Start of a transcript of JIGSAW An Interactive History Copyright (c) 1995 by Graham Nelson Release 3 / Serial number 951129 / Inform v1600 Library 6/1 Standard interpreter 1.1 Interpreter 1 Version C / Library serial number 951024 >out You get out of the white Skoda. Corner The Wall, running the border of the Soviet and British Sectors, turns a corner and begins to head east here. (The Wall would be about 100 miles long if straightened out, so this is nothing unusual.) Thus, west and south are impossible. The shabby apartment block here has windows solidly bricked up, and looks out blindly across at Tempelhof Airport in the old American Sector. Its door hangs open at a crazy angle. The tow rope is tied to the white Skoda. The Skoda is parked here, its engine running. >n Near the Brandenburg Gate ...but not very. About a hundred yards west is the triumphal arch, its green-blue copper roof topped with what looks like a charioteer carrying a flag. This is as close as you can get: the tree-lined square around it is empty but for discreet guard-posts. No traffic passes beneath any longer, for no traffic crosses the Wall. Side streets run north and south, along the frontier of East Berlin. >x wall (the Brandenburg Gate) Beyond the wall is the Street of the 17th of June, named by the West Berliners after the tragedy of the Eastern uprising of 1953: when the West stood by and did nothing. It is absolutely inaccessible. Beyond that, the Russian War Memorial, an island trapped in the British Sector, to the twenty million Russian dead of WW2. >s Corner The Wall, running the border of the Soviet and British Sectors, turns a corner and begins to head east here. (The Wall would be about 100 miles long if straightened out, so this is nothing unusual.) Thus, west and south are impossible. The shabby apartment block here has windows solidly bricked up, and looks out blindly across at Tempelhof Airport in the old American Sector. Its door hangs open at a crazy angle. The tow rope is tied to the white Skoda. The Skoda is parked here, its engine running. >x wall Which do you mean, the north wall, the south wall, the east wall, the west wall, the northeast wall, the southeast wall, the northwest wall or the southwest wall? >n You see nothing special about the north wall. >n Near the Brandenburg Gate ...but not very. About a hundred yards west is the triumphal arch, its green-blue copper roof topped with what looks like a charioteer carrying a flag. This is as close as you can get: the tree-lined square around it is empty but for discreet guard-posts. No traffic passes beneath any longer, for no traffic crosses the Wall. Side streets run north and south, along the frontier of East Berlin. >n Alleyway This alley peters out further to the north, and is quite narrow here, between the eastern building and the first fence of the wall to the west. Beyond the fence, hares roam the hundred yard no-man's-land up to the Wall proper. >x wall (the fence) You see nothing special about the fence. >climb fence Taking a deep breath and a big chance, you scale the barbed-wire fence. With a few cuts and bruises, you make it over, but that wasn't the hard part, compared with staying alive in... No Man's Land Perhaps the most dangerous urban area in Europe. For the moment the Vopos haven't seen you, but escapes are very rare. Even East Germany, over the barbed-wire fence, looks a haven of safety. >w As you stagger west across No Man's Land, you step on a concealed land-mine! *** You have died *** In that game you scored 93 out of a possible 100, in 2251 turns, giving you the rank of Grandmaster Puzzler. Would you like to RESTART, RESTORE a saved game, give the FULL score for that game or QUIT? > undo No Man's Land [Previous turn undone.] >sketch hares You can't see any such thing. >n You tread nervously parallel to the wall, making no real progress. >s You tread nervously parallel to the wall, making no real progress. >s You tread nervously parallel to the wall, making no real progress. >n You tread nervously parallel to the wall, making no real progress. >nw As you take a diagonal path across, your ankle catches a hidden motion detector! The machine-guns are quite automatic. *** You have died *** In that game you scored 93 out of a possible 100, in 2255 turns, giving you the rank of Grandmaster Puzzler. Would you like to RESTART, RESTORE a saved game, give the FULL score for that game or QUIT? > undo No Man's Land [Previous turn undone.] >sw As you take a diagonal path across, you crouch low and keep out of sight of the guards... The Middle of No Man's Land Fifty yards from the East. Fifty yards from the West. Five seconds from death. A hare looks up briefly, wondering what kind of animal you are. >take north That isn't available. Coming out of nowhere, a pack of savage dogs scents you! It isn't long, or pretty, until *** You have died *** In that game you scored 93 out of a possible 100, in 2257 turns, giving you the rank of Grandmaster Puzzler. Would you like to RESTART, RESTORE a saved game, give the FULL score for that game or QUIT? > undo The Middle of No Man's Land [Previous turn undone.] >sketch hare You sketch in a picture of the hare. Coming out of nowhere, a pack of savage dogs scents you! It isn't long, or pretty, until *** You have died *** In that game you scored 93 out of a possible 100, in 2257 turns, giving you the rank of Grandmaster Puzzler. Would you like to RESTART, RESTORE a saved game, give the FULL score for that game or QUIT? > restore Ok. >out You get out of the white Skoda. Corner The Wall, running the border of the Soviet and British Sectors, turns a corner and begins to head east here. (The Wall would be about 100 miles long if straightened out, so this is nothing unusual.) Thus, west and south are impossible. The shabby apartment block here has windows solidly bricked up, and looks out blindly across at Tempelhof Airport in the old American Sector. Its door hangs open at a crazy angle. The tow rope is tied to the white Skoda. The Skoda is parked here, its engine running. >n Near the Brandenburg Gate ...but not very. About a hundred yards west is the triumphal arch, its green-blue copper roof topped with what looks like a charioteer carrying a flag. This is as close as you can get: the tree-lined square around it is empty but for discreet guard-posts. No traffic passes beneath any longer, for no traffic crosses the Wall. Side streets run north and south, along the frontier of East Berlin. >n Alleyway This alley peters out further to the north, and is quite narrow here, between the eastern building and the first fence of the wall to the west. Beyond the fence, hares roam the hundred yard no-man's-land up to the Wall proper. >climb wall (the fence) Taking a deep breath and a big chance, you scale the barbed-wire fence. With a few cuts and bruises, you make it over, but that wasn't the hard part, compared with staying alive in... No Man's Land Perhaps the most dangerous urban area in Europe. For the moment the Vopos haven't seen you, but escapes are very rare. Even East Germany, over the barbed-wire fence, looks a haven of safety. >sw As you take a diagonal path across, you crouch low and keep out of sight of the guards... The Middle of No Man's Land Fifty yards from the East. Fifty yards from the West. Five seconds from death. A hare looks up briefly, wondering what kind of animal you are. >sketch hare You sketch in a picture of the hare. >sw As you take a diagonal path across, your ankle catches a hidden motion detector! The machine-guns are quite automatic. *** You have died *** In that game you scored 93 out of a possible 100, in 2248 turns, giving you the rank of Grandmaster Puzzler. Would you like to RESTART, RESTORE a saved game, give the FULL score for that game or QUIT? > undo The Middle of No Man's Land [Previous turn undone.] >w As you lurch across No Man's Land, the Vopos in the nearest watch-tower catch sight of you! It's said that you never hear the bullet which gets you: anyway, you'll never be able to tell the world whether or not this is true. *** You have died *** In that game you scored 93 out of a possible 100, in 2248 turns, giving you the rank of Grandmaster Puzzler. Would you like to RESTART, RESTORE a saved game, give the FULL score for that game or QUIT? > undo The Middle of No Man's Land [Previous turn undone.] >e The minefield gets you on the way back. There are no second chances here. *** You have died *** In that game you scored 93 out of a possible 100, in 2248 turns, giving you the rank of Grandmaster Puzzler. Would you like to RESTART, RESTORE a saved game, give the FULL score for that game or QUIT? > undo The Middle of No Man's Land [Previous turn undone.] >ne The minefield gets you on the way back. There are no second chances here. *** You have died *** In that game you scored 93 out of a possible 100, in 2248 turns, giving you the rank of Grandmaster Puzzler. Would you like to RESTART, RESTORE a saved game, give the FULL score for that game or QUIT? > undo The Middle of No Man's Land [Previous turn undone.] >se No Man's Land Perhaps the most dangerous urban area in Europe. For the moment the Vopos haven't seen you, but escapes are very rare. Even East Germany, over the barbed-wire fence, looks a haven of safety. >climb fence Taking a deep breath of relief, you scale the barbed-wire fence. Safety! - Of a kind. Alleyway This alley peters out further to the north, and is quite narrow here, between the eastern building and the first fence of the wall to the west. Beyond the fence, hares roam the hundred yard no-man's-land up to the Wall proper. >s Near the Brandenburg Gate ...but not very. About a hundred yards west is the triumphal arch, its green-blue copper roof topped with what looks like a charioteer carrying a flag. This is as close as you can get: the tree-lined square around it is empty but for discreet guard-posts. No traffic passes beneath any longer, for no traffic crosses the Wall. Side streets run north and south, along the frontier of East Berlin. >s Corner The Wall, running the border of the Soviet and British Sectors, turns a corner and begins to head east here. (The Wall would be about 100 miles long if straightened out, so this is nothing unusual.) Thus, west and south are impossible. The shabby apartment block here has windows solidly bricked up, and looks out blindly across at Tempelhof Airport in the old American Sector. Its door hangs open at a crazy angle. The tow rope is tied to the white Skoda. The Skoda is parked here, its engine running. >ne Derelict Apartment Block This block would probably have been demolished, if engineering works like the Wall didn't always take priority. The door hangs open, half-shattered, and masonry is scattered across the floor. Dangerous-looking stairs climb the shell of the walls. >d Cellar Tunnel This cellar is the exit point of one of the makeshift, briefly-used tunnels cut by "Travel Bureau Incorporated", a bunch of West Berlin university students who risk their lives for this elaborate cause. The unguarded tunnel runs west into darkness. A break in the masonry, which probably goes back to the war, opens a cleft to the southwest. You feel terribly nervous here. If you should be caught... >sw U-Bahn Conduit This conduit, once a service tunnel of the underground railway, is bricked up on all sides and probably has been since 1961: if it weren't for the cleft northeast, the only access would be by the manhole up in the ceiling at the western end. Even the great trunks of telephone cables come in through one cement wall and out by another. >x rope You can't see any such thing. >i You are carrying: a delivered note a Cyrillic-lettered key a basket-weave purse (which is open but empty) a berliner a cloth cap (being worn) a sparkler (providing light) a canvas rucksack (which is open) wheels III and I a spent cartridge a RZ-ROV gadget a beige folder a Geiger counter Rukl's "Atlas of the Moon" a British Army officer's uniform a wooden broom a cargo capsule (which is empty) a gnomon Waldo a mandolin a box of mosquito powder a Sixth Officer's jacket Place Names of Carolina a green cap a Richard's anemometer a paper dart a madeleine cake Black's Kaldecki detector a second note from Black a first aid box (which is closed) the 1911 Boy's Book of the Sea a curious device the Victorian ormolu clock Emily's sketch book a charcoal pencil three keys: a little key a elegant key a tagged key an intercept a travel permit a checklist a chit signed by Lenin a handwritten invitation card a White Star Line scribbled-on towel a folded note a white party ticket three newspapers: a crumpled newspaper an historic edition of Pravda Le Figaro >ne Cellar Tunnel This cellar is the exit point of one of the makeshift, briefly-used tunnels cut by "Travel Bureau Incorporated", a bunch of West Berlin university students who risk their lives for this elaborate cause. The unguarded tunnel runs west into darkness. A break in the masonry, which probably goes back to the war, opens a cleft to the southwest. You feel terribly nervous here. If you should be caught... >u Derelict Apartment Block This block would probably have been demolished, if engineering works like the Wall didn't always take priority. The door hangs open, half-shattered, and masonry is scattered across the floor. Dangerous-looking stairs climb the shell of the walls. >sw The way out to the street is west. >w Corner The Wall, running the border of the Soviet and British Sectors, turns a corner and begins to head east here. (The Wall would be about 100 miles long if straightened out, so this is nothing unusual.) Thus, west and south are impossible. The shabby apartment block here has windows solidly bricked up, and looks out blindly across at Tempelhof Airport in the old American Sector. Its door hangs open at a crazy angle. The tow rope is tied to the white Skoda. The Skoda is parked here, its engine running. >x rope Perhaps once a barge's tow-rope: though there are no barges here any more. >untie rope The rope is untied now. >get rope Taken. >ne Derelict Apartment Block This block would probably have been demolished, if engineering works like the Wall didn't always take priority. The door hangs open, half-shattered, and masonry is scattered across the floor. Dangerous-looking stairs climb the shell of the walls. >d Cellar Tunnel This cellar is the exit point of one of the makeshift, briefly-used tunnels cut by "Travel Bureau Incorporated", a bunch of West Berlin university students who risk their lives for this elaborate cause. The unguarded tunnel runs west into darkness. A break in the masonry, which probably goes back to the war, opens a cleft to the southwest. You feel terribly nervous here. If you should be caught... >sw U-Bahn Conduit This conduit, once a service tunnel of the underground railway, is bricked up on all sides and probably has been since 1961: if it weren't for the cleft northeast, the only access would be by the manhole up in the ceiling at the western end. Even the great trunks of telephone cables come in through one cement wall and out by another. >tie rope to cables You tie the rope to the telephone cables. >tie rope to skoda You can't see any such thing. >open manhole [Just try going up.] >u You push the manhole aside, but can't get anywhere since the underside of the Skoda is in your way: from here all you can see is the bumper and the back wheel axle, the hubs, the distribution and so on. >tie rope to skoda You tie the rope to the underside of the Skoda. >ne Cellar Tunnel This cellar is the exit point of one of the makeshift, briefly-used tunnels cut by "Travel Bureau Incorporated", a bunch of West Berlin university students who risk their lives for this elaborate cause. The unguarded tunnel runs west into darkness. A break in the masonry, which probably goes back to the war, opens a cleft to the southwest. You feel terribly nervous here. If you should be caught... >u Derelict Apartment Block This block would probably have been demolished, if engineering works like the Wall didn't always take priority. The door hangs open, half-shattered, and masonry is scattered across the floor. Dangerous-looking stairs climb the shell of the walls. >sw The way out to the street is west. >w Corner The Wall, running the border of the Soviet and British Sectors, turns a corner and begins to head east here. (The Wall would be about 100 miles long if straightened out, so this is nothing unusual.) Thus, west and south are impossible. The shabby apartment block here has windows solidly bricked up, and looks out blindly across at Tempelhof Airport in the old American Sector. Its door hangs open at a crazy angle. The Skoda is parked here, its engine running. >enter skoda You get into the white Skoda. >e With an enormous wrenching sound, the Skoda leaps forward and you jam on the brakes just in time to crash into the Wall's first fence. The tow-rope trails behind, dragging a bundle of telephone cables. You've probably just paralysed the whole East Berlin phone system! But not the Vopos. You scramble out of the car and dive for cover... Precarious Balcony Up on the balcony, overlooking the divided city, you pant furiously, hiding your body from sight of the Vopos searching the street below. The Skoda lies strewn across the wire fence like a bull spiked in a bullfight. [Your score has just gone up by one point.] >z Time passes. >z Time passes. The air here suddenly seems disturbed, and a kind of cloud gathers from light winds and currents. From inside the rucksack, you hear a bell ring. >press white button The cloud of disturbed air condenses into a kind of spherical ink-black ball, large enough to swallow you up whole. >enter ball You climb into blackness, which draws you... Inside the Black Ball You stand in absolute blackness, as if in space, but a space without stars. You can imagine the six spatial directions, but although there seems to be light and you can see your arms and possessions, there is nothing else. All you can hear is your own breathing. >z Time passes. >z Time passes. As suddenly as it enveloped you, the blackness begins to thaw and melt, like snow into an ash-grey slush which drifts and piles into landscape. You have returned to the Land. Grim, monochrome steppes, wide and exposed beneath a brooding sky, the colour of boiled bruised potatoes. Bleak mountain crags surround a huge plain. The pyramid gleams gold like a beacon, like lamplight in the window of a farmhouse at night. Scree Fall A sharp, steep mountain wall rises to the north, and scree rattles down with each gust of wind, jagged as flint. >n You can't go that way. >s Northeast of Pyramid Open field north of a slow, sludgy Ash River, which flows out of the west corner of the golden Pyramid. In the centre of the northeast face is a gleaming doorway. The Ash River bubbles and splutters. >sw Disc Room This is a tiny tetrahedral annexe of a room, whose only clear feature is a broad black disc embedded in the floor. >nw Inside the Monument A sloping crevice of metal, sunken into the ground some way to make a larger-than-expected room. Short flights of steps lead up to west and southeast. The air is hot as a bakery. At the centre is a heavy old table whose top is a beautiful mahogany jigsaw-board, with room for sixteen pieces arranged in a square. The board is full. >footnote a3 [ Footnote a3: ] Berlin was occupied by four armies at once at the end of the Second World War, and the city divided into one sector for each of the "four powers": American, British, French and Russian. The Russian army's war losses were not as high as claimed by Stalin (who used doubtful census records and included his own purges) but were still perhaps 50 times those of Britain or the US (including some 352,475 casualties in the 17-day battle for Berlin alone). By mid-1945 Russia had occupied land so far west that Berlin was soon an isolated pocket of Western army occupation. As the Cold War ran on, the issue of recognition of East Germany as a separate state was a flash-point over which the Third World War might easily have been fought. For a while it seemed possible that a united but neutral Germany might be agreed; as in Austria, where Vienna was reunited. Tension increased as refugees began to flood through Berlin. Kennedy signalled that, rather than go to war, he would prefer to stabilise the situation. In August 1961, he got his way. Overnight, and catching the Western foreign ministries (all on holiday) by surprise, the Wall was built. For the first day, it was easy to break through; for the first week, not too hard; and after that, little short of impossible, though just about everything was tried. About 200 (estimates vary widely) were killed attempting crossings. The Wall fell in the great year of revolutions, 1989, after the Iron Curtain collapsed in Hungary: the elderly East German leadership lacked the vigour, ability or perhaps imagination to fight back. "Freedom of choice is a universal principle. It knows of no exception." - M. S. Gorbachev, addressing the UN in late 1988. >save Ok. >