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What is a dream? Is it good? Is it bad? Is it both? Neither? Dreams differ from Dreamer to Dreamer, but what if they had access to the realm of dreams? What if your desires took form to give you more substantial control over your dreams? What if you had to work with other Dreamers in order to adequately power the dream to where it works properly? A DREAM is a Dire Recreational Event At Motion- The world of Dreams is composed of many Dreamers coming together in order to properly power the world so that it can take form. This is the story of a group of Dreamers who have since passed and been forgotten by all but the Realm of Dreams itself, their Dream so powerful as to leave a record in the Realm even long after their passing.
At its core, the Realm of Dreams is a vast, lifeless, empty scape. There is no color. No plants, or people, or buildings. It is simply a white void. And then, one day… The first Dreamer appeared. Make no mistake, this was not a person who could power an entire realm on their own. No, they simply walked across the vast whiteness and thought only of snow, their mind filled with the thought of cold flurries to give some movement to the sea of white. They did not realize it at first, but their thought, their desire, gave birth to the first item within the void- and that was snow. Gentle flurries started to spiral through the air, no clear origin or direction as they gathered on the ground. The First Dreamer did nothing powerful or awe-inspiring, but the Realm will always remember them as the one to bring something to its depths. The Dreamer slowly took stronger and stronger form in the Realm as they dreamed over and over again- the Realm offering an appearance to their first Child. Silvery-white hair, only a shade darker than the snow she introduced, cascaded down her back and a simple dark robe cloaked her figure. She was content to walk through the snowy landscape everytime she went to sleep- and then another Dreamer appeared. Once again, their form was vague and not really there to begin with- this Dreamer brough grass. Vibrant stalks of cyan blue erupted from the ground, spreading over half of the expansive lands. The First Dreamer was surprised when she discovered the grass. It looked nothing like what she was accustomed to, and she knew she had not created the odd phenomena herself. Which meant she was no longer alone. She spent several weeks searching across the fields of grass to find the other Dreamer. Several weeks passed with no sign of another person beyond the grass still being there until finally, two months into her search, she finally found them. The man’s eyes matched the cyan blue of the grass that surrounded his knees, his hair a rather odd shade of orange, and his robe was a deep purple. The woman slowly strode forwards, her form becoming more and more solid and individualized as her existence was solidified within the abyssos- skin white as snow, hair one shade darker, eyes as red as blood and a robe of black with white snowflakes. She introduced herself as “Blizzard.”
The man offered a small smile to the woman, accepting her hand and kissing the back of it, flowers blooming across his own robe, “Illusion.” The two decided to meet every three nights so that they could explore the expanse together, eventually coming across a pink lake, a vague form floating in the center of it. This new person never listed a gender when talking to them, and their form was much slower to form than the other two had been, potentially due to not knowing what they wanted from the Realm. They decided on the name of Hypnagogia, donning pink robes with wave patterns scattered across them, their hair a long braid of silver.
The three became a group, even as other Dreamers entered the land and added more and more. As time passed, the three watched the land flourish, flora and fauna both coming to life. But, even with it being a Dream, people will always be people, even if they are called Dreamers. And so, as the expanse expanded to fit new people and different regions appeared to suit the needs and desires, Dreamers coveted more. Many began to treat the Realm as an extension of Earth and began to build houses and commerce buildings. And then, finally, a Dreamer had the ambition to become Emperor of Dream. It did not matter how much other Dreamers deferred to her, she wanted to control all that was in the Realm herself. She would have her followers gather new Dreamers and force them to create things she wanted with their added power over the Realm, and then she began to harass other Dreamers into changing what they powered within the landscape. Jewels, castles, elaborate dresses, admirers, nothing was ever good enough for her. And so she came to desire being considered a god and have the ability to manipulate the Realm as she willed, no matter the cost.
However, as history goes, tyrants are not loved for long. Someone will rise up to defeat them. This person is considered a hero, whether they live or die, but only if they succeed. Throughout the times of the Realm prospering, the original three children resided in the woods, on the boundary of the domains that Blizzard, Illusion, and Hypnagogia created. Blizzard and Illusion had decided to be wedded over the years, even finding each other in real life instead of just the Realms and joining hands while Hypnagogia accepted the role as their beloved child. They lived for several years without knowing about the tyranny being held outside of their home- until the world started to crumble around them. A tyrant is not loved, and so Dreamers began to abandon the Realm. The three were desperate to save their home, a place where they had found each other and made a family. And so, they decided to stand up and fight. If one is to die in the Realm, there is a chance of the Realm rejecting their entry. It didn’t always happen, but it happened often enough that many would do their best to avoid death. For one that had caused so much damage to what was built in the Realms, they were for certain that she would not be permitted reentry upon her death.
Hypnagogia made the first move, changing the location of their lake from the forest to the middle of the castle, hoping to drown the Empress. The Empress did not falter, however, and turned the lake into her personal bathing quarters. Illusion was next, letting his grass fade in favor of manipulating light, accepting his namesake and sneaking into the palace, utilizing his illusions to drive the Empress insane and lead her to her demise. However, he also failed, and was killed in the process. Blizzard was the one who had dealt with her husband’s tears as he was forcibly shoved from the Realm. She held him tight that night and spent the next several weeks helping him with nightmares over what he had done and how horribly he’d failed. He felt an encompassing guilt for not being able to end the Empress and save the Realm of Dreams from fading away. And so Blizzard’s rage built and built until she finally entered the Realms once more, forsaking her namesake and turning the eternal snow she had curated so carefully into monsters and demons to ravage the Dreamscape. A dark aura began to haze around her as she approached the castle grounds, the Empress’s eyes terrified as she watched the demonic figure glide closer and closer. “Who are you?” She demanded, angry with the one that caused her to feel such fear and threatened her Dream.
“I used to be a Blizzard. But you have turned me into a Nightmare.” Blizzard, now Nightmare, cast her hand forward, the monsters she had constructed charged forward. “You turned my Dream into a place where people were harmed and never wanted to come back. You abused innocents in the name of your own dream. And so I have become just what you curated so carefully- welcome to the Nightmare. I hope you scream beautifully.” Nightmare listened with a detached aura as the creatures ripped the woman before her apart, the Empress finally being ended. Nightmare watched as the Realm she loved so slowly crumbled away into nothingness, all of its power exhausted from so many leaving at once. Everything crumbled away into dust until there was nothing left but her, and then she too, finally departed from her Dream.
…
And now here you are, the entry of the dream open once more, the blank canvas awaiting new Dreamers to paint upon it, will you enter? Knowing of those that came before, the Nightmare that once inhabited this Dream? The Illusion that was the catalyst to the destruction of an empire? The Hypnagogia that tried and failed to save their home? Or will you continue on, leaving the Dream an empty and forgotten place… The choice is yours- to cultivate or to abandon.