C:\GAMES\IMPRO\SOH> soh (N)ew game, or (C)ontinue? C Dismal Field You find yourself in the middle of a cold, tree-lined field. The grasses here are clearly wild, rising almost to your waist in some spots, and ripple in a chill breeze. In the light of the sun, the field, although not cheerful by any means, somehow does not seem as forbidding as it had in the moonlight. Colors appear, their brightness accentuated by the long night. Here and there, small flowers peek out from under the grass. A faint path leads off to the southeast. There is a tombstone here. Suzume is here. >VERSION = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = SPIRITS OF HOPE An Improtext Adventure Lead Programmer: Brian Stricklin Module Programmer: Lirazel Version 1.99B - Re Creation = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = >DIAGNOSE You are quite hungry. You are quite thirsty. You are extremely tired. You vaguely feel Aoi's presence in Waypoint. >INVENTORY a silver pendant (worn) servant's clothing, soaked (worn) pocky (surprisingly dry) a brown leather purse, soaked (jingles a little when shaken) a tattered map, soaked a potion recipe, soaked a tension bar a metal cup a black-painted keyring and key Rojanosh's Hope (used) a piece of chalk, damp >TALK TO SUZUME What do you want to say? >WHAT WAS THAT? Suzume looks at you quizzically. "That? Oh, that was Despise' statis field. He was trying to bring back the darkness. Only, something went wrong..." >WHAT WENT WRONG? "I don't know. It seems much more... direct than before, didn't it? I mean, before, it just kept day from returning, but this! And it was starting to flow through the palace, too." >LOOK AT WAYPOINT You look towards Waypoint, but all you see is a shimmering pillar of-- something. >WHAT SHOULD WE DO? Suzume sighs. "We need more power." >I AM A SPIRIT OF HOPE. Suzume giggles. "Well, so am I, silly!" >GIVE HOPE TO SUZUME. You close your eyes, trying to remember what it felt like when Rojanosh gave you his Hope--and what it felt like when you gave Hope to Suzume. You feel an energy moving around you, and, again, you feel oddly stronger. [You have gained 3 points!] **MORE** You open your eyes, to see Suzume looking at you, almost tenderly. "Keigo-chan... You're sweet, you know that? But we can't succeed that way. Neither of us can summon enough Hope on our own. Still..." She closes her eyes, and suddenly you again sense strength and energy, flowing into you. [You have received Suzume's Hope!] [You have gained 5 points!] >DIAGNOSE You are somewhat hungry. You are somewhat thirsty. You are quite tired. You vaguely feel Aoi's presence in Waypoint. >SUZUME, FOLLOW ME. "Yes, we should move." >SE You walk down the path, which turns and eventually climbs to the top of a hill. Suzume follows you. Hilltop Vista Standing atop this wide hillock, you're treated to an impressive view of the surrounding terrain. To the north you can see the field where you woke up, and to the east and south there seems to be a large, foreboding forest. To the west, however, is a huge walled city, of a type you've never seen before; its buildings vary in design, being mostly of a Victorian style but with a few Japanese-style structures as well. A wide river sits next to the city, intersecting it briefly on the town's northern side then splitting off to the west and northeast. The nearby path leads back to the field to the northwest, and continues on toward the city to the southwest. In the distance, you see a pillar of the strange shimmering you saw earlier towering around Despise's pagoda and reaching up into the heavens. Rising up to join it are smaller pillars of smoke from Waypoint... the people must be rioting. **MORE** As you watch, you hear a loud booming sound, coming from the city. Suddenly, the huge wooden doors in the wall burst open, and the arch over the door starts to cave in. You hear the shattering crash moments after you see its cause. A cloud of dust rises from the wreckage--in it, you can just make out tiny, struggling shapes. Suzume sighs and shakes her head. "We won't accomplish much by going back there." >SAVE Game saved. >SW Stumbling slightly over loose rocks, you follow the path down toward the city. Suzume follows you. City Gates You stand before the wreckage of what once was a huge pair of foot-thick wooden doors. The doors were set in a protective stone wall forty feet high--but now the great hinges and frames are twisted so badly that the bolts have been drawn out of the stone. A pile of splintered timber is all that remains of the doors, and this is topped by huge stones, fallen from the arched wall. The arch itself has collapsed, and the two sides of the wall lean inward against each other, forming a new, precarious opening. You scarcely have time to notice all this, however, because the area in front of the doors is full of fighting people and choking dust. Before you can even begin to make out which side is which, or even if there are any sides at all, a rock or missile of some kind comes crashing down on your head! ***You have died.*** Quit, restore, or undo? >RESTORE Hilltop Vista Standing atop this wide hillock, you're treated to an impressive view of the surrounding terrain. To the north you can see the field where you woke up, and to the east and south there seems to be a large, foreboding forest. To the west, however, is a huge walled city, of a type you've never seen before; its buildings vary in design, being mostly of a Victorian style but with a few Japanese-style structures as well. A wide river sits next to the city, intersecting it briefly on the town's northern side then splitting off to the west and northeast. The nearby path leads back to the field to the northwest, and continues on toward the city to the southwest. The city appears to be on fire, and a shimmering pillar of-- something is rising from around Despise's pagoda. A crowd of people are fighting before the wrecked gate. Suzume is here. >WAIT Time passes... >WAIT AWHILE Time passes... Suzume coughs gently. You feel Aoi's presence drawing closer! >WAIT Time passes... You feel Aoi's presence drawing closer! >WAIT Time passes... Suddenly, you spot a group of people breaking away from the disaster at the gate and making for the hills. >HIDE You grab Suzume by the wrist and pull her off the path and into some low bushes. You now sense Aoi nearby. >WAIT Time passes... You begin to hear rustling sounds, and thumping sounds, as a group of people moves up the path. Soon, you can hear voices. There seem to be four or five people. >LISTEN "Are yez sure dis is da way?" The voice is huge and deep. You think you may have heard it before. >LISTEN "Yes, I was here the just a few days ago, I told you." You're almost certain you've heard that voice before. >LISTEN "Meow!" >LISTEN My, you're getting cautious! >LISTEN You hear nothing but heavy breathing as the group makes it to the top of the hill and begins to move down the path. >LOOK AT PATH You can't see the path. You're hiding, remember? Suzume whispers in your ear. "They've almost passed us!" >SAVE GAME Game saved. >STAND UP You rise to your feet, and Suzume rises with you. A collective gasp shakes the small group of people before you. You recognize Rojanosh! and Teddy the Brick! and isn't that Meryl from the library? and Hash! There are perhaps ten people in all. Rojanosh shouts, "Here they are!" [You have gained 10 points!] **MORE** A woman in the dress of a servant in Despise' pagoda rushes to Suzume's side. "My lady!" Her face is, perhaps, vaguely canine; certainly, her big brown eyes look at Suzume with a nearly dog- like loyalty. Suzume smiles faintly. "Good to see you again, Yuki." >LOOK AT HASH Hash tilts her head to one side and shakes it, giving you a flickering smile. With her two small horns and curly white hair, she looks like a lamb shaking away a fly. She has a loaf of bread under one arm. "Good t'see you again, guv'nor." >LOOK AT ROJANOSH Rojanosh is grinning at you, his big, horse-like head looking particularly toothy. He seems a bit worse for wear. He has a bruise over one eye, and a bandage is tied around his left bicep. "Can't seem to keep out of trouble, can I?" he says cheerfully. >LOOK AT TEDDY THE BRICK Teddy glowers at you from under his crag-like eye-brows. He is dressed as you last saw him; extremely large trousers and a matching vest, but has added a pair of boots large enough to serve as canoes for a pair of small children. He is carrying a large pike. "Hey, dere, chum... Yuze has sumpin' o' mine," he growls. >INVENTORY a silver pendant (worn) servant's clothing, soaked (worn) pocky (surprisingly dry) a brown leather purse, soaked (jingles a little when shaken) a tattered map, soaked a potion recipe, soaked a tension bar a metal cup a black-painted keyring and key Rojanosh's Hope (used) a piece of chalk, damp >GIVE KEY TO TEDDY This isn't the same key he lost, you know, and you may need it to get back into the sewers. Are you sure you want to do this? Y/N >UNDO (Now, now--no chickening out!) Teddy growls at you again. "Yez gonna give it to me er not?" This isn't the same key he lost, you know, and you may need it to get back into the sewers. Are you sure you want to do this? Y/N >SAVE GAME You can't save here. This isn't the same key he lost, you know, and you may need it to get back into the sewers. Are you sure you want to do this? Y/N >Y Teddy breaks into a surprisingly charming grin. "Dat's it! I knew'd ye'd 'member. Yez c'n use it any time, pal." [You have gained 5 points!] **MORE** "An' I's gots sumpin' o' yers." He reaches one massive hand up to his shoulder and brings down Aoi! Aoi leaps to her place in the crook of your arm. >TEDDY, WHERE DID YOU FIND HER? "Wand'rin' roun'. 'S bin a little busy, y'know?" Teddy leans against the shaft of his pike and blinks in the sun. >LOOK AT MERYL Meryl blushes faintly. "You seemed like such a nice guy when I met you in the library. When Rojanosh said we should go look for you, I came along." "That's right." "Got to do *something*." "Can't let old Despise have everything his own way." A murmur rises from the rest of little group. You look them over carefully. A pretty motley bunch--a couple of merchants, a young man dressed as a priest, an older woman with a surprisingly determined face, three schoolkids--even, standing towards the back, one of Despise' guards. He grins at you shyly, then looks down at his feet and shuffles a bit. This is the Resistance? >TALK TO SUZUME What do you want to say? >SUZUME, WHAT SHOULD WE DO? Suzume shrugs. "I don't know, Keigo-chan. We need more power." >LOOK AT RESISTANCE You look at the tatterdemalion group before you. Certainly, they don't seem like much--but their eyes are shining with determination and hope. You begin to feel stronger, and you can feel a flow of power, from the group to you. All their hopes--Yuki's hope to be free and see Suzume free, Teddy's hope to settle down at the end of the day with a few friends and a couple of brews, the young priest's hope to see the restoration of his temple; Hash's hope for a day when the next meal won't be so hard to come by; even, embarrassingly, Meryl's hope that you might think of her as something more than a librarian--all these come flowing into you! Beside you, Suzume draws a deep breath. You look at her, and see that, for the first time in your acquaintance, her eyes are sparkling and she is smiling broadly. [You have gained 50 points!] >SAVE GAME Game saved >DIAGNOSE You are not at all hungry. You are not at all thirsty. You are somewhat tired. Aoi is near you. >SUZUME, IS THIS ENOUGH? "I-I-- don't think so, Keigo-chan. We need to be able to overwhelm Despise." Meryl coughs politely. >SPEAK TO MERYL What would you like to say? >MERYL, DO YOU KNOW WHAT TO DO? Meryl shakes her head. "I don't know, Okayama-san. The old books say that the world will be in balance again when the Four Balancers are joined; but I don't know what that means." >LOOK Hilltop Vista Standing atop this wide hillock, you're treated to an impressive view of the surrounding terrain. To the north you can see the field where you woke up, and to the east and south there seems to be a large, foreboding forest. To the west, however, is a huge walled city, of a type you've never seen before; its buildings vary in design, being mostly of a Victorian style but with a few Japanese-style structures as well. A wide river sits next to the city, intersecting it briefly on the town's northern side then splitting off to the west and northeast. The nearby path leads back to the field to the northwest, and continues on toward the city to the southwest. The city appears to be on fire, and a shimmering pillar of-- something is rising from around Despise's pagoda. A crowd of people are fighting before the wrecked gate. Suzume is here. Aoi is here. Yuki is here. Rojanosh is here. Teddy the Brick is here. Meryl is here. The Resistance are here. >RESISTANCE, FOLLOW ME. The group raises a raggedy cheer. >SUZUME, FOLLOW ME. "Yes, we should be moving." >S Forest Edge You are traveling on a path near the edge of the Spirit's Forest. To the north you can see the forest end as the path continues to the bottom of a large hilltop. The path also branches off deeper into the forest towards the east and northeast. Aoi is with you. The Resistance follows you from the north. Suzume follows you from the north. >S Plain Forest Path You are traveling on a path near the edge of the Spirits Forest. The path leads back to the north and ahead to the south. It also seems to branch off to the northeast. Aoi is with you. The Resistance follows you from the north. Suzume follows you from the north. >S Forested Path You are near the edge of the Spirits Forest on a path that leads back to the north and ahead to the south. Aoi is with you. The Resistance follows you from the north. Suzume follows you from the north. >S Grue Tunnel Entrance You have entered a large path with a large hole to the east leading down to a tunnel below. Situated all around the entrance to the tunnel are large boulders. Trees restrict movement on the path and the only way out besides the tunnel is to the southeast and north. Aoi is with you. The Resistance follows you from the north. Suzume follows you from the north. >D Teddy the Brick stops and scratches his head. "Me don' t'ink me c'n make it down dere, boss." >ASK TEDDY FOR KEY Teddy looks surprised. "You plannin' on goin' back inta Waypoint, boss?" >TEDDY, STAY HERE. Teddy looks disappointed. You feel a little bit of his Hope ebb away. >UNDO Teddy the Brick stops and scratches his head. "Me don' t'ink me c'n make it down dere, boss." >TEDDY, STAND GUARD HERE Teddy beams with pride, and throws you an impressive salute. He begins to march back and forth in front of the Grue tunnel entrance. >RESISTANCE, FOLLOW ME. [You have gained 2 points!] The group raises a raggedy cheer. >SUZUME, FOLLOW ME. "Yes, we should be moving." >D Grue's Tunnel The tunnel is small, claustrophobic environment with barely enough room for you to stand and about 3 feet wide. The tunnel continues off into darkness to the west. Above you is hole which leads to the surface and is the source of the light. The walls are spattered with dark stains, the remains of Silka's blood. It still smells pretty bad down here, but not as badly as it did. Aoi is with you. The Resistance follows you from above. Suzume follows you from above. >W Rough Tunnel This rough, natural looking tunnel heads in an east-west direction. It is quite dark here. How you wish you had a light! Aoi is with you. The Resistance follows. Suzume follows you. >STOP You stop in the tunnel. It is quite dark--you can barely see the faces of your companions. >WAIT HERE, EVERYONE >Suzume nods. "We'll wait here." >W Pond Chamber This small cave contains a small pond of water fed by a waterfall on the northern wall. The sound of the falling water fills the room, and the air is damp and moist. You think you remember that there are three exits from this chamber, but you can't see them. In fact, you can't see your hand in front of your face. You are touching the wall of the cave with one hand. Aoi is with you. >CRAWL (First putting down Aoi.) Which way do you want to crawl? >TO POND Carefully, you crawl towards the sound of the rushing water. It gets louder and louder. Suddenly, your hand encounters water instead of stone. You are so close to the waterfall that you can feel spray against your face. [You have gained 1 point!] >CRAWL ALONG EDGE OF POND. Towards the waterfall or away? >AWAY You turn, and begin to crawl away from the sound of the waterfall, along the edge of the pond. >FEEL EDGE You carefully feel the edge of the pond as you crawl. >CRAWL You crawl away from the sound of the waterfall, along the edge of the pond, feeling the edge as you go. >CRAWL You crawl away from the sound of the waterfall, along the edge of the pond, feeling the edge as you go. Suddenly, your hand encounters something metal. It's the lamp! [You have gained 20 points!] >TAKE LAMP Lamp taken. >SAVE GAME Game saved. >E It's too dark for you to have much of a sense of direction here. >BACK You rise to your feet, and start hurrying back the way you came... Suddenly, your foot slips on the edge of the pool, and you find yourself falling into the water with a splash and a loud yell. The current drags you mercilessly towards the underground river. You are choking. You hear Aoi mewing pitifully from the cave, and the confused shouting of the others as they try to find you in the dark. Frantically, you try to swim against the current, but it is no use. In the dark, you can't see the edge of the pool as you move towards it, and it hits your head with a bang. ***You have died.*** Quit, restore, or undo? >RESTORE Pond Chamber This small cave contains a small pond of water fed by a waterfall on the northern wall. The sound of the falling water fills the room, and the air is damp and moist. You think you remember that there are three exits from this chamber, but you can't see them. In fact, you can't see your hand in front of your face. You are on your hands and knees. You can feel the edge of the pool with your hand. >TURN AROUND Carefully, you turn around so you are facing the way you came along the edge of the pool. >CRAWL TOWARDS WATERFALL You begin to crawl toward from the sound of the waterfall, along the edge of the pond. >FEEL EDGE You carefully feel the edge of the pond as you crawl. >CRAWL You crawl toward from the sound of the waterfall, along the edge of the pond, feeling the edge as you go. >CRAWL You crawl toward from the sound of the waterfall, along the edge of the pond, feeling the edge as you go. Suddenly, you feel spray on your face. >CRAWL AWAY FROM POND Carefully, you crawl away the sound of the rushing water. It gets softer and softer. Suddenly, your hand encounters the stone of the wall. >GET UP You stand up, still touching the wall. From your right, Aoi gives a soft mew. >WALK TO AOI You walk toward the sound of Aoi's voice, feeling the wall of the cave. She mews again, nearly at your feet. The hand with which you are feeling the wall encounters empty air. It's a tunnel! >LISTEN It's hard to hear anything over the waterfall, but you think you hear voices. >GET AOI You stoop and reach for Aoi, who jumps into your arms. >TUNNEL You step into the tunnel. There is a dim light ahead, a thinning of the darkness, really, but to you right now, it looks as bright as full noon. [You have gained 30 points!] >E Rough Tunnel This rough, natural looking tunnel heads in an east-west direction. Aoi is with you. Suzume and the rest of the Resistance are here. >SAVE GAME Game saved. >ROJANOSH, LIGHT THE LAMP Rojanosh takes the lamp from your (slightly shaky) hand, fills it from the small flask he draws from his robes, lights it, and hands it back to you. "Good thing you knew where to find this!" >RESISTANCE, FOLLOW ME. The group raises a raggedy cheer. >SUZUME, FOLLOW ME. "Yes, we should be moving." >W Pond Chamber This small cave contains a small pond of water fed by a waterfall on the northern wall. The sound of the falling water fills the room, and the air is damp and moist. There are exits on the three other sides of the cavern. You feel faintly surprised at how small it is. It seemed much larger in the dark! Aoi is with you. Suzume follows you. The Resistance follows you. >W You travel down the rough tunnel for some time... Aoi is with you. Suzume follows you. The Resistance follows you. Pit Cave The southern side of this cave is covered by a bottomless pit. Its inky maw seems hungry, waiting to swallow you up. A narrow ledge along the northern wall allows access to exits on the remaining two side. >W You carefully creep along the ledge... Aoi is with you. Suzume follows you. The Resistance follows you. >W Carved Cavern The rough walls of this cavern are covered with primitive looking carvings. Exits are to the west and east. You feel odd. Aoi is with you. Suzume follows you. The Resistance follows you. >LOOK AT CARVINGS The carvings are surprisingly sophisticated. Little details abound that should have been impossible to carve into the stone... almost as if the carvings were a natural part of the rock, rather than artificial drawings. You sense tat there is a great deal of information in these carvings. Aoi seems uncomfortable. >STUDY CARVINGS The carvings appear to tell a story, but you don't have the context to fully interpret it. There seem to be four main characters: A woman, two men, and a boy. Each of them seems to be associated with a certain image: the woman with a mountaintop, one of the men with a tree, the other man with a tombstone, and the boy with... this cavern. Suzume gasps. "Keigo-san, do you know where we are? This is the Cave of Creation!" >DIAGNOSE You feel very ill indeed--and no wonder! You are in the birthplace belonging to your opposite spirit in the Spirits of Hope. Weakly, you lean against Rojanosh, who supports you with some concern. You can feel your strength ebbing away... >SUMUME, CALL CREATION Suzume looks puzzled for a minute, then her face clears. "Why, of course, Keigo-chan. How clever!" Suzume moves to the center of the cavern and places the Bracelet of Creation in the center. Returning to your side, she takes your hand and speaks to the Resistance. "Hope this works, everyone. Hope as hard as you can!" >GIVE HOPE TO CREATION You close your eyes, and reach deep inside yourself, trying to remember what it feels like to give Hope... and also, trying to remember the brief glimpse you had of Creation, sometime in the past, outside of Scarabbus' secret lab. You feel Hope going out of you, and into— Green? A green light seems to be beating right through your eyelids. >LOOK Creation's Cavern The rough walls of this cavern are covered with primitive looking carvings. Exits are to the west and east. A pendant lies on the cavern floor, glowing with a vivid, grass- green light. As you watch it, the light intensifies. The walls of the cavern begin to glow in their turn--great swirls and rivers of colored rock, carved all over with forms that seem to be bursting forth from the rock, or diving into it. You feel so sick you can barely stand. You lean heavily on Rojanosh and Suzume. >WAIT Time passes... The light intensifies. You feel worse, if possible. Aoi is lying on the cavern floor. She looks half dead. >WAIT Time passes... The light intensifies. You feel worse, if possible. Aoi is lying on the cavern floor. She looks half dead. Suzume calls softly, "Creation!" >WAIT Time passes... The light intensifies. You feel worse, if possible. Aoi is lying on the cavern floor. She looks half dead. Suzume calls softly, "Creation!" A rumbling starts overhead. >WAIT Time passes... The light intensifies. It is now so bright you cannot look at it. You feel worse, if possible. Aoi is lying on the cavern floor. She looks half dead. For the third time, Suzume calls "Creation!" With a deafening roar, the light itself pushes up, UP on the roof of the cave. The cave shakes. Small stones are falling all around you, as the top of the cavern is lifted off and flung to every side by the pillar of green fire. In the center of the light, the figure of a young boy appears. He stoops, picks something up off the floor, and puts it in his pocket. The light immediately vanishes, as though someone threw a switch. Standing before you is a perfectly ordinary Japanese boy, dressed in white blouse, navy blue shorts, blue knee socks, and sneaker. He has a baseball cap on his head, and is carrying a small backpack. He smiles shyly at you, and gives a single, small wave to Suzume. Suddenly, you feel much better. It's not just that you no longer feel sick. You feel more complete, as though, somehow, before this boy appeared you were less than your full self. The Resistance lets out the loudest cheer yet. [You have gained 50 points!] >SAVE GAME Game Saved >INVENTORY a silver pendant (worn) servant's clothing, damp (worn) pocky (surprisingly dry) a brown leather purse, wet (jingles a little when shaken) a tattered map, wet a potion recipe, wet a tension bar a metal cup a black-painted keyring and key Rojanosh's Hope (used) a piece of chalk, dry Suzume's Hope Teddy the Brick's Hope Yuki's Hope Meryl's Hope The Hope of the Resistance A lamp (lit) >BLOW OUT LAMP Lamp out. >DIAGNOSE You are not at all hungry You are not at all thirsty You are not tired Aoi is with you. >SCORE You have gained 430 points out of a possible 2000. This earns you the rank of: Wise Leader. >SAVE Game saved. >QUIT C:\GAMES\IMPRO\SOH>_ %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% Author's Notes: So the player is suddenly a point pig! Can I help it if he takes advantage of secret internet knowledge? ^_^;; SJK should be fully armed at this point. Writing this story has been extremely... interesting. I have a greatly increased respect for the people who write text-based games. I had SIX different episodes open at once, working on this one, as the cutting and pasting was fast and furious. Another interesting thing about these stories is that it is much easier in them to describe than it is to act. Reading "Rojanosh delivers a mighty blow!" just doesn't make it for me--it's not immediate enough in this format. But I can describe feeling around in the dark for a lamp, or swimming down an underground river with ease. Anyway, Onward the Enders!