Keine Quest (Part 6): Broken History (Complete)

[DracoOmega]

>Did anything we saw seem familiar in the same sense it seems to feel?
>Head toward the mansion.

>What you saw when you touched it was garbled and difficult for you to understand; fragments of memories and sensations that made very little sense out of context. It felt like parts of them were missing. Perhaps you couldn't understand them because the shadow itself couldn't, and what you saw was filtered through its own awareness? You feel that many of them are memories it doesn't remember having and cannot process.
>You head towards the mansion, opening the great doors and stepping inside. It seems Sakuya has fallen down on her duties in this realm. Or perhaps Remilia felt like replacing the marble flooring with grass. Wait, is that the mansion in the distance ahead of you?

[Hello Purvis]

>"Anyone here?"

[DracoOmega]

>"Anyone here?"

>You call out.
>"Hello?" comes a reply some distance ahead. Is that... Maribel by the shore of the lake, near the mansion?

[Hello Purvis]

>Toward Maribel!

[DracoOmega]

>Toward Maribel!

>You head towards Maribel, noticing that the shadow is still following alongside you. You sense curiosity from it about this new being. Why are there suddenly beings where there was none, it wonders.
>Maribel peers in your direction, then frowns deeply as she looks at the shadow beside you. She takes a step backwards. "What's that?" she calls out before you get too close, pointing towards it.

[Hello Purvis]

>"It's a something."
>Shrug.
>"It seems friendly. And, it kind of recognizes me. You can sort of feel what it's thinking if you get close. I think it kind of recognizes me. Be careful about touching it, you'll start to feel it's memories and a little strange."

[DracoOmega]

>"It's a something."
>Shrug.
>"It seems friendly. And, it kind of recognizes me. You can sort of feel what it's thinking if you get close. I think it kind of recognizes me. Be careful about touching it, you'll start to feel it's memories and a little strange."

>"You're... awfully casual about that," she says, taking another step backwards and keeping a wary eye on you. "May I ask who you are?"

[Hello Purvis]

>"I'm Keine, and you don't remember the last couple times we've met, do you?"

[DracoOmega]

>"I'm Keine, and you don't remember the last couple times we've met, do you?"

>She frowns. "Last couple of times? I'm not sure I understand what you mean..."

[Hello Purvis]

>"This is the third time we met, Maribel. You didn't remember me the second time, either. But that's alright, things are a huge confused mess right now, as you've probably kind of figured out."

[DracoOmega]

>"This is the third time we met, Maribel. You didn't remember me the second time, either. But that's alright, things are a huge confused mess right now, as you've probably kind of figured out."

>"Well, I'm confused, at any rate," she says, peering at you. "We've really met before? Why wouldn't I remember?"

[Hello Purvis]

>"Well, I know your name, don't I? And i don't know why you wouldn't remember, exactly. But I can probably summarize. You're dreaming, Maribel. You've been affected by a youkai that causes sleep while you were already asleep, and now you're caught in a coma as far as the waking world is concerned. A couple friends and I came to save you. Renko's been worried about you."
>Sigh.
>"I'm sorry to force this all down your throat at once. Even if it all sounds crazy, I hope you at least accept I'm a friend?"

[DracoOmega]

>"Well, I know your name, don't I? And i don't know why you wouldn't remember, exactly. But I can probably summarize. You're dreaming, Maribel. You've been affected by a youkai that causes sleep while you were already asleep, and now you're caught in a coma as far as the waking world is concerned. A couple friends and I came to save you. Renko's been worried about you."
>Sigh.
>"I'm sorry to force this all down your throat at once. Even if it all sounds crazy, I hope you at least accept I'm a friend?"

>"To save me... from..." She looks up at the sky. "I already know that I'm dreaming. I come to this place in my dreams. But nothing feels wrong."
>She turns back to you, a little tentatively. "How's... Renko?"

[E-Nazrin]

>"A bit of a mess, unfortunately. She broke down crying when she explained that you'd fallen into a coma, and it didn't look like that was the first time."
>"... do you remember what day it was when you went to bed and entered this dream?"
>How is our shadow friend behaving?

[Hello Purvis]

>"The place you go to when you're asleep? That isn't a dream. I live there. I even saw you, once. Don't ask me how that works. But, while you were there last time, someone who isn't very smart struck you with a spell that put you to sleep. While you were already asleep. And...this happened. In your world, you've not been able to wake up for a couple days."

[DracoOmega]

>"A bit of a mess, unfortunately. She broke down crying when she explained that you'd fallen into a coma, and it didn't look like that was the first time."
>"... do you remember what day it was when you went to bed and entered this dream?"
>How is our shadow friend behaving?

>Maribel frowns deeply. "I..." Her eyes unfocus a little, and she looks away.
>"Uh," she says, sounding distant. "Tuesday, I think."
>It seems to be shifting a little more actively. It wants to know her. It wonders why you've stopped moving towards her.

>"The place you go to when you're asleep? That isn't a dream. I live there. I even saw you, once. Don't ask me how that works. But, while you were there last time, someone who isn't very smart struck you with a spell that put you to sleep. While you were already asleep. And...this happened. In your world, you've not been able to wake up for a couple days."

>"You live there?" she asks. "But not here? Aren't I in the same place?" She looks around her. "Or is this a different world entirely? How did you find me?"

[Hello Purvis]

>"This is different, more like a real dream. I think it is mostly a dream. Think of it as a third world. And I've been trying to solve a mystery involving all this for awhile now."
>"In particular, this place is your dream. It's kind of, but not quite, like my world."

[E-Nazrin]

>Any idea what day of the week it was in Mary's-in-a-coma time?
>Ask our shadow friend to stay calm. We're going to describe what we know, and what we're worried about. Ask it not to approach her for now. Something bad might happen if it does.

Suggest:
Take two. Le sigh.
"It's a long story. Let me see... there are primarily three worlds that we're discussing here. The first is your world, where your true body is currently in a coma and Renko is deeply worried. The second is the world that I come from, and that you physically enter in your dreams. The third is where we are now, a world of your dreams when put to sleep in the second world. I know the first two are real. I'm not sure about this one, since there's something unique about your dreaming into the second world that's probably key to everything that's happened."
"A... few days ago, to keep the explanation simple, a being of dreams noticed you in that second world. She found you unique since dreams normally don't wander the waking world, even in a land of magic. But... her usual method for speaking to someone is to put them to sleep and examine their dreams. When she did that to you, making or entering this third world, something went wrong. The being of dreams was broken into several fragments in this third world, a lot of things got chaotic in the second world, and your body in the first world isn't waking up."
"After a... lot of trouble, I eventually came from the second world to the first and found you. Another being of dreams helped me enter your dreams to try and set things straight. So here I am."
"... part of the chaos that occurred involves strangeness with time and history, which I am sensitive to. So could you tell me what month and year it was when you remember going to bed? This might be more convoluted than I thought..."

[DracoOmega]

>"This is different, more like a real dream. I think it is mostly a dream. Think of it as a third world. And I've been trying to solve a mystery involving all this for awhile now."
>"In particular, this place is your dream. It's kind of, but not quite, like my world."

>"A real dream?" she says. "You mean to say that all of this is just in my imagination? ...wouldn't that mean I'm imagining you, too?"
>The shadow starts to move towards Maribel. She turns a wary eye on it and backs up a little more.

>Any idea what day of the week it was in Mary's-in-a-coma time?
>Ask our shadow friend to stay calm. We're going to describe what we know, and what we're worried about. Ask it not to approach her for now. Something bad might happen if it does.

>You're not certain. The paper was dated July 22nd, 2021. You don't know what day of the week that was.
>You ask the shadow to stop moving. It pauses, somewhat uncertain. Why would something bad happen? Maribel keeps her eye on it.

[Hello Purvis]

>"If the world you normally visited in your dreams is the second world, then consider me a visitor from there. I've come to try to help you get out of here. "

[DracoOmega]

>"If the world you normally visited in your dreams is the second world, then consider me a visitor from there. I've come to try to help you get out of here. "

>"O... kay? And, uh, how are you supposed to do that?"

[Hello Purvis]

>"That's a very good question. I'm still trying to work it out."

[DracoOmega]

>"That's a very good question. I'm still trying to work it out."

>"Oh." She frowns. "Then... what now? Can I get out the same way you got in?"

[Hello Purvis]

>"Not quite, unfortunately. You'll have to wake up from here. The problem is... well, the person who put you to sleep is here. And, well, she's been kinda ripped into several pieces. I...think our shadow friend may be one of them."

[DracoOmega]

>"Not quite, unfortunately. You'll have to wake up from here. The problem is... well, the person who put you to sleep is here. And, well, she's been kinda ripped into several pieces. I...think our shadow friend may be one of them."

>"You... do?" She stares the shadow more closely. "Does she... normally look anything like that?"

[Hello Purvis]

>"No. She normally looks a lot more like a person. With wings."

[DracoOmega]

>"No. She normally looks a lot more like a person. With wings."

>"Well that, uh... that definitely doesn't look too much like that at the moment."
>The shadow makes another slow and tentative motion towards Maribel. It wants to know her. It wants to understand what other beings are. It feels there's some reason they should be familiar.
>"Is that..." Maribel frowns at it. "Is it... trying to communicate?"

[Hello Purvis]

>"I think so. Can you feel what it...she is thinking at all? I think She wants to touch you. I'm...unsure if it's a good idea. But...it makes me wonder if you have an aspect of her within you or something, she definitely recognizes you."

[DracoOmega]

>"I think so. Can you feel what it...she is thinking at all? I think She wants to touch you. I'm...unsure if it's a good idea. But...it makes me wonder if you have an aspect of her within you or something, she definitely recognizes you."

>"I can feel... something, anyway," she says. "It's hard to really understand it. Just... impressions. Thoughts, almost. They're very vague."
>She takes a tentative step towards it. "You warned me about touching it earlier, too. Would it be... harmful?"
>The shadow seems a bit confused. It doesn't seem to understand Maribel's reaction to it. It's uncertain what it should do.

[Hello Purvis]

>"It's very confusing. But, you might be a special case. It might be a harmful thing, or it might be beneficial. I...honestly don't know what would happen."