A Field Full of Irises

You have been hiking for days; its a passion of yours. This particular woods is massive, something that intrigued you. You had a few amazing days out here: lots of beautiful nature, beautiful plants, lots of peace and quiet by yourself. However, while you were alseep one evening, someone must have stolen your gear, as you awoke with all of your previsions gone. You spent the entire day today hiking deeper into this sea of green, trying to find your things, with no luck. However, as the sun sets, and darkness is setting in. And, with the night time in the woods, its getting chillier and chillier by the minute. Your breath is starting to become visable in the air. Along with this, you feel your stomach starting to cramp, unable to move properly with lack of food. You could either find [[warmth]] or [[eat]]. Finding food, especially at night, is a risk for you, and not something you're experienced with. But, it shoul'dnt be to hard to find some warm blankets, or a warm place to stay, such as a cabin or home of some sort.

Alright, warmth. With the temperatures lowering quickly, there is little time for you to find something warm. Either you could [[run]] to try to warm your body up, as well as searching for something, or you could just [[walk]], preserve your energy.

You stand up, immideiantly heading into the woods. After all, there is no way you could maintain heat if you have nothing to fuel your body. However, the only problem is, you have no knowledge of anything in the woods. As a city kid, you have never had much exoerience with it. So, how do you know what to eat? You check your pockets, you do not have your cell phone with you. Best options you have are [[taking your chances with the plants]] around you, or you could [[try your luck hunting an animal]].

Its getting cold quickly, so the easiest way to warm yourself is to run. You may not be able to see if there is any places to hide out, especially if its nighttime, but at least your own body temperature will warm you. ~*~ It feels like it's been hours. Its dark, who knows, maybe you're running in circles; thats what it feels like. You've been running on and off, though not without difficulty in your hiking boots, which are not really designed for running. However, You run past something, and then skid to a halt. Suddenly, what you've been looking for! Right ahead of you is a cabin, with a faint light glowing inside. There must be someone home, so you decide to [[go knock on the door]], your labored breathing slowing as you walk forward.

You walk forward, your eyes finally adjusting to the lack of light. Hours seem to pass before you notice that you have lost feeling in your limbs, they have grown so cold. You look around, and finally, after hours of searching, you see a cabin. A faint light glows from within it, giving you the thought that maybe someone is inside. However, how are you to know if they are safe; what if its dangerous? You could [[go knock on the door]] or [[continue walking]] and press your luck that there will be somewhere else for you to warm up, or at least find a coat.

Unfortunatly, being from the city, you have no idea what kind of plants are edible, and what may kill you. You must have gotten ahold of something that wasn't good for you. You start to feel dizzy, and your limbs start to shake, and you know you've made a horrible mistake. Before you can fully comprehend whats happening to you, your body collapses, and you fade away, into a deep, dark, sleep. (Head back to [[Start]].

You walk around, what must be for miles, without the sight of a single animal, besides many pesky bugs. This is odd, too odd to be normal. Normally, with this much forrest, there must be at least some kind of animals, preferably ones that can provide you with some kind of meat. Suddenly, off in the distance to the right you hear a soft rustle. Good, something small you would be able to catch, given your lack of weapons to hunt larger game. Wait, you realize, there is no way you could possibly hunt down an animal without some kind of weapon, even if its a small one. You have to [[find a weapon]], or you'd never make it. On the other hand, food is so close by, you could always [[investigate the sound]].

Something felt odd about this - something was off. There was no pathway to the house, so you have to fight through weeds and various shrubbary in order to get to the house. It looked like a cottage, like nothing more than even a log cabin with a single window off to the right. You finally walk up to the door, depsperate to be inside and out of the wind; though its light, every bit of the wind chills your further. You knock, and wait for the door to open. A minute or so passes, and nothing does. You knock again, louder this time, but still, no answer. You can either [[see if the door is open]] and go inside, or [[walk away]] and try to find something else.

You decide it is probably best not to knock on the cabin door. Though you are cold, its not worth bothering someone else. Though they may be able to help you, you decide its best to [[walk on]] and see if there is another option for you.

You turn the knob, and find that the door is open, You step inside, into the cottage. It's simple inside, like a hotel room, with the personal affects. A fire burns in the far corner of the room. You can already feel its warmth tickling your skin. "Who are you?" The words hit you like a wall. After hours, what feels like days, of no conversation, the words slice right through you. You turn around, and you see a girl, similar to your age, early twenties, with long, dark black hair. Her skin is fair, almost pale, bleaches of color. Her eyes are dark, like her hair, piercing into you. In one hand, you see what looks like a machete, crusted in what you can only hope is not blood. You have two choices; you could either [[try to talk to her]] or [[get out of there]] as quickly as possible.

Clearly, nob ody was home. You decide it is probably best to just [[walk on]], and continue on your way. It's too bad, this person might have been able to help you, if they had been home.

"Okay," you start out, "I'm lost. I woke up in the middle of this forrest, and this place is he first place I've found. I'm freezing, starving, and I'm wondering if you could help me." You figure honest is probably the best policy. Her had twitches around the hilt of the blade. You can almost hear your heart beat against your chest, and with such force, surly she can hear it, too. She puts her hands to the side, and a sympathetic look crosses her face, and her dark eyes soften. "You're not the first one." She steps towards you, and you stay still. She walks to wards the fire, sitting in front of it, her her head nodding along for you to follow. Now's your chance. You can either follow her, and [[hear her out]], or [[get out of there]].

You make a move for the door, slowly, as not to startle her. "Where are you going?" She asks, suddenly, her eyes moving into you like daggers. "I don't want you to leave yet. You look horrible, come, have some food and I'll give you a warm blanket or something. You're welcome to sit and rest here for awhile with me." "I'll pass," you say, still edging towards the door. "The last thing I would want to do is inconveniance you." Her hand edged back towards the blade, now clean. You can see how sharp it is, the fire's light reflecting on the blade. It's clear now, she's not going to let you leave; you have to choose either to [[fight her]], or [[accept her offer]] to stay.

"What do you mean, I'm not the first one?" you ask. She sighs, looking up at you with innocent eyes. "Well, lots of people get lost out here. My home is prety far away from civilization, if you haven't noticed." She chuckles, and it is this beautiful sound of bird chirping. You realize how lucky you are: where would you be if you hadn't found this place? It's such a streak of [[luck]].

You eventually find a very large stick on the ground. It looks like some sort of walking stick. You use it, maybe you can at least use it to walk until you find some sort of animal. However, when you aren't looking, you feel a sharp pain in your back; it hurts worse than anything you felt before. You fall to the ground, into a dark sleep. (Go back to [[Start]].)

Moving closer to the sound, you figure this is your best option for food. The branch of a nearby shuffles, and you lunge for the animal. You're more than surprised when you see a man, simila to your age, staring back at you. He looks wethered, as if he has been out here for days. More than anything, he looks terrified. He looks at you, and just yells, "RUN!", and bolts off. You could either [[run after him]], or [[ignore him]], and his weird interaction.

You chase after the man, confused, but compelled to at the same time. You run faster than you have ever thought you could, knowing no reason why but basic instincts. And, suddenly, something wooshes past you. An arrow! And that's when it dawns on you... You're being hunted. Animals don't shoot arrows, people do. You run, faster than you ever have before in life. You're so exhaustee, cold and without food, there is no way you are going to make it. Suddenly, you see the other man duck into what looks like a giant hedge or group of bushes, and you decide to [[follow him]].

Though it was incredibly odd to see that strange man all the way out here, you understand why he must've said that; when researching these woods, you came accross the fact that this is a nice place for people to live off the reservation. It's horrible, the amount of homeless people, or people who may be in need of financial help, living out here. However, there is no large animals in these woods, so you know there must be no reason for him to be in trouble, as it might have originally seemed. So, you pass off th entire situation, and decide to try to [[find a weapon]] to try to hunt down a small animal.

"So," I ask, "what's your name?" "Iris," the girl stated. She looked like a nice girl, someone that you cold just so easily talk to. "I have lived here alone for quite awhile now," she continued. "I didn't like th hustle and bustle of the city, this much better suited me." She turned to you, her bright eyes piercing into you. "So, why are you out here? Don't take this offensively, but you don't look well." You shuffle your feet, suddenly embarressed. "Well, I was camping out, and my gear was stolen. I've been without food or a warm coat for a few hours now." "Here," she says, "take this." She pulls out a coat, a man's coat. It's nice she has one extra, despite it being much to big for her. "And here, she gestured towards the fire. "I just put some food on for myself. Sit here, warm up, and I'll make us something to eat." What a nice person, though it does strike you that its a bit odd she has a men's coat, much too big for her, when she mentioned that she lives alone. It is nice though, that she has offered you warmth and something to eat. You can either [[accept her offer]], or [[get out of there]]. After all, you don't want to be a bother to such a nice woman.

You dive into where you saw him dive, and you plow right into him. you rustle around, trying to get up, and get off of him. He holds you against him, his grip one of iron. You struggle, and he whispers harshly "Be quiet, quiet down!" into your ear. You decide the best idea is to listen, what choice do you have? You're weak, unable to fight this man. However, despite the violence, he doesnt seem to be trying to hurt you. You hear rustling all around, peoples muffled shouts, and you sit there, silent, trying to control your own breathing to not make a single sound. Eventually, the sounds stop, and the hand lifts from your mouth, slowly. You turn to look at the man, still being as quiet as can be. "What the hell was that?" The man looks at you, his eyes tired, worn. He suddenly sinks, no longer the strong man holding you down and beggin you to be quiet, but a man who is tired. n"I can tell you if you want," he says. "I suppose I should, you're in this now, but it ain't pretty." You decide to [[hear his story]], as it definetly involves you now.

"Well," you say, "I'm waiting." The man took a large sigh, as if the weight of the world was on his shoulders. "I cam up here to hike, about a month back. I had heard wonderful things about these woods, how the trails were so wonderful, such beautiful sights-" "That's the exact same reason I came here." You interupt. The man continued to stare until he was sure you were silent. "it wasn't until someone stole my gear that I realized it. It's a game they play. This sick family, they put up this website, market the place to draw people in. They hunt us, like a damn animal, its all a game to them." A fear lurches through your body, and settles deep into your stomach. This is what happened to you. Now they are hunting you, there's no way out of it. Unless there was. "We have to come up with a [[plan]]," you say.

The man stares at you liked you're crazy. "What kind of plan? There's no way out, we have no food, no provisions." "No," you say, "here's what we do. Either we [[run together]] or [[run seperately]]. If we run together, we will have two mind heping us through this, and we could try to find the ending. We could stick together. Or, if we run seperatly, that would distract them. We would be a smaller target."

"We better run seperatly," the man says, and you agree. There is no sense wasting time, so you both get up and bolt, running in seperate directions. It seems like you're running forever, a never ending fight for your life. You run for what must be most of the day; thank goodness you're in such wonderfuln shape. Suddenly, you break out of the woods, into the parking lot. You can no longer find your car; they must have taken that, but you run anywhere, everywhere, until finally you reach help. ~*~ It has been almost a year since your escape. You spent time in mental health facilities, after a few nights in the hospital. Nobody beieved your story. People investigated, of course, but found nothing. Of course they didn't find anything, these people were too good. You soent the past few months, since your release, trying to find any record of the man. You eventually found him, a small buisness person who woned a bicycle shop, who had been missing for 14 months now. He must not have made it out. You decide that, with the life you have been given, you have been given a second chance. You will use it to try to find good in the world, help others, and maybe find evidense of what you went through, and stop the tomrneting cycle thy have created. You feel incomplete, but you know what you need to do. less of target more strategic find escape very weathered out of woods try to report, nobody believes you look for man, no finding him, assume he is dead single memorial alone for the man (If you wish, go back to [[Start]].)

The man looks at you. "Let's run together. Two minds have to be better than one, right?" And so youdo, no sense in wasting time. You get up, run as fast as your legs will carry you, together. You dive under falled tree limbs, around branches. Eventually, however, you find that as one big moving target, they are more likely to find you. You feel a sharp pain in your back, like nothing you've ever felt before. And, suddenly, you are falling to the ground. Everything goes dark before you make impact. (Go back to to [[Start]].)

You decide its best to sit down for a bit, clearly, walking like this isn't helping you much, and you're so tired, you need to regain your strength. You sit down, against a tree, and decide that's best. You don't want to fall asleep, since you do not have any protection. However, your eyes eventually close, despite you briefly fighting it, and you fall into a deep, dark sleep. It's too bad you never wake up. (Go back to [[Start]].)

You sit down, with the coat she places around your shoulders. You're wary. very wary of her intentions. It's hard, seeing what looks like such a nice woman, but trying to accept that maybe she is not. Every bone in your body wants to trust her, that's what you do. You're such a trusting individual, you always believe that people are going to do what is best. However, something tells you that she is not a nice person, and a very best, she may not have the best intentions. She's talking, but for some reason, you just aren't listening. In your head, youre trying to decide, either to [[listen to her]], and try to trust her. Or, you could decide you've had enough of this, and [[try to leave]]. After all, you have no connection to this person, and right now, you have to make the decision to look out for yourself.

You tangle with her, unable to get a grasp on anything solid to really hurt her with. She's too quick, to fast for you to really get a good grip on. You see her blade, attached to her hip, and you lung for it, finally getting the upper hand. You weild the blade and stare into her too bright, angry eyes. Then, scarily enough, she begins to form a smile. "The hunter never becomes the hunted." She smiles, dangerously. You can either [[listen to her]], or [[accept her anger]].

You listen to her, talk on and on as you eat some soup. You're still wary of every move she makes at first, but eventually, you decide that you may have misjudged her. Look at her, feeding you, giving you warm clothes - this is not something a malicious person does. However, as the sun begins to rise, you start to feel sick. At first, just aches and pains, but then worse: it's like clawing at the insides of your body. You sceam out at first, until you realize that makes it hurt more. You lay on your side on the wooden floor, and focus on Iris' voice. "I'm the best of them, you know. They enjoyg the hunt, the sport of it. They enjoy running after you like a wild animal. See, I like to be simple. I take my time. I'm like that old children's fary tale, where the woman fattens you up and eats you. See, this is just perfect. You'll make a wonderful stew; after all, nothing makes a man taste better than man himself..." Her voice fades further and further away, until eventually, you hear nothing. (Go back to [[Start]].)

Before you can respond, you feel a giant thump on the nape of your neck, instantly making you go limp and fall to the ground. It hurts, worse than any pain you can imagiune. You hear mutters, and see two gruff looking men walk towards Iris. "I had everything under control," she was saying, looking beyond pissed off. "Well, we are here now," says one of the men. "And besides, I'm hungry!" All three of them stare at you, and you shut your eyes. You know you're done for. So you wait for the end to come. (Go back to [[Start]].

Everything you're about to do goes against your basic nature. All you want to do is trust this woman, and trust that she has good intentions. However, some little voice inside your head tells you to look out for yourself. So, whe she glances away, tending to the stew on the stove, you sprint for it. The door, once you reach it, you struggle to open it, you feel her hand land on her shoulder, but you yank the door open and run, leaving the warm cabin once again into the brisk cold. Eventually, you find your way to the edge of the woods. You can't help but continue to wonder, what if Iris was simply trying to help you? It's not really her fault if she comes on a bit too strong for your taste. unfortunatlyu, you'll never kjnow the truth about her. especially since you'll never be returning to those woods. (If you wish, go back to [[Start]].)