Stepping into the white room was now to Finn a routine. It no longer was as much trouble as it did back then. Part of this was because he was now a lucid dreamer.
What that meant was that he had gained awareness of his state of being. Now he was conscious of just what was happening and the plane he was in.
"Even though I can say stepping into this plane has become relatively easy, I can't deny the feeling of immense weight I feel is on my shoulders each time I'm in this plane, "Finn said.
"That is expected, Master"The beautiful Lady known as Tiwa answered.
Over time, being Finn's dream bug, the latter had learned that contrary to what he had been told by her from the onset, he was in fact the one in charge of her and gaining this knowledge made him take advantage of the situation in full swing. Thus, the introduction of a few formalities such as "Master"that he was being called by her.
"What do you mean by that? Is there a reason I feel this much weight on my shoulders each time I'm here?"Finn inquired.
"Yes, you see, part of the reason we are able to have this conversation is because of the state you have achieved. Right from the onset, you have always had an idea of your state of existence while here. Which is why you were quickly able to defy the laws of this plane and take over. But it comes as a cost. Breaking certain laws requires something from the user. A normal dreamer feeds this plane with energy while in here and in return, the plane drives forward their narrative. You on the other hand, being aware of what the entire plane entails means that your presence here is but in fact a taboo. As such, to remain here, you are losing more energy than the regular dreamer. Your level of awareness is what is costing you energy, "Tiwa explained.
On hearing this, Finn's thought quickly went to something and he decided to check it out immediately.
[Name:Finn Adrain]
[Race:Verwolf]
[Class of race: New blood]
Ability : Oneirokinesis
*Stat attributes*
•Strenght: 15
•Agility:10
•Durability:10
•Dream points:23
"My dream points was 25 on entering here. Now with only this little time spent, I have lost two points to nothing. So if I'm to guess, the price I pay is in form of my dream points and the feeling of heaviness comes from the points I lose. The more I lose points, the harder it is to focus on keeping myself from drifting off into the deception of the dream world. But thankfully, I'm in my Dream box at the moment so I should expend less energy compared to entering other zones, "Finn analyzed on seeing his system prompts.
"I must warn you. Stepping outside the dream box means you become vulnerable to attacks. Being a lucid dreamer, if you die here, you die in the real world. If you get trapped in some place and can't return to the box before your energy diminishes then you are trapped here forever. Do you still wish to carry on?"Tiwa asked.
"Oh Tiwa, this has become an anthem. You say those words exactly the same way each time we are about to head out. I'm almost getting the feeling that you aren't worried for me. Rather, you are scared for yourself. Is there something else I should know?"Finn asked with a grin spreading across his face.
"Nothing of such! I'm your dream bug, my duty is to guide you down the right way. That is exactly what I'm doing!!"Tiwa answered rather sharply.
"Hmmm, in that case, proceed"Finn said stretching forth his right hand to a direction that appeared empty.
Where he was pointing at now was completely void because the walls and the surrounding were completely white making it hard to distinguish just what position he was in.
"Where do you wish to start from today?"Tiwa said.
"If you can, let's begin from my last stop. Take me to ridge of my dream"Finn said with all manner of seriousness on his face.
On hearing his words, without hesitation, Tiwa waved her hand and light particles appearing like fire flies began to gather up at a particular area.
These light particles slowly began to crowd the area and appeared denser as time went by. After several seconds, the light particles gave off a bright shine and when it began go dull down, what was now in view was a white door in the room.
The door had appeared on the command of Tiwa, the dream bug.
Finn didn't waste time as he began to approach the door with purpose. It was only upon reaching the door that he realized there was no knob. The door was as plane as any regular door but with no knob to it.
Nonetheless, with Tiwa appearing behind him, the door opened and oddly, instead of seeing what the other side held in store for him, it appeared like there wasn't anything to behold from the other end.
"Have no worries. Our course is set. Step through the door, master"Tiwa assured walking behind him.
On hearing this, Finn did as was told and stepped through the door appearing at the other end. Now he was in a completely different place entirely. On instincts, the first thing he did was to turn around to see Tiwa. But even he knew that attempt was a futile one as she was no where to be seen.
"Right, she can't manifest outside my dream box. Her limitations can surely be annoying most of the time, "Finn thought.
"But I'm right here with you. I can certainly be of help when the need arises, don't you think?"Tiwa said.
Although not in sight, Finn didn't act unaware as he knew just where she was.
"You know, I don't know how you dream bugs do it but there's something called privacy. And my mind exists for that sole purpose, I don't exactly appreciate you being in there, Tiwa"Finn said.
"The dreamer and the dream bug become one outside the confines of the dream box, master"Tiwa's voice resounded heavily inside Finn's mind.
"I know that. But it's not exactly equal in any sense that you can hear my thoughts but I can't hear yours. Anyways, it's a small price to pay. We have bigger issues to deal with like those things approaching us. Didn't I battle five of them last time? Now there are more?"Finn said with a look of horror on his face.
*Bing*
[Secra Serpents approaching]
*Threat level established : level 5
*New quest available*
[Destroy the Secra serpents from the source]
This notification appeared right in front of Finn's vision and as he read the last part, he didn't know which situation was more worrisome.The creatures approaching him in their numbers or the quest given by the system.