text: [Themes: Mystery, female protagonist, fantasy, horror, blood, mystery]
  
  > look around
  A dimly lit mouse-hole of a hollow that has been bricked off from prying eyes. A pair of mattresses lie near the entrance, where Sal and Piper must have slept. Further in, a guttering candle on the only table illuminates bladed weapons, counterfeit bills, and other contraband.
  
  A trapdoor ascends out of the cellar.
  
  On the table is a wine bottle.
  
  > examine table
  There are many shapes that glisten in the candlelight, but that wine bottle seems the strangest.
  
  > look at the mattresses
  One is big; the other, small.
  
  > look at the weapons
  Knives, mostly, of various sizes and shapes.
  
  > examine the money
  You don't carry much money with you. Just enough to buy food and other necessities.
  
  > examine bottle
  The bottle is still half-full; the label suggests an expensive claret. But the odor surrounding the mouth of the bottle is not quite the odor of wine.
  
  Next to the wine bottle, you spy a stained ribbon and a handwritten note.
  
  > Smell bottle
  At first it smells like red wine, light and fruity. But there is the barest coppery undertone to it.
  
  > examine the note
  (the gift note)
  A gift note written on plain stationery. It reads:
  
  Congratulations to both of you on a job well done. Here is a gift
  to our continued partnership. Let's keep it a secret between us, shall we?
  A. Z. B. N. Creditor Nacarat
  
  > take the bottle
  It's uncorked, and you might spill it while moving around. Best to just leave it where it is.
  
  > Go upwards
  This place was once a beautiful townhouse; now it is a ruin. The walls have been stripped of their furnishings, leaving bone-white plaster and rotting wood. Vagrants sleep on the stairs or in the corridors, curled up in makeshift bedding and soused with laudanum or alcohol.
  
  To the west is the exit. To the south, a trapdoor descends to the cellar.
  
  > Close trapdoor
  You close the trapdoor to the cellar.
  
  > go west
  A labyrinthine morass of concrete and claustrophobia. You know this place better now that you've seen the worst of it -- you know which paths to take, which alleys to avoid -- but there is a horror here that sinks its teeth into you, and does not let go.
  
  Tangled rope ladders lead up and down. A crumbling flophouse lies to the east. Somewhere to the north is the Via Mercurii, and to the west, Cadaver Walk.
  
  > Go up
  Rotting beams spiral from the Shanty Quarter like a stairway grasping for the stars. At their head is a jutting structure like a watchtower, and it shadows all that is beneath it, shielding grimy brick and concrete from desolate sky.
  
  The Shanty Quarter yawns below. Above you is the public house called the Crow's Nest -- but a fearsome eight-legged bouncer blocks the way.
  
  > examine bouncer
  He is human, though you wouldn't have guessed from his silhouette. He wears cracked welding goggles and the greasy leathers of a mechanist. Below the waist, his legs have been entirely replaced with a roaring pistoning walking-chassis.
  
  > talk to bouncer
  "Hello," you say, rather meekly.
  
  The bouncer peers down at you and frowns. He wipes soot from his goggles; he blows on his bandaged fingers.
  
  "You don't look like you're from around here," he finally remarks.
  
  1) "What do you mean?"
  2) "Neither do you."
  3) "I work at Doctor Cavala's clinic."
  
  > 3
  "I work at Doctor Cavala's clinic."
  
  He appraises you with a raised eyebrow. "Thought you looked the sort. White jacket. Gloves like a surgeon. You don't ever take those gloves off, do you?"
  
  You look at your gloves, and he shakes his head.
  
  "I don't know why you'd come down here," he mutters. "People like you don't ever come down here. Not unless there's something you're looking for."
  
  1) "I'm just looking for a drink."
  2) "I need to get inside."
  3) "I'm investigating a series of deaths..."
  
  > 3
  "I'm investigating a series of deaths," you say. "Some bodies have turned up in the Turris Infinita, all dead of the same affliction. I've been looking around the district for clues, and... and I thought..."
  
  The bouncer shakes his head and looks away. He gazes across the spires of the city, rising from the smoke and the water.
  of the city, rising from the smoke and the water."Sounds like a bunch of important people died," he says. "I'm sorry to hear that. But this is the Shanty Quarter. People die like flies here, each and every day, and no one gives a damn. Am I supposed to step aside for everyone who's lost someone?
  who's lost someone?"Your heart is in the right place, sweetheart. I don't begrudge you or nothing. But if you're looking to learn something about people that matter... you should look elsewhere."
  
  1) "Doctor Cavala sent me." <Present the signum.>
  2) "Sal and Piper lived in the Shanty Quarter..."
  3) "Reden came here often, didn't he?"
  4) "I'll be back. I'll find something that matters to you."
  
  > 3
  "Reden came here often, didn't he?"
  
  There is a shift in the air. The bouncer starts, and looks at you with something approaching incredulity in his eyes.
  something approaching incredulity in his eyes."Reden," he says. "Where did you hear that name?"
  
  1) "He's one of the victims I'm investigating."
  2) "I watched him die in Doctor Cavala's clinic."
  
  > 1
  "He's one of the victims I'm investigating."
  
  "Primes," the bouncer whispers. "He's dead, then. I... I never imagined --"
  imagined --"He shakes his head and falls silent. His hands ball into fists, exposing knuckles covered with angry scars.
  
  1) "I'm sorry you had to find out this way."
  2) "You were close to Reden?"
  
  > 1
  "I'm sorry you had to find out this way."
  
  He just shakes his head, his mouth a thin line. He does not reply.
  
  1) "You were close to Reden?"
  
  > 1
  "You were close to Reden?"
  
  The bouncer looks at his mechanical legs; he leans heavily on the struts. The cracks in his goggles glint in the cold light.
  struts. The cracks in his goggles glint in the cold light."We were co-workers," he says. "Way back when in the Channelworks. Back before I lost my legs, before everything came tumbling down..."
  I lost my legs, before everything came tumbling down..."He looks off into the distance.
  into the distance."We were drinking buddies. Him and me and Crow. We all knew each other back in the day -- told jokes, comforted each other when we had a bad run. I don't think he had anyone other than the two of us.
  the two of us."And now he's gone. It's just the two of us left."
  
  1) "Who's Crow?"
  2) "There's no one else?"
  3) "I'm here because I don't want anyone else to die..."
  
  > 1
  "Who's Crow?" you ask.
  
  "Used to be the most cheerful girl on the night shift," he says. "Now... well. People change. Some more than others."
  
  1) "There's no one else?"
  2) "I'm here because I don't want anyone else to die..."
  
  > 1
  "There's no one else?"
  
  "Not anymore. Not since..."
  
  He trails off, and looks up at the clouds. He does not continue.
  
  1) "I'm here because I don't want anyone else to die..."
  
  > 1
  "I'm here because I don't want anyone else to die," you say. "I... I need to find out everything I can about the victims. Please."
  
  The bouncer looks at you, and the eyes behind his goggles are dark and tormented.
  
  "I don't know," he says. "I don't know anymore."
  "I don't know," he says. "I don't know anymore."He turns around with a hiss of steam. For the first time, you notice the assembly woven into his spine -- a sprawl of alchemical glyphs and gears, messily sewn together.
  together."You want to get into the Crow's Nest?" he whispers.
  
  1) "Please."
  2) "For all our sakes."
  3) <Remain silent.>
  
  > 1
  "Please." Your voice cracks.
  
  He takes a deep breath. The gears in his spine turn.
  
  He takes a deep breath. The gears in his spine turn."Go," he says. "Just go. I'm putting my head on the block for you -- for Reden. Don't make me regret this. Go and find out whatever you can find."
  
  make me regret this. Go and find out whatever you can find.""Thank you," you breathe. "I..."
  
  you," you breathe. "I...""Don't thank me." He shakes his head. "This is for Reden's sake. If I die tomorrow... I can tell him I died making a difference in the end."
  
  a difference in the end.""I --"
  
  "Just go. Please."
  
  "Just go. Please."You don't have to be told twice. With a final lingering look at the bouncer on his perch, you push past him, and onward, upward, into the tavern at the edge of the sky.
  
  onward, upward, into the tavern at the edge of the sky.## Crow's Nest There is a strange crooked serenity here, amidst the rags that catch the wind. From discarded blocks and beams have been built tables, landings; odd patrons mingle all around you, engrossed in the late-afternoon murmur.
  
  The exit lies below.
  
  A disaffected young woman lounges behind the bar, chewing on a stick of gum and idly spinning a rota fortunae with her finger.
  
  > examine the woman
  (the bartender)
  She's dressed in a disheveled shirt, wearing a hairpin of feathers and bones.
  
  > examine the rota
  "THE DAEMON'S WHEEL. Step up and spin for your fate!"
  
  > talk to woman
  (the bartender)
  You approach the bartender. She doesn't bother looking up from the countertop.
  
  "So," she says. "You got past Webster. Makes me wonder why I hire him at all."
  
  1) "Do you greet all your customers like that?"
  2) "Nice to meet you too, Miss..."
  3) "I'm here about Reden."
  
  > 2
  "Nice to meet you too, Miss..."
  
  "Crow. Just Crow."
  
  She leans back, and spreads her arms in an all-encompassing gesture.
  
  "This is my nest."
  
  1) "I'm Marid."
  2) "I'm here about Reden."
  
  > 1
  "I'm Marid."
  
  She shrugs.
  
  1) "Do you greet all your customers like that?"
  2) "I'm here about Reden."
  
  > 2
  "I'm here about Reden."
  
  Crow spits her gum into the bin beside her. She gets up and paces back and forth, hooking her thumbs in the loops of her trousers.
  
  "Yeah," she says. "I heard."
  "Yeah," she says. "I heard."Her eyes flicker to the device behind the bar, flared like a foghorn. She brushes the sigiled feathers in its bell, sending them fluttering, whispering.
  bell, sending them fluttering, whispering."You hear all kinds of things on the wind."
  
  1) "You heard everything?"
  2) "Then you know why I'm here."
  
  > 1
  "You heard everything?" you ask.
  
  "I heard enough."
  
  She uncorks a bottle and mixes a drink, a rich dark rum you can smell from across the bar. She pours out a glass for herself -- then she retrieves another, raises it with a sidelong arch of her brow.
  retrieves another, raises it with a sidelong arch of her brow."Drink?" she asks.
  
  1) "Please."
  2) "I'm fine."
  3) "I'm more of a spiced wine person, actually."
  
  > 1
  "Please."
  
  She fills another glass and pushes it across the countertop. You take a sip -- it's powerful stuff, warm in your throat all the way down.
  a sip -- it's powerful stuff, warm in your throat all the way down."I'm impressed," she says. "Not a lot of people around here with the stomach for that."
  
  She takes a long swig from her own glass. For a long while she is silent, absorbed in her own thoughts.
  silent, absorbed in her own thoughts."Reden," she finally says. "You wanted to know more about him."
  
  1) "I understand he frequented this place."
  2) "Were you on good terms with him?"
  3) "Could you tell me what he was like?"
  
  > 1
  "I understand he frequented this place."
  
  "Frequented?" She chuckles. "More like he lived here. Between you and me, I don't think he had anywhere else to go.
  
  "His heart, though, was always elsewhere. You could see it in his eyes. He was always thinking back on old history... stuck in the past."
  
  1) "He was stuck in the past?"
  2) "Were you on good terms with him?"
  3) "Could you tell me what he was like?"
  
  > 1
  "He was stuck in the past?"
  
  She gazes at you intently. "He was. He didn't tell anyone -- wasn't the kind to go on drunken tirades, unlike me --"
  
  She looks down and chuckles softly.
  
  "But I always saw, when he was a few bottles in, that look in his eyes. He was always thinking, thinking of going back. And then he'd say he was done for the night, and he'd lope off and down the gangway... but I don't think he was ever going home. Not really."
  
  1) "Where do you think he went when he was drunk?"
  2) "Were you on good terms with him?"
  3) "Could you tell me what he was like?"
  
  > 1
  "Where do you think he went when he was drunk?"
  
  "There's only one place he could have gone," she says quietly. "Back to the past. Back to where it all started.
  
  "Back to the Channelworks."
  
  There is a silence that settles. You make a mental note of this information.
  
  1) "Were you on good terms with him? Reden, I mean."
  2) "Could you tell me what Reden was like?"
  
  > 1
  "Were you on good terms with him? Reden, I mean."
  
  She shrugs. "I suppose I was. Webster -- he made it sound like we were chums, didn't he? We were, in a way. The three of us, just raging against the unfairness of the world..."
  
  She takes another swig.
  
  1) "It sounds like the three of you have history."
  2) "Could you tell me what Reden was like?"
  
  > 1
  "It sounds like the three of you have history."
  
  "That's a mild way to put it." She looks at her painted nails. "The three of us... we built each other. We shaped each other.
  
  "On the night shift it was just the three of us in the whole of the Channelworks... we were the whole world to each other back then. Can you imagine? The three of us, kings and queen of the Channelworks? And now... now we're nobody."
  
  1) "What happened with the Channelworks?"
  2) "Could you tell me what Reden was like?"
  
  > 1
  "What happened with the Channelworks?"
  
  She shakes her head. "Everything. It all started there. I... I don't know how I can tell you.
  
  "It was late. Webster asked for a whiskey, to keep his bones warm, and I... I just gave it to him.
  I... I just gave it to him."Next day I heard he'd slipped and walked into the rubbish grinder."
  into the rubbish grinder.""Oh Primes..."
  
  She looks into your eyes. "I got found out after that," she says. "The whiskey, I mean. And then Reden took the heat, too, for supplying me. All three of us got handed our letters on that day."
  All three of us got handed our letters on that day."It's a while before you can compose your thoughts.
  before you can compose your thoughts."Sorry," Crow says. "That got dark fast."
  
  1) "Could you tell me what Reden was like?"
  
  > 1
  "Could you tell me... what Reden was like?"
  
  Crow looks into her glass, and her reflection stares up at her.
  
  "Of all of us," she says, "he was the most... detached from the world. I always had the Crow's Nest to keep me busy, even after everything happened. Webster had me to stay in touch. Reden...
  happened. Webster had me to stay in touch. Reden..."I offered him a job, but he never took up the offer. He just stayed here, going through bottles and bottles of cheap wine.
  through bottles and bottles of cheap wine."I never had the heart to charge him."
  
  1) "Could you tell me more about the Crow's Nest?"
  
  > 1
  "Could you tell me more about the Crow's Nest?"
  
  "Oh, it's nothing special." She waves her hand dismissively. "Time was, there was an employee refectory I ran in the Channelworks... I ran the after-dark shift, together with the reception. I served drinks when the commissary wasn't looking.
  
  "Now... the surroundings have changed, and my employer's a little less strict. But otherwise it's just like old times."
  
  1) "You have a new employer?"
  
  > 1
  "You have a new employer?"
  
  Crow's expression darkens. She takes a swig from her glass.
  
  "Yeah," she says. "It wasn't like I had a choice. Place like the Channelworks District, there's only two avenues of employment you have as a bartender. You either work for the Council of Works -- and for people like me, that's off the table -- or you pay your dues to the big fat raven."
  big fat raven.""The Company," you say.
  
  Her lips are thin. "I didn't have a choice. You take what employment you can get, even if it means kissing someone's hobnailed boots."
  
  1) "That's all the questions I have..."
  
  > 1
  "That's all the questions I have," you say. "Thank you, Crow. You've been very helpful."
  
  She drains the last of her glass, and runs a hand through her hair. For the first time since you've met her, she does not quite meet your eye.
  eye."You know," she whispers, "I still feel numb inside. Maybe it's the rum -- I keep thinking Reden's going to climb up the gangway any moment, asking for a bottle of the Bilious Canal's finest..."
  
  She stares at the bottom of her glass.
  She stares at the bottom of her glass."But we both know that's not going to happen. Isn't it?"
  
  1) "...I know what you mean."
  2) "Doctor Cavala and I will get to the bottom of this. I
  promise."
  3) <Remain silent.>
  
  > 2
  "Doctor Cavala and I will get to the bottom of this. I promise."
  
  She looks into your eyes. Her gaze is intense at first, like a sky split by thunder -- then it mists, quivers, and she turns her gaze downward before you can see it falter.
  
  "Yeah," she says. "All right."
  
  She closes her eyes and a tear runs down her cheek, staining it dark in the light.
  in the light."I should get back to bartending," she says, very softly. "It... it was nice talking to you."
  
  1) "Goodbye."
  2) "I'll leave you to it."
  
  > 1
  "Goodbye."
  
  You get up from the bar, conscious of yourself, of the quiet. You wonder if you perhaps shouldn't have asked so many questions --
  
  But it's too late now. Sometimes you must hurt someone before they can truly be healed.
  truly be healed.## Crow's Nest
  There is a strange crooked serenity here, amidst the rags that catch the wind. From discarded blocks and beams have been built tables, landings; odd patrons mingle all around you, engrossed in the late-afternoon murmur.
  
  The exit lies below.
  
  Crow sits quietly behind the bar.
  
  > examine the patrons
  There are the shabby homeless you'd expect from a public house in the Shanty Quarter -- but there are also well-dressed patrons, unfamiliar workmen and work-women.
  
  > examine the wheel
  "THE DAEMON'S WHEEL. Step up and spin for your fate!"
  
  > Spin wheel
  You give the wheel a spin. It lands on a space marked "Free Drink."