The strangest thing Sheogorath has ever said.
In *TES: Blades*, the player character (the Warrior, a Blades agent) returns home after the Great War to find his hometown set ablaze.
One of the few people left in the ruins is a mysterious stranger named *'Theodor Gorlash',* the Daedric Prince Sheogorath in (a paper thin) disguise (a bearded 'mage' with golden eyes and a name that's an anagram for *'Lord Sheogorath'*).
Sheogorath's manifestations range from a regalia wearing Alfiq that behaves as a housecat would (Skooma Cat) to a *'field of flowers with arms instead of petals and Sheogorath's face at the center'* appearing in dreams, but it is the *'Theodor'* avatar that is perhaps the most peculiar.
[https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Online:Skooma\_Cat](https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Online:Skooma_Cat)
[https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Lore:Myths\_of\_Sheogorath](https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Lore:Myths_of_Sheogorath)
Sheogorath greets the Warrior by exclaiming that the two *'at long last'* meet '*once again for the first time'* , calls the encounter '*unexpected and yet carefully planned'* and claims the two *'have and have not met before',* ending the bizzare exchange by reassuring that he *'remembers'* the past meeting/s for both parties even if the Warrior doesn't.
The cryptic remarks don't stop there though. Sheogorath calls the place both are in *'special'* claiming that it represents a great many possibilities that are implied to potentially tie into these forgotten encounters and how they were possible (but also urges the Warrior not to think about it's nature too much or they'll go mad), and in all his dialogue refuses to name the town, saying things like *'I'm from here-wherever "here" is'.*
Fittingly, Sheogorath seems to have detailed knowledge of the Warrior's life, he knows their name before they say it ( making a transparent attempt to 'correct' himself that '*This actually is our first encounter, when I learned your name for the very first time.'* and that he's glad the issue could be cleared up), he knows their past and circumstances concerning the Blades and Great War, and he even knows where they used to play with their friends as children.
This awareness is shown throughout the story to extend to other things: Sheogorath knows of the Sorcerer-King Celemaril's past and how he was undecided on the end goal of his campaign which led to his original defeat, he knows how the search for the Greencap spy will unfold, he even implies he knew how the struggle to reseal Celemaril would end (even hinting at knowledge of the Warrior's nature making it a foregone conclusion, possibly the same concept as the Prisoner described by Sotha Sil).
There are other aspects to this (Sheogorath allows the player character to redo character creation for example, a change only the Warrior and himself can perceive no matter how drastic, even those with lifelong interactions with the Warrior will behave as if the change is how things always were) but the prior experiences only Sheogorath seems to recall arguably remain the most bizzare.
[https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Blades:Theodor\_Gorlash](https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Blades:Theodor_Gorlash)
[https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Online:Sotha\_Sil](https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Online:Sotha_Sil)
The situation in *Blades* (the suggested awareness of how things will unfold) possibly has something of a precedent in Sheogorath's first ever appearance in *Daggerfall* (which also has him manifest in Aetherius, in the Mantellan Crux, and exert a degree of control over that realm,especially the portion of the trial labyrinth near the end) also has him exclaim that the player character has *'come to pay their respects properly at last'* (suggesting he was expecting the Agent would arrive to seek the Mantella).
[https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Daggerfall:Journey\_to\_Aetherius](https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Daggerfall:Journey_to_Aetherius)
Likewise, in ESO Sheogorath speaks of *'reassembling the pieces of the Staff of Chaos'* and *'rebuilding the Numidium',* seemingly hinting at the events of *TES I/Arena* and either the events of *TESII: Daggerfall* or the rebuilding of the Numidium by Zurin Arctus, all of which take place centuries after 2E 582 at the earliest and in late 3E at the latest (he even throws in a reference to the whereabouts of Colovian Fur Hats, which is something you'd expect M'aiq to say).
In *Elseweyr*, the visions Sheogorath has Moon-Bishop Sizenza experience hint at how that storyline will unfold.
[https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Online:Sheogorath](https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Online:Sheogorath)
[https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Online:Moon-Bishop\_Sizenza](https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Online:Moon-Bishop_Sizenza)
[https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Arena:Ria\_Silmane](https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Arena:Ria_Silmane)
[https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Lore:The\_Warp\_in\_the\_West](https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Lore:The_Warp_in_the_West)
[https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Lore:The\_Arcturian\_Heresy](https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Lore:The_Arcturian_Heresy)
[https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Oblivion:M%27aiq\_the\_Liar](https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Oblivion:M%27aiq_the_Liar)
A number of factors might potentially tie into this:
Some of the things Sheogorath says could simply be the result of his nature as a Daedric Prince.
Time in Oblivion is not bound to the (generally) linear flow of Mundus and things like the direction or speed with which time moves are subject to change depending on the will of the spirit/s in control of each realm.
This sort of thing can be observed in a number of instances: Darien exiting Meridia's realm in a point in time prior to that in which he entered it, the Black Books and other tomes associated with Hermaeus Mora being transported from both past, present and future, Nocturnal's influence in Ebon Stadmont transporting people to the past and the inhabitants of the Shivering Isles being subject to the effects of time only if/when Sheogorath wants them to be, for example (this isn't exclusive to the Daedra, the Warrior Celestial also transports Titus Valerius to the future). According to Fa-Nuit-Hen similarity between the time flow of Mundus and Oblivion planes, when present, has to be included as a conscious choice by each dimension's creator/s (said to be to attract/allow for mortal presence in the case of the realm of the Demiprince).
[https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Lore:Lord\_Fa-Nuit-Hen\_and\_Tutor\_Riparius\_Answer\_Your\_Questions\_2](https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Lore:Lord_Fa-Nuit-Hen_and_Tutor_Riparius_Answer_Your_Questions_2)
[https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Online:Darien\_Gautier](https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Online:Darien_Gautier)
[https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Lore:Chamberlain\_Haskill\_Answers\_Your\_Questions](https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Lore:Chamberlain_Haskill_Answers_Your_Questions)
[https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Lore:Exegesis\_of\_Merid-Nunda](https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Lore:Exegesis_of_Merid-Nunda)
[https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Online:Gandranen\_Ruins](https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Online:Gandranen_Ruins)
[https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:Neloth](https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:Neloth)
[https://www.imperial-library.info/content/arena-manual-introduction](https://www.imperial-library.info/content/arena-manual-introduction)
[https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Online:Titus\_Valerius](https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Online:Titus_Valerius)
[https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Online:Andewen](https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Online:Andewen)
Scrying through time is also a possible explanation.
Hermaeus Mora's sphere includes the scrying of fate, with the Prince himself saying he can see the thread of one's life itself, past, present and future.
[https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Online:Hermaeus\_Mora](https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Online:Hermaeus_Mora)
The link to Jyggalag potentially makes this especially relevant in Sheogorath's case( though *Blades* does take place in 4E, post Shivering Isles). According to Dyus the formulae in Jyggalag's library could predict every action ever performed and every event that ever unfolded regardless of whether it was mortal or immortal in origin.
Per Thoron's journal, gazing into the crystalline surface of the Sword of Jyggalag allows one to view all of time, past/present/future *'flowing as one'.*
[https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:Thoron%27s\_Journal](https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:Thoron%27s_Journal)
[https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Shivering:Dyus](https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Shivering:Dyus)
How encompassing a Daedric Prince's spiritual/metaphysical presence is said to be could also provide a potential explanation (due to corresponding perception of events).
According to page 585 of the Skyrim Prima Guide for the Legendary/Special Edition:
*Hermaeus Mora is the Daedric Prince of Knowledge, he who scryes the tides of Fate, weaving his way through the past and future.* ***Always lurking, he is the void and the ever-seeing eyes. He resides everywhere and nowhere*** *but takes glee in tormenting mortals from his realm in Oblivion, the plane called Apocrypha, where the infinite pages of countless books containing all forbidden knowledge are found.*
Sheogorath is described in similar terms by both himself and others:
Madness in general is said in a number of sources to be caused by Sheogorath 'whispering' in people's minds (with both Ravate's tale and Sheogorath himself in TESV noting he already exists in everyone as a *'shadow'* in their minds), for example (interestingly, what Sheogorath whispers is said to be *'advice and information* beyond the recipient's capacity to comprehend specifically, this link to knowledge is seemingly also present in the tale of Shalidor, who could only achieve the \*'secret of life'/\*Glamoril,speculated by some sources to be able to allow one to live multiple lifetimes at once, through the knowledge of Sheogorath's Folium Discognitum), and Talym's madness in Legends is depicted through a series of spectral faces/butterflies (symbolic of Sheogorath's influence) emerging from/hovering around his head.
In ESO (the *Chaos Magic* quest) Sheogorath says he exists *'neither here nor anywhere'* (similar to what is said of Mora) and that the player character can only perceive him in this particular manifestation because they '*possess a special untapped talent for unhinged insanity'* (the Vestige being the only one in the area who can do so).
[https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Lore:Myths\_of\_Sheogorath](https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Lore:Myths_of_Sheogorath)
[https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:Sheogorath](https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:Sheogorath)