# Prologue: The Dream Thief's Greatest Heist
Phantasm perched on a ledge that shouldn't exist, staring up at the twisted spires of the Dream Vault. The sky above flickered between day and night like a broken TV, casting weird shadows across the impossible landscape.
"This is insane, even for you," Whisper's voice crackled through the dreamlink in Phantasm's ear. "The Oneiroi Corporation will skin you alive if they catch you."
Phantasm grinned, the expression transforming their beautiful, androgynous face. "Aw, you do care," they teased. "Don't worry so much, Whisper. I was born for this."
And it was true. Ever since Phantasm - known in the waking world as Innocence - had discovered their ability to manipulate dreams, they'd been unstoppable. No vault too secure, no treasure too well-guarded. If it existed in the world of dreams, Phantasm could steal it.
But this? This was different. The Morpheus Stone wasn't just another shiny trinket. It was the key to... well, Phantasm wasn't quite sure. But the pay was insane, and the challenge? Irresistible.
With a thought, Phantasm reached out and plucked a strand of dream-stuff from the air. It felt like spider silk against their skin, thrumming with power. They tugged, and reality bent around them.
Alarms blared instantly. Nightmarish guard-creatures howled, their cries echoing across dimensions. Phantasm just laughed, the sound like silver bells in the chaos.
They danced through the Vault's defenses, every movement a blur between what was real and what was merely dreamed. A tentacle of living shadow lashed out, and Phantasm pirouetted around it. A wall of fire sprang up, and they simply imagined it away.
"You're enjoying this way too much," Whisper grumbled in their ear.
"Oh, live a little!" Phantasm vaulted over a chasm that opened suddenly at their feet. "Don't tell me you're not curious what all the fuss is about."
At the heart of the Vault, hovering in a field of pure thought, was their target. The Morpheus Stone looked like a marble that couldn't decide on a color, shifting between hues faster than the eye could follow.
Phantasm reached out, fingers trembling with excitement. "Come to papa... or mama. Whatever."
The moment their skin touched the stone, the world exploded.
Visions flashed through Phantasm's mind, too fast to grasp. A world where dreams and reality blended like watercolors. A shadowy figure pulling strings behind the scenes. And a face... a face Phantasm knew but couldn't place, someone important, someone--
The Vault screamed. Dream-stuff swirled like a flushing toilet, with Phantasm at the center. Guards were closing in, their forms twisting into things that defied description.
Clutching the Morpheus Stone to their chest, Phantasm made a split-second decision. Instead of fleeing back to the waking world, they dove deeper into the dream.
They fell through memories that weren't theirs, glimpsed futures that might never be. For a heart-stopping moment, Phantasm remembered a past they'd forgotten, a truth about themselves that changed everything.
And then--
*GASP!*
Phantasm sat bolt upright in a dingy motel room, chest heaving. The Morpheus Stone pulsed gently in their hand, cool and impossibly heavy for its size.
Laughter bubbled up, half giddy triumph, half terrified realization. Phantasm, the greatest dream thief in history, had just stumbled into a game bigger than they'd ever imagined.
The dreamlink crackled to life. "Phantasm? Phantasm! Are you okay? Did you get it?"
Phantasm stared at the stone, a slow smile spreading across their face. "Oh, I got it alright. But Whisper? I think we might be in trouble."
"What do you mean?"
Phantasm flopped back on the bed, tossing the Morpheus Stone from hand to hand. "Let's just say our little heist just got a lot more complicated. Ever wonder if you were meant for something bigger?"
As if in answer, the stone pulsed once, and Phantasm saw it again - that face, those plans, the fate of two worlds hanging in the balance.
"Strap in, partner," Phantasm said, eyes gleaming with excitement. "I've got a feeling our lives are about to get real interesting."
In the distance, sirens began to wail.