  
ClubFloyd Transcript:
The idea behind ClubFloyd is that each
week at a pre-arranged time, a group of
people meet online to cooperatively play
a game of interactive fiction.
ANOTHER WARNING! A lot (most!) of the transcripts contained on this site are, shall we say, family-friendly. This is not one of those family-friendly transcripts. Just so we're clear. |
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ToyShop & Floyditorium
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#ClubFloyd Discussion
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| Jacqueline says (to Floyd), "load sleepmask balderstone2" | ||
Floyd | > ] Lounge Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Good evening. My name is Ryan Veeder. It is my great pleasure, in this Floyd | festive and frightening season, to welcome you once again to Castle Floyd | Balderstone: America's legendary hotbed of horror, a treasure trove of Floyd | the morose, macabre, and monstrous. Its crooked pinnacles continue to Floyd | slash blasphemously against ever-present clouds; its grim silhouette Floyd | is still a stain of absolute blackness in the midst of a black sky. Floyd | Floyd | This year, as they did last year—as they do every year—the greatest Floyd | spookcrafters working in the English language have assembled in Castle Floyd | Balderstone's drafty halls to test their latest material on the only Floyd | audience possessed of hearts so inured to terror as to withstand the Floyd | absolute scariest stories—each other. Floyd | Floyd | Tonight, once again, you are my plus-one to this wedding of the weird Floyd | and the wicked. Floyd | Floyd | As we ascend again the winding stairs of Castle Balderstone, the wind Floyd | outside howls in warning, and the temperature drops until your teeth Floyd | chatter in the cold—or is it in recollection of the horrors you Floyd | witnessed here one year ago? Floyd | Floyd | We trudge again through antique galleries, across musty hallways, and Floyd | down forgotten corridors. The occasional window offers no view of a Floyd | friendly outside world, but of walls, towers, and perilously pitched Floyd | roofs, confirming what your aching legs and ragged breath have already Floyd | predicted: that the labyrinthine architecture of Castle Balderstone is Floyd | one you can never hope to escape. Nevertheless we continue on, through Floyd | another creaking door... Floyd | Floyd | ...And into a warm sitting-room, where velvet couches sit in a circle Floyd | near a roaring fire. The walls are lined with bookshelves, stacked Floyd | with titles you recognize as those you have never been brave enough to Floyd | read. You recognize the occupants of the couches, as well: Floyd | murder-mongers, evil-experts, ghost-gurus, monster-maestros, Floyd | vampire-virtuosos, and dread-distributors. These are the infamous Floyd | authors of Castle Balderstone, and you are their latest victim, again. Floyd | Floyd | I really thought that we'd get here on time this year, but just like Floyd | last time, everyone else is already here and they're all waiting for Floyd | us, so we take our seats in a conspicuous display of embarrassed Floyd | hurriedness and loudly-whispered apologies. When the chamber is quiet Floyd | at last, the first author rises to share with us the first tale of the Floyd | evening. Floyd | Floyd | It is Johanna C. Quinn, an elder stateswoman of the dread-distribution Floyd | community. Oh, this woman messes with my head. Floyd | Floyd | It is common knowledge that Johanna's earliest work was in the field Floyd | of technical writing. She wrote operation manuals for microwave Floyd | ovens—but she lost her job when customers started complaining that Floyd | the Floyd | instructions were too scary. That's when she realized her destiny and Floyd | turned her hand to writing horror: Dense, cerebral horror. Stuff that Floyd | terrifies you on a philosophical level. Floyd | Floyd | A younger author assists Johanna in climbing the dais. She leans Floyd | heavily on the lectern, and pauses a moment before she speaks: Floyd | Floyd | "The story I've brought tonight is a true one. It happened to one of Floyd | my grandchildren. I've changed the superficial details for privacy's Floyd | sake. And I've changed a few other things for the sake of structure. Floyd | To align certain symmetries, to tighten up pacing—to eliminate Floyd | needless repetition, for often, the most important thing is to get to Floyd | the point. Speaking of which," she says, and she begins to read... Floyd | Floyd | Ryan Veeder Presents Floyd | Where We Can Hear the Whispering Dark Floyd | A story by Johanna C. Quinn Floyd | Release 1 / Serial number 191031 / Inform 7 build 6M62 (I6/v6.33 lib Floyd | 6/12N) SD Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | You lie on the couch and look up at the stars. A little while later, Floyd | you fall asleep. Floyd | Floyd | Some unmeasured time later you awaken. The stars haven't moved; all is Floyd | quiet. Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Lounge Floyd | You stand up, stretch, shake your arms and legs a little. The Floyd | professor disapproves of your sleeping on the couch, so you have to Floyd | enjoy the opportunity whenever you can get away with it. Floyd | Floyd | This was designed to be a cozy hangout spot, with as many amenities as Floyd | could be crammed into the limited space: a TV, a microwave, a decent Floyd | couch. You still spend most of your time here, but you stopped Floyd | actively enjoying it a while ago. Even the skylight has become so much Floyd | wallpaper for you; the view never changes. Floyd | Floyd | Passages through the rock lead east, west, and south. Floyd | Floyd | > | Jacqueline exclaims, "!" | |
| Knight_Otu says, "I don't think it matters if you didn't play the original." | ||
| DavidW says, "wow long text dump" | ||
| Jacqueline says, "I'm gonna need a sec." | ||
| Knight_Otu says, "Lotsa text." | ||
| jlvp says, "I have submitted two walk-throughs one is for Detective by Matt Baringer The other one is Baltimore 24" | ||
| DavidW says, "I sense that the microwave will be important in this story" | ||
| DavidW asks, "Who's driving today?" | ||
| wordsmith says, "I'll take a turn." | ||
| Jacqueline says, "Okay. I'm finally done reading." | ||
| DavidW says, "okay" | ||
| Knight_Otu says, "I'm done as well." | ||
| jlvp asks, "what game is this?" | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "x me" | ||
Floyd ] Lounge Floyd | > Floyd | > X ME Floyd | Floyd | You're not in great shape, but you haven't had much of a reason to Floyd | take great care of yourself lately. Floyd | Floyd | > | Jacqueline says (to DW), "Oooh. Good point about the microwave" | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "x microwave" | ||
Floyd ] Lounge Floyd | > Floyd | > X MICROWAVE Floyd | Floyd | The microwave is a mess. You really need to clean it up before the Floyd | professor has a chance to yell at you about it. Floyd | Floyd | > | Jacqueline says, "I was kind of expecting this to be in third person." | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "clean it" | ||
Floyd ] Lounge Floyd | > Floyd | > CLEAN IT Floyd | Floyd | Well, maybe not right this minute. Floyd | Floyd | > | wordsmith exclaims, "!" | |
| Jacqueline says, "hee" | ||
| DavidW says, "We'll make popcorn for a SCARY HOUSE AMULET movie and, well you know the rest" | ||
| mcp arrives, full of neither funk nor fun. | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "x tv" | ||
Floyd ] Lounge Floyd | > Floyd | > X TV Floyd | Floyd | On the screen is the dim image of a sad battery. You must have left it Floyd | on while you were sleeping! Now it'll need a few days to recharge. Floyd | Darn. Floyd | Floyd | > | Jacqueline says (to DW), "hee" | |
| wordsmith says, "That's a very sad battery, indeed." | ||
| Knight_Otu says, "I think it was the same in the original. But I'm not sure since I wasn't all there that day." | ||
| DavidW asks, "couch, skylight?" | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "x couch" | ||
Floyd ] Lounge Floyd | > Floyd | > X COUCH Floyd | Floyd | There's a distinctly you-shaped depression in the eidetic foam. Floyd | Hopefully that'll flatten itself out before the professor notices. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "look under it" | ||
Floyd ] Lounge Floyd | > Floyd | > LOOK UNDER IT Floyd | Floyd | You find nothing of interest. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "search it" | ||
Floyd ] Lounge Floyd | > Floyd | > SEARCH IT Floyd | Floyd | There is nothing on the couch. Floyd | Floyd | > | wordsmith says, "Just for grins..." | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "look for coins under the cushions" | ||
Floyd ] Lounge Floyd | > Floyd | > LOOK FOR COINS UNDER THE CUSHIONS Floyd | Floyd | You can't see any such thing. Floyd | Floyd | > | jlvp says, "it looks like the TV won't be used anytime soon" | |
| DavidW says, "> pour experimental fluid on me-shaped depression" | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "x skylight" | ||
Floyd ] Lounge Floyd | > Floyd | > X SKYLIGHT Floyd | Floyd | A curtain of a million stars hangs outside the skylight: Always the Floyd | same stars, never changing position. The view has become just as Floyd | breathtaking as any cave wall. Floyd | Floyd | > | wordsmith asks, "Which direction from here: S, W, or E?" | |
| DavidW says, "East, since it was listed first." | ||
| Knight_Otu says, "Yeah, east." | ||
| wordsmith says, "Works for me." | ||
| Jacqueline says, "I think I'd still be okay with a view of stars that didn't move." | ||
| Jacqueline says, "Still sounds pretty." | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "e" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > E Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Cabin Floyd | Your quarters are so small that the professor can't even fit inside, Floyd | which at least means they afford some privacy. This is the only upside Floyd | of living in such a tiny little hole. Floyd | Floyd | Since Professor Thezh went to sleep, you've been sleeping exclusively Floyd | on the couch, so your bed is covered in a pile of clothes and trash. Floyd | Above the bed, a lenticular poster is glued to the ceiling. Floyd | Floyd | Narrow passages lead east, west, and south. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "There's some mini-videos I watched where the stars stay still and the Earth rotates." | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "x poster" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > X POSTER Floyd | Floyd | It's not even that racy, but you can't imagine the professor would Floyd | approve. Thezh has a low opinion of human anatomy in general, clothed Floyd | or not. Floyd | Floyd | > | Knight_Otu says, "Hm. Weird." | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "look under bed" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > LOOK UNDER BED Floyd | Floyd | The bed is flush with the floor; there is no cool hiding place Floyd | underneath. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "I get the feeling Prof isn't human. Or we aren't." | |
| wordsmith says, "Right. Or both." | ||
| Knight_Otu says, "It sounds like the professor... what David just said." | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "search bed" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > SEARCH BED Floyd | Floyd | You find nothing of interest. Floyd | Floyd | > | wordsmith asks, "East again?" | |
| DavidW says, "Search the clothes, please. Find a coin or lighter or something." | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "x clothes" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > X CLOTHES Floyd | Floyd | Everything you haven't felt like dealing with is here: Dirty clothes, Floyd | mostly, but also a lot of dishes and stuff that you couldn't be Floyd | bothered to clean or throw away or whatever you're supposed to do with Floyd | them. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "search them" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > SEARCH THEM Floyd | Floyd | I'm not sure what 'them' refers to. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "search clothes" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > SEARCH CLOTHES Floyd | Floyd | That's a scary prospect. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "i" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > I Floyd | Floyd | You are carrying nothing. Floyd | Floyd | > | Knight_Otu says, "Ew." | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "search pile" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > SEARCH PILE Floyd | Floyd | That's a scary prospect. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "x trash" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > X TRASH Floyd | Floyd | Everything you haven't felt like dealing with is here: Dirty clothes, Floyd | mostly, but also a lot of dishes and stuff that you couldn't be Floyd | bothered to clean or throw away or whatever you're supposed to do with Floyd | them. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "PC can handle the word lenticular but not dirty laundry. Must be male." | |
| wordsmith asks, "Other ideas?" | ||
| DavidW says, "East" | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "e" | ||
Floyd ] Tunnel Floyd | > Floyd | > E Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Tunnel Floyd | Cramped tunnels worm their way through the asteroid, their paths Floyd | dictated by the integrity of the surrounding basalt. Why would Floyd | they put an observatory in such a tiny hunk of rock? Because the Floyd | astronomy department couldn't afford anything better. But why does Floyd | it have to be me stuck out here? Well, because of all those Floyd | decisions you made. Floyd | Floyd | From this intersection, the passages go north, east, south, and west. Floyd | Floyd | > | Knight_Otu asks, "Asteroid base, huh?" | |
| DavidW says, "okay." | ||
| jlvp says, "I wonder if there's anything hidden under the poster" | ||
| wordsmith asks (of DavidW), "Are you mapping?" | DavidW says (to ws), "yes" | |
| DavidW says, "So far we're going due east each time." | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "look behind poster" | ||
Floyd ] Tunnel Floyd | > Floyd | > LOOK BEHIND POSTER Floyd | Floyd | You can't see any such thing. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "w" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > W Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Cabin Floyd | Your quarters are so small that the professor can't even fit inside, Floyd | which at least means they afford some privacy. This is the only upside Floyd | of living in such a tiny little hole. Floyd | Floyd | Since Professor Thezh went to sleep, you've been sleeping exclusively Floyd | on the couch, so your bed is covered in a pile of clothes and trash. Floyd | Above the bed, a lenticular poster is glued to the ceiling. Floyd | Floyd | Narrow passages lead east, west, and south. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "Poster was back a room" | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "look behind poster" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > LOOK BEHIND POSTER Floyd | Floyd | You can't see any such thing. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "look above poster" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > LOOK ABOVE POSTER Floyd | Floyd | You can't see any such thing. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "peel poster" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > PEEL POSTER Floyd | Floyd | That's not a verb I recognize. Floyd | Floyd | > | wordsmith says, "Oh, well." | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "e" | ||
Floyd ] Tunnel Floyd | > Floyd | > E Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Tunnel Floyd | Cramped tunnels worm their way through the asteroid, their paths Floyd | dictated by the integrity of the surrounding basalt. From this Floyd | intersection, the passages go north, east, south, and west. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "Watch us trade the poster for a Mars bar from the space pirate." | |
| Knight_Otu says, "I think Inform only implements look under by default." | ||
| wordsmith says, "Ah." | ||
| wordsmith asks, "North now?" | ||
| DavidW says, "no, east" | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "e" | ||
Floyd ] Lounge Floyd | > Floyd | > E Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Lounge Floyd | This was designed to be a cozy hangout spot, with as many amenities as Floyd | could be crammed into the limited space: a TV, a microwave, a decent Floyd | couch. You still spend most of your time here, but you stopped Floyd | actively enjoying it a while ago. Even the skylight has become so much Floyd | wallpaper for you; the view never changes. Floyd | Floyd | Passages through the rock lead east, west, and south. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "huh" | |
| Knight_Otu says, "Wraps around." | ||
| wordsmith says, "Toroidal." | ||
| DavidW says, "So it does." | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "s" | ||
Floyd ] Study Floyd | > Floyd | > S Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Study Floyd | This is where all the work gets done: This is where Professor Thezh Floyd | analyzes data, tests theories, and mutters bitterly in Sadalbari about Floyd | you know not what. You had hoped that being a research assistant would Floyd | involve a lot of sitting in with the professor, bouncing ideas off Floyd | each other. As it turns out, your assistantship mostly consists of Floyd | performing chores and staying out of Thezh's way. Floyd | Floyd | The professor's amphisbaena is situated in front of the chalkboard, Floyd | taking up most of the space in this little cave. Tunnels lead north, Floyd | east, south, and west. Floyd | Floyd | > | wordsmith says, "Amphisbaena is a two-headed snake, I think." | |
| Knight_Otu says, "Usually yes." | ||
| Knight_Otu says, "Might be some kind of alien serpent here." | ||
| DavidW says, "Not a word I'm familiar with" | ||
| wordsmith says, "Sure." | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "x chalkboard" | ||
Floyd ] Study Floyd | > Floyd | > X CHALKBOARD Floyd | Floyd | You can understand maybe a third of the material currently on the Floyd | chalkboard. It's not that you have any trouble reading the professor's Floyd | writing (which is almost too precise), but certain equations and Floyd | assumptions are still a mystery to you. Floyd | Floyd | You're enough of an astronomer to understand the basic principles of Floyd | Thezh's work. For as long as you've been at the observatory, though, Floyd | you don't feel like you've learned anything new. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "x amphisbaena" | ||
Floyd ] Study Floyd | > Floyd | > X AMPHISBAENA Floyd | Floyd | This sprawling piece of furniture is ostensibly the Sadalbari Floyd | equivalent of an easy chair, but the way the professor "sits" or Floyd | "reclines" in it has never looked particularly comfortable. Floyd | Floyd | > | Knight_Otu says, "Huh. An alien chair." | |
| wordsmith asks, "East now?" | ||
| DavidW says, "okay" | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "look under amphisbaena" | ||
Floyd ] Study Floyd | > Floyd | > LOOK UNDER AMPHISBAENA Floyd | Floyd | You find nothing of interest. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "e" | ||
Floyd ] Telescope Floyd | > Floyd | > E Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Telescope Floyd | The radio telescope's dish is almost as wide as the asteroid is long, Floyd | and from outside it looks a lot like a soup bowl strapped to a potato. Floyd | Inside, the bottom of the dish forms a convex ceiling for the chamber Floyd | below, forcing you to hunch over and contort yourself to get around. Floyd | Floyd | Some slightly more comfortable tunnels lead north, east, and west. Floyd | Floyd | > | Knight_Otu says, "Yeah." | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "x telescope" | ||
Floyd ] Telescope Floyd | > Floyd | > X TELESCOPE Floyd | Floyd | The dish has various components, but it's primarily a huge metal dome. Floyd | Your first week at the observatory, you banged your head on it pretty Floyd | hard, and the professor—who somehow has no trouble getting around in Floyd | here—spent a few days reminding you that you'd be responsible for Floyd | repairs if any of the equipment was somehow damaged by the impact of Floyd | your skull. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "search it" | ||
Floyd ] Telescope Floyd | > Floyd | > SEARCH IT Floyd | Floyd | You find nothing of interest. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "e" | ||
Floyd ] Computer Lab Floyd | > Floyd | > E Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Computer Lab Floyd | Professor Thezh calls this rat's nest of cables and interfaces "the Floyd | computer," as if it were a single, discrete, manageable object. The Floyd | desk is a mess, too; that's partially your fault. Floyd | Floyd | There are ways out to the north, east, and west. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "search desk" | ||
Floyd ] Computer Lab Floyd | > Floyd | > SEARCH DESK Floyd | Floyd | You lack the willpower. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "search cables" | ||
Floyd ] Computer Lab Floyd | > Floyd | > SEARCH CABLES Floyd | Floyd | You find nothing of interest. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "Just examine the desk." | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "x desk" | ||
Floyd ] Computer Lab Floyd | > Floyd | > X DESK Floyd | Floyd | You knew when you signed on for this assistantship that there would be Floyd | a lot of downtime while Professor Thezh hibernated, so you prepared to Floyd | embark on several stimulating new hobbies. Here at this desk are your Floyd | abandoned poems, your abandoned origami, your abandoned watercolors, Floyd | the first pages of a memoir... Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "Find that drawer all desks have." | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "search drawer" | ||
Floyd ] Computer Lab Floyd | > Floyd | > SEARCH DRAWER Floyd | Floyd | You can't see any such thing. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "Except this one, I guess." | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "read poems" | ||
Floyd ] Computer Lab Floyd | > Floyd | > READ POEMS Floyd | Floyd | To look at all this stuff too closely would be to invite a surge of Floyd | emotions that you can't handle right now. Floyd | Floyd | > | Knight_Otu says, "A rare drawerless desk." | |
| jlvp goes home. | DavidW says, "It happens." | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "read memoir" | ||
Floyd ] Computer Lab Floyd | > Floyd | > READ MEMOIR Floyd | Floyd | To look at all this stuff too closely would be to invite a surge of Floyd | emotions that you can't handle right now. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "e" | ||
Floyd ] Study Floyd | > Floyd | > E Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Study Floyd | This is where all the work gets done: This is where Professor Thezh Floyd | analyzes data, tests theories, and mutters bitterly in Sadalbari about Floyd | you know not what. The professor's amphisbaena is situated in front of Floyd | the chalkboard, taking up most of the space in this little cave. Floyd | Tunnels lead north, east, south, and west. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "That was expected. South next." | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "s" | ||
Floyd ] Hibernation Pod Floyd | > Floyd | > S Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Hibernation Pod Floyd | Professor Thezh floats in its tank of viscous sedatives, dreaming its Floyd | incomprehensible dreams. Floyd | Floyd | The rest of the asteroid is north. Floyd | Floyd | > | Knight_Otu says, "Hello there, prof." | |
| Jacqueline says, "That sounds pretty hygge." | ||
| wordsmith says (to Jacqueline), "Or maybe suffocating." | DavidW says, "x prof. x tank" | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "x pod" | ||
Floyd ] Hibernation Pod Floyd | > Floyd | > X POD Floyd | Floyd | Numerous pumps and monitors are hooked up to the professor's pod; a Floyd | large chunk of the observatory's energy budget is devoted to keeping Floyd | the professor asleep while also keeping it alive. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "x professor" | ||
Floyd ] Hibernation Pod Floyd | > Floyd | > X PROFESSOR Floyd | Floyd | The Sadalbari life cycle involves the ebb and flow of certain hormones Floyd | that, at peak concentration, induce "pronounced antisocial Floyd | tendencies." How they deal with this on the homeworld is beyond you. Floyd | Professor Thezh's solution was to outfit the observatory with a Floyd | hibernation pod where it can sleep through the "unfriendly phase" and Floyd | effectively experience no interruption in its work—as long as there's Floyd | also a research assistant to handle a few details in the intervening Floyd | months. Floyd | Floyd | The professor stirs. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "uh-oh" | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "g" | ||
Floyd ] Hibernation Pod Floyd | > Floyd | > G Floyd | Floyd | The professor is still. Floyd | Floyd | You must have imagined it. Floyd | Floyd | > | Jacqueline says, "eep" | |
| Jacqueline says, "Sounds like we do not want it to wake up." | ||
| Knight_Otu says, "Run away! Oh, right." | ||
| DavidW says, "We didn't examine north from tunnel." | ||
| wordsmith says, "OK." | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "n" | ||
Floyd ] Study Floyd | > Floyd | > N Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Study Floyd | This is where all the work gets done: This is where Professor Thezh Floyd | analyzes data, tests theories, and mutters bitterly in Sadalbari about Floyd | you know not what. The professor's amphisbaena is situated in front of Floyd | the chalkboard, taking up most of the space in this little cave. Floyd | Tunnels lead north, east, south, and west. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "North, West, North." | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "n" | ||
Floyd ] Lounge Floyd | > Floyd | > N Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Lounge Floyd | This was designed to be a cozy hangout spot, with as many amenities as Floyd | could be crammed into the limited space: a TV, a microwave, a decent Floyd | couch. You still spend most of your time here, but you stopped Floyd | actively enjoying it a while ago. Even the skylight has become so much Floyd | wallpaper for you; the view never changes. Floyd | Floyd | Passages through the rock lead east, west, and south. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "e" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > E Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Cabin Floyd | Your quarters are so small that the professor can't even fit inside, Floyd | which at least means they afford some privacy. This is the only upside Floyd | of living in such a tiny little hole. Floyd | Floyd | Since Professor Thezh went to sleep, you've been sleeping exclusively Floyd | on the couch, so your bed is covered in a pile of clothes and trash. Floyd | Above the bed, a lenticular poster is glued to the ceiling. Floyd | Floyd | Narrow passages lead east, west, and south. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "e" | ||
Floyd ] Tunnel Floyd | > Floyd | > E Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Tunnel Floyd | Cramped tunnels worm their way through the asteroid, their paths Floyd | dictated by the integrity of the surrounding basalt. From this Floyd | intersection, the passages go north, east, south, and west. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "n" | ||
Floyd ] Shuttle Bay Floyd | > Floyd | > N Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Shuttle Bay Floyd | At the "top" of the asteroid is its modest garage, where Professor Floyd | Thezh's skiff is parked. The way out—out into space—is through the Floyd | monolithic pressure gate; the way back into your prison of mazelike Floyd | tunnels is south. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "x skiff" | ||
Floyd ] Shuttle Bay Floyd | > Floyd | > X SKIFF Floyd | Floyd | The shuttle must be a hundred years old. You're pretty sure it almost Floyd | exploded a couple times while you were flying out here. Floyd | Floyd | The trip seemed to take an eternity. You took the wheel while the Floyd | professor slept in the back, rousing itself occasionally to criticize Floyd | your driving ability. When you finally arrived, Thezh insisted on Floyd | landing, so you wouldn't wreck the skiff's paint job. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "search it" | ||
Floyd ] Shuttle Bay Floyd | > Floyd | > SEARCH IT Floyd | Floyd | You find nothing of interest. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "I didn't see a fridge, cupboard, or bathroom in this setup." | |
| DavidW says, "Anyway, if prof wakes up and wants to eat us, head to the cabin where he can't follow." | ||
| wordsmith says, "It seems like we've seen the asteroid now. I can only think of messing with things, like the skiff or the pod the professor is in." | ||
| Jacqueline says, "Ah, true" | ||
| Jacqueline says, "re:cabin, I mean" | ||
| DavidW says, "Try entering the skiff." | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "in" | ||
Floyd ] Shuttle Bay Floyd | > Floyd | > IN Floyd | Floyd | You can't go that way. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "enter skiff" | ||
Floyd ] Shuttle Bay Floyd | > Floyd | > ENTER SKIFF Floyd | Floyd | There are lots of reasons not to poke around in that death trap. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "x wheel" | ||
Floyd ] Shuttle Bay Floyd | > Floyd | > X WHEEL Floyd | Floyd | You can't see any such thing. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "ok, then maybe clean that microwave oven." | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "s" | ||
Floyd ] Tunnel Floyd | > Floyd | > S Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Tunnel Floyd | Cramped tunnels worm their way through the asteroid, their paths Floyd | dictated by the integrity of the surrounding basalt. From this Floyd | intersection, the passages go north, east, south, and west. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "e" | ||
Floyd ] Lounge Floyd | > Floyd | > E Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Lounge Floyd | This was designed to be a cozy hangout spot, with as many amenities as Floyd | could be crammed into the limited space: a TV, a microwave, a decent Floyd | couch. You still spend most of your time here, but you stopped Floyd | actively enjoying it a while ago. Even the skylight has become so much Floyd | wallpaper for you; the view never changes. Floyd | Floyd | Passages through the rock lead east, west, and south. Floyd | Floyd | Somebody screams, and you almost jump out of your skin. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "uh-oh" | |
| wordsmith exclaims, "!" | ||
| Knight_Otu says, "Uh om." | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "clean microwave" | ||
Floyd ] Lounge Floyd | > Floyd | > CLEAN MICROWAVE Floyd | Floyd | You wobble a bit while your nervous system collects itself. Floyd | Floyd | You hear the scream again, and again: It's an alarm, ringing somewhere Floyd | in the observatory. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "Better go see what's wrong." | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "e" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > E Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Cabin Floyd | Your quarters are so small that the professor can't even fit inside, Floyd | which at least means they afford some privacy. This is the only upside Floyd | of living in such a tiny little hole. Floyd | Floyd | Since Professor Thezh went to sleep, you've been sleeping exclusively Floyd | on the couch, so your bed is covered in a pile of clothes and trash. Floyd | Above the bed, a lenticular poster is glued to the ceiling. Floyd | Floyd | Narrow passages lead east, west, and south. Floyd | Floyd | The beeping seems to come from everywhere. Floyd | Floyd | > | Jacqueline says, "Wonder if we were on a timer" | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "s" | ||
Floyd ] Telescope Floyd | > Floyd | > S Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Telescope Floyd | The bottom of the radio telescope dish forms a convex ceiling for the Floyd | chamber below, forcing you to hunch over and contort yourself to get Floyd | around. Floyd | Floyd | Some slightly more comfortable tunnels lead north, east, and west. Floyd | Floyd | The caves echo with repetitive ringing. Floyd | Floyd | > | Jacqueline says, "Or if we triggered it" | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "s" | ||
Floyd ] Telescope Floyd | > Floyd | > S Floyd | Floyd | You can't go that way. Floyd | Floyd | The ringing is starting to make your head hurt. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "e" | ||
Floyd ] Computer Lab Floyd | > Floyd | > E Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Computer Lab Floyd | Professor Thezh calls this rat's nest of cables and interfaces "the Floyd | computer," as if it were a single, discrete, manageable object. The Floyd | desk is a mess, too; that's partially your fault. Floyd | Floyd | There are ways out to the north, east, and west. Floyd | Floyd | The ringing might be louder in here. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "e" | ||
Floyd ] Study Floyd | > Floyd | > E Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Study Floyd | This is where all the work gets done: This is where Professor Thezh Floyd | analyzes data, tests theories, and mutters bitterly in Sadalbari about Floyd | you know not what. The professor's amphisbaena is situated in front of Floyd | the chalkboard, taking up most of the space in this little cave. Floyd | Tunnels lead north, east, south, and west. Floyd | Floyd | You need to find whatever is making that noise. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "s" | ||
Floyd ] Hibernation Pod Floyd | > Floyd | > S Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Hibernation Pod Floyd | Professor Thezh floats in its tank of viscous sedatives, dreaming its Floyd | incomprehensible dreams. Floyd | Floyd | The rest of the asteroid is north. Floyd | Floyd | The ringing is starting to make your head hurt. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "Go back to the lab" | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "n" | ||
Floyd ] Study Floyd | > Floyd | > N Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Study Floyd | This is where all the work gets done: This is where Professor Thezh Floyd | analyzes data, tests theories, and mutters bitterly in Sadalbari about Floyd | you know not what. The professor's amphisbaena is situated in front of Floyd | the chalkboard, taking up most of the space in this little cave. Floyd | Tunnels lead north, east, south, and west. Floyd | Floyd | The caves echo with repetitive ringing. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "w" | ||
Floyd ] Computer Lab Floyd | > Floyd | > W Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Computer Lab Floyd | Professor Thezh calls this rat's nest of cables and interfaces "the Floyd | computer," as if it were a single, discrete, manageable object. The Floyd | desk is a mess, too; that's partially your fault. Floyd | Floyd | There are ways out to the north, east, and west. Floyd | Floyd | The ringing might be louder in here. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "It's something here." | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "search desk" | ||
Floyd ] Computer Lab Floyd | > Floyd | > SEARCH DESK Floyd | Floyd | The sound gets even louder as you turn your attention to the messy Floyd | desk. You shove your way through the clutter, searching more by touch Floyd | than by sight. Your fingers curl around an oblong device, and you feel Floyd | vibrations going up your arm in time with the beeping. Floyd | Floyd | At last the offending object emerges from the mess: It's an alarm Floyd | clock. So that's where that went! Floyd | Floyd | It takes some effort to make it shut up. Did they design this thing to Floyd | be as obnoxious as possible? But now it's quiet. Floyd | Floyd | > | wordsmith says, "heh" | |
| Knight_Otu says, "My." | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "i" | ||
Floyd ] Computer Lab Floyd | > Floyd | > I Floyd | Floyd | You are carrying: Floyd | an alarm clock Floyd | Floyd | > | Jacqueline says, "Well, um, that wasn't so bad." | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "n" | ||
Floyd ] Tunnel Floyd | > Floyd | > N Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Tunnel Floyd | Cramped tunnels worm their way through the asteroid, their paths Floyd | dictated by the integrity of the surrounding basalt. From this Floyd | intersection, the passages go north, east, south, and west. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "e" | ||
Floyd ] Lounge Floyd | > Floyd | > E Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Lounge Floyd | This was designed to be a cozy hangout spot, with as many amenities as Floyd | could be crammed into the limited space: a TV, a microwave, a decent Floyd | couch. You still spend most of your time here, but you stopped Floyd | actively enjoying it a while ago. Even the skylight has become so much Floyd | wallpaper for you; the view never changes. Floyd | Floyd | Passages through the rock lead east, west, and south. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "x clock" | ||
Floyd ] Lounge Floyd | > Floyd | > X CLOCK Floyd | Floyd | You set this alarm when Professor Thezh entered hibernation. On its Floyd | display is a message: Floyd | Floyd | DAY 117 - EXECUTE RADA 29 Floyd | Floyd | That means it's finally time to spin the observatory around. You'll Floyd | have to turn on the computer. Floyd | Floyd | > | Knight_Otu says, "Maybe now we're ... ah." | |
| DavidW says, "back to the lab" | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "w" | ||
Floyd ] Tunnel Floyd | > Floyd | > W Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Tunnel Floyd | Cramped tunnels worm their way through the asteroid, their paths Floyd | dictated by the integrity of the surrounding basalt. From this Floyd | intersection, the passages go north, east, south, and west. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "s" | ||
Floyd ] Computer Lab Floyd | > Floyd | > S Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Computer Lab Floyd | Professor Thezh calls this rat's nest of cables and interfaces "the Floyd | computer," as if it were a single, discrete, manageable object. The Floyd | desk is a mess, too; that's partially your fault. Floyd | Floyd | There are ways out to the north, east, and west. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "I'm surprised you didn't examine the clock." | |
| wordsmith says, "I did, eventually." | ||
| DavidW says, "yes" | ||
| DavidW says, ">turn on computer, I guess." | ||
| wordsmith says, "I was thinking it was a "regular" clock, somehow." | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "turn on computer" | ||
Floyd ] Computer Lab Floyd | > Floyd | > TURN ON COMPUTER Floyd | Floyd | You tap on one of the displays you can reach, and the interface slowly Floyd | wakes itself up. Floyd | Floyd | Professor Thezh's specialization (well, yours too, ostensibly) is in Floyd | the field of Oscevotto emanations, interstellar signals that break Floyd | down under the slightest interference. This makes them impossible to Floyd | detect from any observatory in an inhabited system. Floyd | Floyd | You scroll through menus until you find the reorientation protocol: It Floyd | says the first step is to turn off attitude stabilization. Of course Floyd | you have to do all of this manually. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "turn off stabilization" | ||
Floyd ] Computer Lab Floyd | > Floyd | > TURN OFF STABILIZATION Floyd | Floyd | You stomp across the room to the interface for the attitude Floyd | stabilizer. First you click "Suspend Stabilization," and then Floyd | "Confirm," and then you have to hold down the button for a while to Floyd | prove you really mean it. Floyd | Floyd | To have any chance of detecting Oscevotto emanations, Professor Thezh Floyd | needed an observatory that was as far away from civilization as Floyd | possible—so, in an asteroid cloud around a nameless, near-dead star. Floyd | And to properly image these emanations, the telescope needs to take an Floyd | extremely long "exposure" of interstellar space. Floyd | Floyd | Something stops whirring, and the ground shudders a little bit. Floyd | Floyd | With the first imaging session finally complete, it's time to begin Floyd | scanning the other half of the galaxy. To do that you'll have to Floyd | initiate RADA 29. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "initiate rada 29" | ||
Floyd | > Floyd | > INITIATE RADA 29 Floyd | Floyd | You stomp back across the room to the RCS controls. This is the stupid Floyd | part: Each thruster has its own throttle, and they all have to be Floyd | operated in perfect unison, or else the new orientation will be Floyd | off-target and you'll have to waste fuel making corrections. An easy Floyd | enough task for the professor, but you only have two hands. Floyd | Floyd | You lean over the control panel and try your best to push all the Floyd | throttles forward the same amount. Floyd | Floyd | The room rumbles as the engines come to life, and you sway slightly as Floyd | the asteroid rotates. | DavidW says, "push space" | |
| wordsmith pushes the green 'space' button. | ||
Floyd | the asteroid rotates.Something pops. Floyd | Floyd | Everything lurches to one side, and you fall over the controls. The Floyd | thrusters roar, and you're thrown off the control panel and onto the Floyd | floor. | DavidW says, "oopsie doodle" | |
| Knight_Otu says, "Darnit, protagonist." | ||
| DavidW says, "push space again" | ||
| wordsmith pushes the green 'space' button. | ||
Floyd | floor.You try to get to your feet—but the room goes sideways. You Floyd | fall Floyd | again, tangled in cables. | ||
| wordsmith pushes the green 'space' button. | ||
Floyd | again, tangled in cables.You screw your eyes shut, covering your ears Floyd | with your hands to muffle the screaming engines and suppress your Floyd | nausea. Floyd | Floyd | You may have blacked out for a moment. With no frame of reference, Floyd | only unbearable noise and incomprehensible motion, it's difficult to Floyd | tell. | ||
| wordsmith pushes the green 'space' button. | ||
Floyd ] Computer Lab Floyd | tell.One by one the thrusters die, their fuel cells emptied. Now the Floyd | observatory is silent again. Floyd | Floyd | You crawl toward the nearest wall and stagger most of the way to your Floyd | feet. Floyd | Floyd | Computer Lab Floyd | The room is spinning. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "Bet the skylight shows the local sun approaching." | |
| Knight_Otu says, "We may have also thrown the prof out of bed." | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "x computer" | ||
Floyd ] Computer Lab Floyd | > Floyd | > X COMPUTER Floyd | Floyd | The equipment seems to be okay, but you're having trouble telling one Floyd | component from another. Possibly that panel over there is the attitude Floyd | stabilization interface. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "turn on stabilization" | ||
Floyd ] Computer Lab Floyd | > Floyd | > TURN ON STABILIZATION Floyd | Floyd | You push yourself along the wall toward the attitude controls. You Floyd | click "Enable Stabilization," and then "Confirm," and then you muster Floyd | your last reserves of bodily stability to hold down the button until Floyd | the stupid thing actually starts. Floyd | Floyd | You can hear the reaction wheels spinning and stopping madly as the Floyd | stabilization system struggles to counteract the asteroid's gyration. Floyd | Floyd | Eventually things slow down enough that you can stand unassisted. Floyd | Floyd | Computer Lab Floyd | Everything seems to be more or less where it should be, but all the Floyd | interfaces are blinking with different warnings. Floyd | Floyd | There are ways out to the north, east, and west. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "x interfaces" | ||
Floyd ] Computer Lab Floyd | > Floyd | > X INTERFACES Floyd | Floyd | Most of the warnings are beyond your expertise—but the words Floyd | "HIBERNATION TANK FAILURE" are pretty easy to understand. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "oh dear. We're in big trouble." | |
| wordsmith says, "We knew that was coming at some point..." | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "s" | ||
Floyd ] Computer Lab Floyd | > Floyd | > S Floyd | Floyd | You can't go that way. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "w" | ||
Floyd ] Telescope Floyd | > Floyd | > W Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Telescope Floyd | The telescope seems to be intact, but you can't see much of it from in Floyd | here. Floyd | Floyd | Tunnels lead north, east, and west. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "w" | ||
Floyd ] Study Floyd | > Floyd | > W Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Study Floyd | The professor's amphisbaena is upended, tossed into a corner. The Floyd | floor is wet. Floyd | Floyd | Passages lead north, east, south, and west. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "s" | ||
Floyd ] Hibernation Pod Floyd | > Floyd | > S Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Hibernation Pod Floyd | The tank is empty. None of the monitors are active. Floyd | Floyd | A trail of slime wends its way around the tank, up to your feet. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "n" | ||
Floyd ] Study Floyd | > Floyd | > N Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Study Floyd | The professor's amphisbaena is upended, tossed into a corner. The Floyd | floor is wet. Floyd | Floyd | Passages lead north, east, south, and west. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "oh, he's awake. Joy." | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "n" | ||
Floyd ] Lounge Floyd | > Floyd | > N Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Lounge Floyd | The stars above are still whizzing by wildly. Floyd | Floyd | The couch has been torn apart: Slimy chunks of foam litter the floor. Floyd | The TV and microwave have been smashed and tossed across the room. Floyd | Floyd | Passages through the rock lead east, west, and south. Floyd | Floyd | "Oh, you're alive." Floyd | Floyd | The professor's voice reverberates through the tunnels. Floyd | Floyd | "You know, I've had a lot of worthless research assistants. But I've Floyd | never been saddled with someone possessed of the deleterious Floyd | incompetence it takes to destroy ten million dollars in scientific Floyd | equipment." Well, almost destroy. Floyd | Floyd | > | Knight_Otu says, "Indeed." | |
| Jacqueline asks, "Sorry?" | ||
| Knight_Otu says, "Can we add it to our student loans? Just a slight increase, really." | ||
| wordsmith says, "f e" | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "e" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > E Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Cabin Floyd | It should be safe in here; the professor can't fit through the narrow Floyd | passages. Floyd | Floyd | On your bed is a pile of clothes and trash. Your lenticular poster is Floyd | glued to the ceiling. Floyd | Floyd | Tunnels lead east, west, and south. Floyd | Floyd | "I didn't like you to begin with. I liked you less and less the longer Floyd | you worked for me. Even before I felt the change coming, I was wishing Floyd | there was some way to get rid of you. And while I was sleeping..." Floyd | Floyd | Furious hissing, or sarcastic laughter, or an unnameable sound for an Floyd | equally inhuman emotion fills the asteroid. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "z" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > Z Floyd | Floyd | Time passes. Floyd | Floyd | "I could hear everything. For months. All your snoring, sniffling, Floyd | belching, crying, farting, whistling, muttering—whining Floyd | about Floyd | your cushy assistantship, whining that you had nothing to do—and when Floyd | you finally had something to do, when you had just one job—" Floyd | Floyd | The professor moans, and the asteroid shakes. Floyd | Floyd | You can hear the professor's bulk slithering through the tunnels to Floyd | the east. Floyd | Floyd | > | wordsmith says, "Ima just wait here. Unless someone has other ideas." | |
| DavidW says, "I guess, we try to get to the skiff when the prof isn't in the way." | ||
| DavidW says, "We can" | ||
| Jacqueline nods. | ||
| DavidW says, "We can't stay in the cabin forever." | ||
| Knight_Otu says, "True." | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "save" | ||
Floyd | > Floyd | > SAVE Floyd | %% Enter a save filename to write: | DavidW says, "The skiff is the only way out unless we can pilot this asteroid after Prof leaves." | |
| Jacqueline says, "Oh, ws, we have an autosaver we use." | ||
| Jacqueline asks, "May I?" | ||
| wordsmith exclaims, "Please!" | ||
| Jacqueline says (to Floyd), "cf1" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin
Floyd | > SAVEOk.
Floyd |
Floyd | >
| ||
| Jacqueline clears the save counter. | ||
| Jacqueline says (to Floyd), "SAVE" | ||
| Jacqueline says (to Floyd), "cf1" | ||
Floyd | > Floyd | > SAVE Floyd | %% Enter a save filename to write: Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > SAVEOk. Floyd | Floyd | > | Jacqueline says, "There we go." | |
| Jacqueline says, "Now if you need to save again, just type 'push save'" | ||
| wordsmith says (to Jacqueline), "Thank you." | Jacqueline says, "And it will save cf2, cf3, etc." | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "e" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > E Floyd | Floyd | You enter the tunnel, and something squelches up ahead. Floyd | Floyd | "Ah. There you are," it says, and you hear it scuttling down the Floyd | passageway. In animal terror you retreat—and the noise stops. Floyd | Floyd | "Oh, don't be shy, you blithering waste of air. There's only Floyd | one thing left for you. No point postponing it." Floyd | Floyd | You hold still, and try to breathe quietly. Floyd | Floyd | "The upside is this: As long as the change is happening, I can't be Floyd | held responsible for my actions. The university has all the Floyd | paperwork." Parts of the professor's mouth that aren't busy speaking Floyd | English start purring greedily. "I've never eaten a human research Floyd | assistant before—and it sounds like you've gotten fatter since I've Floyd | been asleep. Am I right about that?" Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "The prof can hear us. That's gonna be a problem. He might not move until we do." | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "w" | ||
Floyd ] Lounge Floyd | > Floyd | > W Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Lounge Floyd | The stars above are still whizzing by wildly. Floyd | Floyd | The couch has been torn apart: Slimy chunks of foam litter the floor. Floyd | The TV and microwave have been smashed and tossed across the room. Floyd | Floyd | Passages through the rock lead east, west, and south. Floyd | Floyd | "I'm getting tired of waiting..." Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "w" | ||
Floyd ] Lounge Floyd | > Floyd | > W Floyd | Floyd | You take a cautious step forward, and you hear the professor scurrying Floyd | toward you again. When you rush back to safety, you hear it retreating Floyd | as well. Then it emits a familiar screech, one you recognize as a sigh Floyd | of frustration. Floyd | Floyd | "Don't be an idiot—At least, try to be less of an idiot. I can hear Floyd | every move you make. You aren't getting out of here alive. There's Floyd | nothing to gain from screwing around—You're just making me angrier." Floyd | Why won't come out of those tunnels after you? Floyd | Floyd | Because it knows that's the only way you could escape. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "Grab some foam from the couch. Stuff your clothes. Make a fake you." | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "get foam" | ||
Floyd ] Lounge Floyd | > Floyd | > GET FOAM Floyd | Floyd | That's not something you can carry around. Floyd | Floyd | The professor's heavy breathing—or whatever that noise is—filters Floyd | in Floyd | through the west tunnel. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "e" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > E Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Cabin Floyd | It should be safe in here; the professor can't fit through the narrow Floyd | passages. Floyd | Floyd | On your bed is a pile of clothes and trash. Your lenticular poster is Floyd | glued to the ceiling. Floyd | Floyd | Tunnels lead east, west, and south. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "e" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > E Floyd | Floyd | Professor Thezh is just down that tunnel. You can hear it rubbing Floyd | against the walls. And you don't want to meet it face to face. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "z" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > Z Floyd | Floyd | Time passes. Floyd | Floyd | The clicking of claws or fangs echoes through the east tunnel. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW asks, "Can we take the poster?" | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "get poster" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > GET POSTER Floyd | Floyd | It's glued to the ceiling! Floyd | Floyd | You hear the professor cough something up, then swallow it. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "w" | ||
Floyd ] Lounge Floyd | > Floyd | > W Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Lounge Floyd | The stars above are still whizzing by wildly. Floyd | Floyd | The couch has been torn apart: Slimy chunks of foam litter the floor. Floyd | The TV and microwave have been smashed and tossed across the room. Floyd | Floyd | Passages through the rock lead east, west, and south. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "Search the clothes again." | |
| Jacqueline asks, "Can we do David's idea, but stuff our clothes with trash?" | ||
| DavidW says, "Or at least examine the clothes again. We have very little to work with." | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "l" | ||
Floyd ] Lounge Floyd | > Floyd | > L Floyd | Floyd | Lounge Floyd | The stars above are still whizzing by wildly. Floyd | Floyd | The couch has been torn apart: Slimy chunks of foam litter the floor. Floyd | The TV and microwave have been smashed and tossed across the room. Floyd | Floyd | Passages through the rock lead east, west, and south. Floyd | Floyd | The professor's heavy breathing—or whatever that noise is—filters Floyd | in Floyd | through the west tunnel. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "e" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > E Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Cabin Floyd | It should be safe in here; the professor can't fit through the narrow Floyd | passages. Floyd | Floyd | On your bed is a pile of clothes and trash. Your lenticular poster is Floyd | glued to the ceiling. Floyd | Floyd | Tunnels lead east, west, and south. Floyd | Floyd | "If you stop being such a coward right now, I promise I'll bite your Floyd | head off first." Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "search clothes" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > SEARCH CLOTHES Floyd | Floyd | You can't think of anything in there that would be any use. Floyd | Floyd | "Come here!" Floyd | Floyd | The clicking of claws or fangs echoes through the east tunnel. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "get trash" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > GET TRASH Floyd | Floyd | Nothing in there is worth taking. Floyd | Floyd | You hear the professor cough something up, then swallow it. Floyd | Floyd | > | Jacqueline says, "aw" | |
| Knight_Otu says, "We thought the microwave would come in handy. Somehow." | ||
| wordsmith asks, "Maybe go south and circle around, then north?" | ||
| DavidW says, "well, check the microwave. Maybe something is useable from it." | ||
| DavidW says, "One of these rooms must have something that will help us." | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "s" | ||
Floyd ] Telescope Floyd | > Floyd | > S Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Telescope Floyd | The telescope seems to be intact, but you can't see much of it from in Floyd | here. Floyd | Floyd | Tunnels lead north, east, and west. Floyd | Floyd | "I can hear you. What are you doing out there?" Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW asks, "Make we can use the dish as a shield?" | |
| DavidW says, "er Maybe" | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "e" | ||
Floyd ] Computer Lab Floyd | > Floyd | > E Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Computer Lab Floyd | Everything seems to be more or less where it should be, but all the Floyd | interfaces are blinking with different warnings. Floyd | Floyd | There are ways out to the north, east, and west. Floyd | Floyd | "Do you think if you'll wait long enough, someone will come rescue Floyd | you?" Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "n" | ||
Floyd ] Computer Lab Floyd | > Floyd | > N Floyd | Floyd | Professor Thezh is just down that tunnel. You can hear it rubbing Floyd | against the walls. And you don't want to meet it face to face. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "e" | ||
Floyd ] Study Floyd | > Floyd | > E Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Study Floyd | The professor's amphisbaena is upended, tossed into a corner. The Floyd | floor is wet. Floyd | Floyd | Passages lead north, east, south, and west. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "search amphisbaena" | ||
Floyd ] Study Floyd | > Floyd | > SEARCH AMPHISBAENA Floyd | Floyd | You find nothing of interest. Floyd | Floyd | "I'm so hungry... Please take pity on your poor old professor." Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW asks, "Take it?" | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "get it" | ||
Floyd ] Study Floyd | > Floyd | > GET IT Floyd | Floyd | That's not something you can carry around. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "push it" | ||
Floyd ] Study Floyd | > Floyd | > PUSH IT Floyd | Floyd | The piece of furniture is too massive for you to do anything with it. Floyd | Floyd | > | wordsmith says, "This feels a little like 'Hunt the Wumpus.'" | |
| DavidW says, "Except we're the wumpus and the hunter's between us and safety." | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "e" | ||
Floyd ] Telescope Floyd | > Floyd | > E Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Telescope Floyd | The telescope seems to be intact, but you can't see much of it from in Floyd | here. Floyd | Floyd | Tunnels lead north, east, and west. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "m" | ||
Floyd ] Telescope Floyd | > Floyd | > M Floyd | Floyd | That's not a verb I recognize. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "n" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > N Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Cabin Floyd | It should be safe in here; the professor can't fit through the narrow Floyd | passages. Floyd | Floyd | On your bed is a pile of clothes and trash. Your lenticular poster is Floyd | glued to the ceiling. Floyd | Floyd | Tunnels lead east, west, and south. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW asks, "Can we go back to Telescope?" | |
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "s" | ||
Floyd ] Telescope Floyd | > Floyd | > S Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Telescope Floyd | The telescope seems to be intact, but you can't see much of it from in Floyd | here. Floyd | Floyd | Tunnels lead north, east, and west. Floyd | Floyd | "I'm getting tired of waiting..." Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "enter dish" | ||
Floyd ] Telescope Floyd | > Floyd | > ENTER DISH Floyd | Floyd | You are close enough to the radio telescope dish already. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "look in dish" | ||
Floyd ] Telescope Floyd | > Floyd | > LOOK IN DISH Floyd | Floyd | You find nothing of interest. Floyd | Floyd | "Come here!" Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "look under dish" | ||
Floyd ] Telescope Floyd | > Floyd | > LOOK UNDER DISH Floyd | Floyd | You find nothing of interest. Floyd | Floyd | "If you stop being such a coward right now, I promise I'll bite your Floyd | head off first." Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "push dish" | ||
Floyd ] Telescope Floyd | > Floyd | > PUSH DISH Floyd | Floyd | The radio telescope dish is fine as it is. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "climb dish" | ||
Floyd ] Telescope Floyd | > Floyd | > CLIMB DISH Floyd | Floyd | Little is to be achieved by that. Floyd | Floyd | "Do you think if you'll wait long enough, someone will come rescue Floyd | you?" Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "take dish" | ||
Floyd ] Telescope Floyd | > Floyd | > TAKE DISH Floyd | Floyd | That's not something you can carry around. Floyd | Floyd | "Come here!" Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x telescope" | ||
Floyd ] Telescope Floyd | > Floyd | > X TELESCOPE Floyd | Floyd | If the accident had been a little worse, the dish might have been Floyd | flung off of the side of the asteroid, and this room would have its Floyd | own skylight (and you'd be violently sucked into space). Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "hit dish" | ||
Floyd ] Telescope Floyd | > Floyd | > HIT DISH Floyd | Floyd | Violence isn't the answer to this one. Floyd | Floyd | > | Jacqueline says, "Being violently sucked into space sounds pretty good right about now" | |
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x base" | ||
Floyd ] Telescope Floyd | > Floyd | > X BASE Floyd | Floyd | You can't see any such thing. Floyd | Floyd | > | Knight_Otu says, "I mean, only vaguely." | |
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "w" | ||
Floyd ] Study Floyd | > Floyd | > W Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Study Floyd | The professor's amphisbaena is upended, tossed into a corner. The Floyd | floor is wet. Floyd | Floyd | Passages lead north, east, south, and west. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "break amphisbaena" | ||
Floyd ] Study Floyd | > Floyd | > BREAK AMPHISBAENA Floyd | Floyd | Violence isn't the answer to this one. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x board" | ||
Floyd ] Study Floyd | > Floyd | > X BOARD Floyd | Floyd | Something large must have scraped against the chalkboard, erasing Floyd | several of Thezh's notes. Floyd | Floyd | "If you stop being such a coward right now, I promise I'll bite your Floyd | head off first." Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "s" | ||
Floyd ] Hibernation Pod Floyd | > Floyd | > S Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Hibernation Pod Floyd | The tank is empty. None of the monitors are active. Floyd | Floyd | A trail of slime wends its way around the tank, up to your feet. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x tank" | ||
Floyd ] Hibernation Pod Floyd | > Floyd | > X TANK Floyd | Floyd | Numerous pumps and monitors are hooked up to the professor's pod. They Floyd | seem to have stopped working. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x slime" | ||
Floyd ] Hibernation Pod Floyd | > Floyd | > X SLIME Floyd | Floyd | The trail continues past you, through the tunnel to the north. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "take slime" | ||
Floyd ] Hibernation Pod Floyd | > Floyd | > TAKE SLIME Floyd | Floyd | That's not something you can carry around. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "n" | ||
Floyd ] Study Floyd | > Floyd | > N Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Study Floyd | The professor's amphisbaena is upended, tossed into a corner. The Floyd | floor is wet. Floyd | Floyd | Passages lead north, east, south, and west. Floyd | Floyd | "Come here!" Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "n" | ||
Floyd ] Lounge Floyd | > Floyd | > N Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Lounge Floyd | The stars above are still whizzing by wildly. Floyd | Floyd | The couch has been torn apart: Slimy chunks of foam litter the floor. Floyd | The TV and microwave have been smashed and tossed across the room. Floyd | Floyd | Passages through the rock lead east, west, and south. Floyd | Floyd | "I'm getting tired of waiting..." Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x microwave" | ||
Floyd ] Lounge Floyd | > Floyd | > X MICROWAVE Floyd | Floyd | It looks like the professor threw this around a few times before Floyd | moving on. Floyd | Floyd | You can hear the professor's bulk slithering through the tunnels to Floyd | the west. Floyd | Floyd | > | wordsmith asks, "Maybe create a distracting noise with the alarm clock, or the microwave?" | |
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "take it" | ||
Floyd ] Lounge Floyd | > Floyd | > TAKE IT Floyd | Floyd | That's not something you can carry around. Floyd | Floyd | The clicking of claws or fangs echoes through the west tunnel. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x alarm" | ||
Floyd ] Lounge Floyd | > Floyd | > X ALARM Floyd | Floyd | The alarm clock is no longer set to anything. Floyd | Floyd | You hear the professor cough something up, then swallow it. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "oh! If it's ringing, it's noise will mask OURS." | |
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "e" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > E Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Cabin Floyd | It should be safe in here; the professor can't fit through the narrow Floyd | passages. Floyd | Floyd | On your bed is a pile of clothes and trash. Your lenticular poster is Floyd | glued to the ceiling. Floyd | Floyd | Tunnels lead east, west, and south. Floyd | Floyd | "Do you think if you'll wait long enough, someone will come rescue Floyd | you?" Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "turn on alarm" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > TURN ON ALARM Floyd | Floyd | A plan is forming in your head—but for it to work, you'll have to Floyd | take Floyd | the alarm to a place where Thezh can reach it. Floyd | Floyd | The clicking of claws or fangs echoes through the east tunnel. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "The furthest place is the pod." | |
| wordsmith says, "Sounds good." | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "w" | ||
Floyd ] Lounge Floyd | > Floyd | > W Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Lounge Floyd | The stars above are still whizzing by wildly. Floyd | Floyd | The couch has been torn apart: Slimy chunks of foam litter the floor. Floyd | The TV and microwave have been smashed and tossed across the room. Floyd | Floyd | Passages through the rock lead east, west, and south. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "s" | ||
Floyd ] Study Floyd | > Floyd | > S Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Study Floyd | The professor's amphisbaena is upended, tossed into a corner. The Floyd | floor is wet. Floyd | Floyd | Passages lead north, east, south, and west. Floyd | Floyd | "I'm so hungry... Please take pity on your poor old professor." Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "s" | ||
Floyd ] Hibernation Pod Floyd | > Floyd | > S Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Hibernation Pod Floyd | The tank is empty. None of the monitors are active. Floyd | Floyd | A trail of slime wends its way around the tank, up to your feet. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "drop alarm" | ||
Floyd ] Hibernation Pod Floyd | > Floyd | > DROP ALARM Floyd | Floyd | Dropped. Floyd | Floyd | "Do you think if you'll wait long enough, someone will come rescue Floyd | you?" Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "turn on alarm" | ||
Floyd ] Hibernation Pod Floyd | > Floyd | > TURN ON ALARM Floyd | Floyd | You fumble with the alarm clock's screen, and set it for some random Floyd | number of seconds. Then you toss into the the far corner of the room. Floyd | Floyd | "I'm so hungry... Please take pity on your poor old professor." Floyd | Floyd | You'd better get a move on. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "n" | ||
Floyd ] Study Floyd | > Floyd | > N Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Study Floyd | The professor's amphisbaena is upended, tossed into a corner. The Floyd | floor is wet. Floyd | Floyd | Passages lead north, east, south, and west. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "e" | ||
Floyd ] Telescope Floyd | > Floyd | > E Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Telescope Floyd | The telescope seems to be intact, but you can't see much of it from in Floyd | here. Floyd | Floyd | Tunnels lead north, east, and west. Floyd | Floyd | "If you stop being such a coward right now, I promise I'll bite your Floyd | head off first." Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "n" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > N Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Cabin Floyd | It should be safe in here; the professor can't fit through the narrow Floyd | passages. Floyd | Floyd | On your bed is a pile of clothes and trash. Your lenticular poster is Floyd | glued to the ceiling. Floyd | Floyd | Tunnels lead east, west, and south. Floyd | Floyd | Thezh sniffs: "Back in your hidey-hole? I wish you'd come out of Floyd | there. Your uncooperativeness is tremendously frustrating." Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "z" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > Z Floyd | Floyd | A second ticks by. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "z" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > Z Floyd | Floyd | Another second ticks by. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "z" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > Z Floyd | Floyd | "Would you stop that?" Thezh whines. You realize you've been Floyd | biting your fingernail. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "z" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > Z Floyd | Floyd | Another second ticks by. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "z" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > Z Floyd | Floyd | Another second ticks by. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "z" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > Z Floyd | Floyd | Another second ticks by. Floyd | Floyd | The alarm goes off. It beeps incredibly loudly. Floyd | Floyd | "Will you please turn off that insufferable machine?" Thezh groans. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "z" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > Z Floyd | Floyd | The noise is unbearable. Floyd | Floyd | "Turn that off right now, or you will live to regret it," Thezh Floyd | whines. The alarm keeps beeping, seemingly more shrill than before. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "z" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > Z Floyd | Floyd | The noise is unbearable. Floyd | Floyd | "Is this a trick? Are you trying to trick me?" Thezh hisses through Floyd | the tunnels, struggling to be heard over the pings of the alarm clock. Floyd | "You really are a stupid brat. And desperate. And cruel." Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "e" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > E Floyd | Floyd | Professor Thezh is just down that tunnel. You can hear it rubbing Floyd | against the walls. And you don't want to meet it face to face. Floyd | Floyd | "This isn't—" Thezh wails in pain. "This isn't going to work. I'm Floyd | going to outlast you. You'll turn off that alarm, and then I will find Floyd | you, and then—" It howls again. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "z" | ||
Floyd ] Cabin Floyd | > Floyd | > Z Floyd | Floyd | The noise is unbearable. Floyd | Floyd | Its rage boiling over, the professor screams even louder than the Floyd | alarm—and you hear it stampeding through the tunnels. Floyd | Floyd | You strain your ears: The alarm goes on ringing, muffled by the limbs Floyd | of something trying to rip it to pieces. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "e" | ||
Floyd ] Tunnel Floyd | > Floyd | > E Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Tunnel Floyd | The web of tunnels extends in all directions—but the shuttle bay is Floyd | just north from here. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "n" | ||
Floyd ] Shuttle Bay Floyd | > Floyd | > N Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Shuttle Bay Floyd | Professor Thezh's skiff is parked here, beneath the gigantic pressure Floyd | gate. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "enter skiff" | ||
Floyd ] Skiff Floyd | > Floyd | > ENTER SKIFF Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Skiff Floyd | You jump into the driver's seat. Floyd | Floyd | The key is in the ignition. The garage door opener is just above the Floyd | windshield. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "SAVE" | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "cf2" | ||
Floyd | > Floyd | > SAVE Floyd | %% Enter a save filename to write: Floyd ] Skiff Floyd | > SAVEOk. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "push button" | ||
Floyd ] Skiff Floyd | > Floyd | > PUSH BUTTON Floyd | Floyd | The button clicks, and a shutter falls over the southern tunnel Floyd | entrance to prepare for depressurization. Floyd | Floyd | The pressure gate opens. Outside the skiff there is a horrendous Floyd | sucking noise: All the air and dust in the garage flies out into Floyd | space. Floyd | Floyd | The stars revolve above you, ever so slowly. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "turn key" | ||
Floyd ] Skiff Floyd | > Floyd | > TURN KEY Floyd | Floyd | You turn the key. The engines fire up—and then they sputter out. Floyd | What's wrong? Floyd | Floyd | Oh, the parking brake is engaged. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "disengage brake" | ||
Floyd ] Skiff Floyd | > Floyd | > DISENGAGE BRAKE Floyd | Floyd | You push the lever down, and the skiff shifts slightly. Floyd | Floyd | Then the whole asteroid shakes. Floyd | Floyd | Something has collided with the shutter between the garage and the Floyd | tunnels. Floyd | Floyd | > | Jacqueline says, "heh. Parking break" | |
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "turn key" | ||
Floyd | > Floyd | > TURN KEY Floyd | Floyd | You turn the key. The engines fire up. The skiff rises from the floor. Floyd | Floyd | The shutter flies off the wall, and the professor bursts into the Floyd | garage. The observatory's atmosphere spills out from behind it: Your Floyd | poems, your watercolors, your origami, and all your laundry stream out Floyd | and up through the open pressure gate. Floyd | Floyd | You pull on the yoke to ascend. Professor Thezh crawls across the Floyd | garage, extending a huge, thorny claw. The skiff lurches to one side; Floyd | a shrill chirp indicates that something's wrong with the landing gear. Floyd | Floyd | With one arm you yank as hard as you can on the yoke, and with the Floyd | other you reach for the secondary thrusters—If you were just a little Floyd | taller— | Jacqueline says, "er, brake" | |
| DavidW pushes the green 'space' button. | ||
Floyd | taller—You pop the thrusters, and the skiff shoots up and out of the Floyd | observatory, into open space. Floyd | Floyd | As you accelerate, the craft rattles like it's about to fall apart. Floyd | Then the rattling stops. All the instruments show up OK. Floyd | Floyd | A shape moves in the rearview. Curiosity gets the better of common Floyd | sense, and you adjust the mirror for a closer look: | ||
| DavidW pushes the green 'space' button. | ||
Floyd | sense, and you adjust the mirror for a closer look:The writhing form Floyd | of Professor Thezh grows smaller and smaller, screaming silently at Floyd | you across the void. Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | *** The End *** | ||
| DavidW pushes the green 'space' button. | ||
Floyd ] Skiff
Floyd | *** The End ***The chamber is quiet for a moment, until a
Floyd | log cracks in the fireplace and brings us back to reality. Slowly we
Floyd | realize that we have only been the audience of a story: There is no
Floyd | danger. It was all pretend. Then there is collective applause; Johanna
Floyd | accepts it graciously, and the moderator rises.
Floyd |
Floyd | The library door flies open, and a figure appears.
Floyd |
Floyd | His leather coat goes down to his ankles, streaming rainwater all over
Floyd | the carpet. His wide-brimmed hat covers most of his face, but we all
Floyd | know who it is.
Floyd |
Floyd | "I have a story!" he announces, brandishing a sheaf of yellowed
Floyd | papers. "I request recognition!"
Floyd |
Floyd | The moderator steps forward, defending the lectern: "Sir, you know you
Floyd | aren't welcome here."
Floyd |
Floyd | "I demand to be heard! I contest the ruling of the board of
Floyd | directors!"
Floyd |
Floyd | A couple of authors stand up and advance on the man. He sneers.
Floyd | "You're removing me by force? What kind of organization is this? Stay
Floyd | away from me—you thugs!"
Floyd |
Floyd | One author puts a hand on the man's shoulder, murmuring a quiet
Floyd | suggestion, but the man recoils, and his hat falls to the floor.
Floyd |
Floyd | You are surprised by his face: You had not expected to see such
Floyd | delicate, boyish features, or eyes filled more with sadness than with
Floyd | anger.
Floyd |
Floyd | "This assembly is a farce," he hisses, as he picks up his hat. He
Floyd | shakes it off, splashing us all with drops of oily rain. Then he
Floyd | stuffs his story back into his coat and spins around, disappearing
Floyd | into the halls of Castle Balderstone.
Floyd |
Floyd | All the authors start muttering to each other about that guy and how
Floyd | much gall he has, and the moderator makes a valiant effort at settling
Floyd | everything down. It looks like there won't be time for Johanna to take
Floyd | any questions about her story.
Floyd |
Floyd | Well, how much did you enjoy it, on a scale of 1 to 10?
Floyd |
Floyd | >
| wordsmith exclaims, "Whew!" | |
| Knight_Otu asks, "Now how do we exxplkain that to the galactic authorities?" | ||
| Knight_Otu says, "*explain" | ||
| DavidW says, "oh, we'll think of something. Asteroid collision. Space madness on the prof's part." | ||
| Jacqueline asks, "Wait, we have to rate her story?" | ||
| DavidW says, "I think it's at least a 7." | ||
| Jacqueline asks, "What are we rating on? Enjoyment or scariness?" | ||
| DavidW says, "Enjoyment." | ||
| Jacqueline says, "I am fine with whatever is entered, though I'm kind of curious if it has an impact." | ||
| DavidW says, "Perhaps the winner gets a prize." | ||
| Jacqueline asks, "Like, if we rate it a 1 or a 10 or whatnot, does that impact ... is there another story?" | ||
| Jacqueline says (to DW), "Oh. Perhaps." | ||
| wordsmith says, "It was minimally implemented, but an original setting and pretty engaging." | ||
| DavidW says, "Well, it could affect the framing story." | ||
| Knight_Otu asks, "The last balderstone had three, four?" | ||
| Jacqueline says, "I'm okay with a 6 or a 7 then." | ||
| Knight_Otu says, "Stories that is." | ||
| DavidW says, "Three or four, yeah." | ||
| DavidW asks, "Shall I say 7, then?" | ||
| Knight_Otu says, "7." | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "7" | ||
Floyd | > Floyd | > 7 Floyd | Floyd | Okay. Noted. | ||
| DavidW pushes the green 'space' button. | ||
Floyd ] Nursery Floyd | Okay. Noted.Now it is time for the next author to step forward and Floyd | share the next of the evening's unbearable entertainments. It is Floyd | Victor Atencio—and he looks great! Floyd | Floyd | While he's approaching the podium I try to explain, quietly: Victor Floyd | Atencio is an absolute genius of gruesomeness. They call him "the van Floyd | Gogh of Gore." But he suffered from debilitating weight problems, to Floyd | the point that he had to stop writing while he pursued various Floyd | treatments and underwent various surgeries. I also heard—Why is Floyd | someone shushing me? Oh, he's starting. Floyd | Floyd | "It's been a while since I visited Castle Balderstone," Victor says, Floyd | and people start applauding him, but he waves it away. "I'm excited to Floyd | get back in the game, and I hope you'll forgive me if I'm a little Floyd | rusty." Floyd | Floyd | Everybody chuckles. I try to whisper to you the juicy rumor that I Floyd | heard, but Victor goes on: Floyd | Floyd | "What I've brought tonight is a new piece, in a classic format. I Floyd | don't aim to surprise—Only to terrify." Floyd | Floyd | We all chuckle again, now a little nervously, and Victor begins to Floyd | read... Floyd | Floyd | Ryan Veeder Presents Floyd | Mittens Floyd | A story by Victor Atencio, "the van Gogh of Gore" Floyd | Release 1 / Serial number 191031 / Inform 7 build 6M62 (I6/v6.33 lib Floyd | 6/12N) SD Floyd | Floyd | Nursery Floyd | Wayne and Yvette are a little bit late, but that just means more Floyd | quality time for you and little Rowan. Floyd | Floyd | The walls are painted with mountains and pines. The wide window fills Floyd | the room with sunlight. Floyd | Floyd | Rowan is asleep in his crib, his brow furrowed by the itty-bitty Floyd | concerns that trouble babies. Floyd | Floyd | Your oxygen concentrator hums away. It's not bothering the baby at Floyd | all. He probably finds it very soothing. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW asks, "okay, so we're a babysitter with an oxygen mask?" | |
| Knight_Otu says, "Possibly." | ||
| Jacqueline says, "Maybe Rowan is another freaky alien." | ||
| Jacqueline says (to Floyd), "x Rowan" | ||
Floyd ] Nursery Floyd | > Floyd | > X ROWAN Floyd | Floyd | He's beautiful. He looks more like his mother than his father, but you Floyd | won't tell Wayne that. Floyd | Floyd | > | wordsmith says, ";Maybe we are." | |
| Jacqueline says, "Yeah" | ||
| Jacqueline says (to Floyd), "x me" | ||
Floyd ] Nursery Floyd | > Floyd | > X ME Floyd | Floyd | You're through accomplishing things of your own-you kept yourself busy Floyd | for long enough. These years are for resting, and enjoying the Floyd | accomplishments of others: Of your children, and your grandchildren Floyd | and your beautiful great-grandson. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "Window has daylight. That's a bit odd." | |
| Jacqueline says, "Nope. Apparently the same species." | ||
| DavidW says, "And old." | ||
| Jacqueline says, "We are just elderly." | ||
| Jacqueline says, "Yeah" | ||
| Jacqueline says, "brb, but keep going" | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "i" | ||
Floyd ] Nursery Floyd | > Floyd | > I Floyd | Floyd | You are carrying nothing. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x window" | ||
Floyd ] Nursery Floyd | > Floyd | > X WINDOW Floyd | Floyd | Outside the nursery is a lovely April day. It's no wonder Wayne and Floyd | Yvette are taking so long. Floyd | Floyd | Wayne and Yvette's cat strolls into the room. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x cat" | ||
Floyd ] Nursery Floyd | > Floyd | > X CAT Floyd | Floyd | Yvette loves this cat, and the loves her—and it hates everything Floyd | else. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x crib" | ||
Floyd ] Nursery Floyd | > Floyd | > X CRIB Floyd | Floyd | Rowan's little kingdom. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x oxygen" | ||
Floyd ] Nursery Floyd | > Floyd | > X OXYGEN Floyd | Floyd | Wherever you go, your oxygen follows, and every minute of the day, you Floyd | have a tube stuck in your nose. You tell the kids you've gotten used Floyd | to it. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "If the cat hates everything, I don't want to pet it." | |
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x rowan" | ||
Floyd ] Nursery Floyd | > Floyd | > X ROWAN Floyd | Floyd | He's beautiful. He looks more like his mother than his father, but you Floyd | won't tell Wayne that. Floyd | Floyd | The cat darts between your legs, hisses furiously, and digs its fangs Floyd | into your calf. Then it disappears. Floyd | Floyd | > | Knight_Otu says, "Yeah, probably a bad idea." | |
| DavidW says, "darn, it attacked regardless." | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x calf" | ||
Floyd ] Nursery Floyd | > Floyd | > X CALF Floyd | Floyd | Four little pinpricks on your calf. It looks like you're starting to Floyd | bleed. Floyd | Floyd | There's a dark shape in the crib: The cat is sitting on Rowan. Floyd | Floyd | > | Jacqueline says, "Lovely cat." | |
| Knight_Otu says, "Uh oh." | ||
| Jacqueline says, "oh gods" | ||
| DavidW asks, "take cat?" | ||
| Jacqueline says, "I predict that will not end well" | ||
| Jacqueline exclaims, "But sure!" | ||
| DavidW says, "take cat" | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "take cat" | ||
Floyd ] Nursery Floyd | > Floyd | > TAKE CAT Floyd | Floyd | As you lean over the crib, the cat leaps away. Floyd | Floyd | You place a hand on Rowan's forehead. He seems to be fine. Floyd | Floyd | Then a horrible hissing noise fills the nursery, and Rowan starts Floyd | squirming. Floyd | Floyd | You turn and see the cat, toying with your oxygen concentrator: The Floyd | tube connected to your nose has been knocked loose. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "put tube in nose" | ||
Floyd ] Nursery Floyd | > Floyd | > PUT TUBE IN NOSE Floyd | Floyd | You can't see any such thing. Floyd | Floyd | > | Knight_Otu says, "Oh dear." | |
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "take tube" | ||
Floyd ] Nursery Floyd | > Floyd | > TAKE TUBE Floyd | Floyd | That cat is between you and your machine. Floyd | Floyd | The cat arches its back, puffs out its fur, and seems to grow several Floyd | inches. It hisses at you, almost screaming. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "push cat" | ||
Floyd ] Nursery Floyd | > Floyd | > PUSH CAT Floyd | Floyd | The cat grows larger. It's really growing. It's three feet tall, now. Floyd | Floyd | It screeches at you, batting at your face with fist-sized paws. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW asks, "Ideas?" | |
| Knight_Otu says, "Oh great." | ||
| wordsmith asks, "Bark like a dog?" | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "bark" | ||
Floyd ] Nursery Floyd | > Floyd | > BARK Floyd | Floyd | That's not a verb I recognize. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "open window" | ||
Floyd ] Nursery Floyd | > Floyd | > OPEN WINDOW Floyd | Floyd | The cat rushes around you to block the window. Floyd | Floyd | The cat continues to grow, its screeches getting louder, its claws and Floyd | teeth becoming longer. You stagger to the floor; your chest feels Floyd | tight. Floyd | Floyd | > | Jacqueline says, "This is not ideal." | |
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "take tube" | ||
Floyd ] Nursery Floyd | > Floyd | > TAKE TUBE Floyd | Floyd | The cat jumps back in front of the oxygen concentrator. Floyd | Floyd | The cat towers over you, growing larger and larger. You can't get up. Floyd | You can't breathe. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "wake rowan" | ||
Floyd ] Nursery Floyd | > Floyd | > WAKE ROWAN Floyd | Floyd | The cat leaps between you and the crib. Floyd | Floyd | The cat is huge. It fills the room. Floyd | Floyd | Your vision swims. Your heart is going so fast—Your throat is so Floyd | tight. Floyd | Floyd | You die of fright. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "yell" | ||
Floyd ] Nursery Floyd | > Floyd | > YELL Floyd | Floyd | That's not a verb I recognize. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "scream" | ||
Floyd ] Nursery Floyd | > Floyd | > SCREAM Floyd | Floyd | That's not a verb I recognize. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x me" | ||
Floyd ] Nursery Floyd | > Floyd | > X ME Floyd | Floyd | The cat steps over your body, over the crib, toward the window. Floyd | Floyd | > | Jacqueline asks, "We died, didn't we?" | |
| Knight_Otu says, "We did." | ||
| DavidW says, "yes, but the game didn't end" | ||
| Jacqueline says, "Nope." | ||
| Knight_Otu says, "Or so the story claims." | ||
| Jacqueline says, "That's... that's a first for me, I think." | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x cat" | ||
Floyd ] Nursery Floyd | > Floyd | > X CAT Floyd | Floyd | It bats at the window, and shatters it effortlessly. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "ask cat about cat" | ||
Floyd ] Nursery Floyd | > Floyd | > ASK CAT ABOUT CAT Floyd | Floyd | The cat squeezes out of the window, destroying the surrounding nursery Floyd | wall. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x rowan" | ||
Floyd ] Nursery Floyd | > Floyd | > X ROWAN Floyd | Floyd | You can't get any closer to the crib. Floyd | Floyd | The cat steps outside. As it walks across the lawn, it goes on growing Floyd | until it's as tall as the house. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x body" | ||
Floyd ] Nursery Floyd | > Floyd | > X BODY Floyd | Floyd | You can't see any such thing. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| Jacqueline says (to Floyd), "x me" | ||
Floyd ] Nursery Floyd | > Floyd | > X ME Floyd | Floyd | The cat walks into the street, trampling Wayne's car. A child screams. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW asks, "This game was called 'Mittens'. Is that the cat's name?" | |
| Knight_Otu says, "Maybe." | ||
| wordsmith says, "I bet." | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "out" | ||
Floyd | > Floyd | > OUT Floyd | Floyd | Rowan stirs, but does not wake. Floyd | Floyd | You are dead. Floyd | Floyd | The cat continues along the street, heading downtown. Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | *** The End *** | Jacqueline says, "It sounded so cute, Mittens. I smiled when I saw the title and wondered how it could be scary." | |
| DavidW says, "I think we lost that game." | ||
| Jacqueline says, "I am not sure we could *win* that game." | ||
| wordsmith says, "Shades of Monty Python. 'Oh, it's just a fluffy little bunny!'" | ||
| DavidW says, "I'm not sure either." | ||
| Jacqueline says, "Though maybe we could." | ||
| Knight_Otu says, "Yeah." | ||
| DavidW says, "I rate it a 5." | ||
| DavidW pushes the green 'space' button. | ||
Floyd ] Nursery Floyd | *** The End ***Victor executes a stiff bow. The chamber Floyd | erupts in applause. Floyd | Floyd | "Thank you," he says, and the room quiets a little. I lean over to Floyd | whisper—But the moderator is getting up now. Floyd | Floyd | "Chilling as ever, Mister Atencio! Are there any questions?" Floyd | Floyd | Naturally the author sitting right next to us has to raise her hand. Floyd | "Is Mittens the name of the cat?" she asks. Of course it's the Floyd | name of the cat you ridiculous woman. Floyd | Floyd | "Uh, I guess it must be!" Victor answers. Everyone laughs, ha ha ha. Floyd | Anyway, what I was gonna say was—"How did you find your way into the Floyd | character of the protagonist, a great-grandparent?" asks an incredibly Floyd | loud author sitting behind us. Floyd | Floyd | "Ah. Well, that's kind of personal," says Victor, and everything gets Floyd | quiet. Floyd | Floyd | The silence is so complete that I can't whisper anything to you. Floyd | Floyd | "How about another round of applause for Victor Atencio?" asks the Floyd | moderator, and everybody claps, and Victor bows again, and now I can Floyd | finally tell you: There was a rumor that Victor got his nose done Floyd | while he was having all those other surgeries, and now that I see him Floyd | in person he definitely did get his nose done. Floyd | Floyd | So, how much, on a scale of 1 to 10, did you like that story? The one Floyd | Victor told, not the one about his medical history. Floyd | Floyd | > | Knight_Otu says, "4 or 5." | |
| DavidW says, "What do other people think? I thought 5." | ||
| wordsmith says, "3 or 4" | ||
| DavidW asks, "Sounds like a 4 then?" | ||
| Jacqueline says, "oh" | ||
| Jacqueline says, "Um, I liked it more than the space one, but okay" | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "4" | ||
Floyd | > Floyd | > 4 Floyd | Floyd | Okay. Noted. | ||
| DavidW pushes the green 'space' button. | ||
Floyd ] Desert Floyd | Okay. Noted.Now it is time for the next author to step forward and Floyd | share the next of the evening's insidious entertainments. It is Eddie Floyd | Carlyle! I gasp, and grab your wrist. You tug at your hand until I let Floyd | go. I am too anxious to apologize. Floyd | Floyd | None of these authors scare me like Eddie Carlyle does. No avenue of Floyd | horror is off-limits to Carlyle. He sniffs at taboo; he rolls his eyes Floyd | at the critics every time they say he's gone too far. I've only read Floyd | the Wikipedia synopses of his works, and they still give me Floyd | nightmares. Floyd | Floyd | Ed looks down at the lectern and coughs. Floyd | Floyd | "I heard that at this year's meeting, we could share stories that Floyd | weren't, you know, Halloween-spooky." Wait, what? Floyd | Floyd | "And, well, the invitation said that one of the themes we could pick Floyd | instead was Día de Muertos, or, Mexican folklore and Floyd | mythology in general. So I chose to write something along those lines. Floyd | And, it's based on one of my favorite Bob Dylan songs." Floyd | Floyd | The other authors are glancing around the room. You and I are glancing Floyd | at each other. Floyd | Floyd | Ed swallows loudly, still looking down at the lectern. "So, I guess, Floyd | for a Castle Balderstone story this is kind of... experimental, but I Floyd | hope you'll enjoy it." Well, it's an Eddie Carlyle story. It's Floyd | probably at least a little scary. Floyd | Floyd | He coughs again, and then he begins to read... Floyd | Floyd | Ryan Veeder Presents Floyd | Romance in Durango Floyd | Adapted by Eddie Carlyle Floyd | from a song by Bob Dylan Floyd | Release 1 / Serial number 191031 / Inform 7 build 6M62 (I6/v6.33 lib Floyd | 6/12N) SD Floyd | Floyd | Desert Floyd | The horse paces slowly across the sands, worn out from a long day of Floyd | riding. You clutch Roberto's cape and screw your eyes shut. You are Floyd | weary for sleep, but sleep is impossible under this bright sun, atop Floyd | this staggering horse. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x me" | ||
Floyd ] Desert Floyd | > Floyd | > X ME Floyd | Floyd | Your eyes are red from sleeplessness, and strained from so much Floyd | squinting. Your face and your dress are coated in dust. You feel lucky Floyd | that Roberto cannot see you. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x roberto" | ||
Floyd ] Desert Floyd | > Floyd | > X ROBERTO Floyd | Floyd | Roberto is a handsome man, with gentle eyes and a curly beard. But, Floyd | sitting behind him, all you can see are his hat and his cape. Floyd | Floyd | You don't remember him wearing that cape before. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x cape" | ||
Floyd ] Desert Floyd | > Floyd | > X CAPE Floyd | Floyd | The cape Roberto wears is covered in dust. Floyd | Floyd | But why isn't his guitar strapped to his back? Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x horse" | ||
Floyd ] Desert Floyd | > Floyd | > X HORSE Floyd | Floyd | This horse appeared with Roberto last night, when he woke you up and Floyd | begged you to leave with him. The animal seemed just as surprised as Floyd | you were to be rushing out of town in the middle of the night. Now, it Floyd | seems just as tired as you are. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "ask roberto about guitar" | ||
Floyd ] Desert Floyd | > Floyd | > ASK ROBERTO ABOUT GUITAR Floyd | Floyd | You ask Roberto what happened to his guitar. Floyd | Floyd | "Ah! I sold that guitarra to Pablo, the son of the Floyd | panadero—for this!" Floyd | Floyd | With a triumphant flourish, he produces from his cape a fist-sized Floyd | loaf of bread. "I was saving it for la noche, but you have Floyd | had such a long viaje. Here you go, mi amor." He Floyd | presses the bread into your hand. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x bread" | ||
Floyd ] Desert Floyd | > Floyd | > X BREAD Floyd | Floyd | How much was Roberto's guitar worth? How much food will the two of you Floyd | need to reach Durango before you starve to death? You can't focus on Floyd | these questions. You're starving. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW asks, "eat bread?" | |
| Knight_Otu asks, "Probably?" | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "eat bread" | ||
Floyd ] Desert Floyd | > Floyd | > EAT BREAD Floyd | Floyd | You gobble it down. You feel a little less exhausted—but even Floyd | sleepier. Floyd | Floyd | And now the sun, which had seemed to hang just overhead for so long, Floyd | finally seems to be descending. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x sun" | ||
Floyd ] Desert Floyd | > Floyd | > X SUN Floyd | Floyd | Roberto chides you: "Don't look directly into el sol, Floyd | Magdalena. It will hurt your ojos." How did he know what you Floyd | were looking at? Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "clean dress" | ||
Floyd ] Desert Floyd | > Floyd | > CLEAN DRESS Floyd | Floyd | The blue dress is fine. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "i" | ||
Floyd ] Desert Floyd | > Floyd | > I Floyd | Floyd | You are carrying: Floyd | a blue dress (being worn) Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "ask roberto about horse" | ||
Floyd ] Desert Floyd | > Floyd | > ASK ROBERTO ABOUT HORSE Floyd | Floyd | Roberto clicks his tongue nervously. "A friend lent this fine Floyd | caballo to me. I don't know when I will be able to repay him, Floyd | after we reach Durango. But he already owed me un favor, Floyd | so..." Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "ask roberto about durango" | ||
Floyd ] Desert Floyd | > Floyd | > ASK ROBERTO ABOUT DURANGO Floyd | Floyd | Roberto sighs blissfully. "When we reach Durango, we'll—First, we'll Floyd | go to the corrida, and sit in the shade drinking Floyd | tequila, and we'll watch the young torero at his Floyd | violent work. And the very next day, we will find the padre Floyd | at his little church, and we'll finally be married." Floyd | Floyd | You hold Roberto tightly around his waist, and he pets your delicate Floyd | hand. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW asks, "Ideas? Keep asking him about things?" | |
| Jacqueline says, "Sure." | ||
| DavidW asks, "Eating the bread seemed to advance the plot. Maybe sleep?" | ||
| Knight_Otu asks, "I guess we keep asking?" | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "ask roberto about marriage" | ||
Floyd ] Ruins Floyd | > Floyd | > ASK ROBERTO ABOUT MARRIAGE Floyd | Floyd | Roberto cocks his head. "What was that, my little one? I'm not sure I Floyd | heard you correctamente." (Usually this means Roberto doesn't Floyd | want to talk about something.) Floyd | Floyd | You lurch to a halt. "Magdalena!" whispers Roberto, pointing across Floyd | the brush: A few crumbling walls sit in the shadow of a hillside. "We Floyd | can make campamento there." Floyd | Floyd | He urges the horse toward the ruins. Floyd | Floyd | Ruins Floyd | The sun is very low, casting long purple shadows over the dust. There Floyd | was a city here, centuries ago. Floyd | Floyd | Roberto ties the horse to a withered tree, eyeing the hills above Floyd | warily. Floyd | Floyd | One nearby building seems more or less intact. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x building" | ||
Floyd ] Ruins Floyd | > Floyd | > X BUILDING Floyd | Floyd | Nothing about the building gives any clue as to what it might be. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x tree" | ||
Floyd ] Ruins Floyd | > Floyd | > X TREE Floyd | Floyd | The tree would snap easily if the horse decided to run off. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "'would' => will" | |
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "ask roberto about building" | ||
Floyd ] Ruins Floyd | > Floyd | > ASK ROBERTO ABOUT BUILDING Floyd | Floyd | As you're wondering how to bring up the subject, Roberto speaks. Floyd | Floyd | "Querida, you must find a place where we will be Floyd | escondidos. Take this linterna, and I will keep Floyd | watch." He hands you a dented lantern and resumes scanning the Floyd | horizon. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "enter building" | ||
Floyd ] Temple Floyd | > Floyd | > ENTER BUILDING Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Temple Floyd | The sagging walls lean over an altar. There is no roof, and the stone Floyd | glows indigo under the stars. Floyd | Floyd | In the back wall is a narrow archway. Floyd | Floyd | > | Knight_Otu says, "Probably." | |
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x altar" | ||
Floyd ] Temple Floyd | > Floyd | > X ALTAR Floyd | Floyd | A slab of mottled stone, carved with pagan icons. The only shape you Floyd | recognize is a snarling, wide-eyed jaguar. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x archway" | ||
Floyd ] Temple Floyd | > Floyd | > X ARCHWAY Floyd | Floyd | On the other side of the archway is another room. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "enter archway" | ||
Floyd ] Darkness Floyd | > Floyd | > ENTER ARCHWAY Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Darkness Floyd | It is pitch dark, and you can't see a thing. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "turn on lantern" | ||
Floyd ] Inner Chamber Floyd | > Floyd | > TURN ON LANTERN Floyd | Floyd | It takes a few tries, but you manage to light the lantern. Floyd | Floyd | Inner Chamber Floyd | Maybe this was the apartment of the temple priest. Floyd | Floyd | In the center of the room is a stone stairway, descending into Floyd | darkness. Floyd | Floyd | Your lantern's light catches on something in the corner: A black Floyd | shard. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x shard" | ||
Floyd ] Inner Chamber Floyd | > Floyd | > X SHARD Floyd | Floyd | The flat side seems polished, like a mirror, but the material is Floyd | completely black. Even in the darkness you can see that the fractured Floyd | edge is deadly sharp. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "take it" | ||
Floyd ] Inner Chamber Floyd | > Floyd | > TAKE IT Floyd | Floyd | You lean down and reach for the shard, as carefully as you can—but it Floyd | slices your fingertip just the same. A drop of blood splashes on the Floyd | mottled floor. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "oopsie" | |
| Knight_Otu says, "Oh dear." | ||
| DavidW asks, "Ignore the blood offering and go down?" | ||
| Knight_Otu says, "Sure." | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "d" | ||
Floyd ] Stairway Floyd | > Floyd | > D Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Stairway Floyd | The stairs go on longer than you had expected. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "d" | ||
Floyd ] Tunnel Floyd | > Floyd | > D Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Tunnel Floyd | You thrust your lantern forward uncertainly, half expecting to see Floyd | walls piled high with skulls—but the tunnel is empty, except for some Floyd | loose gravel and some footprints in the dust. Floyd | Floyd | At the far end of the tunnel is a low archway, blocked by fallen Floyd | rocks. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x footprints" | ||
Floyd ] Tunnel Floyd | > Floyd | > X FOOTPRINTS Floyd | Floyd | You contemplate the floor and the places where the dust has been Floyd | disturbed, but you cannot guess what may have happened here, or how Floyd | for how long this place has been abandoned. Floyd | Floyd | > | Jacqueline says, "That's a great phrase... 'ignore the blood offering'" | |
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x gravel" | ||
Floyd ] Tunnel Floyd | > Floyd | > X GRAVEL Floyd | Floyd | You contemplate the floor and the places where the dust has been Floyd | disturbed, but you cannot guess what may have happened here, or how Floyd | for how long this place has been abandoned. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "enter archway" | ||
Floyd ] Soundstage Floyd | > Floyd | > ENTER ARCHWAY Floyd | Floyd | (first opening the low archway) Floyd | You push the rocks out of the way easily; they're only painted Floyd | styrofoam. Floyd | Floyd | In a few seconds, the archway is clear. Floyd | Floyd | Soundstage Floyd | Bright lights surround you on all sides. A giant camera is pointed at Floyd | your face. Floyd | Floyd | Behind you is a low archway of painted canvas. Floyd | Floyd | Now, I need you to think about Roberto, and whether you can trust him. Floyd | And you're thinking about Ramón, and which one you really loved. Are Floyd | you in the right place? Floyd | Floyd | We'll be cutting between this and Roberto's scene outside where he Floyd | stares into the sunset and thinks about kind of the same questions. Floyd | You're both wondering if you're going to stick together. Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW asks, "uhhh who's Ramon?" | |
| Knight_Otu asks, "Old lover?" | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "think about roberto" | ||
Floyd ] Soundstage Floyd | > Floyd | > THINK ABOUT ROBERTO Floyd | Floyd | I only understood you as far as wanting to think. Floyd | Floyd | > | Jacqueline says, "gosh" | |
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "think" | ||
Floyd ] Soundstage Floyd | > Floyd | > THINK Floyd | Floyd | What a good idea. Floyd | Floyd | Maybe put your hand up to your neck. Yeah. You're in distress. And you Floyd | could almost run away. But then you steel yourself. Floyd | Floyd | Perfect. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x camera" | ||
Floyd ] Soundstage Floyd | > Floyd | > X CAMERA Floyd | Floyd | You stare down the barrel of the camera, projecting sadness, Floyd | confusion, devotion, and strength. Floyd | Floyd | Now you've made your decision, and you turn around, and you find your Floyd | way back to Roberto. Floyd | Floyd | > | Knight_Otu says, "I guess this is all just a movie." | |
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "l" | ||
Floyd ] Soundstage Floyd | > Floyd | > L Floyd | Floyd | Soundstage Floyd | Bright lights surround you on all sides. A giant camera is pointed at Floyd | your face. Floyd | Floyd | Behind you is a low archway of painted canvas. Floyd | Floyd | Come on, we're wasting film. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "enter archway" | ||
Floyd ] Tunnel Floyd | > Floyd | > ENTER ARCHWAY Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Tunnel Floyd | The dusty tunnel is mostly empty. A cool breeze issues from the Floyd | stairway. Floyd | Floyd | At the far end of the tunnel is a low archway. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "u" | ||
Floyd ] Stairway Floyd | > Floyd | > U Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Stairway Floyd | A tenuous sliver of moonlight falls over the stairs. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "u" | ||
Floyd ] Inner Chamber Floyd | > Floyd | > U Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Inner Chamber Floyd | The temple is quiet. Floyd | Floyd | A narrow archway leads out to the main chamber. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "out" | ||
Floyd ] Temple Floyd | > Floyd | > OUT Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Temple Floyd | The sun is gone; the moon and stars shiver overhead. Floyd | Floyd | Roberto will be outside, waiting for you. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "out" | ||
Floyd ] Ruins Floyd | > Floyd | > OUT Floyd | Floyd | Ruins Floyd | You emerge from the ruin, and Roberto rises to greet you. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "hug roberto" | ||
Floyd ] Ruins Floyd | > Floyd | > HUG ROBERTO Floyd | Floyd | You walk over to Roberto—There is a flash of light on the hill, and a Floyd | crack like thunder splits the air. Floyd | Floyd | Roberto crumples to the sand, a bullet in his chest. Floyd | Floyd | You run to him, kneel over him, cradle his head in your hands. His Floyd | gaze is focused on the hill above. Floyd | Floyd | "Ramón?" he gasps. He draws his pistol, but it falls from his fingers. Floyd | Floyd | "Magdalena—mi prado de brisas frescas—" His eyes close. Floyd | "Aim Floyd | well, mi linda." Floyd | Floyd | > | Knight_Otu says, "Well damn." | |
| DavidW asks, "uhhh, are we to grab Roberto's pistol and shoot Ramon or ourself?" | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "take pistol" | ||
Floyd ] Ruins Floyd | > Floyd | > TAKE PISTOL Floyd | Floyd | You pick up Roberto's pistol. Floyd | Floyd | Something catches your eye—Something disappearing over the hill. Floyd | Floyd | > | Knight_Otu says, "I suppose we may also be abnßle to shoot Roberto if we want." | |
| Knight_Otu says, "*able" | ||
| DavidW says, "yeah, but I think ourself is the most Juliet option." | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "SAVE" | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "cf3" | ||
Floyd | > Floyd | > SAVE Floyd | %% Enter a save filename to write: Floyd ] Ruins Floyd | > SAVEOk. Floyd | Floyd | > | Jacqueline says, "Everything is so terrible." | |
| DavidW asks, "May I shoot ourself?" | ||
| Knight_Otu asks, "I guess?" | ||
| DavidW asks, "well, what option would you prefer?" | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "kiss roberto" | ||
Floyd ] Ruins Floyd | > Floyd | > KISS ROBERTO Floyd | Floyd | You can only do that to something animate. Floyd | Floyd | > | Knight_Otu says, "None of the options are nice." | |
| Jacqueline says, "oooh. harsh" | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "shoot me" | ||
Floyd ] Ruins Floyd | > Floyd | > SHOOT ME Floyd | Floyd | That is not your target. Floyd | Floyd | > | Jacqueline says, "guess not" | |
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "shoot ramon" | ||
Floyd ] Ruins Floyd | > Floyd | > SHOOT RAMON Floyd | Floyd | You can't see any such thing. Floyd | Floyd | > | Jacqueline asks, "I guess we pursue?" | |
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x hill" | ||
Floyd ] Ruins Floyd | > Floyd | > X HILL Floyd | Floyd | You see nothing special about the hill. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "climb hill" | ||
Floyd ] Hills Floyd | > Floyd | > CLIMB HILL Floyd | Floyd | You crawl up the hill—your dress snags on a cactus—your lantern Floyd | goes Floyd | out. You toss it behind you. Floyd | Floyd | Hills Floyd | When you reach the hilltop, you hold very still to search the valley Floyd | below. Floyd | Floyd | A jaguar is running away, leaping like quicksilver over the rocks. Floyd | Floyd | > | Jacqueline says, "huh" | |
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "follow jaguar" | ||
Floyd ] Hills Floyd | > Floyd | > FOLLOW JAGUAR Floyd | Floyd | That's not a verb I recognize. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "enter valley" | ||
Floyd ] Valley Floyd | > Floyd | > ENTER VALLEY Floyd | Floyd | Climbing down the rocks takes a long time. The jaguar sits calmly, Floyd | waiting for you. Floyd | Floyd | Valley Floyd | The jaguar is a man, standing over the stream that cuts through the Floyd | valley. He carries a rifle. Floyd | Floyd | He coughs violently, and blood spatters on the sand. He takes a second Floyd | to recover. Floyd | Floyd | "Well?" he asks. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x man" | ||
Floyd ] Valley Floyd | > Floyd | > X MAN Floyd | Floyd | He wears the bloody face of Ramón, but behind his mask are eyes of Floyd | glittering obsidian. This is Tezcatlipoca, god of murder, embodiment Floyd | of strife. Floyd | Floyd | He has nothing to say, and the desert is silent. Floyd | Floyd | > | Knight_Otu says, "Huh." | |
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "ask god about roberto" | ||
Floyd ] Valley Floyd | > Floyd | > ASK GOD ABOUT ROBERTO Floyd | Floyd | He licks his bloody lips. Floyd | Floyd | "Magdalena," he says, smiling. "Doesn't your lover cry out for Floyd | revenge? I am here, I have taken Roberto from you—Destroy me." Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| wordsmith says (to Floyd), "i" | ||
Floyd ] Valley Floyd | > Floyd | > I Floyd | Floyd | You are carrying: Floyd | a pistol Floyd | a shard Floyd | a blue dress (being worn) Floyd | Floyd | He looks up at the sky. "This is not going the way I had planned." Floyd | Floyd | He runs his hand through his hair and grimaces. "I had hoped something Floyd | more interesting would happen." Floyd | Floyd | > | Jacqueline says, "wow" | |
| DavidW asks, "We could cut him instead of shooting him, I guess?" | ||
| Jacqueline says, "Sure." | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "cut god with shard" | ||
Floyd | > Floyd | > CUT GOD WITH SHARD Floyd | Floyd | Cutting him up would achieve little. Floyd | Floyd | "Tezcatlipoca grits his teeth in frustration. "This is embarrassing," Floyd | he says. Floyd | Floyd | Then he approaches you, puts his hands on your shoulders. "Next time, Floyd | you must be willing to kill—to murder me—to appease my bloodlust. Floyd | Next Floyd | time, Magdalena, you must be blind with hatred, ready to do anything Floyd | to avenge Roberto. Will you do that? Will you be ready?" Floyd | Floyd | You nod. Floyd | Floyd | "Good. I look forward to it." Floyd | Floyd | The jaguar slithers down the creek, into the moonlight, leaving you Floyd | alone in the desert night. Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | *** The End *** | ||
| DavidW pushes the green 'space' button. | ||
Floyd ] Valley Floyd | *** The End ***Eddie gives a little bow, and the library Floyd | is filled with a reasonable amount of applause. Floyd | Floyd | "It did get kind of scary at the end there!" says one author. Floyd | Floyd | "Well," says Eddie. "Hopefully it wasn't too scary." Floyd | Floyd | "No, no, not at all." I say, eliciting general murmurs of agreement Floyd | and reassurance. Floyd | Floyd | And another author calls from the back: "Exactly the right amount!" Floyd | Floyd | Eddie gives us an unconvincing smile, and as he cedes the podium I Floyd | lean over to you and ask, inobtrusively: How much did you like that Floyd | story? On a scale of 1 to 10? Floyd | Floyd | > | Knight_Otu says, "Huh." | |
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "undo" | ||
Floyd ] Valley Floyd | Floyd | > UNDO Floyd | Floyd | Valley Floyd | [Previous turn undone.] Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "shoot god" | ||
Floyd | > Floyd | > SHOOT GOD Floyd | Floyd | You raise your gun. He smirks, and glances behind you, at the hilltop. Floyd | Floyd | You spin and see Magdalena raise her rifle. You try to scream—she Floyd | fires—and you are Magdalena again. Floyd | Floyd | Roberto crumples to the sand, and the jaguar disappears into the Floyd | desert night. Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | *** The End *** | DavidW asks, "well, I'm confused. The jaguar god of murder kills our fiancee but ha ha no it was really us that did it?" | |
| Jacqueline pushes the green 'space' button. | ||
Floyd ] Valley Floyd | *** The End ***Eddie gives a little bow, and the library Floyd | is filled with a reasonable amount of applause. Floyd | Floyd | "It did get kind of scary at the end there!" says one author. Floyd | Floyd | "Well," says Eddie. "Hopefully it wasn't too scary." Floyd | Floyd | "No, no, not at all." I say, eliciting general murmurs of agreement Floyd | and reassurance. Floyd | Floyd | And another author calls from the back: "Exactly the right amount!" Floyd | Floyd | Eddie gives us an unconvincing smile, and as he cedes the podium I Floyd | lean over to you and ask, inobtrusively: How much did you like that Floyd | story? On a scale of 1 to 10? Floyd | Floyd | > | DavidW says, "I'm confused. 6." | |
| Knight_Otu says, "Odd one." | ||
| DavidW asks, "Also, what was the shard really for?" | ||
| Jacqueline says, "I was curious if things were different had we not cut ourselves with it." | ||
| Knight_Otu asks, "Maybe cutting our finger was what summoned the god in the first place?" | ||
| Jacqueline says, "But probably not" | ||
| wordsmith asks, "How did Magdalena get the rifle, after the undo?" | ||
| DavidW says, "I don't know. It doesn't make a lot of sense." | ||
| Knight_Otu says, "Divine intervention." | ||
| DavidW says, "I did notice that that story avoided compass directions entirely." | ||
| DavidW asks, "What rating?" | ||
| wordsmith says, "I liked parts of it, including the 'this is really a movie and you are an actress.' But 6 seems about right." | ||
| Jacqueline says, "sure" | ||
| Knight_Otu says, "I guess 6." | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "6" | ||
Floyd | > Floyd | > 6 Floyd | Floyd | Okay. Noted. | ||
| DavidW pushes the green 'space' button. | ||
Floyd ] Floyd | Okay. Noted.Now it is time for the next author to step forward and Floyd | share the next of the evening's dreadful entertainments. It is oh Floyd | my gosh it's Allison Chase. Floyd | Floyd | She is rapturous. She is heavenly. I mean, obviously I appreciate her Floyd | as an author first and foremost. Allison Chase is unmatched in her Floyd | literary command of suspense, anxiety, and trepidation. From page one Floyd | to page six hundred forty-seven, she has the reader's amygdala wrapped Floyd | around her little finger. Floyd | Floyd | But look at that little finger! Look at her hands, her willowy Floyd | arms—Look at that neck. Oh, that neck. Allison Chase's neck. Floyd | Floyd | Around that impossible neck is a pendant. Does she always wear that Floyd | pendant? Maybe she wears different pendants. Maybe I should give her a Floyd | pendant, and then when she wore it, my pendant would be around Floyd | Allison Chase's neck. Floyd | Floyd | "I happened upon this story while browsing through some old cabinets," Floyd | she says. Her voice is like a church bell echoing across a field of Floyd | fog. I close my eyes, the better to drink in that voice. Floyd | Floyd | "I found it utterly horrific. I wondered, what sort of sadistic Floyd | monster could possibly have composed something so deliriously awful?" Floyd | I open my eyes, so that I can look at her neck. Floyd | Floyd | "But when I turned back to the first page, the name I saw beneath the Floyd | title..." Floyd | Floyd | I lean further forward. I have stopped breathing. I have completely Floyd | forgotten that you, my guest, exist. Floyd | Floyd | "...was my own!" Floyd | Floyd | As far as I'm concerned there is no one else in the room. I am aware Floyd | only of the lips of Allison Chase as she smiles wickedly, and begins Floyd | to read... Floyd | Floyd | Ryan Veeder Presents Floyd | The Ghastly Visage Floyd | A tale of terror by Allison Chase Floyd | Release 1 / Serial number 191031 / Inform 7 build 6M62 (I6/v6.33 lib Floyd | 6/12N) SD Floyd | Floyd | The creature was monstrous to behold. Floyd | Floyd | > | wordsmith says, "Also, reminiscent of Craverly Manor. :)" | |
| DavidW says, "Games run together in my mind. Remind me how Craverly Manor went." | ||
| Jacqueline says, "I'm loving the description of her and just want to read more of that rather than a story." | ||
| Knight_Otu says, "Well someone is fanboying." | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x creature" | ||
Floyd ] Floyd | > Floyd | > X CREATURE Floyd | Floyd | His eyes were bloodshot. His hair was stringy and unctuous. His teeth Floyd | were chipped and yellowed. His chin protruded like a bent nail. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x eyes" | ||
Floyd ] Floyd | > Floyd | > X EYES Floyd | Floyd | Caked around his bloodshot eyes was a vile crust, of which minute Floyd | crumbs had scattered over his clammy cheeks. Floyd | Floyd | > | Knight_Otu says, "Craverly Heights. ewhere we play a Doctor and his evil twin in a soap opera." | |
| DavidW says, "ah, that one. thanks." | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x crumbs" | ||
Floyd ] Floyd | > Floyd | > X CRUMBS Floyd | Floyd | Caked around his bloodshot eyes was a vile crust, of which minute Floyd | crumbs had scattered over his clammy cheeks. Floyd | Floyd | > | wordsmith says, "Thanks. I couldn't remember the name." | |
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x hair" | ||
Floyd ] Floyd | > Floyd | > X HAIR Floyd | Floyd | Matted ropes of hair hung a tangled rat's nest over his ears and down Floyd | his back. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x teeth" | ||
Floyd ] Floyd | > Floyd | > X TEETH Floyd | Floyd | Each of his teeth was a unique sculpture, chiseled by decades of Floyd | decay. Each depicted its own tale of neglect—except for those Floyd | mercifully veiled by his awful tongue. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x tongue" | ||
Floyd ] Floyd | > Floyd | > X TONGUE Floyd | Floyd | His tongue hung from between his lips like a fat worm emerging from Floyd | its slimy burrow. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x chin" | ||
Floyd ] Floyd | > Floyd | > X CHIN Floyd | Floyd | His bony, pointed chin seemed to dangle like a pendululm beneath his Floyd | shriveled lips, or else to erupt like an escaped prisoner from his Floyd | overstretched neck. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x lips" | ||
Floyd ] Floyd | > Floyd | > X LIPS Floyd | Floyd | His chapped lips hung open mutely, revealing discolored teeth and a Floyd | lolling tongue. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x neck" | ||
Floyd ] Floyd | > Floyd | > X NECK Floyd | Floyd | Every muscle in his neck stuck out like a pencil beneath his wretched Floyd | skin, drawing his shoulders forward involuntarily, stretching out his Floyd | back and chest like leather on a tanner's rack. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x chest" | ||
Floyd ] Floyd | > Floyd | > X CHEST Floyd | Floyd | His ribs were set carelessly in his chest, and seemed in danger of Floyd | knocking each other loose, or of collapsing collectively into his Floyd | cavernous belly. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x belly" | ||
Floyd ] Floyd | > Floyd | > X BELLY Floyd | Floyd | Between his ribcage and pelvis was his sallow stomach, swelling and Floyd | stretching whenever he managed to draw breath, shrinking and Floyd | shriveling with each exhalation. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x pelvis" | ||
Floyd ] Floyd | > Floyd | > X PELVIS Floyd | Floyd | His hips were set at a crazy angle, upsetting the trajectories of his Floyd | spine and everything that radiated therefrom. The posture of his legs, Floyd | though by no means recognizable as human, had in it nothing of animal Floyd | grace. Floyd | Floyd | > | Knight_Otu says, "Guessing at the twist - we're looking into a mirror." | |
| DavidW says, "oo, that could very well be it." | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x legs" | ||
Floyd ] Floyd | > Floyd | > X LEGS Floyd | Floyd | His grimy legs, interrupted by rickety knees, struggled to remain Floyd | erect over his malformed ankles. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x knees" | ||
Floyd ] Floyd | > Floyd | > X KNEES Floyd | Floyd | Well, his knees, like knots—obscene, ineffective, oblique—separated Floyd | messily the halves of his legs: and really two different worlds, two Floyd | different sexes, are not so different as were the two halves of his Floyd | horrible, horrible legs. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x ankles" | ||
Floyd ] Floyd | > Floyd | > X ANKLES Floyd | Floyd | Those objects which conjoined his feet to his legs were as shapely, as Floyd | sturdy, and as wet as lumps of clay dredged from the bottom of a Floyd | tainted creek. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x feet" | ||
Floyd ] Floyd | > Floyd | > X FEET Floyd | Floyd | His feet were slick with moisture, and beneath his skin I saw greyish Floyd | veins snaking toward his toes. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x veins" | ||
Floyd ] Floyd | > Floyd | > X VEINS Floyd | Floyd | His feet were slick with moisture, and beneath his skin I saw greyish Floyd | veins snaking toward his toes. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x toes" | ||
Floyd ] Floyd | > Floyd | > X TOES Floyd | Floyd | Cracked toenails protruded from long, bony toes, and as he teetered Floyd | under his own diseased bulk, his toes produced minute ripples in the Floyd | puddle of fluid that surrounded him. Floyd | Floyd | > | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "x puddle" | ||
Floyd | > Floyd | > X PUDDLE Floyd | Floyd | The fluid that pooled around the creature's feet was composed of the Floyd | same liquid that had formed rivulets running down the entirety of his Floyd | repulsive body, currents which began in the corners of his sickly, Floyd | overstrained eyes—for the creature was standing in a puddle of his Floyd | own Floyd | tears. Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | Floyd | *** The End *** | ||
| DavidW pushes the green 'space' button. | ||
Floyd ]
Floyd | *** The End ***Those two words are a pair of golden
Floyd | scissors, slicing effortlessly through infinite tension. I more or
Floyd | less faint into my chair.
Floyd |
Floyd | The moderator rises, and asks if there are any questions. I leap to my
Floyd | feet. The moderator calls on me, warily.
Floyd |
Floyd | "Thank you for another excellent reading, Miss Chase," I begin. She
Floyd | nods and mutters modestly.
Floyd |
Floyd | I go on: "I have a question about the story you presented last year,
Floyd | titled 'Lights Out.' In that story you said," and now I quote from
Floyd | memory, "'It is pitch dark, and love is just a chemical reaction.' Do
Floyd | you personally believe that love is just a chemical reaction?"
Floyd |
Floyd | "I'm impressed that you remember that far back!" Allison says, and now
Floyd | I get to nod and mutter modestly.
Floyd |
Floyd | She goes on: "Of course, all of us here are authors, and we know that
Floyd | not every word we put to paper is one that we earnestly believe. I
Floyd | have sworn no oath to Truth, but to Art, and in service to Art I
Floyd | readily will wield a true sentence in one hand and a falsehood in the
Floyd | other. Besides, as we all know, sometimes lies can tell us the truth
Floyd | of things too terrible to be broached by the prim and proper facts."
Floyd |
Floyd | There are murmurs of patient assent; all of this is obvious to us
Floyd | authors.
Floyd |
Floyd | "In writing 'Lights Out,' as is so often the case, it was my mission
Floyd | to terrify my reader. And so I wrote that love is only a chemical
Floyd | reaction: Not to teach the reader an uncomfortable truth, but because
Floyd | that sentence—the meaninglessness that wears that sentence as its
Floyd | hideous mask—is the scariest thing I can think of."
Floyd |
Floyd | I have goosebumps.
Floyd |
Floyd | "Thank you, Miss Chase," I say, and she thanks me, and the moderator
Floyd | thanks me, and I sit down. My knees are shaking.
Floyd |
Floyd | So anyway, how much did you like the story? On a scale of 1 to 10?
Floyd |
Floyd | >
| Knight_Otu says, "Oh, or not." | |
| DavidW says, "That wasn't a story. That was more of an art piece." | ||
| DavidW says, "And it ended too soon. I'd rate that a 2." | ||
| Knight_Otu says, "Hm." | ||
| DavidW says, "And I need a pee break." | ||
| Jacqueline says, "yeah" | ||
| Jacqueline asks, "Also, curious: we're at 2 hours. Do we plan to keep going?" | ||
| Jacqueline says, "Just need to know for errand planning." | ||
| Knight_Otu says, "Would be easier to say if I knew how many stories there are." | ||
| wordsmith says, "Yeah, I'd be up for no more than one more today." | ||
| Jacqueline asks, "Well, or should we just rate this story and then pick up next week?" | ||
| Knight_Otu says, "If this isn't the last one, that may be the way to go." | ||
| DavidW says, "back" | ||
| DavidW says, "This might be the last one or there might be one more." | ||
| DavidW says, "What should I rate it? I think 2." | ||
| Jacqueline says, "Weird." | ||
| Jacqueline says, "I am totally different on the rating scale than you all." | ||
| wordsmith says, "2" | ||
| Knight_Otu says, "I was ctually thinking higher." | ||
| Jacqueline says, "I would rate much higher, but I also don't have a hill on which I'm willing to die." | ||
| Knight_Otu says, "But sure." | ||
| wordsmith asks, "KO and J, how high would you go?" | ||
| DavidW asks, "I am willing to be overruled or make it higher. 5 then?" | ||
| Knight_Otu says, "Sounds like a compromise." | ||
| DavidW says (to Floyd), "5" | ||
Floyd | > Floyd | > 5 Floyd | Floyd | Okay. Noted. | ||
| DavidW pushes the green 'space' button. | ||
Floyd | Okay. Noted.Awkward muttering fills the chamber. Everyone is wondering Floyd | who the next author will be. Floyd | Floyd | The moderator rises and speaks: "With that, our evening is concluded." Floyd | Well, that answers that question. "On behalf of the Balderstone Floyd | estate, I would like to wish you all a wonderful year to come, and a Floyd | safe trip home." Floyd | Floyd | "Hold on!" I say, and I jog up to the dais. The moderator is smart Floyd | enough to get out of my way. I lean over the lectern and grin. Floyd | Floyd | "Some of you may know that I've brought a guest here tonight." I wave Floyd | toward you, and everyone looks at you. "And, for each of the stories, Floyd | I've been asking my guest to score the story, based on how good it is, Floyd | or how much you enjoyed it. Which was it again?" Floyd | Floyd | You are unable to answer. Floyd | Floyd | "Anyway, I thought everybody might like to know the results. Each Floyd | story got a score from 1 to 10. And... it looks like..." Floyd | Floyd | I quickly do some math in my head. | ||
| DavidW pushes the green 'space' button. | ||
Floyd | I quickly do some math in my head."It looks like my guest's overall Floyd | enjoyment of the evening amounted to 22 out of 40." Floyd | Floyd | The authors look you over. "Is that all?" someone asks. "Really?" Floyd | Floyd | "Hey, it's not that bad," I say. "Maybe my guest is just, you know." Floyd | Floyd | "Just what?" Floyd | Floyd | Oh dear. "Just, discerning?" Floyd | Floyd | The moderator decides this is a good time to step in. | ||
| DavidW pushes the green 'space' button. | ||
Floyd | The moderator decides this is a good time to step in.Then there is a Floyd | crash of thunder. | ||
| DavidW pushes the green 'space' button. | ||
Floyd | crash of thunder.The fireplace is snuffed out— | ||
| DavidW pushes the green 'space' button. | ||
Floyd | crash of thunder.The fireplace is snuffed out——And Castle Floyd | Balderstone Floyd | is plunged into darkness! Floyd | cheapglulxe quit with exit status: 0 | ||
| Floyd asks, "That game over already? It was just getting good. Wanna play another?" | DavidW says, "hmmm." | |
| Knight_Otu says, "That answers that question." | ||
| DavidW says, "I can't help wondering if the total enjoyment score was larger if we'd get another story." | ||
| Jacqueline says, "Yeah. Hrm. But to find out the other reactions you'd have to play the whole thing." | ||
| DavidW says, "yeah, and not now." | ||
| Knight_Otu says, "Hm. I have some doubts about that." | ||
| DavidW says, "I can never be sure with Ryan. He's clever." | ||
| Knight_Otu says, "True." | ||
| DavidW says, "anyway, thanks everyone. Glad we played this." | ||
| Jacqueline exclaims, "Yes, thanks all!" | ||
