<center><img src="https://www.dropbox.com/s/zk6cexae7jwubx7/in%20circles%202.jpg?dl=1" />
[[Begin]].<center><img src="https://media.giphy.com/media/3og0Ixh0LJtkJc4vVS/giphy.gif" /><p align="left">
Your mother forbade you from ever entering the wood.
There are boggarts and witches and perverts besides.
Until today you had always obeyed her.
Still, something feels familiar. It's as though you've been walking this path forever. (if: $ring is "Diverge")[You're fated to walk it [[over and over]].](else:)[You're fated to walk it [[over and over|keep walking]].]Your head hurts. You press your fingers to your temple. There's fresh blood streaming down the side of your face.
<img src="https://media.giphy.com/media/3og0IGSaaEj5xsfsDS/giphy.gif" />
How did it get there?
You shrug it off and [[keep walking]].You turn back but can't see your starting point, just a corridor of trees curving out of sight.
You look up. You can almost hear the creaking of wood as the tree trunks stretch into the sky. They appear to spin around you.
The trees induce a strange effect. It's as if they aren't producing oxygen but a pheromone that makes you dizzy, makes you forget.
"How long have I been walking?" you ask yourself.
You see smoke rising above the forest. It must be coming from your house.
Except your house doesn’t have a real fire, does it?
<img src="https://media.giphy.com/media/l0Iy5xFyuVikSLcTm/giphy.gif" />
[[Follow the smoke|Keep going]]<center><img src="http://i66.tinypic.com/2ljnm9g.png" /><p align="left">
You come to a clearing, in the middle of which is a cabin. There is a low mist encircling the shack. Smoke is emanating from the stone chimney. The porch swing creaks as it swings back and forth.
“[[Help me,]]” comes a voice from inside.
<audio src="https://www.dropbox.com/s/hboyufydrwe34dq/Porch%20-%20Swing.wav?dl=1" autoplay>(live: 10s)[You step up the creaking stairs to the porch.]
(live: 16s)[The door is slightly ajar. You open it fully.
In one corner is a small kitchen unit, cabinets and an oven. On the other side is a fireplace. No fire is burning despite the chimney smoke outside. Mounted on the wall is the stuffed head of a deer.
The cabin smells like the freshly baked bread, the kind your mother used to make. No, not "used to." She still does. She might be baking right now.
"[[Help me,|Help me 2]]" you hear again.]
<audio src="https://www.dropbox.com/s/dshuaubihwznigl/Board%20Creak-SoundBible.com-2020134935.mp3?dl=1" autoplay>(live: 2s)["Help me."]
(live: 5s)[You step inside the cabin.
You see the edges of a [[trap door|trap door]] peaking out from beneath a rug. Maybe the voice is coming from there?
Or wait, The [[mounted deer-head]]- did it just move?]
<audio src="https://www.dropbox.com/s/grs9oqa04t2gxne/My%20Song%207.m4a?dl=1" autoplay>Up ahead, is that... (live: 2s)[a cow?]
(live: 3s)[It's blocking the path, stood like a figurine. It twists its head toward you.
You see the cow's lips curling back over its teeth. Its tongue is slapping from side to side. It's trying to talk, forcing its mouth around the words.
"Don't speak, don't speak, don't speak," you whisper to yourself.
"Help me," it yelps. It sounds like it's in pain.
[[Find a way around]]
[[Approach the cow|Help the cow]]]<center><img src="https://media.giphy.com/media/xUA7bihfskFakLafYs/giphy.gif" /><p align="left">
You creep over to the deer-head.
You stand a couple of feet away and stare into its eyes. Its chest is puffed out. It looks down with an air of superiority, overly proud for a dead thing.
You wait for it to speak again, but you pray that it won’t.
“Help me.” It wasn’t the deer who spoke. It came from elsewhere, the [[trap-door|elsewhere 2]].<center><img src="https://media.giphy.com/media/xUA7bihfskFakLafYs/giphy.gif" /><p align="left">
You creep over to the deer-head.
You stand a couple of feet away and stare into its eyes. Its chest is puffed out. It looks down with an air of superiority, overly proud for a dead thing.
You wait for it to speak again, but you pray that it won’t.
“Help me.” It wasn’t the deer who spoke.
The voice is coming from [[the oven]].<img src="https://www.dropbox.com/s/u9ogyptqkrqxjw4/ezgif.com-resize%20%281%29.gif?dl=1" />
You remove the rug and reach your fingers into the crack, trying to gain a purchase on the door. You manage to get a grip. You open the door just enough to [[peer down|peer down 2]].<br><br><br>You open the oven, and [[inside]]...You leave the cabin and ponder the route home.
Talking bread is beyond your ken. You'd quite like to leave the forest, but there's no clear way out.
You pick an [[arbitrary direction]] and start walking.You choose a different path, through the thick trees.
The cow trots toward you.
You look back over your shoulder and see its lips receding over its gums as it pushes out words.
"Help me," it screams.
You dart faster through the wood.
When you're sure the cow hasn't followed, you slow to a [[walk]].<img src="https://www.dropbox.com/s/dqgnsi7gwhd6aao/cow%20silhouette.png?dl=1" />
You take steps toward the cow.
Its black eyes roll back into its head, and human eyes roll up to take their place. They're blue eyes, like yours.
"Will you help me?" it asks. Its voice sounds a little like yours as well.
"I've been waiting so long for someone to come along," it continues. "I know it's a strange question, and I wouldn't normally ask but... would you mind... milking me?"
[[No way]]
[[Milk the cow]]<center><br><br><br><br><span style="font-size:400%">(live: 2s)["[[Help me|tree]]."]
<audio src="https://www.dropbox.com/s/6t3ddugn0h7fit1/horror%20thud%20%28online-audio-converter.com%29.mp3?dl=1" autoplay><center><img src="https://media.giphy.com/media/l4FGIHS0gJgMt2eqY/giphy.gif" /><p align="left">
You walk and walk and [[walk|walk 2]].<br><center><img src="https://media.giphy.com/media/l0Iym2Nd7WNGm37Uc/giphy.gif"><p align="left">
You're hungry, light-headed.
"Help me," you cry out.
There is [[no response]].<br><br><center><img src="https://media.giphy.com/media/3o7bubYW4wQSU69YLm/giphy.gif"><p align="left">
You don't encounter another soul for [[miles]].You turn around, but there are only trees.
(transition: "pulse")["Help me,"] whimpers the apple tree next to you. The voice is hard to distinguish from the wind that carries it.
The tree has a gnarled face- twisted in anguish, burls for eyes and a gaping knot mouth.
<img src="https://www.dropbox.com/s/wvyqz8tzltywbos/tree%20face2.jpg?dl=1" />
"Please shake down my apples," says the tree. "They're causing me a lot of pain." Its mouth doesn't move. Its speech rises up from its belly. It groans and coughs, and sap seeps from its eyes like tears.
You approach the tree but hear buzzing. In its branches is a large beehive. You jump back.
[[Help the tree]]
[[Walk away|passage]]<center><img src="http://i.imgur.com/cE008cq.png" /><p align="left">
You step toward the tree and furtively wrap your arms around its trunk like you're hugging a wild tiger. You're a little emabrrassed as you proceed to shake it about.
"Oh yeah, shake it. That's good."
The bees swarm around you head. A couple of them sting your face and neck.
You keep shaking the tree until all the apples fall. Its burl-eyes relax a little.
You step back and bat the bees away. They leave you alone.
"Thank you ever so much," says the tree. "And what was your name?"
"It's... erm..." You struggle to remember as you scratch your bee-stings. "Wait.. Scarlett! That's it."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes. It's just these woods, they're turning me funny. Do you know the way out by any chance?"
"Out of the woods? What do you mean? There's nothing outside of the woods. The woods are all, forever and ever."
"That's not true. I came from outside. I think. It's getting hard to remember."
"Well I'm just a tree. I'm quite stuck here. Not everyone is as well-traveled as you."
"Oh well, good-bye."
You [[walk on|passage 2]]
(set: $magicalItem to "Scarlett")"Thank-you kindly."
You jump and fumble the talking bread. It falls onto the kitchen counter. Its face is back, still bumpy in places but not gnarled with pain.
"It was getting so bloody warm in there." Its voice is different than it was before, more musical. There's something familiar in it.
"Have I... gone crazy?" you ask.
The thought is oddly comforting. You aren't conversing with bread, only yourself.
"How should I know?" replies the bread, "I'm not your therapist."
"What's your name?" [[you ask]].<br><br><br>(live: 1s)[...is a loaf of bread.]
(live: 3s)[The bread-top is bumpy, mishapen in places. Two doughy lumps look like swollen eyes. Beneath them the bread has sunken into the shape of a gaping mouth.
"Help me."
You stumble back a couple of paces.
"P-leeease."
Its mouth is straining to shape the words. Its skin ripples in the heat. Parts of its face crusts and flakes away as it wails.
"Help," it cries again in its hoarse voice. This time it sounds more resigned.
[[Help the bread|[Take the bread out]]
[[Leave the cabin]]]You grab a tea-towel from the counter and take the bread out of the oven.
<br>
<img src="https://media.giphy.com/media/3o7bua1vntRjGcFCZG/giphy.gif" />
The face has disappeared.
You turn the bread over, looking for its mouth and those grotesque eyes.
Its a normal loaf, not even burnt. Its crust had browned nicely.
The whole thing was your [[own creation|out of the oven]].
(set: $magicalItem to "Scarlett")You run out the cabin and march [[through the forest|arbitrary direction]], determined to find a way home. Adventuring was a bad idea.You see your fractured reflection in the screen. Cracks run through the glass like lattice-work.
You press the power button, and the phone lights up. The lock-screen image is a picture of you, but your face is obscured by the cracks. An oily rainbow bleeds out from your head.
<img src="https://www.dropbox.com/s/62jfg4lqxo3c1sf/phone%20screen%20rainbow.png?dl=1" />
The last of your signal disappears.
[[Turn back]]
You reluctantly grab a couple of udders and squeeze. Milk comes shooting out.
"Thanks" the cow says. "That feels good. My udders were about to burst."
You really wish she wouldn't speak while you're milking her. The whole situation is awkward enough.
"What's your name?" she asks.
"Scarlett."
"Very nice. My name is Heather."
You laugh.
"What's so funny" asks Heather?
"Nothing. it's just... that's not very original, Heather the Heffer."
"What a charmless girl you are. Nothing is original. Everything repeats."
"I'm sorry. It's a lovely name really."
The last of the milk squirts out.
"Could you tell me the way out of these woods?" you ask.
"Moo."
"Pardon?"
"Mooo."
"So now you can't speak?"
"Moooo."
"Oh nevermind. Good-bye."
You [[move on|walk]].
(set: $magicalItem to "Scarlett")You take steps back.
"Sorry," you say as you turn and march away.
The cow trots after you.
"Help me," it screams.
You dart through thick trees where the cow can't follow.
When you're sure it's safe, you slow to a [[walk]].You trip over a rock and land on your hip. You hear a crunch and grimace as you wait for the pain to come.
But it doesn’t. It wasn’t the crunch of bones.
(if: $ring is "Diverge")[You take out your [[phone|smart-phone 2]].]
(else:)[You take out your [[phone|smart-phone]].]The witch spots you from the corner of her eye.
[[Run]]You try to run, but your feet are stuck in place.
"Help me!" you scream. But there is no-one to help.
The woman [[hobbles over to you]]."What are you doing in my woods?" she asks.
"I-I'm lost."
"I'll be the judge of that. What's your name?"
"Erm... It's... Oh dear, I don't know."
"Then you really *are* lost. And anything lost in these woods is mine. If you can't remember your name, you belong to me."
Where could you have lost your name? You must have snagged it on a tree or something.
(if: $magicalItem is "Scarlett")["Oh wait," you say. "I can remember my mother calling me. My name is Scarlett."
"Only the kindest people can survive these woods," says the witch. "You're a [[good sort]]."]
(else:)["Only the kindest people can survive these woods," says the witch. "And you're a [[bad sort]]."]Her wrinkles are so many and so well-worn that her skin has the appearance of leather. Her face makes creaking noses as she grimaces. Her eyes are inset deep under a swollen bumpy brow. Her jaw hangs low as if it's detached. All her teeth are missing, and her nose has weathered away. In its place is a single hole the shape of an upside down "V." Her hands are bruised and covered in liver spots. Her thin skin reveals varicose veins. This is what centuries of ageing looks like.
<img src="https://www.dropbox.com/s/34cmgdfuh9htiyd/screaming%20face3.png?dl=1" />
She looks you [[up and down]]."I disguised myself," says the witch "as a tree, a cow and a loaf of bread. I asked for your help, but you were callous. I curse you to forever walk the woods crying "help me." You're fated to walk the same path over and over with just a faint memory of your mother and your home. You'll be here till your hands your skin has turned to leather, and your nose has weathered away. Only if a kind stranger shows you the way will you ever escape. Maledictus vir coram te!"
You don't know what they mean, but you know you've heard those last words before. There's a door in your mind that you can't open.
The witch slaps your face with the back of her hand. One of her rings cuts your temple. You feel a white-hot pain. Blood trickles down your face.
<img src="https://media.giphy.com/media/3og0IGSaaEj5xsfsDS/giphy.gif" />
In that moment you know the truth. This isn't the first time you've met the witch. You've been here before, a few times.
"Round and round we go," says the witch.
Then [[the next thing you know|Begin]]...
(set: $ring to "Diverge")You're stood at the edge of a forest. A voice is calling your name. Could it be the woods are inviting you on an adventure?
No, you take the phone from your trouser pocket. You've accidentally pocket-dialed your mother.
"Scarlett? Hello?" comes her squirrelly electronic voice.
You hang up and [[enter the woods]].Your feet begin to ache. You raise your right foot to examine the sole. Blood is seeping through your shoe.
You limp onward. Your head is hanging. You watch your feet shuffle along.
Your eyes start to feel funny. The world has gotten brighter somehow. You look up. The sky, you can see it. For the first time in a long time, it isn't obstructed by trees.
You stare up into the sky as you keep shuffling forward. Your feet start to feel wet. You stop walking and look down.
You've stepped into the shallow bank of a broad [[river]].
<img src="https://media.giphy.com/media/3ohzdQsQQWkVbvuMKY/giphy.gif" />In the middle of the glade is an old haggard woman wearing a tattered dress, a witch if you ever saw one.
<img src="https://www.dropbox.com/s/n5bqn17xmwp2mzs/figure%20in%20woods.jpg?dl=1" />
You creep behind the cover of some trees.
There's something about this woman's presence that repels you, like you're two magnetic poles with the same charge. You want the Earth between you and her.
The witch stays in the same spot muttering to herself.
Your breath is getting louder. You try to [[hold it]].You lie on your back, stare at the cloudy sky and let your worries wash away.
<img src="https://media.giphy.com/media/3o7bu0hFurigWeuOPK/giphy.gif" />
You close your eyes and go to [[sleep]].When you wake, you cough up a mouthful of dirt. You've washed up on the banks of an island.
Night has fallen. Everything is neon, the bark of the trees, the leaves, the flowers. You've found another world, with colours that shouldn't exist in nature, hot pinks and luminous purples.
<img src="https://www.dropbox.com/s/hlz51e9ljhn981v/neon%20wood%203.jpg?dl=1" />
(if: $ring is "Diverge")[You see a a dead Heron floating in the water, its body tangled in vines. If only someone had been there to help it.
You walk away from shore, toward the [[centre of the island]].](else:)[You see a Heron stood in the [[shallow waters]].]You stand and stare at the water flowing by, mesmerised by it.
<img src="https://media.giphy.com/media/xUA7aLuqsRaBgcXtTi/giphy.gif" />
You kneel by the river and cup handfuls of water over your face.
If you follow the river, it will eventually lead out of these woods. You look upstream and see the water is running down a cliffside. Even if there's a way up, you don't have the energy to climb. You feel like you've been walking for days.
Instead you wade into the river and surrender to the current. It can take you where it wants. Like a dead fish, you're going with the [[flow]]."I disguised myself," says the witch, "as a tree, a cow and a loaf of bread. I asked for your help and you were kind to me. I will set you back at home with mother."
She reaches within her robes and brings out a vial of water. She pops out the stopper and wafts the vial under your nose. The stench hits your brain and makes you dizzy.
You fall back onto the grass. The trees fade out of focus.
<img src="https://www.dropbox.com/s/2ekgoq02betr12u/trees%20out%20of%20focus.png?dl=1" />
"Time to jump off the merry-go-round," says the witch.
[[The next thing you know...|Home]]You see your fractured reflection in the screen. Cracks run through the glass like lattice-work.
You press the power button, but the phone won't turn on.
[[Turn back]]You're stood on the doorstep of your home.
<img src="https://www.dropbox.com/s/4x2iw9003sk3xkm/house%20horror2.jpg?dl=1" />
You hear your mother calling your name.
"Scarlett! Scarlett!"
You run into the kitchen to find your mother setting plates on the dinner table.<center><img src="https://media.giphy.com/media/3o7buhqUmbGDTf2AMg/giphy.gif" /><p align="left">
You're going round in circles.
You're getting dizzier and dizzier.
"Help me," you shout.
But no-one does.
Why is there never anyone to help when you need it?
You [[continue]] walking.<img src="https://www.dropbox.com/s/52n93zyx0lgjvtc/heron3.png?dl=1" />
Her wings and legs are tangled in vines. She's trying to break free using her beak, but the vines are too tough. They won't snap.
Her head bobs up and down. Her neck expands and contracts. A wave of moonlight shimmers across her feathers.
"Let me guess," you say, "you need some help."
The Heron doesn't respond.
"I said do you need some help?" you ask again.
"Don't patronise me. I need you to mind your own business. Herons don't need help from humans! Herons help themselves."
"No need to be proud."
"Pride is nothing to be ashamed of."
"What I mean is- When the tide rises, you'll be in trouble."
"Nonsense. I'll be out of here in no time."
"Well would you mind helping me? I'm [[lost]]."You walk toward the [[heart of the island]]."I don't accept help, and I don't give it out. What if I was to point the way and you ended up dead in a hole? You'd hold me responsible."
"If I was dead?"
"You know what I mean. Best to help yourself. Learn some independence. You can't rely on anybody."
[[Help the Heron anyway|Help the Heron]]
[[Leave her]]You move closer to the Heron and reach down to untangle the vines. The Heron snaps at your fingers with her beak.
"I told you I didn't need any help," she says.
"Suit yourself!"
The harder she tries to escape, the more tangled she becomes. You [[leave the Heron|Leave her]] to her fate.<img src="https://www.dropbox.com/s/ndkjnwxi8c5lxmq/crow.png?dl=1" />
A crow is flapping around the glade. His left wing is bent out of shape, and he's struggling to stay airborne, out of the reach of the cat below.
The cat is pacing back and forth, trying to paw at the bird as it dips. Her fur has malted in places, exposing her ribcage.
<img src="https://www.dropbox.com/s/a93qp2akf48w8mq/cat2.png?dl=1" />
The bird exhausts itself and drops. The cat takes a swipe. The bird summons extra energy and evades the swinging paw.
They both seem tired. They've obviously been dancing around each other for some time now.
They spot you from the corner of their eyes, but most of their attention remains on their adversary.
Help me," caws the bird. "This crazy cat is trying to kill me."
"No, help me," mews the cat. "I'll die if I don't eat." The cat collapses on her side to illustrate her point. The bird flaps around your head, scrambling to rest on your shoulder.
You turn to leave.
"If you go, it's as good as killing me," say both voices in unison.
[[Help the cat]]
[[Help the crow]]
[[Leave]]You snatch the bird out of the air and hold it within the cat's reach.
The cat pounces on the crow and gobbles it down.
"You cruel girl," says the bird from the belly of the cat.
"You can't help everyone," says the cat before running away.
"Wait, can you tell me the way-"
It's too late. The cat disappears into the thicket.
You [[carry on walking]] the way you were headed.You stoop and hold out your arm so the crow can rest. You place him into the branches of a nearby tree.
"Thanks so much," he says.
"You cruel girl," says the cat before she lets out a final death-wail and collapses.
"You can't help everyone," says the bird before it hops to a neighbouring tree.
"Wait," you say. "Can you tell me the way-"
It's too late. The crow has hopped from tree to tree and out of sight.
You [[carry on walking]] the way you were headed."Sorry," you tell them. "I really shouldn't get involved. Some things are better left to fate, or God, or the powers that be."
You carry on walking the way you were headed, toward the centre of the island.
"I hope you never find your way home," the cat calls after you.
"That goes double for me," yells the bird.
They carry on with their dance. You [[carry on walking]].You come to a [[glade]]."I don't have a name," says the bread. "I've just been baked. Are names very important?"
The last of your fear dissipates. A thing without a name, that's the more pressing issue.
"Oh yes. Everyone needs a name. Mine is Scarlett."
"That's nice. I'll be Scarlett too."
"You can't take my name!"
"Why not?"
"I don't know. I just wouldn't like it. If you were Scarlett, then who would I be? How about Roland? Roland the roll? That's a more proper name for bread."
"Ugh. No, I'll keep thinking. Thanks again for your help. Goodbye now."
"Okay... [[good-bye]]."(live: 2s)[There's nothing, only soil.]
(live: 4s)[“Help me.”
The voice came from elsewhere, the [[deer-head|elsewhere]].]<img src="https://www.dropbox.com/s/u9ogyptqkrqxjw4/ezgif.com-resize%20%281%29.gif?dl=1" />
You remove the rug and reach your fingers into the crack, trying to gain a purchase on the door. You manage to get a grip. You open the door just enough to [[peer down]].(live: 2s)[There's nothing, only soil.]
(live: 4s)[“Help me.”
The voice is coming from [[the oven]].]You try to say sorry, but the word won't come out.
Your expression says it for you as you walk away. It isn't worth helping someone if you're going to get stung to high heaven.
"God bless you anyway," says the tree.
The guilt you feel isn't enough to make you turn around.
You [[walk on|Walk away]].You keep scratching your bee-stings.
"That's what helping people gets you," you think to yourself as you trek [[through the forest|Walk away]] once more.<img src="https://www.dropbox.com/s/79vvgb18y1uc08l/neon%20treez7.jpg?dl=1" />
You hear a scuffle up ahead, the rustling of leaves, the mewing of a cat and the cawing of a crow.
You never get a moments peace in this place.
(live: 14s)[You enter a [[clearing]].]
<audio src="https://www.dropbox.com/s/yky7qvk33l5hhxc/leaves%20rustling%20-%20sound%20effect.wav?dl=1" autoplay>"Help. Can anyone help?" you murmur. You're on auto-pilot now, speaking without thinking as you dawdle through an avenue of trees.
Eventually you come to another [[glade]].Double-click this passage to edit it.