Marie-Jean-Leon Lucoq's Memento Mori

Origin
Marie-Jean-Leon Lecoq, Baron d'Hervey de Juchereau, Marquis d'Hervey de Saint-Demys was a ninteenth-century man of letters and one of the earliest known oneirologists. He recorded his dreams since the age of thirteen. In his journals, he described experiences of dreams where he was aware he was dreaming, making his work the first recorded instance of lucid dreams.

Memento Mori is a Latin phrase that translates as Remember Death' or more commonly Remember you will die". It was popular during the eighteenth and ninteenth centuries for scholars and philosophers to have some form of imagery in their studies, typically near to where they worked, to serve as a reminder of mortality and the fragility of life. Such things were usually skulls or hourglasses made from various materials, bone being quite popular in Eastern countries.

Effects
When the Memento Mori, a skull carved of jade, is held, the holder will enter a state of lucid dreaming. The holder can still move and is aware of the world around them, but they are prone to hallucinations. Any object imagined by the holder will manifest in a physical form that is visible to anyone, and it will display any attibutes typical of a real thing. Any objects conjured by the artifact will remain until it is neutralised.

There are several unusual limitations to the artifact. The effects of the lucid dream only extend to what the holder can see, nothing can materialise out of the users point of veiw. Living things conjured by the artifact will act as expected while the dream state continues, but will display odd and unperdicateble behaivour when left to their own devices. It would seem that for living beings to function perfectly outside of the dream, their personality and behaivour must be set in excruciating detail, leading to rules against users manifesting them.

The only way to erase manifestations is for the dreamer to be the one to neutralise the skull, leaving the conjurings of others intact. If the dreamer dies, the manifestations will also vanish, proving a direct and lasting link between the dreamer and his or her dreams.

Use Today
With the growing number of agents, the Regents deemed it acceptable to allow them to each have their own private quarters. When an agent proves themself competant enough, they are presented with a 3x3x3 room and given the Memento Mori to alter itto their pleasing. When the room is acceptable, the artifact is returned to its storage area and the room remains locked in whatever state it was in until the agent decides to change it. Conjured onjects are forbidden from being removed from the room, though personal effects can be stored safely.