Bab 24: Nightmare of Layla (1): Hope shines the brightest in Despair
Still inside of the Sea of Soul, Ragna just continued looking at his now two cores.
'Am I a Dormant Monster now ? Since I got two cores that's truth, no ?'
Ragna continued looking at his two cores intrigued for a while before leaving the Sea of Soul.
Layla, Celeste and Cera looked at him worried since he actually fell unconscious while his body created another Core.
"Ragna, are you okay ? What happened ?"
"Uhh .. Yeah, I'm okay, better than okay, I think."
Ragna stood up, wanting to test out what changed the two cores brought. He felt slightly stronger but that surely wasn't it.
He tested out a few things and quickly found out one change.
He had a bigger pool of blood to use for his Aspect Ability, meaning that he could augment himself or a Memory at a stronger grade than before.
Before, everything he augmented, maybe felt a strength increase of two times but now it felt like he could augment himself at three times his normal strength.
But he still could only augment one thing at the same time, meaning that he needed to chose from his whole body, a body part like his fists or feet or a Memory like his Sword.
"Uhm ... so, why did you fall unconscious ?", asked Layla
Ragna sighed, knowing that Celeste would tease him for being a "Genius" again.
"My body created another Core, I have two now."
Both stood still for a while before Celeste spoke up.
"Yeah, defenitely a Genius."
"Don't look at me like that! You can probably also create another Core, Celeste. Im pretty sure it has something to do with our Aspect's Rank."
"Would make sense to be honest but don't only Nightmare Creatures normally have multiple Cores ? Did something change with you ?"
"I just feel slightly stronger and my Aspect Ability also got buffed but nothing else really."
***
Layla sat quietly on the sofa of the cramped living room, her mind throbbing with conflicting emotions. She felt a strange mixture of pride, guilt and something deeper, something that a nine year old shouldn't feel.
She'd done something to help her family, but it had come at the price of another person life, even if that person was a jackass.
The Blood on her hand felt like it was still there, even if she had washed them carefully.
Her Mother, Teresa had come home later than usual, looking more exhausted and "used" than on other days.
Her Mother smiled motherly, even in a living situation like that. Teresa was the strongest person Layla knew and that was also why she loved her mother dearly.
"How was your day, sweetheart ? Anything fun happened while I was gone ?", her mother asked softly while sitting down next to her and kissing her on the cheek.
Layla forced a smile as she was ready to lie to her own mother.
"It was fine, Mama. Rob staid inside while i went out to play with a stray cat."
Her Mother just caressed Layla's cheek.
"A cat, huh ? You always loved them."
They didn't say anything for while as Teresa just continued caressing Layla's cheek but after a while Layla spoke up.
"Mom ..?"
"Yes, sweetheart ? Is something wrong ?"
"Mom ... Can I somehow help you ? I never went to school and probably never will but if I earn money, I can maybe help you send Rob there, please .. I just want to help."
Layla of course already had enough money, since she stole valuable items and selled them but she needed an alibi so her mother wouldn't suspect how she got the money.
"Sweetheart, you don't need to. You're just a kid. Let Mommy handle it, okay ? I'll earn enough money for our little family."
Layla nodded and hugged her mother, but inside she knew that things couldn't stay like this, she couldn't go back and act like nothing had happened.
Days passed, and Layla's secret tormented her heart but she still kept it a secret. Her mother was gone too often to notice anything wrong and her younger brother was too innocent.
One evening, while her mother was gone again, Layla sat next to Rob, who was drawing a silhouette.
"This is you, sis !"
Layla patted her younger brothers head, even tho he was only two years younger than her.
"It's beautiful. Maybe you'll become an artist one day."
***
One day, Rob randomly started coughing, spitting out blood.
Their mother instantly rushed towards him, her face full of worry as she held him in her arms.
"Oh god, Baby. Are you okay ?"
She instantly searched for a warm towel and heated it with warm water before setting it down on Rob's Forehead. She then started preparing soup.
The small family, of course, didn't have any medicine or money to go to a doctor, meaning that their Mother needed to do something, anything.
In a dirty place like this, being sick meant death but Teresa didn't want to accept it.
The harsh days slowly passed as Rob's sickness only got worse while his body grew weaker.
Their Mother was doing everything in her power but it just wasn't enough, as soon, Rob died while sleeping.
Layla of course was sad and mourning but her mother fell completly into depression.
She had dark circles under her eyes, she cried herself to sleep every night and she looked worse every time after work .
...
Layla hugged her mom from behind.
"Mom, please don't be sad. I love you. Don't cry."
Her perfect, always kind and warm mother didn't take this nice tho as she got angry for the first time since Layla was born.
Teresa turned around and slapper her daughter.
"I hate you! I hate my life! I would have lived such a easy life if both of you wouldn't have been born"
Teresa froze for a second before hugging her daughter tightly.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it! I love you, Layla."
Teresa continued apologizing, telling her daughter that she loved her but the damage was already done.
The next day, when Layla woke up, she found her Mother hanging from the roof, a rope around her neck.
***
From this moment onward, Layla stopped showing genuine emotion, always just wearing a mask of lies.
She could've continued living in this house, especially since she killed the one who always came for rent, but she decided to leave, she had to many memories with the house, memories she couldn't face anymore.
From the age of nine to the age of 14, she just survived on the streets, somehow pushing trough every day. In that time she had also died her hair Black and gotten the tattoo of a black rose.
She sat on the side of dark street, the ugly stench flowing into her nostrils as her weak and neglected body shivered in the freezing cold.
But in this moment of darkness, she had also found her biggest light.
Infront of her stood a middle aged man. He seemed way too nurtured, way to strong to be in a dark and dirty town like this.
He outstretched his arm infront of her and smiled kindly.
"Has life knocked you down, Kid ? Let me help you."
And so, that man had become her adoptive father ... no, the father she never had. He was actually an ascended and was also the person who had given her the fruit Memory after she awakened.
Slowly her life had transformed from darkness into light as she finally had stability in her life, yet she never forget her dead brother and mother.
Once she had turned 16, she fell into her First Nightmare.
[Aspirant! Welcome to the Nightmare Spell.
Prepare for your First Trial...]
Layla dreamt of a black Cathedral, so huge that it spanned as far as she could see, the ghostly moon shining high in the sky and the fully black stars dripped with a black venom.
Her Nightmare began in the Cathedral, the air thick with decay and the stench of old bones as small stones crumbled down onto her.
She looked around and saw that she seemed to be pretty safe and as her adoptive Father taught her, she first summoned the runes.
Name: Layla.
True Name: -
Rank: Aspirant.
Soul Core: Dormant.
Memories: —
Echoes: —
Attributes: [Echo of the First], [Despair],
Aspect: [Silhouette]
Aspect Description: [Imagine the silhouette of something that embodies you, that is what you are.]
[Echo of the First]: "A Fragment of the first being to ever exist lives within you. This grants you a primordial connection to the unknown."
[Despair]: "Your Life is bound to be one full of despair. Once you think you are happy, everything will crumble."
Layla found the runes very intriguing, yet also didn't like them, especially the [Despair] one.
She continued looking around the Cathedral, the dark and decayed walls being close to crumbling with every step she took, yet they somehow held on.
Layla continued her exploration of the dark Cathedral, the eerie silence and deep shadows scaring her.
As she stepped deeper, old Memories started flooding into her head, Memories she had buried in the back of her mind.
The Image of how her mother hanged herself, the thoughts of her dead brother. The fact that her mother secretly felt desperate, hated her life, yet always stood strong for them.
The five years she had spend on the streets and everything inbetween .
She shook her head and bit her lip.
'Stop thinking about that, you dumbass. You have bigger things to worry about. I WILL conquer this Nightmare and become strong enough to never feel despair again.'
——-Author's Notes——-
Words: 1602
I hope y'all don't mind the random backstory arc. I just need some time to think about how I continue inside of the Dream Realm and since I don't want to write something that I'll regret, I'll complete Layla's backstory first, before continuing the Dream Realm arc.
Peace ✌️
Status Power Mingguan
-- Peringkat
Power 
-- Power
stone