The library of the Vale Estate was silent once again.
Outside, the countryside lay buried beneath darkness as clouds drifted slowly across the night sky.
Elias Vale sat alone at the large oak desk.
The candle beside him flickered softly.
Its flame reflected across the surface of several objects arranged neatly in front of him.
The Veiled Eye.
A small black sphere resting upon a folded cloth.
Beside it lay the silver ring he had purchased during the auction.
The Dream Anchor.
Elias studied the ring carefully.
Ancient runic engravings circled the inner band, faintly glowing whenever his mind brushed against the artifact's energy.
According to the auction host, the ring stabilized the mind during dream excursions.
Which meant one thing.
It would allow him to enter the dream realm intentionally.
Not accidentally.
Elias leaned back slightly.
"This should be interesting."
He opened one of the old journals from the Vale family collection.
The pages were yellowed with age, the handwriting uneven and cramped.
A previous member of the family had clearly attempted similar experiments.
Most of the notes were incomplete.
But the principle was clear.
Dream travel required three elements.
A stable mind.
A connection to the dream realm.
And a focus point anchoring the traveler to reality.
Elias already possessed all three.
The contract with The Lucid One provided the connection.
The Dream Anchor Ring stabilized his consciousness.
And the Veiled Eye acted as the focus.
Everything was prepared.
Elias extinguished the candle.
Darkness filled the library.
Then he placed the ring onto his finger.
A gentle warmth spread through his thoughts.
Calming.
Steady.
Elias closed his eyes.
"Let's begin."
He reached for the power granted by the Lucid One.
The dream threads surrounding the room stirred immediately.
Reality began to blur.
The desk dissolved.
The walls stretched outward like reflections on water.
Elias felt himself falling.
Not physically.
Mentally.
Falling through layers of thought and memory.
Then—
He arrived.
Elias opened his eyes slowly.
And froze.
He stood upon nothing.
An endless black ocean stretched in every direction.
But the ocean was not made of water.
It was made of stars.
Millions of faint lights drifted beneath him like a cosmic sea.
Above him hung a sky of swirling violet clouds.
Occasionally distant shapes moved within those clouds.
Too large.
Too distant.
Too strange to understand.
Elias looked down at his feet.
He stood upon a small circular platform of pale light.
"A protective anchor," he murmured.
The Dream Anchor Ring glowed faintly.
Preventing him from sinking completely into the dream sea.
He looked around carefully.
The dream realm was far larger than he had imagined.
Floating islands drifted slowly through the darkness.
Each island glowed with different colors.
Fragments of memories.
Dreams.
Nightmares.
Occasionally strange doorways appeared above the ocean.
Each door shimmered faintly before fading away.
Elias watched one carefully.
When the door opened briefly he saw a glimpse of a sleeping child dreaming about flying above mountains.
Then the doorway vanished again.
Elias understood immediately.
"Doors into human dreams."
The entire dream realm connected the minds of every sleeping human.
A vast ocean of consciousness.
Fascinating.
Elias stepped forward cautiously.
His platform of light moved with him.
Allowing him to walk across the star-filled sea.
He approached one of the floating islands.
Inside the island drifted fragments of a man's memories.
A childhood home.
A lost lover.
Moments of happiness and regret.
The island slowly dissolved as Elias observed it.
Dreams were fragile things.
Temporary.
He continued walking.
Then something moved beneath the surface of the dream sea.
Small shapes wriggled upward.
Thin creatures resembling black leeches emerged from the glowing ocean.
Their bodies twisted unnaturally.
Dozens of tiny mouths opened along their sides.
Elias tilted his head.
"Dream parasites."
The creatures fed on nightmares.
They sensed his presence and drifted closer.
Hungry.
Elias did not bother fighting them.
Instead he raised his hand calmly.
The dream realm obeyed his thoughts.
Suddenly the sky split open.
A massive eye appeared above the ocean.
Ancient.
Endless.
Watching everything.
The illusion resembled the presence of The Lucid One.
The dream leeches immediately panicked.
They scattered back into the ocean and vanished.
Elias lowered his hand.
"Efficient."
He continued walking across the dream sea.
But the deeper he traveled—
The stranger the environment became.
The floating islands grew larger.
Some contained entire cities made of memory.
Others held twisted nightmares that pulsed with fear.
Then Elias felt something.
A presence.
Far larger than anything he had encountered before.
The dream sea suddenly grew still.
The violet clouds above him parted slightly.
And Elias saw it.
Not fully.
Only a fragment of something far greater.
A vast shape beyond comprehension.
Countless glowing eyes opened within the clouds.
Watching.
Observing.
The symbol of the Lucid One slowly formed in the sky.
A closed eye surrounded by spiraling dream patterns.
Elias did not move.
His heart beat slowly.
Calmly.
Because fear would accomplish nothing.
The presence observed him silently.
For several seconds the entire dream realm seemed frozen.
Then the clouds closed again.
The eyes vanished.
The pressure disappeared.
Elias exhaled quietly.
"So that's how it feels."
The Lucid One had noticed him.
That much was certain.
But the entity had not interfered.
Which likely meant one thing.
Elias remained insignificant.
For now.
He continued exploring.
And eventually something new appeared in the distance.
Lights.
Many lights.
Floating structures clustered together above the dream sea.
Buildings made of shimmering thought.
Streets woven from glowing memory threads.
Elias slowed his steps.
"A settlement?"
As he approached closer, he saw figures moving between the structures.
People.
Occultists.
Dream travelers.
A hidden gathering place within the dream realm.
Elias smiled faintly.
"A dream market."
Fascinating.
Powerful individuals had clearly learned how to navigate this realm long before him.
Elias stepped onto one of the floating streets.
The moment he arrived several nearby figures turned toward him.
Some wore masks.
Others had faces blurred by dream distortions.
No one spoke immediately.
They simply observed the newcomer.
Then a voice spoke from behind him.
Calm.
Curious.
"You're new here."
Elias turned slowly.
A tall figure wearing a dark cloak stood several steps away.
Their face was hidden behind a smooth silver mask.
The stranger studied him carefully.
Then they tilted their head slightly.
"I wonder…"
"How did someone like you find the dream market?"
Elias smiled faintly.
The game had begun again.