Sam's Office: Telepathetic

[Steve Jones]

"I do?" he asked with a surge of interest.

[Samantha McManus]

"Have you ever heard of the Astral Plane?"

[Steve Jones]

He shook his head.

[Samantha McManus]

"It's not a physical realm, but it's the collective subconscious of every sentient being in the cosmos. Everything that's ever been believed in or dreamed is real there."

[Steve Jones]

"No way... seriously?"

[Samantha McManus]

"Entirely seriously. It's more vast than most can fathom. Professor Xavier even carried out a galaxy-spanning romance with an alien princess, after their minds touched in the Astral."

[Steve Jones]

"And I... could go there?"

[Samantha McManus]

"Everyone's mind brushes against it every second of their lives, but you can perceive it actively, and you can send your mind far deeper into it than dreams ever do."

[Steve Jones]

"It's where dreams come from?"

[Samantha McManus]

"The other way around, really."

[Steve Jones]

"...heavy..."

[Samantha McManus]

"The sort of place one could easily get lost in. Dreams join with beliefs and become even stranger things. Unreal landscapes that couldn't possibly exist in the physical world, shaped by thought."

[Steve Jones]

"Amazing."

He thought of nightmares.

"Is it... dangerous?"

[Samantha McManus]

"It can be. You're better equipped than most to defend yourself in it, though."

[Steve Jones]

"The telepathy?"

[Samantha McManus]

"Aye. In a realm that's shaped by thought, you have the ability to assert your will."

[Steve Jones]

"I'm... not exactly good at asserting myself."

He sounded ashamed of that.

[Samantha McManus]

"Well maybe you've got a bit of incentive now, aye?"

[Steve Jones]

After a moment, he grinned. "Yeah."

[Samantha McManus]

"It doesn't have to be your problem. If you master it, it can be your adventure."

[Steve Jones]

"I like the sound of that," he smiled.