“Now that, Anu, I have to say is a plain old lie.” SinDrax elaborated. “There are very few things you won’t dare do, and pissing off Summoners is not one of those. Still, I will give you the benefit of the doubt since it's Gaia we are talking about.”
“Yes… I don't mind doing that since I am now within her club, yet so much lower in status.” With a shake of his/her head, SinDrax continued. “Besides you did and beat her hardest Challenge, the ‘Who Am I? Challenge’. Compared to that, what could make you not dare, brother?”
“Nothing as serious as you imagine, just a healthy dose of respect, Little Sin.” Heinrich answered. “That and the fact that I still owe her two more lifetimes, right after I am done with this one’s task.”
“Task?” SinDrax inquired because he/she truly was unfamiliar with what his/her older sibling had been up to while having been scrubbed of his Ego and everything it entailed in the Who Am I? Challenge’. “Speaking of tasks, you still have not told me the true complications regarding my new Niece.”
“It truly is complicated, Little Sin.” Heinrich replied with a scowl echoing from the annoyance. “You see, every lifetime I am thrust into a new layer of Gaia’s Rift. Some are similar and some are vastly different. But the most common theme is that in every lifetime I have a purpose to fill.
Like a background character pushing the narrative for somebody else. Problem is. I am never told who that somebody is or what I should push to get the desired results. Most of the time, I stumble into the purpose of being a background character to some other Diver and their reasons for diving Gaia’s Womb.
The same applies for this one, for Hannah’s mother. As such, eight years ago, local time, that is, I was supposed to die in a simple incident. The cause was not important, only that I die and leave the mother and daughter to themselves with terrible circumstances.”
“But you went and did a Divination, and that changed everything? Right?” SinDrax posited. “Why? I ask because it can't be as simple as the possibility of a Grand Dream. Right?”
“You're right… It probably would have been fine if I had not.” Heinrich admitted. “If I had not I would have been whisked off of this layer then and there. After that, I would have grouped Hannah with the others I left behind in all those lifetimes when I knew not my True Self. But I did, and what I saw I did not like.
Not at all.
So I resisted Gaia’s Call for this very day.”
“Why? What did you see?” SinDrax pushed for an answer again. “Common, Anu. Stop leaving me hanging with curiosity and just tell me.” That said, a moment later he/she voiced a tiny part of his inner thoughts. “You know, if you were not my brother, I would have smited you for the simple fact of daring to do it in the first place.”
Chuckling for a single moment yet not delivering anything in return, a silence returned between the supposed brothers, Enough silence that SinDrax went back to observing his/her supposed niece recover from the stupor induced on her Shell by an obviously advanced Ability Template. Moments later, SinDrax took note of a sharp intake with the shown clarity of his/her brother’s Light projection displaying the girl taking the first Ingredients for her Ability and Dream Awakening.
Then came the second and third, at which SinDrax laughed at the obvious Lesser Dream fighting for its life. Though, as was meant to happen within a Dream Sanctuary and during Awakening, without true intelligence, the Lesser Dream was incapable of resisting its call for purpose.
Either way, with the fourth and fifth Ingredients tossed into the frying pan, it was time for the draining process. The first drain and transcendent phenomena came and went by fast, and the moment it ended another dose of clarity reached the Light projection. With the increased clarity, SinDrax could now recognize the girl in the same way he/she did when directly observing her lying Shell.
Thanks to that, it was easy for him/her to recognize the obvious signs of pain in the girl's facial expressions.
“That must be some sticky Corruption.”
Quickly noting the girl’s pain, SinDrax switched his/her view to the actual Shell to see the very same situation play out, only there, somebody helped by holding the trashing Shell in place as it emulated and processed the Soul Cleanse.
The moment the second drain and transcendental phenomena came and went by, the trashing Shell ceased moving as it relaxed in the mother’s arms. At the same time, the clarity of the Light projection increased marginally. Enough so, that it prompted SinDrax to lay his/her sight directly through the Shell instead of the Light Projection his/her brother made through some method he/she did not bother investigating.
Unfortunately, he/she still underestimated the strength of Gaia’s Restrictions. Luckily, the next three went by fast enough that almost all the restrictions were gone, and that could only mean one thing.
His/her older sibling removing the Light projection only solidified the signs.
“It's coming… It's coming.” SinDrax announced with excitement, though, it was his borrowed Shell that exaggerated his/her inner feelings, but that was to be expected since he/she was thrust into this without any warnings, at all. But then, he/she waited and waited and the Hatching had yet to take place. “Why is it taking so long? By now she should have already Hatched completely. If she does not hurry, there will be problems!”
“Her Logic is Flawed!” SinDrax suddenly heard his/her brother utter out.
“Flawed? Not Weak?” SinDrax replied confusingly.
“Indeed… It's the mother’s doing.” Heinrich said before shaking his head. “She's lucky, she's not doing it on purpose, or I would have sent her to the next lifetime to try her Tribulation again.”
“Ah… Now that makes more sense.” SinDrax responded as it truly did, though, it was the specific which mattered more than the actual event. “What kind?”
“Beats me!” Heinrich answered with a shoulder shrug. “Regardless, it does involve progeny since it involves our daughter.”
Then, all of a sudden, he extended his right arm to the right a bit as the entire forearm began glowing. So much so that it instantly drew SinDrax’s attention away from the imminent Hatching to observe what his/her brother was up to.
What he saw, however, intrigued him/her beyond anything for a long, long while, because what he was seeing was not what he was used to, not from AnuDrax.
What he saw was his brother’s Ability manifesting into a form he was not familiar with. It was a blend of metal and stone, only closer to metal than stone since the Ability manifested through numerous tiny parts interlocking with each other to form an actual gauntlet on the right hand as it encapsulated the whole forearm with its white/green outlook alongside many, many Runic Enchantments laced from Runic Script application.
It was the white color that gave the gauntlet a metallic vibe, while the green one gave the natural one. Taking a closer examination of the green color, pale green to be precise, SinDrax was reminded of Celestial Jade.
Still, while the base makeup was important, it was the other signs that made the gauntlet peculiar because there were six gems slotted onto the back hand of the gauntlet, with five for each finger, right above the finger knuckles, and one on the back of the hand. Additionally, each of the gems held a unique color while emanating a subdued sensation that made him/her think of something unique.
Blinking a few times, SinDrax could not help himself/herself to not sound surprised. “Are those what I think they are?”
“And more!” Heinrich replied before stroking the gauntlet with his left hand, up and down the metallic forearm. “Little Sin, I want you to meet O-Tama, short for Omni Tool Augmented Modular Armament, my Third Ability.”
“The idea for it came straight from this Layer.” Heinrich added.
“Geez… That is one expensive Armament.” SinDrax expressed this because the gems embedded into the Gauntlet Armament were very expensive to make. “Wait… You mentioned third and from this layer?” In the same instant, SinDrax used a bit of his/her power to scan his older sibling, but the instant he/she did, the white/pale green Armament flared to life denying him the information. With no other choice, he/she stuck to verbal inquiry. “Does that mean you're only an Adept right now?”
“Powerwise?... Yes… But you know I am used to punching above my weight.” Heinrich said before elaborating his circumstances, partially at least. “Either way, I am close to regaining my Master’s Title, as well. Should be done next lifetime. The Grandmaster Title should follow right on that last lifetime.”
“Once I regain that, I am taking the very first ship out of this hellhole of a Rift.”
With that said, Heinrich flexed the metallic/stone fingers of his Ability before pointing the gauntlet at the residential building in which Hannah and her mother lived.
Nevertheless, a tiny usage of his/her power told SinDrax that the gauntlet was targeting the mother and not the daughter.
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Still waiting for the Hatching to happen, though the girl was running out of time, SinDrax re-engaged the conversation between him/her and his/her brother.
“Considering what I am seeing, I take it you have reinvented yourself from scratch. Right?” SinDrax asked pointedly because he/she wanted confirmation of the actual reason his/her brother had Dived into Gaia’s Womb. “The Conditional Passive?”
“Unfortunately… No… Not completely, as it turns out even Gaia could not scrub it off of my Soul.” Heinrich replied before quickly shrugging his shoulders at the circumstances. “However, since its raw form remained behind, I was able to reconfigure the Condition before tying it into my First Ability. It's also why I am running a completely new Path, instead of trekking the old one, even if it would have been improved.”
“I see… Congratulations then!” SinDrax said happily. “When you're ready to leave, contact me and you will have a personal Captain to Sail you through the Void to wherever you want.”
“Thank you for the offer, Little Sin, but I will have to deny it.” Heinrich voiced out with steel-like resolve. “I will leave Gaia’s Womb through my own effort. It's the least I could do to successfully leave this Rift without any hard feelings blocking me from finally taking that Last Step.”
“Fine… But at least make your first destination Scarlet CloudChain.” SinDrax almost pleadingly voiced out, though it was the borrowed Shell that made it feel that way. “Considering how many of her fellow friends had not, Master is the one hoping the most that you will return from Gaia’s Womb.”
“I will… Actually, don't tell her anything after this. I want to surprise her.”
“Sure, Elder Brother. I don't mind keeping you a secret for a few more decades.”
“Good. Now shut up. It's starting.” Heinrich suddenly said.
“…”
As his/her brother stated, SinDrax observed his/her niece finally flex her Soul before actively taking control of the first five layers of her Soul.
Then came the alignment and harmonizing to make a pathway between the Five Corners of Existence the Soul and the Core of Existence, the Consciousness. That way, the excess energy that would have filled those five Sides of the Soul instead flushed into the Core of the Soul to fill it with power before enabling the transcendental phenomena tied to the Ego Stat, Soul Prism, to emerge.
Soul Prism would make his/her niece realize that the Soul was in fact not made of different parts, of different layers, of different attributes, but is, in fact, an ever-changing, endlessly expanding, and infinitely stacking energetic fractal pattern making All of Existence, well… Conscious since Consciousness was All There Was and Will Ever Be because Consciousness was, is and will forever be Omnipresent, Omniscient, and Omnipotent.
Only, for all those attributes, Consciousness wanted to be more, to grow more, to become more.
Yet, what more could it be since it was everything and anything already?
As such, Consciousness did the only thing it could.
To be more, to grow more, to become more, it first had to become less of what it was, and to do that Consciousness chose to limit itself. As a consequence of its choice, Contrast came into Existence between the Limiter and Everything Else, thus generating the First Dream out of Hope for More and the First Nightmare out of Despair at realizing the sheer unfathomability IT was attempting.
That very First Dream and very First Nightmare clashed and created EDIN, Endless Dreams and Infinite Nightmares, the place where every Dream was achievable if you managed to overcome your Nightmares.
Still, as the backstory of the Soul was important, it paled to the importance of the one thing making everything possible, and that was the Limiter, which allowed the Contrast between the Limiter and the Everything Else to occur.
It was that very understanding that allowed his/her niece to condense everything she had been prior to this moment into a Spark of the Self which would change, grow, and become something Unique for as long as she retained her Spark of the Self, her Ego. As such, SinDrax saw his/her niece's Ego take the first Breath of Life all while being accompanied by a dizzying amount of colors due to the overflowing energy suffusing her Ego before it absorbed everything.
Colors that would eventually settle down into one of the Seven Primes suffusing the whole of EDIN, and everything existing within it.
Each color had a Prime Characteristic, also called a Trait, that could be easily identified during the Hatching process. However, before SinDrax even noticed any of the colors settling down, he/she noted his/her brother's powers increasing in preparations, and not a moment sooner, SinDrax realized just why.
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In the same instance his/her niece’s Ego began blossoming to Life, SinDrax saw the mother cease moving as if frozen in place. Then, from out of nowhere, a hideous and sticky dark ink-like color arose from the mother’s head that seemed to ooze sensations of the Degradation of Life.
Seeing and feeling its aura, SinDrax instantly knew the target of that corruption.
Thankfully, today he/she was but an observer, so he/she had no need to do anything at this moment since he/she knew his/her brother had everything planned out because that was the type of character his/her Elder Brother had, a thinker and planner.
That being the case, SinDrax felt his/her brother's power spike to existence by creating a double-layered barrier between the mother and the daughter. The first was see-through and it covered his/her niece to protect her. The second one, however, was a skin-tight white/pale green barrier around the mother. Only, that was not all. After the skin-tight barrier appeared, another spike of power occurred causing that same white/pale green barrier to start drawing out all the hideous stuff from the mother’s Soul.
Calling on a bit more power, SinDrax examined the interaction between the ink-black corruption and the white/pale green barrier, thus instantly realizing that the barrier created some kind of vacuum-like force resembling his/her niece’s current energetic signature, probably from the first barrier around her, to gently guide the corruption from out of the depths of the mother’s Soul.
Unfortunately, as if it was not meant to be, the corruption seemed to have noticed something being off, and when it did, it actually began withdrawing back into the mother’s Soul.
Not one to give up that easily, Heinrich upped the power consumption of his Gauntlet Armament to forgo deception in favor of pure force.
Soon enough, the corruption had no choice but to be forced out of his latest partner and into his white/pale green barrier. However, at the last moment, the corruption smartened up by amputating what it could not save before instantly returning what it could into Hailey’ Soul, causing her to collapse onto the floor unconscious.
“Tch!” SinDrax heard his/her brother make.
Seeing the change, Heinrich used his Armament to transform the white/pale green barrier into a tiny sphere, a tiny bubble of the same color scheme. Right after that, he canceled the wide transparent barrier to drag the bubble containing the corruption to himself.
Staring at it for a moment, things clicked into place. “Hmph… Curse of Despair - Stillborn. No wonder she chose Gaia’s Womb for her Tribulation. This is the only place where it could be fought off at its roots since its Anathema to Gaia’s Life Domain.”
After examining the main culprit, Heinrich wondered just how many innocents had been sacrificed to degrade the Curse to its current state. But then, he suddenly realized why Gaia had orchestrated his meeting with Hailey, and why she allowed his resistance against her Call to occur at all.
Nodding and affirming his actions regarding Hannah, and everything he had been forced to make her go through, he sent the bubble to his younger brother inhabiting the female Shell of Melinda, the Channeler.
“Haha… I knew there had to be a greater reason for you to call on me instead of a simple Hatching Tradition.” SinDrax voiced out. “Don't worry, AnuDrax… Now that it is personal for me as well, I will find the culprit post haste.”
“Can I deal with them, or should I wait until you are done here?” SinDrax asked quickly.
“As much as I would love to do it myself, you have the go-ahead if you manage to find him/her/them, or whatever they are, before I leave the Rift.” Heinrich replied with steel in his voice. “If it’s somebody high profile, wait and we will figure it out together.”
That said, Heinrich dismissed his Gauntlet Armement in favor of observing his newly born daughter. SinDrax did the same, but only after he/she used his/her power to encapsulate the bubble containing the Curse with his own crimson-hued power before actually sending it to his/her True Body.
When that was done, he enjoyed watching his niece finally settle her Prime Characteristic.
“Huh… Brown?” SinDrax voiced out somewhat confused because he/she expected something more complicated. Taking a closer look at the color surrounding his niece inside and outside her Dream Sanctum, SinDrax discovered a rather metallic quality to the Brown color. “From Blank to Unyielding Will?… Anu… That is not something a newborn is usually qualified to get as a Prime Trait. Care to elaborate?”
Shaking his head, Heinrich responded. “When you only have bad choices from which to choose, there is very little to elaborate.” Then with another shake of his head, he continued. “I did what I had to do so let's leave it at that. If you're curious about it, then in the future if you meet her in person you can inquire about her First Tribulation.”
“Very well, Elder Brother… I will respect your choice.” SinDrax voiced out not saying anything else.
Instead, he continued watching the Hatching process.
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After the Prime Characteristic - Brown - Unyielding Will settled onto his/her niece's Soul, what followed was the usual understanding that the Ego Stat was the nominal capacity of the Spark of Self to hold onto itself in the face of Everything Else.
Therefore, to overcome one’s limits one had to grow one’s Ego first, either by slowly acquiring Experience through cultivating one's Ego with different living experiences or by defeating Nightmares and using them as fuel for one's growth.
Naturally, the second one was quicker but it carried the inherent risks of smothering one's Ego, one's Spark of Self, permanently.
Additionally, on top of everything so far, his/her niece would understand that her Ego was the Core of her Soul and her Dream Body, yet her Dream Body was only part of her Soul, her Ego. Hence, how the distinctions between the sides, the layers of Soul, behaved differently from each other yet were in fact one and the same thing.
As such, SinDrax watched his/her niece flex those sides, those layers of her Soul, as if they were prehensile limbs just itching to take their first walk only to realize that they already knew how and what to do that, much in thanks to Gaia’s Unique Shell’s inputting said information into his/her niece’s Ego before she even Hatched.
In the end, SinDrax saw his/her niece simply stand up, pocket the last bits of her Dream Gem within the oversized jacket she wore within her Dream Sanctum before actually examining the strange sensations flooding her perception. And strange they were as SinDrax remembered his/her own Hatching like it was yesterday and not millennia in the past, well relative past because Time was not what it seemed now that he/she was a Summoner.
Yet, for his/her niece it had to be even weirder because what she was picking up on was not just herself, and what the Dream Instance bequeathed on her.
No, his/her niece was also picking on the Suppression from the Rift she was born in.
All Rifts had them, yet none could match that of Gaia’s Womb with its mesmerizing depth, because that very same mesmerizing depth also became intoxicating to behold, causing even Summoners to doubt everything they perceived.
Hence, why Gaia’s Womb was so unique as its Suppression generated a side of EDIN that only grew more intoxicating the deeper one traveled into her Rift. At some point, that Suppression became so hard and rigid that no Dream or Nightmare could ever manifest there in person.
Though, in exchange, something else took their place.
Regardless, it was in those depths that the true uniqueness of Gaia’s Womb emerged, and it was there that the Hardest Challenge, the ‘Who am I? Challenge!’ occurred. Where a Dreamer had to discard everything he/she/them was, meaning stripping their Ego down to the bare minimum, before slowly picking up those very pieces back, piece by piece, lifetime after lifetime, into a whole picture that you used to be, only under a new configuration.
Thankfully, his/her niece was on the upper layers of Gaia’s Womb, so she would be safe from that intoxicating effect.
Not that it mattered that much to a brand-new Soul, since everything was new in some way.
The second thing, SinDrax took note of was his/her niece flickering her right hand weirdly before in her hand a hand-sized pink colored ball emerged, a ball with black and white clouds furbishing the pink looks.
The ball could only be her Tool as was indicated by the Pathway of his/her niece’s Hatching. However, SinDrax had no idea what the Tool was about, at least he did not before his/her niece actually began speaking to the Tool in question.
“Dreamon!”
SinDrax heard her voice out hesitantly, only for her Unyielding Will to pick her up her slack and carry her to the next step of Dream Awakening because, currently, her Great Dream was closer to an Ability than a Great Dream, much less the possible Grand Dream her father had laid out for her.
“I, Hannah Blackwood, Swear to Travel across the Lands, Searching Far and Wide!”
“To Catch them Will be my Challenge!”
“To Train them Will be my Purpose!”
“To make Everybody Understand the Power that is Inside!”
“Dreamon!”
With every sentence announced, SinDrax observed the pink ball and his/her niece glow with multi-colored light before eventually it exploded into one giant flash encapsulating her Dream Sanctuary.
Only, that was where it ended, because as mighty as the glow was, it had not managed to bridge the gap between A and S-Ranked Dreams.
However, it was close, and SinDrax knew the reason for it as well.
“The Oath is a bit clunky… Still… It is also unusual… Some kind of Tamer Path from the Conjuring Discipline?” SinDrax posted to his/her brother, but the only answer he/she got was a simple nod of the head.
That being the case, SinDrax continued observing his/her niece as she, once again, played with her ball. Nonetheless, when she had had enough of that, SinDrax saw his/her niece vanish away the pink ball before settling her gaze onto the last three items on the wooden desk found within her Dream Sanctuary.
With all the restrictions gone, SinDrax ignored the D-Card and the Invitation Envelope from the Champion’s Association, if the mark on it was correct, in favor of examining the third one, the one his/her niece gazed at deeply.
“Another Template?” SinDrax voiced out with curiosity tingling his/her voice. “For the Nightmare? Mmm… I can understand the maximization of Pure Potential utilization, but I am failing at grasping where this is leading.”
Seeing no actual response but just a nod of his brother's Shell, SinDrax said no more and instead eagerly awaited the elaborate show his/her brother had planned out.
It did not even take long, but it did take a bit more than he/she expected after his/her niece picked up the Template before folding it a few times and stashing it into another pocket of her oversized jacket.
The same occurred for the Envelope as the jacket had plenty of pockets still.
However, after that, his/her niece hesitated in picking up her D-Card.
Observing closer, SinDrax noted his/her niece switching her sight between the only entrance/exit of her Dream Instance as if wondering about something very significant. After affirming something in her head, with a visual nod to showcase it, SinDrax saw his/her niece pick the D-Card yet not use it in any way, which instantly told him/her what his/her niece was up to.
And SinDrax wholesomely approved of it too
After stashing her D-Card onto one of the bigger inner pockets of her oversized brown jacket, SinDrax witnessed his/her niece face the door and everything it featured.
Though being a Novice Grade Dream Sanctum, those features were irrelevant to SinDrax.
No, it would take at least an Apprentice Grade Dream Sanctuary to block his/her sight through the borrowed Shell of his/her Channeler. But even then it was possible to peer through if he/she cared not for the well-being of the Shell he was borrowing. On the other hand, the Adept Grade Dream Instance was impossible no matter the Shell. No, for them his/her True Body was required. After Adept, Master Graded Dream Instances might prove challenging for a Summoner like him/her, but Grandmaster was simply impossible to all.
Regardless, SinDrax saw his/her niece take a deep breath before taking out a key from another inner pocket of her oversized brown jacket. With it in hand, his/her niece unlocked the door before opening it up a few seconds later. However, the second the door was opened up enough for her to pass through, SinDrax observed multiple tendrils shoot for his/her niece only to instantly wrap around her torso before quickly pulling the extremely surprised girl close to its bulbous main body sporting one large white dot that seemed to be able to freely move across its bulbous main body.
However, unlike what SinDrax expected, his/her niece did not cry out despite the sudden engagement.
No, instead, she glared at the Nightmare in question.
“Anu… What kind of Nightmare is that?” SinDrax inquired of his/her brother. “It reminds me of something but I can't quite place it well since it's also different from what I am reminded of.”
“Actually… It's my first time seeing it with such clarity as well.” Heinrich replied with a steady voice. “However, through the Divinations I did nine years ago, I believe it to be a Beyonder.”
Reminded of them, SinDrax could see the resemblance. Only something was off, clearly off. “Can't be… I have a few of them nesting in my Rift, and none of their Spawns look like that. Similar? Yes. But not like that.”
“Then it's either a new variant or a very old one. Choose your pick.” Heinrich added. “However, it's a Beyonder. Of that, I am sure.”
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With that voiced out, both brothers watched Hannah’s Unyielding Will Trait kick in to encourage her struggle against the Monster that had infested her Dream Instance.
At first, all Hannah managed was struggle a bit here and there, but soon enough they witnessed her realize that she was stronger, faster, and tougher than she used to be. Using that to her advantage, Hannah wiggled more and more, but the numerous tentacles around her still proved too much for her.
With that understanding, Hannah’s struggle became even fiercer when her hands grabbed and clawed at the tentacles in question.
Soon enough, she even resorted to biting at the closest appendage to her mouth.
All while she did her best in fighting off the Nightmare trying to wrap her up, the Nightmare endured the pain it was not comfortable with, but having been enduring its hunger for so long, and no longer being surprised by its sudden appearance, the pain was easily set aside.
Then, when both, Hannah’s and the tentacular Nightmares, hardship proved their existence to be futile/successful, the brothers saw Hannah simply cease trying anymore.
Yet, it was not to give up.
No, both knew the truth of the Unyielding Will Trait.
No, Hannah would not give up that easily.
Instead, after realizing that her current action was proving futile, Hannah quickly remembered everything she knew about her Monster and the very place they both found themselves in.
When she had what she needed, Hannah glared at the Monster’s big white dot acting as its eye. Like that, the two glared at each other when Hannah suddenly voiced her thoughts at the tentacular Monster.
“This is My place!” Hannah uttered out alongside her determined glare.
“This is My Dream Instance!” She declared, loudly, not caring if the Monster heard her or not. ”I can do whatever I want in this place!”
“I AM THE QUEEN HERE!” Hannah announced with a shout, causing it to echo out into the house she no longer lived in. “Release Me, You Foul Monster!”
Like floodgates, a multi-colored Light exploded from Hannah’s Dream Body and the Dream Sanctum behind her.
Not only had its sudden appearance blinded the tentacular Nightmare, but it had instantly caused it a large amount of pain as the multi-colored Light represented its Anathema, Hope.
Hope that had been stockpiled within Hannah’s Dream Body for a long time. Only, that was not all. No, the Hope Hannah released resonated with the Dream Instance thanks to the coded trigger words she had designated as a little girl right for this moment when she had to overcome her Nightmare.
This confluence of facts instantly manifested through multicolored Light pushing away every inch of the Silver Sheen that had clouded her Dream Instance, and the first walls to do so were the ones around Hannah.
When the walls recovered their shine, they became instant repellers of everything Silver, and that included the Nightmare latching itself on the ceiling. Therefore, in one single moment, Hannah not only freed herself but also denied her opponent the terrain advantage on top of hurting it, thus instantly scaring the Nightmare away from her.
After dropping back on the ground and being released by the tentacular Nightmare, Hanna stood back up on her own two feet only to glare at the retreating Monster as it slithered away from the ever-encroaching returning control she had always possessed but chose to forget for her First Nightmare Tribulation.
Seeing the Nightmare retreat around the corner of the corridor, Hannah took one more breath before flickering her hand, as practiced a few moments prior to exiting her Dream Sanctuary.
With the Dreamon Ball in her right hand, Hannah slowly chased after her Monster.