Blue Lacuna — 210 of 467

Chapter - Fork

The prose name of Fork is "the overgrown path". The description of Fork is "[forkdesc].". To say forkdesc:

if longform begin; say "Smells of damp earth and a profusion of greenery encircle this half-clearing amidst light forest. Trees encrusted with moss rise from a carpet of grassy, leaf-strewn earth, along with tall stands of bamboo and explosions of delicate fronds[dot]";

otherwise if sunrise or morning; say "Shafts of sunlight kiss the treetops of the tiny clearing amid a profusion of greenery[dot]";

otherwise if midmorning or midday; say "Spears of light penetrate the forest, yellow-gold spotlights on the greenery around you, which sways gently in the breeze[dot]";

otherwise if afternoon; say "[if raining]Water dribbles down the fronds and bamboo stands around you, catching in tiny pools of leaves or sinking into the moss and turning it a deep, full green. The smell of rain and wet earth is thick in the air[otherwise if weather state is gathering clouds]Delicate fronds and bamboo sway in the gathering breeze, under the swiftly gathering clouds above[otherwise if rained]Heavy drops of water patter to the mossy earth all around you, pooling in hollows and cupped leaves that hang heavily under the weight[otherwise]The swaying greenery around you seems almost lazy in the warmth of the afternoon light[end if][dot]";

otherwise if evening or sunset; say "The sinking sun sends tiny spears of [if evening]orange[otherwise]red[end if] light through the holes in [windsigh phrase of tree1], and lights up its thousand lemon-yellow leaves like paper lanterns[dot]";

otherwise if dawn or twilight; say "Indistinct, shadowless light paints the foliage shades of greenish-grey, softened even further by its gentle swaying in unfelt breezes[dot]";

otherwise if night; say "[if moonup]Silver shafts touch swaying fronds and tall bamboo patches in this half-clearing, but the deeper forest is hidden in darkness[otherwise]You can smell and hear the foliage around you more than you can see it: the smell of cool earth and growing things, and the sounds of leaf rubbing against leaf[end if][dot]";

end if;

say "The clearing is dominated by [windsigh phrase of tree1], vine-wrapped trunk rising from gnarled roots, lemon-yellow leaves springing from sinuous branches. At the base of the tree, a leaf-lined [o]nook[x] curls invitingly between two gnarled roots.[paragraph break][exits]".

Fork-stuff is stuff in Fork. Understand "dew" as Fork-stuff when location is Fork.

The exits text of Fork is "Though long overgrown with moss and concealed by huge fallen leaves, a path was once cut through the vegetation, connecting [if South Beach has not been visited]what looks like a [dr]beach[x] through the trees[otherwise]the [dr]beach[x][end if][if dir] to the [northwest][end if] with [exFork2]". To say exFork2: say "the deeper [dr]forest[x][if dir] to the [south][end if][exFork3]". To say exFork3: if meadow-path-open is true, say ". The way you cleared back to the [dr]meadow[x][if dir] [east] of here[end if] is also open".

The printed name of Fork is "Overgrown Path". Understand "beach" or "blue" as northwest when location is Fork. Understand "deeper" or "forest" as south when location is Fork.

Check going from Fork to Sloping Meadow when meadow-path-open is false: say "The vegetation is so thick in that direction, you can't see a way through." instead.

Report going to South Beach from Fork: say "You follow the overgrown path down a slight slope[if sunup] towards a bright open area[end if], picking your way over fallen trees and slippery earth, and finally emerge from the trees on some grassy mounds at the edge of a beach." Report going to Sloping Meadow from Fork: say "Picking your way carefully through the dense vegetation, you climb a bit before the trees begin to thin out and you finally find yourself in a more open area." Report going to Big Tree from Fork: say "Making slow progress, you venture deeper into the forest along the nearly-vanished path, ducking under vines and walking through knee-deep clusters of fallen leaves and dense ground cover[if sunup]. The ground slopes up to your left and down to your right, but you stay relatively level[end if].".

Tree1 is a windsigh tree in Fork. The description of tree1 is "[if tree1 is named]This is the windsigh you painted, which brought you here to begin with[otherwise]It certainly is a curious tree[end if]. [the tree spiel]. [paragraph break]The tree is nothing like the surrounding vegetation, and seems stunted somehow-- though you can't say what creates that impression, with nothing to compare it to.". The printed name of tree1 is "[if tree1 is named]a [o]windsigh[x] tree[otherwise]the strange [o]tree[x] you painted[end if]".

The tree1-nook is a nook in Fork. The printed name is "nook". The description is "It looks like a soft place to curl up in for a nap." Instead of touching tree1-nook, say "The leaves feel soft and dry.". First report entering tree1-nook: say "You lie down on the bed of leaves, comfortably anchored between the two tree roots, and rest comfortably on your back, looking up into the sea of dancing lemon-yellow leaves above you." instead. First report getting off when player was on tree1-nook: say "Reluctantly, you rise to your feet again." instead. The sleep message of Fork is "Lulled by the rustling of the leaves above and the quiet sigh of the tree, you drift into a deep, bottomless sleep."

The ambience table of Fork is Table of Fork ambience.

Table of Fork ambience