AllThingsJacq.com - Interactive Fiction | ClubFloyd - June 12, 2022


ToyShop & Floyditorium		#ClubFloyd Discussion


Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "load cellar"
CF \|
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CF \|
CF \| Loading game...
CF \| Welcome to the Cheap Glk Implementation, library version 0.9.0.
CF \|
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CF \|
CF \| The Cellar
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
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CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| The Cellar
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| Written by David Whyld
Jacqueline presses the yellow enter button.
CF \| with ADRIFT Version 4, Release 46
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| From the Lovecraft Commonplace Book:
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| "Man's body dies - but
CF \| corpse retains life. Stalks
CF \| about - tries to conceal
CF \| odour of decay - detained
Jacqueline presses the yellow enter button.
CF \| somewhere - hideous climax."
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| "And you're never to go into the cellar, Nevare!"
CF \|
CF \| "Yes, father."
CF \|
CF \| "Never, you understand! If I ever find you've gone down there-"
CF \|
CF \| "Yes, father."
CF \|
CF \| "Good, Nevare. I knew I could trust you. You're a good boy."
CF \|
Jacqueline presses the yellow enter button.
CF \| But now your father is away on business and you're all alone in the
CF \| house. And you know where he keeps the key to the cellar.
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| The Cellar
CF \|
CF \| This is my entry to the H. P. Lovecraft Commonplace Book & Exhibit. As
CF \| 11th June 2007, this {version 1} is the latest version of the game. It
CF \| and any future versions can be found at:
CF \|
CF \| [LINK]
CF \|
CF \| The Cellar was written with ADRIFT Version 4, Release 46. Earlier or
CF \| later Releases of the ADRIFT Runner will probably play the game
CF \| perfectly fine, but just to be on the safe side you're best using this
CF \| Release. If you don't have it, you can find it at
CF \|
CF \| [LINK]
CF \|
CF \| (Double-clicking the links ought to take you to the relevant
CF \| locations.)
CF \|
CF \| To check which version of the Runner you have, type version.
CF \|
CF \| General game information: size 24 Kb; rooms 5; objects 53; tasks 141
CF \|
CF \| If you like the game, feel free to contact me at dwhyld@gmail.com and
CF \| let me know.
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CF \|
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CF \|
CF \|		Jade says, "I directly look for in ifdb"
		Knight_Otu says, "Good boy, here's some threats. :/"
		Jacqueline says, "If you like the game, feel free to contact me and let me know. If you don't like the game..."
		DavidW says, "Well, there was that one cartoon where the forbidden door had naked grandma behind it."
Jacqueline presses the yellow enter button.
CF \| David Whyld
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| l l l Father's Room l l l
CF \|
CF \| A sturdy oak table has been placed in the dead centre of your father's
CF \| room, its weight enough to make the floorboards creak and groan late at
CF \| night. There are papers scattered across the table's surface, each
CF \| covered with your father's tight, meticulous writing. A bed beneath the
CF \| window is where he sleeps; it seems small, much too small for his large
CF \| frame. A door to the east leads to the hallway at the top of the
CF \| stairs. In an alcove in one wall are your father's collection of
CF \| journals.
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| In a box under the bed, that's where your father keeps the key. You
CF \| should grab it and quickly. He won't return for many hours... but even
CF \| so, it never pays to take chances.
CF \|
CF \| >		Jade says, "funny thing"
		Jacqueline asks (of Jade), "What's funny?"
		Jacqueline asks, "So, we are going immediately to the forbidden cellar, I take it?"
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "x me"
CF \| You are Nevare. 11 years old. A quiet, solitary boy who lives with his
CF \| father in a dusty old house in the middle of nowhere. You don't have
CF \| many friends and have taken to exploring the house and grounds on days
CF \| when you have little to do... which is often.
CF \|
CF \| >		DavidW asks, "How much game is there if we don't take it and try to make a sandwich?"
		Knight_Otu says, "Well, key first, bt I guess."
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "i"
CF \| You are carrying nothing of any great importance.
CF \|
CF \| >
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "look under bed"
CF \| On your hands and knees, you peer under the bed and see an old wooden
CF \| box, dusty and crumpled.
CF \|
CF \| >
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "open box"
CF \| There is not enough room to open the box while it is still under the
CF \| bed.
CF \|
CF \| >
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "take box"
CF \| [get box]
CF \| You tug the box out from under the bed but it is in too poor a
CF \| condition to be lifted without breaking apart.
CF \|
CF \| >
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "pull box"
CF \| [move box]
CF \| The box would tear apart if you were to attempt to pick it up.
CF \|
CF \| >		DavidW says, "move the bed"
		Jacqueline says, "dang"
		Jacqueline says, "I mean, I guess, yeah."
		Jade says, "the comment, if you like the game contact me, otherwise don't contact"
		Jacqueline says (to Jade), "Oh - ha. Yeah, he didn't say the second part, just kind of implied it."
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "move bed"
CF \| You move it slightly away from the wall but it is too heavy to move
CF \| far.
CF \|
CF \| >		DavidW asks, "Also, there's gonna be silverfish in there, isn't there?"
		Jacqueline says, "Possibly"
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "open box"
CF \| Almost choking on the dust, you open the box. It is, frustratingly,
CF \| empty.
CF \|
CF \| It seems your father has found a better hiding place for the key to the
CF \| cellar.
CF \|
CF \| >
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "move bed"
CF \| You move it slightly away from the wall but it is too heavy to move
CF \| far.
CF \|
CF \| >		Jacqueline says (to Game), "I wanted to move the bed back"
		Knight_Otu says, "Well, we are thwarted."
		Jacqueline says, "I guess that's the game, then."
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "l"
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| l l l Father's Room l l l
CF \|
CF \| A sturdy oak table has been placed in the dead centre of your father's
CF \| room, its weight enough to make the floorboards creak and groan late at
CF \| night. There are papers scattered across the table's surface, each
CF \| covered with your father's tight, meticulous writing. A bed beneath the
CF \| window is where he sleeps; it seems small, much too small for his large
CF \| frame. There is a dusty box by the side of the bed. A door to the east
CF \| leads to the hallway at the top of the stairs. In an alcove in one wall
CF \| are your father's collection of journals.
CF \|
CF \| >		DavidW says, "Time for sandwiches, yey!"
		Jacqueline says, "mmm"
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "read papers"
CF \| You glance at the papers...
CF \|
CF \| "... lost Penwright today. Bad omen for the rest of the expedition.
CF \| Expected he would outlast us all but it wasn't to be. But we are
CF \| optimistic of our chances for success in our endeavour. Gavin believes
CF \| we should press on with all speed, that the village cannot be far away.
CF \| I am more hesitant. Penwright was a good man, he should be given a
CF \| decent burial, yet is it possible to bury a man in this godforsaken
CF \| marsh? Clarkson proposed bringing the body with us but that idea was
CF \| quickly passed on when the thought of trekking around darkest Africa
CF \| with a corpse in our possession was raised. And we cannot turn back
CF \| now, not when we are so close...
CF \|
CF \| "In the end, we buried Penwright as best we could. Simonson said a few
CF \| words. I laid Penwright's pipe on top of the stones we piled over his
CF \| grave. Gavin said we would miss the gruff old fellow.
CF \|
CF \| "We continue. The village cannot be far..."
CF \|
CF \| >
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "read papers"
CF \| You glance at the papers...
CF \|
CF \| "... lost Penwright today. Bad omen for the rest of the expedition.
CF \| Expected he would outlast us all but it wasn't to be. But we are
CF \| optimistic of our chances for success in our endeavour. Gavin believes
CF \| we should press on with all speed, that the village cannot be far away.
CF \| I am more hesitant. Penwright was a good man, he should be given a
CF \| decent burial, yet is it possible to bury a man in this godforsaken
CF \| marsh? Clarkson proposed bringing the body with us but that idea was
CF \| quickly passed on when the thought of trekking around darkest Africa
CF \| with a corpse in our possession was raised. And we cannot turn back
CF \| now, not when we are so close...
CF \|
CF \| "In the end, we buried Penwright as best we could. Simonson said a few
CF \| words. I laid Penwright's pipe on top of the stones we piled over his
CF \| grave. Gavin said we would miss the gruff old fellow.
CF \|
CF \| "We continue. The village cannot be far..."
CF \|
CF \| >		Jacqueline says, "Okay, just the one paper to read."
		Knight_Otu asks, "We're keeping Penwright in the cellar, aren't we?"
		DavidW says, "After we lost Penwright, we lost Pencildraw."
		Jacqueline says, "So, to the east is the hallway, or we can read the journals, maybe."
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "read journals"
CF \| Your father only lets you peruse his journals when he is present, and
CF \| he has an uncanny knack of knowing when you have studied them in his
CF \| absence.
CF \|
CF \| >		DavidW says, "Journals, yes. Perhaps look under the table? The key could be taped to the underside."
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "look under table"
CF \| You see nothing more interesting than the floor.
CF \|
CF \| >		DavidW asks, "Loose floorboard?"
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "x floor"
CF \| You see nothing special about the floor.
CF \|
CF \| >
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "move floorboard"
CF \| You cannot move the floorboards.
CF \|
CF \| >		Jade says, "open"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x floorboard"
CF \| The floorboards are a little dusty but you see nothing of interest
CF \| about them.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "push floorboard"
CF \| [move floorboard]
CF \| You cannot move the floorboards.
CF \|
CF \| >		Knight_Otu asks, "Yeah. They appear separate objects at least?"
		DavidW says, "yes"
		DavidW says, "They were mentioned re taable weight"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x walls"
CF \| The walls aren't as ordinary as you'd expect them to be.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x ceiling"
CF \| You examine the ceiling but see nothing special about it.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x bed"
CF \| The bed seems shorter than you would expect considering your father's
CF \| height, but if he has any complaints about the size of his bed he never
CF \| voices them to you.
CF \|
CF \| >		Jade says, "move table"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x mattress"
CF \| You see no such thing.
CF \|
CF \| >		Jade says, "look under"
		DavidW says, "We looked under the table."
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "look under papers"
CF \| You see no such thing.
CF \|
CF \| >		DavidW asks, "Maybe it's not in the room?"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x window"
CF \| The window is nailed shut (making the room unbearably stuffy in
CF \| summer), as is every other window in the house. You once asked your
CF \| father what the reason for this was and he mumbled something vague
CF \| about "security" and then would say no more.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x door"
CF \| The door is pretty much standard as far as doors go.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "close door"
CF \| You don't need to concern yourself with opening or closing the door.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x dresser"
CF \| You see no such thing.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "l"
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| l l l Father's Room l l l
CF \|
CF \| A sturdy oak table has been placed in the dead centre of your father's
CF \| room, its weight enough to make the floorboards creak and groan late at
CF \| night. There are papers scattered across the table's surface, each
CF \| covered with your father's tight, meticulous writing. A bed beneath the
CF \| window is where he sleeps; it seems small, much too small for his large
CF \| frame. There is a dusty box by the side of the bed. A door to the east
CF \| leads to the hallway at the top of the stairs. In an alcove in one wall
CF \| are your father's collection of journals.
CF \|
CF \| >		Knight_Otu says, "I don't think I like our house."
		Jade says, "papers and journals"
		DavidW asks, "I think we've examined everything?"
		Jacqueline says, "I would just go east, but then, that's why you all finish more games than I do by myself."
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x alcove"
CF \| Not so much an alcove as a slight depression in the wall, barely deep
CF \| enough to step into.
CF \|
CF \| >		Knight_Otu says, "Hm."
		DavidW says, "yeah, let's go east."
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "e"
CF \| There's no point in leaving before you've found the key.
CF \|
CF \| >		Jacqueline says, "DANG"
		DavidW says, "okay then"
		Jacqueline asks, "See?"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "search walls"
CF \| [x walls]
CF \| The walls aren't as ordinary as you'd expect them to be.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "touch floorboards"
CF \| You can't touch the floorboards.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "touch walls"
CF \| You can't touch the walls.
CF \|
CF \| >
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "search bed"
CF \| [x bed]
CF \| The bed seems shorter than you would expect considering your father's
CF \| height, but if he has any complaints about the size of his bed he never
CF \| voices them to you.
CF \|
CF \| >		Jade says, "we have the key"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "touch me"
CF \| You can't touch that.
CF \|
CF \| >
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "i"
CF \| You are carrying nothing of any great importance.
CF \|
CF \| >		Knight_Otu says, "We don't."
		DavidW says, "The key was in our heart all along."
		DavidW asks, "Where's the knife?"
		Knight_Otu says, ">CUT HEART."
		Jade says, "I thought there was a key in the box...."
		Jacqueline says, "This is escalating quickly."
		DavidW says, "That has happened in some games. More than one."
		Jacqueline says (to Jade), "No, dad moved it."
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x box"
CF \| The box is open but there is nothing inside.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x lid"
CF \| You see no such thing.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "reach in box"
CF \| I don't understand what you want me to do with the box.
CF \|
CF \| >		Jade says, "ok, I readed the wrong way"
		Jacqueline says (to Jade), "No worries."
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "search box"
CF \| [x box]
CF \| The box is open but there is nothing inside.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "close box"
CF \| You close the dusty box up.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x box"
CF \| The box is closed, its contents hidden from you.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "open box"
CF \| Almost choking on the dust, you open the box. It is, frustratingly,
CF \| empty.
CF \|
CF \| It seems your father has found a better hiding place for the key to the
CF \| cellar.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x dust"
CF \| You see no such thing.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "close box"
CF \| You close the dusty box up.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "get on bed"
CF \| The bed cannot be taken.
CF \|
CF \| >		Jade says, "ok, let's search"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "lie on bed"
CF \| Now is not the time. You need to find the key before your father
CF \| returns.
CF \|
CF \| >		Knight_Otu says, "With all this dust, it's no wonder that dad is always on to us."
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x journals"
CF \| Once lavishly-bound, now the years have begun to take their toll on
CF \| these journals and they are a pale shadow of their former self. For the
CF \| most part, they detail your father's exploration of Africa and his
CF \| findings there, delivered in somewhat tight and unflattering prose.
CF \| Your father was, after all, an historian and not a storyteller.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "search journals"
CF \| [x journals]
CF \| Once lavishly-bound, now the years have begun to take their toll on
CF \| these journals and they are a pale shadow of their former self. For the
CF \| most part, they detail your father's exploration of Africa and his
CF \| findings there, delivered in somewhat tight and unflattering prose.
CF \| Your father was, after all, an historian and not a storyteller.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "move journals"
CF \| You cannot move the journals.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x paper"
CF \| Numerous papers, marked by your father's meticulous handwriting.
CF \|
CF \| >		Jade says, "search it"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "move paper"
CF \| You cannot move the papers.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "search paper"
CF \| [x paper]
CF \| Numerous papers, marked by your father's meticulous handwriting.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "take paper"
CF \| [get paper]
CF \| Father would not be happy if he discovered you had taken his papers.
CF \|
CF \| >		Jade says, "search under bed"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "move table"
CF \| The table is too heavy for you to move.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "stand on table"
CF \| You can't stand on the table.
CF \|
CF \| >		Knight_Otu says, "Search and examine appear wholly synonymous here."
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "stand on bed"
CF \| You can't stand on the bed.
CF \|
CF \| >		Jade says, "ok"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "look under bed"
CF \| On your hands and knees, you peer under the bed and see a dusty space.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x dusty space"
CF \| You see no such thing.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x space"
CF \| You see no such thing.
CF \|
CF \| >		Jade asks, "is there no drawer?"
		Jacqueline says, "The reviews of this game say that it is 'fast-paced'"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x drawer"
CF \| You see no such thing.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "open table"
CF \| You can't open the table!
CF \|
CF \| >		Jade asks, "hidden in some leg?"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x leg"
CF \| One of the table's legs seems slightly shorter than the others and has
CF \| been propped up with some cloth wadded beneath it.
CF \|
CF \| >		Jade asks, "stuck under with chewing gum?"
		DavidW says, "I think we found it!"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x cloth"
CF \| It looks to have been torn from some clothing and wadded under the
CF \| table leg to make it the same length as the others.
CF \|
CF \| >		Knight_Otu says, "Hm."
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "take cloth"
CF \| [get cloth]
CF \| You tug it out from under the table, and a key tumbles free.
CF \|
CF \| A-ha! The key to the cellar! Your father is certainly improving when it
CF \| comes to concealing things from you.
CF \|
CF \| You scoop it up and slip it into your pocket.
CF \|
CF \| >		Jacqueline says, "Well done. Dang."
		Knight_Otu says, "There it is."
		DavidW says, "Good job on the table leg idea."
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x key"
CF \| An unmarked key, cold to the touch.
CF \|
CF \| >		DavidW asks, "East?"
		Jade says, "alright"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "e"
CF \| Clutching the key, you leave the room.
CF \|
CF \| [MORE]
CF \|		Knight_Otu says, "Let's go disappoint dad."
		Jacqueline says (to Jade), "Yeah, good job."
DavidW pushes the green 'space' button.
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| Down the stairs you go, into the kitchen, past the old stove which
CF \| seldom works and emits foul clouds of smoke when it does, to the cellar
CF \| door. You experience a momentary... anxiety? Fear? Dread? It's hard to
CF \| say. You've been in the cellar before, many times in fact, but not
CF \| since your father returned from his last trip to Africa, not since the
CF \| untimely demise of your uncle, and not since your father insisted you
CF \| not enter the cellar...
CF \|
CF \| You hesitate. You've always been a good boy. You've always done what
CF \| your father commanded. And the cellar is creepy...
CF \|
CF \| But like all boys, you burn with curiosity. Deny you something, even
CF \| something you're not bothered about, and attaining it becomes all
CF \| important. Curiosity is not something you can ignore.
CF \|
CF \| So you insert the key in the lock, unlock the door, open the door, and
CF \| head into the cellar before you can change your mind.
CF \|
CF \| [MORE]
CF \|		DavidW says, "oh sure, blame your uncontrollable maleness."
		Knight_Otu says, "And then we were eaten by a zombie."
DavidW pushes the green 'space' button.
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| l l l Cellar l l l
CF \|
CF \| Dimly-lit, the cellar is a place of shadows and darkness. A single bulb
CF \| hangs from the ceiling, swinging back and forth in a light breeze that
CF \| is clearly present but which you cannot feel. Dust stirs beneath your
CF \| feet with every tread.
CF \|
CF \| The cellar extends to the north along a dusty passageway which slopes
CF \| downwards. There are old barrels, themselves little more than dust, in
CF \| one corner. Steps lead upwards.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x barreks"
CF \| You see no such thing.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x barrels"
CF \| At one time these barrels contained beer, but they are now bone dry.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x dust"
CF \| It it nothing more than dust.
CF \|
CF \| >
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "turn on light"
CF \| The light is already on.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x breeze"
CF \| There is a light breeze blowing through the cellar but you are unable
CF \| to tell where it is coming from.
CF \|
CF \| >		Knight_Otu says, "You make it sound as though we drank the beer, game."
		DavidW asks, "I suppose we go north?"
		Knight_Otu says, "I guess so."
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "n"
CF \| To the north you walk, following the dusty passageway as it winds into
CF \| the depths of the cellar. It seems to take a while, far longer than you
CF \| remember it taking from the last time you were down here. The darkness
CF \| encroaches on you at all times, and there are often moments when you
CF \| feel certain that something, just out of the corner of your eye, is
CF \| following you. Of course, there is nothing there but for a moment...
CF \|
CF \| You turn a bend in the passageway and find yourself in a larger room,
CF \| one you do not remember from before. Is it new? One your father has had
CF \| made without telling you about?
CF \|
CF \| The bed in the centre of the room, and the thing lying upon, are
CF \| certainly new.
CF \|
CF \| [MORE]
CF \|
DavidW pushes the green 'space' button.
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| l l l Hidden Chamber l l l
CF \|
CF \| This room, unknown to you before today, is lit so poorly as to make
CF \| seeing anything beyond the end of your nose a trying task.
CF \| Nevertheless, you can discern the outline of a bed in the centre of the
CF \| room, and perhaps a row of cabinets around it, but it is the... the
CF \| thing lying on the bed that draws your attention. Seen barely in the
CF \| dismal light, it is a grotesque mockery of a man, bloated and
CF \| distorted, pale flesh spotted with tufts of coarse hair.
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| The thing stirs. It's too dark to tell for certain, but you feel, or
CF \| sense, it turning to look at you.
CF \|
CF \| "Ah... a visitor..." The voice is a croak. A harsh whisper. A pained
CF \| grunt. "So rare these days. Step forward, boy. Let me see what you look
CF \| like."
CF \|
CF \| You don't obey. Not consciously at least. You're too terrified. Yet
CF \| something in the thing's voice compels you and you take a step forward
CF \| all the same.
CF \|
CF \| "Well, well," it murmurs. "This is a pleasant surprise." The thing
CF \| leans forward slightly and its face, barely recognisable as human,
CF \| moves into the light. "Hello, nephew."
CF \|
CF \| You stare in dismay at your Uncle Gavin.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x Gavin"
CF \| To say he has changed from when you last saw him would be a terrible
CF \| understatement. He seems like a different man, though sickly and
CF \| deformed. It is hard to picture the way he is now with the man you
CF \| remember from your childhood.
CF \|
CF \| >		Jacqueline says, "Well, this doesn't seem so bad."
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x bed"
CF \| It is hard to focus on the bed. Your attention is constantly drawn to
CF \| the... the thing on top of it.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x cabinets"
CF \| "Leave the cabinets be, nephew," says your uncle. "There is nothing for
CF \| you in them."
CF \|
CF \| >		Jacqueline says, "The 'thing' is called uncle Gavin, kiddo."
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "talk to uncle"
CF \| You say-
CF \|
CF \| "I've a story to tell you, Nevare," says your uncle, interrupting you.
CF \| "A... horror story, if you will. But a true one all the same. Then
CF \| again..." A soft laugh. "It features me so what else could be but a
CF \| horror story? Do you want to hear what I have to say?"
CF \|
CF \| You don't. You are as curious as ever but right now, standing so close
CF \| to this... this thing which used to be your uncle, the last thing you
CF \| want to hear is a horror story.
CF \|
CF \| "I sense your... hesitation. Your reluctance. You consider yourself a
CF \| brave little boy, don't you, Nevare? But seeing me like this, seeing
CF \| what has become of me following my little... misadventure in Africa,
CF \| you find yourself wanting to run away." There is disappointment in your
CF \| uncle's tone. Disappointment... and anger. "Tell me, have you read of
CF \| what befell Penwright?"
CF \|
CF \| You nod numbly. You remember what you read in the papers in your
CF \| father's room, but weren't sure whether-
CF \|
CF \| "It is true, every word of it. I see the doubt in your eyes, Nevare.
CF \| Good. You're a clever boy to not accept everything at face value. Only
CF \| a fool blindly obeys. Only a fool..." The thing on the bed shakes its
CF \| deformed head. "Only a fool would end up like I have done. Tell me,
CF \| boy, do you believe in evil? Evil as an actual force? As a being who
CF \| lives the same as you or I?"
CF \|
CF \| The question startles you. The sheer... absurdity of it. And no, you're
CF \| eleven years old. You've never considered such things.
CF \|
CF \| "You should understand there are things in this world that defy
CF \| comprehension, Nevare. There are things... things that I, even looking
CF \| as I do now, even after having undergone the... the transformation that
CF \| I have undergone... things that I fear. I came across one such being on
CF \| the expedition with your father and Penwright and Clarkson and
CF \| Simonson. I came face to face with evil in its purest form. What you
CF \| see now, nephew," a mottled hand gestures to the rest of the thing
CF \| lying on the bed, "is what happened to me because of it. I looked evil
CF \| in the face and evil looked back at me."
CF \|
CF \| There are moments of silence following this, moments which build into
CF \| minutes. The thing on the bed - your uncle, you remind yourself, but
CF \| the image you have in your mind of Gavin Crayson is so different from
CF \| what you see before you that you cannot reconcile the two - breathes in
CF \| and out, painfully it seems. It exudes a stench which makes your nose
CF \| curl and your stomach groan, yet you keep any outward expression from
CF \| showing. Not through manners, though.
CF \|
CF \| Through fear.
CF \|
CF \| "I shall tell you what happened to me, Nevare," says the thing/your
CF \| uncle. "It is right that you know. Your father... he wanted to launch a
CF \| second expedition when the first one failed. Despite what had befallen
CF \| his only brother, he wanted to go back out there. One day, when you're
CF \| older, he'll probably invite you. Look at me, boy. LOOK AT ME! And when
CF \| he invites you, tell him no! Tell him! Lest you end up like me." Your
CF \| uncle's face looms briefly into the light then recedes again. "But
CF \| first... first I desire... sustenance... Go to the kitchen... Find me
CF \| something to... something to eat, Nevare. Something... palatable..."
CF \| The thing laughs harshly. "Something I would find palatable. Go..."
CF \|
CF \| The voice trails off, becoming weaker and quieter, until you suspect
CF \| your uncle has fallen asleep.
CF \|
CF \| You creep from the chamber.
CF \|
CF \| [MORE]
CF \|		Knight_Otu exclaims, "Halp!"
		DavidW asks, "So, Unc gets a sandwich, then?"
		Knight_Otu says, "Oh, hey, sand... darnit."
DavidW pushes the green 'space' button.
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| l l l Kitchen l l l
CF \|
CF \| The kitchen is simple and sparsely-furnished. There are the usual
CF \| appliances here, many old and scratched though still workable: a stove,
CF \| an ancient oven. You see a sink and a counter top where food is
CF \| prepared. You see a fridge which chugs away to itself in the corner.
CF \|
CF \| And then you see the door leading down into the cellar.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x fridge"
CF \| The fridge is overly large and seems to loom over everything else in
CF \| the kitchen. You're not sure that yourself and your father, neither of
CF \| you big eaters, need a fridge this large and it's seldom fully stocked
CF \| in any event. It is closed.
CF \|
CF \| >		Jacqueline says, "Yeah, in the last game Roger was making the 'make me a sandwich jokes' so I say we make Roger figure out the sandwich."
		DavidW says, "Dare we open the fridge? One game I played had a sentient green cottage cheese that attacked with chlorine gas."
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "open fridge"
CF \| You open the fridge. Inside the fridge is an egg.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x egg"
CF \| The egg appears to have gone off. It was perhaps fresh and edible
CF \| several weeks ago but now it is the sort of thing that you couldn't
CF \| force down if you were starving.
CF \|
CF \| >		Jacqueline says, "Good use of fridge."
		Knight_Otu exclaims, "Gee, dad, we'll starve if we don't go shopping!"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "take egg"
CF \| [get egg]
CF \| You take the egg out of the fridge.
CF \|
CF \| >		Jacqueline says, "Uncle Gavin is dead, so that's probably fine."
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "close fridge"
CF \| You close the fridge.
CF \|
CF \| >		DavidW says, "Eggs are symbols of life, y'know."
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x oven"
CF \| A little battered, a little rusty and in desperate need of a good
CF \| clean. It's a little disheartening to think that all your meals are
CF \| prepared here. The ancient oven is closed.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "open oven"
CF \| You open the ancient oven. Inside the ancient oven is a cob.
CF \|
CF \| >		Roger says, "This is beyond my sandwiching abilities"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x cob"
CF \| Bits of mould have begun to turn the cob an unsightly greenish shade.
CF \| The thought of eating it makes your stomach cringe.
CF \|
CF \| >		Roger says, "A cob under the hob"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "take cob"
CF \| [get cob]
CF \| You take the cob out of the oven.
CF \|
CF \| >		Knight_Otu asks, "A hobcoblin?"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "close oven"
CF \| You close the ancient oven.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x stove"
CF \| It's seldom your father cooks food with the stove and the light
CF \| smattering on dust on it indicates it. You suspect it is many months,
CF \| if not years, since it was last switched on. There is a sandwich on
CF \| the stove, left for you there by your father.
CF \|
CF \| >		DavidW says, "SANDWICH!"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x sandwich"
CF \| An edible sandwich left for you by your father. You don't know what he
CF \| puts in the sandwiches he makes, but they all carry an unpleasant
CF \| smell.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "smell it"
CF \| [smell a sandwich]
CF \| The sandwich smells normal.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "take sandwich"
CF \| [get sandwich]
CF \| You take the sandwich.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x sink"
CF \| The sink is far from clean. You are a little horrified to realise just
CF \| how dirty the place where your father prepares his (and your!) meals
CF \| is.
CF \|
CF \| >		Jade says, "lol"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x drain"
CF \| You see no such thing.
CF \|
CF \| >
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "do dishes"
CF \| Sorry. That is not understood.
CF \|
CF \| >		DavidW asks, "Shall we take our 3-course meal downstairs?"
		Jacqueline says, "sure"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "d"
CF \| Clutching the food in hand, you head down the cellar steps.
CF \|
CF \| [MORE]
CF \|		Knight_Otu says, "I guess."
DavidW pushes the green 'space' button.
CF \| Your uncle raises an eyebrow as you show him what you have bought. You
CF \| are worried that he will not like it, that he will shout at you, that-
CF \|
CF \| But he reaches out, takes what you have given him, and swallows it down
CF \| without chewing. "Delicious," he murmurs, licking his lips. "Once I
CF \| would have felt ill at the very prospect of eating such food but now...
CF \| now I feel alive..." His eyes close for several seconds then he
CF \| murmurs, "my story."
CF \|
CF \| He doesn't say anything else for long minutes, simply lies there,
CF \| staring at the ceiling, and breathes in and out deeply. His breathing
CF \| is harsh and ragged, the breathing of a sick man.
CF \|
CF \| But then he begins to speak, slowly at first, then gathering momentum
CF \| as he tells of what befell him and the fateful expedition to Africa...
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| [MORE]
CF \|		Roger says, "uncle, did you brave the rains down there"
		Jacqueline says, "heh"
DavidW pushes the green 'space' button.
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| Uncle Gavin's Story
CF \| {part 1}
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| The four of us continued at a good pace. I led, your father brought up
CF \| the rear, and Simonson and Clarkson walked between, talking quietly
CF \| amongst themselves. They seemed ill-inclined to continue and many times
CF \| I heard them mention the idea of simply turning back.
CF \|
CF \| That night we made camp in a dried river bed. We ate a meal of beef
CF \| jerky and washed it down with water which tasted foul, even though we
CF \| had drawn it fresh from a river that very morning. Simonson insisted
CF \| this was because the land was cursed and that we, continuing as we did,
CF \| were cursed also. Your father told him not to be a fool, that there was
CF \| no such thing as curses and then Clarkson, who I had never known to
CF \| argue with your father before, said that he had spoken to a coloured
CF \| man in Jiman who had forecast our expedition would fail and that
CF \| Penwright would be the first of us to die. None of us were really sure
CF \| what to make of that and so your father ordered Clarkson to desist in
CF \| his foolishness. Nothing more was said on the subject.
CF \|
CF \| We slept poorly that night. I perhaps managed an hour but every time I
CF \| seemed about to slip off, something awoke me. A sound, a perceived
CF \| movement, a feeling that something was wrong.
CF \|
CF \| I awoke in an ill temper the next day but my anger quickly turned to
CF \| dread when only three of us crawled from our beddings. When your father
CF \| nudged Clarkson to see if he was merely a heavier sleeper than we had
CF \| assumed, we discovered he was dead.
CF \|
CF \| [MORE]
CF \|		Roger says, "The sandwich contains mayonnaise and exposition and I'm all out of mayo"
		Jacqueline says, "Do not camp in dry river beds, people."
DavidW pushes the green 'space' button.
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| You are breathless as your uncle's labouring voice falls silent. The
CF \| only sounds remaining in the chamber are the sounds of him shifting
CF \| uncomfortably on the bed.
CF \|
CF \| "Not a pleasant tale, is it, Nevare?" he murmurs once, then says
CF \| nothing more.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "i"
CF \| You are carrying nothing of any great importance.
CF \|
CF \| >
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "no"
CF \| Interesting.
CF \|
CF \| >		DavidW says, "gosh, he ate everything. Even the key."
		Jacqueline says, "ha"
		Knight_Otu says, "As long as we aren't next."
		Knight_Otu asks, "Drat, we are next, aren't we?"
		DavidW says, "I'm not sure what to do but 'talk to uncle' again."
		Roger says, "my delicious brIN"
		Roger says, "brain."
		Knight_Otu says, "I guess that's what we are to do."
		Roger says, "sure why not"
		DavidW says, "raisin brain"
		Jacqueline says, "I am guessing that Uncle Gavin will say, 'I seek to cure what's deep inside, frightened of this thing that I've become...'"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "talk to uncle"
CF \| "Are you ready for the next part, nephew? Ready to hear what happened
CF \| when we ventured further? Ready to know... know the truth?"
CF \|
CF \| A simple question. Requiring a simple answer.
CF \|
CF \| >		Roger says, "but I can't handle the truth"
		Jacqueline says, "I don't think we're ready, yeah."
		Jacqueline says, "But also we have no choice, so."
		Knight_Otu says, "No, but tell us anyway."
		Roger says, "this is a pretty accurate portrayal of when an uncle talks at you"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "no"
CF \| "No? Ah, Nevare. You are assuming you have a choice in the matter..."
CF \|
CF \| [MORE]
CF \|		Knight_Otu says, "By not being ready, we prove we are ready."
DavidW pushes the green 'space' button.
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| Uncle Gavin's Story
CF \| {part 2}
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| We buried Clarkson in the river bed as best we could, piling stones
CF \| atop him. Simonson raised the issue again that we should turn back and
CF \| I was all for agreeing with him, but your father was obstinate that we
CF \| continue. He said that to turn back now would make the sacrifices of
CF \| Penwright and Clarkson in vain and that it was in their good name that
CF \| we go on. I wondered at the word 'sacrifices' but didn't wish to cause
CF \| friction between your father and Simonson so I held my peace. In the
CF \| end, as I knew would happen, Simonson bowed to your father's determined
CF \| stance and we pressed on.
CF \|
CF \| The weather turned cold. Frighteningly cold. We had ill prepared for
CF \| it, assuming that Africa, in the height of summer, would be a hot
CF \| place. We suffered for our poor planning. Again, Simonson raised the
CF \| issue of us turning back and he and your father came close to shouting
CF \| at each other on many occasions. I acted as a go between, though my
CF \| feelings on the subject were that turning back would be a good idea
CF \| indeed. I think the only thing that kept me from doing so was that I
CF \| had always admired your father, Nevare, and had sought for a good part
CF \| of my adult life to emulate him. To be him, if you will. Turning back -
CF \| worse still, siding with Simonson against your father - would have been
CF \| an admission that I wasn't cut from the same cloth as he was. So I
CF \| acted as the go between to calm down tempers and in that way we pressed
CF \| on further.
CF \|
CF \| We should have reached the village the following day. It was marked on
CF \| our maps, unclearly but marked all the same, yet we reached the area
CF \| where it was reputed to lie and found ourselves in a dusty valley. If a
CF \| village had ever stood anywhere within that valley, we could find no
CF \| trace of it.
CF \|
CF \| Yet the valley was not entirely deserted. There was one person waiting
CF \| for us when we arrived at its far end and his presence placed a cold
CF \| chill in my heart.
CF \|
CF \| It was Penwright.
CF \|
CF \| [MORE]
CF \|		DavidW says, "uh oh"
		Knight_Otu says, "That's just Penwrong."
		DavidW asks, "What sort of shortcut did he use?"
		Jade says, "wall after wall of text"
DavidW pushes the green 'space' button.
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| "Penwright."
CF \|
CF \| You didn't realise your uncle had finished speaking at first. The final
CF \| word - the name of the dead man who was still moving - echoes around
CF \| the chamber and, finally, you blink and come back to yourself.
CF \|
CF \| "Was he dead or alive? It was hard to tell."
CF \|
CF \| You want to ask a question but your mouth is dry. You cannot speak.
CF \|
CF \| Your uncle groans. "I am weary, boy. All this talking, it... tires me
CF \| so. Fetch me my satchel."
CF \|
CF \| You stand there, unmoving.
CF \|
CF \| "In your father's study. He keeps it there. He keeps it..." A sigh. "I
CF \| forget where, but I know it is in there. Fetch it for me and return.
CF \| Go."
CF \|
CF \| On shaking legs, you flee the chamber.
CF \|
CF \| [MORE]
CF \|		Jade says, "cool but wall"
		Jacqueline says (to Jade), "Yeah. Well written story, but more static fiction than interactive."
DavidW pushes the green 'space' button.
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| l l l Study l l l
CF \|
CF \| Your father's study is actually used as a reading room, hence the many
CF \| thick tomes on shelves around the walls. He often retires here at night
CF \| to read, though his choice of reading materials seems strange and
CF \| bewildering to you. Needless to say, you are forbidden to read from any
CF \| of the books in here and the door is kept locked for most of the time.
CF \| A chair by the window is where your father sits to read, though the
CF \| appalling creaking sound it makes at the lightest touch is enough to
CF \| set your teeth on edge. There is a door to the east.
CF \|
CF \| >		Roger says, "ennhhh I dunno I think I like this a bit better than a lot of 'press X to continue' after every paragraph. Not that those are the only two options, but you know"
		Roger asks, "Is a study ever not a reading room?"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x chair"
CF \| The chair is a horribly creaky affair, prone to emitting a sound not
CF \| unlike a screech when someone seats themselves in it. Why your father
CF \| does not replace it with a better one you cannot say.
CF \|
CF \| However, tucked under it you discover the satchel your uncle sent you
CF \| for. You snatch it up quickly, disliking how clammy it feels to your
CF \| touch.
CF \|
CF \| >		Knight_Otu says, "I guess it could be a watching room."
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x satchel"
CF \| The satchel is old and worn, though still whole. It was once white, yet
CF \| the years have treated it unkindly, leaving it now a filthy brown
CF \| colour.
CF \|
CF \| >		Jacqueline says (to Roger), "Well, it'd be cool to be able to ask questions. Some semblance of conversation. Thoguh I guess we're petrified, which is fair."
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "open it"
CF \| [open a satchel]
CF \| You fumble with the satchel but can find no way of opening it.
CF \|
CF \| >		Roger says, "#band-names The Clammy Satchels"
		DavidW asks, "explore more here or return downstairs?"
		Roger says, "let's sit in that chair"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "sit on chair"
CF \| The chair is creaky and the sound it makes chills you. You have no
CF \| desire to sit in it.
CF \|
CF \| >		Jade asks, "we are auto moving from one to one room?"
		DavidW says, "The forbidden cellar: Ok. The squeaky chair: Hell no."
		Knight_Otu says (to Jade), "Mostly."
		DavidW says, "We're moving plotwise, not geographically."
		Knight_Otu nods.
		Jade says, "I see"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x tomes"
CF \| Ancient books, some of them first editions, all of them worth a fortune
CF \| in the right hands. Your father has spent his lifetime collecting them,
CF \| though seldom seems to read them. For him, owning them is enough.
CF \|
CF \| >		DavidW asks, "down?"
		Jacqueline shrugs. "Sure."
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "d"
CF \| The only exit is to the east.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "e"
CF \| Clutching the satchel, you return to the cellar.
CF \|
CF \| [MORE]
CF \|
DavidW pushes the green 'space' button.
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| Your uncle stirs as you step into the chamber. His eyes are dark holes
CF \| in his face but they seem to lighten slightly as he sees what you have.
CF \|
CF \| "Ah, my satchel," he murmurs. "And unopened, too. Good. Curiosity is a
CF \| terrible thing, Nevare. I was curious once and look what happened to
CF \| me. Hand me the satchel, boy."
CF \|
CF \| You hesitantly reach out and hand your uncle the satchel. He says
CF \| nothing of your reluctance to approach him but instead takes the
CF \| satchel and puts it to one side of him. He does not open it.
CF \|
CF \| "Do you wish to hear the next part of my sad little tale?" he asks, and
CF \| before you have chance to reply, he continues.
CF \|
CF \| [MORE]
CF \|		Roger says, "The satchel contains yet more sandwiches"
		Knight_Otu says, "The +1 Satchel of Endless Sandwiches."
		DavidW says, "I should hope so"
		DavidW says, "I'd love a satchel like that."
DavidW pushes the green 'space' button.
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| Uncle Gavin's Story
CF \| {part 3}
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| Yes, Penwright. But... changed.
CF \|
CF \| He had always been a large fellow, hefty and strong, yet now he seemed
CF \| larger still. He must have been seven feet tall, and his shoulders
CF \| bulged more massively than ever. But it was his complexion, his very
CF \| skin, which chilled me. It was grey. And cold. His eyes were lifeless
CF \| orbs.
CF \|
CF \| He spoke to us. I don't recall all the words. He told us that we were
CF \| fools to come here, that the secrets we sought were not ours to know
CF \| and that instead of life eternal we would be cursed with death if we
CF \| did not turn back.
CF \|
CF \| Simonson dropped his pack and fled. I suspect I would have done the
CF \| same yet the appearance of a man I knew full well to be dead froze me
CF \| on the spot. I could not move.
CF \|
CF \| Your father, incredibly, took a step towards the living corpse. He
CF \| said, "we are here and we demand what is rightfully ours." I remember
CF \| the words well. They were the words which damned me.
CF \|
CF \| The thing that was Penwright but which was now something...
CF \| different... took a step towards your father. It lifted an arm and
CF \| pointed at him. It said, "go."
CF \|
CF \| Your father stood firm.
CF \|
CF \| The thing seemed to laugh at him. At least I gather that the hideous
CF \| croaking sound was a laugh. It then said, "then you shall suffer the
CF \| consequences."
CF \|
CF \| But when the thing pointed with its gnarled finger, it was not your
CF \| father it pointed at.
CF \|
CF \| It was me.
CF \|
CF \| [MORE]
CF \|
DavidW pushes the green 'space' button.
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| "It was me..."
CF \|
CF \| You wait, expecting your uncle to continue. You're horrified by what he
CF \| has told you, you're seeing a side to your father that you never
CF \| imagined existed before today, you're hearing things that revolt you...
CF \| and yet, at the same time, you find yourself clammering to hear what he
CF \| might say next.
CF \|
CF \| But he falls silent and again the only sound in the chamber is his
CF \| laboured breathing.
CF \|
CF \| >		Jacqueline says, "Golly"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x uncle"
CF \| To say he has changed from when you last saw him would be a terrible
CF \| understatement. He seems like a different man, though sickly and
CF \| deformed. It is hard to picture the way he is now with the man you
CF \| remember from your childhood.
CF \|
CF \| >		Knight_Otu asks, "So, uncle, what shall we fetch from where this time?"
		DavidW says, "Penwright's pipe, of course."
		Jacqueline asks (of Uncle), "What is in your satchel? Is it more sammiches?"
		Jade says, "oh man"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "wait"
CF \| Time passes...
CF \|
CF \| >
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "open satchel"
CF \| Open what?
CF \|
CF \| >		DavidW says, "I don't think it's here any more. Not in scope."
		Knight_Otu exclaims, "Come on uncle, you ate the whole satchel?!"
		Jacqueline says (to DW), "apparently"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x cabinets"
CF \| "Leave the cabinets be, nephew," says your uncle. "There is nothing for
CF \| you in them."
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "open cabinets"
CF \| "Leave the cabinets be, nephew," says your uncle. "There is nothing for
CF \| you in them."
CF \|
CF \| >
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "talk to uncle"
CF \| You start to ask a question - about what happened next to your father
CF \| and your uncle during the expedition - but Uncle Gavin groans and turns
CF \| painfully to one side.
CF \|
CF \| "It... hurts..." he says, and his voice, always a croak, now seems
CF \| worse than ever. "Your father tells me I am wrong, that my nerves are
CF \| as decayed as the rest of me and that they do not function well enough
CF \| to convey pain. He says it is all in my mind. And yet... YET IT HURTS!"
CF \| he hisses, the loudest you have heard him yet. "IT BURNS AT ME! IT EATS
CF \| MY INSIDES! IT... IT... it..." His strength fades and for several
CF \| seconds he is silent, gasping hoarsely for breath. Then he says, "it is
CF \| my gift and my curse rolled into one, I am told. Though I find it hard
CF \| to imagine what gift there can be in being like this."
CF \|
CF \| "I should go," you say, suddenly wishing you were anywhere but here.
CF \|
CF \| "You should." Your uncle sucks in a deep breath then expels it
CF \| painfully. "But then you won't hear the end of my tale, will you?"
CF \|
CF \| >		Roger says, "I'll get over it so bye"
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "no"
CF \| "No? Ah, Nevare. You are assuming you have a choice in the matter..."
CF \|
CF \| [MORE]
CF \|
DavidW pushes the green 'space' button.
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| Uncle Gavin's Story
CF \| {part 2}
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| We buried Clarkson in the river bed as best we could, piling stones
CF \| atop him. Simonson raised the issue again that we should turn back and
CF \| I was all for agreeing with him, but your father was obstinate that we
CF \| continue. He said that to turn back now would make the sacrifices of
CF \| Penwright and Clarkson in vain and that it was in their good name that
CF \| we go on. I wondered at the word 'sacrifices' but didn't wish to cause
CF \| friction between your father and Simonson so I held my peace. In the
CF \| end, as I knew would happen, Simonson bowed to your father's determined
CF \| stance and we pressed on.
CF \|
CF \| The weather turned cold. Frighteningly cold. We had ill prepared for
CF \| it, assuming that Africa, in the height of summer, would be a hot
CF \| place. We suffered for our poor planning. Again, Simonson raised the
CF \| issue of us turning back and he and your father came close to shouting
CF \| at each other on many occasions. I acted as a go between, though my
CF \| feelings on the subject were that turning back would be a good idea
CF \| indeed. I think the only thing that kept me from doing so was that I
CF \| had always admired your father, Nevare, and had sought for a good part
CF \| of my adult life to emulate him. To be him, if you will. Turning back -
CF \| worse still, siding with Simonson against your father - would have been
CF \| an admission that I wasn't cut from the same cloth as he was. So I
CF \| acted as the go between to calm down tempers and in that way we pressed
CF \| on further.
CF \|
CF \| We should have reached the village the following day. It was marked on
CF \| our maps, unclearly but marked all the same, yet we reached the area
CF \| where it was reputed to lie and found ourselves in a dusty valley. If a
CF \| village had ever stood anywhere within that valley, we could find no
CF \| trace of it.
CF \|
CF \| Yet the valley was not entirely deserted. There was one person waiting
CF \| for us when we arrived at its far end and his presence placed a cold
CF \| chill in my heart.
CF \|
CF \| It was Penwright.
CF \|
CF \| [MORE]
CF \|		Knight_Otu says, "Er."
		Jacqueline says, "ah. Yeah, I saw this in a review."
		DavidW says, "oops. bug."
DavidW pushes the green 'space' button.
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| "Penwright."
CF \|
CF \| You didn't realise your uncle had finished speaking at first. The final
CF \| word - the name of the dead man who was still moving - echoes around
CF \| the chamber and, finally, you blink and come back to yourself.
CF \|
CF \| "Was he dead or alive? It was hard to tell."
CF \|
CF \| You want to ask a question but your mouth is dry. You cannot speak.
CF \|
CF \| Your uncle groans. "I am weary, boy. All this talking, it... tires me
CF \| so. Fetch me my satchel."
CF \|
CF \| You stand there, unmoving.
CF \|
CF \| "In your father's study. He keeps it there. He keeps it..." A sigh. "I
CF \| forget where, but I know it is in there. Fetch it for me and return.
CF \| Go."
CF \|
CF \| On shaking legs, you flee the chamber.
CF \|
CF \| [MORE]
CF \|		Jacqueline says, "I saw other reviews that seemed fine, so I was hoping we wouldn't hit it."
DavidW pushes the green 'space' button.
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| l l l Study l l l
CF \|
CF \| Your father's study is actually used as a reading room, hence the many
CF \| thick tomes on shelves around the walls. He often retires here at night
CF \| to read, though his choice of reading materials seems strange and
CF \| bewildering to you. Needless to say, you are forbidden to read from any
CF \| of the books in here and the door is kept locked for most of the time.
CF \| A chair by the window is where your father sits to read, though the
CF \| appalling creaking sound it makes at the lightest touch is enough to
CF \| set your teeth on edge. There is a door to the east.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "x chair"
CF \| The chair is a horribly creaky affair, prone to emitting a sound not
CF \| unlike a screech when someone seats themselves in it. Why your father
CF \| does not replace it with a better one you cannot say.
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "take satchel"
CF \| [get satchel]
CF \| Take what?
CF \|
CF \| >
DavidW says (to ClubFloyd), "e"
CF \| You can't leave without your uncle's satchel.
CF \|
CF \| >		Jacqueline \| There's only one problem: a handful of turns before the climax, at the penultimate moment, you are kicked back to a previous scene with no way to escape from it. I really, really, hate to give two stars because the writing is so good, but at least running Spatterlight, you can't finish the game.
		DavidW says, "I think I broke it. Sorry."
		Knight_Otu says, "To bad, game, uncle already ate the satchel."
		Jacqueline says (to DW), "You didn't break it. It broke itself."
		DavidW says, "I guess I should not have said 'no' again."
		Jade says, "uf"
		Jacqueline says, "Enh. I doubt that was it."
		Jacqueline says, "But I mean, maybe."
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "undo"
CF \|
CF \| [The previous turn has been undone.]
CF \|
CF \| >
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "undo"
CF \|
CF \| [The previous turn has been undone.]
CF \|
CF \| >
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "undo"
CF \|
CF \| [The previous turn has been undone.]
CF \|
CF \| >
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "undo"
CF \|
CF \| [The previous turn has been undone.]
CF \|
CF \| >
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "l"
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| l l l Hidden Chamber l l l
CF \|
CF \| This room, unknown to you before today, is lit so poorly as to make
CF \| seeing anything beyond the end of your nose a trying task.
CF \| Nevertheless, you can discern the outline of a bed in the centre of the
CF \| room, and perhaps a row of cabinets around it, but it is the... the
CF \| thing lying on the bed that draws your attention. Seen barely in the
CF \| dismal light, it is a grotesque mockery of a man, bloated and
CF \| distorted, pale flesh spotted with tufts of coarse hair.
CF \|
CF \| >
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "talk to uncle"
CF \| "To the next part then..."
CF \|
CF \| [MORE]
CF \|
Jacqueline pushes the green 'space' button.
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| Uncle Gavin's Story
CF \| {part 4}
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| I don't remember much of what happened after that. Your father told me
CF \| about it later, though I gather he himself didn't remember most of it
CF \| and so what I'm telling you now is pretty much conjecture.
CF \|
CF \| I collapsed, he said, as Penwright pointed at me. Collapsed on the
CF \| ground. At first he thought I was dead. But he grabbed me anyway and
CF \| dragged me away. I don't know if Penwright tried to stop us - your
CF \| father didn't say - but he dragged and half-carried me away from the
CF \| valley, away from where the village was supposed to be, away from the
CF \| thing that was Penwright. He carried me like that for miles and
CF \| eventually, so he said, I began to recover enough so that I could walk
CF \| on my own. That seemed like a good sign.
CF \|
CF \| It wasn't.
CF \|
CF \| My skin had turned a deathly pale colour. My breathing was ragged. I
CF \| coughed and there was blood in what I coughed up. I couldn't keep food
CF \| down - not normal food anyway. Not the food I'd been accustomed to
CF \| eating. But bugs and lice, vermin of all kinds - they were food to me
CF \| now. I was disgusted by it but couldn't help myself. I broke my teeth
CF \| eating stones and tore my fingernails off trying to unearth rocks. But
CF \| I couldn't help myself, Nevare. I just couldn't.
CF \|
CF \| We returned to England, your father and I. Simonson we never saw again.
CF \| He never returned home. We contacted his family and they professed to
CF \| have not heard from him. That hurt your father badly, the fact that he
CF \| had taken Simonson under his wing and we never really knew what had
CF \| happened to him. But of course he had other concerns of his own right
CF \| then.
CF \|
CF \| He had me to worry about.
CF \|
CF \| [MORE]
CF \|		Jacqueline exclaims, "!"
		Jade says, "undo works at least"
		Knight_Otu says, "Whew."
		Jacqueline says, "I guess I unbroke it. Yay me."
Jacqueline pushes the green 'space' button.
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| Again as your uncle finishes speaking, there is silence in the chamber.
CF \|
CF \| "We are nearing the end of my little tale now," says your uncle. He
CF \| sounds weary, as if the very effort of speaking is too much for him.
CF \|
CF \| >
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "talk to uncle"
CF \| "Is that why we live out here?" you ask.
CF \|
CF \| You've found your voice, found the will to ask a question. You remind
CF \| yourself that the thing on the bed (and you feel wrong for calling it
CF \| that) is still your uncle. He might be changed, hideously, but he is
CF \| still the same man who bought you sweets as a child and carried you
CF \| around the garden of your old home on his shoulders.
CF \|
CF \| "You miss your old home, Nevare?"
CF \|
CF \| You nod.
CF \|
CF \| "So do I. The cellars there were so much nicer..." A bark of bitter
CF \| laughter. "But moving out here was... necessary. I have your father to
CF \| thank for that at least, though for little else. He knew I could not be
CF \| left alone, and knew, also, that if he abandoned me to fend for myself,
CF \| that questions would be asked. They would wonder that how the same
CF \| thing which had befallen me had not befallen him. They might, if they
CF \| asked the right questions, even discover..." Your uncle hesitates for
CF \| long moments.
CF \|
CF \| >		Jacqueline asks, "oh? OH?"
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "talk to uncle"
CF \| "Discover what?" you ask softly, but your uncle, if he hears you, does
CF \| not respond. You try a different question: "What is in the satchel?"
CF \|
CF \| There is movement from the bed. "It is... something I thought I had
CF \| lost... a long time ago. Then I found it again. It is only a... small
CF \| thing but it means much to me." Slowly, his stubby fingers struggling
CF \| to undo its fastenings, your uncle opens the satchel. "It is all I have
CF \| now to remind me of... her."
CF \|
CF \| You see a small portrait, almost tiny enough to fit in the palm of the
CF \| hand, of a striking woman with long dark hair.
CF \|
CF \| "Annie. My... partner. Perhaps even my wife one day. We were very much
CF \| in love. But then the expedition... and my accident... and when I
CF \| returned home..."
CF \|
CF \| The portrait disappears inside the satchel and the satchel is hurled
CF \| bitterly to one side.
CF \|
CF \| "I should not have asked you for it, Nevare. All it does is bring back
CF \| memories better left forgotten. That is why your father took it from
CF \| me. He says it is a reminder I can do without, that to Annie I am dead
CF \| and it is best to forget her. That... but I miss her, Nevare. I miss
CF \| her so badly..."
CF \|
CF \| You had never heard of anyone called Annie, though you remember your
CF \| uncle had many lady friends that your father used to disapprove of.
CF \| Annie must have been one of them.
CF \|
CF \| >		DavidW says, "discover WHAT, uncle"
		Knight_Otu asks, "Dad killed Penwright?"
		Knight_Otu asks, "A ritual sacrifice against the curse, maybe?"
		Jacqueline asks, "Do people need a second to catch up or should I keep talking to him?"
		DavidW says, "I'm good"
		Knight_Otu says, "I'm caught up."
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "talk to uncle"
CF \| "Let us finish it," says your uncle. "Let me tell you the final part of
CF \| my little horor story."
CF \|
CF \| [MORE]
CF \|
Jacqueline pushes the green 'space' button.
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| Uncle Gavin's Story
CF \| {part 5}
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| I tried to continue with a normal life at first, but it was impossible.
CF \| I smelled of the grave, Nevare. I washed frequently, I literally doused
CF \| myself with all manner of herbs and fragrances to take away the smell,
CF \| and yet the smell always returned. It was ever present and ever foul. I
CF \| could not be rid of it.
CF \|
CF \| The... decay. Call it that for that is what it is. The decay was not as
CF \| bad then as it is now. I could make my way in public without many
CF \| glances if I was careful. If asked, I would merely explain that I was
CF \| ill, that I had a sensitive skin condition. But over time, the decay
CF \| got worse. My skin seemed to be literally rotting off my bones.
CF \|
CF \| I visited doctors. Many doctors. We are rich, as you know, and we could
CF \| afford to pay for the best. But no matter how much education these
CF \| doctors had, none of them could tell what was wrong with me. 'A medical
CF \| miracle' was how one described me, but when you smell like death, eat
CF \| bugs and lice and are afraid of your own appearance, it is hard to see
CF \| what 'miracle' there can be in your current condition.
CF \|
CF \| I withdrew from public life after an incident in a restaurant when the
CF \| staff, believing me to be contagious, refused to serve me. I withdrew
CF \| to my house and stayed there. Your father was my only visitor. He
CF \| talked about what had happened to me and wondered what had gone
CF \| 'wrong'. I had been transformed, you see, just as was intended at the
CF \| start of our expedition. But the transformation had not given us what
CF \| we sought.
CF \|
CF \| The irony was not lost on me. I had sought to become immortal and yet
CF \| in doing so had destroyed what years remained to me.
CF \|
CF \| [MORE]
CF \|
Jacqueline pushes the green 'space' button.
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| Again, there is silence in the chamber as your uncle finishes speaking,
CF \| the only sound his harsh and ragged breathing. Then that, too, stops.
CF \|
CF \| A minute later, your uncle says, "breathing is a habit, Nevare. I don't
CF \| need it anymore. I just... do it because it's what I always did before
CF \| I... before I died..."
CF \|
CF \| "Died?"
CF \|
CF \| Your uncle beckons you to approach him. You remain where you are.
CF \|
CF \| "You are afraid of me, Nevare. That is good. If you weren't afraid of
CF \| me, I would wonder that there was something wrong with you. You see,
CF \| you have good reason to be afraid of me. I have done terrible things."
CF \|
CF \| >
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "talk to uncle"
CF \| "What terrible things?" you ask.
CF \|
CF \| "I never meant to do them," says your uncle. "At least, I don't think I
CF \| did. But it's hard to say sometimes. My memory... is not what it used
CF \| to be. I have lucid moments when I remember the events of the
CF \| expedition very clearly indeed and then I have days when I don't recall
CF \| it at all and lie here wondering just what has befallen me."
CF \|
CF \| "The manacles..."
CF \|
CF \| Your uncle raises one bloated arm. The chains rattle.
CF \|
CF \| "A... precaution. Lest I stray from the bed and cause you harm."
CF \|
CF \| You aren't sure what to say to that so you say nothing.
CF \|
CF \| "I am a prisoner here, nephew. I have been here in this room for four
CF \| years, ever since I withdrew from public life. Your father keeps me
CF \| chained up in case I seek to wander around and kill you. As I killed
CF \| Simonson."
CF \|
CF \| You blink. Did he just say...?
CF \|
CF \| >		Jacqueline says, "Whyld has written a great short story of nearly static prose."
		Jacqueline says, "Let me know when y'all are caught up."
		Jade asks, "simonson?"
		Roger says, "just like HPL, I guess"
		DavidW says, "I'm ready"
		Jade says, "go"
		Jacqueline says (to Jade), "Simonson was a protég�on the expedition."
		Knight_Otu says, "Ready."
		Jacqueline says (to Jade), "Simonson was a proté��on � the expedition."
		Jacqueline says, "Never mind. I give up on accents."
		Jade says, "ok, thnx"
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "talk to uncle"
CF \| "You killed Simonson," you say, not so much a question as a statement
CF \| of fact.
CF \|
CF \| "Did I?" Your uncle frowns. "I can't say for certain. My memory is...
CF \| hazy."
CF \|
CF \| "But you said he ran off and you never saw him again."
CF \|
CF \| "Did I?" A slight smile creases your uncle's face. "Maybe that's true.
CF \| Or maybe - maybe, Nevare! - I found him and ate his heart. It was nice.
CF \| Tasty. And still warm. Hahahahah!"
CF \|
CF \| You back away, your former pity for your uncle being replaced with
CF \| dread.
CF \|
CF \| "Or maybe he escaped, Nevare." Your uncle's voice is quiet again,
CF \| restrained. "I don't remember. Maybe your father killed him and I just
CF \| think it was me. Who can say...?"
CF \|
CF \| You can't take anymore of this. You turn and flee.
CF \|
CF \| [MORE]
CF \|
Jacqueline pushes the green 'space' button.
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| You emerge from the cellar and run straight into someone's arms. You
CF \| struggle, trying to break free, but the arms hold you, and draw you
CF \| closer.
CF \|
CF \| "Nevare."
CF \|
CF \| You struggle more fiercely. Your uncle.
CF \|
CF \| "Nevare."
CF \|
CF \| No. Not your uncle. Your father.
CF \|
CF \| You stop struggling as he holds you. His face is bitter with
CF \| disappointment as he stares at the open cellar door.
CF \|
CF \| "The door was locked for a reason, Nevare," he says. He takes a key
CF \| from his pocket and locks it, twice checking that it has locked. Then
CF \| he hesitates. "Did you... see what is down there?"
CF \|
CF \| You nod, tearful.
CF \|
CF \| Your father holds out his hand. "Come. We have much to discuss."
CF \|
CF \| >		Knight_Otu says, "Uh, hi dad."
		Jacqueline says, "Yeah. Hi, dad."
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "cry"
CF \| "That doesn't concern you now, son," says your father. "Take my hand."
CF \|
CF \| >
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "take hand"
CF \| [get hand]
CF \| You take your father's hand.
CF \|
CF \| He leads you from the kitchen and up the stairs to his room. He sits
CF \| you down on the bed then seats himself beside you. You become aware of
CF \| an unpleasant smell - has something died in here?
CF \|
CF \| "How much did he tell you?" your father asks.
CF \|
CF \| >		Jade says, "dad is bac"
		Roger asks, "Did you sit in my chair? Did you speak with the dead? But my chair is okay?"
		Jacqueline says, "haha"
		Jacqueline asks, "Oh gosh. Dad is dead too?"
		Jacqueline says, "ack"
		Knight_Otu asks, "You haven't raided our fridge, have you?"
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "talk to dad"
CF \| You tell your father what your uncle said.
CF \|
CF \| He sighs and shakes his head. "I feared as much. Your uncle is... not
CF \| well, Nevare."
CF \|
CF \| You recall the thing on the bed in the cellar.
CF \|
CF \| "He's dead," you say.
CF \|
CF \| You expect your father to deny that, or to tell you off for being
CF \| foolish, but he simply nods.
CF \|
CF \| "You shouldn't have gone down into the cellar, son," he says softly.
CF \| "It was for your own protection."
CF \|
CF \| "But he's chained up. Like an animal." You can't help but keep the
CF \| distaste from your tone. Despite what he has become, despite what you
CF \| have heard about him, to keep a man chained to a bed in a cellar...
CF \|
CF \| "For a reason, Nevare, for a reason." Your father clenches and
CF \| unclenches his right hand. You notice, suddenly, how pale his skin is.
CF \| And how his nails are crusted with dirt. "He killed Simonson, I'm sure
CF \| of that. Despite what he protests, I saw him return to our camp one
CF \| night with blood around his mouth. Later, I discovered Simonson's
CF \| pocket watch in his possessions. He denied he had killed Simonson and
CF \| taken it but I don't believe him."
CF \|
CF \| >		DavidW says, "We're decaying too now."
		Roger says, "only morally"
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "talk to dad"
CF \| "Why didn't you go to the police?" you ask.
CF \|
CF \| "Because he is my brother," says your father harshly. He almost spits
CF \| the last word out. "He is my brother," he adds more quietly, "and I
CF \| swore I would help him. He only came on the expedition for my sake,
CF \| because I nagged and cajoled him into coming, and then when I saw what
CF \| had befallen him, how he had been unable to rise above it, I knew that
CF \| it was my fault he was that way."
CF \|
CF \| "Rise above it..." You swallow. "But he's dead..."
CF \|
CF \| "He lacked self-control." Your father continues, speaking more to
CF \| himself than to you. He stares into the distance. "He saw himself for a
CF \| monster and despaired and locked himself away from the world. He gave
CF \| up hope of a cure and his body began to decay as a result of his own
CF \| inaction, and as his body decays so does his despair grow ever deeper.
CF \| Of course, no cure exists. There is nothing to cure. He sought life
CF \| eternal and he succeeded. The... the side effects are distasteful but
CF \| they are just that. Side effects. Considering he will never age, never
CF \| succumb to disease, never die... and he talks of a cure..."
CF \|
CF \| You remember your uncle, hideous and bloated, a corpse manacled to a
CF \| bed in the cellar, and shudder.
CF \|
CF \| >		Jacqueline says, "Dad, are you also immortal? Because... you smell."
		Knight_Otu says, ""He wished for eternal life, but not for the youth to go with it.""
		Jacqueline says, "Or the life."
		DavidW says, "yeah, I think Dad is decaying too but too stubborn to believe it."
		Jacqueline says, "No, I think he knows."
		Jacqueline says, "I think it's that you have to just stick to the worms and grubs."
		Jacqueline says, "And avoid, like, eating humans.'"
		Jacqueline says, "That's my theory."
Jacqueline says (to ClubFloyd), "talk to dad"
CF \| "Why did Penwright let you go, father? How did you escape?"
CF \|
CF \| Your father does not answer at first. He still stares into the
CF \| distance. Then he shakes his head slowly and sighs.
CF \|
CF \| Finally he looks at you. He smiles softly. "I didn't," he says and
CF \| removes his glasses to show the hollow sockets which are all that
CF \| remain of his eyes. "I got everything I wanted."
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| [MORE]
CF \|		DavidW says, "ah, the secret ingredient in the sandwiches."
		Jacqueline says, "haha"
		Roger says, "I guess that explains all the unread books"
		Jacqueline says (to Roger), "hahahahaohgod"
Jacqueline pushes the green 'space' button.
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| And so The Cellar has ended. Many thanks for playing.
CF \|
CF \| Did you expect the twist at the end of the tale - that the corpse
CF \| referred to in the introduction was not, in fact, Uncle Gavin, but the
CF \| player's father?
CF \|
CF \| The restart command will start the game again if you feel like taking
CF \| another go, while walkthrough will list the shortest way from beginning
CF \| to end. If you're wondering whether you missed anything, try it and
CF \| see.
CF \|
CF \| Finally, feel free to send an email to dwhyld@gmail.com about the game.
CF \| It's always nice to hear people are playing my games.
CF \|
CF \| This current version (version 1) of the game, and any subsequent ones,
CF \| will be found on my website at:
CF \|
CF \| [LINK]
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \|
CF \| David Whyld
CF \|
CF \| >		Jade says, "oooh. cool great"
		Roger says, "It's fine as a Twine-before-Twine sort of game"
		Jacqueline \| ShadowVault.net
		Jacqueline \| This domain is for sale: $1,895
		DavidW says, "yeah, very on rails. Good writing, though."
		Jacqueline says, "Yeah, quite good writing."
		DavidW says, "He deleted ShadowVault ages ago when frustrated with ADRIFT 5."
		Roger says, "yeah it's not really my jam but when this sort of writing is bad, it can be really terribly bad, so good job"
		Jacqueline says (to DW), "huh"
		DavidW says, "well, I may have the exact reason wrong. Something made him very upset at the time."
		Jacqueline nods.
		Jacqueline says, "Well, I think that's all we can play of these games. Sad that the Ingold game didn't load on Floyd."
		Jacqueline says, "Always like Jon's work."
		DavidW says, "BlueMaxima tried to preserve ShadowVault, but failed, I think."
		DavidW says, "And the Wayback machine can't help. Someone bought the url and slapped a norobots or something on it so all prior records couldn't be kept."
		Jacqueline says, "Oh gosh"
		DavidW says, "or, at least, couldn't be made public."
		Jacqueline says, "Huh"
		Jacqueline says, "I didn't know that was a thing."
		Roger says, "hunh"
		DavidW says, "I asked jscott about it at the time about getting at older copies of ShadowVault and he gave me a flat 'no'."
		Roger asks, "what was it? a bunch of ADRIFT stuff?"
		Jade asks, "there wasn't any fan that has some stuff?"
		DavidW says, "ShadowVault was a jewel of ADRIFT stuff. Not just Whyld's games, but others. Also reviews."