Dreams, Dreamers & Dream Eaters

[Lyrus]

THE SETTING

Dreaming. This is the term used to describe the process of the mind experiencing a succession of images, sounds or emotions during sleep. Dreams are not fully understood, despite having been around since the dawn of time and having been subject to countless forms of research which failed to decipher them. Their content and purpose remains an enigma.

Dreamers. People who have dreams while they sleep. When a dreamer experiences a dream that causes strong negative emotional responses mostly due to elements of fear and horror, that dream is known as a nightmare. The definition of nightmares is generally accepted to be, 'a dream that may contain a situation, or situations of: danger, discomfort, psychological terror, or self-imagined physical torment. Dreamers usually awake from nightmares in a state of distress, and may be unable to return to sleep for a prolonged period of time, hence getting plagued with insomnia or sleep deprivation.

Lucid Dreamers. This is the name given to dreamers who are aware of the fact that they are having a dream and that nothing in their dream environment is real. As a result of this self-awareness, a lucid dreamer can actively participate in and manipulate imaginary experiences within a dream environment. Depending on the level of self-awareness that the lucid dreamer possesses, the realism and vividness of the dream environment may feel so real that is becomes impossible to differentiate from truth and false.

Dream Walkers. A group of reclusive specialists who have the ability to penetrate the folds of another's dream, and "walk" within the dream. One who possesses the ability to dream a dream that is not their own, one who has the power to enter the very mind of any dreamer of their choice, and ultimately one who has the ability to contest the structure of the dream with the dreamers' themselves and manipulate the dream world to their liking. Yet this mystical ability comes at a terrible price, for a Dream Walker is unable to sleep. They are plagued by eternal fatigue, and the only way they can secure some form of rest, some twisted form of sleep, is by entering a trance and leaving their physical body behind while allowing their mind to wander off and invade the minds of others so as to "walk" in their dreams. However, they must know when their victim is going to wake up and judge if they are going to have enough time to "walk out" before their victim wakes up, because when the victim starts to waken, the dream world where they "walk" will start to collapse, and when the world shatters they will perish in mind and their physical bodies become useless vegetables. As a result, Dream Walkers are wary of using their "walking" abilities and must tread lightly or make use of their abilities to give their victims sensual, pleasurable, or fulfilling dreams which causes their victims to sleep indefinitely for unnaturally prolonged periods of time. Some Dream Walkers are so afraid of dying mentally that they force themselves to go for extended periods of time without "walking". This is their gift, their curse, and their plight. This is why they hide from humanity, because the fact is, since they can penetrate the greatest privacy of a human being - the mind - they are also capable of stealing thoughts, gleaning prized information, and obtaining well-guarded secrets regardless of how sheltered it is. The Dream Walkers swear to keep their abilities to themselves, and to never abuse their power.

Dream Stalkers. They have the exact same abilities as Dream Walkers, but their principles are the exact opposite. They seek to use their abilities for their own personal means. For personal pleasure. For personal profit. For personal power. When they enter the dream of their targets, they do not call it "walking", they call it "stalking". They enter with a purpose. To strike the minds of those they fancy and sexually, mentally, and psychologically torment, abuse, and rape them beyond the point of return. To penetrate the defenses of the influential and mighty, and steal information that is exceedingly valuable to the right people. To imbibe the minds of those they enter with slavish thoughts of adoration towards themselves. They are the harbingers of ruin.

Collectively, both the Dream Walkers and Dream Stalkers are known as Dream Eaters.

[Lyrus]

THE PLOT

The sudden worldwide culling of the Dream Walkers first began in China.

On the 18th of May, 1993, a Chinese artist well-known for his mastery of calligraphy was declared brain dead within his suite in the Gao Hotel located in Shanghai. Chen Wei Jun had traveled to Shanghai for an art exhibition where he was to display his works, and had apparently been sleeping when all brain activity had suddenly ended. He was declared brain dead after medics arrived on the scene. Days later, a Chinese politician is found murdered by his most trusted bodyguard, who could not believe what he had done.

In the year 1997, on the 6th of November, Doctor Pritam, a much-adored Indian doctor whose practice caters to the people of Mumbai tirelessly and offers good treatment for low fees, is found sitting listlessly in his chair within his office. Fellow doctors and nurses at the practice, upon rushing to Doctor Pritam's aid, found he had been stricken with the same condition as Chen Wei Jun  - he was brain dead. A week later, an Indian business magnate was stabbed to death by a valet at a hotel where he was staying. The valet appeared to be completely unaware of what he had done. 

The next incident happened in the United Kingdom. John Black, a Scottish architect under the employ of a prominent company, had never failed to turn up for work on time prior to the 21st of February, year 2000. The company found this sudden absence with no explanation downright mystifying, but the man was a good and punctual worker, so they decided that he would probably report to them a day later with an apology. When John fails to show up for a week, the worried company reports the incident to the police. When the police show up at John's door and call for him for over an hour and elicit no response, they break into the house. Nothing seems to be out of place. When they reach John's bedroom and open the door, they find the man lying there, still alive, though weak after not having been given sustenance for a week. They immediately call for an ambulance. A day later, the hospital declares John Black is brain dead. Two days after John Black's death, a UK army general was violently shot to death by his own men, who snapped out of a trance moments later and were shocked at what they had done.

On the 14th of February, year 2005, Valentine's Day, Spanish pop sensation Bella Rodriguez had been celebrating the holiday with her actor boyfriend in his lavish house. Her boyfriend had stepped out for a moment to get some wine to suit the mood, and returned to find she had dozed off while lying on a divan. He had smiled, put the wine down, and walked up to her slowly so as not to startle her. Placing one hand on her cheek, he was surprised when she suddenly slumped down and would not be woken no matter how hard he shook her. He called the police, who in turn called an ambulance, and the medics declared she was brain dead after an hour of unceasing medical care. Her boyfriend was later pushed off a building by his agent. Yet another bizarre case where the murderer had no whatsoever intention, profit, nor reason for the murder.

Year 2009, 9th of December, celebrated French novelist Marianne Dupont was found brain dead in her humble Parisian apartment. She appeared to have dozed off while knitting and somehow been stricken with the strange ailment. After having been declared brain dead, fans all over the world mourned her loss. A month later, the vice-president of France was clubbed to death by his own wife. The wife went into a fit of nerves after realizing what she had done.

The present year is 2010. Professor Edward Newlake is an American college professor in the New Orleans who serves as a philosophy lecturer. Ever since the media hyped up the death of the celebrity Bella Rodriguez, he has been on his guard. When news of Marianne Dupont's death came out, he knew that his suspicions were confirmed. He traced the path of the hunters on the world map by studying the locations of the hunts, watching them go further and further west. He has deduced that the next location will be his proud country, the United States of America. Edward Newlake knows that his life is in danger. Why? Because Chen Wei Jun, Pritam Anand, John Black, Bella Rodriguez, and Marianne Dupont were all Dream Walkers tasked with the mission of protecting the countries they had been assigned to. They had failed, and their failures led to the deaths of several high-profile figures.

Edward Newlake, too, is a Dream Walker. For generations, the duty of protecting the USA's dreamers has been passed down his family. He knows that his fellows perished at the hands of their devious counterparts, the Dream Stalkers, because the act of inception - putting ideas into the heads of the victims and causing them to do something upon awakening - is a signature ability of Dream Stalkers.

Edward Newlake knows that this Dream Stalker is hunting down the Dream Walkers to eliminate the opposition before committing the roundabout assassinations. The Dream Stalker is planning something, and to put that plan into action the Dream Stalker needs to kill the Dream Walkers who stand in the way. Edward Newlake knows that he must fulfill his duty as a Dream Walker and oppose this Dream Stalker. He leaves his home and goes on the run to avoid being attacked while he is unawares, and spends his time determining who the Dream Stalker may be looking for. After months of research and hiding, he finally finds out who the hunter is looking for. The pretty young daughter of a renowned state politician in New York. The Dream Stalker plans to infiltrate the mind of the girl and slowly influence her until she awakes with the intense desire to murder her own father. With this knowledge, Edward Newlake travels to New York and rents an apartment near the girl's residence. For a month now, he has been guarding her mind tirelessly. Waiting for the Stalker to strike.

[Lyrus]

THE CAST

[OPEN] Edward Newlake is a college professor who serves as a philosophy lecturer in a New Orleans university. Unbeknowst to everyone around him, he is an enigmatic sentinel of the American people and watches over them while they sleep by patrolling their dreams - a Dream Walker. Upon piecing together the conspiracy headed towards the USA and realizing that his fellow Walkers have fallen, he drops everything and flees without giving any of his friends or his college any prior notice. Hitting the road, he lives on the run from his enigmatic enemies for months on end while conducting research. Finally, he narrows down the target to the pretty young daughter of a state politician based in NYC. He travels there and rents an apartment near the girl's residence, where he watches over her intently, patrolling her dreams every night.

[TAKEN BY LYRUS] "Nightmare" is a Dream Stalker and an enigmatic assassin who makes use of this abilities to plant ideas in the heads of his victims' and cause them to commit acts of murder they are unaware of. He is responsible for the death of the Dream Walkers based in China, India, the UK, Spain, and France, and has silenced many high-profile targets in his way. His motives are unknown, but he does not appear to be a solo worker, instead working at the behest of shadowy employers. Nightmare has already arrived in the USA. Having first scoured New Orleans, where he thought the Dream Walker of the USA was, and having found nothing, he decided to move on to NYC and has been observing the politician's daughter for some time now. He has detected the Dream Walker's presence near the girl, and knows he has a battle ahead of him. Undeterred, the Nightmare has decided tonight is the best time, and prepares to "stalk" the girl when she falls asleep...

[OPEN] The Daughter of a renowned state politician based in NYC. She is a lucid dreamer and is thus aware when she is in a dream. While it is easy for Nightmare to prey on an unsuspecting regular dreamer, a lucid dreamer is more difficult because of the awareness prevalent. Thus, Nightmare first has to break her mind before he can perform the act of inception. Edward Newlake must work to prevent this. Apart from her status as a lucid dreamer, the daughter's name, personality and appearance are open for configuration by whoever takes the role. How she is configured is exceedingly important, as her dreams will generate the "world" where most of the action takes place.

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Miscellaneous characters may also play a part in this group roleplay. Fellow Dream Walkers from other parts of the world may come to assist Edward, and additional Dream Stalkers hired by Nightmare's shadowy employers may arrive to assist him in his act of inception. The daughter's friends and family may also play a part. If you're interested in playing as a miscellaneous character, use the template provided below and post it up in this thread.

Code Select Expand

MISCELLANEOUS CHARACTER TEMPLATE

[b]Name:[/b]
[b]Age:[/b]
[b]Gender:[/b]
[b]Walker, Stalker, or an Ordinary Dreamer:[/b]
[b]Appearance:[/b]
[b]Personality:[/b]
[b]Intentions:[/b]
[b]Short Biography:[/b]



[Esoteric Myobi]

Well, this sounds rather interesting...now I just need to figure out what I'd like to play as ;o

[Mystic Mika]

Well, If you'll have me, I would be interested in playing the daughter, or maybe an unaware friend of.

[Lyrus]

I don't mind you playing the daughter, but since its a rather important-y role, do you want to PM me with how you want to configure the daughter's persona and such?