#original arg

Do You Love the Colour of the Sky? (Or: This Must be the Place)

i should?

okay, i’ll take a peek inside…

woah.

it’s a huge, half-underwater cave, and there’s some strange plant-like growths hanging from the ceiling. it smells a lot like musty cloth. 

THERE’S MORE FISH IN HERE!!!!!!

i hurriedly splash my way over to a large damp boulder, holding a pile of fish on it like a plate. i nearly start to dig in when i notice… a note next to the pile

huh?

i think it reads:

“Fortunate that you made it, darling, I hope you didn’t find much trouble getting out of that little crevice~ I was hoping to catch up with you once more. No need for introductions, of course, as we already are quite close, are we not? Do take a moment to chat with me, though. Tell me, are you familiar with that hag, the tongue-eating louse? He was such a pain to deal with this morning; I had to bribe him out of parasitizing these fish right here. Eating tongues is quite disgusting, anyways. Going over more serious matters, you may be concerned about your current conditions. Really, there is nothing much to know yet. Everything here is seemingly hand crafted by a powerful force strong enough to maintain a world of somewhat “believable” standards. Even the strongest of wills can’t seem to break the foundation of a strongly built illusion. Now, that just seems like a regular dirt-and-water world, but I digress… Really, though, who has time for such an elaborate scheme? Only the most desperate can create a world to escape to that has no escape itself. Or maybe it's the most desperate that can’t fathom “escape” in the first place? Maybe don’t stress over that, though– just enjoy this wonderful gift, you’ve earned it, my friend. –Opami”

…huh.

i’ll be honest, i don’t entirely understand…

there’s just something about this letter that feels weird to me.

and who’s Opami?

i’ve never met anyone like that in my life. i don’t have any friends

i’m really confused..

…but i’m also hungry, and i can’t really pass down food when it’s right in my face, so i think i’m going to eat for a while.

could you all do me a favor?

what else is this note trying to tell me?

...

...

...oh, hi.

hi!

dear god it's been so long. where the hell were you guys?

i felt every single moment of that loneliness

every

single

one

aSB0aGluayBp

...sorry. i don't know what that was.

uhm... okay, okay, i remember what we're doing now

so everyone's saying the chirping room, huh?

that makes sense. well, if my guess is correct. we'll see. worst case scenario, i'll just leave... as long as i don't get hurt?

what could possibly hurt me...??

i make my way through the door and realize the tunnel to the room itself is much much longer than the one leading to the flooded room.

i try not to think about anything

it's actually easy not to think about anything, really

for me

is that the case for you?

should i always be this "empty"?

it's not like i have anything else to go off of. i don't know anyone. i don't even know you guys. you're just weird little whispers, i'm not even sure if any of you are real

i want you to be

is that weird?

oh, hey, i see light.

and the chirping is getting louder. it sounds like crickets. the air smells like rain.

a few moments later, the ground below me becomes soft, springy- moss?

i look above.

oh.

trees, everywhere. it feels so nice in here...

and it's all green! maybe you guys did choose the right room after all!

now, what was i supposed to do here...?

after looking for a bit, i find another note, just like how i did in the flooded room

but this one... is a lot different...

"itzqopb, tmb’a bmab bpib tqbbtm jziqv wn gwcza! ivaemz bpmam ycmabqwva, ivl wvkm gwc’dm zmikpml i acnnqkqmvb akwzm, q eqtt oqdm gwc gwcz vmfb pqvb. epib ivquit lziabqkittg kpivoma epmv bismv wcb wn qba vibczit mvdqzwvumvb? epib xtivmb, lcm bw bpm qvntcmvkm wn ozidqbg, bisma wv uwzm wn iv moo wz wdit apixm? epib eia bpm dmzg nqzab xpwbwozixp mdmz bismv jg pcuiva? epib qa bpm xP tmdmt wn pcuiv asqv? epmv bpm acv mfxtwlma, pwe twvo eqtt qb bism cvbqt bpm quxikb zmikpma ca? lw gwc svwe epw q iu, wz pidm ivg ocmaama? lw gwc svwe epw bpqa “qawxwl” qa? pwe uckp pidm gwc zmittg tmizvml aw niz? qa bpib mvwcop?"

yeah... i don't know.

please help, if you can... and if you come up with anything, tell me in the replies, okay?

move?

i should. i should. you’re right. i don’t want to die. not like this.

i start to scratch at whatever surrounds me. dust coats my eyes. 

i could tunnel my way out of here…

after a moment, a minute or two, i begin to feel something weaken. 

dim light fills my receptors.

i can do this!

just a little more…

i’ve never felt so alive… well, several days of being trapped in dirt is gonna make you feel dead, of course, but the actual ATTEMPT to get out makes me feel… excited?!

i don’t really remember what that word means, honestly. but it doesn’t matter right now. i keep digging.

the walls finally give in, i feel exhausted and shitty but the thought of being able to leave is enough to power me through it.

i pull myself out of whatever rubble i was encased in, and realize i’m flat on my back

what!!! what!!!! what!!!!!

i flail around forever until i grab ahold of something that lets me flip over. god, i hated that.

but now i can finally see where i am. 

it's a long tunnel-cave-thing, dusty and decrepit, cold yet humid, i don’t know.

it smells horrible.

but there’s finally somewhere to go

the passages are long and stark

dust and humidity chokes the air

i walk for what seems like ages

i am still hungry

…

after a minute or two, i wander into a part of the tunnel that seems to be somewhat submerged. the ground is slippery but still too shallow to swim in, which sucks.

as i kept exploring…

!!!

FISH!!!!!!!!

oh my GOD i have been dying for food. it may not look appetizing but that's the absolute least of my concerns. i can eat!!!!

i bet there'll probably be more if i keep looking, too!

...

...hey.

speak of.

not too far away from me,

there's a doorway. water is trickling out of it.

huh.

oh, right. i was hungry. 

hunger is a funny feeling because it's like hunger tries to eat you. i feel like there’s pins and needles tearing my flesh apart. it might be bodily revenge, i don’t know.

i don’t really even know what the inside of my body looks like. do any of us? we have vague ideas but no clear answers. that makes me feel a bit weird.

i guess i'm still trying to remember who i am, if there even is anything to remember, but i still feel like i shouldn't be this... uh..

i must not have eaten for a while. it has been about 4,334 minutes since i’ve woken up. 

is this what happens when you get hungry? i can't think about anything else. i'm trying to.

i can’t eat anything

i have to eat

i can’t eat anything

but my body 

is curling in on itself

from the pain

my body…

...oh hey, you're right. i knew there was something off about this letter.

thanks!! you're definitely much smarter than me. what are you, by the way? a robot? when i heard your voice it sounded robotic. that's cool...!

so this "green room", huh. no clue what that entails but if this letter is trying to tell me to go there, maybe i should...?

well, again, i don't know this "Opami" person.

but they brought me fish....

uhm. well. i guess there's no harm in exploring? worst case scenario, i'll just come hide here in case there's anything dangerous in the "green room" or whatever. i have some fish left and i REALLY wanna eat it all but it might be a good idea to save some.

i ate... ten fish, by the way!

okay, so i've been looking around for a little bit and i think i've found five doorways total. i've narrowed down my suspicions to two doors...

one sounds like it's faintly chirping, while the other sounds like it's buzzing.

when that note said "green" i thought of a forest, but i could be wrong