Hybrid

<h1>Hybrid</h1> [[Start Another Story->prologue01]] (if: (savedgames:) contains "saved")[Continue(click: "Continue")[loadgame: saved")]](else:)[] Hi there !! Welcome to the Hybrid proof of concept !! This is a gift for my followers who are following my other two games ((link: "Manor Hill")[(gotoURL: "https://heartforge.itch.io/manor-hill")], and (link: "Bad Ritual")[(gotoURL: "https://forum.choiceofgames.com/t/bad-ritual-wip-updated-07-25-2019/53952")]), who have been hearing about this project for so long without seeing it. Be warned, don't expect updates. This game is slated for development, but not until one of my other two games are done. If you want to see more, though, check out (link: "my blog")[(gotoURL: "https://heart-forge.tumblr.com")] where I post most of my devlogs and answer questions !! Just a little forewarning, I'm experiencing a little bug that makes links difficult to see which wasn't reproducable by my beta tester ((link: "@leylses")[(gotoURL: "https://twitter.com/leylses")]). Look carefully: if you see a word or phrase in a different font from those around it, try clicking it !! (set: $currentstation to "")

(if: not((passage:)'s tags contains "exempt"))[ [[->stats]] ] (if: $family01 is "mother" or "sister" or "grandmother")[(set: $her to "her")](else:)[(set: $her to "him")] (if: $family01 is "mother" or "sister" or "grandmother")[(set: $she to "she")](else:)[(set: $she to "he")]

The (link: "radio's")[radio's] gone out again, spitting out a startled hiss in the middle of the already garbled song and is now gurgling contentedly, unable to parse a strong enough signal to replace what slipped out of range. That's fine; it was just background noise anyway, and now that you've lost it you can try to turn what little focus you possess to your new surroundings. The wilderness has fallen away again, though pushing with the slow surety of the glaciers you've read about in old books against the surviving concrete of the old world. It's just more plentiful here; even now there's buildings standing despite the hungry way the earth's green hands snake up to try and reclaim them to dust. (link: "Try to tune the radio again.")[(set: $stat_fidget to +1 and $fidget to false)(goto: "tunes")] (link: "Shut the whole thing off.")[(set: $stat_caution to +1 and $caution to true)(goto: "tunes")]

Welcome to the stats page !! Nice to have you here. Unfortunately, it was either this or finish writing the demo, and I decided to write. There will be stats and it'll all be very interesting and dynamic, but until then, this page is empty. (link: "Let me take you back to the game !!")[(goto: (history:)'s last)]

(set: $radiostations to (array: "There is sad music on the radio.", "There is exciting music on the radio.", "There is happy music on the radio", "There is angry music on the radio.", "There is interesting music playing on the radio.", "You can hear people on the radio.", "You can't hear anything on the radio.", "You hear home on the radio.")) []<radio|(click-replace: ?radio)[(set: $currentstation to (either: ...$radiostations))(display: "radio")] (if: $currentstation is "")[ ](else:)[$currentstation] []<radio|(replace: ?radio)[(display: "radio")]

(set: $stat_fidget to 0) (set: $stat_caution to 0) (set: $fidget to false) (set: $caution to false)

You keep your radio on your hip, fastened tightly to your belt with the sharper bits of plastic and metal you've improvised into a rough chassis and makeshift antenna kept well away from your skin with thickly wrapped fabric securing it. It's been your pet project for a long time, enough so that your (set: $family01 to "mother")<tw-link2 class='cyclingLink' data-cycling-texts='["mother", "father", "sister", "brother", "grandmother", "grandfather"]' onclick='clickCyclingLink(this, "$family01");'>$family01</tw-link2> has been scavenging parts for you well past the point where you actually needed them. (if: $caution is true)[It's better, you think, to not have the static on as you cautiously step out of the cover of the forest and into the wide open spaces pyrrhically maintained by the remains of what was once a modest city. You've never been this far from home, but based on the advice given to you about the wilderness beyond the farm, you know that not everything is as peaceful as it looks.](else:)[Compulsively, your heavily-gloved fingers stretch towards the dial; you're certain that it'd take far more finesse than what you're able to offer at the moment to actually find a different channel, but the movement of the knob is comforting and you were always told that the best thing one can do for themselves in the wilderness beyond the farm is to make sure that they're not on the brink of panic. This is how you accomplish that goal.] The road becomes broader at this point, although what you'd normally recognize to be directional markings— and thank god for the scavenged books at home giving you so much fundamentally useless knowledge about cities— have long since chipped and faded away with the canvas they were marked on. You carefully make your way over the broad, upturned islands of stone formed by thick and unforgiving roots creating jagged fissures in what you think might have once been smooth and flat, [[towards a cluster of buildings -> buildings]].

Cluster is a generous term; it's mostly one enormous, multi-storied building around which there's several smaller, scattered outposts that haven't been swallowed by the surrounding flora despite its best effort. You don't see any real signs of life, but that doesn't mean they aren't there: another story of survival from (if: $family01 is "mother")[(set: $family02 to "mom")<tw-link class='cyclingLink' data-cycling-texts='["mom", "mama", "ma", "mommy", "haha", "umma", "mami"]' onclick='clickCyclingLink(this, "$family02");'>$family02</tw-link>](elseif: $family01 is "father")[(set: $family02 to "dad")<tw-link class='cyclingLink' data-cycling-texts='["dad", "daddy", "pop", "papa", "baba", "appa", "papi"]' onclick='clickCyclingLink(this, "$family02");'>$family02</tw-link>](elseif: $family01 is "sister")[(set: $family02 to "Jun")<tw-link class='cyclingLink' data-cycling-texts='["Jun", "Hyerin", "Raenia", "Trinity", "Felicia", "Hana", "Puja"]' onclick='clickCyclingLink(this, "$family02");'>$family02</tw-link>](elseif: $family01 is "brother")[(set: $family02 to "Rana")<tw-link class='cyclingLink' data-cycling-texts='["Rana", "Goro", "Daniel", "Jihae", "Raheem", "Lian", "Jax"]' onclick='clickCyclingLink(this, "$family02");'>$family02</tw-link>](elseif: $family01 is "grandmother")[(set: $family02 to "grandma")<tw-link class='cyclingLink' data-cycling-texts='["grandma", "oma", "abuelita", "nana", "obachan", "halmoni", "ma ma", "dadi"]' onclick='clickCyclingLink(this, "$family02");'>$family02</tw-link>](elseif: $family01 is "grandfather")[(set: $family02 to "grandpa")<tw-link class='cyclingLink' data-cycling-texts='["grandpa", "opa", "abuelito", "papa", "ojichan", "halaboji", "ye ye", "dada"]' onclick='clickCyclingLink(this, "$family02");'>$family02</tw-link>], despite the fact that (if: $family01 is "mother" or "grandmother" or "sister")[she](else:)[he] never took you off the farm. You're familiar with basic survivalism of course. You know what plants are safe to eat, you know the basic of preservation and what plants are safest to sleep near (and which will act as a guardian for you if you ask nicely); you just didn't expect your first field trip to be forcibly fleeing from the farm to escape wild gangs completely alone with only what you already had packed. [[You just ran. -> trouble]]

You didn't see $family02. (upperfirst: $she) wasn't anywhere in the surrounding woods when you fled, and the (link: "radio")[radio] station the two of you created has been broadcasting nothing but early recording archives. That's all that you can hold on to right now: all of the files being transmitted over this frequency are on a device owned and maintained by $family02, so the scavengers that were violently combing the farm when you left haven't found it. That means $she might still have it on $her; $she could still be out there, in range of the transmitter. So why are you walking in the opposite direction? (link: "Because you're scared.")[(set: $motive to "fear")(goto: "reality")] (link: "Because you're angry.")[(set: $motive to "anger")(goto: "reality")] (link: "Because... you are.")[(set: $motive to "lost")(goto: "reality")]

(if: $motive is "fear")[There was something primally terrifying in a way you'd never experience before about the sight of the farm. You'd come in from the woods to see the field burned, and scavengers tearing in and out of the house to steal supplies and furniture and clothes and even sometimes the wood it was made out of. When you started running, you weren't thinking of anything at all besides how badly you wanted to not be there anymore. Now, you suppose you just need to find somewhere that you can stop, focus, and gather the courage to turn back.](elseif: $motive is "anger")[(upperfirst: $family02)'s always told you what a hothead you are, and when you got back to the farm from a routine local excursion and found people tearing through the ashes of your field digging for root vegetables, tearing down the planks your house was made of, hauling furniture and clothes out like it was their right? You had to stop and think. Nothing good would come of you bursting through the treeline to throw rocks at the mob of strangers, most likely gang affiliated, especially not knowing where $family02 was. So you turned and you put distance between yourself and the farm, and then more and then more and now you just need a place to stop and calm down.](elseif: $motive is "lost")[Your brain... shut off, when you saw the farm through the treeline. The field was burned and still smoking, and a mob of scavengers and gang-affiliated toughs were digging through your house. (upperfirst: $family02) built that house, and those people were pulling out furniture and clothes, supplies, hell you're pretty sure that they were tearing planks right off the walls. Something snapped and you started running, and running, and running... and now here you are. The only plan you can manage to cobble together in your jumbled brain is to find somewhere you can stop and... take stock.] Until then, your radio is on your hip and tuned to the station you built together. The signal quality fluctuates, but it's long range so you're not worried about [[losing it... yet -> forrealplease]].

And now you're here, among the half-digested buildings with your eye on the emptiness. Nothing is ever truly abandoned, whether it be populated with clever humans who've learned better than to make a fuss on ground that's still in the process of reclamation, or plants that are busy doing the reclaiming. You haven't met any such people on your journey thus far, or anyone really, but you aren't entirely sure if it's because you've done such a good job of staying low (unlikely, in your state) or for a much stranger reason. The people on the farm had looked... strange, and unlike you; maybe they stayed away out of fear? Maybe they burned your whole life to the ground because of fear. (upperfirst: $family02) had never indicated that there's a different sort of human wandering around, and of course you'd never thought to ask. Really you've never met another person besides $her, but you don't think your first response to finding a wholly unfamiliar person would be to burn their house down... and you don't think that if you knew this strange human was wandering around, that you would just [[not tell $family02 -> whispers]].

You're so wrapped up in this mess, (if: $scared is true)[this constant buzz of terror](elseif: $angry is true)[this feeling like your gut is a pot about to boil over](else:)[this faint disassociative hum], that for a moment you almost don't hear the voices. It sounds like two people having a very quiet argument, somewhere to your left. You stop abruptly, tilting your head to try and hear them better. You hear a loud, mechanical sounding pop, the likes of which aren't unfamiliar to you. It's the sound of dinner, the sad sound of something feral being put out of it's misery, the sound of distant people wandering a little too close for comfort to the farm: it's a gunshot. And then you realise you've fallen to one knee, and when you try to take a breath in it's like trying to breathe underwater. Your eyes drift dizzily to your leg, where you see a tear and blood that indicates the shot was at you. A warning? A near miss? (link: "Run, before you have to find out.")[(set: $reaction to "run")(goto: "escape")] (link: "This is all going so wrong...")[(set: $reaction to "panic")(goto: "escape")] (link: "Who the hell is shooting at you?")[(set: $reaction to "mad")(goto: "escape")]

(if: $reaction is "run")[You turn and try to lift yourself up on the leg that's trapped in a kneel; and to your horror, pain jolts up your thigh like a crack of lightning and out of balance, you plummet and hit the cement.](elseif: $reaction is "panic")[Your chest feels tight and you realise that your breathing had started to come in short, agonized gasps. Your panic quickly escalates into an attack and you freeze, your hands clenched in terror on the blood welling up on your thigh.](else:)[Your eyes scan the horizon but whoever felt the need to wing you is at least well hidden. You know that now too; you've been brushed by the bullet, drawing blood to the surface but ultimately not damaging you. You'll be fine given a couple hours, but for now you find it too hard to move.] "Mantis!" Your head snaps up and you catch sight of them: there's two blondes standing just far enough away from you that if not for your wounded leg, you'd be impressed with their accuracy despite the miss. One is tall and gangly, with his hair messily shorn closer to his skull than his shorter but broader companion. "What?" the short blonde asks with an unnerving indifference, lowering her handgun; she was the one that shot at you then. Her hair is visibly self-cut even from this distance, hanging unevenly just past her chin. "What do you mean what, [[you just shot them!" -> wondertwins]]

"Stop shouting!" she snaps, her eyes fluttering to you. "Look now they've seen us." The two of them, like the strangers on the farm, look strange and empty; manufactured and artificially released into the world. That isn't to say they don't look good; the tall one has kind eyes and his companion has a thrilling intensity to her face. You just... feel the need to make sure that your scarf is secure around your mouth. You don't have a house to burn down anymore, so the only thing you can protect is yourself. The tall one looks over at you, and you're not sure what to do when he starts walking over. "Crave, get back here," 'Mantis' insists, folding her arms over her chest in what seems more like annoyance than anxiety. You'd love to dissect her reaction, but the gangly one— Crave, you suppose— is coming towards you. (link: "Drag yourself away.")[(set: $reaction to "escape")(goto: "check")] (link: "Panic?")[(set: $reaction to "freak")(goto: "check")] (link: "Watch him.")[(set: $reaction to "watch")(goto: "check")]

(if: $reaction is "escape")[It hurts badly enough that you're pretty sure your jaw locks when you hit the ground. You use your elbows to inch yourself forward, along with the leverage from the knee on your uninjured leg, picking up a decent speed; unfortunately, your pursuer has two long, uninjured legs, so all your frantic wiggling is doing is encouraging him to speed up.](elseif: $reaction is "freak")[He's not running, but the look on his face is hard and determined; fear chokes you, paralyses your limbs, and all you can really do is be relieved that he can't see the hot tears welling up in your eyes beneath your goggles, and that your mouth, opened in a silent sob, is hidden beneath your scarf. You can't die now, like this; $family02 might still be out there looking for you.](elseif: $reaction is "watch")[There isn't much else to do besides watch him approach, sort of distantly interested in the determination in his eyes. His unimpressed companion, while she clearly doesn't think you're a threat, is still refusing to make her way over and keeping a wary eye on Crave as he approaches. You feel hyperaware of your own body; how you blink, how you swallow, how your fingers flexd around the wound. He'll catch up to your position soon. What then?] He pauses when he's a few feet from you, close enough for you to see the way his hands are bandaged and the thin red scars scattered up his arms as he raises them to indicate, you guess, that you shouldn't be afraid. "Hey mate, feelin' all right?" he asks gently, like you're in any shape to skitter away like a spooked deer. (if: $reaction is "escape")[You've already failed once, and aren't sure your dignity could take another hit like that.] (link: "\"Peachy.\"")[(set: $reaction to "laidback")(goto: "intro")] (link: "\"Not great, honestly.\"")[(set: $reaction to "gentle")(goto: "intro")] (link: "\"Stay away from me.\"")[(set: $reaction to "scrappy")(goto: "intro")]

(if: $reaction is "laidback")[He smiles and risks inching closer; you don't really mind. If he'd meant to end you, he'd probably be armed; his biceps aren't really impressive enough to make you think he'd prefer to looking into your eyes as he crushes you. He also looks sort of worried despite the flippant nature of your answer; or maybe because of it, since he did just watch his friend shoot you.](elseif: $reaction is "gentle")[He must sense something truly fragile in your mien, because he drops to his knees before slowly shuffling a little closer. It looks so absurd that you laugh, a little, a strange sound that jumps from your chest in a creaky, winded sort of way. Despite the sound, he smiles in response.](else:)[Your heart isn't deeply in your resistance, mostly because by the look in his eyes he knows just as well as you do that if he wanted to approach, he could. What would you do to stop him? Exacerbate your injuries more than you already have? He steps closer, as if to test his theory, and predictably you do nothing.] "Sorry, I gotta be close to patch you up, yeah?" He's still talking like you have the ability to run, which you think would be funny if you hadn't just been shot (which makes very little ultimately chuckle-worthy). "How bad did she getcha?" "Barely." It would seem Mantis has let go of her pride and decided to approach, walking sharply up to where Crave is but standing with far more rigidity than you think he could even manage. "Why does it matter? They look like one of Roach's." [[You don't know what that means. -> introagain]]

"Nah." That seems to be all Crave has to say on the subject, besides a furtive glance back at you, now having approached enough that he can hesitantly reach for your leg. You allow it; his field medicine isn't necessary, but you doubt he'll let you bolt without taking a look. "Go on, how bad is it?" "I'll live," you tell him, narrowing your eyes a little. You're not sure if you would say he looks a lot like his friend; rather, it almost seems like two similar looking people have gone out of their way to seem identical. They're both blonde, though his roots are dark, and her eyes are brown whereas his are blue. She's built far sturdier than he is, shorter and thicker all around; in comparison, he's almost spiderlike in stature. "I mean yeah, naturally, but don't let her scare ya. Show me where she got you." Slowly, and with visible hesitance, you peel your fingers from the wound where blood is [[already crusting -> crusting]].

"They're fine Crave, let's go," Mantis says with barely a look at her handiwork. Her eyes flicker to the buildings around you, crouched and huddled in the rapidly fading light. "Marsh'll be wondering where we've been." "Not fuckin' likely, if she heard the same shot as me," he says with a scowl. "Reckon she'll be here any second to give us both shit for firing at a civilian." A third voice suddenly curls out of the darkness, belonging to a tall, lean black woman with thick black box braids, who looks like she's been standing there the whole time. "Correct," she says with a wry smile, stepping out of her alcove and letting her eyes flicker towards you. "What have the two of you done now?" Mantis stays quiet, her jaw clenched and her eyes averted. Crave adopts a similar posture, though his is more openly repentent than hers. "Manny shot them," he reports, as if the woman couldn't put that together from context. "Thought they were one of Roach's bugs and tried to make them scurry off." [[Mantis scowls, but says nothing. -> bugs]]

"What's the damage?" the newcomer asks, and Crave turns expectantly towards you for an answer; you, however, are aware that it isn't that simple. You don't want to tip these people off to the fact that beneath your many layers obscuring your face and body, that you and them are not alike. All of them seem to think your wound should at least hurt, although it's faded to a prickle by now; maybe you should just... go with it. "I'm... it's..." You open your mouth before you're really sure about what's supposed to come out of it in this situation. "I don't want any trouble," you try, because it sounds polite up until it leaves your mouth, after which you sound a mix of terrified and suspicious. Mantis' face says as much, but the stranger (relatively speaking) puts her hand up with her eyes locked on you. "What's your name, scavver?" she asks, and boy is it a relief to be faced with a question that you can actually answer. [["It's Zed." -> Zed]]

(upperfirst: $family02) picked your name, $she said, to make it easier for you to venture off the farm if you so chose one day. Zed is the sort of monosyllabic, uninteresting buzz of a name that emables a person to use their real name without making it too easy to remember them afterwards. That's the key to living safely, $family02 had said sagely. Don't let anyone remember they saw you, and it can't occur to them to do you any harm. "Zed... I'm Marsh. You've met Mantis and her brother, Crave." She gestured to each of them in turn and you nod stiffly. "I'm the elected leader of our... outpost, let's call it, and you've stumbled a little too close for some people's comforts." She says so very evenly, but her eyes flicker to Mantis with a flat look that makes your shooter wince and turn away. (link: "\"I didn't mean to.\"")[(set: $reaction to "sorry")(goto: "soup")] (link: "\"If I'd known I'd end up here, I would have avoided it.\"")[(set: $reaction to "scorn")(goto: "soup")] (link: "\"Good to meet you.\"")[(set: $reaction to "chill")(goto: "soup")]

(if: $reaction is "chill")[That seems to throw her off script for a moment, but she recovers quickly enough that you see why she was chosen as leader. Blink and you would've missed her confusion. "And you," she offers, and you nod in response.](elseif: $reaction is "sorry")[She gives you a puzzled sort of look that lasts for all of a heartbeat, as if she hadn't expected you to say what you did; you... wish you understood these people better, as it's sort of nerve wracking that you can't predict how they'll react to you even with your hood on. "It's not your fault; we try to stay hidden," she says with a smile that tries to put you at ease.](else:)["Unfortunately things worked out this way instead," she says with what is still an apologetic smile despite the flash of annoyance in her eyes. You don't blame her: your injured self has determined to not be cooperative with anybody, least of all people who are at least outwardly on your side. Her diplomacy is astounding.] "Marsh, I think we oughta bring Zed here back to camp," Crave pipes up from his spot, crouched a little ways away from you now as he was briefly relieved of the pressure of his leader's gaze on him. "I haven't been able to look at the scrape and I think we owe them to dress it up a little." (link: "Oh no.")[(set: $reaction to "fear")(goto: "excuse")] (link: "Oh?")[(set: $reaction to "curious")(goto: "excuse")]

(if: $reaction is "fear")[You can't. You don't need their medical help and you need to... you need to... what? Find $family02? Go further into the wilderness, blindly searching for something that doesn't exist, some sort of big sign that points you to wherever $family02 is? Does it even matter that you don't know where you're going though? You've been shot by one of these people, is it unreasonable that you don't want to be around them?](else:)[You understand that you've been shot by these people so you shouldn't be so interested in seeing their settlement, but... you are. They're odd looking, like old sci-fi books where robots were built to look like humans. You have to see more of them. Maybe the three in front of you just evolved differently.] "I think that's a good idea," Marsh says, and you note that her eyes are fixed on your face; what she can see of it, anyway. That doesn't bode well for her motive for inviting you, which you can imagine: if a hooded stranger were to show up to your farm under circumstances this chaotic, maybe you'd be more comfortable if they stayed long enough to ascertain their intentions. That doesn't necessarily mean you think you should, regardless of how it might be your best option all [[purposeless wandering -> perm]] considered.

Crave grins without noting that you haven't said a word and straightens up, offering you his arm to lift you to your feet. Now, you're not sure if his offer to give you a check-up at their base was pretense or genuine, but you err on the side of caution: if it was a genuine offer, then he expects that you're more injured than you... maybe are. You accept the gesture, getting to your feet shakily and making sure to keep your weight off your 'injured' leg. "I'm really fine," you offer in spite of the way you're keeping yourself purposely off balance. "Hey don't worry, we'll tell everyone you took it like a champ. You want me to carry you?" he asks, quickly and lightly bonking his own head as if he should have thought to offer sooner. You suppose it's not unreasonable, considering. To your surprise, Mantis steps up. "Don't be silly, Crave. I shot them, I can help them walk." It's a... shocking suggestion, actually, especially considering that this is the only thing she's said directly to you the whole time. (link: "Accept Crave's offer.")[(set: $crave to true)(goto: "transistion")] (link: "Accept Mantis' offer.")[(set: $mantis to true)(goto: "transistion")] (link: "\"I'll... walk.\"")[(set: $walk to true)(goto: "transistion")]

(if: $crave is true)[You turn to the seemingly well-meaning Crave and nod your head shortly. It's your best cover; not being able to walk at all will at least make them think that you have no real means of resistance, which means their guard will drop. It sounds paranoid, but $family02 had always made it clear what you had to do if you were picked up by someone when $she wasn't around. Picked up by who? I've never even seen anyone else, you'd said skeptically after another lesson in wilderness survival that you didn't think was strictly necessary, what with the farm and all. But they're out there, $she'd replied gravely. With aplomb, Crave crouches down and it takes you a minute to realise he means to carry you on his back. "Go on; it's a little high up, sure, but less chance I'll drop you," he says with a boyish grin over his shoulder. Making sure to keep your weight to one side, you manage to hop forward just enough that you can hop on his back; and he stands with such fluidity that you yelp in surprise, having expected him to have a harder time lifting you. He only laughs in response, hurrying after Mantis and Marsh who've already begun to make their way towards the largest building in the lot.](elseif: $mantis is true)[She's gone and made you curious now; why would she offer, when just moments ago she'd been urging Crave to leave you in the street? You give her a short nod and she strides up, positioning herself (surprisingly short, up close) under your arm. You lean into her but not too much, starting to make your shaky way forward. Marsh and Crave have gone on ahead (reasonable, considering the speed at which you move to fake an injury) leaving you alone with the very person who shot you in the first place. She doesn't say anything, which sets your teeth on edge. At the very least you expected some sort of warning, but instead she just keeps glancing at you and then looking away when you turn to face her. It occurs to you that she's trying to see under your hood, checking for what you would assume was some sort of mark of significance. Her clear brown eyes are all but boring a hole into you. Keep your hood up and your scarf on around strangers, $family02 had cautioned. You never know what your face is gunna give away to someone looking. I've never even seen another person, stranger or not, you'd returned, young and weary of the constant vigilance. But they're out there, $she'd replied quietly.](elseif: $walk is true)[With your head held high and trying to ignore the curious looks they give you— unsure, you assume, as to whether you're being stubborn because they shot you and shouldn't expect any different, or if you're hiding something— you start to slowly limp forward. It's a difficult job, as you're not entirely sure how hammy you should be getting. Should you be in pain? Should you try to hide the wound, or bind it with something? Would that be rude, since they're bringing you to their settlement to get it looked at? Should you even care? Be cautious around strangers, $family02 had warned, after another long day of learning everything you needed to be entirely self-sufficient. It was where $family02 had ultimately failed; you can be without other people, but you're not sure you can be without $her. What strangers? I've never seen a person besides you, you'd asked wearily. You'd never seen anyone besides $her, and you were young and tired of lessons. They're out there, $she'd warned, even if you don't see them.] Apparently $family02 [[was right -> transistion2]].

The wilderness here isn't tame, but it seems to be manageable. The four of you are able to ultimately make it through to the largest building you've ever seen in your life, looking for all the world like it's many buildings all stacked on top of each other by a particularly meticulous child playing blocks. It's uniform and symmetric, and well kept considering most of its fellows are moss eaten and crumbling like dry dough. (if: $crave is true)[Crave keeps his hold on you well past the point where you would've assumed you could be set down; you don't see any other people, but you seem to be approaching the building from a particular entrance. Questions burn in your throat, about everything, but you're not naive enough to assume they'll be taken at face value. "Almost there, we just gotta show you to Trigger," Crave explains, shuffling carefully into the broad double doors held open by Marsh. Mantis, meanwhile, steps inside and quickly disappears down a hall.](elseif: $mantis is true)[Mantis' staring hasn't abated, even as you approach what you would say was a far more interesting landscape. The four of you seem to be headed for a particular entrance (there are many, from what you can see), but as much as you'd like to interrogate the choice, you don't think you're quite in the position to do so. "Once we're inside," Mantis says as the two of you approach the broad double doors still held open by Crave, "Marsh will want Trigger to look you over. Then you'll be sorry." And with that, she drops your arm and bolts away, deeper into the building where you're sure you can't follow her.](elseif: $walk is true)[Finally you seem to be getting somewhere, approaching what you would say was a particular entrance uniquely shielded from all the other doors that lead inside the giant building. Mantis seems impatient to get inside, while Crave keeps looking over his shoulder to make sure you're still there. With Marsh having dropped off behind you, you're not sure how necessary his concern is. "Once we're inside," the woman herself says, closer to your elbow than you thought she was, "Trigger will need to have a look at you." You step through the broad doors that Crave holds open for you, noting that Mantis has already disappeared deeper into the building.] [["Who's Trigger?" -> jinseo]]

Crave snorts at the question, which Marsh seems to have expected and takes with a quiet roll of her eyes. Oddly, neither of them seem particularly concerned that Mantis is gone. "He's head of security," she explains, which sounded more reasonable before Crave laughed. "He's a dick," he says cheerily, (if: $crave is true)[setting you gently on your feet](else:)[leaning casually against the wall]. "Don't worry too much, it's like tearing off a band-aid. It'll catch a little hair but it won't be the worst thing to ever happen to you." You frown and are about to respond, when a sudden cackle of static and feedback makes you jump with a suspicious amount of dexterity. "Hello there!" chirps a very friendly, static-laden voice from a speaker just above your heads. "I just set our captain down for a nap, but I can process you in his place! I'll be down in just a second." Marsh is suddenly smiling, despite the fact that the voice was clearly not who she expected. Apparently she isn't as strict as $family02, but to be fair she has more people to work with which surely requires more flexibility. It'd be an interesting thing to study, if [[you had the time -> time]].

(if: $reaction is "fear")[You're here because there wasn't any real way to back out. Your leg was better, but not good enough to outrun three people who were presumably all armed; and besides, you had nowhere to go and might have been experiencing some mild shock. You suppose, therefore, your goal should be to leave as soon as possible.](elseif: $reaction is "curious")[You're here because there wasn't any reason not to be. Sure, you might have to be a little extra careful, but you get to look at these strange people up close and maybe get a sense for how they're different from you and $family02. Maybe knowing in advance will just head off any misunderstandings later on. You guess then that your goal is to watch and to wait.] Wherever the intercom-stranger was broadcasting from couldn't have been far, because before you can really decide how you're going to ask Marsh what's put her in such a good mood, the doors swing open. Standing there with a grin on his face that matches hers, is a man whose black hair is so charmingly ruffled, whose jumpsuit is unzipped and tied so casually, whose demeanour is so open and friendly, that you think you might like him already. "A new recruit?" he asks, his eyes falling on you. "Manny shot them in the leg as they were out walking, so we're gunna have a look at the wound," Crave explains, while Marsh brings herself to your side. The stranger's face takes on a sort of faux-solemnity as he gives you a grim nod. "It's a good thing I came, then. Seongho would only prick himself on the stitches and get mad at you for needing them." And the bright grin is immediately back at his joke and he makes his way [[over to you -> sittches]].

First he turns to Marsh, the both of them still grinning at each other with a sudden air of coyness. "Welcome back, fearless leader," he says, nudging her lightly. She laughs, low and quiet. "It's good to see you, Jinseo. This is Zed." She puts her hand on your shoulder and you fight the urge to stiffen up; this is it. This is medical examination that you have to get out of, and to make matters worse it's not even Crave. All your plans had been centred around trying to get a slightly known element off your scent, but this is a stranger you're even less familiar with. "Good to meet you. If you'll follow me, I can have a look at your wound," he says, gesturing you forward. You stand very still and he gives you a friendly look over his shoulder. "Oh, don't worry. If you made it all the way here without fainting then we probably won't have to put you down." [["I'm really fi—" -> seongho]]

The doors slam open with such a bang that you jump again, reaching out instinctively for Marsh; realising very quickly that she's not $family02 and probably thinks it's strange for you to touch her, you back off and a little ways behind her. In the doorway is a man who looks like someone dragged Jinseo behind a horse for several miles before cutting him loose. His hair is longer and tied back with the sole intention of getting it out of his face with no regards to tidiness, and he's let his facial hair grow out in a way that you can't picture on Jinseo despite their identical faces. His clothes are thin and layered and when his eyes meet yours, he scowls. "Go to bed, Seongho. I'll wake you up if anything happens, Seongho. And yet here you are, trying to process a stranger without telling me," he says in a tone that isn't quite as openly snappish as Mantis, but with the same brooding resentment. "That's not true," Jinseo protests, his mouth already flickering into a smile. "I wasn't going to process them at all." [["That isn't better." -> intro2]]

Crave, who'd also jumped when the doors flew open, reasserts himself into the fray. "We found Zed here out in the wilderness, and Mantis shot them. They're being treated for wounds." "What were they doing in the wilderness?" he asks, not looking at you, the only person with the answer to that question. "Maybe you should ask them, Trigger," Marsh advises, not smiling like Jinseo still is but only watching. So this is Trigger; a battered looking man who staunchly refuses to [[look at you -> enddemo]].

<h1>Hi there!</h1> This is the end of the intro !! Sorry if a character you wanted to see isn't featured as much, but I'd been planning this concept release for my birthday and didn't give myself enough time between working on Valerian's next chapter. As such, this isn't truly indicative of what the final product is going to look like: this is just the standard introduction for the characters, a first-impressions sort of thing, and a glimpse into what you've got to look forward to with Zed. You'll notice some things (like the radio, which normally when clicked makes noise and this time did nothing, and a large amount of choices in dialogue) kind of fell to the wayside around the middle: that's about when I started writing this with a release date in mind, a couple days ago OTL. I hope you liked it, still, and are willing enough to wait a little while to see more: three games at once is a bit much for me ;;