Utopia!

What's the connection between the subconscious mind and dreams?
Is the subconscious mind the one responsible for the dreams we get?
Can dreams be understood in the light of the relationship between them and the subconscious mind?

What would happen, then, if our dreams could be changed--- would they alter the subconscious mind, and in turn, alter our psyche?

Adulthood is full of people who give little regard to these questions. They've all moved on to a point in their life where 'dreams' are but fleeting images that rarely come and are easily forgotten. Despite this, everyone dreams at night and these dreams are a direct gateway into our mind. When we dream, we are connected to an unseen reality known as Utopia. Utopia is ever-present and shaped by the subconscious mind, and when the normal person is most aware of Utopia is when they sleep. However, becoming aware of Utopia makes Utopia's denizens aware to you--- creatures born from dreams and desire, known as REM Dwellers. Creatures of different types with different purposes for being, as usually determined by the dreamer. They take on different forms according to the dreamer's subconscious desire and often play the part of the characters you see in a dream, appearing as those closest to you altered by your perception of them. For this reason, REM Dwellers are a perfectly natural part of Utopia and hold no positive or negative feelings towards the dreamer. They simply desire to exist and partake in the dreamer's vision of 'Utopia'.

However, something strange has happened to Utopia. The dreams present within Utopia have become corrupted into a Dystopia, and in turn, the REM Dwellers there. These creatures while normally passive have become violent and rather than give a balance of good dreams to the dreamer, instead only give vivid nightmares that assault the mind. While the dreamer is able to connect fully to Utopia during sleep, the opposite is also true. During their time in Utopia, a gateway into the dreamer is made, and their psyche is fully malleable at this time. These corrupted REM Dwellers, known as Night Terrors, seed themselves into the deepest parts of a person's subconscious and damage not only their good dreams, but their subconscious mind. ...Thus, the agony they feel in Dystopia transcends sleep, and when they awaken, their personality undergoes a drastic, often violent change through 'Subliminal Implantation'. Akin to the phrase 'Monkey on my back', the Night Terror drives the dreamer while awake to commit heinous actions detrimental to their own health and that of those around them. This is an issue that can result in something as petty as theft or name-calling, and also extend to something as drastic as murder and suicide to escape from their nightmares...

However. There is a way to prevent this from happening. If one could potentially find and travel into a person's mind during Dystopia, they could defeat the Night Terrors and potentially reverse the damage done to the dreamer's psyche through Subliminal Implantation. Although those native to Utopia would never think of acting against Night Terrors of their own volition, if one from the awakened world were to keep conscious awareness of themselves while in Utopia, it would potentially be possible to travel into a dreamer's Dystopia and change their fate. They would become the ultimate dreamer, a Oneironaut, in control of their psyche and able to directly cross between both worlds. A Oneironaut would have to be someone young enough to still be aware of their own dreaming to some degree, and those with a reason to retreat from 'reality' and express a larger interest in imagination and fantasy. In this way, they are those who find themselves unsatisfied with the world as is for whatever reason, and instead welcome Utopia whether consciously or subconsciously.

There are those with this potential within them. If they were to become lucid during their time in Utopia, they could potentially gain the ability to take control of their personal dreams and the REM Dwellers present there. Combining the conscious and subconscious mind means becoming aware of your own psyche, and in that way, you create a shield for yourself while traveling through Dystopia. This shield is the manifestation of your psyche known as the Anima(or Animus), appearing in a symbolic form that represents the Oneironaut's own subconscious desires. Utilizing the Anima makes it possible to close off the connection to your unaware subconscious, thus preventing Night Terrors from sinking their fangs into the Oneironaut's personal Utopia and transforming it into a Dystopia. With an Anima at their side, it is safe for a Oneironaut to travel into Dystopia and do battle with the Night Terrors. It also gives them the ability to take the bridge between Utopia and a dreamer's psyche, traveling to the deepest depths of the mind where they can potentially alter the damage done by the Night Terrors. Thus, it is the most important tool in the battle against Night Terrors.

Become aware of Utopia and manifest Anima--- travel through Dystopia, defeating the Night Terrors. Save the dreamer from Subliminal Implantation and change their fate!