a little dream of her | part i

[groundrules]

A LITTLE DREAM OF HER

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This is the first of two logs covering the Dream county travel Arc — it stretches until 23 April OOCly and covers roughly one IC week. There is an entirely optional wedding mystery plot, which will depend heavily on information gathering, sharing and deduction, rather than on supernatural powers.

Boarding scenarios for existing and new characters are covered under the Old Timers and New Arrivals header, respectively. Click on the tabs for details!

OLD TIMERS

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Absorbing Wrath, Licyn and Yelena’s feedback, King Deimar of Alem decides against joining his brother Haiva in ‘noble sacrifice’ to hell. Good news for the party, who depends on royal savvy to reach Alem’s otherworld transport beacon, buried in the labyrinthine tunnels beneath crumbling Alem.

■ Deimar and his paladins guide small groups back to the beacon — but the keypoint’s war-drained energies only let a handful of party members out. Characters who have dropped or been swept by AC during Arc VI go home. You can also canon update your character now.

The party must heads onwards east, boarding a dreamy train at a station near Hassir. Here, find exotic stalls with wares once intended for Alem — from the latest travel fashions, to unlucky artefacts, heavy alcohol and narcotics. You can even purchase a domestic ghost.

Whether the Merchant supplies a ticket or false staff uniforms for you to proactively sneak aboard, don’t dally — this train runs like clockwork.

NEW ARRIVALS

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You wake up to claustrophobia, ash and gravel in your mouth — and a sense of urgency: run. Midway through a slovenly, rattling underground corridor, you meet an irritable woman, who leads you out, at the foot of a serene, smoke-topped mountain.

The woman passes you a pendant that allows you to understand her and to communicate with others like you. You are one of many otherworlders brought into Akhuras by undead lords who seek to weaponise you, as they battle humans and each other for dominion. Don’t believe her? Look up. The holy citadel Alem yet burns before the dead armies of Rahakku.

The woman is Karsa, an associate of the elusive Merchant, who collects and leads otherworlders east, where ancient beacons can transport them home.

Regrettably, you’re late — you arrived with the unexpected last gasps of Alem’s dying beacon and must now catch up with the others, who’ve departed on the Sandman train express.

WHY THE LONG FACE?

Karsa barters for a carriage led by two nightmare horses, along with several such steeds for confident riders. These are mercurial mounts and dizzyingly fast — your only shot to reach a train travelling through Dream county.

■ Karsa warns you must not fall asleep during travel. The horses will invade your nightmares, consuming your vital energy while you suffer asleep.

■ Talk at all times or sound the shrill silver bells Karsa provides to wake up any sleepers.

You reach the seaside village of Kyari, where you must board the incoming Sandman express. Regrettably, the horses have left Karsa with just enough coin for one ticket for the wounded Dean Winchester. Everyone else: make do.

You must also help Karsa sneak in fist-sized, forbidden dream boxes. Try to avoid the Sandman’s guards and their canine sentries, who scent newly boarding passengers for such contraband. Return the boxes to Karsa once on the train.

You’ve got 45 minutes to board, once the Sandman reaches its rustic station. Some options?

■ Play stowaway and break the rustier locks of the economy class cars.

■ Sweet talk the depressed Conductor. You bought, but just… forgot your ticket.

■ Distract the guards while your group boards, so they can sneak you on after.

■ Plant dream contraband on another would-be passenger, when the dogs draw close.

■ Ride one of those god-forsaken horses and jump on top of the train once it starts moving, then make your way in through ceiling hatches. God help.

A fully veiled young woman might lend you a hand.

THE SANDMAN

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All aboard… the Sandman, a majestic 100-car train that gallops on an emaciated railway across Dream county. Ghosts and dream residents wave as it passes by.

The Sandman stops once after leaving Alem, at seaside village Kyari, before crossing the abyss of the Cradle — the turbulent, storm-prone birthplace of dreams, where it is constantly night-time.

Some say the Cradle is only a cauldron for those who steal dreams or make them into living things. Others say the Cradle has its own mind.

To avoid igniting dream storms, passengers are strictly prohibited from carrying dream tokens and performing dream magic. Characters find their powers are significantly reduced while travelling on the Sandman.

New arrivals join the Sandman at Kyari with group caretaker Karsa, who introduces them to the old party.

■ The Sandman offers exquisite single-person compartments with en-suite bathrooms for First Class passengers, while Second Class travellers share generous cabins in pairs, and up to four voyagers can bunk up in… cozy Third Class cabins. Shared bathrooms and a small sauna cabin are also available.

■ You can hide in the staff, luggage or coal stock rooms.

■ You can decide your character’s First/Second/Third Class, staff or stowaway status. (Pick a job for staff!)

■ The LOST & FOUND booth contains an assortment of clothes and items forgotten by passengers, which you can raid (within reason). Latest findings: cigarettes, medical-grade opiate powders, a a beautiful green dress and pink striped men’s suit, all brought in after the Sandman leaves Kyari.

■ Amenities range from dining & bar carts to game, exercise and cinema halls where the (PG-13!) pleasant dreams you’ve gambled away can be viewed freely, or passengers can hold recitals or seminars.

■ You can gamble in regular currency or pleasant dreams (not memories).

■ Travellers are polite and social. You learn early on that you share a voyage with renown heroine and First Class passenger Firo, who, alongside her friends and sister party, picks up her bride Prassenze from Kyari.

■ Within two hours of leaving Kyari, the sky begins to darken, becoming pitch black and occasionally loudly stormed. It stays a starless night time throughout your journey over the Cradle.

■ For communal safety, windows and doors are locked and magically enforced shut after the train departs Kyari. The nightmare storms within the Cradle region crackle with highly chaotic energy that can (re)shape reality, endangering passengers. Deputy conductor Michel Bauc holds the window and door keys. An irritating, tinny, train-wide alarm sounds if anyone tries to force a window open.

■ You might sometimes find fellow passengers trying to exit the train or open the windows to join the storms, while they nap. Do wake up them up.

■ Whether you’re an insomniac or don’t typically need sleep, you find you fall instantly asleep at midnight and awaken refreshed by 8 a.m.

■ A skeletal crew serves the Sandman at night. The most authoritative figure is gloomy Conductor Rossakoff, who slinks silently across the train.

THE MENU

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Trot down to the dining carts for an unforgettable meal included with your ticket. Formal evening attire is expected during dinner. Some courses are lightly sparkled with stimulants that deepen certain aspects of diner’s emotions during the meal — this is not disclosed ICly, but visible to you OOCly in the menu. (ex: the Ham and Laughter Eggs triggers roaring laughter and a good disposition ).

   BREAKFAST

   SUPPER & DINNER

   SNACKS & BEVERAGES

DREAM SMUGGLERS

The new arrivals helped Karsa bring contraband aboard, but they’ve steps to go to their final destination. The sorceress doles out fist-sized boxes containing precious dream fragments of happiness, sadness, fear, surprise, anger, guilt or disgust — explicitly prohibited cargo that regains its magical properties once aboard the Sandman.

Each box comes with instructions for drop off under a dining hall table at midday, under a roulette table by 6 p.m. or in the coal room by 8 p.m. Karsa says the deliveries are an explicit favour from the Merchant to an old (dream thief) friend aboard the Sandman.

■ Pair up for your run! Those who hold dream boxes feel their emotions to a player-chosen degree of intensity, throughout their adventure.

■ Beware the vigilant guards of the Sandman, who run frequent searches for illicit dream artefacts. Some bring dream-catching dogs who catch the scent of the dreamed things.

■ You may feel unusually sleepy while holding dream boxes. Doze, and you wake up to find your dreams have summoned a wo/man, child or animal whose temperament embodies the box’s emotion. They can’t help drawing attention, but slowly disappear within 30-60 minutes — wait, are those the guards?

■ Caught smugglers are locked into ‘jail’ cabins, while their contraband is placed in the office of Conductor Rossakoff. First-time captives can be bailed out at ludicrous expense or in exchange for maid service, but repeat offenders are jailed
for the rest of the voyage. Liberate your dream box back from the Conductor’s strangely barren, otherwise untouched compartment.

■ Successfully delivered boxes feed into the mystery of the missing bride. You mysteriously fall asleep to a sweet dream if you wait to meet the collector — and wake up to a feeling of wrongness, as if reality is mute and diffuse around you, before your hearing and vision resettle.

THE GROUNDHOG WEDDING: A MYSTERY

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Firo’s bride Prassenze boards the Sandman from Kyari. She comes alone, veiled head to toe, and only brings a modest case. She is short, thin, pale and shy, prone to silence and retiring to her cabin at the earliest opportunity — a far cry from boisterous Firo.

…so much so that Firo’s sister Lita and friends Dulcinea, Maiza and Attru tell anyone who’ll listen that Firo is marrying this girl after courting her for six months through correspondence. Even bashful Hugo admits the pair is… perhaps a little mismatched. This is their first in-person encounter.

■ The wedding party members plead or offer coin for you to coerce the loving pair to delay their marriage — or to sabotage the wedding, due to take place in two days.

■ An enthusiastic Firo meanwhile asks if you can help with celebratory clothing or wedding ornaments.

■ Shortly after, Lita appears lost in her thoughts and altogether not there, clutching a letter in hand, the day after the Sandman departs Kyari.

HERE COMES THE BRIDE... AGAIN

1.0

No one forgets their wedding night — least of all brave Firo, who, vows performed, makes merry with her group and timid bride over a magnificent feast in the dining halls. Everyone is invited.

The blushing bride is visibly infatuated with Firo, but overwhelmed by the loud, relentless social activity. She hardly speaks to anyone, other than Firo, whose friends complain increasingly loudly that Prassenze is aloof, a cold fish, and thinks herself above them.

Prassenze excuses herself to freshen up in her cabin. Nearly an hour’s absence later, a worried Firo checks up on her — finding the bride’s compartment locked from the inside. Once the door is forced open, the partygoers — and you? — discover the inside stormed, bridal veils discarded on the floors, and windows widely open as the Cradle’s nightmare tempests rage.

The bride has vanished.

Terrified, Firo questions everyone in earnest, accepting your assistance to find Prassenze.

2.0.

You wake up next morning to find everyone reliving the same wedding day, which only fellow otherworlders recall. Squinting outside, you see new landscape — suggesting the Sandman has covered a day’s journey.

The bride Prassenze is present again, but sharply different in appearance and manner. Now, she is closer to Firo in size, her build athletic. Her manner is brusque, assertive, commanding. Some in Firo’s group are put off, others frightened. Firo appears a little taken aback by her bride’s domineering nature.

During the second wedding, a drunk Maiza and Dulcinea quarrel with Prassenze, who doesn’t back down. A frustrated Firo tries to break the fight, verbally lashing out at her friends for drinking and at Prassenze for stooping to their intoxicated level.

Prassenze storms to her cabin. She is once more found missing, when searched. As before, her compartment was locked from the inside, the window is wide open, and her veils have been abandoned.

3.0.

You wake up to a third wedding day, with only party otherworlders recalling the past two days. Prassenze looks and acts differently from the first and second wedding day — now she is of average build and height, with an especially jovial, overly friendly manner, prone to laughter and pranks. This time, she drinks with Firo’s friends, plays (and wins!) at many of their card and dice games, humours their stories and even flirts — but is so devoted to Firo’s group that she accidentally neglects Firo herself throughout the day. Firo repeatedly tries to coax her to spend time together, but fails, and abandons her during the wedding feast — perhaps meeting you for a drink instead?

Realising she has driven Fire away, a distressed Prassenze once more withdraws into her compartment at the end of the (third) wedding night — and disappears, leaving the same clues behind as on the first and second wedding day.

There are no further repetitions and time passes regularly after the third wedding day. The morning after, apothecary passenger Rigolante mentions asks Conductor Rossakoff to conduct a search, as some of his herbs and measuring tools have gone missing.

■ Player characters can change events and investigate during the second and third groundhog wedding days. Regrettably, Prassenze still disappears.

■ Non-PC characters and the Sandman’s crew only recall the third wedding day.

■ Conductor Rossakoff says the number of dreamers whose dreams help propel the Sandman during the obligatory midnight-8 a.m. nap — what do you know, you were helping all along! — has stayed the same since leaving Kyari, meaning the bride is alive on board. No one seems able to find her… help a distraught Firo find her missing wife!

CAST & CREW

	FIRO Good-humoured, sincere and just heroine, renown for her many feats of bravery — from rescuing villages to outwitting sphinxes and challenging immortals. Loud and prone to laughter. Quick to tell everyone about her beloved Prassenze.
	CONTESSA LITA Doting older sister of Firo, married to a Count who prefers a quiet life at his countryside estate. Preposterously wealthy and fashionable. Life of every party.
	MAIZA Once a gifted mathematician, Maiza quickly realized there is more money for the modern man to make from his brawns than his brains. After retraining as a barbarian, he served as muscle (and accountant) during many of Firo’s adventures..
	ATTRU The prince of a distant land, some say descended from wolves. Walks among men to learn their ways. Looks young, but will mention at least three wives and five children in the first five minutes of conversation. Smooth.
	DULCINEA Redeemed mercenary, who once used to sell her sword to anyone with the coin to spare — some say, even the dead! Turned an honest leaf after meeting Firo, of whom she is very protective. At times still sinister at her edges.
	HUGO A pilot turned priest, or a priest turned pilot. Met Firo during his many travels. Soft-spoken, mild-mannered, but jittery, with the kind of thin nerves that suggest he has survived numerous fraught circumstances.
	RIGOLANTE An apothecary of exotic drugs and herbs. He had hoped to make his fortune in Alem, but arrived just as the fortress crumbled, before he could sell enough of his wares. Prays he will find better fortune east.
	CONDUCTOR ROSSAKOFF The gloom and doom of the Sandman, eerily tall, slinking and silent. Passengers prefer to deal with deputy conductor Michael Bauc because of Rossakoff’s intimidating and discouraging presence. Takes a hard stand on smuggling or passenger misbehaviour and all but worships the Sandman.
	PRASSENZE The all-veiled bride of Firo, boarding at Kyari. Not once, not twice, but thrice disappeared.

IC TIMELINE

Day 01: Boarding at Hassir/Alem (morning)

Day 03: Boarding at Kyari (midday); within two hours of departing, the Sandman starts journeying on the railway above the abyssal Cradle — the sky is pitch black at all hours, nightmare storms rattle the train.

Day 04: Lita begins to behave airily, as if she’s not quite present.

Day 05: First wedding (16:00) and wedding feast (19:00)

Day 06: Second wedding (16:00) and wedding feast (19:00)

Day 07: Third wedding (16:00) and wedding feast (19:00).

Day 08: Rigolante asks Conductor Rossakoff to enforce a search for his missing herbs and recipients.

QUESTIONS

NPC THREADS

Comments

[somebadnews]

[ Despite referring to himself as a kid, he still twitches when the conductor goes along with it so easily. How many more years does he have before that wears off?

Then he's continuing on his duties, since it doesn't seem like he's actively looking for the missing woman. More likely he's attempting to look busy so Five will stop asking questions, but he's not done with him yet. ]

You're stealing dreams to keep your train running. [ Words he never thought he'd say. ] Not to mention manipulating emotions out passengers for entertainment. How is that different?

[aprescoup]

Manipulating...? ( He turns, all of him, lanky and tall and long, looming. A wall of a man, making himself known. )

I do not understand. You purchased... a ticket.

[somebadnews]

[ Five resents how much he has to crane his neck to keep looking him the eye. The effort he has to put in to be intimidating. ]

If you saw where we came from, we didn't have many options. [ He's not completely sold on him being aware of the world outside of the train, so he'll keep the focus on that. ] From an outside perspective, you're doing exactly what you've said agitates the storms. How do you control it?

[aprescoup]

( Calmly, if still gently looming: ) That... is not what I said, young master. The train... protects itself and its travellers with dreams in a controlled environments. It does not use nightmares. It does not draw from the energy of the Cradle.

( It seems to him almost bizarre that someone would conclude otherwise. But then, the help should not correct the passengers. Politely, he starts the long trek down the corridor, for minor, last-minute inspections. )

The Sandman is a unique and brilliant masterpiece of construction. The finest train this side of the continent. The jewel of the waking world.

[somebadnews]

[ Sometimes he can get away with questions that might seem obvious just because of how he looks, and he doesn't stop when he starts walking away again. ]

What if they only had nightmares? [ He can't recall if he's had any horrific nightmares since he boarded, but they've been a constant in his life for decades so he doesn't imagine they'll stop now. ] Or people opening windows like they're trying to escape? You must have some way to deal with that.

[aprescoup]

There are protocols in place. ( Quietly, firmly, unyielding. ) The train... is content. We have contained... any storms... caused by the brief window opening. There was no spread.


( ooc: Heyhey! Not much to investigate on train magic, if you want to reroute back to any questions the Conductor can help with regarding the main disappearance? c: )

[somebadnews]

[ That was a frustratingly benign response. There’s a pause and he decides to be more blatant. ]

I heard the bride’s room was the latest, locked from the inside when they found it empty. It’d be a pretty good distraction if she were trying to get away with something. Or let something in.


[ ooc: That was my attempt ahha. Based on the open window, if she was trying to get out, etc. He thought train magic was at work, but he’ll keep at it. ]

[aprescoup]

You are very wise to worry about the health of the train under these grave circumstances. ( The feat here is how he manages to speak this with a perfectly straight face. )

The train must be protected. ( At... all costs. ) Passenger 583, Prassenze of Kyari. A first class ticket procured by passenger 129, Firo of Covci. Date of purchase, two days before boarding. Passenger Prassenze boarded within the allocated boarding period, bringing the acceptable one piece of luggage. She has regrettably not made use of many of our hospitality services, called on our staff or enjoyed many of our meals. We accept the exacting standards of all our passengers.

( This profile now perfectly recited: )

She does not strike me as a criminal.

[somebadnews]

[ Grave circumstances, and before he just shrugged it off as a domestic matter. The details he rattles off are weirdly specific, but only tell him that he's watching them. Maybe it is odd to purchase a ticket two days before boarding, considering the size of the wedding party. Still doesn't explain anything. ]

It's unusual though, isn't it? As well as you keep track of your passengers, I wouldn't expect you to lose one. Especially the bride at the only wedding you're hosting.

Do you expect her to answer the door for you?

[aprescoup]

We did not lose the passenger Prassenze of Kyari. ( A terse correction — 'bride' or not, her foremost status is that of a ticket holder.

...as for conductor Rossakoff's intentions, obviously they are nothing so plain. )

The passenger is still on board. The number of dreamers is unchanged. We have either not lost a passenger. ( Clearly, his personal theory. ) Or we have lost a passenger, then gained a passenger, within moments.

( A slightly... less likely probability, although the conductor does not seem particularly distressed by the notion. )

We are not responsible on this train for the private turbulences of our passengers. ( He cannot guarantee Firo of Covci a carefree life. ) We do not typically allow weddings. This was an exception. ( He turns the weight of his gaze on the young boy, callously. ) Exceptions are not good for ticket holders.

[somebadnews]

[ Interesting that he came up with a second possibility. Five bristles at the look he gives him, but he can’t quite catch his meaning. ]

And why is that? [ He tilts his head, challenging him. ] Come to think of it, you aren’t the only one who was against that wedding. From what I heard they hadn’t even met before. If someone was motivated, she could have been kidnapped or…

It’s unlikely she was replaced with another body, but not impossible?

[aprescoup]

I have... no preference about the wedding. It is simply... not a service...we provide. We are not wedding minders. We are train staff. We attend... the train.

( All this business of additional services only takes away from the foremost one that the staff should, by right, perform. )

Tickets are unique. It is not... impossible that the passenger Prassenze of Kyari disappeared, and another person replaced at the same moment, bearing her ticket.

( Please excuse his reticence, only: ) But it is... improbable.

( Some might say, an entirely absurd supposition. )

[somebadnews]

So it isn't just the number of people that hasn't changed, you know who is here by their ticket. [ He's not getting much out of him, but call him stubborn. ] How often do you check them? Or are they more than just tickets?

[aprescoup]

If the ticket bearer is present, the ticket is active. ( A slow, measured nod. He is, if not pleased, then at least at ease with the state of train affairs. )

The ticket is checked once, or if there is any need to identify the passenger. Although, I am... gifted. With a sound memory.

[somebadnews]

[ Uh huh. He could let that go, but he's acting too strangely and he's sure there's something he's missing. ]

If someone died on the train, how soon would you know?

[aprescoup]

( This seems to give him pause long enough that he considers, at length. Then: )

The ticket holder must be alive for the ticket to be valid. But tickets may be stolen.

( In other words, there is no way to know if someone lost their ticket, then was murdered. )

The train... is a closed-off vehicle. We would find a body easily.

[somebadnews]

[ He doesn’t sound too concerned about that possibility. It’s unlikely, but he heard about the state of her room. ]

As long as someone didn’t take it on themselves to toss it overboard. [ They didn’t seem so against the marriage to resort to murder, but still. ] It looked like there could have been a struggle. You didn’t see anyone suspicious? She could be locked in a closet somewhere, even if she is alive.

[aprescoup]

There are no... symptoms. Of violence that the train has detected. ( Helpfully, if entirely monotonously: ) No heard, no defences ruined. No passenger complaints.

( In fact, if he may be so bold: )

If you accept an interpretation, young detective. ( Mocking? Not he. ) The train... accepts the... eccentricities of its passengers. But we have no... stake... in their conjugal quarrels.

[somebadnews]

[ Five doesn't hide his annoyance at the dismissive nickname, but for the sake of cooperation, he doesn't act on his temper. There might be nothing else to it. As much as he's tried to wrangle something out of him that he can use, he's sticking to the story. ]

Is there a reason you keep talking about the train like it's alive?

[aprescoup]

( He seems, briefly, to frown as if this is the first time anyone has said such a thing to him, and it is both curious, interesting and perplexing. Then, walking on: )

The train is our host. It is... our benefactor. It protects us from the elements. We are grateful for the train.

( A few steps farther, nodding to the nearest compartment: )

I believe this is your sleeping place, young passenger. I shall leave you to your rest under the train's watch and bid you good evening.

[somebadnews]

[ Five watches that shift in expression with narrowed eyes. His response just leaves more questions, some less relevant than others. They've seen all kinds of strange groups here, why not a train-worshipping cult?

He looks to the door when he arrives there, and frowns as he recognizes it. Was he just humoring him while he escorted him back? It makes his skin crawl that he could refuse and the train would still force him to sleep come midnight.

For a moment he stands there like he's going to challenge him, or threaten him, or walk off in another direction. Instead he lets out an exasperated huff and shakes his head, then reaches for the door without another word. ]