Let's Do the Time Warp (Again)

[applesaucemod]

It's that time again, but time seems to be a bit muddled. As usual, people from all over the multiverse are being drawn into the Dreaming by the rift. This time, in addition to (or sometimes instead of) picking up the residents of Manhattan, they take them from their home universe but from a different point in time. You may find yourself suddenly encountering a future version of yourself, or perhaps you bump into a friend taken from long before you met them.

Tonight's setting is also time-twisted. You're still in Manhattan, but it seems to be closer to the 1930s. Specifically, you're in an old hotel. There's the dimly lit lobby, with chairs and tables for relaxed mingling. The bar, where tables are front of a stage, on which a band is playing various hits of the 30s. There's also an outdoor area if you need fresh air. Or you could explore the hotel, but it's mostly corridors, unless you stumble upon an unlocked room.



[Mod note: Usual dream-party rules apply. Both members and non-members are welcome to use any character, be they already in the game or no.

For game-specific characters, you can choose whether or not they will remember their time in Manhattan if they're taken from the future. You can take your character from multiple different points in time, if you want.]

Comments

[has_a_horn]

When Topher doesn't accept his offer right away, Gabriel drops his hand and, less quickly, his smile. "My name is Gabriel. I'm an angel of the Lord."

[brink]

Topher gives an incredulous laugh at that. "Okay," he answers. Great. Angels. So this guy is either deranged (in which case Topher doubts he could do any harm), lying (in which case he could do a LOT of harm), or... Well. He's dreaming. Who knows, really?

"I don't like people playing with my mind," he informs Gabriel, twitching a little. He's still debating it.

[has_a_horn]

"I wouldn't call it playing," Gabriel drawls out, confident and a tad pompous. "Are you interested or not?"

[brink]

"Alright," he answers suddenly. He wouldn't have if he were awake, but it finally started to sink in that this is in fact not real. And perhaps some unconscious familiarity with Gabriel is making him feel more trusting.

[has_a_horn]

"It won't take very long." Gabriel takes a step forward and rests the index and middle finger of his right hand against Topher's forehead. There is quite a lot here to untangle, but in the dreaming, such things are much easier to manage.

When he pulls his hand away, he tips his head to the side, considering his work. "How do you feel?"

[brink]

Topher flinches just for a moment as Gabriel reaches out for him.

It's not particularly pleasant. Having your mind messed with is jarring, and there's a good reason his brain has become this tangled to begin with. A flood of painful memories he'd repressed rush at him, but then the dust starts to settle.

Once Gabe is done, Topher reaches up to rub his forehead. "Like you put my head through a blender," he answers, but he feels... clearer. Like putting him through the blender cleared out the nasty chunks and left him smoother. Though the metaphor might need work.

[has_a_horn]

Gabriel smiles, just a little amused. "That's to be expected." He lets the smile blossom as he realizes that he's been successful. "Nice to meet you, Topher."

[brink]

"Right back atcha," Topher answers, shaking his head a little. Weird. Really properly funky. Really quite disturbing, as well. But his brain seems to be working more properly now, which is a welcome change. It's very frustrating when your thoughts don't move the way you're used to.

"Uh... Thanks," he adds. Because unless there's some hidden trickery, which it doesn't seem like, Gabriel just did Topher a solid. Who knows how long it will last, but that's another matter. Maybe his mind will be just as muddled when he wakes up again, or even sooner. He can't tell.

[has_a_horn]

"Gabriel," he provides once more, not sure if Topher had caught it the first time it had been said. He clasps his hands behind his back, but doesn't step back any further than he had been. "You're very welcome."

"Have you been here long?"

[brink]

"Where here?" he asks, thinking he was doing being confused for a while, but it turns out he wasn't. Although when Gabe says his name a second time, Topher wonders if he doesn't know him after all.

[has_a_horn]

"This...hotel. The dream space. Both." He was wondering if perhaps Topher had been tapped in his own mind, and that's what had kept him in this communal space.

[brink]

"Uhh.. A while, I guess," he answers, trying to think. Difficult to tell time when you're so distracted (and scared) by everything else, and you're, well, in a dream. Would a watch even work if it's not physical, just imagined? "I mean, not like, days, but. A little while."

[has_a_horn]

He tips his head to the side a small fraction, considering Topher. "What happened to you?"