I was obsessed with the Nightmare.
Ever since I was young, I dreamt of exploring the wide biomes of the nightmarescape, deep in untouched terrain.
I had heard every story there was to tell about the Nightmare.
About the heroes. About the monsters. About the glory, the riches, the fame.
That was all there was in the Nightmare, wasn't it?
But with every second that I felt sleepier and more sluggish, the realisation of my imminent death started to seep into my mind. It was a short life I had lived.
I was 15, a slum rat, spending my days in the underground labyrinth beneath those parts of the slums. The darkness was crushing down here, but one was protected from the weather, the police, and the other dangers of the upper levels.
I hadn't seen anyone down here for a while, at least not during the last hour of wandering, so I decided it might be a good idea to start looking for shelter. A hiding spot. Somewhere to hide for the time being.
I would be asleep. My body, at least, would be.
Everything else would be in another realm: the Nightmare.
Then, I would die.
Or maybe not, but the odds of survival for a slum rat like me were abysmal, so I wouldn't blind myself with false hope.
With every step, I could feel my feet growing heavier.
Every time I blinked, it took more willpower to lift my eyelids again.
I knew it was selfish of me not to tell anyone that I had been afflicted by the curse that would likely claim my life soon.
Because after I was gone, what would remain would be a portal, a portal through which whatever had claimed me could enter and ravage the slums, sooner or later falling to the blade of a stronger sleeper. A smarter one. A luckier one.
But just because I had given up didn't mean I was filled with despair or sorrow.
I felt a strange sense of excitement.
This was my chance to see the dreamscape!
I would see both its wonders and its horrors. That was only fair.
A little farther ahead, I could see a tear in the wall to my left.
Light from above fell through a grate in the ceiling. Maybe that spot would do nicely?
It had to.
My tired legs couldn't carry me much farther.
The tear led to a small room. It looked like a half-collapsed oxygen supply room, now half-covered in strange, winding plants.
"Comfortable enough, I assume."
I slumped down in the far corner, my eyes falling on one of the old oxygen pumps, now covered in green leaves.
The light falling into the room showed the duat particles in the air. The room was comforting, but something kept my mind from drifting away.
My mouth curled into a grin.
'Let the amazing adventure begin! I wonder what my task is gonna be.'
Still, sleep wouldn't take me away.
I pulled a ragged, dirty plush animal from my belt. It resembled a strange, catlike animal, with far more fur around its neck and a more brutal-looking appearance. The tag had read 'Legon the Lion' when I first found it.
"Are you as excited as me, Legon?"
He didn't answer me.
My grin twisted into a playful frown.
"Rude!"
Another wave of mind-numbing fatigue washed over me.
The time was ripe.
I closed my eyes and let the spell carry me towards the horror that would soon spell adventure and my end.
---
The Nightmare was far worse than anything I could ever have imagined. My skin was lashed, my vision was gone, and a deafening roar filled my ears.