From the writings of Lady Chandra of Alagadda, on the events leading up to the Second War of the Masks.
The children of the Dream are no longer mortal, although at first they remain creatures of flesh, they have always been and always will be. Mortal and immortal, human and inhuman, those we call Dreamers live in a fragile balance, always on the run, always on the go, always hunted down, yet infinitely free. The first Dreamer I met was (and I hope still is) the Honorable Nian Zhen, Chief Archivist of the Library, my friend, benefactor and Master. The name by which he is best known outside the city , however, is the less flattering name of Mad Dreamer. In the Lands of Kouranes, and among the Dreamers who roam the Darklin Plain, they call him the Lost, the Fool, the Forsaken, the Prisoner, yet he is one of the greatest of his kind, having pushed himself to the limits of the Dream, to the Void beyond Being. His are the words with which I have described the Second Birth of the Dreamers, to him we owe all our little knowledge of this elusive species. Only after her disappearance, by sheer coincidence, did I meet the Dreamer. Arual was her name. It was the day of the 3345 Carnival of the Red Lord and the City throbbed at a frenzied rhythm under a scarlet sky, lost in ecstasy. The last time I saw her, the city was burning and destruction was following in her footsteps. Much of what happened after that day was because of her, yet while I hate the consequences of her actions, as I hate what they led me to do, I can't hate her, because I know she had no choice. Or perhaps, if she had, every other decision would have led to unacceptable consequences. For my part, I acted in good conscience, with honor and diligence, always pursuing the interests of the City.
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Dagli scritti di Lady Chandra di Alagadda, sugli eventi che portarono alla seconda Guerra delle Maschere.
[I sognatori] Non più mortali i figli del Sogno, pur restando in un primo momento creature di carne, sono sempre stati e saranno sempre. Mortali e immortali, umani e inumani, coloro che chiamiamo Sognatori vivono in un fragile equilibrio, sempre in fuga, sempre in viaggio, sempre braccati, eppure infinitamente liberi.
Il primo Sognatore che abbia incontrato era ( e spero che sia ancora) l'Onorevole Nian Zhen, Capo Archivista della Biblioteca, mio amico, benefattore e Maestro. Il nome con cui però è più conosciuto fuori dai confini della Città è quello, meno lusinghiero, di Sognatore Folle. Nelle Terre di Kouranes, e tra i Sognatori che vagano nella Piana Oscura, lo chiamano il Perduto, il Matto, l'Abbandonato, il Prigioniero, eppure è uno dei più grandi della sua specie, essendosi spinto fino ai limiti del Sogno, fino al Vuoto oltre l'Essere. Sue sono le parole con cui ho descritto la Seconda Nascita dei Sognatori, a lui dobbiamo tutta la nostra scarsa conoscenza di questo specie così elusiva.
Solo dopo la sua scomparsa, per pura coincidenza, ho incontrato la Sognatrice.
Arual era il suo nome.
Era il giorno del 3345 Carnevale del Signore Rosso e la Città pulsava a un ritmo forsennato sotto un cielo scarlatto, persa nell'estasi.
L'ultima volta che l'ho vista la città stava bruciando e la distruzione seguiva le sue orme.
Buona parte di quello che è successo dopo quel giorno è stato per causa sua, eppure nonostante detesti le conseguenze delle sue azioni, come detesto quello che mi hanno portato a fare, non posso odiarla, perché sono consapevole che non aveva scelta. O forse, se l'aveva, ogni altra decisione avrebbe portato a conseguenze inaccettabili.
Per parte mia ho agito in buona coscienza, con onore e diligenza, sempre portando avanti gli interessi della Città.
Arual the Dreamer leaves Alagadda as she begins the Metamorphosis of her Third Birth.
“ I am longing to be with you, and by the sea, where we can talk together freely and build our castles in the air.”
Bram Stoker, Dracula
I so badly wanted someone to write the story of these two sailing at least for a while! Rhaenys both on board and flying Meleys who will obviously accompany them! An adventure where they met with pirates, where she can visit other ports with him... something so she can feed her adventurous side before her children are born, before she is stuck on the Driftnark like a bird with a broken wing!
Scrolling through my old photos I found this relic from 2020, Aramis, aka René d'Herblay aka the bishop of Vannes ecc, as described in the Three musketeers by Dumas.
Song of the day (Valentine's day with the Three headed Monster that Is the Cardiology-Cardiosurgery-Vascular surgery exam looming ever closer)
Still learning to use Krita, still very confused.
Quick sketch of a VERY young, very scared and still quite human Mad Dreamer.
Took a break from england to listen to the new History of Byzantium and I'm just immensely charmed by the anecdote about how the Niceans very carefully brought Mongol ambassadors to court via the route that required going through as many mountain passes as possible to try and minimize how invadable-by-horse-archers they seemed.
the strange trails series so far - halfway through now!
Some of the pages and covers of Percy Shelley’s notebooks (1811-1822) — accessed through the Digital Bodleian Library
Italian med student with an obsession for painting. Also a mythology and history nerd. Give me a book and I'll give you my heart.
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