The lights of Wyrdweald - Chapter 2: the forest awaits

[Wyz]

> Open trunk
> examine surroundings
> follow tracks

You take a deep breath of foresty fresh air and stretch your legs. You shouldn't have left that late visiting your relatives but you were having a great time. The only problem is that they live at the other side of the country or at least that's how it felt. You don't know this part of the country very well; it is locked in seemingly endless forests.

You open the trunk and look for anything useful; among stuff you find an umbrella, an old towel, your old laptop, a lengthy piece of rope, some rusty wrenches and a roll of duct tape. You wonder what would be worth carrying around. But first it's time to check your heading. You notice shrubs an smaller trees knocked over and tire tracks. This must be the way you entered the forest and also the path that would eventually lead to the road you figure. You decide to follow them.

You walk and walk and twenty minutes later you begin to wonder how far the car made it's way through the forest. It must have plowed through an awful lot of plants and moist forest soil.

[WHAM]

My opinion for other players: Laptop is dead weight in a forest, it'll just run out of battery in moments, rusty wrenches sound unreliable, umbrella we can use (metal bits, waterproof cloth, metal rod), rope we can use and the duct tape is a no-brainer.

> Ponder what year it is

> Loop the rope loosely over your shoulder
> Pocket the duct tape if it fits (otherwise, keep in on wrist for now)
> Grab umbrella
> Strike a heroic pose, as shit just GOT REAL!

[BlueAngel]

Check if computer is working before leaving it behind, if its working try contact someone through mail or skype.
Also check google maps for your position.

[Wyz]

You decide to walk back to your car. Strangely enough you get the feeling the way back took less time then the way you went. You take a look at your old laptop; to your surprise there is still about half an hour of battery left. You try to check you email but there appear to be no WiFi hotspot in this forest. You try connecting with your phone, no luck either. The GPS tool tells you 'no satellites found'. You check the year before you turn the laptop back off: 2011 it says.

You hang the roll of duct tape from the other side of your belt and hang the rope from your shoulder, you look even sillier now but at least in balance. You pick up the umbrella; it would make a good walking stick. Yes you feel shit just got real and move your arms up in the air in an attempt to make an heroic pose but cramp up half way. Slightly embarrassed you put them down again and get yourself together.

[NsMn]

> Touch yourself

[WHAM]

Well, we have no way to call for help in sight, and we are not in imminent danger, unless the car explodes...
*waits for a momen*
No, not looking like it will explode. Okay, I say we put all we learned from watching survival guides on discovery channel into use, and head back the way we came, continuing in the same direction until we find some sort of landmark or help. Or until we spot a shiny light in the forest, at which point we must GO INVESTIGATE!

As we apparently do not have a bag for the laptop, and we might need our hands, I still say leave it behind.

> Leave laptop in trunk
> Lock trunk
> Head back along the direction we scouted earlier
> Keep ears open, hoping to hear sounds of cars passing by, or any other signs of civilization

[BlueAngel]

Maybe we should leave a note if someone friendly found the car and go looking for us. But then again maybe someone unfriendly finds it...?

[WHAM]

No reason to believe anything is unfriendly so far. As far as I know we don't have a pen to write with, though...

[BlueAngel]

No reason to believe anything is unfriendly so far. As far as I know we don't have a pen to write with, though...

True.
We could sketch the message on the car with the car keys but maybe that’s bit overkill. 
(I was thinking of writing “take half a bag of licorice for food” but then I hate licorice so.  )

[Wyz]

> Touch yourself

leave a note

> Leave laptop in trunk
> Lock trunk
> Head back along the direction we scouted earlier
> Keep ears open, hoping to hear sounds of cars passing by, or any other signs of civilization

You touch your nose, "Beep!", and chuckle at how funny that was. Then you put the laptop back in the trunk and lock it in case a deer tries to steal it. You decide that before you leave it might be a good idea to leave a note behind; you use the point of the umbrella to scratch the words "Help me" in the ground.

It's time to leave: you head back the way you scouted earlier and follow the car tracks. Every now and then you stop and listen carefully for any signs of civilisation which there has been none so far.
The forest is dense and seems to get denser each step you take. Every step you grow more tired; it appears as if the ground is made of gelatine. Yet you continue walking, in a steady even pace, stopping every few steps to listen. Its pattern soon becomes a routine. Your thoughts wonder off and you are drawn into some sort of trance. The woodland sounds first very clear seem to get muffled every step. The trees around you blur into one consistent mix of browns and greens. You hear yourself breathing, deep and slow. The car tracks go on and on, as if the car who made them is still driving in front of you. But you are predestined to follow them and find a way out of this weird forest. Even if it takes a lifetime.

[BlueAngel]

Realize that you are falling in a trace (again) and stop and give yourself a slap on the face.
Then climb a tree to see if you can see an end of the forest.

[NsMn]

Also, use your mobile phone's light to search the ground.

[Wyz]

You notice you're loosing your concentration and slap yourself in the face. Some of the drowsiness faints and in a lucent moment you think it's a good idea to see where you are from a higher spot. You start climbing one of the trees and for some reason it 's easier then you would have thought; it is as if you are light as a feather. From the top of the tree you get a decent outlook over the forest but it isn't very helpful. In every direction all you see is trees, trees and more trees. In both directions of the car tracks you see nothing remarkable and it as if the newly made path is engulfed by the forest.
You climb back again and decide to search the ground for anything useful. You wanted to use the light of you phone but remember that the display is cracked beyond repair. You find nothing but leaves, mud and soil.

[WHAM]

Okay, let's finally do the realistic thing here:

> Call out for help, shouting at the top of your lungs
> Wait and listen if anyone responds
> Realize that shouting might have been more effective from the top of the tree
> Mope

[-=Lisa=-]

..ignore me...
i must learn to read better...

[BlueAngel]

Ignore Lisa who just materialized near you and then disappeared and stop moping. 

Climb the tree again and shout for help.

If that don’t work, start walking again same direction as before but mark some of the trees to see that you really are making some progress and that this is not a dream.

[Wyz]

ok then shouting it is

You've got a strange feeling in your stomach, a sensation of fear or maybe it's just the fact you haven't eaten anything in a while but you climb back in the tree and shout your lungs out. A few crows shocked by your sudden cry make their way out of a nearby tree whilst shrieking loudly. A few seconds later the forest restores its usual behaviour.
You climb down a cool down for a bit. It's time to move on, as before, but this time every now and then when you stop you will mark the nearby tree to be sure you aren't walking in circles. You continue your pace and use the umbrella to scratch an arrow in the tree every few dozen steps. You also try to stay focussed but you are having a hard time.
Walking, stop to mark a tree, walking again, stop to mark, walking, marking, walking, marking... you hear you self breath heavy again, walking, marking, it is almost as if someone else is breathing in your neck, walking, marking, wal...
You look back in a swift turn, nothing, just trees. Wait a minute! You thought you'd marked that tree, were did the mark go, are you seeing things now?

[WHAM]

So we're now trapped, low on supplies and the forest seems unwilling to let us escape. I say we make camp and rest. Maybe night will bring a change in the forest, or maybe someone will come looking for us in the morning.

> Check undergrowth for signs of animal life
> Check undergrowth for edible plants or berries you might identify
> Gather edible plats and berries you might find

> Find small trees and use swiss army knife to cut them down to size, in order to create frame for shelter
> Cut and gather leafy branches to make a roof for shelter

[Wyz]

[> Go Bear Grylls

Survival thoughts come to mind, you should probably gather food and build a shelter for the night while the sun is still up. You look at the sky and wonder what time it is, you gather it must be noon. There might still be time to find a better place to stay. You wonder what you should do.

[WHAM]

> Look at the sun again
> Try to figure out which way the sun is going to set
   > Head in the opposite direction, and keep the sun behind you
     > March on