The Last Stop

You car slows to a stop on the gravel road, the sound crunching beneath the tires as the last rays of the setting sun cast long shadows over houses. In this rural town that is the heart of nowhere, everything looks forgotten—windows boarded up, doors slightly ajar, their sagging roofs creaking in the breeze. You look to Jun in the passenger seat. "There's no gas station, but let's take a look around and see if we can find extra fuel." You and Jun step out, breathing in the stale air, and begin wandering the streets looking for anything or anyone around to help them find fuel to fill their almost empty gas tanks and continue on their road trip. Suddenly a [[voice|Meet Strange Man]] breaks through the silence.

"What are you two doing here?" You turn. An old man stands on the road outside the gates to his home. His clothes are as worn as the town itself, his expression unreadable. "...We're just passing by, looking for fuel for our car," You answer. "Did you run into any villagers?" The man asks with worry. "No, not yet," Jun answers, eyeing you with raised brows in suspicion. "It's dangerous if you stay out here..." The man says, eyeing his surroundings as if to see if anyone is listening. "My house is right over here. Would you mind stepping inside for a moment? It's better if I explain there," Do you follow the man into his home? [[No, it's too dangerous. |Avoid the Man]] [[Sure, maybe he knows something important. |Follow Man into Home]]

Surprisingly, the man's home is warm and there’s a quiet coziness to the space compared to the decaying town outside. The man finds some comfort in a sigh as he enters the safety of his home, and gestures you and Jun to sit on the couch. "Listen, it's dangerous for outsiders to be here. Haven't you seen the news recently?" You and Jun eye each other with confusion. "No?" "A murderer was released from prison after serving 20 years for killing his parents..." the man trails off in contemplation. "And?" You ask. "He used to live in this town... And he's my brother. But regardless, it's dangerous here and you shouldn't trust any of the villagers here. I'll step out for a moment and find you the extra fuel you need." This sudden overflow of information doesn't sit right. He's too quick to share something so dark, yet he's offering help, urging you to leave, practically pushing you away for your own safety. "I just need a hand. Would one of you mind coming along? It won't take long." "[[Sure| Join the Man?]]," Jun says and gets up to join the man.

There's something off about the man, the way he keeps looking around, the way he seems uneased—it makes you feel wary. You it’s best to leave before getting involved. "No, it's fine. Thanks for your concern, but we should get going," you say and grab Jun's wrist as you walk away from the man. Leaving the man behind, you and Jun continue to explore the town, but the place is engulfed in silence as if it was holding its breath. On the empty streets, you spot a lady, a villager, passing by and this reassures you that maybe this town isn't completely dead. However, when you try asking about where to find fuel, they glance around nervously, avoiding eye contact, and quickly walk away as if they’re afraid. You and Jun begin to grow frustrated at the lack of solution. You turn to Jun and ask, "Should we just [[leave| Leave Safely]]? Maybe the car won't run out of gas before reaching the next town." Jun points to a building at the edge of town to what seems like an abandoned storage building. "Should we [[check that place out| Search Storage]]? Maybe we'll find something."

What do you do? [[Something feels off and you're worried something might happen to Jun. You go instead.| You Join the Man]] [[He's helping us leave and says it will be quick. Let Jun go help the man.| Jun Joins the Man]] [[The man is too suspicious. Tell him both of you will go.| Both Join the Man]]

You quickly grab Jun’s arm, stopping them from going with the man. "I’ll go with him," you say, stepping forward instead. You reassure Jun, saying you will be back soon. You follow the man walking towards a more vacant part of town. He leads you to what looks like an outdoor storage building. "A lot of buildings and businesses in this town have been left abandonded. There are a lot of useful things left inside, maybe we'll find extra fuel for your car," he explains. It feels cold and shabby inside, but there are indeed rows of shelves with a variety of items such as tools, equipment, gears, and supplies. The man suggests seperating and staring the search from either ends of the place. You agree and begin searching from the other side of the room. Finally, you spot a fuel container and pick it up to feel it heavy and full. You're about call out to the man and tell him you've found it, but you feel an eery presence [[behind |Bad Ending]] and hear a heavy metal being placed down and scraped against the floor.

Jun looks to you and smiles in reasssurance. "I'll be right back," they say and you grin back as you watch them disappear out the door. The silence that engulfs almost feels uncanny and your eyes wander around the interior of the man's home before you decide to stand up and look around a little. The door at the end of the room leads to what seems to be his bedroom. What is the first thing you notice? [[A family photo of three on the nightstand| Family Photo]] [[The top drawer of his dresser left ajar, with scraps of papers and documents sticking out| Drawer]]

The silence that engulfs almost feels uncanny and your eyes wander around the interior of the man's home before you decide to stand up and look around a little. You gesture for Jun to join you. The door at the end of the room leads to what seems to be his bedroom. The first thing you spot is a photograph on his night stand. As you pick up the [[image| Family Photo & Drawer]] to observe it, Jun pulls open a dresser drawer that had been left ajar and finds newspaper clippings and documents inside.

You turn around slowly, heart hammering, to see the man standing in the dim light of the room, an axe in hand, its edge leaned against the ground glinting ominously. His eyes meet yours, dark and unreadable. "[[You shouldn’t have come here| End]]," he says, his voice low and almost regretful. Then, a slow, sinister smile spreads across his face.

You pick up the photograph and observe it closely. The father in the picture doesn't appear to be the man, so you assume this image is of him and his parents. Then a sudden realization hits: didn't he say he had a brother? You flip the picture over, half-expecting to find something, anything, written on the back. Blank. You clutch the photograph in your hand, unsure what to think of this. Could he be lying? Could *he* be the murderer? The thought feels both absurd and unsettling, and a part of you wonders if you're just overthinking. What do you do? [[Trust your guts. Leave immediately to find Jun and run away.| Run Away]] [[You're probably overthinking. Let's search the open drawer.| Drawer]]

You pull open the drawer to see piles of newspaper scraps and documents sitting inside. You pick up the documents on top of the pile that seem to detail custody release. Your heart begins to race, and you set the document aside to read the newspaper clippings. The headline sends chills down your spine: "Double Murder Shocks Rural Town". Beneath the title is a photograph, unmistakably of the man who claimed to be the killer’s brother, identified not as a relative, but as the perpetrator himself. You discard papers in your hand and let them fall to the floor and march towards the door. You needed to [[find Jun and run away.| Run Away]]

You bolt out of the house, breath ragged, and begin shouting for Jun, breaking the eerie stillness of the town. But the silence that answerse is suffocating and feels as if the town itself is holding its breath. You hurry through alleyways and past abandoned homes, and your hope begins to wane. Then, a loud crash breaks through—like a sharp, violent noise coming from the abandoned storage building on the outskirts of town. What do you do? [[Go toward the sound, hoping you'll find Jun.|Look For Jun ]] [[Return to your car and run away. Leave this place far behind.| Leave Safely Alone]]

The building feels cold and shabby inside, but there are indeed rows of shelves with a variety of items such as tools, equipment, gears, and supplies. You begin to weave throught the shelves searching for Jun, but to your distraught you are consitently led to dead ends and no signs of your friend. When you reach the end of the last row, you are undoubtly at another dead end. As you sigh in frustration, you feel an eery presence [[behind. |Bad Ending]] and hear a heavy metal being placed down and scraped against the floor.

You run to your car and start the engine with shaking hands. The gas pump symbol on the dashboard indicates scarcely close to empty; you hope it's enough to make it to the next town over and drive away to at least get away from this town first. As the town fades in the rearview mirror, your mind is elsewhere, replaying Jun’s face as they disappeared out of the man's home. You tell yourself you had no choice, but the guilt gnaws at you relentlessly. Repeatedly, you tell yourself you’re safe, but the guilt weights heavier.

You and Jun head back to the car. As you fumble with the keys, Jun keeps watch, both of you on edge, wary of the atmosphere of the place. Finally, the engine roars to life and you waste no time, pulling away from the town receding in the rearview mirror. There's an unspoken relief settling in the car as the town fades into the distance. You made it out. Safely.

The abandoned storage building feels cold and shabby inside, but there are rows of shelves with a variety of items such as tools, equipment, gears, and supplies. The Jun suggests seperating and staring the search from either ends of the place. You agree and begin searching from the other side of the room. After weaving through the shelves as you search, you finally spot a fuel container and pick it up to feel it heavy and full. You're about call out to Jun and tell them you've found fuel, but you feel an eery presence [[behind |Bad Ending]] and hear a heavy metal being placed down and scraped against the floor.

You observe the image closely: the father in the picture doesn't appear to be the man, so you assume this image is of him and his parents. Then a sudden realization hits: didn't he say he had a brother? You flip the picture over, half-expecting to find something, anything, written on the back. Blank. You clutch the photograph in your hand, unsure what to think of this. Could he be lying? Could *he* be the murderer? The thought feels both absurd and unsettling, and a part of you wonders if you're just overthinking. You look to Jun with worried eyes to see them with the same expression. They hold up the newspaper clipping to show you an article headlined "Double Murder Shocks Rural Town". Beneath the title is a photograph, unmistakably of the man who claimed to be the killer’s brother, identified not as a relative, but as the perpetrator himself. You grab Jun's wrist and pull them with you as you bolt out of the man's home and down the street, away from the house. You turn to Jun and ask, "Should we just [[leave| Leave Safely]]? Maybe the car won't run out of gas before reaching the next town." Jun points to a building at the edge of town to what seems like an abandoned storage building. "Should we [[check that place out| Search Storage]]? Maybe we'll find something."

You should have run away when you had the chance.

You and your friend, Jun, are on a cross country road trip, but find yourselves one night with low fuel and no cell signal. Thankfully, you come across a [[rural town|Enter Town]] on the way and decide to stop by to fill up the gas tank and maybe regain cell signal.