TDM #1 - What Dreams May Come

[perchancetodreammods]

What Dreams May Come

Dream On

Welcome to the Dreamscape. A beautiful, endless dream where you and a bunch of other unique and interesting minds from across the multiverse have been gathered to connect, commiserate, and make the impossible... possible! There are many fantastical realms to explore and even more to come, and you are given your very own Nimbus Cloud to serve as your home. This puffy pink cloud will host a pocket dimension just for you where the only limit to what you can create is your own imagination. Missing personal items or locations from the waking world? No problem--- the only thing you have to do in order to earn feathers, the local currency, is make meaningful connections with others. In fact, making these meaningful connections seems to be the only task assigned to you by your mysterious host, the Outsider.

The only catch? You can't wake up until the Outsider wakes you. And it's not clear when that will be--- if ever.

Make your way in this ever-changing dream realm, find friends and allies to earn Feathers, and navigate strange and fantastical Dreamscape-wide events as you and your new neighbors try to unravel the mystery of what exactly the Outsider wants, and what it will take to escape the never-ending dream. The Outsider isn't just an NPC, either--- they're joining you on your adventures!

WHAT

The grand opening of Perchance to Dream!

WHEN

9/13/2022

QUICK NAV

Locations

Feather Info

The Outsider

I'm Only Sleeping

♫♪♩♬

When you go to sleep that night, it is like any other night. After a long day of living your life in the waking world, you dress down for the night, lie your weary head down, close your eyes, and begin to drift off, as you normally do. However, just as you are about to fall asleep, there is a sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach that something has changed.

But you drift off nonetheless.

When you rise, you find yourself still in the same bed you went to sleep in, but that bed has been… transported, somehow, to a broad and otherwise empty room. Your feet hit the black marble floor, but even if they are bare, they don’t feel cold. Around you are tall arches, beyond which is a rich, pink, sunset sky, and fluffy clouds drifting lazily by, sometimes close enough that parts of them intrude on the room.

On one side of the room, there is a door. Tall and austere, it looms overhead, bearing a carving of a strange blue eye. You feel awake, yet you know you are dreaming. Never in your life have you had a dream like this, so breathtakingly lucid. You feel foreign here, but welcome, like a guest. It’s an odd feeling, but perhaps it is familiar.

At the foot of your bed, there is a note on a small black slip of paper, written in lavender ink. It’s addressed to you by name.

“If you want answers, come find me at the Torn Oak. Otherwise, make yourself at home. Welcome to the Dreamscape.

-The Outsider”

The only way out is through the door. When you exit it, it slams behind you, and is gone if you turn around. You begin to get the sense that you’re going to be here for a while.

The Dreaming Tree

♫♪♩♬

The first area that you come into contact with is a sprawling field of stark white vegetation under a deep purple sky. At the base of the hill upon which you stand, you can see a tree that is particularly large, that seems to be standing perfectly upright despite being torn completely in half just above the stump. A blue wooden door with a silver handle stands in the gap between the body of the three and the stump below. It seems this place has an interesting penchant for disembodied doors. Still, this is probably the “Torn Oak” referenced in the note from the room before.

Should you go in, you’ll find before you a fantastical structure that looks almost like a shrine--- four shimmering crystal pillars, a glass chandelier, and a pedestal with a glowing sphere swirling with light. And beside that, there stands a strange figure. A person with periwinkle skin and a long, slender body, draped in a cloak with golden eyes that moved and blinked. On their head, a pair of horns and a golden halo, and a pointed tail flicked around their ankles. They had three eyes, one seated up on their brow, all of which were that strange, eerie blue that the one carved into that large black door had been.

“Hello there!” They greet you cheerfully. “I’ve been expecting you. I’m sure you have questions!”

Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)

♫♪♩♬

The Outsider, your host, is more than happy to explain the purpose of this place. You are in the Dreamscape, a special pocket of the collective unconscious of the entire omniverse, and they’ve plucked the dreaming minds of a hand-picked selection of people out of their own dreams, to be here in this mystical place. They cannot tell you why, exactly, but they want you to make meaningful emotional, mental, and physical connections with other dreamers, particularly those who you do not know, and they’re willing to reward you for doing so.

Perhaps you want to get started on collecting right away. The Outsider has kindly informed you that the best way to do this is to go and make some new friends. The likelihood that you’ll find another dreamer or two walking around the grassy knoll outside the Torn Oak or heading up or down the colossal escalator leading up into the sky itself is pretty high. Perhaps you’ll even find someone who wants to walk with you over to the Glass Lake, where the water’s surface can be walked on to get a better view of the Rainbow Koi. For some reason, no matter how many people go there or how inviting it seems, no one else besides you and the person or people you went with ever seems to be anywhere around, making it surprisingly private.

Sleepwalking

♫♪♩♬

If the immediate area doesn’t strike your fancy and you’re looking for some other options, you might consider heading to the Barren Freeway. The long stretch of paved road is oppressively isolating and terribly eerie, but it can lead to so many other places, be they strange, temporary locations from the corners of your mind that disappear when you leave, or the Twisted City itself.

Bustling and full of life, there is always something to do or see in the Twisted City. Restaurants, shops, night life, libraries, parks--- and it almost looks like a normal town, if you can ignore the bubbles in the sky, uncanny structures in the street, and the fact that nothing ever seems to stay in the same spot. Though if you get lost and need to get back to the Freeway, the Submarineway has a stop right by there. Maybe in the process of finding your way, you can find a friend.

Comments

[blue_ice]

Kaiba's bafflement only grew. "No, I met Isis right before I launched the Battle City tournament. She told me a bunch of stories about my supposed past life and pushed me to collect the God Cards. I found out later about her wayward brother recruiting a cult to sabotage things."

He reached up to rub at his temples. "It's almost like we're from different realities---that were similar at one point in time. Maybe the common point was Duelist Kingdom, but some major event diverged. Maybe another one of this Outsider's 'amusing' experiments."

But how far did they diverge...? "I suspect you stuck around longer in my reality than in yours. As far as I knew, you were with Yugi for about two years. Through multiple tournaments and bits of world-ending chaos. Somehow, I kept getting dragged into your latest drama of the week."

[dethroned_prince]

"The Battle City Tournament?" The confusion was clearly written on his features. It wasn't really surprising that Kaiba had sponsored multiple tournaments but he didn't seem to recognize the World Championship Tournament at all. Atem was going to have to start accepting just how much their timelines differed, and the prospect of his own failure later in life against... Zorc, apparently. Unless there was still time to change this. "I feel like the Isis I know, would be more likely to gather the God cards for herself.."

Looking over his shoulder Atem wondered just how far it was from the Torn Oak. He would like an audience with the Outsider for himself. "I.. wouldn't know about all that..." Casually admitting that interdimensional theory was more in Kaiba's wheelhouse than his own. ".. but there may be someone who does."

"It definitely wasn't that long, Yugi wasn't near graduating when I knew him." Throwing out that reference point. ".. Technically, you still were pulled into my latest 'drama' the last time I saw you, but only in as much as you possessed something I needed and the tournament you sponsored managed to draw all the Millennium Item wielders together." Emitting an amused hum he added, "I guess you played more of a role than I originally appreciated. I don't know how I would have find all those items without your help." The Millennium puzzle itself always felt a sort of pulling sensation when it neared another item, but it was all about proximity. If you weren't situated close enough then you wouldn't get that almost magnetic sensation.

"... and the only way I paid you back was by kicking your butt." Shrugging flippantly, he turned to continue on through the forest, knowing he'd said something potentially inflammatory but he just couldn't help himself. He needed the levity to break up the more serious nature of all those implications.

[blue_ice]

Kaiba's flustered expression said it all. He clenched his hands into fists as he hurried his stride to follow, taking a sharp breath to gather himself.

"I'll get you back for that one of these days. It might not be with my deck, but...I will prove myself. Expect it."

But he was still following Atem into the forest, almost like he craved familiarity, as strange as that was. "...which way do you think this is?"

He was definitely not admitting that he was lost, but all of these winding paths and shifting landscapes were confusing.

[dethroned_prince]

Atem should have known better than to needle Kaiba over such a sensitive subject, especially if he wanted to foster a new relationship build on goodwill but if roles were reversed he doubted that Kaiba would have been able to restrain his gloating either.

"I would be disappointed if you didn't try." Though he didn't really see why Kaiba needed to prove himself to anyone. He was still a challenging and worthwhile opponent no matter who won the game.

"I haven't a clue," He answered almost sheepishly. "All I know is that I won't find any answers if I stand here sightseeing." It wasn't as if there was a starscape to consult and even if there was the constellations would likely differ from the ones he knew. He also didn't have a compass or sundial handy. "You met with the Outsider already, didn't you? So.. you should have an idea of the general direction of where he can be found?"

They certainly were. The pair were just as likely to spontaneously find the escalator or the barren freeway as they were to actually locate the desired destination.

[blue_ice]

Kaiba fell into silence for a little while as they walked together. It was...not the worst way to spend time in this twisted dream. There was still so much more they needed to know, but as far as they'd been told, they had plenty of time.

As for where to find the Outsider...? "It's the Torn Oak. An enormous tree with a giant hole in it, in the middle of a white field. You can't miss it, it's the biggest one."

So he craned his neck up to try to find that tree again...with no luck. "Maybe we need to be at a higher elevation. I could try to climb one of these?"

He gestured at one of the trees as he eyed it dubiously.

[dethroned_prince]

When all discussion hit a lull, Atem made no effort to fill it. He was fine traveling this way as he considered just what he intended to say when he got to his destination.

At the mention of the tree, he pulled out the black slip of paper holding it just high enough to be seen over his shoulder. "So that's what this meant." The tree literally was damaged in some fashion. They just needed to find a clearing where a field could be.

"As amusing as that would be... you don't need to try and break your neck on my account." He did stop briefly to look up at the tree. This Kaiba was so cooperative, it was going to take getting used to.

Expelling a sigh, "I'll find it when I'm meant to."

[blue_ice]

Kaiba gave Atem a Look. Really, doubting him now?

"I'd handle it perfectly," he groused, but he relented anyway. No need to rush him into a meeting that would probably be fruitless.

"But they've put a lot of effort into making this place a paradise, with promises we can make it better if we play along and make friends," he frowned. "But...it has to be facade, right? It'll turn into a nightmare any moment."

[dethroned_prince]

Don't act as if he didn't just see you almost fall and slip on glass, Kaiba. Cough. Granted, Kaiba had managed to regain his balance in that instance.

"Don't take that as an insult, we just don't know what else could be up there." Climbing the tree itself probably wouldn't pose as much of a problem, but if there was some unseen obstacle that could be a different story.

"It's not yet time for my journey to Aaru, so paradise or no.. I need to insist that I be allowed to leave." Atem swiftly replied dismissively to the notion. A dream couldn't bring back everything he had lost. With a sigh. "I'm not really sure what to think. I don't see how this charade would benefit our host in any way. Why... such an emphasis on friendship?" It might have been a little laughable to hear such a question for someone that was usually all about unity.

[blue_ice]

Kaiba closed his eyes for just a moment as he walked. The voice and presence were familiar, even if other things about him were not. He then turned his head toward the strangely colored sky, opening his eyes as he pondered what it would be---still a headache-inducing mess. Nope.

"To torment me? But. Seriously. Maybe their favorite soap opera got cancelled and they decided to make their own."

Beat.

"Yugi probably didn't have time to watch one of those with you, so a soap opera's a TV show that's usually about people in a small town. They're extremely dramatic stories---someone's making up, breaking up, starting a fight, getting married, or betraying someone else every week."

[dethroned_prince]

Although he hadn't intended on it, Atem chuckled at the sarcastic response. " He couldn't have found a more effective way to do so." He could only imagine just how bizarre this was from Kaiba's perspective; to be walking with someone who looks and sounds like someone you knew but who doesn't have the same memories and experiences as you. Just how close had they gotten in the other timeline? From the earlier description.. it sounded... pretty close. It must have been a disappointment when he realized this was not the exact person he remembered.

Atem didn't add any commentary for a few moments which Kaiba interpreted correctly.

"So it's like real life..." He replied with a sigh, when he thought about everything he'd been through. Then more seriously, ".. Yugi didn't really watch one of those with me, no.. but I think his mother sometimes had them on."