The Dream Sanctum: The Eternal World Read Free Page A

up with it. It’s actually quite wonderful,” Alastor said,
looking excited.
    Kwin cleared her throat, looking very much in
her element.
    “The currently accepted theory of the Sanctum
is that it is a separate universe that our minds somehow gain access to.
Basically, instead of a normal dream that happens only within our own minds,
the Sanctum is a dream that we enter and leave, much as a person would walk in
and out of a room. The room does not need us inside it to exist.”
    “That makes sense,” Lindsay said thoughtfully.
“If it existed in our own minds then that would mean everyone else would be
inside our heads. And then you’d have to answer whose head the Sanctum really
exists in. I mean, it’s not in our heads already or we’d know it, right?”
    Kwin nodded approvingly.
    “Those are the sorts of questions people have
been trying to answer for a while, but I’ll touch on that later. The current
theory is widely accepted because it makes sense. It’s logical. The problem is
that we know so little about the Sanctum that we can’t apply the logic of our
world there as we do here. My idea goes against almost everything that’s
currently accepted, and this is where the ‘occupant-reliant’ aspect comes in.
    “I believe the Sanctum is at the very least
partially reliant on the presence of people within it in order to exist.
Essentially, the room depends on at least one person being inside it at all
times to exist as we perceive it. I believe that the framework for the Sanctum
may exist in some form separate from our unconscious, but that it is dormant
and imperceivable without us.”
    Lindsay nodded, her expression one of intense
focus, but Kai was already starting to feel confused. This idea immediately
brought a multitude of questions to his mind. However, he avoided asking any
questions just yet. He looked at the stacks of papers and reminded himself that
Kwin and Alastor together had probably already thought of every possible question
he could come up with.
    “To expand on this, I believe that the Sanctum
is the catalyst for a mental connection of sorts,” Kwin continued. “We know
there must already be one regardless; there’s simply no other way to explain
how we can interact in a dream with other people. But the Sanctum has shown
that its existence is not entirely inflexible. The Sanctum operates almost like
a mind itself, but since it is not a living thing, that change must be
influenced by the only other factor involved: us.”
    “To put it into simpler terms, think of a
computer program,” Alastor chimed in. “It has a default state, and it can
change and adapt, but without any user input nothing happens. It goes idle
without any commands.”
    Kwin took a quick glance at the papers in front
of her, resting her finger on a particular note, then continued.
    “To further support this theory, remember what
happened during the incident with the Nightmares. Our attempt to remove them by
waking everyone up at the same time failed, but we did see a noticeable
reaction from the Sanctum. The shadows vanished and everything seemed to reset.
It was almost as if the Sanctum was confused by its sudden lack of occupants
and didn’t know how to react. In addition, it showed that it could be reset. It
was almost as if the power had been cut and it was forced to restart.”
    “So basically what you’re saying is the
Sanctum is like a program, and that our minds connect to each other through that program?” Kai asked slowly.
    “Correct. Think of it like a network. The Sanctum
is the core – the hub, if you will – and that’s the dream we all enter.
Everything beyond that, however, is us. I would go so far as to say that we
provide its power. I believe that when we all disconnect simultaneously, it
nearly ceases to be. It is a modifiable program, and its existence is dependent
on people using it. Without dreamers inside, it is a car without an engine, a
carriage without a horse. Basic in form and