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The whole world felt it occur.
The destruction of a god.
Curse that ancient race that cultivated the force of the void. Curse the beings that came after their civilisation's fall that lead to others trying to harness the ever consuming power. Some kingdoms succeeded more than others.
The very centre of the world had risen as one joined mind to consume Radiance. The essence of dreams, the one who enslaved the minds within Hallownest in a fit of rage for being forgotten.
Pale beings had always been a danger to mortals in the mortal realm. It was hard to believe that one such being could lead to the destruction of a conceptual god. One that didn't have a physical form in the mortal world. Inside a realm that could only be accessed through specific means.
How foolish. To think that the Dreamnail, created to guide others to believe further in the dream realm's existence, would lead to her consumption. The very object she created, the creatures she created in her image, contributed to her demise.
The Nightmare heart had felt the power of the universe shift with Radiance's steadily suppressed power, a power that was being consumed by darkness. And so did the Nightmare King himself. After he had been called to battle through the tuning of a god worshipping race, it led to another new god ascending. An outcome the Nightmare King had not expected despite the Wyrm creation's strength.
The barrier that separated nightmares from dreams shook and was close to collapsing. A force that devoured dreams so entirely that it broke into the "limbo" sleep space and would have encroached on nightmares as well had its guardian and god not been present to halt its advance.
It also helped that the force of the void, no matter how catastrophic and all consuming, was entirely focused on dreams.The rest that it brushed against was simply collateral. That was something the Nightmare King had understood after the whole event had passed.
The realm of joined sleep shook from the sheer force of the voiceless screams that had now joined forces, given a purpose, a direction and a desire to consume and destroy a target. The Nightmare King was always precise with how much flame he spent in order to keep feeding the heart of nightmares, yet this event forced him to spend a century worth of nightmare flames so that he wouldn't be consumed along with dreams.
He couldn't allow himself to fall like a simple domino piece because Radiance's reckoning came to take claim. He would not let reign over nightmares fall along with hers. While created at the same time, they would not fall together. The Nightmare King would guarantee it.
As the shaking against the barrier calmed, so did the realm of nightmares. The Nightmare King told all of his nightmare realm Grimmkin to work overtime, to make up for lost flames and be on high alert for the next month. He then went to step through the barrier separating nightmare and dreams, the dream's protection was entirely gone. It let the Nightmare King step through without needing to let up on his own protection.
The entire realm was tainted by void. The mass of consuming darkness had swept through like a surging tide of destruction. The scattered land masses that were sources of dreams, sources of mortals' dreams and wishes, were corroded and damaged from the black tide. The Nightmare King barely spared a glance towards the meeting point Radiance had set up but had only been used twice. A small garden with a shaded roof that was now entirely consumed, leaving only standing poles to show something had been there.
She had always been the sentimental one concerning their joined creation. Sentimental, foolish yet spiteful over their connection that had existed for eons.
While the signs of destructive void caught his attention, it was not what he focused on. Rather, he focused on the large mass of void further inside the realm. One that stretched multiple times larger than the Nightmare Heart itself, a black void dripping mass that had 4 arms, 8 glowing white eyes and writhing masses shaped like horns pointing upwards. A massive entity that looked out towards the realm of dreams with its arms hanging down by its sides.
The Nightmare King watched this void turned creature. A god in its own right. Was this what battling the Wyrm's created vessel led to? It had attuned to the call of gods, ascended into godhood itself and consumed its kingdom's adversary, Radiance? While he had been amused by the battle, considering it was mostly his vessel that performed combat with mortals, it had been a long time since he had faced a worthy adversary on a dream stage without consequence.
But it had meant to be a stage without consequence. How terrifying Pale Beings could be, to claim the power of a God Tuner for itself and ascend its form into something like this. At least, that is what the Nightmare King assumed happened.
He still held his connection to the Grimmchild. It had been part of the early battles within the God Tuner's dream realm but had not joined the final battle. Had this vessel known this would be the end result of its final attunement?
8 white eyes sharply turned towards the Nightmare King. He stared back at this being, this void given focus and form, given a joint consciousness strong enough to be a god. If he was forced to use his flames to stay alive here, so be it. Let dreams be tainted by nightmares. But he would not let the dream realms fall from one part's foolishness…
And yet, the battle didn't happen. The god of Void stared, then lowered its head slightly as a version of a bow. The particles of void scattered over the dream realm moved, all drawn towards the large Void god like a magnet pulled towards its opposite. The mass of void started to recede, pulling back into the very bottom of the clouds. A space the Nightmare King now saw led to a connection to the God Tuner's joint consciousness.
It had recognised the Nightmare King. It really was that Vessel he had fought on the god tuned stage. And now it was pulling back without attacking Nightmares? He wasn't foolish enough to spit in the face of mercy when it was presented to him. He did not have confidence that he could overcome this threat if it were to attack him after he had spent so much power to keep his realm intact.
So he gave the large mass of void a bow in return, his eyes never leaving its form as it continued to pull back to where it came. And it was taking the smaller particles of void with it. By the time the large god had gone back into the space of the God Tuner's, any hint of void within the realm of dreams was gone.
The Nightmare King couldn't understand why the void would pull back from consuming the conceptual realm of dreams entirely. Dreams held a lot of power, power that had been abused by Radiance in her quest to seek personal retribution and revenge. And yet the void did not wish to consume the realm but was satisfied with only its god?
The Nightmare King didn't trust it. And so, he set out to investigate the realm of dreams to make sure that all hints of void truly had disappeared. That no taint would remain. That the realm of dreams would not be further influenced by the taint of void.
Now when the first god of dreams had perished, it was up to the realm of Nightmares to uphold the balance until a new one was created by the combined hopes and wishes of the bugs who dream. A process that would take centuries. Time that the Nightmare King couldn't afford to spend taking care of both realms.
So he would create a new god of dreams. And he would not let a hint of void be inside the realm of dreams to taint any hard work he put into creating it.
The void had truly receded. There was not a hint of its destructive and consuming source left within dreams. And so, the process of creating a new god of dreams could proceed.
Certainly, he could wait for the dream realm to create its own god. But that would be a new god, one that could be more of an annoyance to the Nightmare King and his work than the previous one had been. And Radiance had the emotional baggage of being "siblings" to not raise any more hostility towards him than she had already done.
The realms were separated for a reason. And it had not been a choice the Nightmare King had done willingly, but one that was forced upon him. It had been eons since he had last touched the essence of pure dreams rather than nurturing the flames of nightmares. For his rule to not be threatened, for his hard work to not be disturbed, he needed another Dream god that would have a similar emotional baggage as the last one. He needed this new dream god to be emotionally attached to him, enough to not encroach on nightmares and keep their realms separate.
Which led to the Nightmare King creating a new god of dreams from his own core essence as a dream god rather than wait for the realm to create its own.
He had always been meant to care for nightmares. But he had started out as a dream god, one that nurtured the silly and fantastical dreams of mortals to help drive them forward in life. His core essence, while twisted by nightmares as it was, would always hold a source of dreams. And he would bring out this core of dreams, gather what dream essence left in the dream realm to create its new caretaker.
It took multiple months. The Grimmchild was cared for by the bugs who had gotten a fondness for that vessel who turned into a god. The troupe pulled back into the nightmare realm to assist with filling the needed quota. And the Nightmare King himself frequently went back and forth between nightmares and dreams in order to incubate the core of the new god he was creating.
It was unheard of. Blasphemy some would say, to forcefully create a god from another's core. But the Nightmare King felt that it was possible, that it was necessary even. Why else would he still have that core of dreams left if not to create a new god once the first fell? It had to have been fate's doing. It could see past multiple eons, that would be the only reason his core did not turn entirely into nightmare essence. Because that small speck of dream core had been needed for this purpose.
The incubation process was slow, and the Nightmare King was careful to not taint the dream essence he poured over the dream core. Inside an incubation chamber of mortal material, spellweave through mortal methods to not taint the essence of dreams in any way. The new dream god was slow to take shape, take shape into what the dreams poured onto it wanted it to take.
The core expanded and no longer became a part of the Nightmare King. Completely separate as his connection to it broke off when the dream realm recognised that speck as its new ruler. The core grew first, steadily draining more and more essence that the Nightmare King could bring to it. While an annoyance, it was needed. And so, the Nightmare King continued to "feed" it the dream essence he could capture without tainting its contents.
The realm started to have awake and sleep cycles, where the whole realm darkened to conserve energy. Or to pour all of its energy solely into its new caretaker. The little core's power pulsed and grew stronger as the realm darkened, it was safe to say that the realm had accepted the Nightmare King's proposal for a new god.
The first shape this core took was that of a small armour shelled egg. Similar to a curled up armadillo. The second form it took was that of a flesh mass similar to a fluke with small protrusions similar to fins. The third form became a furred creature similar to a tiktik. Fourth was a curled up centipede form.
It changed its shape frequently as it grew in strength, but it never settled on a solid form. As if it could not decide which form it wanted to take. Its frequent changes stopped as it settled on something that was similar to the Grimmchild that the Nightmare King created.
Silver shell, light golden fur covering its whole body, darker golden wings, a long silver tail and a small golden halo of condensed dream essence spinning around its horns. Similar to a Grimmchild, yet entirely different.
The Nightmare King shouldn't be surprised. The core was his own, of course it would settle on a form that was similar to his own. Yet, he had not expected it to settle on such a form with how frequently it had changed during its growth. He continued to feed it essence and assumed at first it would change form once more. And yet, it didn't. It stayed as a golden, fluffier Grimmchild. A dream child.
When the little dream god opened its eyes, the Nightmare King knew that it did not have a consciousness yet. Its eyes were of a bright gold, the same gold as its wings, yet it had no focus in them. It was solidifying its form, but it still had to grow its own consciousness.
Two days after it opened its eyes, the dream child attempted to escape its incubation chamber to go further into the dreamscape. Drawn in by an invisible force that the Nightmare King knew, instinctively, that it was not ready for. The call of the realm was a powerful thing. He had experienced it himself, but that was when he had been aware. When he had already been a god of dreams for a while and could understand what his actions meant. This dream child did not have that. If it delved too deeply into dreams, it might get consumed and his hard work would have been for nothing.
And so, he brought the incubation contraption into nightmares so the dream child would not be drawn in by the dream realm's call. It had already been recognised by the realm. It still went into rest when the dream realm did. It was intimately connected through its created process so bringing it into nightmares would not damage it. He couldn't allow the dream child to get reckless and perform actions it was not yet ready for. Only when it was stronger or more aware would the Nightmare King allow it to follow the dream realm's call.
With the incubation chamber being made of mortal materials and spellwave, the dream essence that the Nightmare King put into it would not taint nightmares. He also realised, as it continued to be unaware after a week, that it might not get the memories and experience from dream essence as it should. The essence the Nightmare King could gather did not hold any personalities or experiences, merely scattered remains of a blank realm that did not get consumed by void.
The core was made of his own soul, his own essence. And the many vessels he has absorbed through the years gave him memories and experiences from those fathers who had gotten burned. Why not fabricate the memories and experiences as well? He was already performing a form of blasphemy by creating the next god, what's another by giving it memories and experience through his vessels? He had enough "positive aligned" memories from his vessels that they could contribute to the new god of dreams. Simply a case of picking and choosing which memories it would receive.
This process took another few weeks, carefully inserting the memories of his vessels into the dream child. As it grew larger, it started to slowly become more aware thanks to the inserted memories. Soon, the dream child took up the whole incubation chamber, resting suspended in the air and curled up into itself in a form much more similar to the nightmare king himself.
Their body was in the same shape, but the dream child's had softer edges. The wings had rounded ends but seemed to have the same mobility as his own. The halo that surrounded the dream child's horns had expanded to take shape into a star-like dream catcher that spun around one of its horns rather than both. The fluff that had previously covered its whole body was now only around the dream child's neck.
The same sharp shape as the Nightmare King, yet details that made it a lot softer than himself. Silver and gold, softer edges. Its claws are still present but not as sharp as the Nightmare King's. While the Nightmare King had yet to directly touch the dream child, he had no doubt that its shell wouldn't be as tough as his own as well. This child was not made for combat, it was not made to struggle to hold in the flames of despair and suffering. It was created to nurture dreams and bring hope to mortals that would encourage them to grow.
He brought the dream child back to the dream realm as its physical development seemed to be complete. And as he set it free from its incubation, the dream child looked out over the dream realm with no thoughts behind its gaze. They were a similar height, only the Nightmare King being slightly taller. The dream child started to walk forward in a daze and the Nightmare King followed. While the child drifted through the realm using dream essence, the Nightmare King followed using his physical wings.
It went down among the clouds, following an invisible road only the dream god would know where it would be. And it entered the center of the clouds, the source of the realm, where the Nightmare King could not follow. The trial it would face alone would determine if the Nightmare King's efforts of creating a new dream god was successful or not. He couldn't know for certain how long the trial would take, and so he waited.
3 days. 3 days passed before the dream child consumed the source of the realm and emerged from the cloud. When it looked at the Nightmare King, he could recognise that there was awareness in those gold eyes. And a brightness that would be blinding for any mortal to look at directly. The dream child looked at the Nightmare King. Then down at itself with a hint of confusion shining in its gaze. It looked back at the Nightmare King and let out a soft cooing sound.
The Nightmare King extended a hand towards his other half.
"Welcome to the world, God of Dreams. I am Nightmare King Grimm. I will be your guide for your duty."
The dream child looked at his outstretched hand, then slowly reached out to take it. The child stared at his hand for a few moments, then looked back to the Nightmare King with another soft coo.
It was not ready to care for dreams just yet. It needed to learn, and it needed to become attached to the Nightmare King. So he led the new God of Dreams to the nightmare realm, where he could oversee its development properly. This dream child will be loyal to him unlike the last one. He would teach it everything it needed to know to perform its duty. And it would grow into its own person, one perfect to care for the dream realm. It would not be tainted by hate and obsession. It would not be tainted by ideas it could not achieve. It would learn how important it is to spread its influence across different worlds and become a God of Dreams that would nourish everyone.
It would be a new chapter for both the dream realm and the nightmare realm.
The dream child was infuriatingly cheerful and energetic. A good fit for dreams but a handful to watch over. The Nightmare King had sectioned off a piece of his realm for its growth and development. It was quickly taught how to keep its dream essence inside its shell. Then, taught how to absorb the memories the Nightmare King had implanted to gain knowledge that would have otherwise taken many months to learn.
Which let it learn the ways of speech and it became a being of constant chatter whenever the Nightmare King came to check in on it.
"Grimm! Grimm, what's this!?" The dream child asked as it held up a honey covered jar with a wide grin, too close to his face for comfort. There were droplets of honey in the fur around its neck, but it was slowly sliding off.
"It's honey. A substance that has many uses but is mostly treated as a sweet treat." He answered and moved the honey covered hand away from him. He looked over the sealed off "room" he had created… As usual, it had become a mess… And he had only been gone for a few hours.
The paints covered every surface of the dark walls in strange shapes that could be pictures but didn't resemble anything the Nightmare King recognised. The pillows had once again been torn open with its feather contents strewn around the room like a small patch of snow. The snack table was completely empty with the plates and jar of honey close to the mass of feathers. When he glanced towards the dream child's wings, he could see feathers being stuck to it thanks to honey.
This creature had no limit on the amount of energy it had during the day… Thank the heart that it went to sleep at regular times.
"Honey… I like honey! I like sweet things!" The dream child let out a happy giggle and skipped around the Nightmare King with its grin growing even wider. "More!"
"Be polite, child." He reprimanded it, similar to how his vessels would do to the Grimmchild when it was first created. He reached out to poke the dream child on its forehead, an effective way to reset its thoughts. It always worked on those energetic mortals the Nightmare King has met. It worked on this dream child as well.
Dream child stopped completely, blinked twice from the poke. Then it started to grin again and held up the jar. Its hands had pieces of honey stuck to it, but the dream child seemed to have gone through effort to try and remove it. "More, please!"
The Nightmare King let out a soft hum and, since it asked nicely, opened a portal that led to his storage of mortal made substances. He took out a smaller jar of honey and gave it to the dream child. It let out a soft squeal in happiness as it threw away the empty jar, threw its arms around the Nightmare King in a hug and took the new jar from his hand.
He stood still as the dream child sat down to open the jar, slowly processing that the child had… hugged him. He hadn't taught that action in any way. And yet, it had acted upon it…
"Do you know what you just did, child?" He asked with a slight tilt of his head. Just to be sure.
The dream child looked up at him with a blink, pausing in its mission to open the jar. It let out a soft hum in confusion and tilted its head in return.
"You put your arms around me. Do you understand what you did?"
After he'd clarified, the dream child's expression brightened. "Yea! Grimm is warm! Like warm, comfy! Love!"
…. Another word that the Nightmare King had not taught. It seems like those positive Vessel's memories were influencing what it knew. Or perhaps, it had been the dream essence he fed this young god. Either way it was… good. This progress was a positive one for a creature of dreams. It was only strange to have such actions turned towards the Nightmare King. No mortal or bug has touched him with kindness in mind in centuries.
"Do you know what such action is called?" The Nightmare King bent down to easily open the jar of honey with a sharp twist of his wrist. He heard the dream child let out a soft purr at the back of its throat and it nodded.
"Yea! Hug! Comfy with love! Love Grimm cause comfy warm!"
So it did know. This had been his plan, to make this new dream god attached to him to be his ally from the beginning. But he hadn't expected that fondness to be so… energetic, open and genuine. He had expected the dream child to act more like his late sister… Quiet, attentive yet wouldn't want to be in his presence more than necessary.
This dream child was her exact opposite. Loud, forgetful and seemed almost dependent on his attention. It reminded him of another mortal Pale Being far in the past.
He looked over at the mess of feathers this dream child had created. "Why have you destroyed your pillow again?"
"Soft floof! Comfy to roll." The dream child set aside its new jar of honey and proceeded to demonstrate it by laying down into the mass of feathers with a giggle and started to roll back and forward. Feathers got stuck on its form as the dream child did this.
Perhaps the Nightmare King should have Grimmkin watch over this dream child so it would have a more supervised exploration of everything it received. Once he showed other material to the child, it had the risk of hurting itself. A schedule, then. Making sure this dream child learned everything it needed to learn could be prioritised. And it clearly needed some form of outlet for all of its energy. The smaller Grimmkin could be playmates to the dream child.
"Today, I will teach you script." The Nightmare King called for its attention as he sat down on the floor in front of the table. Some honey made the surface sticky, so he wiped it off with a warm cloth. "There are many different scripts made by mortals and gods. You will learn how to read them all."
The dream child quickly joined him by the table with wide eyes and an eager grin. It craved knowledge just like it craved attention. Its focus was limited, so their theoretical lessons never lasted long. The practical lessons were a lot easier to capture the child's attention with.
"Thank you, Grimm!"
Hm. Polite. He nodded towards the dream child and set a book in front of it. Then, he started the lesson on script. It needed a baseline knowledge on script before it could use its powers to translate what it read into something it could understand without fully knowing the language. The Nightmare King would give this child all of the basics it needed to be able to govern over the dream realm.
Until its training was complete, the Nightmare King was still forced to push dream essence where it needed to be and give the new god of dreams essence for it to bond with. The sooner this project was finished, the sooner the Nightmare King could return to his usual work.
The dream child took to having play mates really well. As did the Grimmkin of the nightmare realm. The child now had others it could ask questions to, others it could perform activities with that the Nightmare King never had any interest in performing. There were many times the Nightmare King stepped into the dream child's space and found them in an intense chase of tag with the Grimmkin scheduled to watch them.
Every visit was now greeted by a hug as well. The Nightmare King never found a reason to refute it, since this joy and genuine affection was something the Dream God should have. And so, he allowed the hugs as greetings but never reciprocated them.
The Grimmkin were shocked that he allowed the contact. Of course they would, the Nightmare King didn't allow his servants to act casual with him in any way. Which included touching him. So touching the Nightmare King has been completely unheard of for centuries. But now, this dream child was granted the privilege to do so. The Nightmare King didn't doubt that the Grimmkin spoke amongst themselves about how much leeway he allowed the dream child to have with their interactions.
This child was a being of dreams and should never be discouraged to perform actions befitting of dreams. It was a creature made from the Nightmare King's core, his other half and the second piece of the balance between the realms. Of course it would be granted privileges with its interactions where no one else could. He would be successful in creating the perfect ally and god of dreams.
It was strange how badly he wanted this project to succeed… He had put in a lot of time and effort, so of course he wanted his efforts to pay off. But seeing this dream child grow more intelligent and gain more emotional intelligence… It was rewarding in a way the Nightmare King hadn't expected it to be.
"Grimm!!" The dream child wrapped its arms around him in greeting as usual. "Grass tastes so weird! It's super soft though, and smells nice! What else is grass? I wanna see all from the picture books! The Geo book one! What's sand? What's ocean? What's topical island?"
"Tropical island." The Nightmare King corrected the dream child and waited for it to let up on the hug before he spoke again. "I could show you any environment you wish. As long as you hold in your excitement and don't leak any dream essence into my realm. I doubt you're fit for that just yet."
"I am! I can!" The dream child insisted with its hands clenched in front of its chest. "I'll be good!"
"And yet, the Grimmkin seems especially tired." The Nightmare King noted as he looked at his servants. Long exposure of dream essence would make the Grimmkin feel heavy until they had the energy purged by the Nightmare Heart or by himself. And the Grimmkin were noticeably tired and wary from today's activities looking over numerous pictures from multiple different kingdoms and dimensions.
"I-! It-..." The dream child faltered with its cheeks puffed out in a pout, looking down at its feet. "I got… excited…"
"My point exactly." The Nightmare King did something he hadn't expected he would do. He reached up a hand to settle it between the dream child's horns. "Be patient. You will have that control given practice. I will be showing you recordings of such places before you experience them yourself. It would be step by step practice."
The dream child looked up at the Nightmare King with wide eyes, stunned to silence for a few seconds before it nodded twice. He removed his hand and stepped forward towards the exhausted Grimmkin to purge the dream essence that clung to their forms. The next Grimmkin would arrive in two hours and the Nightmare King would care for the dream child during that time.
It was strange for the child to be silent, but it was welcome. It was a silence that lasted until the Grimmkin had left and the Nightmare King turned to look at the dream child.
It had a hand lightly settled on the spot between its horns and stared at the Nightmare King in return. The dream child's eyes were still wide in surprise.
"You… love me…?"
The question made the Nightmare King tilt his head slightly. What a strange question. Perhaps he hadn't explained his own realm's effect on him to the child yet.
"I'm not able to feel such a deep emotion, child. My duty to the realm of Nightmares comes first. Any emotional attachments I have are severely muted." He turned to fully face the child as its shoulders lowered slightly. "I do not have feelings the way you do. You may make your own assumptions behind my actions as you please. But know that I will never lie. I don't feel the same form of attachment as you do to me."
The dream child started to frown ever so slightly and lowered its head to hide its chin into its soft, light golden fluff. It started to fiddle with its claws, pulling on them as it was deep in thought.
"You… care for me? Yes…?" The dream child had a small smile on its face as it focused on the Nightmare King again.
"That's one way to look at it. Your development and growth is one of my current priorities. I want to ensure that you have all tools needed to take over the realm that is rightfully yours and govern it in the way one should." The Nightmare King said with a small nod. "Now. Are there any words you are confused over after today's reading session?"
The dream child's mood immediately brightened and it reached forward to grab the Nightmare King's hand to drag him towards the pile of books. It had taken a liking to having a pile of pillows where it could read, which was much preferred over a pile of feathers. The Nightmare King was directed to sit down amongst these pillows as the dream child excitedly showed him the words it wanted more context for. Context that the Nightmare King explained in such a way that the dream child would understand it clearly.
This continued until they reached a city's name, where the Nightmare King explained what a name was, what it was meant for and how it was used. It made the dream child fall silent and stare at the page with a small frown and its claws digging into the cover of the book. The Nightmare King replaced the book with a toy so the dream child would not destroy its pages.
"You can speak up."
The dream child moved the wooden dolls limbs up and down, glanced towards the Nightmare King and then down at the doll once more.
"Grimm… Do-... Do I have a name…?"
"No. You don't." He would always be honest. He detested lies after all.
"How…?" The dream child looked at him with a frown. "You call me child… The Grimmkin calls me dream child… Isn't child my name?"
"Child is a description, not a name. We call you such because you are young, but it is not a name that is unique to you. One that your soul has chosen. It may take many years for your soul to give you a name like we gods have. It will not emerge until you have realised your own essence and purpose."
"But… But I want a name now. Like you have Grimm." The dream child's frown grew. "I don't wanna wait and be 'child' all the time if it's not my name. If everyone and everything has a name… I should have one too."
"You could simply choose to have one." The Nightmare King said with a light shrug of one of his shoulders. "If you do not have the patience to wait for the world to give you a name, take one for yourself. My name 'Grimm' isn't my true god's name but one chosen. One I go by to make interacting with mortals easier."
"How did you choose yours?" The dream child leaned slightly closer to him with its eyes wide in interest.
"It was given to me by another. Just as I gave her a name in return." The first interaction he had with Radiance when they had been created together… To give each other names to call themselves by.
"Then you give me my name!" The dream child declared with a grin. "I want a name, Grimm! Gimme one!"
"I am not proficient in giving others names, child. I name things after their functions." His own vessels and Grimmkin were prime examples of this. He didn't have any form of creativity to give others nicknames… Any time he had made attempts in the far past had been cringe worthy.
"I want it! I want you to give me one! I want a name, Grimm! Gimme a good one!" The dream child insisted and grabbed hold of the Nightmare King's hand. "I trust you!"
… Such trust so wrongfully placed… But he couldn't find a reason to refuse either, since it seemed eager for a name but did not want to take one for itself. The Nightmare King looked over the dream child's form with a slight frown. What to name such a being…?
Its glow was painful to look at but suppressed within this space.But he didn't want this child's name to be similar to Radiance's… He had based that name off her glow. Naming it after dreams itself would be redundant, because a name tied to its realm wouldn't be one the dream child would be satisfied with. Its appearance was similar to his own… But it had a fur covered neck… And it would most likely enjoy a more… "cutesy" name with its personality.
"Then, I will present suggestions and you choose from those…" The Nightmare King settled on with a slight frown. "Fluffy, Golden, Halo."
The dream child looked at Grimm with a blink. And slowly tilted its head to the side. "Are those… names? Those are just things that describe me, isn't it? Not like your Grimm name. Or Garmel's name. Can't I be Grimm too, since we're the same?"
"I told you I am not proficient in naming others." The Nightmare King said with a soft huff. "You may have been created from my own core, but that is now your own. We are not the same person, so we cannot have the same name. Grimm is reserved for myself and my vessels."
"Then, Grimmy! That's not the same, right? That's different!" The dream child declared with a wide grin. "You're Grimm and I'm Grimmy! We're brothers, after all!"
The Nightmare King stared at this child for a few moments. It… was certainly better than any of those he had suggested. But to add a y at the end of his own name… This one truly had a child-like logic.
"Very well. If that's what you want your name to be. Do you want to be called by your name? You could choose that for yourself."
"Hmm. I mean, I'm just happy that I have a name now. What do you do, Grimm?" The dream child leaned up against the Nightmare King with a wide smile, looking at him with an unrestrained amount of affection. It let out a soft chirp, a sound grubs usually performed when they felt an overwhelming amount of joy.
"I tell others what I am called. But you are the only one who calls me by name casually. If someone calls me by name, it would be one who either has serious business to perform with me or one who knows me personally. I would never allow a mortal to grow personal with one like myself."
"Hmm. Okay." The dream child nodded and laid down across the Nightmare King's lap with a wide grin aimed up at him. "Then, I'll tell others I want to know my name, my name and let others decide what they call me on their own! So my name will be suuuuper special! So only my most important and cherished people will know it! Or those who deserve the respect of knowing my name. Like other gods! Or those Pale beings you told me about! Maybe my believers will give me a name too, those I'll take care of in the dream realm. Then I'll have two names but Grimmy will be my first and most important one!"
"You may do so if you wish." The Nightmare King said with a slight nod. "Just remember, once you gain your true name, it must never be spoken out loud. It would be a true name only you would know. One that holds the power you need to overcome an obstacle in your path. If others hear your true name, there are ways it could be used against you. So keep that in mind once you receive it, child."
"Okay, okay." The dream child said with a small pout. "But shouldn't you call me by my name now that I have one? I'm calling you by yours!"
"You just said that others were allowed to call you whatever they pleased. And you are still a child. So I will call you such." A small smirk grew on the Nightmare King's face as this child, Grimmy, grew even more pouty. "But I now know your name, Grimmy. That should suffice."
The child's demeanour immediately brightened when the Nightmare King called it by its chosen name. It hugged the Nightmare King around his waist with a happy chirp, one that made the Nightmare King gently detach himself from its grip.
To choose a name like "Grimmy" would clearly show their connection. If their similar appearance wasn't already enough of a hint. There was a risk there, a risk of this new dream god being compared to himself when the comparison between them shouldn't be made.
For now, the dream child was happy. For now, Grimmy was content to spend time with the Nightmare King and talk about everything it wanted to learn. Whatever consequences this chosen name would give it would make its appearance in the future.
The dream child took a large liking to technology, what technology the Nightmare King could offer him. Since it was reckless most of the time, the finer and more fragile creations would be something he would be shown in the future. Once the dream child could prove he could be truly careful and not forget it existed a few moments after setting it down.
He especially liked watching movies, moving pictures on a digital screen, to learn about the worlds he could not visit. Grand ideas of travelling the different worlds entered his mind because of this, ideas the Nightmare King had to shoot down. A god of those who sleep could not leave their realm unattended. But those thoughts only shifted to using a vessel to discover the world with just how the Nightmare King used his own vessel to harvest fallen kingdom's flames. Once an idea entered this dream child's mind, he was determined to follow through with what he wished to achieve despite the difficulties ahead of him.
The Nightmare King wondered how far Grimmy would go in order to reach his goal. Would he give up on the dreams he was created to cultivate? Would he render himself powerless? Would he change the very fabrics of the world?
It was possible. For Grimmy's sake, the Nightmare King hoped that he wouldn't want to change the fabrics of the world in any way. As gods among dreams, they had a unique position. One between reality and fiction. They could influence both worlds to a limited degree, a limit that could be stretched if one put in the effort.
It was how Radiance spread her sickness. How she had created children in her image. It was how the Nightmare King created his troupe to harvest physical flames in the fallen kingdoms. It was how he took in other dimensions in his harvest for flames. He taught the dream child how his powers could influence the world once the thought came to mind. He would not let this Dream God be a foolish one.
The nightmare realm experienced 5 months of housing this Dream God before the Nightmare King deemed it ready to live where it belonged. And so, the day arrived where the Nightmare King would lead Grimmy into the realm of dreams. A place Grimmy hadn't been in since it had completed the trial of the realm and gained awareness.
The dream child's hold on his hand was tight as they stepped into dreams and saw the state of the realm.
The clouds that stretched on as far as the eye could see were a a dim yellow colour, barely any colour at all as the realm had been drained of most of its resources already. The dream essence was weak, fading in and out constantly. The pieces of dreams that floated among the clouds were flickering and unstable, barely there as the whole realm was struggling without any proper guidance.
A realm that would now grow stronger with its proper god to guide it and not just a stand in.
"It's so… tired…" Grimmy said with his voice trembling slightly. His hold on the Nightmare King's hand tightened further.
"It is. I told you of the last dream god's fall. And how the creation of the Pale Wyrm was part of it." The Nightmare King glanced towards Grimmy, only to look away once more. He had gotten used to its forced suppression of that glow that he had forgotten how bright the Dream God was… It was a light that irritated his eyes.
"This is what's left after the Abyss swallowed your predecessor. If I had not taken action to create you, the dream realm would have been in this suspended state for centuries before it would create a Dream God on its own with the meagre energy these flickering dreams could bring to it. It had the potential to connect to other dimensions like my own. But she was never focused on expansion and touching more hearts than those she created."
"That's-... It's crying…" The dream child's voice sounded pained as he took a small step forward to look around at the realm of dreams. "It's not just from the void, it's-. What did she do to it…? Why is it in so much pain…?"
"That's an answer I cannot give, Child." The Nightmare King let go of the Dream God's hand and took a step back. Their eyes met, one pair of gentle gold, the other pair of burning red. "Go. Follow your instincts. Do what feels right to repair what was left broken and torn. Find the answers to your question on your own as you care for this realm that recognises you as its ruler."
"Will you leave me…?" Grimmy asked quietly and took a small step towards him. "Will you leave now when I'm ready…?"
Hm. That dependency could become a problem. But for now, to keep the dream realm stable, the Nightmare King would feed it.
"I will return tomorrow. Same time, same place. To look over your progress. And to make sure you are still stable after spending time in dreams."
"Right… Right, okay." The dream child's body language relaxed with a small smile. "Because my core flame is still… mostly a nightmare flame. Right…?"
"Indeed. The imbalance is still there in your core. Not surprising, of course, considering its source." The Nightmare King nodded. Because while he had, indeed, created a dream god, Grimmy's core held too many nightmare flames. "I will oversee your progress until you make those flames your own, that of dreams."
"Okay." Grimmy's smile widened and he stepped forward to wrap its arms around the Nightmare King in a gentle hug. "Thank you, brother." Grimmy pulled away and backed up towards the edge of this small platform the two had appeared on. "I'll see you tomorrow! I won't disappoint you!"
The dream child then fell backwards off the edge, spun around and used his wings to fly off deeper into the realm. The Nightmare King watched him leave with a surprisingly… bitter taste in his mouth.
How strange. The thought of this dream child not waiting for him to visit during his break periods in his work, the thought of that space he had sectioned off no longer being filled… was displeasing. Bitter. What made those thoughts appear in his mind? Was it some form of lasting maternal instincts he had received from his vessels that were directed towards the dream child?
The Nightmare King stepped back into his own realm and touched a hand against his chest as that feeling of disappointment lingered. The only times he had felt like this was if he had a lucrative deal almost in his grasp only for something or someone else to interrupt it. And now he had this feeling over the thought of this child not being in his realm…? He should be glad for it. It was the very reason why the Nightmare King had created the child in the first place.
It was rare for him to have any form of emotions, since most were burned away through his contract with the Nightmare Heart…
Would this new God of Dreams bring change not only to the dream realm, but to the Nightmare King as well? How long has it truly been since he let himself have a companion to call his own…?
The nightmare core within the new Dream God burned him. When the Dream God sat in front of the space where the Nightmare King would appear, he could immediately see how the flame inside it was flickering and burning Grimmy from the inside. And the more scared the new Dream God was of it, the more it would flicker and burn.
So this turned into a lesson on essence control so Grimmy could wrap a protective barrier around his core and not be burned further. Dreams were not supposed to feel negative emotions, but this Dream God with a nightmare core was clearly affected by negative emotions. The Nightmare King had seen Grimmy's emotions get regulated to suppress negativity, but it seemed to return regularly despite the suppression because of its nightmare flames.
"Am-... Am I really a Dream God…?" Grimmy asked as their lesson concluded and he brushed his claw over the blackened shell on his chest. The Nightmare King lightly batted his hand away to rub a healing salve over the wound. One that would react to essence to enhance his natural healing property.
"Why are you questioning it? The realm has chosen you and accepted you."
"Well, I-... I have a core of nightmares… And nightmares aren't supposed to be in dreams…" The dream child twitched, most likely due to the sting from the salve. "Am I really a Dream God if I hold nightmares…?"
"It's a sign of where you hail from. From me. It's nothing to feel shame over. You will gain control of it given time. And even when you do, there will still always be a small piece of nightmare. It's what keeps the balance between us." The Nightmare King tied a bandage around the Dream God's chest so Grimmy wouldn't rub off the salve before it could take full effect.
"Oh… Right, you also… You also had a core of dreams. It doesn't make you less of a Nightmare God… Do you still have that core?"
"No. That core is you. But it will most likely regrow with time. A failsafe given from fate itself you could say." The Nightmare King looked at his other half with a slight tilt of his head. "Those thoughts of insecurity are new. Did something happen to make you doubt your own purpose?"
Grimmy opened his mouth to speak, but then closed it again. He wiggled slightly from side to side while looking down at his lap. "I-... I just felt… how angry she was… How betrayed she felt… And how she… drained everything from the realm to create her infection… It just-... If I have this nightmare… I get so angry when I think about it, but dreams shouldn't be-... Would I become like that too…?"
"You wouldn't." The Nightmare King was sure of this. Because- "I would warn you if you slipped that far. And you are someone who would listen to reason. There is no need to worry over something that will never happen."
Any visible unease and insecurity on the dream child's expression disappeared when the Nightmare King said that. And he was once again enveloped by a hug as the Dream God held him close.
The unique smell of starlight invaded his senses as his face was pressed up against Grimmy's soft fluff. A pleasing scent, truly.
"Thank you, Grimm… I don't know what I'd do without you."
Hm… Foolish thoughts were invading his mind. But they also felt… right.
"Not exist, for one." Grimm countered with a small smile. His hand rose up to lightly pat the back of the dream child's head as a small reciprocation of the hug.
"Aaaaand you wouldn't have met me. I have brightened up your life in many ways, brother~." The dream child countered with a soft giggle, shining bright enough to be blinding to Grimm. Grimm wasn't sure if it was out of joy or to… punctuate the pun the dream child made. Either way, he had to look away so his eyes wouldn't get too irritated.
"You may think what you wish. Now, what else have you done with your first day in the dream realm?"
The Dream God excitedly told Grimm everything that he had figured out. How he could feel the streams of dreams, how he could watch them, everything that he had found interesting.
And Grimm sat there to listen. To be within the company of the god that he had created. His other half. He sat there as himself rather than as the Nightmare King.
