The words hung in the air, solid proof of the unimaginable . Alex stood frozen, his mind a perfect blank. Before he could form another thought, before he could scream or question, or even breathe… a soft, clear chime echoed through the void.
New text bloomed across the screen
[Welcome, Dreamer. Would you like to begin?]
“Begin… begin what?” Alex muttered, the words barely a whisper.
He stared at the shimmering light on the screen, his gaze flickering between the text, the river with its countless streams and the clusters of light swirling to his left. He couldn’t make sense of it… and yet no panic came.
A strange sensation washed over him. He wasn’t afraid. He wasn’t confused. It felt as if two perspectives were clashing inside his skull: one half of his mind screaming at the absurdity of it all, the other watching with cold, detached acceptance.
One part of him recognized this place. The Veil. the place between worlds. It was the fleeting void the mind traversed just after slipping into deep sleep. But if that were true, why hadn’t he recognized it before? How come he is only now aware of the existence of such a place?
The questions surfaced in the subjective half of his mind, only to be immediately silenced by the objective side with two words.
Lucid Dreaming.
‘Am I dreaming?’ The thought was a spark.
‘This is real!’ A counter-spark, brighter and hotter.
The realization didn’t just echo in his skull, it reverberated through the infinite black glass beneath his feet. He was awake. Inside the dream. The moment the truth clicked, the gates of his mind flooded open. Astonishment, delight, fear… they crashed into him all at once, a chaotic mix of adrenaline and awe. The revelation made his blood tingle.
He wasn’t a prisoner here. He was an explorer.
“That means I can experiment with dreams, right?” Alex grinned. “Begin!.”
He spoke the command, but the sound didn’t just leave his lips, it seemed to ripple from all directions at once, answering his own voice with power.
The screen shimmered, the previous text dissolving into new lines.
[ Alex Dawson has reached the threshold necessary and has achieved Dream Lucidity. Morpheus Congratulates you.]
“Threshold?” Alex wondered aloud. “What threshold? How did I…?”
The screen flickered, ignoring his confusion.
[Would you like to view your basic stats?]
“Stats? Like a video game? Wait, I am dreaming… No, no, this is real, it has to be!”
The two perspectives clashed again, fracturing his focus. His vision swam, the glorious vista of the Veil blurring at the edge as if he were losing a weak signal. The reality of the dream threatened to collapse under the weight of his doubt.
But Morpheus was an anchor, pulling him back
[Lucidity: 21% (-3%)]
[Warning: Fragment Drift Detected]
“Frag… fragment what?”
Pain, sharp and searing like a hot ice pick, lanced through his temple. His heartbeat thundered against his eardrums, he pressed his palms to his head, groaning as he collapsed to his knees on the featureless floor.
The world flickered. One second he was on the black glass of the Veil, the next, a blinding flash of his bedroom, the sharp scent of coffee stinging his nose before he was violently wrenched back. It happened in a fraction of a second, a terrifying loop of unstable existence.
Just as he felt his mind tearing apart, the voice returned. This time, its’ wasn’t cold. It was a soft, gentle whisper that seemed to soothe the frying edges of his soul.
[would you trade a memory for stability?]
The offer hung in the air, both balm and bargain. The pain receded for a single, blissful moment, only to return with a vengeance. Alex didn’t care about the cost. He just needed it to stop.
“Yes… yes, i do!” Alex screamed, his voice raw. “Take it! I trade a memory!”
[Memory received.]
[Lucidity: 26%(+8%)]
Instantly, the agony vanished. The chaotic noise in his head faded, leaving only a heavy silence.
Alex slowly stood, testing his balance. The fracture in his mind had sealed shut. The duality was gone, he could think clearly.
“Right. The Veil,” Alex said, his voice steady. He stared at the shimmering screen. “The place between worlds.”
“I am dreaming… but it’s real.”
He lifted a figure and tapped the screen. New text scrolled into view.
------------------------------ MORPHEUS ------------------------------
Lucidity : 26%▼
Realm Alignment : Common Dream (Ready to Ascend)▼
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Lucidity Tier : Tier 0 (Dormant Dreamer)▼
Tier Level : N/A▼
Dream Resonance : 67/100▼
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“Lucidity?” Alex’s gaze lingered on the text. “Wait, a drop-down… was that there before? Should I click it, or…?” Before he could finish, the synthesized voice cut in.
[Morpheus is your dream interface, Dreamer. It is tailored to the aspects most familiar to your subconscious.]
The voice continued, unravelling the nature of the system. Morpheus wasn’t just a program, its was an entity. Ancient. Manifesting in a form Alex could understand.
‘Because I’m a gamer,’ Alex realized, a corner of his mouth twitching upward.‘it pulled this UI straight from my memories of RPGs and Sci-fi movies.’
According to Morpheus, physical touch was purely optional. Alex could dismiss or summon the shimmering interface with mere thought, navigating it as effortlessly as breathing, and only he could see it.
Fascinating.
To test it, Alex willed the screen away. It vanished instantly. With another thought, he pulled it back, the blue light snapping into existence before his eyes.
------------------------------ MORPHEUS ------------------------------
Lucidity : 26%▼
Realm Alignment : Common Dream (Ready to Ascend)▼
Lucidity Tier : Tier 0 (Dormant Dreamer)▼
Tier Level : N/A▼
Dream Resonance : 67/100▼
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“So, these drop-down arrows…” Alex murmured, studying the interface. “I just think about them?” He focused his will on the arrow next to Lucidity. It responded instantly, expanding with a soft hum of light to reveal the details hidden beneath.
[ Lucidity: 26% ]
[ Description: Lucidity measures a dreamer's awareness, control, and stability within the Realms of Dreams. It is the lens through which chaos is focused into will. Progress is divided into Tiers, each containing five sub-levels (Lv.1–Lv.5). ]
“So, the percentage represents my awareness level,” Alex mused, the concept sinking in.
‘But how do I gain it? And what do Tiers actually do?’
The questions echoed in his head, but curiosity won. He shifted his focus to the next arrow, expanding the text.
[ Realm Alignment: Common Dream (Ready to Ascend) ]
[ Description: The realm of ordinary dreams. Chaotic, personal, and deeply unstable. It is a sea of subconscious reflections where daily thoughts, forgotten fears, and fragmented memories swirl in an endless, turbulent current. ]
Alex gaze lingered on the words. ”Common Dream,” he whispered. His eyes locked onto the glowing tag next to it: Ready to Ascend.
The implication was obvious. If this was the “Common Dream”, then there had to be something higher. Something better.
“Well then…”
A wide grin stretched across his face. As a gamer… specifically the kind who smashed the Skip Tutorial button the second it appeared, the phrase Ready to Ascend was an invitation. He didn’t want manuals. He wanted gameplay.
“After all, this is a dream, and I’m awake,” Alex said, his voice booming with unearned confidence. “That means I’m the god of this world.”
Alex stood tall, chest puffed out and closed his eyes. He let the leash off his imagination. Images flashed behind his eyelids: soaring through the skies like a superhero, commanding armies as a king, living inside the ink-and-color panels of his favorite webtoons. The possibilities were infinite.
He was ready to bend this reality to his will.
His smile faltered, the edges curling downward. “I just hope I don't wake up yet,” he whispered to the void.
‘Don’t think about that,’ he told himself, shaking the fear away. ‘I’m here now. That’s all that matters.’
The world of dreams was waiting and as if sensing the anticipation vibrating off him, Morpheus spoke again
[Would you like to Ascend to a higher Realm?]
Alex locked eyes with the screen floating in silence. Two simple options hung there, pulsing with light.
[YES] [NO]
He hesitated for a heartbeat, his finger hovering mere inches from the prompt
‘No time to think, Alex. Deep down, you know you’ve always wanted this’
He tapped [YES].
Instantly, the world froze. The River of Dreams ceased its flow. The distant shimmers of light hung motionless in the Void. The silence deepened, becoming a physical pressure against his eardrums.
And then, it began.
[Dreamer Ascending]
[Realm Alignment: Common Dream → Lucid Realm]
From the frozen depth of the river, a single thread of golden light ignited. It unspooled, stretching directly toward where Alex stood. He watched, mesmerized as it swirled around him in a helix of brilliance, its other end shooting back into the void, connecting itself to one of the river’s many streams, then diving into one of the countless, sparkling motes of dust within that stream.
Weightlessness took him. He began to levitate, his hair swaying in a windless world. His eyes reflected the consuming gold, and a wide unconscious smile graced his lips. It was pure, unfiltered wonder.
But that wonder shattered in an instant, as a voice deeper and colder than before echoed through his very being.
[Beginning Dream Trial: The Crying Spire]
“Wait, what?”
The veil vanished. Not like a curtain closing, but like air being sucked out of the universe. His vision and thoughts slammed out of sync. One moment, he was floating in cosmic light, the next, gravity drove him into the dirt.
His boots crunched on the loose gravel. The metallic tang of blood and sickly scent of rotting flesh filled his nose, choking him.
Alex coughed, wiping dust from his eyes as he looked up. The golden light was gone. The interface was gone.
And he stood on a battlefield.
