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<<goto "Start">>
/*
This is the starting passage! I tend to initialize some variables in the first passage and then immediately pass the player on to another passage.
VERY IMPORTANT NOTE:
This first passage cannot use ANY Trice macros or functions! The script loader that loads Tracery does not finish until after the first passage has been rendered, so it won't be ready to use just yet. This is an asynchronus load, so if you are concerned about load times, you might want to put a brief wait in the first passage using .
*/
Loading...@@.title;.center;An Evening With a Sprite@@
@@.byline.center;by Yarrun@@
[[Start->Background]]
[[About->An Evening With a Sprite]]<<set $punctuality to trace("punctuality")>>/*<<set $dateType to trace('#dateType#')>>*/You show up near the specified street corner, $punctuality. Not what you planned, but it's hard to plan when your nerves are like this. Blind dates always drive you nuts. Then, you see $dateThem:
$dateName the [[$dateType->testDateType]].{
"name": ["Arlin", "Yunuka", "Darcy", "Randy", "Molosi", "Izzi", "Azra", "Linax"]
, "pcDesc1": ["cowboy hat","light-up sneakers","utilikilt","butt"]
, "punctuality": ["an hour early", "a few minutes early", "exactly on time (eerily so, even)", "a little late", "half an hour late"]
, "appendage": ["claw", "tendril", "talon", "forelimb", "finger","pedipalp"]
, "color": ["orange", "blue", "white", "black", "grey", "purple", "indigo", "turquoise"]
, "skin": ["skin","carapace","bones","scales","fur","leaves","slime"]
, "setPronouns": ["[heroThey:xe][heroThem:xem][heroTheir:xyr][heroTheirs:xyrs]", "[heroThey:she][heroThem:her][heroTheir:her][heroTheirs:hers]", "[heroThey:he][heroThem:him][heroTheir:his][heroTheirs:his]"]
, "dateTown": ["Nueva Bailiwick II","Spookytown","The Citadel","The Inverted Spire","Saraven's Shadow","The Shattered Crystal","Uther's Gravestone","Amygaldon"]
, "spriteType": ["slenderfolk","carapacian","gravewalker","fluffbeast","membran","sylvan","urodelan","velluma"]
, "setDateVariant": [
"[dateType:slenderfolk][dateDesc:The slenderfolk look the closest to human among the sprites, even with their spindly limbs and torsos, though not nearly enough to pass. Usually, it's because something's too long. The fingers, the spine, the tongue. Most find that unnerving, but you've learned to see the beauty of it.][dateIdle:clicking $dateTheir nails together to hear the sound they make]",
"[dateType:carapacian][dateDesc:Carapacians, four-armed creatures of chitin. Some fly, some dig, some play slap bass for passers by on the street. You've seen other humans refuse to work in $dateTown specifically because of carapacians, deeply disturbed by their appearance. You, on the other hand, have learned that sometimes compound eyes can be cute. Who knew?][dateIdle:trying to buff out a scuffed plate of chitin]",
"[dateType:gravewalker][dateDesc:Gravewalkers are skeletons. Zombies. Ectoplasmic golems. Or sometimes, a strange mix of the three. You're not sure whether it's comforting that $dateType are born as they are, or whether it's more worrying that creatures resembling human corpses just naturally occur in the Lost Dimension. Still, you've learned to adjust to their unusual appearance. Enough to work with them. Enough to see through the bone protrusions and stitched flesh to see the beauty within.][dateIdle:polishing $dateTheir fingerbones]",
"[dateType:fluffbeast][dateDesc:Fluffbeasts: a catch-all term for sprites covered in a thick, fluffy coat, usually made of feathers or fur. What's inside the fur is often hard to discern. You've known a few fluffbeasts who, in your mind, are just giant puffs of fur with two legs sticking out of them. The lack of clarity would be a turnoff for some people, but you have to admit, nothing else on or above the earth can give a better hug.][dateIdle:picking dirt out of $dateTheir fluff]",
"[dateType:membran][dateDesc:Membrans: amorphous humanoids, filled with and often coated with a viscuous substance that's colloquially called...slime. Out of all the sprites, they are the most interested in trying to assimilate into their new world, putting themselves into clothes and focusing their bodies into more and more humanlike shapes as the years go on. Most of them, anyways. Some are content with just being orbs.][dateIdle:wringing excess slime out of $dateTheir clothes]",
"[dateType:sylvan][dateDesc:When you first heard that some of the newcomers from the Lost Dimension were treefolk, you expected walking tree trunks with hands and legs. And to your credit, sometimes you're right. But more often, you just get regular trees that happen to be psychic. Or roiling balls of vines that greet you as they tumble by. Still, you've found that they're kinder than most humans you've met in the city.][dateIdle:pruning <<print $dateThem>>self]",
"[dateType:urodelan][dateDesc:Urodelans: a semi-aquatic, scaly people, with cold blood, sharp teeth and a near-unanimous love of fish. Suffice to say that existing fetish communities amongst humans quickly grew to love urodelans, inviting them to visit humans on the surface and...partake in extracurricular activities. Some did, and now live amongst humans. Most did not. The fact that your date invited you up to $dateTown implies that they're in the latter category, which raises *several* questions.][dateIdle:picking a fishbone from betwixt $dateTheir teeth]",
"[dateType:velluma][dateDesc:No one's really sure what the vellumas are, largely because they're always wrapped in something. Bandages, papyrus, wool. You even saw one wrapped in leather once. People ask you how you can be attracted to something hidden, but you can see how they express themselves through their wrappings. Each one ties them a little differently. Some have embroidered designs. They're all so unique and all so beautiful.][dateIdle:mending one of $dateTheir wraps]"]
, "locationName":
["confectionary","museum","arcade","karaoke bar","rink","cinema"]
, "location":
["[locationName:confectionary][locationActivity1:order a sundae, grab a milkshake with two straws,get one of everything with extra sprinkles]",
"[locationName:museum][locationActivity:learn about the fake history of $dateTown,follow the tour guide with the #color# blindfold,touch the sculptures without getting caught]",
"[locationName:arcade][locationActivity:challenging the gamer king on his gamer throne for his gamer crown,playing DDDDDR: Dream Dance Drop Dance Distance Revolution,shaking hands with Dante from Devil May Cry]",
"[locationName:karaoke bar][locationActivity:put on 'The Glass Man's Count',put on 'Big Steps If True',put on 'The Silence of Silence',put on 'lo-fi beats to sing karaoke to']",
"[locationName:rink][locationActivity:get into a knife-boot fight,watch someone pull off the legendary quintuple axle,skate on the malevolent black ice]",
"[locationName:cinema][locationActivity:throw popcorn at people without getting caught,dig under the seats for lost treasure,spoil the plot by yelling \"#spoiler#]!\""]
, "museumAction" : ["learn about the fake history of $dateTown","follow the tour guide with the #color# blindfold","touch the sculptures without getting caught"]
, "cinemaAction" : ["throw popcorn at people without getting caught","dig under the seats for lost treasure","spoil the plot by yelling \"#spoiler#]\""]
, "arcadeAction": ["challenging the gamer king on his gamer throne for his gamer crown","playing DDDDDR: Dream Dance Drop Dance Distance Revolution","shaking hands with Dante from Devil May Cry"]
, "rinkAction": ["get into a knife-boot fight","watch someone pull off the legendary quintuple axle","skate on the malevolent black ice"]
, "confectionaryAction": ["order a sundae", "grab a milkshake with two straws","get one of everything with extra sprinkles"]
, "clubAction": ["put on 'The Glass Man's Count'","put on 'Big Steps If True'","put on 'The Silence of Silence'","put on 'lo-fi beats to sing karaoke to'"]
, "movieName": ["Pope Slap","Pope Slap 2: Clasped Hands","David Lynch Sitting In A Chair","Who Gave This Sassy Child A Gun?","Women in Wheelchairs Destroy The Government (Director's Cut)","An Inconvenient Truth and Three Really Agreeable Lies","Cooking For The Devil","$godShort and the Philosopher's Stone","$god, and the Deathly Hallows","$god, and the Order of the Phoenix","$god, and the Chamber of Secrets"]
, "spoiler": ["the villain's just misogyny in a bad rubber mask","the protagonist's being manipulated by #god#","the spinning top falls","the spinning top never falls","they kiss right before the volcano explodes","it's a dream, and the narrator's in an insane aslyum and this is what they see right before they die","the child with anxiety's plotting to kill god","The protagonist was just a sexy mirror"]
, "chatTopic": ["Hobbies","Your God","The Dream Dimension","Your Job","Favorite Place","Pipe Dreams"]
, "hobby": ["woodworking","photography","cooking","spleunking","painting","stitchwork","knitting","sculpting","gardening","stamp collecting","working out","luge","studying gender", "bungee jumping"]
, "weirdHobby": ["screeching into the night", "skull polishing","hunting the blood orb","nightmare wrangling","serial street performance","artistic apologizing", "digesting lewd thoughts","competitive vibing"]
, "org": ["[orgName:the US Government][orgAgent:#orgAgent_US#][orgDesc:#orgDesc_US#]","[orgName:the Illuminati][orgAgent:#orgAgent_IL#][orgDesc:#orgDesc_IL#]","[orgName:the Knights of the Relic][orgAgent:#orgAgent_KN#][orgDesc:#orgDesc_KN#]","[orgName:Frank's House][orgAgent:Frank][orgDesc:a schlubby dude in an unwashed sweatshirt]"]
, "orgAgent_US" : ["Agent Salmon","the Secret President","General Ripper","Uncle Sam"]
, "orgDesc_US" : ["some guy in a suit","stranger cloaked in nothing but the American flag","guy in shades (oh no)","Abe Lincoln cosplayer","military man with one of those evil-looking scars"]
, "orgAgent_IL" : ["Triple Iris","True Sight Scion","Pyramid Pope"]
, "orgDesc_IL" : ["man with the dollar bill tattooed across his bare chest","white hippie with dollar signs engraved into her Lennon sunglasses","small tower of children in a trenchcoat","mysterious bean"]
, "orgAgent_KN" : ["Sir Saint Sallavander","Sir Lancelot II (on VHS)","Sir Goeffrei 'Eggscellent' Benedict"]
, "orgDesc_KN" : ["a horse that walks like a man","man who clearly jousts against windmills in his spare time","amorphous mass of cheap mall swords"]
,"hidingPlace": ["bush","trashcan","giant jar of jam","clamshell","old-timey phonebooth"]
,"disguise": ["shriner","ambulatory shrub","fursuiter","harlequin","bedsheet ghost", "gamer"]
,"artifact": ["hammer","mirror","knife","pendant","express card","mace"]
, "tendLocation": ["an abandoned bar, once owned and run by a secret cabal of mole people","a placid field where the sky never changes, haunted by a storm on the horizon that will never arrive", "a lake that watches you as you linger on the shore", "a forest of lost lullabies from a forgotten childhood","an abandoned, ambulatory dragon skeleton on the outskirts of town"]
, "bigMood": ["You ever feel like #hobby# or $dateProfession isn't going to cut it? That some day, you'll just wake up and it'll all seem boring and you won't know what to do with yourself?","I was here when I got the call that my dad died. You never expect that'll happen to you until it does...","I really don't know what to do when pretty people like you notice me. I know you're new to #dateTown#, but I'm not exactly a catch around here...","This is fun. It's been so long since I've hung out with someone outside of work. My friends end up busy or move away or just...get bored with me."]
, "god": ["Tavis, the Prognostic Dreamer", "Sybiar, the Reclusive Maker", "Ossidon, the Rotting Skull", "Rothodan, the Thoughtless Saprophyte", "Hildaris, the Porcelain Eyetooth", "Rubidia, the Gilded Charter", "Saraven, the Ethereal Knife", "Han Veilig, the Hallowed Fever", "Tasilox, the Cleanser", "Yuv, of Lost Geists"]
, "death": ["shatters into a million pieces", "falls into a portal to the puppet dimension","suddenly loses all interest in being a god and leaves to take up #hobby#"]
, "story": ["#story1#\n\n#story4#\n\n#story5#"]
, "story1": ["You show up near the specified bench, #punctuality#. Not what you planned, but it's hard to plan when your nerves are like this. Blind dates always drive you nuts. Then, you see #heroThem#. Your date twiddles #heroTheir# #dateColor# #dateAppendage.s# as #heroThey# waits; even an otherwordly monster can get nervous, you suppose. \"Oh hey, there you are! You have the same #pcDesc1# from the photo you sent. I'm #dateName#, from the ad! I hope I met all your expectations!\" #heroThey.capitalize# laughs nervously as you take a good look at #heroThem#. It's been several months since you moved to #dateTown#, and you're still not used to all the monsters that live here, but there's something about your date's #dateColor# #dateSkin# that's...alluring."]
, "date": ["[datePronouns:#setPronouns#][dateName:#name#][dateSkin:#skin#][dateColor:#color#][dateAppendage:#appendage#][dateTown:#dateTown#]"]
, "origin": ["#[#date#][#god#][#org#]story#"]
, "pronounLauncher": ["#[#setPronouns#]pronounHolder#"]
, "pronounHolder": ["#heroThey# #heroThem# #heroTheir# #heroTheirs#"]
, "typeLauncher" : ["#[#setDateVariant#]typeHolder#"]
, "typeHolder": ["#dateType#|#dateIdle#"]
, "locationLauncher": ["#[#location#]locationHolder#"]
, "locationHolder": ["#locationName#|#locationActivity#|#locationActivity#|#locationActivity#|#locationActivity#|#locationActivity#"]
}Gravewalkers are skeletons. Zombies. Ectoplasmic golems. Or sometimes, a strange mix of the three. You're not sure whether it's comforting that gravewalkers were never human to begin with, or whether it's more worrying that creatures resembling human corpses just naturally occur in the Dream Dimension. Still, you've learned to adjust to their unusual appearance. Enough to work with them. Enough to see through the bone protrusions and stitched flesh to see the beauty within.Carapacians, four-armed creatures of chitin. Some fly, some dig, some play slap bass for passers by on the street. You've seen other humans refuse to work in $dateTown specifically because of carapacians, deeply disturbed by their appearance. You, on the other hand, have learned that sometimes compound eyes can be cute. Who knew?When you first heard that some of the newcomers from the Dream Dimension were treefolk, you expected walking tree trunks with hands and legs. And to your credit, sometimes you're right. But more often, you just get regular trees that happen to be psychic. Or roiling balls of vines that greet you as they tumble by. Still, you've found that they're kinder than most humans you've met in the city.Urodelans: often semi-aquatic, scaly, cold blooded, sharp teeth, and a near-unanimous love of fish. Those are the common points; everything else is variable. Some have tails, some don't. Some have four limbs, some have two limbs and a tail, and some are just rolling balls of snakes. They tend to freak out humans due to their cold eyes, but you've...sort of figured out how to interpret their expressions. To like them, even.Membrans: amorphous humanoids, filled with and often coated with a viscuous substance that's colloquially called...slime. Out of all the sprites, they are the most interested in trying to assimilate into their new world, putting themselves into clothes and focusing their bodies into more and more humanlike shapes as the years go on. Most of them, anyways. Some are content with just being gooey orbs.Fluffbeasts: a catch-all term for sprites covered in a thick, fluffy coat, usually made of feathers or fur. What's inside the fur is often hard to discern. You've known a few fluffbeasts who, in your mind, are just giant puffs of fur with two legs sticking out of them. The lack of clarity would be a turnoff for some people, but you have to admit, nothing else on or above the earth can give a better hug.The slenderfolk look the closest to human among the sprites, even with their spindly limbs and torsos, though not nearly enough to pass. Usually, it's because something's too long. The fingers, the spine, the tongue. Most find that unnerving, but you've learned to see the beauty of it.No one's really sure what the vellumas are, largely because they're always wrapped in something. Bandages, papyrus, wool. You even saw one wrapped in leather once. Other humans ask you how you can be attracted to something hidden, but you can see how they express themselves through their wrappings. Each one ties them a little differently. Some have embroidered designs. They're all so unique and all so beautiful.<<set $dp to trace('#pronounLauncher#').split(" ")>><<set $dateThey to $dp[0]>><<set $dateThem to $dp[1]>><<set $dateTheir to $dp[2]>><<set $dateTheirs to $dp[3]>><<set $dateTown to trace('#dateTown#')>><<set $dateName to trace('#name#')>><<set $dateType to trace('#dateType#')>><<set $god to trace('#god#')>><<set $godShort to $god.split(",")[0]>><<set $dv to trace('#typeLauncher#').split("|")>><<set $dateType to $dv[0]>><<set $dateIdle to $dv[1]>>It's been ten years since $dateTown was summoned from the Dream Dimension by an errant municipal rezoning spell. You still remember the day when you looked up at the sky and saw the twisted skyscrapers rising out of the shadowy clouds, the haunting visage of $god, looming above them.
To the surprise of basically everyone, the sudden emergence of a small, floating urban area filled with magical creatures and ruled by a freakish godlike entity of monstrous design did //not// end in a brutal and costly war. Meetings were held. Diplomacy came through. $godShort and the mayor exchanged keys to the city. And when it was learned that the spell couldn't be undone for a hundred years, capitalism moved in to help integration. Humans, such as yourself, were sent up to $dateTown to live and work and sell things. In exchange, $dateTown would provide rare magical resources, even as many humans railed against the interference of $dateTown's sprites (as the town's denizens were called) into human matters.
In the midst of all this, Spritr was launched, a horribly named Tinder expansion used primarily to help sprites match up with sprites. But, every once in a while, an intrepid sprite decides to match up with a human. Today, you're that human.
[[Date1<-Lucky you.]]!!!This game is a short interactive fiction piece made using [[Kate Compton's Tracery|http://tracery.io]] library. Tracery uses a system of grammars to replace text according to rules you define. The Tracery library is harnessed through the [[Trice project|https://github.com/incobalt/Trice]].
[[Back->Start]] "Ah, it's you! Glad you could make it!" $dateName looks happy to see you...you think. Facial cues are always tricky with sprites, and that's just for the ones that *have* faces.
"So, yeah, I...haven't done this before. Not with a human, at least. Didn't expect you to swipe right, honestly. You got here okay?" You reply, and the two of you get into an exchange of small talk, slowly realizing that neither of you planned further than 'meet this stranger who apparently thinks I'm cute'.
<<set $dateProfession to trace("#weirdHobby#")>>
"I'm up for anything," $dateThey eventually blurts out. "Just nothing too expensive. After all, $dateProfession only gets you so much in tips."
<<set $locationNames to traceMultiple('#locationName#',2)>><<set $l1 to $locationNames[0]>><<set $l2 to $locationNames[1]>>
You know a couple of places near here. There's the <<print $l1>> a few blocks east, or the <<print $l2>> down the street to the south. Where to?
[[East]]
[[South]]<<include $dateType>>
$dateName hasn't noticed you yet, too busy $dateIdle. Is <<print $dateThey>>...nervous? You suppose that even creatures from another dimension can get nervous.
<<set $text to "Get " + $dateTheir + " attention.">>
[[$text->Date2]]<<include $l1>>
[[Leave]]<<include $l2>>
[[Leave]]Ahh, the arcade. One of the advantages of a city torn from the Dream Dimension is the sheer amount of games that couldn't exist in the mortal world. And in this building, you can partake of what sprites indulge on when the oddness of just existing gets dull. As long as you have cash. And resist the urge to try and and rack up tickets for prizes from the shelf. //Don't be drawn in by the lava lamp with real lava.// It'll just break in a month.
You and $dateName pool your spare change together, buy some tokens, and get into some classic arcade shenanigans, like losing half your tokens at the claw grab machine, or <<print trace('#arcadeAction#')>>. By the time you run dry, you're both having so much fun that you don't mind the money you spent.You arrive at The Museum of Bizarre Outcomes. As a museum, it's an edifice dedicated to the preservation of art and history. As an institution of $dateTown, it's a strange mix of dreamlike architecture and exhibits that occasionally forget to exist. Still, it's as nice a place as any for a first date.
<<set $museumActions to traceMultiple('#museumAction#',3)>>
There's a lot of museum to explore, and a lot of ways to experience it. You want to <<print $museumActions[0]>> while $dateName wants to <<print $museumActions[1]>>. You both eventually decide to <<print $museumActions[2]>>. By the time you emerge from the museum, it feels like ten years have passed, and you've seen and listened and been things that were once true, or may be true in the future.
Sometimes you forget that being in $dateTown is like existing on the outskirts of a mystery cult, and you can end up deep in the cryptic mess from just looking at the right painting at the right time. Still, you think you enjoyed it. $dateName, as a local, is far less nonplussed and chats blithely about the exhibits you saw/existed in/dreamt about as you depart.You reach a little hole-in-the-wall movie theater, which is...surprisingly normal, even if the movies aren't. The tickets are cheap, but the tradeoff's that the next movie on the schedule's a bit...esoteric? Disjointed? Point is that it's a hard watch. You and $dateName get bored halfway through //<<print trace('#movieName#')>>// and decide to make your own fun.
<<set $cinemaAction to traceMultiple('cinemaAction',2)>>
It doesn't take you two too long to get into trouble. You <<print $cinemaAction[0]>> while your date chooses to <<print $cinemaAction[1]>>. You are both physically thrown out by the fluffy usher, and banned for a thousand years, but $dateName takes it in stride, so you think this worked out for you two.It's a bit early for karaoke, but it's never too early to have fun mocking your own lack of singing talent (unless you're that one weirdo who can actually sing well). Of course, this is $dateTown we're talking about, so the song selection is...atypical.
You decide to cover the cost, so you get to pick the songs. You <<print trace ('#clubAction#')>> for starters, managing a rough croon. Then, you <<print trace ('#clubAction#')>> as a duet song. You find that $dateName is...also bad at singing. But you're bad at singing together, and that's what counts.Otherwise known as Where Insulin Goes to Die, and home to every candy flavor on or beyond the earth. Every crazy, ridiculous flavor you considered while half-asleep, every wild idea of a corporate suit at a sweets company, it's all here, it's all delicious, and it's all affordable with what's in both your wallets.
You can cry if you need to. I would.
<<set $confectionaryAction to traceMultiple(confectionaryAction, 2)>>
Before you even realize it, $dateName disappears down one of the aisles. By the time you find $dateThem, <<print $dateThey>>'s already followed $dateTheir heart and done the obvious thing: <<print $confectionaryAction[0]>>. You shrug, and <<print $confectionaryAction[1]>>. By the time both of you leave, you feel like cherubs from heaven came down to bless your taste buds eternal. Good pick.Rinks in the Dream Dimension are...unusual, to say the least. A series of nested ice discs and ice orbs, where sprites of varying types skate on their fabulous knife-boots. From what you understand of sprite history, ice skates originally started out as combat weapons, and were only later used for skating. Sprites haven't forgotten, and sometimes fights break out, graceful twirls between enemies as they try to move their knife-boots into striking position.
It's great fun, obviously.
<<set $rinkAction to traceMultiple('rinkAction',2)>>
$dateName, who's had much more practice with this sort of thing than you, helps you get your balance on the ice, and also on this corruption of euclidean ideas of space. Then, the two of you <<print $rinkAction[0]>> and <<print $rinkAction[1]>>. It's wild fun, and you only come close to certain death a little."This is actually going pretty great," $dateName says shyly as you walk down the street. "N-not that I figured it wouldn't! I just..." $dateThey leave it at that, and the two of you wander the streets for a bit.
Eventually, you come across one of those small urban parks crammed into a small neighborhood. There's <<print trace('#spriteType.a#')>> sitting on a nearby bench, tossing bits of bread to a flock of fanged pigeons. Two young <<print trace('#spriteType.s#')>> play on a small slide while <<print trace('#spriteType.a#')>> stares directly into one of the three walls enclosing this place. You're not sure if a human's ever been here before.
<<include Chat>>"So," $dateThey says, "what do you want to talk about now?"
<<set $topic to traceMultiple('#chatTopic#',3)>><<set $topic1 to $topic[0]>><<set $topic2 to $topic[1]>><<set $topic3 to $topic[2]>>
[[$topic1]]
[[$topic2]]
[[$topic3]]
[["Can we take a break for a bit?"]]"Oh? Y-yeah, didn't mean to ramble on that much. Let's get out of here. There's a lot more of $dateTown to see." For once, you think $dateName is nervous about something //besides// you. Indeed, you notice that there are eyes on you. The old sprite side-eyeing you two as he continues to toss bread. The two by the slide sneaking glimpses of you and giggling.
<<include Abscond2>>"$god? Well..."
"They're not a god in the same way that your gods are, from what I've heard of your religions. Think of Them more as...a large chunk of the Dream Dimension with Their own consciousness. As long as They're here, we're not forced to obey all of this realm's rules. In return, occasionally They shape the city to fit Their desires. Two apartment buildings might get stacked on top of each other to make room for a mobius strip pizza place. Stuff like that. But once we get back to the Dream Dimension, They'll be no stronger than us."
"I know you humans have a lot of misgivings about Them, but trust me, if They wanted to hurt humanity, They'd have done so by now."
[["...Sure, I believe you."]]
[["That's not very convincing..."]]"Oh, I've gotten into a lot of different things. Lately it's been <<set $h1 to trace('#hobby#')>>$h1, <<set $h2 to trace('#weirdHobby#')>>$h2, <<set $h3 to trace('#hobby#')>>$h3. <<print trace('#hobby.capitalize#')>>, but that was when I was a kid, but I just don't have time for it these days. And of course, $dateProfession is what I do to keep the bills paid, now that I have bills."
"What about you? What are you into?"
[[Your Hobby<-$h1]]
[[Your Hobby<-$h3]]
[[Your Weird Hobby<-$h2]]"Home..." $dateThey falls silent for a moment.
"Humans don't really get what it's like. I know you've read the brochure they pass out when they let you humans in here. 'A world built on the universe's collective thoughts'. But it's another thing to be made there, to grow up there."
"There's a friend of mine who's studied how this works, <<trace #spriteType.a#>> nerd named <<trace #name#>>. Now that $dateTown is out of the Dream Dimension, we can be perceived, and being perceived locks us into a certain quantum trajectory. Basically, we're stuck in the forms we had when we got here, locked into something you can understand. Back home, everything was flexible. You'd wake up to an entirely different world every day, without even consciously realizing it. Sometimes to an entirely different you. I was <<trace #spriteType.a#>> a few times before I got here. I've been <<trace #spriteType.a#>> and <<trace #spriteType.a#>> too."
"Have you ever wanted to be something different?"
[["Yeah. And then I became different. Took a lot of work, but I'm happier now."]]
[["I could change. I'd like to be more like you."]]
[["Nah. The universe got me right the first time. Wouldn't want to change a thing."]]"That's good for you! I understand that a lot of your kind don't feel the same way. I hope you stay that way."
The two of you chat a bit about the nature of permanence before the conversation comes to a halt again.
<<include Chat>>"Cool! It's rare to find someone who shares that passion among sprites. When you have an entire realm of possibility to explore, more...'realistic' activites tend to fall by the wayside. Dull activities for dull sprites." A low, self-conscious chuckle. "But the Dream Dimension has to have humdrum dreams too."
The two of you chat a bit about your shared interest before the conversation comes to a halt again.
<<include Chat>>"...Really?"
"Sorry, it's just weird when I hear about humans that are into sprite stuff. Sometimes I'll talk about something I did over the weekend to a human and they'll make up an excuse about having to lacquer their horse or something and run off. Still, it's nice that you're into that too! Maybe we can do that next time. I mean, if there is a next time."
The two of you chat a bit about your shared interest before the conversation comes to a halt again.
<<include Chat>>"You're still worried, aren't you? I may be new to reading human expressions, but not //that// new."
"Let's just change the topic. I can't affect my god any more than you can affect your government, after all."
<<include Chat>>"N-no, seriously! There are a couple of gods in the Dream Dimension who might want to hurt humanity, but $godShort is just being...curious. At worst, They just think you're interesting."
"Let's just change the topic. I can't affect my god any more than you can affect your government, after all."
<<include Chat>>"Excellent! What were you unsatisfied with? Your weight? Hair? Gender? Oh, no, it's impolite to ask such things, isn't it?" This is the most energetic you've seen $dateThey, practically pulsing with glee.
"I've seen a lot of humans who aren't willing to self-examine themselves enough to make those sorts of changes. Every time I see one of you with that drive for self-improvement, well, it just gives me energy!"
The two of you talk for a bit about change, who you were and how you are now, before the conversation peters out.
<<include Chat>>A pregnant pause. Once again, your lack of experience with sprite emotions leaves a wall between the two of you. Finally, $dateThey takes your hand.
"I didn't expect that answer, but I didn't dislike it." The two of you hold hands for a bit in an awkward but warm silence before $dateName tries to get the conversation going again.
<<include Chat>>You and $dateName shuffle out of the tiny park. If you were the first human to visit there, you may very well be the last.
"A lot of sprites don't see humans that often. Your kind doesn't go exploring into this part of town too often," $dateThey whispers a few minutes later, as you two amble down a small side street. "I've heard of other couples like ours getting bombarded with questions, or getting our pictures taken without our permission. I didn't want that to happen to us."
You note that $dateThey said 'couples like ours'. $dateName stops short.
"I...I guess I did. That was presumptive of me."
Your date leads you to someplace with no audience: <<print trace('#tendLocation#')>>. You get settled in, and $dateThey talks your ear off for a bit about how $dateThey found this little sanctum.
And then $dateThey fall silent.
"I'm...I'm sorry, but I have to ask. Is this date going well?"
[["Of course!"]]
[["I think so."]]
[["Is it?"]]$dateName's surprised by your candor. "Thank you," $dateThey say shyly.
<<include Date5>>"That's...promising, I guess."
<<include Date5>>"I mean...I hope it has? I've been having fun, and you seem great."
<<include Date5>>"I just don't know what you see in me. I'm not sure if you've figured it out, but I'm not exactly a catch by $dateType standards. 'Woefully unoriginal'. 'A rambling pile of insecurity'. 'A bore'. I feel like I'm taking advantage of you because you're human and you don't know how terrible I actually am." $dateName looks mortified, but $dateThey presses on. "Or maybe you'd just like //any// $dateType that would take you, and you'd pass me up for someone more interesting the moment someone catches your eye. I...I just don't know."
"Maybe...this was a bad idea. Maybe I should have figured myself out before doing this." They look like they're about to bolt. If you're going to stop $dateThem, you'd better do it now.
[[Special<-"I didn't pick any sprite. I picked you. I like who you are."]]
[[Pragmatism<-"Maybe you're right, and we have issues we need to work out. But why not work them out together?"]]
[[Hug them<-Hug]]"...I like you too." $dateName "I'd like to continue liking you, if that's okay."
<<include Date6>>"...Yeah. I'm okay with that." $dateName relaxes visibly. "We had fun today. We can worry about eveyrthing else tomorrow."
<<include Date6>>You just hold $dateThem. You grab $dateThem tightly and hang on, even as $datethey cry into your shoulder.
<<include Date6>>Soon, once $dateName has calmed down, the two of you return to where this all began.
"Thank you," $dateThey said. "I mean it. I think I needed this."
The two of you make sure you have each other's phone number, social media account name, and divine designation, and you leave $dateThem by the bench, heading back to your own home. You're not sure what you expected from today, or where the two of you are heading, but it was...nice.
Go you.
[[init<-Restart]]
[[Dev Status<-Development Stuff]]This is version 0.13 of "An Evening With a Sprite". If you're interested in helping improve later versions of this game, feel free to leave a comment. And be sure to run through the story a couple of times to see the various randomized elements!
Current planned additions:
* Customized events based on sprite type
[[init<-Restart]]Oh right, $dateProfession. I was always sort of interested in that, but now that we're here and your government introduced 'capitalism', we need money to buy things you have that we can't make ourselves anymore. We knew about it before, as the Dream Dimension holds all possibilities, but we never saw it enforced. I had a friend who cried when the concept of 'debt' was explained to them.
I'm...honestly not sure why $god allows your leaders to do this. There are surely better ways to handle the circulation of resources; this way seems to only persist to preserve power structures. Don't you agree?
[["We try to fight it. Our leaders are just...stubborn about it."]]
[["One day. One day we'll burn it all to the ground."]]
[["I just try to keep myself and mine happy while we're stuck in the system."]]
"I get it. I can't imagine stepping against $god. Hopefully, you'll have better luck than we would."
The two of you chat a bit about politics before the conversation comes to a halt again.
<<include Chat>>Your date squeezes your hand in sympathy. "There is no true destruction. Only endings and beginnings, a transformation. Burn it knowing that something different will rise in its wake."
The two of you chat a bit about endings and beginnings before the conversation comes to a halt again.
<<include Chat>>"That's fair. I have people I want to protect too. But it's not a crime to dream bigger."
The two of you chat a bit about your families before the conversation comes to a halt again.
<<include Chat>>"Oh, well, I have quiet spots, of course. This whole...city is energetic. Built into its nature when it was drawn out of the Dream Dimension. So we all learned to find spots where it's not constant action. Just because the Dream Dimension is everchanging doesn't mean we don't need stillness every once in a while. Maybe I'll take you by one of my spots later."
"What about you? Where do you go when you need to get away from it all?"
[["Somewhere I can watch water flow."]]
[["The library. Just me and my books."]]
[["Anywhere's quiet if I have my good heaphones on."]]
"Ah, that sounds peaceful. When I was young, there was what you might call a Klein fountain everflowing in a garden near my house. It wouldn't have survived coming here though. Far too elaborate."
You listen while $dateName talks your ear off about the beauty of infinite curvature. Eventually, $dateThey trails off, and the conversation has to start anew.
<<include Chat>>"A reader, huh? Interesting. I wonder how easily books isolate humans from the outside world when you can't, well, actually enter them."
You tell $dateThem about some of your favorite books and how the process of reading entices you, while $dateThey describes being able to actually watch events in books unfold. The conversation eventually falls quiet, and you move to a new topic.
<<include Chat>>"You can get that feeling of isolation from just not hearing it? Amazing. I always feel so connected to the change happening around me."
You talk a bit about your headphones and offer to let $dateThem try them out at some point. You're not...entirely sure if they'll work with $dateTheir anatomy, but it's worth trying. At the very least, $dateName seems excited about the idea, even as you shift to a different topic.
<<include Chat>>"What would I buy with a million dollars? Gee, I don't know, a personality? Can you buy a personality with money in this dimension? I've watched some of the commercials they show down there, and I can't tell how accurate they are. I mean, there's beer in the Dream Dimension that can summon attractive ladies, but I'm pretty sure that wouldn't work in this realm."
"I guess...I'm doing well enough as it is. I'd like to be happier."
"What about you?"
[["Buy all my friends expensive gifts."]]
[["Make sure my family's comfortable."]]
[["200 tons of chocolate fudge."]]"Well, I...I guess it's good that we're friends now." $dateName laughs self-consciously. "It does sound sweet though. It's good that you know people that you're willing to lavish like that."
The conversation doesn't linger on the topic for much longer.
<<include Chat>>"...Ah, right. I keep forgetting how precarious life can be for you if you are not wealthy."
$dateName tries to push the conversation forward, but the realities of living under capitalism kind of spoiled the mood. You pivot to a new topic.
<<include Chat>>$dateName just looks at you for five seconds without saying anything.
"That...sounds wrong, but I don't know enough about human culture to argue against it. Still, it does also sound delicious."
The two of you talk about the ridiculous enterprise it would be to purchase/store/consume that much chocolate before moving to a new topic.
<<include Chat>>