luc1city

[luc1city]

Think my dream characters are getting even more independent.

Last night myself and another character were sneaking around a post-apocalyptic castle, and saw a mysterious figure dressed in white, far off in the distance.

I had a theory that they were a wizard, since they reminded me of one of my old D&D characters.

When out of nowhere, the castle butler comes running and barges into the middle of our conversation. He insists that the figure we saw was actually a ghost. Complete with a tragic backstory, told through an elaborate musical number - singing louder and more aggressively each time I tried to get a word in edgewise

[luc1city]

Vegas Condo

Date: August 14th, 2024 - 6:16 AM Length: 961 words CW: Social/secondhand embarrassment, semantic satiation

In which I am a terrible storyteller, meet an incredible cook, discover what it truly means to truly be a condo, and escape to an alternate dimension to avoid paying rent

It begins with me recounting an anecdote of a dream I supposedly had to some friends at a dinner party.

I am wandering around an outdoor mall, which is simultaneously a public pool. A massive fountain-pool stands as its centerpiece – with palm trees, rock formations, and waterfalls balanced precariously on top of it. Teetering like an ice-cream cone with too many toppings.

Branching canals stretch out from the fountain on all sides, snaking along the sidewalk like lazy river-roads. The heat is sweltering, air thick with the smell of chlorine and Cold Stone Creamery. I’m pacing around in circles, searching for something I couldn’t remember.

I walk past a fountain. Followed by a pigeon. Then a small terrier dog wearing a life jacket. But for some reason, I can’t remember any of their names.

According to my dream-anecdote, I had somehow convinced myself all three of these things were actually homophones [lit: “different things, that were called the same thing”]. And this thing was called a “Vegas Condo”.

So essentially: “I walked past a Vegas Condo (fountain), followed by a Vegas Condo (pigeon), and met a small Vegas Condo (terrier dog)”.

Unfortunately, I was not a very good storyteller. I was nervous, and kept stumbling over my words. Every time I opened my mouth, I kept misremembering or forgetting important details about my dream, and had to look them up on my phone. My friends are distracted, getting bored.

At one point, one of my friends thought I was finished and starting walking away before I got to the “punchline” (Vegas Condo), and had to reluctantly slink back to the table when they realized I was still talking. It was very awkward.

Thankfully, the subject soon changed to my upcoming graduation party, and we begin discussing catering and table arrangement for the event.

It was then I notice the Caterer – an androgynous woman with sunglasses, cropped black ponytail, and a red leather jacket. Standing at a grill beside the pool, cooking up some sliders. Cate’s been with us the whole time, but they’re so deep in concentration on the food, it’s like they don’t even notice or care about anything else.

I can already tell that they are exceptionally talented. Hand-sculpted patties sizzle, lightly topped with cheese, melted on the grill. Paired with fresh bread, lightly toasted, soft in the middle. The smell is intoxicating. Cate moves with casual flair – dangerously close to the flames. Occasionally flipping condiments and grilling tools in the air like a showy bartender, but it's like don't even notice they're doing it. They pay me no mind, and I’m the only one watching.

I watch Cate for several more moments, mesmerized. Until I am finally drawn out of my reverie by an argument going down. Apparently, there aren't enough invitations to go around, which would “ruin the dinner plans, because there’s not enough plans [plates?]".

This was a problem. Because not only was there not enough seats for everyone at the table – but I actually only had a single plus-one, and had already planned to bring Cate. But everyone else was acting like they were already invited. Which I felt was a little unfair, considering I had just met them this afternoon.

I try to diffuse the tension by joking that the dinner’s probably going to be terrible anyways. To which one of the boys laughs and says I have a point, and “jokes” that we should just get Cate to cook for the event instead. They say their food is probably way better, and since Cate's our friend we can probably get them to cook for free.

Cate turns to face the group with an excuse-me-the-fuck glare.

I try to tell my friend hey, that's not cool. Cate already went out of their way to make a nice meal for us today, they should get a chance to relax and enjoy themselves, not spend all day working. It’s rude to expect Cate to cook for us all the time, especially for free.

But secretly - in the deep, dark, shriveled pit in my soul – part of me agrees. Because Cate’s food is incredible. I don’t care about the graduation dinner, and I would be happy to have Cate cook for me every day for the rest of my life even if it was exclusively sliders.

But of course, I don’t say that. Instead, I just compliment Cate’s food, and say it’s amazing, seriously. Best food I’ve ever had.

Cate doesn’t seem to care.

Before I actually get a chance to try Cate’s burgers, however, I get a notification on my phone saying there’s been an unexpected charge on my credit card. I race home to check my laptop, and see I’ve been charged 0,01 Kč for some subscription fee from my landlord.

I try to dispute the charge, but when I do, it says that there’s a three-dollar cancellation fee. I walk up to the front desk and tell them I got this weird email, kinda looks like a scam. They say nah, that’s legit.

I say that’s bullshit, there’s no way I’m paying three dollars just to cancel a 0,01 Kč fee for a subscription I never ordered. They say fine, then just keep the subscription. But I don’t want the subscription. They say well why don’t you just keep the subscription and not use it because it’s cheaper than paying the cancellation fee? And I’m like, listen, you don’t understand.

We argue back and forth for several minutes, until my landlord threatens to send the debt collectors after me if I don’t pay the fee. Where I finally realize I’m dreaming, say something to the effect of “well, you’ll have to find me first” and wake myself up on purpose so they can't respond.

[luc1city]

Rooftop Picnic with an Anxious Pterodactyl

Date: August 10th, 2024 - 7:44 AM Length: <300 words

I find myself high among the trees, navigating branches as effortlessly as roads. It is an ancient modern ruin, melded with a rainforest. Here, time passes only in sunrises and sunsets, with no day or night between; clouds clinging to my clothes like fog.

I step onto a red-shingle rooftop, nestled between the emergents and the canopy. The city is paradoxically high and low – like the view from an airplane, and yet, right beneath my feet.

It is here I come across a young pterodactyl, overlooking the edge of the rooftop. Small. No bigger than a cat. Barely more than a hatchling. The pterodactyl seems wary at first when I ask if I can sit with him. But invites me over anyways, patting the ground beside him with a sheepish grin.

I ask him what he’s doing here all by himself. He says he’s afraid of heights, but has to come up here to hide from predators. He couldn’t learn to fly, so his flock left him behind.

I ask how he plans on getting down from here.

He says he'll use a ladder.

The pterodactyl seems a bit lonely, so I offer to share a rooftop picnic with him in order to keep him company.

It mostly consists of apples.

We talk about life, and our respective struggles to survive in the modern day vs. a prehistoric world. The pterodactyl further confides in me about his fears, and how he had an anxiety attack the last time he tried to fly. He said that “being taken up high” [flying] was like:

“The sound of a thousand screaming insects, being drowned by the blood pumping in my head”

We spend the rest of our time sitting in silence, watching alien humpback whales drift across the sky.

[luc1city]

Static Eye and the Multiversal Sofa

"Set Against Earth, Sand Against Time..."

Date: August 14th, 2024 - 3:52 AM CW: Light eye/body horror (no gore), general mindfuckery Length: < 500 words

A villainous woman in a black leather cape stands in the middle of a field. She is approached from behind by an equally sinister man, who intends to do her harm.

Instead of turning to look behind her, however – the woman simply smiles, and turns her right eyelid inside-out. The moment that she does, a giant tentacle made of lightning and TV static shoots out of her eye socket, and injects itself into the man’s temple. He is slowly lifted into the air, paralyzed by the electricity.

Then, in order to “make things fair”, the woman turns her other eyelid inside-out, and injects a static tentacle into her own forehead. She levitates into the air beside him, also paralyzed and electrocuted.

Unable to speak, the woman communicates with the man through telepathy. She says that she didn't want to hurt him, and was only defending herself. She says that they don’t have to be enemies, and suggests they should team up instead.

. . .

A young woman and a Boy Who is Her Friend are sitting together in the attic, looking through a box of old photographs. Each time the woman looks at a photograph, it unlocks a new memory of a past life/alternate dimension. Other objects can apparently trigger memories too.

One particular memory kept repeating itself over and over again. Which shows a woman (herself?) in a black hooded cloak riding a black horse in slow motion, pursued by a black dragon. Each time the image “loops”, we see a little bit more of the memory. Opening with a large wide shot of the woman on horseback from above, as a dark shadow falls over her. Then a close-up on her hooded face, as she slowly turns, and the dragon comes into focus in the background.

It opens its mouth in a baleful yawn, emitting tendrils of steam. Then its breath explodes not with fire, but with water. Hot, like a geyser, enough to sear flesh from bone - as the woman frantically tugs the reins in order to escape.

As each loop occurs, the phrase, “Set Against Earth, Sand Against Time” is repeated over and over, accompanied by a pulsing, methodical beat.

They are sitting at a kitchen table where the boy is holding her hands, trying to reassure her. The table is empty, aside from a salt and pepper shaker. Each time she looks at a memory, the young woman is physically and mentally transported to this other world, which is confusing and frightening. She nearly collapses several times from the stress, but insists that they keep going.

The dream ends with the two of them frantically tearing apart a fold-out sofa, searching through the couch cushions for multiverses like loose change.

[luc1city]

I haven't found the energy to illustrate as much as I like recently so screw it. I'm just gonna start uploading my dream diary entries raw.

Check back tomorrow, or something.

[luc1city]

Dream Character: "The Horse Men"

[luc1city]

Dream Character: Polly, Whom Death Forgot Because Death Did Not Want Her

Threat Level: Extreme

Polly, Whom Death Forgot Because Death Did Not Want Her (or "Polly" for short) is a small frog whose soul is currently residing inside of an old Nintendo DS.

Before this, Polly used to most of her time on the internet. Sharing memes, drawing fanart, and creating fanfiction of all her favorite characters. Until one day, she woke up and was suddenly confronted by the grim reaper - who said he was here to take her soul.

But as it turns out, Polly was coincidentally in the middle of a RPF about the grim reaper, and wanted to make her fanfic more authentic. So she began excitedly asking Death all sorts of personal questions, like what was his favorite color, and if he was a top or a bottom.

This apparently made the grim reaper so uncomfortable, he decided to bring Polly back to life and make her immortal just so that he would never have to deal with Polly ever again.

It is unclear how Polly ended up being trapped inside of a Nintendo DS. But she has been using her time within to absorb the souls of every fictional character from every game that has ever been used on it. Now making her one of the most powerful characters in existence.

After I spoke with her, Polly admitted that she was still not powerful enough to escape the DS on her own. But if the game system is ever broken - even the tiniest crack will allow Polly to slip through and enter our world, and unleash her powers upon reality.

I do not know what Polly plans to do to the world in the event of her escape, as it has not happened yet.

Let's pray it never does.

[luc1city]

A Nightmare: "The Drowned Mother"

Name: The Drowned Mother Threat Level: High

The mother of Dim. The two of them had a very troubled relationship, finally culminating when she attempted* to drown her adult son in a bathtub after he returned home seeking reconciliation - where it seems she was cursed to drown in turn.

The returned Mother now appears as a bloated corpse with sunken eyes, and always appears to be dripping with water, despite not being anywhere near a source.

Despite her sluggish appearance, Mother is deceptively fast - easily closing 30 meters in under two seconds. She kills by suffocation, wrapping her arms around them in a watery embrace, filling her victims with a feeling of overwhelming warmth and acceptance, soured only by the smell of corpse-rot on her breath.

*or succeeded, dream records unclear

[luc1city]

Dream Character: "Wolf-Woman"

[luc1city]

Apologies for my lack of content recently. I've been busy applying for my MA, and also in the process of working on Something Big, so I've been a bit preoccupied.

Hopefully see you soon, Trespassers.

[luc1city]

No-Signal Rabbit

[luc1city]

Nightmare Documentation: "Fleabags" AKA: "Salvador Doggies"

These creatures start out seemingly as nothing more than normal dogs. But if abused or mistreated, they will start to transform. They gain a voracious appetite, and will continue to eat and consume everything in sight, even as their bodies become bloated to the point of bursting.

As they eat, they will continue to grow, particularly in the legs. Eventually will eventually grow tall enough for them to reach hotel windows - allowing them to grasp the people inside with long tongues; like a giraffe, plucking leaves from a tree.

[luc1city]

The Martyr

[luc1city]

The Hand-Faced Gentleman (Concept art)

[luc1city]

The Hand-Faced Gentleman

[luc1city]

antelope woman

[luc1city]

Dream Bestiary - "The Wolf-Eater"

Also known as a "doppel-wolf" or a "wyrdwolf", this canine-like preys primarily almost exclusively upon wolves. Its body is composed almost entirely out of wires, and it can unravel these cables and twist them to fit into whatever shape it desires.

Most often, it will appear disguised as its preferred prey - slipping into the skin of one of its past victims, where it will use their corpse like a puppet. It will then try and infiltrate an existing pack disguised as one of their members, and continue pick them off one-by-one. Allowing them easy access to new prey, and making it easier for them to hunt undetected.