[Temple’s adrenaline spikes when he reads the message. He doesn’t know what pictures the person’s referring to or why him having them is a problem for that person, but he reckons he’s probably in trouble. He scrolls up to see what pictures the person’s referring to, and his fear rapidly turns into confusion.]
[His content has been leaked again. Of course.]
What do you mean by that?
Those pictures are of me. How do you think I got them?
[Dream frowns: how can that be? He goes back to look at the pictures again, finding details on them that he didn't see the first time around. The 'him' in the pictures looks...younger, somehow, even if Morpheus has always looked this 'age'. He was never been a child or a teenager, he's always existed as he is right now. But not only that, but there are marks, scars, body hair that Dream doesn't have and he has to come to the conclusion that these pictures are truly not trafficked pictures of him. He's heard from others about meeting twins of themselves that were no sibling of theirs, and he wonders if this is the case.]
I asked, because I wondered how one would have pictures of me that I never took.
[And to make a point, Morpheus sends Mark a picture of him he had caught Constantine taking of him.]
[It’s been so long since Temple was last in his own universe that he’s almost forgotten what his neck looks like without the black line on it. And he’s not sure how he feels about being reminded.]
[But the other man is clearly older than him, has a face that shows the subtle signs of age. So, though he looks like Temple, there are some differences - and if the other’s very suggestive username is accurate at all, those aren’t the only ones.]
Well, this isn’t the strangest thing I’ve ever encountered in this city, that’s for sure.
But, in case this isn’t just a city thing, I wonder… have you heard of the Covenant? The UNSC? The Spartans? Master Chief? Project Freelancer? Charon Industries? Chorus? Sidewinder? Valhalla?
[Temple is wondering if the existence of a stranger with his appearance means that either he’s a clone himself, or someone cloned him. He doesn’t know why someone would even bother, but he figures it’s still worth checking. And so, he seeks to learn if the stranger is from his universe.]
['Older' is the understatement of the millennia, but that's just semantics to Morpheus. He existed before Earth and humans did, and he will exist long after either of them disappears.]
If that is not the strangest thing you have seen in this city, I must admit that I find myself curious to know what it would be?
[Not that this is concerning at all.]
I have heard those words before, but I do not think it was in the context you may think of. The Spartans were fierce warriors in Ancient Greek, Charon's myth is based on my sister's ability to bring those that have passed to her realms, the Sunless lands, and Valhalla is certainly not how most mortals think it is.
[They definitely are not from the same universe, and Dream can help but be intrigued by the young man with his face.]
Well met, Mark Temple. I am Lord Morpheus, Dream of the Endless.
Well, the city once turned into a desert city called Al Dahanab. I don’t know how or why, and it’s never transformed like that since then, as far as I know.
While it was like that, people could sign a special sort of contract with each other, called a Finality Contract - one that anyone could sign with anyone. Dominants could sign Dominants, Submissives could sign Submissives, the Dominant/Submissive dynamic could be reversed…
It was before the Creator, of course.
That’s the weirdest thing I’ve seen here. Not the contracts, the city becoming a desert.
Where I’m from, all but the Spartans are myths, made up, and planets, cities, corporations, and supersoldiers are just named after them. There’s probably a planet, a city or a company named after you there, if the pattern holds.
[Temple doesn’t know exactly what Morpheus is but he remembers enough mythology to faintly recognize the name, at least. And that plus Morpheus’ titles makes Temple suspect that he’s a deity of some sort.]
That is, if you are what I think you are, at least…
[Not that Dream will ever admit it, but this story does make him slightly impress with the city. That's quite the demonstration of magical power there, to transform an entire city.]
That does sound strange, indeed. What happened to those that had signed such a contract during that time?
In my world, humanity still thinks as such. Most pantheons have disappeared as mortals turned to other beliefs, the gods losing their powers over them and fading into nothingness. My name is not well known in my world, I would be surprised that it would be in yours either. [He's always been discrete after all, and even his marriage to Calliope had been rewritten to Oeagrus or Apollo, depending on the poets that sang about her life.]
I am no deity, if that is what you are asking. I am the anthropomorphic representation of the collective unconsciousness of humanity. Mortals call me 'the Sandman'; I create and rule over dreams and nightmares that all living creatures visit when they sleep.
[It's an abridged version of what he is, but for now, it'll do.]
When you say 'The Creator', do you mean the entity that created this world?
You are thinking of Orpheus. He was my son.
[And that's all he'll say about it, the grief is still too strong, even centuries after his son's death.]
Because my existence is tied to a key aspect of humanity, and does not rely on faith. Whatever happens to me, there will always be a 'Dream of the Endless'. If I die, another aspect of me will take over my function and my purpose.
No. I mean the Creator of the LIES program, C.R. Eator. There was a war a few years ago, the Dark War, over who would rule this city - C.R Eator or Jules Nissen. C.R Eator won, obviously, and now he’s the mayor. I’m surprised you haven’t heard of him before.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
[His content has been leaked again. Of course.]
What do you mean by that?
Those pictures are of me. How do you think I got them?
no subject
[Dream frowns: how can that be? He goes back to look at the pictures again, finding details on them that he didn't see the first time around. The 'him' in the pictures looks...younger, somehow, even if Morpheus has always looked this 'age'. He was never been a child or a teenager, he's always existed as he is right now. But not only that, but there are marks, scars, body hair that Dream doesn't have and he has to come to the conclusion that these pictures are truly not trafficked pictures of him. He's heard from others about meeting twins of themselves that were no sibling of theirs, and he wonders if this is the case.]
I asked, because I wondered how one would have pictures of me that I never took.
[And to make a point, Morpheus sends Mark a picture of him he had caught Constantine taking of him.]
no subject
[It’s been so long since Temple was last in his own universe that he’s almost forgotten what his neck looks like without the black line on it. And he’s not sure how he feels about being reminded.]
[But the other man is clearly older than him, has a face that shows the subtle signs of age. So, though he looks like Temple, there are some differences - and if the other’s very suggestive username is accurate at all, those aren’t the only ones.]
Well, this isn’t the strangest thing I’ve ever encountered in this city, that’s for sure.
But, in case this isn’t just a city thing, I wonder… have you heard of the Covenant? The UNSC? The Spartans? Master Chief? Project Freelancer? Charon Industries? Chorus? Sidewinder? Valhalla?
[Temple is wondering if the existence of a stranger with his appearance means that either he’s a clone himself, or someone cloned him. He doesn’t know why someone would even bother, but he figures it’s still worth checking. And so, he seeks to learn if the stranger is from his universe.]
I’m Mark Temple, by the way. You?
no subject
If that is not the strangest thing you have seen in this city, I must admit that I find myself curious to know what it would be?
[Not that this is concerning at all.]
I have heard those words before, but I do not think it was in the context you may think of. The Spartans were fierce warriors in Ancient Greek, Charon's myth is based on my sister's ability to bring those that have passed to her realms, the Sunless lands, and Valhalla is certainly not how most mortals think it is.
[They definitely are not from the same universe, and Dream can help but be intrigued by the young man with his face.]
Well met, Mark Temple. I am Lord Morpheus, Dream of the Endless.
no subject
While it was like that, people could sign a special sort of contract with each other, called a Finality Contract - one that anyone could sign with anyone. Dominants could sign Dominants, Submissives could sign Submissives, the Dominant/Submissive dynamic could be reversed…
It was before the Creator, of course.
That’s the weirdest thing I’ve seen here. Not the contracts, the city becoming a desert.
Where I’m from, all but the Spartans are myths, made up, and planets, cities, corporations, and supersoldiers are just named after them. There’s probably a planet, a city or a company named after you there, if the pattern holds.
[Temple doesn’t know exactly what Morpheus is but he remembers enough mythology to faintly recognize the name, at least. And that plus Morpheus’ titles makes Temple suspect that he’s a deity of some sort.]
That is, if you are what I think you are, at least…
no subject
That does sound strange, indeed. What happened to those that had signed such a contract during that time?
In my world, humanity still thinks as such. Most pantheons have disappeared as mortals turned to other beliefs, the gods losing their powers over them and fading into nothingness. My name is not well known in my world, I would be surprised that it would be in yours either. [He's always been discrete after all, and even his marriage to Calliope had been rewritten to Oeagrus or Apollo, depending on the poets that sang about her life.]
I am no deity, if that is what you are asking. I am the anthropomorphic representation of the collective unconsciousness of humanity. Mortals call me 'the Sandman'; I create and rule over dreams and nightmares that all living creatures visit when they sleep.
[It's an abridged version of what he is, but for now, it'll do.]
no subject
I feel like I’ve heard your name before, though. Not frequently, but I think there’s one story about you. It’s by Ovid, I think…
How is the ‘anthropomorphic representation of the collective consciousness of humanity’ not a deity, though?
no subject
You are thinking of Orpheus. He was my son.
[And that's all he'll say about it, the grief is still too strong, even centuries after his son's death.]
Because my existence is tied to a key aspect of humanity, and does not rely on faith. Whatever happens to me, there will always be a 'Dream of the Endless'. If I die, another aspect of me will take over my function and my purpose.
mentions of war
No. I mean the Creator of the LIES program, C.R. Eator. There was a war a few years ago, the Dark War, over who would rule this city - C.R Eator or Jules Nissen. C.R Eator won, obviously, and now he’s the mayor. I’m surprised you haven’t heard of him before.