Mzzkc's Mind Games

??.11.2011

Initiate (Parts 1 and 2) (DILD)

★★★★☆

NON-DREAM DREAM LUCID

There’s so many of us.

But still plenty of room to fight.

One at a time, they all have to fall, else I’ll be the one to go down.

Still, I can’t help enjoying the thrill of battle as I face my first opponent, a looming giant of a man, with sad, soulful eyes and the strength of a monster. With one hand he’s able to catch my true blade and hold it firm even as I charge it with screaming, vibrating, blue energy.

“I’m impressed. You should be in pieces by now. . .”

Time moves forward, as do my battles. The refined, razor sharp steel of my pure white, twisted-dragon-hilt katana, reduced to a blunt club against these foes. Tearing down my Vizard mask, with every strike I release a torrent of black energy, tinted red by my gleeful fury. Teleporting in and out, around my final enemy, I brutal beat him down with one wicked slash after another, into the ground, into darkness. *

It’s over. Three of us are left standing, all of us drenched in blood. I realize we’re the same, though our methods may be different, and it makes me sick.

“I’m done with this,” I say to them.

“Done with what?” One of them asks, suspicion and paranoia in his eyes.

“This,” I motion to the battleground around us, coated in warm blood and the bodies of countless slain warriors.

Walking off, I catch one of them say, “And you call yourself an eight!”

“I have no idea what the hell you’re talking about.” I comment back, not even bothering to look.
______________

Daffodil is her name. A beautiful golden retriever, my new friend. We had spent so much time together, bonding, all in preparation for this moment, as I stand before an invisible committee.

Crouching down, stroking the top of her head to the flowing golden fur on the back of her neck, I do it quickly. My knife enters her throat cleanly, and I slide it through quickly, smoothly, minimizing her pain. But as she lies there on ground, bleeding out, I see I’ve missed the jugular. I correct my mistake immediately, ending her quiet whines, her suffering, my first task.

Now create yourself a human DC, and do the same. I hear his sick voice in my head.

No, that’s stupid. I have no issue killing illusions of my own creation.

You will do it, or you’ll fail. Him again.

But it’s pointless.

Then you fail.

. . . Fine. But I do it my way. . .

Calling out, almost immediately, I find myself a DC. A young boy named Jerry.

“Do you like baseball, Jerry?” I inquire.

“I sure do, mister,” he replies hesitantly.

“I’ve got a friend who’s really into baseball. Excellent pitcher; throws a pitch the Japanese call The Great Equalizer. . .”

And just like that we’ve formed a bond, Jerry and I. We walk for a bit, before I tell him I’ve got something to show him.

“What’s that, mister?”

I can hear he’s nervous as I draw my knife, the one I’d used a short time ago.

“This is my knife. Nice, isn’t it?

“What do you use that for?”

“Oh, killing, mostly.”

He steps back, fear on his face, and I know how much this is going to suck for both of us. So, with a flash, I activate my Geass, imprinting my will over his own. Now all Jerry wants, with his entire being, is to die by my hand. So I oblige, placing my hand on his shoulder and slashing open his throat. To quicken things, I drive my blade into his stomach and drive it upwards, destroying his heart, without breaking any bones.

He’s dead before he hits the ground.

Things begin to fade. . .

Creative. His voice, sickeningly friendly, breaks the silence, keeps me tied to the dream.

He was just an illusion. I told you already, killing DCs is meaningless.

Really? Then I suppose you wouldn’t have any trouble killing a DC of your mother? I can almost see his twisted grin.

Nope.

To prove a point, I whip up a DC who looks just like my mother, cut her throat like the others, hit her onto the ground, and stomp her skull into bits, her brain into mush.

I feel no remorse.

You have issues. He seems stunned and taken aback.

Like I said. Just a DC.

14.11.2010

Legion (WILD)

★★★★★

NON-DREAM DREAM LUCID

I barely notice the transition.

An RC confirms what I already know as I pick myself up, out of bed. I'm home, in my dark, cluttered room, which is odd because I know I'm really at school, in my just as cluttered dorm. Heading downstairs, I hear the sizzling of a frying pan, signaling someone is making breakfast.

“Looks who's up!” My father bellows playfully. “Have some breakfast!”

“I can't, there's a blanket covering my mouth,” I state as I spot the scrambled eggs, steak, and sausages, on the counter.

“You make no sense,” he mutters.

“I know,” I say, smiling back, not wanting to tell him he'd cease to exist upon my waking.

“Well at least help me with these candles—have you seen these? They're so cool!” He takes a lighter to a paper-covered candle in a glass jar. It immediately lights, pouring flame out the opening at the top.

“That's not gonna work,” I say, coldly snuffing the fire out with my mind before it really has a chance to get started.

“Huh, that's weird,” he says, trying to get the thing to light again. Feeling bad, I tell him to try again, this time using my power to bring the flame to life. “Thanks!” he said, “JTF can do this too, you know.”

That's because he a dreamer, like me. I think, walking back to the front door. Waving good bye, I step onto my porch into the waning twilight.

“Holy fuck.”

Before me, facing me, stands a legion, hundreds upon thousands, of small, black, spiky, shadow gremlins, flickering and growing with the shifting light. The shock of it all takes its toll and my vision starts to waver, the dream falling apart. . .

With a concentrated burst of sustained will, I thrust my attention toward the world around me, into every monster, every blade of grass, every dark fluffy cloud in the pale grey sky. I've stabilized, and I'm ready to defend my house, my court, myself.

I run at the creatures, launching myself up and over the lot of them, high in the air. A lone guitar plays an energizing solo as I tear my Katana from its place at my side, and swipe downward forcefully, shouting in raspy voice: “Getsuga Tenshou!” A bright flash erupts from my blade as a huge cyclical blast of blue energy pierces the sky below me, exploding into the legion of shadows, instantly vaporizing a chunk of them and the earth below their feet.

Another swipe fires out a second wave, smaller this time, not quite as devastating, but still very effective. At this point, I figure I've used up my reserves, so I switch it up, still arcing through the air, out of reach. Thrusting at the air in front of me, I start a volley of attacks, each faster than the last, until finally my blade glows hot white. I yell as my thrusts turn into a powerful beam of light that I direct at the ground, wiping out everything I pass it over. I sustain it for the remainder of my fall, dissolving countless creeps. Their numbers less than half, I drop to the ground.

“Bankai!”

A huge burst of energy flies out of me as I skillfully direct it into my blade, encasing it in blue, vibrating, serrated energy, so thick and violent the air around me buzzes audibly with its force. Without hesitation, the shadows attack. I can barely keep them off me, as I slash and cut through their numbers, my blade evaporating them with a mere touch. But each attack I make is more awkward than the last, for my opponents are all one foot tall.

There's too many, I think, jumping away, retreating. Maybe a Resurrection form will give me the tools I need to beat these guys. . . .

No, let them come. They can't hurt me; I'm not afraid.

So I stand there as they swarm me, taking me to the ground, entering my body, carrying me off, slowly down the street. I observe it all, in full control of everything, yet opting to endure the bubbling sensation at my core, the bulging of my skin and clothes, as I'm taken from my court by the few that can't fit inside me. They all look like small black balls of ash as they vainly attempt to bring me down, into a small pipe, leading only to darkness. . .

¡Single Sentence Sizzler!®

15.09.2010

I Like What You've Done With the Place (DILD)

★★★☆☆

NON-DREAM DREAM LUCID

Originally Posted by Mzzkc

I had a pleasant visit to Hell (it felt really homey) wherein I got into a quick spar with Hollow-Controlled Ichigo; it turns out you can chop up your opponent's blade if you swing yours really, really hard.

06.09.2010

I Just Wanted a Drink. . . (DEILD)

★★★★☆

NON-DREAM DREAM LUCID

As I fall asleep, I hold onto the waking world using the annoying pop music blaring through my closed window. Stupid freshman events. . .

A forest. I need to form a forest. . .

Blackness surrounds me as I make the transition.

Green leaves swirl about my vision as I spin and fall into the dream. When everything solidifies, I find myself in a location filled with buildings like the ones you'd find on any college campus. Not enough trees. The tavern and the town are in the middle of the woods. Not satisfied with my surroundings I quickly level most of the buildings around me with a thought, and push the remains underground, replacing the plots with dirt and grass. In a similar fashion, I pull hundreds of trees from beneath the ground to the surface, shooting mounds of dirt high into the air.

Better, I think, This place still needs a river. Still using nothing but the power of my will, I bevel a long stretch of winding earth, snaking it around trees and near the few remaining buildings. As soon as I finish with that, I pull enough water up to create a decent sized river, and set everything in motion. That's good enough for me.

Walking through my creation, I try to recall Nomad's tasks. I can only remember the one about the Hoppy Brains Tavern, so I figure I'll start there. After walking a good distance I come across a very upscale building, with a fancy HB crafted in the open metal gate and metal sign hanging over the door. While my logical self told me this was not the place, something deeper--perhaps my character--was telling me this is where I needed to be.

In front of the door was a female hostess in a simple, white, long-sleeve shirt and black slacks. She stops me, asking if I had made a reservation. I do what my character would do and tell her the truth. Disappointed I wouldn't be getting that drink, I head off the property as the dream starts to collapse around me. . .

DEILD.

Back in the forest I had created, I find myself next to a large lake. Someone behind me gets my attention. Turning, I draw my blade from my side. Sure enough, it's another Shinigami, but his robes, although of traditional make, are white--definitely not standard uniform. He grins broadly, in an almost friendly manner, Zanpaktou in hand. In a flash, we cover the distance between us, crossing blades. My view cuts out, showing the two of us, and the glaring disparity between our uniforms. Sharp metal sparks brightly as the two of us clash. Our movements are so precise and coordinated, that neither of us can get an edge. To the untrained eye, we appear to be equals. . .

Standing on the edge of a cliff, overlooking the lake, Nomad is chastising me for the fight. He tells me that it's hard to look those we wish to kill in the eyes, "It's better to tear the baby from its mother's arms and immediately throw it off the edge of the cliff than it is to look at its face first." I think back to the fight with the mysterious stranger. I certainly didn't mean to kill him. Our fight, if you can even call it that, was more a friendly hello than anything else. Perhaps this was a person my character knew long ago. He definitely felt familiar. . .

"There are lessons you need to be taught." Nomad states bluntly.

"Who's going to teach me?"

"You'll find out," he says as he strikes me, hard, launching me from the cliff. Dropping through the air, I resist the instinct to fly, and instead prepare for whatever lies beneath the surface.

Crashing into the still waters, I can't help thinking about sharks, so what do I have the pleasure of facing down in this murky water as soon as the bubbles clear? Why, a twenty foot great white of course. Staying cool under pressure, I tear my blade from my side and sever its head from its body in one fell motion. Blood permeates through the water as the dead shark sinks out of sight; I sheathe my sword and rise to the surface.

A short while later, two mermaids approach me, and grab my arms. I don't struggle, assuming they're here to take me to my teacher. We reach the center of the lake, and from the depths, rises King Triton, only about 100 times larger, and with a more monstrous body.

His lesson consists of holding me underwater for long periods of time. I cheat and breathe normally, staying calm the whole time. Afterwards, there's a feast at a rather large, golden, banquet table.

Spock gets moody around a couple of girls, and storms off, leaving them for Captain Kirk to woo. Picard was there, too, but not really doing anything interesting.

Edited for improved awesome.

28.08.2010

The Cult (DILD)

★★★★☆

NON-DREAM DREAM LUCID

This looks less than safe.

As I enter the old-tyme, run-down, elevator, I cant help but notice the slanted walls and stain-splattered, dirty yellow upholstery. The door squeaks shut as I randomly hit a floor. I have nowhere to go but up, after all.

My wretched metal tomb lurches as it moves, slowly, upwards into this forsaken hotel. . .

DING!

Hmm. That went better than expected, I muse as I exit the elevator, into the much more luxurious, five-star hotel floor. Walking down the hallways, I pass some strange looking fellows. Very well dressed, but not in any discernible uniform. They greet me kindly, and I return the gesture, rounding the corner into a large meeting room. Ornate pillars dot the perimeter of the area, and off to the left stand numerous folding chairs lined in pew-like rows. Each chair faces forward, toward, a marble altar, complete with curved stairs and huge red and gold-trimmed banners sporting some indistinguishable symbol.

Striding to the chairs, I take a seart. Almost instantly, people begin to stream in and take up seats around me. It becomes clear this is some kind of cult, and they're about to have a mass. I don't belong here. Maybe if I lie low, no one will notice--what am I doing? Standing up, I draw my Katana from my side. The DCs around me gasp and scramble out of the way as I begin my trek out of this ridiculous place.

Two guards block my path out. Not waiting for them to move, I strike them down. . . Or, that's what would have happened if my blade had actually cut. From behind me, "Look at how weak he is. He can't even cut us with his sword."

Like hell, I can't.

I turn quickly and Flash Step to the source of the voice: a colorfully robed man with a golden staff. We fight. My nimble slashes find their way past his rather poor defenses, but each blow I land doesn't even graze him. He begins laughing.

"Bankai!"

Energy bursts out around me and encircles my blade. Swiping downward, I cleave his staff in two. I don't hear any laughter as I shove my Katana through his shoulder. Looking into his eyes, I make sure he understands, 'I'm not done yet.'

"Reverse Bankai, Resurrection!"

My view pops out to third person as light surrounds my body. I feel my sword merge with me, encasing my hands and lower arms, turning them into massive, symmetrical hammers. My grip on the dream wavers. Everything starts to fade away. . .

Oh no you don't.

Utilizing seat of my pants attention manipulation, I'm able to recreate the dream, keeping my new, taller, more muscular form. Unfortunately, I'm no longer in that room. Before me lies a long and perilous staircase, into the heavens. Starting the long climb, towards what I assume is the final battle with the cult leader, three armed men assault me from behind.

My hammers make quick work of their futile attempts to cut me. Two of them I crush outright, while the other survives my initial pound long enough to inform me I've already killed the robed man from before, along with twelve others. This thought sits well with me as I continue my endless climb.

¡Single Sentence Sizzler!®

09.08.2010

Oh, Cruel Dreams! (DILD)

★★☆☆☆

NON-DREAM DREAM LUCID

Originally Posted by Mzzkc

Catching a glimpse of the television, I noticed an intense advertisement for the new season of Arrested Development which, after sending me into fits of joyful mirth, triggered an RC, as I came to realize this news was too good to be true; I cried at my newfound lucidity and took my sorrow out on some shinigami sparring in the driveway.

¡Single Sentence Sizzler!®

09.08.2010

When You Can't Beat 'Em. . . (DILD)

★★★☆☆

NON-DREAM DREAM LUCID

Originally Posted by Mzzkc

Lucidly, I fought a man who refused to die, even when I shoved my energy shrouded katana through his heart and tore it up 'till the blade exited the top of his skull; after making a truce with the man, I taught myself a new trick using Dual Blades, while Bankai'd, wherein a flurry of golden-light charged thrusts created a powerful blast of energy which punched a large hole in the nearby wall.

27.07.2010

Enter Nomad (Non-lucid)

★★★★☆

NON-DREAM DREAM LUCID

Transformed, behind us, likely screwing around, is Nomad, disguised as a container of sorts. Similar to the ones my friends and I had been rummaging through earlier. I know it's him because my perspective had switched to third person omniscient moments ago. He is clearly goofing off, likely without any grand motivation.

Well, I can mess around, too. I think, as I break off from the group and draw my blade. Propelling myself forward, I shoot through the air, mere inches off the ground, straight toward that metallic container. Swiping upward, the world flashes as I make my cut, rendering the object in two. Times slows enough for me to see Nomad's shocked face as he drifts backward in the air, now in his own body.

Landing smoothly, he grins before breaking apart into a platoon of smaller versions of himself. They rush me. I dart into the air, but the little buggers are too fast; They're all over me, taunting and laughing like little madmen, as they tear at my body.

"BANKAI!"

The rush of energy throws them all off, scattering them on the concrete below. I don't hesitate. Raising my sword, I form a tornado that quickly ensnares all the miniatures in a whirling vortex. The sight reminds me of how Raven divides herself, which reminds me of the Disturbed song of the same name. Feeling creative, I play through a key part in the song, but change the lyrics ever so slightly to "Form together and combine!" Sure enough, all the copies trapped within my tornado lump together into a full sized Nomad. But I wasn't done just yet.

KA-CRACK!

A bolt of lighting tears through the air, piercing the tornado and the man within it. Nomad drops to the ground as the tornado dissipates, no longer amused. I wonder if he knows who I am. Maybe I should've introduced myself first. My thoughts are interrupted as a distortion in the air brings my attention back into focus. A woman I recognize as Raven appears from the anomaly and drops down next to Nomad. Nomad brings me to her attention, and she immediately takes a defensive stance.

"Hey," I say, nonchalantly, while motioning with my dual blades, "Why don't the three of us have a spar? You two versus me."

They stare at me, shocked, before turning to each other, as if to confer. Looking back at me, Nomad nods solemnly. I'll take that as a yes, then.

KA-CRACK!

I start things off by striking the two of them with another bolt of lightning, but I had the source come from directly behind them this time. It was just enough to throw them off guard as I lunged forward, ready to strike.

I woke up.

02.07.2010

Dragon Slayer (DILD)

★★★★★

NON-DREAM DREAM LUCID

They're probably going to die.

I watch the dragons slowly descend upon two neighbors from inside my doorway. Fearing for my own safety, I shut the red metal door and casually step away.

"Hurry up and get over here." My brother states from his fancy wooden seat at the dining room table.

"There's dragons out there, man."

"Don't worry about that." He brushes me off, as I take a seat next to him. Plopping down in my chair, he starts talking about something in his usual way, but I can't help thinking about that horde of dragons, the ones from the LD I just had a few moments ago before my. . .

DEILD attempt! Right! This is a dream! I realize excitedly. Taking a look at my brother, I wonder if it's Burmes. "Hey, Burke." He looks at me as if I've got three heads. "Sorry, Burnes--Burmes right?"

"No, not exactly." He states coldly.

"Well, whoever you are, you're pretty convincing. You had me fooled for sure." I stand up and head to the door. I figured I'd help out those people in the court. Those dragons did refer to me as prey, after all.

"Where are you going? Hey! Get back here!" My brother shouts at me.

"I'm alright, thanks." I respond kindly, opening the front door to reveal a dragon hanging off the awning over my porch. Leaping out the door, I grab onto its head just as it begins to launch itself toward the center of the court, where those two people still were. Utilizing Super Strength, I break its neck, sending it hurdling onto my car-less, sloped, concrete driveway where it slides down a bit before stopping, dead in its tracks. The rest of the dragons were quick to notice.

One, two, three, four, five, six. . . and probably more just around the corner. Better get started, then. Taking to the air, I pull out a bow from behind my back, and grab an arrow from much the same place. With a burst of will, I light the tip of my arrow ablaze, draw my bow, and aim it at the heart of the nearest dragon, 50 meters away.

FWANG!

My shot is right on target, hitting its mark in the exact center of the dragon's chest. Stunned, the dragon looks down at the arrow protruding form its deep red and orange scaled body. It stumbles forward, but doesn't go all the way down. That's cause enough for me to switch to my Barret .50 Cal. Sniper Rifle. I take a quick shot without scoping, but it goes rather wide. Resigning myself to obscuring my vision for a short while, I peer through the scope, line up the dragon's head in the cross-hairs, and let off a round, which creates a rather large hole in the thing's forehead. Before it can hit the ground, and after dealing with gun's recoil, I put another bullet through its skull for good measure. Yeah, there's no way it's getting up from that.

Off a ways from all this, I see and hear a dragon howl ominously into the afternoon sky. The narrator in my head explains that this particular dragon was upset because his last living brother had just been killed. I was also informed that the dead dragon in question was the one whose neck I had snapped moments ago. They probably shouldn't have started screwing with my dream, if they didn't want me to fight back.

Dropping the gun, I pull out a weapon from a more civilized age (No, not that, you silly Star Wars fan, you). My steel Katana glints luminously in the slowly failing sunlight. The mass of dragons--plus one enraged ex-brother--smoothly move in my direction. I too move forward, as one of them takes out a missile launcher. Oookay? I think as he fires it, sending a missile careening toward me. . . very very slowly, I might add. Watching the missile sputter out halfway and drop to the ground, isn't too surprising. However, I don't expect the resulting explosion to be as large as it is. If I had been any lower in altitude, this could have ended badly. I need to deal with this before things get even more out of hand, and if there's anything I've learned about efficiently dealing with large groups of enemies from my HvZ exploits, it's that you should always rush them before they rush you.

Shouting ferociously, I fly at high speeds toward a dragon to my left. Raising my sword high above my head I scream, "Getsuga Tenshou!" tearing at the air before me in a dramatic swipe. A blue cyclical wall of energy erupts from my blade and flies forward, hitting the dragon and creating a huge gash along its entire body. Feeling confident that would be enough to put that one out of the fight, I turn my attentions to the others around me, just in time to block a claw from removing my head. I back off from my attacker, and start to fly around him, being sure to make a note of the positions of the other dragons. Right then, that asshole with the missile launcher tries his luck at blowing me out of the sky again, but my next maneuver will put me well out of range of the blast.

Flash Stepping into striking range, I unleash a flurry of slashes on my attacker, before Flash Stepping to the other combatants and doing the same. I finish just in time to feel the shock-wave of the explosion behind me. Unfortunately, my strikes barely break through the dragons' skin, and I'm forced backward yet again in order to avoid being cleaved in half. I let off another Getsuga, but this one is deflect by. . . A dragon with two gigantic sabers? Fuck me.

I strafe aerially in a wide arc, carefully watching not only this new threat, but all those still in the fight. It's then I notice the second blade in my off hand. How'd that get there? I wonder for a moment before realizing how unimportant that information is. All I know is that now I should be able to take on that monstrosity slightly below me.

Changing my flight path, I dart diagonally toward the dragon with the giant twin blades. "Getsuga Tenshou!" I yell, but my blade fails to perform the technique. Ignoring my seeming lack of control, I engage her in direct combat. Yet, as it turns out, fighting with two swords is a lot harder than you'd think, even when acting on instinct. Despite my best efforts, each attack I make, no matter how complex, is subsequently parried and met by a counter. What's worse is some of my opponent's attacks actually manage to nick me a bit. What gets me is that here's this target five times my size, I can't even land a single blow, but she manages to make contact with my skin on several occasions!

"Come on!" she taunts me, "Is this the best you've got?!"

"No, actually." I state as coolly as I can in my agitation.

"Well, then bring it!"

Jumping backward, I warn her, "Remember, you asked for it." Then, throwing my arms out to the side, I proclaim, "Ban--kai!"

FWWOOOOM!

The energy deep within me bursts forth in a remarkable fashion, violently throwing about the air around me. My dual blades are now wider, more ornate in design, and encased entirely in glowing, bright, yellow energy. But that isn't the only new thing I have to show off. Moving toward her, my speed is so great that the world blurs around me and she herself seems to be stuck in time. I circle her, once, twice, three times, four times in less than a second, with each pass I cut into her with a volley of slices faster than even I can make out.

"I'm not quite done, yet." I comment with a grin as I slow down enough for her to register where I am. "Reverse Bankai. . . Resurrection!"

At that, my body is covered in white light as I immediately transform. I switch to the third person to get a good look at my new form. I'm completely shirtless, with smooth pale skin, flared white sleeves sporting two lavender and orange squares overlaid on top, and white bone-like gloves. My shorts are also pure white, and my feet and lower legs are fitted in a bone-like material as well; they too bear the colored squares. My medium length green and blue hair spikes out to the side, flowing subtly in the warm twilight air. A metal loop is affixed to my stomach, from which a thick silver chain is passed through. On the end of that chain is my new weapon: a pair of red marble nun-chucks with gold plated tips.

"But that's still not all I've got lined up." The dragon's eyes are visibly wider now as they continue struggling to follow my movements. Reaching my hand to my face, I rip down my Vizard mask. I feel a cold wave flow out from the center of my being; my desire to utterly destroy this creature rises as the numbing current overtakes me. Allowing myself to act on the impulse, I Flash Step in front of the target of these urges, bringing my weapon down hard across her head.

BOOOM!

The explosion from my strike sends overpowering vibrations throughout my neighborhood. Standing behind my opponent now, I slow down time for the both of us and explain to her why she's missing half her face and falling to the ground, while I'm completely unharmed.

"It seems every time this weapon makes an impact with something, it lets out a fairly powerful blast. I'd say the actual force is around ten times as strong as what those missiles your friend was shooting could produce. Luckily for me, this new form has a built in perk that protects me from attacks below a certain level. Unfortunately for you, its limit is high enough to let me use something that devastating as my main attack. I don't think you're body will be able to handle it like mine can. Let's find out, shall we?"

Resuming the flow of the battle, I move back in front of her and begin my assault--and what an assault it is. Every blow from my viciously spinning nun-chucks is coupled with an enormous explosion. Smoke, fire, and smoldering flesh flies around me as I continue my attack, each strike taking a good sized piece of her body with it. She drops her blades, but I'm not just going to let such massive weapons go to waste. Snatching them from the air, I use a bit of chain from my stomach to bind the sabers together, creating a pair of sword-chucks three times the size of my body. Expertly utilizing both weapons, it's only a short time before all that's left of the dragon is an unrecognizable husk of meat and bone.

My brother comes up to me, his mannerisms completely different from before. "Well, if that doesn't scare them off, I don't know what will."

Nodding to whom may have been Burmes, I turn to the rest of the dragons. Staring them down, shock splayed against their collective faces, I instruct them, "Run, while you still can."

The dream fades as I watch these beasts who once thought of me as prey vacate the area with a hurried purpose.

04.05.2010

Serious Business (DILD)

★★★★★

NON-DREAM DREAM LUCID

CRASH!

I burst through the glass, quickly drawing my blade. Still arcing in the air to the grass below, I shout "Bankai!" releasing the true power of my sword. As I looked down on the lightsaber battle ensuing in my backyard, I see several friends caught up in the fray. Still falling, I bring my hand up to my face and tear down my Vizard mask, enjoying the rush of power. Landing skillfully on the grass, everyone notices my entrance. The clash of sabers ceases as I look up through my red and white mask. I pick a target.

Walking casually into the battle, I relieve someone of his fight, pushing him to the side. Taking a relaxed stance, my blade in one hand, the young 'Jedi' acting as my opponent stares back at me, terrified. He makes a cautious pass at my left side with his green lightsaber. Sneering behind my mask, I parry, flick his weapon away, and stab him in the shoulder, all in one motion. As he staggers backwards, it's easy to see how pissed he is. He charges at me, letting loose a guttural cry.

Still relaxed, I deflect each of his thrusts and slashes, but my complacency gets the better of me. The saber cuts through my side as I jump away, avoiding the brunt of what would have been a fatal blow.

FZZSHHEEWW!

A sharp pain shoots up my right arm as I finally take notice of the other 'Jedi' who have come to aid their comrade. Surrounded, a feeling of panic blossoms at my core. Sensing my moment of weakness, the group attacks as one. I do my best to defend myself, but a few blows end up getting through. I shout violently, emitting a wave of energy that pushes them all backwards. My fiery rage burns away any previous inhibition. "That's it. No more of this fucking kiddie shit."

In a flash, I cut down a 'Jedi' to my left, severing his body into 5 pieces instantaneously. Fear strikes the others as I stand there, bloodied blade in hand, 20 feet from where I was less than a second ago. Before the pieces of the man I just killed could hit the ground, they begin to run, but not fast enough. I speed from one victim to the next, dismembering and mutilating their bodies as I go. My speed and precision is unparalleled. And yet, despite my rampage, save the first, I leave them all alive. . . mostly.

All from one LD.

04.05.2010

Outburst (DILD)

★★★☆☆

NON-DREAM DREAM LUCID







I struggled fervently against the sheets that trapped me to my bed. Every slight movement was a struggle, and the possibility of being snapped back down to my mattress was all too real. A boost of strength would be necessary if I were going to push through this. A song I've only ever heard on Rockband starts playing, "Highway Star" by Deep Purple. With no time to be puzzled by the choice my subconscious made, I drew from the energetic guitar riffs and pushed my way out into the common room. My sheets broke away as I passed through the door. Without hesitation, I dashed toward the blind covered window and burst through it, shattering the glass and tearing through the blinds that bended like elastic around me. I flew off, following the asphalt hill behind my dorm.

For some reason, I felt tremendously powerful, and I had the urge to use that power in destructive ways. I picked up a nearby parked car with my bare hands and slammed it into a wooden fence. Not entirely satisfied, I chucked the car across the street, embedding it in an SUV. These acts of violence were only making me more antsy. MORE! I NEED MORE! A frenzied look on my face, I began to dart off, looking for new ways to exert this power. But before I can, rationality shines through and I stop myself and the still playing song. Regaining control of my emotions I play the song "Created" by Portugal. The Man to help center myself.

_________________________

04.05.2010

Release (DILD)

★★★☆☆

NON-DREAM DREAM LUCID







"Bankai!" Energy burst out around me as I shouted the word. It had been awhile, and boy did it feel good. But there was something new I had been meaning to try out. I reach my hand up to my face, fingers bent like a claw, and start to slowly tear away at the air. Sure enough, a Vizard mask begins to form about my face. Finishing the motion, the mask forms itself to my head, obscuring some of my vision.

BA-DUMP!

My heart throbs once, violently, for a brief moment. I convulse; my back doubles over. The dark powers the mask drew forth were enormous. Looking down, I saw black rings of energy coursing up my leg. It felt fucking awesome. I revelled in the moment as everything began to normalize and I became used to the state.

_________________________

04.05.2010

New Tech (DILD)

★★☆☆☆

NON-DREAM DREAM LUCID







Making up my mind, I decide to try my hand out at portal creation. I focus on my fingertips, bringing as much attention to them as I can muster. My digits begin pulsating as if they were storing a large amount of energy. Not surprisingly, the dream destabilizes. By quickly utilizing a combination of my own personal focus technique and the tactile sensation on my fingertips, I'm able to ground myself enough to keep the dream going.

Reaching my hands out, I pick the first target to come to mind: Raven Knight. I pull at the air in front me with surprising results. A tall, orange, door sized, holographic interface appears. I touch it, and a 3-Dimensional globe pops up along with some controls on either side. Erm, how do I work this thing? Magically, I'm forced into third person wherein I get to see my body (Vizard mask still on) go through a tutorial on how to work the transporter.

Pick a destination.

Code it in.

Step through the gate.

Wait for the destination to load.

Engage!

The world fluctuates around me before shifting into a new environment. I'm in a tropical, forested, slightly urban area, and everything is on fire. An orange hued glow fills the hot night air while once green trees and brush lie before me, charred and blackened by the flames. I take off to see what was going on, blade at the ready.

08.01.2010

Europium (DILD)

★★★★★

NON-DREAM DREAM LUCID

Trying to meet up with some family, I see the person I'm looking for. She looks. . . tense. I head through the crowded plaza, bumping into other nervous looking people. I notice exchanges of money as people passed each other. It was happening all around me.

One person that bumped into me freaked out a bit and followed me, apologizing profusely. I kinda just ignored him. I made my way all the way to the other side only to lose her again. A tall man in a hoodie comes up to me and tries to push some kind of plastic baggy into my hands saying, "Hey, man, here you go."

"What is this?" I asked, refusing to take the bag.

"Europium, dude, now go sell it." He looked to his side, showing signs of paranoia.

"Naw, it's cool, I don't do that kinda thing." I state bluntly walking away as he shook his head at me. I made my way into an open building without doors showcasing a light orange interior. Three men approached me.

"Not, gonna follow the rules, eh?" The one in the tan sweat shirt says in a deep voice. "Then you're gonna have to face the consequences!" He whipped out what looked like a quarter and put it between his digits, making a fist and smiling broadly. "This here's a coin blade. It'll slice you up real nice." He swings at my head, but I put up my right arm to block. The coin cuts through my green trench coat and does, indeed, 'slice me up real good.'

Fuck fuck fuck. This hurts way too much.

Calm down. It's just a dream. I regain my composure. I stand, relaxed, with my hands at my side. I know this is my world. I have all the power here. "I'm impressed that you managed to cut me. I commend you for that. However, it won't happen again." He simply smiles that big toothy smile and comes at me like a maniac, swinging wildly. His mouth practically foaming.

I block and deflect at his forearm, avoiding contact with his small blade. One of his friends tries to come at me from the side. I dodge his punch, grab his wrist, and hurl him into the man with the grey sweatshirt who is also in the middle of a punch. They end up exchanging blows with each other. Before they can recover, I proceed to properly disable them, practically turning them into joined pretzels.

The other guy looks terrified. He takes a hesitant step back before deciding to come at me anyways. I just throw him hard into the other two. He gets back up, and I give him a strong glare. He takes a look at the two men lying crippled on the floor, gets the message, and scampers off the way I had came in.

I walk out the back door. There's a large twisted walkway with large natural barriers on either side. I turn a corner only to come face to face with what I can only assume are more of these drug dealing nazis. I go to the big one that looks like the leader of the group. He's wearing a red sports sweater with some words on it. I treat him like an ordinary DC. "Tell me how to get out of here."

"Why would I do that?" He asks, slightly perturbed by my presence for some reason.

"Look, I just kicked the asses of the three guys you sent at me. And I'll do the same to all of you if you don't tell me."

"Did you kill them?" he inquires in a somewhat expecting way.

"No, I try not to kill if I don't have to. Now, are you going to tell me or not."

Subdued laughter ripples through the group. One of them steps forward, wielding a Katana. He reminds me of Sasuke for some reason ((so that's what I'll call him)). Two others, one male, one female, join behind him, also wielding Katanas. I reach down to my side to pull out my blade. Unfortunately, I have trouble forming the handle and all I manage to pull out is the blade with a thin metal extension where the hilt is supposed to be. I know I can work with this, though, taking my stance.

All three come at me. Sasuke starts his volley. I deflect every cut easily. The girl attacks from my left. I parry her blow, and flick my blade around her sword, pushing it out of the way. The edge of my Katana's blade now rests against her neck. She looks terrified. "You're done, step out." I say to her.

"But--"

"Don't argue with me. Step. Out." I apply a bit of pressure to her neck. She quickly drops her sword, backs off, and joins the others. I throw down my blade. I need a decent sword if I'm going to do this. I reach back down to pull out another blade. I feel the hilt form properly and begin to pull it out. I look down to help solidify it.

Suddenly, from the corner of my eye I see Sasuke dart at me. I don't manage to draw my blade in time and am rewarded with a Katana piercing through my body. Sasuke removes his blade from my right lung, making sure to rip it out at an angle to cause even more damage. My eyes go wide. The hell? This is the most intense pain I have ever felt, dream or no. My body feels like it wants to shut down. . .

. . .

No. I can't give in. I stand upright, ignoring the searing pain in my chest. I rush at him. He parries almost all of my attacks, but even the ones I land don't do much damage at all. Screw this. I stop. I grab my right arm and hold out my Katana.

"Ban--kai!"

Invisible energy explodes from my body, creating a huge gust of sustained wind that throws about the dust from the ground around me. I move at incredible speeds, closing the distance between us in less than a second. He is unable to match my speed, and the torrent of cuts I rain down upon him go un-deflected.

Still no damage?! I swing harder, losing myself in attack as I push him back farther and farther. Out of nowhere, his blade comes in from the right. I jump to the side, but my reaction is too late. More blinding pain wracks my body. I push it out of my mind as Sasuke barrels at me once more. I dodge, throw my blade to my left hand, grab his wrist with my right hand, and attempt to sever his arm.

Oddly, though, my Katana has transformed itself into a razor sharp metallic whip. I strike his arm several times in succession, each time tearing a large portion of skin and muscle from his right arm. Everything starts to fade. The fighting isn't helping matters. I start to run in the opposite direction. Sasuke isn't able to keep up with me. Once he's out of sight I sit and cross my legs. Everything is fading fast. I figure I'll just go peacefully. Sasuke's male henchman has other ideas, though.

He's running towards me carrying what appears to be a large plaster board. I don't bother getting up when he reaches me. For some reason he starts lightly hitting me on the top of the head with it. "Look, dude, all you're doing is stabilizing the dream for me." Sasuke appears behind him and throws him off to the side. Gorrammit. . .

Looks like it's not quite over, yet. I start to attack him, yet again, but he starts doing backflips away from me. This is just getting annoying now. "Getsuga Tenshou!" A streak of blue energy erupts from my sword, which was a Katana again. Every swing of the blade shot out another cyclical blast. I keep up the pressure as he flips over and dodges each one. Finally, one of them clips his side, tearing his baggy white clothes and knocking him to the side. I quickly close the distance between us.

I point the tip of my blade at him. He tries to scamper away as he gets up. In a raspy determined voice I whisper, "Getsuga Tensou." Sure enough a brownish orange tornado forms from the tip of my blade and traps the bastard in its vortex. "Not so tough, now, are ya?" I bang his spinning, trapped, helpless body on the ground a few times. For some reason, my blade is now an ornate spear-like halberd.

I start to walk back toward the others while Sasuke is still stuck in the violently swirling wind protruding from my newly morphed blade. Everything is starting to fade again. I doubt he's still conscious, but the tornado is sustaining itself just fine without any help from me, so I allow myself to wake with Sasuke still ensnared by my sword's power.

15.10.2009

Enter Ice (DEILD)

★★★★★

NON-DREAM DREAM LUCID

Falling back asleep. Rawr. . .

I'm in my darkened living room. Family is in the kitchen. Suddenly, I hear rustling under the dining room table. Crap what is that. A dark wispy doglike figure shoots from under the table at ludicrous speed darting back and forth towards me.

Shit, I need to wake up, now! It's right in front of me now, my eyes are closed and I hear the most sinister growl I've heard in my life. Screw waking up. Let's face this head on.

I woke up. . .

Time to DEILD. I want to see what this thing is.

I'm back in my living room. It's much brighter this time around. Still dark, though. I see my dog coming from the kitchen. I go to grab him and pet him. Keeping him in a friendly state, just in case. I try to think of what that thing could be. Could it have been the ghost of my old dog? Back for revenge. No that's silly. Sure enough my old dog comes up to me as well. I wrap an arm around each and embrace them. Still a bit wary. I hover over to the kitchen and they follow.

I get the idea of turning into a dog and running around with them. So, I take on the appearance of a dog, run to the garage door, and open it. The garage is open! Let's make a break for it! I dash on all fours out into the court. Fellow dogs nowhere to be found.

My vision is obscured by my hair and I can't seem to push it away. In the center of my vision a white creature of some kind starts dashing towards me. It doesn't look like it's actually moving anywhere, though. And it's rather transparent. Regardless, I use my TK to throw it to the side. No effect. As I turn away, to ignore it to death, the creature, what I can only now describe as some kind of yeti, jumps into the center of my vision again. I try to turn away once more, but the same thing happens.

It starts to take a different form, becoming solid this time. It's a man. An incredibly well built and muscular man with spiked silver hair. I hear a loud crackling sound behind me. I know I shouldn't look, but my curiosity gets the better of me. As I turn, I see a grin upon his face. Behind me are many discs and chunks of ice being readied to be hurled at me. He makes a throwing motion with both arms and they start to fly toward me. A dream reflex kicks in and I start to eject myself from the dream. Wait dammit! I want to fight! Everything starts to fade, faster and faster. I have no time to stabilize. This looks like the end of the dream for me. Suddenly, though, everything snaps back into focus.

While surprising, I didn't give it too much thought. I'm just glad I get a chance to fight this guy. I try to throw him around with TK, but it doesn't do anything at all. Fine, let's try a new trick. I point my finger at him, hand outstretched. A charge builds upon the tip of my finger and fires out in a bolt the width of a pin. He tries to dodge it at first, but when I direct it onto this body, like a laser pointer, he just starts calmly walking towards me. I smirk as I make the yellow light burst forth from his body and rend him to pieces. Crap. That didn't work either. No longer smirking, it seems like I was going to have to play this one a bit differently.

I rush around him and try to build a charge in my hands. I stare at my hands and watch the blue electricity start to form and jump between my palm. I lift my hands up and face them toward him. I attempt to shoot some bolts, but nothing comes out. This is just not my day. I figure I'll just taze him, so I grab onto his shoulder, expecting the charge in my right hand to do all the work. No luck. He just looks down at my hand and shakes his head.

Fine back to basics. I think as I whip out a knife. I come at him, slashing away at his shirtless body and arms. We end up in a grapple. A girl appears out of nowhere and hands him an ornate blade. She tells me that I wouldn't be able to cut his right arm, but I could cut his left hand off if I wanted to. "Well, thanks for that." He said sarcastically as I pushed my blade through his left wrist, severing it. I jumped back. He didn't seem too concerned about his lack of hand.

He readied his blade. I threw aside my plain ol' knife and tried to whip out my katana. Nothin' but air. Oh well, let's just pretend I've got one. I grip the air like I would a katana, feeling the hilt in my hands. I rush at him. He starts to back up as I swing and parry his swipes. Each time our blades would have crossed I shouted "Cling!" or "Ching!" He looked really confused. I didn't let up. My form was terribly sloppy, though and I didn't manage to land a single hit. I figured I'd turn it up a notch.

"Bankai!" I shouted and the air around me started to fly apart violently as my energy exploded forth. My blade was visible now. The same blade from that one night. He had a sword now too, and his left hand was back. I swing my blade shouting "Getsuga Tenshou!" The environment turns white as a streak of black energy tears toward him. I keep swinging. More black streaks fly at him and explode on his chest. Slowly at first, but then an incredulous volley of crisscrossing energy pours itself from my blade. As they hit him, they all explode in a puff of grey smoke on his right shoulder. He just stands there and takes the hits.

Frustrated, I dash teleport into position. My blade was now ornate and golden. It shone brightly in the sunlight. Crossing blades with his I whisper, "Getsuga Tensou." Slowly but surely a small tornado extruded from the tip of my blade. It tears at the cord at the end of his hilt. All of this is happening right in front of his face. There's no way he can't pay attention. My tornado tears the blade from his hands. I grab it and drop down. I now have two blades to his none.

He walks over to me. "That was fun, I say. How about we just call it a tie, though." He looks at me funny.

"You've still got a lot to learn." He shoves his left hand into my stomach. I grab at his arm. Trying to keep it from going in further. He looks like he's about to do something, but changes his mind.

He pulls out his hand. "I'm here to teach you. It'll take another year to set all this up, to pull you in again." He pauses for a moment. His brow furrows, "There are words that only have meaning in dreams. I'm going to be talking to you, but I'm not going to explain everything. It'll b--"

"It'll be up to me to figure out their meanings for myself, right?" He nodded. "So, what now?"

"You need to wake up and write all of this down."

"Yes, sir." He looked at me with distaste.

"No. Don't call me that. There are too many out there like that already. . ."

"How about sensei?"

"I have bad associations with that word as well."

"Figured as much. Okay, off to record all of this."

I've decided to call him Ice for the time being.

09.10.2009

Yellow (Non-lucid)

★★★★★

NON-DREAM DREAM LUCID

What a great night for dreaming. No lucids, but almost every non-lucid was quite a lot of fun.

I was taking the role of Static Shock, and had just finished a rather interesting fight with two DCs. While they had the ability to use the others' powers, the most interesting part was how they fought: using fancy moves, bright colors, and lots of light effects. I don't remember who won the battle; regardless, I was now inside a store. In this store were several "Hoodies" signified by their wool caps. Turns out Hoodies and un-capped mutants like myself had been in a constant war with each other that was taking its toll on the community.

I was making progress to ease tensions between the groups, befriending many of the Hoodies after bouts. I found this out while explaining it to some random person who asked, flying on my collapsible manhole cover, citing the lack of merchandise in the store. It was at about the time I finished talking that the girl from my fight earlier came into the store and approached me. She wanted me to accompany her to train, so she could learn to use my power. I said sure, and she jumped on my cover and off we went, in search of a training ground.

This part was incredibly vivid.

As we flew over rooftops, I felt a strange connection to this character. Similar to the one I felt when I first spent time with my first DG. People were outside on top of their houses, taking pictures of each other in the starry night sky. We passed over a miniature golf course where I spotted a friend who didn't notice me. Soon, the urban town was growing more old timely. I mentioned that I had always liked this part of town. She questioned me, asking why I would like such a creepy place. I had no answer.

As the environment did indeed get much creepier, we came across a large caged dome, which apparently housed political prisoners. There was a large forest inside. Perfect for training. The Warden was nearby, luckily, so I asked him if we could use the area to train in order to help fight crime better or some such nonsense. He warily agreed and showed us inside. We found a nice clearing and that's when the fun started. She explained that you could use any ability if you had had it used upon you at all. Thrilled at the prospect we began to spar.

She was using some kind of yellow light that could explode, lash out, and do a multitude of other things. I was using standard purple electricity. After a short while we overheard the Warden saying that now that I was trapped here it was just enough time for them to destroy the town. At this point a large being emerged inside of town, and my perspective cut away to it. It grew until it was fully formed. It was a Hollow, but not a real Hollow. Sure enough, a copy of the monster, with glowing red eyes and bone white mask came out of the ground before it. The first beast questioned it, wondering who it was. The second one responded, calling it an idiot and promptly absorbing the first.

As it stood up, a large indent in the street was created, freaking out all the nearby DCs. Then, as it reached out it's hands, large bolts of blue electricity shot down from its fingers onto the streets and buildings. I had to stop it. Unfortunately, the Warden's henchmen, large, fat, round, fleshy, golem like creatures started to attack us. We went to work. I discovered that if I charge a blast with one finger, and direct the needle thin line of electricity at them, then I could use the yellow light to make them explode from the inside out. I did this to several of them, to spectacular results. It looked like we were thinning their number, but suddenly Menos started to materialize all around us. My new friend set up some kind of barrier of yellow light that slowly dissolved them as they appeared, but they were too resilient for it. For some reason, it made sense to draw my sword. I put my back against hers and released my Bankai. As energy swirled around us, and Menos made their way through the barrier of yellow light, I shouted: "Getsuga Tenshou!" a yellow stream of tornadoes shot out of my blade and started cutting through the Menos. As I sustained my ability, the girl beside me used her yellow light to slice through the Menos. We turned in one wide arc, together, cutting down our enemies in a wondrous fashion. When it was over, I took a look at my blade. A short silver blade with a large, black, blocky hilt that came around the front of the blade into a swept point. I wondered why it wasn't black.

This led into a weird tangent that involved my WoW playing suitemate explaining that I needed to play WoW and collect "evil orbs" to change the stylizing of my character. Yeah. . .

I don't think I did that dream justice.

19.07.2009

Fight! (Non-lucid)

★★★★☆

NON-DREAM DREAM LUCID







It's another Bleach style dream. However, there are no real characters from the show. To prepare for a final battle I go around fighting in order to establish my skill as a combatant. I spend the entire dream fighting things like Hollow and Arrancar. It was fun, but the final battle never happened.

_________________________

19.07.2009

Guitar Hero Duo (Non-lucid)

★★★★☆

NON-DREAM DREAM LUCID







I was at a gig that a popular group was doing. They were putting together a Guitar Hero Band for the latest game featuring their music. I end up volunteering for the guitar spot, but it's a toss up between me and this other guy, who just started playing the game a week ago, but has shown ridiculous growth in skill. We have a face off. We're playing Cliffs of Dover, I'm doing great, but my guitar is having double strum issues. I mention it, and they check it out before agreeing with me and giving me a new controller. But instead of just a normal face-off, the guy and I decide to travel around playing at various venues nationwide, improving our skills as we go. We get better and better before, eventually, we decide to both play guitar in the band.

_________________________

19.07.2009

Resident Halo (Non-lucid)

★★★★☆

NON-DREAM DREAM LUCID







I'm playing matchmaking in Halo 3. I'm at my former skill level, but there are these new setting that allow you to set your difficulty. At Very Hard, you do less damage and are much easier to kill. At Very Easy you deal a bit more damage and it takes a lot to kill you. I'm playing with my skill set to Very Hard, but most people are playing on Very Easy. I'm wiping the floor with everyone, and continue to do so until the dream suddenly turns into a zombie dream.

I give the shotgun to a friend and elect to use a Katana to cut down any zombies in my path. We end up in the building's Hospital Ward, which before long is overflowing with zombies. I'm slashing away, holding up the rear as our group makes it to the stairs that lead outside. I jump down the stairs entire flights at a time, as they wind down ever closer to the outside world. A zombie is waiting in ambush as I head outside, but a sword lodged in his brain stops him dead. In the end, once we reach a grassy hill, it turns out the whole thing was just a simulation and we didn't have anything to worry about. All of a sudden, someone in the group starts convulsing. Everyone looks at each other, realizing this wasn't part of the simulation. Before a real zombie outbreak can start, though, I wake myself up because I don't feel like dealing with it.