AN: Before this chapter starts, I'd like to announce that we have a brand now story in the Magical World universe! Check out "Seth's Disney Experience" by Sethelephant, starring Seth from the Power of Three tournament and having a unique focus on the Marvel side of the Magical World!

Also, if you want some more of Ray's world and the Gamesphere go check out "Ace in the Gamesphere" by LoganJindrakX to meet Logan's Gamesphere counterpart, Ace!

"Thank you all for being here today," Gabriel said to his friends. The raven was currently gathered alongside Logan, Rachel, Almyra, Ben, and Melody in the world of dreams, with all of them currently hanging out in Gabriel's dream which took the form of a void filled with various clouds.

"I've never gotten to explore the dream world before," Almyra said, looking around excitedly.

"I thought this was supposed to be about training, though," Ben said in confusion. "At least that's what you told me."

"This is training, but of a different kind," Gabriel said. He gave a whistle and summoned a Ryu Dragon to his side. "This is Pitaya, my Dream Eater companion here in the realm of dreams. Part of being a Dream Defender isn't just fighting evil, but also showing kindness and helping others. So, instead of combat training, I want each of you to go out and tame a Dream Eater for yourself."

"I thought you had to create Dream Eaters," Logan questioned.

"Jameson has been working on a way to purify Nightmares into Spirits," Rachel said. She pulled out a star-shaped device and gave one to each of the three trainees. "These are Star Catchers, which can be used on a Nightmare to freeze them in place so you have a chance to tame them. If you give a Nightmare enough positive emotions, then you'll be able to change their nature to that of a Spirit."

"Sounds simple enough," Melody said. "And since this is the realm of dreams, that means we can create anything in here, right?"

"Yep!" Gabriel said, before doing a spin and turning into his dragon form. "Use whatever your imagination comes up with to help tame your Dream Eater. There's bound to be one waiting for you in your own dreams, so go get to taming and we'll be waiting here for you when you get back."

"Yes sir!" Almyra, Ben, and Melody said before hopping through some dream portals back to their own dreams.

"…So, what are we going to do now that we're just waiting?" Logan asked.

"…Ever wanted to try and fight every Disney villain at once?" Rachel said.

Logan and Gabriel shared a shrug. "Sure, why not?"

[***]

Melody dropped into her dream first, finding herself at her favorite place to be, her personal lab at SFIT. "Is it weird that I dream about being at school?" the hyena asked herself. "Eh, probably not. I mean, I can build so many things in here. Like a jetpack, or an electric shield, or even a super awesome sword!"

She stopped her ramblings and looked behind herself to see that the items she had mentioned had just appeared. "Right, dream world. Anything I can imagine comes to life here. Now then, where do I find this Dream Eater…?" Looking around her lab, Melody noticed that a large box in the corner of the room had a weird pink glow coming from it. Removing the box she found a glowing pink sphere underneath it, and upon touching the sphere a beam of light shot out into the middle of the room.

"I'm guessing that just summoned the nightmare…" Melody said. The room darkened as the roof of the room was blown off, the Nightmare slowly forming into the shape of a unicorn with a lightning bolt shaped horn, which reared up and called down lightning to strike around it.

"A lightning-based Nightmare… against a tech-based hero. Oh joy…" Melody sighed. Ducking behind a table as the Nightmare started firing off balls of plasma, she shook her head to right her mind. "Okay Melody, think! You've been training with some of the greatest minds in the Magical World to build great things. There's has to be some way to counter its electric attacks…" The hyena girl looked around and saw some old tires she'd set aside to work on a vehicle in the future. Dodging around the Nightmare's attacks, Melody grabbed one of the tires while thinking up a proper way to use it, her imagination conjuring up a giant slingshot.

"That'll do," she nodded. "Hey, Nightmare! What happens whenever electricity meets rubber?" Pulling back the slingshot, Melody let the tire fly as it slammed into the Nightmare, getting caught around its neck and dampening its electrical powers. "It get's grounded! …Man I'm so glad no one else was around to hear me say that…"

Pulling out her Star Catcher, Melody touched it against the Nightmare, the beast looking her in the eyes as the magic item let them connect to each other. "Okay, just think of positive emotions, right?" Melody recalled her time working with Big Hero 6, building inventions with the team and testing out her power suit and gadgets. She remembered teaming up with Max Goof in the tournament and learning how to skateboard from him. Melody also thought of her time in the Outlands with the hyena clan, hanging out with Shenzi and looking up to her as a mother figure.

The Nightmare gave a whiny before glowing with light, its colors brightening up as it transformed into a Spirit, an Electricorn to be exact. The Spirit gave Melody a lick on the cheek, making her giggle. "Aw, you're just a soft little dream horse now, aren't you?" she said, before holding out a hand and conjuring up an apple. "Here, why don't you have a snack? Let's go show Gabriel and the others my new friend."

[***]

In Almyra's dream, the peahen hummed to herself as she danced across an endless stage to an unseen audience. She smiled as she spun around, unaware of the Dream Eater symbol her dance path was tracing out. Once the symbol was complete, the floor shone pink as a Nightmare appeared, taking the form of a cat with a musical motif about it.

"Oh, so you must be the Nightmare here in my dream," Almyra said. "You're pretty cute for a nightmare, though."

The cat gave a meow as it shook its head, sending out musical notes that bounced around the room. "Yes, you are still a creature of destruction. Time for me to show you my feelings!" Almyra stated. "Spotlight, please!"

A spotlight suddenly shown down on Almyra, her clothes changing in a flash to a fancy purple Arabian outfit. Shaking her hips in rhythm, the peahen started using her signature Dance of the Mystic Veil to let her emotions be known to the Nightmare.

I feel like I've been locked in tight

For a century of lonely nights

Waiting for someone to release me

As Almyra danced she gracefully stepped around the Nightmare's music attacks, shaking her tailfeathers as mystical smoke whipped up around her.

Thinking of rain blowing kisses my way

That don't mean I'm gonna hear what you say

Baby, baby

Blowing a kiss to the "audience," Almyra created smoky illusions of herself to join in the dance, giving a wink as her clones copied her movements.

Oh, woah, woah (my mind is saying let's go)

Oh, woah, woah (but my heart is saying no)

Doing a little hop, the room started to brighten up as the area transformed into a palace straight out of the Arabian Nights, with Almyra tossing her Star Catcher at the Nightmare to connect their feelings together.

If you wanna be with me

Baby, there's a price to pay

I'm a genie in a bottle

You gotta ask me the right way

Almyra thought of the time she met Logan and helped him rescue Sora, of meeting Gabriel and dancing in the Philharmagic Show, and of meeting her idol Gazelle and performing with her at the No-So-Scary Halloween Party. As she danced with her positive emotions, they connected with the Nightmare, transforming it into a Spirit.

If you wanna be with me

I can make your wish come true

You gotta make a big impression

I've gotta like what you do

Almyra held out a hand and let the cat jump into her arms, giving it a boop on the nose as she and her illusionary clones danced.

I'm a genie in a bottle, baby

Gotta catch me the right way, honey

I'm a genie in a bottle, baby

Come, come, come in and let me out

Almyra struck a final pose, making her clones disappear in a puff of smoke as she laughed. "Even in my dreams I can't stop dancing," she mused. "And look at you, all bright and colorful!"

The Spirit, a Necho Cat, gave a cute meow as it nuzzled into the peahen's neck. "I'm sure the others will love to meet you. Let's return to them at once!"

[***]

When Ben landed in his own dream, the wolf looked around to see that he was in the middle of a field somewhere, the distant sound of a sheep baaing coming to his ears. "Why is it this dream again…?" he muttered to himself.

"Little wolf… Little wolf…" a voice called out, making Ben shake his head.

"Nope! I'm not dealing with that drama today, inner thoughts!" Ben shouted.

"Little wolf… Little wolf…" the voice called again, fading into the distance as Ben let out a sigh.

"I'm really going to have to deal with that family drama one day…" he muttered. Looking around for clues, Ben went over to a tree, climbing up and looking out to the sky as he noticed the stars shining down. Holding out his hand to them the wolf started to trace out a shape, connecting the stars with lines before finishing a constellation of a dinosaur. Lights shone down as the wind picked up, blowing Ben out of the tree as his Nightmare appeared.

"Great, now I have to fight a dinosaur…" he said, standing up as he faced the Nightmare, taking the from of a skeletal dinosaur. "Have to show this thing my good emotions, right? Easier said than done…"
Pulling out his staff, Ben had little time to blast himself away from the Nightmare with a wind gust as the dinosaur tried to chomp down on him. Righting himself, Ben whipped his staff around and pointed it forward, calling on the winds to stagger the beast. The Nightmare retaliated by stomping the ground, causing ice spikes to come out of the ground and rush towards Ben.

"Oh shoot!" Ben shouted, jumping out of the way and calling on the winds to slow his fall. He held up his staff as the Nightmare barred down on him, Ben managing to keep its jaws from biting down by putting his staff in the monster's mouth, forcing it to stay open.

"Remember Ben, this isn't about fighting," the voice of Gabriel called out. "This is about reaching out with your feelings."

"I know, I know," Ben said. Pulling out his Star Catcher, the wolf jumped at the Nightmare and tagged it with the object, letting their feelings connect to each other. Ben thought of the happiness he got when we won the tournament, of how he found a mentor in Rocket Raccoon, of how he made up with Nuka about their friendship… about the times he looked at Nuka and they smiled and laughed… of how they were roommates together...

"Okay, I think I'm thinking of Nuka a bit too much…" Ben shook his head. His feelings got through to the Nightmare, though, transforming it into a colorful Spirit that spat his staff back out and looked at the wolf with docile eyes. "I'm so glad you don't have spit I need to wash off my staff…" he laughed.

The wolf hopped up onto the Spirit, a Skelterwild, and pointed forward. "Okay then, high-ho, back to Gabriel's dream we go!"

[***]

When the trio got back to Gabriel's dream with their new Dream Eaters, they were surprised to find Gabriel, Rachel, and Logan all lying on their backs, panting and out of breath. Gabriel was groaning in pain as Pitaya picked at his face, Logan was in his Underdog Owl form, his clothes torn to shreds so only his underwear was remaining, and Rachel was in her full Dragon Queen form, completely passed out and snoring, causing little puffs of smoke to come out of her nostrils.

"Woah, what happened here, teach?" Ben asked.

"We thought it would be fun to try and fight every Disney villain at once," Gabriel explained as he sat up, using Pitaya to keep himself steady. "It went well at first… but then Rachel and Logan wanted to fight the Star Wars and Marvel villains as well…"

"We won, but at what cost…?" Logan groaned, covering his face. "I can't feel my legs… This is a dream, how am I in so much pain…?"

"Sleep… in dream…" Rachel muttered.

"That's impressive if you guys actually managed to beat all of them," Melody said.

"To be fair, this is a dream, so I don't think it's quite as impressive as you think," Gabriel replied. "We did have our OP dream powers, after all."

"Well, either way, we're all back with our Dream Eaters!" Almyra said, holding up her cat. "I'm gonna name this little guy Mau."

Melody gave her electric unicorn a pat on the back. "And this girl here, her name is Ngurumo. That's Swahili for "Thunder"."

"And I'm naming this big guy Kay," Ben said, giving a big grin as his dinosaur gave a mighty roar.

"You all did great," Gabriel said. "By taming these Dream Eaters, you've proven that you have the power not only to defend yourself, but to share your emotions with others. In doing this, I trust that you'll be able to reach out and show empathy to others you help in the future."

"Will do, Gabriel," Ben said. "Plus we have these awesome Dream Eaters on our side, so we can use them to help fight evil as well!"

"You'll need to get a Dream Whistle from Jameson to summon them in the real world, but yes, that too," Logan chuckled.

Gabriel then looked at a clock in his room and gasped. "Welp, looks like it's almost morning. Before you go, though… Ben, Melody, I trust you two enough that I'd like to officially induct you into the Dream Defenders. For that, I'll give you these Harmony Pins as a reminder of the bonds we've made here today."

Gabriel held out his hands and focused his Fantasia magic, creating two orbs that went out to Ben and Melody. Ben's pin revealed itself, depicting the wolves Rama and Raksha from "The Jungle Book." For Melody, her pin depicted the Big Hero 6 team all hanging out together in their civilian clothes.

"Sweet! We're official Dream Defenders now!" Melody cheered. She then looked at Gabriel with a big grin. "So, does this mean that we get to be part of the Core 6 now?"

"Core 6?" Rachel questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"That's what the other Dream Defenders call you three, plus Toren, Silver, and Adam, since you all founded the team," Almyra explained. "After Silver went to focus on his princess retainer duties, Adam helping to run SEAS, and Toren being a prince, there's quite a bit of buzz around who's going to take their place."

"I mean, we're not really replacing anyone. They're just not going to be doing the big missions anymore," Logan clarified.

"Still, we really want to know!" Ben said.

"To be fair, I basically gave Ben a position on the team for winning the tournament, so I guess you an consider yourself part of this "Core 6" group…" Gabriel said, scratching the back of his head. "But I make no promises about the other positions. I could see someone like Aline wanting to move up, or any of the other friends, you know?"

"Yes! I stay winning here!" Ben said smugly.

"Well, I'll prove that I'm just as strong as you then, with my gadgets!" Melody declared.

"To be fair, I think Almyra would be a good pick, since her power compliments yours pretty well, Gabriel," Logan pointed out.

"That's very kind of you, Logan," Almyra giggled. "But you have noticed that you're only wearing underwear right now, yes?"

The snowy owl blushed hard at that. "Oh cheese I forgot!" He then poofed away in a cloud of smoke.

"Huh, he got so embarrassed that he woke up from the dream," Rachel chuckled. "If you ever want to do some more training, you know where to find me."

"I've got to go too. Lots of work to get done," Ben said.

Gabriel took his head. "Actually, I'd like you to go and see Aline when you wake up, Ben. I think she can help you learn to relax a bit. Don't want to burn out, right?"

Ben crossed his arms and sighed. "Fine, but I'm only going to relax a little bit. I can't let Melody get ahead of me!"

"Oh it's on now!" Melody declared.

"You two…" Almyra shook her head, smiling at her friends' antics.

Author's Note

Just a fun dream chapter of some of our newest Dream Defenders getting the spotlight! I really like the idea of Dream Eaters in the Kingdom Hearts, so I wanted Gabriel's training to revolve around them by having Almyra, Ben, and Melody tame one of these dreamy monsters for their own.

This also let each of them show off their skills in some way. Melody used her brains to come up with a way to neutralize the Electricorn's lightning moves, Almyra used her dancing to distract and get around Necho Cat, and Ben used his quick wits and wind magic to overcome the Skelterwild. In Almyra's dream she used the song "Genie in a Bottle" to get her feelings across, specifically the Dove Cameron cover.

I really like Ben, and it's clear that in his dream he's dealing with some things in his past with that mysterious voice. His creator has asked me not to share his backstory yet, but I wanted to tease that there's more to Ben that we know of yet. We also get some more teasing between him and Nuka. I wonder if those two will ever confess if there's something more between them than just friendship?

We also set up the idea of the "Core 6" and potentially adding new members to it, like how the Avengers changes its roster over time. Ben is a lock, but who would you want to see join Gabriel, Rachel, and Logan as the face of the Dream Defenders?
Next time: Gabriel finds an unusual friendship forming between Kessie and Randall. Is the chameleon monster looking to finally reform?