//------------------------------//
// A Cruel Joke 
// Story: That damned flower 
// by OKepicbro 
//------------------------------//

As I walk inside the Everfree Forest, i feel a bit of dread. 

My friends dared me to go get something 'cool' from the Everfree Forest and bring it back with me. Of course, I was stupid enough to agree to do it.
They are probably waiting for me to run out of the forest right now, so I must do this; otherwise, I will be the loser. 

What I heard about the Everfree Forest is something to be careful about, there are Timberwolves, Manticores, a Hydra and even Ursa Minor and Major. But they are deeper into the forest, so there's nothing to worry about.

I continued along the dirt path that led from the entrance to the forest a little further into the forest. I may be desperate for their approval, but not even I am crazy enough to continue going deeper into the forest, so if I don't find anything here, I'm bailing.

I began looking around the place I was at, searching for anything remotely 'cool' to bring back, but all I found were just some sticks and stones and a lot of thorny bushes.

I started reconsidering my decision to come here and began turning around to go back, and then, while I was turning, I saw it. It was those blue flowers.

"Wow" was the only word that escaped my mouth before I started slowly getting closer to inspect the flowers, without touching them, of course. They were beautiful flowers, though pretty ominous, and for a good reason at that. I remember the time when the Elements got into the Everfree and stumbled into lots of these flowers. They all got cursed, or so we thought before it was revealed that these flowers play a joke on anyone who touches them.

While these flowers do qualify as something cool, I don't think it's safe to bring them back or even touch them, for that matter. I should probably just ignore them and go back. It's a shame I didn't find anything 'cool', but maybe it's for the better. I turned to go back and out of the forest.

"Grrrrrrrr." I stopped in my tracks immediately and looked behind me, towards the source of the growling I just heard. My sight led me to a frightening scene as a Timberwolf emerged from the bushes.

Wasting no time, I started sprinting straight towards the path that led to the entrance of the forest. But I stopped again as another Timberwolf  jumped out and blocked that path.

I turned to look at the space between the two wolves where I could maybe run, but that thought was short-lived as another Timberwolf appeared in that space. I-I was surrounded!

With no route of escape possible for me, the wolves started slowly closing the distance between us. Carefully backing away, I glanced behind me to see if there was any alternative way to escape.

The space behind me was full of trees that were so close one to another that they created an impregnable wooden wall that I couldn't hope to pass, and the only opening was where those blue flowers were.

So I took off towards my only way out of this mess. Even if I get cursed, it's probably better than being eaten by those stupid wolves.

I rushed quickly into and through the flowers before I noticed all sounds coming from the wolves disappear. Stopping in my tracks, I turned to look behind me, only to see that the Timberwolves stopped their chase, almost like they didn't dare follow me. It was like they were scared of something. But I didn't have time to worry about that; I hurried before they changed their minds.

I was running through the field of flowers to get as far away as I could from those wolves. I finally got tired after maybe a minute of running. While gasping for air and breathing heavily, I looked around to try to get any sense of direction, but I didn't recognize anything around me.

"Damn it." I said quietly while I continued breathing heavily. "W-why me? Why did I....why was I s-so stupid?" My breathing started getting faster and heavier as sobbing gasps of air filled my speech. My vision began spinning, and my head got dizzy as I fell to the ground.

I was laying there, unable to get up, and while I was in that position, I had a good look at one of the flowers. It was blue with the shape of a lily, and while it looked harmless, it in fact wasn't because of the curse effects.......And that's when I realized why I couldn't get up, why I lost all my strength, and why I was in this damned situation.

"Y-you cursed me, so I c-couldn't stand. Y-you....." I tried to talk, but the words wouldn't come out; that was probably because of the flower too. Air was leaving my body quickly until my lungs felt so stiff and dense from oxygen deprivation that it was like they could burst any second. I felt like I was going to.....die. I-I am going to die, but I-I don't want to die. I....I want to live out my life happily. I am not ready. I don't want I.......But there were no more 'I' that I could think of, and my time was running out quickly, so while I could still think, I just prayed—to my family, to my stupid friends, to the Elements and to the demise of that flower. Therefore, while I was unable to move or speak, my vision began getting blurry as the world around me slowly turned to darkness. But there was still one thing that I could see clearly, and it was that damned flower.

As the last bits of light were consumed by the darkness, there was only one sound that could be heard, and it was a sound of laughter, but not a good laughter; this laughter was more sinister but still happy, like it was laughing at my tragedy, at me. I hate it. That was the last thing I heard before I faded into the void.