CORNQUEST! dozens +---------------------------------+ | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |cornbeast.eps | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | +---------------------------------+ 0 you come across a small clearing, You wake up in in the middle of the comfort of which is a small your own bed, in cottage on tall your own room. wooden legs. Goto You open your 31. eyes to see the golden sunlight 2 come streaming in through your win- You sneak up be- dow. Golden like hind a couple of ears of corn. You the old aunties suddenly remember and drop some what day it is. eaves on them. It is the day of You are super the Harvest Fes- stealthy! They tival! You throw are whisper argu- back your fa- ing about whether vorite corn print the Corn Mother bed covers and has abandoned us, leap out of bed. and whether that You've been look- means the corn- ing forward to beast will leave. this day all Leave! It can't year, and you al- leave! Without ready know ex- the cornbeast, actly what you're there will be no- going to wear. If body to protect you wear a pretty the fields! We'll corn dress, goto be totally de- 38. If you wear fenseless! Goto rugged corn bib 27. overalls, goto to 61. 3 1 You get out your trusty corn knife You start to and start slash- sneak sneakily ing at the web around the web, with reckless and do so suc- abandon! The gi- cessfully, the ant spider swoops spider none the down and puts a wiser to your quick stop to passage through such unsanctioned its lair. Good buffoonery. You job! You trek are paralyzed and deeper and deeper cocooned and into the forest, don't even feel losing track of it when the spi- the path behind der's venom jel- you. Eventually lifies your insides. THE END. giant. It stops playing its dou- 4 ble flute and turns its keen You step off the eyesight in your worn path and direction, spot- push your way ting you in- through dense stantly. It walks growth. Twigs and across the backs brambles snatch of its flock of at your ankles clouds, and in and elbows and just a couple brush none too strides is close gently against enough to pluck your cheeks. One you from your such brush of the cloud. You grow cheek is espe- dizzy as it lifts cially sticky and you up to roughly grabby. You swat shoulder height. at your cheek and It speaks softly your hand comes but its voice away sticky. You still booms, look up and find "What are you do- that you have ing here, small nearly walked folk?" Be direct right smack dab and ask about the into an enormous Corn Mother's messy spider web. talisman: goto It spans tree 30. Be a little trunk to tree sneaky and try to trunk, connecting soften the giant half a dozen up first: goto large trees in a 37. sloppy woven ta- pestry. Up above 6 you, a large black and yellow When you look spider appears to around, when you be dozing. Back search your mind to the path! Goto and your feel- 68. Cautiously ings, you know walk around the the giant's story web, goto 1. Get to be true. The out your corn crop dictates al- butter knife and most every facet start hacking and of your life: slashing! Goto 3. where to live, when to plant, 5 when to harvest. Working the earth You jump up and is back breaking wave your arms work. It drives a over head and wedge between you yell at the and the crows and the other crea- than stone. There tures that are stories that threaten the the giants of old crop. It tethers used to live in you in place, for great floating the crops must be castles. You won- tended to. De- der whether you stroy the talis- could collect man: goto 50. cloudstuff if you Return the talis- had the giant's man to the vil- shears.. Yes, lage: goto 51. grab them: goto 64. Let's not be 7 too greedy now: 60. You have a fan- tastic time play- 9 ing tag. Three Fingered Gerald You tuck yourself plays a little into a crevice in too rough, tag- the rocks to get ging the other out of the blis- kids too hard and tering wind, and knocking them wrap your arms over. But you are around yourself too fast for for warmth, and Three Fingered wait. Where Gerald. They there's a flock never catch you. of clouds, You all have a there's guaran- great time, and teed to be a then you decide cloud shepherd to scurry along. nearby. Eventu- Goto 12. ally. Against all odds, you start 8 to doze off. Goto 46. You grab the steel and crawl 10 out of the pouch. You greedily eye You scoop the the shears. Cloud little fella up! shepherds alone You laugh with are able to speak delight as it the language of flips and jumps clouds, and pos- and rolls around sess the ability in your hand like to shear them and a little jumping harvest their bean! It finally cloudstuff, and settles down, to shape and stands up, and harden the cloud- points to a spot stuff into a ma- at the treeline, terial harder commanding you forward like the plaza. Every George Washington year during the crossing the harvest, the vil- Delaware. You lage sets aside a shrug and start portion of the walking that di- harvest for the rection, and the Corn Mother. And whelp impatiently on the night of hops down to lead Harvest Festival you forward. Goto Eve, the Corn 47. Mother comes and takes the offer- 11 ing, and in the morning everybody The cloud is mov- wakes up and ing faster than there are lots of it looked like, presents and and your arm tugs feasting and painfully in its dancing! It's the socket as you best! Goto 34. refuse to let go and are dragged 13 across the peak and then into the You eventually air. The trees of find your way the forest far back to below look like a Eerievale, to the miniature paint- woods, and to the ing as you haul Corn Mother's yourself up and hut. You return grab another the talisman to handful of cloud- her, and she is stuff. Hand over powers are re- hand, you clamber stored. She sum- scramble up onto mons the Corn the top of the Beast who fights cloud. You roll off the dire onto your back crows, and peace and try to catch is restored. The your breath. corn festival Eventually, with continues every nothing else to year as it always do, and quite for the rest of comfortable nes- your days, and tled in the for your children cloudstuff, you and your chil- drift off to dren's children. sleep. Goto 41. In fact, one of your grandchil- 12 dren is about to awaken right now You run through on the morning of the streets of the corn festi- Eerievale toward val. They are terribly excited. the year! If you Goto 0. choose to play tag, goto 7. If 14 you play hide- and-seek, goto No. You should 32. If you play never play Lava Lava Monster, Monster. Go back goto 14. to 16. 17 15 The giant tells You decide to try you of an ancient to get closer to war between the the clouds. You small folk (you) climb the bald and the corn rocky spire, oc- mother. In this casionally slip- story, it calls ping and back- her the Maize sliding, but mak- Witch. And in ing progress this story, she overall, and won and enslaved eventually you the small folk, make it to the forcing them give top of the spire up their nomadic, at the top of hunter-gatherer Mount Char. The ways and instead living clouds are live in villages, now so close that where they are you can almost cursed to ever reach out and work the earth grab them. In and grow corn. fact, one drifts The Maize Witch close by and was able to work you're able to her magic such reach out and that the small grab a fistful of folk forgot the cloudstuff. Goto war, and were un- 11. able to concieve of themselves as 16 enslaved by agri- culture. Indeed, You join in the they imagine games. A bunch of themselves mas- your friends are ters of the here: Three Fin- earth. The giant gered Gerald, Ec- tells you that centric Kevin, you now know the Dale. Even Stan- truth: that the dard Ed has come corn mother is out to play! It's your protector in the Harvest Fes- the same way that tival after all! a jailer protects The best day of their prisoner. It gives you the tall. You run talisman and of- away! Goto 56. fers to return you to the 21 ground. Return the talisman to You grab your the corn mother: lucky lapel pin goto 13. Accept from under your the giant's story pillow. It is as truth: goto 6. small and pointy, in the shape of a 18 corn cob. There are even little "Insolent little ridges and whelp." The Corn grooves all over Mother turns you the pin so that into fertilizer it feels like it for her crops. has corn kernels! THE END. Very lucky in- deed. You pin it 19 by your collar. There, now you're You leave the are ready for plaza and run anything. ...Just down Corn Street to be sure you through the also slip your Golden Gate out lucky corn-shaped into the fields. rock into your Almost all of the pocket. Okay now corn has been you're ready! You harvested already run to the so you have clear kitchen. (You sight all the way never go anywhere to the forest at anything less edge. Unbeliev- than a full run.) ing, you spin Breakfast is corn around in circles grits and corn- three times just bread. You eat to be sure it's quickly. It's the true: the corn- Harvest Festival beast is gone. after all! The You sink to the best day of the ground in de- year! You run spair. Goto 44. outside and down the street, away 20 from your house at 144 Cobb Lane. The dire crow There are a bunch caws loudly and of kids playing beats its wings games out in the and lunges at corn fields. They you, its razor call your name, sharp beak as and you're long as you are tempted to join them. But you For a price. To also want to go offer the crow see the goings on your favorite, down at the corn lucky corn pin, altar! The altar goto 22. To can wait, time to refuse, goto 33. play: goto 16. Games are for 24 stupid babies! Time to visit the You tell the altar! Goto 12. whelp to get lost. Shoo! 22 Skedaddle, you rotten little You acquiesce to crabapple! You the crow's de- gently nudge the mands, and pluck corn whelp away your lucky corn with your foot, pin from your and it topples collar. You hold over. It jumps up it up so that the and pulls out a light glints off long thorn and it, and the crow stabs you in the scrutinizes the foot. Ouch! You shiny. It nods. little rascal! You hold it out, You bend down to and the dire crow scoop the whelp gently takes the up and give it pin from your what for, but it hand. Phew! It skitters away and lays down and ex- scampers off to- tends a wing and ward the tree- you climb up onto line. Follow that its back. Soon whelp! Your honor you are flying demands it! Goto through the air 47. toward Mount Char. Goto 54. 25 23 You decide to not push your luck by The dire crow going bushwhack- stares at you ing in the under- with its black growth. Good alien eye and thing, orienteer- then clucks, ing was never scratches in the your strongest soil, and crooks activity in Corn one wing: it saw Scouts. Eventu- a flock of clouds ally you catch a grazing at the whiff of fresh top of Mount baked bread on Char, and will the breeze. You take you there. follow the scent to a small clear- disapprovingly. ing. The smell is You pick yourself coming from the up and dust your- chimney of a self off, patting small hut stood yourself down. up on wooden You straighten up legs. Goto 31. your lucky lapel pin. You squeeze 26 it tight between your fingers and You notice some squeeze your eyes movement inside shut. Okay this one of the eggs is not the time through its thin to panic after translucent all. This is the shell. You lean time for decisive in to take a action. If you closer look. The decide to go look shell cracks and for the cornbeast a hatchling dire goto 19. If you crow bursts out go home and hide and flies through under your bed the air right to- goto 62. ward your face! It collides into 28 you and you both fall over. It Shhhhh. SHHHHHH. sits on your Shhh. You coddle chest chirping and comfort the pitifully and dire crow hatch- flapping its tiny ling which, al- wings. Try to though merely a sooth and placate couple of minutes it before it old, is already wakes anybody up: almost as big as goto 28. There's you are. You no time! Grab the stroke its feath- bird and run! ers and pat its Goto 43. beak and it slowly calms down 27 and stops making a fuss. It looks You scream and at you and cocks panic and run its head and coos around in circles softly. Looks until you trip like you made a and fall down. friend! Let's You have dirtied get out of here. up your clothes Goto 36. and skinned you knee. One of the 30 old aunties nearby clucks at You tell the gi- you ant about your village and the Corn Mother. She corn mother and stares at you in- the dire crow, tensely, her thin and you ask if it lips pressed to- knows where the gether in a talisman is. straight line. "Yes, I have your If you cry out, necklace," the "What the hell shepherd says. "I Corn Mother! Why bought it from a did you abandon crow for a small us!" goto 18. amount of wool. You drop to your Would you now buy knee and kneel in it back from me? respect. "Corn I will sell it Mother! How can I you. The price is serve you?" Goto that you shall 65. know the truth. Do you accept?" 32 Accept the trade offer: goto 17. You play hide and Refuse: goto 66. seek. You are so good at hiding 31 that the other kids never find You approach the you. You eventu- hut. It smells of ally get tired fresh baked and fall asleep, bread, and your but not for too stomach rumbles. long: your snor- You knock on the ing wakes you up. door. A weak, You decide to reedy voice in- leave and seek side beckons you out other Harvest inside. You cross Festival festivi- the threshold and ties. Goto 12. see an old woman, as tall as three 33 humans, and as thin as a blade "No way, Jose!" of grass. She You shout at the bends over almost crow. It shrugs double but still flies away. Prob- takes up nearly ably to go de- all the space in- stroy Eerievale, side the hut. Her your home, and fine golden hair all your friends. falls in cur- You retreat back tains, covering to the treeline most of her face. and watch the gi- Though you've ant groundhogs never seen her scurry to and fro before, you know betwixt the many this is her: the mounds. Goto 56. 34 dire crow eggs. You back out of Eerievale's five the hatchery and major roads all descend deeper converge at the into the dire village plaza: crow warrens. Up High, Broad, ahead you hear Church, Corn, and one of the giant Wine Streets. You groundhogs snuf- come tearing up fling about, and Broad Street at a you dart down a full sprint. The narrow branching closer you get to tunnel to avoid the plaza, the it. Good news: more you get the you avoided the feeling something groundhog sentry. is wrong. The Bad news: you re- decorations are treated directly all up but nobody into the chambers is singing or of a very irate hollering or dire crow. It laughing or doing pecks you to the Corn Chant. pieces. THE END. Or talking, re- ally. You arrive 36 at the Corn Al- tar, and then You backtrack as gasp out loud and quickly and as skid to a stop quietly as is before it. The possible while offering, the carrying / drag- pile of ears of ging a baby dire corn, is still crow. Soon you lying on the al- are back at the tar where it was entrance to the placed last warrens. You ab- night! People are scond into the milling about, night and back to whispering and the relative casting quick, safety of the fearful glances treeline. Well at the spurned that was a bust! corn. Go check- You snuck into out the corn at the warrens to the altar: Goto find the corn 40. Listen in on talisman, but all some of the you got was this adults: Goto 2. dumb giant baby bird! Goto 45. 35 37 You wisely decide not to mess You tell the gi- around with the ant you were out cloud gazing! And keen on trying to then you heard steal from the its beautiful mu- giant, but you sic! And you were are hungry enough so captivated you to go see if just had to know there are any who could produce bread or cheese such melodies! crumbs: goto 52. The shepherd nar- rows its eyes at 40 you. "I don't be- lieve you. Are omg it's just ly- you telling me ing there! Why the truth?" Dou- has the Corn ble down on your Mother forsaken story: goto 63. us? What does it Admit the truth: mean? What will goto 30. we do? To go into a panic goto 27. 38 To remain calm goto 58. You slip on a lovely corn pat- 41 tern dress. Yes, you look awesome. Later, just as It twirls when the sun is set- you spin around. ting, you hear a And it has pock- mournful sound: ets! Which re- carried by the minds you... Goto wind, the droning 21. melody of a low, sorrowful double 39 flute. You sit up and look around The giant herds in time to see the clouds for the clouds, hours upon hours stirred by the without ever music, start to noticing you. flock toward its Eventually it source. In the stops and makes distance you can bedding out of a see it: a moun- bunch of clouds. tainous shepherd It eats a crust astride a large of bread and some cloud, as tall as cheese, and then twelve men, its plays softly on flute the size of its double flute a small tree. Its until it falls shears hang at asleep. This is its side and your chance to go glint in the see if it has the moonlight. If talisman: goto you try to get 42. You're not the giant's attention goto 5. the hatchery. If you attempt to Goto 36. hide from the gi- ant goto 57. 44 42 You feel some- thing brush You sneak up against your an- close to the gi- kle. You look ant. It wears a down to see a large pouch on corn whelp. A its belt next to kernel sprite. A its shears. You sort of golem lift the flap and made of dried peer inside. It's kernels and corn full of bread and husk tied to- cheese and flint gether with and steel and a golden cornsilk. tinderbox. And a There's only one necklace of cornbeast as far strung glass as anyone knows. beads resembling But there are popcorn. The Corn dozens of these Mother's talis- little fellas. man! You crawl This one is paw- all the way in- ing and scratch- side the pouch to ing at you. Goto fetch it. Might 10 to pick the as will nick a little guy up. To few more things tell the whelp to while you're scram goto 24. here: goto 8. You got what you 45 came for, let's get out of here: You spend a cou- goto 60. ple of days mop- ing around the 43 woods next to the warrens. Because Argh, there's no of its dire crow time for this un- physiology, the sanctioned tom- hatchling doubles foolery! You snap in size and grows the bird's beak its adult feath- shut with one ers, and is soon hand, and awk- attempting short wardly scoop it flights on its up with both arms own. You spend (although just the nights curled freshly hatched, up on a bit of it is already al- cloudstuff fluff most as big as that came with you are!) and the no-longer- drag it out of quite-so-small hatchling. On the one, and separate twelfth day, Baby again. Their bel- (What? It needed lies flash with a name!) returns lightning as they from a longer posture aggres- solo flight and sively at each seems to abruptly other. A couple make up its mind of other clouds about something. drift by watch- It grabs the ing, including a cloud fluff in small fluffly its beak, and white cloud that stoops down and floats nearby. extends a wing, You think it inviting you onto might be within its back. You your grasp. You shrug and climb reach out to grab aboard. And then it and... goto you are flying 11. through the air high above the 47 ground! The war- rens and the The treeline is misty lake fall thick and over- away and quite grown. Usually some time later, there's hardly you are flying any way into the towards a moun- woods unless you tain peak that can find a small juts up out of game trail. Ex- the ground like a cept now there is pole. A thick a rather large, rolling knot of perfectly round thick clouds circular opening gather around its cut through the peak. Goto 54. trees, bushes, grass, and vines. 46 A perfectly round portal into the The rumble of forbidden forest. thunder jolts you Goto 62 to nope from sleep, what- away back home. ever dreams you To venture were having scat- through the weird tering. You peer round hole into from your crevice the forest, goto and see two liv- 68. ing clouds fight- ing. Both dark 48 and heavy with rain, rumbling The Corn Mother deeply. They draws you toward crash into each a looking glass other, merge into hanging in the corner. She de- component of the scribes for you language that the how to get to the crow scratches crows warren, out on the tracing the path ground. After with one long several false talon of a fin- starts and more ger. As she than a couple em- speaks, you can barrassing misun- almost see the derstandings, you hazy path she de- finally under- scribes for you. stand that the The mountains, crow traded the the bog, the tall talisman to one spruce. Her words of the cloud become a hum as shepherds for a the vision fills large bundle of your head. You soft cloudstuff pitch forward as for its hatchery. the looking glass To return to the widens into a Corn Mother in glassy lake and defeat, goto 18. you fall in. Goto Ask the dire crow 53. how to find the cloud shepherd: 49 goto 23. The dire crow 50 pins you down with one black You destroy the shiny eye as you talisman, and the delicately broach power the Corn the subject of Mother has over the Corn Mother's you and your vil- talisman. It lage. The dire blinks. And it crows do arrive bobs its head. and lay waste to Yes, it knows of the fields. But the talisman you then they leave. seek. You know You teach and very little Crow. preach the truth. It is a very com- Some of the vil- plex language lagers return to with verbal and the forests to somatic compo- hunt and gather. nents consisting Others remain be- of caws, clicks, hind and tend the chirps, and earth, but with- whirring; and out the rule of also hops and any monocrop. The bobs and flapping earth heals and of wings. Finally its bounty is there is a rudi- varied and plen- mentary written tiful. THE END. 51 misty lake. It's hard to see You can no longer through the fog, take part in this but you swim to- life yourself. ward what you You will be a think is the slave no more. closest bank and But you cannot crawl up onto the free those who muddy grass. Af- will not allow ter you catch themselves to be your breath, you free. You return look around and the talisman to recognize where the village and you are from the give them the Corn Mother's di- choice. In the rections. The sun meantime you is a pale white teach and preach, disc, barely able and gather a fol- to penetrate the lowing. And you heavy clouds. You part ways, leav- walk away from ing the village, the lake towards never to return. the crow warrens. THE END. Goto 59. 52 54 You sneak up As you get closer close to the you can see a shepherd and flock of living search the clouds clouds grazing for any crumbs. around the moun- You find a few tain peak. They hunks of bread look like they've and cheese the been sheared rel- size of your fist atively recently, and are able to and look rather eat until you're docile at the mo- full. Then you ment. So it's not sneak back to likely that there your cloud and will be any burrow down deep storms any time inside and wait soon. The dire until the giant crow lands on the wakes up... goto peak and you dis- 39. mount. It bobs its head at you 53 twice and then leaves you. The You kick, and the wind is screaming frigid air burns up here. It is your lungs when barren and cold, you break the and there's no surface of the corn ANYWHERE. The clouds roll eventually creep around lazily in into a large room the air currents. insulated with Try to get closer cloud stuff. to the clouds: There are dire goto 15. Wait and crow eggs all see if the cloud over the floor. shepherd shows There is nobody up: goto 9. around. To check out the eggs, 55 goto 26. Better leave those eggs You wait and alone! Goto 35. watch as the gi- ant rodents 57 scurry around, digging and la- That thing is the boring. After a size of a small while of observa- mountain! What tion, you notice were you thinking a pattern in the trying? You make rotation of the yourself small rodents, and are and sink into the confident that soft fluffy you can approach cloudstuff and now without being hide from the seen. Goto 56. shepherd's gaze. Goto 39. 56 58 You wait and ap- proach the war- Okay you got rens under the this. Take a cou- cover of dark- ple of deep ness. You hear breaths. There nary a peep from you go. This giant rodent nor doesn't necessar- dire crow as you ily mean that the sneak up to the Corn Mother has looming entrance turned her back to one of the on Eerievale. She warrens. You probably hasn't check to make withdrawn her sure the coast is protection from clear and then you, leaving you duck inside. The open to attack entrance is hard from the dire earth, packed by crows, right? countless ground- Right? RIGHT?? hog and dire crow Goto 27. crossings. It slopes downward deeper into the warrens. You 59 have a really nice looking corn Enormous mounds pattern on them, jut out of the and the bib earth like a wave pocket in the of goosebumps: front is perfect entrances to the for holding all warrens below, kinds of things. dug out by the Speaking of giant rodents which... Goto 21. that the crows keep as pets. To 62 attempt a direct approach, go to You run back home 67. To wait and and hide under observe, and at- your bed. Eventu- tempt an indirect ally you hear approach, go to throaty, gurgling 55. caws and the thundering beat- 60 ing of wings as the dire crows You feel as descend on the though you have town. Without the indulged your cornbeast to greediness scare them away, enough. You have they rip most of the talisman and the village to a valuable length pieces. THE END of steel. You re- treat to your 63 cloud and gentle coax it away from The giant frowns the herd. You at you. "You vex can't get it to me, small folk." land on the It flings you off ground, but you the cloud. You are able to steer have a little it close enough over a minute of to a tree canopy freefall to re- that you are able gret your tactics to climb off of before being it. The cloud dashed to pieces lazily floats on the ground be- away to rejoin low. THE END. the others as you climb down to the 64 tree to the ground. Goto 13. You start to un- tie the shears 61 from the shep- herd's belt when You pull on your the giant stirs overalls. They and claps a giant hand down over and yahoos, send- you. It pinches ing an alarm you between two throughout the fingers and lifts warrens that is you to its face, picked up and and it peers an- echoed by more of grily at you. the enormous ro- Goto 63. dents. Your ap- proach has been 65 noticed and an- nounced! At the "The crows stole sound the commo- my talisman. A tion, a dire crow necklace of crawls out of the strung glass earthen tunnels. beads. I am pow- It flaps its erless without wings, shaking it. And with it, itself clean of they hold power the dust. It over me. You must raises its beak fetch it for me toward the sky if I am to pro- and its throat tect you and your feathers bristle village once as it caws so again." Agree to loudly you can help the Corn feel it reverber- Mother: goto 48. ate in your chest Tough luck! Sucks bones. It flaps to suck! Goto 18. its wings and hops toward you, 66 as tall as six men, and fixes The giant shrugs you with one ter- and sets you rible inky black down. "If you eye. Inquire del- refuse the pay icately about the the price, then talisman: go to there is no deal 49. Demand the to be made, small crow return the folk." It remains talisman: go to indifferent to 20. you until it is time to set out 68 again. Goto 39. You step into the 67 forest. Gulp! You don't know any- You march di- body who has ever rectly up to the been in the for- warrens like you est. Nobody from want to speak to Eerievale has the manager. A ever been any giant groundhog farther than the sentry stands up corn fields as far as you know. You step care- fully as the whelp dances around your feet, lunging and thrusting with its thorn, threatening to trip you up. You try not to worry too much about the ominous shapes and sounds coming from the pooling shadows to either side of the trail. To stay on the path, goto 25. To step off the path and explore, goto 4.