Hey guys, this is my first ever story out to the public.
I'd appreciate some honest feedback and any kind words.
Also, this prologue is an entirely optional read.
I sat down on my bed, puffing out a loud sigh and sinking into the covers.
Work was so tiring today. I had barely enough sleep the previous night because of someone's bloody dog barking outside my window, and not to mention the endless slurry of blame towards me because of a stupid decision my superior made.
Oh well. 'Tis night, and night be the time to sleep. Forget the day and remember the keep.
I lay down in bed, and the day's exhaustion crept throughout my body. A wave of hypnagogia played through my vision like fireworks, before suddenly cutting away into the dark.
How strange.
Hypnagogia doesn't just dis- wait, where am I? This isn't my bedroom!
I found myself sitting up in a dark, stony room. There seemed to be a massive storm taking place outside, with rain smashing against the cruddy old window above me. Chains hung from the ceiling, swaying softly from the small breeze creeping through the cracks in the wall.
Well, this is creepy. But it is definitely a dream. No doubt. It has to be. Stay calm. Let's find out how to leave this room.
I stood up, reaching eye's view of the window. Outside was a horrible amalgamation of purple storm clouds and blue-misted forests of black.
Suddenly, lightning struck down from the sky and I was blinded. My vision went white, before gradually returning to normal.
I was in a completely different place. I was knees deep within a swamp, and holy crap was it cold. My shins and feet felt like a pair of ice pops. I froze, but not from the cold.
A large, convulsing blob of scaly flesh waded towards me through the water. It stunk so bad that the stench made my nose hairs burn off. It moaned at me, gradually growing bigger and dripping lumps of cold mud into the swampy water. It stared at me with its many eyes, and that was when I decided to panic.
"Shit!" I yelled out, doing my best to scramble and wade through the swamp water. It was getting closer, and it was faster than me. I could feel it. Its bloodlust. Why the hell is this swamp so thick!
Suddenly, I was thrown face first into the mire. The weight of the creature pressed down on my back, and I was submerged into the chilling water. I gasped for air, only to take a mouthful of mud and fragments of ice, slicing the inside of my throat. I tried to push away, but my hands sunk into the mud below. I yelled and flailed until there was no breath left in me.
Am I going to die here? Wait, this is a dream, right? I can just wake up!
I focused as hard as I could to wake up, but to no avail. The pain in my lungs tightened and my stomach twitched as I began to run out of air. A cold came washing over my head, and gradually began to spread around my body.
I'm going to die here.
There was a sudden boom of what was presumably thunder, and I found myself staring at some stone pavement. I immediately threw up a load of mud, ice and blood all across the ground and gasped for air. I coughed and sputtered as my diaphragm began to pain like knives to my sides.
After some time catching my breath and clearing my nose, my feelings began to return to my body.
I am never going near a swamp. Ever. Never again. It's not like I walked into it of my own accord. This stupid dream threw me into the thick of it! I can't even rest during my sleep, huh?
I gradually stood up, looking around. I was stood before a statue of a woman in robes, with flowing hair and wielding both a staff and a…snake? She had horns and a strange, knotted hairstyle.
"Kneel, mortal." A woman's voice thundered out throughout the depths of my mind, causing me to jump.
I felt something gently grab my clothes. I looked down, only to find that there was nothing there. With a thud, my knee was driven into the ground as I was forced into a kneel. My knee audibly cracked. The pain swelled, and I cringed.
Fuck!
The statue began to…crumble? I had no clue what was going on. Before I knew it, a woman in flowy robes stepped off the statue base. She carried a staff, and a snake coiled itself around her neck to look at me. She had a strange black mask over her eyes, with a giant eye at its centre which looked into my soul.
"You dare enter into my mire?" The woman spoke, and once it again it boomed throughout my mind.
My soul…quivered. A strange feeling. As if space-time itself shook in fear within me.
I need to get out of here. Let's play it politely, okay? I'm sure this eldritch lady would be kind enough to let me go if I be polite. Right? I'm not even meant to be here!
"T-to whom do I have the utmost pleasure of speaking to?" I said. My mouth was twitching.
"Foolish mortal. You first enter my realm, and now claim you know me not?" The woman replied.
"My most sincere apologies, oh great one. I am a traveller of worlds, and I had gotten lost beyond the planes of existence."
What? What the hell did I just say? I really need to work on my lying.
The woman tilted her head upwards, peering down at me like some insect.
"First you enter my realm alive, and now you lie to me?" The woman boomed.
Fuck.
"N-no, please. It was a mistake. I thought this was just a dream." I said.
Gosh, I must look so pathetic right now.
Wait, this is a dream, right? Why must I quiver in fear? I want my night's rest, so I will take control of my dream! Eldritch lady or not, this is my mind, and I will defend it as such!
"Actually, lady. I'm not sorry." I said.
Focus. I will stand up. Believe it!
I channelled my thoughts and stood up slowly. The woman's eye widened as she looked back down to me.
"What is this treachery?" The woman said, gripping her staff tighter and squinting at me.
Her face is scary. Gosh, you know – maybe it wouldn't have been such a good idea to stand. Wait, no. No matter! This is my dream! Focus now, I need a weapon.
"Exactly what you see before you, girl. Your realm is my realm." I said.
I channelled my thought, and a white katana appeared in my hands. I took a defensive stance and looked at her in the eye.
"My name is Joshua, and I will not let you take away my night's rest!" I shouted.
The woman looked surprised for a moment, but then her eyebrows curled in anger. A number of snakes appeared from her back, slithering around her and staring into my eyes.
"I am not in a good mood, mortal." The woman said.
"Yeah? I'm not either! I've had to deal with a lot recently and now you're here ruining my one time where I get to relax. I should end you here!" I shouted back.
Okay, maybe I am overreacting. I don't usually shout and display threats like this at all.
"Very well." The woman said.
Everything after happened too quickly. Before I knew it, all of the snakes on her back had bitten into my arms and were holding there. I dropped my sword with a clang as the pain set in, chilling my blood vessels with some kind of burning venom.
Ah shit.
"I am Vaermina!" She suddenly boomed. With every word she spoke, it seemed as if the snakes clamped harder and harder. "I am she who causes nightmares, the terror of the soul and the torment of dreams!"
Vaermina lifted up her staff and bonked me on the head. I felt my energy suddenly being sapped out of my head and into the staff. A wave of exhaustion came over me, and I dropped to my knees. Vaermina then brought her staff close to her ear and closed her giant eye to listen closely.
After a moment of silence, something happened. As sudden as they had attacked, the snakes dropped limply onto the ground beside me. The venom seemingly sucked out of my wounds, dripping down my arms and into the ground beside me. Vaermina looked up across the distance, as if staring into the void itself.
"Sheogorath." Vaermina hissed.
She tapped me with her staff, and my energy returned to me.
Sheogorath? You mean…that Sheogorath? From the Elder Scrolls Series? No way.
I hate to think it, but this isn't a dream. This is a nightmare.
"Rise, mortal." Vaermina ordered.
I stood up once more, looking Vaermina in her large, big eye. She reached up to her mask and pulled it off. Lochs of silver hair flowed down beside her armoured chest, and I found myself gazing into the eyes of a young woman.
"This visage is more pleasant to your mortal eyes, correct?" Vaermina spoke.
"Y-yes." I replied.
This whole time had been a roller coaster, and now I found myself standing before what was presumably a daedric prince from a game I played years ago. Sometimes, I wonder if I'm simply just losing my sanity.
"From now on, you are the champion of Vaermina. You will go to Skyrim and find Sheogorath's champion. Stop them from uniting the lands of Skyrim." Vaermina said.
Wait, what? What is Sheogorath up to? Also, stop them from uniting the lands and ending the war? That is definitely not my kind of vibe, but Vaermina will probably torment me if I don't agree. I don't want to end up anywhere near that swamp again.
"Do I have a choice?
"No. Now begone." Vaermina said.
Suddenly, everything went black. I felt my limbs sink into the ground like a knife through butter. Then, there was silence.
