9354/Dream Sequence Revealed

Dream Sequence Revealed
Date of Scene:	29 December 2021
Location:	The Empire Club - Map Room
Synopsis:	Michael Hannigan drops a major bomb on Tyler Locke that sheds all new light on Tyler's search for his kid brother.
Cast of Characters:	Tyler Locke, Michael Hannigan

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Tyler Locke has posed:
It's dinner time at the private Empire Club. The smell of an amazing English stew fills the rooms. Not too long ago, Tyler received a phone call from Mike Hannigan about an important matter that couldn't be discussed over the phone. Tyler immediately invited him to the Empire Club. After Mike arrives, Tyler leads him into the Map Room.

"You hungry, Mike? Stew night here is bananas. And it goes fast," Tyler inquires. He's casually dressed tonight. What else is new? He leans back against the edge of a table and crosses his arms over his chest. It's the body language of someone who is curious but cautious.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
While Mike has been to the Hellfire Club a few times as a guest of one of the members, this would be the first time he's been here to the Empire Club. Honestly with the amount of bars, clubs, and restaurants in New York City alone. It's not a surprised that the rock star has missed one.

The knitcapped musician is purposefully underdressed. It's his usual style for when he's off the clock from his stage persona. The quiet figure gives but the teeniest of glances to the lounge surroundings. It's not for lack of interest. In that small window of assessment, the room and the scent of stew did get a quirk of a smile in return. No, its just that Tyler's approach was quick enough that Mike was able to get to the Map room reasonably quickly.

In his hands, Mike carries a sketchbook. The slight curl of separation between the paper edges betrays the fact that it is halfway through in terms of usage.

Pale eyes shift over to look to the technically younger man at the question. "It does smell tempting," Mike admits, taking a moment to look at the items in the map room. "This place has the feel of The Wick." He pauses, looking down to his hands for a moment. "Might give me a bit more time to figure out the best way to explain matters without coming out as too off the wall. Although I suspect the time at the mall might help a bit."

Tyler Locke has posed:
Tyler finds out what Mike is drinking then he heads over to an intercom. He clicks the button and asks for two bowls of stew, a draft beer, and whatever Mike requests. After placing the order, he finds one of the super comfortable leather seats and sinks down into it. He gestures. "Make yourself at home."

Crossing one leg over the other, Tyler considers Mike. "You seemed a little...agitated over the phone. Or at least like you had something really important to talk about." He gestures to Michael with a head nod. "What's on your mind?"

Michael Hannigan has posed:
As Mike awaits his Guinness and Stew, he watches as Tyler takes his place on the seat. He's a bit slower sitting down. By all means he picks one of the seats closer to Tyler. He's an ass at times. But not that type of ass. He slides back in another armchair, setting the sketch book on his lap. A glance is given to the doorway they came through before he looks back to Tyler. "Ok. You got a basic idea of one thing I can do over at the mall." Mike starts off, "...Most of my stuff has a dream element to it. Dreams are funny, volatile things. But- Well, I generally can tell when a dream is just that or something more."

He looks down to his sketchbook, "I called you after a dream became the something more."

Tyler Locke has posed:
So far, Tyler doesn't have enough to even put two and two together here. He sits calmly, intently listening to Mike. The guy impressed the hell out of Tyler at the mall so he knows Mike is someone to pay attention to when he has something to say.

The drinks come in almost immediately. Someone from the kitchen enters the room. This is a place of quiet conversations, so the server walks with a loud step and clears his throat as he approaches the door to the room. Clearly this is a place where privacy is routine.

"Thanks, Sam," Tyler says, accepting his draft beer.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
The loud entrance is much appreciated as Mike's explanation pauses. Keeping watch over the server, he gives a nod of thanks as he accepts his darkly tinted beverage. "Thank you." He also relays.

Upon the server leaving, Mike turns, setting the glass upon a nearby table to avoid any stray droplets of condensation from ruining what lays upon his lap.

He looks back to Tyler, glancing above his head as he recalls where he left off. The head uptilts before settling down, matching eyes with his host. "Ok. It started off as a dream based off of the events of the mall. Brief bit. Just the part afterwards where we were talking and then, someone I never met before intruded."

Mike threads his thumb between the last bent page and the cover of the book. With the lifting manner of his hand, and the gentle lifting provided by the other, the cover is swung along the coiled spine to kiss the back of the book. He turns the book around to expose the sketch of a young man, fifteen-ish with long, unkempt hair and wild eyes. There is no color beyond the color of the lead that was used to make the drawing, but the shading done is sufficient enough to give some sense of depth.

Mike holds the picture still for Tyler to get a good look at. "Does he look familiar to you?"

Tyler Locke has posed:
The crash of glass rockets through the room as Tyler's beer slips from his hand and hits the ground. Glass and liquid go everywhere. He stands up immediately, his face pale and drawn like one who literally just saw a ghost.

A moment later, Sam bursts into the room. "Sir, is everything alright?" The server sees the floor and says, "Let me clean that up for..."

"Not now, Sam!" Tyler says sharply. The server recedes from the room without question. "How did you...how did you get that image?" Tyler says, looking directly at Mike. Perhaps Tyler doesn't even realized that one hand slips unconsciously into a pocket where his keys are kept. "How did you get a picture of my kid brother?"

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Looking to Tyler for an answer, the glass slipping from the man's hand escapes Mike's notice. It isn't until the glass is near the floor that Mike registers the impending party foul. But rather than come up with some quip about wasted beer, the sketchbook is pulled back against his chest to protect it from the droplets that dare make their way to Mike's seat.

Ok. That- Is a yes.

Eyes widening as Tyler gets up out of his seat, the musician gets up as well. He shifts to the side, backing up away from the sputtering man. He doesn't leave, far be it for him to penalize the guy for reacting to the depiction of a relative drawn by someone he doesn't really know. Buuut on the same line of thinking, he doesn't want to be in a position where Tyler has situational advantage should the mecha kneecapping man want to try that power on him.

Oh it's such a good thing Mike set his drink down on a table first.

"I drew it." Mike answers, the book clung to his chest still staring back at Tyler as the artist makes sure to keep out of arms length of the guy. "He was the one who intruded."

Tyler Locke has posed:
Tyler's eyes rapidly flick back and forth between the sketchbook and Mike's face, finally landing on the latter. His hand withdraws -- empty -- from his pocket, and his body language seems to loosen a bit. He looks down at the mess he made, then back to Mike. "I'm...I'm sorry. I just...that took me by surprise is all." He walks calmly to an unobtrusive door in the room. He tugs a broom, dustpan, and some towels from the small utility closet beyond and heads back to his mess to start cleaning. No point in making Sam clean up after his stupidity.

"His name is Bode. He vanished near a demonic portal on my family's property back in Massachusetts five years ago." Tyler leans the broom against himself for a moment as he tugs out his iPhone. He flicks through a few things and then turns to phone around for Michael to see. It's a picture of Tyler, some younger girl who bears an obvious family resemblance -- likely a sister -- and a young version of Bode. But the resemblance is startling. There can be no doubt that the person in that picture and the person Mike drew are one and the same.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Mike stands rigid, eyes following the movements Tyler makes, keeping note of the empty hand pulled from the pocket. When the host breaks visual to retrieve the cleaning items, Mike's shoulders drop slightly. Ah Crisis averted. Right?

Returning to the seat, Mike sets the sketchbook down in it with the drawn picture facing outwards. Taking advantage of the newly freed hands, he shifts over to the table where his beer is and takes a moment to sip it while Tyler gives a bit of explanation to his reaction.

The glass lowers slightly as Mike tilts his head forward to get a better glimpse of the actual picture of this Bode fella. A brow lifts. Okay so that's a match.

"...Ok before I continue I have to ask before this nags me throughout the conversation but...Demonic portal? On your family property? Was it there before your family acquired the land or did it just pop up one day?"

Tyler Locke has posed:
After all is quiet for several moment, those familiar footsteps approach the room again. It's Sam. By that time, Tyler has cleaned up the worst of his mess. Sam enters with a tray containing two piping hot bowls of beef stew, two fresh-from-the-oven heels of sourdough bread, and a replacement beer for Tyler. He sets all of the stuff down and departs. As he does, Tyler pats the server's shoulder and softly says, "Thank you, Sam." His expression and tone of voice are contrite.

Once he and Michael are alone again, Tyler sits back in the chair. "I don't know how long it has been there, this portal," Tyler says after taking a goodly sip of his new beer. "There are family records dating back to the American Revolutionary War that make mention of it. It's pretty old. There are caves down under the family estate. The portal is there. I can show you sometime, if you want. I have a key that will take us instantly to Keyhouse Manor."

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Once more the loud steps summon silence from the performer as he watches Sam bring in the stew and bread. A glance is given to the food. "It looks as it smells," Mike comments, giving Sam a smile to match the temperature of the stew. "Thank you."

Mike looks to the wafts of steam escaping from the bowls and makes a judgement call. There should be plenty of time to chat before the food is cool enough to eat. Eyes shift over to track Sam's exit from the room before looking over to Tyler.

There's a bit of a grimace to the mention of willingly going over to the portal to just see it. "Maybe another time." Mike politely declines, giving a wry smile, "I'm a bit portaled out at the moment. So...all those generations knew about it and remained on the land. Why? Is that a family tradition to guard it or something?"

Tyler Locke has posed:
Tyler is unapologetically hungry. He picks up his bowl, dips some bread into the fragrant stew, and takes a hearty bite. "It's complicated," he says around his chewing. "Not everyone involved in this tale has had good intentions. The keys exist because the portal exists. It's the source of Whispering Iron, which is what the keys are forged from. But the portal is now safe because the keys exist. It's a weird kind of symbiotic relationship."

Tyler reaches beside him and takes a deep sip from his beer. "Right now, to the best of my knowledge, nobody can open that portal without a powerful key that only I know the location of. Even my sister, Kinsey, who I trust completely, doesn't know where it is."

Michael Hannigan has posed:
"Hmm." Mike looks to the eating Tyler and lifts up his glass to take another mouthful. Swallowing, he sets the glass down. "Everything is complicated." He responds, looking to the drawing.

"So your brother," Mike jumps back to the original topic, eyes glancing up for a moment before looking to Tyler, "Bode. Disappeared near a demonic portal. Odds are if he's got the time to be intruding on dreams, he probably ended up going through that. Being that he's popping into dreams, I'm imagining a couple scenarios to explain matters. One of which being he somehow ended up trapped physically in one of the shared dream realms. Or, wherever he is, he's still alive and able to dream. Considering the shitty signal, I'm leaning towards the second possibility."

Mike gives an apologetic look, "It was like a face time session with someone overseas. Not everything he said was clear, but I wrote down what I heard when I woke up."

Tyler Locke has posed:
Okay that's a new piece of information. Tyler quickly sets the bowl down on the table next to his chair and leans forward in his seat. "And the picture you drew...it's obviously him but older. That would support your theory that he's still alive. He's somewhere where he ages, where he experiences the flow of time."

He peers down at the floor for several moments in contemplation. He sees a little piece of glass he missed, which he picks up and sets on the table near the bowl. "Could you please tell me what he said?" Tyler asks the other man, emotion clear in his voice. He has been doggedly searching for his brother for so long.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
The musician nods to the flow of time observation. "Another thing that makes me think the second possibility." Mike admits, "Dreams are not a set in stone thing. A person in their 90s could dream themselves back to childhood. And someone whose abilities are fueled by them, well-"

He glances down, giving a shake of the head, "If I survive to my sixties or seventies and I still look like this- some people are going to have questions."

The side of the lip quirks up again for a few moments before Mike looks back to the drawing. Picking the sketchbook up, he turns to take its place in the seat. He gently turns the page, flipping the book over until the back of the page is shown along with some small lettering. He looks to them. "The clearest thing he said was 'You know Tyler?' And then when he visually appeared, it got choppy from there.

He sets a finger on the page, reading out what was left, pausing where he left visual gaps between the words to illustrate where the breaks were.

"Tell Ty-"
"Demo- Zorrek put u-"
"Called - Black Diamond Appurtenance."
"Be."
"To Agrora and bring -home."
"Asgard."
"D Kortessa has"
"Help."

Mike glances up to Tyler for the last line. He holds up the sketch book to display a new page depicting some type of cuff. "That was shown during the Black Diamond part. And based from your mention of the demon portal, I'm guessing Zorrek is a Demon's name."

Tyler Locke has posed:
That last word - help - hits Tyler like a slap to the face. He tenses and frowns. "Zorrek. Black Diamond Appurtenance. Agrora. Kortessa." He repeats the important names like someone who is no stranger to research, like someone who has been studying every thing he can get his hands on for the past five years as he searches for a boy who desperately needs him.

"These things don't mean much to me. But this organization I belong to prides itself on knowledge. I need to check with some people and see what I can get access to. I'd like to get you and Roland in as well. I mean..." He swallows heavily. He's gotten ahead of himself again. His tone softens like the tone of a desperate man who needs someone's assistance. ".../if/ you're willing to help. You've already done more than I could have imagined." He looks at Michael directly, meeting his gaze. "This means everything to me, finding my brother. I would be always in your debt."

Michael Hannigan has posed:
"Well, funny thing about me is I generally don't go looking for these things to jump into." Mike admits. He lets the statement linger for a few moments before giving a shrug, "But, if I stumble onto something and it looks like I can help, I'll help. And nothing fits the bill more than having visions dancing in your head." He pauses, "...or if someone asks for help."

He flips the book again to point to the words, "A lot of these doesn't make sense to me either. But I recognize the term 'Asgard' It was slightly cut off but if there's anything about these words and names that are Asgardian in nature, it might be quicker to try asking one of them. I think if I ask around I might be able to get an appointment with one if you're interested."

He glances over to Tyler, "Would you like the sketches? I got the words recorded in a journal back home and I actually saw Bode and the cuff thing."

Tyler Locke has posed:
Tyler Locke stands up. There's too much anxiety now to sit. He paces a bit, though it's an easy, gentle pace not something angry or rushed. He just needs to siphon off some extra energy. "Yes, if you have access to any Asgardians then I would be very grateful for a meeting. More knowledge is better, yes?"

To the offer of taking the sketches, Tyler stops his pace and looks at Mike with surprise, like he wasn't expecting an offer that kind. He lowers his voice in a near whisper, "Yes, please. I would very much like that."

Michael Hannigan has posed:
"Yes. More knowledge." Mike agrees, "And, maybe with luck, more help for when you have enough information to act on." He closes the book gently. "After we eat, we can take the sketches to a safe place and I'll remove them from the book there." He gets up, setting the sketchbook in its own chair away from the food, "Until then the cover and backing should protect it from unecessary damage and smudging."

Plan offered up, Mike takes this moment to collect his stew.