Don't Be Afraid

Enter young one... Quickly! Quickly now. Don't want any undesirables to come running in after you. Now I sense that you have been wrongfully accused of something. Is this correct? [[You would be correct.|continue - easy]] [[Maybe I am. How can I trust you?|continue - medium]] [[No! I was... uhm... just perusing your fine establishment. Looks quaint and historical in here.| continue - hard]] (set: $food to false) (set: $water to false) (set: $weapon to false) (set:$RepentanceGratitude to false) (set:$mediumDiff to false) (set:$easyDiff to false) (set:$hardDiff to false) (set:$DBAEnding to false) (set:$DBSEnding to false) (set:$PPPEnding to false) (set:$WWWEnding to false) (set:$ICEnding to false) (set:$CINALYATCEnding to false) (if:$DBAEnding is true)[Death By Assholetry Ending Unlocked] (if:$DBSEnding is true)[Death By Sarlacc Ending Unlocked] (if:$PPPEnding is true)[Peaceful Piercing Passing Ending Unlocked] (if:$WWWEnding is true)[Worm Whirlpool of Wounds Ending Unlocked] (if:$ICEnding is true)[Identity Crisis Ending Unlocked] (if:$CINALYATCEnding is true)[Cake Is Not A Lie, You Are The Cake Ending Unlocked]

"Oh so you just walked on by and thought, 'Hmmm, this looks like a swell store. Maybe I'll go check out this nifty store?' Looks like I've hit the jackpot." the shopkeeper continues as he moves to a shelf behind the counter. [[...|Man Climbing]] (set: $hardDiff to true)

Opening your eyes, you stammer as a bright light blinds you. "Ahhh, fuck! What the hell? Did that old man knock me out and take e...very...thi..." [[Continue Blinking|Thrown into a Desert World]]

You feel your body land on soft grassess. "Wasn't I just..." Your confusion confounds you, leaving you with a staggering headache. Wait for Act Two

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Unable to believe your eyes, you stand. Continuously blinking, you realize that this is no dream or hallucination. This is real. As far as your eyes can see there is little to be seen but sand. Sand, sand, and more sand. Damp from the sudden shift in temperature, you begin to sweat uncontrollably. The dry wind buffets you until you feel as though the moisture has been blown clean off of your face. After receiving that face full of sand from the gust, you begin to wander through the desert. Mouth gritty from the sand that went into your mouth, you continue on. [[Wander|Wander]]

The hellish sun beats down upon your head. The little breaks provided by the sand dunes provide little solace to your arid tongue and skin. Your glands have been flooding with sweat since your ordeal began. The shirt you had on is sticking to you, but has dried due to the constant oven temperature of the surrounding area. You see a sand dune in your immediate area. Deciding it better to get a lay of the desert and hope to see civilization you climb the dune. Atop the dune, you see a group of trees surrounded by greenery in the distance. The sun seems to be falling toward the trees so you get your barrings as well. You spot a caravan moving over a sand dune in the distance as well. Think to yourself as to what path to take, you hear a mysterious voice come into your head. "Do you want to live? Then follow the my instructions." [[Head to the Oasis|Oasis]] [[Run to the Caravan]] [[Follow Mysterious Voice]]

(if: $hardDiff is true)[Deciding that it was imperative to your survival that you find water and food, you continue on to the oasis. Just the thought of water makes your mouth come alive. You salivate and begin to run towards the vibrant green vegetation. Your mind is rampant with bathing, drinking, and cooling yourself off. "Would I even have to leave if I get there? This crazy trick can't possibly last forever. I was just in Chicago in the dead of winter. There is no way this is real!"] (if: $mediumDiff is true)[After being shown the snow globe, and the man placing it to your forehead, you find yourself standing in an oasis in the middle of the desert. "Wait, how the hell did I get here? And my god it is hot as hell out here!" you exclaim as you take off your jacket. "First, rival mafias out for the bounty on my head and now a witch doctor in the middle of Chicago. It been a helleva day..." Glad that luck would have it that you would land so close to an oasis of all places in a desert. The sun begins to go down behind where the oasis is located in front of you. ] [[Run to Oasis|Find Water And Nourishment]]

(if: $mediumDiff is true or $hardDiff is true)[Deciding that finding people to guide you to civilization rather than trusting a disembodied voice was the right course of action, you dunk your body within the water of the oasis and leave your fairly safe haven. Continuing out of the sparse vegetation, you head in the direction of the caravan you saw earlier. It seemed that they were heading south, but you changed your direction and could not be sure now.] (if: $easyDiff is true)[Opening your eyes, you are blinded by the blazing sun. The dry air envelops you as you raise yourself from the ground. You find yourself oddly heated and realize it's not your imagination. The snow globe you touched had really taken you to a different destination. "THIS IS AMAZING! How did he even do this!? Hey old guy! Can you bring me back now?" you yell as you await for a response. Nothing came... "Okay... shit. I may be stuck here for an extended amount of time. I should not panic..." you thought to yourself, slightly panicked. "I can do this." Getting up and standing, you feel a brush of sand hit you from a gust. The gritty sand grinds as you attempt to shift the quickly evaporating spit in your mouth around. Looking up to the sky, you see in the sun is setting soon. To the right of the setting sun, you see a caravan. But to the left, you hear a voice calling to you. "Do you want to live? Then follow the my instructions."] [[Turn North of the setting sun|Turn Right of the Setting Sun and Follow the Path]] [[Turn South of the setting sun|Turn Left of the Setting Sun and Follow the Path]]

You decided that living on a prayer was better than chasing dreams, so you follow the voice. The voice leads you to the left of the setting sun, and with only one phrase it pushes you to continue. Though at first you found it odd, the voice does not disturb you anymore. The idea that voice were carried by the wind was not unheard of back in Chicago. "But how are you able to see me...?" you question. "Wait, how do I even know that this voice is friendly?" You contemplate your decision, while the ground begins to shake. [[Endure the Sifting Sands|Sand Worm Horde]]

(if: $hardDiff is true)[Upon approaching the Oasis, you fall to your knees. For once, your luck had held up. The water reservoir seemed like a little pocket of heaven to you. You dunk your head to feel yourself come back alive. Gasping for air, you feel like yourself for the first time since you arrived in the desert. The mysterious voice still calls out to you. "Do you not want to return to your home plane?" But in the distance, you also see the caravan going over a sand dune far in the distance.] (if: $mediumDiff is true)[Upon reaching the oasis in a short walk, you feel secured in your situation. Though you were transported to a desert by an old man, things could be a lot worse. Like what if you got stuck in a random place with no sight of anyone or anything? "All in all, I'm pretty hostile, but shit I have water. There is food on the trees here. I think that's fruit..." you question. "But I still need to find a way out of here!" You dunk your head to feel yourself come back alive. But in the distance, you also see the caravan going over a sand dune far in the distance to the right. Think to yourself as to whether or not you should go to the caravan, you hear a mysterious voice come into your head. "Do you want to live? Then follow the my instructions."] [[Go to the Caravan|Caravan]] [[Follow Mysterious Voice]] (set: $water to true)

Upon moving towards the head trader, he greets you with a handshake. "Man, how are you surviving out here? Especially in that heavy garb! Hold on." The man turns his attention to another member of the group and yells, "Shirshka, please grab this man some appropriate desert crossing gear." A woman returning from one of the camels, tosses some light, airy robes at you. She looks at you and puts her pointer finger to her mouth, gesturing for you to keep quiet. Turning around, the exchange ends. The head trader says okay so what did you want to buy. I am a generous person, but it is give and take out here. You take out a five and hand it to the man. "Food. Edible if possible." you tell the trader as you give him the money. "American, huh? Explains a lot" the man says as he hands you two sandwiches. With a quick shout in a foreign language, the caravan continues on their path. You wait till he caravan is out of sight then change into the robes gifted by the merchant. You feel something solid in the robe, it is a knife. "This'll come in handy." you scoff. [[Relax a moment and eat your sandwiches|Sand Worm Horde]] (set: $weapon to true) (set: $food to true)

(if:$food is true)[While you sit enjoying you food, there is a change in the silence of the desert. The once desolate, but serene portrait of the desert felt disturbed. A sense of danger washes over you and you feel threatened. Frightened by the shift in your surroundings, you stand. Upon standing you realize that the sand is sifting from underneath your feet. From out of the sand you see something that looks like a giant cockroach mixed with an armadillo. One creature turned into four and four turned into sixteen. The horde began o keep growing as more creatures encroached upon you as they came closer. ] (if:$food is false)[Led astray by the alluring voice, you continue as per its directions. Walking to absolute oblivion, you feel your legs begin to shake. At first you chalk it up to just fatigue, but as you continue walking you notice it isn't your legs. The entirety of the desert around you is vibrating. The vibrations grow stronger as time passes. In the distance you see a small creature begin to encircle you. Pacing around you, the one creature turns into five and then into nineteen, growing larger at every pass.] [[Run]] [[Fight]] [[Go Quickly to the Caravan for Help]]

(if:$weapon is true)[You pull out the knife you found within the robes. Deciding that you are tired of running, you wait for the horde of sand worms to attack you. The moment of truth arrives and you lash out at the first one that approaches you. You swing the dagger directly through the center of the creature. Upon the death of one of their own, agitates the group into a frenzy. You are soon overwhelmed by the many tiny creatures that claw at your feet.] (if:$weapon is false)[Frightened by the sudden appearance of the mysterious horde, you attempt to bare fist brawl them as they approach you, but you are quickly run down!] [[Fight On!|Die(sand-worm-feast)]]

Frightened by the sight of the giant horde encroaching upon your position, you can't bring yourself to try to fight them. Seeing them attempt to encircle you, drives you to the brink of insanity. Running around attempting to get away from the group, tires you out. Falling to the ground from exhaustion, you watch as the small horde approaches you slowly. [[Watch|Dehydration + Alive while being devoured]]

Remembering the group of traveling merchant from a short moment ago, you decide attempting to get help is better than not having help at all. "If they had this dagger to just give away, they have to have even more weapons. I figure that'll be my best bet to survive whatever the hell this is!" Waiting for a small dent within the formation of the encircling creatures, you sprint towards a tiny break. Jumping over the moat of shifting sands, you swing the dagger below just in case they attempt to attack as you pass. Free from the encirclement, you run to right of the sun once again, hoping to come across the group again. "Hello! Are you still here merchants!?" you shout into the distance. Continuing to run, you feel a sharp pain within your leg. [[...|Recruit Help Among the Caravan]]

(if: $weapon is true)[The creatures become hostile towards you. Angry for the death of their comrade, they rush you from all angles. You look around as you realize that these are your last moments on this Earth. You drop to your knees in an attempt to pray. "God, if you can hear me, I am sorry for..." you stop. The words that were once steady in your mind as your last words are now falling into an abyss. The words are snagged on something. You can't bring yourself to force the words up. Confused, you push all of your breath out of your lungs in an attempt to get your last words out. The only thing you feel come up is throw-up. As you cover your face with your hands, you open your eyes. Looking at your hands, you quickly change from repentance to hysteria. The words you had were not psychologically trapped, but physically. The small creates that impeded upon you were stopped. Looking down, you grimace as you put all of the event that occurred together. The words stopped because you were physically incapable them. A foreleg of one of the creatures had pierced not only your lung, but your entire body. Slowly you are lifted off the ground. You can see your blood flooding out of the wound in your chest. As you look up to the sky, you cough one last time. The last of your life force comes to the top of your mouth as one tiny blood droplet. The droplet caresses the side of your face as you drift off into death. You unlocked the Peaceful Piercing Passing Ending (set: $PPPEnding to true)] (if: $weapon is false)[Looking for a way out of the situation your are currently in, your mind settles into hysteria. All of your mistakes you had in your childhood come flooding to your mind. The guilt and regrets forces you to scream uncontrollably and roll upon the sand as your doom quickly approached you. Backed into a corner, you get up and decide to at least attempt to get away. Getting as much room as possible away from the wall of creatures, you sprint towards the far wall of them. Putting all of your strength into your legs to jump over the line of sand worms, you leave the ground. For what seemed like an eternity, you glide in the air. With a soft thud, you land safely on the other side. Surprised by the sheer luck of surviving, you attempt to run away. At this time, the horde realizes your direction and become hostile. They chase you down and pierce your legs with their forelegs. Caught by a beast, you can not move your legs. The place where you had just jumped from had become a whirlpool of serrated mouths, sand, and spiked forelegs. Brought back to the whirlpool, you are pulled into it. You don't die instantly to your dismay. You go around the whirlpool an insurmountable amount of times. With each passing, your body is stripped of clothes, flesh, and meat. The horde slowly cleans your bones off. All you can muster is a scream that haunts the caravan that helped you to this day. You unlocked the Worm Whirlpool of Wounds Ending (set: $WWWEnding to true)]

(if: water is false)[Dehydrated and fatigued from your recent journey, you fall to the ground. Upon falling you feel the vibrations grow stronger. The shaking and shifting of the sand comes to a rumble. You close your eyes. The rumbling stop and you open your eyes and look ahead of you. You see the faces of the horde come closer and closer to you. As your body refuses to move, they inch ever so close to your face. Frightened by the up close and personal sight of the creatures, you can feel the heat emitting from their bodies as they brush past you. A wave of relief passes over you. Then you feel a prick near your legs. That prick begins to burn. Then your body runs cold. You try to move your toes. Nothing. You try to move your legs... Nothing. Then you feel a liquid begin to touch your abdominal area. Rolling over, you see that the creatures did not leave, but in fact just began devouring you from your feet first. Where you were lying, you see the sand stained with a sickly and grotesque maroon color. Unable to even scream at this point, you watch as the creatures slowly devour you, until you pass from the Earth You unlocked the Cake Is Not A Lie, You Are The Cake Ending (set: $CINALYATCEnding to true)] (if: water is true)[Exhausted from the ordeal of transportation and shuffling through the desert, fatigues takes a hold of you. You fall to the ground in an attempt to gather even a little energy to go on. Upon falling you feel the vibrations grow stronger. The shaking and shifting of the sand comes to a rumble. You close your eyes. The rumbling stop and you open your eyes and look ahead of you. You see the faces of the horde come closer and closer to you. As your body refuses to move, they inch ever so close to your face. Frightened by the up close and personal sight of the creatures, you can feel the heat emitting from their bodies as they brush past you. A wave of relief passes over you. Then you feel a prick near your legs. That prick begins to burn. Then your body runs cold. You try to move your toes. Nothing. You try to move your legs... Nothing. Then you feel a liquid begin to touch your abdominal area. Rolling over, you see that the creatures did not leave, but in fact just began devouring you from your feet first. Where you were lying, you see the sand stained with a sickly and grotesque maroon color. Unable to even scream at this point, you watch as the creatures slowly devour you, until you pass from the Earth. You unlocked the Cake Is Not A Lie, You Are The Cake Ending (set: $CISNALYATCEnding to true)]

"Ahhhhhh! What the hell is wrong with my..." you begin. Started by the sight of your own leg being removed from your body with little of your knowledge send you into a state of shock. Your leg bleed profusely upon the sand. The sand soaks up the blood as if it hungered for more of it. Struggling to continue on to the caravan, you call out to the world. "HELLO! SOMEONE PLEASE, HELP ME! MY LEG IS... IS... GONE! JUST GONE!" you shout into the distance. You see men on the distant sand dune. They point to you and begin to run towards you. You feel relief wash over you as you stick your arm out as if to reach them faster. Your field of vision begins to fade to black. Not from loss of blood, no. The horde that had followed you had called their queen to assist the hunt. She had a taste of you and decide she wanted the entire entree. Pulling out your dagger, you frantically stab at your surroundings. "Oh hell no! I refuse to die at this point!" you exclaim. Your stabbing within the creature’s mouth frenzies it. The mouth closes even faster... [[...|Transport to Path Medium]]

When the last of the light has faded from your surroundings, you feel yourself fall. Physically and mentally into despair. All of your action seem to not have an effect on your fate as a whole. "He...Pull... out. We can... them!" You can hear muffled voices from outside. Accepting that your were dying, you close your eyes to peacefully go. "Hey, traveler! Are you still alive?" a familiar voice asks you. The head merchant is attempting to resuscitate you. You groan and cough up blood from your time within the beast. Your body is torn, bloodied, and mostly crushed from the way down. "Hey, traveler. Look..." the head merchant starts. "You don't have much time. We saved you just in time, but only with enough time to get your final words. Is there anything you want me to send to anyone? I swear they'll get it." [["Deez...Nutz..."|You Asshole]] [["Tell my mom, I'm sorry."|Short Ending Path]] [["Thank you to the one who gave me the dagger."|Short Ending Path]] (set:$RepentanceGratitude to true)

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"Maybe you can. Maybe you can't. But remember this, My store is the only thing keeping you from getting killed. Oh that's only if you're getting chased." The shopkeep smiles a wide, sickening smile. That makes your stomach churn. I don't mind letting you stay here, but I need you to answer a few questions first. [[...|Ultimatum - Short Version]] (set: $mediumDiff to true)

"Ahhhhh well this is a surprise. I was not expecting such a truthful answer. It seems that I mistook you for someone who you were not," the shopkeeper begins. "Welcome to Misery and Wonder. My shop has many different items that will pique your interest, but there are two questions I have for you." [[...|Ultimatum - Short Version]] (set: $easyDiff to true)

"Do you believe that life is hard?" "Do you beleive that life could be worse?" [[Yes and Yes|Easy Path]] [[Yes and No|Medium Path]] [[No and No|Hard Path]]

Leaning in close to see the minute details, you move in close to the snow globe. You realize that it is not snow, but sand that fills the globe. "Hey what's this sand?" you ask. "Oh, nothing," explains the shopkeeper. "It's just your next destination." [[...|Transport]]

"Destin..." Before you can even finish the word, the man grabs your head and forces it to the globe. An unimaginable mix of colors and sounds envelop you. You feel yourself being sucked into the globe. [[Darkness]]

Then the world goes black. [[Open Eyes|Hard Path]]

You realize that the voice seems just a little to eager to get you to follow it. Then you feel a chill down your spine. "Oh hell no! I don't even really believe all of that religious sign shit. You are not gonna lead me to my death weird ass voice! Suck me off!" you yell into the distance. Having rid yourself of your inhibitions, you decide to continue to travel to the right of the sun. Realizing that you dodged a bullet not going south, you quickly get the caravan within sight again. With your new found energy, you sprint towards the group and yell to them. "Hey! Hey! Can you help me?" The group stops there caravan movement and yell back. "Buyer or Trader?" they respond. "Uhm... buyer, I guess." you yell back. Walking slowly up to the caravan, you see the entirety of the traveling group. [[Speak with Head of Caravan|Found Clothes and Weapons]]

The mysterious voice finally stirs up your curiosity enough to pick yourself out of your relative safe haven on a fool's quest. But believing in an omnipotent voice is something you were taught to follow as a child of the church. "This must be a sign. I never really believed in signs from God, but this is unmistakeable," you think to yourself. Seemingly in good spirits you follow the spirit as it leads you blindly back into the unforgiving barren wasteland. [[Continue Following the Voice]]

Though at first you found it odd, the voice does not disturb you anymore. The idea that voice were carried by the wind was not unheard of back in Chicago. "But how are you able to see me...?" you question. "Wait, how do I even know that this voice is friendly?" You contemplate your decision, while the ground begins to shake. [[Endure the Sifting Sands|Sand Worm Horde]]

You attempt to run to the caravan. "They have to be people who would help an unsuspecting traveler," you think to yourself. Continuing in the direction of the caravan, you feel your legs surge with pain. "Ahhhhhh! What the hell is wrong with my..." you begin. Started by the sight of your own leg being removed from your body with little of your knowledge send you into a state of shock. Your leg bleed profusely upon the sand. The sand soaks up the blood as if it hungered for more of it. Struggling to continue on to the caravan, you call out to the world. "HELLO! SOMEONE PLEASE, HELP ME! MY LEG IS... IS... GONE! JUST GONE!" you shout into the distance. You see men on the distant sand dune. They point to you and begin to run towards you. You feel relief wash over you as you stick your arm out as if to reach them faster. Your field of vision quickly fades to black as you can feel your body being crushed and tore apart. No one can hear your screams under 300 feet of sand. And inside of a giant sand worm. You have unlocked the Death By Sarlacc Ending (set: $DBSEnding to true)

How dare you! You deserve to die! He just wanted to help you and you ruin the narrative like this? No tact. Just an asshole that what you are. You have reached the Death By Assholetry Ending (set: $DBAEnding to true)

"Do you believe that life is hard?" "Do you beleive that life could be worse?" [[Yes and Yes|Man Climbing-Easy]] [[Yes and No|Man Climbing-Medium]] [[No and No|Hard Path]]

As you feel you life drift from your body, you manage to smile one last time. You feel your spirit drift from this plane of this existence. At that moment, you feel a force tugging you away from the bright light that is the afterlife. The resolve you had when you dies persevered through death. You attempt to break free of the spiritual grip on your soul. Unable to shake off the entity you are pulled into a dark abyss. Then your consciousness fades and seems to become one with the Earth. [[Then Nothing...]]

[[Just Darkness...]]

Then you feel your eyelids flicker. Looking at the ceiling of the old man shop, you jump up. Your head hitting the counter with a heavy thud. "What the hell? Am I back? I thought I died..." you think as you question your position. "Oh that? You did die," snickered the old man. "But yu lasted a hell of a lot longer than I figured. I have found a certain fondness for you. You may have been distressed when you entered, but not you seem relaxed. Complacent even." "Well it's been a helleva day. But now I have to go deal with these mafioso, so... thanks for the distraction old man." "What mafioso? You have been working here for 2 years, Alex." "Who's Alex...? Wait a minute..." you say. "So tell me. Has your outlook on how life could be changed at all?" He says smiling. You have unlocked the Identity Crisis Ending. (set: $ICEnding to true)

The man climbs a decrepit old wooden step ladder. It creaks with a deafening tone with each step. The man was old, but in great shape. Moving as if he were in his mid-thirties, the man grabs a snow globe from the top shelf and returns to his previous position behind the counter. He sits the snow globe on the counter with a heavy thud. Come here, sir. Come see this. I believe it may help your current "lack thereof a situation". Leaning in close to see the minute details, you move in close to the snow globe. You realize that it is not snow, but sand that fills the globe. "Hey what's this sand?" you ask. "Oh, nothing," explains the shopkeeper. "It's just your next destination." "Would you like to see life from a whole new perspective?" he asks. "Well, I'm not really su..." you start. But then he grabs your finger and places it on the globe. [[...|Caravan]]

The man climbs a decrepit old wooden step ladder. It creaks with a deafening tone with each step. The man was old, but in great shape. Moving as if he were in his mid-thirties, the man grabs a snow globe from the top shelf and returns to his previous position behind the counter. He sits the snow globe on the counter with a heavy thud. Come here, sir. Come see this. I believe it may help your current "lack thereof a situation". Leaning in close to see the minute details, you move in close to the snow globe. You realize that it is not snow, but sand that fills the globe. "Hey what's this sand?" you ask. "Oh, nothing," explains the shopkeeper. "It's just your next destination." "Destin..." Before you can even finish the word, the man grabs the snow globe and places it to your forehead. An unimaginable mix of colors and sounds envelop you. You feel yourself being sucked into the globe. [[...|Oasis]]