"You look like you could use a drink, Captain."

You turn to see Victoria, your first mate. Her purple hair is tied back in a ponytail. It always seemed to be tied a little towards the left side of her head. The thought came up to question why, but you've learned from experience not to question a woman on her hairstyle.

"Way ahead of you, V," you say raising your cup from the bar top for emphasis.

"I'll have what he's having," she addresses towards the bartender.

"Got any news on The Sanguine?" you ask.

"Yeah, boss, and it's not good. Procter is working on the repairs now. He said we might need the hull replaced."

"I sure hope not," you reply.

“We've been through worse, Cap,” Victoria replies.

You take another sip from your cup. The latest job smuggling cargo for an English merchant paid well, but the damage sustained fleeing from a Spanish Galleon could very well cost the entire payout, or worse, put you in the hole. The wizard on board the Galleon hit The Sanguine with more than a few nasty spells. If Victoria didn't fire back with a perfectly aimed fire bolt, the entire ship might be at the bottom of the Caribbean.

“I sent Freddy to find us some work,” you say to Victoria. “Did he come back with anything?”

“Nothing yet,” she replies. “Although knowing Freddy, he probably got distracted by the nearest gambling hole.”

“He always comes through in the end, despite his tendencies,” you reply.

“What's next for you, Cap?” Victoria asks.

You finish the cup and slam it back down on the bar top. Sunlight pours into the poorly lit building through several open windows creating rectangular beams of yellow. You're reminded of the Caribbean heat each time a wave of warm air floods in. Your crew had certainly seen better days. The last three ships you targeted weren't carrying anything substantial. Your most recent job would have been a huge payday if not for the Galleon's attack. At least you managed to escape alive and with most of your crew. Victoria's former life as naval mage certainly came in handy there.

“Cap?”

“Sorry, V. I must have zoned out for a second. My plan is to...”
> You sit here and drink
“…sit here and drink,” you say.

“Doesn’t seem like much of a plan,” Victoria replies.

“The rum helps with brainstorming. A few more of these, and I’ll come up with something. Always do,” you say with a grin.

“Far be it from me to question the captain,” she replies raising two fingers toward the bartender.

Three more later...

“Ha-ha-ha and that’s when I hid under the horse carriage and tried to find where I left my clothes! Luckily, I still had my hat to decently cover one side of me!” you finish telling the story to Victoria.

“Ha, Captain! Her father, the magistrate, would have hung you.”

“I still have my life...and my hat!” you say plopping the hat onto Victoria’s head. She instantly takes it off disgusted by its involvement in your story.

Suddenly, a man sits down next to you and says, “Buy you a drink, Captain?” The antique arquebus upon his back immediately catches your eye.

“You’re free to do as you please,” you answer. “Might want to buy yourself a modern weapon while you’re at it,” you add on.

“I assure you, no musket any of these street peddlers sell can compare to ol’ Shelly,” the man replies tapping the rifle affectionately.

“Fair enough. Thanks for the drink. What’s your name, friend?” you ask.

“Dampier,” Victoria butts in. “He’s one of Rogers' men.”

The man, Dampier, nods, “That’s right. I’ve actually been looking for you. My employer, Woodes Rogers, has been looking for a captain of your caliber. He graciously offers an invitation to meet at his estate tonight to discuss business.”

You look to Victoria and silently agree there’s no choice but to see him out. At least that’s what your intoxicated senses tell you.

“Tell Rogers I’ll be there,” you answer.

“He’ll be expecting you. And please try to sober up before then,” Dampier replies.

“Excellent idea,” you say. “Bartender, two beers please.”


Day Zero.

You wake up, it seems like a normal day.

A little too normal....
> You go To Work
You put your clothes on and head to work. Regardless of the abnomal normality of this day, the bills need to be paid. You walk down the street to your local 7/11 ,head to the back room and put on your work clothes.
> You time to Work
You spend the rest of the day working, your 9-5 job goes by as normal as ever.

At little too normal....
> You well works done, let's go home
You change back to your normal clothing and walk back home. There's not much to do so you make some food, play some games, masterbate and fall to sleep.

Everything was just too normal though...
> You day One
Suppose it makes sense nothing unusual happens until the first day. After all, if anything happened the day before then that would have been considered the first day, now wouldn't it have.

Before you wake up, let's reflect on who you are so you don't die to some random incident due to some crazy issue you had that you should have known you had all along since you are you.

Anyways....

Name: James

Age: 23

Sex: Yes Please Male

Occupation: Clerk at 7/11 (Full time)

Intelligence: Average

Strength: Average

Stamina: Low

Weapon Experience: You can swing a melee weapon, then again anyone can do that.....that's it

Relationships: You got a best friend who lives next store (Bob) and your family (Mom/Dad/younger Sister) lives across town, that's it. Don't you get lonely?

Driving: You can drive fine, but sadly you cannot afford a car right now.

Special Traits : None, you are an average bastard
> You guess it's time to wake up
You wake up at 8am, take a shower, throw on some clothes and turn on the local news. Everything seems to go just like it did yesterday, and the news is pretty much the same. Except all the normal murder stories are replaced by animal attacks and riots.

The news doesn't say anything specific, no mention of zombies or anything, but the potential is still there...

> You go to work anyways
You decide to head to work anyways, you need money if you're going to finally buy a car and you have bills to pay.

Nothing unusual happens on the way to work, nor for the first 3 hours. However at noon the news starts to say some interesting things. It's saying that the attacks and riots this morning are actually due to a new virus. They instruct everyone to return to their homes and wait until further instructions.

No one arrives for the next hour, and finally your boss calls and tells you to go home. You change and proceed to head home, but then something different happens.

> You well it's about damn time
You exit the employee room, and find a customer standing just inside of the entrance to the store. He seems pretty out of it. You tell him the store is closed and he turns to you.

His clothing is covered in blood, and his eyes seem completely black. He starts to stumble towards you.

You continue to yell at him, angry that he is ignoring you. Finally, when he's just out of arm's reach, you realize hes probably been infected with that virus you heard about on the news.

You hate to admit it, but he's probably a zombie.

(Well no shit Sherlock)

So, what's the plan?
> You wrestle Him
You um...decide the best course of action is to wrestle a zombie.

Perhaps "average intelligence" was a bit too generous...

Regardless, you slip behind the zombie and put him in a chokehold. You lean back, fall to the floor, and wrap your legs around him.

Now usually this is the part where the person would slowly lose consciousness, and you would then let go and kick them a few times for good measure. Sadly this person is a zombie and can't lose consciousness. As such, his continous struggle eventually gets him out of your iron grip, and he bites your arm.

We could go further into the story, but you can guess what your ending is now.

[Death]


You exit the employee room, and find a customer standing just inside of the entrance to the store. He seems pretty out of it. You tell him the store is closed and he turns to you.

His clothing is covered in blood, and his eyes seem completely black. He starts to stumble towards you.

You continue to yell at him, angry that he is ignoring you. Finally, when he's just out of arm's reach, you realize hes probably been infected with that virus you heard about on the news.

You hate to admit it, but he's probably a zombie.

(Well no shit Sherlock)

So, what's the plan?
> You avoid him and exit the store
You avoid the man and exit the store. He looks pretty dangerous what with being covered in blood and all. You lock up behind you, effectively trapping the man inside.

You don't care though, whoever works next can deal with him. You walk home and throw on the news to see exactly what this new virus is.
> The News
The news says that the new virus causes people to become hyper agressive, and that it is passed by the transfer of bodily fluids. They advise again that everyone stay indoors and wait for further instructions.

Further in the day a video is shown on the news, the nature of the video makes it appear as if the news itself was not the one showing it. The video shows a man and one of the "infected", he says that they are like zombies from movies and such. The two are outside, it appears to be a parking lot but you can't tell what the building is and there are no cars.

He says there is no cure and that everyone should put their "Zombie Survival Plan" into full effect. He then shoots the newly dubbed zombie in the head, and instructs that the only way to kill them is to damage the brain, however destroying their legs can render them pretty harmless as well. He continues and says that they are slow, and you can outrun them, however they never get tired.

Pretty detailed for the first day of the infection.

By now it's pretty late, you've been watching the news so intently that you've lost track of time, you go to sleep and decide that tommorow you'll put your Zombie Survival Plan into full effect!
> You day Two
You wake up to day two of the infection. Only now do you realize that you don't actually have a zombie plan.

Well no worries. The infection is still in its early stages, and it should be at least a few days until all hell breaks loose. Until then you can probably walk the streets with no worries.

Probably...

So, what's the plan?
> You go next door to your buddy Bob's
You decide to go see your buddy Bob.

You exit your house, lock it, and walk next door. You knock on the door and he answers.

"Hey James, wanna get high...." Bob says, answering the door and showing you some weed.

> You fuck Yea!
You nod your head and enter. The next few hours go by quickly.

Well, at least you think they do....
> You hours Later
Hours later you remember why you came to Bob's house in the first place.

"Hey...hey Bob"

*cough*

"Sup?"

"You know there's like, zombies out right now. Right?"

"Shit....shit really?"

"Yea"

"Fuck man. I thou-"

Bob's comment is interupted by a knock on the door, a slow heavy pound.
> You idiots can't knock right
You go to the door and look through the peephole. Bob comes up behind you and tries to look through, but you push him back. Outside there's a girl, Bob's girlfriend if you're not mistaken.

Sadly his girlfriend is in bad condition, in fact shes missing an arm. Clearly she's a zombie, which begs the question...

Should you open the door?
> Yes
You open the door....really?

You honestly thought that opening the door for the one-armed chick who is clearly a zombie fell into the "good idea" category?

Well you did it anyways. The girl's knocking arm misses the door and instead hits you in the chest. It doesn't hurt, but she grabs onto your shirt and lunges forward at your neck. You attempt to fight her off, and are somewhat successful. Although you keep her face away from your neck, you both fall down to the floor, her landing on top of you. Using all your strength you push her off of you and towards the door. She ends up in a sitting position at the base of your feet.

This entire time Bob is just staring at the two of you. Finally he does something.

"Dude, that's Claire right!"

Actually it's Casey, but this isn't the time to correct him and lecture him on how he should at least know the name of the girl he's dating. You attempt to crawl away from her but unfortunately she grabs your foot and takes a large bite into your ankle.

You kick her in the face with your good foot and manage to get her outside the door, the quickly lean forward and shut the door.

But you've been bit, so your story ends here. Also you eat Bob, but that bastard kind of deserved it for not helping you anyways.

[Death]


You go to the door and look through the peephole. Bob comes up behind you and tries to look through, but you push him back. Outside there's a girl, Bob's girlfriend if you're not mistaken.

Sadly his girlfriend is in bad condition, in fact shes missing an arm. Clearly she's a zombie, which begs the question...

Should you open the door?
> You course Not
You turn away from the door. There's no way in hell you're opening it and letting her inside.

"Who's that?" Bob says.

"Errr....wrong number"

"Oh..."

Bob walks away, apparently believing that the person knocking at the door had the wrong number. You throw on the TV and watch the news for the next few hours, forgetting all about the reason you came over to begin with....

Hours later you remember though (good thing right?).
> You time for "The talk"
Hours later you tell Bob that zombies have risen, and go into a detailed description of your day.

"Woah...sounds rough."

"Yeah, well least I'm alive. So what's your zombie plan?"

Bob stands up from the couch and walks to his room. He comes back and throws a piece of paper at you.

He actually had a zombie plan...

You read it and it's not the most detailed, but it's better than your plan....of nothing.... You decide that in may be in your best interest to stay with him. Then again the guy can be very unpredictable, and when his weed runs out he'll probably get pretty pissed. But then again, he has a shotgun and you have no weapons at your place. Though trusting this guy with a shotgun makes you feel a bit uncomfortable.
> You stay with Bob
You decide Bob's plan is better than yours, and depending on what you've done you may not even have the supplies needed to survive on your own.

A week passes and things happen. The military comes by in a caravan and tries to pick people up, but the two of you decide to stay inside (you were also scared they would find the weed). After picking people up the miltary attempts to control the situation, but they fail quite badly. People and zombies alike attack, but Bob's house holds out, at least for the first two months.

The weed ran out after the first month, naturally Bob was pretty upset at first, but he dealt with it without going apeshit on you.
> You phase 2 Interlude
Well, this is a bit awkward....

Let's just say due to some constraints in the system and whatnaught you have to come here before Phase 2 can begin.

Suppose a congratulations is in order, then again you only beat the first of three sections. Not to mention unless you were a dumbass (or having fun) you shouldn't have died at all. Common sense was all that was required to survive.

Good luck in the next section, it requires slightly more thinking.

Also there was one actual ending in phase 1, see if you can get it later.

Here's something to help you on your journey.


You decide to go see your buddy Bob.

You exit your house, lock it, and walk next door. You knock on the door and he answers.

"Hey James, wanna get high...." Bob says, answering the door and showing you some weed.

> You drugs are bad mkay...
You shake your head.

"It's not optional", Bob says in an angry tone.

"Kay...."


You wake up to day two of the infection. Only now do you realize that you don't actually have a zombie plan.

Well no worries. The infection is still in its early stages, and it should be at least a few days until all hell breaks loose. Until then you can probably walk the streets with no worries.

Probably...

So, what's the plan?
> You go get supplies
You decide to get supplies. Sadly you do not have a car, so your place for supplies is the local grocery store, a good 15 minute walk.

You walk there with no issues, however everyone seems to have the same idea you do, and are all stocking up on supplies. You enter the store and see complete chaos.

Well, what now?
> You go back home
You go back home, since you'd prefer not to die just to get some food. You return with no issues and decide on your next course of actions.
> You go to you parent's house
You decide to be a momma's boy and head to your parent's house. I mean, who else would know better how to survive zombies than your parents, right?

It's a long walk, and since you won't be carrying anything (or returning for that matter) you ride your bike there. The journey takes an hour and along the way you notice various people taking part in riots, causing violence and eating each other. Though you hope those last ones were actually zombies.

You hope...
> You get to your parent's house and....
You arrive and put your bike in the garage. Everyone should be home what with the news telling everyone to be at home and all. You enter through the front door and are greeted by you parents.

You explain the situation as you know it and they explain that the military is coming, soon. They say within a week they will be here and then they will take everyone to a "safe location". Until then your family will wait it out in their home. They have enough food for a week easily, and your dad has already started boarding up the house.

They insist you stay with them, but since you're a big boy they don't plan to keep you here by force. It sounds like a good deal, wait a bit then be rescued by the miltary. There might be some sort of catch, but for now you don't know what it is.
> You stay with your family
You decide your best bet is to stay with your family. You doubt that the military will be as bad as they are in the movies during these times, so you're sure they can help you.

Well, kinda sure...

Regardless of if they can or cannot help, you and your father board up the rest of the house and your family waits out the week. Mant games of scrabble are played. Sadly you suck at scrabble, which makes this week one of your least favourite weeks ever (the zombies made it pretty bad too).

Then the military finally arrives.
> You well it's about damn time
The military arrives a week after the start of the outbreak. True to their word, they begin calling out to people in the middle of the street to come outdoors and be picked up. Any nearby zombies stand no chance, as the military caravan consists of armoured vehicles which can handle the small amount nearby easily.

You family opens the front door for the first time in a week and runs to the caravan. You kick the scrabble board for good measure before following them outside.

You approach one of the transport vehicles (the one you family ran to before you) and are greated by a soldier.

"Greetings", the soldier says as you approach, "what brings you out here?".
> You [Moan like a zombie]
You make various noises to try and mimic a zombie.

Now why the hell would you do that?

The soldier, in all of his 30 minutes of experience with zombies, has no idea that you are in fact, not one. As a result, he instinctively shoots you. No worries though, he has been trained properly and gives you a clean shot between the eyes. You don't even have time to scream.

[Death]


The military arrives a week after the start of the outbreak. True to their word, they begin calling out to people in the middle of the street to come outdoors and be picked up. Any nearby zombies stand no chance, as the military caravan consists of armoured vehicles which can handle the small amount nearby easily.

You family opens the front door for the first time in a week and runs to the caravan. You kick the scrabble board for good measure before following them outside.

You approach one of the transport vehicles (the one you family ran to before you) and are greated by a soldier.

"Greetings", the soldier says as you approach, "what brings you out here?".
> You say "I want to come"
"I want to come."

"Well fair enough, come on in!" the soldier replies, motioning for you to come in.

You hop in and ride out into the sunset, just like some old western movie...
> You epilogue - Family
Ha! Like you'd actually get a real epilogue. You choose the fastest way out of the city.

You and your family make it to the shelter and are protected by the military. You get news a little later that Bob was killed, cause of death was zombies.

You live the rest of your life in the shelter. Sure the food is crap, the military is full of assholes, and there's not much to do, but hey you're alive right?

Stats

You got the First Epilogue available in the game.

You survived Phase One.

You got the Mediocre Ending.

You got the achievement : Family Man


The military arrives a week after the start of the outbreak. True to their word, they begin calling out to people in the middle of the street to come outdoors and be picked up. Any nearby zombies stand no chance, as the military caravan consists of armoured vehicles which can handle the small amount nearby easily.

You family opens the front door for the first time in a week and runs to the caravan. You kick the scrabble board for good measure before following them outside.

You approach one of the transport vehicles (the one you family ran to before you) and are greated by a soldier.

"Greetings", the soldier says as you approach, "what brings you out here?".
> You say "I want to pillage and rape this town "
"I want to pillage and rape this town", you reply.

"You do eh...." The soldier says, looking you up and down.

"Well see, I can't let you do that, so, uh...." The soldier thinks about what to do in this situation and decides that it's best to shoot you in the leg. You scream out in pain and hear your family protest, but the soldier ignores them and the vehicle drives away.

You manage to crawl to the sidewalk but the pain of the shot is too much and you faint due to blood lose. Shortly after, a crowd of zombies stumble by.

I'm sure you can guess what they plan to do with you....

[Death]


You arrive and put your bike in the garage. Everyone should be home what with the news telling everyone to be at home and all. You enter through the front door and are greeted by you parents.

You explain the situation as you know it and they explain that the military is coming, soon. They say within a week they will be here and then they will take everyone to a "safe location". Until then your family will wait it out in their home. They have enough food for a week easily, and your dad has already started boarding up the house.

They insist you stay with them, but since you're a big boy they don't plan to keep you here by force. It sounds like a good deal, wait a bit then be rescued by the miltary. There might be some sort of catch, but for now you don't know what it is.
> You go back to your place
You decide you're better off not trusting the miltary to this, you ponder on the idea of convincing your parent's and sister to not trust them but decide their best chance is to. After all a zombie world is no place for a family....

You say what may be your last goodbyes to your family and head back to your house, it takes a while but once again you beat all odds and return unharmed (though you're pretty damn tired by now).

Too tired to try and get supplies you decide to just walk next door to Bob's house and see what his plan is.
> You see what Bob's plan is
You go next door to Bob's house. He answers the door, clearly high. Not bothering to ask him anything in this state, you enter and close the door behind you. He stares at you the whole time with a blank look on his face, but says nothing.

Moments later you hear knocking on the door. A slow, heavy knock.


You decide to get supplies. Sadly you do not have a car, so your place for supplies is the local grocery store, a good 15 minute walk.

You walk there with no issues, however everyone seems to have the same idea you do, and are all stocking up on supplies. You enter the store and see complete chaos.

Well, what now?
> You go to where most people are - those are the supplies you want
You decide to go where everyone else is, because following the crowd is sometimes a good thing. Right?

You try and get a shopping cart through the crowd but give up, there's far too many people. You instead reach out and grab as much food as you can in your arms.

However this is where your plan of following the crowd fails you. You see, some not-so-friendly people with guns had the same idea. They also seem to not be big fans of large crowds, and so they shoot in the air and into the crowd a few times.

Most people are uninjured and run away, as gang of men have made their point. Sadly you are not in the group that survived, because you were shot in the leg. Now of course, a shot in the leg isn't fatal, but it did cause you to fall to the ground. Then what was your cause of death you ask? The large crowd of people who trampled you to escape was.

Hey, at least you weren't eaten.

[Death]


You decide to get supplies. Sadly you do not have a car, so your place for supplies is the local grocery store, a good 15 minute walk.

You walk there with no issues, however everyone seems to have the same idea you do, and are all stocking up on supplies. You enter the store and see complete chaos.

Well, what now?
> You go to where no one is, it's safer that way
You decide to avoid the large crowd of people and go to the less populated areas. The pickings are slim, but you manage to get your buggy at least half full with food. You should be able to survive at least a few months with this much.

You hear a few gunshots from a couple of isles over, followed by a mass of people running out of the store. You take this as your cue to leave, and quickly run out of the store pushing your buggy of food.

You get out fine, and your journey home is uneventful. You hope you don't run into those who made the gunfire later.

Well now you're home, you got food, next step is to....
> You barracade and wait it out
You decide to barracade your house and wait things out. You grab various tools and pieces of wood, then board up all your windows and doors.

The next two months pass by and many things happen.

Many, many things....
> You well what happened?
A week after the events of the first day of the infection various things happened.

Panic happened, riots happened. Real ones, not the initial ones which were actually just zombies causing havoc. Martial Law is put into effect, though it only lastws a few weeks before the military was over-run. Fighting the zombies head on was a bad idea but the military didn't learn this fast enough. They came by with caravans originally and picked up anyone who was willing to come with them. Then they created blockades and such to try and contain the problem. But eventually they were over-run.

Your home is attacked a few times, but nothing major. A few gun fights happened just outside as well, but you survive. You've lost a bit of weight, but you're alive and well...ish.

Two months have passed and for the past week it's been very quiet outside. No zombies, no people, nothing. Good thing too, because you're out of food and need to do leave the house now.

Oh and congratulations, you survived Phase 1 of the zombies.


You exit the employee room, and find a customer standing just inside of the entrance to the store. He seems pretty out of it. You tell him the store is closed and he turns to you.

His clothing is covered in blood, and his eyes seem completely black. He starts to stumble towards you.

You continue to yell at him, angry that he is ignoring you. Finally, when he's just out of arm's reach, you realize hes probably been infected with that virus you heard about on the news.

You hate to admit it, but he's probably a zombie.

(Well no shit Sherlock)

So, what's the plan?
> You try and reason with him
You continue to yell at the man, determined to get through to him. When he finally reaches you he grabs ahold of you and gives you a heartfelt hug. It seems you finally got through to him.

Wait...no....no that's not a hug! The man grabs a hold of you and proceeds to bite your neck, ripping out the flesh from it. You fall to the floor and bleed out. Good thing you bleed out quickly, being eaten alive sure is painful.

[Death]


You wake up at 8am, take a shower, throw on some clothes and turn on the local news. Everything seems to go just like it did yesterday, and the news is pretty much the same. Except all the normal murder stories are replaced by animal attacks and riots.

The news doesn't say anything specific, no mention of zombies or anything, but the potential is still there...

> You call in sick and see how everything progresses
You call in sick, you don't feel like being involved in any riots or being murdered. Nothing new appears until noon, when they announce that the cause of all of this violence is a new virus, and that everyone should stay indoors until further notice.

Good thing you didn't go to work.


You are a Private Detective living in Victorian London.

Crimes are common and you are frequently called upon to assist the policemen in Scotland Yard. You have been a Detective for a few years now and by combining hard work with intelligence you have had a few successes in uncovering the information that has enabled the Police to arrest wanted criminals. This has earned you a good Reputation but you must be careful not to lose it: if you do Scotland Yard will no longer trust you to help them.

One evening you are at home when Commissioner James Monro, an experienced Policeman, visits you.

"We would like your help again," he tells you. "A lunatic murderer called James Kelly escaped from

Broadmoor Asylum for the Criminally Insane ten days ago. My detectives have investigated and found no trace of him. Perhaps if you look into the case you might be able to find something?”

What do you do?

> You search for the escaped killer
"I'll see what I can do," you tell Monro who nods.

“I’m glad you can help," he tells you. "I’ll send a telegram to Dr Orange, the Superintendent at Broadmoor,  asking him to meet you tomorrow. He can tell you more about Kelly.”

The next day you take a train out to the Asylum in the heart of the Berkshire countryside. A servant from the Hospital meets you at the station and takes in a horse and carriage through the sleepy village of Crowthorne and up to the gloomy and looming concrete walls of the Hospital. You are shown directly into Orange’s office where the Doctor shakes your hand. He is a middle-aged profession with a no-nonsense manner.

“I got Commissioner Monro's telegram and I will be glad to help you in any way I can,” he tells you. “We are all rather concerned here: James Kelly was one of our most clever patients and I believe him to be a real danger to the general public, especially women.”

You nod and consider which questions to ask first.

> You what is Kelly's criminal history?
“Five years ago Kelly stabbed his wife Sarah in the neck with a knife killing her,"  Dr Orange tells you. "He believed she was a prostitute who had infected him with a sexually transmitted disease. He surrendered at once to policemen and became very remorseful afterwards, claiming he was mad. At the trial he was originally sentenced to be executed but at an appeal he was found mentally unfit and sentenced to life imprisonment at this facility. During his time here Kelly has shown no violent tendencies and in fact displayed no signs of insanity whatsoever. I would say he was one of the cleverest patients we've ever had here."

You nod, considering what to ask next.

> You say "How did Kelly escape your prison?"
"Kelly and another prisoner called George Shatten both play instruments in the Asylum’s band," Dr Orange tells you. "On the evening Kelly escaped they went out into the garden where the band meet to practice. When the rest of the band joined them an hour later only Shatten was still there. When we searched him we found two keys that he and Kelly had carved made out of some metal they found in the asylum’s garden. Kelly used this to let himself through a gate in the inner wall and afterwards climbed the six-foot high outer wall. He vanished without a trace but guards do report seeing a man called John Merritt near the Hospital during the day yesterday. He is an old friend of Kelly’s and visits him occasionally.”

You nod, considering your next question.


You awaken on the cold, stone floor with a shiver running through your body and a pounding earache from sleeping on the side of your head. You do not know how much longer you can survive in this place. No one has brought you any food or water for days. Either you've been abandoned to die or something's happened to the guards to keep them from feeding you. Either way you are well and truly buggered.

With what little strength you have, you pick yourself up and look around your cell. There seems to be no way of escape. The window is barred and even if it wasn’t, your cell is at the very top of a huge, medieval tower, so climbing out would be suicide. The door is far too heavy to break down and you don’t have anything you could use to pick the lock. There is nothing in the room save for yourself, a dirty pile of straw in the corner and a bucket for… Well, let’s not discuss the bucket.

Suddenly though, as your eyes scan the dungeon, you notice something you never saw before. One of the stones on the wall of your cell seems to have something etched into it. As you lean closer you can just about make out two words. “Press me.”
> You press the stone
You press the engraved stone and a secret door in the stone wall gradually slides to one side and reveals a hidden passage way. Congratulations, you’ve escaped your cell! That wasn’t too difficult was it?

As you follow the empty passage way, you seem to be circling the dungeon and walking deeper and deeper into pitch darkness. Eventually you see a light at the end of the passage and find yourself in a room dimly lit by torches that hang from the wall. The room is small with only a spinning wheel and an old rocking chair to decorate it, both of which are coated in cob webs. There is a door on the other side of the room.

Having nowhere else to go, you head towards the door when suddenly you hear the creaking of the rocking chair behind you. For a brief moment you hold your breath and try to reassure yourself that it’s just the breeze rocking the chair, but there is no breeze in the room. Eventually you force yourself to turn around and see the ghostly figure of an old woman sitting in the chair.

Before you can run or scream, the old lady speaks up in a gentle yet eerie voice. “No need to be afraid of me child.” She tells you as she slowly rocks in her chair, stroking a small, ghostly cat on her lap. “You’ve nothing to fear from poor old Nana. I’m just here, pondering the old riddle to myself. Are you good at riddles child? I do hope so. They’re the only way to get out of this tower you see, ever since the old master went mad and cursed the place. Oh and that reminds me, I’m supposed to ask you the riddle aren’t I? Now let’s see if I can remember.

What does man love more than life,

Fear more than death and mortal strife,

What the poor have and the rich require,

And what contented men desire,

What the miser spends and the spendthrift saves,

And all men carry to their graves?”
> You answer "Love"
The ghost lets out a sad and disappointed sigh. “I’m afraid not dearie.” She tells you as the rocking of her chair gradually comes to a halt. “I am sorry child. At least you tried.”

Suddenly a trap door opens up beneath you and you fall screaming into a pit of fire. Personally you find this punishment a tad eccentric just for failing to answer a riddle correctly, but that's just you. Better luck next time.


You press the engraved stone and a secret door in the stone wall gradually slides to one side and reveals a hidden passage way. Congratulations, you’ve escaped your cell! That wasn’t too difficult was it?

As you follow the empty passage way, you seem to be circling the dungeon and walking deeper and deeper into pitch darkness. Eventually you see a light at the end of the passage and find yourself in a room dimly lit by torches that hang from the wall. The room is small with only a spinning wheel and an old rocking chair to decorate it, both of which are coated in cob webs. There is a door on the other side of the room.

Having nowhere else to go, you head towards the door when suddenly you hear the creaking of the rocking chair behind you. For a brief moment you hold your breath and try to reassure yourself that it’s just the breeze rocking the chair, but there is no breeze in the room. Eventually you force yourself to turn around and see the ghostly figure of an old woman sitting in the chair.

Before you can run or scream, the old lady speaks up in a gentle yet eerie voice. “No need to be afraid of me child.” She tells you as she slowly rocks in her chair, stroking a small, ghostly cat on her lap. “You’ve nothing to fear from poor old Nana. I’m just here, pondering the old riddle to myself. Are you good at riddles child? I do hope so. They’re the only way to get out of this tower you see, ever since the old master went mad and cursed the place. Oh and that reminds me, I’m supposed to ask you the riddle aren’t I? Now let’s see if I can remember.

What does man love more than life,

Fear more than death and mortal strife,

What the poor have and the rich require,

And what contented men desire,

What the miser spends and the spendthrift saves,

And all men carry to their graves?”
> You answer "Nothing"
The old woman seems to think about your answer for a moment. “Nothing.” She says to herself before a ghostly smile twists her lips. “Nothing, yes I think that sounds right. Very good child. Thank you for answering poor Old Nana’s riddle. Now I can finally get some rest. You go on through the door now.” And with that, the rocking chair stops rocking and the ghost of the woman and her cat fade away into nothingness.

Opening the door leads you to a staircase. As you descend these stairs you can hear all sorts of strange noises. Scuffling, squeaking, flapping of wings, hooting and howling, you expect to find a collection of animals caged at the bottom of the stairs. Instead you find a circular room with ten doors all the way around, each with a picture of a different animal engraved on the door.

The noises begin to quiet down and the ghost of a dark haired, rather scruffy looking man appears in the centre of the room with a hawk perched on his arm. “So, you made it past Nana did you? Poor old bat’s been trying to solve that riddle for damn near fifty years now. Well I suppose it’s my turn then. Glad to meet you kid. I’m the games keeper here abouts. Master told me we had new company and he sent me down here with a riddle for you, to help you choose which door to go through. Give it a good think before you open one, alright?

Wings as black as a moonless night.

Only ventures in the light.

Long tail, sharp teeth, legs of eight.

Find my name or meet your fate.”
> You open the door engraved with an Owl
You open the door to see nothing but darkness before you and the sounds of several different creatures fill the air once again, only now they sound louder, and angrier. “Sorry kid.” The games keeper says to you as the sounds draw nearer. “Even I can’t stop them now. They’re just so hungry.”

Suddenly you feel a sharp pain in your foot and you look down to see that a rat has come in through the door and bitten your toe. You manage to kick it away but more rats appear and you stumble backwards trying to keep them away from your feet. An owl flies at you out of the darkness and it’s talons scratch at you eyes. You try to shoo it away but see that your arms are covered in tiny black spiders which you frantically try to shake off. The spiders are the least of your worries though, since standing it the doorway is a great black bear which rises onto its hind legs and lets out the most terrifying roar. You are so distracted by the bear that you don’t even notice the wolf that is circling you until it sinks its teeth into your throat.


The old woman seems to think about your answer for a moment. “Nothing.” She says to herself before a ghostly smile twists her lips. “Nothing, yes I think that sounds right. Very good child. Thank you for answering poor Old Nana’s riddle. Now I can finally get some rest. You go on through the door now.” And with that, the rocking chair stops rocking and the ghost of the woman and her cat fade away into nothingness.

Opening the door leads you to a staircase. As you descend these stairs you can hear all sorts of strange noises. Scuffling, squeaking, flapping of wings, hooting and howling, you expect to find a collection of animals caged at the bottom of the stairs. Instead you find a circular room with ten doors all the way around, each with a picture of a different animal engraved on the door.

The noises begin to quiet down and the ghost of a dark haired, rather scruffy looking man appears in the centre of the room with a hawk perched on his arm. “So, you made it past Nana did you? Poor old bat’s been trying to solve that riddle for damn near fifty years now. Well I suppose it’s my turn then. Glad to meet you kid. I’m the games keeper here abouts. Master told me we had new company and he sent me down here with a riddle for you, to help you choose which door to go through. Give it a good think before you open one, alright?

Wings as black as a moonless night.

Only ventures in the light.

Long tail, sharp teeth, legs of eight.

Find my name or meet your fate.”
> You open the door engraved with a Wolf
You open the door with the wolf engraved on it and the game keeper nods with approval. “Good job kid. Did you put together the first letters of every sentence or was it just a lucky guess? Either way I suppose it’s time for me to move on. Good luck with the next riddle, but watch yourself. I hear there’s a killer on the loose in the tower.” You want to ask the game keeper more but by the time you turn around both the man and the hawk have already vanished.

The doorway leads to a large dining hall with one great table, decorated with candles and long enough to host a royal banquet. The plates, cutlery and candle sticks are all covered in dust and all the seats are empty save for the last five at the far end, all of which are filled by ghosts.

Two men sit on the left of the table and two women on the right. Judging by their clothing they are all servants of different standing within the tower, but at the head of the table sits a young woman about your own age, just barely into adulthood. Both her fine velvet dress and the refined way she sits show her to be a woman of noble birth.

“Have you come to free me from my torment?” The noble woman asks as a ghostly tear runs down her cheek. “My father sent me here to become the Wizard Lord’s bride, but while I was a guest in his tower, the scoundrel had me poisoned by one of his own servants. I cannot be free until I know who my killer is. All I know is that it is one of the four sitting at the table, and that only one of them ever speaks the truth.”

In unison the four servants all turn to you and begin to argue in their defence.

“The maid is the murderer.” Says the butler.

“The cook poisoned the princess.” Says the maid.

“I didn’t kill the girl, I swear!” Says the gardener.

“The maid is lying.” Says the cook.
> The butler dunnit!
Feeling rather confident in yourself, you walk past the servants to stand next to the noblewoman at the head of the table. “I think I know who murdered you!” You tell her proudly, seeing her face light up just about as much as a pale white, ghostly face can. “It was…” But before you can finish your sentence, you feel cold, sharp steel plunging into your back and the young ghost woman screams as you fall to the ground in a pool of your own blood. Looks like you got it wrong. Still, look on the bright side, maybe some day some other poor sod will find themselves trapped in the tower and they’ll get to solve the mystery of who murdered you! That side's really not all that bright is it?


You open the door with the wolf engraved on it and the game keeper nods with approval. “Good job kid. Did you put together the first letters of every sentence or was it just a lucky guess? Either way I suppose it’s time for me to move on. Good luck with the next riddle, but watch yourself. I hear there’s a killer on the loose in the tower.” You want to ask the game keeper more but by the time you turn around both the man and the hawk have already vanished.

The doorway leads to a large dining hall with one great table, decorated with candles and long enough to host a royal banquet. The plates, cutlery and candle sticks are all covered in dust and all the seats are empty save for the last five at the far end, all of which are filled by ghosts.

Two men sit on the left of the table and two women on the right. Judging by their clothing they are all servants of different standing within the tower, but at the head of the table sits a young woman about your own age, just barely into adulthood. Both her fine velvet dress and the refined way she sits show her to be a woman of noble birth.

“Have you come to free me from my torment?” The noble woman asks as a ghostly tear runs down her cheek. “My father sent me here to become the Wizard Lord’s bride, but while I was a guest in his tower, the scoundrel had me poisoned by one of his own servants. I cannot be free until I know who my killer is. All I know is that it is one of the four sitting at the table, and that only one of them ever speaks the truth.”

In unison the four servants all turn to you and begin to argue in their defence.

“The maid is the murderer.” Says the butler.

“The cook poisoned the princess.” Says the maid.

“I didn’t kill the girl, I swear!” Says the gardener.

“The maid is lying.” Says the cook.
> The gardener dunnit!
You look accusingly at each of the servants and consider what they each said in turn. “You say that only one of them can tell the truth. Now the only one that can be telling the truth while all the others are lying is the cook, and since the gardener claims he didn’t do it and we know he must be lying, that must make him the killer!” With that, the four servants all begin to disappear into the air. You have solved their riddle and now they can finally move on to the afterlife.

“Thank you.” The ghost of the noblewoman tells you as she begins to fade away. “Finally I can rest in peace. I wish you luck on your next riddle. I hear it can only be solved by one with the sharpest of eyes.”

Once the woman’s ghost has faded from sight you leave the dining hall and descend another spiral staircase until you find yourself in a long passageway that seems to wind in a circle around the tower. All across the walls hang the most incredible works of art. Landscapes and seascapes and portraits of lords and ladies dressed in shimmering silks, all painted with exquisite attention to detail. There is one painting that draws your eye though, a strange pattern made up of purple roses which would look very pretty on a pair of curtains but seems incredibly out of place hanging on the wall with the other paintings.

“Ah, I zee you are admiring my masterpiece.” A voice speaks from behind you and you turn to see a ghost of a man standing behind you dressed in a brightly coloured tunic, holding a paint palette in one hand and a brush in another. “Oh ze hours I slaved avay on zis painting and ze mastery, it iz vasted on blind fools! Vhat of you I vonder? Can you zee past vhat is in front of your eyes? Tell me, vhat is it you zee in ze painting?”
> You purple Roses
The artist simply scoffs at your reply. “Hmph! Foolish child! I should ‘ave known zat your puny little eyes could never vitness ze true brilliance of my vork! Perhaps you vould prefer a more in depth study of von of my other paintings. Zat von maybe?”

With that, the artist uses his paintbrush to gesture towards a magnificent work of art, depicting a war scene between a group of fully armed knights and a gang of vagabonds hiding in a forest with bows and arrows. Suddenly you feel yourself drawn to this painting and as you walk closer you find that the trees in the background seem to get further and further away while the knights in the foreground become closer and closer until they seem to be right there beside you. In fact, some of them are in front of you. It is then that you turn around in a full circle and realize that you are actually inside the painting.

“I see one!” You hear one of the knights cry, and are horrified to find that he is pointing at you. “Rebel scum! Men, in the name of the King, I order you to kill that traitor!” At the man’s orders, all the other knights draw their swords in unison and point them at you.

“… Oh bugger.” You mumble to yourself before turning around and running away, screaming like a little girl. You can hear the knights on their horses drawing closer to you, but they never get a chance to run you through, since out of the trees, the rebel’s arrows rain down on the knights and unfortunately one of them hits you right in the chest and pierces your heart. For a painted arrow it’s incredibly sharp.


You look accusingly at each of the servants and consider what they each said in turn. “You say that only one of them can tell the truth. Now the only one that can be telling the truth while all the others are lying is the cook, and since the gardener claims he didn’t do it and we know he must be lying, that must make him the killer!” With that, the four servants all begin to disappear into the air. You have solved their riddle and now they can finally move on to the afterlife.

“Thank you.” The ghost of the noblewoman tells you as she begins to fade away. “Finally I can rest in peace. I wish you luck on your next riddle. I hear it can only be solved by one with the sharpest of eyes.”

Once the woman’s ghost has faded from sight you leave the dining hall and descend another spiral staircase until you find yourself in a long passageway that seems to wind in a circle around the tower. All across the walls hang the most incredible works of art. Landscapes and seascapes and portraits of lords and ladies dressed in shimmering silks, all painted with exquisite attention to detail. There is one painting that draws your eye though, a strange pattern made up of purple roses which would look very pretty on a pair of curtains but seems incredibly out of place hanging on the wall with the other paintings.

“Ah, I zee you are admiring my masterpiece.” A voice speaks from behind you and you turn to see a ghost of a man standing behind you dressed in a brightly coloured tunic, holding a paint palette in one hand and a brush in another. “Oh ze hours I slaved avay on zis painting and ze mastery, it iz vasted on blind fools! Vhat of you I vonder? Can you zee past vhat is in front of your eyes? Tell me, vhat is it you zee in ze painting?”
> A Ring
The artist applauds your reply. “You zee! You zee! Oh you vonderful peasant, you zee ze ring! Now I can finally move on knoving zat my vork, it is appreciated! Good luck escaping vith your life and all zat.” And with that the ghost leaps into a blank canvas which  quickly becomes a painting of a rather eccentric looking artist with a paintbrush and palette in his hands.

Opening a door at the end of the hallway, you find another staircase. As you descend the stairs you pass by a window which shows you are almost halfway down the tower now. Keep up the good work and you’ll be free in no time.

At the bottom of the stairs you open a door to reveal another round room. This room has six doors and they are each guarded by a suit of armour holding a different flag. No ghosts appear to give you advice, so you head towards the centre of the room to choose a door. It is then that the suits of armour come to life and bang the ends of their flags on the ground in unison.

The first guard is holding a blue flag with white and red crosses going both from corner to corner and through the centre of the flag. The guard shouts, “None shall pass!”

The second guard is holding a flag with vertical blue, white and red stripes. He shouts, “Personne ne peut entrer!”

The third guard is holding a flag with red stripes at the top and bottom, a yellow stripe in the middle and to the left a picture of a shield with a crown on top. He shouts, “Nadie puede pasar!”

The fourth guard is holding a flag with horizontal black, red and yellow stripes. He shouts, “Niemand darf passieren!”

The fifth guard is holding a blue flag with a yellow cross going through. He shouts, “Ingen kan passera!”

The sixth guard is holding a flag with vertical green, white and red stripes. He shouts, “Vieni dentro piccola persona!”
> You open the first door
Well the evil lord of the tower sure knows his European languages. You choose your door and turn the door knob but before you can open it, the suit of armour that guards your door plunges his spear into your back and it pierces all the way through your body, coming out of your chest. The spear also happens to be the stick on which his flag was attached and so you get to watch the little bloodstained flag flapping about before you slump to the ground and die.


The artist applauds your reply. “You zee! You zee! Oh you vonderful peasant, you zee ze ring! Now I can finally move on knoving zat my vork, it is appreciated! Good luck escaping vith your life and all zat.” And with that the ghost leaps into a blank canvas which  quickly becomes a painting of a rather eccentric looking artist with a paintbrush and palette in his hands.

Opening a door at the end of the hallway, you find another staircase. As you descend the stairs you pass by a window which shows you are almost halfway down the tower now. Keep up the good work and you’ll be free in no time.

At the bottom of the stairs you open a door to reveal another round room. This room has six doors and they are each guarded by a suit of armour holding a different flag. No ghosts appear to give you advice, so you head towards the centre of the room to choose a door. It is then that the suits of armour come to life and bang the ends of their flags on the ground in unison.

The first guard is holding a blue flag with white and red crosses going both from corner to corner and through the centre of the flag. The guard shouts, “None shall pass!”

The second guard is holding a flag with vertical blue, white and red stripes. He shouts, “Personne ne peut entrer!”

The third guard is holding a flag with red stripes at the top and bottom, a yellow stripe in the middle and to the left a picture of a shield with a crown on top. He shouts, “Nadie puede pasar!”

The fourth guard is holding a flag with horizontal black, red and yellow stripes. He shouts, “Niemand darf passieren!”

The fifth guard is holding a blue flag with a yellow cross going through. He shouts, “Ingen kan passera!”

The sixth guard is holding a flag with vertical green, white and red stripes. He shouts, “Vieni dentro piccola persona!”
> You open the sixth door
What a nice Italian suit of armour. You open the door and the guard kindly steps aside to let you pass. “Addio piccola persona!” He calls after you. “Cercate di non morire in un modo brutto!”

The next room is a rather cheerful change of pace in this otherwise rather depressing haunted tower. A little girl’s room, painted pink with little purple curtains draped over a little bed and more toys than a princess could ask for. Dollhouses complete with furniture and little tea sets for the dolls, rocking horses, every kind of toy animal you can think of and the most incredibly life like puppets.

In the centre of the room is a table on which sits a little model village. On one side of the village is a little river with an island in the middle. There are three men and a little boat on the island.

“Have you come to play with me?” You hear a little voice ask, and you turn around to see a young girl, about five years old, dressed up in a pretty green dress with a crown of flowers in her hair. Apparently the girl fancies herself a bit of a princess. Unlike the rest of the people in this tower though, the girl is not a ghost. Everything about her seems completely real. “I’ve been trying to finish this game for ages.” She tells you, standing up on a stool to get a better view of the model village. “My Daddy gave it to me. He says only a real smart person can figure it out.” The child then turns to you and considers you for a moment. “You don’t look very smart.” She says sadly. “But I’ll let you play anyway.”

Before you can either agree or object, you suddenly find yourself shrinking down to the size of a little toy soldier. Rather carelessly, the girl picks you up between her thumb and forefinger and drops you on the little model island.

“Now listen carefully.” The girl tells you with a rather bossy tone. “There’s three men on the island. The ugly one is a bad man who threw a lady in the river and drowned her. The angry one is the lady’s brother, and he’s very cross with the bad man for killing her. The scared looking man saw the ugly one drown the lady, he’s very scared because he thinks the bad man is going to kill him too, so that he won’t tell anybody what happened. You are the ferry man and you have to get all three of the men to the village so that they can take the bad man to court, but you can only take one man at a time. You can’t leave the lady’s brother alone with the bad man, or the lady’s brother might get angry and kill him. Also, you can’t leave the bad man alone with the scared man, because if you do then the bad man might kill the scared man so that he can’t tell anyone what happened. Now, who are you going to take first?”
> You take the Murderer to the village
You row to the model village. On the village is the murderer. Now what do you do?
> You row back with the murderer
You row back to the island. On the island are the murderer, the brother and the witness. Who do you want to take to the village first?


You row to the model village. On the village is the murderer. Now what do you do?
> You leave the murderer and row back on your own
You row to the model island. On the island are the woman's brother and the witness. Who do you want to take across next?
> The Brother
You row to the village. On the village are the murderer and the victim's brother. Who do you want to take across next?
> The Murderer
You row back to the island. On the island are the murderer and the witness. Who do you want to take across now?


What a nice Italian suit of armour. You open the door and the guard kindly steps aside to let you pass. “Addio piccola persona!” He calls after you. “Cercate di non morire in un modo brutto!”

The next room is a rather cheerful change of pace in this otherwise rather depressing haunted tower. A little girl’s room, painted pink with little purple curtains draped over a little bed and more toys than a princess could ask for. Dollhouses complete with furniture and little tea sets for the dolls, rocking horses, every kind of toy animal you can think of and the most incredibly life like puppets.

In the centre of the room is a table on which sits a little model village. On one side of the village is a little river with an island in the middle. There are three men and a little boat on the island.

“Have you come to play with me?” You hear a little voice ask, and you turn around to see a young girl, about five years old, dressed up in a pretty green dress with a crown of flowers in her hair. Apparently the girl fancies herself a bit of a princess. Unlike the rest of the people in this tower though, the girl is not a ghost. Everything about her seems completely real. “I’ve been trying to finish this game for ages.” She tells you, standing up on a stool to get a better view of the model village. “My Daddy gave it to me. He says only a real smart person can figure it out.” The child then turns to you and considers you for a moment. “You don’t look very smart.” She says sadly. “But I’ll let you play anyway.”

Before you can either agree or object, you suddenly find yourself shrinking down to the size of a little toy soldier. Rather carelessly, the girl picks you up between her thumb and forefinger and drops you on the little model island.

“Now listen carefully.” The girl tells you with a rather bossy tone. “There’s three men on the island. The ugly one is a bad man who threw a lady in the river and drowned her. The angry one is the lady’s brother, and he’s very cross with the bad man for killing her. The scared looking man saw the ugly one drown the lady, he’s very scared because he thinks the bad man is going to kill him too, so that he won’t tell anybody what happened. You are the ferry man and you have to get all three of the men to the village so that they can take the bad man to court, but you can only take one man at a time. You can’t leave the lady’s brother alone with the bad man, or the lady’s brother might get angry and kill him. Also, you can’t leave the bad man alone with the scared man, because if you do then the bad man might kill the scared man so that he can’t tell anyone what happened. Now, who are you going to take first?”
> You row to the village alone
Congratulations! You made it to the other side of the river! ... Now what?


The artist applauds your reply. “You zee! You zee! Oh you vonderful peasant, you zee ze ring! Now I can finally move on knoving zat my vork, it is appreciated! Good luck escaping vith your life and all zat.” And with that the ghost leaps into a blank canvas which  quickly becomes a painting of a rather eccentric looking artist with a paintbrush and palette in his hands.

Opening a door at the end of the hallway, you find another staircase. As you descend the stairs you pass by a window which shows you are almost halfway down the tower now. Keep up the good work and you’ll be free in no time.

At the bottom of the stairs you open a door to reveal another round room. This room has six doors and they are each guarded by a suit of armour holding a different flag. No ghosts appear to give you advice, so you head towards the centre of the room to choose a door. It is then that the suits of armour come to life and bang the ends of their flags on the ground in unison.

The first guard is holding a blue flag with white and red crosses going both from corner to corner and through the centre of the flag. The guard shouts, “None shall pass!”

The second guard is holding a flag with vertical blue, white and red stripes. He shouts, “Personne ne peut entrer!”

The third guard is holding a flag with red stripes at the top and bottom, a yellow stripe in the middle and to the left a picture of a shield with a crown on top. He shouts, “Nadie puede pasar!”

The fourth guard is holding a flag with horizontal black, red and yellow stripes. He shouts, “Niemand darf passieren!”

The fifth guard is holding a blue flag with a yellow cross going through. He shouts, “Ingen kan passera!”

The sixth guard is holding a flag with vertical green, white and red stripes. He shouts, “Vieni dentro piccola persona!”
> You knock the suits of armour over like dominoes!
A brilliant idea springs to mind! Using all your strength, you push against the first suit of armour in an attempt to knock them all down like a circle of dominoes. It works! The first suit knocks over the second, the second knocks over the third, the third knocks over the fourth, the fourth knocks over the fifth, finally the fifth suit knocks over the sixth suit of armour and the six suit of armour knocks over you. Well, you should have seen that coming. Sadly the last suit of armour is particularly heavy and you are crushed under it’s weight. Remember when you were little and your mother would tell you to look but don’t touch? This is why.


You look accusingly at each of the servants and consider what they each said in turn. “You say that only one of them can tell the truth. Now the only one that can be telling the truth while all the others are lying is the cook, and since the gardener claims he didn’t do it and we know he must be lying, that must make him the killer!” With that, the four servants all begin to disappear into the air. You have solved their riddle and now they can finally move on to the afterlife.

“Thank you.” The ghost of the noblewoman tells you as she begins to fade away. “Finally I can rest in peace. I wish you luck on your next riddle. I hear it can only be solved by one with the sharpest of eyes.”

Once the woman’s ghost has faded from sight you leave the dining hall and descend another spiral staircase until you find yourself in a long passageway that seems to wind in a circle around the tower. All across the walls hang the most incredible works of art. Landscapes and seascapes and portraits of lords and ladies dressed in shimmering silks, all painted with exquisite attention to detail. There is one painting that draws your eye though, a strange pattern made up of purple roses which would look very pretty on a pair of curtains but seems incredibly out of place hanging on the wall with the other paintings.

“Ah, I zee you are admiring my masterpiece.” A voice speaks from behind you and you turn to see a ghost of a man standing behind you dressed in a brightly coloured tunic, holding a paint palette in one hand and a brush in another. “Oh ze hours I slaved avay on zis painting and ze mastery, it iz vasted on blind fools! Vhat of you I vonder? Can you zee past vhat is in front of your eyes? Tell me, vhat is it you zee in ze painting?”
> You beauty, Truth, Love, Passion... Art!
The artist looks rather proud of himself when he hears your answer! “Yes, yes!” He declares with a broad grin. “Beauty! Passion! How remarkable zat a peasant such as yourself could recognize ‘ow much passion I put into zis painting to make it zo that only a truly gifted eye could zee ze… Vait… You ‘ave no idea vhat’s in ze painting do you?”

In complete and utter frustration, the artist slaps his hand against his forehead. “Hmph! Foolish child! I should ‘ave known zat your puny little eyes could never vitness ze true brilliance of my vork! Perhaps you vould prefer a more in depth study of von of my other paintings. Zat von maybe?”

With that, the artist uses his paintbrush to gesture towards a magnificent work of art, depicting a war scene between a group of fully armed knights and a gang of vagabonds hiding in a forest with bows and arrows. Suddenly you feel yourself drawn to this painting and as you walk closer you find that the trees in the background seem to get further and further away while the knights in the foreground become closer and closer until they seem to be right there beside you. In fact, some of them are in front of you. It is then that you turn around in a full circle and realize that you are actually inside the painting.

“I see one!” You hear one of the knights cry, and are horrified to find that he is pointing at you. “Rebel scum! Men, in the name of the King, I order you to kill that traitor!” At the man’s orders, all the other knights draw their swords in unison and point them at you.

“… Oh bugger.” You mumble to yourself before turning around and running away, screaming like a little girl. You can hear the knights on their horses drawing closer to you, but they never get a chance to run you through, since out of the trees, the rebel’s arrows rain down on the knights and unfortunately one of them hits you right in the chest and pierces your heart. For a painted arrow it’s incredibly sharp.


You look accusingly at each of the servants and consider what they each said in turn. “You say that only one of them can tell the truth. Now the only one that can be telling the truth while all the others are lying is the cook, and since the gardener claims he didn’t do it and we know he must be lying, that must make him the killer!” With that, the four servants all begin to disappear into the air. You have solved their riddle and now they can finally move on to the afterlife.

“Thank you.” The ghost of the noblewoman tells you as she begins to fade away. “Finally I can rest in peace. I wish you luck on your next riddle. I hear it can only be solved by one with the sharpest of eyes.”

Once the woman’s ghost has faded from sight you leave the dining hall and descend another spiral staircase until you find yourself in a long passageway that seems to wind in a circle around the tower. All across the walls hang the most incredible works of art. Landscapes and seascapes and portraits of lords and ladies dressed in shimmering silks, all painted with exquisite attention to detail. There is one painting that draws your eye though, a strange pattern made up of purple roses which would look very pretty on a pair of curtains but seems incredibly out of place hanging on the wall with the other paintings.

“Ah, I zee you are admiring my masterpiece.” A voice speaks from behind you and you turn to see a ghost of a man standing behind you dressed in a brightly coloured tunic, holding a paint palette in one hand and a brush in another. “Oh ze hours I slaved avay on zis painting and ze mastery, it iz vasted on blind fools! Vhat of you I vonder? Can you zee past vhat is in front of your eyes? Tell me, vhat is it you zee in ze painting?”
> You need a hint
It might just look like a bunch of purple roses, but there’s a three dimensional image hidden inside the painting. The trick is not to look at the picture like it’s right in front of you, look at it as if you are looking at something far away in the distance. Keep adjusting the way you look at it until you can see a 3D shape very clearly in the painting. (Unfortunately this may be difficult if you have problems with your eyesight and will not work if you are blind in one eye.)


You open the door with the wolf engraved on it and the game keeper nods with approval. “Good job kid. Did you put together the first letters of every sentence or was it just a lucky guess? Either way I suppose it’s time for me to move on. Good luck with the next riddle, but watch yourself. I hear there’s a killer on the loose in the tower.” You want to ask the game keeper more but by the time you turn around both the man and the hawk have already vanished.

The doorway leads to a large dining hall with one great table, decorated with candles and long enough to host a royal banquet. The plates, cutlery and candle sticks are all covered in dust and all the seats are empty save for the last five at the far end, all of which are filled by ghosts.

Two men sit on the left of the table and two women on the right. Judging by their clothing they are all servants of different standing within the tower, but at the head of the table sits a young woman about your own age, just barely into adulthood. Both her fine velvet dress and the refined way she sits show her to be a woman of noble birth.

“Have you come to free me from my torment?” The noble woman asks as a ghostly tear runs down her cheek. “My father sent me here to become the Wizard Lord’s bride, but while I was a guest in his tower, the scoundrel had me poisoned by one of his own servants. I cannot be free until I know who my killer is. All I know is that it is one of the four sitting at the table, and that only one of them ever speaks the truth.”

In unison the four servants all turn to you and begin to argue in their defence.

“The maid is the murderer.” Says the butler.

“The cook poisoned the princess.” Says the maid.

“I didn’t kill the girl, I swear!” Says the gardener.

“The maid is lying.” Says the cook.
> You colonel Mustard in the Library with the Candlestick!
The ghost of the noblewoman looks very confused. “I do not understand. I was not murdered with a candlestick, I was poisoned. Besides, I died here at this very table, not in a library, and I do not believe the Wizard Lord has a Colonel Mustard in his emplo… Look out!” The lady screams, but you do not have time to turn around before you feel the cold, steel knife as it is plunged into your back.

Well, I hope you’re happy. Now you’re dead, and the ghost of the poor woman will be trapped in the tower forever because you just had to make a reference to a board game that hasn't even been invented yet! Was it worth it? Was it really?!


The old woman seems to think about your answer for a moment. “Nothing.” She says to herself before a ghostly smile twists her lips. “Nothing, yes I think that sounds right. Very good child. Thank you for answering poor Old Nana’s riddle. Now I can finally get some rest. You go on through the door now.” And with that, the rocking chair stops rocking and the ghost of the woman and her cat fade away into nothingness.

Opening the door leads you to a staircase. As you descend these stairs you can hear all sorts of strange noises. Scuffling, squeaking, flapping of wings, hooting and howling, you expect to find a collection of animals caged at the bottom of the stairs. Instead you find a circular room with ten doors all the way around, each with a picture of a different animal engraved on the door.

The noises begin to quiet down and the ghost of a dark haired, rather scruffy looking man appears in the centre of the room with a hawk perched on his arm. “So, you made it past Nana did you? Poor old bat’s been trying to solve that riddle for damn near fifty years now. Well I suppose it’s my turn then. Glad to meet you kid. I’m the games keeper here abouts. Master told me we had new company and he sent me down here with a riddle for you, to help you choose which door to go through. Give it a good think before you open one, alright?

Wings as black as a moonless night.

Only ventures in the light.

Long tail, sharp teeth, legs of eight.

Find my name or meet your fate.”
> You open the door engraved with a Penguin
You open the door to see nothing but darkness before you and the sounds of several different creatures fill the air once again, only now they sound louder, and angrier. “Sorry kid.” The games keeper says to you as the sounds draw nearer. “Even I can’t stop them now. They’re just so hungry.”

Suddenly you feel a sharp pain in your foot and you look down to see that a rat has come in through the door and bitten your toe. You manage to kick it away but more rats appear and you stumble backwards trying to keep them away from your feet. An owl flies at you out of the darkness and it’s talons scratch at you eyes. You try to shoo it away but see that your arms are covered in tiny black spiders which you frantically try to shake off. The spiders are the least of your worries though, since standing it the doorway is a great black bear which rises onto it’s hind legs and lets out the most terrifying roar. You are so distracted by the bear that you don’t even notice the wolf that is circling you until it sinks it’s teeth into your throat.

As you lay dying on the ground, ripped apart by wild animals, the ghost of the games keeper steps over your body and shakes his head. "The Penguin door?" He asks himself with the most baffled expression on his face. "Why? Why would you choose the Penguin door?" I suppose he'll never know.


The old woman seems to think about your answer for a moment. “Nothing.” She says to herself before a ghostly smile twists her lips. “Nothing, yes I think that sounds right. Very good child. Thank you for answering poor Old Nana’s riddle. Now I can finally get some rest. You go on through the door now.” And with that, the rocking chair stops rocking and the ghost of the woman and her cat fade away into nothingness.

Opening the door leads you to a staircase. As you descend these stairs you can hear all sorts of strange noises. Scuffling, squeaking, flapping of wings, hooting and howling, you expect to find a collection of animals caged at the bottom of the stairs. Instead you find a circular room with ten doors all the way around, each with a picture of a different animal engraved on the door.

The noises begin to quiet down and the ghost of a dark haired, rather scruffy looking man appears in the centre of the room with a hawk perched on his arm. “So, you made it past Nana did you? Poor old bat’s been trying to solve that riddle for damn near fifty years now. Well I suppose it’s my turn then. Glad to meet you kid. I’m the games keeper here abouts. Master told me we had new company and he sent me down here with a riddle for you, to help you choose which door to go through. Give it a good think before you open one, alright?

Wings as black as a moonless night.

Only ventures in the light.

Long tail, sharp teeth, legs of eight.

Find my name or meet your fate.”
> You need a hint
This riddle might look strange, since different parts of it seem to be describing different animals. Look at the riddle carefully and if it doesn’t seem to make any sense, try looking at it another way. The answer’s in there some where.


You press the engraved stone and a secret door in the stone wall gradually slides to one side and reveals a hidden passage way. Congratulations, you’ve escaped your cell! That wasn’t too difficult was it?

As you follow the empty passage way, you seem to be circling the dungeon and walking deeper and deeper into pitch darkness. Eventually you see a light at the end of the passage and find yourself in a room dimly lit by torches that hang from the wall. The room is small with only a spinning wheel and an old rocking chair to decorate it, both of which are coated in cob webs. There is a door on the other side of the room.

Having nowhere else to go, you head towards the door when suddenly you hear the creaking of the rocking chair behind you. For a brief moment you hold your breath and try to reassure yourself that it’s just the breeze rocking the chair, but there is no breeze in the room. Eventually you force yourself to turn around and see the ghostly figure of an old woman sitting in the chair.

Before you can run or scream, the old lady speaks up in a gentle yet eerie voice. “No need to be afraid of me child.” She tells you as she slowly rocks in her chair, stroking a small, ghostly cat on her lap. “You’ve nothing to fear from poor old Nana. I’m just here, pondering the old riddle to myself. Are you good at riddles child? I do hope so. They’re the only way to get out of this tower you see, ever since the old master went mad and cursed the place. Oh and that reminds me, I’m supposed to ask you the riddle aren’t I? Now let’s see if I can remember.

What does man love more than life,

Fear more than death and mortal strife,

What the poor have and the rich require,

And what contented men desire,

What the miser spends and the spendthrift saves,

And all men carry to their graves?”
> You don't answer. Scream at the scary ghost!
You scream like a little girl. "Ahh! Help! A ghost!" You scream.

The ghost does not look impressed. "Yes, yes I am a ghost." She replies. "Are you quite finished?"


You awaken on the cold, stone floor with a shiver running through your body and a pounding earache from sleeping on the side of your head. You do not know how much longer you can survive in this place. No one has brought you any food or water for days. Either you've been abandoned to die or something's happened to the guards to keep them from feeding you. Either way you are well and truly buggered.

With what little strength you have, you pick yourself up and look around your cell. There seems to be no way of escape. The window is barred and even if it wasn’t, your cell is at the very top of a huge, medieval tower, so climbing out would be suicide. The door is far too heavy to break down and you don’t have anything you could use to pick the lock. There is nothing in the room save for yourself, a dirty pile of straw in the corner and a bucket for… Well, let’s not discuss the bucket.

Suddenly though, as your eyes scan the dungeon, you notice something you never saw before. One of the stones on the wall of your cell seems to have something etched into it. As you lean closer you can just about make out two words. “Press me.”
> You need a hint
Well you're not the sharpest knife in the spoon drawer. It's very simple, you can either press the stone or you can wait around in your cell until you die of starvation. Which would you prefer?


These stories occur within a set time limit where the reader has to solve the mystery by asking the right questions to the right people and looking in the right places for clues (and recognizing the importance of some clues over others). The Normal setting for this TIME challenge is 100, if a reader wants an Easier game they can select this feature to be allowed a TIME of 125, for a Harder game a TIME of 75 is given (this isn't recommended for readers reading the story for the first time).

So Reader, Choose your Difficulty.
> You easy Difficulty (125 Time Points)
The Dorset Evening Gazette - 1 July 2000

TRAGIC DEATH ON BLACKSEA ISLAND

The residents of Poole were shocked to learn this morning of the apparent suicide of Blacksea Island resident Robert Powell, aged 15. Powell and his mother Olivia Powell, aged 40, were volunteers for the National Group and both lived and worked on the Island. Powell, who took the ferry to and from the mainland to attend and leave Poole Grammar School every morning and evening was described by one classmate as a “happy” and “intelligent” student.

In a statement issued by the Dorset Police Force it was confirmed that “A teenager died during a fall from a clifftop on Blacksea Island sometime between the hours of 10pm and 6am last night. At this time no foul play is suspected as the part of the island on which the deceased and his mother were living, known locally as “The Wetlands”, is enclosed by a high spike-topped wall and barred gates, making entry by a third party extremely unlikely.

This paper was able to speak with Barry Guest, owner and operator of the Blacksea Ferry. “I can’t believe it,” he told us in a statement. “Robert was a happy boy and just about the last person I would have expected to top himself. I reckon it was an accident, a fall from the cliffs though Robert would have known better than to go up there at night. I feel sorry for his poor mum, she’s been left all on her own now.”

Robert Powell’s suicide is the third such to happen on the island within living memory: on 25 December 1920 island owner Colonel Augustus Foster shot himself in the Hall of Blacksea Castle and on 5 July 1960 Castle Housekeeper Gwen Green apparently drowned herself in a Lily Pond on the island following a devastating fire on 30 June that had claimed the lives of her husband, butler Jack Green, and the island’s owner, Lord Marcus Van Raalte.

Blacksea Island has a history of death and madness and indeed the eccentricity of a number of the island’s owners, most notoriously “The Mad Doctor” William Benson and the much-reviled Lady Mary Bonham-Christie, who closed the island to the public during her ownership of the island from 1960 to 1980, has done much to bear these suspicions out. This latest suicide is just the most recent in a long line of tragic and unusual deaths to occur on this notorious island.
> The Mystery
You lay down the Dorsetshire Gazette for 1 July 2000 (by now, nearly a month old) and stare moodily over the Blacksea Ferry’s railing towards Blacksea Island, squatting like a bug on the gentle sea, its thickly-growing dark green trees clustering together like a wall which, together with the almost total lack of beach beneath the steep cliffs, makes the island and its secrets appear ominously impenetrable. With a sigh you flick open your notebook to a page you have titled SUSPECTS.

SUSPECTS:
The ten Resident Volunteers who were actually on the island on the night of 30 June 2000:
Iris Grey (50), Castle Compound Volunteer.
Barry Guest (40), Ferryman of the Blacksea Ferry.
George Loader (80), Castle Compound Volunteer.
Gerry Luff (30), Island Handyman.
Father Patrick Ould (40), Island Priest.
Bill Parsons (30), Island Farmer.
Olivia Powell (40), Wetlands Volunteer.
Robert Powell (15), Wetlands Volunteer and Murder Victim.
Arthur Van Raalte (40), Castle Compound Chief Volunteer.
Charles Whitburn (20), Island Gamekeeper.

You stroke your finger over Robert’s name. To you it’s not just a name, it’s a friend, a hundred happy memories, an ear in times of trouble and a joker in times of play. He was your best friend in school and given time he might have become more than that. That will never happen now and you want to know why. You KNOW Rob would never have killed himself. You KNOW that. So now you need to find out if his death was accident or murder.

You suspect the latter.

Your name is Susan Knox and you are a fifteen-year-old amateur detective. You know that your time is limited: the first ferry arrives at the island at 9am and the last ferry leaves the island at 5pm and tomorrow, because of the tragedy, the National Group Volunteers on the island will be moved to another location and a new group will move onto the island: this is your last chance to find out what really happened to your friend Robert.

You don’t believe either the accident or suicide theories which means it must be murder. There were only nine other people on the island on the night your friend died and as steep cliffs ring the island except in one place where the ferry lands (which is locked up at night) you are sure that his killer must be somewhere on the island. You are determined to find out who it is, how they murdered your friend and why.

As the ferry bumps alongside the Island’s Quay you rise to your feet alongside the other tourists who visit the island daily. As you climb off the boat with the others you reflect that time is short and you have to search everywhere and talk to everyone to find the clues that you need to solve this mystery so that you can confront the staff of the island when they gather together to leave on the last boat.

You owe it to the memory of your best friend to find the person who killed him.

NOTE: YOU MIGHT FIND IT USEFUL TO PICK UP THE LIST OF SUSPECTS TO REFER TO IT IN THE FUTURE. TAKING NOTES OF YOUR OWN WOULD ALSO BE A GOOD IDEA.


> You alien Abduction
It was the start of summer and you really wanted to be doing what you had planned for many months: sleeping. Well, of course you weren't going to sleep ALL day, but you certainly were not planning on getting up a five in the morning just so you could go stand in line... and then stand in line again... and then again.

Summer had arrived and while you had planned to spend the week sleeping and gaming, your parents had decided that instead you were going to spend a week with Aunt Mary. You really didn't have anything against Aunt Mary, but she was pretty plan and boring. Worse, she lived in a town with absolutely nothing to do. Last time you spent a week there, you spent most of the week sitting on the front porch watching the grass grow. Sure, you might catch up on some of your sleep in the first part of the week, but she didn't have a gaming system, so you knew you were going to be seriously bored. Then again, it's not like anyone asked you what you wanted to do. So you got up early and rode to the airport.

After getting dropped off, you stood in the line to check in. The days of the skycap were over, you know, because of "terrorism." Instead you had to walk inside and stand in line for an automated kiosk. You managed to make it through the line only for the machine to tell you that you had to check in at the agent counter. You trudged over to that line and waited at least 30 minutes before you made it to the front of the line. You handed ID, she pressed about 500 keys, then took your luggage with a seriously fake smile. This was really going to be a long day.

Thinking about Aunt Mary's tiny house, you headed over to the security line. Of course there were about 1,000 people in that line, most of them confused when the blue-uniformed Wal-Mart greeters told them they had to take their shoes off. Or leave them on. For some reason, some people had to take shoes off and some did not. The confused ensured the line would continue to move very slow. That and the "special" people who managed to cut into the front of the line after paying some bribes or some crap. You were just glad that when you finally got to the front of the line and through the scanners that you didn't get felt up by the goofy guards.

Next you had to wait for your plane to start boarding and then watch as all the people who were not called to board ran to get in line first. You had a ticket with an assigned seat, so you just waited until your row was called and then went to stand in line yet one more time. As you walked down the aisle of the plane, you counted the seats and knew before you finished counting that the seat next to the really fat guy that was having trouble breathing was your seat. Hooray for coach seats! At least you had the aisle seat so you wouldn't be squashed into the wall of the plane. You took your seat, fastened the stupid seat belt, and promptly closed your eyes, trying to ignore everyone and everything around you.

At some point in time, you woke up, wide awake. You're not really sure why you woke up. The plane was filled with the sound of airplane noises. You looked around and realized that there was some sort of odd greenish light coming in through the windows of the plane. A few people started talking about just that as more noticed it. You heard a popping sound and looked around for the source. Everything looked normal, but then you heard someone towards the front of the plane yell. You stood up, like most of the plane, and looked towards the front. Suddenly there was another popping noise, and half the people in front of you simply disappeared! They were there one moment and not the next. More people started to yell and run into the aisle. There was another pop, and everyone in front of you disappeared. You looked around towards the rear of the plane, and saw others staring at you, eyes wide open. Then there was another popping sound and suddenly blackness...
> You continue...
When you start to wake up, you feel cold. Actually, mostly just your rear end feels cold. And quite uncomfortable for some reason. You slowly open your eyes and blink in the bright white light. You realize that you're lying down on your back and your pants are down around your ankles. You are lying on a cold metal table. Well that explains why your rear end is cold, but why does it feel like...

You sit up and look around, pulling your pants up. You are in a small, strange, round metal room. The floor is flat, but the silver metal walls curve up and around, creating almost a bubble. You are sitting on a table in the middle of the room and there is a large machine of some sort sitting right next to you. It has long probes on it that are pointed in your direction. Fortunately, none of them are moving at the moment, but your butt clenches as you stand up from the table.

There is an opening in the wall to the east that leads into a hallway, but you don't see any other ways out of this room. The floor and walls appear solid, but they also appear to be glowing a little, enough to provide light so that you can see all around you.
> You head out of the room to the east.
You stand at the west end of a long hallway. The walls are silver and curve up and around the ceiling so much that you feel like you are walking in a long, strange tube. The floor is flat and level, but there are small dips at the edge, looking almost like gutters that you would find on the roof of a house, but not quite as deep.

To the west is the room where you first awoke with the strange table and probes that make you feel strangely uncomfortable. The hallway continues to the east, slowly bending out of sight to the right. To the south is a rounded doorway that leads into a well-lit room that looks like it might have some other metal tables in it.