"Oh my days, you guys are stupid… so stupid. Challenging the Second Nightmare?! That too as Sleepers? Ah! I have never seen such stupidity since the days of those brats!"
The voice clicked its tongue in irritation.
Mahoraga glanced at his foul mouthed shikigami and groaned, "Can you shut up?"
Dharma ignored him completely.
"No! No, I will not shut up!" The small dragon shrieked, lashing his tail as he clung harder to his shoulder. "Do you have any idea what the Second Nightmare is? Do you? Because clearly, neither of you do, or you would not be standing here looking so unbothered about it!"
"We're aware of what it is," Sunny said flatly.
"Are you?" Dharma turned to him with a scowl. "Are you truly? Because awareness and comprehension are two very different things, and based on the fact that you are both still here, still moving in that direction, I am forced to conclude that you have the first and are catastrophically lacking in the second."
"He's rather talkative," Sunny remarked.
"Yes," Mahoraga agreed quietly.
"I'm right here, you retards." Dharma snapped, huffing in exasperation. "You are Sleepers. Sleepers. Do you understand what that means in the context of what you are about to attempt? It means you are, how do I put this generously — Insane! Categorically, profoundly, and historically insane."
Sunny considered that for a moment, "Historically?"
"Yes, historically!" Dharma's tail lashed again. "As in, I have existed for a very long time, I have seen a considerable number of idiots attempt a considerable number of idiotic things, and what you two are proposing has managed to rank itself quite comfortably near the top of that list!"
"That's almost impressive," Sunny said with a proud grin.
"That is impressive," Mahoraga agreed with a smile.
"It is not a compliment!" Dharma's voice cracked. "Why are you smiling? Both of you, stop that!"
Neither of them stopped.
Dharma looked between them with the expression of someone who had just realized with total clarity, that they were beyond saving. Its tail curled tight around Mahoraga's shoulder and its tiny chest heaved.
"Fine," he sighed, "If you guys want to die, go and do it. I don't really care. It'll be such a headache waiting for a new master."
Mahoraga didn't take any offence to that, instead, he diverted the topic. "Why didn't you come out while Eurys was with us? No matter how much I called, you never answered."
Dharma's tail stilled.
"That skeleton," he said, his voice dropping to something that lacked its usual fervor, "is not something I wanted noticing me."
"Mhm, why?" He asked, lowering his head to meet the curled up dragon's gaze.
"I got history with him… obviously I didn't want him to know that another Incarnation of Adaptation had come into existence."
Mahoraga raised his brow in complete surprise, "There were others who held my Aspect?"
"Yes," he affirmed, "Your Aspect didn't just appear out of nowhere, boy. It's a lineage." He looked towards Sunny and spoke coldly, "You're similar to him in that regard, many Shadow Slaves existed in the past. But there's a clear difference between us… your Shadow Serpent is unique to you, for us there is only one Harbinger of Perfection — me."
Sunny's body stiffened as he took a combative stance, "You know my Aspect?"
Dharma snorted, "I might be old, but I'm not that old. I could smell the Shadow God's blessing on you the moment I appeared. Your Aspect too further confirmed it."
Mahoraga looked at him with genuine astonishment, even he hadn't expected that.
"How much do you know about it?" Sunny asked, keeping his voice level.
Dharma shook his head.
"Enough," he said. "More than you, certainly." the dragon lazily stretched itself across his shoulder, "The Shadow God was not forthcoming with his powers."
"Did you know him?" Mahoraga asked.
Dharma's expression changed into a remorseful one, "More than I'd like."
Mahoraga considered pressing the matter, but a brief glance at Sunny was enough to make him drop it. He didn't distrust him — not exactly but he wasn't still sure of his character.
"Right," he said, letting the matter go… for now.
"Anyways, if I hadn't been making sure we didn't run into any monsters while you guys were busy making friends with Eurys. I would've been forced to reveal myself."
Oh, that. Mahoraga quickly recalled Dharma's runes.
Name - Dharma
Shikigami Rank - Dormant
Shikigami Class - Devil
Shikigami Attributes - [Soul Bound], [Heaven's Favoured], [Reservoir], [Tyrannical Aura]
Shikigami Abilities - [Heaven's Will]
Attribute Description -
[Soul Bound] - Harbinger of Perfection will not bow to any will except his master's.
Quite vague, Mahoraga thought, Does this mean that Dharma cannot die unless I want him to or is it that Dharma has to listen to my commands no matter what? Could be a mixture of both too.
[Heaven's Favoured] - Harbinger of Perfection is a cherished of Heaven, outcomes tend to follow his desire.
Isn't this a bit too powerful, his lips twitched at the thought of his Shikigami being able to bend reality to his will. Then why not guarantee we conquer the Second Nightmare? Hell, he could smooth the entire journey and carry us straight to the Seed without a struggle.
[Reservoir] - Harbinger of Perfection stores cursed energy and returns it when the need arises.
More of a support ability than anything, but having infinite essence is tantalizing.
[Tyrannical Aura] - Harbinger of Perfection can shed its diminished form and showcase his former glory — a ghost of what he once was. The majesty returns, the strength does not.
Does that mean this rascal could turn into a damn Divine being? His gaze drifted to the lazy dragon draped around his neck. The stingy bastard could've made sure we never had to fight another Nightmare Creature.
Abilitiy Description -
[Heavenly Will] - A Cherished of Heaven does not rely on fortune. Fortune simply recognizes what he has already decided.
Mahoraga's eyes lit up in excitement. If [Heaven's Favoured] was a passive ability then [Heavenly Will] was an active one. [Heaven's Favoured] made it so that the world changed to fit Dharma's innermost desire, while [Heavenly Will] caused Dharma's will to impose itself on reality.
An example could be:
[Heaven's Favoured] made sure that Dharma's lottery ticket matched up with the winning numbers allowing him to win the lottery.
On the other hand,
[Heavenly Will] made it so that Dharma bought the right ticket that had the winning numbers so he could win the lottery.
The distinction was subtle, very subtle. Both abilities bent the world toward Dharma's will. But where [Heaven's Favoured] worked quietly in rearranging outcomes — [Heavenly Will] was impatient, it didn't make the world cooperate. It simply decided, and the world followed.
Passive and active. Fate and will. Two sides of the same coin.
Mahoraga deduced that there would be conditions to it — such a powerful ability would never come without it's own unreasonable disadvantages.
Perhaps his will had to remain within the bounds of plausibility — he couldn't simply make them Ascended, instead, it would manifest by steering them toward a Seed where such an outcome could unfold.
Truly a powerful ability.