text: [Themes: Science Fiction, Historical]
  
  > look around
  Green sunlight filters in from the west through the open recess,
  illuminating a small, round room, simple but totally foreign to you. A staircase (when did you learn that word?) winds up along the curved
  wall to another level above you, and, oddly, another doorway leads
  east, as if it would lead back into the forest.
  
  > look at the staircase
  You see etchings on the wall here, pictures of a grassland with a
  stream running through it, which adorn one panel on the wall next to
  the door.
  
  The simple door is closed.
  
  That's not something you need to refer to in the course of this game.
  
  > open the door
  You open the simple door.
  
  > go east
  pass through the door.
  
  Well, this certainly isn't the Forest you've come to know and love. You
  are standing in the middle of a vast grassland, broken only by the
  incongruous stone arch you passed through on your way here. Through it,
  you can see back into the dimly-lit Edifice to the west, a sharp
  contrast to the bright sunlight all around you.
  
  Listening closely, you can hear the sounds of running water away to the northeast.
  
  To the east some kind of animal roams the countryside.
  
  A gentle breeze blows from the northeast, carrying a hint of pollen as
  it rustles through the grass, which bows in its wake.
  
  > About yourself
  You're different. You are about as tall as a two-year-old sapling, and
  your arms come down to about your knees. Walking upright is more
  comfortable now, though you're hunched over. Your thin layer of hair
  does little to block the wind, but this doesn't seem to bother you.
  Your head seems to be bigger than it used to be in the Forest.
  
  You feel a little thirsty.
  
  > Go northeast
  Here you see the beginnings of a small spring.
  
  The spring bubbles up out of the earth, and has turned the whole area
  here quite muddy.
  
  To the southeast some kind of animal roams the countryside.
  
  A gentle breeze blows from the northeast, carrying a hint of pollen as
  it whispers over the water.
  
  > Xyzzy
  You mutter a nonsense word, and, surprisingly, the Edifice trembles in response! Everything else goes silent, and for a moment, it sounds as
  if the Edifice might collapse! Finally, it stills, and the world
  returns to normal.
  
  You seem to have created a Word of Power.
  
  > examine the water
  The spring bubbles up out of the earth, and has turned the whole area
  here quite muddy.
  
  > Go southeast
  The main feature of this area of the grassland is a large, squat,
  blackened Stump, evidently a victim of a past brush fire. The grasses
  wave around Stump, and one or two have taken root in the Stump itself.
  Some day, this will be little more than a rise in the countryside.
  
  Listening closely, you can hear the sounds of running water to the
  north and east.
  
  To the south some kind of animal roams the countryside.
  
  A gentle breeze blows from the northeast, carrying a hint of pollen as
  it rustles through the grass, which bows in its wake.
  
  > examine Stump
  Stump is slightly soft from years of decay.
  
  > examine the grasses
  The long grasses bend in the breeze.
  
  > Go east
  The lush grassland to the west begins to peter out here, becoming more
  rocky, dry, and hilly.
  
  The stream cascades down from a pool to the northwest, rushing away and thinning to the east. Wedged under a rock, you see a dead animal of
  some sort, strangely distorted by the rushing water.
  
  To the southwest some kind of animal roams the countryside.
  
  A gentle breeze blows from the northeast, carrying a hint of baked rock
  as it whispers over the water.
  
  > examine the dead animal
  This animal must have died a long time ago. It is completely
  unrecognizable.
  
  > take it
  The animal seems to be stuck in a crack at the bottom of the stream.
  Besides, the water here is probably completely contaminated anyway.
  
  > search the dead animal
  The animal is stuck at the bottom of the stream.
  
  > go to the southwest
  You are in the middle of an open grassland, the only visible tree far
  to the north. Despite your history of living in a forest, the wide open
  space feels free and natural, as if you had spent your entire life
  here.
  
  Listening closely, you can hear the sounds of running water to the
  north.
  
  Nearby, you see Beast, chewing contentedly on some grass.
  
  A gentle breeze blows from the northeast, carrying a hint of pollen as
  it rustles through the grass, which bows in its wake.
  
  Beast finishes cropping the grass in his area, and wanders across the
  plain up next to you.
  
  > look at Beast
  Beast is about three times your size, with a soft brown coat and nubs
  of horns on his head. He is currently next to you, chewing contentedly
  on some grass.
  
  > Pet Beast
  Carefully, you approach and touch Beast. His hide is thick and soft,
  and covers a rather plump body.
  
  > Inventory
  You are carrying:
  Useful Rock
  
  > ride Beast
  You get a running start and attempt to leap on Beast. Unfortunately,
  Beast steps away at the last minute, and you end up on the ground.
  
  > ride Beast
  You get a running start and attempt to leap on Beast. Unfortunately,
  Beast steps away at the last minute, and you end up on the ground.
  
  Beast finishes cropping the grass in his area, and wanders across the
  plain up next to you.
  
  > follow Beast
  But Beast is right here!
  
  > examine the grass
  The long grasses bend in the breeze.
  
  You're feeling rather parched.
  
  > follow you
  Beast has better things to do.
  
  > go north
  You wander through the grassland to the north.
  
  The main feature of this area of the grassland is a large, squat,
  blackened Stump, evidently a victim of a past brush fire. The grasses
  wave around Stump, and one or two have taken root in the Stump itself.
  Some day, this will be little more than a rise in the countryside.
  
  Listening closely, you can hear the sounds of running water to the
  north and east.
  
  To the south Beast roams the countryside.
  
  A gentle breeze blows from the northeast, carrying a hint of pollen as
  it rustles through the grass, which bows in its wake.
  
  > go north
  The land here is divided by a stream, which has collected to form a
  wide, still pool.
  
  Weeds and long grasses choke the sides of the pool all around, but a
  long, flat rock juts out into the pool, shaded by a tall tree to the
  north.
  
  To the south Beast roams the countryside.
  
  A gentle breeze blows from the northeast, carrying a hint of pollen as
  it whispers over the water.
  
  > Drink pool
  You push your way through the grass and rushes to get a drink, but you
  end up stirring up a lot of mud in the process. You take a drink, but
  it's not that satisfying.
  
  > sit on Rock
  (Flat Rock)
  You get onto Flat Rock.
  
  > Drink pool
  You crouch on the edge of the rock and drink deeply from the wide pool.
  In the process, the rock you are squatting on gets wet, but your thirst
  is now completely satisfied.
  
  > go to the north-east
  You'll have to get off Flat Rock first.
  
  Your stomach growls.
  
  > go outside
  You get off Flat Rock.
  
  The land here is divided by a stream, which has collected to form a
  wide, still pool.
  
  Weeds and long grasses choke the sides of the pool all around, but a
  long, flat rock juts out into the pool, shaded by a tall tree to the
  north.
  
  To the south Beast roams the countryside.
  
  A gentle breeze blows from the northeast, carrying a hint of pollen as
  it whispers over the water.
  
  > Go northeast
  You can follow the stream west upstream or southeast downstream, or
  leave the stream north to the tree or south to open grassland.
  
  > go north
  The lush grassland to the south and southwest begins to get rocky here.
  Just at the border between grassland and rocks, a mighty Tree towers
  above you.
  
  Listening closely, you can hear the sounds of running water to the
  south.
  
  To the south Beast roams the countryside.
  
  A gentle breeze blows from the northeast, carrying a hint of pollen as
  it rustles through the branches of the tree.
  
  > go to the northeast
  The land begins to get rocky and treacherous in that direction.
  
  > Up
  Climbing trees is a lot harder than you remember. You've managed to
  position yourself about three-quarters of the way up the tree, and are
  sitting in a fork in the trunk.
  
  Listening closely, you can hear the sounds of running water below you
  to the south.
  
  To the south, beyond the stream and a stump, Beast roams the
  countryside.
  
  A gentle breeze blows from the northeast, carrying a hint of pollen as
  it rustles through the grass, which bows in its wake.
  
  From this vantage point, you can see a large dead Branch, jutting out
  to the east.
  
  > go east
  You would surely fall to your death!
  
  > examine Branch
  Branch is large, taking up a good portion of the tree. It must be held
  in place by adjacent branches, because it has almost detached from the
  trunk near your feet.
  
  > get Branch
  Branch must be attached more firmly than it looked. You seem unable to
  detach it with your hands.
  
  > hit Branch with Rock
  CRAAAAACK! After a few moments of persistent hacking, the
  already-weakened Branch breaks apart from the tree and swings to the
  ground, the momentum pulling it from the clutches of the surrounding
  branches.