She walked slowly, exhausted from the day. It was dark, and the chill of the night had settled in.
[[She turned on the flashlight to make it easier to see.]]
[[She kept the flashlight off to save battery.]]
She pushed the switch on her flashlight upwards. It illuminated a circle in front of her, lighting up the trees and trail. The visibility made it easier for her to walk without the fear of tripping and falling.
She checked the trail map. The red square trail made its way due east through the forest.
//This should take me right to Montana,// she thought.
[[She continued to walk up the trail.->Walks the Trail]]
It was difficult to see, but she knew that flashlight might be of use in the future.
She kept walking up the trail.
[[She heard a noise coming from the woods.->Hears Noises Without Flashlight]]
It was a low pitched growl. She turned around and pointed her flashlight on side of the trail from where the sound was coming from.
She illuminated a raggedy dog, covered patchy gray, white, and black fur. It was snarling and ready to pounce.
[[She turned off the flashlight and made a run for it.->Ignore Dog]]
[[She slowly took out a granola bar from her backpack, unwrapped it, and extended it out.->Feed Dog]]
(if: $has_gun is true)[[[She pulled out her gun and shot at the dog.->Shoot Dog]]]
She pointed the gun at the dog and pulled the trigger. She missed. The dog barked and sprinted towards her.
[[She turned around and ran.->Ignore Dog]]
She ran as fast as she could, but it caught up in an instant. It lunged forward at her and took her down.
It bit into her arm. She screamed out in pain. She swung her arm, pushing the dog off balance and forcing it to let go of her.
She got up on her knees, but before she could get up any further, the dog jumped at her again.
The dog took her down for good. It was full for days.
[[The End->Bad End]]
The dog walked cautiously towards her. She smiled and said, "Don't worry, it's okay."
The dog took a bite of the granola bar and chewed it up with a few chomps. The dog took another bite and finished it off.
She pet the dog. It didn't have a collar.
[[The dog followed her as she continued to make her way through the forest.->Walks with Dog]]
She couldn't even make it to the highway. The traffic was backed up for over two miles from the on ramp. The cars honked. The drivers yelled. Neither changed anything. (set: $is_infected to false)
She decided that sitting in the car wasn't helping.
[[She grabbed her backpack and stepped out of the car.->Out of the Car]]
She popped open the trunk of her car to see if there was anything of use. A tire iron. A bottle of windshield wiper fluid. A blanket.
She picked up the blanket and stuffed it into her backpack.
Underneath the blanket was a 2006 road atlas of the U.S. For the first time in her life she would actually use the thing.
[[She grabbed the atlas and closed the trunk.->Acquires Atlas]]
She spread out the atlas on top of the trunk and flipped to the state of Washington. She took a pen out of her backpack and traced a route east along Interstate 90 until she quickly reached the edge of the state.
She paged back to Idaho and continued tracing her route, passing through Coeur d'Alene. She remembered the summer vacations her family took there in middle school, where they'd spend time together on a rental boat cruising around the lake.
[[She flipped forward to Montana and finished tracing her route to just west of Bozeman.->Does the Math]]
She did the math in her head—the distance was just over 400 miles. She knew it from her drives back and forth from campus to home. If she walked eight hours a day at four miles an hour, a conservative pace, it would take her about two weeks to get home.
//It's this or sit in traffic until I die,// she thought.
[[She walked along the side of the road, up onto the highway.->Walks the Road]]
The traffic was at a complete standstill. The sound of the horns was relentless and irritating. She saw others who abandoned their cars and were walking along the side of the highway, but most stayed in their cars thinking the traffic jam would eventually come to an end, like every other day.
Step by step, she walked along the shoulder of the highway.
[[She thought about what happened.->Thinks About What Happened]]
[[She thought about anything else.->Thinks About Anything Else]]
The virus had started in the U.S. in San Francisco. It wiped out half of the population of the city in a week. It started to spread up and down the West Coast within days.
The government said to stay put. They said they had it under control. Many people felt otherwise and tried to make their way as far from the West Coast as possible. The internet, cellular network, and telephone lines were all overloaded and unusable. Airports around the world were overbooked and barely functioning.
The media labeled it //The New Plague//. How original.
The public had no idea where it started or what caused it. Some thought chemical warfare. Others thought divine intervention. Regardless of the cause, one thing was clear to her: get out or die trying.
[[She thought about her friends.->Thinks About Friends]]
[[She thought about anything else.->Thinks About Anything Else]]
She thought about her favorite television show, //Mad Men//. She wondered what would happen in the next season.
//Will Don and Betty make it work?// she wondered.
[[She kept walking along the side of the road.->Continues Walking Along the Highway]]
Her roommate, Nora, and their best friend, Lamar, decided to stay in Spokane based on the advisement of the campus and city authorities. The city was quarantined to gymnasiums and auditoriums, which also acted as shelters.
After a day in the university's gymnasium with Nora and Lamar, she decided that waiting there was a mistake.
Nora, Lamar, and the school's faculty told her she was crazy for leaving, but she figured she had better chances of surviving in rural Montana than in the city.
[[She kept walking along the side of the highway.->Continues Walking Along the Highway]]
She was sweating from the heat of the sun, and the asphalt highway only made it worse. She'd say hello to those she walked by, but she was sure to keep her distance.
Her backpack was by no means light. She packed as much as she could gather from her dorm room—granola bars, fruit leathers, a half loaf of bread, two apples, a flashlight for emergencies, and four bottles of water. It was enough for a few days, but she wouldn't be able to make it for two weeks on foot.
[[She kept walking.->Keeps Walking]]
She walked down the exit ramp and made her way into State Line. Her goal: find some supplies.
State Line was, by all accounts, the smallest and saddest city she had ever seen. It was mostly roads, fields, and convenient stops for those getting off the highway.
[[She sat down and caught her breath.->Sits Down in State Line]]
[[She walked to the convenience store down the road.->Explores the Convenience Store]]
She continued to walk along the highway, with her sights set on making it to Coeur d'Alene before nightfall.
She was surprised at the number of car accidents she saw on the road. They seemed to be contributing to the massive, highway-long traffic jam.
A considerable number of drivers thought they were clever and decided to drive on the opposite side of the highway, into oncoming traffic. They figured there's no way in hell someone would be driving west, towards the disease. They were wrong. There was wreckage from head-on collisions in the westbound lane every mile or so.
(if: $is_infected is true)[
[[She started coughing.->Dies from Infection]]
](else:)[
[[She kept walking to Coeur d'Alene.->Coeur d'Alene City Limits]]
]
The sun began to set by the time she made it to Coeur d'Alene. She was tired and could use some rest.
[[She decided it would be best to get off of the highway and seek shelter for the night.->Gets Off Highway in Coeur d'Alene]]
She realized how sore her feet were the moment she sat down under a tree to cool off in the shade. Her heels were already raw, past blistering.
She drank another bottle of water.
The town was strangely empty. She hadn't seen a soul since taking the exit lane off the highway.
[[She took a deep breath, stood up, and walked to the convenience store down the street.->Explores the Convenience Store]]
She opened the door to the convenience store and was immediately hit with a stench so awful she vomited what little was in her stomach.
[[She pulled up the front of her shirt over her nose and walked into the store.->Walks Through the Store]]
[[She turned around and left the store.->Leaves the Store]]
The store was silent.
The aisles were empty, with some bags of corn chips and cans of soda lying on the on the floor. She picked them up and put them in her backpack.
The smell only got worse.
[[She looked behind the counter.->Behind the Counter]]
She wiped off the vomit from her chin and looked around.
//The day isn't getting any longer.//
[[She walked back to the highway and made her way to Coeur d'Alene.->Continues to Coeur d'Alene]]
The man didn't react at all. His body was limp. She wiped her hand off on her pants. (set: $is_infected to true)
[[She grabbed a pack of cigarettes from the overhead case and a lighter from the counter.->Grabs Cigarettes]]
[[She left the store immediately and made her way to Coeur d'Alene.->Continues to Coeur d'Alene]]
The man's body was heavy, but she was able to roll him over with her boot.
His eyes had rolled back into his head, and the whites of his eyes had become dark red. His face started the decomposition process, with patches of skin missing, displaying raw, discolored muscle. Maggots crawled out of his mouth.
She noticed a holster hanging down by his stomach. She used her boot to slide up his shirt, and in the holster was a small pistol.
[[She took the gun.->Takes Gun]]
''The First Day''
An interactive story by Brett Chalupa.
//Warning:// The First Day //contains some graphic and violent content.//
[[Begin->The Beginning]]
She stopped walked, put her hands on her knees, and started coughing.
"Oh fuck. Oh no," she said to herself.
Spatters of blood lined the ground beneath her.
(if: $has_cigarettes is true)[
[[She walked to a tree off the highway to rest.->Smokes Before Death]]
] (else:)[
[[She kept walking.->Keeps Walking Before Death]]
]
She took a drag and started to cough violently. Her lap was covered in blood. She took another drag from her cigarette and coughed one final time.
[[The End->Bad End]]
She kept walking. The coughing kept getting worse, causing her to stop walking, put her hands on her knees, and catch her breath.
She coughed violently and keeled over on the shoulder of the highway.
[[The End->Bad End]]
**BAD END**
Thank you for reading //The First Day//.
Make different decisions to learn more and experience different outcomes. There is one true ending.
[[Start Over->Title]]
She successfully quit at the beginning of the summer. It was a habit she picked up freshman year. (set: $has_cigarettes to true)
//Now isn't the worst time to start again,// she thought.
The store reeked, and there wasn't anything left for her.
[[She left for the highway to make her way to Coeur d'Alene.->Continues to Coeur d'Alene]]
She looked to see if there was anything mentioned in the atlas about Coeur d'Alene. There was a small advertisement for a hotel on the lake with "views so gorgeous you won't want to get out of bed." The advertisement explained that the hotel was directly south of the highway.
//Could be a shelter,// she thought.
[[She made her way towards the hotel.->Walks to Hotel]]
On her way to the hotel, she heard a loud noise approaching from behind that shook her body. She stopped and turned around.
A group of three men and one woman riding on motorcycles were approaching. They weren't wearing any helmets. They were riding fast and howling like a pack of rabid dogs. They rode in a diamond formation, with the largest man in the front, the woman in the back, and the two other men in the middle, side-by-side.
She crouched down and tried to stay out of sight.
They didn't notice her, at least she thought they didn't. She took a deep breath and waited for the motorcycles to be out of ear's reach.
[[She walked to the hotel.->Arrives At Hotel]]
She walked off the highway and into Coeur d'Alene. She didn't see a single soul. She figured there had to be some kind of shelter, so she continued to walk through the city, towards the lake.
She recognized a few of the buildings. She saw a sandwich shop her family ate at once. The bread was a little stale, but the chips were good.
[[She stopped and looked at her atlas.->Looks at Atlas]]
She arrived at the hotel, which was the tallest building along the lake's waterfront. It was a nice hotel, but a little gaudy.
The hotel's parking lot was full of Beamers, Audis, Land Rovers—all nice cars. There wasn't a single open parking spot. Trash lined the perimeter of the hotel. She saw a few bodies lying amongst it.
[[She walked up to the hotel entrance.->Walks to Hotel Entrance]]
Standing in front of the revolving doors of the hotel entrance was a large woman with red hair and a scar down her left cheek. She was wearing a surgical mask over her mouth and nose. A shotgun rested on her left shoulder, supported by her hand.
"What can I do for you?" asked the woman with red hair.
"I am looking for a shelter to stay in tonight. Does this hotel happen to be one?"
"This hotel is a shelter, but it ain't a public one. $1000 a night. Cash only."
"Seriously?"
"It costs money to keep these people safe," said the woman with red hair. "We ain't no fucking charity."
"Is there a public shelter in this city?"
"Three and a half miles north of here is the high school. That'd be your best bet."
[[She decided it was best to head towards the high school.->Towards the High School]]
(if: $has_gun is true)[[[She went to pull out her gun from the back of her pants.->Shoots Guard]]
](else:)[[[She tried to run past the woman with red hair to get into the hotel.->Runs Into Hotel]]
]
As she made her way through the parking lot, she saw the four motorcyclists from earlier pulling in. They parked their bikes in the parking lot lanes and walked towards the woman with the red hair standing in front of the hotel entrance.
[[She stopped walking and watched.->Watches the Confrontation]]
She started to sprint towards the woman with red hair, hoping to knock her over and get into the hotel.
The woman with red hair aimed her shotgun and pulled the trigger.
She was hit right in the chest and blown back three feet onto her back.
//That wasn't worth the effort at all,// she thought.
[[The End->Bad End]]
She reached behind her back to grab her gun.
The woman with red hair yelled, "What are you fucking doing? Don't move a fucking inch!"
She continued to reach for her pistol.
The woman with red hair aimed her shotgun and pulled the trigger.
She was hit right in the chest and blown back three feet onto her back before she could even grab her gun.
//What a bitch,// she thought.
[[The End->Bad End]]
She ran for a half hour without stopping, trying to get as far away from the hotel as possible. She had no idea where she was running, just away.
The sun had set, and it was dark.
She reached the entrance to Coeur d'Alene National Forest. She looked behind her. She didn't see anyone following her. She stopped running and caught her breath. She felt like she was going to collapse.
[[She walked down the road, into the forest.->Walks Into Forest]]
She sat down with her back against a large tree, taller than the tallest building in her hometown. She took out the blanket from her backpack and spread it over her lap. The dog rested its head on top. (if: $has_cigarettes is true)[She lit up a cigarette and smoked it.]
They both fell asleep.
[[The End->Post Script]]
**THE END**
Thank you very much for reading.
//The First Day// was written in November and December 2016 by Brett Chalupa as an experiment with interactive fiction.
If you have any feedback and want to share it, <a href='https://twitter.com/brettchalupa' target='_blank'>I would be thrilled to hear it</a>. If would be interesting in reading a part two of the story, please let me know, and I'll continue it.
<a href='http://www.brettchalupa.com/works/'>View more works by Brett.</a>
//The First Day// is powered by <a href='https://twinery.org/'>Twine</a>.
[[Read Again->Title]]
She looked to her left and to her right. She couldn't see a damn thing. She heard light footsteps. She turned around.
It was standing 30 feet away. She could barely see the outline of a dog. It barked twice.
[[She turned back around and ran for her life.->Ignore Dog]]
The dog walked by her side as they continued to make their way up the trail. They didn't see another soul.
[[After another hour of walking, she decided to take a break.->True End]]
From about 50 yards away she watched one of the four motorcyclists pull out a pistol and shoot the woman with the red hair. She saw the woman in red collapsed.
She was in shock and let out a yell. The woman motorcyclist looked over, pulled out a gun, and shot at her.
The shot missed.
[[She turned and ran north as fast as she could.->Runs North]]
The road was narrow, worn, and lined with lamp posts. They weren't lit though. Power had been out for days in Spokane, and she figured the same here. The only noise she heard was the chirping of cicadas.
She eventually reached an empty parking lot. There was a trailhead with a painted red square on the post near the edge of the parking lot. Screwed to the trail post was a plastic bin containing trail maps. She grabbed one and slipped it into her back pocket.
[[She made her way up the trail.->Up the Trail]]
It was 4 P.M. and the sun was still strong. Sweat dripped off her like it had somewhere to go. She took out a water bottle from her backpack, unscrewed the cap, and gulped it down.
She walked by a sign that said:
Welcome to Idaho<br>Great Potatoes. Tasty Destinations.
[[She walked off the highway to look for supplies in State Line, Idaho.->Explores State Line]]
An overweight white man was lying on the floor face down. Flies swarmed around his body. Maggots crawled along his skin. His body was pale. Drying blood pooled around him.
[[She shook the man's arm to see if he was still alive.->Touches the Body]]
[[She rolled over the body with her foot.->Rolls Over the Body]]
She used her boot, again, to unbuckle the strap and gently kick the gun out of its holster and onto the floor.
Behind the counter, beneath the register, was a roll of paper towels. She ripped off a few sheets and picked up the gun with the paper towel in hand. She wiped it down thoroughly.
She slipped the pistol between her jeans and her back. (set: $is_infected to false)(set: $has_gun to true)
[[Before making her way out, she grabbed a pack of cigarettes from the overhead case and a lighter from the counter.->Grabs Cigarettes]]
[[She left the store and made her way to Coeur d'Alene.->Continues to Coeur d'Alene]]
She kept walking, but her pace was definitely slowing down. The incline of the trail wasn't helping either.
"Another hour or so, and I'm going to have to get some sleep," she said to herself.
[[She heard a noise coming from the woods.->Hears Noises]]