I saw some people ask for the whole story to be posted somewhere else, so if the staff doesn't mind, I shall post it here!
- - - Post Merge - - -
This is this song that was played in the Deep Woods. Thanks to the, Woods Expedition Guide!
The gate creaks on it?s hinges. You glance back over your shoulder, seeing the amber glow of the town in the distance. Right now everyone will be knocking on each others doors, spooking one another, and exchanging candy like it is currency. But, somehow, trick o? treating just didn?t appeal to your tastes this year, did it?
"Wait, you there!"
You spin on your heels. You strain your eyes to see, but there is no one there. You laugh a little, your face warming up at the realisation that the hair on the back of your neck is standing on end. Of course there is no one there. No one else would dare go venturing into The Woods this late at night. There are signs picketed all over the fields surrounding the forest saying that you should not enter. That it?s dangerous. That it?s haunted.
Calmer now, you take another step.
"Oi!"
You scream.
There?s a slithering through the grass. An unmistakeable hiss echoes around you. A flash of - colour? No. A flash of non-colour. A colourless entity whips by you. Then before you, out of nowhere, a chameleon begins to take on his true colour: a deep emerald green. He?s short, shorter than you, dressed-up like a wanna-be Indiana Jones. He wields his purple-handled net like an axe, jabbing the pointed end at your chest with the gusto of a swordsman.
"State your business."
"W-Who are you?"
"I am Nat, Guardian of these Woods." The chameleon stamps his net against the ground like a staff. "Or, of late anyway. After what happened to that poor sweet kitten last October Tortimer decided to hire extra security for this year?s Halloween. Booker and Copper are known to be a little... lax on the job."
You nod. You had heard the rumours yourself: about a curious kitten wandering off into The Woods all by herself last year. The stories say that when she was found the following morning her once orange fur was streaked with white and her pupils permanently dilated with fear.
Nat clears his throat. "And you? State your business."
You rattle off an explanation, telling him of how you heard that there was something hidden deep in The Woods. A treasure that only explorers who have proven their worth, with souls strong enough to resist the lure of malicious woodland spirits, can hope to ever lay their hands on.
"An explorer, huh?" Nat taps his jaw in thought. "But are you an experienced adventurer? I can?t let you through unless you can prove to me you know how to take care of yourself out there."
"Wait, you there!"
You spin on your heels. You strain your eyes to see, but there is no one there. You laugh a little, your face warming up at the realisation that the hair on the back of your neck is standing on end. Of course there is no one there. No one else would dare go venturing into The Woods this late at night. There are signs picketed all over the fields surrounding the forest saying that you should not enter. That it?s dangerous. That it?s haunted.
Calmer now, you take another step.
"Oi!"
You scream.
There?s a slithering through the grass. An unmistakeable hiss echoes around you. A flash of - colour? No. A flash of non-colour. A colourless entity whips by you. Then before you, out of nowhere, a chameleon begins to take on his true colour: a deep emerald green. He?s short, shorter than you, dressed-up like a wanna-be Indiana Jones. He wields his purple-handled net like an axe, jabbing the pointed end at your chest with the gusto of a swordsman.
"State your business."
"W-Who are you?"
"I am Nat, Guardian of these Woods." The chameleon stamps his net against the ground like a staff. "Or, of late anyway. After what happened to that poor sweet kitten last October Tortimer decided to hire extra security for this year?s Halloween. Booker and Copper are known to be a little... lax on the job."
You nod. You had heard the rumours yourself: about a curious kitten wandering off into The Woods all by herself last year. The stories say that when she was found the following morning her once orange fur was streaked with white and her pupils permanently dilated with fear.
Nat clears his throat. "And you? State your business."
You rattle off an explanation, telling him of how you heard that there was something hidden deep in The Woods. A treasure that only explorers who have proven their worth, with souls strong enough to resist the lure of malicious woodland spirits, can hope to ever lay their hands on.
"An explorer, huh?" Nat taps his jaw in thought. "But are you an experienced adventurer? I can?t let you through unless you can prove to me you know how to take care of yourself out there."
Having proved your mettle and determination in your eyes, Nat allows you on by, deeming your gear sufficient enough to tackle your new adventure. He turns around, unlocking the gate and moves to the side to allow passage. As you begin to pass, he blocks the path with the pointed end of his butterfly net.
"Just because you have the tools, doesn't mean you've got it to make it out there. Know your limits explorer, know when to call it quits. Not all treasure is worth losing a part of yourself for," the chameleon advises with a somber look.
You puff your chest out as if to wow him, but he just sighs and lowers his net.
"One last thing explorer. There's a campsite ahead, you might want to rest there tonight before journeying ahead. Someone should be there tonight, so you won't be alone."
You thank the aged explorer for everything and stroll through the woods for a while. With it getting ever darker and your visibility getting worse, you hope to come across the campsite soon enough. After what feels like ages you finally see a light in the distance and break into a full sprint towards it. As you draw near a shadow stands up tall and you hear the whirl of an arrow past your right side.
"I won't miss again, consider that a warning shot. If you're here to loot my campsite, begone now," the giant echoed.
"Please sir, I just wish to sleep somewhere tonight, preferrably with a fire and some company," you plead frozen in place, adrenaline rushing through your body.
"Tell you what stranger, if you can share your best scary story you can pitch your tent here tonight. If you can't, you best find somewhere else to before I pull another arrow from my quiver."
"Just because you have the tools, doesn't mean you've got it to make it out there. Know your limits explorer, know when to call it quits. Not all treasure is worth losing a part of yourself for," the chameleon advises with a somber look.
You puff your chest out as if to wow him, but he just sighs and lowers his net.
"One last thing explorer. There's a campsite ahead, you might want to rest there tonight before journeying ahead. Someone should be there tonight, so you won't be alone."
You thank the aged explorer for everything and stroll through the woods for a while. With it getting ever darker and your visibility getting worse, you hope to come across the campsite soon enough. After what feels like ages you finally see a light in the distance and break into a full sprint towards it. As you draw near a shadow stands up tall and you hear the whirl of an arrow past your right side.
"I won't miss again, consider that a warning shot. If you're here to loot my campsite, begone now," the giant echoed.
"Please sir, I just wish to sleep somewhere tonight, preferrably with a fire and some company," you plead frozen in place, adrenaline rushing through your body.
"Tell you what stranger, if you can share your best scary story you can pitch your tent here tonight. If you can't, you best find somewhere else to before I pull another arrow from my quiver."
You wake up in the early hours of the morning, only to find it's just as dark, if not darker, than what it was last night. You look at your watch to try to grasp a concept of time, but it's mysteriously stopped working. You give it a few more taps... nothing, your watch is broken.
Putting your watch woes aside, you grab your camping gear and begin to venture forth into the woods, stumbling across a sign that reads:
You ignore the sign, thinking a little trip through the woods can't be that bad. You've been in The Woods before and nothing too over the top has ever happened. Although you've never been this far from the outside before. A few steps in and you become overwhelmed. It's a feeling you've never felt before, but you know it's not a feeling that any normal person should experience. Suddenly, a wispy, black figure darts across in front of you, darkening the path ahead, disrupting your vision. You rub your eyes clean, only to see another dark figure bolt across, this time from behind. A sharp pain starts eating away at your shoulder, and soon stretches all over the rest of your back. You look behind you, you're only a few steps into the woods, you can't take much more not knowing what else could happen, so you decide to head back.
Stumped by your journey, but not wanting to give up, you try again. The same thing happens, only this time the pain hurts more. You try to push through the pain, but it only gets worse, and more dark figures dart from across the vast trees, blurring your vision, and aching your every muscle. Not knowing what to do, you head back once again.
You sit out the front of The Woods, hoping something, someone, will help you out. Hours pass, and nothing happens, it's only getting darker and colder. You need to get out before the night settles in again, you're unsure if you can take much more of this. In anger, you throw a rock at the sign, which falls apart, revealing an old, dusty piece of paper from the inside. You blow the dust off it and give it a read:
THE OUTSIDE MASKS WHAT THE INSIDE HIDES
SPIRITS WILL HURT THOSE WHO ARE NOT ONE OF THE SAME
USE YOUR SKILLS TO MAKE IT PAST THE HAUNTED PATH
- A Friend
Someone must have previously made it through the Haunted Path (or, at least knows how to) and left a hidden note for the next "lucky" person to find. But what is it's purpose? If only there was a way to get through. There has to be a way to get through The Woods without upsetting the spirits. Somehow, you've got to figure out how to fool the spirits into thinking you're not of human origins.
Putting your watch woes aside, you grab your camping gear and begin to venture forth into the woods, stumbling across a sign that reads:
WARNING: HAUNTED PATH AHEAD
SPIRITS CAREFULLY WATCH OVER THE PATH AND DO NOT TAKE WELL TO HUMANS
ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK
SPIRITS CAREFULLY WATCH OVER THE PATH AND DO NOT TAKE WELL TO HUMANS
ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK
You ignore the sign, thinking a little trip through the woods can't be that bad. You've been in The Woods before and nothing too over the top has ever happened. Although you've never been this far from the outside before. A few steps in and you become overwhelmed. It's a feeling you've never felt before, but you know it's not a feeling that any normal person should experience. Suddenly, a wispy, black figure darts across in front of you, darkening the path ahead, disrupting your vision. You rub your eyes clean, only to see another dark figure bolt across, this time from behind. A sharp pain starts eating away at your shoulder, and soon stretches all over the rest of your back. You look behind you, you're only a few steps into the woods, you can't take much more not knowing what else could happen, so you decide to head back.
Stumped by your journey, but not wanting to give up, you try again. The same thing happens, only this time the pain hurts more. You try to push through the pain, but it only gets worse, and more dark figures dart from across the vast trees, blurring your vision, and aching your every muscle. Not knowing what to do, you head back once again.
You sit out the front of The Woods, hoping something, someone, will help you out. Hours pass, and nothing happens, it's only getting darker and colder. You need to get out before the night settles in again, you're unsure if you can take much more of this. In anger, you throw a rock at the sign, which falls apart, revealing an old, dusty piece of paper from the inside. You blow the dust off it and give it a read:
THE OUTSIDE MASKS WHAT THE INSIDE HIDES
SPIRITS WILL HURT THOSE WHO ARE NOT ONE OF THE SAME
USE YOUR SKILLS TO MAKE IT PAST THE HAUNTED PATH
- A Friend
Someone must have previously made it through the Haunted Path (or, at least knows how to) and left a hidden note for the next "lucky" person to find. But what is it's purpose? If only there was a way to get through. There has to be a way to get through The Woods without upsetting the spirits. Somehow, you've got to figure out how to fool the spirits into thinking you're not of human origins.
The vast expanse of the thick sludge in front of you reaches out as far as the eye can see. An oozing layer of slime coats the surface, obscuring whatever lurks below. Bubbles of putrid gas crackle and hiss at the trunks of gnarled, long-dead trees. It?s deathly quiet - but you can?t help but notice the ripples that trace movements from underneath.
A clumsily-made wooden bridge spans the length of the water - it?s the only way across. You extend your leg shakily, and take your first step. The strain of the wood creaks beneath you. Your knuckles turn white as you grasp the thick rope banister to keep yourself steady. You keep walking. Slowly, carefully, you place one foot in front of the other, as the bridge sways from side to side. Something doesn?t seem right?
The ripples you noticed before start to become more frequent and more aggressive. You speed up, stepping faster, too scared to look down. The swamp below is being churned up, sending splatters of mud onto your shoes. Your heart starts to race as you break into a run. The bridge groaning. The sludge swirling. Just keep moving, you think to yourself. The swamp is forming waves now; heavy streams shoot upwards and crash back down. A cackling scream comes from below. Your eyes jolt down in time to see a gnarled claw reach out from the depths through the slats in the bridge and grasp at your ankle; dragging you under.
Your mouth opens to let out a screech, and rivulets of swamp mud flood in. Your hands grasp around helplessly, trying to find anything to aid you. You feel movement all around, and imagine ghouls blitzing past through clamped-shut eyes. Down and down you sink, for what feels like an eternity. Menacing laughs infect your mind, scratching through your ears. You start to give in as the possibility of escape begins to evaporate.
Suddenly, the pressure in your head starts to fade. A calming feeling of weightlessness comes over you as you open your eyes. You?re taken aback by the sight. You seem to be in another world - floating, but able to move and breathe as normal. You?re surrounded by colossal mountains of objects - lost possessions that have fallen in the swamp over the years. A scroll hovers in the air in front of you. Snatching it, you unravel the ancient paper and read what is etched into it:
A clumsily-made wooden bridge spans the length of the water - it?s the only way across. You extend your leg shakily, and take your first step. The strain of the wood creaks beneath you. Your knuckles turn white as you grasp the thick rope banister to keep yourself steady. You keep walking. Slowly, carefully, you place one foot in front of the other, as the bridge sways from side to side. Something doesn?t seem right?
The ripples you noticed before start to become more frequent and more aggressive. You speed up, stepping faster, too scared to look down. The swamp below is being churned up, sending splatters of mud onto your shoes. Your heart starts to race as you break into a run. The bridge groaning. The sludge swirling. Just keep moving, you think to yourself. The swamp is forming waves now; heavy streams shoot upwards and crash back down. A cackling scream comes from below. Your eyes jolt down in time to see a gnarled claw reach out from the depths through the slats in the bridge and grasp at your ankle; dragging you under.
Your mouth opens to let out a screech, and rivulets of swamp mud flood in. Your hands grasp around helplessly, trying to find anything to aid you. You feel movement all around, and imagine ghouls blitzing past through clamped-shut eyes. Down and down you sink, for what feels like an eternity. Menacing laughs infect your mind, scratching through your ears. You start to give in as the possibility of escape begins to evaporate.
Suddenly, the pressure in your head starts to fade. A calming feeling of weightlessness comes over you as you open your eyes. You?re taken aback by the sight. You seem to be in another world - floating, but able to move and breathe as normal. You?re surrounded by colossal mountains of objects - lost possessions that have fallen in the swamp over the years. A scroll hovers in the air in front of you. Snatching it, you unravel the ancient paper and read what is etched into it:
YE WHO TREKS THROUGH THIS DEATHLY SWAMP,
SEEKING OUT FIENDISH CANDIES TO CHOMP.
WE ASK OF YOU A SINGLE THING,
CREATE FOR US AN OFFERING.
BUT BEFORE YOU START FORGING WHAT WE ASKED,
YOU WON?T SURVIVE LONG HERE, SO MAKE IT FAST.
ONLY WHEN YOU CAN PROVE YOUR WORTH,
WILL WE, DARK SPIRITS, RETURN YOU BACK TO DRY EARTH.
SEEKING OUT FIENDISH CANDIES TO CHOMP.
WE ASK OF YOU A SINGLE THING,
CREATE FOR US AN OFFERING.
BUT BEFORE YOU START FORGING WHAT WE ASKED,
YOU WON?T SURVIVE LONG HERE, SO MAKE IT FAST.
ONLY WHEN YOU CAN PROVE YOUR WORTH,
WILL WE, DARK SPIRITS, RETURN YOU BACK TO DRY EARTH.
As you leave the swamp, drenched in your mud-ridden clothing, you find yourself stuck in front of an immense, old, rusted gate. You try with all your might to find a way around it, but it seems to go on forever, and reaches up into the heavens. After stopping, just for a minute, you hear an eerie voice.
"Continue into the cemetery, to prove your worth. Only those with the magic touch, who possess the power of enchantments can make it through to our master"
With no sign of warning, the rusted gates in front of you plummet into the ground, disappearing completely from sight, opening your way into the haunted area ahead. You venture forth, unable to see anything as a cloudy, thick fog covers the area ahead. In a matter of seconds, a huge gust of wind wisps past, taking the fog along with it. Suddenly, you find yourself trapped in a cemetery, with on sign of escape. An uncanny feeling overcomes you, running through your entire body, sending chills down your spine. Uncertain of what to do, you start running, desperately trying to seek any means of escape. As you begin running, you start to feel drained, as if your soul were being sucked out the more you move. You try your hardest to push through the surreal feeling of euphoria, but it's no use. You quickly fall to the ground, completely immobilized.
Stuck on the ground with no method of escape, you close your eyes, trying to wake up from what you could only hope is a horrific nightmare. After a few minutes, you open your eyes, and find yourself surrounded by a bunch of tombstones. Directly ahead of you lies a large headstone, made from a material unlike anything you've seen before. Suddenly, you regain movement in your legs, and then the rest of your body. You bring yourself to your feet, stumbling your way towards the headstone, as you feel a force dragging you towards it.
You reach the tombstone and see a small opening beneath it, with a few scratch marks, as if someone were here before you. You bend down and start digging at the ground, trying to uncover whatever lies beneath. After a few small hand movements, the ground beneath you loosens, crumbling beneath your knees, and you fall to the area beneath. Suddenly, your fall stops, and you realize you're stuck in a room, filled with cauldrons and flasks, and an old wooden door. You walk towards the door, moving your hands across it, trying to open it, but it wont budge.
You remove yourself from the door, and start looking around the room once more. To your left, you notice a smaller, inconspicuous door, that opens with the touch of your hands. Inside, it looks like you just entered a kitchen, but not like your kitchen at home. You take a look at one of the jars, holding it close to your eyes, trying to see through the fluids inside. After staring for a few seconds, you realize it's a jar full of blood! In shock, you drop the jar, and it smashes on the ground, transforming into a soft purple glow as it hits the ground. The glow swiftly moves to the old door, and reveals a hand print indented into the door. You raise your hand, and push it into the mould, and a voice starts speaking to you:
"Continue into the cemetery, to prove your worth. Only those with the magic touch, who possess the power of enchantments can make it through to our master"
With no sign of warning, the rusted gates in front of you plummet into the ground, disappearing completely from sight, opening your way into the haunted area ahead. You venture forth, unable to see anything as a cloudy, thick fog covers the area ahead. In a matter of seconds, a huge gust of wind wisps past, taking the fog along with it. Suddenly, you find yourself trapped in a cemetery, with on sign of escape. An uncanny feeling overcomes you, running through your entire body, sending chills down your spine. Uncertain of what to do, you start running, desperately trying to seek any means of escape. As you begin running, you start to feel drained, as if your soul were being sucked out the more you move. You try your hardest to push through the surreal feeling of euphoria, but it's no use. You quickly fall to the ground, completely immobilized.
Stuck on the ground with no method of escape, you close your eyes, trying to wake up from what you could only hope is a horrific nightmare. After a few minutes, you open your eyes, and find yourself surrounded by a bunch of tombstones. Directly ahead of you lies a large headstone, made from a material unlike anything you've seen before. Suddenly, you regain movement in your legs, and then the rest of your body. You bring yourself to your feet, stumbling your way towards the headstone, as you feel a force dragging you towards it.
You reach the tombstone and see a small opening beneath it, with a few scratch marks, as if someone were here before you. You bend down and start digging at the ground, trying to uncover whatever lies beneath. After a few small hand movements, the ground beneath you loosens, crumbling beneath your knees, and you fall to the area beneath. Suddenly, your fall stops, and you realize you're stuck in a room, filled with cauldrons and flasks, and an old wooden door. You walk towards the door, moving your hands across it, trying to open it, but it wont budge.
You remove yourself from the door, and start looking around the room once more. To your left, you notice a smaller, inconspicuous door, that opens with the touch of your hands. Inside, it looks like you just entered a kitchen, but not like your kitchen at home. You take a look at one of the jars, holding it close to your eyes, trying to see through the fluids inside. After staring for a few seconds, you realize it's a jar full of blood! In shock, you drop the jar, and it smashes on the ground, transforming into a soft purple glow as it hits the ground. The glow swiftly moves to the old door, and reveals a hand print indented into the door. You raise your hand, and push it into the mould, and a voice starts speaking to you:
SHOW US WHAT YOU KNOW IN WITCHCRAFT
MAKE A POTION FOR OUR MASTER
SHOW US THAT YOU ARE CAPABLE
FOR WE ONLY LET THOSE OF MIGHT PASS
MAKE A POTION FOR OUR MASTER
SHOW US THAT YOU ARE CAPABLE
FOR WE ONLY LET THOSE OF MIGHT PASS
You had managed to swallow down a wave of impending nausea while mixing a concoction that would be near-fatal to normal human beings. Upon finishing, a metallic chime sounds and the door clicks open. You turn to it, half-expecting it to open for you, but it remains motionless.
As you approach it, you can?t help but wonder what awaits you on the other side. Your fingers tighten around the icy brass knob, and it takes more pressure than you anticipate to make the old handle turn. Eventually it twists in your hand and you take a deep breath before pushing forward.
The fresh scent of nature penetrates your nostrils. Beyond the door you are taken to a narrow stone-walled stairway. You climb it to enter an overgrown garden, with a man-made patio so narrow you can barely see it for the grass. A rickety, rotting six foot fence surrounds you, and ahead of you is a wooden gate.
Wading through the grass, you come to a rusted latch. It takes a little wiggling but with a big push you manage to release it. When you push it back on it?s hinge it collapses onto the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust. You restrain a cough, and when the dust clears you see something in the distance. Is it a light - or did a speck of dust get stuck in your eye?
There isn?t a path through the trees. No one has gone this way in so long that there isn?t even a makeshift path worn away in the ground. Leaves crunch underfoot as you forge your own way between the barren trees.
It begins to feel like you have walked into a maze. If you look behind you, you can?t see the wooden fence of the garden anymore. You can?t even see where it was you entered the cluster of trees. But you know if you take a right or a left now then you will truly be lost. As long as you keep going straight then you are in the clear.
After a while it finally becomes clear. The light shines brighter and brighter as you approach. Then it hits an incline, climbing higher. Until you find yourself at a wall.
Stuck.
It takes a few minutes. Then you test the branch of a nearby tree. It creaks a little, but it appears to be capable of handling your weight. You climb up two branches. Three. Four. Snap. You hit the floor.
Harsh waves of agony overcome you, spreading down your legs and vibrating up your spine. You lay back on the leaves, spread out in a way that might convince the spirits you are about to make leaf-angels. Is there no way forward?
As you close your eyes and try to calm the dizzy spell, you hear voices in your ear.
"I told you they were weak," someone says.
"But are they weak enough to take control of?"
No.
You force your eyes open. For a moment you see a mist of white above your eyes, taking form, but then it dissolves into thin air. Was that? a spirit?
You force yourself to your feet. There is another tree, just a little behind the first. To reach the wall climbing this one you would have to jump to reach the wall. You think for a moment, weighing your options. Then run full force at the tree, grabbing onto it?s lowest branch and hauling yourself up.
You fall.
You shrug off your rucksack and toss it over the wall, then you try again. This time when you charge you jump higher, shining back and forth on the branch. You haul yourself up over it, managing to sit on it. A few more shaky manoeuvres and you are standing atop it, your hands grasping the branch above yours.
Creak.
You don?t have time to prepare yourself. You charge forward, and when you do you swear you hear the spirits cackling in yours ears.
"Not going to make it."
"I told you they were weak."
Your feet scrape the wall. You topple back and forth, struggling to keep your balance. Losing sight of it, you manage to at least throw your weight forward where you land on a pile of leaves next to your bag. Your jaw is bleeding a little, but it?s so cold you can barely feel it.
Picking up your backpack, you move onwards, coming into a clearing. There are large trees positioned in an octagon around you. Unlike those that guided you here, these ones still have all their leaves. When you move closer you begin to realise there is something etched into the bark of the one directly in front of you:
As you investigate the other trees, you realise they each have a nonsensical message inscribed onto them in the same pattern. What does it mean?
As you approach it, you can?t help but wonder what awaits you on the other side. Your fingers tighten around the icy brass knob, and it takes more pressure than you anticipate to make the old handle turn. Eventually it twists in your hand and you take a deep breath before pushing forward.
The fresh scent of nature penetrates your nostrils. Beyond the door you are taken to a narrow stone-walled stairway. You climb it to enter an overgrown garden, with a man-made patio so narrow you can barely see it for the grass. A rickety, rotting six foot fence surrounds you, and ahead of you is a wooden gate.
Wading through the grass, you come to a rusted latch. It takes a little wiggling but with a big push you manage to release it. When you push it back on it?s hinge it collapses onto the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust. You restrain a cough, and when the dust clears you see something in the distance. Is it a light - or did a speck of dust get stuck in your eye?
There isn?t a path through the trees. No one has gone this way in so long that there isn?t even a makeshift path worn away in the ground. Leaves crunch underfoot as you forge your own way between the barren trees.
It begins to feel like you have walked into a maze. If you look behind you, you can?t see the wooden fence of the garden anymore. You can?t even see where it was you entered the cluster of trees. But you know if you take a right or a left now then you will truly be lost. As long as you keep going straight then you are in the clear.
After a while it finally becomes clear. The light shines brighter and brighter as you approach. Then it hits an incline, climbing higher. Until you find yourself at a wall.
Stuck.
It takes a few minutes. Then you test the branch of a nearby tree. It creaks a little, but it appears to be capable of handling your weight. You climb up two branches. Three. Four. Snap. You hit the floor.
Harsh waves of agony overcome you, spreading down your legs and vibrating up your spine. You lay back on the leaves, spread out in a way that might convince the spirits you are about to make leaf-angels. Is there no way forward?
As you close your eyes and try to calm the dizzy spell, you hear voices in your ear.
"I told you they were weak," someone says.
"But are they weak enough to take control of?"
No.
You force your eyes open. For a moment you see a mist of white above your eyes, taking form, but then it dissolves into thin air. Was that? a spirit?
You force yourself to your feet. There is another tree, just a little behind the first. To reach the wall climbing this one you would have to jump to reach the wall. You think for a moment, weighing your options. Then run full force at the tree, grabbing onto it?s lowest branch and hauling yourself up.
You fall.
You shrug off your rucksack and toss it over the wall, then you try again. This time when you charge you jump higher, shining back and forth on the branch. You haul yourself up over it, managing to sit on it. A few more shaky manoeuvres and you are standing atop it, your hands grasping the branch above yours.
Creak.
You don?t have time to prepare yourself. You charge forward, and when you do you swear you hear the spirits cackling in yours ears.
"Not going to make it."
"I told you they were weak."
Your feet scrape the wall. You topple back and forth, struggling to keep your balance. Losing sight of it, you manage to at least throw your weight forward where you land on a pile of leaves next to your bag. Your jaw is bleeding a little, but it?s so cold you can barely feel it.
Picking up your backpack, you move onwards, coming into a clearing. There are large trees positioned in an octagon around you. Unlike those that guided you here, these ones still have all their leaves. When you move closer you begin to realise there is something etched into the bark of the one directly in front of you:
PC 34 Who? 55 4
As you investigate the other trees, you realise they each have a nonsensical message inscribed onto them in the same pattern. What does it mean?
PC 34 Who? 55 4
IB 168 unpalatable 5 12
Dungeon 8 solution 110 16
MS 67 give carrots 35 13
AS 12 hylian advocate 24 6
Notice Panel 3 scary champions 457 43
ACWW 117 brothers 2 13
Joyful Dwelling 29 large starter 53 17
IB 168 unpalatable 5 12
Dungeon 8 solution 110 16
MS 67 give carrots 35 13
AS 12 hylian advocate 24 6
Notice Panel 3 scary champions 457 43
ACWW 117 brothers 2 13
Joyful Dwelling 29 large starter 53 17
??R?D.? You string the letters together in your head. ?Boneyard!?
The trees around you begin to glow, millions of fireflies flocking from their leaves. They spin around you, encircling the trees, making the area glow around you. You step out into the centre of the octagon, holding out your hands. One lands on your finger.
The lights go out.
The fireflies all drop down dead.
You scream as their corpses thud down around you, hitting off your outstretched arms and face. You drop your rucksack to the ground and run.
The gaps between the trees appear to have narrowed. You find your hands slapping off the coarse bark as you run, trying to navigate your way between them.
?I think someone is scared,? a voice whispers.
?I think they are going to cry.?
You force your feet to move even faster. Your calves burn and your eyes are watering as the wind whips against your face. Then you feel the thud and a shot of pain as your foot hits a glared root, pulling you over in slow motion. Twigs slice through your hand as you tumble into the dirt, kicking leaves up into the air. Then they fall down atop of you, burying you alive.
?No, no!?
You fight the barrage of leaves and pull yourself back up onto your feet. You look around and every direction looks the same. Bare trees. Leaf-covered paths. Pitch black sky. White figures coming toward you. No sign of where to go.
Wait.
You rub your eyes and look again. The phantoms have disappeared. You swear you hear a cackling voice on the wind. You listen, but other than laughter there are no words. The spirits - they are mocking you.
Backing up against a tree, you close your eyes and attempt to catch your breath. Phantoms aren?t real. The rumour about the little kitten was just that - a rumour. A little tall tale the villagers told each other to get themselves riled up this Halloween. That?s all it was.
Right?
You open your eyes. You ran so fast you didn?t even take the time to notice which direction it was you were running in. Your rucksack? Where?s your - oh, that?s right.
A few more minutes pass, and finally you take a deep breath and step away from the tree. Then a wisp of black passes by the corner of your eye. You turn, to see a pair of large glowing eyes. You open your mouth to scream, but a large hand wraps around your jaw and fingers muffle your scream. You try to find the strength to bite down, but instead of flesh your teeth meet something hard. A burst of flavour hits your tongue. Something sweet.
Then the hand is gone. You turn to follow it, but no one is there. You spit the sphere out into your hand: a piece of orange and white candy. You?ve no where to place it, but your mother always told you to never take candy from strangers. Searching your pockets, you find a tissue. You deposit the damp sweet into it, twist the ends, and shove it back in your pocket.
?That wasn?t very nice.? A voice says. ?I was only trying to give you a treat.?
You look up, and the face of the Czar of Halloween is pressed so close to yours that you could lick it. So close, if only you were that bold.
Instead you turn on your heels and run. What is the way? You don?t know. You just will your feet to keep pounding one after the other against the leaves. The pain searing through your arms and legs means nothing. The fatigue from your adventure is almost non-existent. Should you look back? Should you - no. If you look back, he might get you.
?Did you see that?? a voice asks.
?I saw I saw,? another responds, ?Jack must be devastated.?
Who is-
No, you don?t have time for this.
Ahead of you there is a glimmer of orange. The mere sight of it conjures up those large, hollow eyes in your mind. But you push past it, knowing that this is the only source of light around you. Dodging overgrown roots and low hanging branches, you make your way to an opening between the trees. Your chest burning, as soon as you make it, you drop down onto the ground and roll onto your back.
If this isn?t it, then you?re a goner. But you tried. You tried your best, right?
Someone clears their throat. ?What happened to your pack??
You force your eyes to open. Your breathing is so laboured you can barely hear anything but that and the sound of your own heart beating in your eardrums.
?I knew I shouldn?t have left you to wander off alone in there.? Nat shakes his head.
?I??
?Tread on a worm, and it will turn.? Nat says, turning his back on you. ?Likewise, the Woods knows it?s friends from it?s foes.?
You watch his retreating back as he moves back toward his post. You roll onto your stomach, hissing as you use your wounded hands to push yourself up onto your knees. Above you, the first signs of dawn are shining bright through heavy cloud coverage.
Down the road from here, a new day begins in the town. You realise that you missed a fun night of trick o? treating with your neighbours. Sighing, you get to your feet and attempt to brush down your now filthy clothes. Maybe you would have been better of with them after all.
A breeze whistles, and along with it there is the faint sound of laughter. You look back over your shoulder, and through the trees, you see a distinct orange glow. Your blood turns to ice; a phantasm of the fear you experienced this night. Then like a mirage it is gone.
You reach into your pocket, feeling the hard candy there. A confirmation that this was not just a nightmare. It was real.
You turn your back on the Woods once again and begin the journey home.
The trees around you begin to glow, millions of fireflies flocking from their leaves. They spin around you, encircling the trees, making the area glow around you. You step out into the centre of the octagon, holding out your hands. One lands on your finger.
The lights go out.
The fireflies all drop down dead.
You scream as their corpses thud down around you, hitting off your outstretched arms and face. You drop your rucksack to the ground and run.
The gaps between the trees appear to have narrowed. You find your hands slapping off the coarse bark as you run, trying to navigate your way between them.
?I think someone is scared,? a voice whispers.
?I think they are going to cry.?
You force your feet to move even faster. Your calves burn and your eyes are watering as the wind whips against your face. Then you feel the thud and a shot of pain as your foot hits a glared root, pulling you over in slow motion. Twigs slice through your hand as you tumble into the dirt, kicking leaves up into the air. Then they fall down atop of you, burying you alive.
?No, no!?
You fight the barrage of leaves and pull yourself back up onto your feet. You look around and every direction looks the same. Bare trees. Leaf-covered paths. Pitch black sky. White figures coming toward you. No sign of where to go.
Wait.
You rub your eyes and look again. The phantoms have disappeared. You swear you hear a cackling voice on the wind. You listen, but other than laughter there are no words. The spirits - they are mocking you.
Backing up against a tree, you close your eyes and attempt to catch your breath. Phantoms aren?t real. The rumour about the little kitten was just that - a rumour. A little tall tale the villagers told each other to get themselves riled up this Halloween. That?s all it was.
Right?
You open your eyes. You ran so fast you didn?t even take the time to notice which direction it was you were running in. Your rucksack? Where?s your - oh, that?s right.
A few more minutes pass, and finally you take a deep breath and step away from the tree. Then a wisp of black passes by the corner of your eye. You turn, to see a pair of large glowing eyes. You open your mouth to scream, but a large hand wraps around your jaw and fingers muffle your scream. You try to find the strength to bite down, but instead of flesh your teeth meet something hard. A burst of flavour hits your tongue. Something sweet.
Then the hand is gone. You turn to follow it, but no one is there. You spit the sphere out into your hand: a piece of orange and white candy. You?ve no where to place it, but your mother always told you to never take candy from strangers. Searching your pockets, you find a tissue. You deposit the damp sweet into it, twist the ends, and shove it back in your pocket.
?That wasn?t very nice.? A voice says. ?I was only trying to give you a treat.?
You look up, and the face of the Czar of Halloween is pressed so close to yours that you could lick it. So close, if only you were that bold.
Instead you turn on your heels and run. What is the way? You don?t know. You just will your feet to keep pounding one after the other against the leaves. The pain searing through your arms and legs means nothing. The fatigue from your adventure is almost non-existent. Should you look back? Should you - no. If you look back, he might get you.
?Did you see that?? a voice asks.
?I saw I saw,? another responds, ?Jack must be devastated.?
Who is-
No, you don?t have time for this.
Ahead of you there is a glimmer of orange. The mere sight of it conjures up those large, hollow eyes in your mind. But you push past it, knowing that this is the only source of light around you. Dodging overgrown roots and low hanging branches, you make your way to an opening between the trees. Your chest burning, as soon as you make it, you drop down onto the ground and roll onto your back.
If this isn?t it, then you?re a goner. But you tried. You tried your best, right?
Someone clears their throat. ?What happened to your pack??
You force your eyes to open. Your breathing is so laboured you can barely hear anything but that and the sound of your own heart beating in your eardrums.
?I knew I shouldn?t have left you to wander off alone in there.? Nat shakes his head.
?I??
?Tread on a worm, and it will turn.? Nat says, turning his back on you. ?Likewise, the Woods knows it?s friends from it?s foes.?
You watch his retreating back as he moves back toward his post. You roll onto your stomach, hissing as you use your wounded hands to push yourself up onto your knees. Above you, the first signs of dawn are shining bright through heavy cloud coverage.
Down the road from here, a new day begins in the town. You realise that you missed a fun night of trick o? treating with your neighbours. Sighing, you get to your feet and attempt to brush down your now filthy clothes. Maybe you would have been better of with them after all.
A breeze whistles, and along with it there is the faint sound of laughter. You look back over your shoulder, and through the trees, you see a distinct orange glow. Your blood turns to ice; a phantasm of the fear you experienced this night. Then like a mirage it is gone.
You reach into your pocket, feeling the hard candy there. A confirmation that this was not just a nightmare. It was real.
You turn your back on the Woods once again and begin the journey home.
The gate creaks on it?s hinges. You glance back over your shoulder, seeing the amber glow of the town in the distance. Right now everyone will be knocking on each others doors, spooking one another, and exchanging candy like it is currency. But, somehow, trick o? treating just didn?t appeal to your tastes this year, did it?
"Wait, you there!"
You spin on your heels. You strain your eyes to see, but there is no one there. You laugh a little, your face warming up at the realisation that the hair on the back of your neck is standing on end. Of course there is no one there. No one else would dare go venturing into The Woods this late at night. There are signs picketed all over the fields surrounding the forest saying that you should not enter. That it?s dangerous. That it?s haunted.
Calmer now, you take another step.
"Oi!"
You scream.
There?s a slithering through the grass. An unmistakeable hiss echoes around you. A flash of - colour? No. A flash of non-colour. A colourless entity whips by you. Then before you, out of nowhere, a chameleon begins to take on his true colour: a deep emerald green. He?s short, shorter than you, dressed-up like a wanna-be Indiana Jones. He wields his purple-handled net like an axe, jabbing the pointed end at your chest with the gusto of a swordsman.
"State your business."
"W-Who are you?"
"I am Nat, Guardian of these Woods." The chameleon stamps his net against the ground like a staff. "Or, of late anyway. After what happened to that poor sweet kitten last October Tortimer decided to hire extra security for this year?s Halloween. Booker and Copper are known to be a little... lax on the job."
You nod. You had heard the rumours yourself: about a curious kitten wandering off into The Woods all by herself last year. The stories say that when she was found the following morning her once orange fur was streaked with white and her pupils permanently dilated with fear.
Nat clears his throat. "And you? State your business."
You rattle off an explanation, telling him of how you heard that there was something hidden deep in The Woods. A treasure that only explorers who have proven their worth, with souls strong enough to resist the lure of malicious woodland spirits, can hope to ever lay their hands on.
"An explorer, huh?" Nat taps his jaw in thought. "But are you an experienced adventurer? I can?t let you through unless you can prove to me you know how to take care of yourself out there."
Having proved your mettle and determination in your eyes, Nat allows you on by, deeming your gear sufficient enough to tackle your new adventure. He turns around, unlocking the gate and moves to the side to allow passage. As you begin to pass, he blocks the path with the pointed end of his butterfly net.
"Just because you have the tools, doesn't mean you've got it to make it out there. Know your limits explorer, know when to call it quits. Not all treasure is worth losing a part of yourself for," the chameleon advises with a somber look.
You puff your chest out as if to wow him, but he just sighs and lowers his net.
"One last thing explorer. There's a campsite ahead, you might want to rest there tonight before journeying ahead. Someone should be there tonight, so you won't be alone."
You thank the aged explorer for everything and stroll through the woods for a while. With it getting ever darker and your visibility getting worse, you hope to come across the campsite soon enough. After what feels like ages you finally see a light in the distance and break into a full sprint towards it. As you draw near a shadow stands up tall and you hear the whirl of an arrow past your right side.
"I won't miss again, consider that a warning shot. If you're here to loot my campsite, begone now," the giant echoed.
"Please sir, I just wish to sleep somewhere tonight, preferrably with a fire and some company," you plead frozen in place, adrenaline rushing through your body.
"Tell you what stranger, if you can share your best scary story you can pitch your tent here tonight. If you can't, you best find somewhere else to before I pull another arrow from my quiver."
You wake up in the early hours of the morning, only to find it's just as dark, if not darker, than what it was last night. You look at your watch to try to grasp a concept of time, but it's mysteriously stopped working. You give it a few more taps... nothing, your watch is broken.
Putting your watch woes aside, you grab your camping gear and begin to venture forth into the woods, stumbling across a sign that reads:
You ignore the sign, thinking a little trip through the woods can't be that bad. You've been in The Woods before and nothing too over the top has ever happened. Although you've never been this far from the outside before. A few steps in and you become overwhelmed. It's a feeling you've never felt before, but you know it's not a feeling that any normal person should experience. Suddenly, a wispy, black figure darts across in front of you, darkening the path ahead, disrupting your vision. You rub your eyes clean, only to see another dark figure bolt across, this time from behind. A sharp pain starts eating away at your shoulder, and soon stretches all over the rest of your back. You look behind you, you're only a few steps into the woods, you can't take much more not knowing what else could happen, so you decide to head back.
Stumped by your journey, but not wanting to give up, you try again. The same thing happens, only this time the pain hurts more. You try to push through the pain, but it only gets worse, and more dark figures dart from across the vast trees, blurring your vision, and aching your every muscle. Not knowing what to do, you head back once again.
You sit out the front of The Woods, hoping something, someone, will help you out. Hours pass, and nothing happens, it's only getting darker and colder. You need to get out before the night settles in again, you're unsure if you can take much more of this. In anger, you throw a rock at the sign, which falls apart, revealing an old, dusty piece of paper from the inside. You blow the dust off it and give it a read:
Someone must have previously made it through the Haunted Path (or, at least knows how to) and left a hidden note for the next "lucky" person to find. But what is it's purpose? If only there was a way to get through. There has to be a way to get through The Woods without upsetting the spirits. Somehow, you've got to figure out how to fool the spirits into thinking you're not of human origins.
The vast expanse of the thick sludge in front of you reaches out as far as the eye can see. An oozing layer of slime coats the surface, obscuring whatever lurks below. Bubbles of putrid gas crackle and hiss at the trunks of gnarled, long-dead trees. It?s deathly quiet - but you can?t help but notice the ripples that trace movements from underneath.
A clumsily-made wooden bridge spans the length of the water - it?s the only way across. You extend your leg shakily, and take your first step. The strain of the wood creaks beneath you. Your knuckles turn white as you grasp the thick rope banister to keep yourself steady. You keep walking. Slowly, carefully, you place one foot in front of the other, as the bridge sways from side to side. Something doesn?t seem right?
The ripples you noticed before start to become more frequent and more aggressive. You speed up, stepping faster, too scared to look down. The swamp below is being churned up, sending splatters of mud onto your shoes. Your heart starts to race as you break into a run. The bridge groaning. The sludge swirling. Just keep moving, you think to yourself. The swamp is forming waves now; heavy streams shoot upwards and crash back down. A cackling scream comes from below. Your eyes jolt down in time to see a gnarled claw reach out from the depths through the slats in the bridge and grasp at your ankle; dragging you under.
Your mouth opens to let out a screech, and rivulets of swamp mud flood in. Your hands grasp around helplessly, trying to find anything to aid you. You feel movement all around, and imagine ghouls blitzing past through clamped-shut eyes. Down and down you sink, for what feels like an eternity. Menacing laughs infect your mind, scratching through your ears. You start to give in as the possibility of escape begins to evaporate.
Suddenly, the pressure in your head starts to fade. A calming feeling of weightlessness comes over you as you open your eyes. You?re taken aback by the sight. You seem to be in another world - floating, but able to move and breathe as normal. You?re surrounded by colossal mountains of objects - lost possessions that have fallen in the swamp over the years. A scroll hovers in the air in front of you. Snatching it, you unravel the ancient paper and read what is etched into it:
As you leave the swamp, drenched in your mud-ridden clothing, you find yourself stuck in front of an immense, old, rusted gate. You try with all your might to find a way around it, but it seems to go on forever, and reaches up into the heavens. After stopping, just for a minute, you hear an eerie voice.
"Continue into the cemetery, to prove your worth. Only those with the magic touch, who possess the power of enchantments can make it through to our master"
With no sign of warning, the rusted gates in front of you plummet into the ground, disappearing completely from sight, opening your way into the haunted area ahead. You venture forth, unable to see anything as a cloudy, thick fog covers the area ahead. In a matter of seconds, a huge gust of wind wisps past, taking the fog along with it. Suddenly, you find yourself trapped in a cemetery, with on sign of escape. An uncanny feeling overcomes you, running through your entire body, sending chills down your spine. Uncertain of what to do, you start running, desperately trying to seek any means of escape. As you begin running, you start to feel drained, as if your soul were being sucked out the more you move. You try your hardest to push through the surreal feeling of euphoria, but it's no use. You quickly fall to the ground, completely immobilized.
Stuck on the ground with no method of escape, you close your eyes, trying to wake up from what you could only hope is a horrific nightmare. After a few minutes, you open your eyes, and find yourself surrounded by a bunch of tombstones. Directly ahead of you lies a large headstone, made from a material unlike anything you've seen before. Suddenly, you regain movement in your legs, and then the rest of your body. You bring yourself to your feet, stumbling your way towards the headstone, as you feel a force dragging you towards it.
You reach the tombstone and see a small opening beneath it, with a few scratch marks, as if someone were here before you. You bend down and start digging at the ground, trying to uncover whatever lies beneath. After a few small hand movements, the ground beneath you loosens, crumbling beneath your knees, and you fall to the area beneath. Suddenly, your fall stops, and you realize you're stuck in a room, filled with cauldrons and flasks, and an old wooden door. You walk towards the door, moving your hands across it, trying to open it, but it wont budge.
You remove yourself from the door, and start looking around the room once more. To your left, you notice a smaller, inconspicuous door, that opens with the touch of your hands. Inside, it looks like you just entered a kitchen, but not like your kitchen at home. You take a look at one of the jars, holding it close to your eyes, trying to see through the fluids inside. After staring for a few seconds, you realize it's a jar full of blood! In shock, you drop the jar, and it smashes on the ground, transforming into a soft purple glow as it hits the ground. The glow swiftly moves to the old door, and reveals a hand print indented into the door. You raise your hand, and push it into the mould, and a voice starts speaking to you:
You had managed to swallow down a wave of impending nausea while mixing a concoction that would be near-fatal to normal human beings. Upon finishing, a metallic chime sounds and the door clicks open. You turn to it, half-expecting it to open for you, but it remains motionless.
As you approach it, you can?t help but wonder what awaits you on the other side. Your fingers tighten around the icy brass knob, and it takes more pressure than you anticipate to make the old handle turn. Eventually it twists in your hand and you take a deep breath before pushing forward.
The fresh scent of nature penetrates your nostrils. Beyond the door you are taken to a narrow stone-walled stairway. You climb it to enter an overgrown garden, with a man-made patio so narrow you can barely see it for the grass. A rickety, rotting six foot fence surrounds you, and ahead of you is a wooden gate.
Wading through the grass, you come to a rusted latch. It takes a little wiggling but with a big push you manage to release it. When you push it back on it?s hinge it collapses onto the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust. You restrain a cough, and when the dust clears you see something in the distance. Is it a light - or did a speck of dust get stuck in your eye?
There isn?t a path through the trees. No one has gone this way in so long that there isn?t even a makeshift path worn away in the ground. Leaves crunch underfoot as you forge your own way between the barren trees.
It begins to feel like you have walked into a maze. If you look behind you, you can?t see the wooden fence of the garden anymore. You can?t even see where it was you entered the cluster of trees. But you know if you take a right or a left now then you will truly be lost. As long as you keep going straight then you are in the clear.
After a while it finally becomes clear. The light shines brighter and brighter as you approach. Then it hits an incline, climbing higher. Until you find yourself at a wall.
Stuck.
It takes a few minutes. Then you test the branch of a nearby tree. It creaks a little, but it appears to be capable of handling your weight. You climb up two branches. Three. Four. Snap. You hit the floor.
Harsh waves of agony overcome you, spreading down your legs and vibrating up your spine. You lay back on the leaves, spread out in a way that might convince the spirits you are about to make leaf-angels. Is there no way forward?
As you close your eyes and try to calm the dizzy spell, you hear voices in your ear.
"I told you they were weak," someone says.
"But are they weak enough to take control of?"
No.
You force your eyes open. For a moment you see a mist of white above your eyes, taking form, but then it dissolves into thin air. Was that? a spirit?
You force yourself to your feet. There is another tree, just a little behind the first. To reach the wall climbing this one you would have to jump to reach the wall. You think for a moment, weighing your options. Then run full force at the tree, grabbing onto it?s lowest branch and hauling yourself up.
You fall.
You shrug off your rucksack and toss it over the wall, then you try again. This time when you charge you jump higher, shining back and forth on the branch. You haul yourself up over it, managing to sit on it. A few more shaky manoeuvres and you are standing atop it, your hands grasping the branch above yours.
Creak.
You don?t have time to prepare yourself. You charge forward, and when you do you swear you hear the spirits cackling in yours ears.
"Not going to make it."
"I told you they were weak."
Your feet scrape the wall. You topple back and forth, struggling to keep your balance. Losing sight of it, you manage to at least throw your weight forward where you land on a pile of leaves next to your bag. Your jaw is bleeding a little, but it?s so cold you can barely feel it.
Picking up your backpack, you move onwards, coming into a clearing. There are large trees positioned in an octagon around you. Unlike those that guided you here, these ones still have all their leaves. When you move closer you begin to realise there is something etched into the bark of the one directly in front of you:
As you investigate the other trees, you realise they each have a nonsensical message inscribed onto them in the same pattern. What does it mean?
??R?D.? You string the letters together in your head. ?Boneyard!?
The trees around you begin to glow, millions of fireflies flocking from their leaves. They spin around you, encircling the trees, making the area glow around you. You step out into the centre of the octagon, holding out your hands. One lands on your finger.
The lights go out.
The fireflies all drop down dead.
You scream as their corpses thud down around you, hitting off your outstretched arms and face. You drop your rucksack to the ground and run.
The gaps between the trees appear to have narrowed. You find your hands slapping off the coarse bark as you run, trying to navigate your way between them.
?I think someone is scared,? a voice whispers.
?I think they are going to cry.?
You force your feet to move even faster. Your calves burn and your eyes are watering as the wind whips against your face. Then you feel the thud and a shot of pain as your foot hits a glared root, pulling you over in slow motion. Twigs slice through your hand as you tumble into the dirt, kicking leaves up into the air. Then they fall down atop of you, burying you alive.
?No, no!?
You fight the barrage of leaves and pull yourself back up onto your feet. You look around and every direction looks the same. Bare trees. Leaf-covered paths. Pitch black sky. White figures coming toward you. No sign of where to go.
Wait.
You rub your eyes and look again. The phantoms have disappeared. You swear you hear a cackling voice on the wind. You listen, but other than laughter there are no words. The spirits - they are mocking you.
Backing up against a tree, you close your eyes and attempt to catch your breath. Phantoms aren?t real. The rumour about the little kitten was just that - a rumour. A little tall tale the villagers told each other to get themselves riled up this Halloween. That?s all it was.
Right?
You open your eyes. You ran so fast you didn?t even take the time to notice which direction it was you were running in. Your rucksack? Where?s your - oh, that?s right.
A few more minutes pass, and finally you take a deep breath and step away from the tree. Then a wisp of black passes by the corner of your eye. You turn, to see a pair of large glowing eyes. You open your mouth to scream, but a large hand wraps around your jaw and fingers muffle your scream. You try to find the strength to bite down, but instead of flesh your teeth meet something hard. A burst of flavour hits your tongue. Something sweet.
Then the hand is gone. You turn to follow it, but no one is there. You spit the sphere out into your hand: a piece of orange and white candy. You?ve no where to place it, but your mother always told you to never take candy from strangers. Searching your pockets, you find a tissue. You deposit the damp sweet into it, twist the ends, and shove it back in your pocket.
?That wasn?t very nice.? A voice says. ?I was only trying to give you a treat.?
You look up, and the face of the Czar of Halloween is pressed so close to yours that you could lick it. So close, if only you were that bold.
Instead you turn on your heels and run. What is the way? You don?t know. You just will your feet to keep pounding one after the other against the leaves. The pain searing through your arms and legs means nothing. The fatigue from your adventure is almost non-existent. Should you look back? Should you - no. If you look back, he might get you.
?Did you see that?? a voice asks.
?I saw I saw,? another responds, ?Jack must be devastated.?
Who is-
No, you don?t have time for this.
Ahead of you there is a glimmer of orange. The mere sight of it conjures up those large, hollow eyes in your mind. But you push past it, knowing that this is the only source of light around you. Dodging overgrown roots and low hanging branches, you make your way to an opening between the trees. Your chest burning, as soon as you make it, you drop down onto the ground and roll onto your back.
If this isn?t it, then you?re a goner. But you tried. You tried your best, right?
Someone clears their throat. ?What happened to your pack??
You force your eyes to open. Your breathing is so laboured you can barely hear anything but that and the sound of your own heart beating in your eardrums.
?I knew I shouldn?t have left you to wander off alone in there.? Nat shakes his head.
?I??
?Tread on a worm, and it will turn.? Nat says, turning his back on you. ?Likewise, the Woods knows it?s friends from it?s foes.?
You watch his retreating back as he moves back toward his post. You roll onto your stomach, hissing as you use your wounded hands to push yourself up onto your knees. Above you, the first signs of dawn are shining bright through heavy cloud coverage.
Down the road from here, a new day begins in the town. You realise that you missed a fun night of trick o? treating with your neighbours. Sighing, you get to your feet and attempt to brush down your now filthy clothes. Maybe you would have been better of with them after all.
A breeze whistles, and along with it there is the faint sound of laughter. You look back over your shoulder, and through the trees, you see a distinct orange glow. Your blood turns to ice; a phantasm of the fear you experienced this night. Then like a mirage it is gone.
You reach into your pocket, feeling the hard candy there. A confirmation that this was not just a nightmare. It was real.
You turn your back on the Woods once again and begin the journey home.
"Wait, you there!"
You spin on your heels. You strain your eyes to see, but there is no one there. You laugh a little, your face warming up at the realisation that the hair on the back of your neck is standing on end. Of course there is no one there. No one else would dare go venturing into The Woods this late at night. There are signs picketed all over the fields surrounding the forest saying that you should not enter. That it?s dangerous. That it?s haunted.
Calmer now, you take another step.
"Oi!"
You scream.
There?s a slithering through the grass. An unmistakeable hiss echoes around you. A flash of - colour? No. A flash of non-colour. A colourless entity whips by you. Then before you, out of nowhere, a chameleon begins to take on his true colour: a deep emerald green. He?s short, shorter than you, dressed-up like a wanna-be Indiana Jones. He wields his purple-handled net like an axe, jabbing the pointed end at your chest with the gusto of a swordsman.
"State your business."
"W-Who are you?"
"I am Nat, Guardian of these Woods." The chameleon stamps his net against the ground like a staff. "Or, of late anyway. After what happened to that poor sweet kitten last October Tortimer decided to hire extra security for this year?s Halloween. Booker and Copper are known to be a little... lax on the job."
You nod. You had heard the rumours yourself: about a curious kitten wandering off into The Woods all by herself last year. The stories say that when she was found the following morning her once orange fur was streaked with white and her pupils permanently dilated with fear.
Nat clears his throat. "And you? State your business."
You rattle off an explanation, telling him of how you heard that there was something hidden deep in The Woods. A treasure that only explorers who have proven their worth, with souls strong enough to resist the lure of malicious woodland spirits, can hope to ever lay their hands on.
"An explorer, huh?" Nat taps his jaw in thought. "But are you an experienced adventurer? I can?t let you through unless you can prove to me you know how to take care of yourself out there."
Having proved your mettle and determination in your eyes, Nat allows you on by, deeming your gear sufficient enough to tackle your new adventure. He turns around, unlocking the gate and moves to the side to allow passage. As you begin to pass, he blocks the path with the pointed end of his butterfly net.
"Just because you have the tools, doesn't mean you've got it to make it out there. Know your limits explorer, know when to call it quits. Not all treasure is worth losing a part of yourself for," the chameleon advises with a somber look.
You puff your chest out as if to wow him, but he just sighs and lowers his net.
"One last thing explorer. There's a campsite ahead, you might want to rest there tonight before journeying ahead. Someone should be there tonight, so you won't be alone."
You thank the aged explorer for everything and stroll through the woods for a while. With it getting ever darker and your visibility getting worse, you hope to come across the campsite soon enough. After what feels like ages you finally see a light in the distance and break into a full sprint towards it. As you draw near a shadow stands up tall and you hear the whirl of an arrow past your right side.
"I won't miss again, consider that a warning shot. If you're here to loot my campsite, begone now," the giant echoed.
"Please sir, I just wish to sleep somewhere tonight, preferrably with a fire and some company," you plead frozen in place, adrenaline rushing through your body.
"Tell you what stranger, if you can share your best scary story you can pitch your tent here tonight. If you can't, you best find somewhere else to before I pull another arrow from my quiver."
You wake up in the early hours of the morning, only to find it's just as dark, if not darker, than what it was last night. You look at your watch to try to grasp a concept of time, but it's mysteriously stopped working. You give it a few more taps... nothing, your watch is broken.
Putting your watch woes aside, you grab your camping gear and begin to venture forth into the woods, stumbling across a sign that reads:
WARNING: HAUNTED PATH AHEAD
SPIRITS CAREFULLY WATCH OVER THE PATH AND DO NOT TAKE WELL TO HUMANS
ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK
SPIRITS CAREFULLY WATCH OVER THE PATH AND DO NOT TAKE WELL TO HUMANS
ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK
You ignore the sign, thinking a little trip through the woods can't be that bad. You've been in The Woods before and nothing too over the top has ever happened. Although you've never been this far from the outside before. A few steps in and you become overwhelmed. It's a feeling you've never felt before, but you know it's not a feeling that any normal person should experience. Suddenly, a wispy, black figure darts across in front of you, darkening the path ahead, disrupting your vision. You rub your eyes clean, only to see another dark figure bolt across, this time from behind. A sharp pain starts eating away at your shoulder, and soon stretches all over the rest of your back. You look behind you, you're only a few steps into the woods, you can't take much more not knowing what else could happen, so you decide to head back.
Stumped by your journey, but not wanting to give up, you try again. The same thing happens, only this time the pain hurts more. You try to push through the pain, but it only gets worse, and more dark figures dart from across the vast trees, blurring your vision, and aching your every muscle. Not knowing what to do, you head back once again.
You sit out the front of The Woods, hoping something, someone, will help you out. Hours pass, and nothing happens, it's only getting darker and colder. You need to get out before the night settles in again, you're unsure if you can take much more of this. In anger, you throw a rock at the sign, which falls apart, revealing an old, dusty piece of paper from the inside. You blow the dust off it and give it a read:
THE OUTSIDE MASKS WHAT THE INSIDE HIDES
SPIRITS WILL HURT THOSE WHO ARE NOT ONE OF THE SAME
USE YOUR SKILLS TO MAKE IT PAST THE HAUNTED PATH
- A Friend
SPIRITS WILL HURT THOSE WHO ARE NOT ONE OF THE SAME
USE YOUR SKILLS TO MAKE IT PAST THE HAUNTED PATH
- A Friend
Someone must have previously made it through the Haunted Path (or, at least knows how to) and left a hidden note for the next "lucky" person to find. But what is it's purpose? If only there was a way to get through. There has to be a way to get through The Woods without upsetting the spirits. Somehow, you've got to figure out how to fool the spirits into thinking you're not of human origins.
The vast expanse of the thick sludge in front of you reaches out as far as the eye can see. An oozing layer of slime coats the surface, obscuring whatever lurks below. Bubbles of putrid gas crackle and hiss at the trunks of gnarled, long-dead trees. It?s deathly quiet - but you can?t help but notice the ripples that trace movements from underneath.
A clumsily-made wooden bridge spans the length of the water - it?s the only way across. You extend your leg shakily, and take your first step. The strain of the wood creaks beneath you. Your knuckles turn white as you grasp the thick rope banister to keep yourself steady. You keep walking. Slowly, carefully, you place one foot in front of the other, as the bridge sways from side to side. Something doesn?t seem right?
The ripples you noticed before start to become more frequent and more aggressive. You speed up, stepping faster, too scared to look down. The swamp below is being churned up, sending splatters of mud onto your shoes. Your heart starts to race as you break into a run. The bridge groaning. The sludge swirling. Just keep moving, you think to yourself. The swamp is forming waves now; heavy streams shoot upwards and crash back down. A cackling scream comes from below. Your eyes jolt down in time to see a gnarled claw reach out from the depths through the slats in the bridge and grasp at your ankle; dragging you under.
Your mouth opens to let out a screech, and rivulets of swamp mud flood in. Your hands grasp around helplessly, trying to find anything to aid you. You feel movement all around, and imagine ghouls blitzing past through clamped-shut eyes. Down and down you sink, for what feels like an eternity. Menacing laughs infect your mind, scratching through your ears. You start to give in as the possibility of escape begins to evaporate.
Suddenly, the pressure in your head starts to fade. A calming feeling of weightlessness comes over you as you open your eyes. You?re taken aback by the sight. You seem to be in another world - floating, but able to move and breathe as normal. You?re surrounded by colossal mountains of objects - lost possessions that have fallen in the swamp over the years. A scroll hovers in the air in front of you. Snatching it, you unravel the ancient paper and read what is etched into it:
YE WHO TREKS THROUGH THIS DEATHLY SWAMP,
SEEKING OUT FIENDISH CANDIES TO CHOMP.
WE ASK OF YOU A SINGLE THING,
CREATE FOR US AN OFFERING.
BUT BEFORE YOU START FORGING WHAT WE ASKED,
YOU WON?T SURVIVE LONG HERE, SO MAKE IT FAST.
ONLY WHEN YOU CAN PROVE YOUR WORTH,
WILL WE, DARK SPIRITS, RETURN YOU BACK TO DRY EARTH.
SEEKING OUT FIENDISH CANDIES TO CHOMP.
WE ASK OF YOU A SINGLE THING,
CREATE FOR US AN OFFERING.
BUT BEFORE YOU START FORGING WHAT WE ASKED,
YOU WON?T SURVIVE LONG HERE, SO MAKE IT FAST.
ONLY WHEN YOU CAN PROVE YOUR WORTH,
WILL WE, DARK SPIRITS, RETURN YOU BACK TO DRY EARTH.
As you leave the swamp, drenched in your mud-ridden clothing, you find yourself stuck in front of an immense, old, rusted gate. You try with all your might to find a way around it, but it seems to go on forever, and reaches up into the heavens. After stopping, just for a minute, you hear an eerie voice.
"Continue into the cemetery, to prove your worth. Only those with the magic touch, who possess the power of enchantments can make it through to our master"
With no sign of warning, the rusted gates in front of you plummet into the ground, disappearing completely from sight, opening your way into the haunted area ahead. You venture forth, unable to see anything as a cloudy, thick fog covers the area ahead. In a matter of seconds, a huge gust of wind wisps past, taking the fog along with it. Suddenly, you find yourself trapped in a cemetery, with on sign of escape. An uncanny feeling overcomes you, running through your entire body, sending chills down your spine. Uncertain of what to do, you start running, desperately trying to seek any means of escape. As you begin running, you start to feel drained, as if your soul were being sucked out the more you move. You try your hardest to push through the surreal feeling of euphoria, but it's no use. You quickly fall to the ground, completely immobilized.
Stuck on the ground with no method of escape, you close your eyes, trying to wake up from what you could only hope is a horrific nightmare. After a few minutes, you open your eyes, and find yourself surrounded by a bunch of tombstones. Directly ahead of you lies a large headstone, made from a material unlike anything you've seen before. Suddenly, you regain movement in your legs, and then the rest of your body. You bring yourself to your feet, stumbling your way towards the headstone, as you feel a force dragging you towards it.
You reach the tombstone and see a small opening beneath it, with a few scratch marks, as if someone were here before you. You bend down and start digging at the ground, trying to uncover whatever lies beneath. After a few small hand movements, the ground beneath you loosens, crumbling beneath your knees, and you fall to the area beneath. Suddenly, your fall stops, and you realize you're stuck in a room, filled with cauldrons and flasks, and an old wooden door. You walk towards the door, moving your hands across it, trying to open it, but it wont budge.
You remove yourself from the door, and start looking around the room once more. To your left, you notice a smaller, inconspicuous door, that opens with the touch of your hands. Inside, it looks like you just entered a kitchen, but not like your kitchen at home. You take a look at one of the jars, holding it close to your eyes, trying to see through the fluids inside. After staring for a few seconds, you realize it's a jar full of blood! In shock, you drop the jar, and it smashes on the ground, transforming into a soft purple glow as it hits the ground. The glow swiftly moves to the old door, and reveals a hand print indented into the door. You raise your hand, and push it into the mould, and a voice starts speaking to you:
SHOW US WHAT YOU KNOW IN WITCHCRAFT
MAKE A POTION FOR OUR MASTER
SHOW US THAT YOU ARE CAPABLE
FOR WE ONLY LET THOSE OF MIGHT PASS
MAKE A POTION FOR OUR MASTER
SHOW US THAT YOU ARE CAPABLE
FOR WE ONLY LET THOSE OF MIGHT PASS
You had managed to swallow down a wave of impending nausea while mixing a concoction that would be near-fatal to normal human beings. Upon finishing, a metallic chime sounds and the door clicks open. You turn to it, half-expecting it to open for you, but it remains motionless.
As you approach it, you can?t help but wonder what awaits you on the other side. Your fingers tighten around the icy brass knob, and it takes more pressure than you anticipate to make the old handle turn. Eventually it twists in your hand and you take a deep breath before pushing forward.
The fresh scent of nature penetrates your nostrils. Beyond the door you are taken to a narrow stone-walled stairway. You climb it to enter an overgrown garden, with a man-made patio so narrow you can barely see it for the grass. A rickety, rotting six foot fence surrounds you, and ahead of you is a wooden gate.
Wading through the grass, you come to a rusted latch. It takes a little wiggling but with a big push you manage to release it. When you push it back on it?s hinge it collapses onto the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust. You restrain a cough, and when the dust clears you see something in the distance. Is it a light - or did a speck of dust get stuck in your eye?
There isn?t a path through the trees. No one has gone this way in so long that there isn?t even a makeshift path worn away in the ground. Leaves crunch underfoot as you forge your own way between the barren trees.
It begins to feel like you have walked into a maze. If you look behind you, you can?t see the wooden fence of the garden anymore. You can?t even see where it was you entered the cluster of trees. But you know if you take a right or a left now then you will truly be lost. As long as you keep going straight then you are in the clear.
After a while it finally becomes clear. The light shines brighter and brighter as you approach. Then it hits an incline, climbing higher. Until you find yourself at a wall.
Stuck.
It takes a few minutes. Then you test the branch of a nearby tree. It creaks a little, but it appears to be capable of handling your weight. You climb up two branches. Three. Four. Snap. You hit the floor.
Harsh waves of agony overcome you, spreading down your legs and vibrating up your spine. You lay back on the leaves, spread out in a way that might convince the spirits you are about to make leaf-angels. Is there no way forward?
As you close your eyes and try to calm the dizzy spell, you hear voices in your ear.
"I told you they were weak," someone says.
"But are they weak enough to take control of?"
No.
You force your eyes open. For a moment you see a mist of white above your eyes, taking form, but then it dissolves into thin air. Was that? a spirit?
You force yourself to your feet. There is another tree, just a little behind the first. To reach the wall climbing this one you would have to jump to reach the wall. You think for a moment, weighing your options. Then run full force at the tree, grabbing onto it?s lowest branch and hauling yourself up.
You fall.
You shrug off your rucksack and toss it over the wall, then you try again. This time when you charge you jump higher, shining back and forth on the branch. You haul yourself up over it, managing to sit on it. A few more shaky manoeuvres and you are standing atop it, your hands grasping the branch above yours.
Creak.
You don?t have time to prepare yourself. You charge forward, and when you do you swear you hear the spirits cackling in yours ears.
"Not going to make it."
"I told you they were weak."
Your feet scrape the wall. You topple back and forth, struggling to keep your balance. Losing sight of it, you manage to at least throw your weight forward where you land on a pile of leaves next to your bag. Your jaw is bleeding a little, but it?s so cold you can barely feel it.
Picking up your backpack, you move onwards, coming into a clearing. There are large trees positioned in an octagon around you. Unlike those that guided you here, these ones still have all their leaves. When you move closer you begin to realise there is something etched into the bark of the one directly in front of you:
PC 34 Who? 55 4
As you investigate the other trees, you realise they each have a nonsensical message inscribed onto them in the same pattern. What does it mean?
PC 34 Who? 55 4
IB 168 unpalatable 5 12
Dungeon 8 solution 110 16
MS 67 give carrots 35 13
AS 12 hylian advocate 24 6
Notice Panel 3 scary champions 457 43
ACWW 117 brothers 2 13
Joyful Dwelling 29 large starter 53 17
IB 168 unpalatable 5 12
Dungeon 8 solution 110 16
MS 67 give carrots 35 13
AS 12 hylian advocate 24 6
Notice Panel 3 scary champions 457 43
ACWW 117 brothers 2 13
Joyful Dwelling 29 large starter 53 17
??R?D.? You string the letters together in your head. ?Boneyard!?
The trees around you begin to glow, millions of fireflies flocking from their leaves. They spin around you, encircling the trees, making the area glow around you. You step out into the centre of the octagon, holding out your hands. One lands on your finger.
The lights go out.
The fireflies all drop down dead.
You scream as their corpses thud down around you, hitting off your outstretched arms and face. You drop your rucksack to the ground and run.
The gaps between the trees appear to have narrowed. You find your hands slapping off the coarse bark as you run, trying to navigate your way between them.
?I think someone is scared,? a voice whispers.
?I think they are going to cry.?
You force your feet to move even faster. Your calves burn and your eyes are watering as the wind whips against your face. Then you feel the thud and a shot of pain as your foot hits a glared root, pulling you over in slow motion. Twigs slice through your hand as you tumble into the dirt, kicking leaves up into the air. Then they fall down atop of you, burying you alive.
?No, no!?
You fight the barrage of leaves and pull yourself back up onto your feet. You look around and every direction looks the same. Bare trees. Leaf-covered paths. Pitch black sky. White figures coming toward you. No sign of where to go.
Wait.
You rub your eyes and look again. The phantoms have disappeared. You swear you hear a cackling voice on the wind. You listen, but other than laughter there are no words. The spirits - they are mocking you.
Backing up against a tree, you close your eyes and attempt to catch your breath. Phantoms aren?t real. The rumour about the little kitten was just that - a rumour. A little tall tale the villagers told each other to get themselves riled up this Halloween. That?s all it was.
Right?
You open your eyes. You ran so fast you didn?t even take the time to notice which direction it was you were running in. Your rucksack? Where?s your - oh, that?s right.
A few more minutes pass, and finally you take a deep breath and step away from the tree. Then a wisp of black passes by the corner of your eye. You turn, to see a pair of large glowing eyes. You open your mouth to scream, but a large hand wraps around your jaw and fingers muffle your scream. You try to find the strength to bite down, but instead of flesh your teeth meet something hard. A burst of flavour hits your tongue. Something sweet.
Then the hand is gone. You turn to follow it, but no one is there. You spit the sphere out into your hand: a piece of orange and white candy. You?ve no where to place it, but your mother always told you to never take candy from strangers. Searching your pockets, you find a tissue. You deposit the damp sweet into it, twist the ends, and shove it back in your pocket.
?That wasn?t very nice.? A voice says. ?I was only trying to give you a treat.?
You look up, and the face of the Czar of Halloween is pressed so close to yours that you could lick it. So close, if only you were that bold.
Instead you turn on your heels and run. What is the way? You don?t know. You just will your feet to keep pounding one after the other against the leaves. The pain searing through your arms and legs means nothing. The fatigue from your adventure is almost non-existent. Should you look back? Should you - no. If you look back, he might get you.
?Did you see that?? a voice asks.
?I saw I saw,? another responds, ?Jack must be devastated.?
Who is-
No, you don?t have time for this.
Ahead of you there is a glimmer of orange. The mere sight of it conjures up those large, hollow eyes in your mind. But you push past it, knowing that this is the only source of light around you. Dodging overgrown roots and low hanging branches, you make your way to an opening between the trees. Your chest burning, as soon as you make it, you drop down onto the ground and roll onto your back.
If this isn?t it, then you?re a goner. But you tried. You tried your best, right?
Someone clears their throat. ?What happened to your pack??
You force your eyes to open. Your breathing is so laboured you can barely hear anything but that and the sound of your own heart beating in your eardrums.
?I knew I shouldn?t have left you to wander off alone in there.? Nat shakes his head.
?I??
?Tread on a worm, and it will turn.? Nat says, turning his back on you. ?Likewise, the Woods knows it?s friends from it?s foes.?
You watch his retreating back as he moves back toward his post. You roll onto your stomach, hissing as you use your wounded hands to push yourself up onto your knees. Above you, the first signs of dawn are shining bright through heavy cloud coverage.
Down the road from here, a new day begins in the town. You realise that you missed a fun night of trick o? treating with your neighbours. Sighing, you get to your feet and attempt to brush down your now filthy clothes. Maybe you would have been better of with them after all.
A breeze whistles, and along with it there is the faint sound of laughter. You look back over your shoulder, and through the trees, you see a distinct orange glow. Your blood turns to ice; a phantasm of the fear you experienced this night. Then like a mirage it is gone.
You reach into your pocket, feeling the hard candy there. A confirmation that this was not just a nightmare. It was real.
You turn your back on the Woods once again and begin the journey home.
- - - Post Merge - - -
This is this song that was played in the Deep Woods. Thanks to the, Woods Expedition Guide!
