Level 1.2 - "Concrete Garden" - The Backrooms Wiki (2025)

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Written by Praetor3005 (Author page)

Olivia Bellerose and Tournesol have been created by Nikuchan (check her stuff! She published great things on this wiki.)

An immense thank you to LiminalDoctor for taking the time to crit the page's concept and SPAG, as well as GLing it for Christmas!

Special thanks to LaundryFan_04 for the commissions of the three Level renders as well!

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Objective: Mapping of the Aquila Sector
Involved Personnel: Ale Venrick (Compass Point regiment "The Misfits"), Megan Harker (Compass Point regiment "The Misfits"), Olivia Bellerose (Base Alpha Botanist and Operative)

<BEGIN LOG EXTRACT>

Ale: Looks like the lights are also back in the halls.

Olivia: Doesn't change that we're lost tho.

Megan: Do you recognize anything around?

Ale: Hum… I don't see any familiar landmarks… I think you'ri— Wait.

Megan: What do you see?

Ale: That's weird… It looks like… Grass patches in the distance? I think there are some flowers too.

Olivia: Plants in Level 1? No way.

Megan: Finally something interesting to explore.

Olivia: Definitely worth exploring yeah. I've never heard about any form of vegetation down there.

Ale: Absolutely not we are NOT going there. It could be toxic or something like that.

Olivia: Ale i'm a botanist that's literally my job. We're gonna be fine.

Ale: We don't even know where we are! We're most likely miles away from the base!

Olivia: Which means we shouldn't let this opportunity slide! Who knows what it holds! Wouldn't be the first time Backrooms plants would be useful for us. Hell, I can go there alone if you're too scared.

Ale: I'm not sca— Sigh Listen, Olivia, I am NOT letting you go there, Kat would kill me if something happened to you. Best I can offer you is to check the old Leaders' database when we're home, to see if they knew about that.

Megan: You're laaaaaame.

Ale: I'm cautious.

Olivia: Whatever— Can I at least take a closer photo before we go?

Ale: Sure but don't take too long. We still have to find a way back home.

<END LOG EXTRACT>

Level 1.2 - "Concrete Garden" - The Backrooms Wiki (5)

Level 1.2 - "Concrete Garden" - The Backrooms Wiki (6)

One of the few images of the sub-sector.

This sub-sector of Scene 01.3 presents the same layout as the rest of the Scene, apart from the presence of heavy vegetation. The floor is carpeted with tall grass and flowers of various colors, while the pillars and walls are infested with vines that can sometimes even stretch across the ceiling. The origin of this vegetation, as well as the reason for its absence anywhere else, is unknown.

This sub-sector is also notable for its complete lack of entities, who seem to avoid it like the plague. While this fact led many to try to set up settlements within it, none have been heard from again. As such, it is heavily unadvised to spend more than a few hours within it.


Level 1.2 - "Concrete Garden" - The Backrooms Wiki (7)BACKDOOR Backrooms' #1 Chat & Forum Archived at: 2012-02-2222:56:18

[oliviab]: Two paragraphs. I found TWO PARAGRAPHS about it.

[Tournesol]: Olivia are you okay?

[oliviab]: No I'm not

[oliviab]: I can't believe I listened to Ale

[oliviab]: I should have went there for myselffff

[Tournesol]: You're being so reckless. What even would be there?

[oliviab]: That's what I need to know

[Tournesol]: Olivia you cannot just go into random liminal spaces just because there's stuff to study there

[oliviab]: Why not? It's my duty

[oliviab]: I'm a M.E.G. researcher. I need to study what I can study to find ways to protect people against the dangers of this place

[oliviab]: That's my whole deal, it's my mission

[Tournesol]: I know how devoted you are to help

[Tournesol]: And I do love this from you

[Tournesol]: But I'm scared your overfixation on helping people is making you neglect yourself

[Tournesol]:It's been two days since you came back from that mapping mission and we barely talked since then. I didn't even see you at the cafeteria today!

[oliviab]: I can't help myself, I just can't think about anything else

[oliviab]: It's not something I can ignore

[oliviab]: The Leaders mentioned that entities avoided the plants. It could mean so much! What if it was a way to protect ourselves from them?

[oliviab]: I have to go there and check for myself

[oliviab]: I could make a difference for everyone living here, finding something to protect them

[Tournesol]: Olivia please

[Tournesol]: We don't know what's there

[Tournesol]: I don't wanna lose you

[Tournesol]: Please, promise me you won't go there

[Tournesol]: Olivia?

[oliviab]: I'll think about it

[Tournesol]: Did you eat yet? I assume not. We can meet at the cafeteria and eat something together to change your mind?

[oliviab]: I guess I'm pretty hungry yeah… I'll join you in a minute

[Tournesol]: I love you

[Tournesol]: Please don't put yourself in danger, whether it's exploration or starvation

[oliviab]: I love you too

[oliviab]: I'll watch after myself, don't worry

It was a sleepless night. The last two nights were equally sleepless, but this one would play out differently. With both a burning desire for knowledge and a cold shame of abusing her soulmate's trust, Olivia made up her mind. She had to return to those halls that obsessed her so much, and this night would be where she would venture there, alone.

And so Olivia went back in the halls, determined to return to the elusive haven she encountered, her thoughts filled with hope about the possible finds. If there was anything Jeremy and Eric had taught her back when she was a child, it was how crucial anomalous plants were for wanderer survival. While some didn't last for long, others have been instrumental for wanderer survival for decades, sometimes even centuries. As she continued walking, the thought of her former teachers and caretakers increased her willingness. Their deaths could have been avoided. If she worked harder, if she tried to help people more…

Focused on her map and her thoughts, Olivia suddenly felt the hard concrete floor replaced by the soft crunch of a grassy patch. Looking away, the botanist witnessed a landscape of many colors, a bright paradox of the grey monotony of the concrete warehouse. She felt a fresh air she hadn't experienced in years, and a gentle scent of wilderness got into her nose. She reached her destination. In front of her resided the Concrete Garden.

Level 1.2 - "Concrete Garden" - The Backrooms Wiki (8)

Finally in her element, Olivia ventured deeper with excitement. As she expected, the interior looked just like the picture on the Leaders' database: blooming with life. Even decades after its last recording, the garden was thriving just as much. Theories started to flow in her mind as she looked around, taking notes in her journal. Could it be Botanicancer covering the remnants of a former settlement? Or perhaps an outdoor level clipped into the Habitable Zone?

Whatever their origin was, the plants in the Concrete Garden showed a diversity that surprised Olivia. She recognized specimens from both the Frontrooms and the Backrooms, all of them from different countries or levels. All required contradicting climates, yet were growing together in a dimension devoid of sun and soil. How was this possible?

As she was taking notes and samples, a batch of sunflowers in the distance caught Olivia's attention. Like an anchor, the sight revived the memory of the dinner she had with her soulmate just some hours ago. Guilt started to replace her initial zeal for knowledge. What would they think of her if they realized she had gone without saying a word? Would they panic? Would they try to reach her? Would they tell Kat, pleading with her to send a rescue mission? Tournesol was right; this place was untouched and unknown. None could say what dangers could lie there. They feared for her safety, as they always did.

Level 1.2 - "Concrete Garden" - The Backrooms Wiki (9)

She shook her head, trying to get rid of her soulmate's thought. This place could hold botanical secrets that could save hundreds of people. Plants with curing effects, food sources, repellents… The possibilities were endless. The risks were worth it. She couldn't afford to give up. Taking a deep breath, she started walking forward, trying to focus back on her mission.

As untamed as it looked near the entrance, the Concrete Garden hosted many ruins of abandoned settlements deeper within, a discovery that surprised Olivia. The parallel to the Leaders' entry was obvious, but some of the structures looked far too ancient to have been made by wanderers from the group. Perhaps she was right about Botanicancer, she thought as she cut a long vine from a pillar, storing it in her backpack for later study.

Starting to feel her stamina wear out, Olivia took the opportunity to rest on one of the stone fences. Her break was cut short, however, as the clumsy structure broke down not long after. Unprepared, she fell down onto a patch of bluebonnets, the shock releasing their pollen into the air.

Level 1.2 - "Concrete Garden" - The Backrooms Wiki (10)

Disoriented by the fall, the botanist started to cough, trying to eject the pollen getting in her lungs. As she did, however, her mind started to blur, flowing with yet another memory. Humans in togas running around. A Curabitur Bird devouring a child. Then more fleeing people and more hungry birds. Fear was all she could feel from those thoughts, but none of those were hers. None of this was anything she lived through. Yet, it felt like she had always held them.

As she stopped coughing, the memories faded as quickly as it appeared. With the pollen gone, none of the elusive thoughts felt personal anymore. Trying to understand the details, Olivia realized she could barely recall them.

Eager to understand what happened, Olivia walked toward another bush of flowers and hummed it, trying to relive the experience. As expected, she felt something foreign entering her mind. However, to her surprise, the memory didn't evoke ancient people or avian creatures, but an operative from the Leaders, rooted to the ground in a literal sense. Thinking back about the database entry, the strike of realization hit her. Those weren't simple plants. They were living memories of those who died here. And their soil was—

Olivia felt a void in her mind. Something important that she couldn't get her hands on. Something about a dinner?

Yet the only memory coming back to her mind was sunflowers. Rushing backward, she ran towards those she passed by just an hour ago. Perhaps revisiting the area might help her recover what she forgot.

The flowers didn't change one bit. Seeing them from afar made Olivia think about her partner Tournesol— No, remember.

Didn't this happen before?

For an hour Olivia had forgotten about the love of her life. The realization hit her. The level grew memories, and the soil was her own. It took her thoughts away to spread them, like it did with so many people in the past.

Why was she here again?

Olivia looked down at the sunflowers. To her horror, however, her eyes caught a blooming rose on her right leg, piercing her skin.

The Concrete Garden wasn't merely stealing memories. It was amalgamating her very identity.

Olivia's heart started to bump faster as she began to run, looking for the Garden's entrance. Yet, all she could do was lose herself deeper within the labyrinthine complex, her body still blossoming.

In her rush, she tripped on a root, falling down on the soft, grassy floor. She felt the thorns and petals on her body, reminding her of the gruesome fate awaiting. Olivia forced herself off the floor, trying to stand up, but her muscles felt absent. As she remained on the soil, her anxiety rose further and further.

Then everything
progressivelely

faded

in
to

o
b
s
c
u
r
i
t
y

Recording of M.E.G. Base Alpha infirmary of 23/02/2012

Warning - This log will be deleted in 24 hours following Overseer B's request

<BEGIN LOG EXTRACT>

After 14 hours in a functional coma, Olivia opens her eyes on a hospital bed. She starts slowly moving her head, which Tournesol (one of the three individuals present in the room) notices, making them rush towards her.

Olivia: Where… What happened?

Tournesol: Olivia! Moon be blessed, you're alive!

Hearing Tournesol, Katherine Zimals (Overseer B) also rushes toward the bed.

Overseer B: Are you feeling better?

Olivia: Kinda… Where are we?

Tournesol: You're back at Base Alpha.

Overseer B: What were you thinking Olivia? You've been exploring the Backrooms for far longer than me. You know its tricks. You should know better than to enter barely explored levels.

Tournesol: Katherine, this isn't the time to blame her. She's recovering.

Olivia lifts her blanket, looking for traces of the plants. Relieved to see nothing, she looks back in the direction of Tournesol.

Olivia: How did you even find find me there?

Tournesol: Come on… did you really think I wouldn't expect you to try to go there? You've been talking about this for two days straight, and I know how you like to leave Base Alpha at night. I spoke with Kat and we convinced Megan to assist me since they already knew the path.

Olivia: I'm so sorry… I shouldn't have gone there alone. I… I didn't want to miss something that might help people, you know?

Tournesol: I know, love. All that matters is that you're safe now. You did scare us good, though.

Overseer B: What did you discover there anyway?

Tournesol: Katherine. This isn't the time.

Olivia: No I understand… Just give me a minute.

Olivia stops talking for some heavy seconds, gathering her strength back.

Olivia: Well… basically, the plants there aren't real, or at least not natural. They are… memories of some sort. It takes them away from the wanderer and makes them bloom. It did that with mine too.

Overseer B: And it also transforms people, right?

Olivia: I think? I'm not sure. It definitely felt like it. One of the memories was about a Leaders operative rooted into the ground, so this would make sense.

Tournesol: So this is basically a vegetal database of memories?

Overseer B: Your little escapade was thoughtless, but it seems you were right after all. This place could go a long way in helping us understand the Backrooms thanks to those memories. If we can find a way to avoid the dangers, of course.

Olivia: As much as I did this to help… I don't think we should disrupt this place.

Overseer B: Why? Wasn't it why you risked your life there? I don't want your near-death experience to have been for nothing.

Olivia: I didn't get the time to feel more of these memories but… one of them had people from long ago trying to flee something. But there was no vegetation around yet. And since they had to be in the sublevel for their memories to be here…

Tournesol: Are you saying this could have been the start of the Concrete Garden?

Olivia: Well… The Backrooms act in mysterious ways. And I have the gut feeling that whatever started this did so to preserve them. That would also explain why entities can't enter and why subsequent people are fused into it.

Overseer B: So you're saying we should preserve their memories?

Tournesol: If what she says is correct, then this sublevel is basically a grave. And we should not disrupt graves.

Olivia: Yeah… I think it would be disrespectful to the people who died there, whatever catastrophe happened.

Overseer B: The M.E.G. is about humanity. We shouldn't disrespect the past. Although… This place is pretty much guaranteed to be stumbled upon by other wanderers or even operatives from other groups. How could we stop them from doing so?

Tournesol: Not to mention some people might want to profit out of it, whether they know about the story behind it or not.

Overseer B: I guess we can always… Lie to them? I don't like doing this, but this wouldn't be the first time we had classified information. The Leaders Database had that too.

Olivia: Who said we should lie? The level transforms people into plants not long after they enter. I'd say that's enough to incentivize people to avoid it.

Overseer B: I mean… I guess we can always mention it in the Level 1 article. We did that for the Ouroboros Sector when the Misfits found it, after all.

Olivia: It's the least we can do. We don't have to make the information public.

Tournesol: Katherine, now that everything is settled, can I be left alone with her? Just wanna make sure she gets some rest.

Overseer B: Of course, I understand. On my end, I'll make sure your wish of protection will be respected, Olivia.

Olivia simply smiles at her friend as she leaves the infirmary, leaving the botanist with her partner.

<END BEGIN LOG EXTRACT>

  • Garden Sector

Level 1.2 - "Concrete Garden" - The Backrooms Wiki (11)

Do not be fooled by the verdant colors and blooming life! Out of the many parts of the Habitable Zone, the Garden Sector is one of the few that doesn't suit human life.

Overgrown since times unknown, the Garden Sector has a rather unusual effect on human life. Staying there for even an hour will start twisting you, progressively turning you into a plant like many others in the past.

If you happen to find the entrance to the Concrete Garden, avoid it like the plague! It is far easier to deal with non-euclidian geometry and liminality than losing yourself to deadly nature.

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