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[nulland]

Sender: Rob
To: All
Subject: The Past

So, is it normal for things to suddenly jump backwards in time here? I see that these books are still some kind of weird email/letter combination with a throwback pen, but other than that this is pretty different from what I saw a few weeks ago.

I'd mostly like to know if it's a good idea to stock up on things that may not be available later. You know, non-perishable food, soap, explosives, that sort of thing.

Comments

[nulland]

Unless you mean you can do that while you're awake, that's pretty lame honestly.

[oathkeeper]

yeah, i mean when you're awake! you can dream things into real life! here!

[nulland]

OK, it's actually really interesting then.

It doesn't just come straight from your actual dreams, right? Because then things might actually BE weird.

[oathkeeper]

erm i guess stuff can come out like that. but with some practice you can control what you wanna do. that's why it's a lot like magic!

what kind of stuff do you dream about?

[Does he want to know???]

[nulland]

[He got left out of the dreams episode, unfortunately.]

Got it. And that's how it can help people with what they need. How do you even practice that though?

I know it's crazier for some people, but most of what I get is stuff I've already seen or been through. And THAT'S weird enough.

[oathkeeper]

i don't know, i learned a bit of my stuff by trying to make plants grow. i really wanted to make tomatoes grow faster

but dreams can't be any weirder than what i've dreamed about too! i used to dream about giant mushrooms that wanted to eat me

[Now if that manifests in the world someday... oh god.]

[nulland]

Wow. How creative. And that still doesn't really say how. What, you just try to think and hope something happens?

Okay yeah, that's pretty weird.

[oathkeeper]

yeah!

it's

i m a g i n a t i o n

[nulland]

Uh huh. Except you have to practice imagining because apparently it doesn't always work. Do you fix it by taking a creative writing course or something?

[oathkeeper]

wait your imagination doesn't always work???

[Sorry, he's... Yeah.]

[nulland]

[He's used to this, you should meet his secondary nemesis.]

You're the one who said you need to practice it to control the magic!

[oathkeeper]

sure, i said that you need practice but your imagination shouldn't just not work?!

[nulland]

OK. Needing to practice implies that you can screw it up or it just may not work. So if it comes from your imagination, those problems would be related to that, right?

[oathkeeper]

oh geeze this is getting super confusing now

i guess you're right? if you've gotta practice imagining things maybe writing stories really could help? or maybe drawing pictures?

[nulland]

That was my question. But considering how hard it was for you to even grasp that, I'm guessing that's not the way someone works on this "magic".

[oathkeeper]

hey come on! i didn't mean it like that! dreams and stuff are just weird!

when i practice magic i just pick a target and shoot!

[nulland]

Weird seems to be a recurring theme, yeah.

That is not comforting in any way. But let me try to figure this out.

So, it IS like other skill-based things like gymnastics or painting or playing a cowbell, it's just that it comes from your imagination and not your muscles. Or sometimes a stick. Right?

[oathkeeper]

yeah! yeah, that is a great way to think of it. it's like learning how to ride a bike but you have to use your imagination or memories to make the wheels go. that makes sense, right?

[nulland]

Surprisingly, yes. So, thanks, now that I actually get it. I think.

[oathkeeper]

haha, yeah! you'll get the hang of it eventually, i promise.