A Dreamless Sleep Act III

by Getoh the Living

Act III Scene I

A Night Watchman for the Human Army comes onstage. He addresses the audience.

Night Watchman

The quiet echoes of the night alarm me to what may be beyond the dark. Perhaps a monster, halting on its path to gobble me up for a late night snack. Perhaps a Goblin, taking revenge on me for the horrid deed of living. Perhaps my wife, upset I took the night watch, and more upset at the fact that she's fine with it. This land, the Goblins called it Nero something. Nero... this Nero place reminds me of her. Nero takes what she can get. Be it the... Giants they say were her first. No one ever lived up to them, aye, but who could?

The Night Watchman holds something up to his crotch area to indicate size.

Night Watchman

Be it the Goblins, the ones she was committed to, together with for so damn long, but who was not as committed to her. Left her behind for a Magic College floating in the sky, or a cushy job keeping out beasties in the dark of the damn night. Handsome buggers, for sure. I mean... just look at me.

Night Watchman gives a knowing smirk to the audience.

Night Watchman

Then, there's Humanity. They came pretty late in the game, Nero's getting old and less desirable now. So big, strong Humanity comes along and gets out those pesky Goblins she'd married. Takes her by the hand, says he wants her, but really he's got no other choice. Truth is, if Humanity doesn't find a place soon, Humanity dies in the cold on the streets, and so he tells Nero he loves her more than the Goblins ever could and the Goblins are getting jealous and the Goblins are- What was that noise?

The Night Watchman goes to the edge of the stage, near the wings, where he peers out into them and calls out.

Night Watchman

Honey? I'll be back to bed if you want me there, but I need to call the others!

Zelgrile
(Offstage)

There will be no need for that, Man of Night.

A blast of fire appears offstage, shooting the Night Watchman, hitting right behind him and sending him flying offstage. Zelgrile and Jibral enter.

Jibral

The poor man he seemed to believe we were
His wife.

Zelgrile

Or Mistress. Who's to say with these
Men? Filled with such infernal lust and hate,
There is no way they are faithful to love,
To life, so we take from their undeserving
Hands, back to those who more deserve those things.

Jibral

Are we the ones to judge such an action?

Zelgrile

If we are to protect our people, yes,
We'll be judge, jury, executioner,
For that is what a mother must become.

Seglat enters with some other Goblins.

Seglat

We are happy to see you again, and happier to be led into battle by your blade. What is the plan, Matriarch? What are we to do?

Zelgrile

The plan is simple. Overpower them,
Outclass their fighters, destroy their buildings,
Bring Man to his knees, force him to retreat
Never again to interfere with us.

Seglat

Matriarch, we do understand this much. We mean no offense, but we know not why we fight. We love you, yet you left us behind and abandoned this land. In the years, we have grown used to running and hiding. The homes we took were difficult to live in, but they were peaceful. Why take back this land?

Zelgrile

To take back the land? Aye, that's what I said,
Yet our battle is for much more than that.
We fight to bring back peace, prosperity,
We fight so that we may again enjoy
The life we so graciously struggle for,
So that we may rest at the end of dawn,
The suns rays illuminating our sweat
As our happiness spreads across the land.
We fight for safety, my glorious friends,
Safety from all who would oppose our peace,
Who would destroy our fragile happiness
All for the sake of their ill-gotten goods
Giving momentary lifeblood to their
God stained cloaks, purses, blades, spades, and crosses.
We fight to spite the Gods who turned their backs
On our people! What wrong did we commit
To cause such ignorance to our poor plight?
It matters not, when petty war is won
We feast like the Gods do, with full stomachs
Chalices of the finest wine in town.
We feast for peace, but first we dine on blood!

The Goblins all cheer, following Zelgrile offstage. Jibral is the only one who remains onstage.

Jibral
(Aside)

Beat back the Men? Bring fear back to their hearts?
We are to do that with destruction only,
Yet through destruction, all becomes alike.
How might I get my chance if this is all
We are to do? No noble name shall bear
The torch, but noble names burn with its light,
As nameless torchbearers destroy all that
Holds but meaning in this here twisted world.
I cannot die by flames, for death by flames
Burns too my name. I shall bring forth honor
Home to Jibral, if not through battle,
Then through my greatest sacrifice of life.
This execution pyre shall light my flame,
I'll place my name along Perzita's fame,
And let this action set the world aflame.

Gellark Lionrage enters stage, wearing a hood to disguise his face. It is the same hood worn by the other Nights Watchman, indicating that Gellark disguises as a Nights Watchman.

Gellark

You did not ring alarum or scheduled
Houred bells as instructed, so I come
Relieve you of your duties here tonight.
Rest now, Night Watchman, I shall take your place.

Jibral

I'm sorry to say, replacement, he shall
Not answer calls in his life,
Though knells of Hell shall haunt his waking death.
Your "rest" is well put, as he shall do so.

Gellark

Your club struck out my predecessors life?

Jibral

As too the wind does blow, your mouth speaks true.

Gellark

Then truth be damned til now, Goblin liar.

Gellark removes his hood, revealing himself.

Gellark

My mouth spake not but lies, and clubs ne'er burn.
I am Gellark Lionrage, son of Varth,
The Dreamless leader of our humble folk.
Why lie to me, Goblin? Speak but truth,
And I will speak but truth to you as well.
Are flames what you can use or are you Ace?

Jibral

Ace? Taunt me with those words, I spit on Ace!

Gellark

Your flame then killed the man who held this post?

Jibral

If truth is sought, truth then shall be given.
Twas not my flame, but that of my mother.
I have no Magic, I cannot live up
To such standards. That is why I lie, Rage.

Gellark

Call me just Gellark.

Jibral

Then so too Jibral.

Gellark

You are daughter of the Matriarch then?

Jibral

And you the Son of Dreamless, is that so?

Gellark

Aye, tis true. The heaviest title, borne
But from birth, rather his noble, kind, soul
Took in a child from a long, long-lost man
And pinned it with responsibility.

Jibral

You think a parent of birth is better?
Speak it not, Gellark, your words are not true,
The blood of a better locks down my veins,
Prevents me from being who I may be.
I seek a battle, Gellark Lionrage,
To live up to her. Grant me, then, that stage.

Gellark

You wish not to fight me.

Jibral

Oh, yes I do.
I'll beat you to submission, fair and true.
Take you as prizes, shining in the sun,
To show I have prospered, conquered, and won.

Gellark

My pity to you, O Jibral the weak,
No Magic to speak of, but blades when you speak.
I'll end this fight quickly, my Magic spared,
Our conflict will end here, grievences aired,
My blade be the end-all, thus too, be all.

Gellark charges at Jibral with his sword. Jibral copies moves she watched from Perzita, ultimately hitting Gellark on the head with her club and knocking him out. She stares at him, dropping her club on the ground beside him and looking at his body until finally, she laughs.

Jibral

Your blade is the end, yet still you did fall?
How piteous, O Gellark unwanted,
Now come, your body alone is enough.

Jibral tries to drag Gellark's unconscious body, but it is too heavy. This is when Seglat enters.

Seglat

Jibral, it is done. We are now to run, or else burn as well in the pyre of our homeland. You lead the way, I shall- What is this? A Human man you are holding?

Jibral

This is Gellark, the son of the Dreamless Man's.
I defeated him, it's true, with mine own hands.
Grant praise and a feast, as mother promised,
First, help me carry this poor mans palmist.

Jibral and Seglat drag Gellark Lionrage's unconscious body offstage.

Act III Scene II

Varth Dreamless is asleep, lying in bed. The sounds of screams are outside of his door, waking him up.

Varth

I stir, for what? The noise that haunts my ears,
Torments my temporary trip to Hell,
Interrupting the one chance for my dreams.
Not that they would come, they never have yet,
Yet who is to say I could not get them
Tonight, tomorrow, or in the next month?
Keep down the racket that disturbs such sleep,
To let me see, if possible, a dream.

More screams are heard outside. This wakes Varth up enough to grab his spear and peer out the window.

Varth

Alarum so cries my people beyond,
Here I did sleep on flames burning my men.
Flames, Magic in their nature, cursed Magic
Which hath refused me yet burnt my people.
I shall fight then, without Magic but spear,
Show power in the Human spirit of will.

Varth grabs his spear and runs offstage.

Act III Scene III

Exterior Nerodil. Zelgrile stands surrounded by burning buildings.

Zelgrile

Burn, home of Man, it was our home before.
If wrong of me to do, then why did you?

Varth Dreamless enters the stage with his spear.

Varth

It was you, Matriarch, who was burning
My home with Magic.

Zelgrile

It was me indeed,
As it was you who took our lands,
Against the pact we made that day, Dreamless.
Trespass on my land or spread further out,
My daughter and I'll kill you and your son.
Those were my words, you wretched, wrought manworm.

Varth

Aye, word is true. Twas not my intention
To here tresspass on you. Eden Zunno,
The man of faith he appears now to be,
Reported you'd fleed, your land had been freed,
All for a Goddess, Erathis, he said,
Now both my men and yours lie now here dead.

Zelgrile

Speak no flowery language of Gods, Man,
Speak true or speak not if you are with me.

Varth

I speak with heart, with mind, and with my soul,
If that's too much heat, then unburn my home
And crawl back to thine, where hellfire shall roast
You all until you understand to leave
Us all alone.

Zelgrile

Speak with your spear, Dreamless,
I shall speak with my flames as my response!

Zelgrile begins charging up flames as Varth stands still, spear hanging limply at his side.

Varth
(Aside)

Why hesitate I to pick up my spear?
Why is it my body freezes, in fear?
Is it fear of losing what I hold dear?
Fear of defeat in battle, standing here?
Is it fear of killing, my hesitance
To move? Or is it fear of death that now
Keeps me frozen here in this very stance?
The feeling I may not survive, yet how
Can't I fight in the darkness, this fiery
Grave, knowing death comes in times just like these?
Why halt I such, speak like a diary?
I know the true answer to why I freeze,
Why fight if I have no dream to fight for,
If each fight could lead me to death's own door?

Zelgrile stops, looking to Varth.

Zelgrile

This will be less enjoyable if you
Refuse to fight me back, Dreamless Coward.

Varth

There must be a better way, Matriarch,
A way without shedding blood of our own.

Zelgrile

There is one way, to surrender yourself,
To let us take your land back from your grasp.
You cannot beat me with that spear of yours,
So take all your men and run on all fours.

Varth

Think you we be beasts?

Zelgrile

Think you not the same?

Varth

I am a Human.

Zelgrile

And I a Goblin,
Think you Man is the only civilized
People? There are cities of gold beyond
These here lands, there are floating citadels
Full of those Magic Dragons. There are those
Mountainous cities with those Dwarvish Men,
But mostly, just mostly, all, too, are true.
There is no Man above all other Men,
Just self-righteous monsters with too much to say.

Varth rushes forward, about to stab Zelgrile with his spear. She shoots a blast of fire at him, which hits him. Jibral then enters, kicking Varth while he lies on the ground.

Zelgrile

You can't use Magic even, Dreamless Man.
Lie in the dirt, see maybe if you can.

Jibral

I captured his boy, Lionrage.

Varth

Foul word,
Speak not from thine foul lips such a sentence.
You could not take Gellark, he is an Ace,
More powerful than I, he would not lose.

Jibral

It is too bad, he said the same of you.
He wanted to be like you, Dreamless Man.
He could not live up to expectations.
Let us go, Mother, and claim now our prize,
Message received. Man will not stand again.

Zelgrile exits with Jibral, leaving Varth onstage, lying on the ground.

Varth
(Aside)

What purpose lies in lying on the floor,
A sad, defeated mess of a man?
Is there meaning in the ceiling of the
Gods lonely Heavens? Do the Stars mock me
Or do they grant me sympathy I miss?
Stand I alone without even standing?
Is there a reason I do not chase them?
Of course, I am weak. I lack any strength
Which would be enough to carry a dream
Which's why all I do's live until I die
With fear in my heart and eyes to the sky.
Can someone, anyone, grant me answer?

Eden Zunno enters.

Eden

I believe, if you'll let me, I can sir.

Act III Scene IV

The Goblin's Cave, beneath Nerodil. Gellark is in a cage with Seglat guarding him.

Seglat

What sort are you, they will not tell. I am kept in darkness in many ways. They placed torches around the entrance but let not light into these halls. Behind those bars and in those cells, unspeakable acts are committed.

Gellark

You call yourelves then beasts? That is not right.

Seglat

You're right, or rather wrong, or maybe both. All men are beasts in one way or another. Even Men with the nasal occlusive at its peak are animals who submit to their baser urges. If you mean to say Man does not torture, then look at our conditions. Disgraced and pushed into a cave.

Gellark

That was not our fault, you banished yourselves!

Seglat

No banishment is self-imposed. All deeds are done in reaction, and those who say the contrary know not the past that precedes them. I have seen horrors on both sides, boy. Horrors you would do well to remember and not repeat. I have seen my Matriarch slaughter Men on false pretense, and so too have I seen dreamless men devour our lands and force us to starve for their own greed and laziness. The world is an open field, and yet Man took the land that was owned.

Gellark

We had no choice but live or else we die.

Seglat

That is oft how it works, Human. Death is the consequence for life. You avoid it, but cannot escape it. You fight it, but you never win. It happens.

Gellark

Are you saying Goblins do not fear death?

Seglat

Of course we fear death. That is the nature of mortality, to fear the unknown, and there is no greater unknown than death. There are few who would greet death with open arms, and those few are those who deserve it the least. They are the ones who must learn to love life, because to greet death without first understanding and loving life is to greet an emptiness without ever knowing what it is like to be full. To answer your question, we do fear death, perhaps more than anyone you know. Yet we also know that there comes a time in life where you are ready to accept it. When that time comes, we have no fear. We die, happy that we had lived.

Gellark

I am surprised to say I understand.
I thought for long that Goblins and Humans
Were so opposed but now I see the truth.
The opposition comes from this unknown,
Which said you we all fear. We are unknown
To you, as you unknown to our new eyes.
We fear what we do not understand, aye,
So we could understand each other then
To live.

Jibral enters the stage.

Jibral

It is not so simple, Human,
As joining hands together, one-by-one,
To sign together in understanding.
You think it is easy to understand
A people you know not a thing about?

Gellark

I think it is not so hard to try.
If we sit down, those who claim to hold hate,
Together, sharing what it is we have,
Our culture, stories, food, and all the like,
We could come to an understanding then.

Jibral

There are those with the thought of bigotry
Ingrained into their soul with naught to fix
But death, or your so honeyed words that would
Bring forth a battlefield to halt in place.

Gellark

You called yourself Jibral, was that correct?

Jibral

If only you did call yourself Gellark.

Gellark

Then we have already come to agree.
I am Gellark, so too are you, Jibral.

Jibral

I see not the point.

Gellark

We speak common tongue,
We share common words and make agreements,
Even minor. There is understanding
Among our people, if we try enough.
A way we can sit together, you, me,
Anyone who can understand our words.
You jest against my words but I stand by
Their meaning. I could put an end to this,
This endless rotation of back-and-forth,
Where you must fight me because we were born.
I asked not to be who I was born as,
Nor, I am sure, did you ask as you are.
Still, I am not ashamed to be myself,
As no man alive nor woman should be.
We live the same, can we not see eye-to-eye?
You too wished to live up to your mother,
As I to my adoptive father do.
You and I, Jibral and Gellark, share this
Common thread, can we not share common peace?

Jibral

Were you not the one that tried to fight me?

Gellark

I said you wanted not to battle me,
Twas you that insisted. I saw myself
In you, and ever since that day I thought
We could come to some kind of agreement.
You could try to live up to your mother
By battling as she does, but without
Magic, you have got a disadvantage.
You could surpass her instead, creating
Not war, but peace. That'd be your legacy.

Jibral

Our God is of War, of conquest, bloodshed.
I would be a disgrace to my people
For accepting your offer, Lionrage.

Gellark

Do you or your people truly look up
To Gods? Or is it then some tradition,
To honor those above, not for your love
But for necessity? Ancestors dreams
That keep you stuck in endless patterned praise.
You do not need to follow the old ways,
Both you and I can make our own next steps.

Jibral

My own steps do not need you to help them,
So do not patronize me, I need not
A failure's aid, I have myself already.

Jibral goes to exit. As she does, she instead hides out of sight of Seglat and Gellark.

Seglat

Can I be part of it? This whole plan of yours.

Gellark

You wish to help make peace between ourselves?

Seglat

No reason we shouldn't be at peace. She said you were Gellark, is that right? Son of the Dreamless Man. I was scared of the Dreamless Man, but you are nothing to be scared of. Had I known that before we talked, I would never have listened to you. The same rings true for Humans and Goblins. They refuse to speak to each other because both sees the other as an enemy. We are not enemies. The enemy is our nature that pits us against each other.

Gellark

What is the name you bear, my Goblin friend?

Seglat

Seglat.

Gellark

You are a truly brilliant man, Seglat.

Seglat

I wish I could free you, but the Matriarch would kill me. Then, we could never have peace.

Gellark

I do not wish for you to place yourself
In harm's way for me, nor need I escape.
I wish to foster peace from within here,
The Matriarch who leads lacks reason, thus
My goal is show Jibral I mean no harm.
We may always end up with us fighting,
Goblins and Humans, but with us in charge
We can find the solution that can keep
Our people from clashing against themselves.
If we can find a way, Goblins and Man,
To live together without hateful war,
This would be the greatest answer to reach.
If it means we must never again meet,
Never again shall we then meet. For peace.

Seglat

Here you were saying I was smart. If you think you can get Jibral to go against what her mother said, you got another thing coming. She's loyal to a fault to Zelgrile, people call her the second Zelgrile because she seems so much like her.

Gellark

Indeed. I am sure she will find that there
Is more which she can do. Make her own mark.

Jibral
(Aside)

Make my own mark, is it that which you mean?
To find some peace where none has existed,
Create my own future, my own honorable end,
A fiery life, not so a fiery death.
Is this life right to reach for, when she's done
So much against this peace I now may make?
Can I build my achievements against what
She's done? Is that what my legacy is,
The one that burns all that came before me?
No, tis not burning but building anew,
Making a future that's better than theirs.
I cannot do it, alone as I am,
I'm weak, my legacy shaky at best,
Whatever I do will not last too long.
However, he can do what I could not,
Use power I lack to get this all done.
As I am to weakness, he is to strength,
An Ace of the highest degree, with skill
That can reach a ceiling, endlessly high.
He need only a push. I have what he needs.
I place all in you, the future is yours.

Jibral exits the stage, as Seglat continues guarding Gellark.

Act III Scene V

The Human Camp, where all Humans are taking refuge. Varth Dreamless sits on a log opposite Eden Zunno.

Varth

He was stolen, Eden, by those Goblins.
What am I to do about it, or you?

Eden

There is a simple solution, Sir Varth,
One that can answer all of your questions.

Varth

You want me to place faith in the Gods,
Those that refused to grant me power, yet
Gave Gellark such a burden as an Ace?

Eden

What if I were to tell you, Varth Dreamless,
There was a way for you to match Gellark
In power, even surpass him if right?
Would you believe then that the Gods were real?

Varth

Power? Oh, power. Is power belief?
Is power the only thing that matters?
Tell me your answer, and please, keep it brief.
Power can help, but so too it batters,
Hurting all those with no way to seek help.
I want not a God who shows me such might,
Let me see a God who seeks out each whelp,
Gives them what's needed, helps do what is right.
If a God like that is to truly live,
Grant me their presence and teach me their ways
There's nothing I will not for this God give,
To free Humanity from this dark daze.

Eden

You seek this truly, this now I do see,
So I shall grant knowledge to you now, Varth.
In the texts there's a secret, another
Typed Magic, beyond Air, Fire, Water, Ice,
Beyond Light, beyond Dark, Earth and Lightning,
A Magic that is not born to, but given.
The Magic of Gods, called Item Magic,
Varied properties for each God of yore.
Erathis holds a Brick, which I wish for,
But there are more, so many more in store.

Varth

I can get a Magic greater than those
Affinities which Gellark wields so well?

Eden

Much greater, in many of the cases.
The power can come from within, without
Such worries as birthright, inheritance.
Ones birth is the second least important
Day of their lives, behind only their death.
It is what one does in between those days,
When placed in life by Gods and taken out,
That matters. Gain the power then to make those days matter.

Varth

As said before, I repeat myself now,
Power is not my goal.

Eden

This I do know.
But think it through, wise leader, if you won't
Believe the Gods will help you then there's one
Other way you can get their help yourself
And still carry the deed without the Gods.
If they grant you Item Magic then you
Utilize it however you see fit.
Protect your people, exterminate Goblins,
The world would bend before your great power,
Whichever goal you have can be attained
By your own hand. This is the power at play.

Varth

I can decide what's done with this power?
Grant me directions, I shall venture forth.

Eden

The closest destination for you is North.
The Goddess Morrigan, some call Raven,
She lords over death. Don't be so craven,
Her power is death, this is the greatest.
Wield death, you win, we become the latest
Permanent residents of Nerodil,
Just close your eyes, accept it all, and kill.

Varth

I gave no such agreement to killing,
Only to protecting Humanity.
There is another way, there has to be,
There is not one way to cross a river,
As there are many ways to live a life
And many more ways to save such a life.

Eden

There may be a way to still save the day,
Yet time runs short, and your son may be dead
By the time you make up your mind. So choose,
If it is to be Goblins who shall die,
Your hands must be the carriers of fate.
If not, the blood of all but them is on
Your hands, refusing to do what is right
For fear of death when death is guaranteed.
We are to all die when this is over,
Joining Erathis in Heaven above,
So bring forth swiftly death to bring us life,
Or die alongside us with your mistakes.

Varth

You speak harsh words.

Eden

The truth is often harsh.

Varth

There is another way, of this I'm sure.
I'll find this answer, save you all, and then
You'll see. Seek out this God is what I'll do,
Expect then my return with prize in hand.

Eden

Indeed. Best of luck. You will need much more.

Varth leaves the stage, leaving Eden alone.

Eden
(Aside)

Have faith, pitiful cowards! You tremble
Against the weight of Gods and still know not
Their might. Might there be salvation in Hell,
Or damned are those who refuse the Good Word?
I was once man of little faith, weary
Of our wide, wondrous watchtower a world,
Where we watch sinners soak in flame of sin
For their eternal punishment in Hell.
Yet I was saved, salvation found in Her,
Erathis, Goddess who did cleanse my soul,
If I can be saved, so too can others.
The Boy was one of your chosen, an Ace,
Yet he lies tortured by horrible beasts
With nothing to be done but wait for death.
The Man was chosen to lead, he may have
Strayed away from the faith, but he does not
Deserve damnation. If it is his fate
To die, then you are fate's great enemy.
Goddess of Invention, invent a new
Branched fate. One where they can live in your light.
No one deserves damnation for good deeds.
If my pureified soul is not enough,
Then let thine own word speak plainly for thee.
The tablets speak of blessed Heaven above,
Eternal resting place for all who trust
In you. We trust in you, but leave us bare
To fend ourselves for scraps of life and soon
Those hallowed halls will fill once and ne'er again.
Grant us something to believe in, or else
No one shall believe again. Yet I do.
I believe in you, so believe in us.

Eden puts out the fire and stands up, walking offstage.

Act III Scene VI

In the Goblin Caves beneath Nerodil, Gellark still sits in his cage with Seglat guarding him.

Seglat

What do they call beards in your language, Gellark?

Gellark

They call them beards, Seglat. We speak the same
Language as you Goblins do in these caves.
Why is it that you ask me this question?

Seglat

I had no way to ask how old you were getting without asking it, so I meant to tell you your beard was growing.

Gellark

It has now likely been about ten years
Since we arrived here on Totania.
This would mean I've now lived twenty-two years
Of total life. But a small speck amidst
The lifespans you claim are possible here.
O, to be an Elf, live seven hundred
Whole years before worrying yourself of
Mortality. Eternal life's a dream.

Seglat

Still you fear death?

Gellark

I do not. After my time in this cell,
With you by my side, I do respect it.
It is not fear I have for death, rather
I hold respect for life. I wish to cling
To its beauteous gifts as long as I
Am allowed. To hold such a gift so long
As Elves and Dwarves, as those great Wizards do,
I can only imagine what I'd do.

Seglat

If I had eternal life, I would see the world. We Goblins cling to this land because travel for us is a dream beyond reach, a trip so long we die before returning, no news of our travel. There is a carving at the entrance to this cave of names. Those that have not returned from the outer reaches of our land. I had a dream once, of living like an Elf, for what seems like eternity. I left the cave... my own prison of sorts, even though I am the one that guards it. I took two steps out and they asked where I was going, if I would return. I had no need to worry about them. By the time I'd be back, they would not be there. I took a trip to see the world, to see the Kamejin, Lizardfolk, and Orcs. The Korvians were crazy and the Nereids quite bombastic, but the whole world was beautiful. When I got back to the cave I was greeted with unfamiliar faces, but I recognized their features. I knew their ancestors. Children, grandchildren, who's to say? They were distrustful but welcoming. They led me past a wall, but I stood still and looked at it. At the mark my life had made. A name carved into a wall of a traveler long gone, or so they said. The name Seglat. That is the mark of life, achieved only in death. I had lived to see the beauty, even if only in a dream, and that was long enough a life for me.

Gellark

Dreams do show us what life cannot, and yet
I wonder if those with such lives as Elves
Do view a Dream as more or less than real.
If an Elf lives a century in Dream,
Does that then astound their minds as does ours?
Or to those who have everything in wake,
Are Dreams but a distraction to beauty?
What are Dreams to the Dreamless? Are they rich
With fruit of life in concept and naught more?
Do those that sleep but not to Dream, or those
Who need but not to sleep desire the life
Found but in fantasy? I do not know,
Nor want I know, to lose the Dreams I prize
Would be more horrible a fate than death.

Jibral enters the stage with a sword and a club in either hand. She approaches Gellark's cage.

Jibral

Death is not the worst punishment to bear,
To suffer life as long is just as bad
If life rewards all but you, death's reward.

Gellark

Jibral! Hath you come now to end me here?
My own blade, Lion's Rage, is quite the tool,
To cleave in twain or twist betwixt the tongue.
Be careful how you slash and swing such sword,
Else you could poke your own eye out or cut
Your favorite home to two mini villas.

Jibral

Well, I have no intention to use it.
It is yours to wield, Gellark.

Jibral places the sword through the cage, in front of Gellark.

Gellark

Be this some form of prank on me, Jibral?
If I pick this up, do I then perish?

Jibral

If you cannot use it correctly, yes.

Jibral grabs the keys from Seglat, opening the cell and stepping inside. She hands the keys back to Seglat.

Jibral

Lock us in, jailor. This will be a fight.

Seglat

Yes, ma'am!

Gellark

Seglat, hold your horses in their stable.

Seglat

My only pet's a Mimic, and even then I consider her more friend than pet.

Gellark

Right, then let me speak more plainer words. I know you understand this more. Do not lock the cage on such hasty orders from such an impulsive individual. Was it not days ago she said she wanted no part of this with me? Clearly she intends to kill me.

Seglat

Are you afraid she will?

Gellark

Moreso worried I will be the one to deal her finishing blow. Jibral, lay down your weapon and I shant hurt you.

Jibral

I will not until the jailor's done.
Get locking so I may get to knocking.

Seglat

I didn't know it was like that.

Jibral

Lock, lock!

Seglat

Yes, future Matriarch!

Seglat locks the door, then running offstage as Jibral faces Gellark.

Jibral

I once had sought a fiery end, glorious
And sad. A death by great a blade as yours
Would be envious to the me of then.
Yet now, I shudder at the thought of death.
I know I can do nothing with my life,
But I can do something with yours instead.

Gellark

What sort of witchcraft do you mean to do?
Ensnare me in some trap and kill me here?
Raise then my corpse to fight for your cruel cause?
Make me believe I am a Goblin too?
I know not what you learned at this Magic
College, but I fear how it could be used.

Jibral

I have not Magic, but I learned something
From those hallowed halls hung high in the sky.
From the one Perzita Theldrar, I learned to fight.

Gellark

The meaning that name holds is lost on me.

Jibral

If her name is not enough, let you see
The might mighty Perzita Theldrar can wield.

Jibral runs at Gellark with her club. He blocks with his sword, but she manages to still hit him past it. Over the rest of their conversation, the two trade blows, with Jibral often getting small hits while Gellark misses his attacks.

Jibral

She is the mightiest of mighty foes,
The one who solves all problems with her fist,
Yet could easily fix all with her mind.
I shall teach you what she showed then to me.
So that you may bring us peace, as agreed.

Gellark

So you accept the offer I offered?

Jibral

I have my own new deal, not an offer,
For you cannot say no to what I'll say.

Gellark

Is that then so?

Jibral

I dare thee to say no.

Gellark

I know not what you speak of.

Jibral

Listen, then.
I serve no purpose in this peaceful plan,
I lack the power to keep it afloat,
Yet I hold knowledge you can use, Gellark.
The fighting techniques of Perzita Theldrar.
I will teach them to you so you can then
Carry out this plan of yours, nay, of ours.

Gellark

You would impart such knowledge unto me?
What has changed there within your mind, Jibral?
Last we had spoke, you called me enemy,
Yet now you teach me as if I'm student.

Jibral

I wish to make my mark, but I cannot.
I lack the power to achieve this task,
The winds of fate could blow me down the road
With naught a fight, only a mewling cry.
But you- the Ace with his potential thus
The subject of high praise- shall be the one.
You'll make a mark for both of us, you hear?

Gellark

This plan does not so work with me alone,
You are the other half needed to work
My simple plan. Without you I'm nothing
But Man, with you I am thus completed.
Plan, Man, and all that stands in between them.

Jibral

This is a non-negotiable plan,
You will either accept this help I give
In building your skills to their peak, or else
You rot without me. Choose then, simple Man
With his simple plan. Me or dignity?

Gellark

In such a case, I'd choose you any day.
Dignity not required, honor a sham,
What's needed to lead is but ones own life,
And yours is as important to me as mine.
Either we both make it out or neither
Shall lead again.

Jibral

You are picking it up,
The techniques and what I am asking you.

Gellark

I like it not, yet I despise it not.
This plan of yours, I can attempt to try.
Neither you nor I can live up to this
Shadow cast by the towered legacy
Of those before us when alone, yet us
Together, the power of the Gods Ace
And training of the Dragons greatest foe,
We shall create a world wholly our own.

Jibral

This will be a partnership that will work.
It's you and I against the world, Gellark,
The world best watch its back, for it cannot
Stand against what we could do together.
This war of parents that we are amidst
Will fade before what you learn here from me,
The Old World stands not even a small chance.
Beware Dreamless Man! Beware Matriarch!

Zelgrile enters the stage, seeing Jibral and Gellark sparring. She sees Jibral in the cage.

Zelgrile

Exit that cage at once, Jibral. Cease this
Rebellion. He is but our prisoner,
We need not entertain him with battles.

Jibral

If I am in a cage, it is the one
You built around me, dear mother. The one
Kept up by expectations to live up
To who you were, you are, you're yet to be.
Gellark will free me from the trap you built
All by simply being my mother.

Zelgrile

He will land you in a worse cage, one where
The Men will treat you as but a plaything,
A curiosity they'll dispose of
When you are no longer entertaining.

Jibral

Be that not what we do now to Gellark?

Zelgrile

We do it for necessity, no more.
Let him be bait for the Dreamless Man's wrath.
After that, when the Dreamless Man is dead,
Humanity will be a memory,
Still remaining, not again our worry.
Then, we can live in peace, against the Gods.
That is our existence. Borne but of war,
We reach this peace then with our final war.
This Man will be the catalyst of peace.
Do you not wish to be Matriarch of Peace?

Jibral

I can be. I have faith in Gellark's plan.

Zelgrile

Humanity is our greatest of foes,
His plan will end with death, you mustn't trust him.

Jibral

I shant. It seems I am yet trapped
In a cage with such beast as this here Man.
I cannot trust to turn my back on him
To leave the cage, so I must stay in here,
Fighting back his attempts to kill me still.
Leave us be, you distract me into fear,
Which leads to panic, and eventually,
My death. Wish you my blood on thine own hands?

Zelgrile

I wish not blood. It is but a result.
I see. I will return, my dear daughter.
Live until then.

Zelgrile exits the stage, leaving Jibral and Gellark alone.

Gellark

You're certain of this?

Jibral

I never will be.

Act III Scene VII

After a couple years of travel, Varth Dreamless has entered the Temple of Morrigan. He stands alone onstage, with no one around him.

Varth

He claims this be the only way to win,
Yet I do not agree. These Gods offer
Nothing which Man cannot create themselves.
There is no limit to Human minds, we
Can do anything, including getting
Out of any situation they're found.
The mind is a wondrous palace of Dreams.
Majesty found within, horror without.
That is, at least, what they tell me in waking.
If only I could dream as the Birds do,
As the Raven and the Fox, as the Men
Who look to me for wisdom, the Fox looks
To the Raven. The Raven caws its mind,
To the listening Fox, and the Fox hears.
The Fox knows not that Ravens dare not Dream,
For if they dreamt, there would be no beauty
That could ever compare. The Raven then
Speaks not from mind, but speaks instead from heart-
The heart is a kind master, overfull
On sentiment, empty on logic- Fools
Listen to their heart. Then am I a fool?

Morrigan, the Raven Goddess of Death, enters stage.

Morrigan

Fool and Raven, mixed together in one?
That fable is impossible to hear.
The Bird of wisdom's brain is never done,
Their fruitful mind keeping pace with their drear.

Varth

I take it you are the Goddess of Death?

Morrigan

That is my title, though Death brings comfort,
Let your sins all wash away in my lethe,
Your fears turn to nothing but meager sport.
I mean no harm, I welcome you gladly,
This is no afterlife, yet still is nice.
We ferry souls with no tears, not sadly,
So please, while you're here, relax with the ice.

Varth

I came not to relax, I seek Items.

Morrigan

There is much more to that weight than you think.
My magic is one wielded only by Titans,
The strong with it rise, the weak ones do sink.

Varth

I have only one question, if you'll hear.
Interrupt me not and complete me not,
I have much to say.

Morrigan

Do as you are ought.

Varth

Be your power one to control then death?
End it lives, snatch it souls, kill it all those
Who dare it oppose?

Morrigan

Treat it as a rose,
Else its thorns prick itself. Death Magic, as
I've called is to forfeit your own dear life,
Remove your possessions, all that you has,
To rid self and those around you of strife.

Varth

You mean to say it kills, too, its user?

Morrigan

In theory, nothing stops the marching of death,
Not me, not my fellows, not even you, sir.
There is no end but the end of a breath.

Varth

Then part I from here, let this deal be done,
I accept not your Devil's frought bargain!

Morrigan

You'll lose what you have, with me you'd have won,
Let me show you the truth, let you think again.

Two Apparitions enter the stage. One is dressed as Varth is, yet with a broken crown, called Apparition Varth. The other is dressed in Eden's uniform, but carries a lifeless body in his hands. This is Apparition Eden.

Apparition Varth

Are there none who remain? All are then dead?

Apparition Eden

Not a single follower of yours lives,
All lost to the great Goblin force we faced.
I warned you, yet you did not heed my word.
This is our suffering, this is our fate.

The Apparitions fade, leaving Morrigan and Varth.

Varth

Stop with your tormenting thoughts and visions,
You twist the future to suit evil deeds.
What truly happens?

Morrigan

Consequences of your decisions.
The heart you held so tight, no doubt, it bleeds.
What I show is truth, I dare not show bait.
Accept me or all die, that is the end,
Die with your friends, or accept now your fate.

A skeletal skull is carried on by two servants of Morrigan, Dead Men. They circle around Varth. Only one speaks.

Dead Man

Fate is so fickle, it changes so fast,
The future uncertain, the pain i'the past.
Destruction awaits, by your fated hand,
Stand up now to cease it, take you the stand?
The world fears but death, its eternal sleep,
Yet fear comes with words, and talk is but cheap.
There is but one name they chant by the hearth,
The Merchant of Death, the Walking Corpse Varth.

Varth

I wishn't kill anyone, I wishn't to die,
You mean there is no other means to win,
Than stain my hands, when my soul hold them not,
And taint the life I have built to this day.
There must be a way beyond such an end?

Dead Man

There is no beyondness to death itself,
It is the end, your life placed back o'the shelf.
Your life is forfeit if you wish to save
Those who are fated to end in a grave.

The Dead Men leave the stage, leaving the skull at the very front of the stage.

Varth

You wish me to die?

Morrigan

If you wish me bend
The course of your ill-fated friends, I do.
There is no other option, why you're here,
To say one final goodbye, bid adieu,
Make those Goblins pay, in return, their fear.

Varth

If I die, how may I save my people?
Is a corpse suited to save all the damned?
This is not an offer, but it's a threat!
I see no solution beyond it
And yet I pray there is more you hold off.

Morrigan

You expect wrong, the answer be not split.
You pray at a God? To that I so scoff.

Varth

I curse this idea, was it then a test?

Morrigan

I do not test, I do not jest, do not
Test me. I can pay such test back in kind.
Death the only answer, each way you rot,
Think you the solution lies in your mind?

Varth

Give you me a moment, I have not words.

Morrigan

Death waits for no one, you play with no toy,
I could send your body to feed my birds,
Or I could give you choice. Now answer boy.

Varth

I've no answer, I wish this all be done,
I require time even to catch my breath!

Morrigan

Think on you my offer, oh Dreamless one,
For tomorrow shall come, and so, too, death.

Morrigan steps to the back of the stage. She does not leave, but instead stands watching over Varth as he stands alone.

Varth

What curse afflicts our being more than life,
For life is the beginning and the end
Of the Gods hellish, heavenly curses
On the state of innocent noble men.
There is no way we make it out of here,
The Goblins are too numerous and strong,
Even my strength is not enough for them.
Yet, Morrigan has offered me power,
Of which I would be a fool to decline.
Yet am I a fool for considering
Her offer with such weight as I do now?
The words of Gods carry with them power,
Power of which I lack as Varth Dreamless
But what is Varth Dreamless but a wizard
And what a wizard but a noble fraud?
Is there nobility in sacrifice,
Or is the noblest end prolongéd?
Death is the gift, both the power and the
Punishment, that I stand to gain from her,
Her who is death incarnate, and I life,
Yet I am to death as she will to life,
The harbinger and herald of future
Announcing life and death respectively.
I am not ready for death, these hands of mine
Stain themselves not with blood of the blasphemed
But with the lifeblood of such worldly men
And women that I do protect alone.
To accept is to court death, to court death
Is to except life in some small doses
In exchange for the world I so desire.
Curse you, cruel Gods, for I wish to be there
Beside you in the Heavens above, naught
Any worry but worship and such praise,
For the worry you send for us to bear.
Grant me seat among your counsel, wise Gods,
So I be free of mortal suffering
And become the dealer, not the dealist,
A name at the footnote of history
Trampled over by greater, wiser men.
Allow me a fate above marble clouds
Beyond this life you damn me to, as I,
Forced to stare Mistress Death in her cold eyes,
And yet still, allow me seek refusal.
Nay, it is not my place to refuse her,
Such an offer comes as often as the
Dawn of man on a new and strange planet.
Aye, what good is the life of a Dreamless
If the dreams of all others are trampled?
Fall now, myself, into an endless sleep,
A dreamless sleep, of which I will not wake!
For Nerodil, for Gellark, for you all,
I condemn myself to death a thousand times
And Humanity, I condemn to life.

Varth picks up the skull left by the Dead Man, raising it to his face.

Varth Dreamless by Jarhed

Gellark Lionrage by Jarhed

Morrigan by Jarhed