"I would be so amazed by everything I'm looking at right now if I didn't have the morning I just had," Trevor said.

     Niki and Malika nodded as one.

​     Valets brought in trays on which rested magnums of champagne in buckets of ice, surrounded by long stemmed glasses.

     "Everyone, grab a glass," Anne said. "I'd like to propose a toast."

     It took what time it took for everyone to take, then fill, their own glasses of champagne. Then,

     "To the dream." Anne said.

     Sip. Sip.

     "I'd love to hear about everyone else's dream," Anne said.

     "I think we've already tried this once," Malika said.

     "I was killed by a pack of aliens, apparently," Niki replied as fury flashed in her eyes. 

     "Oh, you poor dear."

     "How do you think I feel about it?"

     "Only one alien for me," Trevor replied.

     "I shouldn't talk about my dream right now," Gramps replied.

     "That's a shame, Frederick," Anne said. "You're the one I most wanted to hear from."

     "Home, but not home," Abby replied.

     "Reality, but not this reality," Alison said.

     "I can't say exactly where I was, but I was with a bunch of aliens, not humans, and everyone seemed friendly," Skip said.

     "You were at a bar, in other words," Alison said.

     "I don't know about that, but I can say we watched a war on every wall of the room we sat in. On one wall, a couple of infantries duked it out. On another, starships went at it. A naval battle on another screen. An air battle on another screen."

      "Are we the only ones who had the dream?" Abby asked. "Maybe billions of people all over the world had some sort of dream last night."

      "Has anyone had a look at social media?" Trevor asked. "Twitter? Anything like that?"

     "I found ​you on Facebook," Niki said.

     "I could be wrong, but I don't think we need to look in that direction," Anne said, "but I do know of at least two other people."

     "I think my brother may have had the dream," Trevor said.

     "Do you have any way to contact him?" Anne asked.

     "Do I have to?"

     "The two people I'm talking about," Anne said. "They're already here. They're in one of the guest suites now, freshening up."

     "Let me guess who they are," Gramps said. "I'll bet I get it right."

     "Go ahead."

     Before he could reply, Myanna Madieras and Adam Forwarder entered the room, arm in arm.

CONTINUE