The Cave: A Twitter-Based World Model for #SocMediaNarrative #Rutgers class of 2016.
— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016
You come upon the entrance of a cave. It’s the middle of the night. It’s dark but somehow the cave appears even darker.
— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016
You enter and move through carefully, feeling along the wall to guide you. The surface of the rock is wet. You shiver.
— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016
It’s quiet and you begin to notice the sound of your own breathing, rapid and shallow. You try to calm yourself.
— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016
With your breathing slowed, your hearing sharpens. Your heartbeat is still audible in your ears but it’s bearable.
— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016
There’s a sound of rushing water coming from somewhere farther within the cave. You try and move towards it.
— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016
You are confronted by three different passageways. The one on the left emits a warm glow.
— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016
From the center one, the water dripping noise persists. The right one is silent and completely dark.
— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016
You opt for the one on the right and find that it’s only a shallow excavated hole, a crevice but not a passageway.
— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016
F
rustrated, you push out of the hole and sprint down the center tunnel, puddles splashing beneath your feet.— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016The splashes are echoed further back. You look behind you and see total darkness. No one has followed you down this path.
— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016
You trip on a rock and hit the ground, cradling your leg. Your knee stings and your hand comes back wet.
— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016
You a
re unsure whether it’s from blood or the dampness of the cave. You get up and move on, a new limp in your stride.— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016You’re getting closer to the source of the dripping noise. Your breath is no longer controlled as you hurry forward.
— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016
You
reach the end of the tunnel and come upon what looks like a workroom. A feeling of unease grips you.— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016You slowly make your way further inside. There’s a workbench against the far wall, shackles chained to the right, to the left another hole.
— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016
You inspect the shackles first. They’re rusted but still sturdy. You yank on them and find they won’t break free.
— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016
You abandon the chains and move to the workbench. Here, you find the source of the dripping noise.
— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016
There’s a candle on the workbench and you set it aflame with a match. An unctuous red liquid covers most of the bench.
— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016
It has seeped into the cracks of the old bench. Off of the edge, it spills down, trickle by trickle. You stare fixedly.
— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016
A shuffling noise from the hole to your left drags your attention from this horror. You turn and notice a faint glow.
— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016
The glow holds the same warmth as the left tunnel you had previously avoided. You tremble but move towards the glow.
— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016
While in the passageway, leading to the source of the glow fear and rationalization creep upon you.
— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016
They lived here, preying on victims they found lost in the forest, like you. They took them here and did God knows what.
— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016
And you found their hideaway, their horrid workshop. You recall the echoed footsteps and begin to panic.
— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016
They were parallel to your own, running down the other tunnel, while you discovered their dark dungeon.
— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016
You take a step back, trying to return from where you came. The candlelight catches the faint image of the shackles.
— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016
You take a step towards them. Your vision blurs as a great pain stabs through your head and shoots down.
— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016
Your body hits the ground and a darkness even more abysmal than the cave takes you.
— Samantha Procida (@birdwithapen) September 26, 2016
