Night still clung to the Dreamlands like a damp shroud when the Express eased into Dylath-Leen, its basalt towers looming over the platform like the vertebrae of some titanic fossil. The investigators stepped briefly into that stagnant, starlit air—though even that simple act felt fraught with uncanny weight. The city was beautiful in the way a cathedral of bones might be beautiful: arresting, ancient, and better admired from a distance. Henri warned them not to wander, and even the boldest among them understood the warning was not meant politely.

It was here that the tensions of the moment revealed themselves. Delegates from Sarnath glided aboard in robes that shimmered with the arrogance of long memory; behind them, the gelatinous Beings of Ib oozed into a maw that opened obligingly in the train’s side. The contrast was surreal even by Dreamlands standards: beauty and mucus, pride and slow undulating resignation. Arthur and Claire spoke with the Sarnathians enough to glean the contours of an ancient grievance—one side insisting the sin lay a thousand years in the past, the other insisting it was hardly a week old. Time here did not behave properly. It stretched where it should snap, snapped where it should yield. Even Walter, ever anchored in doctrine, felt the uneasy wrongness of it.

And always, Henri worked. His silhouette wove among crates and tentacles as he loaded the last of the cargo. He moved with impeccable grace for a man who admitted, with a quiet sigh, that he was no longer among the living.

The train lingered in the station for hours—long enough for doubt to bloom. Walter’s suspicion of the Dreamlands, always simmering, spilled into earnest inquiry. What truly mattered here? Could actions in this realm touch the waking world? Was any of this safe, righteous, real? Claire listened, still shaken by the memory of a wraith that had marked her arm with an icy caress. Walter questioned Henri about souls, salvation, the nature of death itself. Henri answered as one who had no reason to lie: the Dreamlands were shaped first by the waking mind, but the dead gathered here as well, reshaping themselves as something adjacent to their former selves. The implications landed on Walter like cold water down his spine.

But what cut deepest was Henri’s confession that something dark hovered within Claire—something he had sensed long before offering them passage. It clung to her like a parasitic destiny, a burden thick enough to weigh down a soul in any world. Her arm ached where the wraith had touched her, though no mark remained. Walter examined it with worried precision; Claire masked her fear with wry humor, but the joke rang thin.

Henri urged her toward unburdening. If she could manifest this thing—drag it into the Dreamlands where thought held weight—she might cast it off. Walter balked at the danger; Claire considered it with a grim sort of courage. Here, in a land shaped by dreamers’ minds, the monstrous might take form. But here, too, it might be destroyed.

Their conversation frayed as exhaustion claimed them. The night wore on. Arthur retreated to rest; Claire followed, shaken but unwilling to show it. Walter prayed, though the prayer tasted strange in a world where the dead served as guides.

Per, however, resisted sleep. He prowled to the Men’s Salon, driven by the stubborn conviction that if one could think differently here, reality might oblige. He experimented with belief like a scientist prodding a volatile compound: spoons that should bend, fatigue that should vanish. The Dreamlands resisted him with dreamlike indifference. Eventually, he found himself reading—seeking any text that might illuminate this realm’s unwritten rules.

It was there that the man with the golden eyes entered.

Mironim-Mer, he called himself: a wine trader, a wanderer, a man whose irises shone like molten coin and bore no pupils. He poured himself a nightcap and spoke calmly of rare Sarrubian wines and distant shores. His tone was polite, his smile thin as paper. Per studied him with the wary mind of a man who has seen too many curious strangers across too many cursed thresholds. Mironim-Mer’s gaze—if gaze it was—never quite found him. Yet the stranger’s presence pulled at the room’s edges like gravity.

When Mironim-Mer retired, Per finally surrendered to the inevitable and prepared for bed. But just as he reached the threshold, a cry shattered the air:

“Wait! I meant to board the train!”

A figure sprinted along the platform—jewels flashing, silks streaming behind her like a comet’s tail. She moved with desperate grace, her heels striking sparks from the stone. Instinct overtook Per. He ran, muttering Henri’s name as though invocation alone might summon the conductor. And as he reached the stairwell, the red emergency cord appeared—impossibly, abruptly, obedient to a wish he barely dared form.

He pulled it. The train answered like a living creature: slowing, yielding, allowing the woman to catch up. She leapt into Per’s arms with theatrical flourish, clinging to him as though she had always known he would be waiting. Her smile was dazzling, hungry for attention rather than assuming it. They climbed the stairs together, Per half carrying her, half carried by momentum.

Henri appeared where Per needed him—immaculate, composed, apologetic for nothing.

The woman produced a golden ticket, her voice tremulous in the way of someone expecting to be told she was too late. But Henri accepted it with a bow, calling her Zsusza, and assured her she had been expected. She promised a performance for the passengers—song, dance, spectacle—and hinted at princes who sought to imprison her in palaces. Whether truth or vanity, the narrative clung to her like perfume.

And Per, now utterly drained, accepted a glass of the sleeping draught Henri conjured without his hands. Even here, exhaustion claimed him with mortal insistence.

By the time he finally collapsed into bed, the Dreamlands Express had left Dylath-Leen behind. The city’s black spires receded into the night as the train glided toward its next destination—Zar, where dreams frayed at the edges, and forgotten sorrows whispered in abandoned towers.

Sleep claimed the investigators one by one, and the Dreamlands shifted around them.

Each carried a burden.

Not all would leave with one.

Session Notes

  • Session opens with a recap of the prior events on the Dreamlands train

    • The investigators had been interacting with other passengers and talking about the Dreamlands before the train arrived at Dylath-Leen.

    • At Dylath-Leen’s platform, Henri had warned that it was not safe to wander at night, advising the group not to stray from the station area.

    • The group still stretched their legs on the platform and took in the city skyline.

    • The group observed multiple parties boarding at Dylath-Leen:

      • A delegation from Sarnath: described as young, beautiful, wearing flowing elegant robes and nice jewelry.
      • A group of the beings of Ib: described as gelatinous, like “wads of snot.”

    • The group did not interact with the beings of Ib, but did talk at length with the Sarnath delegation.

    • The group also noticed a well-dressed, dark-haired man who:

      • Was greeted at the platform by Henri.
      • Gave Henri a bottle during a brief conversation.
      • Was then allowed aboard the train.

    • The beings of Ib boarded in an unusual way:

      • A large mouth-like opening formed in the side of the train.
      • The beings of Ib entered through it, described as “feeding themselves to the train,” though clarified that they were not eaten.

  • Clarifying the Sarnath–Ib dispute and the train’s broader context

    • The Sarnath delegation explained they were traveling to present their case before King Kuranes, who was described as fair and wise.

    • The Sarnathians believed they were being unjustly accused of mistreating the beings of Ib.

    • The situation was framed as an arbitration (not yet a criminal trial).

    • A major point of confusion in the dispute was time:

      • The Sarnathians described the dispute as originating around a thousand years ago, tied to the founding of their city and driving the beings of Ib away.
      • The beings of Ib were described as acting as though it had happened recently (as if “a week ago”), asserting they had been unjustly driven from their home.

  • Arrival atmosphere and the stop at Dylath-Leen

    • The Keeper described Dylath-Leen visually:

      • A city of black basalt with towering spires and onion domes.

    • The train remained in Dylath-Leen for a significant period (a couple of hours total; with the boarding activity concentrated in roughly 30–45 minutes).

    • During the stop:

      • Henri was busy unloading and loading cargo, stacking items while the train’s tentacles assisted.
      • Locals/denizens of the city brought cargo to be loaded aboard.
      • After boarding activity, the platform became quiet, with Henri primarily focused on cargo.

    • A Sarnathian woman was noted to be flirting with Walter:

      • Her name was explicitly given as Besweet.

  • Party discussion: what is the purpose of the Dreamlands journey?

    • Walter (and the group) wrestled with what their “objective” in the Dreamlands should be:

      • Whether the purpose was to find information useful in the waking world.
      • Whether the purpose was to discard burdens (and possibly gain some benefit afterward).
      • Whether there was a target to meet or a lead that would connect to their statue-related investigation.

    • The group reiterated constraints already learned:

      • If they leave the Dreamlands (wake up), they cannot return.

    • Walter specifically wondered:

      • Whether actions in the Dreamlands meaningfully affect the waking world (e.g., influencing politics, destroying a city).
      • Whether the Dreamlands are “real” in any spiritually meaningful sense.

  • Walter speaks directly with Henri about the Dreamlands, causality, and time

    • Walter approached Henri to ask how “real” the Dreamlands are and what impact they might have.

    • Henri explained the relationship between worlds:

      • The waking world has more influence on the Dreamlands than the Dreamlands have on the waking world.
      • Dreamlands inhabitants are dreamed by someone in the waking world (described as “another self” in a way).
      • Changes in Dreamlands lives can influence the emotional well-being and mental state of someone in the waking world.
      • Dreamlands kingdoms, politics, and history may inspire tales and stories and influence artists, but Henri emphasized the Dreamlands are more “written by” the waking world than vice versa.

    • Walter asked about time:

      • Whether time is unmoored enough to encounter dreams of historical figures (Henry VIII, Genghis Khan), or figures relevant to the party (Comte Fenalik).

      • Henri said time feels somewhat flexible:

        • It advances like the waking world does.
        • It also seems more mired in the past.

    • The party asked about creating a direct link to a dreamer:

      • Whether they could manifest not just objects, but a connection to a mind/soul.
      • Henri said he had heard tales of Dreamlands sorcerers who might achieve such a feat, but it would require extensive training, and he did not know anyone who could do it.

  • Henri’s identity and the “dead pass into the Dreamlands” question

    • Walter asked if Henri was a dream-version of himself, or a dream created by one of the investigators.

    • Henri responded with a sad sigh and said no.

    • Henri raised the idea that people say the dead pass into the Dreamlands.

    • Walter reacted with concern, framing it in religious terms:

      • If the dead are supposed to go “up or down,” Walter questioned whether this place resembled purgatory or something in transit.

    • Henri said he did not know, but stated:

      • He was trying to help the living and the dead in the Dreamlands.
      • That was his purpose.

  • Henri reveals why he brought the investigators onto the train

    • Henri stated that he knew, in at least a small way, that the investigators face unusual troubles in the waking world.

    • Henri singled out Claire:

      • He said he could feel something sinister / wrong affecting Claire Corning.
      • This was a key reason he offered the group tickets.

    • Henri confirmed he had a knack for finding people with burdens:

      • He seeks people who have burdens to offer to the Gulf of Nodens, or who simply need peace.
      • He said something dark hovered over the group, and he wanted to help.

    • Henri noted the investigators were unusually self-aware in the Dreamlands:

      • Typical dreamers accept what happens without much question.
      • The investigators immediately recognized that this experience was different and asked questions, so Henri tried to be open with them.

  • Attempting to connect Comte Fenalik to the Dreamlands train

    • Walter asked whether Henri could bring Comte Fenalik into the Dreamlands (in the same way Henri brought them).

    • Henri said he could try, especially if Fenalik had a heavy burden that needed to be unloaded, but he would need more information.

    • Henri clarified limits of his knowledge:

      • He senses heavy souls and grants tickets, but he does not know what happens in the waking world after his own “passing.”

    • The party connected Fenalik to their larger situation:

      • They had already recovered a statue arm associated with Fenalik.
      • They believed Fenalik had once owned the whole statue, which was later broken up after being reclaimed from his estate.
      • The party referenced a warning conveyed in Latin: do not reassemble the statue (noting that a phrasing slip was corrected in play).

    • Per was pulled into the conversation to share what he knew:

      • Per described Fenalik as a historical monster who has become literally monstrous.
      • Per stated that Fenalik (as they understand it) hounds Claire’s slumber and seeks the death of their souls.

  • Henri’s response: deceased figures and Dreamlands entry

    • Henri reacted apprehensively to the description of Fenalik.

    • Henri asked whether Fenalik was deceased and historical.

    • Henri explained:

      • The deceased move into the Dreamlands after death, existing in a new form but as a continuation of a living person.
      • If Fenalik is somewhere in the Dreamlands, Henri suggested Fenalik would need to come to Henri and request a ticket, similar to how Madame Bourget had done.

  • The haunting presence affecting Claire: what it said, what it might be

    • The group debated whether the entity haunting Claire was Fenalik:

      • It had spoken in Latin and did not identify itself by name.
      • The Latin did not neatly fit Fenalik’s known background, but the entity’s interest in the statue made the connection plausible to the investigators.

    • From Claire’s recollection and Walter’s understanding of the Latin:

      • The entity appeared to be demanding or directing action related to the statue, interpreted as urging them to gather/find the pieces.

    • Henri offered a possibility:

      • The entity might be a ghoul, though he acknowledged uncertainty.

  • Henri explains what he knows about ghouls

    • Henri described ghouls as:

      • Unfortunate and grotesque beings.
      • Creatures that may have begun as humans, transformed by consuming the flesh of the dead.
      • A change that suggests a person must have been “a little bit of a ghoul inside” even before transformation.
      • Originally from the Dreamlands; after changing, they can come and go between places.
      • Savage and bloodthirsty.

    • When asked why a ghoul would care about a statue:

      • Henri said they can hunger for power as much as for decaying flesh.

    • When the investigators described the ashtray incident (the entity turning to mist):

      • Henri was confused; he said ghouls do not typically do that.
      • He suggested the entity might have additional powers, or it might not be a ghoul at all.
      • He stated that ghouls, as he understands them, can be killed by conventional means.

  • Can Claire be “unhaunted,” and does unburdening help?

    • The group pressed for advice on breaking the link to the entity haunting Claire.

    • Henri admitted he did not know the true source, but said he could sense:

      • A deep stain or darkness that had found its way into Claire’s soul and destiny.

    • Claire asked whether unburdening could remove the connection to the evil.

    • Henri advised:

      • Claire should try to manifest the evil connection in some form in the Dreamlands so she could cast it away.

    • The group questioned the risk:

      • Whether manifesting something dangerous would be safe.
      • Whether harm or curses suffered in the Dreamlands might persist.
      • What, if anything, can be brought back besides knowledge.

    • Henri answered:

      • Not much can leave the Dreamlands and reenter the waking world.
      • Knowledge is the most likely thing they will take back.
      • He had heard tales of things becoming so real in dreams that they can become real in the waking world.

    • Henri then returned attention to his duties:

      • He needed to finish loading the train and offered to speak more in the morning.

  • Returning to cabins and late-night interactions

    • Arthur offered to help Henri with cargo; Henri declined and emphasized Arthur was a guest meant to rest comfortably.

    • Per asked about reading material:

      • Henri said the men’s salon had a bookshelf with novels and books.
      • Henri was the only staff the investigators had seen (aside from the creatures in the tender).

    • The group began turning in for the night (noted as very late, around 1–2 a.m. in conversation).

    • Walter checked on Claire’s forearm:

      • Claire rolled up her sleeve; there was no visible mark or unusual change.
      • However, Claire admitted her arm felt tender and achy, like she might have slept on it wrong, and it was uncomfortable enough to notice.

    • Besweet appeared beside Walter again:

      • She had a small glass of sweet wine.
      • She pushed flirtation further, suggesting they examine bodies together and even tugging at Walter’s sleeve.
      • Walter firmly refused.

  • Per stays up: reading and testing Dreamlands “control”

    • Per chose to spend time in the men’s salon reading rather than immediately sleeping.

    • He pursued an experiment:

      • Trying to see if he could will himself to not be tired by belief alone.
      • He chose a Dreamlands-set story from the shelf (there was no instructional “how the Dreamlands work” text; little mention of the waking world in the books he checked).

    • Per attempted a Dreaming roll to resist fatigue and maintain control:

      • He failed and did not push the roll.
      • The comfort of the salon, the late hour, a good meal, and alcohol all contributed to sleepiness overtaking him.

  • Per meets a late-night passenger: Mironim-Mer

    • A man entered the men’s salon and nodded politely.

    • Per greeted him and noted he had seen him board earlier.

    • The man introduced himself as Mironim-Mer and described himself as:

      • A wine trader and a wanderer.
      • Someone who uses rare wine to keep himself comfortable and enjoy the sights of the Dreamlands.

    • Mironim-Mer’s appearance:

      • He had solid golden eyes with no visible pupils, making it hard to tell where he was looking.

    • Conversation topics:

      • Per asked about the nature of Dreamlands inhabitants: who is a dreamer vs. a dreamed figment, and whether the distinction matters.
      • Mironim-Mer did not provide a direct explanation, instead grounding his identity in his trade and wandering life.
      • Per asked whether Mironim-Mer had a home; Mironim-Mer said his “home” was the act of traveling and seeing new places.
      • Per reflected that he had a home but had not lived there in years and feared it would feel unfamiliar if he returned.

    • The bottle Per had seen exchanged at the platform:

      • Per asked if Mironim-Mer was the one who handed the bottle to Henri while boarding; Mironim-Mer confirmed he was.
      • Mironim-Mer said Henri aims to offer the utmost luxury to passengers, so the wine likely would not stay stored long and would appear at dinner soon.

    • The wine’s name and reputation:

      • Mironim-Mer said he trades in Sarrubian wines.
      • He stated the Sarrubians no longer arrive on their lemon-sailed ships on the Nameless Lake, bringing no more wine, but he still had his own supply.
      • Mironim-Mer promised it would be an experience Per would remember for the rest of his life.

    • Per asked about the politics of the Dreamlands and the Sarnath–Ib conflict:

      • Mironim-Mer said he had only recently arrived on these shores and did not know much about Sarnath or Ib yet.
      • He suggested fellow travelers might teach them more.

    • Mironim-Mer finished his drink, excused himself, and said he looked forward to dining with Per before going to bed.

    • Per also retired, downing his nightcap and heading off to sleep.

  • A passenger nearly misses the train: Per intervenes

    • As the train began moving again, Per heard a woman outside shouting to board:

      • “Wait, wait! I meant to board the train!”

    • Per moved quickly to get a view and then to reach her:

      • The train’s palanquin section was on top, with stairways descending along the side.
      • Per could see a young woman in dramatic flowing clothes and jewelry, heavily made up, running after the train.
      • Despite wearing heels, she was able to keep pace briefly.

    • Per decided to help her board:

      • He asked whether he could get down and open a way to pull her aboard; this was confirmed as possible if he acted quickly.
      • Per began calling for Henri, relying on the established pattern that expressing a need for Henri would cause Henri to appear.

  • Per manifests an emergency cord to slow the train

    • Per decided there “ought to be” an emergency brake cord and attempted to manifest one.

    • Per made a Dreaming check and improved his odds by spending 7 magic points (described at the table as converting to improved success chance).

    • The result:

      • An emergency cord appeared around the corner where it had not been before.
      • It had a chain and a bobble painted with red lacquer, looking official.

    • Per pulled the cord:

      • The train slowed enough for the woman to catch up.
      • She made a light leap toward Per; he lifted her with one arm as she wrapped an arm around him, and he swung her up onto the stairs.
      • She smiled and complimented him, calling him a gentleman.

  • Per assesses the woman: not Sarnathian, attention-seeking

    • Per wondered if she was among the Sarnath delegation.

    • Per made a Psychology check and spent luck to succeed.

    • His read:

      • Her style was distinct from the Sarnathians’ understated elegance.

      • She was flashy and performed for attention.

      • Per noted the subtle distinction that:

        • She wanted people to pay attention to her.
        • The Sarnathians simply expected people to pay attention to them.

  • Henri meets the new arrival: Zsusza and her golden ticket

    • As Per brought her into the connection between cars, Henri was already there, composed and dressed perfectly, as if he had been waiting.

    • Per apologized for disrupting the train; Henri dismissed it as no trouble.

    • Henri identified the woman by name:

      • Zsusza (spelled out later as Z-S-U-S-Z-A).

    • Zsusza produced a golden ticket from her clutch:

      • Per recognized it as the same kind of ticket Henri had given the investigators.
      • Zsusza asked if it granted her passage; Henri confirmed it did.
      • Henri took the ticket and stated she had been expected, and a cabin had been prepared for her.

    • Per questioned whether Zsusza was performing confidence or was uncertain:

      • It was established that she was not entirely certain, and Per’s read picked up that uncertainty.

    • Zsusza’s announcements:

      • She said she looked forward to seeing Per in the morning at breakfast.

      • She said that the next evening she would entertain the passengers:

        • She described herself as a singer and dancer, well-renowned, and implied the passengers would have heard of her.

      • Henri formally affirmed that the passengers were excited she had joined.

  • Why Zsusza was late

    • Zsusza explained her delay:

      • After her performance with the Prince of Dylath-Leen, the Prince sent “turbaned men” to pursue her and bring her back to keep her imprisoned in his palace.

    • She indicated she had many such stories but was exhausted and wanted to rest.

  • Per receives a sleeping draft and the train continues

    • Per asked Henri for the sleeping draft Henri had previously offered.

    • Henri provided it in a supernatural fashion:

      • A bottle floated up from beneath the bar, a glass appeared, and the drink poured itself before the bottle returned below.
      • Henri then served it to Per on a tray.

    • The train was described as now underway to its next stop:

      • The city of Tsar (referred to aloud as “CZAR” during the announcement).

    • The session ended with the investigators settled in for the night as the Dreamlands train traveled onward.