The Old Factory

Browser lacks capabilities required to play.

Upgrade or switch to another browser.

Loading…

[[Start|Ch1p1]]

The Old Factory was a forbidden place, which made it all the more enticing for shenanigans. Kez had suggested snooping around in there, and you had agreed too quickly to think about it. Jude's uneasiness was making you regret that decision. [[Continue|Ch1p2]] <<set $lightend to 0>> <<set $darkend to 0>> <<set $sprainedankle to 0>>

Kez skips merrily towards the huge steel gate barring the entrace, relishing in the drama of the derelict buildings casting dark shadows over the concrete. Jude glances at you, eyes wide. [[Hang back with Jude|Ch1p3.J]] [[Catch up with Kez|Ch1p3.K]]

"Probably asbestos all over the place in there," Jude says. You shrug. "Do you even know what the asbestos is?" "Shut up." Jude kicks your ankle and you stumble over your own feet. [[Continue|Ch1p4]]

"Can't wait to introduce you to all my rat buddies," Kez grins at you. "Ew." You scrunch your nose up in a look of disgust. "Don't tell me you've done a Ratatouille." "Got them all preparing a six course french banquet for us," [[Continue|Ch1p4]]

You approach the steel fence which towers above all of you. Kez hops up the wall next to it, and easily clears the fence to land, but at the last second their foot slips on a piece of glass on the ground and they fall pretty hard. Scrambling to get up, they give a quick grin and look pointedly at you and Jude. Jude is already looking for an alternative solution to the fence hopping, and finds a hole just big enough to crawl through. It leads into the building instead of the courtyard. [[Follow Jude|Ch1p5.J]] [[Follow Kez|Ch1p5.K]]

You give Kez a wry smile and follow Jude through the tunnel. The floor is sprinkled with cracked glass. [[Continue|Ch1p5.J1]] <<set $darkend to 1>>

Jude has already crawled through the gap, but you couldn't see a way out of that building from here. Since Kez could jump it, there's no reason you couldn't, right? You jump over the fence and sprain your ankle. You get up quickly, seeing Kez is watching, and lead the way between the two factory buildings. [[Continue|Ch1p5.K1]] <<set $lightend to 1>> <<set $sprainedankle to 1>>

<<if $darkness is 1>> You and Jude tumble into the light. <<else>> Jude almost runs into you as you tumble round the corner. <</if>> "What the heck was that?" Kez takes their cap off to tackle their hair into a ponytail. You look at Jude, and judging from their pale face, they saw something weird too. "I think..." [[It was something|Ch1p7.K]] [[It was nothing|Ch1p7.J]]

<<if $darkend is 1>> Jude nods, still holding your hand. "That thing was fucking odd - but I'm not sure it was dangerous.." "You saw something too?" Kez chimes in, eager for the details. <<else>> Kez lets out a deep breath. "That thing was freaky looking. Fucking awesome" "You saw something too?" Jude whispers, but doesn't ask for the details. <</if>> [[Continue|Ch1p8]]

Kez and Jude both look at you sharply, confused. <<if $darkend is 1>> "Do you have eyes??" Jude says. "That thing was fucking odd - don't tell me that was nothing." "You saw something too?" Kez chimes in, eager for the details, but you don't elaborate. <<else>> "Do you have eyes??" Kez says. "That thing was fucking huge - don't tell me that was nothing." "You saw something too?" Jude whispers, but doesn't ask for the details. <</if>> [[Continue|Ch1p8]]

Jude is sat on a concrete block, staring past the buildings into the valley. Kez is pacing up and down alongside the warehouse. You can see from the furrowed brow and lip-biting that they're hatching a plan. "What are you thinking?" You say, but before Kez can answer, your eyes are drawn to the wall behind them. Kez sees your gaze move and turns, but not quickly enough to avoid the snaking, wispy tentrils of some fog-like creature tumbling down from the roof. It grabs Kez's ankle and whips their feet out from under them. Kez scrambles along the ground, but can only grab hold of loose rocks and scrapes their hand on a piece of broken glass before being hauled up the wall. You and Jude are immediately running towards them, but it's too far for you to reach already, and more smoky tendrils are trickling down. "I saw stairs in here, we can get up to the roof that way," Jude shouts and runs into the warehouse. But Kez is getting further away with every second, and you might not reach the roof in time. [[Go up the stairs with Jude|Ch1p9.J]] [[Grab a bit of smoke and let it haul you up too|Ch1p9.K]]

Jude is already racing up the steel staircase when you enter, and you get going to catch them up. You reach the 2nd floor and Jude is almost at the roof. They look back at you, and you urge them to keep going. "Get Kez!" you shout. [[Go back to the smoke creature|Ch1p9.K]] [[Continue|Ch1p10.J]]

You reach out towards the smoke, and you feel it slither around your wrist and grip it tight. Within seconds, you have been yanked to the top of the building, which is covered in the white mist. <<if $sprainedankle is 1>>Your ankle is throbbing now, but there's no time to waste. <<else>> <</if>> You run towards Kez who is lying still, face barely poking out above the mist cloud. [[Continue|Ch1p10.K]] <<set $lightend to $lightend+1>>

The door to the roof clangs shut. You're alone in the dark. Your foot suddenly catches on a heavy object, and you tumble to the grating of the staircase. You spin around and quickly scrabble backwards as you see what you tripped on was an ominous shell. You know from the weight of it that something is in there. It rises slowly off the grating, and gently turns inside out, to reveal a fleshy sack of ink-black muscle. You don't move for a second, but neither does it. You slowly back away, getting to your feet. <<if $darkend is 1>> You feel like you're beginning to understand these creepy creatures, crawling around in the dark here. <<else>> You can't make heads or tails of any of these strange creatures. <</if>> [[Continue|Ch1p11.J]] <<set $darkend to $darkend+1>>

You shout, but Kez doesn't stir. The mist begins to form a clear circle around you. You are aware of a faint hum, growing louder and sizzling, like a hundred bees have crawled inside you and are nesting behind your eardrum. The mist is rising to form a wall around you, and the noise is getting louder. [[Scream|Ch1p11.K1]] [[Shake Kez|Ch1p11.K2]]

You shake Kez, who jolts awake, sits upright, and promptly screams. The smoke vibrates in hundreds of spiky tentrils, like a shockwave passes through it. Then it is gone without a trace, and the hum has stopped. <<if $lightend is 1>> You feel like you're beginning to understand these creatures which crawl around the Old Factory in the daylight. <<else>> You can't make heads or tails of any of these creatures. <</if>> Jude crashes through the fire door just as you and Kez are getting your bearings. [[Continue|Ch1p12]]

You regroup. Everyone is holding it together, although unsurprisingly you can sense the fear in their voices. "Fuck this," Kez is rattled and you don't blame them. "I thought we'd find some old cans to kick about here, not a whole fucking army of weird monsters." "I'm not sure I'd call them monsters, but we're definitely leaving now, right?" Jude asks [[Say something encouraging|Ch1p13.J]] [[Say something nonchalant|Ch1p13.K]]

"Oh, for sure we're leaving. I'm scared. In 10 minutes we'll be back at home and we're opening the chocolate." Jude smiles at you. You all head back down to the ground floor via the stairs. <<if $sprainedankle is 1>>Even though you insist your ankle is fine, Kez helps you hobble down. <<else>> <</if>> [[Continue|Ch1p15]]

"Well I think we'd better head home anyway, cause I'm not missing Doctor Who again this week." Kez chuckles. You all head back down the stairs. <<if $sprainedankle is 1>>Even though you insist your ankle is fine, Kez helps you hobble down. <<else>> <</if>> [[Continue|Ch1p15]]

You leave the warehouse and step out into the bright sunlight. You are greeted by a wall of fuzzy grey fur. "For fuck's sake." Kez's words seem to have woken the beast, and it rolls away from you to reveal two eyes the size of truck tyres, red with swollen veins and in the centre, a black pupil. It's blocking your exit out the old industrial park, and you have to face it. [[Draw it into the darkness|Ch1p16.J]] [[Stay in the light outside|Ch1p16.K]]

You back away slowly, into the warehouse again. You grab Jude and Kez's hands, pulling them back with you. "If we bring it in here, maybe we can sneak past and slam the door," you murmer. Jude nods in agreement, but Kez has reservations. "I'm not so sure we can sneak past this fucker..." <<if $darkend is 2>> [[Continue|Ch1p17.J]] <<else>> [[Continue|Ch1p18B]] <</if>>

You grab Kez and Jude's hands and grip them tight. "We are getting out of here, but the gate is right behind that thing. I'll distract it and you guys find something to help us climb over." Kez's palm is sweaty. They nod in agreement. "Got it. You're the boss." Jude squeezes your hand before letting go. <<if $lightend is 2>> [[Continue|Ch1p17.K]] <<else>> [[Continue|Ch1p18A]] <</if>>

You draw the creature in and run to the left. Kez and Jude sprint to the right. The monster has both bulging eyes trained on you, and every idea you should have had seems to have sunk into the gloom around you. Its body starts to sink, the grey fuzz slipping out from underneath itself into a puddle-like skirt, and it is starting towards you now. [[Continue|Ch1p18.J]]

You scream and run to the left. Kez and Jude sprint to the right and have already spotted some crates nearby. The monster has both bulging eyes trained on you, and every idea you should have had seems to have withered away in the sun. Its body starts to sink, the grey fuzz slipping out from underneath itself into a puddle-like skirt, and it is starting towards you now. [[Continue|Ch1p19K]]

As your eyes adjust to the gloom inside, it's instantly clear that you and Jude are not alone. This place should be silent, abandoned, but you can hear a steady rustling coming from the rafters. [[Kez?|Ch1p5.J2]]

As you speak, you see a long, snake-like creature flail on the metal beam above and then suddenly thumps on the ground a few meters in front of you. It slides towards you, jerking its thick, scaly body along the ground and you notice the jagged looking spines running along both sides of its length. You spot a doorway across the room, but the snake-thing is between you and the exit. [[Run|Ch1p5.J4]] [[Stand your ground|Ch1p5.J3]]

You stand perfectly still. Jude does the same. It opens its jaw so wide that its head folds backwards, eyes rolling back to reveal a sickly yellow colour as the crown of its head meets its body. The creature then slowly closes its mouth and curls up in the same crooked movement, looking like a messy pile of barbed wire. You and Jude slowly inch past it and reach the door safely. [[Continue|Ch1p6]]

You grab Jude's hand and yank them to the left. As you pass the creature, it opens its jaw so wide that its head folds backwards, eyes rolling back to reveal a sickly yellow colour as the crown of its head meets its body. As you reach the door, you glance back. The creature has closed its mouth and curled up, looking like a messy pile of barbed wire. [[Continue|Ch1p6]]

You're looking for an entrance to the building that Jude went into, but Kez is suddenly very close to you and tapping you on the shoulder. You turn around and straight away see what has grabbed their attention. You see its white legs first, too many of them, cascading out of a shattered window a few stories up. It crawls out onto the wall, gravity seeming to have no effect on its enormous, bulging body. It is scuttling, fast down the side of the building. [[Run past it|Ch1p5.K2]] [[Stay and look closer|Cp1p5.K3]]

The creature reaches the ground at the same time as you grab Kez' shoulders and push them in front of you to start running down the track. You give the leggy beast a wide berth, knowing that if it chose to come after you, it would catch up in seconds. As you pass, you can see that its body is covered in short white hairs, giving it a texture like crushed velvet, uneven and not soft enough for comfort. The hairs bristle in no discernable pattern, causing a shiver to pass over your own body. You and Kez round the corner, the creature out of sight. [[Continue|Ch1p6]]

The creature reaches the ground and you stand perfectly still, clutching Kez' hand to make sure they don't move either. You can see that its body is covered in short white hairs, giving it a texture like crushed velvet, uneven and not soft enough for comfort. The hairs bristle in no discernable pattern, causing a shiver to pass over your own body. You give the leggy beast a wide berth, knowing that if it chose to come after you, it would catch up in seconds. You and Kez round the corner, the creature out of sight. [[Continue|Ch1p6]]

You give the creature a hard shove with the sole of your boot, pushing it over the edge of the platform. No time for niceties. You make it up the rest of the stairs and burst through the door at the top. Kez is lying on the floor of the roof, head in Jude's lap. There is no sign of the smoke creature. [[Continue|Ch1p12]]

You scream, but can't hear your voice. Kez jolts awake, sits upright and is looking around. The smoke vibrates in hundreds of spiky tentrils, like a shockwave passes through it. Then it is gone without a trace, and the hum has stopped. <<if $lightend is 1>> You feel like you're beginning to understand these creatures which crawl around the Old Factory in the daylight. <<else>> You can't make heads or tails of any of these creatures. <</if>> Jude crashes through the fire door just as you and Kez are getting your bearings. [[Continue|Ch1p12]]

You run to the left. Kez and Jude sprint to the right and have already spotted some crates nearby. The monster has both bulging eyes trained on you, and every idea you should have had seems to have withered away in the sun. Its body starts to sink, the grey fuzz slipping out from underneath itself into a puddle-like skirt, and it is starting towards you now. [[Continue|Ch1p19A]]

The creature's eyes are locked on you, carving a deep chasm in your confidence. It draws nearer. Kez and Jude behind it are frantically stacking crates, waving at you to come over. The creature is so close to you now, it has a weird sort of dusty smell. [[Run for it|Ch1p20A]] [[Let them go|Ch1p20AB]]

You scream again, remembering the mist that evaporated. The ball of fuzz shivers and stops moving. You scream louder. It vibrates with intense energy. Jude and Kez have now stacked the crates ready to hop the fence. They scream with you. [[Continue|Ch1p20K]]

The creature bursts into a thousand tiny hairs, shattering over the ground. Only its eyes remain, rolling around the concrete in a strange dance. Kez and Jude shout at you to run, and you all hop back over the fence. It will take you years to understand what happened here today. [[End]]

You try and dart around, but you trip on the advancing carpet being. Your mouth fills with dust and your vision starts to blur. You shout at Kez and Jude to run, but you don't see what happens next. You simply dissolve into the softness of velvet. [[End]]

You shout at Kez and Jude, "Run!" The creature envelopes you in a warm embrace. Your mouth fills with dust and your vision starts to blur. You don't see what your friends do next. You simply dissolve into the softness of velvet. [[End]]

Thanks for playing Story by T James [[Start again|Ch1p1]]

Kez and Jude have made their way round to the open door. You're trapped between the creature and the wall behind you. The creature's eyes are locked on you, carving a deep chasm in your confidence. It draws nearer. The creature is so close to you now, it has a weird sort of dusty smell. [[Tell them to leave you|Ch1p20BA]] [[Run for it|Ch1p20BB]]

You don't stand still for too long, and dart out of the way. The creature is surprisingly swift in its movements, but you are faster. You've had enough experience running today already. Kez and Jude are poised at the door. [[Continue|Ch1p19.J]]

The creature is so close to you now, it has a weird sort of dusty smell. You lunge, and the path to the door is clear, the monster behind you. You dash to the door, Kez grabs your hand and Jude slams it shut behind you. None of you take a second to breathe, instead racing down the track to the old steel fence. Jude doesn't hesitate this time, and hops the fence with confidence. [[End]]