Page 1726…
I hope we’ve made this pretty clear.
Alex can’t use the sword again.
Now. The LOGICAL part of me would say… “Just TRY it again! Seriously!”
But the writer part of me says “Really? We want to have him lie down. Try it. Get nothing to happen. Then wake up and carry on?”
So. An emphatic statement seemed the right compromise.
Does it work?
In a little more than a week… I will be a guest at
I hope to see some of you there!
Please come visit!
Scott
DREAMLAND IS NOW AVAILABLE IN:
Okay, so I have some more notes from my re-read of the archives. These links discuss the supernatural powers humans can control in Dreamland, and how they work. I figure this will be helpful for everybody speculating on how fast Daniel can adapt in Dreamland.
Alex, as well as most human children, have visited Dreamland by creating a dream-self: a projection of their earthly body. This dream-self is capable of additional powers beyond the capabilities of the earthly body.
Alex has so far demonstrated the power of flight and enhanced physical characteristics of speed, strength, and stamina. According to his cousin Joey, other notable powers of children in Dreamland include invisibility and size reduction.
Humans can also allow other Dreamlanders to fly with them. But without a human, many Dreamlanders do not possess this ability naturally. It has not been seen or discussed whether any other power is also transferrable in this manner.
Fear is the kryptonite that negates these abilities for both adults and children. However, strong determination can help remove this fear, allowing humans to retain their powers. Alternatively, Orion hinted that a smarter person than Alex might be capable of learning the mechanics of controlling the dream-self instead of simply invoking their own spirit.
The link between an earthly body and its dream-self can manifest itself in a number of ways. If you get hurt in Dreamland, it affects you in real life. The same link is likely true in death. Reciprocally, how you treat your body in real life can potentially affect how it reacts in Dreamland. And then still get you later in real life. (Amusingly, you can experience digestive problems in Dreamland but not need to go to the bathroom there.)
While Scott has hinted several times in the comments that the true king of Dreamland might be able to wield more power than an ordinary human, these hints are largely absent from the comic itself (so far). There is little to explicitly state how much more power is controlled, why that difference in power might be manifested, or even what criteria is necessary to make someone a true king in this sense. Only Abaddon makes a public reference to the king’s power, and like everything else stated by Abaddon, it should be considered with suspicion.
While special powers are abundant in Dreamland, they are not entirely absent from Earth. Serapholis was built not only with steam technology, but magic from both Dreamland and Earth. Additionally, Merlin was practicing magic on Earth well before he first met Niviene.
Finally, by suggesting that the dream-self is responsible for the advanced powers of a human in Dreamland, it can be inferred that an earthly body that physically crosses over into Dreamland would not have access to these powers. The Guardians of Seraphopolis, descendants of ancient Egyptians who crossed over through the portal, might be able to verify this assertion. So far, they have only described themselves as proficient in magic and technology.
I can see why you’d want to make this more of a statement and less something that would be attempted (since witnessing failure was hard enough with Nicole and Felicity…and it would take how many pages to do it right?)…I think this works. 🙂
Alex looks pretty steamed…though I guess that would make sense. I just hope he directs his anger appropriately and doesn’t get mad at Daniel.
Can’t Dan just abdicate the thrown to his brother? I mean he has never been there…has no connection to it…no feeling for it….Why should he be king?
Maybe he can still get there the way he used to as a kid?
I was thinking the same thing. Because earlier in the story the rest of the kids were blocked because of the curse that Nic put on the sword initially. I’m sure the elves will enlighten us very soon. They’re being too quiet.
Weird… I tried to post a comment containing more of my notes, but nothing happened.
With regards to today’s comic, I like what you’ve done. But I don’t think it fully dismisses the nagging doubt in my head (and perhaps Daniel’s) that whispers, “Just at least try it again and see what happens.” But that test should be reserved for when time allows it, and right now is a call for urgent action. Nastajia “needs to be rescued,” and Abaddon is marching armies across both worlds. Since you can’t always predict how much time will pass in Dreamland, someone needs to get back to Dreamland ASAP. Alex has a reasonable argument to suggest that person is Daniel. If King Oberon comes clean on the rationality behind his confidence in Daniel, the deal is sealed.
Additionally, if Daniel finally gets a trip in Dreamland, he might feel a similar empathic sensation that confirms everything Alex just said. Even more precisely, he could just ask the sword for a straight answer.
Best find yourself a new girlfriend, Alex.
Actually, if I remember correctly, adults have been blocked from entering Dreamland…at least since the time of Ramses if not before then. Remember, Ramses wanted to bring his enemy into Dreamland to show him that peace was possible…and they used the portal for that. It seems that the way of things has always been that only children can enter Dreamland by dreaming.
There never was a curse on the Sword. The only children that have ever been blocked from entering Dreamland were those who were the next heirs to the Dreamland throne…and that was because of the laws that govern Dreamland. No heir to the throne mya enter Dreamland while the reigning King still lives. The “curse’ was on Arthur that kept him in a state of limbo, so that he wouldn’t truly die, and no new heirs could come to Dreamland and claim the throne. Other children were still able to visit though.
Works fine for me.
If there’s anything odd about the whole thing, it’s Alex being so calm. Sets off every alarm bell in my head. These folks there shouldn’t let him stay alone until he vents it out in some non-self-destructive way.
Nope…adults can’t enter Dreamland without the aid of the Sword or a portal. If he could still get there just by going to sleep, then Nicole wouldn’t have needed to try out to sword necklace to see Felicity. She could have just gone to sleep and “ta-da!” she’d see Felicity again.
I don’t know if it’s been clearly stated what specific determining factor blocks a child from returning to Dreamland. It could be age or potentially a loss of innocence or something else…maybe that’s a behind-the-scenes thing we can learn from Scott. 🙂
I’m really getting sick of this Plot induced Stupidity I mean Alex should at least LOOKING for a third option to get back into Dreamland.
1st Dan does have somewhat of a connection… this dialog is one of a few http://thedreamlandchronicles.com/comic/page-337/ (read a few pages)
2nd if Dan Abdicates the thrown, it will likely pass to the next King… i believe Orion said this somewhere, but i couldn’t find it.
Huh….I didn’t get “calm” from today’s page. I got “angry” or maybe “frustrated” but either way I also got “purposeful”…maybe he’s getting dressed with the intention of heading down to the pond to check on Niviene and get her feedback/help?
What makes you think he isn’t? I’m halfway wondering if he’s going to drag everyone out to talk to Niviene for a kind of planning session.
Honestly though, what third option would you suggest? Unless Scott resorts to introducing a heretofore unknown magical way to get into Dreamland (which IMO is weak writing, and Scott’s way better than that), they’re options are severely limited.
1) The Sword of Kings is a way into Dreamland, but it is only useable by the “current” King of Dreamland…so no good there.
2) We know that the little pouch from the cenaturs can go between Earth and Dreamland, but it can’t carry anything beyond a note or small item…so no good there.
3) There is still a working portal between the waking world and the dream realms, but based on what we learned from Oberon & Titania, it’s in Egypt…so until they get passports and plan tickets, no good there.
4) We know that Merlin and Niviene were able to spend time together via the Pool of Auryn, but with the help of magic, only Niviene was able to emerge from Dreamland to visit Earth for a few minutes. Merlin had to use the same kind of “dream-quests” that the Native Americans used in order to visit…he never crossed over physically…so the Pool isn’t a viable option either.
5) We know that Arthur and Merlin were working on some sort of amulet/device that would allow adults to enter Dreamland, but the magic creating it was disrupted. We don’t know if the amulet/device was successfully created or where it might reside now…so not helpful for an immediate solution.
What other options are there?
Ugh…”their options”…not “they’re”. 🙁 That’s what I get for writing this comment in spurts while working. 😛
Keep in mind, while days are passing for us, they are still within minutes of Alex being kicked out of Dreamland. They’re still coming to grips with what has just occurred. Give them time to wrap their brains around it.
Here’s the link to Orion’s explanation. Not sure how he learned this, but there it is.
THANK YOU Alex for taking the polite route of “Shut the heck up, fall asleep, and see what happens.” PLEASE let sometime next week be Dan’s first trip to Dreamland.
I have a feeling Alex will make it back to dreamland in the end. The fact that the Elf King and Queen are in his bedroom should make it obvious that he can get to dreamland the same as they can get here. As for Dan, never having been to dreamland before, he is going to be at a disadvantage at a critical time because he doesn’t have the training that Alex went through, so he isn’t going to know how to use his special dreamland power or know how to fly.
I feel like the second panel text doesn’t *quite* get the right message across. It sounds a little too Mojo Jojo (“i can no longer use the sword, that is to say, it is no longer in my possession, the sword an i have parted ways, as in, I no longer have the ability to use the sword….”)
I would have him mention Nic cast a spell and Orion made it clear if the Sword passes on to Dan Alex can’t use it again. Otherwise, it just sounds like Alex is being defeatist for no reason.
I like the part about Alex knowing teh sword is gone like he would know if his own arm was ripped off.
If any of the Nightmare Realm denizens are still in our world,maybe they’d construct a portal to allow Abbadon’s forces to invade ours not far from Alex and Dan’s hometown?
Well, he’s just got his only way to meet his true love taken from him right when she’s in mortal danger… I’d say he’s underreacting at the least. And he’s purposeful all right. That’s why I’d take a walk with him just to make sure he’s not planning to jump into that pond.
Also, whatever it is he’s up to, we all know what a strategic genius he is. No, I definitely wouldn’t let him go alone.
The rant does seem a bit “pig-headed”, like “I won’t try it!”… but I understand your dilemma Scott.
Couldn’t you do a “fast forward” panel? Something like a panale with explanatory text “After giving the sword back to Alex and have him sleep for over an hour without being able to get back into DL…” (next panel) “Its USELESS, Dan! I can just feel it! I felt how the sword was taken away from me!”
?
Bravo! Excellent recap! There was a lot of things I’d forgotten. Thanks for doing that, choco.
Well, waiting for Daniel going to dreamland.
I’m mostly just glad to see Alex finally in proper clothes. Maybe it’s just me but I always felt awkward for him sitting around chatting with all those people in his room and he’s in his boxer shorts. His brother’s fine, I’m sure he and Dan have shared room and various levels of clothed/unclothed for years but brother’s GF and his GF’s parents….awkward.
So yay, Alex has clothes on. Now they can proceed on figuring out their dilemma.
Works for me.
We don’t know if Niviene is still alive. When last seen, she was under attack by a horde of NR creatures…
Also, I’m wondering how Oberon and Titania made it to the U.S. from Egypt. I doubt the TSA would let them just walk in. Maybe they’ve got a teleport spell. In which case, getting themselves and Alex to Egypt may not be impossible.
Hear hear. It’s seldom a good idea to talk to royalty when clad only in boxers. 🙂
Yes! 😀
I think it works perfectly, no need for him to faff about with trying it out. I’m excited to see where you’re going to take this now!
Nice plot tension going on here… Nastajia is stuck in a presumably dangerous area of the Nightmare Realm, now Alex can’t go back, threatening their relationship, and Dan has to take over when he’s never been to Dreamland before. And the impending invasion by Abaddon. And meanwhile, the dwarfs are going to pay the nightmare realm a visit in a battleship. Can’t wait to see how all of this will pan out. 🙂
Yanno, I re-read through the archives recently and….there IS another way.
The Portal? No no, I don’t mean the portal, it will likely be destroyed. And the sword will not work for him now. But the AMULET…
What amulet? Why, the one that Merlin and Arthur were making. The one that may have, with Arthur, been lost “Between Worlds”. It may be completed. Simply lost.
I predict that when Felicity brings the tablet from the death pyramid and Merlin is awoken from his slumber, he will be able to return the Amulet to the world, thus enabling Alexander to return to Dreamland once more.
For it must happen. Alexander may be dim and not King material, but he has proven he is KNIGHT Material. Dan may be King material, with a knowledgable and strategic mind, but he can’t fight. They compliment each other, and they need each other. Alex is the hand that wields the blade, and Dan is the mind that tells it where to strike. They cannot function effectively when separate.
Or start hitting the booze and writing country songs..! 😉
Right now, Alex needs to vent. He needs a soundboard. This is like someone taking the jersey from the rookie quarterback and giving it back to the veteran who has just been hired from another team.
That would be very nice of them!
I think it would be nearly impossible for Alex to fall asleep at this point.
One point about the bracelet. If it can be reclaimed, it’s Merlin who reclaims it. And he’s got a girlfriend in Dreamland as well.
One bracelet. Two contenders. One can turn the other into a toad. Guess who goes and who stays.
Granted, Merlin has every right to die of old age or creating a mighty spell to stop Abaddon. Something you’d expect from an average storyteller. But this, fellow Readers, is a story by Scott the Unpredictable.
The only thing you could do to underline the point, Scott, would be to throw in the added penalty: Not only would Alex’s trying fail, it would also make it impossible for Dan to use it. There’s precedent from earlier, when Scott tried to “loan” the sword to Dan a few months back and was stopped with this same consequence.
I think so, too. Alex looks like he is still far too wrapped in his emotions. And as it sounds, the effect of loosing the sword seems to be rather traumatizing. He needs to get his head straight about the matter and overcome this trauma before he can consider his options.
I wonder what happens if Dan relinquishes the sword as well. To whom will it go?
Another idea: could the small sword around Dan’s neck open its eye and speak?
“What Alex says is true. You are the king now, Daniel. Alex can not go back.”
Thanks again for your great summary!
Excellent notes! 🙂
Actually, I think you may have something there with the powers not being available to those who cross over with the portal. It might be why the Guardians need mechanical wings (though I know that they also have those wings because their city is too high for regular dream-flight…so maybe that assumption isn’t legitimate). I definitely look forward to seeing the portal (or some other transportation device) being used to either confirm or deny your assertions! 😀