The Dream-Flicker Fish
Filed under: Salt Hollows Fauna | Dream-Reflective Species | Memory-Bait Creatures
Contributor: FDG Field Archivist No. 5
Last updated: May 2025
Overview
Driftglass Minnows are small, mirror-scaled fish found near memory coral beds and the soft-lit shoals of the Salt Hollows. Unlike natural fish, they are not entirely biological—each contains trace amounts of memory pearl dust and reality-reflective scale matter that causes them to shimmer with impossible visions.
They are not hunted for food.
They are not tamed or trained.
They are watched, because to look at them is to remember something you’ve lost—or never had.
Appearance
- Length: 2–4 inches
- Colour: Silver with an opaline sheen; flashes of blue, violet, and green when in motion
- Body: Slender with pronounced reflective scales; no mouth is visible
- Eyes: Unnaturally still—some say they appear to weep light
- Behaviour: Swim in slow shoals, circling memory coral formations or sunken artefacts
- Light Response: Highly reactive to light. Glow when watched, darken when forgotten
Behaviour and Abilities
Dream Reflection
- Minnows absorb ambient dream-fragments and reflect forgotten moments into the water around them.
- These can be:
- Events the viewer has forgotten
- Alternate versions of past choices
- Hopes or regrets that never materialised
- The effect is non-verbal but emotionally intense. Many weep after observing them.
False Memory Seeding
- Viewers sometimes experience memories they never lived—e.g., “I remember holding a child I never had.”
- If multiple viewers observe the same shoal, their memories may intertwine, causing shared delusions or dream blending.
Attraction to Emotion
- Driftglass Minnows are drawn to grief, especially in the form of repressed sorrow or unshed tears.
- Some appear in the mortal world near seaside mourning benches, empty cradles, or abandoned harbours.
Folklore and Signs
The Widow’s Shoal
Folk tales speak of a woman whose dead lover’s voice flickered in the fish near her pier. She watched them daily until she could no longer tell what was real. In some versions, the minnows grew inside her, shining behind her eyes.
Saltwater Saints
In isolated fae-aligned fishing villages, some children are believed to be “Touched by the Minnows”—they hum songs from dreams and claim to remember past lives seen in the water.
Gift of the Driftglass Ring
Occasionally, minnows will swim in perfect circles around a person and then vanish, leaving behind a scale that petrifies into ring-like driftglass. These rings cause vivid dreams and are forbidden artefacts by Thorne Institute policy.
Effect on Earth and Human Minds
Mild Exposure
- Feelings of nostalgia and longing
- Temporary emotional shifts (sorrow, joy, yearning)
- Recollection of lost dreams
Prolonged Exposure
- False memory syndrome
- Sleep disturbance or hyperreal dreaming
- Identity confusion—especially among highly empathetic individuals or trauma survivors
- Obsession with returning to the viewing site (“drift-dream addiction”)
Operatives note that subjects frequently describe the experience as “peaceful but wrong,” or “a kindness that doesn’t belong to me.”
Summary for Field Operatives
| Trait | Detail |
|---|---|
| Threat Level | Very low physical. Moderate psychological disruption. |
| Signs of Presence | Reflective flashes in water without light source. Emotional shifts. Phantom dreams. |
| Containment Risk | Low. Shoals dissolve if pursued too long. Driftglass scales may persist. |
| Engagement Advice | Limit viewing time to under 30 seconds. Do not observe in groups. Avoid touching the water during reflection events. If false memory symptoms appear, report immediately and begin grounding protocols. Do not take the ring. |
“I saw my daughter again. The one I lost at birth. She was older. Laughing. Holding a string of the minnows like balloons.
She said, ‘It’s all right, I waited in the water.’
I haven’t slept since.”
—FDG Report 067, Anonymous Recovered Witness, Hastings Harbour
Faylinn Defence Group 