Fever Dream

[Hadrian]

2nd Fall, 512 A.V. but time is relative in dreams Sometimes it was good to be people who know people, and Hadrian's connections to the Order of the Knights of Syliras went right up to the top, so when he asked them to stop for a day, they allowed it, albeit with some reservations. They were racing toward something important. Hadrian remained in his tent, attended by a Healer-Knight, who battled the fever that laid him low and, as the day worn on, comatose. It was not an ideal time for his gnosis to activate, but somehow in that state between waking and sleep, it did, and he dreamed of the chavena, the fractal pattern of his own chavi, similar but not the same as his auric signature, became a psychadelic web upon which he crawled, desperate and without knowledge of his own situation. At some point, he lost control, and fell from that familiar place, and knew true terror. But there were an infinite number of links in the chavena, and he tumbled from his chavi to that of another person, one he hadn't met, but with whom there was a connection anyway, tenuous and strange. He could not explain that. He was not quite rational at this point. He screamed but nobody heard him. He wasn't even sure sound was possible where he was, the rainbow pattern suddenly as menacing as a killer clown. He pulled himself into a fetal ball, and willed everything away. When he thought he could bear the noise no longer, it went silent. Surprised, he lifted his head from his arms and looked around. This place was familiar, and yet he had never been there. The world was painted in blocks of color. The land was black, the sea a mirror without ripples, the sky starless and a blue nearly as dark as the land. Above him, the moon was the only thing of patterns, the face of it hyperreal, its pockmarked pattern clearer than ever when seen by the naked eye. Then there was the sound of a stone thrown into the water, the deep plop of its descent into the deep. As his gaze fell, he saw the form of a man at the end of a pier, limned in moonlight. He made a graceful dive into the sea, and disappeared like another stone thrown. When he didn't resurface, curiosity got the better of Hadrian, who stood, and walked out onto the pier, taking creaking steps to the edge and peering at that reflective blankness. "Hello?"

[Ricky Maze]

It was the strangest thing for Ricky when he fell into sleep, last he recalled he and Odis weren't bound to be home at least fifty days more or less. Yet it was all here around him, in all of its glory he remembered Zeltiva was still here. Standing on the pier in the wondrous enjoyment of the night, he felt a long need to bathe within the sea water once more. With a quick high spirited attitude he undid the laces of his dirty worn leather shoes, kicking them off behind as he threw off his vest. The water waited below him now, only question is....should he remove his pants? He looked around in a cautious manner, nobody seemed to be around so far....so why the heck not? He mischeviously grinned as he undid his leather belt, allowing the worn linens to fall and wrap around his ankles. The air felt great on his body as he took in the smell of the scenery, and as he opened his eyes once more he jumped in with vigorous joy. He dove head first into the water, plunging in as the magnificent cool sea carressed his body. Oh how he missed this so. The fantastic feel of the ocean as the incoming tides feel like a gentle pulse under the water. He began to let go of the air he held as he went to resurface, his eyes closed as his body bobbed out the surface. The water trickling down his face and head felt so good, so revigorating now that he was back home. "Hello?" A voice seem to call out, but from where did it come? Ricky could've sworn he was alone, but he didn't feel panicked about the unknown stranger's appearance. Instead he felt the same tranquil serenity the ocean provided, overpowering his usual sense of manners and gratifying his emotional release to coming home. "Who's there?" He looked around with curiosity, unable to see the stranger as he may be on the pier. By the sound of the voice it seemed to be a he, which Ricky wouldn't mind seeing another fellow Zeltivan anyway. He only hoped that when he realized Ricky was nude, that he wouldn't mind and things would remain less awkward. It would feel better for such a sweet homecoming dream...but that was for this mysterious stranger to decide. OOC : I got went skinny dippy! lol Can't wait to see how Hadrian reacts! Happy Posting!

[Hadrian]

There was the detritus of clothing all around him where he stood: shoes, a vest, a belt, pants. But the water was still, and unnaturally so. He could hear the rush of waves, smell the salt tang in the air, but the water was still with nary a ripple from the diving man. One by one, the stars appeared, stinging through the blank midnight sky to burn coldly around the giant moon. Then he saw a head surface, and he could see the face clearly despite the relative dark, as if that face were illumined from within rather than reflecting some light as the moon did. But no, the moon seemed to be the source of his own light. Was that Leth watching? He didn't recognize the face, somewhat swarthy as one might expect of a sailor of fisherman of Zeltiva. Broad and broader shoulders broke the surface of the water too. Most of him remained submerged, but Hadrian guessed he was a large man. "Hello," he called again, raising his hand. It was not a question this time, but a true greeting. "I'm Hadrian. This..." He looked around, and here in the chavena, the fever no longer touched him. "We're dreaming." Knowing this, and feeling the ripple of Nysel's mark upon his shoulder, gave him power. He sat down on the edge of the pier, his own shoes disappearing with less than a thought, the pier sinking until half his long, pale legs sank beneath the plane of the water. Though he wasn't sure if his gnosis and thrown him into another man's dream or drawn that man into his own, the power to control the environment seemed to come quite easily to him. He would just have to make sure this man made it safely back to his own chavi, and Hadrian to his, when the time came to part. Nysel ought not rethink His decision to grant Hadrian power and insight into the dreaming.

[Ricky Maze]

It was weird how this stranger randomly appeared, almost eerie seeing as how he was randomly near Ricky's clothes. Yet the stranger just took a seat at the edge of the pier, shoes dissolving as if they were no longer existing in this world. He stated that his name was Hadrian, and that oddly enough this was a dream. If it what he was saying was true then it was definitely a good one, for Ricky hardly remembers his dreams and the ones he does usually aren't worth remembering. If this really was a dream though, then for what reason is Hadrian here? Was he some visitor or guardian to the dream? He felt wonder fill his mind, but the very essence of the sea washed it away as he relaxed. He swam near the pier and anchored himself to where he wouldn't drown, though if it were a dream then he really hadn't had to worry about that. "The names Ricky, pleasure Hadrian." He stated as he looked up to the moon in the sky, his mind completely tranquil as he smiled. He hadn't felt this good in a while, it was a feeling he wanted to hold on to when he awoke....if he remembered this dream. He wondered again what Hadrian was doing here, perhaps to enjoy the nice air and georgous feel of that salty breeze. As the water splashed upon Ricky he could feel his balance shift with the ocean, rocking about as if he were one with the tides. "So Hadrian," He contently kept his eye on the moon and sea, "What brings you here tonight?"

[Hadrian]

"The pleasure is mine, Ricky." This certainly wasn't the sort of situation in which he would find himself were he truly back in Zeltiva. The docks there were inevitably busy, even long into the evening, and there were fistfights and knife fights and other carousing later on; sailors were a rowdy lot. But time was frozen here, and it was a perfect night that he knew he could stretch out for an eternity if he wished it to, and when they woke, only a normal night would have passed. This was the magic of dreaming. He smiled faintly down at Ricky, who did indeed have the look of a fisherman or sailor out of Zeltiva; he even spoke like one. It reminded him of his adoptive home. "I'm sick," he admitted. "I feel fine here, but my body has a fever. I'm dreaming too." There was more, of course. He felt instinctively that he could trust this Ricky, but perhaps it was just the intimacy of their chavi connecting one to the other, the shared dreamscape. "Lord Nysel marked me. I think in my fever I reached out into the dreaming, and here I am. I'm glad you're not having a nightmare."

[Ricky Maze]

Sick? Hadrian didn't look the least bit sickly, but then some cases don't shiw just like that. Ricky hoped that it wasn't a contagious illness, but being a dream he probably couldn't catch it anyway. Ricky laughed pretty good when Hadrian stated he was glad this wasn't a nightmare, the humor may have not been in his voice but it still seemed funny to Ricky. This world was really a dream after all, because now that Ricky thought about it the Djed Storm wouldn't leave a city in the state it was in. Rememberijg this the joyous feel the ocean provided retracted a bit, a more feel of reality gripping the scenery around them. He paid little attention to it though, as he began to wonder who this 'Lord Nysel' was. He turned to Hadrian feeling even more curious about the dream walker that had entered here. "Who is Lord Nysel?" He asked respectively, knowing that by "lord" he could be referring to a deity. Hadrian seemed to have a scholarly look about him, one that did indeed show much wisdom. Now that Ricky did take the moment to examine Hadrian, he did look like a scholarly type that would hang out at the University. If he was sick then did that mean a plague hit Zeltiva? "Wait if yer sick, then isn't there more with ya?"

[Hadrian]

"Nysel, the dream god," he said, looking down to Ricky again. He never knew how much the common person knew about anything. Hadrian had been lucky to be born into a wealthy Syliran family and have the best education possible. He never meant to be condescending, but sometimes he forgot how much of a foundation of knowledge he had. "You needn't worry," he assured Ricky. "My colleague was ill, and so I must have caught it from him. I'm on a journey out of Zeltiva for a while, and there is a Healer-Knight from Syliras tending to me. I believe the worst has passed, and there should be little danger of a pandemic." Though it was not Mura, there were plenty of talented healers and physicians in Zeltiva. Hadrian was not worried, and hoped Ricky would not be either. If the man began to freak out, Hadrian would likely have to return to his fever-wracked body the sooner, and he was hoping to spend that time blissed out here than struggling back toward health. "You look like a man of the sea," he noted curiously.

[Ricky Maze]

It was a relief to know thag Zeltiva wasn't going to suffer a pandemic, such an event was one he did not one he wanted to come home to. Yet he felt bad for Hadrian considering his disposition, having to suffer an illness was one thing that was terrible. Though it brought him comfort in knowing Zeltiva should be fine he still wondered about its condition, if there would've been a pandemic then things must be still in bad shape there. Or at least it was just speculation, one he felt was just an unnecessary worry. His home would surely be there once he returned, that he felt was true inside his gut as he stared at the sea again. He heard Hadrian compliment him as a man of the sea, and Ricky let a laugh go again; this one being more subtle. With a loose smile he turned to Hadrian, "Yea. You could say that." He remembered his father and all he learned, the time they shared he treasured...until that one day. Yes that one day when he wanted Ricky to take care of the house while he went sailing with his crew mates, only to find that they would never return from sea again as the storms moved in. "My father was the real sailor, he raised me alone..I dunno 'bout me mom. Heard she lived in Wind Reach, didn't make it there to find out." He said it with little with a disappointment, his gaze now looking at the reflection in the water. He could see a man who lived alone for a time, until a companion and a push from friends helped him find the courage he needed, helping him to venture out and learn much of the world. Yet what he saw in that man now was just the same lost boy that no longer had a father, wondering now if his pa was as proud as ever of his boy. "I had to start headin' home, otherwise my dog and me wouldn't have enough to make the trip back." He looked back out to the sea once more, a subtle smile now covering the loose one."In truth though it wasn't an adventure to find me ma...but more of a search to find me." He didn't really think of it like that before, but in a way that's what the journey really was about. Now of course he was heading home, with no answer found at all. "Only trouble is I ain't found me yet."

[Hadrian]

Hadrian listened respectfully to the short monologue, seeing how Ricky worked through his thoughts by talking them out, watching the small epiphany on his face. When it seemed he was talked out for a moment, Hadrian spoke again. "I was on my way to Wind Reach when the storms hit," he said. "Wintering in Avanthal, but then I knew I had to return to Zeltiva to make sure it survived. I can understand your search for yourself; the people of Denval still worship... well, worshipped Aquiras, god of travel. Despite his long slumber, or he might be dead, they worshipped him in their remote place, not traveling. But some of their scholars wrote of the inner journey... "Perhaps this dream is part of your inner journey. Some people say that in dreams we are on the threshold of revelation, that our waking minds are no longer distracted by so many things and our intuition can take us more quickly through things that we could otherwise think them. "Perhaps that is why I am here. Perhaps Nysel wishes me to guide you on your inner journey." He paused, then shook his head ruefully. "That sounds so pompous. I'm not that important, but I will listen to you if there are things you wish to say out loud." Or not... He wasn't one to force someone to spill their secrets. On the off chance that his offer would make Ricky defensive or off-put, he continued to speak. "I have a ship in Zeltiva. Perhaps when I return and you return we will meet again in the flesh. I need to learn how to sail it." In fact, he needed to focus his studies in Animation, the better to animate the craft to sail itself. Otherwise he would need too many people to make it go. Hadrian wasn't so good with people, although he and Ricky seemed to be getting a long just fine, despite the differences in their backgrounds. Perhaps that was a bonus to meeting in a dream. Threshold of revelation.

[Ricky Maze]

Oddly when Hadrian spoke the stuff he said seemed a little bit like nonsense, only thing was it actually "did" make sense to Ricky. To come here as to find the answer he longed to find, and now that it was made clear Hadrian himself seemed to find his reason for being here. He invited Ricky to become a part of his future vessel, which would initially make him a sailor. As much as sailing was in his blood, he still had that respective fear of the ocean. As did every man and sailor alike, for there was no crueler mistress than the sea. The thought felt rather hollow at first, but as it finally found its volume it grew into a ever high pitch. Filling his head with the idea that this could very well be his answer, deep inside he felt that somehow he knew who he was. He smiled in relief to Hadrian, not many would connect in such an easy and unawkward way; but this was in fact a dream after all. Ricky felt sure that should he awaken, he would remember at least the importance of this dream. "Honestly Hadrian I know next to nothin' bout sailin', but if you need a sailor there for ya then my arm's are yer's." He swore with a nod, convinced that, after Hadrian returns and they meet face to face in the real world, he would be Hadrian's first mate. 'This feels good,' He thought, 'I think I know my answer now.' His smile was a true virtuous one, that signified his deep understanding in all of this.