Text will now be saved to the script file. Type SCRIPT OFF to discontinue scripting. >restart Do you really want to start over? (Y is affirmative) > y Years ago, a witch placed you in this tower and arranged for your upkeep, paying certain villagers well to keep you supplied with the most basic necessities, and no more. Your years in the tower have changed you. You are more or less a grown woman now, with hair nearly to the floor. Your skills have developed as far as solitude and tedium can take them. You are ready to leave. Take your time. (New players may wish to type ABOUT.) Kitchen A fire burns in the fireplace and a few basic kitchen things are still lying around. The plank staircase spirals up to the room above, while a much older, darker, stone staircase descends to the storeroom below. You see a withered apple and a cauldron here. >about This game was created for Speed-IF Indigo, which challenged authors to create a piece somehow loosely related to the idea of indigo while using a programming language they haven't published in before. I only had a couple of afternoons to give this project, and there's lots I would like to have done better. As with all speed-IF, this is an unfinished design with minimal implementation. Still, it was a fun time, and I owe a lot to Eric Eve's manuals and tour guide for making it possible to implement even as much as I was able to here, given that I was coming to the language as an almost complete novice. It is possible to make the game unfinishable, but typically only by destroying an object. It should be immediately obvious when an object is destroyed. Hints are available, though like everything else, they may be flawed. Finally: if in doubt about removing one object from another, try TAKE. Other variations ('get foo from bar', 'remove foo from bar', etc.) are not necessarily as well accounted-for as they should be. >x apple The skin has drawn in close and wrinkled; the flesh has turned to meal. A month of age clings to it, making it ugly and useless. >get it Taken. >x cauldron A heavy iron cauldron, with a lid. It’s closed. >open it Opening the cauldron reveals an unfinished potion. There's a strong smell of rotten eggs. >x potion A potion with weeks of age on it. It is not done yet, however. Another month should finish it: its purpose is to fortify the hair, make it strong and glossy and unbreakable. >l Kitchen A fire burns in the fireplace and a few basic kitchen things are still lying around. The plank staircase spirals up to the room above, while a much older, darker, stone staircase descends to the storeroom below. You see a cauldron (which contains an unfinished potion) here. There's a strong smell of rotten eggs. >smell There's a strong smell of rotten eggs. >x things The word “things” is not necessary in this story. (If this was an accidental misspelling, you can correct it by typing OOPS followed by the corrected word now. Any time the story points out an unknown word, you can correct a misspelling using OOPS as your next command.) >x kitchen things The word “kitchen” is not necessary in this story. >x fire The fireplace is substantial, and serves you for both food and warmth. A low peaty fire is burning there. >get it It's fixed to the wall. There's a strong smell of rotten eggs. >u You clatter up the stairs. Blue Tower This compact turret has been your home for the last ten years, and the walls are covered and re-covered in the images you've painted there. There is a window in the curving south wall, and stone stairs spiral down into the body of the tower. Under the low bed are a small wooden box and a chamber pot. The rotten-egg smell diminishes. >[clatter?] The story doesn’t know how to use the character ‘[’ in a command. >x paintings The word “paintings” is not necessary in this story. >x images The pictures show a sky in transition from day to night: on one side, puffy clouds and birds are visible, while the sky opposite is dark and starry. It's all taken a very large amount of blue dye. What lies there now is a decade of work. >x box A rough box, somewhat the worse for wear. It’s closed. >open it Opening the small wooden box reveals a stub of candle, a comb, some shears, and a stained paintbrush. >get box Taken. >x paintbrush A makeshift construct of hair (your own) and string and stick. These never last long. This is your most recent brush, the bristles stained deep blue and never washed clean. >x shears Cold iron shears, still sharp enough to do their business. >x comb The one treasure you have, from your mother: a broken-toothed tortoise-shell comb with a mermaid crudely carved into the handle. >comb hair The story doesn’t understand that command. >get comb Taken. >comb hair The story doesn’t understand that command. >l Blue Tower This compact turret has been your home for the last ten years, and the walls are covered and re-covered in the images you've painted there. There is a window in the curving south wall, and stone stairs spiral down into the body of the tower. Under the low bed is a chamber pot. >x pot It's a cheap clay pot with the most humble of purposes. You empty it yourself, except when saving the contents to make dye. The ground outside under the window is well fertilized. >[heh] The story doesn’t know how to use the character ‘[’ in a command. >get pot Taken. >pee The word “pee” is not necessary in this story. >l Blue Tower This compact turret has been your home for the last ten years, and the walls are covered and re-covered in the images you've painted there. There is a window in the curving south wall, and stone stairs spiral down into the body of the tower. >use pot The word “use” is not necessary in this story. >x window Panes of clear glass set between iron bars. Only one pane can be opened, and it will be a long time before rust and the aging of glass make the rest of the thing fragile enough to break. It’s closed. >open it The single pane opens and shuts, to be sure, but that does you little good at the moment. If you're leaving, you'll need to get the whole thing open. >d You descend the sturdy steps with a clatter. Kitchen A fire burns in the fireplace and a few basic kitchen things are still lying around. The plank staircase spirals up to the room above, while a much older, darker, stone staircase descends to the storeroom below. You see a cauldron (which contains an unfinished potion) here. There's a strong smell of rotten eggs. >d You descend the familiar stairs, keeping one hand on the wall for balance. A millennium of wear has made them treacherous. In the dark It’s pitch black. The rotten-egg smell diminishes. >feel What do you want to touch? >all hair: You feel nothing out of the ordinary. withered apple: You feel nothing out of the ordinary. small wooden box: You feel nothing out of the ordinary. comb: You feel nothing out of the ordinary. chamber pot: You feel nothing out of the ordinary. >feel room The word “room” is not necessary in this story. >l In the dark It’s pitch black. >i You are carrying a withered apple, a small wooden box, a comb, and a chamber pot. >x box It’s too dark to do that. >u It's always a more strenuous journey going up. These stairs are pitched for the calves of a giantess. Kitchen A fire burns in the fireplace and a few basic kitchen things are still lying around. The plank staircase spirals up to the room above, while a much older, darker, stone staircase descends to the storeroom below. You see a cauldron (which contains an unfinished potion) here. There's a strong smell of rotten eggs. >x box A rough box, somewhat the worse for wear. It’s open, and contains a stub of candle, some shears, and a stained paintbrush. >get candle Taken. There's a strong smell of rotten eggs. >light candle What do you want to light it with? >all You can’t use multiple objects there. >light candle with fire So little remains of the wick that it could not be lit. If you were to take back the hour it has already burned, however, it might be serviceable again. >i You are carrying a withered apple, a small wooden box (which contains some shears and a stained paintbrush), a comb, a chamber pot, and a stub of candle. There's a strong smell of rotten eggs. >[wow, I bet I have to manipulate time] The story doesn’t know how to use the character ‘[’ in a command. >l Kitchen A fire burns in the fireplace and a few basic kitchen things are still lying around. The plank staircase spirals up to the room above, while a much older, darker, stone staircase descends to the storeroom below. You see a cauldron (which contains an unfinished potion) here. There's a strong smell of rotten eggs. >u You clatter up the stairs. Blue Tower This compact turret has been your home for the last ten years, and the walls are covered and re-covered in the images you've painted there. There is a window in the curving south wall, and stone stairs spiral down into the body of the tower. The rotten-egg smell diminishes. >x images The pictures show a sky in transition from day to night: on one side, puffy clouds and birds are visible, while the sky opposite is dark and starry. It's all taken a very large amount of blue dye. What lies there now is a decade of work. >x me You have fifteen years, two months, twelve days, five hours, and one minute. You can spare none of this. Besides this, your most notable endowment is your hair. >get decades The word “decades” is not necessary in this story. >get images The wall images aren’t important. >l Blue Tower This compact turret has been your home for the last ten years, and the walls are covered and re-covered in the images you've painted there. There is a window in the curving south wall, and stone stairs spiral down into the body of the tower. > I beg your pardon? >z Time passes... >z Time passes... >x me You have fifteen years, two months, twelve days, five hours, and one minute. You can spare none of this. Besides this, your most notable endowment is your hair. >x hair Your hair grows down to your feet. Its natural color is blonde, nearly white, but you have dyed it a deep rippling blue. >dye hair The word “dye” is not necessary in this story. >cut hair (with the shears) Your hair will make an excellent rope when it's had time to grow out about ten years more, but right now it wouldn't get you close enough to the ground to prevent a nasty fall. >l Blue Tower This compact turret has been your home for the last ten years, and the walls are covered and re-covered in the images you've painted there. There is a window in the curving south wall, and stone stairs spiral down into the body of the tower. >d You descend the sturdy steps with a clatter. Kitchen A fire burns in the fireplace and a few basic kitchen things are still lying around. The plank staircase spirals up to the room above, while a much older, darker, stone staircase descends to the storeroom below. You see a cauldron (which contains an unfinished potion) here. There's a strong smell of rotten eggs. >drink potion The thought of tasting it in its current form makes you gag. It's astonishing how much age can convert the texture and scent of such a brew. >age potion The story doesn’t understand that command. >[how do i manipulate time?] The story doesn’t know how to use the character ‘[’ in a command. >l Kitchen A fire burns in the fireplace and a few basic kitchen things are still lying around. The plank staircase spirals up to the room above, while a much older, darker, stone staircase descends to the storeroom below. You see a cauldron (which contains an unfinished potion) here. There's a strong smell of rotten eggs. >about This game was created for Speed-IF Indigo, which challenged authors to create a piece somehow loosely related to the idea of indigo while using a programming language they haven't published in before. I only had a couple of afternoons to give this project, and there's lots I would like to have done better. As with all speed-IF, this is an unfinished design with minimal implementation. Still, it was a fun time, and I owe a lot to Eric Eve's manuals and tour guide for making it possible to implement even as much as I was able to here, given that I was coming to the language as an almost complete novice. It is possible to make the game unfinishable, but typically only by destroying an object. It should be immediately obvious when an object is destroyed. Hints are available, though like everything else, they may be flawed. Finally: if in doubt about removing one object from another, try TAKE. Other variations ('get foo from bar', 'remove foo from bar', etc.) are not necessarily as well accounted-for as they should be. >u You clatter up the stairs. Blue Tower This compact turret has been your home for the last ten years, and the walls are covered and re-covered in the images you've painted there. There is a window in the curving south wall, and stone stairs spiral down into the body of the tower. The rotten-egg smell diminishes. >take decade from painting You can’t have that; it’s part of the wall images. >take decade You stroke your fingers lightly over the wall, seeking purchase. Pinch. Pull. The decade pulls away, the mural rapidly cycling backward, showing again the layers in which it was painted: the sky overlies a forest, the forest is painted over a garden, the garden you drew when you first moved here in childish strokes of charcoal on the wall. Then it's all gone. The wall is whitewashed and pristine, and the decade hangs in your hands. >[woo!] The story doesn’t know how to use the character ‘[’ in a command. >take hour It takes several attempts, but in the end you manage to take the hour between your fingernails and tease it away from the candle with no tearing or disruption. What remains behind is a whole candle, unburnt. >[ha ha ha] The story doesn’t know how to use the character ‘[’ in a command. >d You descend the sturdy steps with a clatter. Kitchen A fire burns in the fireplace and a few basic kitchen things are still lying around. The plank staircase spirals up to the room above, while a much older, darker, stone staircase descends to the storeroom below. You see a cauldron (which contains an unfinished potion) here. There's a strong smell of rotten eggs. >light candle with fire You light the candle. >d You descend the millennium-old stairs again. Store Room The clammy uncomfortable space under the stairs is not pleasant enough to live in, but it does keep roots and stores cool. Under the stone stairs are some indigo cuttings. The rotten-egg smell diminishes. >get all indigo cuttings: Taken. >x cuttings It grows by your tower, and you've convinced a few of your suppliers to bring you quantities of the stuff. To make dye of this stuff requires another supply you have in plenty: stale piss. No need to make another batch today, but you have used up many days with the occupation. >take millenium The word “millenium” is not necessary in this story. >take millennium You haul away. It is like dragging a tablecloth from a banquet table – if the tablecloth were made of chain mail, and the banquet table seated fifty. >i You are carrying a withered apple, a small wooden box (which contains some shears and a stained paintbrush), a comb, a chamber pot, a decade, a candle (providing light), a hour, some indigo cuttings, and a millennium. >[well then] The story doesn’t know how to use the character ‘[’ in a command. >l Store Room The clammy uncomfortable space under the stairs is not pleasant enough to live in, but it does keep roots and stores cool. >u This time around you have to stop at the midway point and pant a little. Kitchen A fire burns in the fireplace and a few basic kitchen things are still lying around. The plank staircase spirals up to the room above, while a much older, darker, stone staircase descends to the storeroom below. You see a cauldron (which contains an unfinished potion) here. There's a strong smell of rotten eggs. >put month in cauldron You can’t put that anywhere; it’s part of the withered apple. >take month You pluck the month away from the withered apple and gather it into a skein in your fingers. There's a strong smell of rotten eggs. >put month in cauldron You cannot attach anything to that. >put month in potion Done. You get a whiff of fresh lavender. The rotten-egg smell diminishes. >x potion A pale blue potion with an odor of lavender and rosewater. It is thick and lustrous and has a sheen of its own. It is the witch's own discovery, and is used to fortify hair. >drink potion You drink the potion. It slides down slowly, but its effect is quick afterward. Your hair gleams, strong as spun silk. The lavender scent diminishes. >put decade in hair You lower the decade – carefully, carefully! – into your hair, touching nothing else. Your scalp crawls as though infested and there is a terrible feeling of urgent liveliness up there. (Does soil feel like this when the seeds work their way up in the spring?) But your hair grows and grows and grows, pooling around your feet in astounding lengths. >cut hair (with the shears) (first braiding the hair) You braid your hair deftly. It takes twice as long as it used to, and the new- grown hair is a bit unwieldy, but you've dealt with worse. You cut the whole lot through right at the base of your neck. The effect is dizzying. Your head feels light, like a bauble on a string. The braid hangs from your hand. >u You clatter up the stairs. Blue Tower This compact turret has been your home for the last ten years. The walls are perfectly white. There is a window in the curving south wall, and stone stairs spiral down into the body of the tower. >put millenium in window The word “millenium” is not necessary in this story. >put millennium in window The years pour through your fingers. The iron rusts and withers, the glass flows and thickens at the bottom. When you are done, all that remains is a rusty frame. >open window Opened. >tie hair to bed The word “tie” is not necessary in this story. >out What do you want to get out of? >window You can’t get out of that. >enter window At the Foot of the Tower It's a perilous climb, but worthwhile. Once, long ago, you went the opposite way by ladder; then the good townsfolk took the ladder away and left you behind. And they kept your secret for you well, saying nothing to the lord seeking you. (He had desired to take his wife to bed a virgin every night.) Folded on a nearby rock, neat as an old garment returned by the washerwoman, are the seventy years you put aside when you entered this tower. *** You have escaped *** Would you like to RESTORE a saved position, RESTART the story, or QUIT? >quit Thanks for playing!