Dreamer's Throne

It took nearly two hours for Garrett’s body to calm down from the experience of being possessed by a nightmare. Two hours of shivering on the floor despite the warmth of the light that radiated from the chair in the middle of the room. Two hours before his body would listen to him well enough that he could get up. When he finally could control his limbs, he pushed himself to his feet and sat down in the chair. At the last moment his limbs spasmed, as if trying to throw him across the room, but with a terrible cry he gripped the armrest of the throne with all his strength, forcing himself to remain on it.

The burning he had felt when he fell into the room returned with a vengeance, this time centered around his heart. Unbelievable pain shot through his chest, causing him to black out, mercifully falling unconscious as his body, which had appeared fine moments before, began to sizzle. One after another, eyes began opening across his body, erupting like crimson sores that bled out black blood. As quickly as they appeared they were turned to ash, revealing unblemished skin behind. Completely oblivious to all that was going on, Garrett’s thrashing body should have fallen out of the glowing throne, but a mysterious power held it in place and the light continued to pour through him, burning away the impurity.

At long last his chest split open, revealing a large bloodshot eye that looked around wildly, as if trying to see everything in the room. Yet no sooner had it appeared than the throne pulsed and the warm light shone bright, dyeing everything in the room a gleaming gold. The terrifying eye seemed to sense its imminent destruction and power surged through it, creating a crimson shield that blocked out the golden light. For a moment the two lights fought for supremacy, but the golden light could not be stopped, and after a moment of futile resistance it burned away with a soundless scream that shook the Dream.

This time Garrett woke up in the real world, wrapped in sweat-soaked sheets, his chest throbbing as if the eye was still implanted in him. His gaze was grim, but there was a certain level of schadenfreude as well. He wasn’t sure how he’d known that the nightmare’s possession was hiding deeper inside his body, or what had possessed him to sit directly on the Dreamer’s Throne, but it had been as effective as he’d hoped. The only problem that remained was the terrifying window that popped up in front of him.

You have wounded [???????], Crimson Eye of Shalmoroth, destroying one of her seven baleful eyes and forming an irreconcilable hatred.

You have fulfilled a hidden condition, opening up a precarious path for your future.

EXP gain from the destruction of a baleful eye blocked due to your current path.

EXP: 6/10

You have observed [???????], Crimson Eye of Shalmoroth, one of the Great Rulers of the Dream. You have gained 10 EXP.

You have observed the Hidden Eye, one of the seven baleful eyes of the Crimson Eye of Shalmoroth. You have gained 8 EXP.

You have witnessed the power of the Dreamer’s Throne. You have gained 3 EXP.

EXP: 27/10

[Congratulations! You currently have enough experience points to level up. Would you like to level up to level one?]

Tentatively nodding his head, Garrett saw the windows hovering in front of his vision shift, transforming into something that looked like a tree diagram. A blinking light indicated where he currently was, and dim paths led to two different options. Each of those options further split into a web of additional options, and it wasn’t hard for Garrett to figure out he was about to start determining the direction his life would take.

[Each time you level up, you will be presented with the choice of acquiring a new ability or increasing the skill level of an existing ability. Please choose which of your skills you will level and then choose your first level advantage.]

Another window popped up in front of the tree diagram, showing Garrett the skills he already possessed, Whisper of the Dream and Observe the Dream. Focusing on the first of the options, Garrett saw the window morph again and a description of the ability appeared.

Whisper of the Dream

You have gained the ability to communicate with those who can walk the Dream.

*NEW* You can now initiate communication without touching your target. You must be able to see the target.

Skill Level: 1 > 2

Even though he’d never used this ability before, Garrett could immediately understand the advantage that leveling it up would bring. The Dream was a terribly dangerous place, so anything that would allow him to communicate remotely would be tremendously helpful. As tempted as he was to immediately select it, he resisted the urge and opened up the other skill description for Observe the Dream.

Observe the Dream

You have gained the ability to see the Dream clearly.

*NEW* The energy cost of activating this ability has been reduced.

Skill Level: 1 > 2

At first, Garrett couldn’t help but be underwhelmed by the second level of Observe the Dream. Compared to the qualitative advantage that Whisper of the Dream would grant, having a lower cost for observing the Dream seemed to Garrett to be lacking. However, just before he chose Whisper of the Dream, he paused, a curious look awakening in his eyes.

Wait. I only gain experience points through observing things. Even destroying that baleful eye or whatever wasn’t helpful to me. Which means what I should really be doing is finding somewhere to hide and using Observe the Dream to look for new things. So, if that’s the plan, then Observe is going to be way better than Whisper.

Changing his selection, Garrett selected Observe the Dream, increasing its skill level to two. He half-expected he would feel different somehow, but nothing happened apart from the mechanical voice speaking in his head.

[Congratulations! Observe the Dream has risen to level two. Please select your new ability.]

As the skill level window faded, Garrett was once again faced with the tree diagram that displayed the skill options he had. There were two gray lines stretching out from the lit-up point, and when Garrett focused on them, their descriptions popped up.

Dreamer’s Cloak

You have gained the ability to use the Dream to cloak your presence, reducing the likelihood that you will be seen.

Skill Level: 1

For obvious reasons, Dreamer’s Cloak was quite attractive to Garrett, but the second ability was no less interesting.

Illusory Dream

You have gained the ability to use the Dream to create illusions, confusing both dreamers and nightmares.

Skill Level: 1

Looking up at the ceiling, Garrett let the description windows fade away and tried to think carefully about the two options. Dreamer’s Cloak was the more defensive of the two options, but he was concerned about how effective it would actually be. Frowning, he was going to open up the descriptions to read them again when he suddenly noticed something he’d missed the first time. Stretching out from the lit-up point was a faint crimson line that immediately made Garrett think of the burning eye that had stared at him from outside the window. That line stretched into nothingness, seeming to vanish like it was moving deeper into the window instead of along it. With trepidation growing in his heart, Garrett focused on the bloody line and it suddenly flared, revealing a pulsing light that looked like one of the bulges that had covered his body.

[??????????]

You have survived the possession of one of the Great Rulers of the Dream through the intervention of the Dreamer’s Throne. If you choose to embrace this ability, you have the potential to seize one of [???????], Crimson Eye of Shalmoroth’s abilities.

*WARNING* This is your only opportunity to select this ability. Should you choose a different ability, this ability will be returned to [???????], Crimson Eye of Shalmoroth.

Skill Level: [NULL]

With a gasp, Garrett pulled his attention away, his body beginning to tremble as the memories of his encounter in the Dream rushed back into his mind. It took him nearly ten minutes before he could regain control of his shaking limbs, and another five before he could look at the window again. Nothing had changed about it, but as he read it for the second time a few things stood out to him. First, the description said that if he selected this ability, he would seize one of the Great Ruler’s abilities, indicating that his new enemy would lose it.

If that, in and of itself, wasn’t sufficient reason for him to choose this mysterious ability, then the fact that he would be returning it to the Crimson Eye was. He had no clear concept of what it meant to be a Great Ruler, or how a Seeking Wraith, which had been described as a lesser nightmare, had suddenly transformed into one of the Crimson Eye’s seven baleful eyes. There were simply too many questions Garrett still had, but the allure of a hidden ability was just as strong as the fear it induced.

It said that the hatred I’ve formed with this Crimson Eye person is irreconcilable, which means that even giving her ability back won’t help. In that case I might as well go all in, right?

Making up his mind, Garrett selected the ability and felt a familiar pain appear in his chest. This time, however, it didn’t result in a massive crimson eye bursting out of his body. Instead, it vanished as soon as it appeared, transforming into a powerful surge of energy that shot up into Garrett’s head. Expecting a headache, Garrett braced himself, but instead a familiar warmth spread from his soul spark, enveloping the crimson energy and integrating it into his mind.

[Dream Seed]

You have seized one of [???????], Crimson Eye of Shalmoroth’s abilities, Dream Seed.

1 EXP - Observation Seed

2 EXP - Communication Seed

[Other types of seeds locked]

Skill Level: 1

Information about the ability rushed into Garrett’s head, helping him understand how to use it and cementing his belief that he’d made the right choice. Eager to try it out, he hurried to enter the Dream, only to stop when he appeared on the Dreamer’s Throne.

STATUS

NAME: Garrett Klein

PATH: Path of the Watcher

LEVEL: 1

EXP: 17/20

ABILITIES: [3/10]

Whisper of the Dream [1]

Observe the Dream [2]

Dream Seed [1]

[To open your status in the future, concentrate on your soul spark and say ‘status.’]

There wasn’t a whole lot to see on his status, but he did notice the numbers under his abilities, which got him wondering if he would only be able to get a total of ten abilities. Considering he got a new ability with every level, he could only assume he would have the option of replacing existing abilities. Unless, of course, ten levels was the maximum he could get. His first level had required ten experience points, while the second required twenty, which could mean that the experience required for each level would either be the level multiplied by ten or double the number of experience points of the previous level.

If it was the latter, then getting to level ten would require nearly eight thousand experience points, an unimaginable number. Even observing a Great Ruler of the Dream had only given Garrett a measly ten experience, and it had nearly killed him. With a sigh, he closed the window and stood up, intending to walk out the door into the hall, but as soon as his hand touched the handle of the door he stopped, cold sweat breaking out on his forehead. Staring down at his trembling hand, Garrett’s eyes narrowed, able to feel the two personalities his body possessed struggling against each other. The young noble in him wanted to stay in the room where it was safe, while the cold, ruthless personality he had brought from Earth demanded that he go out, a complete change from the last time he’d tried to walk out this door.

Rather than give in to either, Garrett closed his eyes and activated Observe the Dream, causing his vision to rise up into the air. He could see the entirety of the room he was currently in, along with the closed door he was holding onto and a bit of the empty hallway outside. With a thought, he moved his view, trying to see more of the hallway. Like a camera sliding along a rail, his view shifted out to the hallway until he could only see the closed door of his room. Not seeing anything dangerous, he shifted his view again, trying to go out of the window at the end of the hallway, but nothing but gray fog filled his view, so he soon came back in. Next, he tried to check beyond the doorway he hadn’t yet entered, but again the same thing happened and all he could see was the thick gray haze.

Hmm. Is it because I haven’t been into that room yet? Can this remote viewing only see where I’ve already seen? Maybe I need to actively remove the fog before my Observe the Dream ability will work. I’ll have to test that.

Normally Garrett would have already fallen unconscious, his soul spark completely drained, but thanks to the upgrade he’d gotten the ability barely used up any energy. Pulling back into the hall, Garrett moved to look at the office, the only other room he’d entered while in the Dream. Sure enough, the haze that covered the office was largely gone, allowing him to see the desk and the area around it. There were two figures in the room Garrett easily recognized as Henrick and Gorn, who seemed to be discussing something. Just like the last time he’d seen them in the office, both Henrick and Gorn had shining lights set in their chests that Garrett immediately recognized as soul sparks.

Neither one held a shape, which meant they were both still in the lighting stage, but Henrick’s soul spark was considerably brighter than Gorn’s. Focusing his view down on Henrick, Garrett couldn’t help but frown as the view started to distort, almost as if static was being introduced into it. The closer he got to Henrick, the greater the disruption, and he quickly realized that his soul spark was starting to dim. Pulling back out, everything went back to normal, causing his frown to lighten. Trying it with Gorn, he found that the distortion still appeared, but it wasn’t nearly as strong.

It must have something to do with the strength of their soul sparks. I wonder if the same will be true for different classes of nightmares? I bet the same will apply to my other abilities as well, though I guess I could just test it.

Zooming in on Gorn, Garrett activated his newest ability, Dream Seed, only to find himself stymied from the outset.

[You have not yet unlocked the ability to plant Dream Seeds without line of sight to your target. Level up in the path of the Watcher to unlock this ability.]