15th April
06:28 GMT -5
"That was a bit quick?
"
John shrugs. "With demons you have to take your time, because if you make a mess of the binding then
at best they kill you. But since we're not trying to
bind Morpheus -just get his attention- it doesn't really matter."
I look the diagram over, applying my apprentice-level comprehension of magic ritual to what he's doing. Looks.. like a.. bound evocation without the focus circle this sort of ritual usually has.
"You haven't filled the spaces for active or passive links. Do you need me to get something?
"
"A piece of the Mother Star should do."
"Any piece in particular?
"
"If she touched a piece, that piece. Otherwise, no."
I nod and
step out,
reappearing in the physical universe on the skin of the Mother Star. The perspective of the starfish landscape and non-horizon throws me off for a moment, but then I look down and ignore it, cutting through the covering of rock and ice with an x-ionised knife to get at the flesh beneath. The size of it means that it's not practical for me to cut any singular part
off, but
a lump of meat should do it. Yeah, that looks fine.
I
reappear in the tower and hold it out to him.
"Anything else?
"
He waves his right hand and a faint red.. disk forms under the meat and then floats it over to its position in the diagram.
"Do you have anything she owns?"
"Yes.
"
Zagreus pulls a.. photograph out of one of his pockets, steps forward and lays it face down in the diagram.
"Right then. That'll do for Melinoë, now for the dream."
He carefully opens the box containing… Not a lot of dream powder, and taps the tiniest portion into a pestle in which he's crushed some flowers and seeds. He then carries it into the centre of the ritual space.
"Any of you know anything about lucid dreaming?"
"I know I've never really done it.
"
Koriand'r shakes her head while Zagreus shrugs.
"Gods don't dream in quite the same way that mortals do. My experience isn't relevant.
"
"Alright, well, make yourselves comfortable anyway."
I sit down, crossing my legs. Koriand'r copies me, while Zagreus stands at parade rest. John shrugs, then clicks his right middle finger against his right thumb, using sympathetic resonance to ignite the bowl. There's a puff of relatively normal smoke, then it… Becomes decidedly
abnormal. It's..
twinkling, and there's a… Depth to the cloud that it clearly shouldn't have. It flows
outward, almost reaching for John, Zagreus-. And Koriand'r. But apparently ignoring me.
Ah.
I don't want to mess this up because this ritual doesn't interact with my wards very well. I drop down my environmental shield and
lean into the miasma as it flows past me. A… Slightly woody smell
which… Oh, I… See. I
blink and I'm
almost completely back into the room. It's… Like I'm looking at their full emotional association network and… It takes me a moment to recognise what's happening
now and what's past or imagined. Ordinarily I'd try to pull back, but I suppose-.
I look at myself as.. the room falls away slightly. It's still
there, but it's less… Relevant. I'm… Larger, glowing with the orange light
and for a disturbing moment I'm not sure whether I'm looking though the Ophidian's eyes or my own.
In Koriand'r I/
we we see her think about/
relive a training session on Okaara, an armoured figure serving as a sparring partner for her class. John
sits at the feet of a master of some mystic art, listening keenly to his words. Zagreus guides an indistinct figure
through a dense forest while I…
No. Wait.
The fighter turns to
us. / The mystic turns to
us. / The explorer turns to
us.
"I see what my brother/sister found interesting about you. In the world yet not entirely part of it."
"Lord Dream.
" /
"Morpheus"
The fighter is watching the class run through katas while talking to
us. / The mystic holds the jewel up to John's eyes. / The explorer offers a flask to
us.
"Why do you seek me?"
"We appear to have mislaid Melinoë in your realm, and were hopeful that you could find her and return her to us.
"
"Yes, her sudden presence could be… Disruptive. Do you offer anything for her safe return?"
"What do you want?
"
The fighter shows Koriand'r how to dismantle and clean a gun. / The mystic passes a scroll to
us. / The explorer extends a rope down to
us.
"There is something that you can do for me. During the period in which I was trapped on Earth, there was a man who made an unusual connection to my realm. He used his prophetic abilities to hunt criminals and named himself after me."
"Wesley Dodds.
"
Dead of a stroke over a decade ago. Alan's spoken to me about him a few times.
"It has been brought to my attention that I do not always reward good service as I should. Wesley Dodds is now dead, but in his memory I would see some unfinished business attended to."
"I'd be happy to do that anyway. What's the job?
"
"Wesley Dodds was unable to restore his adopted son Sanderson Hawkins to full health. Find him, and complete his work."
…
I/
we wasn't/
weren't sure if that happened here.
"I/
we already looked for him.
"
"You have more resources and allies to draw upon now than you did then."
"Okay, if… You're telling me that he's
definitely still around… I'll get right on it.
"
The fighter strikes
us and Koriand'r both, sending us tumbling to the floor. / The mystic exhales a pink mist. / The explorer pulls a lever and closes a stone door on
us.
And I snap awake, the mist gone and my colleagues pulling themselves upright.
