TO LIVE, OR NOT TO LIVE
Olivia Kim
INTRODUCTION
It is the year of 1348, in the Medieval Times. You are a friendly dragon named Aragon, who likes to go around town to help ou t the townspeople who needs a
spare worker. You have been living in the castle of King Edward, as you were taken there by the king himself when you were fo und alone in the woods as he went
out for a hunt. You have now been living with the king as a humble servant. However, the king treasures you, and has been tre ating you like his own family. Every
morning, you arise from the from you’re comfortable, warm bed that was specially crafted just for you. You take a look in the mirror and catch yourself staring back
at you. You look much like the average dragon, only much smaller. Still, you have the ability to fly, and breathe out fire; b ut you don't abuse your powers, and only
use them when necessary. Your scales range from a gradient green to a shade of turquoise that resembles a precious stone. You usually arise at dawn, long
before the sun starts shining, and the rooster starts crowing, as you like to spend your morning entertaining the king. Howev er, today, things worked a bit
differently. You awake to the sounds of screaming and mourns coming from the town, but they can be heard from the distant cas tle. You fly out through a crack in
your wall, and decide to take a tour around the town, and find out that was the reason behind the shrill screams. You are sho cked and dumbfounded to see people
lying around the street, out cold. Dead. But these deaths weren't any ordinary deaths. The corpses lay motionless on the grou nd, but you notice black lumps all
over their bodies. You didn't want to make contact with the victims, so you only dare to look at the tragedy spread out just below your feet. You even witness a
child die in front of you. The round , beady eyes look into your soul and as they plead for help, and they remind you of you own, when you too, were a child, and
left alone helplessly alone in the forest. But there was nothing that could be done for the poor child. The shouts still ec ho in you head as you turn to head back to
the castle to warn the king about the deaths.
You notify the King about the motionless bodies around town, when the King's messenger barges into the chamber.
"Sire! Sire!" He shouts. "I have a message for you!" he cries again. "It is from the landlord of Easthaven."
There has been deaths ravaging our town here, my great king. Everyday, I witness over 140 deaths all over the town of Easthaven. It has been classified as a
new disease. We are unaware, my lord, as to what is causing this. The disease may spread to Crystalwyn. Please, do take care of yourself, and I will go to speak
to you in the near future personally.
As you read over the King's shoulder, you are surprised to learn that you are not the only one affected by this. You are aware that the disease has already come
to your town and are already killing people around you. You do not want the king to be affected by this and decide to ventur e out into the woods to look for a
cure, or rather something that will prevent the king from getting the disease as well.
It is nighttime, and the King has already gone to sleep. You leave the castle grounds and fly towards the gates of the town. However, when you arrive, you see
five or so dead bodies lying just beyond the gates.
Do you:
a) go to the woods in search of the elixir
b) Return back to the castle
OPTION A – GO TO THE WOODS
Option A - GO TO THE WOODS IN SEARCH OF THE ELIXIR
You eventually make the decision that it would be wise to go to the woods in order to protect your king. And besides, you're
unsure if dragons can get the disease anyways. So you keep walking straight ahead. The woods is an awfully strange place.
The trees are ancient, and they tower over your head, although you are two times the size of a man. There are hardly any
flowers growing, everything is rather colorless, and bland. Dead decaying plants are in sight just below your feet. The woods
are motionless, and not even the leaves from the trees are swaying. There are also no other creatures are in sight, and you
don't know a way to navigate around the woods, so you just head in random directions. It is not long before you come across a
silhouette with rather sharp edges. You get closer and closer to the figure, and find out that it is a mere person. To be mor e
specific, the shadows belonged to an old woman; about maybe in her 30s. But she has harsh features to her face. Her eyes
give off a warning glare, and one side of her mouth is pointing upwards, as if she was smirking at you. And worst of all, her
face was as pale as snow. You do not want to confront this mysterious lady and so you decide to walk past her. You are about
25 feet ahead of her. However, in the distance you see the same lady smiling at you; her razor -sharp teeth exposed. You
wonder who - or rather what she is. She approaches you slowly floating in the air, and finally drops down in front of you.
You are now making eye-contact with the lady, and she speaks in a foreign language that you only barely understand. She
seems to completely understand your situation and asks how things are doing at your town. She seems to have knowledge of
the disease already. So, you desperately ask her for an elixir that would prevent the disease from entering your body, and
maybe perhaps, even a cure. Still maintaining the smile, the lady closes her eyes, and concentrates for a while, and out of
nowhere, a cauldron appears. Astounded, you learn that she is a witch. You've heard many many stories about witches, but
you've never really encountered one in your entire life. So you wonder if you can trust the witch. Then, she asks you if you
could bring her some of the ingredients that are needed for her potion. "lady's bells, golden ring, tooth of wolf, wool of ba t."
The witch cackles. She is referring to the items that she needs for the elixir.
Do you:
a) Leave her and look around for something else.
b) Find the ingredients needed and give it to the witch.
OPTION B – RETURN BACK TO THE CASTLE
Option B - RETURN BACK TO THE CASTLE
When you return to the castle, only about an hour has passed since you left. You fly directly to your room, and
you are greeted by the King. He asks where you have been, and you simply reply that you just went for a walk in
the castle grounds. The King seems to believe you and he invites you to his chamber, assuming that you were a
bit lonely, and wanted some company. You go to sleep on the floor of the King's chamber, and your eyelids get
heavier, and heavier as the King pets you with his kind, warm hands.
You wake up from the alarming sounds of a rooster's cry. It is strange that you have overslept like this, as it is a
rare occurrence. You look around for the King, but the bed is empty. You decide to look around the castle in
search of the king. You check the dining room, the wardrobe, the throne room, as well as the great hall, and even
stop by the servants' room to ask if anybody had seem the King. They all replied with a simple "No." Your last
stop is the garderobe, and there on the floor is the king, pale, with black spots all over the body with puss and
blood that covers it. It is an absolutely horrific sight, but nothing can be done now. You wonder about how the
king could have contracted the disease, especially since the king hasn't even made contact with the townspeople
at all for the past couple of days. You come to a conclusion that you must have brought the disease past the
castle walls and into the King's chamber. The following day, lords, priests, loyal servants, as well as yourself
attend King Edward's funeral.
THE END
OPTION B – FIND THE INGREDIENTS
Option B - FIND THE INGREDIENTS AND GIVE IT TO THE WITCH.
You offer the witch some help with finding the proper ingredients that she needs. She grins as she hands you an old map. IT i s drawn accurately, including the
peaks of the mountain, and the rivers, and even the trees. On the side of the map are the names of the ingredient written in thick ink. You slightly tap one, and
watch in excitement as the letters fleet to a place in the map. You expect that this map is a special kind of map that leads you to the ingredients. The first item
on your list is 'lady's bells', and the map says it's located at the end of the world.
Nobody. Nobody had ever dared to venture out to the edge of the world. Only legends have been heard that only the mighty can go to the end of the world and
come back alive.
You decide to take a chance anyways. You want to pay back the king for giving you his kind heart, and looking after you.
It takes you two whole days for you to reach you destination. It is as you've expected. The ocean halts to a stop at the edge of the world. And there on a stone
platform at the center, was the flower. You immediately fly over and pluck the root out in one swift motion. The flower is a bright, vibrant purple, with five petals
on it. You wonder what must be so special about it.
The next item on you list is the golden ring. You tap the lettering, and it shows that you can find it at the hart of a volca no. You back out, not wanting to go. You
wonder if any plain old ring would do fine, and so you work your into a neighboring town. It is called " Easthaven". "That's the one from the letter!" You exclaim.
You wonder how things are in this part of town.
'Strange, why would they want to leave the gates open?' you wonder. You see dead guards with blood that trickled down their s ides. And beyond that point, you
see disaster. Ash is laid out on the ground, and fire that hasn't been put out marks his territory. Almost everybody has fled their town, leaving their dilapidated
houses. And on the street lies the unfortunate. You poke around some of the old houses and shops, and find that not everyone has left the city. A father sits at
the bedside of his sick child. The girl looks as if she's five, at the most. And she reminds you of the little boy who tragically left to another world from your town.
You turn to leave, when the father opens his mouth and pleads, "Please, can you save my child? Please, I'm willing to give yo u anything." You reply, "Listen,
I'm seeking a cure for this disease, and I need a golden ring. Do you have one with you?" The man's eyes suddenly grow wider, as if he'd thought of an idea.
"Yes, yes I do. It's my wife's ring. I'm pretty sure it's in this house somewhere," he says as he walks towards a cabinet. He looks through a pile of unwashed,
greasy clothes, and pull out the shiny metal. "Here sir, this is the one!" He exclaims. You take it without hesitation, and run to the exit calling back behind you
"I'll come back and give you the cure!"
Now you've retrieved two out of four items from your list. But there is no time to lose. You gently touch the "tooth of wolf" on your map. It reveals two paths; one
a shortcut, with plenty of obstacles on the way, and a longer route, with only a small body of water that would interrupt yo u.
Do you:
a) Choose the shortcut
b) Take the longer route.
OPTION A – TAKE THE SHORTCUT
You end up alone in the woods once more. The night is cold, and you start regretting the fact that you ignored
the witch. But, you tell yourself that you can not back out and will yourself to move forward. The night is damp,
and the trees are placed at odd angles, giving them a spooky look. The moonlight reflects on your face, but it is
hardly noticeable. Then you notice the rats scurrying around in search of food. Given the motivation, you search
for something that they could nibble on, and you finally come across a few mushrooms growing out of an old
tree. You o back to the rats, and feed it to them. They crawl onto your arm, and down to your legs, and tickle
your senses. You leave them behind, and look for a place to sleep in. You settle on damp grass next to a big
tree. Since it’s cold, you blow fire onto some of the branches that you scavenged, and go to sleep.
Eight hours pass by, and you wake up with the sun. You yawn, and prepare to get up when you notice a black
spot situated just below your knee. You search through your body some more, and count 38 spots in total. Then,
you start feeling tired, and drowsy, and collapse. The world is faint in your sight. You feel your body loosening,
but you cannot lift your arms or legs, or even move them. You smell and hear nothing, and your vision is getting
blurrier and blurrier by the second. 'Oh no,' you think. And you close your eyes, and fall into a deep, deep sleep.
When you arise, the King is waving at you; happier than ever. He asks, "My son, where have you been?" and
gives you a warm hug. "I have been searching for a way to stop this illness from spreading," you reply proudly.
"Well, no need for that now Aragon, we're save now, here in heaven, under the watch of God.
OPTION B – TAKE THE LONGER ROUTE
OPTION B - take the longer route
On your way to find a wolf's tooth, you notice traces of blood on the gravel path that you are following. You almost instinct ively follow it. 10 minutes
later, at the top of a tall tree, you see a wolf tied to a branch of the tree by his leg. You call to him, but he does not re ply. He's just hanging there,
unconscious. You sigh, and fly towards the trap, and burn the ropes here and there to loosen the wolf from the trap. He is we aring a green top, but
blood is smeared all over it. He's also wearing a green hat with a bright red feather situated on the side of it. You haul hi m onto the floor, and
gently tap on his shoulder multiple times, until he finally wakes up.
He looks fine, he even stood up to introduce himself and everything. You learn that his name is Robinhood, and that he is a w anted "criminal" who
was caught stealing goods from the corrupt rich to pass it on to the poor. He thanks you and asks if you want anything in ret urn for his life. "Hey,
you're a wolf, right?" You begin. "Why of course I am! Why else would I have this long foxy tail of mine do you reckon?" You both giggle and finally
continue. "Say, do you have a spare tooth I could have?" You ask. "A what?!" Robinhood asks. "A tooth," you repeat once more. "Why of course I
have them, right here in my pocket! You see, I lost a tooth about four years back, and that silly little Peter Rabbit kept te lling me that if I put it
under my pillow, a fairy would come to get it and leave behind money! It never worked, by the way," Robinhood says gleefully and hands you over
the tooth. "I hope this works for whatever you need it for." You both shake hands and you leave for the witch.
It seems that the witch has been expecting you, because when you arrive at the designated spot, she is wearing her creepish lopsided grin again.
"So, you find the ingredients, eyy?" She says. You nod and hand them over. Hers finger and slender and long, and her fingernails are a bright red.
"All right, let's start, shall we? Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn and cauldron bubble." The a puff of smoke app ears and goes. She pours
the orange liquid into a glass bottle, and leaves with the wind.
Smiling, and proud of your achievement, you fly full speed towards your home. The king is out there to greet you, and a sense of relief strikes you,
as it seems that the king hasn't fallen ill yet. "Here, sire, I went to seek this magical cure that would stop the disease fr om getting to you," you say,
and present your bottle of the elixir that you earned. "Why how very thoughtful of you," the king says, and drinks half, leav ing the rest for you. You
two are now immune to the disease, and you go around helping the ill, setting up lazarets, to treat the ill. You even go back to bring the little girl
and her father to live with you in the castle. With the proper treatment, she recovers, and is now living a happy life. And s oon enough, the disease
fades away, and the people are back to living their lives again. Of course, the damage of the disease was horrendous. Due to lack of space, the
king orders the survivors to dig huge pits and to line up the bodies in them.
You fear the days where you will have to face your children, and tell you about the tragic experiences that the whole contine nt faced, but you are
glad it's over.
OPTION A – LEAVE THE WITCH
Option A - LEAVE HER AND LOOK AROUND FOR SOMETHING ELSE.
As you keep walking on and on, you feel your legs getting tired, and so you decide to fly for a while.
The sun is shining, and the sky is a bright, summery blue. You fly by an alley, and you notice the
colorful patterns of the flowers; death has not reached this place yet. The fragrant aroma hits your
nose, and you are overwhelmed by its sweet scent. Your mind is set on peaceful thoughts, and you
don't hear the repeated screaming pounding in you head. You feel a slight sense of hope; that
everyone would be able to overcome this tragic epidemic, and return to their normal lives soon
enough.
Two hours fly by in an instant. You are now faced with a decision to make. You are standing in front
of a two-way path. One leads to the river, and the other leads to the darkness of the woods. You
notice a figurine standing by the riverside, and you assume that he is a lost stranger as he is
wearing a top hat. You also notice that he is wearing a cloak that hides his arms and legs, but other
than that, you can't make out anything else. The river is so clear, and fresh that you want to jump in
it right away, and the riverbed is lined with new growth of plants. On the other path however, you
see bats swarming around the old trees and you can even smell the pungent odor coming from
within. It is dark there, and it isn't even nighttime. Not even the sunlight seems to favor this place.
You observe the area longer, and watch in anguish to see a bird feeding on a dead deer.
Do you:
a) Go to the river
b) Go to the woods
OPTION A – GO TO THE RIVER
OPTION A - GO TO THE RIVER
You walk straight towards the river, and approach the stranger. You realize that this person isn't any stranger. He is dresse d in
black, and is wearing a weird mask. The mask is in the shape of a bird's beak; you have never seen a mask like this ever in y our
life. You can smell the strong scent of herbs coming from the stranger as well.
You decide to start a conversation and ask who he is. He replies by simply saying, "I am a plague doctor." "A What?!" You rep ly.
"I am the doctor who cures the new disease. It is called the Black Plague." You recall the memories of seeing the black spots over
all of the corpse's bodies, and a shiver runs up your spine. "So, do you treat the ill?" You ask. " Yes, I do," the stranger says rather
blankly. You are distracted by the fleas that are jumping up and down from his cloak. You are in search of another answer. " Do you
have an elixir to prevent death from the Black Plague?" You ask. "Indeed," the cloaked doctor replies. "Can I have one?" you say
anxiously. "Only if you get me something in return," he says, and snickers. "I can give you anything! Just hand the elixir ov er to me.
What is it that you seek, money? Treasure?" "I'll give you one bottle of elixir in exchange for a gold bar."
You brainstorm the ways that you could gain access to such a big amount of gold, and an ideas pops up in your head. "The King 's
gold!"
You realize that the King probably has loads of gold hidden somewhere in his chamber. You quickly turn back and run, but soon
realize that you're going to slowly, and decide to fly.
A couple of minutes later, you arrive at your home. The place has changed significantly since the day that you left. Signs of
destruction are evident everywhere; destroyed buildings, ash, and bodies of the dead are visible throughout the town.
You take a short walk to the castle. You had been expecting somebody to greet you, and ask you about your four day long trip.
However, nobody is present when you arrive. In fact, it is very quiet. There is no laughter coming from the entrance of the d oor.
'Strange,' you think to your self. 'The king should have invited lords over for some tea.' You enter the building, and find t hat it has
been emptied out. You can see a coffin, and as you go closer, you find that the king is lying there. It seems as if death has struck
already. But where were all the people? You run through some of the possibilities as to where the people could have wound up in.
They could have all died, or left the city in search of safety. You settle for the second thought, regardless of the truth. B ut, your
mind goes to the king again. He has not yet been buried, but there is nobody in sight. Why is that? So, you take the coffin, and
burry the king safely between the layers of the earth, and repeat a prayer.
You feel lonely and sad, but you trudge on, hoping that you'll find other great people on your way to refuge.
THE END
OPTION B – GO TO THE WOODS
OPTION B - Go to the woods.
You end up alone in the woods once more. The night is cold, and you start regretting the fact that you ignored
the witch. But, you tell yourself that you can not back out and will yourself to move forward. The night is damp,
and the trees are placed at odd angles, giving them a spooky look. The moonlight reflects on your face, but it is
hardly noticeable. Then you notice the rats scurrying around in search of food. Given the motivation, you search
for something that they could nibble on, and you finally come across a few mushrooms growing out of an old
tree. You o back to the rats, and feed it to them. They crawl onto your arm, and down to your legs, and tickle
your senses. You leave them behind, and look for a place to sleep in. You settle on damp grass next to a big
tree. Since it’s cold, you blow fire onto some of the branches that you scavenged, and go to sleep.
Eight hours pass by, and you wake up with the sun. You yawn, and prepare to get up when you notice a black
spot situated just below your knee. You search through your body some more, and count 38 spots in total. Then,
you start feeling tired, and drowsy, and collapse. The world is faint in your sight. You feel your body loosening,
but you cannot lift your arms or legs, or even move them. You smell and hear nothing, and your vision is getting
blurrier and blurrier by the second. 'Oh no,' you think. And you close your eyes, and fall into a deep, deep sleep.
When you arise, the King is waving at you; happier than ever. He asks, "My son, where have you been?" and
gives you a warm hug. "I have been searching for a way to stop this illness from spreading," you reply proudly.
"Well, no need for that now Aragon, we're save now, here in heaven, under the watch of God.
THE END!!