HEALTH:
[++++++++++]

CONSCIOUSNESS:
[+++++|+____|_____]
[Uncon|Alert|Hyper]

INVENTORY [8/20]:
| KIT | SMARTPHONE | WALLET | Herbal Remedy: Betel Nuts | Flask of Ayahuasca | Toasted Sandwich | Empty Bottle | Sunglasses |

TIME:
Day 1, 8:40 AM

CURRENT OBJECTIVE: Prepare for your quest.
Scarecrow is ALERT.

Quote from Exilement

uhh


#thought

I've been staring at this ayahuasca for a while. maybe I should just drink some.

ooc: now we're talking! for the record, I intend to leave hints like this around all over the place that you'll need to pick up on. this is the only stage of the game where i'm going to point it out and force you to do it, just because this is how i intend to get the questline started. normally, failing to notice things like this will just give you a disadvantage. i also realize that i didn't mention that Ayahuasca = Caapi Vine + DMT, which is kind of important.

Unsure of where to begin his quest, Scarecrow realizes that it would be a wise move to consult the AYAHUASCA SPIRITS for some GUIDANCE. He quickly opens the FRIDGE again, measures out a second dose into a cup, and chugs down the AYAHUASCA without further hesitation. It's extremely bitter, but he is used to weird-tasting BREWS. By the time he has returned the POT OF COLD AYAHUASCA to the FRIDGE again, he has already started to feel powerful energies stirring within him.

Scarecrow knows that his physical body will not be able to do anything more than roll uselessly around soon. He should find a place to sit or lie down before he hurts himself.

APPROPRIATE MUSIC is still playing in his ear.




HEALTH:
[++++++++++]

CONSCIOUSNESS:
[+++++|+++__|_____]
[Uncon|Alert|Hyper]

INVENTORY [8/20]:
| KIT | SMARTPHONE | WALLET | Herbal Remedy: Betel Nuts | Flask of Ayahuasca | Toasted Sandwich | Empty Bottle | Sunglasses |

TIME:
Day 1, 8:45 AM

NEW OBJECTIVE: Seek GUIDANCE from the AYAHUASCA SPIRITS.
Scarecrow is ALERT.
Scarecrow has drunk AYAHUASCA! His CONSCIOUSNESS is increasing quickly.

#thought: the garden has a bench, doesn't it? what kind of garden doesn't have a bench? what kind of shamanic archon-slaying cosmonaut doesn't have a place to sit in his garden?



alright I'll let someone else take over from here.

HEALTH:
[++++++++++]

CONSCIOUSNESS:
[+++++|+++__|_____]
[Uncon|Alert|Hyper]

INVENTORY [8/20]:
| KIT | SMARTPHONE | WALLET | Herbal Remedy: Betel Nuts | Flask of Ayahuasca | Toasted Sandwich | Empty Bottle | Sunglasses |

TIME:
Day 1, 8:45 AM

NEW OBJECTIVE: Seek GUIDANCE from the AYAHUASCA SPIRITS.
Scarecrow is ALERT.
Scarecrow has drunk AYAHUASCA! His CONSCIOUSNESS is increasing quickly.

Quote from Avalon

#thought : Shut down the smartphone then sit somewhere.

To preserve battery life, Scarecrow turns OFF his SMARTPHONE, stopping the APPROPRIATE MUSIC.

The walls are starting to shift and breathe, as though they have a life of their own. Scarecrow's perception of time is starting to fall to pieces. Getting distracted for a moment, he simply stares at the pattern of his kitchen tiles starting to shift around.

Quote from Exilement

#thought: the garden has a bench, doesn't it? what kind of garden doesn't have a bench? what kind of shamanic archon-slaying cosmonaut doesn't have a place to sit in his garden?

Damn right it does!

Scarecrow walks slowly and carefully out of the KITCHEN, through the LIVING ROOM, and towards the door that leads out to his GARDEN. He turns the handle, and the door seems to swing open for him of its own volition, revealing to him his GARDEN in all its glory.

Bathed in the morning sunlight, and augmented by the AYAHUASCA, Scarecrow can only be summarize his garden with the word "glorious". A path leads from the door through the GARDEN, so Scarecrow starts to follow it at a very relaxed pace. A warm happy feeling spreads through Scarecrow. He is getting REALLY GOOD VIBES from this place.

On the left of the path, the LAWN is a vibrant green, and is growing a little bit wild. It hasn't been mowed in some time. Along the fence on that side is a variety of bushes and plants with brightly coloured flowers, selected and planted specifically for their "trippy" appearances. The LAWN ends at his GREENHOUSE, which occupies the rest of that side of the GARDEN. On the right of the path is a small POND with LOTUS FLOWERS, next to a ZEN STONE GARDEN, complete with raked sand. The path leads around and behind the POND, passing by his HERB GARDEN at the far end of the GARDEN. The plants in the HERB GARDEN seem to radiate joy towards Scarecrow as he passes by it. The path ends at a pair of trees with a HAMMOCK, spaced a comfortable distance away from, but still near to, the POND and ZEN STONE GARDEN.

The vibrant colours and ultrachill vibe are starting to get overwhelming. Scarecrow hauls himself into the hammock and stares through the branches of the trees. In seconds, the branches begin to move, parting slowly and giving way to a vortex of colour, heralded by snakelike vines that swim through the air towards him and pass narrowly by.

Knowing what to do from experience, Scarecrow forces himself to relax and submit to the strange visions. Immediately, the colour of his vision pulses brighter, more vivid. The physical plane has faded away entirely now, and Scarecrow has the sensation of floating. The vines passing by him begin to glow golden, and suddenly appear to be encrusted in jewels. They start to embrace him, pulling him towards the center of the prismatic vortex from which they seem to be coming. Gently at first, but faster and faster.

Suddenly, Scarecrow is hurled through the vortex, and then everything goes dark.

After a moment, Scarecrow has the uncanny sensation of opening his eyes for the first time in the morning... except in the center his forehead. He looks around, and appears to be in a clearing in some kind of jungle. Down a path through the dense trees seems to be the only direction he can go in, but that's okay. Scarecrow has been here before. This is the place where the AYAHUASCA SPIRITS dwell.

Walking down the narrow path, Scarecrow can't help but notice that there are several thick snake-like vines following him. Or are they vine-like snakes? It's very hard to tell from the small glimpses of movement he's getting. Looking up, Scarecrow notices that there are immense amounts of vines climbing and hanging from the trees around him. Vines he recognizes immediately as Banisteriopsis Caapi; the Caapi vine, also known as the Ayahuasca vine. The trees seems to pulse with life, and these pulses seem to be carried by the vines. The pulses seem to originate from somewhere to the left of the path he is on.

Soon, he reaches a fork in the path, and Scarecrow slows down, considering his options. He had been expecting this; a test, from the AYAHUASCA SPIRITS. The left path appears to lead downhill into darker, thicker jungle. The middle path seems to continue as it has been for however long Scarecrow has been walking. The path that leads to the right seems to lead towards less dense jungle, and goes uphill.

Before he has time to think about the decision any further, an enormous python slithers out of the dense jungle between the middle and right paths, and Scarecrow stops in his tracks while staring at it. The python sees him, slows down, and stares right back, its gaze penetrating his spirit to the core. A moment that feels like an eternity later, the snake blinks once, then turns away and slithers off down the path to the left. The amount of time it takes for the end of its tail to follow its head out of Scarecrows field of vision emphasizes to him just how huge the python had been.

Now alone on the path again, Scarecrow finally relaxes. He knows that snakes are a common theme in visions from AYAHUASCA, but that knowledge didn't make their presence any less disconcerting. They had never tried to harm him, but their intentions are always unfathomable.

With this in mind, Scarecrow returns to deciding which route to proceed down.


HEALTH:
[++++++++++]

CONSCIOUSNESS:
[+++++|+++++|+++__]
[Uncon|Alert|Hyper]

INVENTORY [8/20]:
| KIT | SMARTPHONE | WALLET | Herbal Remedy: Betel Nuts | Flask of Ayahuasca | Toasted Sandwich | Empty Bottle | Sunglasses |

TIME:
Day 1, ??:?? AM

OBJECTIVE: Seek GUIDANCE from the AYAHUASCA SPIRITS.
Scarecrow is ALERT.
Scarecrow has drunk AYAHUASCA! His trip has begun.
Scarecrow has no PERCEPTION OF TIME right now.
CHECKPOINT reached.

#Thought: Fighting Archons would be a dark and dangerous task, would the Ayahuasca spirits really offer me guidance if I wasn't willing to walk the shadier left road? Or maybe I should take a coin from my wallet and flip it, heads for left and tails for right, trusting the universes decision.

#Thought: I might wanna check the time on my smartphone.

HEALTH:
[++++++++++]

CONSCIOUSNESS:
[+++++|+++++|+++__]
[Uncon|Alert|Hyper]

INVENTORY [8/20]:
| KIT | SMARTPHONE | WALLET | Herbal Remedy: Betel Nuts | Flask of Ayahuasca | Toasted Sandwich | Empty Bottle | Sunglasses |

TIME:
Day 1, ??:?? AM

OBJECTIVE: Seek GUIDANCE from the AYAHUASCA SPIRITS.
Scarecrow is ALERT.
Scarecrow has drunk AYAHUASCA! His trip has begun.
Scarecrow has no PERCEPTION OF TIME right now.
CHECKPOINT reached.

Quote from Lawl

#Thought: I might wanna check the time on my smartphone.

Scarecrow checks his phone out of habit, despite the fact that time is completely unimportant in this place. It's pointless - the digital display is swimming around the screen, and no sense can be made of the shapes on it.

Quote from Youwishjellyfish

#Thought: Fighting Archons would be a dark and dangerous task, would the Ayahuasca spirits really offer me guidance if I wasn't willing to walk the shadier left road?

Scarecrow decides to assume that the python must have been some kind of sign, and an important part of the test he was being presented with. He decides to follow it down the low path to the left, through the darker part of the jungle. It was true that he would need to be capable of facing darkness to be be able to fight ARCHONS.

Scarecrow moves onto the left path and begins to travel downhill. The jungle around him seems to have immediately become denser, but the path he was on was still clear. He hears a rustling and a creaking noise behind him, and turns quickly to see that the jungle has closed behind him, cutting him off from the other paths. He had made his choice; there was only one way to go now.

As Scarecrow continues, Scarecrow realizes that the path he is on seems to be zig-zagging just enough to obscure his view of what's up ahead. The pulses of energy passing through the canopy above him seem to be radiating from somewhere in the direction he is being led. After a while, the path straightens out, and there appear to be primitive downward stairs about 20 meters ahead. Scarecrow stops again as he notices the same python as before waiting at the start of these steps. Again, it looks at him, then turns and goes down them, disappearing from his view. Without any other options, Scarecrow presses on.

The stairs, initially just beaten chunks of wood that roughly served their purpose, become more and more refined as he travels down them. Soon, the wooden steps are replaced by broken pieces of stone. Shortly after, the pieces of stone are replaced by solid blocks. Not long after that, the solid blocks start to have carvings all over them.

The pulses through the canopy seem to be coming from directly ahead, faster now. Scarecrow can see the end of the stairs, and again notices the python watching him, then leading him onwards. Encouraged, Scarecrow picks up the pace, and at the bottom of the stairs he finds a huge clearing in the jungle, largely occupied by a huge pyramidal temple, built in a style that reminds him of the Incas, or Mayans, or something. The temple seems to radiate wisdom and power, and is connected to the jungle by a thick mat of vines that run from it to the trees. It seems to be the source of the pulsing energy.

From the stairs, a stone path leads up to what appears to be the entrance of this temple. Again, the python has been waiting for him, this time at the entrance. It slithers inside. Scarecrow follows it.

Inside the temple is a large open area, with a raised platform in the center. The python moves towards it, climbs up onto it, and - disappears inside. Moving closer to understand where it went, Scarecrow realizes that the raised platform is actually a raised pit... and it's literally full of snakes.

"Oh," he blurts out, startled.

Suddenly, the snakes writhe together and rise upwards, together creating a larger form. Scarecrow steps back, and beholds a giant man literally made out of ever-moving snakes of various sizes. A glowing golden headdress appears on its 'head', and the entire room is illuminated by it.

The being towers over Scarecrow, but doesn't seem to be trying to intimidate him.

A voice booms towards him.

"Why have you come?"


HEALTH:
[++++++++++]

CONSCIOUSNESS:
[+++++|+++++|+++++]
[Uncon|Alert|Hyper]

INVENTORY [8/20]:
| KIT | SMARTPHONE | WALLET | Herbal Remedy: Betel Nuts | Flask of Ayahuasca | Toasted Sandwich | Empty Bottle | Sunglasses |

TIME:
Day 1, ??:?? AM

OBJECTIVE: Seek GUIDANCE from the AYAHUASCA SPIRITS.
Scarecrow is ALERT.
Scarecrow has drunk AYAHUASCA! He is tripping balls.
Scarecrow has no PERCEPTION OF TIME right now.

#thought: to seek guidance in destroying the archons, of course

HEALTH:
[++++++++++]

CONSCIOUSNESS:
[+++++|+++++|+++++]
[Uncon|Alert|Hyper]

INVENTORY [8/20]:
| KIT | SMARTPHONE | WALLET | Herbal Remedy: Betel Nuts | Flask of Ayahuasca | Toasted Sandwich | Empty Bottle | Sunglasses |

TIME:
Day 1, ??:?? AM

OBJECTIVE: Seek GUIDANCE from the AYAHUASCA SPIRITS.
Scarecrow is ALERT.
Scarecrow has drunk AYAHUASCA! He is tripping balls.
Scarecrow has no PERCEPTION OF TIME right now.

Quote from Exilement

#thought: to seek guidance in destroying the archons, of course

"I have come to seek guidance regarding my quest to destroy the ARCHONS that feast upon the weak-willed and gullible in my plane," Scarecrow replies to the creature, whom he now assumes is the embodiment of the AYAHUASCA SPIRITS.

The creature is silent for a moment, considering the weight of his words, or perhaps simply surprised at the seriousness of them.
"Why?" it asks.
Another pause, this time as Scarecrow carefully forges his reply before uttering it.
"I want to free the Earth from their influence, such that they may become aware of the situation they have put themselves in."
"A noble goal," replies the creature. "But ARCHONS are created by the beliefs of humans. Do you really think that doing this will change anything?" It hisses its S sounds, like a snake.
"If nothing else, it will create a window of opportunity for change," Scarecrow answers quickly, his tone level but sombre. "That is better than not trying at all." The snakes that make up the SPIRIT's body start to writhe around faster. It gives Scarecrow the impression that it is thinking deeply. A long pause follows, before the snakes slow down again.
"There are many very powerful ARCHONS that will not be simple to destroy," it says slowly and deliberately. "If you wish to match them in battle, you will need to absorb the powers of lesser ARCHONS, and you may be forced to become what have you set out to destroy. Giving up this power if you succeed will not be easy. Are you certain that you are prepared to walk this path?"
Scarecrow hesitates for only a moment, and then answers truthfully.
"I am."
The snakes accelerate again, and for the first time Scarecrow notices the creatures eyes. They are a pair of some kind of large amber gems, carved into dodecahedrons, with a slightly darker flat surface pointing towards him, acting as the pupils. They glint in the light from the golden ethereal headdress, and Scarecrow has the sudden impression that his soul was naked before them. The snakes slow down once more, and the creature speaks again.
"I see that your intentions are clear, so I will help you." It stretches out its snake-hand, and opens its palm. A pure, clear crystal the size of a tennis ball seems to push its way out of the creature's hand. A single, moderately sized snake slides up and around it, before plunging itself into the top of it, somehow becoming one with it. The crystal begins to glow slightly with golden light, similar to that of the headdress that the creature is wearing. A loop of caapi vine suddenly sprouts out of it, leaving the crystal resembling an oversized necklace. The SPIRIT lowers his hand, offering the crystal to Scarecrow.

"Take this POWER STONE," it says. "I have imbued it with the POWER you will need to face your first ARCHON, as well as a portion of my own SPIRIT. It will lead you in the right direction if an ARCHON you can match is nearby, and feed you energy in battle through the vine. Conversely, it will also try to keep you out of danger if you are dealing with forces you aren't powerful enough to deal with yet. Whenever you destroy an ARCHON, its power will be absorbed by the POWER STONE, and made available to you. Also, it doesn't occupy an inventory slot because it's a necklace."

Scarecrow tentatively reaches out and takes the POWER STONE from amidst the mass of writhing snakes. It is even heavier than it looks, but Scarecrow puts it around his neck anyway out of good will. He is surprised to find that as soon as the vine comes in contact with his spine, the weight seems to disappear. In fact, instead of weighing him down, it gives him an immense amount of energy and strength, such that he has never felt before.

"Thank you." Scarecrow is in awe, and doesn't know what else to say in response to this tremendous gift. "But where should I start? How far must I travel?"
"You will not have to travel far," the SPIRIT replies. "As your power grows, you will become more and more sensitive to ARCHONS, and as a result will be able to engage with them even if they are very far away. For now, you must start small, and aim to cultivate that power. You must start by fighting weaker ARCHONS, by freeing individuals from strange influences. I believe you have a FRIEND whose life has become ruled by the COMPULSION TO DO NOTHING BUT SMOKE WEED AND PLAY VIDEO GAMES."
"Drew?"
"Yes. Free him, and then perhaps try to free your parents from TELEVISION. If you succeed with these tasks, return to this place and I will guide you further."
"I will do as you say," Scarecrow says, now with a clear direction to work towards.
"Then go."

Suddenly, the golden headdress fades, and the snakes making up the AYAHUASCA SPIRIT collapse (albeit in a controlled manner) back into the pit. The gigantic python Scarecrow had been following earlier slithers out of the mass of snakes, and starts to move past Scarecrow, presumably to exit the temple. Everything begins to take on a strange appearance; appearing more as a false, two dimensional image, rather than the seemingly real three dimensional world it had been a moment ago. Scarecrow watches the snake, turning around to face the exit as it passes him by. But instead of facing the temple exit, he finds himself again staring into the swirling psychedelic void populated only by snakes and/or vines. A sensation of falling at terminal velocity sweeps over him, and he finds himself moving further and further away from the center of the void... falling...

Scarecrow opens his eyes and sees the tree branches above him, shifting uncomfortably. The world is spinning and it's hard to focus. He pushes himself upright, struggling to sit up in the hammock. It sways around as he does so, and flips over, dropping him over onto his side roughly. Without hesitation, he sits upright again, ignoring the grass tendrils cheekily trying to wrap around him. The wood grain in the fence is swirling with life.

A moment later, he doubles over and purges into the grass. While this isn't pleasant (or pretty), he has the uncanny sensation of expunging all the negative energies in his body (along with his greasy breakfast. maybe bacon and eggs wasn't the best choice...).

Several heaves later, Scarecrow feels much better, and sits back up again. This often happens with any brew that contains CAAPI VINE; the stomach struggles to digest it properly, and usually rejects it once the alkaloids have been absorbed in larger doses. Now that he has purged and calmed down a bit, he is able to think a bit more clearly. He looks down to his chest,and sees that the POWER STONE is still hanging there. He is not sure whether he should be surprised about this or not.

He stands up and looks around his GARDEN. It is just as beautiful as it had been earlier. Scarecrow feels kind of crappy/weakened after being in another dimension for several hours, falling out of a hammock and then throwing up, though. His stomach is now empty, and he feels dehydrated.


HEALTH:
[++++++++__]

CONSCIOUSNESS:
[+++++|+++++|+___]
[Uncon|Alert|Hyper]

INVENTORY [8/20]:
[ POWER STONE ] | KIT | SMARTPHONE | WALLET | Herbal Remedy: Betel Nuts | Flask of Ayahuasca | Toasted Sandwich | Empty Bottle | Sunglasses |

TIME:
Day 1, 1:25 PM

OBJECTIVE COMPLETE: Seek GUIDANCE from the AYAHUASCA SPIRITS.
NEW OBJECTIVE: Free DREW from the ARCHON that COMPELS HIM TO DO NOTHING BUT SMOKE WEED AND PLAY VIDEO GAMES.
NEW OBJECTIVE: Free PARENTS from the ARCHON that COMPELS THEM TO BELIEVE IN TELEVISION.
CURRENT OBJECTIVE: Prepare for your quest.
Scarecrow is ALERT.
Scarecrow has drunk AYAHUASCA! He is coming down from a trip.
Scarecrow is VERY HUNGRY.
Scarecrow is EXTREMELY THIRSTY.

#Thought: I should stock up on some of the herbs I might need from the garden before having lunch and leaving to free people.

#Thought: Might as well drink before going anywhere

#Thought: When the post above me are done, I text my parents that they will try to act other things than watching television all the time.

HEALTH:
[++++++++__]

CONSCIOUSNESS:
[+++++|+++++|+___]
[Uncon|Alert|Hyper]

INVENTORY [8/20]:
[ POWER STONE ] | KIT | SMARTPHONE | WALLET | Herbal Remedy: Betel Nuts | Flask of Ayahuasca | Toasted Sandwich | Empty Bottle | Sunglasses |

TIME:
Day 1, 1:25 PM

OBJECTIVE COMPLETE: Seek GUIDANCE from the AYAHUASCA SPIRITS.
NEW OBJECTIVE: Free DREW from the ARCHON that COMPELS HIM TO DO NOTHING BUT SMOKE WEED AND PLAY VIDEO GAMES.
NEW OBJECTIVE: Free PARENTS from the ARCHON that COMPELS THEM TO BELIEVE IN TELEVISION.
CURRENT OBJECTIVE: Prepare for your quest.
Scarecrow is ALERT.
Scarecrow has drunk AYAHUASCA! He is coming down from a trip.
Scarecrow is VERY HUNGRY.
Scarecrow is EXTREMELY THIRSTY.

Quote from _Ai_

#Thought: Might as well drink before going anywhere

Scarecrow doesn't have anything to drink except a FLASK OF AYAHUASCA. He can't handle that right now and it wouldn't quench his thirst anyway.

Quote from Youwishjellyfish

#Thought: I should stock up on some of the herbs I might need from the garden before having lunch and leaving to free people.

Ignoring the awful taste and sensation of a mouth that is both dehydrated and coated in bile, Scarecrow steps over to his herb garden to see what's available.

A variety of herbs populate the garden, but only some of them are both mature and worth taking on their own.

Among them are psychoactives: SALVIA DIVINORUM, MUSHROOMS: P. SUBAERUGINOSA), CACTUS: PEYOTE, CACTUS: SAN PEDRO, SINUICHI (the sun psychedelic), CALEA ZACATECHICHI (dream herb)...

...and herbal remedies: HERBAL REMEDY: ALOE VERA (for SMALL WOUNDS and BITES), HERBAL REMEDY: KAVA KAVA (to kill pain. also sedates/intoxicates), HERBAL REMEDY: MILK THISTLE (to treat TOXIC MUSHROOM POISONING), and HERBAL REMEDY: VALERIAN (to help sleep).

Scarecrow can also make a FRESH CHINESE MEDICINE BREW to TREAT ANYTHING using some other available herbs he can't be bothered listing and the STOVE inside. He can only do this at home.

But he doesn't have a sickle to harvest anything with!

Quote from Zylon4

#thought : eat the toasted sandwich

Scarecrow tries to eat the sandwich, but despite how hungry he is, his mouth is too dry to chew properly (apart from the bile, which is only making things worse). He wraps it back up and puts it back in his SATCHEL, deciding he should drink something first.

Quote from Smahley=)

#Thought: When the post above me are done, I text my parents that they will try to act other things than watching television all the time.

Scarecrow's is repulsed by the idea of starting a conversation with his parents (which would never end), but perhaps it will help loosen the ARCHON's hold over them? The possibility is only remote, and the consequences are guaranteed to be tedious, if not downright agitating. Scarecrow decides to think about this some more while he FINDS SOMETHING TO DRINK.


HEALTH:
[++++++++__]

CONSCIOUSNESS:
[+++++|+++++|+___]
[Uncon|Alert|Hyper]

INVENTORY [8/20]:
[ POWER STONE ] | KIT | SMARTPHONE | WALLET | Herbal Remedy: Betel Nuts | Flask of Ayahuasca | Toasted Sandwich | Empty Bottle | Sunglasses |

TIME:
Day 1, 1:30 PM

CURRENT OBJECTIVE: Prepare for your quest.
Scarecrow is ALERT.
Scarecrow has drunk AYAHUASCA! He is coming down from a trip.
Scarecrow is VERY HUNGRY.
Scarecrow is EXTREMELY THIRSTY.

#thought: screw texting my parents, but I should probably charge my phone while I'm still home. the sandwich is nice and portable, so save that for later. heat up some of the COLD PUMPKIN SOUP and get a glass of COLD JUICE, if any is left.