(css: "Font-size: 150%")[(t8n:"flicker")+(transition-time:4s)+(align:"=><=")+(font: "Arial")[**Ｔａｌｌｅｓｔ
Ｔｒｅｅｓ**]]
(t8n:"dissolve")+(transition-time:40s)[(live:5s)[The moonlight flickers as you pass between the trees.](stop:)(live:7s)[ The rough floor of the woods is slippery in places and knobbly in others.](stop:)(live:10s)[ It's a miracle you haven't tripped and fallen yet.]
(live:14s)[You're running, //hard//. The air around you is thick with mist, and it chills you. Your jacket is ripped and the left sleeve is a tattered mess flapping in the breeze.](stop:)
(live:18s)[And you continue to run.](stop:)
(live:22s)[You're being chased: soft hoofbeats sound in the distance, almost drowned out by the pounding of the blood in your head. Whatever it is, experience tells you it must be a powerfully supernatural being. And that whatever happens, //it must not catch you.//
You're sure you can't go on running at this pace. You're going to wind yourself, or run into a tree and smash yourself silly.](stop:)
(live:24s)[//But you know you must not get caught.//](stop:)
(live:26s)[[[Stop and catch your breath->stoprunning]]
[[Carry on running->keeprunning]]
[[Slow your pace->slowdown]](stop:)]
]
(display: "initialise")
(set:$ps += 1)(print: $ps of $psa)
You can't keep up the pace. The cold air burns your lungs. You feel your legs beginning to falter. If you fell, and got hurt, you'd never make it out of here. You have no choice but to stop running.
You crouch down, head between your knees, and try to calm your breathing. The pounding lessens and the sounds of the woods slowly return.
A quiet cricket chirps. You still can't see for the mist, which seems even thicker than it was before. Anything further than four or five metres in front of you is just a deep blue-grey, backlit by the full moon. The tall shadows of the trees leave alternating bands of dark and light.
It's as if you're in a bubble, which is slowly, almost imperceptibly, shrinking.
You silently mouth thanks to (link: "Kel")[Kel, your assistant back at the lab,] for double checking your pack before you set out. It seems like ages have passed since then, but in fact it has only been a day.
[[Go through your pack->checkpack]]
[[Try and get your bearings->getbearings]]
[[Set off again in the same direction->surgeahead]](set:$ps += 2)(set: $injured to true)(print: $ps of $psa)
Your foot catches a root, and the ground rushes up to meet you. You feel a sharp pain, and a bright light and a loud crack; then the blood running warmly down your face from the gash across your forehead.
Dazed and with ringing ears, you end up flat on the ground. You lie there for a minute. Your mind unravels.
(live: 7s)[The pounding in your head slows as your heartrate gradually drops.](stop:)
(live: 10s)[You manage to sit up. You touch your (link:"face")[face, but your cold-numbed fingers are useless. It hurts. Your fingers come away wet with blood.]
](stop:)
(live: 13s)[
[[Continue...->Keeprunningcont]]
](stop:)
(set: $inv to
(a: "",
"",
"",
"",
"",
"")
)(set: $ps += 1)(print: $ps of $psa)
You can't keep up the pace. But you can't stop either. The sound of hooves carries unnaturally through the air. Searching for you. You need to keep going. You drop to a jog, and try to get your breathing back into rhythm, try to calm down.
The pounding lessens and the sounds of the woods slowly return. You become conscious of the sound that you're making as you jog along. The mist is making it harder to see: it seems even thicker than it was before. Anything further than eight or nine metres in front of you is masked, backlit by the full moon. The tall shadows of the trees leave alternating bands of dark and light.
[[Continue...->slowdowncont]](set:$ps += 1)(print: $ps of $psa)
You take a minute to open your pack and check the contents.
You see a pencil and notebook, a first aid kit, a small jar of (link:"grey powder")[grey powder: iron dust, used in conjunction with magnetic bullets], a (link:"velvet bag")[velvet bag full of salt, used for purification], and a piece of (link:"inkstained parchment")[inkstained parchment - a map written in ancient runes].
Right at the bottom of your pack is an (link:"emergency ration.")[emergency ration, one day's worth of food.]
Strapped to the outside of your pack is a half-full canteen. Your (link:"revolver is in its holster.")[revolver is in its holster. It is loaded with magnetic quicksilver bullets. The casing of one of them glints in the light.]
Everything else you brought with you is back at your abandoned camp. There's only a slim chance of you finding it in this mist, you think.
(set: $seengoods to true)
[[Take off into the woods again, with your pack->surgeahead]]
[[Take a minute to get your bearings->getbearings]]
[[Leave your pack behind, in the hopes of moving faster->surgeaheadempty]](set:$gotbearings to true)(set:$ps -= 1)(display: "pursuitchecker")(if: $inv contains "Revolver")[(display: "pursuitchecker")]
(else:)[You feel like you're running out of time: (lowerfirst: $ps of $psa)]
Ahead of you through the gloom, looms a giant forked trunk. Its distinctive curve, brought on by many, many years of age, points north-northwest, in the direction of the prevailing wind. You can use this as a landmark, you realise.
You have a better sense of where you're headed. At least you're not lost. Well, not entirely, you think.
You think that you could return to camp. You left a lot of equipment back there, that could be (link:"useful.")[ useful: your portable banishing circle, and Golden Tome, and your stock of holy water. All too heavy to carry while you're running, but all very handy items to have.]
Your other option is to keep following the path you've already been on, and circle back later once you've evaded (link:"whatever it is that is following you.")[the beast.]
It strikes you that you could attempt to climb the tree. The trunk runs at about a 45 degree angle, and the bark is old and gnarled and provides plenty of grip. Being high enough may afford you a reliable place to hide.
(if: $ps >= 4)[You need to decide, //now.//]
(unless: $inv contains "Revolver")[[[Go back and collect your things->packbag]]]
[[Attempt to go back the way you came, to the campsite->returntocampx]]
[[Continue in the direction the tree is pointing->surgeahead]]
[[Attempt to climb the tree->climbtree]]$gotbearings[(set:$gotbearings to false)]
You set off again, fleeing from the sound.
Your $injured[hastily packed ]backpack jolts around and pokes you painfully in the back. You come to a fork in the path. Both ways look mostly the same, the one to the left perhaps a little less-used. Your hands are shaking.
[[Take the left path->goleft]]
[[Take the right path->goright]](set: $ps to $ps + 1)(print: $ps of $psa)
(set: $seengoods to true)You remove your suspiciously light backpack. Your canteen is still strapped to the side and sloshes, half-empty. In the bag is your last food ration. The rest of the contents must be strewn about on the ground around you.
You begin picking your way through the items you find.
You find a set of keys.
You feel a small first aid kit, a small jar of (link:"grey powder")[grey powder: iron filings, used in conjunction with magnetic bullets], a (link:"velvet bag")[velvet bag full of salt, used for purification], and a piece of (link:"inkstained parchment,")[inkstained parchment written in ancient runes.] Finally, you find an (link:"emergency ration.")[emergency ration, one day's worth of food.]
Strapped to the outside of your pack is a half-full canteen. Strapped to your leg is a holster. Your revolver lies on the ground in the dirt.
(print: $ps of $psa)
[[Take a minute to gather up the items and repack your bag->packbag]]
[[Grab the gun, leave the rest, and run->surgeaheadempty]](set: $ps += 1)(if: $ps >=6)[(go-to:"endgame")](set: $inv to (a: "Revolver"))(print: $ps of $psa)You're not wasting any time. You surge ahead, running hard again. You're faster now that you've left your pack behind, but you can't help wondering if you should have taken something with you. (if: $seengoods)[The map would have been very helpful, or the velvet bag of salt. Salt has very powerful antimagic properties. Or the jar of iron powder](else:)[Kel would definitely have packed extra ammunition for your revolver. Or maybe something you can use as antimagic. That will help with the being chasing you.]
You haven't gone too far, you think. You may be able to go back and grab just one thing.
[[Go back and grab something->endgame]]
[[Just keep moving forward->surgeaheademptycont]]
[[Take a minute to check where you're headed->surgechecking]]
(set: $inv to
(a: "Revolver")
)(set:$ps += 2)(set: $packbag to true)(print: $ps of $psa)
(if: $ps is >= 6)[(go-to:"endgame")](else:)[You spend a little while re-packing you bag. Your numb fingers are making you fumble. Nothing seems to fit!]
$injured[You notice a red stain on the bag - blood? It's your own, from the cut across your forehead. Blood is another (link: "bad sign.")[bad sign. You're pretty sure that whatever is following you can smell it.]
You remember the first time you spotted //the thing//, about (link: "a night and a half ago.")[a night and a half ago...or was it longer ago than that? It's impossible to keep track of time in a timeless wood, and your watch stopped working the moment you crossed the threshold into the mist.]
What //it// is, is still up for interpretation. You thought you could identify any beast by sight. But with this one's use of the obscuring mist, and being in the dense forest, it has been almost impossible.
You've finished packing your bag.
(print: $ps of $psa)
[[Take another minute to get your bearings, before heading out->getbearings]]
[[Go in the direction you were heading before you fell->surgeahead]]
(display:"setinv")
](print:$ps of $psa)
You look around. The unnaturally thick mist has (link: "thickened further;")[ thickened further. It seems like a supernatural effect] a //bad// sign. The backscatter from the full moon makes everything around you glow with an ambient light.
You silently mouth thanks to (link: "Kel")[Kel, your assistant back at the lab,] for double checking your pack before you set out. It seems like ages have passed since then, but in fact it has only been a day.
You feel a hard object against your leg. Looking down, you can barely make out the shape of your revolver. It must have been wrenched from the holster (link: "when you fell")[when you fell. A magnetic quicksilver bullet glints through the mist.] You feel around as best you can, and find a small jar, which you know is full of (link: "iron dust")[iron dust, used in conjunction with the magnetic bullets.]
You realise you've made a dreadful mistake. Your backpack must have ripped or somehow opened. Your stuff is lying all over the ground. In the mist. In the half-dark.
(print: $ps of $psa)
[[Take a minute to explore a little, try to get your bearings->getbearings]]
[[Take a few minutes to gather your equipment->gathergoods]]
[[Grab the revolver and run->surgeaheadempty]]The mist makes it seem as if you're in a bubble. A bubble which is slowly, almost imperceptibly, shrinking.
You silently mouth thanks to (link: "Kel")[Kel, your assistant back at the lab,] for double checking your pack before you set out. It seems like ages have passed since then, but in fact it has only been a day. Your (link:"revolver is in its holster.")[revolver is in its holster. It is loaded with magnetic quicksilver bullets. The casing of one of them glints in the light.] The rest of your equipment is in your pack.
(print: $ps of $psa)
[[Keep going->surgeahead]]
[[Stop briefly to check your pack->checkpack]]
[[Stop for a few minutes to get your bearings->getbearings]](set: $climbtree to true)(set:$ps to $ps + 1)(if: $ps >= 6)[There is no hope for you. (live: 12s)(go-to:"endgame")(stop:)](else:)[(print: $ps of $psa)
A few deft steps and a firm hold on the trunk is all it takes for you to make it up into the tree. You settle in the fork of two branches and wait.
And wait.
You heartbeat is drumming in your ears. The mist is freezing now and growing colder.
You see movement beneath you. A giant dark shape slides silently through the air. A pair of silver glowing specks hovers, like sun glinting off a distant wave in a sea of fog. How can this thing not hear your heartbeat?
You are in deadly peril.
$injured[You feel a drop of blood run down your face. It stops on the end of your nose. You dare not move. The beast pauses, moving what looks like its head side to side. It looks directly up at you.]
]
$injured[[[Continue...->endgame]]](else:)[[Continue...->climbtreecont]](set: $ps += 1)(print: $ps of $psa)
(live:3s)[You decide to head back. You turn around to the direction you came from.](stop:)
(live:8s)[Instantly, you realise your foolishness. You should have kept running.](stop:)
(live:13s)[THE BEAST rears above you. Metres tall and insubstantial as air, it appears as a giant hooded figure, at the same time human, and grotesquely twisted. With hooves for feet and an icy presence that bores down to your core. (if: $inv contains "Revolver")[You raise your gun to fire. The quicksilver bullet passes clean through THE BEAST. It does nothing. You forgot the iron dust.]](stop:)
(live:20s)[THE BEAST surges forward.](stop:)
(live:23s)[Your body will never be found.](stop:)
---
(live:25s)[[[Start over->Trees]]]](stop:)(if: (history:)'s last is "shootbeast")[
(display: "beastkills")
]
(elseif: (history:)'s last is "packbag")[
(live:2s)[You curse yourself for wasting time!
You should have kept moving.](stop:)
(display: "beastkills")
]
(elseif: (history:)'s last is "bothprepare")[
(live:2s)[You take some time to get things ready.
As you hear the sound of hoofbeats, you realise your foolishness. You curse yourself for wasting time!](stop:)
You should have kept moving.
(display: "beastkills")
]
(elseif: (history:)'s last is "climbtree")[
(live:2s)[THE BEAST (if: $climbtree)[roars. It slams into the tree, and you are thrown into the dirt. You land with a sick crunch.](else:)[rears over you.] Metres tall and insubstantial as air, it appears as a great four-legged creature with sleek black flanks and silver eyes. A strange black cloud hovers around it, and the foggy air is icy against your skin.](stop:)
(display: "beastkills")
]
(else:)[
(live:2s)[(set: $ps to 6)(print: $ps of $psa)
You curse yourself for having wasting time!
You should have kept moving.](stop:)
(display: "beastkills")
](if: $ps >=6)[(go-to:"endgame")]
(if: (history:)'s last is "surgeahead")[You take the left-hand path.](else:)[You head down the narrow path.] Low branches catch your hair and pull at your sleeves. Your outer jacket is soaked from the condensed mist. You feel colder than you've ever been. The moon is almost totally obscured. You dare not turn on a light - you'll be spotted immediately. $injured[You wipe away blood. The cut stings. You hope (link:"whatever is following you")[the beast] can't smell blood. Deep down you know it can. These things always do.]
Ahead of you is a small clearing. You feel drawn to it, as if you //need// to enter the clearing. Moonlight streams in through the gap in the canopy, like a spotlight on a stage. The grass is lit in a jagged-edged circle. The mist has cleared from the centre. It looks like an arena.
(Print: $ps of $psa)
[[Take a moment to prepare->bothprepare]]
[[Step into the clearing->enterclearing]](if: $ps >=6)[(go-to:"endgame")]
(if: (history:)'s last is "surgeahead")[You take the right-hand path.](elseif: (history:)'s last is "climbdown")[](else:)[You head down the narrow path.] Low branches catch your hair and pull at your sleeves. Your outer jacket is soaked from the condensed mist. You feel colder than you've ever been. The moon is almost totally obscured. You can't turn on a light - you'll be spotted immediately. $injured[You wipe your bloody face; the cut across your forehead stings. You hope (link:"whatever is following you")[the beast] can't smell blood. Deep down you know it can. These things always can.]
Ahead of you is a small clearing. You feel drawn to it, as if you //need// to enter the clearing. Moonlight streams in through the gap in the canopy, like a spotlight on a stage. The grass is lit in a jagged-edged circle. The mist has cleared from the centre. It looks like an arena.
(Print: $ps of $psa)
[[Take a moment to prepare->bothprepare]]
[[Step into the clearing->enterclearing]](enchant: ?Link, (t8n-arrive: "dissolve"))
(enchant: ?Link, (t8n-time: 3s))(set: $inv to
(a: "Pen and notebook",
"First aid kit",
"Jar of iron dust",
"Velvet sack of salt",
"Runed parchment",
"Revolver")
)(set: $ps -= 1)You want to scream. To cry out and throw yourself from the tree and take off running.
But to do that would be instant death.
You force yourself to breathe as quietly as you can. And quietly, inexorably, the dark shape glides away. It seems to have relaxed somewhat too. It's less careful, less quiet. It steps firmly on the ground, leaving hoofprints and a soft thud behind.
[[Take a good look at the beast->goodlook]]You carefully climb down the tree. As you reach the bottom, you hear the beast again. (print: $ps of $psa)
Your precious calmness deserts you. You have a better idea of how to deal with the beast, but right now, you have to preserve your own life.
[[Head out again, sticking to the path ->surgeahead]]
[[Make your own path, find another way out->goright]]
(set: $climbtree to false)(set: $ps += 1)(if: $ps >=6)[(go-to:"endgame")]
(print: $ps of $psa)
You decide not towaste any more time. Whatever was chasing you, you can outrun it. Despite the trees and the mist and the rough floor of the forest.
You strike out again, following the familiar paths. You're running confidently, sure of where you're headed.
Until you come to a fork in the path.
[[Go left->goleft]]
[[Go right->goright]]
(set: $inv to
(a: "Revolver")
)Now that you're getting a good look at it, it's definitely a unique being. Almost entirely incorporeal, apart from the eyes and the hooves. You wonder if they are also silvery like the eyes are.
The inquisitive part of you wants to bind this thing, maybe lure it into a banishing circle and entrap it that way. Try and get a hold of the beast's (link:"//core//.")[//core//. These things often comprise a 'core'. - something solid and tangible that acts as a focus for their being. The (link:"incorporeal")[incorporeal (non solid)] parts are energies, emotions, elementary powers, anything really, that attunes to that core and forms the bulk of the being. This kind of being will absorb anything that could make it stronger.]
You think that if you could dissipate the black cloud, and strip it away, you could reduce the being to a bare core. Then you could take it with you back to the lab... Kel would love to get a good look at something like this.
(set:$thoughtaboutbeast to true)(set: $ps += 1)(if: $ps >=6)[(go-to:"endgame")]
(print:$ps of $psa)
The mist is thicker and colder than ever, and you can't tell where you are in the forest. The backscatter of the moonlight makes it seem as if you're in deep water.
There is just you, and the path. And in the distance through the gloom, a pair of glowing silver eyes.
You dive behind the nearest tree. The rough bark scratches and cuts all down your arm. You feel blood, but you don't care: you're in self preservation mode here. You hope you weren't seen.(set: $injured to true)
(live:10s)[Some time passes. You hear nothing.](stop:)
(live:15s)[You force yourself to breathe calmly.](stop:)
(live: 18s)[You peek around the tree. Ahead of you is a great black form, a ghostly mass of dark energy.](stop:)
(live:21s)[(display: "beastinvestigation")
[[Continue->goleft]]](stop:)
(display: "pursuitchecker")(set: $ps to 4)You think you can spare a minute or two to prepare before you enter the clearing. You might be able to use one of the items you're carrying with you. Two at a stretch. But you know you haven't a second to waste: (lowerfirst: $ps of $psa) You know that the longer you take, the closer the beast gets.
{
(if: $inv's length > 1)[
(if: $seengoods is true)[You remember that you're carrying a (lowercase: $inv.join(", a ")).]
(else:)[You realise that you haven't checked your bag yet! You're wasting extra time having to double check that now!(set: $seengoods to true) You see that you're carrying a (lowercase: $inv.join(", a "))(set: $ps to $ps + 1)(display: "pursuitchecker"). You reckon you have time to grab one more thing only.]]
(elseif: $inv's length is 1)[
(if: $inv contains "Revolver")[(set: $onlyrevolver to true)But you're only carrying your gun. In your haste to escape you left everything else behind. [[You set out, clutching your trusty revolver tightly->enterclearing]]]
(else:)[(set: $onlyrevolver to true)All you have with you is a (lowerfirst:$inv's 1st). [[You suppose it will have to do->enterclearing]]]]
(elseif: $inv's length is 0)[You neglected to check your bag, then you left it behind you. [[You have nothing. You will have to enter the clearing completely unarmed->enterclearing]]]
}
{
(if: $inv contains "Jar of iron dust")[
(if: $seengoods is true)[(link: "You could <u>examine</u> the jar of iron dust.")[
(if: $thoughtaboutbeast is true)[You could examine the jar of iron dust...You remember thinking that this kind of beast will absorb anything that would strengthen it. You hope that iron, the metal that embodies strength, would count. You think that if you were to throw the iron dust into the air, the beast may absorb it....turning it into a metallic target perfect for your magnetic quicksilver bullets. That could help you to dissipate the beast's incorporeal form. Then, if all went well, //if you got lucky//, you could grab the beast's core: the silvery eyes. You unscrew the lid of the jar slightly, and set it aside, ready to throw. (set: $ps to $ps + 1, $preparediron to true)(display: "pursuitchecker")]
(else:)[You could examine the jar of iron dust...You have a jar of iron dust and a revolver with magnetic bullets. There must be some way you can use these against the beast. You doubt that the beast will get harmed by the bullets alone. It's form is incorporeal - invulnerable to any physical damage. You wish you had more time to think! But the sound of hoofbeats is growing louder, and the beast is drawing near again. (set: $ps to $ps + 1)(display: "pursuitchecker")]]]]
}
{
(if: $injured is true)[
(if: $inv contains "First aid kit")[
(if: $seengoods is true)[(link: "You can use the first aid kit to <u>patch up your injuries</u>.")[You can use the first aid kit to patch up your injuries...You dress your wounds. You must look like a crime scene. You spend a minute mopping up as much blood as your numb fingers and the half-light will allow. Kel would have a good laugh if he could see you now. At least you're not bleeding everywhere anymore.(set: $injured to false)(set: $inv to $inv - (a: "First aid kit"))(set: $ps to $ps + 1)(display: "pursuitchecker")]]]
(elseif: $seengoods is true)[
(if: not ($inv contains "First aid kit"))[$injured[You wish you could have brought that first-aid kit with. You could have used it to patch up your head.(set: $ps to $ps +=1)(display: "pursuitchecker")]]
(else:)[You wish you had a first-aid kit.(set: $ps to $ps + 1)(display: "pursuitchecker")]]]
(else:)[$seengoods[(link: "You can use the first aid kit to <u>patch up your injuries</u>.")[You unpack the kit. It has everything you'd need to treat a variety of small injuries. But you are not hurt and have no need of a first aid kit. You wonder why you took it out of your bag. Is this a premonition that you're going to get hurt?(set: $ps to $ps + 1)]]]
}
{
(if: $inv contains "Velvet sack of salt")[
(if: $seengoods is true)[(link: "You know that salt is a powerful antimagic. <u>Examine the bag of salt.</u>")[You know that salt is a powerful antimagic. Examine the bag of salt...You think you could use it to make a banishing circle, but there is so little of it. A powerful being like the one chasing you would need far more salt that this little bag. If there was a way to get the salt //on// the beast...but again, that seems impractical. From the sound of the hoofbeats, this is a very large creature. You're really unsure about how this salt could help. And now you're wasting time!(set: $ps to $ps + 1)(display: "pursuitchecker")]]]
}
{
(if: $inv contains "Pen and notebook")[
(if: $seengoods is true)[(link: "You could take out the pen and notebook and <u>attempt to draw a ward against darkness</u>.")[You could take out the pen and notebook and attempt to draw a ward against darkness...You take out the pencil and paper. It's almost pitch black, but you're so well practised; you've drawn so many wards that your hand moves as if automatically, hastily scribbling an arcane symbol on the top sheet of paper. You tear it off and put it in your pocket.(set: $ps to $ps + 1)(set: $inv to $inv + (a: "ward"))(display: "pursuitchecker")]]]
}
{
(if: $inv contains "Runed parchment")[
(if: $seengoods is true)[
(if: not $gotbearings)[(link: "You can read the parchment map, to <u>see if there is another way out</u>.")[You can read the parchment map, to see if there is another way out...You unfold the unwieldy parchment. It flutters in the breeze. There's almost no light; you can't make out the runic letters inscribed on the surface. The map is as good as useless. (set: $ps to $ps + 1)(display: "pursuitchecker")]
(else:)[You got your bearings earlier and have no need of a map: you know where you're headed.]]]]
}
Your revolver is always ready at your side.
(if: not $onlyrevolver)[[[Once you have prepared yourself, enter the clearing->enterclearing]]]
(display: "beastinvestigation")
Lost in your thoughts, you realise you haven't heard or seen the beast in a while. It has moved on from the tree. You wait a while longer, but hear nothing. You decide it's safe to climb down the tree.
[[Climb down->climbdown]](if: $ps > 7)[You step forward into the clearing. But the beast is at your back. You curse yourself for taking so long to go through your pack.(live:10s)(goto: "endgame")(stop:)](else:)[You step forward into the clearing.]
(print: $psa's 6th)
THE BEAST bursts into the clearing behind you. Metres tall and insubstantial as air, it appears as a great four-legged creature with sleek black flanks and silver eyes. $thoughtaboutbeast[Those eyes must be the core, you realise. Everything else is just energy that must be stripped away before you can get to it.] A strange black cloud hovers around it, and the foggy air is icy against your skin.
Suddenly, the beast spins on the spot and the dark cloud surrounding it is flung wide: its bulk fills almost the entire clearing. With an ear-splitting screech, the creature dives at you.
At the last possible second, you dive aside. $injured[You scarcely make it. Your injuries are slowing you down. You feel the wind get knocked from your lungs as you hit the ground](else:)[You narrowly avoid contact with the beast.] This thing is far faster, far more powerful than anything you've faced before.
[[Fight for survival->wardbeast]]The beast spins back to face you again, and the cold of the dark cloud rolls over you. It prepares to charge.
(if: $inv contains "ward")[(link:"Take the ward from your pocket.")[You grab the hastily-scribbled ward from your pocket, and hold it up in the direction of the beast. It recoils as if burned: the paper grows hot in your hand. The beast's silver eyes flash with an icy flame. It dives at you, but is violently repulsed by the effects of the ward. The paper grows even hotter, the skin on your palm sears.
The beast backs away, its dark cloud rapidly diminishing. The paper is smouldering now - the ward is burning out. You hold on by sheer force of will $injured[but it is not enough. Weakened by your injury, you falter. Your hand wavers, and you drop the ward. Its power not entirely spent, the beast rises again. You watch as the dark cloud coalesces. It seems as if the shadows of the trees are drawn backward towards the centre of the beast, swirling around the silvery $thoughtaboutbeast[core](else:)[eyes.] The beast reforms itself before your eyes.](else:)[and the beast is beaten back. Wisps of darkness ebb away, leaving the silvery $thoughtaboutbeast[core](else:)[eyes] to glow even brighter. The paper is mere ash in your hand, and blows away in the wind - but the beast is greatly weakened. It is almost transparent now.(set: $beasthurt to true)]]](else:)[You search your pockets fruitlessly: there's nothing there that can help you now.]
The beast rears for another attack: one you're not sure you'd be able to dodge.
[[Luckily you still have your revolver with you.->shootbeast]](set: $beastdead to true)
The woods are quiet now.
Your legs ache. (unless: $injured)[The cut beneath your bandages throbs.] Your throat burns from breathing the cold mist. But the mist is lifted, the air is warmer and you are alive and awake.
You're trying not to think of what Kel would make of this //mess//. You very nearly came off a lot worse than with just a cut and aching legs. You carelessly underestimated this beast. But you can't help but think with a sense of wry pride of how you banished it. $preparediron[Especially that quick thinking with the iron powder. That was //genius//.](else:)[It must have been a particularly powerful creature, you think. Able to shapeshift at will.
You saw its silver eyes, but never the hooves. They must have been part of the core too, to be solid enough to make the sounds that they did. Your mind wanders...]
A glimmer of silver catches your eye. Your heart jumps - the beast!
But it just the beast's eyes, separated from the dark cloud of energies that was so chilling and so dangerous. They're lying in the leaflitter on the forest floor.
You pick them up: they're warm in your hand, and solid silver. This would make an excellent channel, you think, or a source of energy. At the very least, you should get it back to the lab. Kel would be ecstatic to analyse this. They feel much heavier than they should, for their size. You're impressed - a shapeshifter like this is uncommon, and the core of such a being is a rare prize.
You should call Kel, you think.
[[Call Kel->resolution]]You grab the crystal round your neck and squeeze. It grows warm.
You speak to thin air: "Kel? I need a transport circle. You can bind it to my crystal."
Kel's voice sounds inside your head, but as if shouted across a vast gulf: "Crenshaw? What happened? You were supposed to check in ages ago!"
"It was a shapeshifter. Incorporeal."
"Did it have a silver core? Two eyes?"
"How did you know-?"
Kel laughs, "I read the legends too, you know. Did you dissipate it? Get the core?"
(if: $beastdead is true)["Yes I have it. Pure silver"
Kel whistles, impressed. "Hang on, let me just place the last stone here...](else:)["No. I didn't get it." Kel catches the disappointment.
"You fought hard, I know you"
The realisation hits you like a brick. All that fear you've been suppressing seems to fall on you at once. Your voice shakes.
"I nearly...didn't make it"
"I'm bringing you over," says Kel, "let me just place the last stone here..."]
A 'clunk' sound echoes across the gulf, then Kel's voice again: "There...you should be this side-"
A flash, and you see Kel's friendly face in front of you.
"-in just a second," he finishes.
At last, you think, you're safe.
---
[[Credits]](set: $inv to
(a: "Pen and notebook",
"First aid kit",
"Jar of iron dust",
"Velvet sack of salt",
"Runed parchment",
"Revolver")
)
(set: $psa to
(a: "The hoofbeats are distantly audible behind you",
"Though still distant, the sound of hoofbeats grows louder.",
"The faint hoofbeats sound like they're getting nearer.",
"The hoofbeats sound even louder, and much closer.",
"The hoofbeats sound very close, as if they were right behind you.",
"The sound of hoofbeats thunders in your ears. It is here.")
)
(set: $beasthurt to false, $seengoods to false, $climbtree to false, $packbag to false, $gotbearings to false, $injured to false, $thoughtaboutbeast to false, $preparediron to false, $gotward to false, $onlyrevolver to false)
(set:$ps to 1)(if: $ps >6)[(go-to:"endgame")](if: not $preparediron)[You raise your revolver loaded with the quicksilver bullets, and fire.
Your aim is dead on but the bullet flies straight through the centre of the cloud. The beast turns once more and rears to rush you down. You fire off another shot, then another and another. The quicksilver bullets do nothing against the incorporeal mass of the beast's shadow.
$thoughtaboutbeast[You think back on when you first saw it $climbtree[when you were hiding in the tree.](else:)[when you were hiding behind that tree.] The beast absorbs only //that which makes it stronger// and quicksilver is the bane of all supernatural beings - if it can hit them.
You know exactly what you're missing! The iron powder in your bag! Iron, the essence of strength. You could have thrown it at the beast, and used the magnetic bullets to tear the black cloud to shreds.]
The beast turns and prepares to rush forward once more. You're spent; your revolver is useless and you don't have time to think.
$beasthurt[You notice the beast is stripped to the barest essence, but not completely destroyed. It wheels and turns, juddering this way and that, seemingly desperate. The silver eyes burn with an icy fire.
Then, as suddenly as it had appread, the beast, much smaller and weaker now, shoots away.
With a rush, the moon bursts into life and the stars erupt into the sky.[[Is it dead?->beastnotdead]]](else:)[[[Try to run->endgame]]]]
(else:)[You raise your gun and squeeze off a shot. Your aim is dead on but the bullet flies straight through the centre of the cloud, harmlessly. The beast turns once more and rears to rush you down.
$thoughtaboutbeast[You think back on when you first saw it $climbtree[when you were hiding in the tree](else:)[when you were hiding behind that tree.] You grab the jar of iron dust, and wrench off the top. The beast turns once more and rears to rush you down: as it passes you, you turn and dump the contents of the jar in its path. The dark cloud swells, deep within, and momentary sparks fly as the iron is absorbed. The beast seems to grow larger than before. The shadows of the trees are drawn inward, the moon grows dim, the starts are blotted out. All is icy darkness.
You raise your revolver once more. The gun discharges, and a great rent is opened in the cloud surrounding you as the magnetic quicksilver bullet rips away a chunk of darkness. You fire again, and again, adjusting your aim to the darkest centre of the cloud. More and more darkness is torn away.]
$beasthurt[With a piercing screech, the beast turns once more to face you. It looks as if it is boiling: great clouds of black vapour stream off of the surface of the cloud. The silver eyes lash back and forth. And then, suddenly, the beast's power is broken.
With a rush, the moon bursts into life and the stars erupt into the sky.
(set: $beastdead to true)
[[Is it dead?->beastdead]]](else:)[The beast is stripped to the barest essence, but not completely destroyed. It wheels and turns, juddering this way and that, seemingly desperate. The silver eyes burn with an icy fire.
Then, as suddenly as it had appread, the beast, much smaller and weaker now, shoots away.
With a rush, the moon bursts into life and the stars erupt into the sky.
[[Is it dead?->beastnotdead]]]]
The woods are quiet now.
Your legs ache. (unless: $injured)[The cut beneath your bandages throbs.] Your throat burns from breathing the cold mist. But the mist is lifted, the air is warmer and you are alive and awake.
You're trying not to think of what Kel would make of this //mess//. You very nearly came off a lot worse than with just a cut and aching legs. You carelessly underestimated this beast. But you can't help but think with a sense of wry pride of how you drove it off. $preparediron[Especially that quick thinking with the iron powder. That was //genius//.](else:)[It must have been a particularly powerful creature, you think. You saw its silver eyes, or the core of its being. But never the hooves. They must have been part of the core too, to be solid enough to make the sounds that they did. Your mind wanders...]
It's gone, but not destroyed.
You should call Kel, you think.
[[Call Kel->resolution]]---
Written by Peter Bates (peter.bates@live.co.za)
Playtesting by Alastair Kingon-Daniels
Background image by Unsplash.com
---
Thank you for playing (t8n:"flicker")+(transition-time:2s)+(align:"=><=")+(font: "Arial")[**Ｔａｌｌｅｓｔ Ｔｒｅｅｓ**]. This game is the first in a series of similar titles that follow the supernatural escapades of Crenshaw and Kel.
Each Interactive Fiction work is assigned a unique IFID (interactive Fiction Identifier). The IFID for Tallest Trees is CF4B75F7-191C-4F5D-A060-7AC41A8E093C.
(live:4s)[The beast rears over you. Its blackness extinguishes the moon and stars. The silver eyes blaze with icy fire. ](live:6s)[The beast rushes forward, and passes over you and at the same time, right through you. ](stop:)
(live:8s)[
<==
You fall to the ground, ](stop:)(live:10s)[
=><=
give a great shudder, ](stop:)(live:12s)[
==>
and lie still.](stop:)
=><=
---
(live:14s)[[[Start over->Trees]]](stop:)