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<<silently>><<audio "mainsong" loop play>> <<set $currently to 0>> <<set $totalHealth to 100>> <<set $health to 0>> <<set $damage to 0>> <<set $totalSanity to 100>> <<set $sanity to 0>> <<set $abuse to 0>><<set $NW to 0>><<set $SW to 0>><<set $NE to 0>> <<set $hasgun to 0>><<set $SE to 0>> <<set $hascode to 0>><<set $sus to 0>> <<set $email to 0>><<set $inq to 0>><<set $kill to 0>> <</silently>> You're sitting at your desk<<print either(" and the sun cascades warmth through the windows"," and the room of cubicles feels just plain dreary"," as you settle into the first few seconds of the day"," and relish that your coffee is still steaming")>>.<<set $hours to 10>> <<set $minutes to 0>> Why does it feel like there are eyes on you<<timed .2s>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><</timed>> "We've got <<print random(2,99)>> customer inquiries to answer this morning already," a man behind you scoffed, "not too bad for our first day, right?" Maybe he was being sarcastic. "<<print $name>>?" "Yeah totally," you reply, "I'm stoked." <a class="Box" data-passage="Encounter">Talk to Your Coworker</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="Email">Check Your Email</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="Watch">Check Your Watch</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="Customer Inquiries">Get to work</a>

<<if visited("Encounter") == 1>>\ Your ears ring. There's something happening across the room, a commotion outside in the hallway. Before you can say something to your neighbor, a woman bursts through the door, looking around and catching your gaze. "Take this!" the girl yelled as you see her barrelling toward you. It's a piece of paper. "Who are you??" you call to her, for she is already across the room, pushing through the side exit door. She whipped around to smile, "Dixie Mae, and now it's your turn." Men yelling from the hallway. You turn quickly to see them, but they haven't pushed through the doors yet, and when you look to ask Dixie what she meant, she was already gone. You sit down quickly, sliding the crumpled paper underneath your keyboard while gluing your eyes to the computer screen in front of you. Two men can be heard bursting through the doors, and you feign innocence as they search every cubicle for a corporate spy. They move on in seconds, right out the door that Dixie had gone to.<<set $abuse to $abuse -10>><<else>>//What did that girl mean,// you wonder, //my turn<<timed .2s>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><</timed>>?// <</if>> <a class="Box" data-passage="Letter">Read the Letter</a> <<silently>><<set $minutes to $minutes+11>><<set $abuse to $abuse +10>><</silently>> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<span class="charw">W</span><span class="charw">O</span><span class="charw">R</span><span class="charw">K</span> <span class="charw">I</span><span class="charw">N</span> <span class="charw">P</span><span class="charw">R</span><span class="charw">O</span><span class="charw">G</span><span class="charw">R</span><span class="charw">E</span><span class="charw">S</span><span class="charw">S</span> <span class="charl">A</span> <span class="charl">T</span><span class="charl">W</span><span class="charl">I</span><span class="charl">N</span><span class="charl">E</span> <span class="charl">G</span><span class="charl">A</span><span class="charl">M</span><span class="charl">E</span> <span class="small">//Created by Charles McGinn//</span> [[GO->Before Begin]]

<a data-passage="Bland Start">✖</a> <<if {visited("Email 1") is 0 and visited("Email 2") is 0}>>\ 2 New Emails <<elseif {visited("Email 1") >= 1 and visited("Email 2") is 0}>>\ 1 New Email <<elseif {visited("Email 1") is 0 and visited("Email 2") >= 1}>>\ 1 New Email <<elseif {visited("Email 1") >= 1 and visited("Email 2") >= 1 and visited("Secret Email") is 0}>>\ ''1 New Email'' <<elseif {visited("Email 1") >= 1 and visited("Email 2") >= 1 and visited("Secret Email") >= 1}>>\ No New Emails <</if>>\ ---- <<if visited("Email 1")>>☑<<else>>☐<</if>> [[[Caution to All Employees->Email 1]]] <<if visited("Email 2")>>☑<<else>>☐<</if>> [[[Congratulations!->Email 2]]] <<if {visited("Email 1") >= 1 and visited("Email 2") >= 1}>> <<if visited("Secret Email")>>☑<<else>>☐<</if>> [[[Special Gift!->Secret Email]]] <</if>> <<set $minutes to $minutes +5>> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<a data-passage="Email">⇦✉</a> ''__Caution to all Employees:__'' ---- We at Lotsa-Tech strive for the utmost security and serenity for our workers at this facility. You have been promised a gorgeous, expansive campus for your exclusive pleasure throughout your career with us. Unfortunately, our facilities management team has recently discovered a piping issue with the beloved central fountain. Yes, our little slice of natural springs is not operating correctly, but it will be repaired soon enough. Even while our crew has been working tirelessly to fix the problem, the fountain has sent out an enormous mass of mist over night, covering most of the Lotsa-Tech property. The fog is now impairing vision everywhere, and seeing the rest of the spectacular campus from anywhere is near impossible. We are deeply saddened to say that until further notice, no employee will be permitted to leave the radius of their main building. You may still walk around the visible pathways that surround your complex, should you need to take a lunch break, but any further than that is prohibitted. Thank you for your understanding, and as always, we appreciate your irreplaceable work, Lotsa-Tech Team <<set $minutes to $minutes + 10>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<a data-passage="Email">⇦✉</a> ''Congratulations!''🎉 ---- You have been selected by the Lotsa-Tech Encouragement Council for a surprise bonus in your paycheck! Report to your supervisor at the end of this work day to sign off on this special offer! Best regards, Lotsa-Tech Team <<set $minutes to $minutes + 10>> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

⚞<<timed 3s>><<print '<<goto "' + previous() + '">>'>><</timed>>__''<span class="blink"> <<if $minutes < 10>><<print $hours>>:0<<print $minutes>> <<elseif $minutes >= 60 and $minutes < 70 and $hours >= 12>><<set $hours to 1>><<set $minutes to $minutes - 60>><<print $hours>>:0<<print $minutes>> <<elseif $minutes >= 60 and $minutes < 70 and $hours < 12>><<set $hours to $hours + 1>><<set $minutes to $minutes - 60>><<print $hours>>:0<<print $minutes>> <<elseif $minutes >= 70 and $hours < 12>><<set $hours to $hours + 1>><<set $minutes to $minutes - 60>><<print $hours>>:<<print $minutes>> <<elseif $minutes >= 70 and $hours >= 12>><<set $hours to 1>><<set $minutes to $minutes - 60>><<print $hours>>:<<print $minutes>> <<elseif $minutes >= 10 and $minutes < 60>><<print $hours>>:<<print $minutes>><</if>></span>''__⚟

<span class="centeralign"><<print either("//Well, now what?// you think","//What am I supposed to do?// you ponder","This really isn't a normal day")>><<timed .2s>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><</timed>> <a class="Box" data-passage="Stand">Look at the Exit</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="Email">Check Your Email</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="Watch">Check Your Watch</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="Customer Inquiries">Get to work</a></span> <<silently>><<set $minutes to $minutes + 3>><</silently>> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<div class="inquiriestag"><span class="centeralign">__''Inquiry Answer Menu''__</span> <<if visited("Customer Inquiries") is 1>><<set $inq to 1>><</if>> We at //Lotsa-Tech// value our customers beyond all else... As such, we will provide you with one inquiry at a time that must be acknowledged properly before moving on to the next one. If your response does not exceed a character count of 20, you will be in violation of your contract. ''<a class="IBox" data-passage="Inquiry Prompt">Inquiry Number <<print visited("Inquiry Prompt")+1>></a>'' <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>>\ &emsp;[[EXIT->Bland Start]] </div> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<div class="inquiriestag"><a data-passage="Customer Inquiries">❌</a> __''Inquiry Number <<print visited("Inquiry Prompt")>>''__ User ID #<<print random(1,9)>><<print random(1,9)>><<print random(1,9)>><<print random(1,9)>><<print random(1,9)>><<print random(1,9)>><<print random(1,9)>><<print random(1,9)>><<print random(1,9)>><<print random(1,9)>> ---- <<if visited("Inquiry Prompt") is 4>>//<<print $name>> please... it's the computers... respond to this with "R34DY" if you want to help...// <<else>>//<<print either("Hi there,","Hello,","Good morning,","Can you help me?","Is anyone there?","Can't seem to figure this out...","Help!")>>// //<<print either("It's all glitching!","It won't recognize my voice!","My computer is broken.","The button is stuck","My double-u key on't ork :(","I spilled something on my device, is rice the best option??","Can I get a refund on my product?")>>//<</if>><<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>> <<textarea "$answer" "">> \ <<button "SEND">> <<if $answer.length < 20 and $answer is not "R34DY">> <<goto "Warning">><<set $minutes to $minutes + 10>> <<elseif $answer is "R34DY">> <<goto "Inquiry Help">><<set $minutes to $minutes + 10>> <<else>> <<goto "Inquiry Prompt">><<set $minutes to $minutes + 30>> <</if>> <</button>> [[Skip to Next Inquiry->Inquiry Prompt][$abuse is $abuse +10]] <<silently>><<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>><</silently>></div> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

''WARNING: YOU HAVE BEEN FOUND TO BE NONCOMPLIANT WITH OUR EMPLOYEE GUIDELINES''<<set $sus to $sus + 1>> YOUR IDENTIFICATION TAG HAS BEEN REPORTED TO YOUR SUPERVISOR<span class="blink">_</span> <<timed 10s>><<goto "Inquiry Prompt">><</timed>> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>><<set $abuse to 10>>\

Hello <<print $name>>, To put this briefly, you are in danger. No, your supervisor will not be aware of this, and for the sake of all of your safety as well as that of your coworkers, do not let this information escape your cubicle. As you might have noticed, I have employed Dixie Mae to deliver these instructions. If everything goes as planned, you won't be seeing her again from here on out. Check your email if you haven't already; you might find something you'll like. The code that you need is 4249.<<set $hascode to 1>> Yours Truly, //<<print $name[0]>>// <a class="Box" data-passage="New Start">Return</a> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>>\

<<timed .2s>>L<<next>>I<<next>>F<<next>>E<<next>> R<<next>>E<<next>>S<<next>>E<<next>>T<<next>>T<<next>>I<<next>>N<<next>>G<<next 2s>> .<<next>> .<<next>> .<<next>> D<<next .2s>>E<<next>>L<<next>>E<<next>>T<<next>>I<<next>>N<<next>>G<<next>> M<<next>>E<<next>>M<<next>>O<<next>>R<<next>>I<<next>>E<<next>>S<<next 5s>><<goto Starting>><</timed>>

<<cacheaudio "mainsong" "https://files.freemusicarchive.org/storage-freemusicarchive-org/music/ccCommunity/Blear_Moon/split/Blear_Moon_-_02_-_There.mp3">> https://files.freemusicarchive.org/storage-freemusicarchive-org/music/no_curator/Lobo_Loco/In_a_Movie/Lobo_Loco_-_03_-_Mystery_Forest_ID_1143.mp3

<<print " SUSPICION">><<statusbar "sanity-bar" "$totalSanity" "$sanity" "$abuse">> <<print " DANGER">><<statusbar "health-bar" "$totalHealth" "$health" "$damage">>

<span id="evilman1"> <<set $kill to 0>> &emsp;&emsp;<<link [img[https://www.clipartroo.com/images/104/man-silhouette-clipart-104316.png]]>><<set $kill++>><<if $kill is 2>><<timed 5s>><<goto Success>><</timed>><</if>><<replace "#evilman1">>[img[https://media2.giphy.com/media/EPnlVYJ4vWLPa/source.gif]]<</replace>><</link>></span>&emsp;&emsp;<span id="evilman2"><<link [img[https://www.clipartroo.com/images/104/man-silhouette-clipart-104316.png]]>><<set $kill++>><<if $kill is 2>><<timed 5s>><<goto Success>><</timed>><</if>><<replace "#evilman2">>[img[https://media2.giphy.com/media/EPnlVYJ4vWLPa/source.gif]]<</replace>><</link>></span> <<silently>><<set $minutes to $minutes+9>><</silently>> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<<set $name to prompt("What's your name?","Dixie Mae")>><<set alert("Lotsa-Tech can view your location")>> <<timed .75s t8n>>A<<next .15s>>R<<next>>E <<next>>Y<<next>>O<<next>>U <<next>>R<<next>>E<<next>>A<<next>>D<<next>>Y <<next>>T<<next>>O <<next>>S<<next>>T<<next>>A<<next>>R<<next>>T <<next>>Y<<next>>O<<next>>U<<next>>R <<next>>F<<next>>I<<next>>R<<next>>S<<next>>T <<next>>D<<next>>A<<next>>Y <<next>>O<<next>>F <<next>>W<<next>>O<<next>>R<<next>>K<<next>>?<<next>><span class="blink">_</span> <<next 2s>>[[YES->Starting]]<</timed>>

<div class="outline">They weren't<<timed .2s>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><</timed>> real? But how is that<<timed .2s>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><</timed>> they looked so<<timed .2s>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><</timed>> You hear your name coming from the direction that you had been heading before the<<timed .2s>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><</timed>> distraction<<timed .2s>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><</timed>> It's an echoed woman's voice, and you have a feeling that she is who you're supposed to find.</div> <a class="Box" data-passage="Fountain1">Get to the Fountain</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="Watch">Check The Time</a> <<silently>><<set $minutes to $minutes+10>><</silently>> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<a data-passage="Customer Inquiries">❌</a> We know this might be overwhelming, but you have to trust us. You and your entire department are in grave danger. Please, take a break from work and take a chance. We are all depending on you. <<silently>><<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>><<set $abuse to $abuse + 10>><</silently>> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<<set $minutes to $minutes>><<set $hours to $hours>>

<span class="centeralign"> <a class="Box" data-passage="Email">Check Your Email</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="Watch">Check The Time</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="Customer Inquiries">Get to work</a> <<if visited("Encounter") is 0>> <a class="Box" data-passage="Encounter">Turn to talk to your coworker</a><<else>> <a class="Box" data-passage="Stand">Stand Up</a><</if>>\ <<if visited("Secret Email") > 0 and $hasgun is 0>> <a class="Box" data-passage="Get Gun">Look in the Drawer</a><</if>>\ <<if visited("Stand") > 0>> <a class="Box" data-passage="ExitB">Leave</a> <a class="qBox" data-passage="Sus">"Does anyone else think that was weird?"</a><</if>>\ </span> <<silently>><<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>><</silently>> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

"What are you thinking?" a mangled voice interupts your deliberation. You glance to your right at the wearied eyes peaking around the cubicle wall. //Should I do it? The message was cryptic, but not impossible to follow<<timed .2s>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><</timed>>// <a class="qBox" data-passage="ExitB">"I'm going to go on my lunch break."</a> <a class="qBox" data-passage="Bland Start">"Nothing, nothing..."</a> <a class="qBox" data-passage="Sus">"Something weird is going on..."</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="Watch">Check The Time</a> <<silently>><<set $minutes to $minutes + 10>><</silently>> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

"It isn't anywhere near lunchtime though," your coworker objects as you <<if visited("Letter Gone")>>escape the cubicle.<<else>>slide the paper out from under your keyboard descretely.<</if>> "So? I just need some fresh air," <<if visited("Letter Gone")>>you answer, regretting throwing the paper away already.<<else>>you answer, crumpling the letter in your pocket.<</if>> "How long are you going to be? These inquiries don't answer themselves ya know." "Not long, just a few minutes," you're already walking away, no longer entertaining him. "The supervisor will get suspicious if your work doesn't show any processing after a while. Don't get us all in trouble!" but you're already at the door. <a class="Box" data-passage="First Outside">Head Outside</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="Watch">Check The Time</a> <<silently>><<set $minutes to $minutes+10>><<set $abuse to $abuse +20>><</silently>> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

"You mean the woman who came through here, tailed by the police?" the woman over your green cubicle wall responds, laughing. "The corporate spy?" the older gentleman beside you whispers, glancing at your keyboard. "That wasn't the police," a man behind you swivels in his chair to face you with sudden interest, "looked like a new security team." You feel your face getting hot. "Let's see what she handed you," the face of the woman in front of you appears over the wall. <a class="qBox" data-passage="Sus 2">"Oh it's nothing"</a> <a class="qBox" data-passage="Letter Gone">"I think I'm just going to throw it away"</a> <a class="qBox" data-passage="Bland Start2">"We should get back to work"</a> <a class="qBox" data-passage="ExitB">"Actually, I think I need some air"</a> <<silently>><<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>><<set $abuse to $abuse + 10>><</silently>> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<div class="outline">This is it. There was no turning back now. As you start getting down the path, it's clear that you should've checked the weather before you left: fog roams every inch of the grassy Lotsa-Tech campus. The pathways ahead of you are visible, luckily, but beyond them you can't even distinguish the other compex buildings. //The fountain?// you muse, //Wasn't it still under construction?// The report had come out this morning that the plumbing was faulty, and was sending out plumes of mist in all directions. Maybe that excuse for grounded clouds wasn't entirely true. //I know my way there though,// you think, taking the first few steps away from your own building, before shifting gears to match the gravity of the situation. //What am I even doing<<timed .2s>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><</timed>>//</div> <a class="Box" data-passage="Start Path">Keep going</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="Watch">Check The Time</a> <<silently>><<set $minutes to $minutes+10>><<set $abuse to $abuse +20>><</silently>> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

"Really? Sure didn't look like nothing," you hear the voice of the girl in front of you pipe up. "Yeah, let's see it!" You don't even turn to identify the guy behind you chiming in. //This is getting out of hand<<timed .2s>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><</timed>>// you think, getting worried. <<if visited("Inquiry Help") > 0>>//That mysterious inquiry meant that I can't tell them.//<</if>> <<if visited("Secret Email") > 0>>//There's a gun involved now, we are all in danger.//<</if>> <a class="qBox" data-passage="Bland Start2">"Let's just get back to work"</a> <a class="qBox" data-passage="ExitB">"Look, I just need some air I think"</a> <a class="qBox" data-passage="Letter Gone">"I'm just going to throw it away"</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="Corporate">Hand them the paper</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="Watch">Check The Time</a> <<silently>><<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>><<set $abuse to $abuse + 10>><</silently>> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

You grab the paper from underneath your keyboard, and walk over to the trash can in the aisle of the office space. Balling it up, you toss it in the bin. There's a look of mild disappointment across the faces of all your coworkers as you get back to your desk. <a class="qBox" data-passage="Bland Start2">"There, now let's get back to work"</a> <a class="qBox" data-passage="ExitB">"After all of this, I would like to get some air though"</a> <<silently>><<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>><<set $abuse to $abuse + 10>><</silently>> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<span class="centeralign"> <a class="Box" data-passage="Email">Check Your Email</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="Watch">Check Your Watch</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="Customer Inquiries">Get to work</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="ExitB">Get up to leave</a></span> <<silently>><<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>><</silently>> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

You take the letter out from underneath your keyboard, slowly but surely. There's a flurry of hands. Suddenly, the whole office is your audience, and the paper has left your grip. The guy who identified the men as security was now reading the letter aloud. Safe to say, everyone around you was stirred up, and the silence of listening became a murmur. "We have to report this," the nosey girl from before was beside you. You take the paper back. This was you're fault, and now everyone is getting pulled in. <a class="qBox" data-passage="Letter Gone">"And get us all in trouble? I'm just going to throw it away"</a> <a class="qBox" data-passage="Corporate Comes">"Ok I guess..."</a> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

The next moments passed quickly, like some sort of nightmarish montage. You look around, still standing, but the eyes have all disappeared; they're all back to work. Someone had phoned it in--//something something, a suspicious paper//--and no one wanted part of this anymore. //Who would?// you think, //Just a horrible way to start a first day.// A man and a woman in suits breeze into the office, and you're swept away in some hurried explanation. The hallways are so clean, so barren. You're sitting in some expensive cushioned chair, right in front of a big mahogany desk. The woman behind it doesn't have kind eyes, but at least she wasn't yelling. Was she? It didn't matter anymore. "You've had a lot of trauma," she began. "Have I?" you respond, not sure where you went wrong, but you definitely didn't belong here. She was reassuring you about something else, but the suits were back, putting light diodes on your temples. Your supervisor stopped talking, smiled at your begging stare, and pressed a key on her [[laptop->End]].

<div class="outline"><<print either("Getting through this fog is going to be tricky...","There is no one around, yet somehow it feels...off")>> //Whoosh// There's a sound<<timed .2s>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><</timed>> it's coming from your, left? But there isn't a path that way, just another grove of trees, and the fog that hugs them. Checking it out will stray you off your path, and this all was urgent wasn't it? You haven't raised much suspicion yet, though, so maybe you don't need to go straight to the fountain<<timed .2s>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><</timed>></div> <a class="Box" data-passage="Monster1">Left through the Trees</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="Next Path">Stay On Track</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="Watch">Check The Time</a> <<silently>><<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>><<set $abuse to $abuse + 10>><</silently>> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<div class="centeralign"><span class="rumble">PREPARE TO MEET YOUR DEMISE MORTAL</span> <img src="https://webstockreview.net/images/demon-clipart-evil-spirit-18.png" width="600px"> <a class="qBox" data-passage="Monster Talk">"Wait, who- what are you??"</a> <a class="qBox" data-passage="Get onto the path">"No thanks, bye"</a> <<if $hasgun is 1>><a class="qBox" data-passage="Shoot Monster">"Maybe it's time to meet yours"</a><</if>></div> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 3>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<div class="outline">"Hello <<print $name>>," they say in unison<<set $hasgun to 1>> <<if visited("Shoot Game")>> The fist woman notes the gun at your side, "Looks like you found our little gift."<</if>>\ The woman beside the first begins, "Sorry if this is blunt, but hopefully you weren't too surprised by your adventure so far." Together, they begin to explain, in unison, what's been going on, "We are Ellen, and as you might have noticed, this is all a simulation. But, it's breaking. The viruses are bringing Lotsa-Tech's attention to every detail of the property, but to conceal the presence of the viruses, the company has sent instructions to the programmers to 'fog up' many areas of the campus (covering it up as a faulty fountain) while the workers in the real world send in an investigative security team to get rid of the virus. Our associate, Dixie Mae, was found out by these investigators and mistaken as an agent of the virus, so we've had to employ new team members like you to fill her shoes undercover. Your responsibility, should you choose to join us, is to help defeat the viruses so that the security team will eventually be called off, and we and the programmers can get back to our work in getting us all out."</div> <a class="qBox" data-passage="How fog">"How do I get through the fog?"</a> <a class="qBox" data-passage="Virus Instruct">"What do I do when I see a virus?"</a> <<silently>><<set $minutes to $minutes+20>><</silently>> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<div class="outline">Maybe straying from the path wasn't the right idea. You hear footsteps in the distance behind you<<timed .2s>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><</timed>> no, boots. The security team. You've been gone from the office for far too long.</div> <<if $hasgun is 1>> <a class="Box" data-passage="Shoot Game">Shoot Them</a><</if>>\ <a class="Box" data-passage="Hidden">Hide</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="TMen">Keep walking</a> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>><<set $abuse to $abuse + 10>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

You've hidden from the men. They look around for you, and stop in their tracks. As you peer around the tree at them, they stand motionless, staring down the path. //What are they-// you barely get the thought across your mind before both security agents look up abruptly, before beginning to shudder. You witness their entire bodies shake and fizzle, as they disintegrate upwards, the motion mixed with small flashes of light. It was something out of //Star Trek//, you muster, barely able to be amused at the sight when it was horrifically real. Right in front of you, the men disappeared, as if they were illusions<<timed .2s>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><</timed>> <a class="qBox" data-passage="Success">//But that means that<<timed .2s>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><</timed>>//</a> <<silently>><<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>><<set $sanity>><</silently>> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<span id="building1"><<link [img["https://image.flaticon.com/icons/svg/63/63610.svg"]]>><<goto "Northwest">><</link>></span>&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;[img["https://image.flaticon.com/icons/svg/861/861188.svg"]]&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;<<if $NW is 1>><span id="building1"><<link [img["https://image.flaticon.com/icons/png/512/63/63720.png"]]>><<goto "Northeast">><</link>></span><</if>> &emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;[img["https://image.flaticon.com/icons/svg/427/427584.svg"]]&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;[img["https://image.flaticon.com/icons/svg/120/120175.svg"]] &emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;[img["https://image.flaticon.com/icons/svg/112/112879.svg"]]&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;<<if visited() > 1>><span id="building1"><<link [img["https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d0/Fountain_icon.svg"]]>><<goto "Return Fountain">><</link>></span><</if>>&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;[img["https://image.flaticon.com/icons/svg/433/433153.svg"]] &emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;<span id="building1"><<link [img["https://image.flaticon.com/icons/svg/63/63937.svg"]]>><<goto "Return Building">><</link>></span> <<if $NE is 1>><span id="building1"><<link [img["https://image.flaticon.com/icons/svg/63/63838.svg"]]>><<goto "Southwest">><</link>></span><</if>>&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;&emsp;<<if $SW is 1>><span id="building1"><<link [img["https://image.flaticon.com/icons/svg/63/63611.svg"]]>><<goto "Southeast">><</link>></span><</if>> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 2>>\

<<print either("Excuse us,","Stop right there!","Going somewhere?")>> you freeze, turning around slowly. "Yes, officers?" "The company has reason to believe that have not been productive for <<if $hours > 11 or $hours < 9>><<print "over two hours">><<elseif $hours > 10>><<print "over an hour">><<else>><<print "nearly an hour">><</if>>." <a class="qBox" data-passage="LunchExcuse">"I'm just on my lunch break, I must not have noticed the time."</a> <a class="qBox" data-passage="Delivery">"I am delivering an item for my supervisor."</a> <<if $hasgun is 0>><a class="Box" data-passage="Run to Fountain">Run</a><<else>><a class="qBox" data-passage="Shoot Game">"Well it's a good thing I have a gun!"</a><</if>> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

"You have exceeded your allotted break time," the first officer replies. "Oh sorry, I must have lost track of time..." you defend. "This will not go without punishment." the second persists. <a class="qBox" data-passage="Escort">"Can't I just stay out here a little bit longer?"</a> <a class="qBox" data-passage="Escort">"Please, it was an accident, I'll get back right now!"</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="Run to Fountain">Run</a> <<if $hasgun is 1>><a class="qBox" data-passage="Shoot Game">"Yeah, for you."</a><</if>>\ <<silently>><<set $minutes to $minutes+10>><</silently>> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<<silently>><<if $hasgun is 1>>"Identify the item that you are transporting." Officer 1 demands bluntly. Your hand instinctively slides to your hip, where the gun from earlier resides. Is it worth the risk...<<else>>"We have received no alerts that any items would be transported across the property." Officer 1 argues. "I was not made aware that packages had to be declared." you stall with false confidence. "Any campus-wide deliveries must be reported in advance." Officer 2 insists. "Show us the item. Now."<</if>><</silently>> <<if $hasgun is 1>><a class="qBox" data-passage="Shoot Game">"You want to see what I'm carrying? Ok, you asked for it"</a><<else>><a class="Box" data-passage="Run to Fountain">Run</a><</if>> <a class="qBox" data-passage="Delivery 2">"Fine, I don't have anything!"</a> <<silently>><<set $minutes to $minutes+10>><</silently>> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<div class="outline">You turn on a dime, and start off down the path. There was no stopping now, something was definitely up about this place. There is no yelling, but as you tilt your head back to grin at their reactions, they are mere strides behind you, silently pursuing. "Duck!" a woman's voice echos from up ahead. Blind trust and desperation takes over as you bend your shoulders forward, eyes on your feet, covering your head in hopes that whatever is about to happen will make this all stop. A high pitched buzz rings out suddenly, and as you glance up you witness a static beam piercing through the mist of the broken fountain. It moves faster than you can react, but just nearly grazes your right shoulder anyways. You glance back to see what it hit as you continue your sprint, your gaze met by only a single pair of eyes. Only one security guard was on your tail now, baffling and delighting you as you're almost at the [[fountain->Run 2]].</div><<set $health to 0>> <<silently>><<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>><<set $sanity to 0>><</silently>> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

"We have made our decision, <<print $name>>," Officer 1 declares. "Wait, how do you know my name?" you object, stepping back. "That is none of your concern, you will have to come with us." the other man finishes, reaching for your arm. <a class="Box" data-passage="Corporate Comes 2">Let them take you back</a> <<if $hasgun is 0>><a class="Box" data-passage="Run to Fountain">Run</a><<else>><a class="qBox" data-passage="Shoot Game">"I don't think so" Use your gun</a><</if>> <<silently>><<set $minutes to $minutes+3>><</silently>> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

They've got both of your arms, and somehow you've let them lead you back to the only building you know. It's some sort of side entrance, an elevator, and so many pristine hallways. All of it a blur like a weird dream. You're sitting in some expensive cushioned chair, right in front of a big mahogany desk. The woman behind it doesn't have kind eyes, but at least she wasn't yelling. Was she? It didn't matter anymore. "You've had a lot of trauma," she began. "Have I?" you respond, not sure where you went wrong, but you definitely didn't belong here. She was reassuring you about something else, but the suits were back, putting light diodes on your temples. Your supervisor stopped talking, smiled at your begging stare, and pressed a key on her [[laptop->End]].

"Lying to members of security is a corporate offense," Officer 1 says with complacency. "Now you will have to come with us." his partner finishes, reaching for your arm. <a class="Box" data-passage="Corporate Comes 2">Let them take you back</a> <<if $hasgun is 0>><a class="Box" data-passage="Run to Fountain">Run</a><<else>><a class="qBox" data-passage="Shoot Game">"I'm not going anywhere" Take out your gun</a><</if>> <<silently>><<set $minutes to $minutes+3>><</silently>> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<div class="outline">In a flash, you're there. Exactly where the hologram showed. <<if visited() is 1>>The sun wasn't even close to visible, and nearly everything around you was shrouded in the fountain's fog. The side door to Building 945 was nowhere near a welcome entrance, but it would suffice for your mission.<<elseif $NW is 1>>The virus in this sector was defeated, but no harm in checking back in.<<else>>Building 945 sat right in front of you. <</if>>\ <<if $NW is 1>><a class="Box" data-passage="NW Inside Done">Go Inside</a><<else>><a class="Box" data-passage="NW Inside">Go Inside</a><</if>></div> <a class="Box" data-passage="Watch">Check The Time</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="Map">Flip Coin</a> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<div class="outline">In a flash, you're there. Exactly where the hologram showed. <<if visited() is 1>>It was like a skyscraper, how had you not noticed it before. //The fog.// Of course, you could barely see around the block, and looking up was somehow intimidating as the tower was swallowed in the clouds. The front door to Building 953 was barely lit, but it was your only option.<<elseif $SW is 1>>The virus in this sector was defeated, but no harm in checking back in.<<else>>Building 953 scowled down at you. <</if>>\</div> <<if $SW is 1>><a class="Box" data-passage="SW Inside Done">Go Inside</a><<else>><a class="Box" data-passage="SW Inside">Go Inside</a><</if>> <a class="Box" data-passage="Watch">Check The Time</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="Map">Flip Coin</a> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

In a flash, you're there. Exactly where the hologram showed. <<if visited() is 1>>What a strange complex of brick towers ahead of you. The world around you almost appeared black-and-white (maybe a sign of the damage already done by the virus). The cluster of structures was almost overwhelming, but this was where you had to go. The double doors that opened up into what could only be a lobby were dark, along with the patchwork of windows above them. You had to go in though.<<elseif $NE is 1>>The virus in this sector was defeated, but no harm in checking back in.<<else>>Building 928 stood ahead of you. <</if>>\ <<if $NE is 1>><a class="Box" data-passage="NE Inside Done">Go Inside</a><<else>><a class="Box" data-passage="NE Inside">Go Inside</a><</if>> <a class="Box" data-passage="Watch">Check The Time</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="Map">Flip Coin</a> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<div class="outline">In a flash, you're there. Exactly where the hologram showed. <<if visited() is 1>>Could this even be part of the campus still? You stood in front of what looked like an appartment complex. This was your last option, though, and it would be foolish to stop trusting the Ellens now. You were so close to finishing. The path to Building 314 was a deserted parking lot, and the gloom was just as heavy hear as the rest of your travels. Was it worth it to keep going?<<elseif $SE is 1>>The virus in this sector was defeated, but no harm in checking back in.<<else>>Building 314 sat right in front of you. <</if>>\</div> <<if $SE is 1>><a class="Box" data-passage="SE Inside Done">Go Inside</a><<else>><a class="Box" data-passage="SE Inside">Go Inside</a><</if>> <a class="Box" data-passage="Watch">Check The Time</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="Map">Flip Coin</a> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<div class="outline">"If you noticed," the Ellens started, gesturing around them passively, "the Lotsa-Tech property is boasted as one of the most expansive campuses endowed to its employees." "Of course," you squint to your left and right, "the tennis courts, and the view of, well-" "...the world." they cut you off, "The machine is quite a marvel, and the men behind it are quite proud of it." "Can't be right now, though," the first Ellen continues, "as soon as the instructions for 'fog' came in, all the buildings had to disappear, so that no worker would stumble upon a portion of the virus and give it something to feed on." "We don't have time for stumbling though." the second Ellen dealt in, "//You// don't have time. So, our buddies at the keyboard had a better idea." Smiling, both Ellens dug into their lab coat pockets, eventually the first resurfacing a balled fist triumphantly. Looking at you, the winner flicked her wrist in your direction, opening her hand, "[[Catch!->How fog 1]]" </div> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<a data-passage="Email">⇦✉</a> ''Special Gift!'' ---- Hello <<print $name>>, We would like to provide you the opportunity to gain new experiences and better education towards improving your work experience. That probably hit the word-count minimum right? The automated system only reads through the first sufficient paragraph to filter and report email fraud to the company management. We had to type out whole essays before we realized that it was a waste of time. Almost lost a few who didn't bother to keep reading in the process. Anyways, there's a gun in the second drawer of your desk on the left. Hide it well, and it'll come in handy. You'll understand soon. Good luck! Best regards, Lotsa-Tech Team~~<<print "(not really)~~(it's actually the boys)~~">> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 10>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<div class="centeralign">\ <<linkreplace "<img src='https://webstockreview.net/images/demon-clipart-evil-spirit-18.png' width='600px'>">><span class="rumble"><img src='https://webstockreview.net/images/demon-clipart-evil-spirit-18.png' width='600px'> <<print "You think mere weapons can defeat me?">><<timed 5s>><<goto "End">><</timed>></span><</linkreplace>></div> <<silently>><<set $minutes to $minutes+3>><<set $abuse to $abuse +20>><</silently>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

"4..." you say, almost feeling foolish, standing in front of this dark monster. To your delight, though, its form shifts. Its expression, if it even had one, clouds in something of surprise or even pain. "2," more confidently, standing your ground as the monster moves toward you. "4," you ball up your fists, not sure what to expect. It's angry. "9!" you feel yourself shouting now, as the virus hovers in its smoke barely a foot in front of you, as if ready to engulf ou. But it doesn't. The black cloud surrounding you dissipates, and as the virus loses its monstrous form, you back up to watch it completely disappear. Once its eyes are gone you know you're safe. //Well,// breathing again, //that wasn't so hard.// <a class="Box" data-passage="Map">Flip Coin</a><<set $NW to 1>> <<silently>><<set $minutes to $minutes+10>><</silently>> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<div class="outline">You hear footsteps in the distance behind you<<timed .2s>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><</timed>> no, boots. The security team. You've been gone from the office for far too long.</div> <<if $hasgun is 1>> <a class="Box" data-passage="Shoot Game">Shoot Them</a><</if>>\ <a class="Box" data-passage="Hidden">Hide</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="TMen">Keep walking</a> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<div class="outline">Through the mists of the fountain you can just barely make out the figure waiting for you. What must be a lab coat flutters a bit as you quicken your pace. The fog that was licking your ankles before is now parting around your knees, and it isn't until you're several feet away from her that you realize that she isn't alone. The silhouette splits and you can differentiate the two people now, except that their features are identical. //Twins?// you think, with barely any time to be confused before you're standing in front of them.</div> <a class="qBox" data-passage="Fountain">"Hi"</a> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<div class="centeralign"><span class="rumble">I AM THE VIRUS</span> <img src="https://webstockreview.net/images/demon-clipart-evil-spirit-18.png" width="600px"> <a class="qBox" data-passage="Get onto the path">//I'm not ready for this//</a> <<if $hasgun is 1>><a class="qBox" data-passage="Shoot Monster">//Let's hope this gun is loaded//</a><</if>></div> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 3>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<div class="outline"><<if visited("Get Gun")>>"Well good thing you didn't use that gun," the first Ellen winked, "it only works on the security agents." "So don't bother trying it out on yourself!" the second laughed.<</if>> "Don't be intimidated by them," the two answered your worry together, "the virus has its soldiers all over campus, but they won't attack you unless you prove to be a threat." <<if $hasgun is 1>>"Like brandishing a gun?" you touch your hip, mind still whirling.<<else>>"So then the only way to stop them is..." you think out loud.<</if>> "Code," the unison came again, "is the key." <<if $hascode is 1>>"You remember <<linkreplace "the code">>4349<</linkreplace>>," both pairs of eyes waiting, "don't you <<print $name>>?"<</if>> "Yes, of course, the code!" you manage out, "4249!" "That's all you need," the second Ellen smiled, "As soon as you saw those numbers you unlocked your ability to destroy each and every one of the virus' soldiers." </div> <a class="qBox" data-passage="How Fog 2">"How do I get to them all?"</a> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<div class="outline">In a flash, you're there. Exactly where the hologram showed. <<if visited() is 1>>Back where it all began. The mist had somehow condensed itself even more since you left, and the temptation to walk inside your office buildling pulled your wearied will. This wasn't part of the mission, though. Going in would be death, or worse.<<else>>Going back to work was not an option. You made that decision when you first stepped out of that building this morning. <</if>>\</div> <a class="Box" data-passage="Map">Flip Coin</a> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

In a flash, you're immersed once again in the mists of the fountain. <<if $SE is 1>>"Good job, <<print $name>>," one of the Ellens says from behind you. You turn to see both of them, smiling, the fog swirling all around them. "What do I do now?" you ask, feeling the humidity cling to you. "Head back to the southeastern building," the other Ellen directs, "there's one part of your mission left." <<elseif $SW is 1 and $SE is 0>>"You aren't done yet, <<print $name>>," an Ellen appears through the fog. "I destroyed three monsters," you say cooly, "are there more?" "Certainly," the second Ellen comes, "one just appeared in a building on the southeastern part of campus." "Got it," you reply, nodding quickly. <<elseif $NE is 1 and $SW is 0>>"Two down," the Ellens voices greet you, "one to go." They fade in, as if they teleported like you did, but with all of the mist you have no way to tell. "There's just one left?" you ask skeptically, recalling their initial instructions. "More may come," one of them answers, "but only one has appeared since your last encounter." "Keep an eye on the southwestern part of the property," the other tacks on. "Sounds good," you say, excited for the next battle. <<elseif $NW is 1 and $NE is 0>>"How did it go?," the two Ellens startle you, and you watch their silhouettes push through the dense fog. "Good," you answer, fiddling with the coin, then more confidently, "I felt a little silly at first but I got it." "Perfect," they echo, "you did everything right." "Now on to the next one I assume?" you're already getting the coin ready as the Ellens nod approvingly. <<elseif $NW is 0 and visited("Return Building") >= 1>>"Back already?" you hear the Ellens asking, and you turn to see the mist swirling around their concerned faces. "Sorry," you explain, looking at the fountain briefly, "still figuring out this whole teleportation thing." "Need another explanation?" one of them offers, but you're looking at the coin. "No," you say quickly, "I think I've got it now." <<elseif $NW is 0 and visited("Return Building") is 0>>"Not sure how to use the hologram, <<print $name>>?" one of the Ellens asks as the mist spins around you. "Oh," you find your feet, and realize that the Ellens haven't moved since you teleported from them seconds ago, "no, sorry, just getting the hand of it I think." "Alright, then," the other Ellen smiles encouragingly, "good luck!" <</if>> <a class="Box" data-passage="Map">Flip Coin</a> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<div class="outline">"If you noticed," the Ellens started, gesturing around them passively, "the Lotsa-Tech property is boasted as one of the most expansive campuses endowed to its employees." "Of course," you squint to your left and right, "the tennis courts, and the view of, well-" "...the world." they cut you off, "The machine is quite a marvel, and the men behind it are quite proud of it." "Can't be right now, though," the first Ellen continues, "as soon as the instructions for 'fog' came in, all the buildings had to disappear, so that no worker would stumble upon a portion of the virus and give it something to feed on." "We don't have time for stumbling though." the second Ellen dealt in, "//You// don't have time. So, our buddies at the keyboard had a better idea." Smiling, both Ellens dug into their lab coat pockets, eventually the first resurfacing a balled fist triumphantly. Looking at you, the winner flicked her wrist in your direction, opening her hand, "[[Catch!->How fog 3]]" </div> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<div class="outline"><<if visited("Get Gun")>>"Well good thing you didn't use that gun," the first Ellen winked, "it only works on the security agents." "So don't bother trying it out on yourself!" the second laughed. <</if>>\ "Don't be intimidated by them," the two answered your worry together, "the virus has its soldiers all over campus, but they won't attack you unless you prove to be a threat." <<if $hasgun is 1>>"Like brandishing a gun?" you touch your hip, mind still whirling.<<else>>"So then the only way to stop them is..." you think out loud.<</if>> "Code," the unison came again, "is the key." <<if $hascode is 1>>"You remember <<linkreplace "the code">>4249<</linkreplace>>," both pairs of eyes waiting, "don't you <<print $name>>?"<</if>> "Yes, of course, the code!" you manage out, "4249!" "That's all you need," the second Ellen smiled, "As soon as you saw those numbers you unlocked your ability to destroy each and every one of the virus' soldiers." "Wow," is all you can get out. "Are you ready?" the Ellens ask, not quite as stern as they could have been. </div> <a class="qBox" data-passage="Ready">"I don't know"</a> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

The lobby was still dark, but at least there was no virus goon terrorizing the space. <a class="Box" data-passage="Watch">Check The Time</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="Map">Flip Coin</a> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<div class="centeralign"><span class="rumble"><<if visited("Monster 1")>>YOU AGAIN?<<else>>I WILL DESTROY YOUR WORLD<</if>></span> <img src="https://webstockreview.net/images/demon-clipart-evil-spirit-18.png" width="400px"> <<if $hascode is 1>><a class="Box" data-passage="Coded NW">Use Code</a><</if>></div><<set $minutes to $minutes + 3>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<div class="centeralign"><span class="rumble">YOU DO NOT KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DOING</span> <img src="https://webstockreview.net/images/demon-clipart-evil-spirit-18.png" width="400px"> <a class="Box" data-passage="Coded SW">Use Code</a></div><<set $minutes to $minutes + 3>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<div class="centeralign"><span class="rumble">YOU GOT LUCKY ONCE</span> <img src="https://webstockreview.net/images/demon-clipart-evil-spirit-18.png" width="400px"> <a class="Box" data-passage="Coded NE">Feelin' Lucky</a></div><<set $minutes to $minutes + 3>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

This was different than the virus faceoffs you had before. As deserted as the place looked on the outside, the interior of the building really wasn't reminiscent of anything new. You had thought it was an apartment complex of some sort, but this lobby felt the same as all of the rest of the places you had been. //Figures,// you think, remembering that this is apparently all one big simulation. You step further into the lobby, cautious of your expected foe. Each of the previous ones seemed to have been communicating with the others, so maybe this one was waiting for you. To leave the empty room was to enter the narrow hallway on the right, a <<linkreplace "decision">>decision<</linkreplace>> that was no longer yours. Gradually, getting closer to the hallway, you become aware of a buzzing sound. It was muffled, but definitely something of static. You find yourself standing in front of a utility closet, and the static was clearly coming from [[inside->Basement Stairs]]. <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<div class="outline">"Get out of the way," the familiar echo insists, as a figure steps out of the fog in front of you. Peeling to your right, a second silhouette reveals itself, identical to the first. Both women, as the mist clears, stare down your pursuer. "You are in an illegal region of Lotsa-Tech property, identify yourselves!" the officer commands, a slower pace with his targets standing still. "Yeah, identify this," deadpan, the first woman lifts her arm in front of her, casually brandishing a revolver. The buzzing again, as a beam leaves the barrel and hits the man square in his chest. His entire body fizzeles in a wave, as parts of his body are transformed into flashes of colored pixels. In seconds the pixels, too, evaporate, and by the time it would have taken you to blink, the agent has been replaced by air. Speechless, you carefully rotate back towards the women. "Sorry," they say in unison, "sometimes we just like to have fun with it." <<if $hasgun isnot 1>> The first flips the gun around in her hand, and without hesitation tosses it in your direction, "[[catch!->Fountain]]"<</if>>\ </div> <<silently>><<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>><<set $sanity to 0>><</silently>> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<div class="outline">Your reflexes send your open hand into the air, clasping the tiny object. When you open it back up, a gold coin is sitting in your palm. "Another gift from us," you hear the Ellens say as you stare at it. "Just give it a flip," the first begins. "And it'll display a holographic map of the entire campus," the second finishes. You don't dare try it yet, "so I'll be able to navigate?" "Teleport." they clarify together, grinning as you look up in amazement. "We didn't want you ending up in random parts of the map," they explain, "so you will only have access to locations that are affected by the virus or ones that you are familiar with." "Okay, okay," you stop the cogs from turning in your head, they're useless now. </div> <a class="qBox" data-passage="Virus Instruct 2">"I still don't get the viruses"</a> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<div class="outline">"Don't worry," the first Ellen reaches forward to touch your shoulder. "You are," the second smiles kindly. "More importantly," they say in unison, "you have to be." Their tone change startles you, but perhaps in a good way. You straighten up, "How much time do I have?" "Until 5 o'clock today," the first Ellen answers, glancing up briefly before adding in: "when your day resets, and you lose the memories of everything that's happened." "It's just about <<print $hours>> now," second Ellen interjects, "so you better get moving if you want to finish your work in time." "Don't you mean //your// work?" you tease, poising the coin on your thumb. "It's all of ours now," the two of them stand side by side, watching you, "good luck." </div> <a class="Box" data-passage="Map">Flip the Coin</a> <a class="Box" data-passage="Watch">Check The Time</a> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<div class="outline">Your reflexes send your open hand into the air, grabbing it. Opening your hand, a gold coin is sitting in your palm. "Another gift from us," you hear the Ellens say as you stare at it. "Just give it a flip," the first begins. "And it'll display a holographic map of the entire campus," the second finishes. You don't dare try it yet, "so I'll be able to navigate?" "Teleport." they clarify together, grinning as you look up in amazement. "We didn't want you ending up in random parts of the map," they explain, "so you will only have access to locations that are affected by the virus or ones that you are familiar with." "Okay, okay," you stop the cogs from turning in your head, they're useless now. "So," the Ellens voice has an encouraging note, "are you ready?" </div> <a class="qBox" data-passage="Ready">"I don't know"</a> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

Standing firmly in the doorway, it's your game now. "4249!" you yell at the virus as it moves forward. Clearly this one is no different from the last, as it wriggles in agony, evaporating. You watch its eyes fade away before taking out your coin again. <a class="Box" data-passage="Map">Flip Coin</a><<set $NE to 1>> <<silently>><<set $minutes to $minutes+10>><</silently>> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

The soldier makes its last effort to intimidate you, starting toward you faster than the others. "Yes, I do," more confidently than ever, the monster is no threat. "4249," you say smoothly, almost boastfully as the smoke descends on your place at the door. With your eyes closed, the black clouds wash over you, and you position the coin on your thumb. Still holding your breath--can't take the chance of inhaling remnants of a dying virus--you prepare for departure. <a class="Box" data-passage="Map">Flip Coin</a><<set $SW to 1>> <<silently>><<set $minutes to $minutes+10>><</silently>> <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

You glance down beside you, realizing that you never bothered opening any of your desk's drawers yet. It was just the first day, they should be empty. //Unless they aren't//, you think, your hand shaking as it reaches for the second drawer. You look around quickly to make sure no one is watching you carefully pull the forbidden handle, praying that the metal wouldn't squeak. There it was, a small but very real revolver, sitting by itself in the grey drawer. Again, you glance up to make sure everyone is still working. Quickly, you grab the gun and slide it into the side of your pants, making sure to cover the rest of it with your shirt. Closing the drawer back up--quietly still--you glance back at your computer screen, not sure what [[to do->Bland Start]].<<set $hasgun to 1>> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 10>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<div class="centeralign"><span class="rumble">YOU CANNOT STOP ME</span> <img src="https://webstockreview.net/images/demon-clipart-evil-spirit-18.png" width="400px"> <a class="qBox" data-passage="Coded SE">"Touché"</a> <a class="qBox" data-passage="Coded SE">"Nice Try"</a> <a class="qBox" data-passage="Coded SE">"Yeah, right"</a> <a class="qBox" data-passage="Coded SE">"Well I've come this far!"</a></div><<set $minutes to $minutes + 3>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

"4249," you say, looking at the fading virus before scanning the room you've barged into. It was dark, and damp, and all you can wonder is why you are so tempted to keep going. "I definitely heard it," the voice echoed softly off the damp walls. It was a man's voice, followed immediately by the clanging of a metal door just down the corridor. You quickly pulled out your gun, relieved it survived the various teleportations. Shifting to the right, you can now see the door built into the leftmost wall, and it was <<linkappend "opening">>. You point your weapon down the hallway, just as a face appears through the crack in the door. It blinks back into the darkness, and you edge towards the door, both hands clutching the weapon in front of you. "I thought we decided," you hear the man again, louder than before and clearly annoyed, "that the gun wasn't a good idea." You stop, your nerves easing. "It's okay, <<print $name>>, we're friends," another man's voice comes, with a hand pushing open the [[door->Meeting]]<</linkappend>>. <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

//Maybe this was the last part of the mission,// you think, going for the doorknob. It isn't even unlocked, as you ease the door open, but it isn't a closet either: it's a staircase, leading down into <<linkappend "darkness">><<print ".\n\nYou place a cautious foot on the top landing inside the doorway, now reaching out for a railing. Feeling it, cold and metalic, you edge your other foot down to the next step.\n\nEyes adjusting, you make your way down, and before you know it, you're standing in an otherwise abandoned [[basement->Virus 4]]">><</linkappend>>. <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

"That revolver won't work anyways," this new face slowly leading the man out of the doorway. "He would know," the first came back, stepping into the corridor beside his comrade before glaring at him, "since he's the one that gave it to you." "Your names wouldn't happen to be Ellen too, would they?" you ask, recalling your first encounter as you walk towards them. "Wouldn't that be fun? But, no, I'm sorry to disappoint," the gun's apparent creator returned, "My name is Dan Eastland." "And I'm Rob Lusk," the drier of the two pushed the door open further. "I think we're a little past handshakes," Dan filled in with a smile, glancing at your hand still gripping the gun, "come on in and we'll explain it all." "Any reason I should trust you?" you hold your ground as they start through the doorway. "Yeah," Rob turned back to you, unamused, "it's in your hand." Holstering the revolver, you [[follow them in->Lair]]. <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<span class="whitehighlight">"I promise," Dan says, moving towards a dimly lit desk, "despite the looks of the place, we were expecting you." "Can you tell he's told that joke a thousand times?" Rob teases, sitting down at the desk, reaching over to flip on the lights. You stand in the center of the smallest office you had ever seen. The desk was already crowded with monitors and wires and computer equipment that you couldn't identify, and the chair that Rob sat in only hid a smaller chair behind it. "Ok," you start, "so is this the end of my mission? That last virus barely put up a fight." "Yeah well, it wasn't supposed to be there," Rob answered, staring blankly at the computer screen, "we've decided it was looking for us." "We're just lucky that the coin's targeting algorithm was working well enough to point you here," Dan leaned against the wall, "we could have stopped it the same way you did, but then the entire virus would know where we're set up." "So what's next?" your eyes switch between them, "I got them all, [[right?->Lair 2]]"</span> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<span class="whitehighlight">Dan interrupts you, "You see, you aren't the first to help us out with this virus. We've been working on this for a few months now, and in the first week, our associate Dixie Mae was able to lay the groundwork for slowing and stopping the strains of the virus." "That is, until the guys in the real world caught on." Rob continued, "They noticed the virus just a few days after we did, and ordered us to cover it up with the faulty fountain excuse so that none of the workers in here would notice anything was up." "So... you work for the same people that tried to take me away?" you're thinking it out again, instinctively touching the gun on your hip. "That's what they think," Dan says coyly, "they provide us instructions to improve the code, but they don't know that we figured out years ago that it was the code of this entire simulation." "We didn't even know we were in a simulation before then," Rob added, looking up at his partner, "Dixie Mae was quite the catalyst. She and the Ellens have been working with us to get everyone out of here and back to the real world." "The officers that were on your tail are a separate AI program," Dan explains as you cross your arms, "plugged in directly from the real world and designed to go after abnomalies down here. Unfortunately, that included [[Dixie Mae->Lair 3]]."</span> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<span class="whitehighlight">"They went after her instead of the virus..." you finish for him, remembering what happened this morning. "Yeah," Dan says, a more solemn now, "she gets found quicker and quicker with each regeneration cycle. Every day we have to try harder and harder to get her here without them catching her and then the rest of us." "But she's a crafty one," Rob says, more cheerfully than ever, "and she knew just what to do. Since your lives reset each day, the messages that she had been sending to herself could just as easily be sent to someone else in the company." "The <<if visited("Secret Email")>>email, and the letter signed with my initial<<else>>letter signed with my initial<</if>>..." you piece together. "And, for the best measures," Rob watched the gears turn and smiled, "<<if visited("Inquiry Help")>>that<<else>>an extra<</if>> crazy inquiry request, in case you managed to ingnore everything else." "We even extended her life span just a few minutes longer," Dan almost whispered, "so that she could deliver the letter in person, for the maximum effect." "But now what," you manage out, "if that's everything, then I finished the mission, and I'm done. Right?" Dan and Rob glance at each other, "Well, this is always the hard part..." Dan starts as you feel the coin burning a hole in your [[pocket->Lair 4]].</span> <<set $minutes to $minutes + 5>>\ <<if $hours >= 5 and $hours <=7>><<timed 1s>><<goto "End Time">><</timed>><</if>>\

<span class="whitehighlight">"You are allowed to leave, and never do this again." Rob puts bluntly, starting to clack away at his keyboard. "What he means," Dan clarifies, "is that you aren't the first person we've picked for this mission." "Or the tenth," Rob pipes up, still typing. "Ouch?" you look back to Dan, who seems newly apologetic. "The longer we keep someone on the team, even if they're really good, it increases the chance of them being found out," he explains quickly, "they might end up getting permanently deleted." "So you have a choice," Rob says, no longer typing, "to either keep helping us after you get reset each day, or get back to your dream desk job, and we'll never bother you again." You can't even figure out what emotion to show them. The office somehow feels smaller all of a sudden. "So I can risk my life to help us all get out," you say, mostly to yourself, "or go through my life never knowing any better." They stare at you in affirmation. The room really does feel [[smaller->Lair 5]].</span>

<span class="whitehighlight"> <a class="qBox" data-passage="Cookie">"I'll do it, count me in!"</a> <a class="qBox" data-passage="No">"You guys will fair better without me"</a> </span>

<span class="whitehighlight">Dan and Rob smile together. "Good choice," Dan says, reaching out to shake your hand. "Formality now?" you ask, laughing as you shake hands. "Well I'd just like to be the first to welcome you to the Cookie Monsters," he releases your hand to bounce to the corner of the room where a laptop sits open. "Incorporated." Rob adds, still smiling, "You haven't got much time in the day left, so let's hop to it." As you walk behind the desk you can see his screen: it's an inbox, with your email address on the receiver line. "You've got a new pen pal, and spoiler alert: it's you." Rob selects the body of the email, "This will get sent out just after you reset, so you have to tell your future self to trust Dixie Mae, and maybe leave the info about the gun out this time." "Hey!" Dan whips around, offended, before crouching back over his laptop as Rob chuckles. "Okay," you say, "I can do that." Your hands move onto the [[keyboard->New Email]].</span>

<span class="whitehighlight">Dan and Rob smile inwardly, and it actually is comforting. "Good choice," Dan said, moving towards you, extending his hand forward. "Formalities now?" you smile, shaking his hand. "It's been a pleasure working with you, and you really helped us out," he answered earnestly. "You did a great job," Rob interjects, not looking up from his screen. Dan turns to work at an open laptop on the desk. "So, now what?" you ask, the weight of the past hours off of your [[shoulders->No 2]]. </span>

⇦✉ ''Special Gift!'' ---- <<textarea "$email" "">> \ <<button "SAVE DRAFT">> <<goto "After Email">> <</button>>

<span class="whitehighlight">Rob laughs, "Very creative. We'll take care of the rest." "And now, you have to be reset so that you can do this all over again," Dan says, still at his laptop. "So I won't remember any of this... and what about you guys?" you can't help but wonder. "We'll use the information that you collect each day to fight the virus at its source," Dan explains, "bit by bit." "A bit of a work in progress." Rob adds, "So <<print $name>>, are you ready for your first day of work?" He's stopped typing, and with his index finger over the ENTER key, both pairs of eyes wait for you. <a class="qBox" data-passage="End 2">"Yes"</a></span>

<span class="whitehighlight">"We can reset you," Rob answers, still not looking up. "Okay," you start, "...so I won't remember any of this?" "None of it," Rob's eyes meet yours briefly. "What about you guys?" you can't help but wonder. "We won't be reset for the rest of the year," Dan says, typing something of his own, "plenty of time to destroy the virus with the help of people like you." "A bit of a work in progress," Rob adds, before throwing in, "so <<print $name>>, are you ready for your first day of work?" His hand hovers over the ENTER key, and the room has gone silent. <a class="qBox" data-passage="End 3">"Yes"</a></span>

You're sitting at your desk<<print either(" and the sun cascades warmth through the windows"," and the room of cubicles feels just plain dreary"," as you settle into the first few seconds of the day"," and relish that your coffee is still steaming")>>.<<set $hours to 10>> <<set $minutes to 0>> "We've got <<print random(2,99)>> customer inquiries to answer this morning already," a man behind you scoffed, "not too bad for our first day right?" Maybe he was being sarcastic. "<<print $name>>?" "Yeah totally," you reply, "I'm stoked." <a class="Box" data-passage="Credits">Get to work</a>

Thank you for playing <<repeat 1.5s>><<clock>><</repeat>>\ <<widget "clock">>\ <span id="heart">🕛</span>\ <<timed .125s>><<remove "#heart">><span id="heart">🕐</span>\ <<next>><<remove "#heart">><span id="heart">🕑</span>\ <<next>><<remove "#heart">><span id="heart">🕒</span>\ <<next>><<remove "#heart">><span id="heart">🕓</span>\ <<next>><<remove "#heart">><span id="heart">🕔</span>\ <<next>><<remove "#heart">><span id="heart">🕕</span>\ <<next>><<remove "#heart">><span id="heart">🕖</span>\ <<next>><<remove "#heart">><span id="heart">🕗</span>\ <<next>><<remove "#heart">><span id="heart">🕘</span>\ <<next>><<remove "#heart">><span id="heart">🕙</span>\ <<next>><<remove "#heart">><span id="heart">🕚</span>\ <<next>><<remove "#heart">>\ <</timed>><</widget>>\ <span class="small">Story, elements, and characters based on Vernor Vinge's novella //The Cookie Monster//</span>

You're sitting at your desk<<print either(" and the sun cascades warmth through the windows"," and the room of cubicles feels just plain dreary"," as you settle into the first few seconds of the day"," and relish that your coffee is still steaming")>>.<<set $hours to 10>> <<set $minutes to 0>> Why does it feel like there are eyes on you<<timed .2s>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><<next>><span class="blink">.</span><</timed>> "We've got <<print random(2,99)>> customer inquiries to answer this morning already," a man behind you scoffed, "not too bad for our first day right?" Maybe he was being sarcastic. "<<print $name>>?" "Yeah totally," you reply, "I'm stoked." <a class="Box" data-passage="Credits">Get to work</a>

<<timed .2s>>5<<next>>:<<next>>0<<next>>0<<next .8s>> L<<next>>I<<next>>F<<next>>E<<next>> R<<next>>E<<next>>S<<next>>E<<next>>T<<next>>T<<next>>I<<next>>N<<next>>G<<next 2s>> .<<next>> .<<next>> .<<next>> D<<next .2s>>E<<next>>L<<next>>E<<next>>T<<next>>I<<next>>N<<next>>G<<next>> M<<next>>E<<next>>M<<next>>O<<next>>R<<next>>I<<next>>E<<next>>S<<next 5s>><<goto Starting>><</timed>>