Well, here goes nothing. After finally being convinced into trying it out, and working up my nerve, I've put it up... if there's things you think I need to work on or you don't really like about my writing style, please give nice advice... I'm rather lacking in self-confidence already, so please don't be too harsh on me.

That aside, here's the story...

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...it's dark. Whispering voices float through your head, and yet you see nothing. Scattered bits of conversation, brief moments of hearing voices filled with confusion... it seems surreal. Foggily drifting through your own thoughts, trying to sort out just where you are and who these people are, you hear a scream.

Your mind is instantly alert, though the darkness doesn't fade. You're dreaming. Asleep in... somewhere, with who knows what going on outside... the voices build to a climax, becoming panicked, worried, full of terror as they're accompanied by the sound of people running for their lives. Whatever it is, something bad is happening. And you're not awake to see it. Desperately strugging against your own mind, you try to wake up. If something has scared these people so much, then you're probably in danger as well! 'This is no time to be sleeping!' you think to yourself, but it doesn't end. The darkness grows a more malevolent presence, as if something is holding you in this subconscious state. You try to fight against it, but the power is just too overwhelming... There's a constant urge growing in the back of your mind to just rest.

"You're okay," it tells you. "If you were in danger, you'd have felt pain by now." But as tempting as it is, it's also obviously a trap. People screaming... dying... the sounds of a desperate struggle rise around you, as you remain asleep, trapped in the darkness like a corpse.

...Is that why you can't seem to wake up? You're dead? It's not like you'd know what death is like, so the worry begins to creep into your mind, shaking your resolve and strengthening the darkness. Your mind screams out at you "No, no!" But you can't help but start to sink back into unconsciousness.

'If I'm really dead... maybe I should just rest. Better than hearing the voices of those dying around me forever.' You think. And so the darkness pulls you to sleep, one that you don't feel like waking from for a long, long, time...

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...Sun beats down on your face. The harsh light is unforgiving rousing you from your sleep. At first, you being to look back on that crazy dream you were having... and then something catches your eye. You're in what appears to be a building. ...'Appears to be', because of all the moss, vines, and plants growing in it. Wherever you've just woken up, it's been ruined for a long time.

It looks... normal. At least, normal enough for when you fell asleep. Architecture-wise, that is. It's not some relic of the ancient past, carved out of stone... it's a fairly normal office building-looking place, or at least it was. Just... how long were you asleep there? And what caused the building to be abandoned like this? Nothing adds up... but you're sure there has to be answers somewhere.

Your first instinct is to check for records of some kind. This is an office building... you think... so there has to be some kind of information in it. Quickly looking around, you find a few desks, grown over with foliage. The drawers of one are totally overgrown with vines, and without some kind of cutting tool, there's no way for you to get through them to what's inside.

・Heading over to the next desk, you pull it open with some difficulty, and find nothing but a nest of bugs and papers that have long since faded into dust for your efforts. After recoiling in shock from the sudden group of insects in one drawer, you head towards the last one. You know what they say, third time's the charm. You tell yourself, but the contents are equally ruined.

After giving up in frustration, your attention is drawn by a scream seeming to come from below you. It's higher pitched, feminine - a girl's in trouble, but in this place?! While you do want to go to help them, you don't know if it's the most wise thing to do. You have no weapons to defend yourself with, and nothing around looks useable, but at the same time this may be your only chance to meet someone who knows what's going on. There's no time to waste either way, though so you...

[ ] Write-in (Expect most of my things to be writeins, I have the most fun when the readers have a larger control over storyflow.)