“Hey, dragon, you're good at this! Keep it up! I've always wanted to sky-dive!”\n\t“Don't mock me! I'll go faster, then!”\n\t“All right!”\n\t“And even faster!”\n\t“Yee-haw!”\n\t“Raagh! Human, do you not know fear?”\n\t“Heck, no! This is awesome! Is this what you do for fun? 'Cause I love it!”\n\t“Raagh. You're a strange one.”\n\t“Man, I wish I could fly like this forever. I love being friends with a dragon.”\n\tYou feel a slight slackening in your wings and the out-of-control spiralling descent slows to a bearable speed. \n\t“You are not staying with me forever! And we're not friends!”\n\t“I love dragons. You're probably the most majestic creature that ever lived.”\n\t“Odd you say that. I think you should hate us. After all, I've been roasting your fellow humans to a crisp since the first day I took to the skies!”\n\t“You should consider stopping that. Wouldn't you rather be admired than hated? I'm sure you can find some humans somewhere who would appreciate your majestic ways. You could even be friends.”\n\t“Humans and dragons, friends? Don't make me laugh.”\n\t“You never know until you try. You never even thought about befriending a human, did you?”\n\t“Well... it sounds ridiculous…”\n\t“Don't you think you're being a bit of a hypocrite when you hate the humans for being so violent, and yet you spend your whole life killing them? You're just doing the same thing they are, aren't you? You need to find another way. A way you can both live in peace.”\n\t“What you're talking about doesn't exist.”\n\t“Well, go fly around the whole world if you have to, until you find the right place and the right people. You've got wings, don't you? Once you find it, I'm sure you'll feel better about yourself.”\n\t“An around-the-world adventure…?”\n\t“Yeah, sure!”\n \t“Hmm, I do like the sound of that. I'll... consider what you said. You're a strange one, human! I've never met one like you.”\n\t“I've never met a dragon like you, either! Too bad I've got to leave now.”\n\t[[“Well then, may we meet again.”]]\n\t\n\n

\t“Hey, dragon, I know you hate humans, but don't you think you're going a bit far? You're driving yourself crazy over this! You're just going to hurt yourself if you keep spinning like this!”\n\t“Don't try to sweet-talk me, human. I won't spare you!”\n\t“You know you can't kill me no matter what you do, because I'm already dead. Just please, calm down!”\n\t“Why must you plague me?! I want nothing more to do with your kind!”\n\t“Yeah, I know how you feel! I hate humans too. Actually, I like your company a lot better.”\n\t“What did you say?”\n\tYou feel a slight slackening in your wings and the out-of-control spiralling descent [[slows to a bearable speed.]] \n\t

Despite how freaked out you are, you remember how you tuned into the tree's emotions the last time, and put all your energy into listening to the dragon's inner voice.\n\tA shrieking, roaring voice fills your head, making you feel like your insides are going to shatter.\n\tRarrrghh! I've had enough with these vile, arrogant humans! They're taking over my land, killing the forests, hunting me! Now they invade my mind! Audacious, irritating worms! I ought to raze every last one of their little hovels to the ground! I'll burn the flesh off of them and rip them from limb to limb! I'll snack on their infants, I'll turn their corpses into food for my children! I will have my revenge no matter what! I will destroy you, parasite! I will shake you off and see you smashed on the earth!\n\tScary, but at least now you know why the dragon's so mad. But now what do you do?\n\n[[Try to calm the dragon down.]]\n[[Act like you're enjoying the ride.]]\n

“Now, listen, cucumber, maybe you're going to be eaten, but I don't want to see you feeling miserable. You need to face your fate with courage.”\n\t“But I don't wanna die.”\n\t“You'll be fine. The worst part is waiting, trust me.”\n\t“You'll stay here with me?”\n\t“Of course. We'll face this together.”\n\t“Okay....”\n\tAfter a few minutes, you hear a man's footsteps. Someone is coming into the kitchen. He glances at you as he walks past and reaches for a drawer. You hear a sickening sound of clattering silverware: he's going for a knife!\n\t“I'm sorry, little guy, but it looks like this is it. You're going to be eaten.”\n\t“No! I'm going to die!”\n\t“I know you're scared, but it's okay. You'll be fulfilling your life's purpose. Cucumber's need to be eaten. It won't hurt, I promise.”\n\t“I wanna go back home and see Mommy.”\n\t“I'm sure your mom's proud of you.”\n\t“You think so?”\n\t“Yes, definitely. You're facing your destiny with courage.”\n\t“Okay!”\n\tThe man comes near with his knife and, without hesitation, makes a slice into your water-filled body. To your surprise, you don't feel very much.\t\n\t“It doesn't hurt! Being eaten isn't that bad after all.”\n\t“Whew!”\n\t“It's a little ticklish, but I'm fine! Thanks. You were really inspiring.”\n \n\t<i> “Okay, Gatekeeper, I'm done here!”\n\t“Your words of courage were an inspiration to cucumbers everywhere.”\n\t“Hey, it's scary when you're about to be eaten!”\n\t[[“Time to go.”|Let's get you out of there.”]] </i>\n

<i> I'm drifting in the darkness.... I can't see a single thing. What's happening? My body... something's weird about it. It's so light, it's never felt like this before. Is it even there? I try to flail out my arms to grab onto something, but I feel nothing, not even my arms. This is freaking me out!\n\tI get the feeling someone else is around. I can't see them, but maybe if I try I could say something...? </i>\n\n[[Say something.]]\n[[Try to remember what happened.]]\n

“It's pretty cool actually!”\n\t“Then how would you feel about staying like this for a while longer?”\n\n[["Sure!"]]\n[[“No way! I miss my family.”|It's a drag. I want out.]]

“You want to know what it's like being human?”\n\t“Of course I do. I've dreamed about it my entire life.”\n\t“You might regret knowing. You sure?”\n“Yeah I'm sure!”\n“Well, let's see… you have to work a lot. You gotta eat and find a place to live. People pick on you, tell you what to do, try to get in your way, hurt you sometimes. You might fight with people who you care about...”\n\t“Why would you do something like that?”\n\t“It just happens, because people are stupid sometimes.”\n\t“What else?”\n\t“You have to protect yourself and fight for what you believe in. Sometimes you make mistakes, and people hate you for it. It's pretty stressful, actually.”\n\t“Is it that bad?”\n\t“It can be.”\n\t“I still want to try it. I just have to see for myself, so I'll know for sure whether I like it or not.”\n\t“Uhh... That might be difficult.” \n\t“It's possible.” It's the voice of the Gatekeeper. \n\t“Really?” you respond. “How?”\n\t“We'll transform the tree into a human, temporarily. You have the power to do it.”\n\t“You're serious?”\n\t“I don't kid, kid! It's up to you.”\n\t“Okay then, tree. If it's what you really want, we're gonna make you into a human.”\n\t“Ooh, do it, please!”\n\t“I've never done this before... Wait a sec... Umm, here goes!”\n\tIn front of your eyes, the tree fades away as a human child comes into being. She looks up at where the tree used to be, in your direction, with a big grin on her face.\n\t“I can't believe it... This is amazing. Thanks so much!”\n\t“Go knock yourself out, y'hear?” \n\tThe child runs off towards the other children in the playground, laughing.\n\t[[You watch after her with a faint smile of satisfaction.]]\n

You think as hard as you can, but all your memories feel like a blurry haze. You definitely remember your parents. Mom and Dad.... You feel like they were mad at you. But why? \n\tYou want to shake your head in frustration. Why is that all you can remember? If you could move your fists right now, you'd punch something. But even that's impossible. You hate this stupid freaky place!\n\n\t“Weren't you going to say hi?”\n\tA strange voice floats from the darkness near you and shocks you out of your stupor. \n\t“You're confused, aren't you?” the voice continues. “That's common with the dead.”\n\t“Did you say 'the dead'?!”\n\t“Oh sorry, you didn't know? Yeah… You died, and now you're here.”\n\t[[“But how…?”]]\n

“Yeah, I'm ready. I'll do whatever it takes if it means I get a chance to go back to my life!”\n\t“That's the spirit. Now let's hope your enthusiasm lasts more than a few minutes.”\n\t[[“Don't worry, I got this!”|you'll see soon enough.”]]\n

“Whew, that's better. Yeah, people are annoying. They're greedy, loud, violent, uncaring. So I understand why you hate them.”\n\t“They're destroying the earth! There are barely a dozen of us dragon kind surviving, and our numbers dwindle by the day.”\n\t“I'm sorry to hear that. I wish we had lots of dragons in the world, too.”\n\t“Your kind wastes all the planet's resources on wars against each other. Killing each other while killing the planet. What manner of foolishness is this? I do your kind a service by putting you out of your misery!”\n\t“Maybe you do. But not all humans are like that, you know. There are good ones, who care about the planet. People who don't fight each other. They live in peace. You dragons should find them. You can live together, helping each other and the planet.”\n\t“Ha! You're daydreaming.”\n\t“No, I'm sure about it. It's the only chance your kind has of surviving. Think about it: you hate the humans who make war, but you also destroy their homes in anger. You're doing the same thing they are. You're being a hypocrite!”\n\t[[You feel your body loosen up even more]] as a heavy sigh rumbles out of your lungs.

“You wanna know what happened? You're not gonna like it.”\n“You have to tell me.”\n“You went out on your motorbike last night. Your parents told you not to, but you went anyway. It was raining hard. You'd had an argument with your dad. You were mad. You weren't concentrating on the road. Your tire slipped as you were making a tight turn. You spun out of control and ended up thrown from your bike, onto the road. There was a car behind you, and it couldn't stop in time. It crushed you.”\n\t“No way... That can't have happened. I'm a good rider!”\n\t“Well. Better face the facts now. Your body's gone, kid. If you ask me, you had it coming. You were an arrogant little snot, as far as I could tell.”\n\t“Hey! You don't even know me.”\n\t“I know enough.”\n\t[["Who are you supposed to be?"|Who are you supposed to be?]]

\t“Good job.” It's the Gatekeeper's voice. “You're not as bad at this as you looked.”\n\t“Do I get to go back to my life now?”\n\tA laugh from the Gatekeeper. “Don't be silly. You've only started.”\n\t“That's what I thought you'd say.”\n\t“Time for your next experience. You get to pick.”\n\t“I do?!”\n\n[["I'll go with a dragon."|I'll go with a dragon.]]\n[["I'll go with a cucumber."|I'll go with a cucumber.]]

“Who are you supposed to be? You're giving me the creeps!”\n\t“I'm the Gatekeeper. You'd better watch your attitude, 'cause I decide what to do with you now that you're no longer living.”\n\t“You mean like... going to heaven or Hell?”\n\t“Not quite. Right now we're in what we could call your soul, basically. Since you haven't quite departed from the earthly world, we're stuck here for now.” \n\t“And what's wrong with that?”\n\t“Well, it isn't the most welcoming place I've ever been, to put it mildly.”\n\t“Whatever. So... what happens to me now?”\n\t“First, we have to see whether there's a chance you want to go back to the world of the living.”\n\t“What?! Are you kidding? I can do that?”\n\t“If you want it badly enough, yes, it's possible.”\n\t[["Of course I want to go back to living!"|Of course I want to go back to living!]]\n

\t<i> “Okay, Gatekeeper, I'm done here!”\n\t“Good job. That was rather amusing, watching you crawl around like that.”\n\t“I reunited a mother and child. I'm proud of myself.”\n\t[[“Time to go.”|Let's get you out of there.”]] </i>

<i> I wake up. I see a couple of trees, a quiet street in the suburbs, a building that looks like a school behind me. I can hear loud, high-pitched, laughing, chattering voices coming from all around, and a bunch of kids are playing with a ball and running around nearby. I guess I'm at a school playground? </i>\n\tYou notice that you can't move at all, and your arms are involuntarily outstretched. You feel a heaviness at your base, as though you're rooted to the spot. You look out at your “arms” and realize they're thin, green and leafy. They're branches!\n\tWait, I'm a tree?!\n\t“Hey, Gatekeeper, I didn't know I could become a tree! What kind of sick joke is this?! Let me out of here!”\n\tThere's no response except a faint chuckle. You're stuck as a tree... for now, you hope.\n\tAngrily resigned, you decide to try talking to the tree.\n\t“All right, tree, what do you want?” What kind of problems could a tree have? you wonder. You always assumed they'd be pretty happy with their lives.\n\tSuddenly, as if out of nowhere, you feel a surge of emotions that are not your own.\n\t<i> Look at those kids. Look how they get to run everywhere they want, and they have so many friends. I'm stuck here with a bunch of old-timer trees who don't even want to talk to me anymore. I can barely move my branches more than a few inches. I'm young, too! Don't I deserve to go out into the world and experience all its wonders? Instead, I'm forced to stand here silently watching while the kids and the teachers pass me by every day, laughing and talking and going about their busy lives, without even a glance at me. Once in a while someone throws some trash near my roots and I have to wait until the groundskeeper comes and picks it up for me. Even he doesn't look at me, even though he comes so close to where I am. I want to scream at them, “I'm alive too!” but I can't. \n\tI hate being a tree! It's so unfair. </i>\n\tYou're shocked at this flood of emotions coming from a tree. What should you do?\n\n[[Talk about being a tree.]]\n[[Talk about being a human.]]\n

“Hey, Gatekeeper! Who the hell would pick being a cucumber? You'd have to be retarded.”\n\t“What's wrong with being a cucumber? It's relaxing.”\n\t“Like watching paint dry? Wait a second. I didn't know dragons still existed.”\n\t“Tsk tsk. Kid, I'm a Gatekeeper. My powers are not limited by time or space.”\n\t“Really? So you could send me to a cave-person or… maybe a dinosaur? Yeah, that'd be cool! Hey, how bout aliens? So do they exist?” \n“I've had enough of your nosy questions! Now get out of here!”\n\t“Okay, okay...”\n\nI open my eyes. I'm soaring in the sky! I look down and see the shapes of mountains below me, looking tiny from this distance. The ground is reaaally far down. I'm moving so fast. The wind shrieks in my ears and I start to feel queasy. So this is what it's like to fly? It's kinda freaking me out!\n\tYou can feel your huge wings pumping up and down powerfully. Your body is muscular, orange-coloured and scaly. Strength and energy seem to ripple through every cell in your body. You feel as though you have dominion over every single being on this planet. Your eyes are as sharp as a hawk's, too! If you wanted to, you could follow the movement of the water in the rivers five thousand feet below you. The scales on your body make you feel like you're wearing a plate of thick armour. Even this high up in the sky, you don't feel the coldness of the wind at all.\n\t“Who are you?” A cold voice is addressing you. “Speak!”\n\tYou realize it's the dragon.\n\t“Uh, I'm here to help you. I'm a spirit, or something like that, I'm not really sure myself to be honest -”\n\t“You're a human, aren't you?”\n\t“I used to be. I'm dead at the moment.”\n\t“So you are a human.”\n\t“I - I don't know if you could say that. I'm more of a spirit... ghost... disembodied voice... type of thing.”\n\t“You think I'll let you hitch a ride, parasite?! I don't care what you are! Remove yourself now!”\n\t“Whoa, whoa. The Gatekeeper sent me here. I don't know how to leave even if I wanted to.”\n\t“Then I'll make you!”\n\tYou suddenly feel yourself lurch as your body is hurled into a spinning nose-dive. You're rotating at a ferocious rate, even as you plummet towards the mountains. You don't know how much longer you can take this. It's making you sick!\n\n[[Calm down and think of a solution.]]\n[[Ask the Gatekeeper for help.]]\n

<i> “Gatekeeper! I need your help! Like seriously!”\n\t“What kind of trouble have you gotten yourself into now?”\n\t“I'm not sure if I'm going to die, but this dragon's gone crazy!”\n\t“No, you won't die. You're already dead, remember?”\n\t“Well, what should I do? It might kill itself at this rate!”\n\t“If it does, then you'll have failed.”\n\t“That's not helping right now!”\n\t“Calm down. Remember what happened with the tree?”\n\t“Yeah… I somehow got to feel what the tree was feeling.”\n\t“You can connect with the feelings inside this dragon, too.”\n\t“Can I really do that? But it's out of control!”\n\t“As a spirit, that's your only choice.”\n “I guess you're right. Okay, I'll give it a shot. Thanks, Gatekeeper!”\n\t [[“Any time.”|you could do something about it] </i>\n\n\n

“Hey. Is someone there?”\n\tA strange voice floats to you through the darkness. “I'm coming, I'm coming.”\n\t“Do you know what the hell happened to me?”\n\t“What the hell happened to you? You died is what happened.”\n\t“What?! Are you kidding? What do you mean I died?”\n\t“You had an accident, and then you died. And now you're here.”\n\t“An accident? W-where's my mom and dad?”\n\t“They're not with you anymore.”\n\t[[“That can't…”|“But how…?”]]\n\n\n

“Hey, don't hate being a tree... I'm sure there are nice things about being a tree, too.”\n\t“Like what?”\n\t“Well, uh, why don't you tell me? C'mon. It's not every day I get to talk to a tree, y'know!”\n\t“I guess it's nice being brown and green.... I couldn't imagine being that ghostly pale colour that you humans are! Just looking at you makes me shiver sometimes.”\n\t“You smell nice, too, you know. Much better than people do.”\n\t“Yeah, I guess so. I never thought of that. I've never smelled a person, actually! But your garbage really reeks, so I can imagine.”\t\n\t“Yup, being a human means we tend to bring a mess everywhere we go.”\n\t“Oh, I know! We trees live a lot longer than you do. We're sturdier, too. Kids fall down and this red stuff starts oozing out of them. It's gross!”\n\t“Blood? Yeah, that sucks.”\n\t“We've got natural armour, which comes in handy. Though your human clothes look a lot cozier than this bark of mine....”\n\t“But it's a hassle having to dress and undress all the time.”\n\t“I guess it would be.”\n\t“So, how about your life? Tell me what it's like being a tree.”\n\t“You really want to know about that? It's so boring, I'm embarrassed to talk about it.”\n\t“I'm listening.”\n\t“I mostly stand here and watch the humans and animals go about their lives. Once in a while a bird lands on my branches and we might chat. Or a squirrel comes and tries to climb me. In the summer, I soak up the rays. The kids are usually gone in the summer, so I can sleep all day long. In the winter, snow covers my branches completely and makes things real cozy for me. I sleep a lot then, too.”\n\t“Sounds like a pretty comfy life.”\n\t“You think so? But it's boring. I want to do things too, you know. I want to go exploring, I want to see the world, I want to have friends.”\n\t“You can talk to the birds and squirrels. Ask them to be your eyes and ears.”\n\t“I suppose so. But it's the humans that bother me. They don't even notice me!”\n\t“We do notice you, you know. But we're taught that trees can't talk, they don't have feelings. So we walk past you without saying anything. Most people like trees. We wouldn't be able to live on Earth without you.”\n \t“Really?”\n\t“Yeah. Have you ever tried talking to a human? Give it a try. They might not talk back, but see what happens.”\n\t“Y'know, I never thought of that. Thanks. I feel a lot better now. I'm starting to think being a tree isn't <i>so </i>bad.”\n\t[[“That's what I want to hear.”]]\n

Charry (Valerie Ma)

You calm down and remember that your goal is to help solve the dragon's problems in some way. Maybe if you could look inside its mind, you'd find out the reason it's so angry. Then [[you could do something about it]]… you hope.

You feel yourself lulled into a sweet sleep. As your eyes close you whisper, “Thanks, Gatekeeper. Thanks for all the help.” You sink deeper into sleep, certain that you'll be back home as soon as your eyes open again. Memories of your experiences as a spirit drift through your consciousness and you smile, [[thinking about the stories you'll have to tell!|Ending]]

<i>It was fun floating around as a spirit, but I've got a life back home waiting for me. My family, my friends. My motorbike! I'm gonna take better care of all of them when I get back. I can't keep them waiting any longer. </i>\n\n\t“No,” you say to the Gatekeeper. “I just can't. I want to go back home. I have a lot of people to apologize to.”\n\t“That's fine. I'll miss you, though.”\n\t“You mean I can really go back? So soon?”\n\t“You've realized what's important to you. That's enough for us Gatekeepers. Besides, I don't have time to keep watching over you like this!”\n\t“Haha, yeah right. I bet you're gonna watch what I do when I go back to the living.”\t\n\t“I'll keep an eye out. If I find you throwing away your life again in some careless accident, you won't get another chance! I'm warning you.”\n\t“Yeah, I got it.”\n\t“Then, I'm sure you're impatient to see them again. [[Let's go!]]”

\t“Uhh... hold on! I have a question. Why do I have to do this exactly? Who decided on this stuff?”\n\t“You ask way too many questions, kid. You're lucky I'm one of the more patient Gatekeepers.”\n\t“You mean there are more than one of you?”\n\t“There are living beings dying every second. You think I can handle them all myself?”\n\t“Oh, right. I didn't think about that.”\n\t“Very well then. We've wasted enough time. Are you ready now?”\n\t“Whoa, whoa, hold on! What's it gonna be like once I go back? Am I gonna talk to you again?”\n\t“We will be in close contact. About your other question... [[you'll see soon enough.”]]\n

\tSo you keep rolling and squiggling. Eventually you see a garden patch, and you head towards there. \n\t“Mommy!” \n\tYou see a large green plant with long vines. Several other cucumbers are growing from the plant. After much effort, you manage to drag yourself to the base of the plant. You feel a benevolent, loving presence from the plant.\n\t“Mommy, I'm back home!”\t\n\t“Oh darling, I thought I would never see you again! I'm so glad you're back.” She addresses you. “I don't know who you are, but thank you for bringing him back. This is amazing!”\n\t“No problem. I didn't want him to get eaten!”\n\t“Oh, don't say that word, it's frightening.”\t\n\tYou have to suppress a slight chuckle of amusement as you watch the cucumber and his mother edge closer to each other and embrace. \n\tSuddenly, [[you feel your body getting a little lighter.]]\n\n\n\n\n

<i> I'm sitting on a table. Someone's kitchen table. On a plate. Oh no, I'm going to be eaten?! </i>\n\t“Hey, cucumber, what's going on?”\n\tA sad voice answers you.\n\t“I'm going to die....”\n\t“Hold on, do you mean you're going to be eaten?”\n\t“I'm going to die!”\n\t“Okay, let's see what I can do to help you.”\n\n[[Try to escape.]]\n[[Wait for your demise.]]

“So where do I go next, Gatekeeper?”\n\t“You've experienced quite a lot of this strange spirit world, haven't you?”\n\t“Do I get to leave? Am I finished?”\n\t“How have you found it so far?”\n\n[["It's pretty cool actually!"]]\n[["It's a drag. I want out."]]

You squiggle as hard as you can (which is difficult considering your body is so heavy and rigid), and after a few minutes, manage to roll off of your plate onto the table top.\n\t“You did it!” The cucumber sounds very happy. “I'm free! I'm not going to die!”\n\t“Not quite yet. First we have to get you out of here completely.”\n\t“Yes, I want to go home!”\n\tAfter some more squiggling, you plop onto the floor. \n\t“That hurt!”\n\t“Sorry. It's gonna be a bumpy ride for a bit longer if you want to live.”\n\tYou roll and roll and roll across the floor. It's excruciatingly slow. After a few minutes of struggle, you finally see a sliding door. It's open! The fresh breeze coming through it has never tasted more delicious.\n\tSuddenly, you hear footsteps. Someone's coming. A man walks in through the sliding door and stops in his tracks when he sees you.\n\n[[Keep rolling! Onward!]]\n[[Freeze. Pretend you're inanimate.]]\n

<i> \t\n“Hey, Gatekeeper! What did you think?”\n\t“I wasn't expecting things to turn out like that.”\n\t“I'd say I was pretty charming.”\n\t“All right, [[let's get you out of there|Let's get you out of there.”]].” </i>

<i> “Hey, Gatekeeper! I did it, didn't I?”\n\t“Not bad. [[Let's get you out of there.”]]\n</i>

\t<i>I love my family, and I miss my life at home... But what was I? Just a highschooler who got into trouble a lot. I never did a thing to help anybody other than myself. I really was an arrogant little snot, like the Gatekeeper said. \n\tBut since I've started working with the Gatekeeper, I feel different. My life is so much more exciting, and I feel like I can make a difference. I want to stay like this, at least for a while longer! </i>\n\n\t“Yeah,” you say to the Gatekeeper. “I think I want to keep doing this for a while. If you're okay with that.”\n\t“Well then. We don't have time to waste. [[Let's get going!]]”\n\n\n\n

\t“I don't want to admit it," the dragon says with a heavy sigh, "but I… do see the truth in your words. I do not enjoy killing, even if they are vile humans. I will rethink what I am doing some more.”\n\t“You will? That's great! Happy to hear it.”\n“Yes. Thank you for talking some sense into me.”\n\t\nYou're so happy at the dragon's change of heart that you want to break out into a huge beaming smile and wrap your arms around the dragon's neck. [[If only you had a mouth and some arms again!]]\n\n\n

An interactive story about a troublemaking highschool kid who gets into an accident and then finds him/herself reborn into the world as a spirit. To pay for your bad deeds during life, you must work with the Gatekeeper to help the sentient beings of the world who are in trouble. Since you're a spirit, you can do this by entering the mind and body of the living being and tapping into their thoughts and feelings. By proving your newfound love and respect for life, the Gatekeeper may have the power to help you return home, to your family and your real life! \n\n

\t“Good job.” It's the Gatekeeper's voice. “You're not as bad at this as you looked.”\n\t“Do I get to go back to my life now?”\n\tA laugh from the Gatekeeper.“Don't be silly. You've only started.”\n\t“That's what I thought you'd say.”\n\t“Time for your next experience. You get to pick.”\n\t“I do?!”\n\n[["I'll go with a dragon."]]\n[["I'll go with a cucumber."]]\n

The man stoops down after a moment and picks you up. Damn!\n\t“What's this doing on the floor?”\n\tYou feel yourself lifted into the air as he brings you back over to the plate on the kitchen table. Then, you hear a sickening sound of clattering silverware: he's going for a knife!\n\t“I'm sorry this is happening, little guy. It looks like you're going to be eaten.”\n\t“No! I'm going to die!”\n\t“I know you're scared, but it's okay. You'll be fulfilling your life's purpose. Cucumber's need to be eaten. It won't hurt, I promise.”\n\t“I wanna go back home and see Mommy.”\n\t“I'm sure your mom's proud of you.”\n\t“You think so?”\n\t“Yes, definitely. You're facing your destiny with courage.”\n\t“Okay!”\n\tThe man comes near with his knife and, without hesitation, makes a slice into your water-filled body. To your surprise, you don't feel very much.\t\n\t“It doesn't hurt! Being eaten isn't that bad after all.”\n\t“Whew!”\n\t“It's a little ticklish, but I'm fine! Thanks. You were really inspiring.”\n \n\t<i> “Okay, Gatekeeper, I'm done here!”\n\t“Your words of courage were an inspiration to cucumbers everywhere.”\n\t“Hey, it's scary when you're about to be eaten!”\n\t[[“Time to go.”|Let's get you out of there.”]] </i>\n\n

You're determined to keep rolling forward. That man can't stop you!\n\tSure enough, although the man makes a noise of surprise, he doesn't do anything but watch in stunned silence.\n\tWith a final triumphant heave, you make it over the sliding door threshold, and burst out into the cool green forest of grass.\n\t“You're home now, cucumber!”\n\t“No, not yet. I want to see mommy.”\n\tYou're confused, but you realize he probably means [[the plant which he came from.]]

THE END\n\n\nThanks for playing~ =D

\t“Of course I want to go back to living! I'm already sick of this 'soul' place or whatever it is!”\n\t“That makes two of us.”\n\t“Okay then! Take me back! I'll do anything. I'll listen to my parents this time, I promise! I'll... apologize to them for what happened. I bet they're really worried about me.”\n\t“Don't get carried away. It's not quite so easy, of course. We can take you back to the living, but not as the life form that you once knew as yourself. First, we'll send you back as a spirit -”\n\t“What, you mean like a ghost?!”\n\t“Sort of, yes. Let me finish. As a spirit, you will accompany various other beings as they go about their lives. You will experience their thoughts and their feelings. You will encounter their problems and solve them as though they were your own. In so doing, perhaps you will gain a greater sense of compassion towards all beings, and wisdom to keep you from doing stupid, reckless things again. Now, are you ready?”\n\n[["Wait! Question!"]]\n[["I'm ready."]]\n

And so you continued your journey as a spirit, experiencing the lives of other beings and helping out when you could... You missed your old life from time to time, but cheered yourself up with the thought: [[“I bet nobody's going to believe the stories I have to tell when I get back home!”|Ending]]

“Hey Gatekeeper, send me to the cuke.”\n\t“You're not joking?”\n\t“No. I've always wanted to be a cucumber.”\n\t[[“All right. You said it...”]]\n\n\n