Level 9

Level 9 is the 10th level of the Voidclusters.

## Description

**Level 9** is a dream. You're floating. Levitating. Falling. Sleeping.

`Everything here resembles a dream. You remember your dreams, right?`

The level's architecture is too abstract to be described with words. Flickering lamps, marble statues, leather couches, and zig-zagging floor patterns define the level's basic layer. It may emulate late 80's nostalgia for some; for others, this is only the start of a nightmare. You're **sleeping**. Remember that.

You won't realize it, but the moment you enter this level, you slip into a deep sleep and start dreaming, passing out at the level entrance. Travelers have reported allegedly waking up from the Level 9 dream, being randomly thrown out of the level for no reason, and waking up groggy and dizzy on the floor of the entrance. This level's abstract appearance is all in their heads, with any sense of time nonexistent. At first, it may seem as though everything they experienced in the level was real, but eyewitnesses who frequently saw the travelers passed out on the floor would dispute the claims. Without a sense of time, one could claim to be in this level for 5 hours, yet when the dream stops eventually, only 5 minutes would have passed. Traverse this level in its entirety; you might see other wanderers in your dream, but they too are asleep. They are simply sharing the same dream as you — of Level 9. The level's physical layer — if it even exists — cannot be accessed by anyone. Slip into a dream… and never come out.

Unfortunately, this is only the first layer. The deepest dream layer. The other dream layers have not been explored and cannot be explored — like the first layer, these layers are all in the subconscious mind. Some wake up on the floor next to the level's entrance, only to realize something is off; the area looks different from when they left it. There's an easy explanation for this — the traveler is still dreaming, still unaware of that fact; after a few minutes pass in this next dream layer, they may wake up in reality, or they may wake up in another dream layer perceived to be reality. There's no guaranteed way to wake up from your Level 9 dream, but maybe it's better that way. Many of those who wake back up from their dreamland have mental breakdowns in the future; is this all just a dream?

Unfortunately, it's hard to tell. In this level, distinguishing dreamland from reality is near impossible. Even after you wake up, you can't help but wonder if you're still dreaming.

This level can only be experienced once; anyone who visits this level a second time falls into sleep, but this time, permanently. Curiously, every traveler claiming to have entered Level 9 was unaware that they were asleep the entire time. They thought Level 9 was a real physical area, but alas, this is false. Some people have been known to fall asleep permanently even during their first visit, which we believe leads to a peaceful death.

It is not recommended for lucid dreamers to enter this level. Nearly every lucid dreamer dies when attempting to enter it for unknown reasons. The only "lucid dreamers" who make it out alive claim to have not been aware that they were in a dream. This leads us to conclude that travelers are killed when they realize that Level 9's "area" is all just a dream, which would explain why repeat visitors and lucid dreamers die in worrying numbers when trying to enter this level.

We're not sure how the dream reacts when the person inside the level realizes that Level 9 is all a dream; we can only theorize that the person dies as a result.

## Colonies and Outposts

Forming a colony in this dreamland is impossible; you could be pulled out of it at any time for no reason, unable to return without being killed.

## Entrances and Exits

### Entrances

* Sleep… forever. Legend has it, however, that Level 2 may provide an entrance.

### Exits

* Wake up… if you can. You'll be in Level 10, Level 13, or the level you entered from.

**Author Information >**

Page written by Sky.