Level 25

4
4

**Survival Difficulty: Class 4**
»⠀Unsafe
»⠀Unsecure
»⠀Non Entity Hazards

**"The first thing I remember after opening my eyes was the stench. I never knew ink could smell so... intoxicating."**
-Anonymous Wanderer

## Description

**Level 25**, or The Sea of Red Ink, is an expansive ocean of red ink. The top layer of the red liquid is an innumerable amount of papers, usually filled out as some sort of assignments or homework. Many of these papers are essays or reports and are marked up with corrections and grades and the papers themselves do not seem to soak up the red ink from the ocean. The depths of the inky ocean is uncertain, as parts are shallow enough that one can walk on the rocky floor while parts are so deep, many wanderers assume infinity. There is no day and night cycle here. The time seems to be set during the day, however, due to the constant cloud cover, no one has been able to determine the exact time.

Upon entering this level, wanderers find themselves floating, opening their eyes as though they were awoken from a deep slumber. Amnesia clouds their minds as they attempt to recall what exactly they were doing before falling asleep. Wanderers know they are in the schoolrooms, they know who they are and where they came from, but they never remember how they got to **Level 25**. This feeling of emptiness in their minds, due to the lapse of time not existing in their memories often cause a wander to flail and panic. If they are in a deep section, drowning in the murky dark abyss is a real threat to those not adept at swimming.

Lucky wanderers have a possibility of finding islands on **Level 25**. These islands are made of a mountain of mostly school desks and chairs, with an occasional computer monitor or tower. Some of these desks can contain notebooks and red ink pens. Luckier wanderers will rarely find an upright chalkboard, protruding out of the sea like a billboard, anchored to the ocean floor. These are unmovable and can be a safe haven for a few weather-related disasters. Chalkboards are also the surest way out of **Level 25**.

### **The Weather**

The weather on this level is chaotic, giving it its high difficulty ranking. The sky is always overcast with gloomy clouds, but the possibility of violent changes is always present. Weather changes quickly on **Level 25**, so it is advised to always remain vigilant, looking for an exit.

**Waves**

**Waves found in Reality can be formed in many different ways. This is no different for** Level 25**. The inky sea often becomes choppy, forming large waves making it difficult to swim as the weather turns violent. Choppy waters, notably, are not the most dangerous waves.**

**If the inky water begins to recede, and you start to see the ocean floor, know that you are in grave danger. At first you will hear a roar not unlike an avalanche or landslide. On the horizon you will see a mountain of ink and paper, cresting and breaking. These waves are powerful and can often reach 10-20 meters in height. Ink tsunamis are rare but happen often enough to have been recorded by more than one wanderer.**

**Less rare are the rogue waves. These waves can reach up to 30 meters and happen without warning. These waves occur about once a 24-hour period on** Level 25**, making them among the most dangerous aspects of the level. As they occur as one, big wave, it is possible to survive, but note that islands are not safe havens from rogue waves.**
**Storms**
**Storms may seem like the least terrifying possibility on** Level 25 **but do not underestimate them. These storms pack up powerful, hurricane/typhoon level wind gusts with towering waves. Lightning is often a threat striking at violent speeds. Wanderers have recorded cyclones, reaching form the clouds like spindly fingers of death, grabbing the souls of whoever is unfortunate enough to be near one. Try to seek shelter on an island or a rare chalkboard if you are caught in a storm. These storms happen at any time and at any frequency.**
**Maelstroms**
**Being a possible exit, maelstroms are sometimes sought after by wanderers. These phenomena are not for weak swimmers, however. Being giant whirlpools, maelstroms can be lethal and should generally be avoided. Wanderers will usually just happen upon one, but they can form randomly. At first, the wanderer will notice a sudden shift in current. If this occurs, immediately swim the opposite direction to escape the potentially forming maelstrom. If you are already stuck in the current, swim directly to the center and hope to exit from this deadly level.**

### **Your Grade**

Wanderers that spend any amount of extended time on **Level 25** will start to see writing on their skin. This writing is in red ink and all messages are written in the native tongue of the wanderer. They start as lines and grow into full words and sentences. These words will spell out the wanderer's greatest insecurities and weaknesses. Everything a wanderer perceives is wrong with themselves begins to show up on their skin, all over their bodies. With these messages are a grade with a circle, some will have numbers, letters, symbols, depending on what they are used to from their own schooling experience.

These writings are not permanent but can last several weeks on a wanderer's skin after escaping **Level 25**. It is advised to let time erase these words as wanderers that try to manually remove these marks are often left scarred, both physically and mentally.

## Entities

There are no documented entities on this level.

## Colonies and Outposts

In **2009** an outpost was attempted on a large island of desks, but due to the frequency of rogue waves, this outpost was shortly abandoned afterwards. No attempt has been made since.

## Entrances and Exits

### Entrances

Wanderers that wake up in **Level 25** are unsure how they got to **Level 25** and thus official entrances are not currently available. Speculations suggest that object 2 or entity 1 are somehow involved. Investigations are ongoing to verify how this may occur. It would be advisable to avoid this level at all costs; seeing as how it is unknown how to avoid this level, try to exit as soon as possible.

### Exits

There are two known methods of leaving **Level 25**, one method providing several possible destinations.

* **Chalkboards** are rare but are the safest way to exit **Level 25**. A wanderer will need to have found a writing device, whether one that was brought, or a red pen found in a desk. That wanderer must draw a believable doorway into the chalkboard surface. If the drawing is good enough, the board will crack, eventually shattering exposing a white void in the shape of the door that the wanderer drew. (Note that if the doorway is too small for a wanderer to pass through, they are out of luck and a new door cannot be drawn on that chalkboard.) Once a wanderer goes through this portal, they are transported to level 8.
* **Maelstroms** can provide an exit from **Level 25**. Wanderers must swim to the middle of the whirlpool and dive to the bottom. Depending on what they find at the bottom determines where they will end up.
	+ If a wanderer finds an inverted version of the level, this means they have ended up in Level -2.
	+ If a wanderer finds a computer monitor, they will end up on level 19.
	+ If a wanderer finds a desk, they will end up on level 0.6.
	+ If a wanderer swims down and down without finding a bottom, they may pass out and end up in level 15.
	+ If wanderer finds another dead wanderer, they will end up on level 50.
	+ No one that has survived has ever seen empty ground at the bottom of a maelstrom. If one finds nothing, it is assumed they will perish.

**Credits**
Author:TheDadams

Photos: AI generation.