Start of a transcript of Meeting Robb Sherwin An Interactive Fiction by Jizaboz Release 1 / Serial number 191002 / Inform 7 build 6M62 (I6/v6.33 lib 6/12N) Identification number: //84EBF7A1-99AE-4C71-A6A2-F8C2F1B30572// Standard interpreter 1.2 (0) / Library serial number 080126 Standard Rules version 3/120430 by Graham Nelson >l Platform You are standing on a train platform where people are boarding the RTD rail line to the east in order to leave the airport. You can see a kiosk here. >verbose Meeting Robb Sherwin is now in its "verbose" mode, which always gives long descriptions of locations (even if you've been there before). >l Platform You are standing on a train platform where people are boarding the RTD rail line to the east in order to leave the airport. You can see a kiosk here. >x kiosk This seems to be an automated ticket terminal. There is a large LED square in the middle of which displays "$9.00". >i You are carrying: a wallet (closed) a phone >x me That's hard for you properly without a mirror around, but for a moment you stare down at your black khaki pants with matching black Vans brand shoes. >x wallet It's a big chain wallet like a biker would wear. However, the chain was broke off during a stupid game of fisticuffs over Budweiser about 20 years ago. >open it You open the wallet, revealing a credit card and a drivers license. >put credit card in kiosk Your credit card can not physically be inserted into the kiosk at this time for some reason. >x square There is a large LED square in the middle of which displays "$9.00". The words "PURCHASE TICKET" are printed above it on the kiosk. >purchase ticket You can't see any such thing. >use That's not a verb I recognise. >help That's not a verb I recognise. >about Meeting Robb Sherwin A slice of life created by Jizaboz. Play testers: Robb Sherwin, Jonathan Blask, Chris Wardell >buy ticket You can't see any such thing. >push kiosk It is fixed in place. >search it The kiosk is empty. >l Platform You are standing on a train platform where people are boarding the RTD rail line to the east in order to leave the airport. You can see a kiosk here. >x booth Hm. This doesn't appear to be a ticket booth at all. There are no visible openings as you peer through the window no one inside pays you any attention. Perhaps this is a security building or something. >x terminal You can't see any such thing. >x ticket You can't see any such thing. >x kiosk This seems to be an automated ticket terminal. There is a large LED square in the middle of which displays "$9.00". >enter train That's not something you can enter. >x train A modern and high-tech looking electric train. The doors are open and passengers are boarding. >enter door That's not something you can enter. >in You can't go that way. >x square There is a large LED square in the middle of which displays "$9.00". The words "PURCHASE TICKET" are printed above it on the kiosk. >push it You push the square. The kiosk begins blinking and prompting you to insert a credit card. >insert card What do you want to insert the credit card in? >kiosk (first taking the credit card) You insert your VISA card into the kiosk. A few seconds later, the kiosk quits blinking. After a mechanical clicking sound, it dispences your credit card and a ticket; both of which are sticking out of the machine. >take card Taken. >take ticket Taken. >enter train That's not something you can enter. >x ticket This ticket provides transportation on the A Line for the day. >l Platform You are standing on a train platform where people are boarding the RTD rail line to the east in order to leave the airport. You can see a kiosk here. >board That's not a verb I recognise. >e Train You board the train and moments later it begins to move. It's very plain inside; mostly white with blue seating. The other passengers start looking at the scenery through the window, talking amongst themselves or glancing at their cell phones. >x window Along this route you mainly see dry scrubland. Since it is June, there is no snow on the ground. >x passengers These passengers are fairly non-desciptive. The few that are here are either talking to themselves or looking at their phones. A man in a uniform with some sort of scanner on his belt walks up to your seat and addresses you. "Ticket, sir." "Okay. Here you go." you say while handing him the ticket. He thanks you and heads down to the next row. About 20 minutes later, you arrive at your destination. Union Station You admire the city for the first time. There are kids playing in an area with water spouts popping out of the sidewalk. It feels comfortable to you here despite the temperature. The humidity level is much lower than back home! You take a deep breath of the dry air. Streets lead off in many directions. You looked at this area in Google Maps a few times before you got here; just enough to know it's not practical to walk to your hotel from here. You should probably "call Robb" to let him know you have arrived in Denver. >call robb Robb answers the phone. "Hello?" "Hey Robb! I just landed, man! Now how do I get out of here?" "That's awesome. Do you need me to get you a ride? I'll get you a ride. Can't wait to see you buddy! Oh. Wait. What should I call you when I introduce you to my parents and stuff? I mean.. other than Jiz?" Robb replies. After talking a little longer, a black SUV promptly pulls up across the street. You cancel the call after muttering "Think he's here. Bye." A while man in it spots you in a red Neo Geo MVS shirt you told Robb that you would be wearing. "Robb?" he says as you approach the vehicle. Failure to communicate something here, but close enough. You enter the vehicle which takes you to.. Parking Lot Here you have arrived at the parking lot of the La Quinta hotel. There is a pool here on the other side of a gate which a father and his two kids in swimming trunks are skipping along their way to take a dip in. As you stand around taking in the loud sound of trains idling on the two or three tracks wihin about one hundred yards of the hotel and notice a little area with a picnic table and trashcan by the fence, you hear the sound of the two young boys crying as you notice them walk back into their room. The father slams one of the doors to the west behind them. The hotel lobby is to the northeast and the street is to the east. You can see the door to room 302 here. >x 302 You can't see any such thing. >x door You see nothing special about the door to room 302. >open it It seems to be locked. >unlock it What do you want to unlock the door to room 302 with? >i You are carrying: a credit card a wallet (open) a drivers license a phone >ne Hotel Lobby This bare lobby has two features; a desk and a woman covered in tattoos behind it. The only exit is to the door to the southwest. The receptionist addresses you and asks for your reservation information. After she punches a few things into a computer, she hands you your keycard and informs you that checkout time is eleven in the morning. You can see a receptionist here. >talk That's not a verb I recognise. >x woman You can't see any such thing. >sw Parking Lot You are standing between the fence blocking the pool and the picnic area in the La Quinta parking lot. The loud hum of trains idling nearby fills the air. The hotel lobby is to the northeast and the street is to the east. All of the hotel room doors are to the west. You can see the door to room 302 here. >unlock door What do you want to unlock the door to room 302 with? >keycard You unlock the door to room 302. >open it You open the door to room 302. >enter it Your Room You walk into your room and look around. It looks pretty clean at first glance, but when you peel back the blanket on the first of your two beds closest to the window, you notice a hair in the bed and a stain on the pillow. That won't do. The second bed near the bathroom looks cleaner and you lay down on it for a bit to relax after the trip. Due to the excitement of your new surroundings, you can't sleep it all, but you feel better after about twenty minutes. Suddenly, your phone rings and you answer it. "Hey man!" You recognize that voice. It's your friend; Mr. "Jonathan" Jack Flack! "What's up, Flack?" "What's up dude? Looks like everyone is headed over to the Hipster Draft House soon. You need a ride?" "Nah, I'll just walk." you reply. "I wanna walk around and check out the area a little bit on the way." "You sure? That's cool. See you there. Later!" says Flack as he ends the call. You can see the door to the parking lot here. The door to the parking lot slowly closes. >exit But you aren't in anything at the moment. >out But you aren't in anything at the moment. >s You can't go that way. >e (first opening the door to the parking lot) Parking Lot You are standing between the fence blocking the pool and the picnic area in the La Quinta parking lot. The loud hum of trains idling nearby fills the air. The hotel lobby is to the northeast and the street is to the east. All of the hotel room doors are to the west. You can see the door to room 302 here. >e Park Avenue Bridge This large bridge has plenty of sidewalk on each side for pedestrians and an excellent view of the Rocky Mountains. Downtown Denver is to the south. Up the street to the northeast you see a large box-shaped building with a plain sign next to it. The La Quinta hotel is to the west. In the far distance to the east, you see the peaks of the Rocky Mountains. >ne Pure You walk into what looks like a waiting room for a dental practice office, but there are no patients sitting here. A friendly merchant behind the counter greets you. "Hey, how's it going? Never been here before? I will need you to give me some identification to let you through to see the merchandise." she says. You can see the merchant here. >give drivers license to merchant (first taking the drivers license) You hand your ID to the merchant. She enters a few things into a computer and hands it back to. Then, you hear a buzz coming from a door near the counter. "Please come on in." the merchant says. You walk into a room containing many glass jars filled with different types of marijuana. The clean-shaven man behind the counter greets you and asks "So, what are you looking for? Would you consider yourself a light user?" He probably wouldn't assume that if you didn't just get a haircut for this trip you think to yourself. "Actually, no. I'm uh.. pretty heavy duty if you know what I mean." You respond. Oh. Well.. okay. This here is over 25% percent THC. It's called Dead Head and.. "I'll take that." you respond. And so, after a quick walk to the back of the building to use the ATM (They don't accept credit cards, apparently.) and 10 minutes later, you walk out with your product in a medicine bottle, something to smoke it with, and something to burn it with. You pocket your new stash and head back out to the street. Park Avenue Bridge This large bridge has plenty of sidewalk on each side for pedestrians and an excellent view of the Rocky Mountains. Downtown Denver is to the south. Up the street to the northeast you see a large box-shaped building with a plain sign next to it. The La Quinta hotel is to the west. In the far distance to the east, you see the peaks of the Rocky Mountains. >n You can't go that way. >e You can't go that way. >s Downtown This is just one small section of the rest of downtown Denver, but at the moment your destination is the Hipster Draft House to the west. Artistic graffiti marks most of the sides of the buildings down the nearby alleyways. People are strolling about everywhere around you. The Park Avenue Bridge is back to the north. >w Hipster Draft House You stroll into the large, open doors into a bar with very minimal decor. The main point of interest is one wall is filled with beer taps. You look around a while for someone you know. There are not many people here yet. Quickly, you notice Flack waving at you from a nearby table. Plain, wooden tables and benches on the concrete floor fill the room; slightly resembling a German beer hall. Maybe I should "ask Flack about beer". You can see Flack here. >ask flack about beer You walk over to Flack and say "What's up, Flack? Good to see you again!" "Good to see you, man." he replies. "So hey, how do you get beer around here anyway? I see beer taps on the wall that people are just helping themselves to. This place is high tech!" you say. "Yeah man. Check it out.." he replies as he explains how the tap system works. At this point, all you have to do is "take beer" if you want another one. Or three. You pick what seems to be the strongest lager they have on tap and drink it down while talking with Flack about Denver. >z Time passes. Flack asks you about your flight. You explain that it was one of the roughest you had ever ridden. There was a lot of turbulence or something because the plane hopped in the air more often that smoothly flying through it. "Oh man. That sucks." he replies. >z Time passes. Some dude with a shaved head a weird, skinny, braided little beard introduces himself to you as John and starts talking. And talking. Mostly about himself and females in the room. You distance yourself as far away from him as quickly as possible >z Time passes. You hear some cheering as someone walks in. It's Robb Sherwin! He's surrounded by people, but maybe you could manage to "ask robb about tomorrow" and finally meet in person for the first time. >ask robb about tomorrow You wade through a few people to get to Robb Sherwin. "Robb!" you exclaim. "Really nice to finally meet you in person." You shake his hand and ask "Nervous about tomorrow?" "You know.. surprisingly, not at all!" He responds. You talk some about each others arcade games, and he mentions you should join the others going to his house later to check out his basement arcade. Flack enters the conversation for a while and the three of you are all in agreement that you wish that your mutual friend Roody Yogurt could have made an appearance this weekend. >z Time passes. You hear an eruption of laughter at a nearby table. Food is offered by a passing staff member, and you grab a hamburger slider which you gobble down in four bites. >z Time passes. >z Time passes. >l Hipster Draft House This bar has very minimal decor aside from an elaborate wall filled with beer taps. It sort of resembles a German beer hall with all of the large wooden tables. You can see Robb and Flack here. Most of your party announces they are leaving and headed to Robb's house. You tag along, but his basement arcade is filled with kids and there are so many people in the rest of the house that you spend more time on his back porch smoking cigarettes (a habit you finally gave up a little over a year later) and talking to the people that come outside rather than hang out inside. However, Robb and the bride to be are among those people, and you get to spend about half an hour talking with them. A local friend of Robb offers to give you a ride back to your hotel once things wind down. He hasn't been drinking and you have never called an "Uber" like people always suggest to do when you need a ride, so you take him up on the offer. The ride takes ten minutes or less, and it sure beats walking back as worn out as you currently are. Soon after turning on the television to watch some Ancient Aliens, you fall asleep in your bed.. Your Room You are in your room at the La Quinta. There's not much here and it's certainly not very fancy, but that's fine. You won't be here long. It just seems rather run down for one hundred and thirty dollars a night even if it is this close to the Coors baseball field. The door out is to the east. You can see the door to the parking lot here. You wake up at almost lunchtime the next day. You should probably "take shower" so you don't offend the others in the car when Flack picks you up a little later. You're pretty sure you recall him saying he was going to give you a ride to the wedding anyway. >take shower What the hell? There's no soap in here! Guess I need to go to the hotel lobby and "ask receptionist about soap". Ridiculous. >s You can't go that way. >e Parking Lot You are standing between the fence blocking the pool and the picnic area in the La Quinta parking lot. The loud hum of trains idling nearby fills the air. The hotel lobby is to the northeast and the street is to the east. All of the hotel room doors are to the west. You can see the door to room 302 here. >ne Hotel Lobby This bare lobby has two features; a desk and a woman covered in tattoos behind it. The only exit is to the door to the southwest. You can see a receptionist here. >ask about soap You can't see any such thing. >ask receptionist about soap "Um.. do you have soap? There's not any in my shower." you ask the receptionist. "Sure. Here you go." she says as she hands you a small bar of soap wrapped in paper. "Thanks." you reply as you pocket the soap. >sw Parking Lot You are standing between the fence blocking the pool and the picnic area in the La Quinta parking lot. The loud hum of trains idling nearby fills the air. The hotel lobby is to the northeast and the street is to the east. All of the hotel room doors are to the west. You can see the door to room 302 here. >w Your Room You are in your room at the La Quinta. There's not much here and it's certainly not very fancy, but that's fine. You won't be here long. It just seems rather run down for one hundred and thirty dollars a night even if it is this close to the Coors baseball field. The door out is to the east. You can see the door to the parking lot here. >take shower You jump in the beige shower and get cleaned up. After drying off and putting on clean clothes, you feel refreshed. Hm. Where is your ride? You should probably "call Flack". You were afraid the phone would ring or the phone would ring during the soap fiasco, but neither have occurred. >call flack You call Flack. After a few rings he answers. "What's up man?" "Hey man! Are you on your way to pick you up?" you ask. Long, silent pause. "Uh.. I thought you were going to take an Uber or something. Why don't you do that? We're like almost there. Sorry man!" Flack replies before letting you go. Damn it! This is not good. You don't know where to begin to get yourself a ride. You look up how far it is to walk. Over an hour and the directions look a bit confusing, even on paper. The last thing you want to be doing is walking around like an idiot for a few hours in Denver while missing what you came here for in the first place. You download the Uber app. The account creation process, your phone, or both is going way slow. Your heart starts pounding as panic sets in. After about ten minutes of this frantic moment, Flack dials your phone again. Maybe he's curious as to if you got a ride or not. "Hey man!" Flack says. "I guess you didn't get a ride yet. Look, we just left Walmart and my wife checked the GPS and says we've got time to get you." "Are you sure? I won't make you late?" you ask. "We won't miss anything man. We've got time." he says. "Dude, I really appreciate this! I was really starting to panic there!" you reply. After getting off the phone, you grab a collared shirt with a tie you already put a windsor knot in, you briefly wait in the parking lot to wait for your ride. It arrives within minutes to take you to a large park where the wedding is being held. The Wedding You march along with Mr. and Mrs. Flack across a long field of grass up a low hill towards a lone fancy-looking structure. Surely this is the right place. Otherwise, there is going to be a lot more trekking across this park and you are running out of time. Once you reach the top of the hill, it's obvious you are finally here. Many people are here talking and laughing. Flack and his wife go their seperate way for a while to mingle with others. You can see Jason and Flack here. >z Time passes. You hear a young, male voice exclaim "That's WONDERFUL!" You notice Jason Scott walking away from the pizza line. Maybe you should "ask Jason about Durham" because that's the only topic you can think of to bring up to him. You think he was there recently, and that's about a forty minute drive from where your house is. >ask jason about durham ""You walk up to Jason and introduce yourself by your real name and tell him that it's great to meet him. He stares directly into your eyes and asks "I'm sorry. Who are you? How would I know you?" "Uh.. I'm Jizaboz on.." you begin to say as he cuts you off. "Ohhh you! Right, Right. I think Robb mentioned you were coming." he replies. "Yeah, I flew in from North Carolina. This is my first time in Denver. Weren't you in Durham, North Carolina not that long ago?" you ask. You end up having a short but good conversation. You learn that both of you had relatives that were treated at the main hospital in Durham. After he walks off, someone offers you a Miller Lite. Not your favorite beer by any means, but it's hot out here and you are thirsty. You drink it quickly and deposit the can in a recycling bin. Some random, sweaty jogger dude jogs up to your area, looks around, then jogs off around the pond. >z Time passes. Some awful jackass helps himself to a piece of the uncut wedding cake, then disappears. >z Time passes. >z Time passes. >z Time passes. People start making their way near a platform by the pond. You follow them over as it's obvious things are getting started. Flack's wife reserves a seat for you and you wait for things to begin. Robb Sherwin emerges, and stands at the platform. The bride appears and walks up to the platform to join him; looking happy and vibrant. Everything is silent with exception to light music playing. "They're GETTING MARRIED! That's WONDERFUL!" you hear the now slightly familiar young voice. You glance back and see a very happy teenage boy who is the obvious culprit of this outburst due to all the other people you see also glancing at him. It's apparent this kid has a learning disability or something, but you much more annoyed at the old woman nearby scowling at him and his parents than you are with him. Robb and the bride are completely oblivious. The bride and groom read their vows they had written themselves, producing a few chuckles from the crowd at certain moments. Shortly after, they are pronounced man and wife. As everyone begins to rise and clap, a small flock of doves that is released behind you that flies over your head and towards the lake. You hear that familiar voice once again: "And now back to SISTER SISTER ON THE DISNEY CHANNEL!" You couldn't have said it better yourself. Things happen, but life moves on. Much like by lunchtime tomorrow, you will be boarding a flight back to North Carolina and saying goodbye to friends both old and new. You talk with Robb briefly as he notices you starting to leave before saying goodbye. You go looking for Flack for yet another ride back to your hotel. >z Time passes. >z Time passes. You have had a great time on this trip. You got to talk to many interesting people and have formed closer friendships. Most importantly, you met Robb Sherwin! On the way out, Robb invites you back to his place early tomorrow morning before your flight and offers to give you a ride to the nearest train terminal. You gladly accept. Once there, you get to play his various arcade games alone for a bit. At least, you think you are alone. In a dark corner behind you, there lies a ball of fur! Upon closer examination, you see it is a long-haired cat. This must be the legendary cat "Frobozz". "Hello friend. I'm Robb's friend too. You look like a sleepy cat. Ok, friend. I'll let you be. Nice meeting you." you say to the cat as you go return to playing games. *** The End *** Would you like to RESTART, RESTORE a saved game, QUIT or UNDO the last command? > q Please give one of the answers above. Would you like to RESTART, RESTORE a saved game, QUIT or UNDO the last command? >