Voice; Go Back To Sleep... OTA

[ushahin]

[Ushahin, unlike his previous communications, sends this one out around nine o'clock, about the time he thinks the most people will be heading for bed. There's a rustling sound of pages as he picks up the book he received here.] Do you all like stories? I do. I have received a book from home. It contains many legends and tales from my home. Tonight, I shall tell you one that has great personal meaning to me. It is called The One Who Walks Between Dusk and Dawn.

[His soft voice is at the perfect tone and volume to lull someone to sleep. Though with how this tale veers more towards the Grimm Brothers than Disney, it might pay to stay awake and hear the ending.]

Once upon a time, in a land called Pelmar, there was a prince who lived in a shining, prosperous city. He had everything his heart could desire, including a beautiful wife and son. The only thing that troubled him was the monsters that lived beyond the walls in the dark forest. They were the Were, a curious mix of wolf and man, and they often attacked the people when they traveled the road outside. The prince would often lead a band of men to slay the Were, but they were cunning beasts, and evaded him like smoke slipping through bare hands.

One day, a woman disappeared from the city in the middle of the night. Though curious, not many thought anything of it until a man disappeared a few days later. Very shortly, people were disappearing from the city every night, never to be seen again. The prince was greatly troubled by this all and even his wisest men could give him no answers. He prayed to the gods for help. That night, a figure came into his dreams. In his crooked features and uneven eyes lay madness. "Who are you?" The prince asked.

The figure smiled. "I am the one who walks between dusk and dawn. You may call me Ushahin." (I suppose now you will all see why this is one of my favorite stories.)

"What do you want?" The prince asked.

"I want three things. If you do this for me, I will leave your people in peace. If not, I shall take someone every night until none remain. Do you agree to the bargain?"

What choice did the prince have? He agreed. "And what three things do you desire? I have all the riches of the city at my disposal."

Ushahin told him in plain terms. "What I desire is far greater than any riches. I want three impossible things. The dream of a newborn child, the last thought of a dying man, and a memory that you have forgotten. (What I asked for was far more humble, but that would not sound nearly as dramatic in a tale such as this.)

The prince's heart sank, but he had already given his word. Ushahin gave him a week to procure what he had asked for. When he awoke, he gathered his wise men once more. The first two items were gathered through tremendous effort... (Which I am skipping...) [The sound of several pages being turned is heard.] ...but as the seventh day approached, he had them. The last proved to be more difficult than he had imagined. What had Ushahin meant, 'a memory you have forgotten'?

Though he tried his hardest, the prince couldn't discover what Ushahin wanted from him. The seventh day came and went. When the prince fell asleep that night, Ushahin returned. He was angry. "You failed to deliver your part of the bargain, prince."

"Give me another chance," he begged, but the figure in his dreams remained unmoved. The prince offered his soul in exchange for the lives of his people. Ushahin laughed and sneered at him, telling him that if he wanted his soul, he would have already taken it. (As if I ever said anything half so clever as that.)

"The time for bargains is over," Ushahin said. "I shall take everything from you. I will spare no one in your city. Neither you, nor your wife, nor your son will be exempt." The prince awoke from the nightmare with a start. He ordered his guards to search the castle. Both his wife and son were gone, disappeared into the dark forest. The prince saddled his horse and took up his sword. He vowed to save his family or die trying. (Never make such a vow. It only ends one way.)

He went into the forest by himself, going through many tasks and trials to find where his family had been taken to. When his horse's strength failed, he continued on foot. Finally, he found himself in the deepest, darkest part of the forest at night, where the Were resided. He could feel their yellow-green eyes on him as he traveled forward, though they refrained from attacking him. There, in a clearing, was the leader of the Were, the Grey Dam. And standing beside her was the figure from his dreams: Ushahin.

"Where are my wife and child?" The prince demanded. Ushahin snapped his fingers and a pair of Were pushed them forward. Though disheveled and scared, they were unharmed. Much to the prince's surprise, he was told that they were free to go. The prince hugged his wife tight and told her how much he loved her. Then he made the two leave the clearing and head back towards the main road that would lead them to the city.

"I will kill you for this," the prince said, drawing his sword.

"You may try," Ushahin said, unaffected by the threat. He was unarmed as he stepped forward, away from the protective circle of the Were. "But before you die, I want you to know that it was always you that I wanted, right from the start. You have preyed on my people long enough." The prince looked around and realized that Ushahin meant the Were, the monsters who had killed his people for generations.

He grew angry. "You choose to side with these beasts? With these monsters?"

"Of course I do. They are like me, for I am the monster of your dreams." (Again, I wish I had been as eloquent as all that.) "Tear him apart," Ushahin ordered the Were. The prince knew that the fight was hopeless. He had time only for one final despairing scream before they sank their teeth into his flesh. The prince was never seen again, except in the bits and pieces retrieved later on. His son went on to become king and was a better ruler than his father had ever been, though he never spoke another word again. And Ushahin went on to become the servant of god Satoris, the Sunderer of the world. But that is a tale for another time.

[There's a thumping sound as he closes the book with a decisive air.]

Good story. It has a few discrepancies to the heart of the matter, but then, it wouldn't make as good a story if it told the truth. Sweet dreams, everyone.

Comments

[ushahin]

That's a shame. I have often found that monsters deserve compassion just like anyone else does. Most of them are far less monstrous than human beings can be. There are several here I can now count among my acquaintances.

[sciencelizard]

really?
I might know some of them
my world isnt uh
only humans either

[She's... not sure if she's ok with revealing herself just yet, due to a rather persistent shyness and anxiety. But if he knows Sans or Papyrus or something... well, who knows.]

[ushahin]

Oh? [He knows of only one other world that has monsters in it.] Are you from the same place Sans and Papyrus are?

[He probably already knows her face. Sans had dreamt about his friends at least once, a horrible nightmare where he had lost them all. The half-man had watched, fascinated by the scene. Ushahin has no shame about poking about where he wasn't wanted.]

[sciencelizard]

oh uh
yeah
sans is an old friend of mine
and i know papyrus through him

hah well
you probably know im not human then

[ushahin]

[That peaks Ushahin's interest. Sans had told him a little about his home, a king who was a goat and a fish who was captain of the guard. He wonders who is on the other end.]

Care to show your face? I promise that I do not bite. Not until I get to know you better.

text --> video

[sciencelizard]

oh i mean uhm
if you want i guess
i didnt know if you were going to be scared or not with
everything uh
im sorry this isnt making sense hang on

[She fumbles with the device for a few seconds before finally activating the video feature, pointing it at her face and trying to smile. It comes out a little lopsided around her buck teeth and general nervousness. She is, in fact, a lizard person, glasses resting on the snout of her scales.]

Uhm... hello. I'm Alphys. D-Dr. Alphys.

Re: text --> video

[ushahin]

[Since Alphys has switched, he does the same, going from voice to video. His face looks like it has never quite healed from some horrendous injuries. Shattered cheekbones, a crooked jaw, and a left eye that just doesn't look right keep his face from the unearthly beauty that might have otherwise been his from being half-Ellyl.]

I know your face.

[An odd comment that he doesn't elaborate on. He smiles back at her, a crooked grin that lights up his otherwise broken-looking face.]

[sciencelizard]

[Luckily for him, monsters don't really have a baseline for beauty. Monsters have such varied faces, bodies, everythings, that she doesn't recoil or feel horrified. He just looks... distinctive.

But the comment does get her. That gives her pause.]

Uhm... t-thank you? Er, uh, how, though? Did Sans draw you a picture or s-something?

[ushahin]

Or something.

[He echoes the lizard.]

He dreamed about you.

[Again, that doesn't really explain a whole lot about how Ushahin would know about. Alphys. He's just a bit wary about explaining his powers. Most people have reacted poorly.]

[sciencelizard]

Oh. And you... s-saw it?

[Dreams aren't usually visual. But to be fair, this guy seems like he's got a long and varied sort of history, so... maybe he can!]

... He thinks about me?

[She realizes, like a second too late, that she actually said that out loud and clasps a hand over her mouth.]

I mean, uh, w-well, that's interesting! Or uh, rather, it's, cool you could see that? Or s-something, heh.

[ushahin]

Of course. Most people tend to dream about those that they think about a lot. It usually means they care for them.

[Ushahin grins, a crooked expression that spreads slowly across his face. Her skittishness is charming to the old immortal.]

I am glad you think so. Most are not so gracious when I speak of my powers.

[sciencelizard]

Oh. Well... oh. That's nice.

[It sounds so plain, a simple 'that's nice', but it does stick with her. Does make her smile.]

But uh, there's a lot of magic in my world, so... it's not that weird for me! There's tons of common, uhm, t-types, but there's plenty that probably haven't been studied, so, uhm, it is really pretty cool.

[ushahin]

Thank you. My powers are why one of my names is the Dreamspinner. I see things inside people's minds, their dreams, their thoughts, things that they might not realize about themselves.

[He'll leave out the part where he hears them all the time, whether he wants to or not. That would make him sound weak.]

I like it best when everyone is sleeping. Then everything is quiet.

[sciencelizard]

That sounds like it's b-basically a superpower, then! You could, uhm, be a superhero and help a t-ton of people.

[Gosh, she always wishes she was chosen for something like that. Some great destiny, instead of being, so... so... her. Someone who messes up and only hurts people. Someone who could never help anybody.]

[ushahin]

Oh, if only that was the case. I am afraid, where I am from, most think of me as the villain rather than the hero.

[The propaganda machine had worked quite well when it came to painting Satoris and his Three in a certain light. Most thought of Ushahin as some ethereal boogeyman, the one who would haunt their dreams and steal their very souls if they weren't careful enough.]

[sciencelizard]

[Ha. Haha. She knows what that's like. What people would think of her if they knew the truth. Besides, humans never throw around the word 'monster' kindly. She knows what connotations it has to people.]

Well, uhm... m-maybe it can be different here. Or, uhm, something. You k-know? Just, uh, change into being, a totally different person, that people like.

[ushahin]

Mayhaps I shall. I have found that here I have been able to make friends, even being what I am.

[He sounds rather amazed at the whole idea. Ushahin has gone a thousand years without ever learning properly how to make friends. It's such a new experience for him and he rather enjoys it.]

It's been a rather novel experience.

[sciencelizard]

That's... that's good.

[It gives her a little bit of hope for herself. That maybe, just maybe, she can be a completely different person here. Someone better. Someone less weighed down by her past mistakes.]

Well, uhm, I'm glad to have talked to you, uh, t-then! Even if you already kinda-sorta knew about me.

[ushahin]

I am glad to have met you as well, Alphys.

[He has found that he quite likes the monsters from the Underworld. Sans, Papyrus, Alphys: they all have qualities he finds that most human beings lack. It is refeshing to see.]

[sciencelizard]

I'll uh... s-see you around, then!

[She smiles, or at least tries to in a way that doesn't look award, before waving a bit and signing off the network.]