The first thing Ren noticed when he stepped through the shimmering door…
…was the silence.
Not peaceful.
Expectant.
Like the whole realm was holding its breath.
A soft, golden mist curled around his boots. Strange star-petal flowers bloomed from floating stones. The horizon wobbled like watercolor on wet parchment, and the sky blinked once before deciding to stay closed.
"This is… Cindale?" Ren asked.
Keeri nodded behind him. "The real version. Welcome to the Dreamwoven World."
Clomp added, "Here, places are shaped by collective dreaming. Cities vanish if forgotten. Roads change when no one's looking. And if you meet yourself? Don't say anything awkward."
They followed the golden thread of the Key across a shifting plain where trees hummed lullabies and rivers ran uphill.
Finally, after hours—or minutes? Time was funny here—they reached the edge of a vast basin.
Nestled inside:
A city made of glowing marble and woven moonlight. Towers floated like balloons. Streets curved into spirals. And in the center rose a colossal sleeping statue, curled like a resting god, wrapped in chains of starlight.
Above the gate shimmered a name:
Somniel: The City of Shared Dreams
Ren stepped closer—only to freeze as a chill slithered down his spine.
The Key buzzed nervously.
A dream-haze swept through the gate.
And a voice whispered from the mist:
"He's here."
"The Catalyst has entered the script."
"Wake the Seer. The erased one warned us."
Ren turned sharply. "Did you hear that?"
Keeri was already drawing her blades. "Something's watching us."
Clomp sniffed the air. "Bad idea juice incoming…"
Suddenly—
The ground rippled.
A crack split the earth beneath the city statue.
And from it rose a figure—tall, half-shadow, half-fire, wearing a mask shaped like a dreaming moon.
Its voice was a whisper and a roar.
"You should not have come." "The World-Eater remembers you." "You were supposed to be forgotten."
It raised a hand—
—and the statue opened one eye.