Steve Jackson's Sorcery!
An epic journey through a magical land
80 Days
The award winning adaptation of Verne's classic.
Inner Demons
Jack Matthews
You’re walking in the woods. You don’t know how you got here. Last thing you remember is seeing yourself watch you fall asleep… Does that make sense? You don’t know- But you have to focus on the task at hand. There’s a cold chill, despite it being late summer. It’s early evening, with piercing rays of light breaking through the dark canopy of the trees. As you continue to walk, the mysterious woods become darker and darker. There’s an eerie fog creeping along the forest floor, and the further you go along, more trees appear to be fallen over, or rotting, or dead.
That’s when you see the first body. There’s a body there. Up in the tree. It’s hanging on a noose, dangling by its neck and its head is covered in what appears to be a burlap sack. It peacefully swings back and forth, despite it’s certainly gruesome appearance. You get another chill and begin to realize the entirety of this situation. You’re alone in the woods, completely unaware of how you got here, and there’s a hanging body. That’s when you hear it. A sound from behind you. You turn around and see a figure about 100 feet away, shrouded in the fog. But it’s definitely a human, not some kind of animal. You’re not sure if you should be relieved or not. You continue on your way through the sinister forest, at a much brisker pace now, and encounter more bodies hanging in the trees.
You begin to run, when you come across a familiar looking body lying on the ground a few feet ahead of you. Its head is covered in a burlap sack, a noose around its neck, yet its lying on the ground. You look around and see no fallen branches, but assume the body must have fallen from the tree while… hanging. You walk towards the body, cursing yourself for your curiosity. You definitely recognize the shape of this body, and consider taking off the sack… No. That’s too creepy. Maybe they have some things with them that will help you put together what’s going on? You rummage through their pockets, and pull out a key ring with three keys on it and a wallet.
Suddenly, a rustling in the bushes reminds you of the danger you’re in. Where’d that figure go? You need to get out of here. With the panic that sets in, you only think to grab one of the objects. Which do you take?