“Unfiltered?” Trin asked, frowning. “I thought it had to be purified with Jaxite crystals before it was usable.”
“Oh, that’s just how they do it in Opulex.” Needra shrugged. “That’s so they can use it for vicarious sensory play—you know, feeling like your acting out a book or vid or whatever entertainment medium you want to feel like you’re part of. But dream gas can be filtered through many different mediums to give different effects.”
“And what effect does unfiltered dream gas have?” Thrace asked, adroitly avoiding a smoky pink sphere which came drifting in his direction.
“It’s much more immediate and personal. But as to what it does, it depends on the vein you get—there are several underground which all converge at this fountain,” Needra explained. “Come on—try some!” Leaning forward, she inhaled a triangle shaped bubble filled with sunshine yellow gas and began giggling hysterically. “G-get one, Y-yorth,” she commanded her slave, barely able to get the words out.
Yorth sucked in a pink cube and smiled blissfully. “Mmm, Mistress…” he murmured. “Delicious.”
“My dears, are you enjoying yourselves?” Lady Tam-tam suddenly appeared beside them with Lord X in tow.
“Lady Trin, it’s so lovely to see you again.” Lord X bent low over Trin’s hand in a courtly gesture that made the short hairs on the back of Thrace’s neck stand on end. He didn’t trust the bastard one bit—there was something wrong about him, Thrace just didn’t know what it was yet.
He felt a growl building in his throat and had to suppress the urge to thrust Trin behind him to keep her safe. Only the fact that he knew she would hate such a proprietary and possessive act on his part stopped him.
“It’s… nice to see you too. I—” But before she could say more, Trin accidentally inhaled a rectangular bubble filled with white smoke. Thrace stared at her in alarm as her eyes widened and she froze, her hand still caught in Lord X’s grip. “You…you’re…” She choked, a small plume of white smoke curling from her mouth. “I…I can’t…”
“Trin—are you all right?” Thrace yanked her hand away from the other male and spun her around to face him. Taking her by the shoulders, he stared into her face anxiously. “What’s wrong? What is it?”
“Thrace…” For a moment she relaxed and then her eyes got even wider. “Goddess…you don’t really feel that way, do you?”
“Feel what way? What is she talking about?” Thrace looked at Lady Tam-tam, demanding an explanation.
“Oh, she simply got a bit of truth gas, that’s all.” Lady Tam-tam waved airily. “We call it that because it sometimes reveals someone’s true emotions or intentions. But just as often it’s wrong and only produces a vivid hallucination. Don’t worry, my dear,” she added to Trin. “You’ll be over it in a minute.”
Trin blinked and shook her head like a female coming out of a dream.
“That was…unbelievably odd,” she said in a shaking voice.
“Well, it’s not what I would pick for my first dream sphere experience,” Lady Tam-tam said. “In fact, I think it would be better for you and your love-slave to stick to the scarlet spheres. They’re much better.”
“What do they do?” Thrace asked flatly. They were already in a precarious position—he didn’t want to make it worse by inhaling some strange gas that impaired his judgment.
“Oh, don’t worry my dear—the effects are transitory,” Lady Tam-tam said, without answering his question. “Now go on, try some of the scarlet dream gas. I insist.” She nudged Trin gently toward a triangular bubble passing by which contained swirling scarlet gas.
“I…don’t know.” Trin looked at the bubble with fearful eyes. Clearly her experience with the white dream gas had made her leery of trying any other kind. But just as clearly, Lady Tam-tam, who was now frowning petulantly, was determined that he and Trin try some.
“I’ll do it,” Thrace said roughly. He would try some gas, he decided, but not exactly the kind Lady Tam-tam insisted on. Stepping forward, he inhaled a passing green sphere. The bubble popped on his lips and the smoke drifted into his throat and lungs.
At once a feeling of warm optimism enveloped him. He felt the same way he did after completing a successful run on The Empress—with his pockets full of credit and the entire universe laid out before him.
“Ahh…” He felt a smile spread across his lips and couldn’t stop it. “That’s good—try some, Mistress,” he said to Trin. “It’s all right—they’re not all like the white one.”
“Well…all right.” Trin inhaled a passing yellow bubble. A silly little smile plastered itself across her full lips and she clapped a hand to her mouth.
“What?” Thrace asked her. “What is it?”
“I…I can’t explain it. “She began to giggle. “It’s just…I can’t seem to stop laughing! I feel like I did when I was a little girl and someone tickled me!”
Her laughter was infectious and Thrace felt himself laughing too, despite the fact that feeling of warm optimism caused by inhaling the green dream gas was beginning to fade. Thrace was glad to feel it go. Though it had been a very positive emotion, he didn’t want his judgment clouded. Still, the gas didn’t seem to cause any lasting harm and he was less wary of it than he had been before.
Just then, a cube filled with midnight black gas drifted past his nose. Without thinking about it, Thrace opened his mouth and inhaled it. Lady Tam-tam saw him and put out a hand, her face filled with worry.
“Oh no, my dear—you must avoid the black bubbles at all costs! They are—”
But before she could finish speaking, Thrace felt himself plunged into darkness.
“Kneel,” a horribly familiar voice was barking in his ear. “Kneel before your Master and suck! And you’d better do a damn fine job or it’s the hole for you and you won’t see light for a month!”
Rough hands gripped his head and something thick and hard and hot was shoved past his lips. Thrace gagged, feeling the familiar shame and hatred envelope him. I’ll kill him, he found himself thinking, his fists clenched in helpless rage. Kill him for what he’s done to me…
Suddenly another hand was on him, a small, soft palm was cupping his cheek.
“Thrace?” a worried voice asked—Trin’s voice. All at once, he felt her in his mind, sharing the awful memory or maybe just catching a glimpse of it. “My Goddess,” she breathed. “What’s happening? Why is he…what are you…?”
“Stop!” Thrace jerked away from her, unwilling to let her see his shame. He fell to his knees, coughing harshly, expelling the last of the midnight black gas from his lungs and body, willing the vision of his own private season in Hell to fade.
“What is it? What happened to him?” Trin was down on her knees beside him, her dark eyes filled with anxiety. She looked up at Lady Tam-tam. “What’s wrong with him?”
“Oh my dear, I should have warned you! The black gas is from a vein of nightmare vapor that rises up through this vent along with the dream gas.” Lady Tam-tam looked upset. “It causes horrid visions—bad dreams and memories we would much rather forget are brought to the surface.”
“They are?” Trin looked at him wide-eyed. “Then that…what I saw…”
“A bad dream.” Thrace straightened up, his eyes watering from the coughing fit. He swiped at them and got to his feet. “A really fucking bad one. That’s all.”
Trin didn’t look convinced but she turned back to Lady Tam-tam at once.
“I don’t think my love-slave is well, Lady Tam-tam. I think I’d better take him back to our suite and get him settled in bed.”
“Nonsense.” Lady Tam-tam frowned. “I told you, the effects are transitory. He should be better already.”
“I’m fine.” Thrace took a deep breath, careful not to inhale any bubbles as he did. “It was just…really vivid. That’s all.”
“That nightmare vapor is a problem,” Lady Tam-tam remarked. “I would have had that particular vein sealed off if I could but it runs too close to the love gas and I couldn’t risk losing that strain. It would never do—oh my, no!”