Ok so I was the knife the whole time, nerds
That was pretty sneaky
Also I’m pretty sure that the triple guy is @OraNui
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pretty sure that was a red herring
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Chapter 30
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It was an absolute massacre.
In a fraction of a second half the party was decimated by gunfire. All of those who were less than impervious to traditional firearms were either dead or presumed so. Racie had been hit and stumbled back through one of the buildings, crashing through the window. Krelikan took a good number of the bullets and managed to rip one of the arms off, but the yellow creature evaded further harm by backpedaling away from the onslaught. Ghid took the opportunity to shove his wire-like fingers right through Krelikan’s chest, dropping the robot in his tracks.
“No! That’s it, that’s absolutely it!” Renner growled, pulling himself off Diero’s back and landing on the ground. “Jethryn, I want you to-”
Jethryn had no time to react, as Monopoly suddenly drove his hand through the back of Jethryn’s neck, tearing his head right off his body. Renner looked in stunned silence for a moment at the sight of his friend gone yet again, even as Diero kicked Monopoly through the walls of yet another house. “I want- I’ll- Dream: WILD CA-”
Ghid advanced with terrible speed, his arms moving like black lightning, to grip Renner by the throat and mouth. Unable to sound out his request, Renner could only look on in horror as Ghid’s jaw unhinged and the wire-like fingers forced him inside the darkness.
“That’s that taken care of.” Ghid looked about to see who was left. “Ah yes, sport, don’t you want to help out your dear old dad?”
That was enough to send Winger running for his life straight out of town. The vile creature turned to face Monopoly, and met Monopoly’s boot with enough force to split him down the middle. The mechanical frame dropped dead as its host was eliminated, and there seemed to be another wave of quiet as the first raindrops fell.
“A lot of people dead now.” Monopoly grimaced, clenching his fists in protest of his very deeds. “I hope what’s about to happen has been worth all this, Ghid.”
Diero was trying to figure out who to funnel his unyielding rage into when I handed him the paper. He looked at it, all folded up and indiscernable, but decided to chomp down on it anyway. The moment he did so, his eyes shut off and he slumped slightly, but they reignited just as bright as they were before. A guttural roar proceeded out of his mouth as blue flames crept from every joint, and his beady eyes landed on my own.
“Right, boss. What’s the plan?”
“The plan is simple.” I took out my last cigarette and a match instantly appeared to meet it, dry under the brim of Diero’s hat. “I need you to kill Ghid.”
Diero whipped out his revolver and leveled it at the figure. “Dream: WHIRL-”
“Boss.” Diero hissed, leaning down to hiss further. “You don’t have any Dreams set right now. You’ll have to figure those out later.”
Well, that was just perfect. I was counting on Diero keeping the same Dreams he had before so Ghid could be eliminated as swiftly and easily as possible. Ah well, I’d just have to get experimental with eliminating him then.
Cordax was looking on, keeping as much of a distance as he could while still observing everything. Monopoly eyed him for a moment, but turned his attention to Ghid, dropping into a ready stance. Ghid’s grin grew larger and larger until his face physically couldn’t reach a greater extent. “I trust the three of you will make this interesting, then. It’d be an absolute pity to have this be over with so quickly. I have to meet back up with Dadertrix- oh, you only know his as Fifty, don’t you? He was always such a stickler for using that alias as a way to hide in plain sight. At my suggestion, of course; hiding in plain sight has always been a good idea, don’t you think?”
I had quietly ripped off the tag of my coat and picked up a particularly jagged rock while Ghid rattled away his diatribe. Dipping it in the soggy ash of Monopoly’s former home, I wrote tiny, indecipherable words on it before running the message back over to my associate and jamming the thing in his jaws. He had barely consumed the note before the exposed fingers unprotected by his fingerless gloves lit ablaze with blue flame.
Rushing forwards, he sent a swipe at the arm Ghid raised in defense and carved directly through it, then sent an extended hand like a knife through the large teeth in his jaws, melting through them like butter. Both hands tore at the back of Ghid’s throat until they clawed their way through, then swept outwards and ripped the entire thing apart.
The suited body fell with a thud onto the muddy street. Diero held the top half of Ghid’s head as the flames dissipated, his hands untouched by bodily fluids because there were bodily fluids to spill - he had been a Dreamer the entire time.
“That’s that.” Diero sighed, dropping what remained of Ghid onto the deceased Dreamer it came from. “Now all that’s left is apprehending you.”
Monopoly stood, feeling over his ruined eye, the rain seeming to double down on its downpour as the two figures stared each other down. This whole situation is a real downer, isn’t it? Cordax had crept up during the standoff and was tapping me on the shoulder, shaking enough to bubble the mud beneath his feet.
“Tott. Tott. They’re all- Tott they’re all dead.” He quivered, clutching me by the shoulder and almost knocking the cigarette out of the lower hole of my Akaku. “They’re all d-dead. And Winger just took off and I don’t see Racie but- Tott- is Ghid really dead? is he gone now? Is it over?”
“I don’t think it’ll ever be over.” I replied, calmly, even though I could feel the sensation of my stomach knotting despite not having a stomach. “Ghid finds a way to keep on living. I don’t think we’ll ever really kill him.”
“We have to.” Cordax steeled, his shaking muffled under the hardened resolve. “That heartless monster who can callously orchestrate such killings… We have to eliminate him. If it’s the last thing I do, I’ll avenge Renner and all the others here. And everyone who’s ever had to deal with his-”
Cordax jumped slightly as Diero fired two shots at Monopoly. One struck his functioning eye, but he didn’t seem to mind, closing the gap remarkably fast and crushing the gun into powder. His free hand swung a fist at the deadsperado, and quivered against his sharp and unmoving chin. With the gun destroyed, Monopoly sent another fist into his face, the recipient of this attack folding his arms and waiting for him to finish. Then another. And then another. Finally he spun about and slammed the sole of his boot - hard - into Diero’s nose cavity, the force of the wind blowing his hat off his rounded skull.
Diero looked at it as it touched down and landed in the mud. I knew things were about to get real.
“Friend,” Diero bared his teeth even more somehow. “There are lines some people do not cross.” Another fist was thrown, but Diero caught it. “There are even some which have never been crossed. And lucky you, you’re the very first one.”
Monopoly wrenched his hand free and sent a devastating hook towards Diero’s cheek. Surprise surprise, he caught it again. “Today we get to find out what happens when someone soils my hat.”
Pulling Monopoly close, Diero bit down on the brawler’s face, tearing out a large chunk of it. Wiring sputtered as black blood leaked about, Monopoly refusing to give up his assault. More fists were thrown, each with greater force, and minor grunts from their owner told me he was starting to hurt himself. Diero sent a fist of his own directly through what remained of the head and the yellow spine attached to it, shattering the entire thing.
Monopoly wavered for a moment, backpedaling and looking about with his ruined head. Then he growled, grabbing at the contraption and pulling it off his shoulders, revealing a glowing blue orb mounted on two metal rods and surrounded by blue flames. “You have no idea how much of a pain that was to put back together.”
“I think I know about pain.” Diero steeled his jaw, beginning to walk towards Monopoly. “In fact, I think a demonstration is in order.”
Monopoly threw even stronger blows at Diero now, with enough force to send shockwaves through the air as they traveled. Yet Diero never moved, continuing his advance as Monopoly grew weary of the strength he was exerting. Reaching down, he pulled up a brick from one of the ruined houses and slammed it into Diero’s face, knocking him flat on the ground.
“I see.” He whistled, feeling behind him for more rubble. Diero jumped back up and practically bolted towards him, forcing Monopoly to swing object after object into him to slow his advance. But nothing fully stopped him, only hindering him temporarily. After the objects tossed grew in size from a few wooden beams to a ruined refrigerator, Diero vaulted over the pile and dug his stirrup into Monopoly’s chest.
“I saw this movie once where this guy hides in one of those to survive a nuclear bla-”
"I don’t care."I sharply retorted, too busy trying to determine the outcome of this conflict. Cordax sunk back behind me in disappointment that his fast fact™️ was not as appreciated as he hoped it would be.
Diero dug his fingers into the blue sphere, and it glowed for a moment, with Monopoly uttering a “Ha!” of satisfaction at the opportunity. But the fingers came back out just fine, their owner growing more devious every second. “It’s the sphere, then.” he grinned, grabbing the metal poles on either side of it. “Excellent! I just destroy these and you-”
Monopoly gripped his foe by the shoulders and slammed his stupid glowing head into Diero’s eyes for a moment. His hands struck Monopoly at random for a moment, but then went limp, along with the rest of his body. His eyes had been extinguished, and after confirmation that he was not offering any resistance, was tossed aside into the mud and ashes.
“Cordax.” Monopoly said, his voice ragged from the fight, but Cordax crept further behind me. “Cordax, I-”
“Save it.” I snarled, throwing the stub of my cancer stick into the mud. “You’ve lost here, Monopoly or Photez or whatever your name is. Your game’s over; you and Ghid have failed.”
The brawler paused, his body language conveying he was considering retorting with physical violence, but he chose the verbal route. “I would think I’ve won this boute, Tott. I know your little game and your little secret, so if you want-”
“April remembers the voice of September.” I interrupted his vicious retort with masterful calm, my words causing him to start violently. There was an uncomfortably long pause at that point, which ended with a snarl and an accusatory forefinger thrust towards my lack of a nose.
“I imagine we’ll meet again before too long. But until that happens,” Monopoly growled, looming over me much to Cordax’s dismay. “You keep him safe. I don’t want anything happening to Cordax, understand?”
“I understand.” My answer was flat and mixed genuine emotion with bitter refusal, hopefully in a way he could understand. He marched back through the city, making for the second dark wall, and I didn’t take my eyes off him until he passed through it.
“Eeurgh…” Diero slowly stood, rubbing his head. “That’s the second time that has happened. Does anybody know what went down during the- MY HAT!!” He tore towards it and lifted it gingerly from the ground where it lay. The amount of mud on it was minimal, but his breathing implied the crown jewels had been stolen. “Who- Who did this to my… My beautiful-”
“We’ll talk about it later.” I interrupted yet again. “Do you have any more Eilrach bullets left?”
“Sure I do.” Diero felt his pocket. “Thought I can’t seem to understand what happened to my gun… I had it when I went to kill Ghid, I know that…”
“We’ll talk about that later, too.” I sighed, throwing my hands in my soaked pockets. “Go ahead and gather up whoever is still alive. We need to leave this horrible place.”
I turned and almost tripped over Cordax, who was crouching down, nestled in his own arms, sadly staring out across the now visible wastes. “He killed those people, Tott. I thought he was my friend.” A solidly blue tear rolled down his cheek, mingling with the raindrops. “I don’t think I’ll ever not see him as a friend, and yet…”
“I can’t offer you an equal substitute.” I softly replied, extending a hand. “I’m new to the whole having friends thing myself. But I’ll be as much of a friend as you want me to be, Cordax.”
He looked at the hand for a moment, and then stood up on his own. “No. I can’t do that yet. This level of betrayal, this… I can’t be so close to someone again so soon. I can’t be so trusting again.”
I slowly lowered my arm, a little defeated. Anger seemed to bubble up inside my wooden frame, anger at the efforts made being wasted, while my logic and reason forced them back down. Seeking a source to expel the ruffling of my feathers, I turned about and saw the inhabitants of this town peering out of their homes in curiosity. I shot them a glare. They slunk away again.
Diero motioned that he had collected those he could find still living, and so I trudged towards him to help transport them out of this horrible place, this prison of mine, trapped with all the innocent souls who were boxed away just to keep Ghid contained. Just to keep one Dreamer of Ghid contained… It seemed as though Ghid was the driving force, the dictation of every event, his wiry fingers spread throughout the whole world, his reasoning explained in the fact that it was his. One formed had been destroyed; how many more existed? Where else was he hiding? Whose lives did he influence, did he control - how many stories turned and twisted on his fancy?
Every story begins with a hero, someone to sympathize with, to understand, to possibly imagine yourself as. Illustrations, animations, visual media enhances this perception, and each medium and concept exists in its own vein, but the original script - written words on a white canvas illustrated only by the fantasy of the reader - remains an entirely unique source of storytelling and crafting of tales.
And every person, whether young or old, living or dead, has adamantly stuck to being the hero of their own personal story; the one they write every day and illustrate with their unique actions and personality. But what if you were the villain?
Ah, therein lies the illogical fallacy, the paradox unfathomable. How could one exist and posses motives yet intentionally hinder them as the antagonist, the obstacle, the monster at the end of the path? You would need to be in two places at once, have two contrary motives at once; live two different lives at once. But still be the same person, with the same thoughts, intents, and goals? Paradoxical.
This might be accomplished by some inferior author as an evil twin, or imperfect duplicate, or replica from another reality. In the pinnacle of laziness the dilemna would be lazily solved as some cliché trope and hang above the author’s work as the weakest point of the whole story - the brainless, blubbering buffoons known for asking the ignorant question ‘What if this character was evil?’
I promise to you I am not so crude. My name is Tott.
The One To Trust.
The Book of Dreams.
–
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Now before everyone comes bellowing in here saying I KNEW IT HE WAS HIM THE WHOLE TIME I TOTALLY CALLED THIS GHID I’M THE ULTIMATE THEORIST let me burst your bubble right now:
Atobe got it right all the way back at chapter one. I PMed him to make sure.
Get nae nae’d.
he was the knife the whole time, nerds
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I figured out sometime in the middle I’d say:
yeh
also I’m assuming I’m Cordax’s knife considering that’s the only one with any significance?
Also…
???
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so krelikan came back just to immediately die again
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You didn’t end it with “then he woke up. Thank goodness, it was all a bad dream!” And for that I am immensely disappointed.
Good thing not a lot of people saw when I accidentally blatantly leaked Tott’s identity a few months back heh heh hah hahahahahahhahaha
I wonder if it’s a bad idea to read all of these spoilers while skipping over much of the meat (cordax) and potatoes (tater totts). I’ll likely reread the whole series someday (ideally before book 4 begin) so that I can better understand the story and join in on the theorizing and whatnot. 
Though my reading of this latest installment has admittedly been fairly cursory, from what I have read, The Book of Dreams seems like a really imaginative and enjoyable tale, so good job Ghiddy; very nilp
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is this all I’ll ever be remembered for
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WAIT IT WASN’T A RED HERRING!?!?!?!?!
so I understand nothing someone help
also can someone confirm or deny this:
Ghid created the BoL universe around Yuo with Tott as the version of Ghid in it, but once BoL ended, Tott escaped, even though he isn’t truly alive. Ghid fine with Tott, but once Tott saw what Ghid was really up to, he turned against him?
Oh also I think that Tott and Cordax’s bond keeps Tott alive somehow.
@NOTaHFfan you’re my only hope to understanding any part of this story
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Good ol’ Ghid, failing expectations again!
That sounds horrible
I thought I was the one who said nilp
“Sometimes it’s best to hide in plain sight.”
― David Estes
After this book is over I’ll have a Q&A session to hopefully clear things up regarding Tott, Ghid, Book of Logic, and anything else that’s left uncertain.
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so I’m Cordax’s knife, right?
THANK YOU SO MUCH I WILL FINALLY UNDERSTAND THIS STORY
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I’m glad I remained a Tott is me denier until the very end because now I can join the “I’m going to laugh at you because you’re so far off” club.
However, now chapter 12 of book of ramblings makes even less sense to me.
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wait…
GASP!
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wait but that implies that there’s gonna be another chapter
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I retract the “until the very end” part of my previous statement.
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book of ramblings ramblings
sm my h
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Bamboozeled again!?
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