<img class="resize" src="images/kinsale.png">
Every driver's [last words?]<a1|
(click: ?a1)[//"That's as far as I go. [Got everything?]<a2|"//]
(click:?a2)[[Take your backpack and bag.]<a4|]
(click:?a4)[(replace:?a4)[Couple days hitchhiking -
Extremely hungry and tired -
You reached it -
Gourmet capital of Ireland -
[[Kinsale!->JOURNEY]]
//"Good luck! You'll need it."//
]]
---
//based on true hitchhiking events//(if:$time is 8)[<img class="resize" src="images/sun.png">](else:)[<img class="resize" src="images/dusk.png">]
[Walking over the steep coast.]<a1|
(click:?a1)[Below you a fleet of expensive yachts, ages ranging all the way from antique 1800s. Stationary. Anchors in the deep sea.
[Immense blue ocean.]<a2|(click:?a2)[ Yachts floating on the waves and little islands in the distance make for a perfect postcard view. Beautiful.
[Lawnchairs set up, wine bottles opened, towels and clothes spread on deck.]<a3|
(click:?a3)[No people.
Leaving everything lying like that... They got off the boats in a hurry.]
[[You feel the weight of multiple eyes watching you.->RAT]]]](if:$time is 8)[<img class="resize" src="images/sun.png" >](else:)[<img class="resize" src="images/dusk.png" >]
[The path takes you outside the tightly packed bay area.]<a1|
(click:?a1)[[Following a miniscule stream of water by the road.]<a5|]
(click:?a5)[[And to the grass covered hills around the village.]<a2|]
(click:?a2)[Too much. [Your tired body revolts.]<b3|]
(click:?b3)[[Wet your face in the stream.]<a3|]
(click:?a3)[[Secret revealed. Water flows out of a grated sewer hole. Shit.]<a6|]
(click:?a6)[[Over the hole stands a monumental red building. Black banner. White butcher's knife.]<a4|]
(click:?a4)[SMITH'S OF KINSALE: [[Real food, Real people->HUTS]]]
(set: $college to false)(if:$time is 8)[<img class="resize" src="images/sun.png">](else:)[<img class="resize" src="images/dusk.png">]
(if: $time is 8)[(set: $time = $time +1)9 PM. Back by the old pier.
Your host must be around here. Short girl, brunette. Probably the only other person on the street.
[Have a look around. What's the worst that could happen?]<a1|
(click:?a1)[[''FATFACE'']<g1|]
(click:?g1)[Well, that's a rude name for a clothes shop.
Manekins look at you with absolute apathy.
You hope their eyes [don't move]<a2|...] (click:?a2)[[And they don't!]<d1|]
(click:?d1)[Nobody else here. You are [alone.]<a3|]
(click:?a3)[And then... [music]<a4|?]
(click:?a4)[[A horde of squirels comes running down the trees and out of town.]<a5|
(click:?a5)[Suddenly the [music stops.]<a6| Along with the animal exodus you just witnessed.]
(click:?a6)[The music must've came from...
$harbour[ [[Or maybe north?->FISHMEN LANDING]]]
$college[ [[west.->FURMEN HOLE]]]
$center[ [[east?->FEASTING GROUND]]]
]]](else:)[10 PM. [Again standing by the closed Centra doors.]<b1|
[Your body is close to collapsing.]<b5|(click:?b5)[ This whole day feels like a dream. Places, events, all merging together with no structure or coherence.]
(click:?b1)[[A big green bus with another town's name]<b3| and next to it, forming a line, [you see,]<c2| (click:?c2)[[to your surprise,]<c1|] (click:?c1)[[people!]<b2|]
(click:?b2)[Tourists. Eating ice cream. Looking at you. Confused. Like they've never seen a homeless person before. Well, tonight is special, tonight you're not homeless! Only your host hasn't shown up yet...]
(click:?b3)[[Bus driver waves you in and invites you on the bus.]<b4|
(click:?b4)[The ride is crazy expensive, you will lose all your money, but it will take you out of town.
[[Get on the bus?->BUS]] ''//'' [[Wait for your host.->HOST]]]]]]<img class="resize" src="images/night.png">
11 PM. [Darkness sets in for good.]<a1|
(click:?a1)[The town feels tiny. Hills invisible.
[Comfortably under the night's blanket.]<a4|
(click:?a4)[Kinsale consumed by blackness. Occasional street lights provide bright yellow spots [guiding you along the street.]<a2|]]
(click:?a2)[[//"Hoo"//]<a3|]
(click:?a3)[Night creatures' concert echoes through the town. Sets the tone. [Eerie night.]<a5|
(click:?a5)[[[Where is she?->HER]]]]<img class="resize" src="images/night.png" >
You spend your last 12 euro and [buy your bus ticket.]<a1|
(click:?a1)[Green Eirean bus drives off into the night, [with you on board.]<a2|]
(click:?a2)[You were right, Kinsale got a bit too creepy, whatever shady business is going on, it's none of your business.
[[You'll set up a tent somewhere else, where the air doesn't smell of fish and fur.->BUSEND]]][A memory.]<a1| (click:?a1)[(replace:?a1)[[A road sign.]<a2|] ](click: ?a2)[(replace:?a2)[<img class="resize" src="images/title4.png">] ]<img class="resize" src="images/sun.png" >
Main road. Old pier. Not a single soul on the street. Kinsale feels lifeless. [Abandoned]<a1|.
(click: ?a1)[Overgrown hills surround tiny weather-stained pastel houses. Kinsale is just a small fishing village. Not much traffic coming here. Glory days long over.]
[Something's off. ]<a3| (click:?a3)[Kinsale from the stories is bustling, always lively. Even in the night. [[A little investigative walk might be in order.->SIGN]]]
East wind blows, it's getting [chilly.]<chilly|
(click: ?chilly)[ (replace: ?chilly)[[really cold.]<a4|]
(click:?a4)[Don't lie to yourself. The thought of yet another night in a tent makes you shiver already.
Plus, you were promised a hot shower. You'd do anything for a hot shower right now.] ]
<img class="resize" src="images/sun.png" >
The driver waves a quick goodbye and [drives off.]<a3|
(click: ?a3)[(replace: ?a3)[drives off.
His tiny yellow car zigzags quickly on the narrow cliffside road.
[Faster.]<a4|](click:?a4)[A quick sharp turn almost falling off the cliff and he's gone.
[//(Odd. Didn't look like a frantic kinda guy.)//]<a5|
(click:?a5)[[[A startling loud shriek->SHRIEK]] welcomes you in town.]]]<img class="resize" src="images/sun.png" >
[A maze of narrow colourful alleyways.]<a6|
(click:?a6)[Each alley a collection of old one-storey houses painted in lively hot hues. [Cozy and comfortable.]<a9|(click:?a9)[(replace:?a9)[[Devoid of human life.]<a7|] ]
(click:?a7)[The setting Sun bathes empty cobblestone roads in that unsettling bloody glow.]
You spot a worn out [tourist sign.]<a1|]
(click: ?a1)[Original text unreadable, new names painted over the old ones:
-> [..a..r]<a2|(click: ?a2)[ ([[FISHMEN LANDING]])]
<- [To.. ....er]<a3| (click: ?a3)[([[FEASTING GROUND]])]
Last wing lies beneath the sign.
| [C.l..g]<a4| (click: ?a4)[([[FURMEN HOLE]])]
]
(set: $harbour to true)
(set: $center to true)
(set: $college to true)
(set:$time to 8)
(if:$time is 8)[<img class="resize" src="images/sun.png">](else:)[<img class="resize" src="images/dusk.png">]
The [path]<a1|
(click:?a1)[[leads you]<a2|
(click:?a2)[through a grid of [short]<a3|
(click:?a3)[[one-way]<a4|
(click:?a4)[[ streets.]<a5|
(click:?a5)[[Finally you reach a massive blue barricaded building. Imposing metal wall and barbed wire surround the grounds.]<a8|
(click:?a8)[Huge letters on its wall spell:
[[GARDA STATION.]]]]]]]]
(if:$time is 8)[<img class="resize" src="images/sun.png" >](else:)[<img class="resize" src="images/dusk.png" >]
[Another tourist sign - Town Center.]<a1|
(click:?a1)[(replace:?a1)[The prideful heart of Kinsale. A wild assortment of [local pubs and small restaurants]<a2| in tenements from the Great War.
Gourmet heaven everyone in Ireland is talking about.
You can feel your mouth watering. Stomach growls again.]]
(click:?a2)[White clothed tables, wine glasses, candles, handkerchiefs in fancy shapes. All prepared to take in customers, [but...]<a7|]
(click:?a7)[There's no people. Every TV in every pub shows the same soccer game and nobody's watching. Kinsale's town center feels like a ghost town on Wednesday night. [You sweat a little.]<a3|
(click:?a3)[[''DING'']<a8|
(click:?a8)[[A text!]<msg|
(click: ?msg)[(replace: ?msg)[(if: $time is 8)[
//"hey! im so sorry, i had a thing to do haha, im right next to centra, [[come meet me!->CENTRA]] :)"
//](else:)[//"how long do i have to wait for you? [[come to centra->CENTRA]]! tell me you didnt follow the music..."//
[Answer: No, what music?]<msg1|
(click: ?msg1)[ (replace: ?msg1)[//''"you know what i mean haha"''//]]]]]]]](if:$time is 8)[<img class="resize" src="images/sun.png" >](else:)[<img class="resize" src="images/dusk.png">]
Windows [boarded up.]<a1| (click:?a1)[Wood and nails. Very oldschool. Beams of electric light slip out through the gaps. There's life inside.]
High spiked fence around the building and a [chained up gate as the only way in.]<a5|
(click:?a5)[White rectangle marks the single empty space for a [Garda cruiser.]<a2|]
Your nose [itches.]<a3|
(click:?a3)[A small lump of fur stuck to your nose. Curiously, you haven't seen any animals here.
]
(click:?a2)[You saw that cruiser on the road to Kinsale. Garda checkpoint. Officers armed with guns. Stopping the few cars coming here.
[They gave you strange advice.]<a4|
(click:?a4)[//[["Leave before sundown."->CENTER]]//]]
(set: $center to false)
<img class="resize" src="images/night.png">
[You look at your phone.]<b1|
(click:?b1)[(replace:?b1)[10 PM. Quick rhytmic steps. [Getting louder.]<a1|]]
(click:?a1)[[//''"HEY!!!"''//]<a2|]
(click:?a2)[A shout so loud, so close and so unexpected you immediately flinch. [A grinning short girl appears in front of you.]<a3|]
(click:?a3)[//
"Haha sorry, didn't mean that. Okay, let's try again.
Hey! Sorry, this whole evening was a bit crazy, delays and all that.
But there you are, finally here, ready to be fed!
I'm super happy you made it!
But first, you're going to need [this]<a4|."//]
(click:?a4)[[She hands you a bright yellow emergency vest.]<a5|]
(click:?a5)[//"I'll just leave you for like 5 minutes, my mom needs to talk. She's not used to outsiders, she wants to see me before you come.
[Wait here]<a6|, I'll be right back!"//]
(click:?a6)[[[//''"I promise nothing bad will happen haha!"''//->WAIT]]]
<img class="resize" src="images/sun.png" >
[A beast's roar?]<b1|(click:?b4)[ Wakes you up and makes your skin crawl...
[(//Okay, reality check, what's going on?//)]<b5|]
(click:?b1)[(replace:?b1)[[A dying last howl?]<b2|] ](click:?b2)[(replace:?b2)[[Somewhere in between.]<b3|] ](click:?b3)[(replace:?b3)[[Aggressive.]<b4|] ]
(click:?b5)[["NO FISHMEN - sincerely Centra staff"]<a1|
(click:?a1)[A handwritten sign glued to the window. Lights off, shop's closed. Curious.]
[Famous Kinsale odour makes you uneasy.]<breath|
(click: ?breath)[The smell of fish, sea and... surprisingly... wet fur.
Even more powerful than people told you.]
[Your eye lids feel awfully heavy. Stomach grumbles.]<a4|
(click:?a4)[Your body has never been so exhausted.
You can feel your grasp on reality slipping.]
[8 PM. A good time to call your host.]<call|
(click: ?call)[(replace: ?call)[8 PM. A good time to call your host. No answer. A text will do.
[["I'm next to Centra".->TEXT]]]] ]
<img class="resize" src="images/end.png">
Or...Maybe...Stay in Kinsale and [[WAIT->HOST]]? Like your host told you to.
---
//based on true hitchhiking events<img class="resize" src="images/night.png">
Mood suddenly interrupted.
[A distant siren wails.]<a4|
(click:?a4)[At once all the doors on the street open.
[Then there's a pause.]<a1|]
(click:?a1)[And simultaneously from every door, from every house a person walks out. [Clacking.]<b1|
(click:?b1)[They're all bald. Naked. Their skin oily. [Reflecting sodium yellow light from the street lamps.]<a3|]]
(click:?a3)[Reflections so uniform, their skin featureless, as if they were made from polished plastic. You stand there. [Mesmerized.]<b2|
(click:?b2)[The few clothed ones [look familiar.]<a2| Their clothes clean, ironed, brand new. (click:?a2)[Store manekins!]
[[Get off the street.->WRONG]]]]<img class="resize" src="images/night.png">
[Moving manekins!]<a1|
(click:?a1)[[Their heads turn.]<a2|]
(click:?a2)[[Looking at you with firm dead eyes.]<a3|]
(click:?a3)[Their default prefabricated mouths smiling hideously.
They seem focused on [your reflective emergency vest.]<a6|]
(click:?a6)[[Keep watching]<a4|
(click:?a4)[[They start walking towards you.]<b1|
(click:?b1)[[Slowly.]<b2|
(click:?b2)[[Synchronous clicking.]<b3|]
(click:?b3)[[Movements mechanical. Uncanny, like badly constructed dolls.]<b4|] ]
(click:?b4)[The street quickly fills up with ghastly puppets.]
]
[RUN]<a5|]
(click:?a5)[(replace:?a5)[The way up and out into the woods is blocked by dozens of them.
[[Ram them, hope they fall apart like ordinary store manekins.->RAM]]]]<img class="resize" src="images/night.png">
[You punch the first manekin.]<b1|
(click:?b1)[[Shoulder first. Body weight behind the blow, just like TV taught you.]<a1| ]
(click:?a1)[It stumbles and hits the ground. Arms detach.
[Its shiny body rolls around and tries to get up. Terrifying sight.]<b3|
(click:?b3)[[Other manekins ignore this incident and go straight for you.]<a2|] ]
(click:?a2)[[What happens next is a haze.]<a4|](click:?a4)[(replace:?a4)[[A sequence of blurry images.]<a5|] ](click:?a5)[(replace:?a5)[[A few painful punches against plastic.]<a6|] ](click:?a6)[(replace:?a6)[[And the feeling of losing your balance.]<b2|] ](click:?b2)[(replace:?b2)[[Being pulled down by many arms.]<a3|] ](click:?a3)[(replace:?a3)[[You're on the ground.]<a7|] ]
(click:?a7)[(replace:?a7)[A dozen shiny humanoids above you. The ones you broke into pieces crawl towards the brightest object on the street.
[[Your emergency vest.->SHINE]]]]<img class="resize" src="images/night.png">
Plastic arms try their best to [rip your clothes.]<a1|
(click:?a1)[The bright yellow vest is [the first thing to go.]<a2|]
(click:?a2)[Then your [shirt.]<a3|]
(click:?a3)[[And finally they puncture your skin and dig into your body.]<b1|
(click:?b1)[[Tearing through the skin. ]<a4|] ]
(click:?a4)[(replace:?a4)[[Ripping apart whatever bloody pieces of meat they can find.]<b2|]
(click:?b2)[(replace:?b2)[[Horrific pain.]<a5|] ] ] (click:?a5)[[Only a second before you faint for the last time in your life.]<b3|]
(click:?b3)[[You see manekins rubbing your blood on their "skin".]<b6|]
(click:?b6)[[Madly shoving your meat down their plastic mouths...]<b4|]
(click:?b4)[[And then in your final moment you giggle.]<a6|]
(click:?a6)[[Your last action a weak but sincere laugh. Because...]<b5|]
(click:?b5)[There's [[something in your head->END]] and it's not a plastic arm.]
(if:$time is 8)[<img class="resize" src="images/sun.png">](else:)[<img class="resize" src="images/dusk.png">]
[Red building closed and abandoned.]<a1|
(click:?a1)[Workers went to lunch and never came back, like all Kinsale citizens. Parking lot could house a few hundred cars. Empty.]
[You push on despite your body's rebellion.
"Pain in your feet is only temporary." - the golden mantra.]<a2|
(click:?a2)[[Small mud huts on the hills.]<a4|(click:?a4)[ Lifted a few centimeters above the ground by wooden poles. No windows. Dry plants stick out from the walls.]
[Padlocks.]<a3|] (click:?a3)[Every hut has one. Must be a bad neighbourhood. Curious handmade contraptions made with wire and cans lay between the huts. Primitive alarm system. Better not come closer.
[[A gigantic warning sign: ''DANGER''->BUNKER]]](if:$time is 8)[<img class="resize" src="images/sun.png">](else:)[<img class="resize" src="images/dusk.png">]
[Gigantic hole in the hillside. Cut in stone.]<a1|
(click:?a1)[Far larger than any building you saw in town.
Dripping with moisture of the place. [Astonishing.]<a6|
(click:?a6)[The cut too regular to be natural. Human structure.]]
[Small tin blockades.]<a2|
(click:?a2)[Obstacles supposed to keep people out. Or something in. Their remains lay in the mud.]
[Long rusted metal rods on the ground.]<a3|
(click:?a3)[Train tracks. Coming from the cave and suddenly ending in the mud.]
[Ghastly howl comes from the inner tunnels inside the cave.]<a4|
(click:?a4)[Blowing wind? [You can't feel any wind on your skin.]<a5|
(click:?a5)[Your body must be so tired it doesn't feel anything anymore.]]
[[Better go back already. Maybe your host is waiting?->CAR]](if:$time is 8)[<img class="resize" src="images/sun.png" >](else:)[<img class="resize" src="images/dusk.png">]
[Metallic hit from below. A rattle of keys.]<a1|
(click:?a1)[Sounds come from a sewer pipe, embedded in the cliff, emptying sludge into the ocean.
[Shadows move inside.]<a2|] (click:?a2)[Red glowing eyes. Watching your every move from afar. Petrifying. You can't take your eyes off that pipe.
[They noticed.]<a3|] (click:?a3)[Shadows quickly merge with the black void deeper in the pipe and for a brief moment you can see a dirty pink noodle.
[A tail.]<a4|]
(click:?a4)[Then it's gone and only the sound of sludge hitting the water remains.
[[You can feel your neck hair stand up.->FORT]]](if:$time is 8)[<img class="resize" src="images/sun.png">](else:)[<img class="resize" src="images/dusk.png">]
[Roaring.]<a1|
(click:?a1)[A squirrel jumps on the road.
[Roaring gets louder and louder.]<a2| ]
(click:?a2)[[A car !]<a3|]
(click:?a3)[Squirrel's splashed by a black van speeding down the road.
Blinking yellow emergency lights.
Tire squeak.
[You look at the driver.]<a4|]
(click:?a4)[Your eyes lock. First human you've seen.
[[You can feel the connection.->DRIVER]]](if:$time is 8)[<img class="resize" src="images/sun.png" >](else:)[<img class="resize" src="images/dusk.png" >]
[//(Am I so hungry and tired I imagine things?)//]<a1|
(click:?a1)[[James fort rises above you.]<a2| (click:?a2)[The remaining stones a memory of its imperial glory. Forgotten ruins hold a mystery but [you're too shaken to care.]<a3|]
](set:$harbour to false)
(click:?a3)[[//''DING''//]<a8|
(click:?a8)[[A text!]<msg|
(click: ?msg)[(replace: ?msg)[(if: $time is 8)[
//"hey! im so sorry, i had a thing to do haha, im right next to centra, [[come meet me!->CENTRA]] :)"
//](else:)[//"how long do i have to wait for you? [[come to centra->CENTRA]]! tell me you didnt follow the music..."//
[Answer: No, what music?]<msg1|
(click: ?msg1)[ (replace: ?msg1)[//''"you know what i mean haha"''//]]]]]]](if:$time is 8)[<img class="resize" src="images/sun.png">](else:)[<img class="resize" src="images/dusk.png">]
[On his face pure terror. A struggle to keep his sanity. Honking and waving like a madman.]<a1|
(click:?a1)[[He's shouting something !]<a2|]
(click:?a2)[[His windows closed, you can't make out what he's saying.]<a4|
(click:?a4)[In a second he's gone. Down the road a good hundred meters.
[Your hearts races !]<a8|]]
(click:?a8)[[//DING//]<a3|
(click:?a3)[[A text!]<msg|
(click: ?msg)[(replace: ?msg)[(if: $time is 8)[
//"hey! im so sorry, i had a thing to do haha, im right next to centra, [[come meet me!->CENTRA]] :)"
//](else:)[//"how long do i have to wait for you? [[come to centra->CENTRA]]! tell me you didnt follow the music..."//
[Answer: No, what music?]<msg1|
(click: ?msg1)[ (replace: ?msg1)[//''"you know what i mean haha"''//]]]]]]]