of things. Amongst our world, and amongst the dream world. This order, as it were, has been in place since the creation of…wel , everything. But the way the torrial function, wel – there was never a place for it, in this world or the other. And the resonance that one feels when using a torrial , it comes from a disruption of that natural order.
“Using only one at a time, as I had just now, seems to be fine. The problems start to creep in when many torrial are being used, al at once. The disturbance that occurs when each one is accessed is amplified, exponential y, depending on the number of other torrial being used at the time. Use too many, and the order is disrupted so much so, that you rip a hole in the fabric of reality.”
“What?” Laura demanded. She couldn’t grasp what she was hearing. First learning of these devices, then of their danger, and then of their real danger…
“That’s right,” Rafael continued. “If too many are used at once, neither dream nor human world can handle the disruptions. There is a limit. Bypass that limit, and… poof . You rip a hole in reality, a black hole, as it were. And it can engulf the entirety of both planes, destroying everything that exists, or ever had existed.”
“That’s terrifying ,” Laura said. “Are you saying that through the use of these devices, somebody can theoretical y… destroy the entire world?”
“Not just the world, child, but the entire galaxy. The entire universe. Everything that has ever been, or ever wil be, would disappear into a contracting abyss.
“And that is precisely why they were put away. Hidden from al , so that their use may never again threaten the existence of our worlds.”
“Why were they not destroyed?” Alexander asked. “If the risk is so great…?”
Rafael smiled at him. “That, dear friend, I cannot answer. My suspicion is that once made, the torrial become impossible to destroy. Although perhaps, simply because they are such treasures, the caretakers did not have it in them to break them down.”
“So they are like allurvai ,” Laura whispered half to herself.
“What did you mean about the one we’l need to use?” Logan asked.
“Ah. Wel , the repository contains many different torrial . For you to take the fight to the elders, you wil need some advantage… and these artifacts can give you just that. If you find them, you can use them to help you navigate the dream, to arm yourselves against the elders. They wil be the weapons that you must use should you be successful.”
“What can they do?” Laura asked.
“Many things. Things I do not know of. Perhaps none of them wil be of use.” He shrugged. “But I have a feeling you wil find something that wil aid you. For example. You two.” He pointed at Laura and Logan.
“You have fed recently, but on a different type of blood. You are stil unable to sleep, and who knows how long the effect wil last? But the fight wil not wait for you. The elders wil not wait for you. So how wil you enter the dream realm?”
Laura looked to Logan. What Rafael brought up was something she hadn’t thought of yet, something she hadn’t even considered. She just assumed the effects of the feeding would wear off before it came time to fight the elders… but now, she was not so sure. Logan met her gaze, but he looked equal y unsure.
“I wil tel you how,” Rafael continued. “You wil use a special torrial to do so. I am certain, that amongst al the ones that have been locked away, there is at least one that al ows the user to come into the dream realm without fal ing asleep. And not in the same way you did inside the archive. So there is one reason you need to find this repository.”
“What about the danger of using too many at once?” Madison asked.
Rafael looked at her. “I do not think you should worry about that. There are but four of you, and using four torrial at a time pales in comparison to how many were being used at the peak of their
“Using only one at a time, as I had just now, seems to be fine. The problems start to creep in when many torrial are being used, al at once. The disturbance that occurs when each one is accessed is amplified, exponential y, depending on the number of other torrial being used at the time. Use too many, and the order is disrupted so much so, that you rip a hole in the fabric of reality.”
“What?” Laura demanded. She couldn’t grasp what she was hearing. First learning of these devices, then of their danger, and then of their real danger…
“That’s right,” Rafael continued. “If too many are used at once, neither dream nor human world can handle the disruptions. There is a limit. Bypass that limit, and… poof . You rip a hole in reality, a black hole, as it were. And it can engulf the entirety of both planes, destroying everything that exists, or ever had existed.”
“That’s terrifying ,” Laura said. “Are you saying that through the use of these devices, somebody can theoretical y… destroy the entire world?”
“Not just the world, child, but the entire galaxy. The entire universe. Everything that has ever been, or ever wil be, would disappear into a contracting abyss.
“And that is precisely why they were put away. Hidden from al , so that their use may never again threaten the existence of our worlds.”
“Why were they not destroyed?” Alexander asked. “If the risk is so great…?”
Rafael smiled at him. “That, dear friend, I cannot answer. My suspicion is that once made, the torrial become impossible to destroy. Although perhaps, simply because they are such treasures, the caretakers did not have it in them to break them down.”
“So they are like allurvai ,” Laura whispered half to herself.
“What did you mean about the one we’l need to use?” Logan asked.
“Ah. Wel , the repository contains many different torrial . For you to take the fight to the elders, you wil need some advantage… and these artifacts can give you just that. If you find them, you can use them to help you navigate the dream, to arm yourselves against the elders. They wil be the weapons that you must use should you be successful.”
“What can they do?” Laura asked.
“Many things. Things I do not know of. Perhaps none of them wil be of use.” He shrugged. “But I have a feeling you wil find something that wil aid you. For example. You two.” He pointed at Laura and Logan.
“You have fed recently, but on a different type of blood. You are stil unable to sleep, and who knows how long the effect wil last? But the fight wil not wait for you. The elders wil not wait for you. So how wil you enter the dream realm?”
Laura looked to Logan. What Rafael brought up was something she hadn’t thought of yet, something she hadn’t even considered. She just assumed the effects of the feeding would wear off before it came time to fight the elders… but now, she was not so sure. Logan met her gaze, but he looked equal y unsure.
“I wil tel you how,” Rafael continued. “You wil use a special torrial to do so. I am certain, that amongst al the ones that have been locked away, there is at least one that al ows the user to come into the dream realm without fal ing asleep. And not in the same way you did inside the archive. So there is one reason you need to find this repository.”
“What about the danger of using too many at once?” Madison asked.
Rafael looked at her. “I do not think you should worry about that. There are but four of you, and using four torrial at a time pales in comparison to how many were being used at the peak of their
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