Survival is Key: Ch.1

>You wake up, dazed, confused, but thankfully, in one piece.
>There was, however, one question that plagued your mind as you gazed around, your surroundings appearing surreal, almost... alien to you.
"WHERE THE FUCK AM I?!
>After you finish freaking out, you run over your mental checklist
>You are lost. Check.
>You are scared out of your mind. BIG check.
>You are clothed.
>Glancing down at your chest, you are relieved to find that you are indeed wearing clothes. Nothing too special, just a white shirt, albeit with patches of dirt smeared here and there, some blue jeans, and some heavy, steel-toed work boots. Patting your head, you find a hardhat sitting atop your cranium.
>You're clothed. Thank God. Check.
>Are you armed? You glance around, to see if anything had been transported with you that you could use as a tool, or in the worst case scenario, a weapon.
>Your eyes rest upon a shovel. The blade of the shovel is slightly caked with dirt, but other than that, it's intact. That's a check.
>Slowly you stand up, walking over to the shovel, and grasp it firmly in your hands. Your eyes rise skyward as you realize that the sun is setting, and you're in an unfamiliar place.
>As the sun disappears over the canopy of trees, it's not long before the moon rises in its place.
>You swear, your search for shelter of any kind proving fruitless.

>You curse your rotten luck, but it;s not long before your eyes catch a glimpse of a tree. Not just any tree, but the biggest tree you've ever seen!
>It is surprisingly easy to scale this bark-covered behemoth, thanks to the rather sturdy fungi serving as makeshift footholds.
>You make it to the top, finally. The tree was an odd shape, as though it were two trees twisted together, spreading outwards, the trees resembling hands, and the branches like fingers.
>On the relatively flat center of the tree, you lay down, gazing at the stars listening to the sounds of the forest as you struggle to drift off into unconsciousness, eyes bolting open as you feel something slithering across your chest. As you crane your head upwards to confirm the source of the sensation, you immediately bolt upright, the creature flung towards the forest floor as you "Nope" several times, the option of sleeping tonight lost to you as your body runs on nothing but adrenaline, keeping an eye out as you clutch your shovel tightly, hugging it against your shivering form.
>You groan as you spy the sun slowly rising over the forest canopy.
>That was one day down, god knows how many more to go.

>You sigh, rubbing your gurgling stomach. You hadn't been able to find anything to eat since you arrived here. You were unfamiliar with this place, and you didn't trust the look of some of the berries you found, but God damn it, you were getting desperate.
>So you decided to follow this blue... bear thing. It seemed harmless enough, but you knew better than to judge based on appearances alone. It'd probably shred you six ways from Sunday if you were stupid enough to try and attack it.
>Fortunately, your brain managed to win in a bout between common sense and hunger, and you wisely kept your distance from the beast, watching as it lumbered throughout the forest.
>Finally, you watch as it comes across a small tree, where what looked to be a large beehive hung from one of the branches.
"Oh you have GOT to be kidding me..."
>You clasp your mouth shut as the bear's ears perk up, the blue blob of fur glancing around as it searched for the source of the noice. Shrugging, it focuses its attention on the beehive before it.

>You struggle to keep yourself from laughing your ass off as the bear clumsily pokes and prods the hive, causing its inhabitants to buzz rather angrily. Unperturbed, the bear strikes the hive, causing it to crash to the ground.
>You're laughing wildly now, watching through tear-filled eyes as the bearlike creature is being chased around the tree by a yellow and black cloud of pure insectoid rage. Your laughter is cut short as a large blob of bugs splinters off from the main cloud, and begins chasing you.
>Both you and the bear are being chased throughout the forest by the swarm of angry bees, when, depsite all the chaos, your ears manage to pick up the sound of rushing water. Motioning for the bear to follow you, the two of you run towards a nearby stream, sucking in as much air as your lungs can muster, and dive into the water, your waterlogged ears listening, waitng for the bees to leave.
>Fortunately, for the both of you, it's not long before the bees fly off, and you two surface.
>As the two of you gasp for breath, you stare at each other, a silent understanding forming between the both of you. Finally you break the silence, and place a hand upon the bear's blue head, rubbing it where there was a star-shaped patch of fur, located on the forehead.
"I think I'm going to call you Baloo."
>Thankfully, it smiles, rather than claw your face off, like you thought it, or rather he, would.


>Baloo, as you have dubbed the bearlike creature, laughs, or what you assume to be a laugh, as it sounds more like that wheezy sound Muttley makes whenever something goes wrong Dick Dastardly, only deeper.
>This provokes a smile from you, when then breaks into a grin, followed by laughter of your own as the two of you exit the creek, before it's cut short by your rumbling stomach. In all the confusion, you had forgotten you were hungry.
>Almost as if he understood your plight, Baloo returns to the stream, and it isn't long before he manages to fish up a decent-sized fish, which he tossed to your feet.
>Overcome with gratitude as you watch the fish flop about on the riverbed, you hug the brotastic blue bear-thing, and immediately smack the fishe with your shovel until it's no longer moving. You entertain the thought of cooking the thing, but this time, you're too damn hungry to care, and immediately set to work, devouring the fish with gusto.
>As the two of you set off for your makeshift home in the trees, a hooded figure watches in silence. When it is certain that the two of you are out of earshot, it speaks.
>"A strange new creature has arrived it would seem, and to have befriended an Ursa Major, surely this must be a dream!"
>It pauses, glancing in the direction you two had gone off to.
>"Though they pose no threat as of now, I should keep an eye on those two, but how?"

>It's not long before it's nightfall in the forest once more, and you and Baloo have arrived at your tree with no incident.
"Thanks pal, you've been a real help."
>You're not sure if the big lug can really understand what you're saying, but you pat his head, and watch as he lumbers off, leaving you to scale the tree once more.
>You check the branches for any other creatures, hoping to avoid a repeat of the previous night.
>Luckily for you, the only inhabitant of the tree this evening seems to be you, and once more, you rest your shovel upon a branch, and you remove your hardhat.
>As you feel yourself drifting off, through bleary eyes, you spy something in the bushes.
>Rubbing your eyes, you turn to grab your shovel, but when you turn to where you saw the... whatever-it-was, you find that it had already left.
>Feeling uneasy, you decide to hold onto the shovel, in case something happens, and fortunately, you begin to drift off into a deep, dreamless sleep.
>And thus ends your second day in this strange place. You have made friends with a rather strange creature, no doubt, and you're not certain, but something's watching you, and you don't like it. Where will things go from here? Who knows...