Storm Over London
Juhana Leinonen
female protagonist Hugo source available Lovecraftian MIT parser
A stormy night. An old mansion. And the woman keeps calling me Elizabeth.
%
I was driving home when the storm front hit me. I have never seen such rainfall. I could barely see the headlights, and only flashes of lightning gave me brief glimpses of the road ahead so I could prevent the car from swerving off the road.

The GPS lost the signal and at some point I must have taken a wrong turn, for I was soon in an unpaved road I wasn't familiar with. The tires skid on the dirt that was quickly turning into deeper and deeper mud, and I knew stopping now would most likely mean getting hopelessly stuck.

The road ended in the yard of a large and old house. I was trying to turn the car around when it stopped in a puddle in the middle of the driveway.

Hugo v3.1 / Library 31031
Type HOWTO for instructions, ABOUT for more information or CREDITS
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Mansion Courtyard, in the car
The mansion was old, built perhaps in the 19th century. It seemed to be relatively well-kept, not counting a few missing roof tiles, rusty rain gutters about to fall apart and the need for a new layer of paint.

The GPS was still offline and the car was stuck in the muddy driveway.

The front entrance was near, right outside the car.
Inventory
I was carrying the business clothes (being worn) and a cell phone.
You examine the car
The car was hopelessly stuck. I needed a tow truck.
You examine the business clothes
I was wearing straight pants and a short jacket.
Leave
I got out of the car and ran to the porch. The spurt couldn't have taken more than five seconds but I was already soaking wet from the pouring rain and my shoes dirty with mud.

keep the rainfall out. The rain was still slashing against me and several times gusts of wind almost knocked me over.

The front door was closed and I couldn't see a doorbell.
You knock on the door
At first there was no answer. I knocked again, and after a while a small older woman opened the door.

"Yes, dear?"

(I could have asked her about the mansion, herself, or using a phone; or told her about myself, the car or the storm.)
You ask the old woman about the the Mansion
"I'm very sorry to come knocking at your door so unexpectedly. This is quite a mansion you have here. Are you the lady of the house?"

"I am she," she replied briefly.
You ask the woman about the Mansion
"You rarely see houses like this,"

She looked impatient. "Our home is not open for tourists, young lady."

"Oh no, I didn't mean to imply..." I stuttered.
You ask her about herself
(assuming you meant the old woman)
"My name is Lauren. Whom do I have the honour to address?"

She had a puzzled look on her face. "Lauren? I don't think we know a Lauren."
You tell her about the the car
(assuming you meant the old woman)
"Sorry to bother you at this hour, but the weather caught me off guard and my car is stuck in your driveway," I said.

"I see," she said without changing expression.
You ask the woman about the phone
"If you have a landline, I'd like to borrow your phone to call a tow truck or a taxi so I could get home. My cell phone has no reception here."

She looked at me from head to toe and seemed to sharpen up. "Yes, I suppose we can't leave you there in the rain. Please do come in."

She took a step back inside the mansion and held the door open for me.
Go inside
The house looked like something out of a Jane Austen book. The furniture was antique, or at least very skillfully made replicas. The air was heavy and smelled of dust. It must had been a while since the room had been properly cleaned.
There was a phone on a side table.

The old woman sat down on one of the chairs. "Oh dear, you're quite wet," she said. "I wonder if..."

She looked conflicted for a while. "Yes, Elizabeth's clothes should fit you. Perhaps you could go upstairs and change into something dry. It's the second door to the left."
You look at phone
Which phone do you mean, the telephone or the cell phone?
You examine the telephone
Although the dark red colour of the landline phone matched the decor it still looked out of place here.
You call tow truck
The landline was dead. Not even a dial tone.
You ask the lady about the phone
"Please, dear, you're dripping water all over our carpet," she said. "Go upstairs and change and we'll talk."
Go upwards
I walked up the creaking stairs.

The hallway was decorated with yellowing wallpaper and a carpet that had already seen its best days. I could have went in to the bedroom as the old lady had instructed or back down to the living room.
Go inside
The room seemed to belong to a teenaged girl, although it was very ascetic. There was a simple bed, a dressing table, and a bookshelf with assorted novels.
A massive wardrobe was standing on the wall opposite the window.
You look at the wardrobe
The wardrobe looked massively heavy. It was made of thick, dark wood.
You open wardrobe
Opened.

Hanging inside the wardrobe was a row of dresses.
You examine the dresses
It was almost as if no-one had opened the wardrobe in several decades. The dresses were all old-fashioned and conservative with subdued colors. They were dusty but otherwise clean.

Creeeeeeeeeeeek.
You remove the clothes
I got out of my soaked clothes. The wet fabric kept clinging to my skin and left me shivering.
You get the dress
I looked through the dresses in the wardrobe and picked a plain brown one that was the least obviously old-fashioned. I tried to brush most of the dust away and then put it on. I didn't feel comfortable wearing other people's socks so I decided to go barefoot.

The dress fit me quite well, although it was perhaps a bit too big. I tried to force myself not to feel self-conscious and rather be happy to have something dry to wear.
You leave
The hallway was decorated with yellowing wallpaper and a carpet that had already seen its best days. I could have went in to the bedroom as the old lady had instructed or back down to the living room.
Go downward
The house looked like something out of a Jane Austen book. The furniture was antique, or at least very skillfully made replicas. The air was heavy and smelled of dust. It must had been a while since the room had been properly cleaned.
The old woman was sitting on a chair, watching me.
There was a phone on a side table.

When I walked down the stairs it seemed like the old woman's gaze was glassy and she was looking through me.

"Oh there you are, Elizabeth. Your father and I have missed you."

Before I had time to say anything over my surprise, the lights went out. The woman walked carefully by the mantel, picked up a box of matches and started to light candles around the room. She passed one of the candles to me.

"Could you be a dear and go see your father upstairs, Elizabeth? He always knew what to do in situations like this. He should be in the study. The door is right across the stairs, you remember that."

(I could have asked her about Elizabeth, father, using the telephone, or electricity; or told her about myself.)
You tell her about myself
(assuming you meant the old woman)
"I'm not Elizabeth. Who's Elizabeth?"

"Oh Elizabeth, stop fooling around," she replied with a weak smile.
You ask her about using the the telephone
(assuming you meant the old woman)
"Can I use the telephone, please?"

"Do you want to call your friends, Elizabeth? Although I think the weather has cut the phone lines."
You ask the woman about Elizabeth
"I'm not Elizabeth. Who's Elizabeth?"

"Oh Elizabeth, stop fooling around," she replied with a weak smile.
You ask her about the electricity
(assuming you meant the old woman)
"Do these power outages happen often?" I asked.

"Oh, not very often, not at all," she said. "But it's all right, your father is prepared for everything."
You ask the woman about the father
"I'm sorry, did you say my "father"?"

"Don't worry, your father will know what to do," she just said.
Scream
It was a desperate situation, but I managed to keep my emotions in check.
Go upwards
I was back upstairs, and the door leading inside the study was right in front of me.
You enter
The door was locked.
You examine door
Study door looked just like I expected.
You knock on the door
I knocked on the door, and almost immediately an old man opened it. He was grey as ashes, just like the woman, but while she was lethargic, he was jitterish and full of energy.

"Yes, what is it? Who are you? It doesn't matter, the power's out again and I'm at a very delicate phase right now. Be a sport and go downstairs to the cellar and turn on the diesel generator."

Before I had time to say anything he slammed the door shut.
Go downward
The house looked like something out of a Jane Austen book. The furniture was antique, or at least very skillfully made replicas. The air was heavy and smelled of dust. It must had been a while since the room had been properly cleaned.
The old woman was sitting on a chair, watching me.
There was a phone on a side table.

"So, what did your father say?" the old woman said.

"He said to turn on the generator. And he's not my father, lady. Where's the cellar?"

She glanced at a door next to the staircase, which must lead down to the cellar. "You were always warned not to go to the cellar, weren't you, Elizabeth? Remember, when you were young?"
Describe the surroundings
The house looked like something out of a Jane Austen book. The furniture was antique, or at least very skillfully made replicas. The air was heavy and smelled of dust. It must had been a while since the room had been properly cleaned.
The old woman was sitting on a chair, watching me.
There was a phone on a side table.
You look at lady
The woman was small and frail, and her thin face was grey as dust. She was wearing an old-fashioned grey dress that the aristocracy would have worn a hundred years ago.
.
Down
The cellar had apparently been used as a wine cellar. The shelves
were empty now. Water was trickling down to the floor but there didn't seem to be immediate danger of flooding.
Otherwise the space was dominated by a large diesel generator.
Examine generator
It looked similar to what my grandparents had in their farm, except this was much bigger. It was probably large enough to provide electricity to the whole mansion, and to the neighbouring houses as well.
You switch on generator
I turned the generator on. After some coughing and wheezing its engine started running and lights flickered on in the cellar.
Go upward
The house looked like something out of a Jane Austen book. The furniture was antique, or at least very skillfully made replicas. The air was heavy and smelled of dust. It must had been a while since the room had been properly cleaned.
The old woman was sitting on a chair, watching me.
There was a phone on a side table.

The lights were on in the living room, so I put the candle down on a table.
You talk to the woman
The old woman was listening.
You ask the woman about the electricity
"Do these power outages happen often?" I asked.

"Oh, not very often, not at all," she said. "But it's all right, your father is prepared for everything."
You call for the help
The landline was dead. Not even a dial tone.
You ask the woman about the father
"I'm sorry, did you say my "father"?"

"Don't worry, your father will know what to do," she just said.
Go inside
Bookshelves lined the walls, full of books that had titles in languages I didn't recognize. Behind a mahogany writing desk, filled with books, papers and parchments, sat an old man, frevently writing on a notepad or looking up something from the books.
A curious machine was embedded in one of the walls.
Heavy curtains covered the windows.
The old man was sitting behind the desk, scribbling on a notepad.

"It's you," he said as he noticed me. "Now who did you say you were again? You must excuse me, I'm very busy with the experiment.'"

(I could ask him about the woman, Elizabeth, or the experiment; or tell him about the generator, myself, or the storm.)
You look at the machine
The machine was a jumbled mess of wood, iron, leather and brass. Pipes and wires were strewn across the contraption, connected to meters that didn't say anything meaningful.
You ask him about the the woman
(assuming you meant the old man)
"Why is the woman downstairs insisting that I'm Elizabeth? Who is she anyway?"

Suddenly he looked very melancholic. "Oh, Elizabeth... She was our daughter. She died too young, and my wife has been... ill ever since." He pauses to wipe his eye with a handkerchief. "But when we moved to this house and when I discovered this library, there's hope! We will soon be together again!"
You ask him about machine
(assuming you meant the old man)
"Uh... what exactly are you doing here?" I asked carefully. There was obviously something not quite right here.

"This, my lady, is how I will bring back my dear Elizabeth!" His eyes gleamed with crazy. "I found these books, and the incantations..."
You ask him about Elizabeth
(assuming you meant the old man)
"I think your wife needs professional help," I said.

"Help? She needs Elizabeth back!" he exclaimed. "I'm so close... so close..."
You ask him about the phone
(assuming you meant the old man)
Which exactly do you mean, the cell phone or using the phone?
You tell him about the the generator
(assuming you meant the old man)
"I managed to turn on the generator."

"Yes, I noticed. Thank you," he replied.
You tell him about myself
(assuming you meant the old man)
"I'm here only by chance," I explained. "My car got stuck in the mud.."

"Yes, yes," he interrupted. "As long as you don't bother my experiment, I don't really care."
You tell him about the storm
(assuming you meant the old man)
"There's a huge storm outside! It... doesn't feel natural," I said.

"I have no time for small talk about the weather young lady," he replied.
You ask the man about the experiment
"Uh... what exactly are you doing here?" I asked carefully. There was obviously something not quite right here.

"This, my lady, is how I will bring back my dear Elizabeth!" His eyes gleamed with crazy. "I found these books, and the incantations..."
You examine the curtains
The curtains were heavy and thick, blocking all light.
You open the curtains
I opened the heavy satin curtains and saw that they were covering not a window but glass doors to a balcony. Behind the doors was a view that on any other day would have been a magnificent sight. Only now I realised that the house was on a high hill that overlooked London which, at the moment, was in the midst of what seemed like a hurricane.

Entire city blocks were on fire. There were no lights on in the city, only lightning and the fires revealed the horrifying scene.

The clouds above the city were moving in disturbing patterns. Something was out there, about to emerge form the darkness.

(I could tell the old man about London.)
You tell man about the london
"Look at what's happening to the city! Curse your damned experiments!"

He raised his head to view the scene. He looked at London in disbelief and he seemed to experience a brief moment of sanity.

"No... It's impossible! Did I write the wrong glyphs... or was the voltage too high? Or..."

"What's happening here? What is this storm?"

"I... all I wanted was to bring Elizabeth back... You mustn't judge me! Something has went terribly wrong," he cried.

He rummaged through a box next to the apparatus and pulled out a small axe. "We must end this now! Here, take this hatchet and climb to the roof. I've set up an antenna there that broadcasts the subspatial messages. I can't stop it from here, you must cut down the antenna to make this right."

"What? I don't..." I tried to protest, but he shoved the hatchet to me. "Go! Now!"
You examine the hatchet
The axe was small and slightly rusty, with ornate carvings in the blade.
You describe your surroundings
Bookshelves lined the walls, full of books that had titles in languages I didn't recognize. Behind a mahogany writing desk, filled with books, papers and parchments, sat an old man, frevently writing on a notepad or looking up something from the books.
A curious machine was embedded in one of the walls.
A view of London is visible through the balcony door.
Go outside
The balcony was made of white marble. Rain fell on it from the roof like from a waterfall.
An iron ladder led up to the roof.

Soon after closing the balcony doors behind me I heard a bang from inside the mansion.
Go inside
I looked in through the balcony doors and saw the old man lying on the floor, with a revolver in his hand. He had taken his own life.

I couldn't bring myself into returning inside the house. I had to stop this madness.
Go upward
I climbed past the gutter and saw what must have been the antenna, a gnarled wooden staff, on top of the roof's ridge. The rain was pouring down in torrents and staying on the steps took all my effort.

Clambering up to the antenna I glanced behind me and saw horrifying a dark mass was emerging from the storm clouds over London; it was larger than the city itself, and revealed more of itself every second as it descended from the skies. Even the light from lightning would not penetrate the total blackness of its form. Only its grotesque shape could be seen as a silhouette against the dark sky.

An overwhelming sense of dread and despair overcame me. I screamed, screamed until my lungs were empty of air.
Scream
And I did scream. I screamed my mind empty of thoughts that once were human but now claimed by the Devourer, the Destroyer, the god of Despair.

(U)NDO your last turn, or (Q)UIT?

Enter (R)ESTART, R(E)STORE, (U)NDO, or (Q)UIT:
You hit the antenna
I struck the antenna with the axe once, twice, three times. It broke and fell down the roof, but it was naive to think it would have had any effect. Was it even the old man who had summoned the Devourer into this world?

It mattered not: the damage was done, and nothing could stop the inevitable. I laughed at the foolishness of my efforts, I laughed when the rain swept me off the roof and into the merciful hands of Death.