It was a relatively normal day.

I had just finished an exhausting week of examining corpses and writing reports on their causes of death, so I decided to take some time to rest before being called to another crime scene.

About a week ago, my computer broke down, so I took it for repairs and to have some new components added to make it more powerful. Today, it was finally delivered back to my home.

I was thrilled because I could finally play games again and take the break I deserved, forgetting about all the cases I'd have to handle later.

The first thing I did was take off my shirt while sitting on the couch and head to the bathroom for a nice, relaxing shower.

After showering, I changed into fresh clothes and grabbed something to eat because, if I planned to play all night, I needed to fill my stomach first.

When I finished eating, I grabbed a beer from the fridge and rushed to my computer, eager to turn it on and start gaming as soon as possible.

"How many mods did I install again?" I wondered.

For Skyrim, I had downloaded a lot of mods, most of which I couldn't even remember. The ones I did recall included one that improved the game's graphics, another that enhanced the appearance of Skyrim's women, and, of course, the one that allowed me to marry Serana. After all, if the base game didn't allow it, mods would make it possible.

The computer finally booted up, so I immediately launched Skyrim.

Everything seemed normal. The sound was the same, the loading screen was the same—it all gave me a wave of nostalgia, as it had been a while since I last played.

The first thing I noticed was the option to continue or start a new game. I chose "New Game" to start fresh, as I always did whenever I finished the main story or abandoned the game for too long.

What I saw when the new game started felt odd. "Where's Alduin?" I asked aloud, confused, as he didn't appear like he usually did at the start of a new game. Then I remembered that I had installed the Alternate Start mod, which made more sense.

Several minutes passed without the game loading, which I found strange. I started to think I should have let the computer process other things first before jumping straight into the game.

Then, the tower of my PC began making a loud noise, which worried me. I thought maybe there were too many mods overheating it, so I tried to shut it off, but instead, the computer shut down completely.

"Damn it! It just got back, and I already broke it," I said, frustrated.

I leaned back in my chair, thinking I'd have to send it for repairs again. I reached for my beer, but it slipped and spilled all over the floor.

"Now this…"

I grabbed some paper towels to clean it up, and as soon as I touched the spill, everything went dark.

--

--

I felt a bit uncomfortable, like something was poking my back. When I touched it, it was slightly wet, so I stood up with a slight headache.

Looking around, I saw I was at the edge of a shallow river. I stood up, feeling a bit confused.

"Did someone kidnap me?" I said aloud, my voice sounding different—higher-pitched. I looked at my hands, which were smaller and covered in what appeared to be scales, along with sharp claws. My arms had scales too. As I inspected my body, I realized it was covered in scales.

"What's happening?"

I looked at my reflection in the river and saw that I didn't have my usual appearance. Instead, I was a strange-looking child. My forehead, hands, arms, and legs were covered in scales, and I had a tail resembling a reptile's, as well as two horns on my head. Everything was white: the scales, the horns, and my hair. My eyes were blue, with slit pupils like a reptile's.

"What is this? Where am I?"

I looked around, and though I didn't recognize the place, it felt familiar.

"Skyrim? Is this Skyrim?" I asked, recalling the river.

"I'm in Skyrim!" I shouted joyfully, jumping as I remembered I must be near Ivarstead.

"I guess things work the same as in the game."

I tried to open the inventory but noticed there was no HUD. That realization hit me like a bucket of cold water.

"Wait a second... Am I really in Skyrim?"

I began to piece things together, wondering how and why I ended up here. The only explanation I could think of was that when my computer shut down, there was some kind of short circuit, and when I tried to clean up the beer, I got electrocuted.

"So, I must have died and, like in a Japanese story, ended up here."

I tried accessing the settings, but nothing happened. The same was true for inventory, magic, and quests.

I sat down, staring at my new appearance. "I've seen this form before." I remembered that I had also installed a mod for a new race called Half-Dragon, but I didn't recall them looking like this.

"Well, it doesn't make much sense for me to be here anyway. I would've preferred having the system, but I won't complain. At least I don't have to deal with corpses anymore."

I thought about what to do next since I had no clear objectives. If this really was Skyrim, then I should have magic, which intrigued me. But given my appearance as a child, I guessed I was about 5 or 6 years old.

Like any starting character, I should have Flames and Healing magic. I decided to try them.

I focused for a moment, but nothing happened. Then I felt something stir in my chest, and a golden light emerged from my hand, giving me a sense of relief.

Seeing that it worked, I tried Flames. I barely managed to produce a small flicker of fire in my palm, which went out almost immediately.

"Now, what do I do?"

I looked around and noticed a path leading uphill. It should take me to Ivarstead, though it seemed much farther away than in the game. That seemed normal; if distances were too short, the world would feel unrealistic.

I started walking up the path, thinking about the system. I even made strange gestures in case it activated that way, but nothing happened.

I tried using the Thu'um, but nothing happened there either, which was odd given that I was a half-dragon.

"How does it work?"

I passed a small cave filled with animal bones and what looked like a human body. Ignoring it, I kept walking until I heard something move.

I turned around and saw a creature I knew all too well. "A damn bear." That beast had killed me countless times in my early Skyrim playthroughs.

I crouched and tried to back away as the bear moved toward the river, seemingly fishing for the swimming trout.

The bear caught one, but as it lifted its head, it spotted me. I froze in place. The bear let out a loud growl, so I took a deep breath and ran.

As I ran, I felt the bear closing in on me. "Crap, crap, crap!" I cursed, focusing only on running as I climbed the path toward Ivarstead.

"If I make it, I'll be safe. If I make it, I win," I told myself, trying to encourage myself.

I considered attacking it with magic, but quickly dismissed the idea. I could barely produce a flame, and I didn't know how much magic I had left. Running was my only option.

If I could reach Ivarstead, the guards could take care of the bear, so I had to make it no matter what.

I glanced back and saw the bear dangerously close. It lunged to bite me. I braced myself, closing my eyes, but the attack never came. Instead, I heard a single word:

"Child."