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Alexandras White Oak Intro To Dreaming 240301
At Camp White Oak, Alexandra introduces her students—Joel, Meridith, and Caelum—to the basics of astral projection and entering the Nightmare non-corporeally. This method, as Alexandra explains, offers safety from physical threats and allows explorers to spy and gather information without being detected. Interested yet apprehensive, the students listen closely, soaking in the details of this new and intriguing ability. As they follow Alexandra's instructions to lay back and visualize themselves drifting away from their bodies, they embark on their first step towards mastering this skill. The session's practical exercise has the students successfully astral project, observing the differences in their appearance and capabilities in this state, emphasizing the lesson on safety and the incorporeal nature of their exploration.
The lesson shifts towards understanding how to enter dream worlds through doors in the Nightmare and the importance of developing a detailed dream persona for deeper immersion. Alexandra emphasizes the need for solo practice in building these personas, underscoring the clarity of memory and experience one retains from adventures within dream worlds. Questions from the students reveal their curiosity and concerns about control and the implications of their dreamworld experiences on their psyche. The class concludes with a reminder of their homework: to create a dream persona, explore a dream world, and report back on their experiences. As the lesson wraps up, the students show a mix of enthusiasm and contemplation for the challenges and discoveries that lie ahead in their journey into the world of dreams.
(Alexandra's [White Oak] Intro to Dreaming)
[Wed Feb 28 2024]
At the Flag Pole and Bonfire for Camp White Oak
Standing tall and proud, a flag post shoots straight up into the air thirty feet, holding a flag bearing the White Oak symbol. During the day, a central bonfire waits to be lit for the night. This area serves as the general gathering place of the camp, located between two clearings for tents and a tent setup for showers. A path leads to the northeast and the obstacle course.
It is afternoon, about 31F(0C) degrees, and there are a few dark grey stormclouds in the sky. Ankle high mist flows through the area.
Joel lifts his hand, still a little uncomfortable by all the weaponry about "I guess mainly what the point of it is, as opposed to entering the Nightmare bodily? Is it safer somehow?"
Meridith nods to Joel. She stretches out, and observes Alexandra as she begins to unload her rifle and set it aside. Then as she begins she pays close attention, worn in full medieval armor, blade at her hip, bow over her shoulder. She keeps a steady gaze into the woods. She smiles at Alexandra, this is all new to her, it seems? But not entirely unfamiliar.
Caelum gives a noncomittal shrug towards Alexandra. Meridith and her antics are ignored, what with the challenged bit, and instead he sets his arm up on his bag to half-curl up a few fingers above his eyes to shield them while he looks up at Alexandra. "Just, how you do it, that's all."
"Firstly, yes. If you enter the nightmare in your body, you can be attacked, captured, interacted with, and all of that. If you astrally project, you are basically incorporeal. If anyone tries to hurt you, you dissipate and return to your body, instantly. Secondly, it is also able to be done in a ritually nightmare blocked room, which you can then leave to spy and explore without being spied upon in a similar fashion," Alexandra says to Joel to cover his points as she leans back and puts her hands onto the grass to look up at the midday sky through the overhanging trees.
"You still cannot go through a nightmare shielded wall though, and when you are done, you can pop right back to your body. Useful for things like, scouting every house in Haven to try to find a missing priest," she mentions as if this was in fact a measure she considered using back when it was necessary.
"As for how, that is a subject of some debate. Some call it meditation, others like psychedelic drugs. I am a firm believe that it is all about will power and intent, to separate consciousness from physical being. It is also much easier in Haven, compared to other areas of the world," she says before laying down then beside her rifle, putting her tablet on her stomach. "I suggest learning it from a prone position. When you separate consciousness from body, your body tends to drop like a puppet with its strings cut. Avoid concussions, lay down before you project."
Meridith nods thoughtfully. "I was under the impression such a sleeping form is often subconsciously driven not consciously. Is it typical to be fully aware within the nightmare when occupying it non-corporeally?" she asks.
Joel nods nodstly as he moves to sit down as well, stretching his legs out along the grass, head tilted to the side as he takes the information in.
Caelum stares at Alexandra beginning to lay down, and there is a tilt of his head for it. Knit brows, narrow eyes - perplexed, almost, while he asks, "And are we going to do it just.. here? Out in the open, in the middle of the woods? What if we get attacked, or robbed."
Meridith says "I can keep watch."
Caelum gives Meridith a dismissive wave. "I trust you the least."
Meridith scowls at Caelum. "Trust my character or my ability!" She isn't sure which would be more offensive.
"You are conscious while in the Nightmare. You become subconsciously driven once you enter a door into a dreamworld. The distinction is important. You can focus consciously on a desired result while preparing to go into the nightmare and eventually a dreamworld, and that will focus the eventual efforts of your dream persona," Alexandra says toward Meridith before lifting her hand and gently moving it back and forth in the air above her. "Yes, Mister Cross, we are. Because it's somewhat safe to do so, as you'll see," she replies to Caelum, shaking her head a little.
"This presumes any of you actually manage to focus enough to accomplish it," she points out to the students. "Once we reach the nightmare, without our bodies, you'll understand why it is safe. For now, lay back, close your eyes, and think of drifting, being untethered to the world, floating, flying, or whatever other analogy helps you visualize yourself separate from your body, and focus on imagining yourself floating toward a land of dreams," she instructs the class, trying to help them figure out their own, personalized steps for bridging the gap and falling asleep. (The command for which is: Dream)
"You have no ability, and suspicious character." Caelum lazily drawls towards Meridith, still keeping his chin on the back of his once again folded arms. Begrudgingly, he closes his eyes, and keeps them that way, face eventually buried into his arms once again. He doesn't lie down, remains seated, half-hugging the makeshift pillow that is his backpack while trying to do as he''s told, and drift off to sleep. It isn't an easy task, nor a quick one, evidently.
Meridith gazes around warily, and nods. Then begins to settle down on the ground, laying back. She sticks her tongue out at Caelum, and then settles in to close her eyes. "I have incredible talent, and immaculate character," she says confidently, and smirks. She closes her eyes slowly, relaxing. She looked pretty tired.
Joel just rolls his eyes a little at the sniping between the two and lays back himself, slowly closing his eyes and following the guidance of Alexandra's voice as he tries to let his mind drift off.
"Just visualize your own path into the nightmare, drift off to sleep if you like, stay close by once you reach the nightmare," Alexandra instructs the class as another student potentially joins the group. Then she remains quiet for the next bit of class, letting everyone focus instead on how they want to visualize stepping out of their bodies. Silence is really preferred for that, so instead, she goes ahead and makes her own way into the nightmare, having done this a few times and gotten decently good at doing it quickly, some times, even under pressure. Once she has managed this, she watches the students from the other side.
Alexandra waits until all three students have joined her and nods to them. "Well done," she says, motioning around. "Look about, look at each other. See how different it is from when you came in physically?" she asks, letting them figure out exactly what she is referring to in this case.
Meridith huhns, and gazes about, drifting lazily around.
"Yeah, I don't have my junk with me." Caelum calls out an answer rather morosely, tapping his nondescript torso and the distinctly undistinct underside that doesn't bare anything to sight. "Bizarre."
Joel nods slowly as he turns around, flickering a little "No clothes but not naked. Kinda like we're more... ideas than bodies right now."
"Exactly. We are nightmare spirits, dream figments, incorporeal drifters. Whatever term for it you wanna use, feel free. This is why I call this Astral Projection," Alexandra says to her class, nodding at the observations they made before motioning around and gesturing toward the sleeping bodies. "For the moment, we can keep an eye on our bodies too. Mister Arkwright left apparently, not wanting to really participate, despite driving all the way out here. I suspect because he likes the sun less than Mister Cross," she points out as for why she felt safe doing this in the woods. "All you have to do to get back to your body if someone did show up and start messing with you is try to wake up. Which we could do now, but we have more lesson to cover," she says, motioning for everyone to follow her.
Meridith nods softly and begins to follow after Alexandra. Voiceless it seems for the moment, perhaps she is just distracted.
"Also note, you can only people on the physical plane with roughly the same clarity as each other. You won't see clothes, or symbols, or anything like that, but you can hear them talk like this. Though that may require mandrake tea or supernatural sensitivity on their part," Alexandra says, clearly still exploring the limits of what is possible with the separating of the mind herself. "Now, let's see if we can get a door to open, without going into one," she says, as she leads the class deeper into the camp.
"We'd return where we were, no matter where we woke up?" Caelum asks somewhat skeptically while breezing forward and drifting closer to Alexandra, in preparation to follow in ghastly fashion. "I'm not comfortable leaving sight of myself.. but," One of those nondescript shoulders in all their haze shrugs idly, "I suppose I'll live."
Meridith says "Wah!!! "
Joel turns toward the strange flickering lightl, head cocked to the side, oddly thoughtful.
"Doors appear where there are hard surfaces like walls, windows, or doors, or obviously, any forests around you," Alexandra explains as she gestures toward the multiple doors opening in forested spaces around her. "This is why it is wise to move slowly or stick to paths," she explains, motioning to the obstacle course to the north, which, conveniently, does not have a dream door blocking that direction. "This is how you get into a dream world, by stepping through one such door. That is the big step, but there is more to cover, so... Wake up," she says then before fading out of existence on the nightmare.
Joel blinks a bit as he starts awake "Huh..." he slowly sits up, yawning a little. "Weird... just like actually dreaming but, like... clearly remembering."
Alexandra waits until all the students have awakened before slowly sitting up. "Questions, comments, or concerns thus far?" she asks before stretching a little from what constitutes as a bit of a power nap. "Also note, no nightmare manifestations or auras were visible in that state, perhaps because the blood in the body was not there to supply enough substance to show it," she suggests with a shrug of her sholders for why that phenomenon was a thing.
Caelum lifts his head up from his backpack -- then, after sparing a look-over, dips it right back with a low, near-silent groan. It appears he hadn't budged even an inch in how he sat with his legs crossed, backpack in his lap. "No questions from me," he murmurs, mumbled, into his arm.
Meridith thinks a moment and shrugs helplessly. "...What if we went into the door? Are we stuck?" she asks curiously.
Joel purses his lips thoughtfully, but still doesn't ask a question.
"So, if we had gone through that door, you would have been incorporated into that dreamworld, as your normal self. Which is fine, if that's what you're after. Less fine if you want to really embrace the world more closely," Alexandra starts to explain, stretching her arms a little still before stifling a yawn. An after effect no doubt of the little nightmare trip. "If you do not want to be yourself in those worlds, you need to do some pre-game planning," she says, sounding a little more serious then, knife-hand pointing toward the unlit bonfire. "You need to sense what worlds are nearby. You do this somewhat subconsciously, normally, but bringing it to your conscious mind does require a little bit of effort. This can be everything from just closing your eyes and letting your mind drift toward dreaming to focused psychic discipline calling out to the dreamworlds for an echo. However you manage it is up to you," she explains to the class, maintaining her serious expression for this, suggesting nothing is a joke, despite some slightly outlandish things mentioned. (The command for this is: dreamworld list)
Meridith blinks and nods thoughtfully, she seems intrigued.
Joel rests back on his elbows, quietly listening to Alexandra's instructions.
"Once you have locked onto what is available, you can scan each of those worlds for various bits of information," Alexandra continues quietly, looking up at the sky as she tries to consider each of the steps from a new and fresh perspective, like she was not too long ago. "Basic information should bubble forth with a little effort," she says to the class (the command for this is: dreamworld summary #). "Or, if you feel like delving a little deeper, you can probably open a flood gate for way more information," she says, glancing around to each of the members of her class at this point (the command for this is: dreamworld fullinfo #). She lifts a hand to roll it with her wrist a few times and says, "You can also check on who exists in a dreamworld, to help get an idea of who is there, what sorts of people there are, and how those people look. These are important details to understand going in, because if you want to really delve into that world, you need to know and understand it on a fundamental level. And then you have to build a persona to exist there." (these commands are outlined in the following helpfiles: help dreamworld and help dreamworld commands)
Meridith says "Are we intending to go to ne during this class?"
"No. This is one of those activities best done alone, in a bedroom, with silence. It takes a lot to make a good dream persona. And you really need to focus on it without distractions," Alexandra says to Meridith, shaking her head slowly. She lifts her tablet up to check the time and says, "This is right about how far I expected to get on this class, and about where I wanted to end it. Everything you need to get started dreaming. Including everything you need to get to the dream. The effort to build a persona though would take longer than we have today. There are plenty of books in the library about it. And once you do it a few times, it does become second nature."
Joel nods softly "And... you don't really remember what happens in those dreamworlds?"
Meridith nods to Alexandra, standing up and looking a little refreshed after het catnap. "Maybe I'll see you in there," she muses.
Apparently having slightly drifted off yet again, Caelum spends a lot of effort to climb to his feet. His backpack is tossed over his shoulder, hoisted, and he rubs his face with the heel of his hand. "Right. I'm about to pass out, thank you for the lecture." The call is drawled half-asleep already, while he turns on a heel, falls away, hands atop his head for a lack of a parasol.
"Oh no, you remember damned near everything that happens in a dream world. With uncanny clarity. But you aren't YOU in the dreamworld, unless you step through a door without prepping first," Alexandra says to Joel, shaking her head at the concept of forgetting dream stuff. "If you get tortured in the dreamworld, you will very clearly remember it when you wake up. But. We tend to let dreams go. It is part of our defense mechanisms and psychology. So if you reach for it again, you probably will remember it, but if you don't, you'll forget it just as easily as any other dream," she continues before standing up. She waves to Caelum and says, "Dismissed!"
Joel blinks and nods softly "Interesting..." he tilts his head and shrugs a little, dismissing whatever thought was nigglign at him. He gets t his feet, brushing out his trousers "Yeah, thanks" he adds toward Alexandra, before giving a smile and a nod to Meridith as well.
Alexandra says "If you still have questions, feel free to ask. I was just making sure Mister Cross knew he could leave."
Meridith says "...Anyone want a match while we're here?"
Joel tilts his head "Afraid I haven't done any combat training yet. Don't think I'd be much help to you."
"Your home work is to build a dream persona for a dream world and go explore it, see what happens, and report back to me later," Alexandra says to the two remaining students. "I'll text Mister Cross," she adds with a shrug regarding making sure he gets his assignment.
Alexandra says "And I have another thing to do, so no sparring today, sorry."
Meridith nods. "Sounds like fun!"
Meridith says "Okay! Thanks Professor, Joel, always good to see you!"
Joel nods softly "One more thing... when you're /in/ that persona... how fully is the real you in control?"
Meridith says "How in control is the real you of this persona?"
Meridith smiles softly at Joel.
Meridith nods.
The lesson shifts towards understanding how to enter dream worlds through doors in the Nightmare and the importance of developing a detailed dream persona for deeper immersion. Alexandra emphasizes the need for solo practice in building these personas, underscoring the clarity of memory and experience one retains from adventures within dream worlds. Questions from the students reveal their curiosity and concerns about control and the implications of their dreamworld experiences on their psyche. The class concludes with a reminder of their homework: to create a dream persona, explore a dream world, and report back on their experiences. As the lesson wraps up, the students show a mix of enthusiasm and contemplation for the challenges and discoveries that lie ahead in their journey into the world of dreams.
(Alexandra's [White Oak] Intro to Dreaming)
[Wed Feb 28 2024]
At the Flag Pole and Bonfire for Camp White Oak
Standing tall and proud, a flag post shoots straight up into the air thirty feet, holding a flag bearing the White Oak symbol. During the day, a central bonfire waits to be lit for the night. This area serves as the general gathering place of the camp, located between two clearings for tents and a tent setup for showers. A path leads to the northeast and the obstacle course.
It is afternoon, about 31F(0C) degrees, and there are a few dark grey stormclouds in the sky. Ankle high mist flows through the area.
Joel lifts his hand, still a little uncomfortable by all the weaponry about "I guess mainly what the point of it is, as opposed to entering the Nightmare bodily? Is it safer somehow?"
Meridith nods to Joel. She stretches out, and observes Alexandra as she begins to unload her rifle and set it aside. Then as she begins she pays close attention, worn in full medieval armor, blade at her hip, bow over her shoulder. She keeps a steady gaze into the woods. She smiles at Alexandra, this is all new to her, it seems? But not entirely unfamiliar.
Caelum gives a noncomittal shrug towards Alexandra. Meridith and her antics are ignored, what with the challenged bit, and instead he sets his arm up on his bag to half-curl up a few fingers above his eyes to shield them while he looks up at Alexandra. "Just, how you do it, that's all."
"Firstly, yes. If you enter the nightmare in your body, you can be attacked, captured, interacted with, and all of that. If you astrally project, you are basically incorporeal. If anyone tries to hurt you, you dissipate and return to your body, instantly. Secondly, it is also able to be done in a ritually nightmare blocked room, which you can then leave to spy and explore without being spied upon in a similar fashion," Alexandra says to Joel to cover his points as she leans back and puts her hands onto the grass to look up at the midday sky through the overhanging trees.
"You still cannot go through a nightmare shielded wall though, and when you are done, you can pop right back to your body. Useful for things like, scouting every house in Haven to try to find a missing priest," she mentions as if this was in fact a measure she considered using back when it was necessary.
"As for how, that is a subject of some debate. Some call it meditation, others like psychedelic drugs. I am a firm believe that it is all about will power and intent, to separate consciousness from physical being. It is also much easier in Haven, compared to other areas of the world," she says before laying down then beside her rifle, putting her tablet on her stomach. "I suggest learning it from a prone position. When you separate consciousness from body, your body tends to drop like a puppet with its strings cut. Avoid concussions, lay down before you project."
Meridith nods thoughtfully. "I was under the impression such a sleeping form is often subconsciously driven not consciously. Is it typical to be fully aware within the nightmare when occupying it non-corporeally?" she asks.
Joel nods nodstly as he moves to sit down as well, stretching his legs out along the grass, head tilted to the side as he takes the information in.
Caelum stares at Alexandra beginning to lay down, and there is a tilt of his head for it. Knit brows, narrow eyes - perplexed, almost, while he asks, "And are we going to do it just.. here? Out in the open, in the middle of the woods? What if we get attacked, or robbed."
Meridith says "I can keep watch."
Caelum gives Meridith a dismissive wave. "I trust you the least."
Meridith scowls at Caelum. "Trust my character or my ability!" She isn't sure which would be more offensive.
"You are conscious while in the Nightmare. You become subconsciously driven once you enter a door into a dreamworld. The distinction is important. You can focus consciously on a desired result while preparing to go into the nightmare and eventually a dreamworld, and that will focus the eventual efforts of your dream persona," Alexandra says toward Meridith before lifting her hand and gently moving it back and forth in the air above her. "Yes, Mister Cross, we are. Because it's somewhat safe to do so, as you'll see," she replies to Caelum, shaking her head a little.
"This presumes any of you actually manage to focus enough to accomplish it," she points out to the students. "Once we reach the nightmare, without our bodies, you'll understand why it is safe. For now, lay back, close your eyes, and think of drifting, being untethered to the world, floating, flying, or whatever other analogy helps you visualize yourself separate from your body, and focus on imagining yourself floating toward a land of dreams," she instructs the class, trying to help them figure out their own, personalized steps for bridging the gap and falling asleep. (The command for which is: Dream)
"You have no ability, and suspicious character." Caelum lazily drawls towards Meridith, still keeping his chin on the back of his once again folded arms. Begrudgingly, he closes his eyes, and keeps them that way, face eventually buried into his arms once again. He doesn't lie down, remains seated, half-hugging the makeshift pillow that is his backpack while trying to do as he''s told, and drift off to sleep. It isn't an easy task, nor a quick one, evidently.
Meridith gazes around warily, and nods. Then begins to settle down on the ground, laying back. She sticks her tongue out at Caelum, and then settles in to close her eyes. "I have incredible talent, and immaculate character," she says confidently, and smirks. She closes her eyes slowly, relaxing. She looked pretty tired.
Joel just rolls his eyes a little at the sniping between the two and lays back himself, slowly closing his eyes and following the guidance of Alexandra's voice as he tries to let his mind drift off.
"Just visualize your own path into the nightmare, drift off to sleep if you like, stay close by once you reach the nightmare," Alexandra instructs the class as another student potentially joins the group. Then she remains quiet for the next bit of class, letting everyone focus instead on how they want to visualize stepping out of their bodies. Silence is really preferred for that, so instead, she goes ahead and makes her own way into the nightmare, having done this a few times and gotten decently good at doing it quickly, some times, even under pressure. Once she has managed this, she watches the students from the other side.
Alexandra waits until all three students have joined her and nods to them. "Well done," she says, motioning around. "Look about, look at each other. See how different it is from when you came in physically?" she asks, letting them figure out exactly what she is referring to in this case.
Meridith huhns, and gazes about, drifting lazily around.
"Yeah, I don't have my junk with me." Caelum calls out an answer rather morosely, tapping his nondescript torso and the distinctly undistinct underside that doesn't bare anything to sight. "Bizarre."
Joel nods slowly as he turns around, flickering a little "No clothes but not naked. Kinda like we're more... ideas than bodies right now."
"Exactly. We are nightmare spirits, dream figments, incorporeal drifters. Whatever term for it you wanna use, feel free. This is why I call this Astral Projection," Alexandra says to her class, nodding at the observations they made before motioning around and gesturing toward the sleeping bodies. "For the moment, we can keep an eye on our bodies too. Mister Arkwright left apparently, not wanting to really participate, despite driving all the way out here. I suspect because he likes the sun less than Mister Cross," she points out as for why she felt safe doing this in the woods. "All you have to do to get back to your body if someone did show up and start messing with you is try to wake up. Which we could do now, but we have more lesson to cover," she says, motioning for everyone to follow her.
Meridith nods softly and begins to follow after Alexandra. Voiceless it seems for the moment, perhaps she is just distracted.
"Also note, you can only people on the physical plane with roughly the same clarity as each other. You won't see clothes, or symbols, or anything like that, but you can hear them talk like this. Though that may require mandrake tea or supernatural sensitivity on their part," Alexandra says, clearly still exploring the limits of what is possible with the separating of the mind herself. "Now, let's see if we can get a door to open, without going into one," she says, as she leads the class deeper into the camp.
"We'd return where we were, no matter where we woke up?" Caelum asks somewhat skeptically while breezing forward and drifting closer to Alexandra, in preparation to follow in ghastly fashion. "I'm not comfortable leaving sight of myself.. but," One of those nondescript shoulders in all their haze shrugs idly, "I suppose I'll live."
Meridith says "Wah!!! "
Joel turns toward the strange flickering lightl, head cocked to the side, oddly thoughtful.
"Doors appear where there are hard surfaces like walls, windows, or doors, or obviously, any forests around you," Alexandra explains as she gestures toward the multiple doors opening in forested spaces around her. "This is why it is wise to move slowly or stick to paths," she explains, motioning to the obstacle course to the north, which, conveniently, does not have a dream door blocking that direction. "This is how you get into a dream world, by stepping through one such door. That is the big step, but there is more to cover, so... Wake up," she says then before fading out of existence on the nightmare.
Joel blinks a bit as he starts awake "Huh..." he slowly sits up, yawning a little. "Weird... just like actually dreaming but, like... clearly remembering."
Alexandra waits until all the students have awakened before slowly sitting up. "Questions, comments, or concerns thus far?" she asks before stretching a little from what constitutes as a bit of a power nap. "Also note, no nightmare manifestations or auras were visible in that state, perhaps because the blood in the body was not there to supply enough substance to show it," she suggests with a shrug of her sholders for why that phenomenon was a thing.
Caelum lifts his head up from his backpack -- then, after sparing a look-over, dips it right back with a low, near-silent groan. It appears he hadn't budged even an inch in how he sat with his legs crossed, backpack in his lap. "No questions from me," he murmurs, mumbled, into his arm.
Meridith thinks a moment and shrugs helplessly. "...What if we went into the door? Are we stuck?" she asks curiously.
Joel purses his lips thoughtfully, but still doesn't ask a question.
"So, if we had gone through that door, you would have been incorporated into that dreamworld, as your normal self. Which is fine, if that's what you're after. Less fine if you want to really embrace the world more closely," Alexandra starts to explain, stretching her arms a little still before stifling a yawn. An after effect no doubt of the little nightmare trip. "If you do not want to be yourself in those worlds, you need to do some pre-game planning," she says, sounding a little more serious then, knife-hand pointing toward the unlit bonfire. "You need to sense what worlds are nearby. You do this somewhat subconsciously, normally, but bringing it to your conscious mind does require a little bit of effort. This can be everything from just closing your eyes and letting your mind drift toward dreaming to focused psychic discipline calling out to the dreamworlds for an echo. However you manage it is up to you," she explains to the class, maintaining her serious expression for this, suggesting nothing is a joke, despite some slightly outlandish things mentioned. (The command for this is: dreamworld list)
Meridith blinks and nods thoughtfully, she seems intrigued.
Joel rests back on his elbows, quietly listening to Alexandra's instructions.
"Once you have locked onto what is available, you can scan each of those worlds for various bits of information," Alexandra continues quietly, looking up at the sky as she tries to consider each of the steps from a new and fresh perspective, like she was not too long ago. "Basic information should bubble forth with a little effort," she says to the class (the command for this is: dreamworld summary #). "Or, if you feel like delving a little deeper, you can probably open a flood gate for way more information," she says, glancing around to each of the members of her class at this point (the command for this is: dreamworld fullinfo #). She lifts a hand to roll it with her wrist a few times and says, "You can also check on who exists in a dreamworld, to help get an idea of who is there, what sorts of people there are, and how those people look. These are important details to understand going in, because if you want to really delve into that world, you need to know and understand it on a fundamental level. And then you have to build a persona to exist there." (these commands are outlined in the following helpfiles: help dreamworld and help dreamworld commands)
Meridith says "Are we intending to go to ne during this class?"
"No. This is one of those activities best done alone, in a bedroom, with silence. It takes a lot to make a good dream persona. And you really need to focus on it without distractions," Alexandra says to Meridith, shaking her head slowly. She lifts her tablet up to check the time and says, "This is right about how far I expected to get on this class, and about where I wanted to end it. Everything you need to get started dreaming. Including everything you need to get to the dream. The effort to build a persona though would take longer than we have today. There are plenty of books in the library about it. And once you do it a few times, it does become second nature."
Joel nods softly "And... you don't really remember what happens in those dreamworlds?"
Meridith nods to Alexandra, standing up and looking a little refreshed after het catnap. "Maybe I'll see you in there," she muses.
Apparently having slightly drifted off yet again, Caelum spends a lot of effort to climb to his feet. His backpack is tossed over his shoulder, hoisted, and he rubs his face with the heel of his hand. "Right. I'm about to pass out, thank you for the lecture." The call is drawled half-asleep already, while he turns on a heel, falls away, hands atop his head for a lack of a parasol.
"Oh no, you remember damned near everything that happens in a dream world. With uncanny clarity. But you aren't YOU in the dreamworld, unless you step through a door without prepping first," Alexandra says to Joel, shaking her head at the concept of forgetting dream stuff. "If you get tortured in the dreamworld, you will very clearly remember it when you wake up. But. We tend to let dreams go. It is part of our defense mechanisms and psychology. So if you reach for it again, you probably will remember it, but if you don't, you'll forget it just as easily as any other dream," she continues before standing up. She waves to Caelum and says, "Dismissed!"
Joel blinks and nods softly "Interesting..." he tilts his head and shrugs a little, dismissing whatever thought was nigglign at him. He gets t his feet, brushing out his trousers "Yeah, thanks" he adds toward Alexandra, before giving a smile and a nod to Meridith as well.
Alexandra says "If you still have questions, feel free to ask. I was just making sure Mister Cross knew he could leave."
Meridith says "...Anyone want a match while we're here?"
Joel tilts his head "Afraid I haven't done any combat training yet. Don't think I'd be much help to you."
"Your home work is to build a dream persona for a dream world and go explore it, see what happens, and report back to me later," Alexandra says to the two remaining students. "I'll text Mister Cross," she adds with a shrug regarding making sure he gets his assignment.
Alexandra says "And I have another thing to do, so no sparring today, sorry."
Meridith nods. "Sounds like fun!"
Meridith says "Okay! Thanks Professor, Joel, always good to see you!"
Joel nods softly "One more thing... when you're /in/ that persona... how fully is the real you in control?"
Meridith says "How in control is the real you of this persona?"
Meridith smiles softly at Joel.
Meridith nods.