"Monster..." Dimi's weary voice echoed off the wooden, circular table that she was listlessly resting her head atop. Her half-open eyes slowly moved from the ground to her right, where a pile of variously sized animal skin bags were piled, to Nyx who was rocking on the back legs of a rickety chair.
Several items of black cloth, leather and metal objects that appeared slightly sinister, stuck out the tops of the bags drawing the curious gazes of the couple of dozen people that were placing their orders, eating, or chatting leisurely in the small roadside café. However, the moment their eyes landed on Nyx's dull grey robes, let alone when they noticed Dimi's more stunning white set, they quickly diverted their gaze as if they had discovered something exciting elsewhere.
Yet, even though on the surface it appeared that no one wanted anything to do with the two sect members, all of the tables surrounding the pair were packed with customers with more than a few heads turned so they could watch from the corner of their eyes or position themselves better to eavesdrop. The strange pile of bags that looked more appropriate to a wealthy nobles shopping spree and the vast assortment of food and drinks littering the small table seemed extraordinarily out of place for individuals that belonged to the almost legendary, first sect of the continent gaining everyone's interest.
That cause of all of this, Nyx, seemed to not notice or care about the strange atmosphere that had descended upon the small café as she continued to watch the passing crowds of people and casually graze on the various foods before her. In one of her hands was a strange, green coloured drink while in the other was a half eaten, sponge-like cake.
"Hmm?" Using her knees pressed against the bottom of the table to keep her balance, the chair creaking in a manner that made Dimi and those close enough to hear over the din of nearby street and café almost certain that it would collapse at any moment, Nyx slowly turned her head towards the lioness as her left eyebrow rose slightly. After finishing the remains of the sponge cake, it disappearing surprisingly fast for its size, Nyx took a sip of her drink before clearing her throat. "What are you whining about now?"
After staring at the lioness for a few moments, realising that she wasn't going to answer, Nyx took another sip of the drink which appeared to be her favourite by the many empty glasses with the residue of the green liquid and returned her gaze to the bustling crowd flooding the market-like street.
Seeing Nyx's reaction, Dimi released a deep sigh as she lifted her head slightly towards the sky. After briefly gazing at the position of the sun, as well as the shadows that were visible from the sand-coloured buildings around them. After frowning for a moment, Dimi pushed herself up onto her elbows. "Why are you doing this to me? We have already wasted three-quarters of a day shopping, eating junk and aimlessly walking around at a speed that would make snails impressed."
Not getting any reaction, Dimi continued to complain, exhaustion etched on her face as she glared at Nyx. "This is so~ boring. It's so bad that I think I have reached enlightenment and discovered a method to sense my body ageing."
"Is this some sort of payback for something I did? You bought everything you wanted within the first hour, and it's just been a waste of time since. By the way, we have servants for this kind of thing."
"Still, that was even the more entertaining side of things..." Dimi huffed as she leant back into her chair and folded her arms. "You're just sitting there, stuffing your face as you stare at people's chests."
"Why are you doing that by the way?" Dimi’s gaze softened as she observed Nyx. She had noticed that Nyx seemed to be deep in thought, often staring at an individual's chest, both men and women as well as human and beast. While not too strange, it was weird and consistent enough for Dimi to pick up on it fairly quickly.
"Hmm? What's wrong with people watching?" Nyx chuckled, her gaze flickering towards Dimi for a brief moment. As she did, the tiny motes of light that were floating in her black eyes seemed to sparkle mysteriously even though the brightly lit café made it impossible for anyone other than Dimi to notice.
After a few minutes, Nyx noticed that Dimi was staring at her and let out a light-hearted sigh, the creaking of the chair under her becoming almost rhythmic in nature. "What do you want me to tell you?"
"That I am doing this to gather information? To understand the locals? Maybe watching a target or looking for prey? Identifying escape routes or ambush points?" Nyx quickly reeled off some reasonable excuses.
"You are?" Dimi frowned as she started to scan her surroundings. After making sure there wasn't anyone of importance nearby, both in terms of strength and status, she searched the rooftops and the small alleyways that led off the main road.
Nyx's smile grew as she watched Dimi from the corner of her eyes. After Dimi had scanned the street a second time, Nyx shook her head and turned her head towards the confused lioness. "Of course not. Why would I waste my time with that? I hate this almost as much as you."
"I don't know. Because sometimes a change is as good as a rest?" Nyx responded absentmindedly as she watched a group of noble-looking people check the slaves lined up outside a small shop on the opposite side of the dusty road. A young, somewhat handsome looking youth was currently examining the teeth of a well endowed, early twenties woman in a similar manner to how Nyx had seen farmers evaluating livestock.
As the man was standing sideways to her, multiple people's figures obscuring her view as they walked past, Nyx couldn't see much of the man's face. However, even with the poor visibility due to her position, she was almost sure that he wasn't really interested in the dental health of this slave as his eyes kept flickering downwards. It wasn't long until the man started to barter with the slim merchant that had been standing at the side, haggling over the price of the woman as she revealed a somewhat relieved expression.
Nyx's eyes flittered over the rest of the man's group with disinterest before returning to Dimi. Seeing that the lioness didn't look like she would accept such an answer, the low growl indicating that she was losing her patience, Nyx rolled her eyes. "Do you really want to know?"
Seeing Nyx become serious, Dimi's eyes squinted slightly as she analysed Nyx's expression. After finding nothing that could help her with her decision, she finally responded. "As long as it isn't another heavenly secret, yes, I do."
Nyx sighed before stuffing a small, biscuit into her mouth. After chewing once, she swallowed loudly while exhibiting an expression like she didn't enjoy the taste. As she did, her gaze turned towards the sky. "I feel... disconnected from everything. Even my goals."
Nyx's voice was quiet and her tone somewhat despondent and emotionless causing Dimi who was about to speak, to close her mouth and wait silently.
"I feel like all of this..." Nyx waved her arm out in front of her, indicating the bustling street before her. "means nothing. My dream of wanting to live a quiet, mundane life was so... small and unachievable. Even death isn't... urgh, this is all so tiny and meaningless." Nyx stopped herself from revealing something she believed would cause a warning before sighing deeply.
Nyx's eyes became unfocused as she remembered the scenes she had witnessed in her dream-like state. The steady pulse from her core, without her consciously knowing, had become much more powerful causing Dimi and those sitting at tables nearby to feel a strange pressure.
"Dimi?" After a while lost in thought, Nyx turned towards Dimi, the mysterious pressure vanishing. "If you had a choice between a peaceful but pointless life or an endless struggle for an entity that you had never met, but had given you so much. Which would you choose?"
Dimi thought for a moment, not able to understand the meaning behind Nyx's words. "You haven't given me enough information."
"Don't worry, it was more of a rhetorical question. I have already made my mind up." Nyx smiled, but there was no warmth to it. Though she was looking at Dimi, her mind was back at that lake, looking upon the figure that seemed to be made from the night sky. "From the darkness, I was born. To the darkness, I shall return."
Nyx's smile started to turn cruel and vicious.
"Who knows, maybe marching under her banner will be more enjoyable."
The last part was spoken almost in a whisper as Nyx's thoughts returned to the strange sights she had seen. Though nothing had been explained and she had been left to make her own conclusions, Nyx couldn't help but be concerned about the limited amount of souls that had adopted darkness. An unknown sense of danger and pressure slowly descended, not aimed at Nyx, but at the woman that had stood before her.
“What the hell are you talking about?” Dimi leant forward and placed a hand on Nyx’s forehead, one that Nyx didn’t even attempt to dodge. “Are you still suffering from delusions from your tribulation. Should we go ask one of the physicians?”
"To rise or to fall, that is the question." Nyx's eyes suddenly became extremely focused, looking straight through the concerned Dimi and into the distance, as the surrounding shadows became slightly darker.
"Nyx?" Dimi waved her hand in front of Nyx's face. "You OK?...What's up?"
"I'm fine." The shadows returned to normal as Nyx shook her head. Without saying anything else to Dimi, even though she was displaying a confused, somewhat concerned expression, Nyx returned her gaze to the slaves on the other side of the road in order to distract herself as she used her palm to massage the middle of her chest.
Whenever she started thinking about her dream, or to be more precise, her state of mind during it, her core would resonate causing the pulse it released would grow in strength. She believed that due to her weakened state, this caused the sharp stabbing pains in the area around her core. The pain felt like her flesh and organs were trying to twist and change as if it was breaking down and rebuilding at the same time.
Dimi frowned but didn't say anything, sitting back and following the direction of Nyx's gaze.
Most of the barely clothed slaves were human while a small amount displayed a few animalistic traits. One of the men had cat-like ears, as well as his normal ones, sticking out from his hair. Another, a thin woman who had been standing next to the woman that had been bought and led away by the young man, had a fox-like tail sticking out of her custom made leather shorts. She also had green-yellow eyes with vertical slit pupils, attracting a lot of attention from the young men and even a few women that passed by.
All of the slaves were wearing thick, metal collars around their necks and holding small, wooden boards with their skills, abilities and price listed. Some of them looked willing, often smiling or trying to appear attractive to those that passed while others seemed soulless and defeated, staring numbly at the floor. The rest seemed to be in between the two states, often changing depending on who they saw looking in their direction.
“Dimi.” The cold, chilling tone that Nyx had used when speaking earlier had reduced significantly as Nyx tilted her head to the side as she scanned the various animal extremities, completely ignoring the humans. After signalling a passing waitress for another drink and pointing to a plate of meat skewers from the card-like menu, Nyx turned to Dimi and continued. “From what I know, beast traits in demi-humans are random and can be both positive and negative. However, all of those slaves over there seem to have mutations that are either aesthetically pleasing or enhance their innate abilities. It's not just that slave merchants, the others we passed earlier were the same."
Dimi's brow scrunched up as she slightly moved her head back. Nyx's tone earlier had caused shivers to run down her spine even though it was a warm, sunny day. She had momentarily felt that she wasn't sitting next to a living being, but an ancient, terrifying deity that looked down upon everything with disinterest as they prepared themselves for war. The sudden change, and then back had thrown her slightly, causing her to feel unsettled.
This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it
After a moment composing herself, Dimi spoke. "Most of them are full-blooded beasts, so can control their change to a certain degree. The others... are selectively bred. The beast bloodlines are stronger than humans, so if you get a positive trait, it will normally be passed down for one or two generations. And the child of a slave will also be a slave unless they are freed so this makes it rare to find beast or demi-human slaves, at least displayed outside a shop, with any negative traits. This is common knowledge. How do you not know?"
Nyx shrugged. "Why would I know such useless information? I may have lived many short lives, but my exposure to the world was limited. The days I have truly lived are relatively few. I calculated my age based on… more constant factors. Anyway, if it wouldn’t aid my mission, I wasn’t allowed to learn much."
Nyx revealed a mocking smile. “Knowledge is dangerous to those with nothing to lose and a grudge to bear.”
"Also, beasts are extremely rare on the second continent and almost unheard of on the primary. Their innate abilities give them an advantage at the start, but there are far too many limitations and dependencies for their continued growth." Nyx sighed, turning her gaze away from the small slave girl with bat-like wings that had desperately tried to make eye contact with her.
"That so..." Nyx continued to talk with Dimi for a bit about the differences of the continents, mainly around technology, social structure and species. While Dimi seemed to be enjoying the content of the conversation, her speech and body language becoming excited, Nyx warmly smiled and responded with just as much enthusiasm. It wasn't long before she had pushed the thoughts that had been troubling her to the back of her mind as the two chatted as if they had known each other all their lives.
During a long conversation about the drakes and wyverns of the second continent, which often evolved into dragons when reaching the prime, Nyx raised her hand and casually pressed her hand against her chest, just over her core. "But the fact remains all beasts, even dragons, have both a heart and a core. Where I... I only have a core. I wonder what kind of creature I am?"
"You only have a core?" Dimi flinched slightly, a guilty expression appearing on her face as she tried to buy some time to think.
"Yep. Just a core." Nyx shook her head. "No idea why or how I am even alive, but… At least now when someone calls me heartless, they aren't wrong."
Nyx chuckled to herself, her gaze becoming sharp as she ran her tongue over her lips, the image of the fat man’s terrified, bloodied face appearing in her mind's eye.
After looking away for a few moments, trying to think of an excuse, Dimi scratched her chine awkwardly as she replied. "Umm… Well not having a heart is pretty shocking but it doesn’t seem to be doing you any harm. And… I’ve already told you what you are...”
"You have?" Nyx's sharp, star-like gaze locked onto Dimi, causing the lioness to once again shiver.
"Yes." Dimi nodded her head as her back straightened. Under the table, Dimi's legs had subtly moved to the side opposite Nyx. Her muscles were taut as her feet lightly pressed against the ground.
Seeing Dimi subtly repositioning herself, Nyx frowned for a moment before sniggering. "Then why does it look like we are about to have a game of tag and I’m it?"
“Tag? It?” Dimi carefully analysed Nyx's face and body position, noticing that not only had Nyx relaxed, but she had also leant back further on the chair making it impossible to make any sudden movements without toppling over.
"Sorry N- Runt." Dimi breathed out deeply as her shoulders sagged slightly. "I somehow thought you knew, especially as I mentioned it a few times carelessly. Thinking back, I never specifically said what you were after I found out."
Nyx watched Dimi closely, a gentle smile forming on her lips. "So~ what am I?"
"A Nightmare." Dimi's response was short, precise and like Nyx would know precisely what she meant.
Nyx blinked a few times, signing loudly before finishing her drink and placing the empty glass on the table. "Hook, line and sinker. I’ll give it to you this time, I totally fell for it."
"What?" Dimi still looked nervous, her eyes occasionally flickering to the side to make sure her path of retreat was empty. While she was confident in beating Nyx if it came to a fight, the time of day and location being in her favour, she felt that she was in the wrong so didn't want to escalate things, especially as it was going so well.
"I believed you knew for a moment there," chuckled Nyx. Picking up the plate of meat skewers that had just been delivered, she quickly scoffed one down and stabbed the wooden skewer into a cake that only had a single bite taken out of it.
"But I was serious..." Dimi paused for a moment, suddenly realising what the problem was. "Oh, you think I meant like a bad dream?"
Nyx shook her head slightly, seemingly becoming more indifferent with the conversation. "I have been called a nightmare many, many times. In fact, I actually quite like it. It-"
Dimi quickly interrupted Nyx, leaning forward as she lowered her voice. "No, you are a Nightmare. A primordial Nightmare. A creature of the dark gods from the celestial wars. A species that was meant to be extinct. A beast of darkness. Every single one of them was elemental royalty. They were the peak of the dark hierarchy like angels are to light, whales to water and dragons for fire."
Nyx froze for a moment, searching Dimi's eyes for any signs of dishonesty, before letting out a sigh. "Typical. Something else that is unique and one of a kind."
Dimi chuckled. "Only I know. I've been upping the betting stakes between me and the others since we got back. A few of the other beasts at the branch have also joined in after hearing about you from Jorm and Hrafn. I'll split the winnings with you fifty-fifty when you reveal yourself."
Nyx started at Dimi for a few moments, before snorting loudly and shaking her head. She didn't bother asking how Dimi knew, feeling a strange sort of resonance in her core when she had heard the term explained.
"What are you worried about? As soon as you build your Gem core even average three Gem cultivators will be hard pressed to deal with you. And that's without saying that even Timur might find it hard to stop you making your moves." Dimi snickered as she observed Nyx lean back on her chair, staring into the blue sky as if she were grieving for a lost relative.
Nyx didn't say anything, though by the movement of her eyes Dimi felt as if she had heard her.
"The norm for core realm cultivators, even for our sect, is four layers. That means that when they form their gem that has a power rating of ten. Double plus two for each Gem formed. So even without forming your core, once you have recovered, you are already are two grades higher in terms of raw power.
"Raw power is not even a quarter of the story when it comes to combat, and that doesn't really have anything do with-"
"Of course it does." Dimi once again interrupted. "An ordinary beast's power is stronger than a human's, so a human always need to be two or three power levels above to win. In comparison, a high-level beast is stronger than a normal beast by around two times. Those that are of an elemental royalty are even more powerful depending on the purity and balance of their essence but even still when compared to a primordial bloodline..."
Dimi gulped, a half excited, half fearful expression appearing on her face. "You also only cultivate one affinity..."
Nyx looked at Dimi, noticing that she had put her hands on the table and was using her fingers to count. Nyx watched for a bit longer, the confused expression gradually turning into one of amusement.
"The layers formed for the first Gem is the max you can create before creating another. When you form your first Gem, you will have a power rating of..." Dimi's fingers moved up and down. "Twenty-six. That's a difference of sixteen for one of our normal disciples."
"Even a genius who has reached seven layers will be outclassed in terms of raw power." Dimi paled slightly at the realisation. "When they reach the Second Gem rank their base power will be thirty-two and yours... fifty-two."
Dimi's complicated gaze fell upon Nyx. "You... It won't be long before you can equal any of the major powers by yourself. Even then by the time you have reached the requirements for migrating to the third continent... no one, even if they team up, will be your match."
"It's not as easy as you make it sound." Nyx tilted her head, enjoying Dimi’s exaggerated expressions. "Each layer takes double the essence and refinement time to consolidate. By the time I have reached the second rank, a seven-layer might be at the fourth or fifth rank. Maybe even higher if they have luck on their side. It's not so hard to stand at the top here because the gap between the realms is so small here but in the higher continents, Well..."
Though it sounded like Nyx felt negative about her situation, she revealed a bright, happy smile. She already knew that by choosing this path, she would be at a disadvantage to others in terms of speed of cultivation. But at the same time, even if the way were far harder to travel, even those that outranked her in strength would consider her a calamity.
"Fuck It!" Dimi slammed the table with her palm, having lost count. "And stop speaking such nonsense. Nightmares don't have a known lifespan. The scrolls in the sect state that they could only be killed and do not die naturally. The only reason humans and beasts, even geniuses, don't cultivate more layers when it can be so beneficial is that we will die of old age before we breakthrough a realm and increase our lifespans. All you need is time and a safe place to grow. The sect is such a place."
Dimi's gaze became complicated. "Even when you transcend, your advantage only grows with each continent. If you survive and continue to grow, eventually you will become... a terrifying existence."
"Oh," Nyx smiled, revealing her white teeth as she chewed on a mouthful of meat while pausing the glass she was about to drink from. "Are you saying I am not scary enough as it is?"
"Pfft," Dimi, who had been becoming very serious couldn't help but laugh. "Only if I was worried about famine or drought. You currently look like an envoy of Gluttony."
Dimi scanned Nyx's expression. "So~ are we done talking abo-”
“For now.” Nyx was looking towards the end of the street, behind Dimi, where a silver robed sect disciple was walking as he scanned the people and shops around him. It appeared as if he was searching for something as he moved quickly and efficiently through the crowd only pausing if he spotted a flash of black or white. Moments later, he spotted Dimi and Nyx.
Dimi turned and spotted the disciple, a small frown appearing on her face when she realised he was smiling and walking in their direction. “Urgh.”
The pair watched the man weave through the crowd, nearly knocking into a slave carrying what looked like to be sacks of wheat, before moving under the overhang that provided shade to the café's customers.
"Seems like they found us." Nyx leaned back on her chair.
Dimi turned to glare at Nyx. "And who's fault is that? I told you we had to keep moving if we didn't want that old goat to interfere with our fun now that you are awake."
By this time, the man had reached their table and quickly cupped his hands. With a slight bow towards Dimi, he started to speak."Elder Dimi, Hall Master Fang has requested your presence. There is an unannounced delegation from the..."
The man paused as he glanced at Nyx who was watching him expressionlessly, his eyes scanning her robe for the badge that he expected to see. After finding nothing, his gaze returned to Dimi. "...new Empire. There will be a banquet tonight which he expects you to be present for."
Dimi’s frown caused her forehead to wrinkle into many black lines "What else?"
The messenger's smile cramped a bit as he looked between Dimi and Nyx. After a moment’s contemplation, he couldn't help but subtly roll his eyes as he realised that the rumours he had heard about the beast elders seemed to be true.
Seeing that Nyx wasn’t going to leave and Dimi wasn’t going to ask her to, the man cleared his throat. "Umm, he said that if you run or mess around, not even your sister will be able to save you."
"Thought so." Dimi let her head flop back as she seemed to lose all strength in her body. "And Runt?"
"Executioner Runt is to-"
"I'm going hunting." Nyx's voice was cold, without the warmth of emotion, causing the man to flinch. Her eyes narrowed as her black eyes locked the messenger in place. "Do you have a problem with that?"
"N- not at all Executioner." The man stuttered, quickly looking at Dimi as his heart rate started to increase. For some unknown reason, the moment that Nyx had opened her mouth he had felt the instinctual need to move away from the thin, sickly woman.
The frown on Dimi's face seemed to be in a battle between becoming more pronounced or disappearing altogether. She was used to Nyx's attitude to others since waking up, appearing to not put anyone in her sight or putting up any pretence, which made her happy as it showed that she had been accepted. However, the fact that Nyx was going hunting while she was forced to go to a diplomatic meeting, ignoring the fact that this was the first time she agreed to hunt together, left a sour taste in the lioness’ mouth. "Why don't you rest and find an inn with hot water? These sorts of things don't last long past midnight. We can go hunting then?"
Nyx turned to Dimi, her expression and gaze becoming much more gentle compared with how she looked at the messenger. "I need to consolidate my realm quickly. You should know what sort of environment suits me best for that, right?."
"But..." Dimi sighed as her mouth opening and closed a few times. However, in the end, she just closed her mouth as her shoulders sagged, her body becoming even more listless. "Kill a couple for me."
"Of course." Nyx smiled, somewhat shocking the man who had been staring at her eyes from the corner of his peripheral. "Catch up when you are done. Worst case, we can hunt again tomorrow. It's not like the world is going to run out of prey in a single night and you still need to teach me about my beast form."
"Fine~," Dimi responded in a sulky voice as she slowly rose to her feet after placing a large coin purse in front of Nyx. Pushing the chair away noisily, drawing even more attention to the three sect members, she pointed at the bags on the floor. "Want me to take those back? Oh, you'll be staying in my room with me so ask any of the guards of other disciples where the elder's hall is if you get back before we meet up."
Nyx nodded once as she picked up the leather bag Dimi had given her earlier and placed it on her lap. "Thanks."
"What thanks? You owe me." Dimi picked up the remaining bags, handing them to the messenger who was looking between her and Nyx with an odd expression. "What? You too good to carry my bags?"
"No sect elder." The man jumped, quickly moving to take the rest of the bags before moving to stand behind Dimi as if being out of her sight would save him from her palpable anger.
Huffing noisily, Dimi patted Nyx's shoulder before the pair smiled at each other. "Try not to have too much fun in town, we will be here a few weeks. Timur is a bit of a stickler when it comes to keeping things neat and orderly."
"You know what I'm like. No promises." Nyx shrugged as the smile on her face grew.
Dimi chuckled at the grinning Nyx before turning around and walking in the same direction the messenger had come from without looking back. “Come on then.”
Hearing her voice, the messenger took another brief glance at Nyx before following Dimi, a slight frown on his face.