Game version 1.0 scripting started at 2:20 PM on December 6, 1999. Copyright (c) 1999 N.K. Guy. What would you like to do now? >i You're wearing a T-shirt, a sweater, a jacket, jeans, winter boots, glasses, your wristwatch, ski gloves and a woolly toque, but you're not carrying anything. Inside your car 9:31 PM >x watch A chunky digital watch, made of metal and plastic. It's showing the current time, which is 9:32 PM. Inside your car 9:32 PM >x shirt A white cotton T-shirt, but since it's under your other clothes you can't tell much else about it. Inside your car 9:33 PM >x sweater A heavy sweater, knitted out of thick cream-coloured wool. Inside your car 9:34 PM >x jacket A bright red and reasonably fashionable insulated nylon ski jacket. It's unzipped. Inside your car 9:35 PM >x windshield There's nothing out of the ordinary about the windshield. Inside your car 9:36 PM >open door (unlocking the car door, which can be unlocked from this side without a key) As you open the door, frigid winter air rushes into the car. Ugh. Inside your car 9:37 PM >get key Pardon me, but your request is a bit ambiguous. To which key are you referring? The house keys or the car key? >all house keys: You take the house keys out of your jeans pockets. (examining the house keys) (remember that if you don't like having each new object described to you the first time you pick it up, simply type DESCRIPTION) Two house keys, linked by a metal keyring, for the locks to the door to your house. car key: You take the car key out of the ignition key switch. (examining the car key) A standard Renault Alliance car key, with its trademark rhombus-shaped head. (or bow, if you want to be fussy) Inside your car 9:38 PM >out (taking off your seatbelt first) Outside your Car You stand in deep snow next to your ignominiously stationary car. It's something like standing in a deep white trough or perhaps a giant bobsleigh run - the walls of snow left by the ploughs are over two metres tall. High above you, the dark shadows of the tall conifers that line the highway. The snow-covered road runs back towards the small town of Grand Forks, a good hour's drive away under these conditions, and on towards Castlegar. Outside your Car 9:39 PM >lock door You'll have to shut it first. Outside your Car 9:40 PM >[I can't just push the lock down?] I don't know the special character '[.' >close door You close the car door. Outside your Car 9:41 PM >lock it With what would you like to lock that? >car key Locked. Outside your Car 9:42 PM >l Outside your Car You stand in deep snow next to your ignominiously stationary car. It's something like standing in a deep white trough or perhaps a giant bobsleigh run - the walls of snow left by the ploughs are over two metres tall. High above you, the dark shadows of the tall conifers that line the highway. Outside your Car 9:43 PM >n (I assume you mean 'north' and not 'no.') Unfortunately, you haven't got a compass, so you haven't any means for telling any absolute directions. You can, however, walk up or down the road from here, or re-enter your stranded car. Outside your Car 9:44 PM >up (since you're not capable of unassisted flight, I assume you mean 'go up the road.') Up the road from your car A twisty mountain highway that runs through a dense winter forest. Tall snowbanks left by the snowploughs line the road, making you feel as though you're in a wide white trough. Up the road from your car 9:45 PM >u Further up the road from your car A narrow mountain road that runs through winter forest. High snowbanks left by the snowploughs stand to either side. Further up the road from your car 9:46 PM >u Still further up the road from your car A twisty mountain highway that runs through winter forest. High ridges of snow line the road, pushed into great hills by the snowploughs. Snowflakes spin down out of the night sky. Interestingly, there's a sort of gap cut into the snowbank on one side. The faint tinkling of a small bell seems to be coming from the gap. Still further up the road from your car 9:47 PM >x gap There's a narrow gap on one side of the snowbank, possibly chipped out with a shovel. It's just large enough for you to squeeze through. Still further up the road from your car 9:48 PM >listen You can hear the wind blowing through high branches and the sound of a small bell tinkling in the wind. Still further up the road from your car 9:49 PM >enter gap (you step through the narrow gap) Outside Shack You're in the woods outside a tiny rundown shack. The windows are all boarded up with rough sheets of plywood and whole sections of the roof appear to be missing. A gap in the snowbank leads back to the road. A small bell hangs from the roof of the shack, and tinkles gently in the breeze. Outside Shack 9:50 PM >x bell It's a small cast iron bell, hanging from the roofline of the shack. It has a piece of cardboard or thick paper tied to its clapper, and it tinkles as the card catches the breeze. Outside Shack 9:51 PM >x paper It's a small cast iron bell, hanging from the roofline of the shack. It has a piece of cardboard or thick paper tied to its clapper, and it tinkles as the card catches the breeze. Outside Shack 9:52 PM >read it There's nothing written on the bell to read. Outside Shack 9:53 PM >push cardboard The bell is too high for you to reach. >blow bell Erm. I can't parse that sentence. Sorry. >l Outside Shack You're in the woods outside a tiny rundown shack. The windows are all boarded up with rough sheets of plywood and whole sections of the roof appear to be missing. A gap in the snowbank leads back to the road. The bell tinkles gently in the breeze. Outside Shack 9:54 PM >knock on door Nobody replies. Outside Shack 9:55 PM >x plywood They're just boards covering the windows. Outside Shack 9:56 PM >get it The plywood can't be taken. Outside Shack 9:57 PM >push it Pushing the plywood doesn't accomplish anything. Outside Shack 9:58 PM >climb it I'm afraid you can't really climb the plywood. Outside Shack 9:59 PM >l Outside Shack You're in the woods outside a tiny rundown shack. The windows are all boarded up with rough sheets of plywood and whole sections of the roof appear to be missing. A gap in the snowbank leads back to the road. The bell tinkles gently in the breeze. Outside Shack 10:00 PM >get bell The bell is too high for you to reach. >jump You cheerfully jump up and down on the spot for a bit. Outside Shack 10:01 PM >n Lacking a compass you haven't any means for knowing the cardinal directions. Outside Shack 10:02 PM >out Still further up the road from your car Still further up the road from your car 10:03 PM >u Some distance up the road from your car You are standing on a road that twists through thick winter forest. Snow falls, heavy and silent, out of the sky. Some distance up the road from your car 10:04 PM >verbose Okay. Now in 'Long' mode. You will always see a full description for every location you enter, regardless of whether you've been there before or not. Some distance up the road from your car You're out on a narrow mountain road that runs through a dense winter forest. Tall snowbanks left by the snowploughs line the road, making you feel as though you're in a wide white trough. You can faintly hear the sound of small bell tinkling, coming from back down the road. >u Mountain road You're standing on a winding mountain road that leads through winter forest. Snow falls, heavy and silent, out of the sky. Mountain road 10:05 PM >u Mountain road This is a twisty mountain highway that runs through a dense evergreen forest. High ridges of snow line the road, pushed into great hills by the snowploughs. Snowflakes spin down out of the night sky. Mountain road 10:06 PM >u Mountain road You are now standing on a twisty mountain highway that runs through a dense evergreen forest. Tall snowbanks left by the snowploughs line the road, making you feel as though you're in a wide white trough. Snow falls from the darkened sky. Mountain road 10:07 PM >u Mountain road This is a winding mountain road that leads through winter forest. Mountain road 10:08 PM >u Mountain road A twisty mountain highway that runs through thick winter forest. High snowbanks left by the snowploughs stand to either side. Snowflakes spin down out of the night sky. Mountain road 10:09 PM >u Mountain road You're standing out on a twisty mountain highway that runs through thick winter forest. Snow falls, heavy and silent, out of the sky. Mountain road 10:10 PM >u Mountain road This is a twisty mountain highway that runs through a dense evergreen forest. Mountain road 10:11 PM >u Mountain road This is a winding mountain road that leads through a dense evergreen forest. High ridges of snow line the road, pushed into great hills by the snowploughs. Mountain road 10:12 PM >u Mountain road This is a narrow mountain road that runs through a dense winter forest. Snowflakes spin down out of the night sky. Mountain road 10:13 PM >u Mountain road You are now standing on a road that twists through a dense evergreen forest. High ridges of snow line the road, pushed into great hills by the snowploughs. Snow falls from the darkened sky. Mountain road 10:14 PM >u Mountain road You find yourself standing on a twisty mountain highway that runs through a dense evergreen forest. Tall snowbanks left by the snowploughs line the road, making you feel as though you're in a wide white trough. Snowflakes spin down out of the night sky. Mountain road 10:15 PM >u Mountain road You're out on a winding mountain road that leads through winter forest. High ridges of snow line the road, pushed into great hills by the snowploughs. Snow falls from the darkened sky. Mountain road 10:16 PM >u Mountain road You are now standing out on a road that twists through a dense winter forest. Tall snowbanks left by the snowploughs line the road, making you feel as though you're in a wide white trough. Snow falls, heavy and silent, out of the sky. Mountain road 10:17 PM >u Mountain road You're standing on a narrow mountain road that runs through winter forest. High snowbanks left by the snowploughs stand to either side. Snow falls, heavy and silent, out of the sky. Mountain road 10:18 PM >u Mountain road You're standing out on a narrow mountain road that runs through winter forest. High snowbanks left by the snowploughs stand to either side. Mountain road 10:19 PM >d (since you're not capable of burrowing into the frozen surface of the tarmac, I assume you mean 'go down the road.') Mountain road This is a twisty mountain highway that runs through a dense winter forest. High ridges of snow line the road, pushed into great hills by the snowploughs. Snow falls, heavy and silent, out of the sky. Mountain road 10:20 PM >d Mountain road You're standing on a narrow mountain road that runs through a dense evergreen forest. Tall snowbanks left by the snowploughs line the road, making you feel as though you're in a wide white trough. Snow falls, heavy and silent, out of the sky. Mountain road 10:21 PM >d Mountain road A twisty mountain highway that runs through a dense evergreen forest. Snow falls, heavy and silent, out of the sky. Mountain road 10:22 PM >d Mountain road You are out on a narrow mountain road that runs through a dense evergreen forest. High snowbanks left by the snowploughs stand to either side. Mountain road 10:23 PM >d Mountain road You're standing out on a road that twists through a dense evergreen forest. Mountain road 10:24 PM >d Mountain road This is a road that twists through a dense winter forest. High ridges of snow line the road, pushed into great hills by the snowploughs. Mountain road 10:25 PM >d Mountain road A road that twists through a dense winter forest. High snowbanks left by the snowploughs stand to either side. Mountain road 10:26 PM >d Mountain road You are standing on a twisty mountain highway that runs through a dense winter forest. High snowbanks left by the snowploughs stand to either side. Mountain road 10:27 PM >d Mountain road You're standing out on a road that twists through thick winter forest. High ridges of snow line the road, pushed into great hills by the snowploughs. Mountain road 10:28 PM >d Mountain road You are now standing out on a winding mountain road that leads through thick winter forest. High snowbanks left by the snowploughs stand to either side. Snowflakes spin down out of the night sky. Mountain road 10:29 PM >d Mountain road You're standing on a twisty mountain highway that runs through winter forest. High ridges of snow line the road, pushed into great hills by the snowploughs. Snowflakes spin down out of the night sky. Mountain road 10:30 PM >d Mountain road You're now standing on a road that twists through thick winter forest. Tall snowbanks left by the snowploughs line the road, making you feel as though you're in a wide white trough. Snow falls from the darkened sky. Mountain road 10:31 PM >d Mountain road You're now on a narrow mountain road that runs through winter forest. Tall snowbanks left by the snowploughs line the road, making you feel as though you're in a wide white trough. Snowflakes spin down out of the night sky. Mountain road 10:32 PM >d Mountain road This is a road that twists through winter forest. High snowbanks left by the snowploughs stand to either side. Mountain road 10:33 PM >d Some distance up the road from your car A winding mountain road that leads through thick winter forest. High ridges of snow line the road, pushed into great hills by the snowploughs. Snow falls from the darkened sky. You can faintly hear the sound of small bell tinkling, coming from back down the road. Some distance up the road from your car 10:34 PM >d Still further up the road from your car You are standing on a road that twists through thick winter forest. Snow falls from the darkened sky. Interestingly, there's a sort of gap cut into the snowbank on one side. The faint tinkling of a small bell seems to be coming from the gap. Still further up the road from your car 10:35 PM >d Further up the road from your car This is a winding mountain road that leads through thick winter forest. High ridges of snow line the road, pushed into great hills by the snowploughs. Snow falls, heavy and silent, out of the sky. The breeze carries the faint sound of a bell or a chime, coming from somewhere up the road. Further up the road from your car 10:36 PM >d Up the road from your car You're standing on a road that twists through winter forest. Tall snowbanks left by the snowploughs line the road, making you feel as though you're in a wide white trough. Up the road from your car 10:37 PM >d Outside your Car You stand in deep snow next to your ignominiously stationary car. It's something like standing in a deep white trough or perhaps a giant bobsleigh run - the walls of snow left by the ploughs are over two metres tall. High above you, the dark shadows of the tall conifers that line the highway. Outside your Car 10:38 PM >d Down the road from your car A road that twists through a dense winter forest. High ridges of snow line the road, pushed into great hills by the snowploughs. Snowflakes spin down out of the night sky. Down the road from your car 10:39 PM >d Further down the road from your car You're standing out on a narrow mountain road that runs through a dense winter forest. High snowbanks left by the snowploughs stand to either side. Snow falls from the darkened sky. Further down the road from your car 10:40 PM >d Still further down the road from your car You are now standing out on a road that twists through a dense winter forest. High ridges of snow line the road, pushed into great hills by the snowploughs. Still further down the road from your car 10:41 PM >d Some distance down the road from your car You're standing out on a narrow mountain road that runs through thick winter forest. Tall snowbanks left by the snowploughs line the road, making you feel as though you're in a wide white trough. Some distance down the road from your car 10:42 PM >d Mountain road A winding mountain road that leads through a dense evergreen forest. High snowbanks left by the snowploughs stand to either side. Mountain road 10:43 PM >d Mountain road This is a road that twists through a dense evergreen forest. High snowbanks left by the snowploughs stand to either side. Snow falls from the darkened sky. Mountain road 10:44 PM >d Mountain road You're standing out on a road that twists through winter forest. Mountain road 10:45 PM >d Mountain road This is a winding mountain road that leads through thick winter forest. High ridges of snow line the road, pushed into great hills by the snowploughs. Snowflakes spin down out of the night sky. Mountain road 10:46 PM >u Mountain road A road that twists through a dense winter forest. Snowflakes spin down out of the night sky. Mountain road 10:47 PM >u Mountain road You're standing out on a narrow mountain road that runs through a dense winter forest. Snow falls, heavy and silent, out of the sky. Mountain road 10:48 PM >u Mountain road You're standing on a twisty mountain highway that runs through a dense winter forest. High ridges of snow line the road, pushed into great hills by the snowploughs. Snow falls from the darkened sky. Mountain road 10:49 PM >u Some distance down the road from your car This is a winding mountain road that leads through a dense evergreen forest. High ridges of snow line the road, pushed into great hills by the snowploughs. Snow falls from the darkened sky. Some distance down the road from your car 10:50 PM >u Still further down the road from your car A road that twists through a dense evergreen forest. Snow falls from the darkened sky. Still further down the road from your car 10:51 PM >u Further down the road from your car This is a narrow mountain road that runs through a dense evergreen forest. High snowbanks left by the snowploughs stand to either side. Snowflakes spin down out of the night sky. This doesn't seem right. You just drove up this stretch of road from Grand Forks. There's nothing between here and Christina Lake, quite a long haul from here. Perhaps you should go the other way. Further down the road from your car 10:52 PM >u Down the road from your car You find yourself standing out on a narrow mountain road that runs through a dense winter forest. Down the road from your car 10:53 PM >u Outside your Car You stand in deep snow next to your ignominiously stationary car. It's something like standing in a deep white trough or perhaps a giant bobsleigh run - the walls of snow left by the ploughs are over two metres tall. High above you, the dark shadows of the tall conifers that line the highway. Outside your Car 10:54 PM >u Up the road from your car You are standing on a road that twists through winter forest. Snowflakes spin down out of the night sky. Up the road from your car 10:55 PM >u Further up the road from your car A twisty mountain highway that runs through winter forest. Tall snowbanks left by the snowploughs line the road, making you feel as though you're in a wide white trough. Snowflakes spin down out of the night sky. Further up the road from your car 10:56 PM >s You haven't got a compass, so you haven't any means for determining the cardinal directions. You can, however, walk up or down the road from here. Further up the road from your car 10:57 PM >d Up the road from your car You are now standing on a twisty mountain highway that runs through a dense winter forest. Up the road from your car 10:58 PM >d Outside your Car You stand in deep snow next to your ignominiously stationary car. It's something like standing in a deep white trough or perhaps a giant bobsleigh run - the walls of snow left by the ploughs are over two metres tall. High above you, the dark shadows of the tall conifers that line the highway. Outside your Car 10:59 PM >open trunk It's locked. Outside your Car 11:00 PM >unlock it With what do you want to unlock that? >key To which key are you referring? The house keys or the car key? >car Unlocked. Outside your Car 11:01 PM >open trunk Opening the trunk reveals a spare tire. Outside your Car 11:02 PM >x tire Which tire do you mean? Are you referring to the car wheels or the spare tire? >spare There's nothing out of the ordinary about the spare tire. Outside your Car 11:03 PM >close trunk Okay. Closed. Outside your Car 11:04 PM >x car Your car, an ageing 1983 Renault Alliance, stuck by the side of the road. It leans partway into the ditch at a rather alarming angle. Not, perhaps, the most powerful or sexy machine on the road, but hey - the entire thing cost a third of just the down payment on even a cheap new car. Admittedly, parts are hard to find given that Renault abandoned the North American market over a decade ago after a spectacularly unsuccessful attempt to make it here, but that's part of the fun, isn't it? In retrospect it was kind of unwise coming out on these roads in such a small vehicle, but the BC road and weather reports promised clear skies with well-ploughed roads - this blizzard literally came up out of the blue. Outside your Car 11:05 PM >u Up the road from your car You are standing on a narrow mountain road that runs through thick winter forest. High ridges of snow line the road, pushed into great hills by the snowploughs. Up the road from your car 11:06 PM >u Further up the road from your car You're standing out on a twisty mountain highway that runs through winter forest. Snow falls from the darkened sky. The breeze carries the faint sound of a bell or a chime, coming from somewhere up the road. Further up the road from your car 11:07 PM >u Still further up the road from your car This is a narrow mountain road that runs through a dense winter forest. Tall snowbanks left by the snowploughs line the road, making you feel as though you're in a wide white trough. Snow falls, heavy and silent, out of the sky. Interestingly, there's a sort of gap cut into the snowbank on one side. The faint tinkling of a small bell seems to be coming from the gap. Still further up the road from your car 11:08 PM >e You haven't got a compass, so you have no way of determining the cardinal directions. You can, however, walk up or down the road from here. Still further up the road from your car 11:09 PM >in (you step back through the narrow gap) Outside Shack You're in the woods outside a tiny rundown shack. The windows are all boarded up with rough sheets of plywood and whole sections of the roof appear to be missing. A gap in the snowbank leads back to the road. The bell tinkles gently in the breeze. Outside Shack 11:10 PM >in (opening the door) Shack You edge into the musty air of the old shack. An old oil lamp rests on a table, casting a dim flickering light around the room. Through the gloom you can make out an empty fireplace, a large easy chair and a doorway to another room. A small glass-topped wooden box rests on the table next to the lamp. Shack 11:11 PM >x chair It's a large soft easy chair, covered with orange and gold fabric. Shack 11:12 PM >x fireplace There's nothing unusual about the fireplace. Shack 11:13 PM >x box It's a small wooden box, about twenty by thirty centimetres in size. It has a glass top, and has been subdivided into six sections of equal size. The first contains a stuffed toy mouse, the second a pair of drawing compasses, the third a clockwork tin robot, the fourth a stuffed toy monkey in a pirate costume and the fifth contains a pocketwatch. The sixth space is empty. Shack 11:14 PM >get mouse You'll have to open the wooden box first. >open box There doesn't seem to be any way to open the box. Shack 11:15 PM >in (you edge slowly through the darkness...) In the dark. It's completely dark in here. In the dark 11:16 PM >out Shack You're inside the musty confines of the old shack. Not much here, really - a small table, a very inviting-looking easy chair and an empty fireplace. A doorway leads to a second room. There are a wooden box and a lamp (which is lit) on the small table. Shack 11:17 PM >sit in chair Okay. You're now seated on the easy chair. Shack, on the easy chair 11:18 PM You settle back in the chair, stifling a yawn. >search chair You don't find anything of interest. Shack, on the easy chair 11:19 PM It really is quite relaxing in the chair. You find yourself feeling quite tired - not surprising, given your long and stressful day. >z Time passes... Shack, on the easy chair 11:20 PM You're starting to doze off. Shack, on the easy chair 11:21 PM And finally, you sleep. Panelled Room You're in a dimly-lit room. In addition to the door behind you there are doors to your left, your right and straight ahead. Each pair of doors is curved and set forward from the wall, as though it were a sort of cupboard or armoire. Panelled Room 11:21 PM Panelled Room 6:07 PM Panelled Room 3:12 AM >open door Which door do you mean? Are you referring to the left-hand doors, the right- hand doors, the middle doors or the back doors? >left These are a couple of those self-closing doors that won't stay open. You can just open them and walk through, though. Panelled Room 7:45 PM >left (you open the lefthand doors and step through. The doors swing closed behind you with a click) Panelled Room You're in another dimly-lit room. In addition to the door through which you entered, there are doorways to your right and straight ahead. >forward (you open the centre doors and step through. The doors swing shut behind you with a faint click) Candlelit room Candlelit room 7:45 PMYou step into a large darkened chamber that's lit by flickering candlelight. The ceiling appears to be solid glass, affording a view of a night sky and a brilliant vault of stars. Seated around a table before you are five very familiar figures - only now human-sized and very alive. A mouse, a pair of compasses, a robot, a monkey pirate and a pocketwatch. They gaze back at you cheerfully. The mouse smiles. 'Hello, my dear,' she says. 'Won't you be seated? We've been expecting you.' >x mouse An elderly grey mouse. She's wearing a green dress with a lace apron and bonnet. Candlelit room 7:06 PM 'This is exciting!' whispers the robot to the compasses. 'Look who's arrived!' >x pirate You're looking at a rather grouchy looking monkey, who's dressed in a pirate costume. He frowns and looks around grumpily, a long scimitar at his side. Candlelit room 4:54 AM 'How about another cup of tea, then?' asks the watch, looking over to the robot. >sit (on the empty chair) Okay. You're now sitting down. Candlelit room, on your chair 5:40 PM The mouse gestures at the teapot. 'Would you like a cup of tea?' she asks. >yes You nod your head. 'Splendid!' The mouse beams and takes your teacup, then carefully pours out a serving of tea. Steam rises from the cup as you take it from her. Candlelit room, on your chair 4:19 PM >x tea There's nothing out of the ordinary about the small quantity of tea in your teacup. Candlelit room, on your chair 4:12 AM The mouse smiles at you beatifically. 'Such wonderful tea! Normally I'm not into those Oriental drinks at all, but Taro does such a good job!' You notice the robot scowling at this. Oblivous, the mouse continues. 'Now, let me introduce everyone. On your left here we have Alethea the drawing compasses, then Croatoan the monkey pirate, Fugit the pocketwatch and Taro the sushi robot.' Each figure nods and smiles in turn. 'And finally, me.' She curtseys in her chair, a sort of bobbing motion. 'My name is Mrs. Wilkinson.' >x sushi robot A large tin toy robot with a cylindrical head. He whines and buzzes as he moves. The robot looks at you eagerly. 'Do you want some sushi?' he asks. Candlelit room, on your chair 9:24 PM 'Now I really should welcome you to the Place.' says Mrs. Wilkinson. 'That's what we call it here, anyway. We don't exactly know where we are or how we got here, but we were told to wait for you. Because you can lead us out and away from the Darkness.' Darkness. She says it with a capital D, her voice coloured with fear. >ask her about darkness I don't know what you're referring to with 'her.' >ask mouse about darkness You open your mouth to speak but, to your horror, not a sound comes out. You fight a rising sense of panic, but can't utter so much as a whisper. The mouse notices your distress and smiles reassuringly. 'You poor dear,' she says. 'You can't speak, can you? Well, not to worry. That happened to all of us. It has something to do with the way you travel here - it freezes your tongue, we think. But not to worry. Your voice will be back before the day is done!' Candlelit room, on your chair 3:38 PM 'Now, while we've been waiting,' continues the mouse quickly, 'we've been telling stories. It's such a pleasant way to pass the time, wouldn't you say? In fact, we were just getting to Fugit's story.' She gestures to the pocketwatch. >x watch Which watch do you mean? Are you talking about your wristwatch or Fugit the Pocketwatch? >fugit An antique silver pocketwatch, a bit dented and tarnished. Its hands spin and rotate as it moves. Candlelit room, on your chair 2:35 AM 'Well,' says the watch slowly. 'Let's see now. My story is about an old acquaintance of mine... Candlelit room, on your chair 2:35 AM Candlelit room, on your chair 8:01 AM >x stone A smooth, heavy, polished ovoid of a stone, dark silver. There's a small hole at one end, so it might have been hung from a thread or a fine chain. It's about two by three centimetres in size. It looks like a large drop of mercury. Candlelit room, on your chair 10:04 AM 'What a great story!' exclaims the mouse. Now I think it's Alethea's turn.' She looks expectantly over to the drawing compasses. >touch stone Nothing happens. Candlelit room, on your chair 9:45 AM 'Oh.' The compasses look around a bit apprehensively. 'Well, okay. So. Let's see... Candlelit room, on your chair 9:45 AM Candlelit room, on your chair 7:42 AM >x compasses A rather large pair of drawing compasses. They clack and click alertly. Candlelit room, on your chair 12:46 AM The monkey, who had been frowning deeply the whole time, snorts. 'Hrm. What sort of stupid mushy story is that?' he asks. 'And how did they come to be together anyway if they're always apart?' The compasses rattle in annoyance. 'I'm just the storyteller,' she says. 'Don't question the story! Anyway, maybe they met at a party in a city on the plains or something.' The mouse quickly steps in. 'Now, now. It's really not nice to be criticizing the stories like that. Now perhaps we'll move on? I believe it's Croatoan's turn.' She looks over to the monkey, who frowns and casts a surly glance across the table. >z Time passes... Candlelit room, on your chair 2:53 PM 'Look,' says the monkey in a coarse voice. 'I already told you - I don't tell stories. I don't know no stories.' 'Oh come, now!' says the mouse. 'You must know at least one story. Please, in honour of our distinguished guest!' Candlelit room, on your chair 6:03 AM Candlelit room, on your chair 6:03 AM Candlelit room, on your chair 3:15 AM Candlelit room, on your chair 11:28 PM 'The monkey sits back and takes a rough swig of tea. There,' he mutters. 'Your story. Hope you're happy.' 'Well,' say the compasses primly. 'I wasn't very convinced. You claim that's a true story? I mean, you're a monkey!' 'Yeah? Well, that's rich, coming from a pair of compasses!' Croatoan snaps back. 'Children!' exclaims the mouse. 'A little decorum, please. Now. Perhaps Taro could offer his story.' >z Time passes... Candlelit room, on your chair 9:46 AM 'Okay,' says the robot. 'I'm afraid that as a robot I don't really have any good stories of my own. But here's one I heard once. Candlelit room, on your chair 9:46 AM Candlelit room, on your chair 11:13 PMAnd the robot hands you the fine needle which, oddly enough, immediately sticks to the heavy silver stone. Candlelit room, on your chair 12:37 PM 'And now,' says the mouse, 'it's time for my story. And I too would like to tell you about an old friend. Candlelit room, on your chair 12:37 PM Candlelit room, on your chair 1:13 PM Candlelit room, on your chair 10:03 AM 'Now we'd love to hear a story from you, my dear,' says the mouse to you. 'But unfortunately, as you know, your voice hasn't unfrozen from the trip. So perhaps we'll have to wait a bit longer. But in the meantime, we were told to tell you to examine your presents carefully. We'd all like to leave, but we don't know the secret.' >i You're wearing a T-shirt, a sweater, a jacket, jeans, winter boots, glasses, your wristwatch, ski gloves and a woolly toque, and you're carrying house keys, a car key, your teacup, a blue-black stone, a crystal goblet, a canteen and a small leaf. Your teacup contains some tea. The blue-black stone has a needle on it. Candlelit room, on your chair 5:31 AM 'Certainly!' The robot beams and pours some tea into the watch's cup. >[Er, what? 'Certainly!'?] I don't know the special character '[.' >x canteen It's one of those leather water canteens that's shaped, well, sort of like a stomach. It's firmly closed. Candlelit room, on your chair 12:29 AM 'So how long you think before we're finally out of here?' says the robot. >open it You open the canteen, revealing some water. Candlelit room, on your chair 8:35 AM The monkey takes a swig of tea in as manly a way he can. 'Hell if I know. But I damn well hope it's soon!' >drink tea You drink the tea. Hot, slightly astringent, and quite refreshing. (you still have some tea left) Candlelit room, on your chair 12:27 PM The compasses click and snap. >x needle A fine metal sewing needle. Candlelit room, on your chair 11:16 PM The mouse suddenly remarks, 'You know, we were told always to walk north if we got lost.' >put needle on leaf You can't really put the needle on the leaf right now. Candlelit room, on your chair 8:09 AM The mouse looks uneasily up into the sky. >put leaf in cup To which cup are you referring? Your teacup, the Mouse's teacup, the robot's teacup, the compasses' teacup, the monkey pirate's teacup or the pocketwatch's teacup? >my Unfortunately the leaf is slightly too big to fit in the teacup. Candlelit room, on your chair 10:54 PM The watch says, 'I'm quite glad to get rid of that old stone, actually. It did have great sentimental value, but it's magnetic, and that always seems to throw me a little out of sorts.' >put leaf in canteen The leaf is too big to fit into the canteen. Candlelit room, on your chair 4:16 AM The compasses help themselves to another cup of tea. >put needle in teacup To which teacup are you referring? Your teacup, the Mouse's teacup, the robot's teacup, the compasses' teacup, the monkey pirate's teacup or the pocketwatch's teacup? >my Done. Candlelit room, on your chair 9:57 PM The monkey idly scratches himself. >x teacup To which teacup are you referring? Your teacup, the Mouse's teacup, the robot's teacup, the compasses' teacup, the monkey pirate's teacup or the pocketwatch's teacup? >my A glossy black ceramic teacup. It contains some tea and a needle. Candlelit room, on your chair 11:04 AM The compasses click and snap. >get needle You take the needle out of your teacup. Candlelit room, on your chair 10:46 PM The compasses click and snap. >i You're wearing a T-shirt, a sweater, a jacket, jeans, winter boots, glasses, your wristwatch, ski gloves and a woolly toque, and you're carrying house keys, a car key, your teacup, a blue-black stone, a crystal goblet, a canteen, a small leaf and a needle. Your teacup contains some tea. The canteen contains some water. Candlelit room, on your chair 2:54 PM The watch gets up and stretches. >drink tea You drink the tea. Hot, slightly astringent, and quite refreshing. Candlelit room, on your chair 3:56 PM 'Got the time?' asks the monkey of the watch. 'Very funny,' the watch replies. >g I'm afraid you can't repeat that command. >drink tea The teapot is closed. Ergo, the tea is inaccessible. Candlelit room, on your chair 8:44 PM The mouse looks uneasily up into the sky. >pour water into cup To which cup are you referring? Your teacup, the Mouse's teacup, the robot's teacup, the compasses' teacup, the monkey pirate's teacup or the pocketwatch's teacup? >my The small quantity of water in the canteen gurgles into your teacup. Candlelit room, on your chair 4:33 AM The watch says, 'I'm quite glad to get rid of that old stone, actually. It did have great sentimental value, but it's magnetic, and that always seems to throw me a little out of sorts.' >i You're wearing a T-shirt, a sweater, a ski jacket, jeans, winter boots, glasses, your wristwatch, ski gloves and a woolly toque, and you're carrying house keys, a car key, your teacup, a blue-black stone, a crystal goblet, a canteen, a small leaf and a needle. Your teacup contains some water. Candlelit room, on your chair 4:21 PM The monkey idly scratches himself. >put needle on stone The needle sticks to the blue-black stone. Candlelit room, on your chair 2:34 PM The mouse looks uneasily up into the sky. >rip leaf I'm afraid you can't tear up the small leaf. Candlelit room, on your chair 12:35 AM The monkey idly scratches himself. >trim leaf That sentence doesn't seem to have a verb. (at least, it has nothing I recognize as a verb) >put leaf in cup Which cup do you want? Do you mean your teacup, the Mouse's teacup, the robot's teacup, the compasses' teacup, the monkey pirate's teacup or the pocketwatch's teacup? >my Unfortunately the leaf is slightly too big to fit in the teacup. Candlelit room, on your chair 9:43 AM The monkey idly scratches himself. >x my cup A glossy black ceramic teacup. It contains some water. Candlelit room, on your chair 11:02 AM 'Got the time?' asks the monkey of the watch. 'Very funny,' the watch replies. >i You're wearing a T-shirt, a sweater, a ski jacket, jeans, winter boots, glasses, your wristwatch, ski gloves and a woolly toque, and you're carrying house keys, a car key, your teacup, a blue-black stone, a crystal goblet, a canteen and a small leaf. Your teacup contains some water. The blue-black stone has a needle on it. Candlelit room, on your chair 8:40 AM The watch says, 'I'm quite glad to get rid of that old stone, actually. It did have great sentimental value, but it's magnetic, and that always seems to throw me a little out of sorts.' >x toque A brand new black toque. Candlelit room, on your chair 3:19 PM The mouse adjusts her bonnet. >[what the heck is a toque?] I don't know the special character '[.' >x goblet It's a cut crystal goblet. Candlelit room, on your chair 12:19 PM The mouse adjusts her bonnet. >pour water into goblet The small quantity of water in your teacup gurgles into the crystal goblet. Candlelit room, on your chair 6:09 AM The mouse adjusts her bonnet. >put leaf in goblet The leaf floats on the surface of the water. Candlelit room, on your chair 7:57 PM The compasses help themselves to another cup of tea. >put needle on leaf Done. Candlelit room, on your chair 10:32 AM The monkey briefly swings his scimitar at the shadows. >x needle A fine metal sewing needle. Candlelit room, on your chair 4:04 AM The watch briefly winds himself. >x goblet It's a cut crystal goblet, which contains some water and a small leaf. The leaf floats on the surface of the water, and the needle rests on the surface of the leaf. Candlelit room, on your chair 2:02 AM The monkey yawns loudly. >follow needle Hm. I'm afraid that I don't know how you can follow the needle. Candlelit room, on your chair 2:09 AM 'You know,' muses the monkey. 'Sometimes I think that life is just a game being played on someone's computer.' >touch needle with stone Sorry. I think I understand those words, but not in that order. >put stone on needle There isn't a suitable surface to be found on the needle. Candlelit room, on your chair 12:19 PM The mouse looks uneasily up into the sky. >put stone on leaf There isn't much you can put on the leaf. Candlelit room, on your chair 7:30 AM 'Got the time?' asks the monkey of the watch. 'Very funny,' the watch replies. >put stone in goblet You can't fit that into the crystal goblet. Candlelit room, on your chair 8:36 PM The watch gets up and stretches. >i You're wearing a T-shirt, a sweater, a ski jacket, jeans, winter boots, glasses, your wristwatch, ski gloves and a woolly toque, and you're carrying house keys, a car key, your teacup, a blue-black stone, a crystal goblet and a canteen. The crystal goblet contains some water and a small leaf. There is a needle on the small leaf. Candlelit room, on your chair 2:59 AM The mouse suddenly remarks, 'You know, we were told always to walk north if we got lost.' >n (I assume you mean 'north' and not 'no.') I'm afraid that you'll have to get off your chair before you'll be able to go anywhere. Candlelit room, on your chair 10:39 PM The compasses click and snap. >get up Okay. You get up off your chair. Candlelit room 1:22 PM The compasses click and snap. >n (I assume you mean 'north' and not 'no.') Unfortunately, you haven't got a compass, so you haven't any means for determining any absolute directions. There are four doors here - one to your left, one to your right, one behind you and one in front of you. Candlelit room 9:23 PM The mouse adjusts her bonnet. >l Candlelit room You're in a dark candlelit chamber. Five improbable figures sit around the central table, drinking tea and chatting. There are a teapot and 5 teacups on the round table. Candlelit room 6:49 AM The mouse gets up and relights a guttering candle. >x candle Candles of every size and shape litter the room, illuminating the chamber with a warm flickering light. Candlelit room 11:39 AM The mouse gets up and relights a guttering candle. >get candle The candles can't be taken. Candlelit room 9:11 AM The compasses prod the watch and point into the shadows. >i You're wearing a T-shirt, a sweater, a jacket, jeans, winter boots, glasses, your wristwatch, ski gloves and a woolly toque, and you're carrying house keys, a car key, your teacup, a blue-black stone, a crystal goblet and a canteen. The crystal goblet contains some water and a small leaf. Sitting on the small leaf is a needle. Candlelit room 9:15 AM The compasses click and snap. >x shadows I'd deal with the substance if I were you. Candlelit room 2:39 PM 'You know,' muses the monkey. 'Sometimes I think that life is just a game being played on someone's computer.' >get needle You pick up the needle. Candlelit room 5:18 AM The mouse gets up and relights a guttering candle. >undo (undoing your last command) Candlelit room You're in a dark candlelit chamber. Five improbable figures sit around the central table, drinking tea and chatting. There are a teapot and 5 teacups on the round table. Candlelit room 10:40 AM >turn leaf Turning the small leaf has no effect. Candlelit room 11:41 AM The mouse asks the robot for some more tea. He happily complies. >turn needle Turning the needle has no effect. Candlelit room 9:35 PM The monkey yawns loudly. >get needle You take the needle. Candlelit room 12:02 AM The mouse gets up and relights a guttering candle. >put needle on stone The needle sticks to the blue-black stone. Candlelit room 12:27 AM The watch says, 'I'm quite glad to get rid of that old stone, actually. It did have great sentimental value, but it's magnetic, and that always seems to throw me a little out of sorts.' >z Time passes... Candlelit room 7:14 AM The compasses prod the watch and point into the shadows. Candlelit room 12:29 PM The mouse adjusts her bonnet. Candlelit room 1:41 PM 'Got the time?' asks the monkey of the watch. 'Very funny,' the watch replies. >z Time passes... Candlelit room 9:57 PM The monkey yawns loudly. Candlelit room 3:23 PM The watch gets up and stretches. Candlelit room 4:16 PM The watch says, 'I'm quite glad to get rid of that old stone, actually. It did have great sentimental value, but it's magnetic, and that always seems to throw me a little out of sorts.' >x needle A fine metal sewing needle. Candlelit room 5:09 PM The mouse asks the robot for some more tea. He happily complies. >put needle on leaf Done. Candlelit room 11:35 PM The monkey briefly swings his scimitar at the shadows. >x needle A fine metal sewing needle. Candlelit room 10:58 AM The watch gets up and stretches. >turn What would you like to turn? >me You can't turn yourself. Candlelit room 12:24 AM The compasses help themselves to another cup of tea. >turn goblet Turning the crystal goblet doesn't appear to have any effect. Candlelit room 6:16 AM 'Got the time?' asks the monkey of the watch. 'Very funny,' the watch replies. >turn needle Turning the needle has no effect. Candlelit room 3:13 AM The watch briefly winds himself. >help Welcome to Six Stories! Six Stories is, at its heart, a pretty straightforward work of interactive fiction. (or a text adventure, to be less grandiose) The main enhancement is that the text is supplemented by true-colour illustrations and stereo sound - at least, when used with multimedia versions of the TADS software. The game is perfectly playable in text-only mode, if you aren't able to use the multimedia software, but it's considerably less cool. It's also my entry to the 1999 Interactive Fiction Competition. (http://www.textfire.com/) If you're not familiar with traditional text adventures I can give you an introduction to the basics. Would you like to read it? (it's pretty long, but very useful - type 'extras' if you're a hardened adventurer but just want to see what custom functions this program supports) (please type 'Yes' or 'No') >n Okay. Enjoy your stay in Six Stories! >hint Welcome to Six Stories! Six Stories is, at its heart, a pretty straightforward work of interactive fiction. (or a text adventure, to be less grandiose) The main enhancement is that the text is supplemented by true-colour illustrations and stereo sound - at least, when used with multimedia versions of the TADS software. The game is perfectly playable in text-only mode, if you aren't able to use the multimedia software, but it's considerably less cool. It's also my entry to the 1999 Interactive Fiction Competition. (http://www.textfire.com/) If you're not familiar with traditional text adventures I can give you an introduction to the basics. Would you like to read it? (it's pretty long, but very useful - type 'extras' if you're a hardened adventurer but just want to see what custom functions this program supports) (please type 'Yes' or 'No') >n Okay. Enjoy your stay in Six Stories! >extras Here are some useful additional extra verbs that Six Stories supports, many of which are unique to this game. background - Switches background textures on and off - assuming you have graphics available and enabled. Normally the story starts with background textures turned on if you're using a multimedia interpreter, but obviously not everyone likes them. Abbreviated 'bg.' It's a toggle verb, so typing it once turns the feature off and typing it again turns it back on. bold - Boldfaces input line. Some versions of the TADS interpreter don't let you set the text characteristics of text you type on the input line. This feature allows you to have that text boldfaced if you like. It's a toggle verb, so you type it once to turn the feature on and once to turn it off. Again, if your interpreter already boldfaces user input then this feature really won't make any difference to you. clear - The story sometimes clears the screen for dramatic effect. To disable this function type 'clear'. It's a toggle-style verb. (note that the HTML TADS and HyperTADS programs allow you to view previously cleared chapters of text - look for the menu items. However, some interpreters erase previously- displayed information when they clear the screen) copyright - Displays the copyright information and legal licence for the game. credit - Displays the full list of credits. description - Turns auto description on or off. Normally the game will describe every object to you when you pick it up. Use this command to disable that feature. enter/return - At one point in the story a fair bit of dialogue passes by. Pressing enter or return alone advances the dialogue silently. This is only the case at one particular point. graphics - Normally the game only shows you a given graphic (associated with a location or object or whatever) once. This command toggles whether graphics are show each time or just once. inventory tall - Displays inventory in the old-school vertical format. See also 'traditional'. inventory wide - Displays inventory as a regular sentence, horizontal-style. See also 'traditional'. is x important? - Some people don't like red herrings. This verb is for you - it just tells you if an object is purely decorative. long - Always describes room locations in long form. Also known as the 'verbose' verb. normal - Only describes rooms in their long form the first time you see them. Also known as the 'brief' verb. The story starts up in this mode. short - Never describes rooms in their long form. Also known as the 'superbrief' verb. long detail - Describes objects in slightly longer detail the first time you encounter them. The game defaults in this mode. short detail - Always describes objects in slightly shorter detail. objects - Traditional Inform-style verb that lists all the objects that you've handled. places - Traditional Inform-style verb that lists all the places that you've visited. prompt ">" - Allows you to set the prompt character. Normally the traditional Infocom-style > symbol is used to show that the story is ready for your next command. However, if you want to change that to something else for some reason, you can. Just make sure to enclose your new prompt in quotation marks. Typing 'prompt' without specifying any text resets the prompt to the default > character. quicksave - Saves your current story immediately without asking you for a filename. Each saved point is saved under the name 'qs' followed by a number, and every new quicksaved game has a new number. Abbreviated 'qs.' quickrestore - Restores your previously quicksaved game. Abbreviated 'qr.' tech - Lists the various locations used for the photo shoots and also lists the full list of tech gear used to create the game. traditional - Whether your inventory is displayed as a long vertical list or as a sentence-style horizontal list. This verb is a toggle. walkthrough - This isn't exactly a complicated piece of IF to get through or anything, but for those who like such things - the walkthrough will reveal all. At least, all the basics. when - When you last saved the game and stuff. what is - There are a few minor points of vocabulary that are explained. Asking 'what is x' will always produce a response, though not always a helpful one. >walkthrough Do you really want to view a game walkthrough? It's a lot more fun if you go through it all on your own, I think. (please type 'Yes' or 'No') >y Okay. Well, Six Stories isn't exactly a huge piece of work, and there's really only one puzzle. But here we go: Leave the car. You need to depart the poor vehicle first. Walk up the road. Next, walk up to the road until you find the gap in the snowbank. Enter the shack. Go through the gap and then enter the shack. Have a look round and sit on the chair. You'll be magically transported! Walk through the rooms. This is what I call a non-maze. Choose doors at random until you end up in the candlelit chamber. Have a seat. Your new friends have stories to tell you, so have a listen. Examine the presents. When the stories are over you'll find you've collected quite a few presents. Take a look at at them. Make a compass. Yep, you need a compass. First pour some liquid into the wine glass. Then put the leaf into the glass. Rub the needle with the stone, and finally put the needle onto the leaf. Stand and leave the room. You can now leave the chamber, but be sure to walk north. Continue walking north. Walk north through all the panelled rooms. Go through the places. Each place inhabited by one of the five characters has its own exit, and it's pretty self-explanatory how to find them. Enter the car. Get back into your car and start the engine. > l Candlelit room You're in a dark candlelit chamber. Five improbable figures sit around the central table, drinking tea and chatting. The round table has a teapot and 5 teacups sitting on it. Candlelit room 11:12 AM The compasses help themselves to another cup of tea. >rub needle with stone You rub the needle with the stone, being careful to stroke it in the same direction each time. Candlelit room 11:10 PM 'I wonder which of us will get home first,' say the compasses. >put needle on leaf The needle is already on the small leaf. Candlelit room 11:27 AM 'I'm so excited!' says the robot. 'I can't wait to get back!' >x needle A fine metal sewing needle. Candlelit room 11:28 PM 'I wonder which of us will get home first,' say the compasses. >turn it Turning the needle doesn't accomplish anything. Candlelit room 8:34 AM 'Do you think everything will be the same when we get home?' asks the watch. >turn leaf Turning the small leaf has no effect. Candlelit room 7:60 AM 'I wonder which of us will get home first,' say the compasses. >get needle You take the needle. Candlelit room 2:48 AM 'Got the time?' asks the monkey of the watch. 'Very funny,' the watch replies. >rub needle with stone No need. You've already magnetized the needle. Candlelit room 2:08 PM The mouse looks uneasily up into the sky. >put needle on leaf You carefully place the magnetized needle on the leaf. The leaf spins lazily on the surface of the water for a while, then slowly orients itself to the north. The robot notes the proceedings with interest and nudges the mouse. She looks over at the goblet, then claps her paws delightedly and hops out of her chair. 'Marvelous!' she cries. 'I knew you'd do it! Now we'll be able to leave. As long as we always head north through the woods we'll be fine.' Candlelit room 2:57 AM 'I wonder which of us will get home first,' say the compasses. >n (you open the back doors and step through, followed by your five friends. The doors swing closed behind you with a click) Panelled Room You're in still another dimly-lit room panelled with roughly-textured cedar. In addition to the door through which you entered, there are doors to your left and straight ahead. Panelled Room 10:49 PM 'Hurry!' exclaims the mouse. 'The Darkness has awakened and will soon find us!' >n (you open the lefthand doors and step through, followed by your five friends. The doors swing closed behind you with a click) Panelled Room You're in yet another dimly-lit room. In addition to the door through which you entered there's a doorway straight ahead of you. Panelled Room 1:16 PM The floor trembles and shudders. 'Do you feel that?' asks the robot in obvious fear. >n (you open the centre doors and step through, followed by your five friends. The doors close behind you) Hall of Time You find yourself in a long hallway of sorts that stretches off into the distance, as far as you can see. The walls, floor and ceiling all seem to be made of layers of floating timepieces, suspended against blue sky. Off to one side is a small blue door. 'And now I must leave you,' says the pocketwatch. 'This is my home. You must all pass through that door before the Darkness comes.' He turns to you solemnly. 'Don't worry about me - I'm afraid it's you that the Darkness is after, because of what you hold.' Hall of Time 1:12 AM >n You can't go in that direction. Hall of Time 4:37 AM >s You can't go in that direction. Hall of Time 6:57 PM >l Hall of Time You find yourself in a long hallway of sorts that stretches off into the distance, as far as you can see. The walls, floor and ceiling all seem to be made of layers of floating timepieces, suspended against blue sky. Off to one side is a small blue door. The pocketwatch, the monkey, the robot, the compasses and the mouse are here with you. Hall of Time 4:55 PM >in (opening the blue door) Garden You're in a lush green traditional Japanese garden. Trees are reflected in the waters of a small pond, and a tall stone lantern stands before you. A trail winds northwest through the trees. 'And this is my home,' says the robot, unable to conceal obvious pride despite the circumstances. 'We must follow the trail to the teahouse.' Garden 6:20 AM >follow trail I'm not familiar with the word 'trail.' >nw Outside Teahouse You're standing by the door to a traditional Japanese teahouse. 'And now, please enter the teahouse.' says the robot. 'I will remain here, but will always remember you.' Outside Teahouse 8:54 AM >in (opening the teahouse door) Ship in a Bottle You find yourself aboard an old wooden sailing ship. Strangely the deck beneath your feet feels perfectly solid, as though you were standing on shore. As you look around you notice solid glass walls curving up overhead, to both port and starboard. And you realize that you're aboard a ship in a bottle. 'Ah, home sweet home!' exclaims the monkey, swinging his sword. 'Now you three have to leave quickly.' He points to the bow of the ship, to the north. 'You'll be wanting to go fore, and step down to the water. You can then climb out through the neck. I'll come with you.' Ship in a Bottle 12:59 AM > n (you climb up to the prow of the ship, and gingerly step over the side. To your astonishment you land on firm ground, textured and painted to resemble water perfectly. You and your companions walk up the narrowing neck of the bottle.) Neck of the Bottle 'And here we are,' says the monkey, pointing out the round bottle opening before you. 'No time for goodbyes - just walk through that portal!' Neck of the Bottle 11:18 AM >in (you step through the round portal of glass) Cave You find yourself in the cool air of a dark cave. At first glance the rough curved walls seem to be perfectly natural, but you then notice the cracks and form lines of old poured concrete. Through an opening in the wall you can make out a sort of tunnel, which apparently runs from the cave to the east. 'And now I must bid you farewell,' says the compass sadly. 'You and Mrs. Wilkinson must take that eastern entrance to take you to your next destination. Goodbye!' Cave 7:44 PM >e Outside a Derelict House You stumble momentarily as you arrive on a low hill, upon which is perched an ominous derelict Victorian house. Looking like every haunted house from your childhood dreams, the building is silhouetted against a red-orange sky. The mouse turns to you. 'Adieu, my dear,' she says. 'Thank you for bringing us all back to our homes. I doubt we'll ever meet again, so please take this.' And she hands you a plain silver ring. It slips perfectly on your finger. 'Now, go!' she urges. 'The Darkness won't leave you until you too are safely home.' She points to the front door of the old house. Outside a Derelict House 10:02 PM >x ring It's a flawless silver ring that fits you perfectly. Outside a Derelict House 10:07 PM >in You feel the shock of ice in your lungs and darkness speckled with stars spins across your vision... Outside your Car You stand in deep snow next to your ignominiously stationary car. It's something like standing in a deep white trough or perhaps a giant bobsleigh run - the walls of snow left by the ploughs are over two metres tall. High above you, the dark shadows of the tall conifers that line the highway. The snow-covered road runs back towards the small town of Grand Forks, a good hour's drive away under these conditions, and on towards Castlegar. Outside your Car 1:00 AM >i You're wearing a T-shirt, a sweater, a ski jacket, jeans, winter boots, glasses, your wristwatch, ski gloves, a woolly toque and a silver ring, and you're carrying house keys, a car key and a canteen. Outside your Car 1:01 AM >x ring It's a flawless silver ring that fits you perfectly. Outside your Car 1:02 AM >unlock door With what would you like to unlock that? >car key Unlocked. Outside your Car 1:03 AM >open it You open the car door. Outside your Car 1:04 AM >in (closing the door against the cold) Inside your car You're sitting behind the wheel of your car. It's leaning to the side at a rather unfortunate angle, and it's getting increasingly cold in here now that the engine and heater aren't running. There's a steering column lever here. Resting on the seat is a cell phone. Inside your car 1:05 AM >get phone You take the cell phone. (examining the cell phone) It's a fairly ordinary analogue-mode cellular telephone. The antenna is retracted. It's powered on and the little LCD screen reads 'NO SERVICE'. Looks like you're too far from the nearest cell repeater. Inside your car 1:06 AM >extend antenna You extend the antenna. Makes no difference. The cell phone still displays the message that it isn't in range. Inside your car 1:07 AM >put key in ignition To which key are you referring? The house keys or the car key? >car Done. Inside your car 1:08 AM >turn it You turn the key, expecting the worst. But miraculously the engine starts without hesitation. You turn the heater on full, clear the snow off the windshield with the wipers and reverse smoothly out into the road. Even the headlights are working. You can feel the silver ring, warm on your finger, as you resume your journey. Words, pictures, sound, music, programming and production N.K. Guy The Text Adventure Development System Michael J. Roberts Voice of Taro the Robot Ralph Alfonso Voice of Croatoan the Monkey Pirate Steve Daniels Voice of Alethea the Compasses Cathryn France Voice of Fugit the Pocketwatch John Guy Voice of Mrs. Wilkinson the Mouse Crystal Heald Opening narration N.K. Guy Testing Liza Daly David Dyte Iain Merrick Michael J. Roberts Special thanks David Dyte for puzzle generosity. Volker Blasius, David Kinder and GMD for the IF Archive. Artwerks Design, Nettwerk Productions and Nettwerk Management for kind use of gear -- in particular, Tim Oberthier, Mark Jowett, Geoff Goddard, John Rummen, Ric Arboit and Terry McBride. Iain Merrick with Andrew Pontious for HyperTADS, Chris Nebel for TADS for Mac, Andrew Plotkin for MaxTADS, Stephen Granade for WinTADS, David Kinder for TADS for Amiga and Bob Newell for TADS for Linux. Neil deMause, Stephen Granade and Mike Roberts, for several lines of helpful code. The Vancouver Maritime Museum. Christina Dunkley, Armand Sebris, Catherine McLaren and Tracy Harvey. Location photography Vancouver, BC, Canada Cypress Bowl Provincial Park, BC, Canada Mount Seymour Provincial Park, BC, Canada Richmond, BC, Canada Nitobe Gardens, University of British Columbia, Canada Osoyoos, BC, Canada Whistler, BC, Canada Nek Chand's Rock Garden, Chandigarh, India Somewhere near Leh, Ladakh, India Black Rock City, Nevada, USA Death Valley National Park, California, USA Copyright (c) MCMXCIX N.K. Guy For Gwyn Jones 1936-1997