Pine Woods

[[Enter the woods]]

You and your friend Jake arrive at the woods of some property his uncle owns. "I've seen some raccoons on the game cams here", Jake says as he puts the truck in park. You grab your guns and head [[into the woods]]

The forest feels unnaturally quiet tonight. You walk for hours without hearing much more than an occasional owl. You're starting to get tired of walking. "Well, this was a waste of time," Jake complained, "I'm ready to head back. We can try another day." [["I agree, let's head back"->head back to truck]] [["We've come all this way, I want to keep looking"]]

Jake looks slightly annoyed, "Okay, but not for too much longer." You continue walking for a while longer and still dont hear anything. "Can we head back now?" [["not yet"]] [["Okay"->head back to truck]]

"We've come all this way, I'm sure we're close," you tell Jake. He shakes his head but walks along side you. You start hearing raccoons in the distance. Not just a few of them, it sounds like dozens of them, [["Hear that! I told ya"]]

You turn around and you dont see Jake anywhere... Maybe he went back to the truck, but why didnt he say anything? You could go back and [[look for Jake->turn back]] or continue to [[follow the raccoons]].

You and Jake walk back to the truck together. As it comes into view you start hearing raccoons. Not just a few of them, it sounds like there are dozens of them Jake lit up with excitement, "Hear that! This is what we came here for!" [["There's so many! Let's go get them!"]] [["I just want to go home."]]

You decided to keep following the sounds. They seem to keep getting further and further way. No matter how long you've been walking, you're not getting any further. You could [[keep looking]], but it's probably best to [[turn back]] towards the truck. Hopefully Jake is there waiting.

The sounds of the raccoons feels like they are calling to you. You keep walking further and further into the woods until all the noise starts to fade. You realize that you have gone too far. You try to turn around but the forest looks unfamiliar. The small trail made my animal traffic seems to have disappeared and the trees look different. There's not much you can do besides [[find a way out]].

You make it back to the truck, but Jake isn't there. You worry about him, you dont want to be alone here. You get into the truck and [[hope he turns up->wait with the truck]]

You walk and walk, it feels like hours pass by. The sun should have come out by now, but it feels darker than when you arrived. You hear nothing. No insects, animals, wind. You try calling out to Jake but you get no response. Hours turns into days as you keep walking. The sun never comes up. [[There's no escape->GAME OVER]]

[[Enter the woods]] again? [[about]]

My dad and my brother went raccoon hunting late one night on New Years Eve. They didnt hear anything all night until they went back in to the truck, as they got to the truck they could hear in the distance what sounded like a hundred raccoon. They were with my dad's hunting dog who would always chase after sounds, but in this instance it was as if she couldn't even hear anything at all, completely unresponsive to it. As they kept following the sounds they didnt seem to get any closer. Finally they both realized that something was off. When they got back to the truck the raccoons got louder again, as if there was something trying to pull them into the forest, away from the truck. This story was based off that experience. This experience was created by <a href="https://buriedinfish.itch.io/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">buriedinfish</a> [[Enter the woods]] again?

You and Jake head back into the forest. As you get further from the truck, the raccoons seem to do the same. You've been walking for a while, but not getting any closer. Something seems to be leading you into the forest. Jake looks nervous, but doesn't seem to be reacting. You worry a little about looking weak if you ask to [[head back]]. You could [[keep walking]] towards the sounds

"We can go home, I just want to check it out really quick. I won't go far, I just want to see if I can see them." [["Hold on, I'll go with you"->"There's so many! Let's go get them!"]] [["I'll wait here"]]

You tell Jake that you want to head back. He looks relieved, "I didn't want to be the one to say anything, but there's something wrong here". The sounds of the raccoons fade as you make your way back to the truck. The forest is silent again. You can see the truck in view. As you approach it, you can hear the raccoons again, louder this time. [["We need to get out of here"]]

You throw your gear into the truck and rush into it, heart racing as Jake starts it up and pulls out. You feel a strong sense of relief as you reach the highway. You cant shake the feeling that something terrible was going to happen if you kept walking into the forest. Whatever was making those sounds was trying to lead you into the forest for some reason. Whatever it was, [[it wasn't raccoons->GAME OVER]]

You tell Jake you want to [[follow the raccoons->keep looking]]. He looks annoyed, "I'm not going to leave you here, but I dont want to go any further. Something isn't right here. I think we should [[leave->head back]]

You stay at the truck. He said that he was just going to check, but it's taking a lot longer than you expected. You think about [[going out to find him]], but it's probably better to [[wait with the truck]].

You leave the truck and start walking in the direction where Jake went. The woods are silent, no signs of Jake but you can faintly hear the raccoons in the distance. You could [[head back to the truck->turn back]], or [[follow the sounds->follow the raccoons]] of the raccoons.

Time keeps passing and still no signs of Jake. The forest is completely quiet. You should probably [[go look for him->find a way out]] or you can [[keep waiting]].

Hours pass and the sun comes up and the birds and insects are singing as usual. Jake never came out of the woods. It feels safe to [[go look for him]] or could try to leave and get [[go get some help]].

You leave the truck and look for him in the woods. After so much time calling out to him and searching any trail where he could have gone, you come up with no signs of him. You think you need to [[go get some help]] .

You feel terrible leaving Jake alone in the forest, but you can't find him on your own. You leave the property and call for help. After coming back with some friends and looking for him, he never turned up. Eventually a full search party was called and still no signs of him. He was never seen again, but you know there was [[something evil->GAME OVER]] in those woods that lead him out there.