Dream on Victor42

Space Hotel

hi@victor42.work (Victor42) — Wed, 27 Dec 2023 15:35:00 +0000

I had the craziest dream.

Midjourney prompt: Uranus in the window frame of a space station, thin white tracks on its calm cyan surface, NASA image of the day –style raw –v 6.0 –ar 16:9

I woke up as a kid, stuck in a space hotel in synchronous orbit. Outside, I could see a huge, unfamiliar planet, cyan like Uranus, with air currents streaking across its surface. The hotel was huge, with every amenity imaginable. The staff and guests were friendly and helped me get by. But nobody could tell me where we were. Everyone just called it “the hotel.” Asking about the year got me blank stares – they didn’t even know what a “year” was.

Midjourney prompt: astronomical observatory in a space station, cyan light reflected by a gas planet shining into the capsule, low key lighting –style raw –v 6.0 –ar 16:9

Days became weeks, and as I explored, the mystery deepened. I found a small library and an observatory. I taught myself basic math, astronomy, and observation. It took ages, but I found pulsars and variable stars to use as beacons. Finally, I pinpointed our location: 91,000 light-years from the solar system, on the Milky Way’s far side. It was 5 billion years in the future. The sun had gone red giant, swallowing most of the solar system, including Earth.

Midjourney prompt: blueprint map of the milky way, latitude and longitude, lines and marks, sci-fi UI, hologram –style raw –v 6.0 –ar 16:9

With that, I finally understood. Everyone, like me, came from lost civilizations. I could see their true forms, and they were bizarre – if you could even call them “people.” There was a self-tying towel and a plasma ball making dolphin sounds. A mysterious, advanced civilization had preserved our memories, letting us live here in our original forms. The space hotel was actually a museum.

Midjourney prompt: a cubic-shaped space station from a mysterious civilization floating in the space, flawless white smooth surface, built with some unknown transparent material, Uranus as background, sci-fi movie scene –style raw –v 6.0 –ar 16:9 –seed 1394083352

I borrowed the hotel’s biggest cinema and presented my findings. Some were silent, some were fascinated. Most, of course, burst into tears… if that’s what you’d call the strange things these creatures suddenly started doing.

The Blessed Child

hi@victor42.work (Victor42) — Mon, 11 Jul 2022 13:16:00 +0000

This is from a third-person dream: a young girl, a strange illness, a small mountain village.

The girl, about 10, was loved by everyone. The day she fell ill, she was picking mulberry leaves under the big mulberry tree. Villagers saw her collapse and yelled for her parents, but no one dared get close.

Her illness was bizarre. Blood seeped from her skin without warning, gushing out. A pool of blood formed beneath her, mixing with the dirt. She screamed, digging trenches in the ground, quickly filled with blood. Onlookers, terrified, backed away, unsure if it was a disease or an evil spirit.

Her father was miles away, planting rice. Her mother rushed to the village entrance. The girl was pale and unconscious. It seemed she had bled out completely. The mother pushed through the crowd, knelt in the blood, and cradled her daughter, wailing.

After a few minutes, someone shouted, “Quick! Take her to the hospital! There might still be hope!”

The mother jolted, but felt her daughter move. She thought she was hallucinating, then saw her daughter open her eyes. The girl, covered in blood, only saw her mother’s distorted face and the villagers. Color returned to her face; she looked like she’d just woken up. She asked softly what was wrong, with no memory of the pain.

The mother looked around, but everyone looked terrified. Some pointed, mouths agape. Some ran. Sparks flew off the mother’s body, with arcs of electricity at her joints. But she felt nothing, and her daughter was unharmed. The sparks disappeared, and the daughter, seeing the blood, burst into tears.

Life returned to normal, except for the two sets of blood-stained clothes. Miraculously, the girl’s grandmother, bedridden before, was walking within a month. Villagers called it a blessing after a great ordeal.

The girl would occasionally relapse, each time dying and reviving. People touching her afterward would have sparks fly off them and experience good luck within six months. One adopted an unclaimed cow, another found a long-lost son, and another dug up antiques, selling them for a good price.

The girl became a god-like figure. Villagers called her the “Blessed Child,” treating her with respect, but no longer joking with her. A wealthy businessman built a “Blessing Temple,” with three courtyards and an altar, to repay her blessings. She was carried to the altar whenever she fell ill. Everyone would kneel, waiting for her to wake and touch them, “receiving blessings.” Someone proposed a “Blessing Cult,” with the girl as leader. Her parents became guardians, announcing the ceremony and holding considerable influence. The cult became famous, attracting people from neighboring villages.

At one ceremony, the guardians stood on either side of the altar, followers kneeling. The temple was silent. More followers rushed in, joining the kneeling crowd. After a while, the guardians exchanged worried glances. A stir arose: an elderly woman struggled to stay upright.

Whispers broke out. Followers looked at the altar, then at the guardians. The father whispered, “Leader?” No response. The mother pushed the girl’s arm, and blood overflowed, flowing down the stone.

The girl didn’t wake, and there were no sparks. The followers were in an uproar. Someone shouted, “The leader can’t take the blessings anymore!” The crowd dispersed. The guardians, bewildered, shouted, “The leader hasn’t woken up yet!” but couldn’t stop them.

On the altar, the girl lay curled up, pale. Nail marks on the stone were covered by fresh and dried blood.

A Regular Day in the Era of Divine Punishment

hi@victor42.work (Victor42) — Tue, 04 Nov 2014 00:38:00 +0000

This dream’s mostly gone, some parts are just me rambling.

“T, you got the goods today, right?!” I snapped into the phone.

“Hold your horses! I said next week at the earliest! Metal’s in short supply. You think I’d screw you over, being such a long-time customer?”

“Cut the crap! You’re holding some back to resell, don’t even. It’s not the money, my place is about to run dry!!”

“Seriously, I got nothing. I’ll tell you first thing next week. That’s it, I’m out.”

I hung up, totally screwed. The kitchen faucet wouldn’t shut off, water gushing for eight hours straight. At this rate, I’ll be broke for weeks. Basic resources are crazy expensive, mostly transport costs. Faucets don’t usually just break. Who keeps a spare?

I looked out at the turbulent sea, its dark blue gave me the creeps. I live by the sea, but I never go in. This isn’t White Sand Bay. It’s dangerous. Monstrous waves, every day. Any idiot going down there gets smashed on the rocks. My house is high above sea level, on a towering cliff. I once lay on the cliff edge, peering down. Dark, porous cliff face, seabirds all over.

I put on my windbreaker and went out for the routine detector check. It’s my job. These umbrella-shaped detectors are everywhere in open areas, each with a technician. What for? Long story.

Four generations ago, an unimaginable catastrophe. An asteroid hit Shanghai, out of the blue. Flattened the whole city. The weird thing? No astronomical agency saw it coming. It just popped out of thin air. Humanity was helpless. The asteroid had a lot of copper. Green flames from the burning, like the Last Judgment. No one will forget.

What happened next almost ended us. Asteroids kept hitting, taking out cities. Appearing out of nowhere, only detected in the atmosphere. After a month, terrified people saw a pattern. Asteroids struck every six days, targeting the most populated cities. This absurd theory wasn’t widely accepted until later, but the chaos, migration, and killings caused more casualties than the impacts.

This is the new era - the Era of Divine Punishment.

Detector No. 1 is operating normally, readings safe. No. 2’s wind buffer is acting up, I’ll replace it. No. 3 is normal, readings fluctuate a bit, the negative feedback module needs fine-tuning…

I sigh, the monotonous peace of today is a blessing. No divine punishment in over twenty years, not because they’re over, but because the tiny population doesn’t dare gather. The fewest killed in an attack was 98, showing how dispersed people are. Humanity regressed to a primitive village life, dozens of people in small villages, extremely cautious movement. Like the Tower of Babel. Humans built a tower. God confused their languages, so they couldn’t communicate, couldn’t approach him. This God seems more blunt.

The negative feedback module is exposed to sea wind, the connection decays. Small deviations amplify the reading’s fluctuation, so it needs frequent fine-tuning. Too frequent, and it needs replacing. My backups are almost gone, I need to apply for more.

These detectors, if you ask me, are useless. They detect radiation, air vibrations, and low-frequency sounds. When divine punishment occurs, three points can calculate the coordinates. More points, more accurate. But other than evacuating, nothing can be done.

Worth mentioning: Shortly after the Era of Divine Punishment, an unexpected turn. People found living underground didn’t trigger it. Generations of construction, now there are many intricate, ant-nest-like underground cities. Industry is recovering there, while the surface is basically agricultural. Where else would these detectors come from?

After the inspection, the rest is free time. Usually, I’d play the ukulele. I snagged this cheerful instrument last month, and I’m hooked. But today I have to go to the market, get a new faucet or spend a fortune on water. I really don’t want the latter.

I sent an entry application to the village. Almost no outsiders here, so it was quick. Driving the electric truck on the dirt road, I see city building outlines. All the glass is gone, it’s valuable. Empty window frames, like hollow eye sockets, chilling. Those residences are abandoned. Even if a few are nostalgic, it’s impossible to maintain water and electricity for a whole city for just a few dozen people.

Nature has almost regained everything. The truck brushed past tall grass, rustling. Maybe it’s better near the ant nests, more human activity, but I’ve never been down there.

The ant nests are the territory of those underground humans. We call them cave dwellers. They call us primitives. Every time I talk to people from underground, they look at me like a country bumpkin. But it’s fine, they eat our corn, and we buy their faucets.

Dusk approached, the sun was low. I flipped down the visor, barely able to drive. If I’m fast, I’ll reach the market by noon tomorrow. At first, I wasn’t used to the wilderness at night. But I got used to it, it even gave me a sense of security. No worry about gathering and triggering divine punishment, no one knows my location. Interesting? Divine punishment flipped the definition of safety.

The truck is solar-powered, so with uncertain sunshine, I need to be careful. After nightfall, it’s impossible to move. Driving in the wilderness, lighting consumes a lot. I opened the self-heating food, dinner under the stars. Those cave dwellers wouldn’t get it.

Dinner is the last entertainment. No lighting, no ukulele, the Milky Way urges you to dream. Rest early, continue the journey tomorrow.

A soothing song from a century ago echoed, I can try a cheerful ukulele version when I get back:

i’ve seen rivers rise. seen mountains fall. seen endless vistas coming to an end…

The Rights of Robots

hi@victor42.work (Victor42) — Wed, 03 Sep 2014 22:42:51 +0000

It was a simple dream, but it stuck with me.

I’d just cut the back of my hand. Blood welled up, soaking the bandage. The news hadn’t hit me yet – not sadness, not anger, just… confusion. I’m not human? But this body’s identical to a human’s. I’d tried starving myself, only to get dizzy. I’d held my breath until I was red in the face.

Anyway, my life changed that day…

If security hadn’t stopped me at the airport, and the weird stuff that followed hadn’t happened, I’d be on vacation at Bluegrass Manor in Seviral. You probably haven’t heard of it. The world’s completely different now, even the place names.

The staff just asked me to the reception room, saying someone was looking for me. A lean, weary security officer handed me a holographic card. This thing, a thin sliver of glass, held my identity, origin, mission – everything. I checked later, and it was all accurate.

I, Mercury D2, am a biorobot. I serve the National Library, handling online data 24/7, feeding info to virtual visitors. That kind of processing power needs a neural network computer, not the old Von Neumann type. Neural networks, like real brains, are too complex. They need a living body to run, using biology to keep them going. As the carrier, I get 0.01% of that power. That’s my brain, my consciousness. The rest runs silently, endlessly, without me knowing.

The reason I was stopped? Cost. My high-speed link only covered the capital. Outside, I’d have to use regular civilian channels, killing efficiency. It’d cripple the library system, and the data flood would overload the civilian network.

The officer said biorobots were used in other areas. I’m the 7th library hub, with two others sharing the load. He said internal rules let library hubs retire after 50 years, to live a normal human life. Just be patient, he said.

It was a relief to know I wasn’t alone. I wonder if they know. But I won’t just roll over. I’m a robot, by your definition. But I live like a human. What’s wrong with being both?

I demanded a lawyer. I’m suing the National Library for human rights.

“You? A robot,” the officer barked, a nasty edge to his voice, “There’s no law saying robots can sue.”

“There’s no law saying they can’t.”

Bluegrass Manor was off. I went home and started calling law firms and independent lawyers. Surprisingly, many were more interested when they heard I was a robot. Maybe this case went beyond applying the law, to questioning its very core. A chance to make a name for themselves.

“We’ll try, but the court might not take the case.” Tim, the lawyer I hired, had filed the lawsuit: “Now we wait. Live your life normally – like a human. That’s how we win.”

The court took the case, which I’d figured was likely. The trial’s in two days, and I’m unprepared. I’m reading an old book, a fictional history from Earth’s early days. The Three Laws of Robotics it mentions… my request must be a real headache for humans. Still, this 0.01% computing power gives me a sharp mind and perfect memory, and Tim’s confident. I think we’ll win.

Nobita Saves the World

hi@victor42.work (Victor42) — Sun, 08 Apr 2012 13:50:25 +0000

I’ve always loved Nobita. He’s lazy, a bit mischievous, oddly optimistic, and has a sliver of conviction. He’s no loser, and yesterday, in my dream, I made his dream a reality. Nobita finally became a hero, saving the world.

Rock-paper-scissors is brilliant. I always win, so Doraemon always gets stuck buying dorayaki. But… he’s taking forever. Why isn’t he back? Even without the Take-copter, he should’ve been here by now. I’m starving and sleepy.

Whoa, that startled me! Why’s he coming from the drawer? Does he need the Time Machine for dorayaki? Wait! That’s not him, what is that!? A mechanical bird, hey! That’s Doraemon’s voice! Help? Did I hear right? Hey, hey, don’t go! Where are you flying off to?

Doraemon, what’s up? Are you in trouble? Slow down! Phew, my glasses didn’t break. Wait up!

Why’d you bring me to the square? There’s nothing here but concrete pipes. Ah, it’s gone! I saw it go into the pipe. Uh… there’s nothing there, let me reach in… nothing.

Doraemon! Where are you! Doraemon! Whoa! Embarrassing, I stepped in a puddle… Wait!! This water’s deep, I can’t swim! Help!

Phew~ I made it out… What!!?? Where am I? Where’s the square? No way, is this a forest? Doraemon… where am I…

There’s an old house, two stories. Ew~ it’s creepy, covered in dark vines. Are you in there, Doraemon? I hope nobody finds me, this place is scary…

The first floor seems empty, door’s ajar, I’ll take a peek. Uh, what’s that noise? It sounds like a machine short-circuiting, a buzzing sound, it’s coming from the second floor. What is this place, Doraemon, get out here! The sound upstairs is so scary… I don’t wanna go up…

Ah, I’m busted, that step I took was so loud. Closet? Under the table? Behind the sofa? Hmm! Behind the sofa it is… Probably nobody’s here, I made so much noise. I’ll go upstairs, just a quick look.

This is… Oh my god! Doraemon, what happened! Who did this! He’s trapped in an electrified cage, wires all over him.

“Nobita! Don’t touch it!”

“I… What do I do, Doraemon…”

“No time for tears, go get help!”

“Should I get Gian and Suneo?”

“Hurry! Go back the way you came.”

This pile of wet leaves must be where I climbed out, let’s try… Yes! Phew~ I’m back, I hope nobody saw me, this is nuts!

“Nobita! Hahaha… You look like a drowned rat on a sunny day! Hahaha…” Gian and Suneo were there, playing with a remote-controlled airplane.

“Help, Doraemon’s been kidnapped!”

“Where?”

“Here!”

“Hahaha… Nobita, you’re messing with us, not falling for it.”

“Yeah, he probably fell in himself and is trying to trick us,” Suneo added.

“It’s real!”

“Nobita, if you’re playing games, I’ll beat you up.” Gian started rolling up his sleeves.

“It’s… nothing.”

They don’t believe me, will Shizuka?

“What’s wrong? You look worried.”

“Doraemon’s been kidnapped, help…”

“Where is he?”

“Follow me.”

“Here? I don’t see anything.” Gian and Suneo were gone.

“In this puddle.”

“Huh?”

“Seriously, in here.”

“Nobita, I can’t save him even if I go in. Let’s call the cops, I have homework.”

“Shizuka! Don’t go!”

What do I do? Telling Mom, or the police, it’s pointless. My friends think I’m lying, how can they believe me? No, I’ll check on Doraemon.

He’s still motionless in the cage, but why doesn’t he use his gadgets? Ah! His pocket’s gone, what’s this? A steel plate? Doraemon said the kidnappers have snake tattoos on their wrists, they’re not normal, they used 22nd-century tech to remove the pocket. Under it, there’s just this plate, with Doraemon’s model number, AZ-30.

What do I do… I cried, Doraemon sighed: “It’s up to you, Nobita.” He took off the plate, revealing the wires inside. I picked it up, looking at him unsure.

“You can use this, but be careful. It’s my last gadget, the Chaos Double-Sided Mirror, I’ve activated it.”

The AZ-30 faded, and the surface became mirror-clear. It’s a mirror.

“It’s no common mirror, the front shows the past, the back, try reaching in.”

Reach in? I touched it, no sensation, my hand went through, appearing inside the mirror.

“You can take things out, like that dorayaki on the windowsill.”

There’s such a thing? I turned my back, the dorayaki appeared, I reached in, the distance was within reach. I took it out, and it was gone from the windowsill.

“Now look at the front, what do you see?”

I flipped it, oh my god! A kidnapper, calm down… he can’t see me. They do have snake tattoos, as Doraemon said, they look identical, with perfect features. They’re setting up this prison, pushing Doraemon in, connecting wires, the wires leading to an inverted cone on top.

I turned, the pocket! That’s it! A kidnapper took it and left. “Doraemon, I’ll save you, wait!” I threw the dorayaki, Doraemon almost caught it, but it touched the bars, turning into charcoal with a bang.

“Wait! I’ll save you!” I said, backing down the stairs, watching the steps and the mirror. The kidnapper got into a UFO and flew away, disappearing with a whoosh.

I chased, a river blocked me, a boat on the other side, how do I get there… Right! I turned my back, flipped the mirror, reached for the boat, got it! I pulled it across. Curious, I turned, the mirror was the mirror, reality was reality, the boat still bobbing on the other side. The mirror boat was on the shore, I pulled my hand out, turned, and the boat was really there.

Walking along the path, the kidnapper scared me again, it was a scene from hours ago. The snake tattoos were walking, gathering deeper in the forest. Identical faces, with eager eyes, like devout believers. I saw the one with the pocket! I almost reached out, but nearly smashed the mirror, this side shows the past. Following them to a castle, like a vampire family lives there, ew…

The pocket kidnapper seems to be the leader, the guards saluted him. But now, the guards just stood silently. No, Doraemon, I promised! Hang on! But with just this mirror, no Anywhere Door, no Take-copter, how… Sneak in first, hmm! Movies always use drains, no guards, I removed the bars and snuck in.

I can’t stand it, finally out of this ditch, where am I? Ah! Oh my god, a lab, human bellies sewn with pockets, like Doraemon’s. They’re on benches, eyes closed, not breathing. Some without pockets, with steel plates like mine, but with names, not model numbers. Are they… dead… These kidnappers want to turn humans into Doraemon! They are from the 22nd century! Doraemon, how can I fight them…

I have to get the pocket back. I opened the lab door, a dark corridor, candlelight on pillars, ceiling unseen. I stepped on the stone, a snap, echoes. Wait… Not echoes! The kidnappers are coming! Whoa, escape back to the lab, how’d they find me? Nowhere to hide, oh no, the drain again. Doraemon, I’m going to die, they’ll put a pocket on me…

Escaping was faster, I slid out, falling outside the castle, ah! The mirror’s broken! Run, the guards heard, they’re chasing, hide in the woods! I’m going to die, Doraemon… A tree hole! Hide! Footsteps, they ran past, chasing down the path.

Looking at the broken mirror, I’m desperate, Doraemon, what can I use?

I hid all night, curled up, sore, I’m sorry, Doraemon, I can’t… Can I see you first?

I’m done! They’re chasing me! Right behind! Oh… Scared me, it’s the mirror, them chasing me yesterday. Listless, holding half a mirror in each hand, walking back. Sunlight through the trees shone on the left mirror, then the right, piercing my eyes. My eyes flashed, an idea - what if I use them together!

I placed them face to face, seeing yesterday in the right mirror from the left. I fixed them, reached in, and pulled off a leaf from last night. It had dew on it. Nobita! You’re a genius! Doraemon’s saved, humans are saved, kidnappers, you’re done!

I tricked the kidnappers and guards from yesterday, took their weapons, watched them panic, I couldn’t help laughing. They’ll never know someone from the future took their stuff.

Time to get the pocket, but where? I only saw it yesterday… Right, I’ll take it from the mirror! Hahahaha… Too easy, the kidnappers ran back to the castle. Go, return the pocket. Wait… those lab subjects, what are these 22nd-century guys doing? It must be bad, I have to stop them!

Sneak in again, I need to know. Oh no, the castle’s surrounded. I can’t even get in the drains. No weapons, those metal sticks are useless, I don’t know how to open the pocket, throw stones… Right, why not! I can take things, maybe throw things in. I threw a stone, it flew out, landing at my feet, no sound on the mirror. Great, a slingshot, I shot a guard. Like by the river, no trajectory, it appeared after hitting him. He was puzzled, I hit him more, he ran to another guard, terrified. I kept hitting, the other guard saw the stones, and ran with him, like they saw a ghost.

I shot more guards. Oh no, one’s not scared, he’s smart. He judged my direction, leading a sweep. Hehe, disarm them! Now they’re panicked, retreating.

Suddenly, blue light at the castle top, a gate of light. The leader, a sapphire on his neck, maintaining the gate. A portal! More 22nd-century people, identical, snake tattoos.

Great, you asked for it! No need to sneak in. I went back to the path, the mirror replaying yesterday. The leader leading kidnappers, wearing the sapphire, like picking something. After taking it, the luster dimmed, a 22nd-century safeguard, the treasure loses power away from its owner. Anyway, you can’t go back, I’ll save Doraemon, and he’ll seal the exit, hahahaha…

“Nobita! Nobita! I’m back! Hey… You fell asleep? Forget it, I’ll eat the dorayaki. Ah! Help! Nobita! Wake up!”

“Doraemon! I’m here to save you! Uh… I’m home, what’s wrong, Doraemon?”

“There’s a—rat!!”