The Introdes

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<<silently>> <<display "(System) Create Variables">> <<display "(System) Setup Resources">> <</silently>>

/% Store all your game variables here %/ <<set $cPlayerName="Tiatha", $cDrinkChoice="none", $cHairChoice="A deep red, held forward", $iPath=0, $iInfluence=0, $bMachiDistant=false, $bDissentSeed=false, $bWalkAlone=false, $bCircleWords=false, $bCircleIntact=true, $bSavedMessage=false, $bSawMessage=false, $bCentreIntact=true, $bWearingPin=false, $bWalkAlone=false, $bInfluencerIntact=true, $bPlayerPrepared=false, $bMarchActive=false, $bMarchLoyal=false, $bPlayerPass=false, $bPlayerMutable=false, $bPlayerSusceptible=false, $bHordeFree=false>>

<<setscene "BG_parlour.jpg">> <<narration>> <font style="font-size:48pt">NEW LOVE CLASSIC</font> [[Explore the theme|DialogueLayout]] <<endnarration>>

/% Example Dialogue Layout /% Tag this passage with "t8n-typewriter-1" for typewriter FX %/ /% Scene's full screen background image %/ <<setscene "BG_library.jpg">> /% <<character "name" "image passage" "position keyword">> /% Position keywords: left, right, center /% Note: you can add more in the css %/ <<character "Clarice:" "CHAR_ClariceMad.png" "right">> /% <<dialogue>> ... <</dialogue>> is a special macro that /% displays bottom with your <<character>>'s name in a tab %/ <<dialogue>><<display "ShortText">> <<display "ChoiceButtons">> <</dialogue>>

Hi <<print $playerName>> ! Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam...

[[Center Text|NarrationText]] [[Center Choices|NarrationChoices]] [[Short Dialogue + Choices|DialogueLayout]] [[Long Dialogue|DialogueLongLayout]]

/% Example Narration Layout /% Use this layout to display setting scene, choices, or any /% text at the center of teh screen. /% Tag this passage with "t8n-typewriter-1" for typewriter FX %/ <<setscene "BG_tearoom.jpg">> /% <<narration>>...<</narration %/ <<narration>><<display "ShortText">> [[Back|DialogueLayout]]<</narration>>

<<setscene "BG_bedroom.jpg">> <<character "Clarice" "CHAR_ClariceMad.png" "center">> <<narration>><<display "ChoiceButtons">><</narration>>

<<setscene "BG_library.jpg">> <<character "???" "CHAR_ClariceMad.png" "left">> <<dialogue>><<display "LongText">> [[< Back|DialogueLayout]]<</dialogue>>

Sed ut perspiciatis unde omnis iste natus error sit voluptatem accusantium doloremque laudantium, totam rem aperiam, eaque ipsa quae ab illo inventore veritatis et quasi architecto beatae vitae dicta sunt explicabo. Nemo enim ipsam voluptatem quia voluptas sit aspernatur aut odit aut fugit, sed quia consequuntur magni dolores eos qui ratione voluptatem sequi nesciunt. Neque porro quisquam est, qui dolorem ipsum quia dolor sit amet, consectetur, adipisci velit, sed quia non numquam eius modi tempora incidunt ut labore et dolore magnam aliquam quaerat voluptatem. Ut enim ad minima veniam, quis nostrum exercitationem ullam corporis suscipit laboriosam, nisi ut aliquid ex ea commodi consequatur? Quis autem vel eum iure reprehenderit qui in ea voluptate velit esse quam nihil molestiae consequatur, vel illum qui dolorem eum fugiat quo voluptas nulla pariatur? At vero eos et accusamus et iusto odio dignissimos ducimus qui blanditiis praesentium voluptatum deleniti atque corrupti quos dolores et quas molestias excepturi sint occaecati cupiditate non provident, similique sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollitia animi, id est laborum et dolorum fuga. Et harum quidem rerum facilis est et expedita distinctio. Nam libero tempore, cum soluta nobis est eligendi optio cumque nihil impedit quo minus id quod maxime placeat facere possimus, omnis voluptas assumenda est, omnis dolor repellendus. Temporibus autem quibusdam et aut officiis debitis aut rerum necessitatibus saepe eveniet ut et voluptates repudiandae sint et molestiae non recusandae. Itaque earum rerum hic tenetur a sapiente delectus, ut aut reiciendis voluptatibus maiores alias consequatur aut perferendis doloribus asperiores repellat

This is a prototype version of The Introdes, by Nick Hudson (<a href="http://twitter.com/nicktatorship" target="_blank">@nicktatorship</a>). It was created for #ResistJam, nad is veering toward a few different topics that I think relate to the goals of the jam. The big driver is the power of language, with some additional thoughts around the way the many can both be steered toward beliefs, but also how the separation of the many can be a means of control. It is set in a future, where an organisation known as the centre tries to train groups of "Introdes", highly-individual individuals who are bonded with four other introdes, to form circles. The intent of this process is to train people into maintaining their presence and sense of self, while being able to interact with other such highly influential people. The goals of the centre beyond this are not clear from the outset, and while well-meaning in ways, seemingly wanting to guard against demagogues, there are flaws in their thinking that present through the continuing narrative. The current iteration leads up to the beginning of the third sequence, out of a total of eight sequences. I haven't stock on how many branching lines there are, or moments of diversion, but there are some early ones from your first sequence in Clanden - some of which mightn't present so easily. The story and setting are partially lifted from a short story I began for NaNoWriMo in November 2016, and was inspired by the events of the month. There are some differences, in that the protagonist is now the player, and there are divergent branches. Aside from writing and coding, all of the artwork in the game is also by me. I am not regularly an artist however, so you may freely describe it with the words quaint or interesting. The feel of this game (as-is) would not be possible without the use of these amazing pieces of music, which are credited as below. Music: <ul><li>Gravity Waves Back (ft. airtone) by robwalkerpoet (c) copyright 2017 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Noncommercial (3.0) license. http://dig.ccmixter.org/files/robwalkerpoet/55616 Ft: airtone</li><li>Serenity by Purple Planet Music http://www.purple-planet.com Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Noncommercial (3.0) license. http://www.purple-planet.com/reflective/4583971306 </li><li>"Heart of Nowhere" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ </li></ul> The other absolutely massive thing that made this game possible, was the Twine theme (CSS and Macros) I'm using. It's a partial port of Rebecca Cohen-Palacios's Love Classic Theme for Twine - wherever the differences of Twine 2 and SugarCube 2 to the original implementation were required, absolutely heavy inspiration from the original took place. The port was to make the theme work with Twine 2 and SugarCube 2. I've been in touch with Rebecca to make sure it's fine to use this port, and have maintained the original credits for Love Classic below: /% Special case layout: shows only text /% Passage must be tagged "FullTextLayout" /% Can be used for credits, instructions, etc %/ Love Classic is a visual novel theme using Twine's Sugarcane format as a base. It's meant for dating sims and other games that use the classic visual novel interface and styling. This was developed by Rebecca Cohen-Palacios for <a href="http://pixelles.ca" target="_blank">Pixelles</a>. Credit would be very much appreciated! Any questions or feature suggestions, e-mail <a href="mailto:rebthegreat@gmail.com">rebthegreat@gmail.com</a> or tweet to <a href="http://twitter.com/rebheartsyou" target="_blank">@rebheartsyou</a>. &hearts; Inspired by: <a href="http://twitter.com/benswinden" target="_blank">Ben Swinden</a>'s visual novel theme &hearts; Placeholder assets by: <a href="http://twitter.com/kimbert" target="_blank">Kim Hoang</a> &hearts; This theme was created with <a href="http://twinery.org" target="_blank">Twine</a> and is powered by <a href="http://tiddlywiki.com/" target="_blank">TiddlyWik</a>

[[About|About]]

<<setscene "bg_march.jpg">><<audio "gravity" loop play volume 0.25 fadeto 0.75>> <<narration>> <font style="font-size:48pt"><<print Story.title>></font> [[Begin the Story|Introduction]] <</narration>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">> <<narration>>Clanden was like many of the nightfall combines, places decked out in colour and brightness to dish out the positive. There were others that sought a taste of daylight, but this one didn’t delve that way. It was reminiscent of the fungal biolumes in the Planter district, casting hues and lights with an edge of ultraviolet. It also invoked thoughts of the anglers of the deep, but was like nothing you've seen beneath the sun’s light. It bordered on the tone of a street brightened by burning barrels, met by a forest sprouted by neon spores. Tonight, it was your refuge. [[Inside the Combine|Clanden]] <</narration>>

Now that the task is done, something must happen.

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<<setscene "bg_hallemon.jpg">><<audio "serenity" stop>><<audio "heart" loop play volume 0.25 fadeto 0.75>><<narration>>The city of Hallemon was a different kind in daylight. The wide mossy pathways with ore husks were a sight in the old district, but the environment around your home was a brilliant green growth, sprinkled with small yellow flowers. The numbers out were lower than at nightfall, and it would be half-day before there were more than a dozen visible on a widepath at any one time. [[Continue|The First Steps]] <</narration>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<audio "gravity" stop>><<audio "serenity" loop play volume 0.25 fadeto 0.75>><<narration>>The fizz of the sun’s rays moved through the room and brought sharp light to everything in its way. You heard it first, but weren't sure if you were ready to greet what the sound meant. It was something you learned about in pre-second classes, how the heat of the burgeoning star squeezed the gases in the air until they shook off the shivers they gained at nightfall. By the time the notion took root with the introdes, the theories ranged from airborne photovoltaic particles charging each habitat to the world being slow cooked into some other worldly meal, and all kinds of variations within. It was most often reduced to shorthand for the arrival of daytime, and became ingrained in expressions like the morning fizz, lightcrackles, and a mistranslated “sizzle the day” that was accepted as age-old proof it had always done so. [[The New Day]] <</narration>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<narration>> Much like yourself, a number of the introdes found their way to Clanden after the meal of the thankful. It was a way to have a taste of the irresponsible without rolling right into abandon. It was closer to the nights of old, and removed from the glares made from burning metal. You had a different path waiting in the years to come, but as an introde, nobody expected anything more post-thankful than to revel within a combine. It wasn’t every nightfall that it happened, but it was Clanden common enough that it felt like your spot. [[Meeting Machi]] <</narration>>

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<<narration>><<audio "gravity" volume 0.65 fadeto 0.25>> You leave the combine, knowing that it could have gone different. How you acted toward Machi, the things you said and even what you drank, everything could have been different and you feel this is only the beginning. [[Home]] <</narration>>

<<narration>><<audio "serenity" volume 0.65 fadeto 0.25>> You leave your home, and begin the bright walk through Hallemon, along the path that leads to the centre where you'll take the evaluation. The events of the night before seem to echo in the light, but all you can do is continue your journey onward. [[Hallemon]] <</narration>>

[[Evaluation]]

[[Antithesis]]

[[Fracture]]

[[Horde]]

[[Dissipate]]

[[End]]

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<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<narration>> You're here to meet Machi, one of the introdes in your circle of five. Machi found a way to make Clanden a permanent fixture in their life, but it was the shadow of an evaluation that beckoned you this time. There were <<button "other circles" "Other Circles in Clanden">><</button>> in the Combine, some partial and others whole, but very few that were on their own. They always cut it loose once an eval date had been set, and being there the night before their day was riskier than most would dare. You spot Machi in a distant corner, their face lit by garish pink. Machi sights you too, and their eyes change big and round, and of a brighter white than any of the teeth in their smile. [[Approach Machi|Drink Offer]]<</narration>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<character "Machi" "ch_machi_tall.png" "left">> <<description>> Machi holds a glass toward you. It is filled to lip by a swirl of neon rainbow liquid with a faint shimmer deep inside, and waits for you to take it. The contents pulse with life, matching the deep bass line of the music as though they were its own heartbeat. Their own <<button drink "Machi Drink">><</button>> is a subdued honey-brown, much calmer by comparison. <span id="no_drink"></span> [[Accept the Drink|Take the drink]] <<nobr>><<timed 10s>><<replace #no_drink>>[[Turn down the Drink|No Drink]]<</replace>><</timed>><</nobr>><</description>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<character "Machi" "ch_machi_tall.png" "left">><<set $cDrinkChoice="honey">><<narration>>You take Machi's drink instead. [[Continue|Drink Excuse]]<</narration>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<set $cDrinkChoice="neon">><<character "Machi" "ch_machi_tall.png" "left">> <<dialogue>>You are my reliable one. It is these specks on the day that makes it so each of us can do the same as you. [[Talk to Machi|Machi Drink Convo]] <</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<set $bPlayerPrepared=true>><<charactername "You">> <<dialogue>> I can't risk this. Even coming tonight could be too much. I could be out. [[Continue|Drink Convo 2]] <</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<charactername $cPlayerName>> <<dialogue>> Not tonight, Machi. My evaluation tomorrow and I don’t have the clock for a biolift. [[Continue|Machi Response to Reason]] <</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<character "Machi" "ch_machi_tall.png" "left">> <<dialogue>>The proper life is one of risks. We never get close enough for a brink. But chancing, that’s a dance with fate. [[Continue|Machi Drink Convo]] <</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<charactername "You">> <<dialogue>> <<if $cDrinkChoice eq "neon">> I'm supposed to be me, aren't I? That's as much as we each know. <<else>> Did you set a date yet, Machi? <</if>> [[Continue|Drink Convo 2]] <</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<narration>>You look around at the denizens of Clanden, taking in the different groups scattered across the luminescent shadows. There was no identifier that told you something about a group, and no commonality beyond the standard tongue that persisted across circles. To forsake your own circle and made contact with another was an unknown, as the familiarity they shared with each other became a barrier. You could cross the shadows and try your words, or meet Machi where they wait. [[Approach another Circle]] [[Approach Machi|Drink Offer]] <</narration>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<character "The Other Circle" "ch_othercircle.png" "right">><<narration>> <<set $cCirclePhrase="Why the five? Never alter">> You pass on meeting Machi, and approach one of the other circles. Much like yours, there are five in the piece. As you approach, you can hear their words, coinciding in places with ones that you know, but framed and phrased in ways altogether different. [[Talk to the Other Circle]] <</narration>>

<<nobr>><<repeat 1s>><<set $newThing=either("history", "robot", "science", "welfare", "doggy", "kitten", "dance", "krogan")>><<replace #no_drink>>You know all about a $newThing<</replace>><</repeat>><</nobr>> <<button "other circles" "Other Circles in Clanden">><</button>> <<nobr>><<timed 10s>><<replace #no_drink>>xxTurn down the Drink|No Drinkxx<</replace>><</timed>><</nobr>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<character "Machi" "ch_machi_tall.png" "left">> <<dialogue>> <<switch $cDrinkChoice>> <<case "neon">> You're the star of the class, and the circle sure. We wait to see where yours goes. Our own setting is in a future still coming, and I am not you, but needn't be. <<case "honey">> That is somewhere in the future still. I could have set it already, but you’re the star of the class. We all wait to see where you go first, and then we can walk the way. <<case "none">> That caution brings more to my setting a date. If the best of us needs to face it unburdened, then the circle will all push their future further. How can we fail to be ourselves? <</switch>> <span id="no_answer"></span> <<nobr>><<timed 10s>><<replace #no_answer>>[[Say nothing|Let it stand]]<</replace>><</timed>><</nobr>> [[Deflect|Not the first]] <</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<charactername $cPlayerName>><<dialogue>>First? That's not it. I’m not even close to the first of us, not even in our circle. [[Continue|Not first Response]] <</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">> <<narration>> You aren't the first in the circle to undergo an <<button "evaluation" "On the Evaluations">><</button>>, but you don't challenge Machi's words. You had enough to worry about without needing to lean in and tell them they were wrong. [[Continue|Machi Banter]] <</narration>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<character "The Other Circle" "ch_othercircle.png" "left">><<charactername "You">> <<description>>You consider what to say. You think about the words, letting the syllables flow until you have a sentence that seems to fit. They may understand you, but you want to find those that show you can think as they do. "<<button $cCirclePhrase "Talk to the Other Circle">><<nobr>> <<switch $cCirclePhrase>> <<case "They count us five, all per circle, but not in here.">> <<set $cCirclePhrase="Circles count five, but who counts the circle?">> <<case "Circles count five, but who counts the circle?">> <<set $cCirclePhrase="What is our reason? Why don't we speak?">> <<case "What is our reason? Why don't we speak?">> <<set $cCirclePhrase="Circles, right?">> <<case "Circles, right?">> <<set $cCirclePhrase="You count you and see five, but many more cross the path.">> <<case "You count you and see five, but many more cross the path.">> <<set $cCirclePhrase="Is this a cult? Are we in a cult?">> <<case "Is this a cult? Are we in a cult?">> <<set $cCirclePhrase="Strike your wonder and cop. Five to a circle, just like a hand, but even I take two. How many more?">> <<default>> <<set $cCirclePhrase="They count us five, all per circle, but not in here.">> <</switch>> <</nobr>> <</button>>" These could be the ones that will push the question. [[Speak the Words]] [[Leave the Other Circle|Step Away]] <</description>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<character "The Other Circle" "ch_othercircle.png" "left">><<charactername $cPlayerName>><<set $bMachiDistant=true>><<dialogue>>$cCirclePhrase <<if $cCirclePhrase eq "You count you and see five, but many more cross the path.">> [[Continue|Circle Headway]] <<else>> [[Continue|Clanden Alone]] <</if>><</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<character "Machi" "ch_machi_tall.png" "left">><<dialogue>> You made it after all. We're the only ones of the Circle. [[Acknowledge Machi|Drink Offer]]<</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<character "The Other Circle" "ch_othercircle.png" "left">><<set $bCircleWords=true>><<description>>The introdes of the other circle study you for a moment, unsure of what to make of you. Your words have provided intrigue for each of them, and they accept your presence on the edge of their space. You find it difficult to follow the conversation of the other circle, yet glean enough from what they say that a few new words imprint on you. When they leave, they say their beyonds to you as well, and thought you don't know what it could lead to, you recognise it as a moment of significance. [[Leave Clanden]]<</description>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<narration>>The words fail to find their mark with the Other Circle. They turn away from you, leaving you alone in the combine. You look around to where you saw Machi before, but find even they have left Clanden now. <<set $bPlayerSusceptible=true>>[[Leave Clanden]]<</narration>>

<<display "C1 Wrap Up">>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<character "Machi" "ch_machi_tall.png" "left">><<dialogue>>If it's a count of actual, no, but Miani is devastatingly different. [[Besides her|And Yeo?]]<</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<description>>Machi nods unwittingly as you mention Yeo, finding it difficult to contain their agreement. You weren't the first in the circle to undergo the <<button "evaluations" "On the Evaluations">><</button>>. Machi’s own twin Miani had gone through it first, but the expectations around you were greater. You'd already taken full advantage of the open-ended periods applied to an introde. Miani had done her best and Yeo's day had come and gone without a word from him. It was only Machi's eyes, clear pools unable to hold a secret, that had given Yeo away. They did the same now. They scratched at the back of their neck, pulling at their hair. They were stalling. [[Continue|Machi Counter]] <</description>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<character "Machi" "ch_machi_tall.png" "left">><<dialogue>>Yours is of another kind. If Torran and I had put ours through, then it might be like yours was the last. we would be watching for you no matter when you went. [[Continue|Machi Banter]]<</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<character $cPlayerName>><<dialogue>>Why no $cPlayerName, I can’t see why you would feel any pressure at all. Ha ha. [[Continue|Machi Comforts]]<</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<character "Machi" "ch_machi_tall.png" "left">><<dialogue>>Even as you try to <<button "fall to pieces" "You confess worry">><</button>>, every one of them is cut with precision. [[Respond bravely]]<</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<charactername $cPlayerName>><<dialogue>>But.. I’m also trying not to fall into any kind of pieces. Joy or jaded, we’ll do the swirls after the evaluation, without fail. We don’t have to make it a big thing. We don’t even know how it’ll go yet, and I don’t want to bring the whole circle out if it means they’ll be diving into swirls while I try to keep out the grey. [[Face the grey]]<</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<charactername $cPlayerName>><<dialogue>>I'm not going to fall to pieces. I'm going to show you and Tollan that our whole circle can get through it. [[Continue|Machi respond to bravery]]<</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<narration>>The word sticks out again. Even though the event attached to the word looms over you, you realise there were many unknowns that surrounded the evaluations. It was a test of yourself, that you much you know, but how it rolled through and what came next, you didn't know. <span id="question_evals"></span> <<nobr>><<timed 30s>><<replace #question_evals>>[[Question them|Question the Evaluations]]<</replace>><</timed>><</nobr>> [[Continue the Conversation|Machi Counter]]<</narration>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<character "Machi" "ch_machi_tall.png" "left">><<dialogue>>And you think we’d allow you to face a grey moment on your own? None of us are alone, $cPlayerName. [[Accept the help]] <</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<narration>>The whole idea of a circle meant you were matched with solid support, and even if you didn’t think you needed it, they were there. Especially when you didn’t think you deserved it, you had a tight group to get you past your worst self to either overcome your challenges or grow from your failures. Asking them to not be there if the evaluation was sour would only guarantee the entire four would be at her side. As you look at Machi and see the knowing expression on their face, you know that your realisation was there on your eyes, mouth and maybe even nose. [[Leave Clanden]]<</narration>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<description>>As you start to think about the evaluations, you wonder how you could fail to be yourself. The test in itself had to be more than just checking that you had kept your inners intact, but that those inners met the centre's need. [[Express doubt about the Centre|Raise dissent with Machi]]<</description>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<character "Machi" "ch_machi_tall.png" "left">><<dialogue>>It's not you that we're worried about. You could swirl and roll into a biolift, but we're not through so easily. [[Encourage Machi]] [[Discourage Machi]] <</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<charactername $cPlayerName>><<dialogue>>All of us. Five to every circle, Machi. No alter. [[Continue|Machi leaves Clanden]]<</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<set $bMachiDistant=true>><<charactername $cPlayerName>><<dialogue>>I can't take it for you. You won't be able to put it off forever. If you fail, then you're meant to. [[Continue|Machi leaves Clanden]]<</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<character "Machi" "ch_machi_tall.png" "left">><<narration>><<if $bMachiDistant>>Machi looks around Clanden for someone that they could hand the rainbow swirls to. They could broach the unusual and deliver the drink to someone outside circle, but that was the point where doubt returned to Machi. The only thing they didn't do, was look at you. <<else>>Machi tilted their head to the side, but it was hard to hide the smile. They look at the swirling drink still in their hand, drink it empty, and nods at you again.<</if>> <<if $$bDissentSeed>>You watch as Machi leaves, noticing the way they look a little longer at each circles as they go, but they stay silent all the way. You aren't sure how you feel as you sit still in the dark of the combine, barely noticing the iridescence within its light.<<else>>They leave Clanden in silence, leaving you alone with the brilliant darkness, the other introdes, and your thoughts.<</if>> [[Leave Clanden]]<</narration>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<set $bDissentSeed=true>><<charactername $cPlayerName>><<dialogue>>The Centre isn't part of our circle. I'd lean toward you or the rest, but others here? The circle can't separate from that either. [[Continue|Machi Dissent Response]]<</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<character "Machi" "ch_machi_tall.png" "left">><<dialogue>>You can't... You. $cPlayerName? [[Bring Dissent Plan]]<</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<set $bDissentSeed=true>><<charactername $cPlayerName>><<dialogue>>We should bring it to the Circle. Doesn't change tomorrow, but tomorrows beyond it could. [[Continue|Machi leaves Clanden]]<</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<character "Miani" "ch_miani.png" "left">><<narration>>Miani waits at the door, ready to accompany you on the walk through Hallemon. She takes a look at you, at your hair. [[Continue|Miani Arrives]] <</narration>>

<<setscene "bg_clanden.jpg">><<narration>> You decide not to test the words on them. At best you might have made contact, and made yourself known to them, but with no image of an end. Perhaps those were the right words, but you wouldn't know until you tried - and now not at all. You step back from that circle and notice that Machi is still here. [[Return to Machi]]<</narration>>

<<setscene "bg_march.jpg">> <<description>>-- Future Content -- [[Preview|Coming Up 3]] <</description>>

<<setscene "bg_centre.jpg">> <<description>>-- The End (for now) -- <</description>>

/% Setup all your game resources here %/ <<cacheaudio "gravity" "audio/gravity_waves_back.mp3">> <<cacheaudio "serenity" "audio/serenity.mp3">> <<cacheaudio "heart" "audio/heart_of_nowhere.mp3">>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">> <<description>> You start your day by leaving your bed and dressing in the outfit you'd picked out the night before. It was made from purple, brown and red fabrics, with ribbons that twirled your arm all the way to your wrist. On the shelf of your cupboard, you see a layered pictogram that represents your circle. A circle didn’t have to be part of an outfit. The earliest days as an introde tended toward the expectation that it should be there, as time passed it became something personal. Most introde circles garnered the same kind of familiarity between their respective fives, but there was no uniform means to present themselves as a group. [[Wear the Emblem|Emblem Choice][$bWearingPin=true]] [[Don't Wear the Emblem|Emblem Choice]] <</description>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<description>> <<if $bWearingPin>> You set the pin upon your outfit, signalling to the rest of the circle that no matter how the day runs, you are among them. You hope that your success will come, but you won't have to be alone if the moment turns grey. <<else>> You decide against wearing the pin. The evaluation is a day too large to wander or wonder whether the choice meant more, but you know there was a meaning there. Whether you expect to pass or fail, you alone are responsible. <</if>> [[A Message]]<</description>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<narration>>A curved light on the wall of your lodgings rolled through a mix of dark and light - an alert to let you know a communication has been received. <span id="no_message"></span> [[Play the Message]] <<nobr>><<timed 10s>><<replace #no_message>>[[Ignore the Message|Ignore Message]]<</replace>><</timed>><</nobr>> <</narration>>

<<setscene "bg_forest.jpg">><<set $bSawMessage=true>><<description>>The wall surface changed for a moment, from the orange texture it usually was, to showing a picturesque scene somewhere in the natural world. There was a tree caked in thick moss, with only flickers of its black trunk peeking out from the growth. The foliage depicted was dense, more so than you had seen in the world herself, and though there was light, it was more subdued than the sunlight which had brought morning to your day. [[Ask Home about the Message]] <</description>>

<<setscene "bg_forest.jpg">><<charactername $cPlayerName>><<dialogue>>Home, is this message active? [[Continue|Home Answer]]<</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_forest.jpg">><<description>>An <<button "active message" "Active Message">><</button>> would mean someone on the other end as she you watched. <<if $bMachiDistant>>Tollan or Yeo could have been behind it<<else>>You could imagine Machi popping into view as you watch<</if>>, but it didn't seem like the kind of thing your circle would send. There were occasions when a message would go astray - something left over from a transmission that went elsewhere, or when the controllers pushed it to an unintended recipient. This seemed a candidate for the same, but it was different enough to a general misfire to raise questions. [[Continue|Message Response]] <</description>>

<<setscene "bg_forest.jpg">><<description>> You spend another moment running your gaze over the details in the image. It was different to the decor of the day-type combines, and even stood separate to the neatly arranged growths of the planter district. Nothing about it was organised, and didn’t seem to fit with the idea of what a tree was expected to be, yet you find it easy to accept it for what it was. <span id="keep_message"></span> <<nobr>><<timed 20s>><<replace #keep_message>>[[Save the Message|Message Status][$bSavedMessage=true]]<</replace>><</timed>><</nobr>> [[Delete the Message|Message Status]] <</description>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<description>> You had enough noise in the evaluation without leaning to distractions beyond. The message would likely be either from your circle, or a stray notion not for you. Anything else was beyond thought. <span id="keep_message"></span> <<nobr>><<timed 10s>><<replace #keep_message>>[[Save the Message|Message Status][$bSavedMessage=true]]<</replace>><</timed>><</nobr>> [[Delete the Message|Message Status]] <</description>>

<<description>>Sometimes the messages that came through the system were live - there were times when the person making the <<button "call" "Active Call">><</button>> might be present for the message, and other times where they had recorded it and sent it through. The norm had shifted between the two in a seasonal sense. [[Continue|Message Response]] <</description>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<character "Miani" "ch_miani.png" "left">><<dialogue>><<if $bGreenGuardian>>Yeah, that's you.<<else>>Okay $cPlayerName.<</if>> I'm going to walk you there. [[Invite her in|Answer the Door]] [[Send her Away]] <</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<narration>>Hair was harder than the clothes. You weren't a grafter like Torran, who seemed to change his cut and style as often as the date changed, yet you liked some change. You could do colour, but always found yourself veering to the day hues more than the ones of night. It normally didn't ask for thought, but to be the you that best defined your psyche was a thing of pressure. Your mind <<if $cDrinkChoice eq "neon">>races through the choices you could pick, never settling on one over the other. Even when feels like a preference, you wonder <<else>> moves through the possible choices you could make, but you draw toward choosing<</if>> <span id="hairchoice">$cHairChoice</span><<nobr>><<if $cDrinkChoice eq "neon">><<repeat 0.3s>><<set $cHairChoice=either("if Green is the way.", "could you make it RED? REDDDD IS THE WAY!", "BLUE? Not like, blue-blue, but that special blue, like a Rainbow BLUE.?", "if SHINY is a colour?", "why nobody picks purple or everybody picks purple but never not everybody and nobody.", "if it could be EVERY colour.")>><<replace "#hairchoice">>$cHairChoice<</replace>><</repeat>><<else>><<repeat 1.8s>><<set $cHairChoice=either("a comfortable Green Spokes style.", "tips with lots of red.", "putting it up, blue and the like.", "a cloud of silver.", "bright purple coils.", "a cascade of darkness.")>><<replace "#hairchoice">>$cHairChoice<</replace>><</repeat>><</if>><</nobr>> [[Hair Choice]]<</narration>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<description>><<if $cHairChoice eq "if Green is the way.">>You veer to the verdant, despite the awful state of your focus, a relic of the drink from nightfall. It's a choice that slides into your mind like a pour of wet, where the dusty spray of racing thoughts can find their steady moment. In a way it feels like the <<button "Green Guardian" "Green Guardian">><</button>> herself brought you to the moment.<<set $bGreenGuardian=true>><<elseif $cHairChoice eq "a comfortable Green Spokes style.">>It had begun as a novelty, but a run of twelve days was enough to normalise it. The next time you'd taken it on past had garnered a nnodding smile and nothing more. It wasn't a permanent fixture for you, but you returned to it regularly enough that it was an automatic choice for the day - a latch of familiar to see you through the evaluation. It helped that Miani would approve of anything in the image of the <<button "Green Guardian" "Green Guardian">><</button>>. <<set $bGreenGuardian=true>><<else>>You settle on a kind of hair, reckoning into it being a distraction from what the day brought. The outside couldn't make you, though you wonder if part of it could. <</if>> [[A Visitor]]<</description>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<narration>> <<if $bPlayerPrepared>> With the close of the distraction through the calls, you put yourself into the present. It wouldn't be much before the day brought someone to the door, and the rest of a life seemed to start with today. <<else>> You wonder if you'd done everything you needed to. You could have <<button "prepared" "Speedy Prep">><</button>> more, but realise that even asking it of yourself could bring doubt to bear. <</if>> <<if $bDissentSeed>> You find it hard to remove yourself from the moment. While you are sure the evaluation will proceed unstifled, all that's beyond leaves a question within you - one you find hard to even ask in words. You wonder how you could have a rise unworded, but its presence burns deep. <<elseif $bCircleWords>> You don't know if you expect the other circle to be present. Neither do you know if the centre might be aware, though you suspected they did. There was still a shake of circumstance around how your own circle might treat the actions, but you'd come this far already. <<else>> The evaluation came without news or guidance. With no burden beyond the expected, you realise this moment could be your last in solitude. The future of the circle, and your own as tied, would change once others came. It could be a slice of forever before they were gone. <</if>> [[Take a Moment|Time Alone]]<</narration>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<narration>><<if $bSavedMessage>>It takes a moment for the machine to store the message.<<else>>It takes a moment for the machine to delete the message.<</if>> [[Continue|Post Messages]]<</narration>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<charactername $cPlayerName>><<dialogue>>Nevermind this. I want to <<if $bDissentSeed>>>call my Circle <<elseif $bCircleWords>>call the Circle I spoke to last night<<else>>speak to Machi<</if>>. [[Continue|Dial]]

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<narration>> <<if $bDissentSeed>>>The quarters of the screen flip through the rest of your circle - Yeo, Torran, Miani, and <<if $bMachiDistant>>even Machi<<else>>Machi<</if>>. They all watch you. It's your evaluation day, yet a call as this spells something else. <<elseif $bCircleWords>>You call just one of the introdes from Clanden, clinging as often to words that trip your tongue, only because they're the same blend of unfamiliar that caught your ears when you spoke. Though not in your circle, they know the day in front, and where it travels for you. <<else>><<if $bMachiDistant>>The outward cycles longer than you expect, and when it finally brings the image of their home, it takes a moment more for Machi to show their face.<<else>>Machi answers almost immediately, as though waiting on the call itself.<</if>> <</if>> [[Continue|Active Call Counter]] <</narration>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<nobr>><<if $bDissentSeed>>><<charactername $cPlayerName>> <<elseif $bCircleWords>><<charactername $cPlayerName>> <<else>><<character "Machi" "ch_machi_tall.png" "left">> <</if>><</nobr>><<dialogue>> <<if $bDissentSeed>>>This might not be the day for it, but you all need to come to the Centre with me. It's not the evaluation. It's something more. But I'll tell you once you're here. <<elseif $bCircleWords>>If every five crossed, we'd be not five. We're only five because they guide us so. <<else>><<if $bMachiDistant>>You shouldn't call me.<<else>>$cPlayerName! This day is yours, you shouldn't be calling when you need to be on your ways.<</if>> <</if>> [[Continue|Active Call Outcome]] <</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<narration>> <<if $bDissentSeed>>>The rest of the circle understand. You can tell that a major reason for their agreement to what you ask is that it is the day of your evaluation. Whatever purpose the circles might solve, they are there for you. <<elseif $bCircleWords>>There is some hesitation from the introde, but they seem to understand. Where you take this, could or might, you don't yet know, but you have the sense that the circles together could do more than each separate. <<else>>You can tell that Machi appreciates the call, despite their words. You share a few with them beyond the greeting, but time does not run free.<<set $bMachiDistant=false>> <</if>> [[Continue|Post Messages]] <</narration>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<narration>> You hair was braided out to points, spoked like the headdress of the green guardian. The first time you’d done it brought remarks from the circle, and mostly Miani. Miani was just as capable of excited bursts as her twin Machi, and just as often did it on behalf of someone she thought wasn’t enthused enough about themselves. You hardly felt like a statue of the deep, watching for the world beneath the water, but it still gave you a sense of more. [[A Visitor]]<</narration>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<narration>> All these tiny distractions were a way of keeping yourself busy, anda way to put off the evaluation and any proper focused thought on it. The fleeting instances where it captured your attention were an indulgence of her guilt for ignoring what it meant, but not really an attempt at dealing with the issue. Your evaluation would be the one that shifted the majority of the circle to being more done than waiting for it, and possibly make it more likely for Torran and eventually Machi to have their own evaluations. You still weren't sure what it would mean for you, or if it would have any lasting impact on the circle as they continued as introdes through to the end of second adolescence, but those were the worries of other days. Today’s was just the evaluation<<if $bPlayerPrepared>>, and you could only hope you had <<button "prepared" "Speedy Prep">><</button>> enough. <</if>> [[Complete the Ensemble]]<</narration>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<narration>>You take a moment to set your mind, giving the day ahead a true run at the circumstances. A summation of who you are seems an impossible thing, yet you thread your thoughts across the topic, in the hopes it might lead the uncertain away from you. A sound at the door takes the mind's whispers away, yet the words of them echo a moment longer. You hope that might be enough to deliver you to success. [[A Visitor]]<</narration>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<narration>>You invite Miani in for a few moments, as you take a few moments to collect yourself. She watches you as you move about your home, occasionally distracted by the green beyond the windows. [[Talk to Miani]]<</narration>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<narration>><<if $bMachiDistant>> <<set $bCircleIntact=false>><<set $bWalkAlone=true>> <</if>>You look at Miani and shake your head, then close the door. She pleads at the door for a few moments, before taking your actions on their intent, and finally leaves you alone. [[Leave Home]]<</narration>>

<<display "C2 Wrap Up">>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<charactername $cPlayerName>><<dialogue>>You still can’t give me a lead on what to expect? [[Miani Response]]<</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<character "Miani" "ch_miani.png" "left">><<dialogue>>The only guidance here is the path we walk. [[Miani Explanation]] <</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<charactername $cPlayerName>><<dialogue>> I don’t know why you need to do that. <<if $bMachiDistant>> [[Continue|Distancing the Circle]] <<elseif $bSeedDissent>> [[Continue|Directing the Circle]] <<else>> [[Continue|Bonding the Circle]] <</if>><</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<narration>>You let the words go by without a challenge. Miani lets out a smile - a little unsure if you'd caught the reference, but a simple nod lets her know you're not going to stop her from mocking her sibling. [[Continue|Compliance among Friends]]<</narration>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<character "Miani" "ch_miani.png" "left">><<dialogue>>And what you did in Clanden? I might speak it while Machi can't hear it, but do you know what you did? Will you even save it? [[Continue|Walk Choice]] <<timed 30s>><<goto "Walk Alone Choice">><</timed>><</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<character "Miani" "ch_miani.png" "left">><<dialogue>>I just wanted to say it a little different to the way I normally do, push you out of yourself. Let you come back to it thoughtless. [[Continue|Leave]]<</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<dialogue>>All I want to do is take you away from the trouble of this moment. I’m not saying anything I wouldn’t in front of Machi. [[Continue|Walk them all]]<</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<description>> [[Continue|Leave Home]]<</description>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<character "Miani" "ch_miani.png" "left">><<dialogue>>Nothing is so lost it can't be found, $cPlayerName. My words, every one. We get you there, and find the real $cPlayerName that lies somewhere inside. [[Leave]] <</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<character "Miani" "ch_miani.png" "left">><<description>><<set $bWalkAlone=true>>Miani takes note of your hesitation and without a word, leaves. Whatever path you need to take to Hallemon, each step will be alone. [[Continue|Leave]]<</description>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<narration>> It takes longer for the rest of the Circle to arrive. <<if $bMachiDistant>> First Yeo, then Torran, and finally Machi.<<else>>Machi comes first - almost as if they were waiting for an invitation to do exactly this. Yeo comes second, with Torran last of the three to come.<</if>> [[Leave Together|Leave]]<</narration>>

<<display "C2 Wrap Up">>

<<setscene "bg_hallemon.jpg">><<narration>>A cool wind coursed through the steeped canyons, but the flicker of sun that poured through the canyon grid meant warmth and coolness found an equilibrium. What shivers the sun couldn’t reach in the cold, the walk met instead. <<if $bWalkAlone>> [[Continue|The Long Empty]] <<else>> [[Continue|Miani's Question]] <</if>><</narration>>

<<setscene "bg_hallemon.jpg">><<character "Miani" "ch_miani.png" "left">><<dialogue>>The evaluation. You know why they do it, don’t you? [[Preview|Coming Up 2]]<</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_hallemon.jpg">><<description>>It was a short distance from her spot to the centre where evaluations were run, but having company from the circle meant she could spend it honing that link to herself. Even with the lenient timelines and the voluntary application that led to the evaluation, there was always pressure to be something else or something more, and this would be a way to be sure it was herself that shone through. [[Preview|Coming Up 2]]<</description>>

<<setscene "bg_forest.jpg">><<charactername "Home">><<dialogue>>No, it is not. [[Continue|Home Response]]<</dialogue>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<narration>>Your home begins an active call to <<if $bDissentSeed>>>all the members of your circle.<<elseif $bCircleWords>>the Introdes you met at Clanden.<<else>>Machi<</if>>. [[Continue|Active Call Response]] <</narration>>

<<setscene "bg_home.jpg">><<narration>>You recognise Miani's manner of speaking as an imitation of her sibling, Machi. Even the way she opened her eyes wide was a mockery of how Machi tended to do it through sincerity. There was a current of sibling rivalry that stood between Machi and Miani, and while it never seemed to be an issue for the rest of the circle when their competitiveness was out in the open, it was when one was absent that it didn't seem right to let stand. [[Challenge Miani]] [[Let it go|Ignore the Comments]] <</narration>>