The Realm of Waking Dreams and the Search for Netherite - Wizard Craft 3.0 #13

0:04 Hello friends from across the nation and around the world. I'm Martin and you are listening to Dad's Bedtime Stories. The podcast that takes listener ideas and turns them into bedtime stories. And today we're headed back into Wizardcraft 3.0 to explore an idea that I kind of put into place during Wizardcraft 2.0. The No World. Now, I can't actually remember who originally came up with the idea of the no world. It was definitely a listener who wrote in and suggested that there was a place you should go when you select no instead of yes. But for the life of me, I can't at this point find it because it was so long ago. So if it was you, send me a message and I'll shout you out in the next episode. As for why I came

1:00 back to the idea now, Luna, who... wrote me a message in the Spotify comments, suggested that we go back to the No World, and it kind of fit in with the whole netherite thing I was doing in the last episode, so there we are. Thank you to Luna and the person who originally suggested the No World. Let me know who you are if you're still listening. If you like the podcast, don't forget to rate it and review it wherever it is you're listening. If you haven't already done so, share it with a friend. And if you want the ad-free experience, you can join us on Patreon.

1:45 I always appreciate people having the ad-free experience and supporting the podcast, so I keep it as cheap as I possibly can. But now, it's that time again. Time to get as comfy as you can in that bed. Close your eyes and imagine yourself doing what the kid in the story does. You wake up to a floating set of words in front of your eyes. Wake up? You mentally select yes and the world slowly forms around you.

2:24 You find yourself lying in your bed inside your house, in the still unnamed mountain village. Beside the bed, your emerald cat golem is curled up in a little green ball, apparently sleeping. You really have no idea why a golem sleeps. Almost immediately, another screen appears in front of you, accompanied by the all-knowing voice. Congratulations! Character Progress Summary Available Current Player Level Level 7 Unused Skill Points 1 Current Skills Unlocked Lockpicking Level 3 Ninjutsu Combat Level 2 Arcane Engineer Level 3 Advanced Wizard Current Spells Unlocked Stone Golem Copper Golem Iron Golem Golden Golem Diamond Golem Laser Golem Emerald Cat Golem Netherite Golem Fireball Level 2 Telekinesis Level 3

3:46 Earth Magic Level 2 Lightning Magic Level 2 Animal Control. Level 2. Current Equipment. Iron Sword. Sword of Stolen Skills. Diamond Golem Mech Suit. Upgraded Armored Car. Current Mounts. Giant Hawk. Young Void Dragon. Current Active Settlement. Unnamed Mountain Village. Current Known Enemy. Gary the Golem King. The words disappear. Then, another set appears almost immediately. Congratulations! Your experience and continued growth of your settlement have increased your level. You have reached Level 8. New skill point awarded. You now have two unused skill points. Two?

4:51 Two?

4:51 You sit up in bed. You could probably unlock something pretty useful with two skill points, but the last few times you waited until you actually needed something and it worked out pretty well. So once again, you decide to leave them alone. For now. You get out of bed. Come on, you say to the emerald cad golem. Its eyes open. Yes, master. It stretches exactly like a regular cat and follows you outside. You head towards the town center. JD, Grayson, and Gus are already there. Gus is standing over the same large map he was studying yesterday. Unfortunately, he looks even more worried than he did then. Uh, I'm guessing this isn't good news, you say?

5:49 Eh?

5:51 No, Gus answers. It is decidedly not good news. JD and Grayson move closer. Gus points at several places across the map. My scouts have continued following the Golem King's movements. It appears he isn't simply gathering golems around his own fortress. What do you mean? He has been pulling forces together from throughout the kingdom. Gus moves his finger across the map.

6:29 Stone golems, iron golems, soldiers, whatever other things he has hidden away too. Then he pauses. And apparently that gigantic dinosaur creature you encountered before. You stare at him. That, like, Godzilla-like thing? That would be the one. Now, you remember that fight. Or more accurately, you remember deciding that fighting the thing wasn't really the best idea at the time.

7:06 That is not ideal, you say. No, Gus says. It certainly is not. You turn towards the front gate. The enormous netherite golem is standing there, completely still, its huge dark body towering above most of the other defenses. Well, at least we have him now. Gus follows your eyes. That certainly helps. I just wish we could make more.

7:42 You think for a second. I could teach the netherite golem spell to you and JD and Grayson, maybe even some others. Grayson immediately looks interested. But we don't have enough netherite anyways, you continue. Exactly, Gus says. And unfortunately, netherite is almost impossible to find in this realm. You look back at him. This realm? Gus pauses. Ah, what do you mean, this realm? I suppose you've never been to the No-Realm. The what? The realm of waking dreams.

8:33 Though most people simply call it the No-Realm. JD looks confused too. Why is it called the No-Realm? Because that's how you get there, Gus explains. After you've had a full night's sleep, when the prompt asks you if you wish to wake up, he pauses dramatically. You select no. Everyone stares at him. Seriously, you ask? Seriously, he answers.

9:11 And where does that take you? Gus leans against the table. It's a rather strange place. Beautiful, actually. Floating grassy lands. Great clouds substantial enough to stand upon. Lava far below. Strange landscapes. Okay. Oh, and cow people, of course. You blink. Cow people? Yes.

9:42 Yes.

9:44 Like cows? But also like people. But cows. Correct. Cow people. Grayson nods slowly. Seems reasonable.' It really doesn't,' J.D. says. But Gus continues.' The upper levels are quite peaceful.' The cow people farm, they build, they use golden tools for some reason.' They absolutely adore gold.' Some people even travel there for a vacation. A vacation? Oh, yes. Float around on a cloud, explore the islands, talk to the wonderful cow people. It's rather relaxing. Then why haven't we heard about it? Because the lower level is considerably less relaxing.

10:48 Gus points downward. Far beneath the clouds and grassy lands is the land of lava. That is where the cow people keep their most valuable treasures. Gold? JD asks. Yes, gold. Jewels? Grayson asks. Yes, plenty of jewels, too. You already know what you're going to ask. Netherite? Gus smiles. Netherite? You immediately look at JD. JD looks at you. Grayson looks at both of you. No, Gus says. We didn't even say anything. You didn't need to. Well, we're definitely going.

11:46 I know, Gus says. The cow people are perfectly friendly in the upper world. They won't bother you at all. But, but they very much do not want anyone entering the land of lava. Once you do, you will be treated as a thief. Fair enough. Oh, and one more thing. Gus says. He suddenly looks very serious. Anything inside your inventory goes with you into the No Realm. But if you are defeated there and forced to respawn, you will be transported somewhere very, very, very far away from your original spawn point. How far? Far enough that you would almost certainly never find this village again. Your smile disappears, and your inventory will be empty. How? J.D. looks at Gus.

13:06 How do you even know that? Gus hesitates. Well... Because one person did manage to find his way back. You stare. You just said you'd never find your way back. Generally speaking. So somebody did? One person that we'd know of. And then what? Well, we told everyone about it. So everything you know about this world comes from that one person who's returned? Well, not everything we know about the world, just everything we know about respawning elsewhere. All right, fair enough.

13:52 Don't get respawned. That is what I would recommend, Gus says. Not long afterwards, you, JD, and Grayson move three beds into the same house. Based on Gus's advice, where you teleport to in the No World depends on where you are in the normal world. And you don't want to take any chances of getting spawned into a different area and not being able to find your friends. Before climbing into bed, though, you head outside towards the mech suits.

14:33 Yours and JD's already have the netherite and crystal flight boosters you created the day before, but Grayson's doesn't. Luckily, you still have the tiniest scrap of netherite remaining in storage. You combine it with some spare crystals and Grayson's power cells. You place both hands against the back of his diamond golem mech suit. Your arcane engineer abilities kick in The ghost-like design appears, and you lock it into place. Pieces of netherite fly forward, crystals snap into position, power cells connect, and within seconds, Grayson's mech has matching magical thrusters. Perfect, Grayson says. I only wish we could put these on all of the mech suits I made for the villagers.

15:32 You place a hand against your mech. It disappears into your inventory. Immediately, you feel uncomfortably full. JD and Grayson both do the same, and the three of you return to the beds. You lie down. A familiar prompt appears. Sleep? You all select yes. Your muscles relax, your breathing slows, your eyes close, and after what feels like an entire night of sleep, another prompt appears. Wake up? You stare at it. Normally, you'd select yes without even thinking about it.

16:23 This time, you select no. Everything changes. You feel as if some invisible force grabs your entire body. You're pulled downward, sideways, upward. Honestly, you can't even tell what direction you're pulled in. Colors stretch around you, and suddenly, with a whoosh, you land on soft grass. You open your eyes. Whoa. Whoa. JD and Grayson are standing right beside you. You find yourself on a small, grassy island floating in the sky. Clouds drift everywhere around you. Not thin clouds like you'd normally see from the ground, but huge, thick clouds. Some of them look almost solid. More floating islands stretch into the distance.

17:28 Tiny rivers run off their edges and disappear into the clouds below. Flowers cover the grass, and directly behind you stands a large glowing purple portal. Exit? JD asks. I assume so. You walk toward a nearby cloud. You cautiously place one foot on it and Somehow, your foot doesn't even fall through. You step completely onto the cloud. It squishes slightly beneath your feet. Then, it begins drifting away.

18:11 Get on! JD and Grayson jump onto the cloud beside you. The three of you float gently over the strange world. Below, you see farms. little villages, and, well, cow people. Actual cow people. They walk around on two legs. Some carry golden hoes, while others carry golden pickaxes. One is sitting beside a pond with a fishing rod. Another is sleeping casually under a tree. They really are just living their best cow people lives. JD says. Apparently, you agree. A cow person looks up at you and waves. You wave back. Then, you notice something in the distance. Deep, deep below. Orange light.

19:16 Far below the grassy islands. Lava. That must be where we're going. You say, pointing down. You step off of the cloud onto another grassy island. Then, you all summon your mech suits. They appear around you, the backs open, and you climb inside. The neural connections activate, and immediately, you become the machine. J. and Grayson do the same.

19:54 The magical jets ignite and the three of you lift into the air and begin flying downward past clouds, farms, little waterfalls, Past peaceful cloud people who continue waving as you fly by. You descend lower and lower until the floating islands begin disappearing above you. Eventually, you reach something completely different. Bedrock. A seemingly endless dark floor and, in the center of it, a single hole. Well... Grayson says.

20:38 That looks welcoming. You jump through. Heat immediately surrounds you as you descend into an enormous underground world. Lava lakes. Lava rivers. Lava falls. Dark stone platforms floating from place to place. And gold. Gold everywhere. Where? Whole walls sparkle with it. Cow people are mining it with golden pickaxes.

21:12 Only these cow people look very different. Golden chest plates, golden swords, golden shields. One looks up, its eyes narrow.

21:25 Uh-oh.

21:28 It points its sword, and then every cow person nearby looks at you. So much for friendly. They charge, with obvious intent to destroy. You instinctively fire your shoulder lasers. Two guards instantly disappear in a puff of smoke, and instead of leaving normal loot, gold explodes across the floor.

21:58 Oh.

22:01 JD blasts another with lightning and More gold. Grayson fires his lasers and jewels mixed with gold scatter everywhere. This place could be incredibly lucrative, Grayson says, as you all move through the floor and absorb the loot into your inventory. Just don't forget we're here for the netherite. I can appreciate both, can't I? The cow guards continue attacking. Golden arrows bounce off your diamond armor. Spears clang against your chest.

22:43 One cow leaps at you with a sword. You catch it with one enormous mechanical hand and toss it into a nearby wall. Poof. More gold. You continue deeper. Platform after platform. Lower and lower. The amount of lava... increases with every step and so do the number of cow people guards but inside the diamond golem mech suits none of them are actually much of a problem eventually you reach a huge cavern at the far side is what looks like a mine entrance and around the entrance several enormous cow people giant cow people each one is nearly the size of your mech suit one is carrying a gigantic golden hammer another has a spear longer than a tree uh those guys are new you say the giant cows roar and charge you meet the first one head

23:57 on its hammer crashes into your shoulder causing you to stumble JD blasts it with both lasers. Grayson fires from the other side. You reach it with your telekinesis, grab the hammer, and yank it downward. The cow loses its balance. You hit it with a concentrated fireball, and finally, with a boom and a puff of smoke, it disappears, leaving gold and jewels raining onto the ground. The other giants attack.

24:35 You launch stone pillars beneath them. JD fires lightning, Grayson circles overhead using his jets and blasting lasers from high above. One of the giants throws a spear, which you quickly grab with telekinesis and send straight back at it. Eventually, the final giant disappears in a puff of smoke. and another shower of gold. You turn toward the mine. Inside the dark stone walls are tiny deposits of black metal. Netherite.

25:18 All right. The three of you begin mining. Pickaxes don't seem to do much, but from your experience, lasers work rather well. You blast the rock around the deposits, carefully freeing the netherite. Piece after piece, you absorb everything. Eventually, you check the amount. I think that's enough for three golems, you say. Grayson laughs. Gus is gonna lose his mind when he sees all this. Then, you hear something. Then another.

26:05 Then dozens. You turn to see cow people pouring into the cavern. Hundreds of them. Golden soldiers, archers, spearmen, and more giants. It looks like the reinforcements have appeared. Yep, JD responds. RUN! While the cow people generally aren't much of a match for you and your mech suit, the sheer number of them is absolutely overwhelming. The three of you ignite your jets and blast upward. Lasers fire continuously behind you from your shoulders. You shoot the ground, collapsing platforms using your earth magic. JD unleashes lightning into bridges, platforms, and anything else he can aim at. But an enormous flood of cow soldiers continue following. Giants leap across the gaps.

27:15 Arrows and spears bounce off of your armor. You continue to fly faster, up through the lava world, towards the bedrock opening. You burst out and stop. Cow people are waiting above too. The friendly farmers are gone and golden weapons are everywhere. Apparently they heard about the mine. Keep moving, you say. You blast forward as the peaceful grassy islands turn into a battlefield. Cow people launch arrows. You fly between clouds. JD shoots lightning. Grayson fires lasers. And you blast a hole directly through the middle of the floating islands to, well, make your way up quicker and possibly slow the pursuit. Then you see it. The glowing purple portal. There, you say. but something is standing in front of it.

28:30 Three gigantic cow people, bigger than the ones below. One lowers its horns. Oh, come on, a bull, you say? But you don't slow down. You run straight at them. Your shoulders fire lasers. JDs and Graysons do the same. and six beams slam into the giant cows. You hit the first one directly with your shoulder. JD smashes into the second. Grayson clips the third. The huge cows fly away from the portal. Go! You dive through, and everything stretches.

29:16 The world disappears, and suddenly, you find yourself lying in bed, Your eyes snap open. JD is on the bed beside you and Grayson on the other side. All three of you are breathing hard. You quickly open your inventory. and see that the netherite is there and so is the mech suit, along with a whole bunch of gold and jewels.

29:51 Everything is there. It worked, you whisper. JD gives you a tired thumbs up Grayson barely manages to speak, and an overwhelming wave of fatigue crashes over you. Apparently, traveling between dream realms takes a lot out of you. Your eyes immediately become heavy, your head sinks into the pillow, and no matter what you try to do, You simply can't seem to fully wake up. You don't even get another prompt this time. You simply close your eyes, safe in your bed, with enough netherite in your inventory to create three more of the most powerful golems you've ever seen.

30:50 And somewhere outside the village, the golem king is gathering his armies. But now, you're gathering one too. Your breathing slows, your muscles relax, and your mind drifts away towards thoughts of new dreams, new battles, and new golems to come. Good night, everyone.

31:40 Thank you. you Thank you.

34:19 Thank you.

35:14 Thank you.

37:53 Amen. Thank you.

40:44 Thank you.

41:26 Thank you.

42:20 Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

45:00 Thank you.

45:54 You Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

50:35 Thank you.

51:26 Thank you.

52:08 Thank you.

53:01 Thank you. Thank you.

55:40 Thank you.

56:34 You Thank you.

59:15 Thank you.