ALBA
Page 43
That doesn’t explain the bear trap you spy a few metres away. Or the pitfall just in view to your right.
The resident either is very enthusiastic about catching dinner, or they really don’t want anybody here.
Too bad you’re smart enough to spot their tricks.
You tiptoe through the traps until you come to the clearing at the top of the hill. The windmill lies still, the breeze this afternoon not strong enough to make it move, and you notice that next to it are some sort of plastic tunnels – when suddenly the door bursts open and a man with a shotgun is aiming directly at your face.
You stare at each other, both equally surprised. His finger twitches on the trigger.
Bring out your own gun – Turn to 23.9, Needs Sharpshooter.
* * *
Disarm him – Turn to 23.10a, Needs Hand-to-Hand Combat.
* * *
Stop dead – Turn to 23.11.
* * *
Talk to him – Turn to 23.12.
23.4
The sign is well kept. It seems someone wants to make sure that their message is heard, as it looks like they’ve repainted it a few times, the different colours of each successive coat peeping out from under the cracks.
KEEP OUT. TRESPASSERS WILL BE SHOT.
Well, you think to yourself, someone knows how to give a warm welcome. This thought is only backed up when you look to your left and right and see more of these signs in both directions, each no more than fifty feet from the other.
You begin to back away and think maybe this isn’t somewhere you particularly want to stick around, when suddenly the sole of your foot doesn’t connect with the ground. It connects with air. You wave your arms wildly to try and maintain your balance, but instead end up flinging yourself backwards.
You fall about ten feet down, landing heavily on your back. The air is pushed out of your lungs.
You try to catch your breath as you look up. You’re in a hole. A big, deep hole, dug straight down into the earth. You can see insects skittering around the sides. A couple of tree roots poke through.
When you’ve caught your breath, you sit up and look around. Beneath you is a pile of leaves and twigs to reflect the canopy but also something else… a net.
A net that was clearly covering the hole. A trap. Which you fell into.
You curse yourself for not being more vigilant. If someone was putting up warning signs, of course they’re going to try to protect their property. It was foolish of you not to have your guard up. And now you’re in a hole.
If Gaia could see you know, she’d probably laugh. You can’t help but smile at the idea too.
Try to get out of the hole – Turn to 23.13.
* * *
Wait for someone to free you – Turn to 23.14.
23.5
You approach the windmill, trying to think of what to say, when your sure footing suddenly goes too far. Your foot doesn’t touch land; the pile of leaves you just put your boot down on gives way beneath you. You fall down into the hole that’s now opened up before you.
You land on your stomach about ten feet later, and the breath is slammed out of you.
The world feels dizzying around you, though that might be from a possible concussion after the fall. It takes a while for the dirt around you to stop spinning, and eventually you manage to haul yourself up to standing.
You’re in a hole. It’s more than three feet taller than you are, designed to keep its occupants inside. You sigh at your own foolishness. You should have been more prepared, more aware, and now you’re stuck in a trap.
You’re almost glad nobody’s here to witness this. It’s a bit embarrassing.
You sigh and consider your options.
Try to get out of the hole – Turn to 23.13.
* * *
Wait for someone to free you – Turn to 23.14.
23.6
With a sigh, you swipe at the ground with your fingertips. There are enough branches around here for you to fashion a weapon, even if it will be awkward when you’re upside down. You swing a little bit to gather the momentum, just enough to grab onto a sturdy looking stick, smashing it against the forest floor to make it into more of a point, and get to work.
You shove the point awkwardly into the rope loop around your foot and begin to move it. The process of unravelling the rope is long and uncomfortable but soon you hear snap and the thing wears through and drops you.
You land heavily on your shoulder and hear something crunch. It’s dislocated, you think, as you cry out in pain. Luckily, resetting a joint is one of the pieces of knowledge you left the vault with. You grab your dangling arm with your good one and push up and twist with a scream – and you manage to get it back in place with a loud pop. The pain is excruciating.
Tears in your eyes from the pain, you gather everything back into your pack. Really, you need medical attention. You could go back down the hill to find the nearest friendly settlement, you suppose, but it would take a while, and you’re so close to the windmill you really hope you can find some sort of first aid there.
Even if it’s a long shot because the occupants are clearly not happy about visitors.
You approach the windmill with a far warier eye for spotting traps, but someone is already waiting for you. A man stands at the door of the building as you leave the safety of the trees, a shotgun pointed steadily at you.
Bring out your own gun – Turn to 23.9, Needs Sharpshooter.
* * *
Charge at him – Turn to 23.10.
* * *
Disarm him – Turn to 23.10a, Needs Hand-to-Hand Combat.
* * *
Stop dead – Turn to 23.11.
* * *
Talk to him – Turn to 23.12.
* * *
Ask for medical attention because of the trap – Turn to 23.15.
23.6a
You’re looking down when you see the weapon. It might not be the best idea, but it has a blade and that blade is sharp enough to slice through a rope. You reach out as much as you can and manage to get your fingertips around the hilt before bringing it into your hand and swinging up.
The blade cuts through the rope as easily as butter and you fall spectacularly.
You land heavily on your shoulder and hear something crunch. It’s dislocated, you think, as you cry out in pain. Luckily, resetting a joint is one of the pieces of knowledge you left the vault with. You grab your dangling arm with your good one and push up and twist with a scream – and you manage to get it back in place with a loud pop. The pain is excruciating.
Tears in your eyes from the pain, you gather everything back into your pack. Really, you need medical attention. You could go back down the hill, you suppose, but it would take a while, and you’re so close to the windmill you really hope you can find some sort of first aid there.
Even if it’s a long shot, because the occupants are clearly not happy about visitors.
You approach the windmill with a far warier eye for spotting traps. But someone is already expecting you. A man stands at the door of the building as you leave the safety of the trees, a shotgun pointed steadily at you.
Bring out your own gun – Turn to 23.9, Needs Sharpshooter.
* * *
Disarm him – Turn to 23.10a, Needs Hand-to-Hand Combat.
* * *
Charge at him – Turn to 23.10.
* * *
Stop dead – Turn to 23.11.
* * *
Talk to him – Turn to 23.12.
* * *
Ask for medical attention because of the trap – Turn to 23.15.
23.7
Well, you have nothing that has a blade to help you. So unless you can get free with just your body, you’re probably stuck.
As you slowly swing around, you try to inspect your surroundings. Now you can see where the snare was set up – a pair of small saplings by the tree with the hidden rope, standing upright now the trap has been sprung.
But still with the rop
e knotted around them.
Well, that does give you an idea, but it’s going to be a bastard to execute.
You throw your arms out behind you and then forward, your body slowly swinging in the direction you point. You sigh, because it makes you dizzy as anything, but keep going. The more you move, the further you swing. It’s tiring, disorientating work, but eventually you have enough force behind you that as you go forward you manage to grab onto the sapling with the rope. There’s no chance of getting it untied, not with the knot that’s been used, but as gravity tries to pull you back you grab onto the sapling with all your strength and pull.
It comes out of the ground. The rope comes off the trunk, which unwinds from the branch, which means you…
Thunk.
Fall heavily to the floor.
You land on your shoulder and howl. It’s incredibly painful. Probably sprained. Nevertheless, you force yourself to your feet, stumbling a little as the reorientation hits you, and begin to collect your things back into your pack.
You almost certainly need medical attention or at least some first aid. You sling your pack over your good shoulder and head towards the windmill, hoping that human decency will mean the occupant (or occupants) will help you.
There’s someone at the door as you approach; a man with a shotgun pointed at you. The sight makes you sigh but doesn’t surprise you. His finger twitches on the trigger.
Bring out your own gun – Turn to 23.9, Needs Sharpshooter.
* * *
Disarm him – Turn to 23.10a, Needs Hand-to-Hand Combat.
* * *
Charge at him – Turn to 23.10.
* * *
Stop dead – Turn to 23.11.
* * *
Talk to him – Turn to 23.12.
* * *
Ask for medical attention because of the trap – Turn to 23.15.
23.8
There’s nothing to do except wait.
You spin around slowly, the dizzying feeling getting more intense as the day turns to night. You only manage to fight off vomiting because you haven’t eaten anything recent enough to come back up. You close your eyes. You’re not sure if you fell asleep or passed out, but you don’t open them again until you’re poked in the stomach.
You can groggily make out that there’s a man in front of you. His face is haggard and angry, but most importantly he has a shotgun aimed at you.
“What are you doin’ ’ere?” he asks, his voice as gruff as his looks.
Explain you’re from the New World – Turn to 23.16.
* * *
Say you’re a trader – Turn to 23.17.
* * *
Say you’re a trader – Turn to 23.17a, Needs Deer Skin OR Tiger Skin.
* * *
Threaten him to let you free – Turn to 23.18, Needs Cruelty >/=2.
23.9
You whip your arm round and pull your rifle off of your back, aiming it right back at him in one fluid motion. He clearly didn’t see that you were armed when you came out of the woods because his face visibly pales. Not only does his shotgun have a far worse range than your rifle, it’s also in much worse condition.
He clearly sees he’s no longer in command of the situation and lowers his gun, not dropping it but no longer pointing it at you.
“Why did you come ’ere?” he asks, a gruff voice barking out his question through the quiet stillness of the afternoon.
Explain you’re from the New World – Turn to 23.16.
* * *
Say you’re a trader – Turn to 23.17.
* * *
Say you’re a trader – Turn to 23.17a, Needs Deer Skin OR Tiger Skin.
23.10
Taking him by surprise, you run. He’s startled and fires, but it goes wide, and even if it hadn’t you had dropped into a roll to duck from any passing shrapnel. It takes you only a moment to be on him, taking his shotgun in your hands and pulling it back as your head goes forward, headbutting and disarming him in one fluid motion.
He yells and staggers back. You push forward, knocking him to the ground, before climbing on top of him to pin him down. Bruised and angry, he stares up at you, knowing you have the advantage.
“Why did you come ’ere?” he asks, a gruff voice barking out his question. “You come to rob me?”
Explain you’re from the New World – Turn to 23.16.
* * *
Say you’re a trader – Turn to 23.17.
* * *
Say you’re a trader – Turn to 23.17a, Needs Deer Skin OR Tiger Skin.
* * *
Yes, I came to rob you – Turn to 23.19.
23.10a
Of course, the pain in your arm is a disadvantage, but you still know how to fight. You run towards him as fast as you can. His eyes go wide and he presses on the trigger but the shot misses – he didn’t take the time to aim. When you get near enough, you fling one of your legs up in the air and catch the barrel of the shotgun. The force slams it out of his hands and onto the grass some feet away.
You push back and kick into his stomach. He doubles over and falls to the floor. You don’t let the moment slip by, instead you clamber on top of him to pin him down. Bruised and angry, he stares up at you, knowing you have the advantage.
“Why did you come ’ere?” he asks, gruff voice barking out his question. “You come to rob me?”
Explain you’re from the New World – Turn to 23.16.
* * *
Say you’re a trader – Turn to 23.17.
* * *
Say you’re a trader – Turn to 23.17a, Needs Deer Skin OR Tiger Skin.
* * *
Yes, I came to rob you – Turn to 23.19.
23.11
You stop dead. Maybe it’s not the smartest thing to do, but you also want to prove to this man that you aren’t going to hurt him. You raise your hands above your head and the man mirrors this with his gun, rising from aiming at your stomach to your head, squinting his eyes as if he’s trying to work you out.
Silence runs between you as each of you waits for the other to speak first. You don’t want to start the conversation; it will be easier if he believes he has control of the situation.
At long last the man talks, his voice gruff and gravelly, as if he doesn’t use it much.
“What are you doin’ ’ere?”
Explain you’re from the New World – Turn to 23.16.
* * *
Say you’re a trader – Turn to 23.17.
* * *
Say you’re a trader – Turn to 23.17a, Needs Deer Skin OR Tiger Skin.
23.12
“I’m not here to hurt you,” you tell him, and you hope it sounds truthful even though your voice wavers with fear.
The man snorts in a way that suggests he doesn’t believe you. His gun doesn’t move.
“Please. If I wanted to attack you, I would have done so by now.”
It may be the desperation in your voice, or he genuinely believes you, but you see the tiny movement of his finger coming off of the trigger.
“Why are you here then?” he asks, caution still lacing his voice.
Explain you’re from the New World – Turn to 23.16.
* * *
Say you’re a trader – Turn to 23.17.
* * *
Say you’re a trader – Turn to 23.17a, Needs Deer Skin OR Tiger Skin.
23.13
You look up at the top of the pit. It’s at least three feet taller than you. You sigh. Whoever dug this thing really wanted to make sure whoever was in it couldn’t get out.