Chapter Text
The sun shone brightly, high in the sky, overlooking the land with its warmth. There were dark green forests and lush green grass with flowers blooming that soaked in the sun. The land was slightly bare, with only a few noticeable buildings. One in particular, however, will unknowingly have an amount of history connected to it that always seems to come back in conversation. This piece of land lays a small caravan with a small lake surrounding it, all surrounded by a tall wall.
And in this land holds two forces facing each other on opposing sides, one resting in the safety of the walls and land while the other hangs by the border, only slightly inside.
It’s all quiet as they stare at each other, each side harboring many emotions and morals towards one another. There were 9 people in total. Unfortunately, their faces and figures are unknown as all they can be seen as are colorful auras representing each one and their overall being.
To start off, inside of the walls, is an energetic, mischievous warrior, whose aura is loud and pulses in waves as if you can almost feel it. The tall one is chaotic, reckless, and prideful, but under all of that childish and immature nature is determination and strength to fight for their morals, beliefs, desires, and, most importantly, their friends. They will do anything, going to the extremes, to keep their loved ones and anything they care about safe. They are represented by Red.
Standing next to Red is a strong, but cocky, leader, whose aura is calmer than Red’s, but still pulses slightly as the leader can and will speak their minds. The older one is a strong and capable leader, who uses peaceful techniques rather than violence, but is resilient and never gives up on their goals and beliefs. They trust their fellow comrades, will follow them into battle for their causes, and show a great amount of selflessness. However, under all of that goodness and warmth, lies a deep, hidden feeling of desire, paranoia, and slight hatred that has yet to be awakened. They are represented by Yellow.
On the opposite of Red, and the furthest from Yellow, stands an optimistic, but naive, follower, whose aura is bright yet soft at the same time, always pleasant to be around. The shorter one is far more easygoing and modest of the group, always choosing to follow instead of lead, which can get him in trouble and hurt sometimes (and more times in the future). They have a small shyness that envelopes them, but is drowned out by their optimism and slight mischievousness. They have different parts to their aura that makes it seem that they have multiple sides or “alter-egos” that live inside of him. While their optimism and nativity can get them into trouble at times, their heart is in the right place towards their friends and beliefs. They’re represented by Forest Green.
And standing on the other side of Yellow is a creative, yet sly and cunning trickster, whose aura gives off a dull glow like a warm sunset. The young one is loyal to a fault and has many creative thoughts and ideas inside their head, using their creativity to either help or prank others. The mischievous schemer is unpredictable, never knowing when they’ll strike next, like a fox. They remain loyal to their family and friends, but are hard to forgive those that have wronged them. They are capable enough to not be treated like a child, looking for approval by taking up many responsibilities to prove themselves and won’t be overlooked by anyone. They are represented by Orange.
Standing on the opposing side behind the wall, unseen by the rest, lies a neutral mercenary, whose aura is almost completely invisible, being undetected by others so they can easily sneak up on their targets. They are a neutral spirit, always staying out of conflict unless needed to, but willing to join the side of an ally and friend. However, they are easily swayed to join certain sides or people for a good price. But, they are still kind enough to help everyone in times of peace even if they were on opposite sides. They are represented by White.
The furthest from the group, seeming like they’re hiding, refusing to show themselves for personal reasons unknown by the others, stands a calm and collected king, whose aura is a mix of colors with some darkened parts that harbor conflicted feelings and choices. They are a kind king, always helping out their citizens, friends, and even those who do not like them. They are a hard worker with a sense of justice to stand up for those who cannot stand up for themselves. Unfortunately, even with all of these redeeming qualities, the caring king is known by many other titles, the most notable one being “traitor”. Their need to succeed has led them down a road full of betrayal and backstabbing, even though they are very reluctant to hurt their friends and loved ones. Their aura has too many colors that one does not stand out like the others, therefore they are represented by Rainbow.
Stepping into the land, close to the border, standing on the right of the middle person is a hot-headed pyromaniac, whose aura burns blazingly around them. They are quick to anger with their stubbornness and a bit brash, but are extremely loyal and protective, refusing to back down towards anything. If anyone were to threaten their friends and loved ones, they are quick to fight and defend them by any means necessary. They are chaotic, starting fights and pranks, but it’s mostly all fun-and-games. They are, however, somewhat insecure and bottle things up, always pushing their feelings and troubles away in favor of focussing on their friends’ feelings and troubles, which causes them to snap and have a temper often. They are represented by Black.
On the other side of the middle person is a tired vice, whose aura isn’t as bright, but comforting all the same with a bit of a shimmer to add to their charm. They’re careless, sarcastic, and not serious about many things. They blindly follow the middle person and have committed many crimes due to their naivety. They do, however, show some care to their friends, especially their close friends. They wouldn’t be fighting with them if they didn’t. Even though they seem to be careless and tired all the time, they have a calmness surrounding them that helps relax those around them. They are represented by Blue.
And finally, the middle person themselves, the wise founder, whose aura is bigger and brighter than the rest to show off their power. They are the founder of the entire land, bringing their closest friends to join so they could all live in peace and harmony and be one big happy family. They are a natural-born leader, logical and brave. They are extremely stubborn, never knowing when to back down, and are seen as egotistical and overconfident. They can get overwhelmed with their emotions, causing them to snap. However, even though they possess many flaws and are hated for being power-hungry and controlling, they do care for everyone and want what’s best for everyone, even though their means of doing it aren’t the best, their heart is in the right place. They are protective of their friends, willing to step into conflicts to help them out. They are represented by Lime Green.
High in the sky, unseen and unknown by the soldiers, floats a transparent outsider, looking in on the war that they have no reason to be a part of, yet here they are. They’re not a ghost nor are they a deity. They are just someone who happened to appear in the sky and are witnessing a battle about to unfold that they have no relevance to. At least, none they know of.
His name is Dream, and he is very confused, yet intrigued about the situation he’s in.
He looks over himself and gets a sudden jolt of some mixture of emotions (confusion, shock, interest, awe). He can still see his body, but it’s been faded out enough that he can see the land through himself. Everything was just all so surreal, Dream couldn’t believe it as he takes in everything from the sun glares to the flowing tree leaves. Everything is so beautiful here, why would anyone want to disturb its peace through war?
Speaking of the aforementioned war, he floats closer down towards the region. He can feel their auras, giving a color to each person to easily identify who is who. The two sides seemed to be exchanging words, but they were too muffled for Dream to hear clearly, only making out a few words: “white flags”, “revolution”, and the one that worries him the most “death”.
As he tries to make out the conversation below, he notices movement in the corner of his eye. It was Lime Green. And they brought out TNT from their pocket. Dream’s eyes widened; what the hell was he doing? Dream opened his mouth to scream and warn the others as Black lit a match, but no sound came out. Not even a gasp. Dream looks over at Yellow’s side hoping for someone to step in with what the other side is doing, only to be shocked into disbelief as their auras radiate calm, as if they’re not too concerned about what is currently happening. Dream couldn’t believe it; their land, their territory, their home is about to be blown up, why aren’t they trying to stop it?! It was about to be destroyed and Dream can only float there, observing everything that is about to unfold, powerless to stop it. Dream hated it. Even though he has no relation to the matter at hand, he can’t help but feel frustrated at the fact that he’s powerless to stop this.
Maybe in another universe he’d be involved with everything (just not how he’d thought he would be). Maybe in another universe he’d be powerful (just not in the way he intends to use said power). Maybe in another universe he wouldn’t have to sit on the sidelines and be forced to watch this tragedy (but instead would be the one to start it). But that doesn’t matter right now; he can’t do anything but watch.
He watches as Lime Green turns to Black. He watches as the bright aura lights the explosive in their hand. He watches as Yellow’s side stands their ground while the auras outside the walls back up. He watches as Lime Green throws the TNT on the ground and sprints away with Orange and Blue. He watches as the TNT explodes with more hidden explosives under the land start a chain reaction. He watches Red, Yellow, Forest Green, and Orange flee further into their land to escape the explosions.
He watches a home get destroyed by a malicious ruler.
And just when Dream thought things were over, another chain reaction started, only this time it affected him.
After the last TNT went off, the world abruptly shifted causing Dream to tense up. What was going on? It was like someone hit the fast forward on the TV remote because suddenly a million images and sounds were hitting Dream all at once that he had barely any time to process them. Evil laughter rang in the air, screams of terror, anguish, and heartache echoed all around him, more explosions went off, more craters formed. Too much was happening at once and finally when things finally stopped, Dream found himself in a dark secluded room with no way out.
Dream looked around the room, but everything was too blurry. The only thing he could make out was a wall of steaming hot lava across from where he was standing. The room wasn’t very spacious and if he tried hard enough, he could probably touch one wall with his hand and the other with his foot if he uses his height to his advantage. The major thing that stood out to Dream was the eerie silence.
“...”
It was quiet. Too quiet. The only thing that he could hear was a ticking sound coming from a blurry resemblance of a clock.
“...am”
Dream finally realized what this place was and what it could do to someone.
“...eam”
The black touch walls that would withstand any type of escape. The hot lava that could burn you to a crisp that cuts off the only exit. That god-awful ticking that seemed to echo off the walls and into your ears no matter where you are in the room.
“...ream”
All of those pieces combined together could drive anyone residing in here to go mad. To die alone.
“Dream”
Dream didn’t want to go mad. He didn’t want to die alone. Why was he here? What did he do to deserve to be here? Was it just fate telling him that everything in his life ultimately led up to this? Is this where he’ll go in the future? Did they put him here? What about-
“DREAM!”