Asa

Asa is a dozy sheep Vtuber that streams a variety of games, from big triple A games to small indie games. Asa loves to bring a soft and cozy place for lost souls that stumble upon her abode.

Credits: Basic story: Me, Story building and writing: @yun_nathan

Part 1:

Sleep Paralysis. The feeling of being conscious, but unable to move. Occurs when transitioning from asleep to awake, and is caused by a combination of factors. While asleep, the human brain intentionally paralyzes the body's muscles to prevent people from acting out their dreams. And sometimes, when they wake, the brain doesn't let go in time and sleep paralysis results. Often times the fear from being unable to move is combined with the dream state, resulting in "hypnagogic hallucinations". Feelings of being dragged out from your bed. Difficulty breathing, even choking. Shadowy figures sitting at the foot of your bed or on your body, staring you down as you look back helplessly. People in the past believed these seemingly supernatural occurrences to be the work of demons and monsters, but science has since found a logical, reason-based explanation.

What if I told you, however, that those in the past were closer to the truth?

Night Hags. Those who are truly responsible for sleep paralysis. Existing in a dimension between the waking world and the world of dreams, they feed on defenseless, sleeping humans. To do so, they briefly materialize in the physical world and turn dreams into nightmares, feeding on the immense fear. Usually these night hags feed unnoticed, and humans explain their work as simple nightmares. To keep humans from resisting, these night hags briefly bind them, making them unable to move. Fear Essence is extracted through the mouth, temporarily halting oxygen flow. Sometimes, however, the human wakes up early, unable to move or breathe. A shadowy figure sitting on their bed, or even their chest. Legs and arms clamped down. Sleep paralysis.

No one believes the stories of "sleep paralysis demons", as science has explained everything for them. Thus, the Night Hags have lived in complete secrecy, the human race unaware of their existence.

Until now.

Part 2:

The current Night King's daughter was born with a rare mutation only previously known as legend: The Empath Gene. This gene has not been seen in thousands of years, as it had been naturally selected for in order to streamline the feeding process. Those with the gene, and thus the Crown Princess, experience their source human's nightmares as their own, sharing every emotion and experience. The gripping fear, the unending terror, even overwhelming sorrow and despair. The worst for her were those who simply accepted the monsters in their head, as if they wanted their own demise to come. Innumerable human nightmares would linger in her own mind, tormenting her every waking moment and invading all of her own dreams. Unable to live with herself and her race torturing innocent humans, her mind filled with the terrifying visions she inflicted on others...

The Crown Princess ran away.

Vowing never to bring about another nightmare, the princess ran until she was sure she was alone. If she would eventually die from being unable to feed, so be it. At least she wouldn't be hurting another innocent human.

At least retribution would come to someone who deserved it.

Her eyelids heavier than ever before, she finally let them close. She knew the nightmares, the nightmares of others that she caused, would come flooding back. But strangely, she was at peace.

Suddenly, the ground began to violently shake and the earth opened up beneath her. The princess had experienced this nightmare before, from a young boy afraid of earthquakes, but this one felt too real. As it split the earth behind her, it screamed with the voices of a thousand tormented souls. The chasm seemed to follow her as she ran. No matter how fast she went, it was always faster. No matter how much she curved and weaved around the dense trees, it always followed. Suddenly, her foot snagged on a rock...

And she never hit the ground.

The streak of light from the sky grew smaller until it was a crack, then a speck, then gone.

The princess closed her eyes, not that it made a difference. It was pitch black around her anyway. Perhaps this was the retribution she so deserved...

Down she fell, further...

Further...

Further...

Until sleep finally embraced her once more.

PART 3:

Her dream was not a nightmare.

It was the first pleasant dream she ever had.

She was sitting in a field of all kinds of flowers - tulips, lilies, poppies, even sunflowers. And surrounding her were a crowd of sheep, staring expectantly at her. Not knowing what to do, she simply stared back. Until one of them came up cautiously, placing its head in her lap. What she felt from it was not fear, terror, or any of the other emotions inundating her in the past. Instead, what she felt was calm and warm, neither of which she had felt before. When she looked down, the sheep was sound asleep. And another wandered up to her, leaning against her side. Again, the same calming warmth and again, it fell promptly asleep. Now more sheep were coming up to her, surrounding her with their soft wool and the same strange warmth.

One, two, three, four...

They lay all around her - in her lap, behind her back, on her sides - until it seemed like she was floating in a sea of clouds.

Five, six, seven, eight...

For the first time, she felt emotions other than those from her past.

Nine, ten, eleven, twelve,

Joy welled up inside her, turning into laughter as more sheep wandered towards her; even those from far away began coming by and eventually joining in the peaceful slumber.

Thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen...

Laughter gave way to tears. She didn't deserve this. All she did in life was bring pain onto others. Why does she get to experience this... What did the humans call it?

Happiness?

Hugging a sheep in her lap the princess sobbed, drying her tears in its wool.

Seventeen, eighteen...

Nineteen...

PART 4:

Two surprises came when she woke:

First, she woke. Didn't expect that. Whatever happened to her retribution?

Second, she was in some sort of residence. A human one, no doubt. She wandered around, examining the splintering wooden walls and stained carpets on the floor. Opening a door, presumably to the bedroom, she gasped and nearly jumped.

A human.

An old female, likely with not much time left. Sadness overtook the princess, but she was surprised when the old lady beckoned to her.

"Come, sit here on the bed."

"Are... you not afraid of me?"

The princess looked at her own hideous, shadowy figure in a nearby mirror.

"Sweetie, it's not about how you look on the outside, but on the inside. I hope you don't mind, but I took a look into your emotions while you were dreaming. I could feel everything. Your fear, your happiness, your sadness..."

"You have my curse too?"

"I wouldn't call it a curse. The people around me did, though. Called me a witch and took me out in front of the townspeople to burn me at the stake. All I tried to do was help others find happiness..."

The princess could see tears in her eyes.

"Come here sweetie, I don't have much time left."

The lady placed the princess's hand on her head, only for the princess to quickly draw it away.

"No! I'll give you nightmares!"

"Just trust me, sweetie. It'll be all right."

The princess cautiously placed her hand on the lady's head once more.

And the warmth from her dream returned.

PART 5:

The princess saw and felt everything.

The lady was sickly and frail as a child, and in order to avoid getting sick she could not be around many people other than her loving parents. Her only friend was a doll they made for her out of sheep's wool, which she named Asa. Asa had long, flowing white hair, floppy ears, and a red and yellow button for eyes. And she was the girl's best friend.

Throughout her childhood, her and Asa would go on adventures together. They would sail through endless seas, meeting all kinds of creatures. They would find immense, golden trees, filled with light and radiating warmth that could be felt from miles away. They would trek through rotten wastelands, fending each other off from undead monsters and finding piles of treasure.

One day, her parents were taken by the lords of the region, and this young girl was taken to a monastery to become a servant of "God".

Whoever that was.

It was here that she found her gift, as she would feel the dreams of other orphans like her as they would cry into their thin blankets. Some kids never had parents, and were forced to fend for themselves on the streets. Some found work, but were treated terribly and thrown out for being "worthless". Some saw their own parents murdered in front of their eyes.

When she awoke the next day, the young girl went to each child, handed them Asa, and told them all about their adventures together. She would give them hugs and take their burdens upon herself, replacing their sadness and fear with happiness and joy. Soon, there was no more crying to be heard amongst the children, and when the adults asked they all pointed to the girl.

But instead of commending her and admiring her gift, they called her a witch. She was dragged out into the town square and tied to a stake, clutching Asa as scorching flames engulfed her.

PART 6:

Her eyes snapped open again, heart racing and breath panting. The girl's life was just like the nightmares she inflicted on other people. But it was real.

"Now, sweetie, let's try again. This time, try giving me pleasant dreams. It's always been my wish to experience my gift myself."

The princess placed her hand on the lady again, and tried her best to bring about a pleasant dream. She brought back the girl's adventures with Asa, The loving embrace of her mother, The rough hands of her father as they walked through the town market together, holding hands, The laughter and hugs from her friends as she rid them of their nightmares. The princess even used some of her recent dream: The sea of sheep's wool that radiated endless warmth.

"Now do you see? It's no curse, isn't it?"

The princess opened her eyes, and the lady was gone.

"Thank you, sweetie. Now go! You have a job to do now, don't you?"

She was right.

The princess stepped outside the cottage to a familiar sight.

An endless field of all kinds of flowers - tulips, lilies, poppies, even sunflowers. And surrounding her were a crowd of lost souls, staring expectantly at her.

PART 7 (last part):

Taking each soul, one at a time, the princess turned their nightmares into the sweetest dreams she could think of. When she began, a lot of them were the same since she only had her own dream and the life of the old lady to use. But as she met more souls she experienced more stories, and soon people began flocking to the cottage. Each time she held a soul in her embrace or placed her hand on their head, they would begin radiating the same warmth and happiness from her first dream. And each time they would fade away with a smile on their face.

At first, the princess knew not where they went, but sometimes she would see a soul again that she had helped in the past before. Over time, she began to realize her role. Some lost souls would come to her looking for some last pleasant visions before they pass on. Others had accidentally wandered in from the land of the living, returning home after receiving "The Princess's Dreams". Realizing this, the princess had a thought. What if, instead of helping lost souls, she would instead come to people in the living world and give her dreams to them? This way, there wouldn't be any more lost souls wandering into the flower field to search for them.

She would need a better appearance, though. After all, people would still be scared of a shadowy, monster-like being despite the sweet dreams it may grant them. So, the princess stood in front of the same mirror in the cottage bedroom, and knew exactly what she would become.

Her sharp, rough skin became smooth and soft. Her claws became beautiful human hands. Her grotesque horns changed to match a sheep's, and her ears flopped down like a sheep's as well. The black aura surrounding her transformed into long, flowing, shining white hair. The pitch-dark pits that were her eyes began to twinkle red and yellow.

Asa has been reborn.

And now, she's here with you.

Come to take you into her loving embrace and grant you the sweetest dreams of your life.