The Twilight. Some say it’s an alternate dimension; some say another world altogether. Even after years of research not much is known about the mysterious shadowy realm that we Others can access.

We do know it is what gives an Other his or her shapeshifting or Gifted abilities - humans who have the potential inside them find this potential unlocked upon entering the Twilight for the first time, and after that, all shifters and Gifted draw their energy from the Twilight unconsciously. The first time entering/leaving the Twilight is not of one’s own will - Others simply find themselves looking at a world empty of colors and full of shades while slowly being drained of their life force.

We also know the Twilight has a structure to it. There are 3 levels that we know of, and the only way to move between levels is to hop from a lower level to the next highest level. To jump to/from the real world or between levels one must find their shadow, then imagine falling through the shadow into the desired level of Twilight. Of course, that’s easier said than done. Only those with sufficient energy can move to higher levels, and it can take some months or years to be able to make it to another level. Many never make it past level one because of the loss of complete energy control.

Some quirks of the Twilight to take note of - firstly, those in the Twilight cannot be seen by anyone in the real world, or by Others in another level of the Twilight. To anyone watching, it would seem as if the person suddenly disappeared (or turned invisible). Second, time moves faster in the Twilight than in the normal world. Spending 5 minutes in the realm would be equal to about one minute in the real world.

And the last quirk we know of - those with special Gifts can place wards and alarms in the Twilight. Wards that harm anyone who break them in the wrong way… alarms that alert someone to a broken ward… anything is possible. And objects from the real world can be hidden here with the right kind of Gifts.

Also, beware staying in it too long. Just as an Other draws their energy and powers from the Twilight, the Twilight draws energy from an Other. The energy drain starts the moment an Other enters the dimension and it only increases as one moves to higher levels. Lose too much energy and it’s very possible to be unable to leave the Twilight, becoming stuck and eventually dying in it.

So far we know of 3 levels to the Twilight:

• Level one; a grayscale version of the world. Buildings, structures, various objects… everything can be seen. And while anyone in this level can see those in the real world, though anything moving will seem to be moving slow as molasses due to the time flow difference, they cannot be seen by anyone not in the same level. Others can interact with objects from the real world here, with one major difference. Things closed or locked in the real world may be open in this level only, and vice versa.
  
  
• Level two. Here all things from the real world disappear, leaving only a shadowy, thick atmosphere to a barren world. Light and dark mix so that there is only shadow, and obviously those in this level cannot influence anything in the real world.
  While the first level seems to be a shadowed replica of the real one, this one is distorted and there are things/buildings/or atmospheres that are different than they'd have been in the real world and first level.
  
  
• Third level. This is a place of legends; no one has ever entered this level of the Twilight to make it back out alive to speak of their spoils. However, there are rumors. Rumors that this is where the heart of the Twilight resides, the heart of the dimension's power; therefore it is the heart of all Other's powers.
  
  It's said that the powers of Others who die inside the Twilight are absorbed back where they came from, and not only that but even their very souls are consumed by the Twilight - and this is where those poor souls reside.
  If someone ever did manage to get inside of this level and back out of it, they would have gained the knowledge of the universe as well as unstoppable, inconceivable powers; invincibility.
  
  Some even believe that the Twilight could have a mind of its own and that it enforces the use of its captured souls to push the sides of light and dark into the favor of whatever it chooses; always serving its greater needs before others.