11 Chapter XI: Transcendent Memory
The evening found William lying on his back on the bed of the dorminatory provided to him by the Academy. The room was nothing fancy, but it was big enough for a single person and had its own private bathroom. Although, since the rooms were undergound, there were no windows to speak off.
He had just returned from eating his supper at the cafeteria where the whole commotion about Nephis' having a True Name while being a Sleeper and her being the last member of the Immortal Flame clan happened.
'Predictably, Caster immediately went to his brown-nosing mode, the cheeky fucker. Of course, Sunny was about to blow his cover and shout out about his True Name,' he reminsced. Thankfully, cooler minds won and the master of shadows ate his food in silence.
After wishing Cassie a goodnight, he retired to his own room to decide on how to exactly prepare for his inevitable excursion into the Dream Realm.
"That was a good move, chief," the snarky voice from before resounded in his ears and broke his train of thought; a shiver ran down his spine, "Seducing that treacherous oracle is going to do wonders with keeping us alive."
Looking around the room, his eyes landed on a copy of himself sitting on a chair with his legs crossed, "Y-You! What are you doing here?"
The blue eyed young man immediatedly stood on his feet and pointed an accusing finger at the intruder.
The copy tilted his head in confusion before making a wide cheshire grin, "I'm here to congratulate you for starting your first conquest. Just looking at you being so concerned about her and encouraging her was disgusting as hell, but as long as it works, I can't complain."
"You're wrong!" he retorted angrily, "I did that because she needed someone to lift her spirits up or she was going to close people off just like she did in the novel!"
"Bitch please," the grinning William snorted in derision, "even you don't believe the bullshit you spout like a broken faucet. You just saw a vulnerable, emotionally distraught girl with potentially useful abilities and couldn't wait to sink your teeth into that supple flesh. You're a sick fuck, you know that?"
The copy became silent for a moment before continuing in a somber voice, "Or is this some form of atonement? Do you really think that by helping her you can atone for your mistake? Do you really believe that you can forget? Maybe you can, considering your Flaw and all. Must be really good, yeah?"
After saying that, the next time he blinked, the other William was nowhere in sight. He just stood there alone in the room with cold sweat trickling down his forehead and back for several seconds before collapsing on the bed.
"Hells," he muttered in a shaky breath, "these hallucinations are getting out of hand."
'Am I going crazy?' the thought passed through his consciousness before being dismissed as he shook his head
He decided to throw these doubts in the far depths of his mind. The young Sleeper didn't have the leisure to think about such things. Moreover, the chances of them meeting in the Dream Realm is already minimal at best since she enters near to Nephis' location.
He was just being a decent human being. Nothing more.
After taking in a few deep breath, he focus on one of his memories that he got from his nightmare and an image of a beautiful and delicate necklace with metallic silver flourishes encasing a tear-shaped blue gem.
(Image)
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[Teardrop Talisman: Two young souls once professed their undying love for each other. Alas, one went astray and became the sole thing he swore to destroy. His lover, through ancient magic, was able to save a sliver of her beloved's soul and conjoined it to a fragment of hers in an amulet made from the crystalized angel tear. Thus, the two lovers are always together even in death.]
Memory Name: Teardrop Talisman
Memory Rank: Transcendent
Memory Tier: VII
Memory Type: Charm
Memory Enchantment: [Summon Spirits], [Purity]
[Summon Spirits]
Enchantment Description: Summon the spirits stored in the talisman as incorporeal entities that can only be seen and heard by the owner of the talisman.]
[Purity]
Enchantment Description: The purity from the angel tear protects against corrupting influences.
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He felt a wave of cleansing energy wash over him as soon as the necklace manifested around his neck. It was a new feeling, for the first time in his life, he felt himself clean and pure as if all his sins were washed away.
However, he knew that this feeling only temporary due to the [Purity] enchantment on the memory. Lifting the necklace, he observed the glimmering blue gem closely.
"So... According to the description, this contains two soul fragments; although, it is pretty stingy with names. Yet, considering I got this from the Lich King fragment, I may have an idea about their identity."
Activating the [Summon Spirits] enchantment, he felt something inside him drain away before the gem gave off a dim glow. It was a wierd feeling, like someone taking out buckets full of water out of a shallow well, 'So that's what the consumption of essence of a much higher ranked memory feels like.'
Two white sprites flew out of the gem and expanded into two ethereal figures of opposing genders.
(Image)
{A reminder, everything that may happen from now on about the two characters below is in no way how their canon versions act. This is just how I picture them.}
"Arthras is that really you?" the female spirit asked in wonder.
"Jaina?" the male spirit, Arthras Menethil, asked back in a cracked voice. Yet, he immediately got enbraced into a heart-felt hug by the blond sorceress.
"The spell really worked!" she exclaimed excitedly before kissing him with the passion of eons of longing.
William, for his part, felt really awkward witnessing this private scene so he decided to give them some privacy by locking his eyes with the wall of the room.
Luckily, Arthras noticed the extra presence in the room before things could get anymore steamy -or as steamy as two ghost-like entities can take it- and pried Jaina Proudmoore off of him as gently as he could.
"Jaina, please! We are not alone here!"
"I don't see a -," she pouted at the interruption before also noticing the the owner of the room looking at its wall like its the most interesting thing he had ever seen, "Oh."
With the love scene finally ending, the Sleeper could finally face the two ethereal spectres back again. They looked at each other for what seemed to be an eternity as an awkward atmosphere pervaded the whole room.
The silence reigned until Jaina noticed the familiar necklace around William's neck.
"Where did you get that amulet?" she asked in a half-curious and half-accusing tone.
Knowing that he was in for a long conversation, the white haired boy took in a deep breath before explaining the whole situation to the two legendary figures.
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"Let me see if I can get this right. We," the sorceress pointed to herself and her lover, "are characters from what you call a video game?"
"Yes."
"And this world we are in now is also a fictional world in a novel."
William nodded.
"You are a person from the 'real' world that found yourself here inexplicably. Just like that?"
"That's right."
She started pacing around the room while Arthras just looked broodily at the room's ceiling while crossing his hands.
"I would've said that you were just spinning us a long tale," she stopped right infront of William and let out an exasperated sigh, "it is too intricate for it to be fabrication. Especially, that Nightmare Trial of your you told us about."
She then looks at Arthras worryingly. Noticing the attention on him, the prince sighs before eyeing the young man critically, "So, you are the new Lich King?"
William stayed silent and summoned the sole proof he needed.
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[Frostmourne Description: The fabled, nigh-unbreakable mourneblade, Frostmourne, has chosen you as its new master and is the new conduit of your immortality. However, its powers have faded due to its long slumber. Yet, even in its weakened state, Frostmourne will not sit to be wielded by a weak-willed coward. Strive to stand at the top lest your soul be consumed as many previous unworthy masters.]
Memory Name: Frostmourne
Memory Rank: ?
Memory Tier: I [0/1000]
Memory Type: Weapon
Memory Enchantments: [Soul Rune]
[Soul Rune]
Enchantment Description: [Just as the blade cuts flesh so does Frostmourne rend the soul and feeds on it.]
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When he summoned the runic sword manifested from nothing right into his grip.
Firstly starting with the part that he had in his hands - the hilt. The mourneblade's hilt is ornate and menacing featuring a skull shaped pommel with glowing blue eyes. Moreover, it is adorned with intricate and dark engraving and runes, adding to its ominous design.
Next, the blade attached to the hilt is massive and encrusted with traced of what seemed to be ice and frost. It has a sinister, jagged appearance, with a dark, almost black, metallic color. From pommel to tip of the blade, the sword was about 5'3 ft (1.6 meters) long and about a foot (30 centimeters) wide.
In addition to that, the blade of Frostmourne is etched with runic symbols giving off an eerie blue glow. However, from the seven runes on the mourneblade only one of them, the nearest to the hilt, was currently glowing.
(Image)
The two spirits fliched at the sight of the cursed mourneblade.
"Frostmourne," spat the silver-hand paladin with apparent distate. Honestly, William couldn't blame him, this sword was the cause of much of the tragedies in his life. No wonder he had little love for it.
"It is Frostmourne, but..... it feels weaker somehow," noted Jaina Proudmoore as she inspected the big sword carefully. "You're sure it didn't try to devour your soul when you held it for the first time?"
"I'm here, aren't I?"
"What about the other thing you received..... Aspect Legacy, was it?"
"It is some form of grimoire," he said as he summoned the Legacy's runes.
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[Profane Grimoire Description: An old book containing magic alien to the world. If one listened carefully one may hear the lingering voice of the foul entity that created it.]
Memory Name: Profane Grimoire
Memory Rank: Dormant
Memory Tier: -
Memory Type: Tool
Memory Enchantment: [Magic]
[Magic]
Enchantment Description: The owner of this grimoire can cast spells written in it by consuming essence.
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An old book with its cover made of some sort of wrinkled skin manifested right before the Sorceress' eyes onto William's hand.
(Image)
"Fascinating," she commented as she watched the entire process for a second time.
The spirit of Jaina Proudmoore tried to touch the grimoire but her hands passed right through it. Momentarily forgetting that she was nothing more than an intangible spirit right now, Jaina looked at her ethereal hands like they had betrayed her somehow.
"Would you....," she muttered almost embarrassed at her fumble.
Taking the que, the young Sleeper opened the grimoire for the sorceress to look through. Every time she did a mock cough, he turned a page.
Seeing that his lover has entered her usual trance whenever finding something interesting, the blond paladin decided take hold of the conversation.
"If I remember correctly," he began as he inspected William's physique, "you are going to go to this 'Dream Realm' in a few weeks, right?"
Unsummoning the bulky sword, the youth nodded in confirmation.
"Do you know how to wield a mourneblade - or any kind of weapon?"
He didn't need to think too much about it since by the end of the day the wild flailing he was doing in his nightmare with the black sword was in no way how a sword was supposed to be used.
"No, never had any formal training."
Taking in a deep breath, the spectral paladin continued, "I am thankful for you for allowing Jaina and I to be together again and for giving closure to my shameful past. So, as a token of my appreciation, I can train you how to fight like a warrior would."
"You know, you would be much cuter if you just be honest and admit that you don't want to see the boy throw his life away," added the sorceress who seemed to have finished her casual browsing of the ominous-looking grimoire. "Even if he is a Lich King; albiet an incomplete one."
"I, for my part," Jaina said proudly as she pointed to the old book, "can teach you how to cast the spells inside that grimoire and much more. So? What do say? Quite a deal, right?"
Lady Luck seemed to be finally smiling on the poor kid.
