5 Bones

[[Feed the Fire->You Fed the Fire]]

Glowing embers spark and snap growing hotter and catching. The fire roars. Flames lick the cold and you can feel your hands again. Stretching all around you, beyond the reach of the flames, is an inky blackness. The black feels dry and chaps your lips. [[You see 5 bones.->You See 5 Bones]]

The rib seems strong. [[Feed the fire->The Bone Cracks rib]] [[Put it down.]]

What do you feed it? [[A femur->Femur]], [[a rib->Rib]], [[a finger bone->Finger Bone]], [[a vertebrae->Vertebrae]], [[a tooth->Tooth]]

a femur, a rib, a finger bone, a humerus, a tooth [[Looking at them hurts your eyes.->You See 5 Bones]]

Resting in a careful row are [[5 bones]], delicately placed in the ashy dust. The light just glances off them, but they seem scorching white compared to the black. [[Feed the Fire]] [[Look into the Fire]]

It is so small. [[Feed the fire->The Bone Cracks finger]] [[Put it down.]]

It’s not human. [[Feed the fire->The Bone Cracks femur]] [[Put it down.]]

You don’t want to look at it [[Feed the Fire->The Bone cracks tooth]] [[Put it down.]]

It's cracked in two places. [[Feed the fire->The Bone Cracks vert]] [[Put it down.]]

The flames press against the black. The black presses against your back. You lick your lips. They still feel chapped. [[Feed the Fire]] [[Look into the Fire again]]

There are only embers. The black gobbles up each one warm rock. Your lips are still chapped. You can no longer feel your hands. Moving your body is a conscious effort. The black pushes thick up your arms into your throat. [[The Fire goes out]]

The black presses against the flames. The flames look like small brushes sitting in the dark ash. Your lips are chapped; you can't feel your hands. The black presses into your pores. [[Feed the Fire]] [[Look into the Fire still]]

[[You look at the Fire's afterimage]]

You feel the black gurgling in your throat and clouding your eyes. You are so cold. Your skin is dry and papery. Like ash. [[You lie down]]. You don't want to feel.

[[ash]]

You chose not to know.

The bone cracks in the [[flame->Femur Vision]].

The bone cracks in the [[flame->Tooth Vision]].

The bone cracks in the [[flame->Vert Vision]].

The bone cracks in the [[flame->Finger Vision]].

The bone cracks in the [[flame->Rib Vision]].

You stretch your back in the midday sun. Resting on the porch is always so relaxing at this time of day, and it calms you down to bathe in the warm rays and watch the dust motes twirl through th- You see something move in the bushes across the street. You pause perfectly still. If you can just catch this thing, you’re sure you’ll be happier than you’ve ever been in your life. You wait poised, and the hair on your back feels electric. Then you burst into a flurry of movement. Your paws hit the pavement hard and fast and your whole body rushes forward towards your prey. There is nothing else: only you and it. You hear the sharp screech of wheels on pavement. You are only pain. You can feel your body concave where it shouldn’t and your organs throbbing. You feel a rushing of fluid in your head and through your eyes. You think you’re missing a leg. The [[bone]] turns to dust.

You’ve never been so afraid. You heard gunshots in your home and ran into the bathroom. Your hands shake as you lock the door. You’re not safe here. Frantically you pull the latch of the small window. You clamber from the porcelain seat onto the window sill. If you jump you’ll catch the branch of the tree. Despite your trembling, you leap out grasping for bark and leaves. You know the feel of this tree having climbed it many times sneaking in and out before. But the familiar hug of wood never comes. The ground rushes toward you, and you feel the compression of bones and flesh and then nothing. The [[bone]] turns to dust.

You’re coloring on the kitchen table. You’re running out of crayola crayons and you told your mom the roseart ones aren’t any good. You hope she buys the right ones from the store. You pick up the mac-and-cheese crayon for the sun. You don’t think it’s exactly the right color for a sun, but you really like the name. You hear a series of loud bangs in the house. They’re louder than anything you’ve ever heard before and ring in your ears. You feel a wetness across your chest and then a searing pain. Your small body slumps, leaning on the table. You look at your hand still holding the color of the sun. The [[bone]] turns to dust.

You haven’t been able to breathe for a while now. Your body is fighting for air, and you’ve never experienced such anguish. There’s an ache through your entire being like your cells are ripping apart, but annoyingly there’s this regular thump beating on top of your chest. You wish it would stop. You feel a pop in your chest and feel fluid entering your lungs. You’re drowning. The [[bone]] turns to dust.

[[bone->bone ending]]

You chose to know. You did not understand.

You only feel a white heat. The [[bone->True Path]] turns to dust.

Resting in a careful row are 5 bones, delicately placed in the ashy dust. Feed the fire? [[A femur->Femur]], [[a rib->Rib]], [[a finger bone->Finger Bone]], [[a vertebrae->Vertebrae]], [[a tooth->Tooth]] [[Look into the Fire]]

You feel the cold black again. Stretching all around you, beyond the reach of the flames, is an inky blackness. The black feels dry and chaps your lips. You see [[4 bones]].

[[A femur->1]], a rib, a finger bone, a vertebrae, a tooth

You drive to the address you’ve been given. It’s been a while since you’ve had a job like this. You feel a thump against your car as you come to a screeching halt in the appointed street. [[You get out of the car.]]

You see a small corpse lying by your car [[You walk towards it.]] [[You get on with the job->Bad Path]]

You feel the cold black again. Stretching all around you, beyond the reach of the flames, is an inky blackness. The black feels dry and chaps your lips. You see [[3 bones]].

You hear it's labored breathing. The unnatural flattness of it burns into your eyes. [[It didn't deserve to die.->Good Path intro]]

The fire roars. Flames lick the cold and you can feel your hands again. Stretching all around you, beyond the reach of the flames, is an inky blackness. The black feels dry and chaps your lips. You see [[3 bones->3 bones good]].

A femur, a rib, [[a finger bone->2]], a vertebrae, a tooth

[[You start shooting into the house.->A bad ending]]

You break down the door and see two bodies in the kitchen. One is still breathing. [[Walk towards the bodies->One is still breathing.]] [[Finish the job.]]

[[You're out of bullets.]]

You lean over their body. Their breaths are ragged, and their eyes dart around the room unfocused. They don't seem to be able to register their environment anymore. [[You grip their neck.]]

[[You squeeze.]]

The bone turns to dust. The fire extinguishes suddenly and the [[black->Bone bad ending]] consumes you.

You are the [[black]]. You consume everything. You feel nothing.

[[black->black ending]]

You chose to know. You did not feel.

A femur, a rib, [[a finger bone->2]], a vertebrae, a tooth

You see a child slumped over the kitchen table. Your bullet shot them through the window and through his chest. Their little hand clutches a crayon still as blood filters into their drawings, dyeing them red. This isn't the right house. The [[bone->This isn't the right house.]] turns to dust.

A femur, [[a rib,->3]] a finger bone, a vertebrae, a tooth

You lean over the one that is still alive. Their breaths are ragged; you can hear the raspy failure of the body to take in air. Their eyes dart around the room unfocused. They don't seem to be able to register their environment anymore. [[You try to save them.]]

You fervently compress on their chest trying to restart their heart. [[You're afraid you're hurting them.]]

You feel a series of small pops beneath your weight. Their eyes lose focus, and their face goes slack The [[bone->almost]] turns to dust.

A femur, a rib, a finger bone, [[a vertebrae,->4]] a tooth [[no no no no no no no no no->Look into the Fire still]]

You stumble out of the house and notice a body under the tree. [[You walk towards it.->the body under the tree]]

[[You stand over it.]]

You don't want to look [[Look->You don't want to look]]

You don't want to look. [[Look.->Look.]] Turn away.

You see the neck twisted up sharply, and eyes pooling with red gazing up. Your stomach heaves. The [[bone->done]] turns to dust.

[[There are no more bones.->done]]

The flames press against the black. The black presses against your back. You lick your lips. They still feel chapped. The fire seems familiar now. [[Feed the fire.->Try to feed it]] [[Look into the fire again.->it's almost over now]]

The fire seems so warm and safe compared to how lonely it is out here in the black. Maybe the fire will forgive you. [[Feed the fire.->Try to feed it]] [[Look into the fire still.->ending 1]]

[[You reach for the flames.->ending 2]]

[[The fire licks your hand.->ending 3]]

[[and then your arm->ending 4]]

[[and then your eyes->ending 5]]

[[You are the fire.->ending 6]] You feel everything. The pain sears and the guilt bleeds into cavities of your being.

[[It is agony.->ending 7]]

You see their deaths, and you see [[yours.->ending 8]]

The fire burns out. There are only [[teeth->ending 9]] left.

[[fire->ending 10]]

You chose to know.

The bone cracks in the [[flame->True Femur]].

The bone cracks in the [[flame->You start shooting into the house.]]

The bone cracks in the [[flame->Rib ending]]

The bone cracks in the [[flame->vertebrae ending]]

[[5 Bones->the first]] created by <a href="http://carinadraws.tumblr.com/">Carina Taylor</a>