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Welcome to Hidden Madness, an interactive game created by Emma C. Snyder for her DGST 101 (Introduction to Digital Studies) class with Professor Zach Whalen at the University of Mary Washington. To play the game or view the credits for the background photographs used, please click either of the links below. Thanks for playing!
[[play game]]
[[credits]]<span style="background-color:#273635;">"I don't think so." Wesley argues. "What else would you call it when the entire world goes crazy?"
"You can only call it madness." Marcia whispers, her voice meek as it echoes around the forest clearing.
Aria chimes in. "You watch these people be completely normal before one day, they just... snap. Like a firework somebody lit and forgot about 'till it sets itself off. One after another, everyone who was loved by somebody else gets turned into a monster."
"Monster doesn't seem like the right word, either." Evan pulls his knees up against his chest, eyes downcast.
"It spread like a sickness, tainting everything and everyone it touched." Marcia is staring into the shadows, eyes wide as she remembers. "It took everybody."
"Everybody but us." Aria smiles.</span>
<span style="background-color:#151C1C;">[[continue listening]]</span><span style="background-color:#273635;">"We could still go mad, you know." Evan shudders. "Or Fester, whatever you want to call it. The disease is still in the air."
"We're far enough away from the rest of the world." Wesley pats Evan on the back, making him jump. "Don't worry your head off. It'll be fine."
It goes quiet for a moment. Evan is trembling from Wesley's sudden move, and Aria glances at you.
"Saoirse, can I talk to you for a second?"
She pauses.
"Alone?" </span>
<span style="background-color:#151C1C;">[["Of course."]]</span><span style="background-color:#0B1C07;">Aria leads you over to where the trees begin to line the clearing, where none of the others will be able to hear your conversation.
"Have you noticed the way Evan's been acting lately?" Aria whispers, as if she's afraid the group will overhear. "The paranoia, the trembling, the doubt?" </span>
<span style="background-color:#0E1C0F;">[["It's nothing, I'm sure."]]
[["Yeah, I have. Aren't those the first signs of the madness?"]]</span><span style="background-color:#273635;">Aria nods pensively, biting her bottom lip. She opens her mouth as if about to say something else when a scream interrupts the thought. You whip around to face the clearing, only to watch as Marcia wrestles Wesley to the ground.
"Come on!" Aria shouts, motioning for you to follow as she breaks into a run. You do as she commands, drawing out your small silver dagger from its sheath.
By the time the two of you reach the campsite, Evan is already locked into a tussel as he tries to free Wesley from Marcia's grasp. There's a chance all three of them could turn mad now. Exposure to any sick person leaves room for the disease to spread. </span>
<span style="background-color:#151C1C;">[["What do we do?"]]</span>
<span style="background-color:#273635;">Aria nods pensively, biting her bottom lip. She opens her mouth as if about to say something else when a scream interrupts the thought. You whip around to face the clearing, only to watch as Marcia wrestles Wesley to the ground.
"Come on!" Aria shouts, motioning for you to follow as she breaks into a run. You do as she commands, drawing out your small silver dagger from its sheath.
By the time the two of you reach the campsite, Evan is already locked into a tussel as he tries to free Wesley from Marcia's grasp. There's a chance all three of them could turn mad now. Exposure to any sick person leaves room for the disease to spread. </span>
<span style="background-color:#151C1C;">[["What do we do?"]]</span><span style="background-color:#273635;">"I wish everything were different," says Marcia. She tilts her head, the flames of the fire reflecting in the whites of her eyes.
"It's useless to wish for anything, after the madness started." Wesley sighs, rubbing his hands to keep them warm. "Wishing hardly ever helped before, anyhow."
"Is that what we're calling it now?" asked Evan, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "The *madness*?"
"That's the best way to describe it." Aria tosses another stick into the fire and glances at you as it disintigrates into embers.</span>
<span style="background-color:#151C1C;">[[keep listening]]
[[I've played before -- skip past the context->"Of course."]]</span><span style="background-color:#273635;">You decide to go and try to save Evan instead of following in Aria's footsteps yet again, but your heroic rescue ends up being nothing but a sacrifice. By the time you reach Evan's side, Wesley is crawling toward him on all fours with a look of hunger in his eyes.
Madness takes many forms, but in this sickness, it is always murderous.
"Saoirse, run!" Evan cries as he backs up, eyes wide with terror. "Please, just leave me here with him - save yourself!" </span>
<span style="background-color:#151C1C;">[[go with Aria]]
[[ignore Evan's warning]]</span><span style="background-color:#0B1C07;">You decide to abandon Evan to his festering fate with Wesley and run to Aria's side. The two of you take off together, stumbling over roots and past gloomy oak trees. You feel as if the whole world is listening to the way your sneakers snap every branch they land on. </span>
<span style="background-color:#0E1C0F;">[[keep going]]</span><span style="background-color:#255733;">You decide you want to try sleeping in the cave. Aria is brave enough to pioneer the way into the mouth of the beast, ducking her head to avoid hitting it against its stony lips. Moss grows rampant inside the dark dankness of the cave, but Aria insists you walk deeper within the space to avoid being seen by Wesley. The perfect spot is found when Aria spies a place where the stone has been cracked overhead, letting the starlight shine through against the moss. The two of you fall asleep, dreaming lightly in case of danger.
That danger is soon to be realized. You are woken in middle of night by scuffling echoing from the depths of the cave behind you.
"Is it--" you gasp. Aria covers your mouth with her hand to keep you quiet, but breaks her own rule with a cry as Evan rounds the corner of the cave. His blue shirt is muddied and tattered, and he has a myriad of scratches in every place where his skin is visible.
"Are you mad?" Aria asks.
Evan shakes his head and Aria looks to you, eyes pleading for you to help her decide. </span>
<span style="background-color:#173620;">
[[leave Evan behind]]
[[invite Evan to stay]]</span><span style="background-color:#0B1C07;">You decide it would be much safer to sleep in the tree, with the advantage of elevation. Aria scales it first, swinging from branch to branch with the limber skills of a gymnast. She was one in school, long ago when that still existed. Before the madness.
You shake your head to avoid the tears that well in your eyes and threaten to spill over onto your cheeks. It's not worth remembering - it can only bring you pain. </span>
<span style="background-color:#0E1C0F;">[[stop remembering]]</span><span style="background-color:#0B1C07;"> You shake your head quietly at Aria and begin to back out of the cave.
"I'm sorry, Evan," you call to him as you leave, Aria following just behind you. "You have to understand, we're doing this for everyone's safety."
"Not mine." Evan's voice echoes as we abandon the cave, facing the same darkness you were trying to hide from. You and Aria walk together for hours, whispering stories to keep one another awake. You try to avoid the topic of the world-before -- it's hard to look back at how it was without the pain of missing it all. The madness was so sudden, the way it festered overnight and took millions by morning. Your stomach churns at the memory.
"Look, up ahead." Aria points at a small collection of cottages resting in the forest a few hundred yards away. "Let's see if it's properly abandoned. There might be some food left behind." </span>
<span style="background-color:#0E1C0F;">[[warn Aria]]</span><span style="background-color:#255733;">You nod at Aria, and she visibly relaxes.
"Okay, Evan." Aria says. "You can stay."
Evan looks equally relieved as he comes toward you, staying roughly five feet away (as per your own instructions). The three of you try to fall asleep, but when Aria and Evan nod off, you try sure to keep one eye open just in case Evan turns.</span>
<span style="background-color:#173620;">[[fall asleep]]</span><span style="background-color:#0B1C07;">You press your lips against Aria's forehead as gently as you can muster, but her eyes open in a flash at the sensation.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Aria sits up and untangles herself from me, unsteady as she attempts to balance herself on the branch.
"Nothing--I--" You try to fabricate a valid excuse, but nothing comes to mind. Aria stares at you for a moment, eyes narrowed. She seems angry with you - so why is she leaning closer? </span>
<span style="background-color:#0E1C0F;">[[let Aria kiss you]]</span><span style="background-color:#0B1C07;"> In your haste to avoid the temptation of kissing Aria's forehead, you manage to lose your balance on the thin tree branch and go plummeting toward the ground. You hit it with a thud, shock vibrating through your limbs. The world around you is dark and frightening, but you can't move your legs to try and run away from it.
"Look what the cat dragged in."</span>
<span style="background-color:#0E1C0F;">[[turn around]] </span>
"Go ahead and give it to her," you sigh. "I don't want to eat it anyway. It could be contaminated."
No sooner have the words left your lips that the child lunges at Aria and tackles her to the ground. The madness is keen to give all its victims exemplary strength - Aria won't stand a chance. You hesitate, hand restinga against your sheathed dagger. You're not sure whether or not to run and risk losing the only friend you have left.
[[hesitate]]"Aria, no." You hesitate, resting your hand against your sheathed dagger. "No, we need to go. Now."
It's too late for Aria. She has come too close to the child. The madness has a way of festering and spreading by any means, whether it be skin, air, liquid - you name it. Aria's arms and legs begin to jerk wildly, and she stumbles to the ground. By the time she picks herself back up, the yellow glint of madness shines in her eyes.
[[take your own advice]]<span style="background-color:#0B1C07;">You end up going to the left and manage to run a few paces before Wesley jumps out from where he was concealed behind a tree, like a tiger waiting to pounce on his prey.
"Wes, please-" you cry, backing up along the path to try and get away from him.
You hear a hiss from behind you and turn to see Aria standing there with the child by her side.
You are absolutely surrounded. </span>
<span style="background-color:#0E1C0F;">[[go mad]]</span><span style="background-color:#0B1C07;">You go to the right and run for several paces before you see Evan sitting by the path, sharpening a stick into a spear with his pocket knife.
"Saoirse?" Evan says in surprise. He looks no worse for the wear from when you left him behind in the cave. His blue shirt is still tattered the same, and his eyes are crystal-clear. There is no madness in them, and he doesn't appear to be in the early stages. His movements with the spear are calm and precise, but there is still no guarantee.
Sometimes, the calm is part of the madness. </span>
[[go with Evan]]
[[run from Evan]]<span style="background-color:#0B1C07;">"Can I come with you?" You ask hesitantly, hand still resting on the sheath of your dagger. "I'm being chased by Aria and a village child. We need to run, and now. With or without me, you're going to be found by them."
Without a word spoken, Evan jumps to his feet and takes off down the path. Stunned at his forgiveness for the previous abandonment, you follow him. </span>
<span style="background-color:#0E1C0F;">[[run with Evan]]</span><span style="background-color:#0B1C07;">You run from Evan to avoid the possibility of his madness and manage to run a little ways before Wesley jumps out from where he was concealed behind a tree, like a tiger waiting to pounce on his prey.
"Wes, please-" you cry, backing up along the path to try and get away from him.
You hear a hiss from behind you and turn to see Aria standing there with the child by her side.
You are absolutely surrounded. </span>
<span style="background-color:#0E1C0F;">[[go mad]]</span><span style="background-color:#374A46;">"We should go in," you tell Evan. "It's almost nightfall. The mad ones cluster in the dark."
Evan nods in agreement and stands back from the doors of the church, allowing you to take charge and enter first. You pull on the metal rings that serve only to open the ancient wooden doors, and dust falls across your face when you succeed in your mission.
[[go inside]]</span><span style="background-color:#374A46;">You keep running with Evan until he begins to pant for breath.
"Can we slow down?" Evan asks. "There's a river up ahead through the trees. We can stop for a drink of water."
You nod in reply, slowing down to match his pace. The two of you reach the edge of the water within five minutes, enchanted by the sight of the refreshing river.
Evan kneels down on the muddy bank and cups his hands to gather water to drink.
[[warn Evan]]</span>
<span style="background-color:#374A46;">You make a split-second decision to slam the door before Evan can go into the pantry with you and bolt it shut.
"Saoirse?" Evan calls from the other side of the door after a moment of stunned silence. He pounds on the wood with a single fist, his voice sounding confused. "Saoirse, stop being funny. Open the door."
You back into the metal racks behind you, eyes wide with the recognition of the crime you have just committed.
*And after everything Evan has done for you...*
There's a rustling in the corner behind you that breaks you out of your thoughts. You turn around to see a festering madwoman crouched in the pantry corner, her steely gaze sizing you up. She bares her teeth, and you feel yourself becoming dizzy. Moments later, you become lost in the madness too.
THE END</span> <span style="background-color:#374A46;">"Come on in. Let's lock the door, in case there are people outside." You tell Evan. He comes in and you bolt the door behind him.
The two of you decide to take inventory of what you have in stock. There are five cans of green beans, one thing of canned tomatoes, three gallons of water, and three boxes of dried spaghetti.
Once you're done counting your sorry collection of items, you curl up on the roughly carpeted floor and start drifting off to sleep at the perception of safety. Evan comes to lie down beside you, so you decide to stay awake to make sure there are no dangers in the pantry.
[[stay awake]]
</span><span style="background-color:#374A46;">You let Evan keep his arm there. It must have been some sort of accident - there's no use in freaking out and trying to shove him away. Plus, it's warm next to him. You like the way his chest presses against your back, rising and falling with every breath he takes.
As you begin falling asleep, you catch a glimpse of a small handheld radio in the corner of the pantry that appears to be brought to life with a small crank on its side.
[[try to turn on the radio]]
[[dissect it for electrical parts to start a fire]]
</span>
<span style="background-color:#374A46;">You move his arm from you to avoid the uncomfortable tension, but the movement wakes Evan. He startles out of his slumber, eyes bloodshot and wide.
"I'm going mad," he swears, standing up and balancing precariously against the metal racks. "You have to let me out of here, Saoirse, I swear to God. I don't want to hurt you. You might already be contaminated, I--"
"What the hell are you talking about?" You narrow your eyes and stand in front of the door, guarding Evan from the bolt. When you see how wide his eyes are getting, you realize the truth.
[[try to calm Evan down]]</span><span style="background-color:#5E3F38;">"Let's go," you tell Evan. "This is our only chance. If we die, we die together. This is worth it."
Evan scrambles to his feet as you bravely unlock the pantry door and go through the sanctuary. Dawn is just now breaking over the horizon, and you hope the copters overhead will be able to see you.
Once both you and Evan are safely out of the church, you see the newscaster was right - copters are flying through the skies, their mechanical husks swaying back and forth in the wind. Some are flying higher to get a wider scope, and some are going near the tips of forest trees as they scan for survivors.
[[call out to the helicopters]]</span>
<span style="background-color:#374A46;">It takes a week or two before you die. It's a painfully slow process wrought on by lack of water and food. Evan tries to venture out mid-week, but his emaciated form makes it impossible for him to go further than the sanctuary.
The two of you die in your sleep, his arm still looped over your body as if trying to protect you. Sadly, there was nothing to protect you from.
The copters never land in your area, never storm through the buildings. Only those who went outside were saved, but you weren't willing to take the risk.
THE END</span> <span style="background-color:#374A46;">You follow Evan to a nearby river, calling his name. Evan glances back to you and then at the water again. He begins to walk into the current, the water swirling around his ankles, then his knees.
"Evan, please..." you cry, crossing your arms over your chest. He's delusional over that nightmare, and you're beginning to be unsure of whether or not he really is going crazy.
"I have to." Evan looks at you, tears in his eyes. A single man tear trickles down his cheek. "I'm sorry."
You fall to your knees, heart thudding in your chest. You want to stop him, but there's nothing you can do. He wades into the water and disappears beneath the surface, leaving you alone on the bank to mourn him.
[[press f to pay respects - or just click here]] </span>
<span style="background-color:#374A46;">There's no use in trying to follow Evan. It might have been a nightmare that scared him, but there is still the possibility that he is going mad. You wait a moment, hoping to haer his footsteps on the floor of the church sanctuary.
There is nothing but silence.
[[bolt the door]]
[[follow Evan]]</span>
<span style="background-color:#374A46;">"Over here!" Evan calls, his voice echoing through the hollow room. "There's a food pantry by the kitchen. Looks picked over, but there's still some provisions."
You follow Evan's voice and find yourself in a meager pantry, hardly enough space within to four people standing shoulder-to-shoulder. There are thin metal racks that hold only a few offerings, mainly dented cans of soup and various vegetables.
There looks to be only enough food for one person to survive for a week.
With two, it would be a lot less.
You glance at Evan, who is standing just outside the pantry door. There is a bolt that would be easy to slide into place if the door was closed. It would be even easier to close the door and lock yourself in with more food than if you invited Evan to stay with you...
[[lock the door]]
[[invite Evan inside]]</span><span style="background-color:#0B1C07;">The two of you run for what seems like miles, the sun slowly setting in the distance behind you by the time you both slow down to a steady jog. You find you are not as out of breath today as yesterday, which seems like a good sign. Evan has been oddly quiet, but you try not to take it personally. </span>
<span style="background-color:#0E1C0F;">[[keep jogging]]</span><span style="background-color:#374A46;">The two of you pass a church as colors begin to bleed into the horizon, their reflections dancing against the stained glass windows of the building.
"Should we go inside?" Evan finally speaks, glancing at the church. "It looks safe."
[[enter the church]]
[[keep running]]</span><span style="background-color:#0B1C07;">You stop once you can't breathe anymore, doubling over to rest your hands against your knees. Aria joins you, equally breathless. She glances around our surroundings once she regains her bearings.
"There's a cave over there and a tree beside it with branches that are low enough to climb up with. Where do you want to sleep?" she asks you.</span>
<span style="background-color:#0E1C0F;">[[sleep in the cave]]
[[sleep in the tree]]</span><span style="background-color:#0B1C07;">Once Aria is safely nested at the top of the tree, you climb up to join her. There's a place where the branch is nearly wide enough for the two of you to lie down, but only if you are holding one another to keep from falling.
"Safety first," Aria laughs as she wraps her arms around you. You smile back at her and wait untli she falls asleep to make sure you will both stay steady in the tree. As you are about to drift off to sleep, you see the moonlight reflects off of her skin, making it glow with radiance. She looks so beautiful in this light.
</span>
<span style="background-color:#0E1C0F;">[[kiss her forehead]]
[[turn the other way]]</span><span style="background-color:#374A46;">"Sweet revenge." Aria whispers as she leans in and kisses you. As soon as she pulls away, she laughs again, but this time it sounds much less innocent.
"I'm mad." Aria cries, standing up on the branch. Her sneakers are sliding against the slick bark, but she doesn't seem to mind.
"Enjoy the taste of crazy," she shouts as she falls backward and plummets toward the ground, meeting the earth with a deadly thud.
You stare into the darkness, shocked. Hesitant, you bring your fingers against your lips.
Did she just...? Are you turning...?
The world starts to spin, and you feel like you're on a rollercoaster ride while you have the hiccups. The darkness fades away to light, and you start to laugh, but it sounds much less innocent than all the times you have laughed before.
THE END</span><span style="background-color:#255733;">As soon as the sun rises and bursts through the mouth of the cave, Evan opens his eyes and blearily looks around at you and Aria, who is still asleep.
"Can I run back to the campsite and see if I can get some supplies?" Evan asks me. "I might be able to find something useful." </span>
<span style="background-color:#173620;">[["..."]]</span><span style="background-color:#374A46;">Before you have the chance to reply, you hear growling from the mouth of the cave. In comes Wesley, shirt torn and tattered as he lunges at Evan.
Aria startles awake and you scramble further back into the cave with her, watching in fear as Evan goes mad.
Only minutes later, you feel cool rock pressing against your back - there's nowhere else to turn. Evan and Wesley corner you and Aria.
The last thing you remember is thinking about how funny it feels to go mad.
THE END</span><span style="background-color:#0B1C07;">You try to follow your own advice and run. You had a good head start from not being so close to the cottages, but Aria is close on your tail nonetheless. You find your way back into the heart of the forest, suddenly met with a path forked in two. </span>
<span style="background-color:#0E1C0F;">[[fork left]]
[[fork right]]</span><span style="background-color:#374A46;">It doesn't take long for the madness to settle into your veins. It feels like falling asleep while plummeting from the moon to the earth and then landing in a pool of cottage cheese.
Did that make sense? Probably not.
But when the metaphor begins to become reality in your mind, you know it is lost for good.
THE END</span> <span style="background-color:#374A46;">Inside, the sanctuary is deathly quiet. The light from the sunset is fading through the stained glass windows that are mounted over the altar, which is covered with a dusty sheen from lack of use. The pews are empty, but some of the kneelers are set down, as if they were recently used.
[[continue]]</span>"Any food left is likely to be tainted with the disease," you warn Aria. It's too late. She has already sprinted ahead to the first cottage and after scouting for homeowners, comes out the front door with two loaves of stale bread in her hands.
"Tonight, we eat like kings." Aria grins.
Behind her, a small child approaches. Its hair is brown and tangled, matted over its head in a thick wad of knots. It wears a worn nightgown, the semblance of dancing clowns still gracing the old fabric.
"Aria--" you call, but she has already turned around to face the child. She stares at it for a moment and calls back to you for help.
"Should I give her one of the loaves?" Aria cries. "She looks hungry, and I'd rather be on her good side."
[[give the child the loaf]]
[[tell Aria to run]]<span style="background-color:#374A46;">About an hour into waiting, Evan puts his arm around you. From the sound of his breathing, you wager that he's still asleep.
[[let him keep his arm there]]
[[move his arm]]</span><span style="background-color:#374A46;">"Evan, be careful," you warn him. "The water might be tainted with the disease."
"There's no way you would be able to get any kind of contamination this far out from the city." Evan replies, taking a sip of the water. He closes his eyes in blissful relief.
"Saoirse, you need to come try this," Evan breathes. "It tastes so wonderful. I forgot how good water feels when you drink it."
You're about to follow his advice when you see something floating in the water, drifting downstream. You narrow your eyes, trying to see through the gathering gloom of dusk.
It's Aria's body.
[["Evan!"]]</span><span style="background-color:#374A46;">"Evan!" you scream. Evan follows your gaze and gags, spitting out the water that was remaining in his mouth, but it's too late.
"No, no, no..." Evan coughs. He stares at Aria as she drifts downstream. "That's definitely contaminated. It's... I'm..."
Evan glances back to you and then at the water again. He begins to walk into the current, the water swirling around his ankles, then his knees.
[["Evan, stop. Don't let it end like this."]]
[["I'm going with you."]]
</span>
<span style="background-color:#374A46;">"I have to." Evan looks at you, tears in his eyes. A single man tear trickles down his cheek. "I'm sorry."
You fall to your knees, heart thudding in your chest. You want to stop him, but there's nothing you can do. He wades into the water and disappears beneath the surface, leaving you alone on the bank to mourn him.
[[press f to pay respects - or just click here]] </span>
<span style="background-color:#374A46;">"I'm going with you," you say, choking on the tears in your throat. Evan is most definitely going to go mad, and you don't know what you're going to do without somebody else to watch your back. Besides, after all Evan has done for you, this is the least you can do.
You walk into the water with Evan, who has tears in his eyes. You take his hand and the two of you wade into the river until it's at your shoulders. You want him to say something - anything. He doesn't.
You both go beneath the water at the same time, fingers still interlaced as you hold each other under. Just as your sight is starting to fade, you notice a helicopter flying low overhead, just over the tops of the trees.
It might have been a rescue copter.
You're never going to know.
THE END</span><span style="background-color:#374A46;">You mourn Evan, mud soaking through the knees of your jeans. After a few moments, you hear a whirring overhead and look up to see a helicopter headed right for you. Overwhelmed, you start waving your arms wildly.
The helicopter comes closer, and you realize it's on a crash course for you. You die in a massive, beautiful flame of glory.
At least you didn't go crazy.
THE END</span><span style="background-color:#374A46;">Your hesitance is ill-rewarded. Aria passes out from fear and the child approaches you. You turn to run, but she is too fast. The next thing you know, you feel the bubbles of madness popping like champagne in your throat.
This must be the nicest way to die.
THE END</span><span style="background-color:#273635;">"What do we do?" you ask Aria. "Should we go in and help?"
Aria is already deserting the crew, going to stand by the edge of the woods where you had just been. She waves at you from where she is, calling for you to follow.
Behind you, Evan has untangled himself from the fight as Wesley plunges a knife into Marcia's heart. As soon as she lies still, he is up on his feet with madness foaming in his mouth. His eyes are on Evan. </span>
<span style="background-color:#151C1C;">[[try to save Evan]]
[[go with Aria]]</span><span style="background-color:#374A46;">"Evan, it was just a bad dream," you say, trying to calm him. "It was a nightmare. I swear, you're okay."
"Saoirse, if you don't move out of the way right now, I'm going to lose it." Evan growls. He's not mad. You can tell because of the normalcy his eyes are retaining. It's not the early stages, either. There's nothing in here he could have been exposed to.
Still, to avoid escalation, you step aside. Evan unbolts the door in a frenzy and runs out of the church. You stand there alone in the pantry as the church doors creak open.
[[follow Evan]]
[[stay inside]] </span><span style="background-color:#374A46;">You decide it's best to bolt the door and await some kind of rescue, if at all possible. Or perhaps another companion that isn't as crazy as Evan ended up being.
You take inventory one more time, saddened to see the limited supply of provisions. As you're sorting through your supplies, you notice a small handheld radio with a crank to turn it on.
[[try to turn on the radio->radio silence]]
[[dissect it for electrical parts to start a fire]]</span><span style="background-color:#374A46;">You untangle yourself from Evan, who murmurs in his sleep as you leave his side. Within minutes of you cranking the dusty radio, it works by some unforeseen miracle. You try to tune it to the news station, which comes over in crackling *hiss* of noise. Evan jerks awake at this and glares at you from where he lies, unable to process what you're doing.
[[listen to the news]] </span><span style="background-color:#374A46;">You decide to try pulling the radio apart to see if you can start some kind of electrical fire, both to keep yourself warm and also to boil water if you happen to find an outside source of it. After hours of pulling apart the machinery, you dumbly press every wire together with no previous knowledge of how to actually ignite the flame. Either all your efforts have failed, or the batteries are dead. Either way, this attempt was in vain.
With a sigh, you put the broken radio on one of the metal shelves and curl up on the floor, taking in the silence that surrounds you.
[[take in the silence]]</span>
<span style="background-color:#374A46;">You decide to try and bring the radio back to life, but after cranking it for several minutes, you realize its batteries must be dead. It's not going to be any use for fire, either. With a sigh, you put it on one of the metal shelves and curl up on the floor, taking in the silence that surrounds you.
[[take in the silence]]
</span><span style="background-color:#374A46;">It takes a week or two before you die. It's a painfully slow process wrought on by lack of water and food. You know it would have been better to go out and be with Evan, even if it meant going mad.
Anything would be better than this.
THE END</span><span style="background-color:#374A46;">You turn up the radio so you can hear the announcer beneath the static.
"If you're just now tuning in, we'll say it again - the preventative medicine against the madness has been discovered!" cries the announcer, voice roaring with white noise from the speakers. "One and all who are still alive and sane, go outside and wave to the rescue helicopters - they will come and save you! They are currently flying over all of America in waves!"
Evan sits up, dazed from sleep.
"What should we do?" he murmurs. "Go outside like he says or wait to see if they'll come to us? They might storm the buildings. It'll be safer in here, but if they don't come in, they'll never see us."
[[go outside and wait for rescue]]
[[stay inside and wait for rescue]]</span><span style="background-color:#5E3F38;">"Hey, over here!" you yell at the top of your lungs. Evan joins you, waving his arms up and down over his head. It doesn't take long before one of the copters inevitably spots you, thanks to your position in the clearing right outside the landmarked church. The copter lowers to the ground, propeller spinning wildly overhead.
Once the door is opened, you and Evan are checked by a small team of officers protected by hazmat suits. Both of you are determined to be sane, by whatever measures invented in this new system.
You are invited onboard the helicopter, an offer which you eagerly accept. The last thing you and Evan see of your little forest home is the way the sun rises over the trees, casting shadows you are more than grateful to leave behind.
CONGRATULATIONS! YOU SURVIVED. CLICK [[HERE->the beginning]] TO REPLAY.</span> <span style="background-color:#374A46;">You ignore Evan's warning and stand between him and Wesley, who climbs to his feet to match your height.
"Doesn't it feel funny to go mad?" Wesley growls, his green eyes unrecognizable behind the yellow sheen of disease that clouds his vision. "That's how you know you've got the madness. You'll feel it in your veins. Saorise, don't you feel how the ground is spinning beneath your feet?"
Truth be told?
You do.
THE END</span>
<span style="background-color:#374A46;">It's Wesley. He approaches you from the trunk of the tree where Aria is still asleep. His bleeding fingers indicate he was trying (and failing) to scale it.
"Wes, please--" you cry, still unable to move. If it's not from the fall, it's from the shock of seeing Wesley and knowing what is inevitably going to come next.
"It's like the hiccups," he grins. "But it never goes away."
He starts singing to himself an odd, halting tune as he approaches you. By the time he reaches your side, the world around you is filled with all the things from his manic song.
Despite the fight you put up to resist the madness, you find yourself singing along too.
THE END</span>All images in this game were found on pexels.com, which is a free stock image resource that allows the images on the site to be used both commercially and personally without accredation to the photographers. Below is a list of the owners of the free stock photos I used as a thank you for letting their pictures be used in this manner.
https://www.pexels.com/@munkee-panic-272941
https://www.pexels.com/@pixabay
https://www.pexels.com/@brett-sayles
https://www.pexels.com/@grizzlybear
https://www.pexels.com/@sabeel-ahammed-15010
https://www.pexels.com/@kaboompics
https://www.pexels.com/@ridoframe
https://www.pexels.com/@miakel-root-8843
https://www.pexels.com/@hasanalbari
https://www.pexels.com/@aeppli
https://www.pexels.com/@zhangkaiyv
https://www.pexels.com/@andreea-ch-371539
https://www.pexels.com/@holiho-426367
https://www.pexels.com/@hngstrm<span style="background-color:#273635;">It's a dark, cold night in late December. You and four of your best friends are huddled by a campfire in the heart of a forest, trying to keep warm as the first few flakes of winter snow begin to drift down from the sky. It's a picturesque scene, the solemnity adding to the forested serenity. You wish you could appreciate the beauty of your surroundings more, but after months of being trapped in the depths of this forest, you've stopped noticing anything except the way the branches knock together, snapping and popping. It always sets your teeth on edge.
Your friends are chatting by the campfire, oblivious to the way the branches crackle in the distance.</span>
<span style="background-color:#151C1C;">[[listen in on your friends' conversation]]</span>