This tale begins with a young man centuries ago. This man was studying curses and blessings from an ancient kingdom. He was trying to learn all he could from them. One such curse was Dormio Onero or loosely called the sleeping burden. It takes the worst part of sleep onto the cursed and gives the relief from sleeping to the caster or the one the caster designates.
The cursed falls into a deeper sleep then normal for a few seconds per person they are connected to. They experience the dreams, nightmares, and memories in these few moments with one major difference. As the cursed are experiencing sleep not their own, that experience is real to them in all sense of the word. A cut in a nightmare becomes a cut when awake.
The man knew this well and understood the risks, but wanted to use it. His family were healers and were getting overworked. The war efforts so close to home left them ragged with little time for themselves. He loved his family and was willing to risk pain or death to allow his family rest. He inscribed the curse onto his bed under the sheets and designated his family as the recipients then told his family what he planned. They refused harshly and scolded him for such reckless actions but conceded reluctantly after hearing him wholeheartedly spill his worries for them.
He had spent years watching his family failing to sleep. Nightmares and insomnia plaguing them. While they tossed and turned he slept with ease, but he woke up to his brother’s fretful calls from nightmares more then once. He saw the bags under his parent’s eyes, and saw his sister’s narcolepsy annoy her to no end. He had wanted to help them ever since he knew he could, he would even if they didn’t agree. There was nothing they could do to stop him.
First time he used the curse he felt his mom, dad, and sister’s dreams with his brother’s nightmare. It left him with cuts and bruises in the morning, nothing that wouldn’t heal. The family felt no need for sleep and stayed up that night relaxing, talking, and playing games.
They then went back to their business when morning came. His sister no longer had narcolepsy. It had passed to him, but where it’s effects affected her for a while it only lasted a second for him. He did this every night for two months gaining wounds the longer he did so. On the fifth month he lost his left eye from a horrific nightmare. His family worried, begged him to stop to cease this foolish endeavor. They pleaded and he refused. He told them every wound, scar, and missing piece his pride. The sixth month ended with the war landing on their doorstep.
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The city was under siege. Barely protected by the men and women who guarded it. The man cared for his city and all who lived in it. He knew the opposing army would spare few he decided to help. He spent hours seeking the commander to help the war effort. He explained to the commander of the curse how it worked what it could do and the commander saw the benefits. But he also saw the risk to it. He denied the use of such a curse. That is for a day before calling the man back and reluctantly installing the practice. They tried to spread the curse over willing volunteers but all had died in the first week. The enemy was whittling them down quick the city would not last a month. The man under desperation cursed himself the burden of the cities sleep. The cursed caused him to be in the deep, dark sleep the entire time he slept each night. His family constantly healing him as his city pushed back the army long enough for the country to deploy soldiers to them.
The city put their faith into the man causing him to be more then a man and more like a god. The more that believed in him the stronger he and the curse became until the curse started to grow on its own taking people under it. The war continued at the city for years with more and more people being place under the curse. The God in the first year didn’t wake up anymore. The prayers and faith keeping him alive. Soon the entire country was under the curse So much belief in him pushed him to godhood. He was worshiped and the religion of the Slumbering God began and spread throughout the world. The curse became a blessing for all that believed in him. The war ended 10 years later, but the man never woke up again. Years passed he was moved to a church in his honor his city built for him. People from around the world pilgrimage to the church praying for all manner of things. Wealth, love, money, revenge, anything and everything was asked, but he could not give. The God learned he could however punish people.
He saw and felt every dream that was dreamed he felt guilty dreams, sick fantasies, and victims nightmares. He punished with the affliction his sister had and making them carry some of the burden he had carried. Giving victims nightmares to the perpetrators and such punishments to as many who deserve it as he could. He did this for as long as he could. But he lost so much to become a god. He lost his country, city, and family to the sands of time.
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You now know my history now or at least the scraps of memories I have of it. Sorry for forcing you to go to sleep, but I needed this to end. I wish to be with my family and countrymen I can not continue being a god. I will slowly give your sleep to all of you allowing you to adapt to a need you haven't had in generations. I am sorry for doing this after so much time you believed in me, but I… I am tired. I have forgotten so much. I no longer remember my family's names or faces. I do not remember my own name anymore. So please I beg of you, put your faith to other things such as your family, country, or even other gods. Tell any and all who will listen, the Slumbering God wants to wake.