Start of a transcript of Nothing Could Be Further From the Truth Another tale from the Bunker by Adam Wasserman Release 1 / Serial number 230327 / Inform 7 build 6M62 (I6/v6.33 lib 6/12N) Identification number: //974987D8-E0F4-4B95-BC5E-7BDD7B07B983// Interpreter version 1.3.6 / VM 3.1.2 / Library serial number 080126 Standard Rules version 3/120430 by Graham Nelson Menus version 5 by Wade Clarke Smarter Parser version 16/140501 by Aaron Reed Alternatives version 3 by Eric Eve Extended Grammar version 8/140501 by Aaron Reed Reversed Persuasion Correction version 2 by Juhana Leinonen Commonly Unimplemented version 2 by Aaron Reed >l Dev 1 A shallow depression in the center dominates this room. Above it, a crane protrudes from the ceiling. Hanging nearby from a thick wire that leads into the wall is a controller. On one wall hangs a whiteboard. Otherwise, this area is sparse. This place has a strange smell, and splotches of grime and corrosion can be seen on the walls and ceiling. Both are no doubt remnants of spectacularly promising experiments. A squat opening leads outward, and a doorway obscured by a thick, black curtain leads inward. The wall to the right is made entirely of glass, on the other side of which is the research lab's main hallway. It is accessible through an almost invisible door. >* OK this is complicated and I think we can't do anything yet? Come again? >outward Darkened Passage You find yourself in a small, uninteresting passage with no light source of its own. To your right is a door. You can also continue inward through a squat opening or outward through a narrow opening. >right (first opening the refrigeration unit door) It seems to be locked. >inward Dev 1 A shallow depression in the center dominates this room. Above it, a crane protrudes from the ceiling. Hanging nearby from a thick wire that leads into the wall is a controller. On one wall hangs a whiteboard. Otherwise, this area is sparse. This place has a strange smell, and splotches of grime and corrosion can be seen on the walls and ceiling. Both are no doubt remnants of spectacularly promising experiments. A squat opening leads outward, and a doorway obscured by a thick, black curtain leads inward. The wall to the right is made entirely of glass, on the other side of which is the research lab's main hallway. It is accessible through an almost invisible door. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >outward Darkened Passage You find yourself in a small, uninteresting passage with no light source of its own. To your right is a door. You can also continue inward through a squat opening or outward through a narrow opening. >outward Dev 3 This is Dev 3, one of the main developmental areas in Research Lab A-U61. The researchers who toil here specialize in smaller - but certainly no less important - hardware than their colleagues in Dev 1. When researchers are present, they are usually hunched over the workstations, manipulators busily poking at whatever is lying on them, and the floor littered with discarded parts. Now, however, much of the equipment has been stowed away. Some of the researchers - and most certainly the former lab director, Atikurrahman Vosh - have a security clearance. You've seen them come and go through that metal door out in the hallway. No one is born with a security clearance, and everyone is eligible for one. According to the vidshows on the tube, the best way to get a security clearance is to demonstrate loyalty to the Bunker through daring acts of courage. Recording traitors on your PA and submitting the feed to Homeland Security is one example. Sometimes a simple accusation is enough, especially if the evidence is self-evident. But the truth is that you've never once encountered a terrorist. And frankly, you'd like to keep it that way. Four workstations have been arranged in a square in the center of this room, basking in the bright light from the glow panels. Nestled between them is a bank of manipulators. What appear to be controls for the manipulators have been built onto the surface of each workstation. On one of the workstations is a zorgot. Through a glass wall to the right, you see a hallway. A door has been cut into the glass. Set in the middle of the inward wall is a narrow opening. You can see a sturdy locker here. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >x zorgot This is an oblong, electronic device that can be held in one hand. You have no idea what it does. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >take it Taken. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >squeeze it You achieve nothing by this. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >turn it on I see that you're an optimist. Unfortunately, optimists are predisposed to a lifetime of disappointment in the Bunker. You have no idea how to do that. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >l Dev 3 Four workstations have been arranged in a square in the center of this room, basking in the bright light from the glow panels. Nestled between them is a bank of manipulators. What appear to be controls for the manipulators have been built onto the surface of each workstation. Through a glass wall to the right, you see a hallway. A door has been cut into the glass. Set in the middle of the inward wall is a narrow opening. You can see a sturdy locker here. >x controls You peer at the controls for the bank of manipulators and feel that you could easily operate the slicer (by slicing or cutting) and the soldering iron (by soldering). A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >* OK... Come again? >i You're carrying (in plain sight): a zorgot a shiny black helmet Renardin's Card the lab office chip key Ati's Card your PA your Card the feather duster You're wearing: some rubber gloves your boots your jumpsuit bunny ears >l Dev 3 Four workstations have been arranged in a square in the center of this room, basking in the bright light from the glow panels. Nestled between them is a bank of manipulators. What appear to be controls for the manipulators have been built onto the surface of each workstation. Through a glass wall to the right, you see a hallway. A door has been cut into the glass. Set in the middle of the inward wall is a narrow opening. You can see a sturdy locker here. >x key A square microchip embedded in a small plastex wedge, chip keys are generally attuned to a single door. Simply possessing the chip key will allow the bearer to pass through it. Which door, however, is not apparent. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >right (first opening the glass door) The glass door swings shut behind you. Lab Hallway Outward You are standing at one end of a short, bare hallway lit by glow panels. The left wall is made entirely of glass. Through it you can see into Dev 3. Normally, a few researchers can be seen toiling within, but now it is strangely empty. To the left a door has been cut into the glass. Another door is to your right. A smart sign is affixed to it. Outward is a third door made entirely of metal. Inward, the corridor continues towards the Lobby. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >left (first opening the glass door) The glass door swings shut behind you. Dev 3 Four workstations have been arranged in a square in the center of this room, basking in the bright light from the glow panels. Nestled between them is a bank of manipulators. What appear to be controls for the manipulators have been built onto the surface of each workstation. Through a glass wall to the right, you see a hallway. A door has been cut into the glass. Set in the middle of the inward wall is a narrow opening. You can see a sturdy locker here. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >left You can't go that way. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >right (first opening the glass door) The glass door swings shut behind you. Lab Hallway Outward You are standing at one end of a short, bare hallway lit by glow panels. The left wall is made entirely of glass. Through it you can see into Dev 3. Normally, a few researchers can be seen toiling within, but now it is strangely empty. To the left a door has been cut into the glass. Another door is to your right. A smart sign is affixed to it. Outward is a third door made entirely of metal. Inward, the corridor continues towards the Lobby. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >right (first opening the office door) The lock is activated by the chip key, and you hear a slight rasping noise from the door. Ah, a rare moment of cherished privacy away from prying eyes... You hear a slight click after the door swings shut. Lab Director's Office You are in the lab director's office. Looking around, you can see that the previous lab director had little if any personality. Framed by bare, white walls, the room prominently features a shallow, curved desk. Behind the desk tucked against the wall is a heavy, metal safe. The room is dimly lit by a single glow panel near the ceiling; the others appear to be out of service. Outward is a door leading to the research lab's main corridor. You can see the lab director's chair here. >undo Lab Hallway Outward [Previous turn undone.] >* I think going in there kills me unless I disable the cameras somehow? Come again? >outward The metal door swings shut behind you. Restricted Corridor You are standing in a hallway, unremarkable in every way. Outward an alarm is blaring. Inward is a metal door leading to the unrestricted part of the research lab. A red light gleams menacingly under the restricted lab security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >undo Lab Hallway Outward [Previous turn undone.] >* OK maybe more warning about that killing us Come again? >inward Lab Hallway Center You are standing in the center of a bare hallway lit by glow panels. The wall to your left is made entirely of glass. Just out of reach above your head, a security camera relentlessly surveys the hallway and the areas visible through the glass wall. To the left, you can see the Refrigeration Unit. Across from it, to your right, is a plain door. The hallway continues both inward and outward. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >left You can't go that way. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >unlock unit Can't do it. >x unit Can't do it. >x door The plain door is closed. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >* "can't do it" is a potentially-misleading parser error here, since it seems like UNIT isn't actually a recognized noun You seem to want to talk to someone, but I can't see whom. >x door The plain door is closed. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >unlock door (using the lab office chip key) You do not need specifically unlock anything with a chip key. If you attempt to pass the lock it is attuned to, it will automatically open. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >open it You open the plain door. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >l Lab Hallway Center You are standing in the center of a bare hallway lit by glow panels. The wall to your left is made entirely of glass. Just out of reach above your head, a security camera relentlessly surveys the hallway and the areas visible through the glass wall. To the left, you can see the Refrigeration Unit. Across from it, to your right, is a plain door. The hallway continues both inward and outward. >left You can't go that way. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >x unit Can't do it. >x refrigeration unit Can't do it. >* ...I guess it's just visible through there? Come again? >outward Lab Hallway Outward You are standing at one end of a short, bare hallway lit by glow panels. The left wall is made entirely of glass. Through it you can see into Dev 3. Normally, a few researchers can be seen toiling within, but now it is strangely empty. To the left a door has been cut into the glass. Another door is to your right. A smart sign is affixed to it. Outward is a third door made entirely of metal. Inward, the corridor continues towards the Lobby. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >left (first opening the glass door) The glass door swings shut behind you. Dev 3 Four workstations have been arranged in a square in the center of this room, basking in the bright light from the glow panels. Nestled between them is a bank of manipulators. What appear to be controls for the manipulators have been built onto the surface of each workstation. Through a glass wall to the right, you see a hallway. A door has been cut into the glass. Set in the middle of the inward wall is a narrow opening. You can see a sturdy locker here. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >inward Darkened Passage You find yourself in a small, uninteresting passage with no light source of its own. To your right is a door. You can also continue inward through a squat opening or outward through a narrow opening. >outward Dev 3 Four workstations have been arranged in a square in the center of this room, basking in the bright light from the glow panels. Nestled between them is a bank of manipulators. What appear to be controls for the manipulators have been built onto the surface of each workstation. Through a glass wall to the right, you see a hallway. A door has been cut into the glass. Set in the middle of the inward wall is a narrow opening. You can see a sturdy locker here. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >right (first opening the glass door) The glass door swings shut behind you. Lab Hallway Outward You are standing at one end of a short, bare hallway lit by glow panels. The left wall is made entirely of glass. Through it you can see into Dev 3. Normally, a few researchers can be seen toiling within, but now it is strangely empty. To the left a door has been cut into the glass. Another door is to your right. A smart sign is affixed to it. Outward is a third door made entirely of metal. Inward, the corridor continues towards the Lobby. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >inward Lab Hallway Center You are standing in the center of a bare hallway lit by glow panels. The wall to your left is made entirely of glass. Just out of reach above your head, a security camera relentlessly surveys the hallway and the areas visible through the glass wall. To the left, you can see the Refrigeration Unit. Across from it, to your right, is a plain door. The hallway continues both inward and outward. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >* OK so I guess the unit is dark? Come again? >inward Lab Hallway Inward This is the beginning of Research Lab A-U61's main hallway, lit by glow panels. It is bare and - thanks to your best efforts - mostly free of dust. To your left is a glass wall. Through it, you can see into Dev 1. The thin outline of a door is visible in the glass. Opposite the glass wall to your right is a battered door. The lobby door is inward, and the hallway stretches outward. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >left (first opening the glass door) The glass door swings shut behind you. Dev 1 A shallow depression in the center dominates this room. Above it, a crane protrudes from the ceiling. Hanging nearby from a thick wire that leads into the wall is a controller. On one wall hangs a whiteboard. Otherwise, this area is sparse. This place has a strange smell, and splotches of grime and corrosion can be seen on the walls and ceiling. Both are no doubt remnants of spectacularly promising experiments. A squat opening leads outward, and a doorway obscured by a thick, black curtain leads inward. The wall to the right is made entirely of glass, on the other side of which is the research lab's main hallway. It is accessible through an almost invisible door. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >outward Darkened Passage You find yourself in a small, uninteresting passage with no light source of its own. To your right is a door. You can also continue inward through a squat opening or outward through a narrow opening. >inward Dev 1 A shallow depression in the center dominates this room. Above it, a crane protrudes from the ceiling. Hanging nearby from a thick wire that leads into the wall is a controller. On one wall hangs a whiteboard. Otherwise, this area is sparse. This place has a strange smell, and splotches of grime and corrosion can be seen on the walls and ceiling. Both are no doubt remnants of spectacularly promising experiments. A squat opening leads outward, and a doorway obscured by a thick, black curtain leads inward. The wall to the right is made entirely of glass, on the other side of which is the research lab's main hallway. It is accessible through an almost invisible door. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >inward Depot This narrow, cramped space is where Research Lab A-U61 accepts and stores deliveries. It is sparsely lit by a single lightbulb dangling from the ceiling. A darkened service tunnel wide enough for a sizeable vehicle leads off into darkness. In the corner next to an obscured doorway in the outward wall is a stack of boxes. To the right through a wide opening, you can enter the lab's Lobby. You can see a forklift here. >r The Loyalty Stretch catches your attention on the tube. Yuri and Sally are briefly replaced by a public service announcement. A plain face appears on the screen: a woman drinking from a flimsy plastex cup. "Ah," she breathes with satisfaction and stands up. The camera pans out, revealing the pristine corner of a community dining hall. A recycling chute is embedded in the wall next to her. The woman casually tosses the used cup inside. "The success of the Bunker's economy depends upon an efficient recycling system," she tells the camera. "Most of the materials we use are reclaimed and recycled automatically." A montage of images briefly replaces her: chips of metal being raked off a factory floor; an autopod being disassembled by robotic arms; a smiling citizen exiting a cleaning station, wiping his hands. The plain face of the woman returns. "But we should not forget the many small and mundane items. Like that plastex cup." The camera zooms in again on her face, which smiles reassuringly. "The success of the Bunker's economy depends upon you, loyal citizens. Remember: after you're done with it, recycle it!" Lobby This is an ornate entrance hall. The walls are inlaid with the trappings of a respected research institution such as Research Lab A-U61: murals, awards, and the portraits of esteemed colleagues. The light comes from a battery of bright bulbs arranged in an X on the ceiling. An L-shaped receptionist's desk is tucked into one corner of the outward wall. The receptionist - a curt, expressionless man you've never had the displeasure of dealing with - is absent. In front of the receptionist's desk, a tube juts out from the wall. Underneath is a vending machine. Next to the vending machine and opposite the receptionist's desk is a sculpture, the Persevering Scientist. The remainder of the room is an open space. It is currently empty, save for a lone smart sign hanging on the wall. A large revolving door has been set in the inward wall. A turnstile has been placed directly in front of it. You can also go left through a wide opening. Another door next to the receptionist desk leads outward, deeper into the research lab. >r You can't go that way. >* OK I guess I need to go out into the plaza? Come again? >save Ok. >inward You pass through the turnstile and push through the revolving door. Plaza, by the Lab Ah, sweet relief! Not because you have somehow escaped the peril of your predicament, but rather you have entered one of the Bunker's only grand, open spaces accessible to a no-clearance peon such as yourself. The Bunker's plazas are proof of its technological prowess. Only humanity's greatest minds could have designed the large domes that cap them. Below the soaring ceiling, amid the delightful hum of the air recycling system, atop the shiny and slippery flooring, is a spacious theater of bustling activity. The corridors that thread this department inevitably lead here. Citizens come to relax with their mates, play with their children or meet with the members of their trade guild or social club. Others peruse the wares of the vendors that cater to every need. And there are some who come to enjoy the Bunker's many cultural wonders: museums, exhibits, concerts - and so much more! Around the perimeter are a number of buildings where important business is transacted. Much of the real estate is owned and operated by the Bunker's conglomerates, but some has been reserved for the private firms that contract with them. You are standing outside Research Lab A-U61. A decorative statuette protrudes from the wall, but otherwise the building and its purpose is unmarked. The normally bustling Tucker M. Carlson plaza is strangely subdued today. Inward, you see a mobile response unit set up by Homeland Security, which explains why. All the citizens in the area have been detained for questioning, and - for the moment at least - no one is allowed to leave. To the right is a row of vendors, and to the left a billboard hangs over a security camera. Beyond them, a caring demonstration is getting under way. Outward is a revolving door leading into the lab. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >l Plaza, by the Lab You are standing outside Research Lab A-U61. A decorative statuette protrudes from the wall, but otherwise the building and its purpose is unmarked. The normally bustling Tucker M. Carlson plaza is strangely subdued today. Inward, you see a mobile response unit set up by Homeland Security, which explains why. All the citizens in the area have been detained for questioning, and - for the moment at least - no one is allowed to leave. To the right is a row of vendors, and to the left a billboard hangs over a security camera. Beyond them, a caring demonstration is getting under way. Outward is a revolving door leading into the lab. >x statuette (the decorative statuette) A grotesque carving of a fantastic creature with wings. You have no idea what it is supposed to represent. It is, however, ugly, and like most people you prefer to ignore it. In the creature's chest you can see a female, V-shaped electronic interface. Its claws appear to be grasping something missing. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >x interface It is female. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >x claws A grotesque carving of a fantastic creature with wings. You have no idea what it is supposed to represent. It is, however, ugly, and like most people you prefer to ignore it. In the creature's chest you can see a female, V-shaped electronic interface. Its claws appear to be grasping something missing. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >i You're carrying (in plain sight): a zorgot a shiny black helmet Renardin's Card the lab office chip key Ati's Card your PA your Card the feather duster You're wearing: some rubber gloves your boots your jumpsuit bunny ears >put zorgot in claws It doesn't fit. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >put key in claws It doesn't fit. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >put card in claws (the Card in the decorative statuette) It doesn't fit. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >* OK well it needs something Come again? >l Plaza, by the Lab You are standing outside Research Lab A-U61. A decorative statuette protrudes from the wall, but otherwise the building and its purpose is unmarked. The normally bustling Tucker M. Carlson plaza is strangely subdued today. Inward, you see a mobile response unit set up by Homeland Security, which explains why. All the citizens in the area have been detained for questioning, and - for the moment at least - no one is allowed to leave. To the right is a row of vendors, and to the left a billboard hangs over a security camera. Beyond them, a caring demonstration is getting under way. Outward is a revolving door leading into the lab. >inward Plaza, Near the Museum You are standing halfway to the center of the plaza. A sense of travesty and loss envelops you here. Nearby, corpses have been piled into a sloppy stack, and a mobile response unit has been hastily set up next to it. A long queue of frightened, weeping citizens has formed there, waiting patiently to exonerate themselves. Outward is the Museum of Athletic Ability, occupying the very center of the plaza. There, a group of exercise enthusiasts has gathered for some intense stretching. Inward is the entrance to Research Lab A-U61. To the left and right are large, empty spaces, beyond which are corridors leading off to other parts of the department. You can see the agent from Homeland Security here. A flustered citizen approaches from the direction of the Museum of Athletic Ability and scampers past the mobile response unit, completely oblivious to what's going on. He heads straight for the row of vendors and disappears from view. Sure enough, after a short wait he comes trotting back, some small item he purchased clutched in one hand. As he's about to pass, the agent from Homeland Security pipes up. "Where do you think you're going?" The man, struggling to understand the gravity of the situation, blabbers on about the Museum of Athletic Ability. "I see. Well, you can tell me all about how you weren't present when the poison gas leaked into the plaza - when it's your turn! Now get to the back of the queue or I'll have you fitted with a restraint." Realizing he has no choice, the man reluctantly complies. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >undo Plaza, by the Lab [Previous turn undone.] >l Plaza, by the Lab You are standing outside Research Lab A-U61. A decorative statuette protrudes from the wall, but otherwise the building and its purpose is unmarked. The normally bustling Tucker M. Carlson plaza is strangely subdued today. Inward, you see a mobile response unit set up by Homeland Security, which explains why. All the citizens in the area have been detained for questioning, and - for the moment at least - no one is allowed to leave. To the right is a row of vendors, and to the left a billboard hangs over a security camera. Beyond them, a caring demonstration is getting under way. Outward is a revolving door leading into the lab. >x billboard (the billboard) The billboard features a standard-issue PA. However, this one has large, cartoonish eyes peering out from the touchscreen and two stunted stick-arms. It is smiling at you joyously. "OOGLE" is written in huge, block letters across the top. Under the ecstatic PA, it tells you, "You couldn't live without us." The billboard, which is slightly crooked, is suspended from two cables directly over a security camera. Unfortunately, you are too far away to inspect it more closely. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >x demonstration A large, unruly crowd of people in funny hats, singing discordantly and occasionally dancing. A few unfortunates cower among them, trying to fend off waves of brief but brutal assault. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >listen The muffled, erratic hum of the air recycling system and the delightful sounds of people casting aspersions at one another under their breath. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >l Plaza, by the Lab You are standing outside Research Lab A-U61. A decorative statuette protrudes from the wall, but otherwise the building and its purpose is unmarked. The normally bustling Tucker M. Carlson plaza is strangely subdued today. Inward, you see a mobile response unit set up by Homeland Security, which explains why. All the citizens in the area have been detained for questioning, and - for the moment at least - no one is allowed to leave. To the right is a row of vendors, and to the left a billboard hangs over a security camera. Beyond them, a caring demonstration is getting under way. Outward is a revolving door leading into the lab. >* I guess we need to break the billboard to disable the camera? Come again? >x vendors There aren't many right now. Tony Bleet is the closest, and he's selling general goods. The others do not interest you. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >right Plaza, Vendor Row In this corner of the Tucker M. Carlson plaza, tucked between the research lab and corridor ZU-8, is a row of vendors. A common sight in the Bunker's plazas, they are able to provide all those handy items a citizen requires on demand - for a stiff price, of course. At this time of your daystretch, most of the spots are empty. One vendor, however, stands ready to take your order. A frame of piping with a fabric roof has been placed exactly within the confines of the spot demarcated by slight markings on the floor. You can see over the shelving into the interior of the stall, where a man stares back at you expectantly. Behind him hangs a thick, splotched curtain with many folds. The vendor speaks to you. "Greetings, citizen. Tony Bleet's the name. Don't be shy! If you've got the credits, I've got what you need! All my gear comes with the famous Bleet guarantee, not that you'll need it." To the left is the entrance to the research lab. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >l Plaza, Vendor Row In this corner of the Tucker M. Carlson plaza, tucked between the research lab and corridor ZU-8, is a row of vendors. At this time of your daystretch, most of the spots are empty. One vendor, however, stands ready to take your order. A frame of piping with a fabric roof has been placed exactly within the confines of the spot demarcated by slight markings on the floor. You can see over the shelving into the interior of the stall, where a man stares back at you expectantly. Behind him hangs a thick, splotched curtain with many folds. "Don't be shy, friend," Tony says to you. "I've got whatever you need." To the left is the entrance to the research lab. >x vendor A youngish citizen, perhaps in his late twenties, Tony Bleet is wearing a regular jumpsuit with a gamboge handkerchief sticking out of one pocket. Like all successful salespeople, he is friendly and accommodating. Tony is a no-clearance citizen. Tony eyes you slyly. "Dust bunny, eh? Is that why you're wearing those ridiculous ears? Anyway, I saw you come out of the lab over there. I saw you come out of the lab AFTER all that gas did. Not that there's a connection. No, no, of course not. I used to work in that lab. A long time ago. Not as a dust bunny, of course. I was an assistant equipment runner!" You know exactly what he's talking about. You've seen them scurrying about behind the glass wall, loading up carts and pushing them around. Glorified caddies is what they are. Tony rubs his hands gleefully. "I've always enjoyed working with electronics. Know a lot about them. But the researchers didn't want to hear about my ideas. They told me to bolt down and only speak when spoken to." He shrugs. "So here I am." "But I'm still just as handy with electronics! Take a look at these over here. I put some of them together myself." You lose interest as he holds up equipment you'll never have need of and probably doesn't even function properly. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >x equipment Can't do it. >i You're carrying (in plain sight): a zorgot a shiny black helmet Renardin's Card the lab office chip key Ati's Card your PA your Card the feather duster You're wearing: some rubber gloves your boots your jumpsuit bunny ears >* OK there's no equipment Come again? >ask tony about himself (Tony Bleet about that) "Don't touch that!" Tony pretends he is uninterested but gestures nonetheless. "What's that you've got there? Something from the lab?" A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >ask tony about lab (Tony Bleet about that) "I used to work over at Research Lab A-U61. Those crackheads couldn't appreciate my brilliance, so Control reassigned me. And thank the dome! After I left, the lab director failed a mental fitness exam and got taken away. When the new director came on - his name is Ati - the lab went downhill. No successful inventions. Just leaks, accidents and deaths. "Anyway, I can still acquire the materials I need to invent my own gadgets. One daystretch, I'll use one to nab a traitor and snag a promotionl." He leans over and points to a slender bottle. "See that? Looks like glue. But it's not." Tony snickers and refuses to say more. Tony turns his attention to a sagging corner of his frame. You can see that he has mounted some kind of device - handcrafted by himself, naturally - on the roof nearby. It consists of a flimsy pole to which an array of cables is anchored. The cables fan out and are fastened at the other end to the sagging metal frame. Unfortunately, the cables don't provide enough support. Tony steps up on a ladder and fiddles with the device. Eventually, one of the cables snaps and the frame sags further. Throwing his hands up in the air, Tony climbs down and returns to his place, muttering to himself about tensile strength. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >* Yeah was going to show him the z-thingy Come again? >i You're carrying (in plain sight): a zorgot a shiny black helmet Renardin's Card the lab office chip key Ati's Card your PA your Card the feather duster You're wearing: some rubber gloves your boots your jumpsuit bunny ears >show zorgot to tony (Tony Bleet) Tony leans closer and pokes at the zorgot. "Oh," he finally tells you and rolls his eyes. "An electromagnet. Big deal." You aren't quite sure how to use it, so you flatter Tony until he explains. Someone approaches from the direction of the caring demonstration. It's a loyalty leader from the looks of it, holding a broken triangle. Tony leaps to his feet to attend to the unexpected customer. "You got any glue?" "Of course I do." He hands her a small tube. The loyalty leader peers at it suspiciously. "How long before it's dry?" "Oh, that's instaglue! Never heard of it? A new invention. Scientific progress never stops in the Bunker!" The loyalty leader glances dubiously at the tube but buys it anyway. You notice that Tony charges her double the regular price. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >* er, hopefully *I* know how to use an electromagnet You seem to want to talk to someone, but I can't see whom. >i You're carrying (in plain sight): an electromagnet a shiny black helmet Renardin's Card the lab office chip key Ati's Card your PA your Card the feather duster You're wearing: some rubber gloves your boots your jumpsuit bunny ears >x magnet This oblong device is an electromagnet. It can easily be switched on or off to generate an oscillating magnetic field. The magnetic field will pull magnetized objects, such as certain metals, to one end of the oblong device. To work properly, you must aim the electromagnet at its intended target. In addition, you can set the strength of the magnetic field from 1 to 3 using a dial. The dial is currently set at 1. The electromagnet is off. Tony pulls out his PA and stares at it intently. Then, he grabs a gadget off a shelf nearby - unfinished by the looks of it - and a pair of pliers. He glances once more at the PA, then into the innards of the gadget. Carefully, he lowers the pliers inside. His brow is creased with concentration. But sure enough, after a brief pause he yelps and jerks his hand back. The pliers drop loudly to the floor. He quickly recovers his composure and returns the gadget and the pliers to their respective places, pretending all the while that you don't exist. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >* OK great! Come again? >l Plaza, Vendor Row In this corner of the Tucker M. Carlson plaza, tucked between the research lab and corridor ZU-8, is a row of vendors. At this time of your daystretch, most of the spots are empty. One vendor, however, stands ready to take your order. A frame of piping with a fabric roof has been placed exactly within the confines of the spot demarcated by slight markings on the floor. You can see over the shelving into the interior of the stall, where a man stares back at you expectantly. Behind him hangs a thick, splotched curtain with many folds. "Don't be shy, friend," Tony says to you. "I've got whatever you need." To the left is the entrance to the research lab. >x curtain In the front you see a variety of products common in the Bunker. Showcased on shelves stretching towards the back are electronic devices. Some are recognizable. You can see a short-wave radio, for instance. Others, however, are not. In fact, now that you think about it, Tony has far more in electronics than any other vendor you've ever come across. In the back hangs a black curtain, in front of which stands Tony. In the stall are a short-wave radio, some glue, a butt plug and a razorblade. Tony's PA gives off a cheerful tone and lights up. "Yeah?" he grunts into it. After a brief pause he says, "Now's not a good time. Check back with me later." He cuts the line and glances darkly at you. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >x radio (the short-wave radio) A simple device that can be used to receive and transmit broadcasts over radio waves. A small dial sets the channel. The short-wave radio is switched off. The radio dial is set to 15. Tony's face suddenly brightens, and a finger leaps into the air. "Of course!" he exclaims. "Why didn't I think of that before?" He slips behind the curtain in the back of the stall and reappears almost immediately, a large wrench in hand. He brings it to a bench in the middle of the stall. On it is a neat, sleek unidentifiable cube - presumably a gadget of some kind. Tony slips the wrench around a bolt and gives it a tug. In response, the gadget rearranges itself. At least, that's what it looks like to you. The bolt retracts and reappears somewhere else, along with the cube's other features. Defeated, Tony tosses the wrench through the curtain where it clatters loudly to rest and returns to his place. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >x plug Standard issue. Previously owned, by the looks of it. Tony glances disapprovingly over at the mobile response unit. "I wish she'd hurry up over there. This investigation is killing my business!" A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >x glue You see nothing special about the glue. Tony glances disapprovingly over at the mobile response unit. "I wish she'd hurry up over there. This investigation is killing my business!" A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >* really? Come again? >x blade You see nothing special about the razorblade. Tony's PA gives off a cheerful tone and lights up. "Yeah?" he grunts into it. After a brief pause he says, "Now's not a good time. Check back with me later." He cuts the line and glances darkly at you. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >buy it (from Tony Bleet) Tony accepts your Card, swipes it and returns it to you along with the razorblade. "Congratulations!" he says, beaming blissfully. Someone approaches from the direction of the caring demonstration. It's a loyalty leader from the looks of it, holding a broken triangle. Tony leaps to his feet to attend to the unexpected customer. "You got any glue?" "Of course I do." He hands her a small tube. The loyalty leader peers at it suspiciously. "How long before it's dry?" "Oh, that's instaglue! Never heard of it? A new invention. Scientific progress never stops in the Bunker!" The loyalty leader glances dubiously at the tube but buys it anyway. You notice that Tony charges her double the regular price. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >buy plug (from Tony Bleet) "Sorry, that's already spoken for. Someone's supposed to pick it up shortly. Of course, if it's still here tomorrow, I'll be happy to sell it to you!" Tony pulls out his PA and stares at it intently. Then, he grabs a gadget off a shelf nearby - unfinished by the looks of it - and a pair of pliers. He glances once more at the PA, then into the innards of the gadget. Carefully, he lowers the pliers inside. His brow is creased with concentration. But sure enough, after a brief pause he yelps and jerks his hand back. The pliers drop loudly to the floor. He quickly recovers his composure and returns the gadget and the pliers to their respective places, pretending all the while that you don't exist. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >buy glue (from Tony Bleet) Tony accepts your Card, swipes it and returns it to you along with the glue. "Congratulations!" he says, beaming blissfully. Tony glances disapprovingly over at the mobile response unit. "I wish she'd hurry up over there. This investigation is killing my business!" A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >buy radio (the short-wave radio from Tony Bleet) "Sorry, that's already spoken for. Someone's supposed to pick it up shortly. Of course, if it's still here tomorrow, I'll be happy to sell it to you!" Someone approaches from the direction of the caring demonstration. It's a loyalty leader from the looks of it, holding a broken triangle. Tony leaps to his feet to attend to the unexpected customer. "You got any glue?" "Of course I do." He hands her a small tube. The loyalty leader peers at it suspiciously. "How long before it's dry?" "Oh, that's instaglue! Never heard of it? A new invention. Scientific progress never stops in the Bunker!" The loyalty leader glances dubiously at the tube but buys it anyway. You notice that Tony charges her double the regular price. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >* this event feels like it should only trigger once. Come again? >z Time passes. Tony pulls out his PA and stares at it intently. Then, he grabs a gadget off a shelf nearby - unfinished by the looks of it - and a pair of pliers. He glances once more at the PA, then into the innards of the gadget. Carefully, he lowers the pliers inside. His brow is creased with concentration. But sure enough, after a brief pause he yelps and jerks his hand back. The pliers drop loudly to the floor. He quickly recovers his composure and returns the gadget and the pliers to their respective places, pretending all the while that you don't exist. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >z Time passes. Tony glances disapprovingly over at the mobile response unit. "I wish she'd hurry up over there. This investigation is killing my business!" A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >z Time passes. Tony glances disapprovingly over at the mobile response unit. "I wish she'd hurry up over there. This investigation is killing my business!" A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >z Time passes. Tony turns his attention to a sagging corner of his frame. You can see that he has mounted some kind of device - handcrafted by himself, naturally - on the roof nearby. It consists of a flimsy pole to which an array of cables is anchored. The cables fan out and are fastened at the other end to the sagging metal frame. Unfortunately, the cables don't provide enough support. Tony steps up on a ladder and fiddles with the device. Eventually, one of the cables snaps and the frame sags further. Throwing his hands up in the air, Tony climbs down and returns to his place, muttering to himself about tensile strength. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >z Time passes. Tony glances disapprovingly over at the mobile response unit. "I wish she'd hurry up over there. This investigation is killing my business!" A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >z Time passes. Tony pulls out his PA and stares at it intently. Then, he grabs a gadget off a shelf nearby - unfinished by the looks of it - and a pair of pliers. He glances once more at the PA, then into the innards of the gadget. Carefully, he lowers the pliers inside. His brow is creased with concentration. But sure enough, after a brief pause he yelps and jerks his hand back. The pliers drop loudly to the floor. He quickly recovers his composure and returns the gadget and the pliers to their respective places, pretending all the while that you don't exist. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >z Time passes. Tony glances disapprovingly over at the mobile response unit. "I wish she'd hurry up over there. This investigation is killing my business!" A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >z Time passes. Tony turns his attention to a sagging corner of his frame. You can see that he has mounted some kind of device - handcrafted by himself, naturally - on the roof nearby. It consists of a flimsy pole to which an array of cables is anchored. The cables fan out and are fastened at the other end to the sagging metal frame. Unfortunately, the cables don't provide enough support. Tony steps up on a ladder and fiddles with the device. Eventually, one of the cables snaps and the frame sags further. Throwing his hands up in the air, Tony climbs down and returns to his place, muttering to himself about tensile strength. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >z Time passes. Tony's PA gives off a cheerful tone and lights up. "Yeah?" he grunts into it. After a brief pause he says, "Now's not a good time. Check back with me later." He cuts the line and glances darkly at you. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >z Time passes. Someone approaches from the direction of the caring demonstration. It's a loyalty leader from the looks of it, holding a broken triangle. Tony leaps to his feet to attend to the unexpected customer. "You got any glue?" "Of course I do." He hands her a small tube. The loyalty leader peers at it suspiciously. "How long before it's dry?" "Oh, that's instaglue! Never heard of it? A new invention. Scientific progress never stops in the Bunker!" The loyalty leader glances dubiously at the tube but buys it anyway. You notice that Tony charges her double the regular price. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >z Time passes. Tony glances disapprovingly over at the mobile response unit. "I wish she'd hurry up over there. This investigation is killing my business!" A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >e You can't go that way. Tony glances disapprovingly over at the mobile response unit. "I wish she'd hurry up over there. This investigation is killing my business!" A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >r You can't go that way. Tony glances disapprovingly over at the mobile response unit. "I wish she'd hurry up over there. This investigation is killing my business!" A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >l Plaza, Vendor Row In this corner of the Tucker M. Carlson plaza, tucked between the research lab and corridor ZU-8, is a row of vendors. At this time of your daystretch, most of the spots are empty. One vendor, however, stands ready to take your order. A frame of piping with a fabric roof has been placed exactly within the confines of the spot demarcated by slight markings on the floor. You can see over the shelving into the interior of the stall, where a man stares back at you expectantly. Behind him hangs a thick, splotched curtain with many folds. "Don't be shy, friend," Tony says to you. "I've got whatever you need." To the left is the entrance to the research lab. >l Plaza, Vendor Row In this corner of the Tucker M. Carlson plaza, tucked between the research lab and corridor ZU-8, is a row of vendors. At this time of your daystretch, most of the spots are empty. One vendor, however, stands ready to take your order. A frame of piping with a fabric roof has been placed exactly within the confines of the spot demarcated by slight markings on the floor. You can see over the shelving into the interior of the stall, where a man stares back at you expectantly. Behind him hangs a thick, splotched curtain with many folds. "Don't be shy, friend," Tony says to you. "I've got whatever you need." To the left is the entrance to the research lab. >left Plaza, by the Lab You are standing outside Research Lab A-U61. A decorative statuette protrudes from the wall, but otherwise the building and its purpose is unmarked. The normally bustling Tucker M. Carlson plaza is strangely subdued today. Inward, you see a mobile response unit set up by Homeland Security, which explains why. All the citizens in the area have been detained for questioning, and - for the moment at least - no one is allowed to leave. To the right is a row of vendors, and to the left a billboard hangs over a security camera. Beyond them, a caring demonstration is getting under way. Outward is a revolving door leading into the lab. Suddenly, a delivery man careens toward you from out of nowhere and bumps into you. On his jumpsuit you can see the logo of SCS - Speedy Courier Services, Ltd. - an outfit which you've never heard of but is in all likelihood a private firm associated with P&L. The delivery man is agitated. He is holding a square package in one hand and his PA in the other. He glances desperately from the PA to the package to you. "Nice ears. Seriously, I like how you express yourself. Anyway, do you know if there's a research lab around here?" He peers at the address on the package. "This is the Tucker M. Carlson plaza. Research Lab A-U61 should be around here somewhere. Can you point me in the right direction?" A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >point man left I only understood you as far as wanting to point the delivery man. >point left The delivery man frowns suspiciously but indeed starts out in that direction. But eventually he stops, takes his bearings and returns, shaking his head. "Are you sure? I've already looked over there." The delivery man recognizes an unhelpful citizen when he sees one. He sighs and glances around once more. "I'll see if anyone in here knows," he mumbles to himself and pushes through the revolving door. A few stretches later, there is a loud blast, and you are knocked off your feet. Smoke and debris pour through the revolving door, obscuring your view. Eventually, you sit up, coughing relentlessly. Standing over you, feet planted apart, you see the agent from Homeland Security. "You again," she sneers as she points the barrel of her laser gun at your chest. "This can't be a coincidence. It just can't." *** Let's skip the gory details of your interrogation, shall we? *** Would you like to RESTART, RESTORE a saved game, QUIT or UNDO the last command? > undo Plaza, by the Lab [Previous turn undone.] >* umm Come again? >x courier Can't do it. >l Plaza, by the Lab You are standing outside Research Lab A-U61. A decorative statuette protrudes from the wall, but otherwise the building and its purpose is unmarked. The normally bustling Tucker M. Carlson plaza is strangely subdued today. Inward, you see a mobile response unit set up by Homeland Security, which explains why. All the citizens in the area have been detained for questioning, and - for the moment at least - no one is allowed to leave. To the right is a row of vendors, and to the left a billboard hangs over a security camera. Beyond them, a caring demonstration is getting under way. Outward is a revolving door leading into the lab. You can see the delivery man here. >x man The delivery man keeps glancing at his PA and looking around in bewilderment. He is carrying a square package. The delivery man glances at you for help. "Look, I've got a wheelbarrow full of packages that have to be delivered by the end of my shift. Can you tell me where the research lab is? Please?" A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >x paclages Can't do it. >x packages Can't do it. >x package You hear ticking coming from the package held by the delivery man. The delivery man glances at you for help. "Look, I've got a wheelbarrow full of packages that have to be delivered by the end of my shift. Can you tell me where the research lab is? Please?" A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >take package The delivery man pushes you away. "I'll deliver it myself, thank you very much. It's my job!" The delivery man glances at you for help. "Look, I've got a wheelbarrow full of packages that have to be delivered by the end of my shift. Can you tell me where the research lab is? Please?" A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >tell man about package The delivery man looks at the package, perplexed, then holds it up to his ear. "Yeah you're right!" Then he shrugs. "Could be anything: a clock, a toy, a vibrator, whatever. Not my business!" The delivery man glances at you for help. "Look, I've got a wheelbarrow full of packages that have to be delivered by the end of my shift. Can you tell me where the research lab is? Please?" A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >listen to package You hear ticking coming from the package held by the delivery man. The delivery man recognizes an unhelpful citizen when he sees one. He sighs and glances around once more. "I'll see if anyone in here knows," he mumbles to himself and pushes through the revolving door. A few stretches later, there is a loud blast, and you are knocked off your feet. Smoke and debris pour through the revolving door, obscuring your view. Eventually, you sit up, coughing relentlessly. Standing over you, feet planted apart, you see the agent from Homeland Security. "You again," she sneers as she points the barrel of her laser gun at your chest. "This can't be a coincidence. It just can't." *** Let's skip the gory details of your interrogation, shall we? *** Would you like to RESTART, RESTORE a saved game, QUIT or UNDO the last command? > undo Plaza, by the Lab [Previous turn undone.] >point right You've had one hell of a daystretch so far. Call it callous behaviour, but you've decided this unfortunate sap will, too. The delivery man frowns suspiciously but indeed starts out in that direction. But after a few steps he shakes his head and returns. The delivery man recognizes an unhelpful citizen when he sees one. He sighs and glances around once more. "I'll see if anyone in here knows," he mumbles to himself and pushes through the revolving door. A few stretches later, there is a loud blast, and you are knocked off your feet. Smoke and debris pour through the revolving door, obscuring your view. Eventually, you sit up, coughing relentlessly. Standing over you, feet planted apart, you see the agent from Homeland Security. "You again," she sneers as she points the barrel of her laser gun at your chest. "This can't be a coincidence. It just can't." *** Let's skip the gory details of your interrogation, shall we? *** Would you like to RESTART, RESTORE a saved game, QUIT or UNDO the last command? > undo Plaza, by the Lab [Previous turn undone.] >point inward The delivery man frowns suspiciously but indeed starts out in that direction. The agent from Homeland Security looks up from her current interviewee and spots him. "Hey, you!" she shouts. "Where do you think you're going? Back of the queue! I have to file a report on everyone in the area. No exceptions!" The delivery man begins to protest, but the agent from Homeland Security is having none of it. She stands up and places her hand on her laser pistol. "There's only one reason I can think of you wouldn't want to answer a few helpful questions." Head hung low, the delivery man resigns himself to his fate and takes his place at the end of the queue, trapped like everyone else. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >* umm OK so there's a ticking bomb now -- at least I'm not immediately stuffed though Come again? >l Plaza, by the Lab You are standing outside Research Lab A-U61. A decorative statuette protrudes from the wall, but otherwise the building and its purpose is unmarked. The normally bustling Tucker M. Carlson plaza is strangely subdued today. Inward, you see a mobile response unit set up by Homeland Security, which explains why. All the citizens in the area have been detained for questioning, and - for the moment at least - no one is allowed to leave. To the right is a row of vendors, and to the left a billboard hangs over a security camera. Beyond them, a caring demonstration is getting under way. Outward is a revolving door leading into the lab. >left Plaza, under the Billboard You are standing near the entrance to the Clement Vallandigham complex. A sign on the wall indicates it is mostly occupied by the Internal Operations division of the Procurement conglomerate, including portions of its sprawling Department of Administration. Internal Operations is responsible for mining out on the surface, sorting and refining ores, distribution of raw materials and the like. Normally a bustling corner of the plaza, today is it deserted. And you know exactly why. Citizens have gathered just to the left of this location. But this is no ordinary meeting; this is a caring demonstration. And like all caring demonstrations, it is sorely in need of volunteers. Loyalty leaders stationed around the perimeter are handing out funny, yellow hats; red, rectangular cards; and musical triangles to any who venture too close. The happy citizens who have been ensnared clutch their red cards and - those who have them - strike wildly at their musical triangles. Others are stomping their feet and singing. No one is coodinating the song, however. The result is a terrible cacophony. Peppered among them are a few glum citizens with green cards. These are the unfortunate people being cared for. These wayward citizens - not quite traitors, guilty of some minor infraction of the guidelines - have been thrown amongst their peers, unsupervised and unprotected. In the Bunker, this is a combustible combination. As you look on, two holders of the red cards descend upon a cowering man with a green card. There are some stern words followed by a few quick punches. The man with the green card falls to his knees, clutching his stomach. Lucky bastard, you think to yourself. He didn't lose any teeth. A billboard - slightly crooked - hangs above a security camera mounted overhead. Beneath them both, playing with a flat, rectangular piece of transparent plastex, is a Ward of the State. A grate set in the floor, about a meter wide, separates you. Fortunately, the Ward of the State has her back to you. To the right is the entrance to Research Lab A-U61. The Ward of the State perks up at your approach and turns to get a look at you. She climbs to her feet, gripping the rectangular piece of transparent plastex in one hand. Her eyes quickly settle on your bunny ears, and a curious mix of joy and mischief seizes her face. She bounds carelessly over the grate - it clangs loudly as she passes over it - and lunges to snatch them from your head. Anticipating the attack, you dodge her flabby fingers. Fortunately, you are much taller, but the girl jumps a few more times before finally giving up. "Get dysentery," she spits, eyes narrowing petulantly. "You can't see out the back of your head, poopy-face. I'll get them. Then I'll throw them down the drainage pipe!" She points at the grate. You notice that the bunny ears would easily slip through the metal bars. The Ward of the State retreats across the grate - again, it clangs loudly - and plops down on the other side, back to you. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >* OK this is a lot Come again? >l Plaza, under the Billboard You are standing near the entrance to the Clement Vallandigham complex. A sign on the wall indicates it is mostly occupied by the Internal Operations division of the Procurement conglomerate, including portions of its sprawling Department of Administration. Internal Operations is responsible for mining out on the surface, sorting and refining ores, distribution of raw materials and the like. Normally a bustling corner of the plaza, today is it deserted. And you know exactly why. Citizens have gathered just to the left of this location. But this is no ordinary meeting; this is a caring demonstration. And like all caring demonstrations, it is sorely in need of volunteers. A billboard - slightly crooked - hangs above a security camera mounted overhead. Beneath them both, playing with a flat, rectangular piece of transparent plastex, is a Ward of the State. A grate set in the floor, about a meter wide, separates you. Fortunately, the Ward of the State has her back to you. To the right is the entrance to Research Lab A-U61. >volunteer Full of pride and loyalty to the Bunker, you saunter over to the caring demonstration and tap a loyalty leader on the shoulder. A stunned face stares back at you as you inform him that you wish to join up. When you finish, the amazement morphs into hostility. "You trying to set me up for some treason YOU pulled?" he grates. "Well, I'm not having it! Now get out of here before I report you to Homeland Security!" The pride drains away, and you retreat back to where you were, wondering what you could possibly have done wrong. A few onlookers stare in disbelief. No one has ever seen anyone leave a caring demonstration before it's wrapped up. You are truly something special, Oliva Mirram. The Ward of the State informs you with all the confidence of a teamster that she's prettier than you are. "And smarter," she adds with a glance at the bunny ears. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >x ward (the Ward of the State) A girl, perhaps nine yearstretches of age. She is clutching a flat piece of transparent plastex, which she carries close to her chest like a treasured toy. At the moment, she is playing contentedly under the billboard. The Ward of the State catches you staring at her and sticks her tongue out at you. The Ward of the State informs you with all the confidence of a teamster that she's prettier than you are. "And smarter," she adds with a glance at the bunny ears. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >x plastex It looks just like the protective cover that fits over the dispensing slot of a certain vending machine. The Ward of the State leisurely crosses the grate, taking no notice of you. As soon as she gets within reach, however, she takes a swing at you with the rectangular piece of plastex. It strikes you in the thigh with a loud THWACK! A few of the closest citizens in the caring demonstration snicker as you grin and hold your tongue, enveloped in a potent combination of resentment and shame. The Ward of the State seeks to take advantage of your momentary distraction by making another attempt for your bunny ears. Luckily, you evade her. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >* aha! Come again? >put ears in grate And please the Ward of the State? I think not. The Ward of the State begins playing a little game. She hops about, singing a song, and every once in a while swings her arms about in a swift, circular motion. Before you know it, she passes directly in front of you, squashing your toes and punching you solidly in the throat. Stopping short, she fixes you with an angry glare. "Your face hit my hand!" she shrieks and pretends to cry. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >give ears to ward (the Ward of the State) The very specific threats of your supervisor, Nur Dular, about what would happen if you should somehow lose the bunny ears echo in your mind. Besides, why go out of your way to please the little brat, even if only for a secondstretch? No one has ever gone out of their way to make you happy. Just the opposite, in fact. The Ward of the State farts loudly and blames it on you. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >take plastex The Ward of the State quickly snatches it from your grasp. "Get your own, you goddamn typhoid." The Ward of the State leisurely crosses the grate, taking no notice of you. As soon as she gets within reach, however, she takes a swing at you with the rectangular piece of plastex. It strikes you in the thigh with a loud THWACK! A few of the closest citizens in the caring demonstration snicker as you grin and hold your tongue, enveloped in a potent combination of resentment and shame. The Ward of the State seeks to take advantage of your momentary distraction by making another attempt for your bunny ears. Luckily, you evade her. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >x grate Rusty, with thick, metal bars that crisscross at right angles. It is about one meter wide. You peer down through the bars and see only blackness. The grate is wobbly. A closer look reveals a flat panel where the grate is secured to the floor. The hinge on the opposite end opens downward. The Ward of the State farts loudly and blames it on you. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >x panel A flat panel in the grate is secured to a small extension in the plaza floor via bolts. Two of the bolts are missing. The remaining bolt has been inserted from underneath. Facing you is the bottom of the stem, secured by a nut. The nut is tightly wound up against the panel. The Ward of the State begins playing a little game. She hops about, singing a song, and every once in a while swings her arms about in a swift, circular motion. Before you know it, she passes directly in front of you, squashing your toes and punching you solidly in the throat. Stopping short, she fixes you with an angry glare. "Your face hit my hand!" she shrieks and pretends to cry. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >turn nut You must specify an appropriate instrument. The Ward of the State informs you with all the confidence of a teamster that she's prettier than you are. "And smarter," she adds with a glance at the bunny ears. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >i You're carrying (in plain sight): some glue a razorblade an electromagnet a shiny black helmet Renardin's Card the lab office chip key Ati's Card your PA your Card the feather duster You're wearing: some rubber gloves your boots your jumpsuit bunny ears >turn nut with magnet Can't do it. >turn nut with electromagnet Can't do it. >* is there a wrench somewhere? Come again? >* Tony had one Come again? >right Plaza, by the Lab You are standing outside Research Lab A-U61. A decorative statuette protrudes from the wall, but otherwise the building and its purpose is unmarked. The normally bustling Tucker M. Carlson plaza is strangely subdued today. Inward, you see a mobile response unit set up by Homeland Security, which explains why. All the citizens in the area have been detained for questioning, and - for the moment at least - no one is allowed to leave. To the right is a row of vendors, and to the left a billboard hangs over a security camera. Beyond them, a caring demonstration is getting under way. Outward is a revolving door leading into the lab. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >right Plaza, Vendor Row In this corner of the Tucker M. Carlson plaza, tucked between the research lab and corridor ZU-8, is a row of vendors. At this time of your daystretch, most of the spots are empty. One vendor, however, stands ready to take your order. A frame of piping with a fabric roof has been placed exactly within the confines of the spot demarcated by slight markings on the floor. You can see over the shelving into the interior of the stall, where a man stares back at you expectantly. Behind him hangs a thick, splotched curtain with many folds. "Don't be shy, friend," Tony says to you. "I've got whatever you need." To the left is the entrance to the research lab. Tony glances disapprovingly over at the mobile response unit. "I wish she'd hurry up over there. This investigation is killing my business!" A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >x wrench Can't do it. >ask tony for wrench Can't do it. >ask tony about wrench (Tony Bleet about that) "What that does?" Tony hesitates. "Why bother to explain? You wouldn't understand." Tony's face suddenly brightens, and a finger leaps into the air. "Of course!" he exclaims. "Why didn't I think of that before?" He slips behind the curtain in the back of the stall and reappears almost immediately, a large wrench in hand. He brings it to a bench in the middle of the stall. On it is a neat, sleek unidentifiable cube - presumably a gadget of some kind. Tony slips the wrench around a bolt and gives it a tug. In response, the gadget rearranges itself. At least, that's what it looks like to you. The bolt retracts and reappears somewhere else, along with the cube's other features. Defeated, Tony tosses the wrench through the curtain where it clatters loudly to rest and returns to his place. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >* weird Come again? >left Plaza, by the Lab You are standing outside Research Lab A-U61. A decorative statuette protrudes from the wall, but otherwise the building and its purpose is unmarked. The normally bustling Tucker M. Carlson plaza is strangely subdued today. Inward, you see a mobile response unit set up by Homeland Security, which explains why. All the citizens in the area have been detained for questioning, and - for the moment at least - no one is allowed to leave. To the right is a row of vendors, and to the left a billboard hangs over a security camera. Beyond them, a caring demonstration is getting under way. Outward is a revolving door leading into the lab. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >left Plaza, under the Billboard You are standing near the entrance to the Clement Vallandigham complex. A sign on the wall indicates it is mostly occupied by the Internal Operations division of the Procurement conglomerate, including portions of its sprawling Department of Administration. Internal Operations is responsible for mining out on the surface, sorting and refining ores, distribution of raw materials and the like. Normally a bustling corner of the plaza, today is it deserted. And you know exactly why. Citizens have gathered just to the left of this location. But this is no ordinary meeting; this is a caring demonstration. And like all caring demonstrations, it is sorely in need of volunteers. A billboard - slightly crooked - hangs above a security camera mounted overhead. Beneath them both, playing with a flat, rectangular piece of transparent plastex, is a Ward of the State. A grate set in the floor, about a meter wide, separates you. Fortunately, the Ward of the State has her back to you. To the right is the entrance to Research Lab A-U61. The Ward of the State leisurely crosses the grate, taking no notice of you. As soon as she gets within reach, however, she takes a swing at you with the rectangular piece of plastex. It strikes you in the thigh with a loud THWACK! A few of the closest citizens in the caring demonstration snicker as you grin and hold your tongue, enveloped in a potent combination of resentment and shame. The Ward of the State seeks to take advantage of your momentary distraction by making another attempt for your bunny ears. Luckily, you evade her. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >l Plaza, under the Billboard You are standing near the entrance to the Clement Vallandigham complex. A sign on the wall indicates it is mostly occupied by the Internal Operations division of the Procurement conglomerate, including portions of its sprawling Department of Administration. Internal Operations is responsible for mining out on the surface, sorting and refining ores, distribution of raw materials and the like. Normally a bustling corner of the plaza, today is it deserted. And you know exactly why. Citizens have gathered just to the left of this location. But this is no ordinary meeting; this is a caring demonstration. And like all caring demonstrations, it is sorely in need of volunteers. A billboard - slightly crooked - hangs above a security camera mounted overhead. Beneath them both, playing with a flat, rectangular piece of transparent plastex, is a Ward of the State. A grate set in the floor, about a meter wide, separates you. Fortunately, the Ward of the State has her back to you. To the right is the entrance to Research Lab A-U61. >x billboard The billboard features a standard-issue PA. However, this one has large, cartoonish eyes peering out from the touchscreen and two stunted stick-arms. It is smiling at you joyously. "OOGLE" is written in huge, block letters across the top. Under the ecstatic PA, it tells you, "You couldn't live without us." The billboard, which is slightly crooked, is suspended from two cables directly over a security camera. You notice that a thick screw joining one of the cables to the billboard is loose. If removed, the whole thing might come crashing down. The Ward of the State begins playing a little game. She hops about, singing a song, and every once in a while swings her arms about in a swift, circular motion. Before you know it, she passes directly in front of you, squashing your toes and punching you solidly in the throat. Stopping short, she fixes you with an angry glare. "Your face hit my hand!" she shrieks and pretends to cry. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >x screw It is loose. Removing it might cause the entire billboard to come crashing down. The Ward of the State informs you with all the confidence of a teamster that she's prettier than you are. "And smarter," she adds with a glance at the bunny ears. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >remove screw The screw is too high up for you to reach. The Ward of the State informs you with all the confidence of a teamster that she's prettier than you are. "And smarter," she adds with a glance at the bunny ears. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >turn on magnet The electromagnet produces a pleasant humming. The Ward of the State farts loudly and blames it on you. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >turn dial to 3 Done. The electromagnet produces a loud racket and vibrates violently in your hand. The Ward of the State begins playing a little game. She hops about, singing a song, and every once in a while swings her arms about in a swift, circular motion. Before you know it, she passes directly in front of you, squashing your toes and punching you solidly in the throat. Stopping short, she fixes you with an angry glare. "Your face hit my hand!" she shrieks and pretends to cry. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >point magnet at screw Nothing happens. The Ward of the State pretends she doesn't see you, expecting you to move on. When you do not, she grows visibly incensed. "Those things on your head make you look stupid! I guess that's because you are stupid! You're a stupid dumb-dumb stupidy idiot-face!" The electromagnet continues to quiver and squeal. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >x magnet This oblong device is an electromagnet. It can easily be switched on or off to generate an oscillating magnetic field. The magnetic field will pull magnetized objects, such as certain metals, to one end of the oblong device. To work properly, you must aim the electromagnet at its intended target. In addition, you can set the strength of the magnetic field from 1 to 3 using a dial. The dial is currently set at 3. The electromagnet is on. The Ward of the State pretends she doesn't see you, expecting you to move on. When you do not, she grows visibly incensed. "Those things on your head make you look stupid! I guess that's because you are stupid! You're a stupid dumb-dumb stupidy idiot-face!" The electromagnet gives up under the strain, and some kind of release mechanism is activated. The dial turns, and the device switches off. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >aim magnet at screw Nothing happens. The Ward of the State runs over to the caring demonstration, grabs someone's triangle, and returns with it to her spot under the billboard. There, she casually drops it through the grate. Gleefully, she looks on as a loyalty leader reprimands its former owner. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >turn on magnet The electromagnet produces a pleasant humming. The Ward of the State begins playing a little game. She hops about, singing a song, and every once in a while swings her arms about in a swift, circular motion. Before you know it, she passes directly in front of you, squashing your toes and punching you solidly in the throat. Stopping short, she fixes you with an angry glare. "Your face hit my hand!" she shrieks and pretends to cry. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >aim magnet at screw You see the loose screw jiggle, but it remains stubbornly in place. The Ward of the State leisurely crosses the grate, taking no notice of you. As soon as she gets within reach, however, she takes a swing at you with the rectangular piece of plastex. It strikes you in the thigh with a loud THWACK! A few of the closest citizens in the caring demonstration snicker as you grin and hold your tongue, enveloped in a potent combination of resentment and shame. The Ward of the State seeks to take advantage of your momentary distraction by making another attempt for your bunny ears. Luckily, you evade her. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >turn dial to 3 Done. The electromagnet produces a loud racket and vibrates violently in your hand. The Ward of the State farts loudly and blames it on you. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >aim magnet at screw Nothing happens. The Ward of the State farts loudly and blames it on you. The electromagnet continues to quiver and squeal. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >turn dial to 1 Done. The electromagnet produces a pleasant humming. The Ward of the State runs over to the caring demonstration, grabs someone's triangle, and returns with it to her spot under the billboard. There, she casually drops it through the grate. Gleefully, she looks on as a loyalty leader reprimands its former owner. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >aim magnet at screw You see the loose screw jiggle, but it remains stubbornly in place. The Ward of the State runs over to the caring demonstration, grabs someone's triangle, and returns with it to her spot under the billboard. There, she casually drops it through the grate. Gleefully, she looks on as a loyalty leader reprimands its former owner. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >* huh, am I on the right track? Seems like this is the intended solution You seem to want to talk to someone, but I can't see whom. >set dial to 2 Done. The electromagnet produces a sharp buzzing. The Ward of the State runs over to the caring demonstration, grabs someone's triangle, and returns with it to her spot under the billboard. There, she casually drops it through the grate. Gleefully, she looks on as a loyalty leader reprimands its former owner. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >aim magnet at screw You see the loose screw jiggle, then wobble, then break free. It strikes the electromagnet with a loud TING! The Ward of the State starts, then looks at you and sneers. "Can't you be annoying somewhere else?" Her attention fixed on you, she fails to notice the billboard swaying uncertainly above. There is a sudden crack, and the billboard drops half a meter. The activity in the plaza ceases as everyone turns to look - the caring demonstration, the queue of citizens, even the exercise enthusiasts. The last one to look up at the billboard is the unfortunate Ward of the State herself, just as it comes crashing down and squashes her. What follows is a heavenly silence. Rarely in the Bunker do its citizens share in a collective emotion, unless it is frustration or contempt. But here and now - for an instant - you are all joyous, and you are all joyous together. No one can express their feelings, of course. Wards of the State are untouchable; anyone who harms them faces immediate termination. That person, of course, is you. When everyone returns to their senses, they also recover their ability - honed over a lifetime - of deflecting blame. You are the one closest to the scene of the crime, so you are the natural scapegoat. You never see where the laser bolts come from, but you die knowing surely it is from a newly minted Delta clearance citizen. *** Bravo! You died... but still, bravo! *** Would you like to RESTART, RESTORE a saved game, QUIT or UNDO the last command? > undo Plaza, under the Billboard [Previous turn undone.] >* well so much for that -- maybe I need to get rid of the ward first? Come again? >* I'll take a hint Come again? >hint (If you're using a screen reader, press S to turn on Screen Reader mode. This message only appears on the front page of the menu system.) 1. New to Interactive Fiction 2. New to Nothing Could Be Further From the Truth 3. New to the Bunker 4. Credits 5. Hints (Hints) 1. What's going on? 2. I am in Lab Hallway Inward. How do I escape? 3. Can I get an Epsilon security clearance in this game? 4. Can I get a Delta security clearance in this game? 5. Every time I smell, I sneeze. 6. What is the zorgot? 7. The security camera keeps blasting me for no reason. 8. A search and extraction team or two thugs or a tall, gangly man show up and end the game. 9. Lobby 0. Elsewhere in the Research Lab A. Restricted Research Lab B. Plaza C. Control D. The underground E. Waste of space F. Accusing someone (Hints - Plaza) 1. The research lab keeps blowing up. 2. How do I get the plastex from the Ward of the State? 3. Can Tony Bleet help me? 4. Can the agent from Homeland Security help me? 5. I am being accosted by first responders from Defense. (Hints - Plaza - The research lab keeps blowing up.) Press H to reveal the first hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Plaza - The research lab keeps blowing up.) 1/8: This happens when the delivery man enters the lab to delivery his package. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Plaza - The research lab keeps blowing up.) 1/8: This happens when the delivery man enters the lab to delivery his package. 2/8: Looks like you don't want the delivery man to deliver his package. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Plaza - The research lab keeps blowing up.) 1/8: This happens when the delivery man enters the lab to delivery his package. 2/8: Looks like you don't want the delivery man to deliver his package. 3/8: He doesn't know where the lab is. He's asking you to point him in the right direction. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Plaza - The research lab keeps blowing up.) 1/8: This happens when the delivery man enters the lab to delivery his package. 2/8: Looks like you don't want the delivery man to deliver his package. 3/8: He doesn't know where the lab is. He's asking you to point him in the right direction. 4/8: Is there some place where he might get caught up in whatever's going on there? Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Plaza - The research lab keeps blowing up.) 1/8: This happens when the delivery man enters the lab to delivery his package. 2/8: Looks like you don't want the delivery man to deliver his package. 3/8: He doesn't know where the lab is. He's asking you to point him in the right direction. 4/8: Is there some place where he might get caught up in whatever's going on there? 5/8: The caring demonstration is a good idea. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Plaza - The research lab keeps blowing up.) 1/8: This happens when the delivery man enters the lab to delivery his package. 2/8: Looks like you don't want the delivery man to deliver his package. 3/8: He doesn't know where the lab is. He's asking you to point him in the right direction. 4/8: Is there some place where he might get caught up in whatever's going on there? 5/8: The caring demonstration is a good idea. 6/8: Unfortunately, it's too far away. He'll turn back before he gets there. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Plaza - The research lab keeps blowing up.) 1/8: This happens when the delivery man enters the lab to delivery his package. 2/8: Looks like you don't want the delivery man to deliver his package. 3/8: He doesn't know where the lab is. He's asking you to point him in the right direction. 4/8: Is there some place where he might get caught up in whatever's going on there? 5/8: The caring demonstration is a good idea. 6/8: Unfortunately, it's too far away. He'll turn back before he gets there. 7/8: What about the mobile response unit? The agent is questioning everyone in the area, and no one is exempt. Not even delivery people. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Plaza - The research lab keeps blowing up.) 1/8: This happens when the delivery man enters the lab to delivery his package. 2/8: Looks like you don't want the delivery man to deliver his package. 3/8: He doesn't know where the lab is. He's asking you to point him in the right direction. 4/8: Is there some place where he might get caught up in whatever's going on there? 5/8: The caring demonstration is a good idea. 6/8: Unfortunately, it's too far away. He'll turn back before he gets there. 7/8: What about the mobile response unit? The agent is questioning everyone in the area, and no one is exempt. Not even delivery people. 8/8: Say inward. (You have revealed all the hints on this page.) ------------------------ (Hints - Plaza) 1. The research lab keeps blowing up. 2. How do I get the plastex from the Ward of the State? 3. Can Tony Bleet help me? 4. Can the agent from Homeland Security help me? 5. I am being accosted by first responders from Defense. (Hints - Plaza - How do I get the plastex from the Ward of the State?) Press H to reveal the first hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Plaza - How do I get the plastex from the Ward of the State?) 1/9: Have you tried distracting her? Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Plaza - How do I get the plastex from the Ward of the State?) 1/9: Have you tried distracting her? 2/9: Have you tried stealing it? Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Plaza - How do I get the plastex from the Ward of the State?) 1/9: Have you tried distracting her? 2/9: Have you tried stealing it? 3/9: Have you tried killing her? Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Plaza - How do I get the plastex from the Ward of the State?) 1/9: Have you tried distracting her? 2/9: Have you tried stealing it? 3/9: Have you tried killing her? 4/9: Looks like you can't right now. Just be patient. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Plaza - How do I get the plastex from the Ward of the State?) 1/9: Have you tried distracting her? 2/9: Have you tried stealing it? 3/9: Have you tried killing her? 4/9: Looks like you can't right now. Just be patient. 5/9: In the course of the game the protective cover might become available to you some other way. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Plaza - How do I get the plastex from the Ward of the State?) 1/9: Have you tried distracting her? 2/9: Have you tried stealing it? 3/9: Have you tried killing her? 4/9: Looks like you can't right now. Just be patient. 5/9: In the course of the game the protective cover might become available to you some other way. 6/9: If you are not permitted in the restricted part of the lab, do not continue. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Plaza - How do I get the plastex from the Ward of the State?) 1/9: Have you tried distracting her? 2/9: Have you tried stealing it? 3/9: Have you tried killing her? 4/9: Looks like you can't right now. Just be patient. 5/9: In the course of the game the protective cover might become available to you some other way. 6/9: If you are not permitted in the restricted part of the lab, do not continue. 7/9: You will not be able to retrieve the protective cover until after you have conducted a controlled discharge of the malfunctioning EF harvester. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Plaza) 1. The research lab keeps blowing up. 2. How do I get the plastex from the Ward of the State? 3. Can Tony Bleet help me? 4. Can the agent from Homeland Security help me? 5. I am being accosted by first responders from Defense. (Hints - Plaza - Can Tony Bleet help me?) Press H to reveal the first hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Plaza - Can Tony Bleet help me?) 1/5: He can sell you things. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Plaza - Can Tony Bleet help me?) 1/5: He can sell you things. 2/5: Have you talked to him much? Asked him about the lab maybe? Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Plaza - Can Tony Bleet help me?) 1/5: He can sell you things. 2/5: Have you talked to him much? Asked him about the lab maybe? 3/5: Tony used to work in the lab and is interested in electonics. He might be able to give you information if you ask him about specific things in the lab, or show them to him. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Plaza - Can Tony Bleet help me?) 1/5: He can sell you things. 2/5: Have you talked to him much? Asked him about the lab maybe? 3/5: Tony used to work in the lab and is interested in electonics. He might be able to give you information if you ask him about specific things in the lab, or show them to him. 4/5: If he has offered his help to you concerning a certain matter, he can help you with that, too. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Plaza - Can Tony Bleet help me?) 1/5: He can sell you things. 2/5: Have you talked to him much? Asked him about the lab maybe? 3/5: Tony used to work in the lab and is interested in electonics. He might be able to give you information if you ask him about specific things in the lab, or show them to him. 4/5: If he has offered his help to you concerning a certain matter, he can help you with that, too. 5/5: For information on this topic, look under "The Underground->The menacing crowd". (You have revealed all the hints on this page.) ------------------------ (Hints - Plaza) 1. The research lab keeps blowing up. 2. How do I get the plastex from the Ward of the State? 3. Can Tony Bleet help me? 4. Can the agent from Homeland Security help me? 5. I am being accosted by first responders from Defense. (Hints) 1. What's going on? 2. I am in Lab Hallway Inward. How do I escape? 3. Can I get an Epsilon security clearance in this game? 4. Can I get a Delta security clearance in this game? 5. Every time I smell, I sneeze. 6. What is the zorgot? 7. The security camera keeps blasting me for no reason. 8. A search and extraction team or two thugs or a tall, gangly man show up and end the game. 9. Lobby 0. Elsewhere in the Research Lab A. Restricted Research Lab B. Plaza C. Control D. The underground E. Waste of space F. Accusing someone (Hints - Lobby) 1. The invisibility cloak 2. There's something I need to get rid of. (Hints) 1. What's going on? 2. I am in Lab Hallway Inward. How do I escape? 3. Can I get an Epsilon security clearance in this game? 4. Can I get a Delta security clearance in this game? 5. Every time I smell, I sneeze. 6. What is the zorgot? 7. The security camera keeps blasting me for no reason. 8. A search and extraction team or two thugs or a tall, gangly man show up and end the game. 9. Lobby 0. Elsewhere in the Research Lab A. Restricted Research Lab B. Plaza C. Control D. The underground E. Waste of space F. Accusing someone (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab) 1. How do I get past the metal door in Lab Hallway Outward? 2. How do I get into the Lab Director's Office? 3. I can't get through the revolving door in the Lobby. 4. Depot 5. Dev 1 6. Dev 3 7. Dressing room 8. Storage Room 9. Refrigeration unit 0. Lab director's office A. Vending machine (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - How do I get past the metal door in Lab Hallway Outward?) 1/2: Turn the wheel. 2/2: The parts of the research lab on the other side of the metal door are restricted to those with an Epsilon security clearance or higher. (You have revealed all the hints on this page.) ------------------------ (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab) 1. How do I get past the metal door in Lab Hallway Outward? 2. How do I get into the Lab Director's Office? 3. I can't get through the revolving door in the Lobby. 4. Depot 5. Dev 1 6. Dev 3 7. Dressing room 8. Storage Room 9. Refrigeration unit 0. Lab director's office A. Vending machine (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - How do I get into the Lab Director's Office?) 1/8: If you are still being directed to exit the lab, you will not be able to enter the lab director's office. 2/8: The former lab director, Atikurrahman Vosh, probably held the key. 3/8: If you didn't search the scientists' bodies before stashing them away, all is not lost. You will encounter their possessions yet again. 4/8: The bodies disappeared from the hole. If you have no idea what happened to them, do not proceed. 5/8: Afraid that they would be implicated in their deaths, the two members of the God and Freedom Church on the other side hid the bodies in the Decomposition Chamber. The scientists' possessions were then discarded in Beneath the Altar. 6/8: Among them is a lab director's office chip key. 7/8: Just by possessing this chip key, you will be able to enter the office. 8/8: Without an Epsilon security clearance, however, you won't live very long after entering. (You have revealed all the hints on this page.) ------------------------ (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab) 1. How do I get past the metal door in Lab Hallway Outward? 2. How do I get into the Lab Director's Office? 3. I can't get through the revolving door in the Lobby. 4. Depot 5. Dev 1 6. Dev 3 7. Dressing room 8. Storage Room 9. Refrigeration unit 0. Lab director's office A. Vending machine (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - I can't get through the revolving door in the Lobby.) 1/6: If you have not solved the invisibility cloak puzzle, do not proceed further here. The clues you seek are under "The invisibility cloak" heading. 2/6: If you have not solved the following puzzle concerning the scientists' bodies, do not proceed further. The clues you seek are under "Getting rid of the bodies" heading. 3/6: You now have free reign in the lab, but you are not able to exit the research lab. Have you been back to the Lobby? 4/6: Have you examined the smart sign there? 5/6: Have you noticed the shiny black helmet with the flashing light? 6/6: Wear the shiny black helmet. (You have revealed all the hints on this page.) ------------------------ (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab) 1. How do I get past the metal door in Lab Hallway Outward? 2. How do I get into the Lab Director's Office? 3. I can't get through the revolving door in the Lobby. 4. Depot 5. Dev 1 6. Dev 3 7. Dressing room 8. Storage Room 9. Refrigeration unit 0. Lab director's office A. Vending machine (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Depot) 1. I keep getting killed. 2. How do I go down the service tunnel? 3. How do I drive the forklift? (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Depot - How do I go down the service tunnel?) 1/3: You need a source of light. 2/3: Have you checked the vending machine? 3/3: No, you cannot leave the research lab this way. (You have revealed all the hints on this page.) ------------------------ (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Depot) 1. I keep getting killed. 2. How do I go down the service tunnel? 3. How do I drive the forklift? (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab) 1. How do I get past the metal door in Lab Hallway Outward? 2. How do I get into the Lab Director's Office? 3. I can't get through the revolving door in the Lobby. 4. Depot 5. Dev 1 6. Dev 3 7. Dressing room 8. Storage Room 9. Refrigeration unit 0. Lab director's office A. Vending machine (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Dev 1) 1. How do I fix the controller? 2. I have fixed the controller. How do I operate it? (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Dev 1 - How do I fix the controller?) 1/6: Have you examined it? 2/6: There's a piece missing. You'll have to find it. 3/6: The piece is thin and oblong, and it fits in an iron plate. 4/6: It's somewhere in the lab. 5/6: It's in the Dressing Room 6/6: It's in the drain of the showering unit. Once you have it, insert it into the controller. (You have revealed all the hints on this page.) ------------------------ (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Dev 1) 1. How do I fix the controller? 2. I have fixed the controller. How do I operate it? (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab) 1. How do I get past the metal door in Lab Hallway Outward? 2. How do I get into the Lab Director's Office? 3. I can't get through the revolving door in the Lobby. 4. Depot 5. Dev 1 6. Dev 3 7. Dressing room 8. Storage Room 9. Refrigeration unit 0. Lab director's office A. Vending machine (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Dev 3) 1. What is the zorgot? 2. How do I operate the workstations? 3. How do I fix the slicer? (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Dev 3 - What is the zorgot?) 1/6: As a dust maid, you're not equipped to recognize specialized lab equipment, including electronic devices. 2/6: Do you know someone who is? 3/6: Someone who is interested in electronics? 4/6: Someone who once worked in the lab? 5/6: What about Tony Bleet? Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Dev 3) 1. What is the zorgot? 2. How do I operate the workstations? 3. How do I fix the slicer? (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Dev 3 - How do I operate the workstations?) Press H to reveal the first hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Dev 3 - How do I operate the workstations?) 1/5: For all intents and purposes, you only need to refer to and use a single workstation. Pretend the others aren't there. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Dev 3 - How do I operate the workstations?) 1/5: For all intents and purposes, you only need to refer to and use a single workstation. Pretend the others aren't there. 2/5: You can put something on the workstation. Then you can use one of the manipulators on it. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Dev 3 - How do I operate the workstations?) 1/5: For all intents and purposes, you only need to refer to and use a single workstation. Pretend the others aren't there. 2/5: You can put something on the workstation. Then you can use one of the manipulators on it. 3/5: Examine the manipulators to see what your options are. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Dev 3 - How do I operate the workstations?) 1/5: For all intents and purposes, you only need to refer to and use a single workstation. Pretend the others aren't there. 2/5: You can put something on the workstation. Then you can use one of the manipulators on it. 3/5: Examine the manipulators to see what your options are. 4/5: To slice something on the workstation, simply say "slice". To solder something on the workstation, simply say "solder" Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Dev 3 - How do I operate the workstations?) 1/5: For all intents and purposes, you only need to refer to and use a single workstation. Pretend the others aren't there. 2/5: You can put something on the workstation. Then you can use one of the manipulators on it. 3/5: Examine the manipulators to see what your options are. 4/5: To slice something on the workstation, simply say "slice". To solder something on the workstation, simply say "solder" 5/5: Ah, right, the slicer needs to be fixed first. (You have revealed all the hints on this page.) ------------------------ (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Dev 3) 1. What is the zorgot? 2. How do I operate the workstations? 3. How do I fix the slicer? (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Dev 3 - How do I fix the slicer?) Press H to reveal the first hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Dev 3) 1. What is the zorgot? 2. How do I operate the workstations? 3. How do I fix the slicer? (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab) 1. How do I get past the metal door in Lab Hallway Outward? 2. How do I get into the Lab Director's Office? 3. I can't get through the revolving door in the Lobby. 4. Depot 5. Dev 1 6. Dev 3 7. Dressing room 8. Storage Room 9. Refrigeration unit 0. Lab director's office A. Vending machine (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Dev 3) 1. What is the zorgot? 2. How do I operate the workstations? 3. How do I fix the slicer? (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab) 1. How do I get past the metal door in Lab Hallway Outward? 2. How do I get into the Lab Director's Office? 3. I can't get through the revolving door in the Lobby. 4. Depot 5. Dev 1 6. Dev 3 7. Dressing room 8. Storage Room 9. Refrigeration unit 0. Lab director's office A. Vending machine (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Dressing room) 1. How do I get the gizmo? (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Dressing room - How do I get the gizmo?) 1/6: You can't reach it, and the drain won't open. You'll need some kind of tool to assist you. 2/6: The gizmo is made of iron. 3/6: If nothing comes to mind that can help you, you probably don't have access to it yet. 4/6: First, you need to figure out what the zorgot is. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Dressing room) 1. How do I get the gizmo? (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab) 1. How do I get past the metal door in Lab Hallway Outward? 2. How do I get into the Lab Director's Office? 3. I can't get through the revolving door in the Lobby. 4. Depot 5. Dev 1 6. Dev 3 7. Dressing room 8. Storage Room 9. Refrigeration unit 0. Lab director's office A. Vending machine (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Storage Room) 1. How do I find the secret passage? 2. How do I find the terminal? (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Storage Room - How do I find the secret passage?) 1/1: You can't. (This page has just the one hint.) ------------------------ (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Storage Room) 1. How do I find the secret passage? 2. How do I find the terminal? (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Storage Room - How do I find the terminal?) 1/1: You can't. (This page has just the one hint.) ------------------------ (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Storage Room) 1. How do I find the secret passage? 2. How do I find the terminal? (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab) 1. How do I get past the metal door in Lab Hallway Outward? 2. How do I get into the Lab Director's Office? 3. I can't get through the revolving door in the Lobby. 4. Depot 5. Dev 1 6. Dev 3 7. Dressing room 8. Storage Room 9. Refrigeration unit 0. Lab director's office A. Vending machine (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Refrigeration unit) 1. I can't get through the refrigeration unit door. 2. I keep freezing to death. 3. How do I get the glass jar out of the tank? 4. What's inside the glass jar? 5. I keep getting killed by what's in the glass jar. (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Refrigeration unit - I can't get through the refrigeration unit door.) 1/3: It can only be opened from a restricted place. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Refrigeration unit - I can't get through the refrigeration unit door.) 1/3: It can only be opened from a restricted place. 2/3: It can only be opened in the Lab Director's Office. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Refrigeration unit - I can't get through the refrigeration unit door.) 1/3: It can only be opened from a restricted place. 2/3: It can only be opened in the Lab Director's Office. 3/3: It can only be opened via the screen in the Lab Director's Office. (You have revealed all the hints on this page.) ------------------------ (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Refrigeration unit) 1. I can't get through the refrigeration unit door. 2. I keep freezing to death. 3. How do I get the glass jar out of the tank? 4. What's inside the glass jar? 5. I keep getting killed by what's in the glass jar. (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab) 1. How do I get past the metal door in Lab Hallway Outward? 2. How do I get into the Lab Director's Office? 3. I can't get through the revolving door in the Lobby. 4. Depot 5. Dev 1 6. Dev 3 7. Dressing room 8. Storage Room 9. Refrigeration unit 0. Lab director's office A. Vending machine (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Lab director's office) 1. I am looking for documents. 2. How do I activate the screen/keyboard? 3. How do I get into the safe? 4. What is God's Holy Wrath? (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Lab director's office - I am looking for documents.) 1/3: Did you search the desk? 2/3: Investigate the safe? 3/3: What about sitting in the lab director's chair? (You have revealed all the hints on this page.) ------------------------ (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Lab director's office) 1. I am looking for documents. 2. How do I activate the screen/keyboard? 3. How do I get into the safe? 4. What is God's Holy Wrath? (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Lab director's office - How do I activate the screen/keyboard?) 1/1: Try sitting in the lab director's chair. (This page has just the one hint.) ------------------------ (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Lab director's office) 1. I am looking for documents. 2. How do I activate the screen/keyboard? 3. How do I get into the safe? 4. What is God's Holy Wrath? (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab) 1. How do I get past the metal door in Lab Hallway Outward? 2. How do I get into the Lab Director's Office? 3. I can't get through the revolving door in the Lobby. 4. Depot 5. Dev 1 6. Dev 3 7. Dressing room 8. Storage Room 9. Refrigeration unit 0. Lab director's office A. Vending machine (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab - Vending machine) 1. The vending machine won't sell me anything. 2. I have the protective cover. Now what? 3. The vending machine has the protective cover. I still can't buy anything. (Hints - Elsewhere in the Research Lab) 1. How do I get past the metal door in Lab Hallway Outward? 2. How do I get into the Lab Director's Office? 3. I can't get through the revolving door in the Lobby. 4. Depot 5. Dev 1 6. Dev 3 7. Dressing room 8. Storage Room 9. Refrigeration unit 0. Lab director's office A. Vending machine (Hints) 1. What's going on? 2. I am in Lab Hallway Inward. How do I escape? 3. Can I get an Epsilon security clearance in this game? 4. Can I get a Delta security clearance in this game? 5. Every time I smell, I sneeze. 6. What is the zorgot? 7. The security camera keeps blasting me for no reason. 8. A search and extraction team or two thugs or a tall, gangly man show up and end the game. 9. Lobby 0. Elsewhere in the Research Lab A. Restricted Research Lab B. Plaza C. Control D. The underground E. Waste of space F. Accusing someone (Hints - Can I get an Epsilon security clearance in this game?) Press H to reveal the first hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Can I get an Epsilon security clearance in this game?) 1/3: Yes. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Can I get an Epsilon security clearance in this game?) 1/3: Yes. 2/3: The path to an Epsilon security clearance depends a little on which path you take with the Underground. In general, you need to have two traitors arrested. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Can I get an Epsilon security clearance in this game?) 1/3: Yes. 2/3: The path to an Epsilon security clearance depends a little on which path you take with the Underground. In general, you need to have two traitors arrested. 3/3: You can have someone arrested by accusing them. (You have revealed all the hints on this page.) ------------------------ (Hints) 1. What's going on? 2. I am in Lab Hallway Inward. How do I escape? 3. Can I get an Epsilon security clearance in this game? 4. Can I get a Delta security clearance in this game? 5. Every time I smell, I sneeze. 6. What is the zorgot? 7. The security camera keeps blasting me for no reason. 8. A search and extraction team or two thugs or a tall, gangly man show up and end the game. 9. Lobby 0. Elsewhere in the Research Lab A. Restricted Research Lab B. Plaza C. Control D. The underground E. Waste of space F. Accusing someone (If you're using a screen reader, press S to turn on Screen Reader mode. This message only appears on the front page of the menu system.) 1. New to Interactive Fiction 2. New to Nothing Could Be Further From the Truth 3. New to the Bunker 4. Credits 5. Hints Plaza, under the Billboard You are standing near the entrance to the Clement Vallandigham complex. A sign on the wall indicates it is mostly occupied by the Internal Operations division of the Procurement conglomerate, including portions of its sprawling Department of Administration. Internal Operations is responsible for mining out on the surface, sorting and refining ores, distribution of raw materials and the like. Normally a bustling corner of the plaza, today is it deserted. And you know exactly why. Citizens have gathered just to the left of this location. But this is no ordinary meeting; this is a caring demonstration. And like all caring demonstrations, it is sorely in need of volunteers. A billboard - slightly crooked - hangs above a security camera mounted overhead. Beneath them both, playing with a flat, rectangular piece of transparent plastex, is a Ward of the State. A grate set in the floor, about a meter wide, separates you. Fortunately, the Ward of the State has her back to you. To the right is the entrance to Research Lab A-U61. >* OK so this puzzle is solved later? Come again? >* Even looking at all those hints I'm not clear what I'm meant to do -- something in the shower area, which I'm not sure I've found? Come again? >* Or should I be accusing random people of treaso? Come again? >accuse ward You call Homeland Security's new and improved terrorist hotline and manage to get an agent on the line. When it becomes clear you have nothing in the way of evidence to back up your claims, she grows angry and sends someone to investigate. Within minutestretches, you are in the presence of a stocky, irritable man who listens impatiently as you repeat the story. You haven't even finished before he draws a stun gun. "Don't you know it's treasonous to falsely accuse your fellow citizens of treason?" You would like to answer, but by now you are twitching uncontrollably on the floor at his feet. He prods you roughly with a thick, black boot. A few stretches later, a colleague shows up with a wheelbarrow. Together, they toss you in and whisk you off to a Homeland Security interrogation center. *** You have been arrested. *** Would you like to RESTART, RESTORE a saved game, QUIT or UNDO the last command? > undo Plaza, under the Billboard [Previous turn undone.] >w You can't go that way. The Ward of the State begins playing a little game. She hops about, singing a song, and every once in a while swings her arms about in a swift, circular motion. Before you know it, she passes directly in front of you, squashing your toes and punching you solidly in the throat. Stopping short, she fixes you with an angry glare. "Your face hit my hand!" she shrieks and pretends to cry. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >left A loyalty leader nearby spots you. "Another volunteer!" he declares as a hat and red card are pressed into your hands. There's nothing for you to do but smile and accept them. A few hourstretches later, you find yourself bruised and spattered in melted wax, running as fast as you can down the corridors of the Bunker, carrying half a mannequin and smelling of expensive perfume. A Special Ops squadron from Defense is not far behind. How exactly you got here is a long and complicated story, nor does it have much to do with this one. *** In the Bunker, caring is harmful to one's health. *** Would you like to RESTART, RESTORE a saved game, QUIT or UNDO the last command? > undo Plaza, under the Billboard [Previous turn undone.] >right Plaza, by the Lab You are standing outside Research Lab A-U61. A decorative statuette protrudes from the wall, but otherwise the building and its purpose is unmarked. The normally bustling Tucker M. Carlson plaza is strangely subdued today. Inward, you see a mobile response unit set up by Homeland Security, which explains why. All the citizens in the area have been detained for questioning, and - for the moment at least - no one is allowed to leave. To the right is a row of vendors, and to the left a billboard hangs over a security camera. Beyond them, a caring demonstration is getting under way. Outward is a revolving door leading into the lab. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >outward You push through the revolving door and scramble with difficulty over the turnstile, confident no one is observing you. The Loyalty Stretch catches your attention on the tube. You see the words at the top of the screen: HARMONY THREATENED IN W-8 SECTOR. "Earlier today, the power in W-8, W-9, and W-12 sectors was briefly taken offline for regularly scheduled maintenance," Sally informs you. "A routine and mundane occurence, hardly worthy of mention. Unfortunately, rumors - entirely unfounded - quickly spread that the reactor core in W sector was spewing radiation into the aforementioned departments. "Citizens, nothing could be further from the truth. Not that it matters. Need I remind you that - as we all know from Nutty the Happy Neutron's constant rejoinders - radiation in moderate doses is entirely harmless?" Sally purses her lips in silent admonition. "As could be expected, the power was back online within hourstretches and no one was hurt. Remember: traitors can attack our hearts and minds as well as our bodies. Don't become an accomplice and spread dangerous rumors, or you'll be treated accordingly." Lobby This is an ornate entrance hall. The walls are inlaid with the trappings of a respected research institution such as Research Lab A-U61: murals, awards, and the portraits of esteemed colleagues. The light comes from a battery of bright bulbs arranged in an X on the ceiling. An L-shaped receptionist's desk is tucked into one corner of the outward wall. The receptionist - a curt, expressionless man you've never had the displeasure of dealing with - is absent. In front of the receptionist's desk, a tube juts out from the wall. Underneath is a vending machine. Next to the vending machine and opposite the receptionist's desk is a sculpture, the Persevering Scientist. The remainder of the room is an open space. It is currently empty, save for a lone smart sign hanging on the wall. A large revolving door has been set in the inward wall. A turnstile has been placed directly in front of it. You can also go left through a wide opening. Another door next to the receptionist desk leads outward, deeper into the research lab. >inward You pass through the turnstile and push through the revolving door. Plaza, by the Lab You are standing outside Research Lab A-U61. A decorative statuette protrudes from the wall, but otherwise the building and its purpose is unmarked. The normally bustling Tucker M. Carlson plaza is strangely subdued today. Inward, you see a mobile response unit set up by Homeland Security, which explains why. All the citizens in the area have been detained for questioning, and - for the moment at least - no one is allowed to leave. To the right is a row of vendors, and to the left a billboard hangs over a security camera. Beyond them, a caring demonstration is getting under way. Outward is a revolving door leading into the lab. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >left Plaza, under the Billboard You are standing near the entrance to the Clement Vallandigham complex. A sign on the wall indicates it is mostly occupied by the Internal Operations division of the Procurement conglomerate, including portions of its sprawling Department of Administration. Internal Operations is responsible for mining out on the surface, sorting and refining ores, distribution of raw materials and the like. Normally a bustling corner of the plaza, today is it deserted. And you know exactly why. Citizens have gathered just to the left of this location. But this is no ordinary meeting; this is a caring demonstration. And like all caring demonstrations, it is sorely in need of volunteers. A billboard - slightly crooked - hangs above a security camera mounted overhead. Beneath them both, playing with a flat, rectangular piece of transparent plastex, is a Ward of the State. A grate set in the floor, about a meter wide, separates you. Fortunately, the Ward of the State has her back to you. To the right is the entrance to Research Lab A-U61. The Ward of the State farts loudly and blames it on you. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >undo Plaza, by the Lab [Previous turn undone.] >outward You push through the revolving door and scramble with difficulty over the turnstile, confident no one is observing you. The Loyalty Stretch catches your attention on the tube. You see the words at the top of the screen: TERRORIST ATTACK IN D-5 SECTOR. A grainy feed in a rectangular box in the corner depicts the scene of the disaster. Citizens - most of whom are naked and lubed up - run screaming from double doors as thick, black smoke belches forth behind them. "In other news, terrorists struck a VR deck in D-5 sector earlier today," Yuri explains. "Fortunately, a squadron of guardians from Defense arrived just in time to rescue those trapped inside. Casualties were minimal." The grainy feed is replaced by a much clearer one. A number of citizens can be seen standing around a pair of guardians, uniforms splattered with blood, applauding. "The traitors and their accomplices have all been punished. As for the VR deck in D-5, it is expected to become operational again within the next daystretch." Lobby This is an ornate entrance hall. The walls are inlaid with the trappings of a respected research institution such as Research Lab A-U61: murals, awards, and the portraits of esteemed colleagues. The light comes from a battery of bright bulbs arranged in an X on the ceiling. An L-shaped receptionist's desk is tucked into one corner of the outward wall. The receptionist - a curt, expressionless man you've never had the displeasure of dealing with - is absent. In front of the receptionist's desk, a tube juts out from the wall. Underneath is a vending machine. Next to the vending machine and opposite the receptionist's desk is a sculpture, the Persevering Scientist. The remainder of the room is an open space. It is currently empty, save for a lone smart sign hanging on the wall. A large revolving door has been set in the inward wall. A turnstile has been placed directly in front of it. You can also go left through a wide opening. Another door next to the receptionist desk leads outward, deeper into the research lab. >inward You pass through the turnstile and push through the revolving door. Plaza, by the Lab You are standing outside Research Lab A-U61. A decorative statuette protrudes from the wall, but otherwise the building and its purpose is unmarked. The normally bustling Tucker M. Carlson plaza is strangely subdued today. Inward, you see a mobile response unit set up by Homeland Security, which explains why. All the citizens in the area have been detained for questioning, and - for the moment at least - no one is allowed to leave. To the right is a row of vendors, and to the left a billboard hangs over a security camera. Beyond them, a caring demonstration is getting under way. Outward is a revolving door leading into the lab. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >inward Plaza, Near the Museum You are standing halfway to the center of the plaza. A sense of travesty and loss envelops you here. Nearby, corpses have been piled into a sloppy stack, and a mobile response unit has been hastily set up next to it. A long queue of frightened, weeping citizens has formed there, waiting patiently to exonerate themselves. Outward is the Museum of Athletic Ability, occupying the very center of the plaza. There, a group of exercise enthusiasts has gathered for some intense stretching. Inward is the entrance to Research Lab A-U61. To the left and right are large, empty spaces, beyond which are corridors leading off to other parts of the department. You can see the agent from Homeland Security here. At the end of the queue, you spot the delivery man, stomping his feet impatiently and craning his neck. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >accuse man You ring up Homeland Security's new and improved terrorist hotline and manage to get someone on the line. "This call may be monitored for quality assessment purposes," the agent tells you. "Okay, great! Now listen -" "Please hold." Inoffensive music is piped into your ear. Fuming, you refuse to drop the line. Eventually, the agent returns. You can hear him laughing at a joke one of his colleagues just told. "Yes, can I help you?" You unload on the man. He lets you finish your tirade before responding. "I'm sorry, but based on what you're telling me we'll need more conclusive evidence. Hearsay doesn't cut it. Have a nice daystretch!" The agent cuts the line before you can react. At the end of the queue, you spot the delivery man, stomping his feet impatiently and craning his neck. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >take package The delivery man pushes you away. "I'll deliver it myself, thank you very much. It's my job!" At the end of the queue, you spot the delivery man, stomping his feet impatiently and craning his neck. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >search package You find nothing of interest. At the end of the queue, you spot the delivery man, stomping his feet impatiently and craning his neck. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >listen to package You hear ticking coming from the package held by the delivery man. At the end of the queue, you spot the delivery man, stomping his feet impatiently and craning his neck. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >* I can't accuse him based on him trying to bomb the lab? Come again? >l Plaza, Near the Museum You are standing halfway to the center of the plaza. A sense of travesty and loss envelops you here. Nearby, corpses have been piled into a sloppy stack, and a mobile response unit has been hastily set up next to it. A long queue of frightened, weeping citizens has formed there, waiting patiently to exonerate themselves. Outward is the Museum of Athletic Ability, occupying the very center of the plaza. There, a group of exercise enthusiasts has gathered for some intense stretching. Inward is the entrance to Research Lab A-U61. To the left and right are large, empty spaces, beyond which are corridors leading off to other parts of the department. You can see the agent from Homeland Security here. >x corpses The faces are frozen in grotesque portraits of agony. Traces of foam can still be seen around their mouths. At the end of the queue, you spot the delivery man, stomping his feet impatiently and craning his neck. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >x queue You see nothing special about the queue of citizens. At the end of the queue, you spot the delivery man, stomping his feet impatiently and craning his neck. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >* nothing special? Come again? >l Plaza, Near the Museum You are standing halfway to the center of the plaza. A sense of travesty and loss envelops you here. Nearby, corpses have been piled into a sloppy stack, and a mobile response unit has been hastily set up next to it. A long queue of frightened, weeping citizens has formed there, waiting patiently to exonerate themselves. Outward is the Museum of Athletic Ability, occupying the very center of the plaza. There, a group of exercise enthusiasts has gathered for some intense stretching. Inward is the entrance to Research Lab A-U61. To the left and right are large, empty spaces, beyond which are corridors leading off to other parts of the department. You can see the agent from Homeland Security here. >x unit A rickety desk and chair is about all there is to it. Flextex handcuffs hang from a hook off the side, and a large sign atop a slender, collapsible pole in front reads "Mobile Respnse Unit: Queue forms ere". The mobile response unit is manned by a sole agent from Homeland Security. She is busy filling out paperwork, scattered chaotically on the desk, as she interviews the citizen at the front of the queue about the poison gas that mysteriously leaked into the plaza earlier today. At the end of the queue, you spot the delivery man, stomping his feet impatiently and craning his neck. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >x agent (the agent from Homeland Security) This agent from Homeland Security looks like so many of the others posted throughout the Bunker, just younger and greener. Her job is to keep a watchful eye, report back to her superiors and maintain order. Wide-eyed and out of breath, the agent from Homeland Security looks like she is expecting a tsunami of treasonous activity to overwhelm her. A laser pistol is strapped to her belt. The agent from Homeland Security is an Epsilon clearance citizen. At the end of the queue, you spot the delivery man, stomping his feet impatiently and craning his neck. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >left The agent from Homeland Security perks up. "Ah, excuse me!" she shouts, pointing a pen in your direction. "You're still a Person of Interest in this matter. So don't even THINK of skulking off... unless you have something to hide?" The citizens in the queue study you intensely, hoping to catch some hint of your duplicity. At the end of the queue, you spot the delivery man, stomping his feet impatiently and craning his neck. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >inward The agent from Homeland Security perks up. "Ah, excuse me!" she shouts, pointing a pen in your direction. "You're still a Person of Interest in this matter. So don't even THINK of skulking off... unless you have something to hide?" The citizens in the queue study you intensely, hoping to catch some hint of your duplicity. At the end of the queue, you spot the delivery man, stomping his feet impatiently and craning his neck. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >outward Plaza, by the Lab You are standing outside Research Lab A-U61. A decorative statuette protrudes from the wall, but otherwise the building and its purpose is unmarked. The normally bustling Tucker M. Carlson plaza is strangely subdued today. Inward, you see a mobile response unit set up by Homeland Security, which explains why. All the citizens in the area have been detained for questioning, and - for the moment at least - no one is allowed to leave. To the right is a row of vendors, and to the left a billboard hangs over a security camera. Beyond them, a caring demonstration is getting under way. Outward is a revolving door leading into the lab. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >g You push through the revolving door and scramble with difficulty over the turnstile, confident no one is observing you. The Loyalty Stretch catches your attention on the tube. Yuri looks squarely into the camera and smiles reassuringly. "Citizens, we must count ourselves fortunate that we live in a technological dreamland such as ours. No one lacks sustenence, medical care or education. We enjoy these basic necessities because of Control, the ninth and most important of the conglomerates. The Alpha-clearance citizens who work there are tireless in their vigilance." Sally nods and takes over the narrative. "Control has many responsibilities, one of which is managing the other eight conglomerates - the commanding heights of the economy, so to speak. Upon graduation from the creche, every citizen is guaranteed a lifetime job in one of them." "Some citizens, however, choose to take a position in one of the small, independent enterprises that serve as a complement to the conglomerates. Although their services are not per se necessary for our well-being, our lives can still be supplemented in useful and sometimes unexpected ways." Sally assumes a stern expression. "It is important to remember, citizens, that those who work in private enterprises are not by definition traitors. Otherwise they wouldn't be allowed. However, this underlying assumption persists, no doubt due to pernicious rumors spread by the Underground. For this reason, Control is offering a series of lectures to educate everyone on the relationship between the conglomerates and free enterprise. One will surely be held in a plaza near your communal barracks. Expect a notification to arrive soon. Attendance is mandatory." Lobby This is an ornate entrance hall. The walls are inlaid with the trappings of a respected research institution such as Research Lab A-U61: murals, awards, and the portraits of esteemed colleagues. The light comes from a battery of bright bulbs arranged in an X on the ceiling. An L-shaped receptionist's desk is tucked into one corner of the outward wall. The receptionist - a curt, expressionless man you've never had the displeasure of dealing with - is absent. In front of the receptionist's desk, a tube juts out from the wall. Underneath is a vending machine. Next to the vending machine and opposite the receptionist's desk is a sculpture, the Persevering Scientist. The remainder of the room is an open space. It is currently empty, save for a lone smart sign hanging on the wall. A large revolving door has been set in the inward wall. A turnstile has been placed directly in front of it. You can also go left through a wide opening. Another door next to the receptionist desk leads outward, deeper into the research lab. >x turnstile This turnstile freely allows anyone to exit the research lab but does not yield to anyone trying to enter. The receptionist usually lets you in. If you happened to leave the lab and wanted to come back in, you could just scramble over it. Provided no one was in the Lobby to observe you, of course. >outward Lab Hallway Inward This is the beginning of Research Lab A-U61's main hallway, lit by glow panels. It is bare and - thanks to your best efforts - mostly free of dust. To your left is a glass wall. Through it, you can see into Dev 1. The thin outline of a door is visible in the glass. Opposite the glass wall to your right is a battered door. The lobby door is inward, and the hallway stretches outward. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >right (first opening the battered door) Storage Room Your feet kick up a fine layer of dust on the floor, which you glare at disapprovingly. A stretch later, you sneeze violently and rub your nose. Obviously, it's been quite some time since anyone entered this place. You are standing in a rudimentary storage room with barely enough room to stand in. Dilapidated shelving lines three walls. Otherwise it is bare and uninteresting. The exit is outward. >x shelves You see nothing special about the shelving. >search shelves There is nothing on the shelving. >out Lab Hallway Inward This is the beginning of Research Lab A-U61's main hallway, lit by glow panels. It is bare and - thanks to your best efforts - mostly free of dust. To your left is a glass wall. Through it, you can see into Dev 1. The thin outline of a door is visible in the glass. Opposite the glass wall to your right is a battered door. The lobby door is inward, and the hallway stretches outward. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >right Storage Room You are standing in a rudimentary storage room with barely enough room to stand in. Dilapidated shelving lines three walls. Otherwise it is bare and uninteresting. The exit is outward. >outward Lab Hallway Inward This is the beginning of Research Lab A-U61's main hallway, lit by glow panels. It is bare and - thanks to your best efforts - mostly free of dust. To your left is a glass wall. Through it, you can see into Dev 1. The thin outline of a door is visible in the glass. Opposite the glass wall to your right is a battered door. The lobby door is inward, and the hallway stretches outward. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >inward The Loyalty Stretch catches your attention on the tube. Sally shuffles a thick stack of papers, looks intently into the camera and says, "The Bunker is a technological dreamland. Its factories churn out finished products of every kind. But none of this would be possible without the valuable resources collected out in the asteroid belt by our loyal miners." Yuri nods solemnly and continues. "No doubt, leaving the safety and comforts of the Bunker to live and work on the surface of an asteroid is not for everyone. But the reward more the compensates the adventurous citizen willing to brave the excitement: an early retirement at thirty-five yearstretches of age." Sally smiles enthusiastically. "Want to volunteer? Just fill out one of the handy forms made available by Procurement on its portal on X.net and you'll find yourself on an interplanetary ship destined for Malkuth in no time!" Lobby This is an ornate entrance hall. The walls are inlaid with the trappings of a respected research institution such as Research Lab A-U61: murals, awards, and the portraits of esteemed colleagues. The light comes from a battery of bright bulbs arranged in an X on the ceiling. An L-shaped receptionist's desk is tucked into one corner of the outward wall. The receptionist - a curt, expressionless man you've never had the displeasure of dealing with - is absent. In front of the receptionist's desk, a tube juts out from the wall. Underneath is a vending machine. Next to the vending machine and opposite the receptionist's desk is a sculpture, the Persevering Scientist. The remainder of the room is an open space. It is currently empty, save for a lone smart sign hanging on the wall. A large revolving door has been set in the inward wall. A turnstile has been placed directly in front of it. You can also go left through a wide opening. Another door next to the receptionist desk leads outward, deeper into the research lab. >outward Lab Hallway Inward This is the beginning of Research Lab A-U61's main hallway, lit by glow panels. It is bare and - thanks to your best efforts - mostly free of dust. To your left is a glass wall. Through it, you can see into Dev 1. The thin outline of a door is visible in the glass. Opposite the glass wall to your right is a battered door. The lobby door is inward, and the hallway stretches outward. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >g Lab Hallway Center You are standing in the center of a bare hallway lit by glow panels. The wall to your left is made entirely of glass. Just out of reach above your head, a security camera relentlessly surveys the hallway and the areas visible through the glass wall. To the left, you can see the Refrigeration Unit. Across from it, to your right, is a plain door. The hallway continues both inward and outward. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >g Lab Hallway Outward You are standing at one end of a short, bare hallway lit by glow panels. The left wall is made entirely of glass. Through it you can see into Dev 3. Normally, a few researchers can be seen toiling within, but now it is strangely empty. To the left a door has been cut into the glass. Another door is to your right. A smart sign is affixed to it. Outward is a third door made entirely of metal. Inward, the corridor continues towards the Lobby. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >g The metal door swings shut behind you. Restricted Corridor You are standing in a hallway, unremarkable in every way. Outward an alarm is blaring. Inward is a metal door leading to the unrestricted part of the research lab. A red light gleams menacingly under the restricted lab security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >undo Lab Hallway Outward [Previous turn undone.] >left (first opening the glass door) The glass door swings shut behind you. Dev 3 Four workstations have been arranged in a square in the center of this room, basking in the bright light from the glow panels. Nestled between them is a bank of manipulators. What appear to be controls for the manipulators have been built onto the surface of each workstation. Through a glass wall to the right, you see a hallway. A door has been cut into the glass. Set in the middle of the inward wall is a narrow opening. You can see a sturdy locker here. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >right (first opening the glass door) The glass door swings shut behind you. Lab Hallway Outward You are standing at one end of a short, bare hallway lit by glow panels. The left wall is made entirely of glass. Through it you can see into Dev 3. Normally, a few researchers can be seen toiling within, but now it is strangely empty. To the left a door has been cut into the glass. Another door is to your right. A smart sign is affixed to it. Outward is a third door made entirely of metal. Inward, the corridor continues towards the Lobby. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >right (first opening the office door) The lock is activated by the chip key, and you hear a slight rasping noise from the door. Ah, a rare moment of cherished privacy away from prying eyes... You hear a slight click after the door swings shut. Lab Director's Office You are in the lab director's office. Looking around, you can see that the previous lab director had little if any personality. Framed by bare, white walls, the room prominently features a shallow, curved desk. Behind the desk tucked against the wall is a heavy, metal safe. The room is dimly lit by a single glow panel near the ceiling; the others appear to be out of service. Outward is a door leading to the research lab's main corridor. You can see the lab director's chair here. >left You can't go that way. >undo Lab Director's Office [Previous turn undone.] >undo Lab Hallway Outward [Previous turn undone.] >undo Dev 3 [Previous turn undone.] >x locker You see nothing special about the sturdy locker. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >open it You open the sturdy locker, revealing a new IC chip. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >x ic A flat, square integrated circuit chip with one side as thick as your thumb. White letters identify it as a series R-76. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >take it Taken. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >* OK... Come again? >hint (If you're using a screen reader, press S to turn on Screen Reader mode. This message only appears on the front page of the menu system.) 1. New to Interactive Fiction 2. New to Nothing Could Be Further From the Truth 3. New to the Bunker 4. Credits 5. Hints (Hints) 1. What's going on? 2. I am in Lab Hallway Inward. How do I escape? 3. Can I get an Epsilon security clearance in this game? 4. Can I get a Delta security clearance in this game? 5. Every time I smell, I sneeze. 6. What is the zorgot? 7. The security camera keeps blasting me for no reason. 8. A search and extraction team or two thugs or a tall, gangly man show up and end the game. 9. Lobby 0. Elsewhere in the Research Lab A. Restricted Research Lab B. Plaza C. Control D. The underground E. Waste of space F. Accusing someone (Hints - Accusing someone) 1. How do I successfully accuse someone? 2. Who can I accuse? (Hints - Accusing someone - How do I successfully accuse someone?) Press H to reveal the first hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Accusing someone - How do I successfully accuse someone?) 1/3: There are two ways. The easiest is to simply "accuse" the person. You can accuse anyone, even dead people. If it makes sense in context (the treason is self-evident or the evidence can be verbally communicated, especially if its circumstantial in nature), this would be enough. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Accusing someone - How do I successfully accuse someone?) 1/3: There are two ways. The easiest is to simply "accuse" the person. You can accuse anyone, even dead people. If it makes sense in context (the treason is self-evident or the evidence can be verbally communicated, especially if its circumstantial in nature), this would be enough. 2/3: Oftentimes, however, you'll have to specifically "record" someone performing treasonous behavior. You do this with your PA. You can only record people, not things. If the recording is incriminating, you will know it by examining your PA afterward. At this point you can "submit feed" and the recording will be sent to Homeland Security, where it will be reviewed. If you "accuse" someone and you have an incriminating recording of them on your PA, this is what will happen. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Accusing someone - How do I successfully accuse someone?) 1/3: There are two ways. The easiest is to simply "accuse" the person. You can accuse anyone, even dead people. If it makes sense in context (the treason is self-evident or the evidence can be verbally communicated, especially if its circumstantial in nature), this would be enough. 2/3: Oftentimes, however, you'll have to specifically "record" someone performing treasonous behavior. You do this with your PA. You can only record people, not things. If the recording is incriminating, you will know it by examining your PA afterward. At this point you can "submit feed" and the recording will be sent to Homeland Security, where it will be reviewed. If you "accuse" someone and you have an incriminating recording of them on your PA, this is what will happen. 3/3: If you "accuse" someone and there is no evidence to back up the accusation, you will yourself be found guilty of treason. You can, however, "submit feed" as often as you like and if the content is not interesting, it will simply be ignored. (You have revealed all the hints on this page.) ------------------------ (Hints - Accusing someone) 1. How do I successfully accuse someone? 2. Who can I accuse? (Hints - Accusing someone - Who can I accuse?) Press H to reveal the first hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Accusing someone - Who can I accuse?) 1/15: Only proceed if you have encountered the Underground. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Accusing someone - Who can I accuse?) 1/15: Only proceed if you have encountered the Underground. 2/15: When you first put on the shiny black helmet, you encountered Asimov and he gave you a task. Once you deal with this task, you will have gotten one successful accusation out of the way. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Accusing someone - Who can I accuse?) 1/15: Only proceed if you have encountered the Underground. 2/15: When you first put on the shiny black helmet, you encountered Asimov and he gave you a task. Once you deal with this task, you will have gotten one successful accusation out of the way. 3/15: You must find one other traitor to unmask. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Accusing someone) 1. How do I successfully accuse someone? 2. Who can I accuse? (Hints) 1. What's going on? 2. I am in Lab Hallway Inward. How do I escape? 3. Can I get an Epsilon security clearance in this game? 4. Can I get a Delta security clearance in this game? 5. Every time I smell, I sneeze. 6. What is the zorgot? 7. The security camera keeps blasting me for no reason. 8. A search and extraction team or two thugs or a tall, gangly man show up and end the game. 9. Lobby 0. Elsewhere in the Research Lab A. Restricted Research Lab B. Plaza C. Control D. The underground E. Waste of space F. Accusing someone (Hints - Every time I smell, I sneeze.) Press H to reveal the first hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Every time I smell, I sneeze.) 1/3: Yeah, you have a dust allergy. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Every time I smell, I sneeze.) 1/3: Yeah, you have a dust allergy. 2/3: And you're carrying a duster. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Every time I smell, I sneeze.) 1/3: Yeah, you have a dust allergy. 2/3: And you're carrying a duster. 3/3: You might consider dropping the duster before smelling. (You have revealed all the hints on this page.) ------------------------ (Hints) 1. What's going on? 2. I am in Lab Hallway Inward. How do I escape? 3. Can I get an Epsilon security clearance in this game? 4. Can I get a Delta security clearance in this game? 5. Every time I smell, I sneeze. 6. What is the zorgot? 7. The security camera keeps blasting me for no reason. 8. A search and extraction team or two thugs or a tall, gangly man show up and end the game. 9. Lobby 0. Elsewhere in the Research Lab A. Restricted Research Lab B. Plaza C. Control D. The underground E. Waste of space F. Accusing someone (If you're using a screen reader, press S to turn on Screen Reader mode. This message only appears on the front page of the menu system.) 1. New to Interactive Fiction 2. New to Nothing Could Be Further From the Truth 3. New to the Bunker 4. Credits 5. Hints Dev 3 Four workstations have been arranged in a square in the center of this room, basking in the bright light from the glow panels. Nestled between them is a bank of manipulators. What appear to be controls for the manipulators have been built onto the surface of each workstation. Through a glass wall to the right, you see a hallway. A door has been cut into the glass. Set in the middle of the inward wall is a narrow opening. You can see a sturdy locker (empty) here. >smell A horrendous itching overwhelms you. You sneeze - very loudly and unhygienically into your hand. Regretfully, you glance at the duster. If only the medibots could do something about your dust allergy... A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >drop duster Dropped. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >smell The air here is laden with a sharp, chemical smell. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >w You can't go that way. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >left You can't go that way. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >right (first opening the glass door) The glass door swings shut behind you. Lab Hallway Outward You are standing at one end of a short, bare hallway lit by glow panels. The left wall is made entirely of glass. Through it you can see into Dev 3. Normally, a few researchers can be seen toiling within, but now it is strangely empty. To the left a door has been cut into the glass. Another door is to your right. A smart sign is affixed to it. Outward is a third door made entirely of metal. Inward, the corridor continues towards the Lobby. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >outward The metal door swings shut behind you. Restricted Corridor You are standing in a hallway, unremarkable in every way. Outward an alarm is blaring. Inward is a metal door leading to the unrestricted part of the research lab. A red light gleams menacingly under the restricted lab security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >undo Lab Hallway Outward [Previous turn undone.] >inward Lab Hallway Center You are standing in the center of a bare hallway lit by glow panels. The wall to your left is made entirely of glass. Just out of reach above your head, a security camera relentlessly surveys the hallway and the areas visible through the glass wall. To the left, you can see the Refrigeration Unit. Across from it, to your right, is a plain door. The hallway continues both inward and outward. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >inward Lab Hallway Inward This is the beginning of Research Lab A-U61's main hallway, lit by glow panels. It is bare and - thanks to your best efforts - mostly free of dust. To your left is a glass wall. Through it, you can see into Dev 1. The thin outline of a door is visible in the glass. Opposite the glass wall to your right is a battered door. The lobby door is inward, and the hallway stretches outward. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >left (first opening the glass door) The glass door swings shut behind you. Dev 1 A shallow depression in the center dominates this room. Above it, a crane protrudes from the ceiling. Hanging nearby from a thick wire that leads into the wall is a controller. On one wall hangs a whiteboard. Otherwise, this area is sparse. This place has a strange smell, and splotches of grime and corrosion can be seen on the walls and ceiling. Both are no doubt remnants of spectacularly promising experiments. A squat opening leads outward, and a doorway obscured by a thick, black curtain leads inward. The wall to the right is made entirely of glass, on the other side of which is the research lab's main hallway. It is accessible through an almost invisible door. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >x depression A circular area that prevents unwanted movement of machinery the scientists are working on. The floor of the depression is currently raised. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >x controller A heavy, rectangular hunk of plastex that's charred in places, it is attached to a wire that runs into the wall near the shallow depression. A large switch is in the center. The large switch is up. Above it is a button (the top button) and below it is an identical one (the bottom button). Turning it around to the back, you can see an iron plate. A thin, oblong piece about half the length of your pinky is missing. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >right (first opening the glass door) The glass door swings shut behind you. Lab Hallway Inward This is the beginning of Research Lab A-U61's main hallway, lit by glow panels. It is bare and - thanks to your best efforts - mostly free of dust. To your left is a glass wall. Through it, you can see into Dev 1. The thin outline of a door is visible in the glass. Opposite the glass wall to your right is a battered door. The lobby door is inward, and the hallway stretches outward. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >right Storage Room You are standing in a rudimentary storage room with barely enough room to stand in. Dilapidated shelving lines three walls. Otherwise it is bare and uninteresting. The exit is outward. >right You can't go that way. >left You can't go that way. >outward Lab Hallway Inward This is the beginning of Research Lab A-U61's main hallway, lit by glow panels. It is bare and - thanks to your best efforts - mostly free of dust. To your left is a glass wall. Through it, you can see into Dev 1. The thin outline of a door is visible in the glass. Opposite the glass wall to your right is a battered door. The lobby door is inward, and the hallway stretches outward. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >outward Lab Hallway Center You are standing in the center of a bare hallway lit by glow panels. The wall to your left is made entirely of glass. Just out of reach above your head, a security camera relentlessly surveys the hallway and the areas visible through the glass wall. To the left, you can see the Refrigeration Unit. Across from it, to your right, is a plain door. The hallway continues both inward and outward. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >left You can't go that way. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >right Dressing Room This is a shower and dressing room, the first and last stop for Research Lab A-U61's scientists. Here, they exchange their standard-issue jumpsuits for a lab coat. At the end of their shift, they use the showering units and disinfectant powder to remove any dangerous substances they might have inadvertently accumulated during the course of their work. After all, the last thing the Bunker needs in the midst of the heroic struggle against traitors and social deviants is an outbreak of a deadly, flesh-eating bacteria. A long bench is situated in front of a row of tall lockers. Next to them along the wall are two showering units. On the opposite wall is a pill dispenser. A poster hangs next to it. Outward is a door leading to the research lab's main corridor. >x poster You see a young man, his face contorted in anguish as he clutches his throat. In the background, a disfigured person standing on a designer steppod watches and giggles. In one hand is an open box. Inside can be seen little pills. Above them a public service message reads: "Buying meds on the black market is treason - and dangerous to boot!" >i You're carrying (in plain sight): a new IC chip some glue a razorblade an electromagnet a shiny black helmet Renardin's Card the lab office chip key Ati's Card your PA your Card You're wearing: some rubber gloves your boots your jumpsuit bunny ears >take pills Can't do it. >take pill That's not for the taking, I'm afraid. >x pill Pill dispensers - much like vending machines - are everywhere in the Bunker. After all, the Bunker's citizens need meds. And usually immediately. In large quantities. The most common medications are mass-produced by P&L and doled out for free via these handy and easy-to-use devices. Pep pills keep you awake; sleeping pills knock you out; anti-anxiety meds put you at ease. Other pills are produced by private firms associated with Production and Logistics. These are sold in vending machines or prescribed in medical clinics. Sometimes these pills are boutique versions of the freely available ones, but more often than not they serve some kind of niche function: Ablafang, for instance, is sometimes prescribed to guardians from Defense before going into battle. Despite the best efforts of the data sleuths in Homeland Security, these specialized medications often end up in the black market where they are sold for recreational use. The pill dispenser is simple enough. The mouths of three small tubes are set in the wall in a row. A red button is below the first tube, and above it is written "Pep". A yellow button is below the second tube, and above it is written "Zzzzzz". No button or source of identification marks the third tube. >push red You hear a slight whirr and a click. A stretch later, a red pill slides down the tube and pops out into your waiting hand. >take red (the red pill) You already have that. >pi Come again? >i You're carrying (in plain sight): the red pill a new IC chip some glue a razorblade an electromagnet a shiny black helmet Renardin's Card the lab office chip key Ati's Card your PA your Card You're wearing: some rubber gloves your boots your jumpsuit bunny ears >push yellow You hear a slight whirr and a click. A stretch later, a yellow pill slides down the tube and pops out into your waiting hand. >l Dressing Room This is a shower and dressing room, the first and last stop for Research Lab A-U61's scientists. Here, they exchange their standard-issue jumpsuits for a lab coat. At the end of their shift, they use the showering units and disinfectant powder to remove any dangerous substances they might have inadvertently accumulated during the course of their work. After all, the last thing the Bunker needs in the midst of the heroic struggle against traitors and social deviants is an outbreak of a deadly, flesh-eating bacteria. A long bench is situated in front of a row of tall lockers. Next to them along the wall are two showering units. On the opposite wall is a pill dispenser. A poster hangs next to it. Outward is a door leading to the research lab's main corridor. >x pill Which do you mean, the pill dispenser, the yellow pill or the red pill? >dispenser The pill dispenser is simple enough. The mouths of three small tubes are set in the wall in a row. A red button is below the first tube, and above it is written "Pep". A yellow button is below the second tube, and above it is written "Zzzzzz". No button or source of identification marks the third tube. >push third Can't do it. >l Dressing Room This is a shower and dressing room, the first and last stop for Research Lab A-U61's scientists. Here, they exchange their standard-issue jumpsuits for a lab coat. At the end of their shift, they use the showering units and disinfectant powder to remove any dangerous substances they might have inadvertently accumulated during the course of their work. After all, the last thing the Bunker needs in the midst of the heroic struggle against traitors and social deviants is an outbreak of a deadly, flesh-eating bacteria. A long bench is situated in front of a row of tall lockers. Next to them along the wall are two showering units. On the opposite wall is a pill dispenser. A poster hangs next to it. Outward is a door leading to the research lab's main corridor. >x lockers You see nothing special about the locker. >open lcokers Can't do it. >open lockers You open the locker, revealing a lab coat. >x coat Long, white and unadorned, this lab coat is the proud attire of every scientist who works here. This particular lab coat is a fine specimen, as it is unsullied by stains or blemishes. >wear it (first taking the lab coat) The lab coat slips onto your body with ease. It fits perfectly! Now there's a noticeable perk to your step. You find that you are embued with confidence. >x pocket You see nothing special about jumpsuit's pocket. >l Dressing Room This is a shower and dressing room, the first and last stop for Research Lab A-U61's scientists. Here, they exchange their standard-issue jumpsuits for a lab coat. At the end of their shift, they use the showering units and disinfectant powder to remove any dangerous substances they might have inadvertently accumulated during the course of their work. After all, the last thing the Bunker needs in the midst of the heroic struggle against traitors and social deviants is an outbreak of a deadly, flesh-eating bacteria. A long bench is situated in front of a row of tall lockers. Next to them along the wall are two showering units. On the opposite wall is a pill dispenser. A poster hangs next to it. Outward is a door leading to the research lab's main corridor. >look in pocket You reach inside jumpsuit's pocket, but despite your best efforts you can't find anything inside. >l Dressing Room This is a shower and dressing room, the first and last stop for Research Lab A-U61's scientists. Here, they exchange their standard-issue jumpsuits for a lab coat. At the end of their shift, they use the showering units and disinfectant powder to remove any dangerous substances they might have inadvertently accumulated during the course of their work. After all, the last thing the Bunker needs in the midst of the heroic struggle against traitors and social deviants is an outbreak of a deadly, flesh-eating bacteria. A long bench is situated in front of a row of tall lockers. Next to them along the wall are two showering units. On the opposite wall is a pill dispenser. A poster hangs next to it. Outward is a door leading to the research lab's main corridor. >* OH yeah, we can hide things there You seem to want to talk to someone, but I can't see whom. >x units Can't do it. >x showering A narrow space barely big enough to turn around in. Small holes in the ceiling dispense water, which disappears into a small drain in the floor. On the wall is a small container of disinfectant. >x drain In the drain is a gizmo. >x gizmo A thin, oblong piece of iron, small but otherwise unremarkable. >take gizmo The gizmo is too far down to reach. >turn on magnet That's already on. >aim magnet at gizmo The gizmo flies up through the grate in the drain and attaches itself to one end of the electromagnet. You switch the electromagnet off and retrieve it. >x gizmo A thin, oblong piece of iron, small but otherwise unremarkable. >take it You already have that. >left You can't go that way. >right You can't go that way. >outward Lab Hallway Center You are standing in the center of a bare hallway lit by glow panels. The wall to your left is made entirely of glass. Just out of reach above your head, a security camera relentlessly surveys the hallway and the areas visible through the glass wall. To the left, you can see the Refrigeration Unit. Across from it, to your right, is a plain door. The hallway continues both inward and outward. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >left You can't go that way. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >rgiht Come again? >right Dressing Room This is a shower and dressing room, the first and last stop for Research Lab A-U61's scientists. Here, they exchange their standard-issue jumpsuits for a lab coat. At the end of their shift, they use the showering units and disinfectant powder to remove any dangerous substances they might have inadvertently accumulated during the course of their work. After all, the last thing the Bunker needs in the midst of the heroic struggle against traitors and social deviants is an outbreak of a deadly, flesh-eating bacteria. A long bench is situated in front of a row of tall lockers. Next to them along the wall are two showering units. On the opposite wall is a pill dispenser. A poster hangs next to it. Outward is a door leading to the research lab's main corridor. >undo Lab Hallway Center [Previous turn undone.] >inward Lab Hallway Inward This is the beginning of Research Lab A-U61's main hallway, lit by glow panels. It is bare and - thanks to your best efforts - mostly free of dust. To your left is a glass wall. Through it, you can see into Dev 1. The thin outline of a door is visible in the glass. Opposite the glass wall to your right is a battered door. The lobby door is inward, and the hallway stretches outward. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >left (first opening the glass door) The glass door swings shut behind you. Dev 1 A shallow depression in the center dominates this room. Above it, a crane protrudes from the ceiling. Hanging nearby from a thick wire that leads into the wall is a controller. On one wall hangs a whiteboard. Otherwise, this area is sparse. This place has a strange smell, and splotches of grime and corrosion can be seen on the walls and ceiling. Both are no doubt remnants of spectacularly promising experiments. A squat opening leads outward, and a doorway obscured by a thick, black curtain leads inward. The wall to the right is made entirely of glass, on the other side of which is the research lab's main hallway. It is accessible through an almost invisible door. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >x controller A heavy, rectangular hunk of plastex that's charred in places, it is attached to a wire that runs into the wall near the shallow depression. A large switch is in the center. The large switch is up. Above it is a button (the top button) and below it is an identical one (the bottom button). Turning it around to the back, you can see an iron plate. A thin, oblong piece about half the length of your pinky is missing. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >put gizmo on plate Putting things on the controller would achieve nothing. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >put gizmo in plate It snaps easily into place. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. > left You can't go that way. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >right (first opening the glass door) The glass door swings shut behind you. Lab Hallway Inward This is the beginning of Research Lab A-U61's main hallway, lit by glow panels. It is bare and - thanks to your best efforts - mostly free of dust. To your left is a glass wall. Through it, you can see into Dev 1. The thin outline of a door is visible in the glass. Opposite the glass wall to your right is a battered door. The lobby door is inward, and the hallway stretches outward. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >out You can't go that way. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >outward Lab Hallway Center You are standing in the center of a bare hallway lit by glow panels. The wall to your left is made entirely of glass. Just out of reach above your head, a security camera relentlessly surveys the hallway and the areas visible through the glass wall. To the left, you can see the Refrigeration Unit. Across from it, to your right, is a plain door. The hallway continues both inward and outward. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >inward Lab Hallway Inward This is the beginning of Research Lab A-U61's main hallway, lit by glow panels. It is bare and - thanks to your best efforts - mostly free of dust. To your left is a glass wall. Through it, you can see into Dev 1. The thin outline of a door is visible in the glass. Opposite the glass wall to your right is a battered door. The lobby door is inward, and the hallway stretches outward. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >left (first opening the glass door) The glass door swings shut behind you. Dev 1 A shallow depression in the center dominates this room. Above it, a crane protrudes from the ceiling. Hanging nearby from a thick wire that leads into the wall is a controller. On one wall hangs a whiteboard. Otherwise, this area is sparse. This place has a strange smell, and splotches of grime and corrosion can be seen on the walls and ceiling. Both are no doubt remnants of spectacularly promising experiments. A squat opening leads outward, and a doorway obscured by a thick, black curtain leads inward. The wall to the right is made entirely of glass, on the other side of which is the research lab's main hallway. It is accessible through an almost invisible door. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >right (first opening the glass door) The glass door swings shut behind you. Lab Hallway Inward This is the beginning of Research Lab A-U61's main hallway, lit by glow panels. It is bare and - thanks to your best efforts - mostly free of dust. To your left is a glass wall. Through it, you can see into Dev 1. The thin outline of a door is visible in the glass. Opposite the glass wall to your right is a battered door. The lobby door is inward, and the hallway stretches outward. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >outward Lab Hallway Center You are standing in the center of a bare hallway lit by glow panels. The wall to your left is made entirely of glass. Just out of reach above your head, a security camera relentlessly surveys the hallway and the areas visible through the glass wall. To the left, you can see the Refrigeration Unit. Across from it, to your right, is a plain door. The hallway continues both inward and outward. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >left You can't go that way. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >outward Lab Hallway Outward You are standing at one end of a short, bare hallway lit by glow panels. The left wall is made entirely of glass. Through it you can see into Dev 3. Normally, a few researchers can be seen toiling within, but now it is strangely empty. To the left a door has been cut into the glass. Another door is to your right. A smart sign is affixed to it. Outward is a third door made entirely of metal. Inward, the corridor continues towards the Lobby. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >left (first opening the glass door) The glass door swings shut behind you. Dev 3 Four workstations have been arranged in a square in the center of this room, basking in the bright light from the glow panels. Nestled between them is a bank of manipulators. What appear to be controls for the manipulators have been built onto the surface of each workstation. Through a glass wall to the right, you see a hallway. A door has been cut into the glass. Set in the middle of the inward wall is a narrow opening. You can see the feather duster and a sturdy locker (empty) here. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >right (first opening the glass door) The glass door swings shut behind you. Lab Hallway Outward You are standing at one end of a short, bare hallway lit by glow panels. The left wall is made entirely of glass. Through it you can see into Dev 3. Normally, a few researchers can be seen toiling within, but now it is strangely empty. To the left a door has been cut into the glass. Another door is to your right. A smart sign is affixed to it. Outward is a third door made entirely of metal. Inward, the corridor continues towards the Lobby. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >inward Lab Hallway Center You are standing in the center of a bare hallway lit by glow panels. The wall to your left is made entirely of glass. Just out of reach above your head, a security camera relentlessly surveys the hallway and the areas visible through the glass wall. To the left, you can see the Refrigeration Unit. Across from it, to your right, is a plain door. The hallway continues both inward and outward. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >inward Lab Hallway Inward This is the beginning of Research Lab A-U61's main hallway, lit by glow panels. It is bare and - thanks to your best efforts - mostly free of dust. To your left is a glass wall. Through it, you can see into Dev 1. The thin outline of a door is visible in the glass. Opposite the glass wall to your right is a battered door. The lobby door is inward, and the hallway stretches outward. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >inward The Loyalty Stretch catches your attention on the tube. In a small box above Sally's head, the snap of a sheepish-looking young man appears. In the same instant, your PA lights up and you can see the very same face looking back at you from the display. "Meet Voymar Griffith," Sally exhorts, "our newest recipient of Fifteen Minutes of Fame!" The sounds of applause and enthusiastic whistling accompany the announcement. "As with all recipients of this rare and prestigious award, citizen Voymar has shown selfless and undying commitment to the Bunker and all it stands for: peace, prosperity and tranquility." Nodding enthusiastically, Yuri takes over. "That's right, Sally. Citizen Voymar is employed at one of our ball bearing factories, where a social deviant maliciously tipped over a wheelbarrow of sparkling new ball bearings. Suffice it to say, they were to be delivered to an undisclosed recipient in Defense. The social deviant was duly punished, but ongoing operations against the terrorist menace were threatened by the delay. Citizen Voymar is being recognized for taking it upon himself to forgo sleep and sustenance and retrieve every last one of those ball bearings with his bare hands, wherever they had rolled." "Citizens," Sally continues, "let us take a moment to review the highlights of citizen Voymar's life. Perhaps you will be inspired. I know I will!" You stand as you are with the rest of the Bunker, pretending to be interested, until the seemingly endless recitation is over. Lobby This is an ornate entrance hall. The walls are inlaid with the trappings of a respected research institution such as Research Lab A-U61: murals, awards, and the portraits of esteemed colleagues. The light comes from a battery of bright bulbs arranged in an X on the ceiling. An L-shaped receptionist's desk is tucked into one corner of the outward wall. The receptionist - a curt, expressionless man you've never had the displeasure of dealing with - is absent. In front of the receptionist's desk, a tube juts out from the wall. Underneath is a vending machine. Next to the vending machine and opposite the receptionist's desk is a sculpture, the Persevering Scientist. The remainder of the room is an open space. It is currently empty, save for a lone smart sign hanging on the wall. A large revolving door has been set in the inward wall. A turnstile has been placed directly in front of it. You can also go left through a wide opening. Another door next to the receptionist desk leads outward, deeper into the research lab. >left Depot This narrow, cramped space is where Research Lab A-U61 accepts and stores deliveries. It is sparsely lit by a single lightbulb dangling from the ceiling. A darkened service tunnel wide enough for a sizeable vehicle leads off into darkness. In the corner next to an obscured doorway in the outward wall is a stack of boxes. To the right through a wide opening, you can enter the lab's Lobby. You can see a forklift here. >enter hole Perhaps you are confused, citizen. >x boxes You peek inside a few boxes and find lab equipment. You have no idea what it could be used for. >look behind boes Can't do it. >move boxes You move the boxes out of the way, revealing a hole in the wall. >x hole The hole in the wall is quite wide, providing more than enough room to scramble through. Through it, you catch a whiff of something sweet. Strange, where did all those bodies go? >look in hole The hole in the wall is quite wide, providing more than enough room to scramble through. Through it, you catch a whiff of something sweet. >smell You catch a faint whiff of something a tad too sweet. >enter hole You crawl through the hole and make it to the other side. Your sudden arrival appears to upset the room's occupants. The one with the staff deftly swings it at your head and knocks you unconscious. When you come to, you find yourself on your knees with your head above a tub of murky water. You are not alone. Out the corner of your eye, you catch a glimpse of an audience seated in folding chairs behind you. A man in a red robe stands nearby, leading some kind of service. Someone's hand is holding you firmly by the neck. "O Lord," intones the strangely clad man, "we offer our thanks that You have provided us - Your pitiful flock - with life, free choice and an abundance of weapons. Congregation, let us pray." Together, they chant: "Eway askay orfay Ouryay essingblay asay eway indlykay anday entlygay ashway awayay ethay inssay ofay isthay intruderay. Amen." At that, your head is pushed into the tub and held there for quite some time. Longer than you can hold your breath, at any rate. *** You have died. *** Would you like to RESTART, RESTORE a saved game, QUIT or UNDO the last command? > undo Depot [Previous turn undone.] >save Ok. >hint (If you're using a screen reader, press S to turn on Screen Reader mode. This message only appears on the front page of the menu system.) 1. New to Interactive Fiction 2. New to Nothing Could Be Further From the Truth 3. New to the Bunker 4. Credits 5. Hints (Hints) 1. What's going on? 2. I am in Lab Hallway Inward. How do I escape? 3. Can I get an Epsilon security clearance in this game? 4. Can I get a Delta security clearance in this game? 5. Every time I smell, I sneeze. 6. What is the zorgot? 7. The security camera keeps blasting me for no reason. 8. A search and extraction team or two thugs or a tall, gangly man show up and end the game. 9. Lobby 0. Elsewhere in the Research Lab A. Restricted Research Lab B. Plaza C. Control D. The underground E. Waste of space F. Accusing someone (Hints - Accusing someone) 1. How do I successfully accuse someone? 2. Who can I accuse? (Hints - Accusing someone - Who can I accuse?) 1/15: Only proceed if you have encountered the Underground. 2/15: When you first put on the shiny black helmet, you encountered Asimov and he gave you a task. Once you deal with this task, you will have gotten one successful accusation out of the way. 3/15: You must find one other traitor to unmask. Press H to reveal another hint. ------------------------ (Hints - Accusing someone) 1. How do I successfully accuse someone? 2. Who can I accuse? (Hints) 1. What's going on? 2. I am in Lab Hallway Inward. How do I escape? 3. Can I get an Epsilon security clearance in this game? 4. Can I get a Delta security clearance in this game? 5. Every time I smell, I sneeze. 6. What is the zorgot? 7. The security camera keeps blasting me for no reason. 8. A search and extraction team or two thugs or a tall, gangly man show up and end the game. 9. Lobby 0. Elsewhere in the Research Lab A. Restricted Research Lab B. Plaza C. Control D. The underground E. Waste of space F. Accusing someone (If you're using a screen reader, press S to turn on Screen Reader mode. This message only appears on the front page of the menu system.) 1. New to Interactive Fiction 2. New to Nothing Could Be Further From the Truth 3. New to the Bunker 4. Credits 5. Hints Depot This narrow, cramped space is where Research Lab A-U61 accepts and stores deliveries. It is sparsely lit by a single lightbulb dangling from the ceiling. A darkened service tunnel wide enough for a sizeable vehicle leads off into darkness. In the corner next to an obscured doorway in the outward wall is a stack of boxes. A few of the boxes have been shunted aside, revealing a hole leading left. To the right through a wide opening, you can enter the lab's Lobby. You can see a forklift here. >left You crawl through the hole and make it to the other side. Your sudden arrival appears to upset the room's occupants. The one with the staff deftly swings it at your head and knocks you unconscious. When you come to, you find yourself on your knees with your head above a tub of murky water. You are not alone. Out the corner of your eye, you catch a glimpse of an audience seated in folding chairs behind you. A man in a red robe stands nearby, leading some kind of service. Someone's hand is holding you firmly by the neck. "O Lord," intones the strangely clad man, "we offer our thanks that You have provided us - Your pitiful flock - with life, free choice and an abundance of weapons. Congregation, let us pray." Together, they chant: "Eway askay orfay Ouryay essingblay asay eway indlykay anday entlygay ashway awayay ethay inssay ofay isthay intruderay. Amen." At that, your head is pushed into the tub and held there for quite some time. Longer than you can hold your breath, at any rate. *** You have died. *** Would you like to RESTART, RESTORE a saved game, QUIT or UNDO the last command? > undo Depot [Previous turn undone.] >right The Loyalty Stretch catches your attention on the tube. Yuri's face droops a little as he announces, "And now, good citizens, back to the most important news of the daystretch: the new and improved Vitamim being served in X-10 sector." Sally does her best to be excited. "Control cares about our health and wellbeing," she continues. "Did you know that the new and improved Vitamim now cures common skin rashes?" You lose interest and return to the matter at hand. Lobby This is an ornate entrance hall. The walls are inlaid with the trappings of a respected research institution such as Research Lab A-U61: murals, awards, and the portraits of esteemed colleagues. The light comes from a battery of bright bulbs arranged in an X on the ceiling. An L-shaped receptionist's desk is tucked into one corner of the outward wall. The receptionist - a curt, expressionless man you've never had the displeasure of dealing with - is absent. In front of the receptionist's desk, a tube juts out from the wall. Underneath is a vending machine. Next to the vending machine and opposite the receptionist's desk is a sculpture, the Persevering Scientist. The remainder of the room is an open space. It is currently empty, save for a lone smart sign hanging on the wall. A large revolving door has been set in the inward wall. A turnstile has been placed directly in front of it. You can also go left through a wide opening. Another door next to the receptionist desk leads outward, deeper into the research lab. >inward You pass through the turnstile and push through the revolving door. Plaza, by the Lab You are standing outside Research Lab A-U61. A decorative statuette protrudes from the wall, but otherwise the building and its purpose is unmarked. The normally bustling Tucker M. Carlson plaza is strangely subdued today. Inward, you see a mobile response unit set up by Homeland Security, which explains why. All the citizens in the area have been detained for questioning, and - for the moment at least - no one is allowed to leave. To the right is a row of vendors, and to the left a billboard hangs over a security camera. Beyond them, a caring demonstration is getting under way. Outward is a revolving door leading into the lab. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >inward Plaza, Near the Museum You are standing halfway to the center of the plaza. A sense of travesty and loss envelops you here. Nearby, corpses have been piled into a sloppy stack, and a mobile response unit has been hastily set up next to it. A long queue of frightened, weeping citizens has formed there, waiting patiently to exonerate themselves. Outward is the Museum of Athletic Ability, occupying the very center of the plaza. There, a group of exercise enthusiasts has gathered for some intense stretching. Inward is the entrance to Research Lab A-U61. To the left and right are large, empty spaces, beyond which are corridors leading off to other parts of the department. You can see the agent from Homeland Security here. At the end of the queue, you spot the delivery man, stomping his feet impatiently and craning his neck. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >accuse cult I would if I could, citizen. >accuse artemis I would if I could, citizen. >tell agent about cult (the agent from Homeland Security about that) "Really? I suppose I could pretend that was interesting. I suppose I could..." At the end of the queue, you spot the delivery man, stomping his feet impatiently and craning his neck. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >tell agent about artemis (the agent from Homeland Security about that) "Really? I suppose I could pretend that was interesting. I suppose I could..." At the end of the queue, you spot the delivery man, stomping his feet impatiently and craning his neck. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >* oh wait asimov Come again? >accuse asimov You call Homeland Security's new and improved terrorist hotline and manage to get an agent on the line. When it becomes clear you have nothing in the way of evidence to back up your claims, she grows angry and sends someone to investigate. Within minutestretches, you are in the presence of a stocky, irritable man who listens impatiently as you repeat the story. You haven't even finished before he draws a stun gun. "Don't you know it's treasonous to falsely accuse your fellow citizens of treason?" You would like to answer, but by now you are twitching uncontrollably on the floor at his feet. He prods you roughly with a thick, black boot. A few stretches later, a colleague shows up with a wheelbarrow. Together, they toss you in and whisk you off to a Homeland Security interrogation center. *** You have been arrested. *** Would you like to RESTART, RESTORE a saved game, QUIT or UNDO the last command? > undo Plaza, Near the Museum [Previous turn undone.] >tell agent about hole (the agent from Homeland Security about that) "Really? I suppose I could pretend that was interesting. I suppose I could..." At the end of the queue, you spot the delivery man, stomping his feet impatiently and craning his neck. A red light gleams menacingly under the plaza security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >tell agent about church (the agent from Homeland Security about that) The agent from Homeland Security blinks stupidly a few times before a glint of malice shines briefly in her eyes. Whipping out her laser pistol, she marches you off to the closest interrogation center. She may have found the terrorist on the loose in the Tucker M. Carlson plaza; then again, maybe not. But you sense that either way, she could care less. *** Nice try. *** Would you like to RESTART, RESTORE a saved game, QUIT or UNDO the last command? > restore Ok. >l Depot This narrow, cramped space is where Research Lab A-U61 accepts and stores deliveries. It is sparsely lit by a single lightbulb dangling from the ceiling. A darkened service tunnel wide enough for a sizeable vehicle leads off into darkness. In the corner next to an obscured doorway in the outward wall is a stack of boxes. A few of the boxes have been shunted aside, revealing a hole leading left. To the right through a wide opening, you can enter the lab's Lobby. You can see a forklift here. >left You crawl through the hole and make it to the other side. Your sudden arrival appears to upset the room's occupants. The one with the staff deftly swings it at your head and knocks you unconscious. When you come to, you find yourself on your knees with your head above a tub of murky water. You are not alone. Out the corner of your eye, you catch a glimpse of an audience seated in folding chairs behind you. A man in a red robe stands nearby, leading some kind of service. Someone's hand is holding you firmly by the neck. "O Lord," intones the strangely clad man, "we offer our thanks that You have provided us - Your pitiful flock - with life, free choice and an abundance of weapons. Congregation, let us pray." Together, they chant: "Eway askay orfay Ouryay essingblay asay eway indlykay anday entlygay ashway awayay ethay inssay ofay isthay intruderay. Amen." At that, your head is pushed into the tub and held there for quite some time. Longer than you can hold your breath, at any rate. *** You have died. *** Would you like to RESTART, RESTORE a saved game, QUIT or UNDO the last command? > undo Depot [Previous turn undone.] >right The Loyalty Stretch catches your attention on the tube. Yuri's face droops a little as he announces, "And now, good citizens, back to the most important news of the daystretch: the new and improved Vitamim being served in X-10 sector." Sally does her best to be excited. "Control cares about our health and wellbeing," she continues. "Did you know that the new and improved Vitamim now cures common skin rashes?" You lose interest and return to the matter at hand. Lobby This is an ornate entrance hall. The walls are inlaid with the trappings of a respected research institution such as Research Lab A-U61: murals, awards, and the portraits of esteemed colleagues. The light comes from a battery of bright bulbs arranged in an X on the ceiling. An L-shaped receptionist's desk is tucked into one corner of the outward wall. The receptionist - a curt, expressionless man you've never had the displeasure of dealing with - is absent. In front of the receptionist's desk, a tube juts out from the wall. Underneath is a vending machine. Next to the vending machine and opposite the receptionist's desk is a sculpture, the Persevering Scientist. The remainder of the room is an open space. It is currently empty, save for a lone smart sign hanging on the wall. A large revolving door has been set in the inward wall. A turnstile has been placed directly in front of it. You can also go left through a wide opening. Another door next to the receptionist desk leads outward, deeper into the research lab. >take helmet You already have that. >wear it The shiny black helmet fits easily onto your head, and the visor slips over your eyes. You can't see anything. >turn it on You should probably take the helmet off first. >remove helmet The visor lifts from your eyes, and you find yourself standing in Lobby. >turn on helmet It isn't something you can switch. >left Depot This narrow, cramped space is where Research Lab A-U61 accepts and stores deliveries. It is sparsely lit by a single lightbulb dangling from the ceiling. A darkened service tunnel wide enough for a sizeable vehicle leads off into darkness. In the corner next to an obscured doorway in the outward wall is a stack of boxes. A few of the boxes have been shunted aside, revealing a hole leading left. To the right through a wide opening, you can enter the lab's Lobby. You can see a forklift here. >right Lobby This is an ornate entrance hall. The walls are inlaid with the trappings of a respected research institution such as Research Lab A-U61: murals, awards, and the portraits of esteemed colleagues. The light comes from a battery of bright bulbs arranged in an X on the ceiling. An L-shaped receptionist's desk is tucked into one corner of the outward wall. The receptionist - a curt, expressionless man you've never had the displeasure of dealing with - is absent. In front of the receptionist's desk, a tube juts out from the wall. Underneath is a vending machine. Next to the vending machine and opposite the receptionist's desk is a sculpture, the Persevering Scientist. The remainder of the room is an open space. It is currently empty, save for a lone smart sign hanging on the wall. A large revolving door has been set in the inward wall. A turnstile has been placed directly in front of it. You can also go left through a wide opening. Another door next to the receptionist desk leads outward, deeper into the research lab. >outward Lab Hallway Inward This is the beginning of Research Lab A-U61's main hallway, lit by glow panels. It is bare and - thanks to your best efforts - mostly free of dust. To your left is a glass wall. Through it, you can see into Dev 1. The thin outline of a door is visible in the glass. Opposite the glass wall to your right is a battered door. The lobby door is inward, and the hallway stretches outward. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >left (first opening the glass door) The glass door swings shut behind you. Dev 1 A shallow depression in the center dominates this room. Above it, a crane protrudes from the ceiling. Hanging nearby from a thick wire that leads into the wall is a controller. On one wall hangs a whiteboard. Otherwise, this area is sparse. This place has a strange smell, and splotches of grime and corrosion can be seen on the walls and ceiling. Both are no doubt remnants of spectacularly promising experiments. A squat opening leads outward, and a doorway obscured by a thick, black curtain leads inward. The wall to the right is made entirely of glass, on the other side of which is the research lab's main hallway. It is accessible through an almost invisible door. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >x controller A heavy, rectangular hunk of plastex that's charred in places, it is attached to a wire that runs into the wall near the shallow depression. A large switch is in the center. The large switch is up. Above it is a button (the top button) and below it is an identical one (the bottom button). In the controller is a gizmo. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >turn on switch It isn't something you can switch. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >turn on ctroller Can't do it. >turn on controller It isn't something you can switch. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >flip switch You flip the large switch. It is now down. You hear a whiny screeching as an invisible gear above you turns. The chain slowly descends. When the screeching stops, the hook hangs a few centimeters from the bottom of the shallow depression. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >x hook Through a small hole in the wall hangs a thick chain. At its end is a large hook. The crane is currently lowered. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >push top Nothing obvious happens. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >push button Which do you mean, the top button or the bottom button? >button Which do you mean, the top button or the bottom button? >bottom A hollow booming sounds from somewhere below your feet. At first, nothing happens, but then the shallow depression drops a meter through the floor. A crawlspace leading off to the left is now visible. A red light gleams menacingly under the hallway security camera. It carefully sweeps the area. >left You kick up a cloud of dust which envelops your face. Naturally, the inevitable follows: a loud, juicy sneeze! Before it can happen again, you hold your breath and plunge into the crawlspace. There is enough room for you to slither along on your hands and knees. The way is fairly straight, but eventually you reach a slight turn. Light streams into the crawlspace beyond. Grateful, you reach the other end. At the end of the tunnel is an opening. Two people in strange attire stare coldly down at you. "I told you I heard something," says the woman with the strap-on beard. "Let us less this needy typhoid!" Before you can protest, she swings her staff at your head and knocks you unconscious. When you come to, you find yourself on your knees with your head above a tub of murky water. You are not alone. Out the corner of your eye, you catch a glimpse of an audience seated in folding chairs behind you. A man in a red robe stands nearby, leading some kind of service. Someone's hand is holding you firmly by the neck. "O Lord," intones the strangely clad man, "we offer our thanks that You have provided us - Your pitiful flock - with life, free choice and an abundance of weapons. Congregation, let us pray." Together, they chant: "Eway askay orfay Ouryay essingblay asay eway indlykay anday entlygay ashway awayay ethay inssay ofay isthay intruderay. Amen." At that, your head is pushed into the tub and held there for quite some time. Longer than you can hold your breath, at any rate. *** You have died. *** Would you like to RESTART, RESTORE a saved game, QUIT or UNDO the last command? > undo Dev 1 [Previous turn undone.] >