As I woke up, the first thing I felt was a great, cold wind traversing through my body, making me violently shiver. I was soaked in water, disoriented and utterly terrified. As I tried to look around, to attempt to calm myself down, all I could see was grey sand and a cloudy sky covered in dark clouds. I tried to stand up but quickly lost my balance and stumbled. I shivered as another wind cut through my skin as if a million sharp needles had done the same and yelled, more in surprise than actual pain. When I attempted to stand again, i succeeded and turned my gaze on what I should have noticed much earlier... The sun which shines a bright yellow usually, was now pure and absolute black. The dread that filled my heart in that instant was unlike anything before. I recall my thoughts being irrational and in utter chaos. I prayed to god that this was a dream...

I saw in the distant mountains, peaks covered in snow, forests with great pine trees of a deep dark grey. I looked to the east and saw a great expanse of water black as the night sky, black as ink. I could see an uncountable amount of shipwrecks on the shores, so ravaged by time it was as though they had been there for hundreds of years. I wondered how I had come into this place and where my fellow men were. I did consider that, perhaps I had died.

As I walked in the direction of the ship wrecks and of the inky waters, I felt my hunger grow, I wondered how I would find food or water. Surely this nightmarish water was not consumable... I walked under a large piece of wood when I felt the winds pierce through me once more. As I crouched under it, I noticed many  small crustaceans, hidden in their shells and barely reacting when I touched them. I thought to myself that maybe food would not be such an issue, plus, I could use the wood on the wreckage to try to make a fire. When I no longer heard the sound of the winds, I decided to go in search of whatever I could find useful.

When the wood finally took fire, the little area inside of the large ship's corpse I had made into my temporary home finally took some colors as the orange light of the flames danced across the rotting walls. When the light of day dwindled to nothing, I went outside to see what the moon looked like. To my surprise, it appeared normal, as bright as ever and full. When I went to sleep, my stomach still unsatisfied, I used the rags I had found laying around to cover myself. That night, I dreamt of home. I recall it distinctly, those sweet dreams, at night, I believe two days after my arrival, turned into terrible nightmares. I woke up covered in long black leeches, pulsating in unsettling manners. Terrified, I tried to remove them from all over my body, there must have been a dozen of them, their presence on my skin did not hurt but simply seeing those things repulsed me. I tried to crush those that had not escaped by burrowing into the sand with my feet, with little success. After that experience, I found myself too terrified to sleep again. 

As the lights of the morning filtered through the rotting planks of the wreckage, I felt light headed, the thirst and hunger really getting to me, but I still refused to taste the black water. I had run out of food, which forced me to go explore those broken ships I had yet to search through. To protect myself from the cold winds, I covered my body with the same rags I used to sleep. Images of the thing were still fresh in my mind and I feared I'd find one again. I walked through the rotted wood, slowly and carefully, my hunger growing and my thirst increasing. Unlike the first day, I could not find anything I could eat without likely dying.

Only a few hours must have passed until I could barely walk, my strength had left me and I fell on the grey sand. The soft noises of the winds and of the black sea were starting to fade and my sight was slowly but surely bluing. I couldn't say how many times I blacked out, nor for how long. I recall time becoming a distant memory. Sometimes, I wake up at night, other times, in the blinding light of day. Sand covered my body over time. Sometimes it rained, sometimes, I could hear the thunder not far away. Again, my body was overtaken by leeches but I could not do a thing about it. 

I remember having seen a great beast, a grotesque amalgam of tentacles and pincers, it dragged itself across the shore and did not seem to notice my presence. Then, I was too numb to react, to be scared, now that I rethink these events and that I know what these things are capable of, I truly find myself lucky. The levels of the water changed over time. When it reached above my head, I drowned and yet, I did not die, I eventually woke back up, still too weak to do much of anything. Pain was then a thing so far away, such a distant memory, even my own name, the name of my friends and family felt like they were fading away. Everything, all tones and forms and sounds and smells melted and fused together into an indistinguishable mass. The only memories I still have of those times are that of suddenly waking up, drowning and losing consciousness. Again, and again and again.

Then, I saw it for the first time. A humanoid creature, a mix between a corpse and a squid, whose skin was  as white as bones, wearing inky water as an ever flowing robe. On its back lay two bony wings, devoid of any membrane in between their digits. Its face was somehow blacker than it, starting from where a human's nose would be instead of four large tentacles of a light pink that glowed a slightly yellow coloration. It had four arms and the digits on its hands numbered four. It looked upon me as I was laying in the sand, I remember it looking at me for what felt like hours. Finally, it raised one of its right hands and at the same time, my body lifted into the air. As it moved along the coast, so did my body, floating just behind. For the first few seconds, I screamed, I was terrified but it did not seem to care. I fell unconscious after a short period of time. Those memories lack the specific details about its appearance. It is only because of my more recent encounters with him that I can give such details.

My eyes were closed, I felt a great warmth all over and inside of my body. I felt myself slowly rising and I felt my lungs and stomach to be heavy. Only a few moments must have passed as I finally felt the freezing air on my skin. I opened my eyes and saw a black sealing. I noticed that I was naked but it was the least of my problems. I suddenly started to vomit as I rose to my feet, then fell to my knees. I could feel whatever liquid it was that entered my lungs moving as I did. I was bathing in a yellow substance, its constitution as oil, that was the only source of light in this cavern. It felt wrong, I tried to breathe in the air but I could not. I still felt the warmth inside my body, even though the air surrounding me was so cold. The awkwardness and vomiting lasted for a while until it finally stopped. I rose to my feet and walked outside of the pool of the yellow oily liquid. Before me was a large tunnel of black stone, irregular and reflective in an unnatural manner. There was only one path and it was forward.

As I walked outside of the cavern, I slipped on the substance still covering me. It was night outside, the moon was shining bright, right in front of me, still full. There were small trees here and there, all with dark wood and silver leaves reflecting the moonlight. I reflected upon all of what had led to this point, the whirlpool, my awakening on that beach, my encounter with the creature, which only came back to mind now that I took the time to think about it. I couldn't understand what was happening. Nothing made any sort of sense. This strange world, the black sun that still illuminates the sky, the strange creatures I had encountered. As I reflected on my time stuck on the beach, I recalled drowning a great amount of times. I hadn't eaten or drank anything but the black water and yet, I never did die. Or perhaps was it that I had died but somehow came back. If it was indeed that later, since I didn't recall anything from the time I spent dead, did it mean that there was nothing after death? I never did believe in god or the devil or even in sea monsters yet the thought of there being nothing after death still scared me. At least it seemed that I would always come back from it... But in truth, I knew many things could be worse than death.

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I didn't know where to go so I just walked aimlessly, trying to find something. In retrospect, it would have been wiser to stay near the oil but I didn't know better. In this silver forest, I saw the first creature in this place that didn't look like a crab or a squid. It was a bird. It sang of a voice deeper than I had expected, which didn't do much to improve the mood of this forest. Even if I was immortal, I still felt hunger, and I did not want the same thing that happened on the beach to repeat here. I looked for berries and fruits but had no success. When sleep claimed me, at the first lights of day, I gladly embraced it.

I woke up as the sun was at its apex. It took me a few moments before deciding on a plan. For now, all I could do was fire, a shelter and attempt to find some food. Then, I did regret leaving behind the cavern I had awoken in, I could have used it as shelter. I couldn't even tell when it would rain, the sky always looked dark and cloudy. As I looked for fire wood and potential sources of food, I came across a body. Its waters were not black but looked normal, as translucent as they should be. I did not hesitate to drink until I couldn't anymore. When I was done, I looked upon my reflection for the first time in many days. My hair was now longer, still as messy as before, it and my skin were one of the few sources of colors in this world. After I rose from the ground, I noticed something on the other side of the lake. They looked like stone buildings, perhaps ruins. I had not noticed them before, too occupied by satiating my thirst. I didn't think I would find food or people but I decided to take a closer look at them. They did not seem far, following the right side of the lake wouldn't take me more than five minutes, according to my estimations, which turned out to be accurate.

The ruins were covered in grey vines, as empty as I had expected. The buildings were built out of stone, I assumed, everything here looked grey, white or black. I explored a few of them until I came across the last thing I expected to find in this strange world. I suppose that even in hell, rats would find their way. Its large size did frighten me a little but It seemed to be sleeping. That vile thing was the size of a dog. There were, lying here and there, pots of various shapes and sizes, those that were outside, on the roofs and near the doors, where filled with water and leaves and such things. The other ones were empty. Exploring, walking through the small streets of stone, stood before me a building a bit larger than the rest. I could recognize a church when I saw one. I entered by opening its double wooden doors, which weren't even totally closed. The whole thing was dark inside, but for a single candle lit in front of a kneeling figure, whose robes were the only source of color I had found in a while, slightly red and adorned of orange accents, turned to face me, seemingly as surprised by my presence as I was by his.

He slowly rose to his feet, and I realized though he appeared to be human, was many heads taller than I and his skin was grey. We stayed speechless, for at least a full minute until he made the first sound. "Hmmm? Are you here to pray to your god? Go on... I won't bother you. It has been a long time since someone new has come to this old city." I did not react right away. When I did register what he said, I wasn't sure what to answer. "I am... not. I am sorry, I am only a lost traveler." He was still looking at me, I couldn't keep eye contact. "How curious... Yet I feel the power of life within you. Has it not been granted to you by one of the gods? And if you are not here to pray, then why have you come here?" He walked to a large chair on my right and sat on it. I had not yet noticed it but he had a large book in his hands. He opened it as he sat. "I am sorry but I really need some food, could you be so kind as to spare some for me, please?" I asked him, hoping I would finally be able to eat something. He hummed a bit and then laughed out loud, my confusion only grew. "Go through the door on your left, go upstairs and talk to the young lady upstairs. She will help you burn the oil." I must admit that I had not understood half of what he had said but still, I decided to follow his instructions. As I went through the door, the stairs going upwards just in front of me, I suddenly realised my lack of clothing. I turned back around to the old man, "Could I take one of these?" I said, pointing towards a large piece of cloth on what appeared to be an altar of some sort. The giant man laughed and made a motion of his right hand, I assumed it to mean that he did not mind, and so I took the cloth and covered my only belongings as I ascended the stairs hastily. 

The stairs lead to a large room, the ceiling shaped like a triangle. At the center of the room lay a strange artifact from which a strange golden vapor seemed to originate. A woman entirely dressed in black, her face hidden by a vale and adorning a large circular hat, was standing near it. I hesitated before speaking but when I tried to say something, I found myself interrupted by her "Ah! A new face in this dreary place. It has been a long time since a vessel has shown itself here." She did not appear to be as tall as the man downstairs but she was still taller than me. "My name is Adriana. Who might you be?" She did not seem to be bothered by the little cloth I was wearing but I most definitely was bothered by it. "I am... Frederick, hum, a sailor..." The silence was only increasing my discomfort, so I readjusted the cloth on my genitals. "The ... Man downstairs told me that you could help me with... Food. " She did not say anything for what seemed like an eternity. "Ah! Now I understand. You are a vessel not granted power from one of the gods. Your birth or rebirth is of heretical nature." As she spoke those words, my heart stopped. I feared I had made a mistake coming to this place. "I see the look on your face, do not worry. My lord pities those of us that are rejected by society. He keeps us in his embrace until the tides are reversed." She placed her gloved hands on the strange object. "Come closer, let me teach you how to burn the oil."

I was still uncertain of what to do. These talks of oil and gods were beyond me, I had yet to understand anything. "I don't understand any of this. What are you talking about? Why is the sun black and what do you mean by burning the oil!" I was starting to get angry. To me, all of this was nonsensical, events were unfolding in chaotic manners, without any reason. Even still, I approached the thing she was touching. "Let us start with the last question. Place your hands on this device and let the power flow through you. Then, you shall know what it is to burn the oil." I did hesitate before complying. I complied because from my point of view, it was the only way to get my answers. The moment both of my hands touched the object, I felt the liquid still stuck in my lungs and I felt the flesh under my skin burning. My vision was entirely taken over by a bright light and from my mouth, my nostrils and even from my ears escaped something I assumed to be some kind of gas. 

"Feel the light that brings life within you." I heard the woman say. "Let it fill you in your entirety and even your soul. " The heat stopped and I collapsed on the floor, still conscious.

The woman walked to me and helped me to my feet and I asked her as she did, "What was that? What just happened?" I was baffled by the fire that seemingly filled my whole body "That was the burning of your oil. The energy burns the oil, allowing your body to absorb it so that you may use it later." 

"I don't understand, why, how? Is this some kind of magic?"