Two weeks passed quickly, during which the situation at Camp Erebus remained relatively stable. The call of the Nightmare wasn't so insidious, so the Awakened could come and go from the Dream Realm to obtain information from the high command, which was provided to Anders and then to them. Based on that information, they would take measures for their plans.
Stretching a bit, Uriel looked at the result of the last battle that had taken place the previous day. It was a Category Two Nightmare Gate from which a Fallen Tyrant had emerged. The battle was quick and really simple, and no one was too seriously injured. Those who suffered wounds were treated, and others simply rested until the next battle.
Closing his eyes for a moment, Uriel entered his mind, seeing Shade, who had woken up and was studying the Supreme-rank Echo that he hadn't yet transformed into a Dark Creature.
"You're not doing anything weird with her, are you?" he asked, making Shade freeze.
"What do you take me for?"
Uriel narrowed his eyes.
"I've heard rumors that there are Awakened who can't resist temptation and use Echoes as if they were dolls," he expressed.
Shade blinked.
"Well, that's terrible and sick," Shade replied. "I would never stoop to that. I have standards, Uriel."
"Yeah... sure."
"Hey, I'm serious." Shade made an indignant expression.
"Anyway, I was the one who risked my skin to kill her."
"Well, I admit that. So why do you keep looking at her?"
"It's simple. I'm studying how will works."
"Will? Why?"
"Well, to be able to damage bigger things, like Supremes or Great Creatures, for example. Although we can use it a little, it's inefficient. It's like a Sleeper trying to use essence the way an Awakened does. So I'm studying it and seeing what's needed to be able to use will independently of whether Supremacy is achieved or not."
Uriel brought a hand to his chin.
"Do you think that skeleton will help us?"
"Azarax?"
"Yeah."
"I don't think so. He's crazy and would probably kill us, so he's ruled out. And I don't want to go to the Underworld to convince Eurys."
"Well, shall we transform her now?" he asked.
"Yes. It'll be strange since she far surpasses us, so we don't know if she'll follow our orders."
"If my hypothesis is correct, then the same thing will happen as with Soul. She'll retain her memories and much of herself. However, I don't know if corruption will affect her. According to her description, she saw the hidden truths in Ariel's tomb, which corrupt anyone, and I don't want to be corrupted," Shade said.
"That's too high a risk. What if we use Soul?" he offered.
Shade shook his head.
"A Supreme's will is vast, especially when we're talking about someone who was in the war of the end. She'll break Soul's barriers in an instant. If she were Supreme, it might be possible, but she's only Transcendent."
Uriel grimaced.
This wasn't a decision to be taken lightly. He possessed a means that would solve a huge part of his problems. He could use her to track down Goliath and the Winter Beast and eliminate them before tens of millions of people died.
But there was also the possibility that she would refuse to follow him. Although he remembered that when Sunny killed the shadow of Orphne of the Nine, she refused to obey him, taking a long time until she began to voluntarily follow his orders.
Uriel bit his nail in annoyance.
Approaching the Echo, he transferred the Black Legion Armor to her. He watched as the black, spiked armor equipped itself on the Echo, giving the patience of a beautiful warrior who brings destruction to the battlefield.
Uriel looked at Shade.
"Let's leave this for later. Let's keep her as a normal Echo until we're at least stronger or have more information."
Shade nodded.
"Sounds fair," he said, then stretched, cracking his bones.
"Well, I have to catch up and finish reading Naruto."
"Weren't you reading One Piece?"
"I'll save it for later. Right now, I'm at the Chunin Exams, the best fight."
Shade turned around and walked toward the two-story house.
Uriel dismissed the Echo and returned to the outside.
Opening his eyes, he heard the sound of gunfire in the distance and the roars of dying abominations. Looking up at the sky, he frowned. The sky was beginning to fill with gray clouds.
When he returned to the Rhino, Abel and Miranda had returned from the Dream Realm. Since the number of Gates continued to increase little by little, the green zone was beginning to become a yellow zone.
According to the information, the Dream Realm wasn't much better than central Antarctica. There was a great migration of Nightmare Creatures toward places like Bastion, Rivergate, Ravenheart, and the River of Tears, as well as the Storm Sea, where members of the House of Night were keeping the abominations at bay that were trying to reach the rivers that fed Bastion and Ravenheart.
Also, about how a Saint of the Valor clan had died defending an important citadel, which was a hard blow for humanity.
Something interesting was that, according to what Miranda heard at her citadel in Ravenheart, a great Terror had appeared, and Ki Song herself had to eliminate it far from the citadel.
On another note, the news of how he had eliminated a Great Creature in central Antarctica spread like wildfire among the different citadels, inevitably giving him more recognition for achieving an impossible feat. And thanks to his warning, the army was preparing for the eventual arrival of Category Four Gates and possibly a Category Five Gate.
...
Slowly, the hours passed, and Uriel didn't have many things to do. He could still feel the call of the Nightmare Gate in the distance.
Sitting on top of the Rhino, he watched as Lucien had a bored expression while studying his Memories. Lily was leaning against the Rhino with a somewhat bored expression.
Abel, Tiffany, and Miranda were chatting among themselves, while Asher was drinking a cup of hot tea with some cookies.
The rest of the day, nothing really interesting happened. Nor did the following morning. There hadn't been any monster attacks.
Thus passed a strange week of relative peace. That was until something happened.
Uriel had met with Colonel Anders, who looked tired. Due to the call of the Nightmare, inevitably more people were falling asleep, some even being dragged into their First Nightmares, where they remained asleep and watched over by competent Awakened and tense soldiers.
In a population of over a dozen million people, with more arriving from other cities, many were dragged into their First Nightmares. Some survived, others didn't.
Currently, there were a total of about 1,400 Sleepers who had survived their First Nightmare, and at least over a hundred were being monitored in their Nightmares.
Uriel was sure of something. Something enormous was approaching. The events he remembered were being changed and altered, not adhering to what he had read.
He wondered if it was because of his presence but ruled it out, yet he kept that window open.
Snapping out of his thoughts, Uriel paid attention to the meeting and the information Colonel Anders would give him.
The colonel looked at the three Masters and the group of assembled Awakened and spoke.
"Disappearances have begun to be reported," he finally said, making them look at him.
"Disappearances, sir?" asked an Awakened.
"Yes. At first, we didn't notice, but recently a group of about a hundred people disappeared without a trace."
"There are no footprints or anything to look for?" asked Randal.
"No," Dale answered.
"My subordinates began to notice this discrepancy recently, but apparently, it's not the first time it's happened. For days, the number of missing persons has been increasing. In a population of millions, it's currently like a drop in the ocean, but it's there," the Ascended explained.
"For now, my team is searching for the cause of these disappearances."
After that meeting, Uriel left the building. His eyes narrowed. He brought a hand to his head and frowned.
'Where is my crown?'
Uriel summoned back his Crown of Repose and lifted his gaze, seeing the same sea of clouds. Then he looked at Soul.
"Soul," he called mentally.
"Can you detect anything abnormal?" he asked cautiously.
"No. The usual, though I have a feeling of unease," Soul replied in his mind.
"Stay alert."
"Alright."
After that brief conversation, Uriel began using the bonds to keep his mind safe from mental attacks.
...
About two days of investigation passed, during which the three Masters and the colonel met again.
"Did you find anything, Master Dale?"
"No, I was exploring the city but found nothing, not even a trace of a fight," the Master said.
"Well, that at least gives us three possibilities."
"And what are they?" asked Anders.
"First... it's possible that they were killed and their bodies were eliminated without leaving a trace."
"That's unlikely. We would have found at least the slightest trace by now."
"That would be the best-case scenario," said Randal.
"What's the other one?" asked Anders.
"That they deserted."
"No, that's impossible. There are guards stationed on the walls; they would notice if hundreds of people tried to leave. Besides, there are abominations outside the walls. They're not foolish enough to throw themselves to their deaths."
"So the first two options are ruled out, leaving us with the last one," said Dale.
"And what would that be?" asked Uriel.
"There could be a Nightmare Creature that has infiltrated the city and is now hiding somewhere within these walls. Since we found no trace, it has the intelligence not to leave any."
"But what kind of creature would do something like that?"
"No one knows how Nightmare Creatures function. Maybe it's an insidious one. Either way, whether it's a Nightmare Creature or deserters, we need to get to the bottom of this and close it."
The meeting ended.
Another day passed.
Uriel was lying on one of the Rhino's tires when he saw Dale, who had a somber expression. For a few seconds, he said nothing until he spoke.
"...More people have disappeared."
Uriel felt annoyance upon hearing that.
His gaze settled on the sea of gray clouds above their heads, stretching for kilometers. For a moment, something glinted before he blinked and forgot it. All he saw was a cloudy sky.
Uriel grimaced due to a sudden headache.