[Nexus] Outside XXVIII

[Lady Serpentine]

[Mornstar Rift -> Lake of Dreams]

Rael nods, and tries to teleport them both to the Lake of Dreams, at the top of the stairs leading down to it.

[Beans]

[Lake of Dreams]
What is it?

[Lady Serpentine]

[Lake of Dreams]

"The Lake of Dreams. It takes the dreams of, so far as can be told, everyone, and they can be entered by touching the water."

[Beans]

[Lake of Dreams]
What's... dreams?

[VampireRot]

[Melody's Island - Barn]

Reinholdt waits, still finding this whole thing very awkward.

"They went through a lot of trouble for this huh?"

He idly asks Ermine. It was... quite nice of them really.

[Melody's Island - Barn]

"Aye. It's nice."

Ermine smiles. She's not feeling very awkward, at least.

[Lady Serpentine]

[Lake of Dreams]

"False images, unreal memories, almost. They happen when you sleep."

[Beans]

[Lake of Dreams]
She goes down to look at the lake.

[Lady Serpentine]

[Lake of Dreams]

Rael follows, saying, if she gets close "Remember, don't touch the water yet. Not everything that floats up here is pleasant."

[Beans]

[Lake of Dreams]
She stares for a long time.

[Lady Serpentine]

[Lake of Dreams]

She'll see quite a few odd things then. One of the ones that's likely to stand out is most of when Karyana and Zwei went into Ashley's nightmare with her; another the time that Tirin and Elena came here, which involves Inside being ablaze, Tirin shooting someone that looks exactly like Megan, who releases some sort of fog upon death, and then a conversation between the Elena-clone, Tirin, and Elena.

Others are more peaceful, of course - dreams of the stars over Ostrim Tower, in the city of Taelarys, the conversations in the dream-realm that the Tieflings of the Dancing Fox Inn sometimes have.

And, naturally, there are plenty of half-glimpsed fragments; half-human birds in the air, snippets of a meadow, flashes of strange cities...

[Beans]

[Lake of Dreams]
She stares a long, long time.

[Lady Serpentine]

[Lake of Dreams]

Then she'll likely see one of Talina's nightmares after a bit; this particular one involves finding Nycca half-eaten by a fully feral Jen.

After that, it's mostly random bits and pieces, though she could probably see more if she keeps staring.

[Beans]

[Lake of Dreams]
She keeps on staring, wanting to learn more.

[Lady Serpentine]

[Lake of Dreams]

She'll see this, then, from a first-person view:

In antechamber, upon a stone platform directly in front of the doors
(copper, and roughly twelve feet tall, bearing a bas-relief of a woman, who could be the one upon the platform, though as her form is unmarred on them, it is difficult to be certain), lies the body of a woman, once beautiful, but now scarred, as though horribly burned, and apparently undecaying. She wears a green dress, and is covered from the waist down by a crimson and gold shroud, which is folded back, and would cover her completely were it not.

Opening them and stepping through, into the garden itself, the most striking feature is an oak tree, once great, but now split and charred by fire. Though it is clearly dead, the leaves remain upon it, and nothing has claimed the spaces inside as would usually happen, nor is it rotting.

Going around it, and continuing on, the dreamer enters a domed chamber, filled with strange, ashen trees, with pale white leaves. In some of them, elaborately decorated obsidian jars can be seen, the trunks slowly growing around them.

Through the chamber walk black robed people, with mirrored silver skin, and softly glowing faceted eyes, in shades ranging from a dark, almost black, purple to a bright, shining green, collecting the fallen branches, and taking them to stone platforms in the center of the room, on some of which bodies are being burned.

The scent of funerary herbs, bitter and sweet, hangs thickly in the air, given off from the pyres, and small bowls of incense set on rocks, as well as amongst the roots of the trees - and, oddly enough, it rises from the lake itself, though scent is usually absent when simply observing dreams.

[Beans]

[Lake of Dreams]
What is it?

[Lady Serpentine]

[Lake of Dreams]

"I'm not entirely sure... It's not from any universe I'm familiar with."

[Beans]

[Lake of Dreams]
So strange...

[Lady Serpentine]

[Lake of Dreams]

"You certainly won't get any argument from me there... Though, admittedly, dreams often are. Do you want to find out more about it?"

[Mr. Moon]

[Field]

"An unpleasant term for the arrangement, if you behave."
Which can be seen as either a hope-giving statement, or a threat.
Either would be correct.

Feia gestures off in an entirely different direction, towards the city of Inside in the distance.
"You will be constrained to this realm, for now. There is a city, which I believe you would fit well in."

Tel-Zaff Kax's eyes flick towards the city, briefly following Feia's pointing finger. A quick examination of the unfamiliar skyline, and his heated glare has returned to the sorceresses. It was a strange looking city, with all its blocky square buildings and the odd plume of smoke. The orc wasn't sure how right Feia is about how well he'll fit in here, but he doesn't argue the point.

"For now?" He repeats, his curiosity but not his hope piqued by Feia's wording. Maybe there was a possibility that he would be able to return home before it was completely destroyed. But he wasn't going to bet on it.

[Beans]

[Lake of Dreams]

"You certainly won't get any argument from me there... Though, admittedly, dreams often are. Do you want to find out more about it?"

She nods.
Uh-huh.

[Lady Serpentine]

She nods.
Uh-huh.

"Then," he says, going to take Arel's hand, and lead her into the water, "let's enter enter the dream, and ask the inhabitants."

[Beans]

[Lake of Dreams]
She nods and will follow him in.

[Lady Serpentine]

[Lake of Dreams]

Then, presumably, they end up in the dream. Though the dreamer is nowhere in sight.

In any case, Rael motions for Arel to approach one of the mirror-people, since she's the one with questions.

[Beans]

[Lake of Dreams]
She approaches the nearest person and asks what's going on.

[Lady Serpentine]

[Lake of Dreams]

The Asodelian smiles at her, and says "We're cremating those that died in the war."

[Beans]

[Lake of Dreams]
What war?

[Lady Serpentine]

[Lake of Dreams]

The mirror-woman looks confused.

"...the one with the Raviien?"

[Beans]

[Lake of Dreams]
The R...
What?
Poor doesn't-know-any-of-the-things girl.

[Lady Serpentine]

[Lake of Dreams]

Admittedly, rather few people in the Nexus have heard of Raviien; I think that one of Harnel's characters is the only one that's even heard the name up to to this point.

"The Raviien? Bird-folk, live up near the City of Bells and the Tla'Mxi?"

[Beans]

[Lake of Dreams]
I know... bells.
And... birds.
What's all the other things?