Data and Dream
Overview
- Data is the essence of information. It provides structure and definition. It is logic.
- Dream is the essence of empathy. It provides intuition and insight. It is emotion.
Light and Darkness are not the only forces at play in the world. There are other Worlds in which Light and Darkness are not the overriding factors in their existence. These worlds, the Data World and the Dreaming World, offer great vistas and serve their own purpose in the grand cosmology.
Commonalities
Data and Dream are not tied to the moral components that make up Light and Darkness, but they are universal constants in their own right. Data and Dream both help make up parts of what make a person whole (Data is Body, Dream is Heart, while both have a part in the Mind)
This means that one can have an ‘alignment’ on both the ‘DD’ Axis (Data-Dream) as well as the ‘LD’ Axis (Light-Darkness). This is also displayed in canon materials in both Data (Virals, Security Programs) as well as Dream (Nightmares, Dream Eaters).
Relationships
Data and Dream do not have an antagonistic relationship like Darkness and Light. They do not seek to destroy each other. They are, however, resistant to intrusion by the opposite force. This is why you do not see Programs in the Dream in general, nor Dream Eaters on the Grid. One could certainly dream of Programs or the Grid itself, or create a Program that mimics a Nightmare, but these are facsimiles and not true representations of those entities. There are occasions where Data may leak upon the Dream and vice versa, but such instances are extremely rare, usually only occurring in places that one or the other has taken total sway of the physical realm.
Data Terms
- Sea of Simulation: A vast digital ocean that acts as barriers between sectors. Travel across it is hazardous, relatively less so by air.
- Outlands: Rough, unpowered or barely powered sectors. The wilderness of the Data realm.
- Null Zone: An area of the Grid that is unpowered. Programs and Data entities generally do not survive long here without some form of an external power source. Often used to refer to both the Outlands and the Sea of Simulation.
- Free Sector: An unpopulated or uncontrolled area of the Grid that nevertheless has power access. More common as one heads away from the Boot Sector.
- Protected Sector: A Sector that is controlled by one of the various forces warring for dominance over the Grid, so named because of the Security Programs that maintain a presence there. These Sectors are almost always found closer to the Boot Sector.
- Boot Sector: The central core of the Data realm where master control is established and maintained. Handles all underlying processes for the Data.
- Nano-Click/”Click”: 1 second.
- Cycle: 1 minute
- Megacycle: 1 hour
- Gigacycle: 1 day
- Teracycle: 1 month.
- Exacycle: 1 year
- Repurpose: To alter a Program to a new function or loyalty, but maintain the old personality and memories. Can go wrong, requiring rectification (see below) to recover the Program.
- Rectify:To completely wipe a Program and rebuild them into a new function.
- Light Ribbon/Ribbon: A wall of light emitted from the back of all known Grid vehicles. Can be used as offense or defense. Also known as Jet Wall or Light Wall, depending on the vehicle.
- Deresolution/Derez: Death.
- Resolve/Rez: To create.
- The Games: A gladiatorial arena, often featuring a variety of events where Programs compete to win. The catch is that these games generally derez you if you lose. Usually used as a punishment by Administrators for those they see no use for elsewhere.
- Administrator: The program or entity that holds control over a Sector or group of Sectors.
- User: Either a Program’s creator/programmer, or a general term for a sentient organic being, especially humans.
- Programs: A general term for any Data-based sapient being. They are the populace of the Data realm and perform many tasks.
- ISO:
Additionally, almost any computer jargon or slang has been known to be used in the Grid for various reasons. Assume most jargon has connotations similar to what it possesses in real life.
Dream Terms
- The Dream: The overall realm in which Dreaming Worlds and Dreamscapes reside.
- Dreaming World: A greater Dreamscape that consists of the common thoughts and impressions of many Minds and Hearts. They are resistant to change, but not impenetrable.
- Dreamscape: Any bounded area within The Dream is a Dreamscape. They appear as bubbles within The Dream.
- Personal Dreamscape: A Dreamscape created by a person who is actively dreaming. The person to whom the Dreamscape belongs to generally has power there, but exceptions exist.
The Dream
Dream is the essence of empathy. It provides intuition and insight. It is emotion.
Light and Darkness are not the only forces at play in the world. There are other Worlds in which Light and Darkness are not the overriding factors in their existence. These worlds, the Data World and the Dreaming World, offer great vistas and serve their own purpose in the grand cosmology.
Commonalities
Data and Dream are not tied to the moral components that make up Light and Darkness, but they are universal constants in their own right. Data and Dream both help make up parts of what make a person whole (Data is Body, Dream is Heart, while both have a part in the Mind)
This means that one can have an ‘alignment’ on both the ‘DD’ Axis (Data-Dream) as well as the ‘LD’ Axis (Light-Darkness). This is also displayed in canon materials in both Data (Virals, Security Programs) as well as Dream (Nightmares, Dream Eaters). Additionally, unlike Light and Darkness, it is a simple thing to not have any particular relationship to Data or Dream. Most brings don't really particularly have an affinity one way or the other. The main exception, of course, are entities who come from those realms...
Relationships
Data and Dream do not have an antagonistic relationship like Darkness and Light. They do not seek to destroy each other. They are, however, resistant to intrusion by the opposite force. This is why you do not see Programs in the Dream in general, nor Dream Eaters on the Grid. One could certainly dream of Programs or the Grid itself, or create a Program that mimics a Nightmare, but these are facsimiles and not true representations of those entities. There are occasions where Data may leak upon the Dream and vice versa, but such instances are extremely rare, usually only occurring in places that one or the other has taken total sway of the physical realm.
The Dream
The Dream in general consists of a collective unconsciousness. The dreams of all who sleep contribute to the locations (and sometimes people!) found in the Dream World. Particularly powerful impressions or dreamers can create more stable areas within the dream world. Some worlds can be quite pleasant, while others, horrifying. Anything that one can dream of can exist in the Dreaming World, for good or for ill.
Physical objects generally do not exist within the Dream World. Exceptions occur when Data leaks into the Dream World, or when a form of Sorcery forces physical forms into said world. the vast majority of the time, however, one is forced to use what is at hand unless one can use their Mind or Heart to affect the world around them (see Interaction). This means that objects encountered in the Dream Worlds often follow their own rules, ones not necessarily matching up with what one might expect in the Waking Worlds.
A typical dreamer both contributes to the collective Dreaming Worlds in their own way, but often creates their own personal dreamworld. They float through the Dreaming Worlds, keeping generally to areas related to their personal dream in fragile-seeming bubbles, called Dreamscapes. Someone on the outside of a bubble can look in and watch to see what the dream is about. Those with the skill to do so can interact with the personal dreamscape in many ways, whether moving it to another location (and thus influencing the general content of the dreamscape), or entering it and beginning to affect the dream directly. This can be dangerous, as a Dreamer is always most powerful within their own Dreamscape, as long as their Heart is strong.
The greater Dreaming Worlds are within Dreamscape bubbles of their own, macrocosms within the greater Dream. One often travels between one to the next by travelling through ‘tunnels’ that connect them. It often looks and feels like one is dropping between them, racing past gleaming stars, pieces of Dreamscapes, and the occasional Nightmare.
The area between Dreaming Worlds is unshaped and vast. Errant thoughts can create anything outside in the misty realm. Those skilled in doing so can escape the bounds of the Dreaming Worlds and look within, observing the greater Dreamscapes in detail. This, too, is often used by the Shadow Lords to investigate worlds still behind their Barriers of Light to seek out those of their number within… Or possibly seek out a way to manipulate events in a way to give them access in a more direct manner.
The destruction of someone’s dreamscape will generally have no effect on the dreamer, simply waking them up rudely. Exceptions may occur in particular situations, however...
Interaction
Someone who travels through the Dream World and is both conscious of the fact that they are in a dream (to wit, a lucid dreamer) and possesses a disciplined enough Mind can influence the area around them. The degree of effect this can have is an aggregate of both their general control over Dream itself and the strength of their Mind. Most people at their utmost can do little more than manage to escape their Dreamscape and travel freely. Those who know the true secrets of the Dream can exert control over their surrounding area and even alter the Dreamscapes of others. Dreams can also be altered if one introduces a great deal of Light or Darkness into a Dream and establishes control through that, a favored tactic of Shadow Lords.
Accessing the Dreaming World is generally simple: Fall asleep! However, other methods to access the Dreaming World exist, most of which involve various forms of Sorcery or Technology. It is extremely rare, but the potential exists for one to simply enter the Dreaming World entirely through the use of forces that would alter the physical realm, but such places would be extremely powerful and extremely rare.
Items do not have a true physical form in the Dreaming World unless they were physically brought there in the first place. If one does not have a way to give that item a physical Body of some kind, one cannot remove items from the Dream.
Denizens
The natural denizens of the Dream are Nightmares and Dream Eaters. The Nightmares invade Dreamscapes and feed off of the negative emotions created from such dreams, while Dream Eaters feed upon the Nightmares themselves. As Nobodies and Heartless do not exist in the Dream World, they are the primary entities that a traveler will encounter.
Dream Eaters and Nightmares look astonishingly similar, a dizzying array of creatures and entity forms being possible. Dream Eaters are usually colored in bright colors, while Nightmares are dark, and bear similar alignments to those sensitive to Light or Dark.
Dream Eaters are generally friendly and might accompany a dream traveler for a time, especially if they are planning to face Nightmares for them to consume. Nightmares attack anyone they see without care or pause. Those who know the secrets of Dreams or have control over the forces of Light or Darkness can influence these creatures in various ways. However, they are limited in that they cannot leave the Dreaming World, as they have no Body.
Progression Path: Dream Control
