I'd like to take this opportunity to say that I'm going to have to change a couple of things from the game. Since some of the Don't Starve mechanics don't translate well into writing, I'll be doing my best to make them work without breaking any rules. The biggest changes will be made in the Adventure Mode, which will be explained more fully in later chapters. Anyway, I'll do my best to remain true to the game while still keeping the writing interesting.

Disclaimer: I don't own Don't Starve or any of the characters

Wilson had often heard others talk in fear, and sometimes anticipation, of waking up one morning with absolutely no recollection of what had happened the night before. Sitting inside his apparently fully constructed workshop as he was now, he could hardly believe that other people regularly experienced this.

Behind him, Willow, Wendy, Wolfgang, and Abigail had all crowded into the glorified shack to get a better view of his most recent exploits. He himself was just as confused as they were when looking over the scene.

A moderately sized desk had been built at some point and placed against the back wall. It was the only piece of furniture in the workshop other than a rickety chair that looked like it was held together by nothing more than woven grass. How these two pieces came into existence was a mystery, but what was even more perplexing were the objects on and around them.

Random assortments of junk were scattered all over the floor. Everything ranging from broken pieces of metal, to children's toys, to some weird looking purplish thing that smelled like rotting leather.

The objects on the table itself were far more interesting. Piled on one side of the work-space were an assortment of odd gems. They came in two colors; a bright crimson-like red, and a cool icy blue. At first Wilson believed them to be rubies and sapphires, but closer inspection led him to think otherwise. The shades of the colors were off and, if viewed out of the corner of the eye, swirling things could be seen moving inside them.

As peculiar as the gems themselves were, it was the items in the center of the table that held their collective attentions with such disturbed awe. Four devices were lovingly arranged next to each other with an almost obsessive care to ensure that they were all placed at exact intervals of distance. Each one had a tiny note attached, torn from his notebook and written with a twitchy, ungainly, hand.

The first was a walking stick. At least, he assumed it was. In actuality it looked like little more than a red gem tied to the end of a long stick. While the object itself was uninspiring, the not attached left him very intrigued and more than a bit frightened by it.

Dearest Willow

It has come to my attention that you haven't been allowed to indulge your pyromania to its fullest potential. This is unjust, unhelpful, and thoroughly unright. With this device, I hope to rectify this mistake. The staff will allow you to spread the joy of total immolation with the rest of the world from a safe distance.

Keep that fire burning

-Wilson

The second object was much smaller and much shinier. It appeared to be a necklace shaped out of bent scraps of metal that had been fixed together. Like the staff, it held a red gem at its heart and had a strange note attached to it.

To the most esteemed Sir Wolfgang

Having seen you fight first hand has left me in no doubt as to your physical capabilities, but I must say that your psychological strength is in need of some help. Thankfully my genius will fix that. I give you the solution to all of your fears; the life amulet! After all, what is there to be afraid of if death can't touch you?

Hugs and kisses

-Wilson

The third was perhaps the most intricate of the creations. It resembled a radio on a long rod with dials that were permanently fixed halfway between the labels of 'daytime television' and 'pure evil'. What was the most interesting about it was the fact that it somehow managed to emit a low frequency sound every now and then despite having no obvious source of power. For whatever reason, its note was addressed to Wendy.

Young miss Wendy

Your relationship with your departed sister is both heartwarming and bone-chilling in equal measure. I must say that I've seen many other siblings torn asunder over lesser issues than a violent end. Since you have shown such an aptitude for speaking with the spirits, I believe you will appreciate this. Remember, just because the voices aren't real doesn't mean they don't have good advice.

I hid your ax

-Wilson

The fourth and final of the oddities wasn't a new device, but rather was a modified version of something Wilson knew all too well. It was his knife. The very same knife that he'd kept on his person ever since being drawn into this world by his own insatiable curiosity. The only difference was the fact that there was a strangely dark purple gem embedded into the handle right where the blade connected. It showed no signs of welding and gave no clues as to how it had been inserted. Unlike the other pieces, the note attached to it was only two words.

Payback time

So far, nobody had gone near them. They'd all been silently waiting for Wilson to answer the question that was on everybody's mind. Sadly, it was one he had no idea how to explain. Ever the direct one, Wolfgang decided he'd had enough of waiting.

"What happen to science man?" He questioned, shifting his gaze back and forth between the table and Wilson. "How did you make things after being eaten by dirt mouth?"

The scientist rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. He knew full well that they wouldn't approve of what he'd gone and done.

"Funny you should ask…" He began, pointedly avoiding looking any of them in the eye. "After I fell into the worm… mouth… thing. Whatever it was. I woke up in a graveyard. I can only assume that it spat me out there. The one near us must be connected to the other one somehow."

"Hold on, a graveyard?" Willow asked, giving him a pointed look. "As in, a bunch of dead people buried all over the place graveyard? Are you telling me that we're not the only ones who've been trapped here?"

Wilson simply shrugged in response. It was something he recalled wondering also, but he couldn't be sure if there were actual people buried inside them.

"Anyway, after waking up I wasn't too keen on trying to go back through the worm." He went on. "I set up a little camp nearby. There wasn't much in the way of building a fire, but there were enough shrubs and pieces of flammable material that I managed to hold out for the night. Of course, there was still the problem of finding something to eat in the meantime…"

He had to pause before going on. There was no way to explain what happened next without making himself look like a total fool.

"There wasn't a whole lot around, but there were a few strangely colored mushrooms growing on the graves."

It took several seconds for the meaning of his words to sink in. When they did, Willow's face instantly met her palm with a noise of exasperation.

"You didn't!" She exclaimed, shaking her head. "What made you think eating mushrooms you found growing on rotting corpses was a good idea!?"

In what was likely a wise move, Wilson decided to remain silent. He didn't fully understand what his motivations at the time had been either. Looking back, it was obvious how stupid a decision it was to try eating the fungus. Yet in the heat of the moment, it had seemed like a calculated, almost reasonable, risk to take. It was as if the hauntingly isolated atmosphere of the graveyard had infected his mind in the short time he'd been there. Maybe it had. He certainly couldn't think of a logical explanation for his actions now.

"Do you have more of these mushrooms with you?" Wendy asked curiously. They all turned to look at her.

"No. At least, I don't think so." Wilson replied, trying to remember the aftermath of his artificial insanity. "Why do you ask?"

"Because I wanted to try them next."

The others stared at her in shock, even Abigail who stopped her normal flowing movements enough for her face to solidify into an expression of disbelief. Suddenly, Willow pointed an accusing finger at Wilson's chest.

"Do you see what you've done!?" She demanded. "Now you've gone and got her wanting to try it! You're going to turn her into a drug addict!"

"I-"

Before he could attempt to defend himself, Wendy spoke up again.

"It's only fair." She said indignantly. "You got to experience madness already. Now Wilson has done it. I think that I should be the next to stare into the void."

"You-"

"Is that how this works?" Wolfgang asked, suddenly growing fearful. "Please science man! I not want to go crazy! Can you fix somehow?"

"I don't-"

Wilson's words were quickly drowned out as both Wendy and Wolfgang began speaking at the same time. He could only look helplessly as the two of them tried to make their cases on the subject of going insane.

"That's enough!" Willow shouted, silencing the overlapping voices. "The only person who's going to go nuts is me if this keeps up!" Once they had quieted down, she turned to Wilson and flicked open her lighter.

"Do you have any of those things with you?" She demanded. "If you do, then its best you tell me right now. I won't be happy if I find out that you've been stashing them later."

He held up his hands in a plea of innocence.

"I don't think so." He said. When her eyes started to narrow, he quickly went on. "Honest! I don't remember all that much after eating one! I don't think that I brought any others with me though. I'll check in a bit to be sure though."

She still eyed him a bit suspiciously, though decided against pushing the subject. Instead, she turned to get a better look at the table and its contents.

"Do you happen to know how the heck you managed to make this stuff?" She asked. "Where did all these jewels and scraps come from?"

Wilson gave an involuntary shudder as he thought back on that. His memories were hazy at best, but he still had the general idea of what had happened for a little while after ingesting the mushroom.

"You know how I said I woke up in a graveyard?" He asked. They all nodded. "Well…" He raised a finger that trembled very slightly to point at an object that had been placed in the corner. The shovel. The darkened soil caked on its bowl was enough to tell them the story.

"You started eating mushrooms… and then decided it was a good idea to go grave robbing?" Willow groaned, holding her head in her hands. Wolfgang looked positively mortified at the thought of digging up graves, and Wendy was shooting him a glare of genuine anger.

"I wasn't exactly in my right mind." Wilson defended. "It's not like I just thought 'hey why don't I start disturbing the dead?' It was out of my control. Though I have to say that I'm curious as to what these things were doing inside them."

Stepping over to the table, Willow took a closer look at the arrangement of his creations. She reached out towards the staff, hesitating momentarily before lifting it up. It was about three fourths her height, the gem resting level with her shoulder.

"Well, I'm not sure how this thing is supposed to help with igniting stuff but it does look nice." She commented. "How did you manage to cut the wood so straight?"

Wilson only shrugged in response. The manner in which he'd made these items, like much of what he'd done last night, were lost to the depths of his memory.

When nothing horrific happened to Willow upon picking up her new gilded walking stick, Wendy and Wolfgang drew closer to take a look at their generously made gifts. The strong man dangled his necklace up while giving it a thoughtful look. After a moment, a wide smile broke out on his face.

"Is like medal!" He proclaimed, placing it around his neck and proudly displaying it to the others. "Is mark me as mightiest of men!"

"That it does." Wilson agreed, chuckling. At least his little outing had made someone happy. "Just don't go testing the whole 'death can't touch you' thing. I don't trust the advice that crazy me gave."

Wendy was frowning as she looked over her radio on a stick. She tried adjusting the knobs, but they refused to budge. After a moment, she put the device up to her ear in an attempt to better understand what the noise coming from it was supposed to mean.

Thinking back to the note that had been left with it, Wilson was struck by a sudden thought.

"Do you hear anything?" He asked. "Like voices maybe? Something useful?"

She fixed him with a deadpan and entirely serious stare.

"Yes Wilson. I'm hearing voices in the box." She said, her voice coming out in an eerie monotone. "They're telling me to wait until you all fall asleep tonight, and then to slit your throats so that they can possess your bodies."

They all looked warily at her, highly disturbed by her manner.

"…Really…?"

"No. Not really." She assured, rolling her eyes. "It is just making the same blank noise over and over again. You've created a sonic metronome."

"Uh… right. Right. I knew you were kidding." He said, failing to hide the slight nervous edge in his voice. "Anyway, I've got a real headache after last night. If things are sorted out around here, I think I'm gonna go get a bit more shuteye to make up for what I've missed out on."

"Oh no you don't!" Willow said, grabbing his arm as he tried to move past her. "Temporary insanity or not, you got all the pigs to build your little workshop last night instead of our cabin. You're not getting a nap until you've finished up our home."

He gaped openmouthed at her.

"How the heck am I supposed to do that?" He asked, shocked that she would make such an unreasonable demand. "It's not even halfway done! It'll take days to finish even if we work around the clock!"

Her gaze was pitiless.

"You managed to finish up this place in an afternoon." She countered. "Just do what you did here. After there's a roof over our heads, you can take all the naps you want."

He stammered for something to say, settling on a groan when he realized that she wasn't about to change her mind. He couldn't help but feel like she was punishing him for something he'd done, and not just the whole workshop dispute.

One thing was for sure, he was never eating mushrooms again.

Wendy spent the better part of her day wandering the edges of their campsite. The adults and the pigs had all gone to work finishing up their cabin. It certainly didn't look like the most impressive structure, but it would hopefully be a dry place to sleep in the night.

Of course, the downside to their labor was that she was left on her own. With only Abigail to keep her company, she'd ended up mostly meandering her way around while staying out of the way. It wasn't that she didn't appreciate her sister's presence, she didn't know what she would do without her, but conversations were slightly more enjoyable when the person you were speaking to could talk back.

"Do you think anyone has noticed that we're missing?" Wendy asked, leaning on the radio pole. "We've been gone for some time now. Will they have people looking for us back home?"

Her ghostly sister replied with a lilting whisper. She could only assume that it was meant to be a reassuring noise. Not that she particularly needed reassuring. Some part of her didn't really see the appeal in returning home. She knew full well that Abigail wouldn't be able to stay with her in the normal world, and there was nobody waiting for her that she was particularly attached to. Wilson, Wolfgang, and Willow were the first people that she'd actually come to think of as friends other than her sister. Maybe one of them would be able to take her in when this was over. It was a pleasant thought, however unlikely.

Falling into a comfortable silence, Wendy cast a glance over at the slowly building house of logs. The pigs weren't in the same construction frenzy that had swept them up yesterday, but they progressed at a reasonable pace. They wouldn't have a home tonight but they were getting there.

Wolfgang was carrying a sizable log over one shoulder, with Wilson standing behind him and directing where he needed to go. The scientist must have said something because Wolfgang turned to reply, not thinking about the consequences of such an action. The log he carried smacked Wilson full in the face. The scientist was sent sprawling, landing directly in what was either a small mud puddle, or something left behind by one of the pigs that hadn't made it to the edge of the clearing in time.

Wolfgang, realizing what had just happened, quickly shoved the log into a nearby pig's arms. He then made a point of helping Wilson to his feet as though he could possibly pass of blame for the accident. Wendy shook her head, silently laughing at the dysfunctional group she'd become part of.

As she leaned back and tilted the radio away from camp, something strange caught her attention. The sound it emitted suddenly became slightly higher pitched.

"Did you hear that?" She asked, turning to Abigail. The ghost's form rippled as she nodded.

Regarding the device more carefully, Wendy started experimenting to see if it had just been a trick of the moment.

She positioned the radio back in its initial position. After a couple seconds of silence, it let out the same droning moan that it had been making all day. She then took several steps forward and planted it firmly in the ground. This time when the sound came it was a subtle but noticeably higher pitch.

Wendy frowned, trying to make sense of what the noise could mean. The rush of understanding hit her like a bolt of lightning.

Ripping the device out of the ground, she dashed back towards the camp. The others had to hear about this.