What Is This Place

[Calvin]

The newcomer took a moment to assess the situation, waiting until the woman put her gun away to calm himself. The woman's outfit had seemed to stabilize and now she had a holster for her weapon. Cal could tell she was familiar enough with the dream to know this wasn't a normal one, but not familiar enough to keep her own image consistent.

Caught off guard by the man's statement, Cal hesitated before responding. The man hadn't really done anything to offend him. Cal actually thought he acted in a way he probably would have given the same limited information he had. Cal knew that what he as seeing was a cultural response, however, and didn't want to offend the man by telling him it was all good - would that offend him. Shit - he didn't know enough about this man's culture to know for sure.

"I'm honestly not sure," he responded. "I'll think about it - if that's okay? A name would be a start though - I'm Cal and this is..." he gestured towards the woman realizing he hadn't gotten her name yet either.

[Marisol]

The man calmed down and then not only apologized, but asked what he could do to make the situation right.  Cal - obviously confused at how to reply, said he'd think about it.  Marisol didn't really know either, but offered first her name and a perhaps more tactful response. "I'm Marisol, and what I think Cal here is trying to say is that you really didn't do anything wrong, and there is no need to feel shame or disgrace.  You saw someone in danger and tried to help.  That is a noble thing."

She smiled and stepped forward so the newcomer would be able to see her and she wasn't talking to his back anymore, but faced Cal. "I do have to apologize though.  I got very defensive.  This place gets to me. It's odd and I'm not sure I like it here.  So eerie...And then with the nightmare trying to hurt the infant..." she shivered and turned to the newcomer. "There was a baby here, and a creature - Cal called it a nightmare...was I think trying to feed on it...I shot it and killed it.  The baby isn't here.  We think she woke up and isn't in the dream anymore."

Marisol didn't know if the newcomer knew he was in a dream or not, but Cal definitely did.  She made the assumption that this person - who seemed more solid than those who could actually be here - did know this.

[Kiyohito]

Kiyohito took in their surroundings slowly, his gaze sweeping over every detail as though he were reading a strange story that had been laid out for him, line by line. His expression shifted from wary distrust to something closer to reluctant acceptance, his posture loosening as he let out a low murmur, as if grounding himself.

He turned first to the man—Cal, if he’d understood correctly—and inclined his head in a deep, respectful bow. “I must apologize for my earlier assumption,” he said, his voice calm but edged with a kind of formal sincerity, as though he were both soldier and diplomat. Then he turned to the young woman, a softness almost brushing his features. “Miss Marisol, please, no apology is necessary. Self-defense is the only proper response when the unknown approaches.”

Even as he said it, he found himself frowning at the surroundings. A nursery? It was difficult to reconcile this dim, dreamlike space with anything dangerous. The child and the strange creature were gone, but the memory of their presence lingered in the air, adding to the surreal quality that pressed in on him.

He took a breath, steadying himself, but felt an odd flicker at the edge of his vision. Glancing down, he saw his suit shimmer and dissolve, shifting into a plain shirt and shorts. His old pajamas, oddly familiar, blinked into existence before flickering away again, replaced once more by the suit. He stared at the fabric, then let out a single, quiet laugh, half in surprise, half in disbelief.

When he looked back at his companions, there was a glint of curiosity in his eyes now, a spark that broke through his usual composure. “My name is Kiyohito,” he said, his tone softening just a fraction. “If you would oblige, I would very much appreciate it if you could explain… where we are. And perhaps why reality seems so willing to shift its shape.”

[Calvin]

Calvin accepted Kiyohito's apology with a nod. "No harm done here, apology accepted." It seemed like that would likely be good enough for the man to accept. It appeared though that the woman, Marisol, knew about the dream - at least enough to know where she was. Kiyohito, on the other hand, was completely clueless.

"You're in the Dream, or the dream world, if you prefer. Your body, is in its bed, sleeping while the rest of you - soul, spirit, I'm not really sure how to describe it - is here. Reality here shifts based on you and your perception of it." He turned his golden eyes on the woman. "Makes me think congratulations are in order - shifting between a patrol uniform and a detective's suit?" She blinked in surprise, but nodded. "Hold true to yourself in your mind and what want want to portray yourself as, and things will be more stable for you." he said to both of them.

Calvin reached out to the wolves. Neither of the other two had the golden eyes of his kin, but that didn't mean they weren't wolfkin. They could still be new. The pack nearby informed him that they couldn't commune with these two. They were like Nimeda. He turned back to Kiyohito. "Most people enter here for brief amounts of time, you might see them flicker in and then disappear. Then, as far as I tell there are two types of people who can be here more fully. People like me, and people like you. As for what I am - well, I'm not quite ready to tell you that yet." he said, with a mischievous grin. "That all being said, this place is dangerous. It's not like a normal dream where if you get hurt, you'll wake up safe in bed. Any hurt you get here will happen to your body."

[Marisol]

Marisol listened to Cal speak of the dream.  He clearly had more experience here than either of them and that was good enough for her.  Kiyohito didn't even know he was in the dream world, but she could understand that.  She remembered her first time, so many years ago that she stumbled into this strange place.

Cal's assessment of her situation also made sense.  Marisol's sense of identity had changed, and it was recent enough that she was still adjusting to it.  Cal said to hold true to how you see yourself, so she closed her eyes and tried it.  She wasn't on duty, so she wasn't a cop right now.  She pictured what she wanted in her mind and when she opened her eyes, she was wearing jeans, a blue shirt and a black leather jacket.  Her gun remained at her hip in its holster.  Just because she wasn't a cop right now didn't mean she wanted to go unarmed.

She wondered at what Cal was as he finished his the Dream World 101 class.  His glowing golden eyes hinted that he was something different, and Marisol wondered if he was human or not.  The nightmare combined with the emergence of channelers had been enough to solidify that there were things beyond what she ever thought possible in the world - not to mention people had her gift too.  She smiled briefly.  It was the first time she had ever thought of it as a gift.

"It's true," she said, agreeing with Cal.  "The first time I came here, I broke my arm.  It is what woke me up."

[Kiyohito]

The steady and brooding Kiyohito was not one to often display surprise, but when explained they were dreaming, and all the dangers of the experience, the expression clearly brightened his face.

The room seemed as real and solid as expected of waking life. His companions, Cal and Marisol, were similarly of flesh and blood. Intense focus replaced the surprise on his face as he examined theirs, wondering if some hidden haze may overtake them as if the Matrix was suddenly revealed.

Yet nothing of the sort happened. He had to accept the evidence before him, and that was how he shifted his own appearance with a whim, and that the strange familiarity of a building he’d never been in before must all be accounted for by the power of a dream.

“We are sharing this dream together? Have I conjured you two as some sort of guardians to explain to me what I already know? Or are you also two people in your own beds, sharing your dream with me?”

He shook his head in exasperation and crossed to the window to peer upon a world he wasn’t sure was actually there. Buildings surrounded theirs. A street stretched, but all the usual accompaniments - trash, rats, cars - were chillingly absent.

The next moment, the room shifted around him, and he suddenly found himself on that very street, unaware of how he came to be there.

[Marisol]

Elyse was about to respond to Kiyohito when he just vanished. "What the fuck!? she yelled out.

Fuck this place! she thought with a sigh as she moved to the window where Kiyohito had been standing.

Looking out the window, she saw that Kiyohito had moved. He was still here in the dream, but he was now standing in the street below. Marisol shrugged. That seemed like a neat trick. She figured it was just like her outfit. Marisol closed her eyes, and thought of herself standing in the street with Kiyohito. She felt the environment around her shift and then...

She landed right on top of Kiyohito, knocking him down. "Oh, shit!" she said rolling off of him and standing. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." She offered her hand to help him get up. "I must not of thought of where I should go exactly right. So very sorry!"

Marisol's face burned with embarrassment. She can't believe she did that. "Are you okay?"

[Calvin]

Marisol freaked out a little bit when Kiyohito disappeared.  She had spent some time here, but clearly was still learning the rules.  She was smart though and figured it out quickly.  Soon she disappeared from the room, and Cal took her spot and watched as the woman landed on top of their other companion.

Cal took this opportunity to laugh a moment before heading down with them. He too offered a hand to their companion, but as he did, the wolves contacted him.

Stargazer...they come...

They're pups - help them? he sent back.

They sent images as he sniffed the air, his face growing hard.  Four nightmares - two coming from opposite directions. "Alright - play time is over. We got nightmares coming in.  Yes - they're dangerous.  They feed on fear and they will try to feed on you. They can change shape into what you fear.  Kiyohito, I hope you can fight.  Weapons - they're as real as you make them here.  They work and they will kill.  If you see any wolves, do not hurt hurt them, they are on our side."

"You were the wolf I saw - you're a wolf..." Marisol said, her scent curious.

"I'm just as human as you are, but you're on the right track.  Focus - I'll explain later." She nodded and removed her gun from it's holster. "Four of them - two from that direction - you and Kiyohito got that side He felt a couple of wolves before they showed themselves, mostly for Marisol and Kiyohito's sake. "And some wolves too - remember - they're friends!" He said sternly. "The rest of us got this side.  If you need help - call for it!  Calvin prepared for battle.