ProjectGorgon:Dream Realm
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The ProjectGorgon:Dream Realm is a land where dreams actually happen. It is maintained by ProjectGorgon:Miraverre, god of Sleep and Dreams. One such dream is the ProjectGorgon:Phantom Ilmari Desert.
"Who she is: ProjectGorgon:Miraverre runs the ProjectGorgon:Dream Realm, a place where dreams actually happen. You may have visited it yourself. They say that if you wake up from a dream with the sensation that your dream was real, you were probably dreaming in Miraverre's realm.
Although dreams seem to be what Miraverre concerns herself with most of the time, she is also the god of Sleep itself, and sometimes helps insomniacs.
What she knows and how to find her: If you've had one of those "it seemed too real" dreams, and you need to remember it better, she can help you relive it. She also knows what has taken place in countless dreams over the millennia. She will rarely divulge the secret dreams of someone who is still alive, but she sometimes shares pieces of dreams from the long-deceased.
In general, calling on ProjectGorgon:Miraverre for help is a long-shot. But if you want to reach her, just dream about her. She might choose to appear in your dreams.
And remember, you don't want to upset her. She won't withhold sleep from you -- that idea would be offensive from her -- but she WILL turn all your dreams into horrific nightmares.
Just... be polite, really. That's all it takes. She's a very easygoing elf by all accounts.
"I'm glad you came. How have you been?
I'm sorry, have we met?
Oh! I remember now that you lost your memories. That's a painful burden to bear. I'm so sorry for your loss! Yes, we've met before. It was years ago, in your youth. I will tell you what you've forgotten another time when we meet in your dreams. For now, I need your help once again.
ProjectGorgon:Gulagra, the god of Anarchy, is breaking into the dream realm! If he gets a foothold here he will be able to infect mortals' dreams with madness, driving them to worship him. I won't allow my realm to be used for this! But I am stretched thin -- there are other gods who wish to infiltrate my realm, and I have little left to spare right now. Gulagra knows this; it's why he's struck now.
What do you need me to do?
Right now we're in the dream of one of Gulagra's scions. He dreams of a desert filled with death! And the longer he dreams, the harder the dream is to stop. He is empowered by Gulagra and I cannon currently wake him.
I need you to weaken the dream by killing the beasts within it. Then we can work to end this dream! I have called for aid from some other trusted mortals. When the time comes I hope you can work together to defeat him.
Start by fighting back against this dream. Kill, oh, fifty monsters here. It will start to weaken Gulagra's hold.
Okay. I'll get to it.
"So it was true: I as in ProjectGorgon:Miraverre's ProjectGorgon:Dream Realm! I'd read stories of it, but never been here. At least, not that I remembered. I followed the swiftly-moving dwarf through the fog, staying as close as possible. The fog was so thick that if he got more than a few feet away, I couldn't see him anymore. “This is the dream realm! Do all sleeping people come here?”
I heard the dwarf snort. “No, 'course not! There's billions of sleepers an' only a few million in here. Most people dream in their beds. But sometimes they dream here instead. There's a cord, an' astral cord, she calls it, that can lead people here.”
No doubt “she” would be ProjectGorgon:Miraverre, the Goddess of Sleep and Dreams. An astral cord to the dream realm? That's long been hypothesized by sages but never confirmed. This nugget of information alone was worth a hefty sum. But I desperately wanted more. “So is this place the reason we dream? Or do dreamers just happen to come here?”
“People dream regardless. This place exists BECAUSE they dream. ProjectGorgon:Miraverre is made of dreamstuff. She does her best to make dreams restful, enjoyable, all that. But it don't always work out.”
ProjectGorgon:Rulgirt moved just a bit out of sight, and I suddenly felt cold cobbles under my feet. I realized I was barefoot. And naked. The fog was drifting away and there were people here: hundreds of people, staring at me, aghast at my nakedness. I recognized the teachers I'd failed, and people I'd killed, and some I'd betrayed. My closest friend, ProjectGorgon:Sylvia, stood in front of me, her arms folded, an uncharacteristic snarl on her face. Completely unrealistic: if the real Sylvia had been that angry, she'd be in wolf form. I knew it was a dream... but it felt completely real.
...
There was a knock on my door, and I woke up with a shock. I'd fallen asleep while writing and spilled ink everywhere. I cursed and tried to blot it up while the knocking continued. “Just a minute! Um, come in!”
The door opened a crack and the kindly proprietor of the inn appeared. “Sorry to bug ya this early in the morning, but you've got a visitor. Shall I tell him to come back later?”
“No, no... it's fine. I'll be out in a minute.”
She closed the door and I got dressed. My hands were stained with ink, but my notes were still legible. I was much relieved, because my memories of the Dream Realm had already become hazy.
In the inn's little foyer sat ProjectGorgon:Rulgirt. He smiled when he saw me. “You did good. I didn't plan that. I wanted to give ya a tour, not put ya to work. Did you get your scoops of knowledge?
“Yes. I got quite a scoop.”
ProjectGorgon:Rulgirt beckoned me over, and handed me a pendant. It was a tiny piece of stone on a chain. I could feel a faint magic in it... It was a bit of dream-stone, somehow brought into the real world. “If you're willing, we'd be pleased to have you in the ProjectGorgon:Dream Keepers. Don't worry, just in the reserves! If you go to sleep wearing that and we need your help, we'll be able to call ya. Don't wear it if you've gotta be somewhere the next day, though. I bet you're feeling last night, eh?”
I was indeed. “That was exhausting. I guess I will accept this honor, but I don't know how often I could do THAT.”
He nodded. “Yeah. It's usually easier. But sometimes it's not. Look, the ProjectGorgon:Dream Keepers've been secret a long time. But I think its time people knew about us. I was one of the founding members, almost fifty years ago, so I get to decide.”
“Those were ProjectGorgon:Gulagra's creations in there. ProjectGorgon:Gulagra is in ProjectGorgon:Miraverre's realm! That's where he's been hiding!” ProjectGorgon:Gulagra hasn't been seen in our world in a long time.
“Not exactly, no. He lives in another place. But about a thousand years ago he tore a hole into the ProjectGorgon:Dream Realm. It's how he drives people insane in their sleep, makes them his minions. ProjectGorgon:Miraverre is constantly fighting to close the tear, but she hasn't managed it yet. And so fifty years ago she called on her old friend ProjectGorgon:Ormorek for help.”