The Dream: You know, the one I promised :)

[Keeper]

This has been a long time coming I know many of you probably doubted that I would ever do this, after the huge amount of time from when I suggested this to now ... but it has come! I'm referring to the story I mentioned in this thread (yes, I know it is a search. I couldn't find it otherwise ) anyhow, this is going to be chapter one (of MANY!), but as school has started again, and I can't promise that I will be able to update regularly (or even often at all), but I will try. So, without further addo, here is part one: ~***~ Prologue: The Dream Eons have past, young one. Far to long. The secret of the Dreams has been hidden for to long. Oh, excuse me! I forgot, we haven't been introduced! Just call me the Seeker. Not that you will remember anyways. Young ones find it hard to remember much of this world when they wake. Oh yes, you are dreaming, have no fear. I have come to tell you something important. Something ... wonderful! You see, we will not all descend into madness and despair. Our world – or rather, out world of the flesh – has escaped the terrible fate planed for it. Hum? You seem vaguely bored. Yes, that is they way of the young. You know you are dreaming now, and you wish to fly, or have sex ... or even just walk around naked. There will be plenty of time for that later, my child. Right now, I think we brush up on our history, don't you? I thought you would agree ... Long ago, when man first stood upon the bare rock and sand of the world of flesh he dreamed of the stars. His desire was to reach the darkest depths of this world, and journey to its edges. As man huddled around his fires, seeking warmth, his only thoughts where of the outer dark, and the strange lights that dominated his night sky. Well, it is good for us that not all where like this. Oh, don't get me wrong, much good has come from this desire to rule the natural universe. But even greater things came from the mind of the one who wished to rule himself. The hero of this part of our story is a man who I have a special connection. Let us just say that we are kin. Oh? Are we interested now? Good. The next part can be a bit ... ah, never mind. You will see ... A small group of men and women heard the cry of my kinsman, and joined him in his ques- what? Oh, yes, I am sorry! You see, my relative had found the link between the dreams and the reality in which our flesh resides. He learned how to learn, and he found out the true power of dreams. Not just for the fun of sex-on-tap, or one of the many other joys of lucidity. Oh no. He found out the key to the other worlds ... Put that down! Now, where was I ...? Oh yes! He, for lack of a better term, found angels and demons. Like any sane person, he kept the company of the angels and spurned the advice of the demons. I see that look on your face. You think I am mad. That is because you don't understand. They are not demons, nor are they angels. I just used that as a way of explaining. He found aliens then. You prefer that? Well, not even that is truly accurate. He found beings that are thought alone. Some where the desire of the heart (yes, I know you are thinking of the Warhammer 40k warp) and beings of thought not of man. He befriended the good, and rejected the evil. They taught him how to build, and how to control reality. They taught him how to enter the dream world when he willed, and they taught him the secrets of reality. They taught him about technology. And he taught others what he know. Forgive me, but even in a dream you can become thirsty. Would be please pass me that bottle ... no, not that one. The one with the blue- yes, thats the one! Excuse me a moment ... Ah, that was good! Now, they formed a city, and named it Atlantis. What? What? Stop laughing! I am being dead serious! If you continue like that I will stop my story ... Thats better. You really should learn how to respect your elders ... and betters! I see you are fading away. Soon, you will wake. Yes, yes, I know you wanted to have sex. You can have it later. You do have a girlfriend. Hah! You are surprised, I see. You didn't realize that dreams grant such ... um ... 'cool' powers, where you? Well, let me just sum up the story for you. Until another night ... yes, you can have sex there. But take it from me: its overrated. Now, the Atlantians kept the knowledge to themselves (after all, why not? The other 'barbarians' didn't deserve to know!), and continued to explore the world of dreams further. In there arrogance they made dream spirits of there own, and tried to destroy the angels and demons. Doubtless you have heard that Atlantis sank? Well, I guess you can tell the reason ... Some survived, of course. I am one of them. Believe it or not, I am well over several thousand years old. No, I'm not dead! (children of today!). Now ... there are those who are the children of the children of my kinsmen. They carry the torch forward, so that the dream of the dream will never die. Unfortunately, the ghosts of the past still haunt the present. And it is an unlikely set of heroes who will be responsible for saving the world was we know it ... ... okay, you can go away and have sex now ... ~***~ well? I will try to make the chapters a bit longer, and the narration isn't going to be like this all the time, but how did you find it?

[ExoByte]

Very good concept. A bit rough around the edges, and separating it to make it more legible could help. But I can see this becoming good! Nice work Keeper. Heh, Seeker!

[Lyla]

Hey, I've just seen this. I completely forgot about you saying you were going to write this story! I liked it! Pretty neat how the old man keeps being interupted during his story ("Put that down! Now, where was I ...? Oh yes!" that so made me laugh!) - it makes the story more realistic and funny at the same time! Looking forward to your next chapters! Keep up the good work!

[Keeper]

Done a bit later then I had intended, but here comes chapter two Oh, and a belated happy birthday to Ame enjoy! ~***~ Chapter One: The Harvest Begins “For the last time, insomnia is not an excuse for your lax performance!” Standing in the tiny office, Simon had begun to sweat. The lighting didn't seem quite right, and his boss's features had taken on a distinctly demonic twist. “I really am sorry, ma'am. It wont happen again.” “Damn right it wont! Your fired!” For a moment he thought his heart had stopped. Simon staggered into the chair behind him. He felt himself slipping deep into the dark leather. Too deep. What's going on? This isn't right. This isn't ... “No-one likes you.” His boss added, a cruel glint in her dead-black eyes. “No-one loves you. Your fired. You have no future.” Simon tried to clear his head. He tried to take deep, calming breaths. He tried. “No! No, this can't be true! I've worked hard for this company! I've ... I've given up so much!” tears began to slid down his face. “You ... you can't do this!” He cried. “I can, and I have. You only have one solution.” She reached into her desk. “Only one option. I suggest you take it.” “What-” he began, and stopped. In the outstretched hand of his superior was a gun. He recoiled in horror. “No! No, I won't!” This isn't right ... “Why not?” Asked witch in front of him. No, not a witch; a demon. Why he hadn't noticed this before ... and she actually sounded curious. She got up. “Your wife has left you.” Wife? What ... Susan. How could he have forgotten. The demon-lady leaned in close, offering the gun again. Through his tears she almost seemed like his estranged lover. “Your children have disowned you. Your friends have left you. You have no reason left to stay alive. Take the gun. Take it. Feel its sweet relief.” “No ... no.” His voice was barely a whisper. He tried to push the gun away. “I ... I still have my mother-” “She died yesterday,” she snapped. “Coming to get you out of jail. She died because of you.” Simon felt his stomach heave. He tasted bile in his throat. This isn't right! The room began to shake. “Take it! Take the gun!” Hissed the beast, its form blurring and changing. No. Don't. The new voice resonated in Simon's head like a gong, driving out the demons roars. A swift blur of motion in front of him knocked the creature from his vision. He tried to move, but the chair had pulled him in deeper, holding him tightly. “Whats ... whats going on ...?” Leave! Now! None of this is real. Go! Simon tried to shake his head, but that to was now impossible. Not real? Franticly, he tried to pull his body loose from the half-living bonds, but it was no use. Out the corner of his eye he saw the beast writhing on the ground, fighting an Amethyst serpent. No, not a serpent. A Dragon. The witch lashed out with her claws, trying to slit the dragons neck open, but the serpent retaliated with a whip of its tail, shattering the body of the beast. With inhuman grace, the fire lizard leaped over the shards of the horror at its feet – already gathering together once more – and fixed the struggling Simon with a gaze like two stars. Once more he felt the salamanders thoughts. Listen to me. This is a dream. This is all a dream. Hurry! Leave while it's weak! “I can't!” Simon pulled uselessly against his bonds. “I can't!” You CAN! This is YOUR world! This is YOUR dream! Blue flame flowed from the dragons maw, enveloping Simon. Simon's once desperate struggles now seemed placid as he heaved his body to and fro, trying desperately to escape the searing heat of the metal skinned creatures awesome will. He screamed. Fear not! My fire is a fire of life, not death. Be still! As Simon's thrashing slowed, and then stopped. He could feel it, the blessed calm in the dragon's fire cooling his pain, soothing his mind. The 'chair' dissolved, dropping Simon to the floor. He hadn't realized he had run out of breath. He raised his hand to his head, and felt a pain so dull he hadn't realized he had had it melt into the aether. How could I have been so blind? None of this had made any sense whatsoever. Like I was dreaming ... But the Purple lizard had said that he had been. Not had. Still are Simon looked up into compassionate eyes. “You can read my thoughts?” The dragons form seemed to waver, and then solidified into the body of a woman. The eyes, however, remained the same. “Only some. Come on! It won't stay dead.” She grabbed his hand, and pulled. The world seemed to swirl, many colours blending together as the room lost its form. As the last elements of the room faded away, Simon thought he heard a cry filled with rage and hate. The bronze-haired babe pulled him to his feet. “What was that?” He asked, a hint of hysteria in his voice. Oddly, he felt very calm inside. “That was a nightmare, friend. Worse then a nightmare actually, but since your going to wake up without any memory of this, I don't think you need to know any more.” “I won't remember ... are you with the FBI? The CIA? Your going to do a Men in Black mind wipe thing?” Simon backed away. “Well, you can keep your mind-probes to yourself! I won't tell anyone! I swear!” “I know you won't, but its not up to me. Its actually up to you. Your not used to recalling your dreams, so ...” “What are you talking about? This isn't a dream! This is ...” He paused. “What ... what ...” his body began to fade. “What ...?” “Goodnight, dreamer,” The star-eyed girl said softly as he faded away. “Goodnight.” Simon woke in his bed to the sound of rap. He yawned, and moved to get out his covers. “Hurry up, Simon, Paul!” His mother called. “Your going to be late for school!” Right. School. Getting into his slippers, he scratched his head. Something about last night seemed to bug him. It had seemed ... odd, somehow. He shrugged. He hadn't recalled a dream in thirteen years, the last being something of a blur anyways. He moved to where his brother was sleeping. “Come on, Paul,” he muttered, his voice thick with sleep. Paul didn't stir. “Come on, Paul,” he repeated. “Wake up.” He placed his hand on Paul's shoulder. “Wake up!” In the kitchen, Simon's mother heard him scream. Deep in the world of dreams a purple statue was suddenly filled with a brilliant white light. Moving of its pedestal, it stretched its arms, and took on a more human appearance. An ancient red statue was soon to follow, taking the form of an old man. The Purple-one bowed respectfully to the other. “Greetings Seeker.” The old man acknowledged her with a nod. “Greetings Amethyst. I sense that you succeeded?” “Yes, sir. I got there in time. I moment later and he would have been lost. I am glad you told me when you did.” “As am I.” He grinned, a surprisingly imp like look upon his face. “Its good to see you again, Ame.” She grinned back. “Its good to see you too. I just wish it could be under more ... pleasant circumstances. “As do I. They have been stepping up there activities. Moving where they can be seen. Far to many of us have been corrupted ...” “I know. There getting desperate; taking direct action in peoples dreams. Getting them to kill themselves ...” she stopped. “Jade didn't succeed, did he? Thats why we're here right now, and not at the Citadel, isn't it?” Seeker sighed. “Yes on both counts. Jade couldn't stop Drego'or from claiming the Green One. Without that, our options are ... diminishing.” “But this ...” Amethyst gestured to the hall. “This isn't an option now either. Their too strong to be kept here now.” Seeker shook his head. “Follow me.” They walked down the dusty, stagnant formed passageways, forever shrouded in unnatural twilight. They stopped in front of a half-rotted tapestry. “We appear to be exactly where my grandfather said we would be, Ame,” Seeker said as they gazed upon the ancient cloth, the forms of men and woman barely visible on its worn surface. “And these people will be our saviors.” ~***~ Don't worry if it doesn't make that much sense now. I'm going to try and make the next one a bit more ... coherent. Once more, I hope you all enjoyed

[Man of Steel]

Hey, you finally updated this! I'll read it later, when my eyes will focus properly. I've been up since 11:00 AM yesterday.

[Amethyst Star]

Yeah! Thank you, Keeper! I've enjoyed reading this and am anxious to see where you take it. You have a engaging style of writing, which I am sure will continue to improve over time. I'd be happy to share some constructive criticism if you'd like. This was a great birthday present I'll be keeping an eye on this.

[Abra]

Pretty shweet stuff. I adore the concept. <3 Amethyst and Seeker are based off of the DV ones, am-i-rite?