BESIDE THE DYING FIRE

Demo postponed — 18+

[besidethedyingfire]

In the sleek new days of earth, snow covers erratic fires and green pastures alike. Nothing remains untouched by the cold, and trying to survive without a community is a death sentence. You and your mother are moving from camp to camp after being exiled from your old community, trying to survive on the limited resources you can find when, beside the dying fire, your life changes in more ways than one.

Beside The Dying Fire is an upcoming interactive fiction story by Nova Lea Games. BTDF is rated 18+ for depictions of death, violence, childbirth and explicit language. Explicit sex scenes are also depicted, although skippable.

Your goal is undoubtedly to stay alive— the cold alone is a cruel killer. Worrying about the people, their weapons and hunger is another thing entirely. The choices you will decide who you are, how you react and whether or not you survive. Your choices also dictate the path of those around you, who takes reign of your heart and who you turn out to be in the end of it all.

— Customise your pronouns, sexuality and appearance, as well as your backstory and personality traits. Dictate who you are as a person, your greatest strengths and biggest weaknesses. Ability to use multiple pronouns also available. (she/theys unite!!)

— Interact with a diverse cast of people, five love interests and multiple opportunities to add to your family. Make enemies, develop lifelong friendships and even fall in love— two polyamorous routes are available, as are friends-with-benefits scenarios…👀

— Interact with engaging combat scenes, adventures and explore the new world the story is set in. Make decisions that could mean you thrive, or die. Explore your abilities as a warrior, medic, scientist, hunter or homesperson. MORE ABOUT PLAYER TYPES HERE

— Play as someone who is trusting, or someone reserved. Choose how you convey your emotions, if at all, and which people you let into your heart.

— Try and save the lives of the people you travel with. Avoidable deaths are prevalent, and even your own lovers fate is in your hands…

— Witness (or stop) the end of the world.

Although romance is a pretty focal point of this IF, it is completely possible to play through without romancing anyone (I see you, desperate aro readers) without losing too much of a plot line. Explicit scenes can be turned off at the start of the game too, and won’t affect your romance stats or ruin plot. <3

F

The snow is perceptive, it sees and hears and watches, waiting. It comes like grace and settles in beautiful sheets of ice that children come to play in and photographers capture for an eternity onwards. Messina Cole is the daughter of the snow, though she comes in blizzards and hides the green grass forevermore. She freezes time and holds it captive like the camera capturing a snowy day hostage forevermore. Messina is not grace, but she is beauty personified.

M

Old folklore in the communities would call the dark night a dangerous place, lurking and evil. One that is unafraid to slit another’s throat and watch them bleed out into the white snow. Old folklore in the community was a waste of Murphy Coles time and he refused to take any part in story time, he had a job to do, watch his sisters back. She hunts, he fights off anyone keen on stealing their game. The old-timers compare the ruthless mind of Murphy to the darkest hour of the night.

MORE ON MURPHY

F

Stark contrast to the debilitating cold, the warm embrace of the sun. A healer at heart, one look from Summer Darcy and your soul is healed, your heart whole and mind renewed. She is a healer, never a harmer and has the innocent and loving smile to prove it. None are truly cold when put in a room with the girl who’s heart is warm enough to make even the darkest nights shine with love.

M/F

Silence is a killer, murderous and distasteful. It steals the words from your own lips and replaced them with nothingness, leaving you to choke on air. Shaes inclination to silence has meant they haven’t spoken a word in three years. A stealthist, Shae is called upon by the community to steal, and never once get caught. Their silence is domineering: what are they thinking?

M

A poet from lands far away. A lover, a thief and a liar. Someone’s been leaving you letters beside the dying fire.

[besidethedyingfire]

more work on the demo is done!! might have it out soon.....!!!!

[interact-if]

hi thank you for all of the work you do here i really appreciate this blog <3 do you have any recs for ifs with indigenous ROs? sometimes a girl just wants to romance someone from a similar background to her but i couldn't think of any off the top of my head.

Hi Anon,

Thank you for the kind words!

Here is a list of IFs including Indigenous ROs.

Beside the Dying Fire by @besidethedyingfire (Messina and Murphy: Aboriginal)

Hollowed Minds by @shai-manahan (Alonzo: Agta descent, Jade: Sinti)

Tin Star by Allen Gies (Yiska: Shoshone)

This Too Shall Pass by @ttspinteractive​ (Adrienne: Aboriginal)

WALL by @notesfromwall​ (Oz: Lakota equivalent)

When it Hungers by @roast-ifs (Nico: Zapotec heritage equivalent)

Zorlok by @zorlok-if (Rose: Suquamish)

[besidethedyingfire]

replies are turned off, haha- but Murphy and Messina are Maori! big difference, completely different countries!! all my love and i hope to see some more aboriginal RO’s in the future!

[blueletters-if-deactivated20230]

❛ I’ve been writing letters to someone very sick, very far away.❜

18 +, demo TBA. 

Words of Love is a non-profit organisation pairing sick kids across the country with pen pals to talk to and engage with. Their aim is to provide these sick kids with mail that, for once, isn't a hospital bill or series of test results. Your college has partnered with Words of Love and is offering extra credits to any students willing to write back and forth with a kid throughout their stay in hospital. You take the opportunity and henceforth change the rest of your life, for better and for worse.

❛ Dear stranger, my name is Blue. 

I am an eighteen-year-old with an illness that no one has been able to decide on yet, it’s still figuring itself out (and killing me in the meantime). This is my last year at St Helena Children's Hospital before I’m transferred to a regular hospital where they don’t cut the crusts off of your sandwich and the walls aren't bright yellow. I understand you expected a letter from a young kid that could answer your questions about my favourite superhero with a bit more enthusiasm but instead you got me which I hope is okay. If not, I’ll be dead soon enough so you need not fret. I don’t know how to write letters to strangers with lives much more promising than my own: I usually only talk to Jenna, who is my best friend and also dying so we can relate to each other pretty easily except for the fact that she’s a lesbian and I’ll just take whatever I can get. She’s gorgeous so she gets to be picky. I know you’re a college student so I stole some of the good pens off Nurse Jacqui and slipped them into the envelope to help you research a cure to my boredom in this place. You’re welcome. 

My favourite superhero is Spider-Man, since you asked. Please write back and tell me if college is really worth the stress and financial hardship. I think I’d rather be here, at least I get my meals delivered no charge. 

Blue.❜

For better and for worse.

FEATURES

-Play through a compelling and emotional story as whoever you please. Customise yourself to no end, play as male, female, nonbinary or genderfluid. Customise your appearance, personality and aspirations which play a crucial role in how you are perceived throughout the story.

- Build a relationship (platonic or romantic) with Blue. Learn from them, laugh, cry and walk with them through the notions of being a dying young adult. Personalise the letters you write them by choosing your own dialogue and picking out gifts to send. 

- Interact with the people around you and participate in the day to day life of a college student. Try not to let Blue stain your life too much, you’ve been thinking about them just a bit too much. Decorate your side of your dorm-room and converse with your best friend, who thinks you’ve been a bit unlike yourself. 

- Explore the true meaning of life with some help from Blue. Find out what true happiness is and never let go of it. Live life while you’re able to. 

ABOUT BLUE

A wildcard if you’ve ever known one. They’ve been in and out of hospital since they were seven- every memorable moment of their life, good and bad, have been made within the constraints of their illness. Their best friend calls them upbeat and energetic, their doctors report lethargy and a tendency to lash out at those trying to help. They yearn to be free, to be loved and listened to. They wish to be anyone but a sick kid.

Blue’s gender is customisable, male or female. They are romanceable by any gender and love as if the world will soon end. 

WARNINGS

‘Blue Letters’ is rated 18+ due to skippable depictions of sexual content, violence and serious depictions of negative mental health. Death is one of the main themes in this story, and it is explored without limits- although trigger warnings will be present whenever necessary, please read with discretion.

Dear stranger,

I think I’m going to die soon. I’ve been left in the dark about everything despite my right to know what’s happening. A priest came in to pray with me last night, which has only happened once before when I was really sick and we all thought I wouldn’t last the night. I was even taken out to see a movie the other day, it was an overhyped action movie but I got to eat real movie-theatre popcorn drowned in butter and salt like it should be. My dad can’t talk to me without breaking down, his girlfriend won’t let me in on anything. As often as I like to tell you that I’m not scared of dying, this is the first time in years that I’ve been genuinely afraid. I hate bucket lists: I think they’re filled with false hope and unobtainable goals but I wrote one anyways. There are eleven things I need to do before I die, but I did one of them this morning so now there are only ten. I know this is too much to ask, and you don’t truly know me but the only things I have been able to look forward to these last 6 months have been Jenna’s leftover custard and getting letters from you. I’ve slipped a piece of paper into the envelope with my phone number on it, alongside a copy of my bucket list.  I’m leaving tonight to live my life in full before I die, and I want you to come with me. If you’re up for an adventure, please call me on that number and let me know where we can meet; I’ll make it there. If you don’t want to do this with me, I understand: thank you for giving me some hope these last six months. I’m happy to have made a friend in you. Please don’t write back to the hospital. I will not be here. 

Blue.

header images by @thedeadundying (thank you!)

[besidethedyingfire]

wow. this is absolutely gorgeous.

[besidethedyingfire]

i have covid! been working on the story but may be a little bit sower for the time being </3

[besidethedyingfire]

Isn't a queer platonic relationship something like when you and your queer friend be like a 'traditional' couple without actual sex and/or romance involved? Like, you move in together and get married but for health and tax reasons, go to parties together as a couple except you are not a couple actually, more like queer roommates but more legally binding?

this is incredible.

[besidethedyingfire]

Is it possible to add the option to be aromantic?

you can play through without romance, and i am more than happy to add a label for a romantic people to hold throughout the game :)

[besidethedyingfire]

Is it possible to make all the RO/s switches?

regardless of who you romance, you can top, bottom, switch etc. it’s completely up to you, those headcanons are just preferences :) it changes nothing to sex scenes or plot.

[besidethedyingfire]

first NSFW ask??

do any of the RO’s have preferences for like, dom sub & switch?

!!! nsfw under cut, block the tag if you dont want to see it

Dom preference: Murphy, Messina

Switch preference: Shae, Lucas

Sub preference: Summer

I do honestly think all of them are switches, though. Just a matter of how they’re feeling ykyk

[besidethedyingfire]

Welcome back, have you heard of QPR (queerplatonic relationship)?

Thank you! Ive seen it talked about on a few other If blogs but if i’m honest with you i’m lost for what it means. Is it just, queer and platonic, haha? if you let me know i’d appreciate that forever <3

[besidethedyingfire]

welcome back!! super excited to see u posting again and i wish u all the best in the process of ur demo rewriting in the while to come <3 will be absolutely ready to play it whenever youre ready to release it! 😁

thank you so much! you are too kind lovely, i really really hope you enjoy it!

[2456798rfghjk-deactivated202305]

THE DEAD, UNDYING⋮ “I don’t think I’m ever going to feel like a kid again.”

[DEMO TBA]

This is end times, you’re watching the world end before your own eyes, and you have never been more terrified. You were supposed to be in your golden years, graduating high school to become something bigger… Zombies aren’t real, the dead don’t walk, you must be delusional. Scholars warned the masses of this, but we ignored them and now reap death in millions.  

We are to die, you and I. The question is, are you going to make something meaningful before your end? You can’t help but try to survive, but as people drop around you, it becomes more and more challenging to keep your composure. Perhaps we don’t need to survive, my friend, but rather search for reason to thrive. Who do you have by your side? What would you sacrifice to keep them there?

These people you know, do you know them so well? We are in end times, desperation fuels horrible things. Fall in love, yes, make something of this disgusting new world… but be careful, not everyone has a heart like yours.

Right?

And hopefully, my friend, you will only find pain in the parting of this love, God forbid. Nurture your soul with the reassurance of another, bless this world with one more reason to continue on. Find love and hold it close, it is a rare phenomenon these days. 

Ryan Collier, a soul with bindings that need glue such as your love. She is stolen of the heart. She is angry. She is hurt. She is a weather system fluctuating between tornadoes and snowstorms, and back to tornadoes. She has lost more than most, even in these trying times and will continue to lose herself without the interference of those that care. You’ve grown up alongside her in this dead town, watched her fall in and out of love with the world around her, watched her become someone you didn’t want to know. Ryan has never done you wrong, nor has she done you right. She is nothing more than a figment you pass in the halls and sit behind in homeroom, at least for now. [F]

Zain Hakim is on this earth by design, made to mock scholars and stand tall behind the podium of success. He is an enigma of dutiful academic success and popularity alike, yet he is humble, and genuinely kind. The few interactions that he two of you have shared have been nothing but pleasant, it’s something about his smile. President of the student body, leader of the schools Amnesty club and a focal voice in both the debate and academics clubs. Though he is not without flaw, Zain is encouraged only by his academic success, and is burnt out beyond belief, maybe a change in environment is exactly what he needs. [M]

Angel, a superficial whirlwind of chaos and eclectic energy. He is, as most would say, a complete idiot- anything and everything is a target for his laughter. Not a day alongside Angel is dull; his name isn’t actually angel, but you haven’t heard his real name since preschool. With Angel comes laughter, and with laughter comes healing and forgiveness, he is the brightest spark in any crowd, and will not stop in his tracks until all around him have smiled. His joking nature have gotten him into trouble a few times too many, however. His downfall? He’s best friends with your ex… [M]

Finley Kees is your ex lover, an enigma of green and purple and very colour in between. Your relationship was a rollercoaster of laughter and memories engraved into your mind and fast stomach turning drops that they held your hand throughout. Love doesn’t always last, however, and now eye contact is spared only by mistake. There is wire-thick tension between the two of you: they arent to be forgotten, but is moving on an option when the world is ending? Finley used to talk of days like this late at night, looking out to the sky with your had in theirs. Oh how the circumstances have changed. [F/M/NB]

Though love seems limited, who knows who you will meet? The world is ending, love can be found in those most unreachable. Two more romanceable characters are available later on in the story, alongside options for flings with other characters, No string attached, its the apocalypse. 

◦ Experience a story in which your choices matter. Avoidable deaths, important stats and interaction with characters is vital to your survival.

◦ Sharpen your skills. Customise your abilities and talents to suit a survivor like yourself.

◦ Customise your character to your hearts content. Play as a Male, Female or Nonbinary Person, choose your personality and appearance alongside interests and hobbies, etc. 

◦ Survive in the apocalypse, meet a varied cast of people to befriend or betray. 

◦ Influence romance between other characters, boost morale in your group or try and start up your own militia. You are in charge of this story. 

◦ Read a balance of action, dystopia and romance. Emotional and hard-hitting at times. 

The Dead Undying is rated 17+ due to graphic depictions of violence, body horror, gore and strong language. Any applicable trigger warnings will be available when necessary. but read at your own discretion. 

Hello, friends <3 I am an aspiring author with an innate interest in CYOA books and interactive stories, TDU is an idea that has been floating around in my head for a time now, and I am ecstatic to finally put it to work. I am so excited to give you a story that is both engaging and interactive, and I do hope you love it as much as I do.

A quick note, I am an autistic person, and thrive on my peer validation (lmao) so any reblogs or follows are so greatly appreciated. I am proud of what I have done here and would love to tell you so much more than I can fit into this post, so, if you wish to talk to me, or ask me anything please send through an ask <3 

Stay hydrated. ;p

[besidethedyingfire]

i had to rb because a) zombie culture is my JAM, you will not find someone bigger on zombies than I am. BTDF was originally going to have apocalypse aspects before I came up with this premise and sometimes i wonder how my RO’s would feign in the apocalypse 👀

and b) supporting other IF creators is something i am urging myself and others to do more of :) i feel as if we all compete sometimes and that’s not awesome, the support we can give eachother is beyond any sort of jealousy.

i am so so so excited to read this, i have my eyes locked and glued on Angel 😳 giving Lucas vibes and that’s enough for me

[besidethedyingfire]

Man, I missed summer- I mean this WIP!....... Who am I kidding, I missed summer

I missed summer too, anon, me too.

fun fact, my boyfriend (who does my coding because i have no brain when it comes to that) loves summer with an undying passion. she was originally meant to be an avoidable death but he wouldn’t allow it, not even in the slightest haha. so rest be assured, my boyfriend has granted you all with a summer that lives 🙄

[besidethedyingfire]

HEY, your alive!

Alive and well!

[besidethedyingfire]

When they were needed most, they returned.....

Not the hero they asked for, but one that could do about half the work in half the time 🌈

[besidethedyingfire]

A little life update!

I have finally gotten my internet reconnected and boosted up to the speeds that weren’t clapping out every 10 minutes, it feels great. This move was a pain in the ass and I needed a week or two to get myself together and unpacked before I could even think of touching this IF again— but, things are finally settled and i’m feeling great about writing again, so I am officially back!

Of course all things are followed by a ‘but’, so I have to be the bearer of bad news and say that I completely deleted the work I had done on the demo throughout the time I was on a little break. It was an accident and I have no idea how to salvage it so i’m going to have to write that out again, and add a little more, so the demo is going to be a little while now— i’m not going to put a date on it, but it will be released within the month.

Mid like to say a very heartfelt thank you to all of you, who have been my main source of motivation throughout the process of developing this IF. your support means the world to me, and i can not wait for you to meet Murphy, Messina, Shae, Summer and Lucas <3

[thatonereadersblog]

Your childhood best friend is back in town, bringing with him a certain destruction that changes your life forever. You never thought you’d regret talking to those two kids on the playground when you were younger— but seeing your face now plastered across the news, “WANTED FOR PREMEDITATED MURDER”, makes you rethink a couple of decisions in your past. Can you even reach out to your mother? Your little brother? You’re on the run from the law with two people you never thought you’d speak to again— don’t get caught.

True Blue is an upcoming IF story about redemption, refuge and reconciliation throughout your late teens. It is rated as mature, due to depictions of drug use, sexual innuendos, violence and mentions of past abuse and domestic disputes. A full list of content warnings is present before you read, so only continue at your own discretion. 

In True Blue, you can:

-Play as whoever you decide to be. Customise your appearance, sexuality, gender expression and personality entirely. Decide how you interact with the unforgiving world around you, which in turn impacts how it treats you.

- Grow your relationship with your two accomplices, good or bad. Decide who takes charge, who takes blame and who takes your heart. Fall in love, or turn a childhood friend into a new enemy.

-Run away from the law and the peoples chasing lies and accusations. Decide where you end up, who you go with and what lies you tell to get yourself out of sticky situations. With multiple different endings, replay value is at an all time high— truly decide your fate. 

-Pick your vice, what keeps you sane in these trying times? A drink with her, or a joint with him? Perhaps you prefer something else…

Romance is not the focal point of this IF, but can be insanely influential to how your story unfolds. You’re running from the law, why not let someone steal your heart? A polyam route is being considered. 

When he was just a young boy, Blue told a lie that changed his life forevermore, and he has the scar to prove it. After vowing to himself that he’d never tell anything but the truth, Spencer ‘Blue’ Hartwell has fought with his mind all throughout his teenage years. Obsessing over never lying again, the last thing Blue needs is to be running from the law— but he’s in too deep, and already on the run from what he seems to be much much worse. Your voice of reason, even when you were kids. 

Spencer is kindness, humour and the soft remnants of tobacco lingering on his breath. His mind is complicated, and hard for him to convey, but at least you know he’d never lie to you. 

Magdalene De Smidt has been known for telling the most exuberant and exotic lies ever since she was young. She would sit across from you and Blue on the playgrounds and tell you stories of her times fighting skeletons in Antarctica, and meeting the Queen in the Amazon Rainforest. Growing up, she’s lost her imagination, but never quite stopped with the white lies— she’s not happy with the situation at hand, but even Blue thinks she just needs a shoulder to cry on. 

Maggie may be hard to handle, but her friends mean more than the world to her. Theres nothing she wouldn’t do to protect you and Blue, even if she mentions offhandedly that she hates the pair of you <3

[besidethedyingfire]

on public wifi but had to hype up my friends new IF, the plot will be insane yall ik you’ll love it.

should have wifi settled by early next week!!!!!!!!!!