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I was some soldier. A regular 'shootem up' who happened to specialize in sniping and medicine. We were called in on this case involving this family-a mother, children, and some occult thrown in. I remember staying near my group, relatively, instead of running off on my own like I normally do. We were gathered around the back end of the house, hiding from the crazy-possessed soldiers who were perched on the barn and shed and looking for us. They count on me to snipe most of them out, but they know I'm there. Not for lack of skill-I'm a damn fine sniper-but because they can read my intentions and actions. So without telling me, my soldiers start screaming and run around firing at them rapidly, drawing all the attention. I use this distraction to pop their heads quickly, though I had to reload after every shot. I want my semi back.

So we take a moment to breathe, I revive one of my comrades, and realize that I've done all this before. At least, something similar to this. I was with this group, these people, and I had the vague sensation that this wasn't the only form I was going to take-I could be reincarnated, revived, that this form was only temporary.

Especially since I just *revived* someone from death. We then go into the back of the house and up the stairs, sweeping, searching for the mother and her children. We find the mother in the kitchen, blood trailing down the window over the sink until we see her limp form on the ground. Everything has a surreal, white-light feel to it, and reality is starting to wane. My comrades ask me if I'm okay, and I tell them sure, we're fine, let's go. But something about the white light of that window-I've felt it before, especially at the top of stairs, and I've always wondered what is beyond it, even though I just *came* from the backyard and I know the backyard is filled with the bodies of dead soldiers.

We continue up the stairs and to the children's bedrooms, where we split up to go search them. I find them huddled in a closet together, but then hear my comrades fighting the monsters. They must have been in other rooms. I tell the children to follow me, and bust out this hole in the ceiling in the closet. I check out the coast, to make sure the attic is clear, then see a bunch of zombies rush into the room. I couldn't save three of the children, because they were grabbed immediately while I was looking. I should have closed the door to the closet, or something-I was so used to only saving myself. I push the two remaining children up into the attic, close the door behind us, and cover the hole with a bureau I find. I've been in this situation before too-in this other zombie dream. I have to break a window to get out and hope that there's a way we can safely get to the ground (or roof). I break open this window and see that there's the back porch behind it-just a 5 ft drop, we can easily make it. I lower the children down by their hands, then go to climb down myself when I hear the children screaming. So I burst out and see that the window, and in fact the wall, where the kitchen sink used to be has been torn away. The two remaining children see their mother, dead, and their three siblings. Only now there are six: two of each kind. The zombies had taken on the form of the now zombified children. The children start to climb down after them, and I barely miss their hands as they drop down from the roof. I jump down after them, but as soon as one of the zombies touched them, I see that the zombie took on the form of the child. I have no idea who to shoot. I hesitate, confused, then go to run into the hole where the kitchen sink used to be after them.

I wake up, having tumbled out of a window, onto soft green grass. A soft breeze ruffles the blades and stirs me to sit up. I'm on some plateu up in the clouds. The whole place is covered in grass, and peaceful people in robes. The window that I came from, which was embedded in the rock of a higher plateau, is black, then disappears. I shake, scared, but a feeling of peace comes over me. Something tells me I've been here before-that this is home. It was like that split second feeling of strangeness you get before opening the door home after a long, long journey. Will it be the same? Are your memories of it accurate? I stand up and see an old man on the opposite side of the mesa, with soft white hair, humming quietly to himself while overlooking the ground far below.

I sit beside him, and a word pops into my mind for this man-"B-Jorge'. He's the leader of this whole compound, and in fact, the closest I can compare him to a kinder version of that order leader from Assassin's Creed. I feel intense devotion and loyalty to this man, and love him as my own father. I would do anything for him, and I feel incredibly ashamed of what just happened. The memories of the children's screams, the sight of the mother's blood, how it was a total failure, and now I don't even have my comrades. He doesn't say anything at first, just keeps humming, then casually admires the weather and the day. I keep staring at my feet, melancholic, till he asks me what was wrong. I tell him, and normally I'd break down crying out of shame, but I feel so at peace here, I just kind of make the words come out. He nods, "That's not surprising. You've been away so long, your connection here must have weakened. This is normal. Do not worry, you will be one with us again soon enough. For now, you are welcome here."Then he stood up and walked away to some elevator that took him to the next level of plateau.

I look over the edge, and feel comfortable that I won't fall off. I can see the ground below us is still beautiful and lush. I wander around, and don't really feel compelled to go to the upper levels. I don't feel like that's where I belong yet. I find my comrades, and go to apologize to them, but they just shake their heads and place a hand on my shoulder, then smile. It's okay. They understand I did my best. Besides, they tell me, we have another missions soon. One of our own is so far gone that he's become a threat. In my head, I compare it to a Jedi who turns to the dark side, because I just watched Star Wars before I went to sleep, and they laugh and confirm, yeah, something like that. We go back to that window from before, and they tell me that windows are the portal to this world. It is completely safe, and if I ever am in danger, I should break through this window. It explains all my dreams before, where I wanted to get to the window, because safety was beyond it. Things would just end, right there. No sudden realization that I just jumped out of a 20 story building-I'd be safe.

We step through, and we're back in a neighborhood. We're dressed up as teenagers just hanging out on the street corner, eying the goings-on of this one house. There's some secret meeting under the guise of a moving truck, so one of the guys goes over and starts smoking with one of the movers to try and find out what's going on. He comes back, but then suddenly we get shot at and scatter. I run behind the nearest house, only to find instead of a backyard, there's just a trail in front of the tree lines. I run along these, knowing that there's a chase going on in the middle of the street, and I'm trying to cut them off. I manage to pull out my gun and assembly it quickly (is that even possible?), then set up to take a shot at the guy. But he looks directly at me and fires his own gun. I tumble out of the way and start running towards him.

We meet each other near the creek, having temporarily called a truce. I don't know where my comrades are, so I'm worried. This guy is definitely much stronger than me. He calls me out for a while, yelling at me, chiding me for falling back 'to them' and offering me a place next to him. I was good-but he could make me better. He could remove my fears and hesitations. I feel sick to my stomach, and approach him slowly. He opens his arms for me, expecting me to collapse into a hug on him like I normally would have, but I wrap my arms around him and pull us into the creek.

It acted as a window and we wake up back on the plateau. The man trembles, scared, and looks around on all fours as if he were a kitten who was just released from a box when she was brought home. Bjorge slowly approaches us, and stops a few feet in front of the man. The guy curls up smaller and shivers, then slowly crawls on his knees to the man's feet, and starts crying. Bjorge kneels down and pets his hair, and the man's cries of sorrow turn to simple whimpers, then the leader walked away. I see my group is there with me, so I pull the crying man into my arms and hug him, rocking him until he fell asleep.

My comrades tell me there's another mission I need to take: but I have to do it alone. Bjorge wants me to be able to find him in the physical world. I've tried it before and failed, because I was too scared, but they think I'm ready to go again. I ask what the danger is that I'm so scared? They so there is no real danger-none of us are ever in danger, we just think we are, and it's a matter of how much we allow ourselves to think that. But I'll realize that when I get there. I nod, and consider for a moment joining the clergy here. I'm actually looking forward to the service Bjorge is about to present, and would love to conduct themself. I dont' ever want to leave, but I can feel my consciousness waning.

Then Ferret shows up for the service. The world takes on a different tone-as if this is just an illusion and not the reality I was in before. We go through and pick out what 'class' Ferret would be, and come up with a Mage that manuvers like a Rogue. I don't know how I ended up a soldier/medic-I'm not a fighter at heart. Ferret starts jokingly hitting on me, saying 'Hey-it's a dream, right...? We can do whatever~" and I direct him back to the service.

Reality shifts again, and I'm back down on 'earth' for one of the people's weddings-one of my best friends. I'm playing security at the venue for her, and I go around checking all the windows, making sure they'll easily break out. Then I find the bride and check and make sure everythings okay, give him a hug and smile, then we all meet up for lunch. It was very casual and fun, and I felt so happy to be there for my friend. To be part of that family.

Then reality shifts again and I'm a 14 year old girl who lives in the desert. There's no life anywhere except the humans, and I live along some dirt road that leads to a ravine. Beyond the ravine is a town, but it's very deep and no one has built a bridge yet. There is, however, a lattice-like scaffold about 3 three away from the cliff that you can climb down. I can't even approach the cliff, I'm too scared. There's a slight slant, and even though I'd be fine, I feel so scared, even though I know I could jump onto that scaffolding. A 10 year old girl makes fun of me and climbs down, and I'm left frightened and trying to climb to the ground, even though I'm not moving


I notice a ramp, so I take that instead. There's a train station at the bottom, so I ask around for an old man. I don't remember my comrades or what they told me, just that I'm looking for an old man. Kind of hermit-y. Lives in the dangerous ravine.
Note: the ravine was often used as a garbage dump by the townspeople, and the rural villagers who live on my side would often go down and scavenge for items. I got directed to one of the scavengers who live in the ravine-a 30 year old, stocky man with a beard who lived behind chainlink fences with a dog. Said no one had spoken to him in 15 years, and just kept talking. I realized he wasn't who I was looking for, so excused myself. I got on the train to go to the next stop, since I picked up that there was an old man there who lived just off the path.

I take the path, which is surrounded by a bunch of large brambles and trees. It's very shady here. I see a red house with yellow lighting up ahead, and I get a feeling that's where the old man is. I get closer, then wake up..