
The balance was unbearable.
Eyes wide, he toppled onto the invisible ground, staring into the black hole's abyss as it grew, inch by inch. Time became meaningless. His body went numb, the torment fading only after what felt like an eternity. By then, he was lying in silence, gazing into the endless expanse of his soul sea while his body trembled every so often.
He didn't snap out of the tranced that overtook him immediately. The trance released him slowly, like sand trickling through a hourglass. When awareness returned, he felt drained—not with exhaustion, but with the heavy drowsiness of deep sleep. The kind of weariness that made one long for a nice bed and nothing else.
Giving in, Bari let the feeling wash over him. His consciousness drifted from his soul sea, back into his coral cove. Curling onto his side, he surrendered to the pull of sleep.
***
Even before waking, Bari saw. His perception pierced his eyelids, scanning his surroundings and whispering truths his eyes never missed. At first, it had been overwhelming. His Aspect revealed every truth, but never repeated a truth unless necessary as each one was etched permanently into his mind. This meant that with enough exposure a certain environment, the amount of truths his eyes could uncover would lessen. Yes, lessen, not stop. This is because a truths could be as small as a change in the weather or the flick of a single black grain of sand in the wind.
Drawing a long breath to calm the storm of details flooding his mind, Bari steadied himself and pushed upright into a cross-legged seat upon the coral's crimson surface. Pain flared through his neck and spine—reminding him that a coral's jagged interior was no bed, its inner ridges just as unyielding as its outer shell, more stone than living reef.
The sea had retreated again, its vibrations shaking him awake. Dim orange and yellow light streamed through the corals and grey sky, bleeding outward from the Crimson Spire like an all-consuming flame.
Normally, waking left him weary. But this time, he felt alive—like he was standing atop the world. There was still an ache from sleeping in such an uncomfortable surface, but it was a minor price. The reason for his relief became clear the moment he checked his runes.
Bari let out a low whistle in astonishment.
***
Name: Bari
True Name: Will-Born
Rank: Dreamer
Class: Monster
Soul Core: [2/~]
Soul Fragments: [0/2000]
Memories: [Strider's Earrings], [Knight Armour 24], [Deceiving Pouch], [Sunset]
Echoes: —
Attributes: [Flames of Divinity], [The Fire], [Unique Being], [Divine Protection], [Strength II], [Limitless]
Innate Ability: [Unique Being]
Aspect: [Eyes of Genesis]
Aspect Rank: Divine
Aspect Abilities: [True Insight]
Flaw: [Oath Keeper]
***
"No new attribute? That's a shame. Still I'm no longer a Beast but a Monster, which seems to be nice." A smile spread across his face as he spoke out loud.
'If I keep this up, I might eventually reach the class of a Titan. Even though it might take a really…really long time' Bari thought as he glanced towards the crimson spire.
The Titan class is the last confirmed class after a Terror. This was confirmed by his grandfather, Immortal Flame, after he died defending the evacuating cities from the onslaught of terrible creatures that entered the real world through a Category Five Gate. It was within this incident that he also lost his mother, Smile Of Heaven.
Disregarding such depressing thoughts Bari decided to test out his new found strength, he could not possibly hunt or even fight without knowing the true limits of his body. Doing so was a quick and easy way to die within the Dream Realm.
As Bari rose to his feet, a low rumble echoed through the coral. It wasn't the sea this time, but his own stomach, loud and insistent. He chuckled. 'I guess food comes before training.'
'There was a reason he had spared one of the soul shards when he slayed the Depth Eater.' Bari thought to himself as he rummaged through his Deceiving Pouch until he found a soul shard.
Soul Shards are used to saturate the cores of humans, this is a known fact by many, if not all humans. But they also serve multiple purposes, such as being used as an alternative power source that led to many discoveries, such as the clan of Valor using them to craft weapons and Guns for Awakened.
But, something that it can also be used for mundane things such as a light source.
Wasteful, perhaps — as he could indeed sea in the dark to a minimal degree, but today it was a lantern. Bari let its pale glow fill the cavern, the shard's light painting his face as he gnawed on the roasted axolotl meat he had saved and read his father's journal on the Dream Realm. The flavour was earthy, faintly briny, tougher than he would have liked, but filling all the same. Grease clung to his fingers, and he licked them clean with a satisfied sigh. His body relaxed, warmth spreading through him, and for the second time in days, he felt "Saturate…" Bari spoke out loud while chuckling at his own terrible joke.
***
As Bari left his coral cavern, the early mourning light of the spire gave a nice warm feeling of sun of skin. He arched his back and lifted his hands in the air while letting out a yawn.
Bari decided that he would quietly go through some morning stretches and an exercise in order to get his body moving. While working out did not improve ones physical strength as much as saturating one's soul core, it did get the blood moving with his body.
When his legs trembled with the last set of squats, Bari transitioned smoothly into his clan's kata by summoning his sword, Sunset. His own version of his clans battle art relied more on speed, reaction time, and precision than raw, brutal strength it usually possessed and such, it was his main focus.
His graceful swings and steadfast footing flickered through the sand, faster and faster until they blurred beyond the naked eye. His clan's style was etched into muscle memory — flowing strikes, each step as precise as it was lethal. With every motion, he pushed himself to execute each kata at greater speed, striving for perfection.
When a practitioner goes through their fighting style, they rarely put all their strength and speed behind an attack unless they are certain it's going to land. This is because any slight overuse of strength can destabilise and ruin their form leading to an overextension of an attack that an opponent can easily capitalise upon.
Bari's eyes had glimpsed at such a flaw within combat many times over, and as a result, never had he experienced such a flaw himself due to his enhanced reaction time. When his perception narrows, and time slows down, he is able to react at instantaneous levels compared to his opponent. This leads to any missed attack to be instantly recoverable.
This also results in him being able to maximise his speed and strength to the closest possible percentage to 100. If an elite fighter, regardless of rank, could only maximise up to 95-98% of their strength without breaking stance safely. He could press to 100.
As Bari continued to go through his kata, he noticed a peculiarity as he moved. He did not seem to suffer the backlash of having his strength increased.
As Bari came to such a conclusion, he stopped moving through his fighting style's kata and looked around for any over mound of coral that contained rainwater.
Spotting one, Bari started to walk over while deep in thought. He came to the conclusion that the reason as to why he did not suffer such a regular backlash was due to his enhanced perception. After all it wasn't just his strength that got increased, so did his eyes, and as such, he could react willingly no matter the change.
But knowing the strength you have and what you can produce is a totally different thing. As Bari thought, he bent his knees, then leapt. His hands found a ledge of coral, fingers gripping tight. Then he swayed and launched himself higher to another, then another. Each bound was effortless, the heights dizzying, the pace breathtaking. Any other Awakened would be left baffled at the sight.
By the time Bari reached the top, he had a rough sense of how much his stats had grown. His strength had increased fourfold, and his speed had doubled. He reasoned it came from two sources: the newly gained Strength attribute, which doubled his base power, and the freshly formed soul core, which doubled it again—together multiplying his strength by four since he last tested it. If he was to fight against Cormac of Valor, he doubted he would struggle as much as he did last time.
Reaching down with his hands Bari started to drink off the fresh rainwater that had accumulated atop the coral. He looked up at the spire and stared for a long while before a single question came to mind.
'Exactly how long do I want to be here for?'