This is a nice little non-depressing story about a lovely version of Earth,
which isn’t perfect, but is defined primarily by a wholesome and fun annual
event that just about everyone loves. But first, you need some background.
There are only a few people throughout the bulkverse who are able to travel
across it. Even if you include the people who managed to get themselves on
board one of the machines, like The Crossover or The Prototype, the number
is strikingly low. The number goes up when you include The Transit Army, and
the Westfall experiencers, but it’s still nothing compared to the number of
people throughout all of existence. Only a handful of people can do it
through other means. Joseph Jacobson is one of these people. He was born to
a mutant time traveler named Jacob, and a mother whose nature may be more
complicated than anyone can understand, though there’s proof of nothing.
Jacob sired twelve sons, and one daughter, and all of them have abilities.
They all possess some form of temporal manipulation, but Jacob was drawn to
powerful women, so they all also have other abilities. None of them is as
impressive as Joseph, though. Before any of this, one of those things
capable of crossing the bulkverse suffered a major engine failure that could
have resulted in tragedy were it not for the quick-thinking of its crew.
Still, there were side effects, and one of these was a simple coat that
someone happened to leave in engineering while they were working to stop the
catastrophe. This coat was imbued with the ability to travel the bulkverse,
but not for just anyone. The only people who could use it were those who had
already done it at least once, and even then, they could only go to places
they had been before. It’s an amazing piece of cloth, but it’s not all that
useful to most. Joseph is different. With it, he can go anywhere he wants,
and no one is sure what it is that makes him so special, because none of his
siblings can do it, not even the one with whom he shares a mother. The two
phoenixes in the family can technically travel as well, but they have to die
first, and navigation is sketchy at best. Joseph is the one true bulk
traveler, and it makes all of his brothers extremely jealous. For some, it
makes them murtherous. That is a story for another time, though.
If these names and situations sound slightly familiar, that’s because you’ve
probably heard the story. This family is important to the collective history
of the bulkverse, so a lot of people are aware of it. Some see it as part of
their religion, or someone else’s, while others know it as fiction. Either
way, the story itself is powerful. If the right people produce the right
interpretation of the story of Joseph and his Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat,
it will actually summon him to their location. From there, they can make
requests to him. He’s not obliged to follow through, of course but you can
always ask. Finding the right way to tell Joseph’s story is difficult, and
requires clear intent. Lots of people have put on a show, and nothing has
happened, continuing to allow them to believe that it’s all made up. If you
know that it’s a possibility that Joseph will appear in the flesh, then you
can try to make it happen. Again, it’s not guaranteed, but it’s kind of the
only way to get a hold of him. One thing I never mentioned before is that
hypnopediaverse has a history of people randomly finding themselves trapped
there from elsewhere. I don’t know why, and it’s not that important. The
point is that these people once came together, put on Joseph’s show, and
were able to summon him to their location, so he could ferry them back to
their respective homes. Two of these people told their own story when they
returned, and surprisingly, people believed them. Not only that, but they
wanted to recreate the magic. So they produced their own version of the
musical, and found success. Joseph appeared, and regaled them with stories
about his adventures across the bulkverse. Every year since then, the people
of that universe have repeated the experiment, not just with one show, but
with many. Multiple productions are shown simultaneously around the world,
each one hoping to be the one that attracts Joseph Jacobson to them. Of
course, once he does show up, Joseph allows his tales to be broadcast
worldwide, but the cast and crew that won the contest that year will end up
with bragging rights, global recognition, and other ancillary prizes. The
true reward comes from the lessons that Joseph unwittingly teaches.
Understanding what goes on in other universes has given this one the
perspective it needed to make sure it didn’t make any of the same mistakes.
They learned to better preserve their planet, and were justifiably ignored
by the Ochivari, and the Darning Wars.
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