[The Master rarely sleeps. As an old acquaintance of his said once, "Sleep is for tortoises." And that's at least one thing he's said that the Master can agree with. Why sleep when there are so many more, interesting options for what he could be doing?
Of course, given long enough, he does need sleep, but that's not what's happening tonight. Tonight
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"Professor--"
Then he blinks, and he's a full-grown man, a good quarter-century older, and he knows that can't be the house he once accidentally burnt down with an ill-advised arte, mortally injuring the woman inside. It's much too small. But for a moment it certainly looked that way.
Jade stands there in the snow of his hometown for a while longer, still smelling the fire, and regards the little hut in front of him. He waits until awareness trickles through to him.
"Hmm..."
He lays a hand on the door.
"The City will even interfere with dreams. How cruel."
But he's a curious man, and so he opens it.
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He notes the despair, but does not allow himself to be affected by it. The emotions of others are something he observes, not something he takes part in. The frown fading into his usual calm almost-smile, he makes his way for the balcony.
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"You musn't, sir," she says urgently. "You're so obvious already...you shouldn't--" She cuts herself off from what she is about to say, and changes it to, "Our Master is merciful. Our Master is kind..." She seems desperate now, though her voice is still hushed. "But...but...you really musn't! Head to the corners, sir, it's the only way you might...the only way."
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Jade listens without the slightest change to his expression. "Thank you for your concern," he says when she's done, "but I think I'll decline your advice."
He turns back to the balcony, and it occurs to him for the first time that it's possible his artes won't work here. It's a dream created by the City, as far as he knows--he's not in control. But that only makes it more important to act like he is.
Besides, it's only a dream. He moves forward.
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"Hello, sheep, room 475!" he says joyfully. The people are utterly silent. "Aren't you lucky to warrant the attention of your Master! Of course, lucky to an extent, obviously. As I've decided to remove you all entirely from the system. Now, now, don't be sad. It's nothing personal. It's completely arbitrary and only because I was bored." He raises his laser screwdriver and fires randomly into the crowd. A young man far off to the left of Jade screams and slumps to the ground. The people barely react. This makes the Master a little bit cross, and he aims more carefully this time, picking off a little girl.
"Go on!" he says. "Dodgeball! it's no fun if you don't run!"
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He makes no effort to save the people around him. He can tell this is a dream, after all, and any heroics would probably be useless. Instead, he wonders, "Would you mind telling me if this is a memory or a fantasy?"
His own dreams hardly say nice things about him either. Jade isn't going to judge just yet.
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"You're not really here," he says flatly. "Memory or fantasy, why does it really matter?" He moves his screwdriver to shoot a few more people instead, and the girl's mother who had moved to crouch over her body, becoming just another body, slumping over her. "If this were a proper fantasy, I should think they would run, wouldn't you?!"
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He doesn't bother asking why, because he understands well enough. Instead he says, "There's no reason to expect them to run when it wouldn't make any difference. People give up."
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And the scene shifts abruptly. There's only a dark tunnel, still grey and barely lit but it's empty. And then a man, one of the people from the previous room, runs past Jade, breathing hard. The Master's voice fills the tunnel suddenly, over some sort of intercom.
"You were right, I'll admit it. The little spark of hope, I was missing that. Now," and the vicious grin is audible in his voice, "let's see if you can find your way out!" He laughs and yells, "Run, sheep! The gate is open and there's a wolf in your folding!"
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He observes. There's nothing more to be done, and by observation, perhaps he can gain some way to deal with this man--or whatever he is--in the waking world.
When he finally speaks, his voice is still calm. "I see...so it's a distraction."
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On the inside, he's bracing himself, although for what, he's not sure. It's not like he can truly fight back here. But on the outside, he's as cool and composed as ever.
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"Different ideas of fun, I expect," says the Master thoughtfully. He doesn't need to explain himself. "You've only wandered into one specific dream." He ponders this a moment and then grins. "You're the exit, now. New rules: if they can take you down, they get to leave. Let's see what I can learn about you."
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