World Of Wonders

"Thank you so much for clearing that nest of vampires, oh kind traveler! Our village can now look to the future, instead of cowering in fear day and night! Would you like to rest for a little while before continuing on your journey?"

"You think I have nothing else to do? Dumb old bitch! Just give me my money, and I'll be on my way! Those damn vampires chewed through all my consumables!"

"Wh-what? That's very rude, good sir! Hearing that kind of talk, I now wonder whether you are truly of the Faction of Righteousness, or whether you are-"

"Shit! I forgot about the realism part! Err...I'm sorry about that, dear lady! The vampires were difficult to handle, and I let my temper get the better of me! Please accept my apology!"

Hawke felt as if he was waking up from a dream that had gone on for far, far too long.

As the sounds of two people speaking somewhere near him floated into his mind, he struggled to wake up from the embrace of the slumber that was so sweet, yet so difficult to get out of at the same time.

"Oh, that's quite all right, then! I can see that you are a prime example of Righteousness! However, I'm afraid that I shall have to verify it! Please wait a moment!"

This was followed by the sound of someone walking away, and a few moments later, he could hear the low muttering of the same person who had retorted before.

"F.u.c.k this f.u.c.k.i.n.g 'realism' thing! Sure, it's fun, and the graphics are the best I've ever seen, but this kind of shit is troublesome to deal with! I'm just here to earn some money and have fun, dammit! Why do you have to give me so much trouble, like those vampires which refused to die? ARGH!"

In the army, Hawke had been taught to recognize when someone may turn violent.

Right away, he could hear the telltale signs of someone who was going to blow their top soon, and understanding the urgency of the situation, he renewed his struggle to wake up.

POP!

Accompanied by the sound of a bubble being popped, the strangest feeling washed over him.

Legs that were too weak to stand on.

Hands that couldn't grip anything.

And a mouth that could only say 'googoo gahgah'.

"What the-"

As Hawke started to feel more of the body that he was somehow suddenly in, he felt his b.u.t.t clench and then loosen automatically, resulting in a wet feeling that stuck to his b.u.t.t.o.c.k.s.

"Oh, my little boy did a poo-poo! Please take a seat, traveler! I hope you don't mind waiting for a little bit of time, because I should change this little naughty boy's clothes before he stinks up the whole village! Yes, that's youuuu! Who's gonna stink up the village? Who is? Is that youuuuu, mister?"

While the last few sentences were spoken in a high-pitched voice that used to irritate Hawke to no end whenever he found himself in close proximity to a loving parent, he felt a weightless sensation as he was lifted into the air and then placed on the table above the cradle that he had been placed in until now.

As the woman who had unremarkable, yet, for some reason, endearing features lovingly started to unravel the knot she had made on the cloth that had been functioning as his u.n.d.e.r.w.e.a.r, Hawke could only stare and wonder whether this was how it felt to have a mother.

He could feel her love radiating in his direction, bathing him in a cocoon that promised him that he had nothing to worry about.

However...that illusion was suddenly broken by the sound of something being unsheathed.

"Behind you!", was what he tried to say to warn her, but only a panicked 'GOO!' left his mouth before a flash of steel appeared in his vision.

This was followed by the sound of something gurgling, and at the same moment, a dull 'thud' was heard from one direction.

"Oh ho ho, that felt GOOOOD! Guess I'm going Deviant!"

A jubilant voice said these words, and as Hawke watched the headless body of the woman for whom he had been the whole world fall forward, he could only watch on as his mind turned completely blank.

He saw a hand reach forward and carelessly turn her over on the table before taking a purse with jingling coins from her bosom, and following that, that hand groped once or twice at that spot.

"Che! So mushy! Guess my next stop is the Brothel of Singing Stars to get this memory out of my head!"

Letting go of the body, the man started to hum a merry tune as he walked to the door and kicked it open.

Hawke continued to hear his footsteps until they faded completely, and even after that, it was as if the image he had just seen was replaying over and over again in his mind.

Blood and gore weren't new to him. He had killed hundreds in his unit, and he had even been trained to torture one until there was nothing left of them except a c.h.e.s.t and a head to answer any questions that might need to be answered.

However, the reason this shocked him so much...was what he had felt before this act had taken place.

A minute passed. And then another. And another.

Finally, after ten minutes, Hawke finally started to return to his senses.

Only, before he could even fully recover...something miraculous happened.

The blood that had pooled onto the table and floor from the neck of the woman began to be s.u.c.k.e.d back into her body, and watching this, Hawke froze, honestly surprised that there was something even more strange to witness after he had been through this much.

After the blood had gone back in, the head flew back to its place, and taking in a harrowing breath, the woman woke up.

She looked around with shock before beginning to curse under her breath, and as Hawke was about to do the only thing he could to get her attention(bawl out loudly) in an attempt to find out just what was going on, everything...went dark.

After it felt like an endless amount of time had passed, the same feeling that he had been greeted with before returned, and at the same time, the sound of someone speaking was also heard.

"Welcome, kind traveler. Please sit."

It was a woman's voice, again, but the timbre was different.

This time, Hawke managed to wake up faster, and he saw that he was in a cradle again.

Yet...the scene he saw above him was distinctly different. Before, there had been a crudely-made wooden ceiling, but now, there was a stone ceiling with a chandelier that had been lit.

Completely baffled, Hawke did the only thing he could do to express his emotions.

"WAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH! WA WA WA WAAAAAAHHHHHH!"

As the sound of a baby bawling at the top of its lungs spread throughout the room, only one thought was present in his mind.

"What the F.U.C.K is going on?"