Gun Mute
by C.E.J. Pacian (2008)
Genres: Western

Step into the shoes of Mute Lawton, a lone cowboy who must stop an execution set to occur at noon by shooting his way past dangerous cyborgs and mutants in a post-apocalyptic western setting. An Interactive Fiction shoot-em-up. Each location presents you with a simple puzzle which you must solve before you can progress to the next location and, in contrast to the Inform parser's famous default response, violence usually is the answer.

action: %
response: The desert sand squirms beneath your feet, alive with mutant nanomachines. Sheriff Clayton has Elias. He's hanging him at noon.

It looks like you're going to have to shoot some people.

An IF shoot-em-up by C.E.J. Pacian

[Type 'About' if this is your first time playing.
Type 'Credits' to learn who's responsible for this drivel.]

Rolling dunes stretch in every direction, ending in a distant horizon broken only by a few low, jagged mountains. A small pile of sticks burns here, sending a thin trail of black smoke into the ruddy dawn sky.

A pot of some strange green fluid sits bubbling on the fire.

The plainswoman sits meditatively by the fire, her spear resting across her lap.
action: About you
response: You're Mute Lawton. A devilishly handsome cowboy with windswept black hair and roguish stubble. Lean and tall, your tanned body is taut with cool, calculated strength.

You're topless and barefoot, wearing nothing but a pair of dust-caked black jeans and your holster.

Far in the distance, you can just make out something uttering a low, metallic howl.
action: You check your inventory
response: You are carrying nothing, and are wearing a pair of dusty black jeans and a gun belt (which contains a six shooter and numerous bullets).

The plainswoman leans forward to sniff the concoction brewing on the fire. She sits back again shortly after, apparently unsatisfied.
action: You look at the plainswoman
response: A woman with straight black hair and a stony stare. Her long, slender limbs are coiled with ropy muscle. Otherwise completely naked, her body is caked in a layer of sun-hardened mud.

The plainswoman is carrying a spear.

The wind picks up briefly, cooling your skin.
action: You look at the plainswoman
response: A woman with straight black hair and a stony stare. Her long, slender limbs are coiled with ropy muscle. Otherwise completely naked, her body is caked in a layer of sun-hardened mud.

The plainswoman is carrying a spear.

The plainswoman leans forward once more to sniff the strange liquid. This time she smiles and gestures to the pot.

"Drink," she tells you.
action: You look at the pot
response: The small, battered metal pot contains a thick green fluid that bubbles in an eerily slow fashion.
action: Smell liquid
response: You've got out of the habit of smelling random things. You're often unpleasantly surprised.
action: You look at the speak
response: The word "speak" is not necessary in this story.

(If this was an accidental misspelling, you can correct it by typing OOPS followed by the corrected word now. Any time the story points out an unknown word, you can correct a misspelling using OOPS as your next command.)
action: You examine the spear
response: Pointy sticks have come along way of late. This particular example has a lightweight polycarbonate shaft and a tip that glimmers with an incandescent plasma fire. You townsfolk have little time for the old ways of science though, and you'd happily take your reliable six shooter over something that probably has an arrogant computerised mind of its own.
action: Look around
response: Rolling dunes stretch in every direction, ending in a distant horizon broken only by a few low, jagged mountains. A small pile of sticks burns here, sending a thin trail of black smoke into the ruddy dawn sky.

A pot of some strange green fluid sits bubbling on the fire.

The plainswoman sits meditatively by the fire, her spear resting across her lap.
action: You ask the woman about the fluid
response: There's a reason they call you Mute Lawton.
action: Point to spear
response: You point at the spear.

"A fine weapon," the plainswoman says, "far superior to your crude firearm."

Something grey and amorphous squirms up between your toes. You step to the side.
action: Point to pot
response: You point at the pot of strange green fluid.

The plainswoman adopts a serious expression. "It is the highest aspiration to see one's consciousness join the Atmospheric Network, and the greatest magnanimity that they deign to help those of us still in physical form."

You squint as a cloud of airborne dust passes by.
action: Drink
response: (the pot of strange green fluid)
You bring the pot to your lips and gulp down the bubbling green liquid. It smells foul, and it's burning hot. The roof of your mouth tingles unpleasantly as you set the pot back down on the fire.

The plainswoman studies you carefully as you grimace, the tingling in the roof of your mouth seeming to spread upwards, into your brain, dancing psychedelically before your eyes. And then arcane symbols rise through the white noise oppressing your mind: ++GPS UPLINK VERIFIED++TEMPORARY THERMOBOT NETWORK++SEARCHING FOR USER...++USER LOCATED++CREATING INSTINCTUAL IMPRINT++CLOSING CONNECTION++THANK YOU FOR USING GPSNET++

The vision fades. Gradually you become aware of your surroundings again, the plainswoman watching you with mild concern.

"You find the one you fear for?" she asks.

You nod. Yes, you know where he is now. The way ahead is now obvious.

(If you'd prefer not to be notified about score changes in the future, type NOTIFY OFF.)
action: Inventory
response: You are carrying nothing, and are wearing a pair of dusty black jeans and a gun belt (which contains a six shooter and numerous bullets).

Something slick and black scuttles past on several asymmetrical legs, before disappearing beneath a rock.
action: F.
response: From the peak of this rocky hill you can see the town you once called home sprawl out over the landscape ahead. Ramshackle iron and wood buildings are almost piled on top of one another, clustering around the shattered concrete dome of the old reactor.
action: You look at reactor
response: A cathedral-like dome of grey concrete, pocked with gaping holes and coated in sickly weeds.
action: You look at the buildings
response: From abject poverty to dehydrated affluence: the town's rooftops are
action: You examine the town
response: decorated with an eclectic array of vents, steam pipes, satellite dishes and good old-fashioned rust-eaten holes.

From abject poverty to dehydrated affluence: the town's rooftops are decorated with an eclectic array of vents, steam pipes, satellite dishes and good old-fashioned rust-eaten holes.
action: F.
response: You're at the entrance to a street of low wooden buildings and corrugated iron shacks. A small corral encircles part of the dusty ground here, home to a single broken robot and a trough of stagnant water.

Vicious Sue faces you with one hand on her six shooter, smirking.

Claw-Hand Hank stands by the water trough, legs apart, his one good hand ready to draw.

"Well, well, well," Sue says, looking you over. "Look who it ain't. Sheriff said you'd be through here. But me, I didn't think you were quite so stupid."

Hank spits out a wad of tobacco and chuckles, fingering the buckle of his gun belt with his good hand.
action: You look at the robot
response: Once some sort of multi-legged farming machine, it now disintegrates into the ground, rubber hoses and shattered circuit boards visible through its corroded sides.

Hank bares his half-rotten teeth in a leering smile.
action: You take the cover
response: There's no cover here.

Hank's good hand twitches slightly.
action: You examine sue
response: A hawkish woman in jeans and a close-fitting jacket. Her vulturine eyes peer out from beneath the rim of her stetson, flitting between your face and your hands.

Hank touches his fingertip to the handle of his gun, then draws it back again uncertainly.
action: You look at the trough
response: A shallow metal container, stained with mould and filled with putrid green water.

Sue catches your eye and smiles evilly.
action: You look at the robot
response: Once some sort of multi-legged farming machine, it now disintegrates into the ground, rubber hoses and shattered circuit boards visible through its corroded sides.

Hank unconsciously squints his left eye as he stares at you.
action: You draw
response: You whip your gun out of its holster in a single fluid motion.

Vicious Sue and Claw-Hand Hank go for their guns. Sue has drawn her six shooter in a flash, but Hank fumbles with his holster.
action: You shoot sue
response: You fire at Vicious Sue, hitting her square in the stomach. She freezes for a moment, as if unsure what's happened, and then falls to the ground.

Hank finally manages to draw his gun. He takes careful aim at you, squinting his left eye.
action: Shoot hank
response: You shoot Claw-Hand Hank in the face. His head jerks back with a puff of splintered teeth and he collapses into the water trough.
action: Reload
response: (your six shooter)
You quickly empty the spent casings from your six shooter and replace them with live bullets.
action: Holster
response: (your six shooter)
You slip your six shooter back into its holster.
action: Kiss sue
response: You'd sooner kiss a vampire spider-snake.
action: You find the dark tower
response: What do you want to look that up in?
action: F.
response: This narrow, dusty street ends in a slat-fronted building bearing the name Rowdy Juanita's Saloon. A broken-down tractor rests here, its dismantled engine spilling out onto the ground.

Deputy Gene stands in front of the saloon, brandishing a double-barrelled shotgun.

"If you're planning on rescuing Elias," Gene snarls, "you're gonna have to shoot your way through the whole damn town. I'd turn back now if you don't want to end up sleeping in a pine box with a tombstone pillow!"

Gene takes careful aim at you with his shotgun, about to fire...
action: You take the cover
response: You can't have that; it's part of the broken-down tractor.

With a powerful report, Gene fires. The buckshot blast catches you square in the chest. The last thing you see is the pink mist that was your lungs only an instant earlier.
action: You hide
response: (behind the broken-down tractor)
Okay, you're now taking cover behind the broken-down tractor.

With a powerful report, Gene fires, buckshot striking the side of the tractor.

"You ain't gettin' no further than this!" the deputy screams.
action: You draw
response: You whip your gun out of its holster in a single fluid motion.

With a powerful report, Gene fires, buckshot striking the side of the tractor.

"Fight like a man!" Gene shouts. "And stand the fuck still!"
action: Shoot gene
response: You can't get a good shot while you're taking cover.

Gene breaks open the shotgun. Two smoking cartridge cases are ejected from the breach.
action: You stand
response: Okay, you're now standing.

Gene slots two new shells into his shotgun and closes the breech. He takes careful aim at you once more.
action: Shoot gene
response: You and Gene both fire at the same time. And your bodies hit the dirt within a few seconds of one another.
action: You draw
response: You whip your gun out of its holster in a single fluid motion.

With a powerful report, Gene fires, buckshot striking the side of the tractor.

"Come out with your hands up!" Gene yells. "So I can shoot you!"
action: You wait
response: Time passes...

Gene breaks open the shotgun. Two smoking cartridge cases are ejected from the breach.
action: You wait
response: Time passes...

Gene slots two new shells into his shotgun and closes the breech. He takes careful aim at you once more.
action: You wait
response: Time passes...

With a powerful report, Gene fires, buckshot striking the side of the tractor.

Gene growls with frustration. "Get out from behind there, Mute! I gotta deal out some double-barrel justice!"
action: You wait for a while
response: Time passes...

With a powerful report, Gene fires, buckshot striking the side of the tractor.

"Fight like a man!" Gene shouts. "And stand the fuck still!"
action: You stand
response: Okay, you're now standing.

Gene breaks open the shotgun. Two smoking cartridge cases are ejected from the breach.
action: You look at the shotgun
response: A standard-issue WPSF side-by-side double-barrelled shotgun.
action: You take the shotgun
response: You prefer to have six rounds to play with.
action: Reload
response: (your six shooter)
You quickly empty the spent casings from your six shooter and replace them with live bullets.
action: Forward
response: Rowdy Juanita's Saloon is a homely place, and mostly clean. A shady refuge from the wasteland sun, a shaft of harsh light shines in through the doorway, enveloping countless dancing motes of dust in its glare. A multitude of round tables are dotted around the carefully polished bar, and sturdy wooden beams criss-cross the high ceiling.

Rowdy Juanita stands behind the bar, a six shooter in each of her upper set of hands, a third being reloaded by her lower arms.

"Hi Mute," Juanita says cheerfully. "Watch out! The sheriff reprogrammed me to shoot you on sight!"

And with that she starts firing wildly with both guns, wood splintering and glass shattering around the bar.

"It's a good thing I can't shoot worth a damn," Juanita says. "You should be safe as long as you don't get too close to me."
action: You draw
response: You whip your gun out of its holster in a single fluid motion.

"I'm really sorry about this," Juanita says. "Believe me, the last thing I want to do is to shoot up my own bar."
action: You shoot juanita
response: You don't want to shoot Juanita. She's always been nice to you, and it's not her fault if she's been reprogrammed to blow your brains out.

You flinch as a bullet whips past your head. "Sorry!" Juanita calls out, apologetically.
action: Look around
response: Rowdy Juanita's Saloon is a homely place, and mostly clean. A shady refuge from the wasteland sun, a shaft of harsh light shines in through the doorway, enveloping countless dancing motes of dust in its glare. A multitude of round tables are dotted around the carefully polished bar, and sturdy wooden beams criss-cross the high ceiling.

The floor is littered with splinters of wood and broken glass.

Rowdy Juanita stands behind the bar, a six shooter in each of her upper set of hands, a third being reloaded by her lower arms.

A whisky bottle on a nearby table explodes as a bullet hits it. "Damn it," Juanita grumbles.
action: You examine the beams
response: The ceiling is criss-crossed with thick wooden beams. Suspended among the beams you see a chandelier.

A bullet strikes the leg of a table, causing it to collapse explosively. Juanita sighs. "Fixing all this is gonna cost me."
action: You shoot the chandelier
response: You take careful aim at the rope anchoring the chandelier to the ceiling, and fire. For a second it seems to hang suspended in thin air. And then it drops down on Juanita with a terrifying crash. You race over to her, worried that you've done her permanent damage.

Pinned beneath the chandelier, her weapons scattered across the bar, Juanita looks up at you and offers a vinyl-lipped smile. "Nice work, Mute. Now get moving and stop that execution!"
action: Kiss juanita
response: You kiss Juanita affectionately on the cheek. She sighs. "You always treated me right, Mute. I never could figure out why you seemed so immune to my charms."
action: F.
response: You're on a simple wooden platform next to the train tracks that run through the town. Standing on thick tripod legs, a water tower casts its shadow over you, ready to supply coolant to nuclear-powered locomotives. The only train in sight, however, is a single open railroad car, a gyro-controlled, multi-barrelled turret anchored to it with fat iron bolts.

Gatling Gun Fiona sits at the controls of the turret, staring at you with fierce, emerald green eyes.

"I been waiting for you!" Fiona says, shouting over the whine of the turret's motors. "I'm gonna make you into Swiss Cheese!"
action: Shoot tower
response: It doesn't look like that would achieve much.

With the earth-shuddering sound of screaming servos, the turret turns to aim its fat bundle of barrels directly at you. Slowly but surely, the barrels begin to spin.

"You just stand right there," Fiona tells you.
action: B.
response: Fiona has all your potential exits covered with her monstrous turrets.

With the earth-shuddering sound of screaming servos, the turret turns to aim its fat bundle of barrels directly at you. Slowly but surely, the barrels begin to spin.

"You just stand right there," Fiona tells you.
action: You shoot fiona
response: You aim carefully at Fiona and squeeze the trigger. The perspex shield protecting her deflects the bullet without even a scratch to show for it.

"Hey," Fiona yells, "you should learn when to just roll over and die!"

With the earth-shuddering sound of screaming servos, the turret turns to aim its fat bundle of barrels directly at you. Slowly but surely, the barrels begin to spin.

"You just stand right there," Fiona tells you.
action: You climb tower
response: There's no way up the water tower, and you'd be completely exposed up there anyway.

With a sound like thunder splitting a mountain in two, Fiona's huge turret explodes into action. The fast moving, high calibre bullets distintegrate you so fast you don't even notice it happening.
action: F.
response: You're on a simple wooden platform next to the train tracks that run through the town. Standing on thick tripod legs, a water tower casts its shadow over you, ready to supply coolant to nuclear-powered locomotives. The only train in sight, however, is a single open railroad car, a gyro-controlled, multi-barrelled turret anchored to it with fat iron bolts.

Gatling Gun Fiona sits at the controls of the turret, staring at you with fierce, emerald green eyes.

"I been waiting for you!" Fiona says, shouting over the whine of the turret's motors. "I'm gonna make you into Swiss Cheese!"
action: You hide
response: (behind the water tower's legs)
Okay, you're now taking cover behind the water tower's legs.

With the earth-shuddering sound of screaming servos, the turret turns to aim its fat bundle of barrels directly at you. Slowly but surely, the barrels begin to spin.

Fiona peers at you around the water tower. "Come out, come out, wherever you are..." she coos.
action: You shoot the car
response: You can't get a good shot while you're taking cover.

With a sound like thunder splitting a mountain in two, Fiona's huge turret explodes into action. Bullets strike the water tower's legs with frightening power, but the sturdy metal seems to withstand the onslaught.
action: You wait
response: Time passes...

The entire train station flickers with the muzzle flash from the turret - a glare brighter than the wasteland sun.
action: You wait
response: Time passes...

You notice that Fiona seems to be uttering a constant stream of inaudible expletives as she douses the water tower with ammunition.
action: You wait awhile
response: Time passes...

With the shriek of metal on metal, the spinning barrels suddenly come to a juddering halt.

"Gods damn it!" Fiona screams. She looks down at the stationary barrels, which are glowing dull red and emitting noxious black smoke. "Hang on a moment," she tells you, almost apologetically, "I'll get back to killing you in a jiffy..."

Fiona looks down at the turret's control panel and begins pressing buttons.
action: You look at the control panel
response: It's difficult to see from this angle, but you're sure it has all sorts of neat buttons.

The large chemical tank behind Fiona begins to tremble and groan. She takes hold of the controls again and grins.

With a tremendous hiss of steam, the hoses emerging from the tank douse the barrels in some sort of liquid. When the steam has cleared, the barrels are no longer glowing.
action: Shoot tank
response: You can't get a good shot while you're taking cover.

"Back in business!" Fiona growls, as the barrels begin to spin back up to speed.
action: You stand
response: Okay, you're now standing.

The large chemical tank behind Fiona begins to tremble and groan. She takes hold of the controls again and grins.

With a tremendous hiss of steam, the hoses emerging from the tank douse the barrels in some sort of liquid. When the steam has cleared, the barrels are no longer glowing.
action: Shoot tank
response: You fire off a shot at the chemical tank. The bullet richochets off of it harmlessly.

"Back in business!" Fiona growls, as the barrels begin to spin back up to speed.
action: You shoot the gyro
response: Your bullet bounces harmlessly off the turret's thick metal hide.

"Back in business!" Fiona growls, as the barrels begin to spin back up to speed.
action: You hide in the car
response: You can't take cover behind that.

"Back in business!" Fiona growls, as the barrels begin to spin back up to speed.
action: You hide
response: (behind the water tower's legs)
Okay, you're now taking cover behind the water tower's legs.

With a sound like thunder splitting a mountain in two, Fiona's huge turret explodes into action. Bullets strike the water tower's legs with frightening power, but the sturdy metal seems to withstand the onslaught.
action: You examine the platform
response: Better than standing on dirt as wait for a train. Must make it easier to board as well.

Fiona clings to the controls as the turret judders with the recoil of its own insane firepower.
action: You examine the platform
response: Better than standing on dirt as wait for a train. Must make it easier to board as well.

Bullets whip either side of you in a terrifying stream of sparks, ricocheting off of the water tower and kicking up a thick cloud of dust.
action: You examine the car
response: A flat bed of metal on wheels, sitting on the train tracks. It would have to be towed by a locomotive to actually get anywhere.

The railroad car is currently home to a gyro-controlled, multi-barrelled turret.

With the shriek of metal on metal, the spinning barrels suddenly come to a juddering halt.

"Gods damn it!" Fiona screams. She looks down at the stationary barrels, which are glowing dull red and emitting noxious black smoke. "Hang on a moment," she tells you, almost apologetically, "I'll get back to killing you in a jiffy..."

Fiona looks down at the turret's control panel and begins pressing buttons.
action: Examine tank
response: A fat metal cylinder is mounted on the train carriage behind the turret. A number of colourful warning signs are plastered to its sides.

The large chemical tank behind Fiona begins to tremble and groan. She takes hold of the controls again and grins.

With a tremendous hiss of steam, the hoses emerging from the tank douse the barrels in some sort of liquid. When the steam has cleared, the barrels are no longer glowing.
action: You read the signs
response: "Warning! Extremely cold! Handle with care! Danger of severe injury!"

"Back in business!" Fiona growls, as the barrels begin to spin back up to speed.
action: You examine the hoses
response: Thick, rubbery hoses, covered in a pale frost. They're connected to a valve on the cylinder and disappear somewhere under the turret.

With a sound like thunder splitting a mountain in two, Fiona's huge turret explodes into action. Bullets strike the water tower's legs with frightening power, but the sturdy metal seems to withstand the onslaught.
action: Wait
response: Time passes...

The barrels of the turret are a blur as they spit hundreds of rounds of high calibre ammunition at you.
action: You look at the tower
response: It's difficult to get a sense of what it looks like from up so close. You just get an impression of something large and metal blotting out a big chunk of the sky.

The water tower's thick legs look like they could offer good cover from the turret.

You can feel the staggering noise of the turret firing as it seems to rattle the whole desert.
action: You wait awhile
response: Time passes...

With the shriek of metal on metal, the spinning barrels suddenly come to a juddering halt.

"Gods damn it!" Fiona screams. She looks down at the stationary barrels, which are glowing dull red and emitting noxious black smoke. "Hang on a moment," she tells you, almost apologetically, "I'll get back to killing you in a jiffy..."

Fiona looks down at the turret's control panel and begins pressing buttons.
action: You stand
response: Okay, you're now standing.

The large chemical tank behind Fiona begins to tremble and groan. She takes hold of the controls again and grins.

With a tremendous hiss of steam, the hoses emerging from the tank douse the barrels in some sort of liquid. When the steam has cleared, the barrels are no longer glowing.
action: You shoot the hose
response: The bullet passes easily through one of the hoses, throwing up a little puff of snow.

"Back in business!" Fiona growls, as the barrels begin to spin back up to speed.
action: You hide
response: (behind the water tower's legs)
Okay, you're now taking cover behind the water tower's legs.

With a sound like thunder splitting a mountain in two, Fiona's huge turret explodes into action. Bullets strike the water tower's legs with frightening power, but the sturdy metal seems to withstand the onslaught.
action: You look at the hose
response: Thick, rubbery hoses, covered in a pale frost. They're connected to a valve on the cylinder and disappear somewhere under the turret. A little spray of something seems to be emerging from the hoses.

The barrels of the turret are a blur as they spit hundreds of rounds of high calibre ammunition at you.
action: Wait
response: Time passes...

You can feel the staggering noise of the turret firing as it seems to rattle the whole desert.
action: You stand
response: Okay, you're now standing.

The large chemical tank behind Fiona begins to tremble and groan. She takes hold of the controls again and grins.

And then the tank starts spurting a huge stream of coolant out of its side, up into the air and very far from the red hot gun barrels.
Fiona spins round to watch this with wide-eyes, and then turns back to face you with a terrified, placating smile. "Let's talk about this like reasonable human beings," she says, standing up from the turret's control seat and holding up her empty hands.

And then she jumps off of the turret, hitting the ground running. She's disappeared before you're even sure how to react.
action: Reload
response: (your six shooter)
You quickly empty the spent casings from your six shooter and replace them with live bullets.
action: F.
response: Between cold stone walls, orderly rows of wooden pews face the pulpit ahead. Vengeful angels peer down on the absent congregation from lofty stained-glass windows.

Reverend Gun-Arm Joe stands in the pulpit.

"We thought we'd never see you again, child," the reverend says. His voice is quiet, but it echoes profoundly through the expanse of the church. "Let us speak as equals. Allow me to show you the path to happiness through peace. Please, my son, put away your weapon."
action: Holster
response: (your six shooter)
You slip your six shooter back into its holster.

"Now," Reverend Joe says, "allow me to show you the true peace delivered by the Hand of Wrathzor..."

He holds his right arm out to the side as something inside it seems to whir and click. In a single smooth, mechanical motion, the preacher's arm splits in two, divulging a sleek, nickel-plated machinegun. He aims his arm at you, bracing himself against the pulpit. "May Wrathzor have mercy on your soul," he intones, solemnly.
action: You hide
response: (behind the pews)
Okay, you're now taking cover behind the pews.

Reverend Joe's machinegun arm spits out gunfire to a deafening staccato rhythm that rattles harshly against the stone walls. Bullets rip through the pews, cracking and splintering the wood. You throw your arms over your head defensively.

"There is no point hiding, my son," the reverend booms, "for it is Wrathzor's judgement that you die, and you cannot hide from Him."
action: You draw
response: You whip your gun out of its holster in a single fluid motion.

The powerful recoil of the reverend's gun arm sends his aim climbing too high. For a moment, he totters on his feet, blasting chunks of stone out of the ceiling.
action: You stand
response: Okay, you're now standing.

The reverend stops firing for a moment to regain his footing.
action: You shoot reverend
response: You aim at Reverend Joe. He ducks behind the pulpit at the last moment, and your shot goes wide.

Reverend Joe steadies himself against the pulpit and aims at you with his machinegun arm.
action: You shoot reverend
response: You aim at Reverend Joe. He ducks behind the pulpit at the last moment, and your shot goes wide.

Reverend Joe's machinegun arm spits out gunfire to a deafening staccato rhythm that rattles harshly against the stone walls. Bullets whack into you, passing through your body and leaving you gasping for breath in a pool of blood on the floor.

Reverend Joe leaves the pulpit to stand over your broken form. "Allow me to complete your journey to the Almighty," he says, aiming his gun-arm at your head.
action: Duck
response: (behind the pews)
Okay, you're now taking cover behind the pews.

Reverend Joe's machinegun arm spits out gunfire to a deafening staccato rhythm that rattles harshly against the stone walls. Bullets rip through the pews, cracking and splintering the wood. You throw your arms over your head defensively.

"You can find peace only through acceptance," the reverend intones. "Show yourself and receive your judgement."
action: You examine the ceiling
response: You see nothing unusual about it.

The powerful recoil of the reverend's gun arm sends his aim climbing too high. For a moment, he totters on his feet, blasting chunks of stone out of the ceiling.
action: You examine the window
response: The stained-glass windows depict warrior angels brandishing swords and cutting down swathes of wretched unbelievers. Their eyes seem to follow you around the room.

The reverend stops firing for a moment to regain his footing.
action: You look at the ceiling
response: You see nothing unusual about it.

Reverend Joe steadies himself against the pulpit and aims at you with his machinegun arm.
action: You examine the pulpit
response: A raised wooden platform from which a man of Wrathzor can preach his message of fear and judgement.

Reverend Joe's machinegun arm spits out gunfire to a deafening staccato rhythm that rattles harshly against the stone walls. Bullets rip through the pews, cracking and splintering the wood. You throw your arms over your head defensively.

"Wood is but a thin veil for the hand of Wrathzor to part," the reverend booms.
action: You wait awhile
response: Time passes...

The powerful recoil of the reverend's gun arm sends his aim climbing too high. For a moment, he totters on his feet, blasting chunks of stone out of the ceiling.
action: You stand
response: Okay, you're now standing.

The reverend stops firing for a moment to regain his footing.
action: You shoot the glass
response: You blast one of the stained-glass windows with your six shooter. It shatters spectacularly, multi-coloured shards of glass raining down on the pulpit.

Joe screams as the glass cuts into him, ducking behind the pulpit. After the tinkling of glass on stone has ceased, he does not re-emerge.
action: You look at Joe
response: A pale form slumped in the pulpit among creased, blood-soaked robes. His right arm seems to consist of a hollow plastic shell that has split in two to reveal a shiny, high-calibre machinegun.
action: You look at the window
response: The stained-glass windows depict warrior angels brandishing swords and cutting down swathes of wretched unbelievers. Their eyes seem to follow you around the room. One of the windows has been shattered, perhaps explaining the angels' angry demeanour.
action: F.
response: Chipped and crumbling headstones here sprout from the desiccated wasteland soil, their names obscured by weathering and dust.

Metal-Skin Mickey stands among the graves, a six shooter clasped in his robotic hand.

"TARGET IDENTIFIED," Mickey exclaims. "ENGAGING!"
action: You shoot Mickey
response: You blast Mickey with your six shooter. The bullet bounces harmlessly off of his thick metal skin.

Mickey aims his single eye at you, a narrow thread of laser light projecting from it onto your forehead.

"LOCK-ON ACQUIRED," Mickey states. "PREPARING TO FIRE..."
action: You hide
response: (behind the tombstones)
Okay, you're now taking cover behind the tombstones.

A thin beam of laser light from Mickey's eye sweeps back and forth over the top of the headstones, seeking you out.
action: You examine Mickey
response: A cylindrical war-bot, dressed in chipped and peeling desert camouflage paint. His face is featureless except for a single round, glassy eye.

A thin beam of laser light from Mickey's eye sweeps back and forth over the top of the headstones, seeking you out.
action: You shoot eye
response: You can't get a good shot while you're taking cover.

A thin beam of laser light from Mickey's eye sweeps back and forth over the top of the headstones, seeking you out.
action: You read the headstones
response: Jagged, worn, broken, crumbling, in some cases even completely collapsed. The tombstones are all made of stone, however, and might be sturdy enough to afford you some cover.

You are taking cover behind the tombstones.

A thin beam of laser light from Mickey's eye sweeps back and forth over the top of the headstones, seeking you out.
action: Forward
response: Chipped and crumbling headstones here sprout from the desiccated wasteland soil, their names obscured by weathering and dust.

Metal-Skin Mickey stands among the graves, a six shooter clasped in his robotic hand.

"TARGET IDENTIFIED," Mickey exclaims. "ENGAGING!"
action: Reload
response: (your six shooter)
You quickly empty the spent casings from your six shooter and replace them with live bullets.

Mickey aims his single eye at you, a narrow thread of laser light projecting from it onto your forehead.

"LOCK-ON ACQUIRED," Mickey states. "PREPARING TO FIRE..."
action: You shoot eye
response: You aim at Mickey's eye and squeeze the trigger. The eye shatters with a brittle crack, and Mickey freezes in place, sparking and whirring.
action: Reload
response: (your six shooter)
You quickly empty the spent casings from your six shooter and replace them with live bullets.
action: You examine Mickey
response: A cylindrical war-bot, dressed in chipped and peeling desert camouflage paint. His face is featureless except for a single round, shattered eye.

Mickey stands perfectly still.
action: You take Gun
response: You've already drawn your gun.
action: F.
response: You're on a sturdy platform beneath a huge dome of cracked concrete, an expansive pool of off-colour, steaming water stretching out far below. An ancient control panel sits by the edge of the platform.

A broken catwalk hangs from the ceiling.A mass of tree roots protrude from one of the larger cracks in the concrete.A girder juts up from the toxic pool.

Glow-in-the-Dark Earl stands on the rickety catwalk.

"You!" Earl rasps, hoarsely. "Execution or no, this is my reactor, and ain't no-one passing through here long as I breath!"
action: You look at the panel
response: Rusted right through and glowing faintly. It's encrusted with strange dials and buttons.

Earl holds out his bow and notches an arrow to it.
action: You hide
response: (behind the control panel)
Okay, you're now taking cover behind the control panel.

Earl sends an arrow flying over your head. "I know you're still in here! You can't hide from me!"
action: You look at the roots
response: Having broken through the concrete dome over slow years of growth, the tree roots now seem strangely sinister and monstrous: as if frozen in the act of an intelligent writhing motion. Various objects from the reactor complex seem to have been snatched up by the roots over time, including a large, bright orange canister.

Earl clucks like a chicken until his hoarse voice breaks down into a coughing fit.
action: You examine the canister
response: A bright orange canister of some sort is caught up in the curled and grasping tree roots.
action: You read the canister
response: The bright orange canister is too far away.
action: You wait for a while
response: Time passes...

You hear an arrow ping uselessly off the other side of the control panel.
action: You stand
response: Okay, you're now standing.

Earl holds out his bow and notches an arrow to it.
action: Shoot canister
response: You sight down your barrel at the bright orange canister, and squeeze the trigger. The canister erupts into a sizeable fireball, consuming the tree roots and burning them to a crisp.

Earl jumps clear of the tree roots and lands on the catwalk.

Earl holds out his bow and notches an arrow to it.
action: You shoot the catwalk
response: There's a small splash of radioactive water, but no other evidence you're having an effect on the submerged catwalk.

Earl draws back the string on his bow, taking aim at you.
action: You hide
response: (behind the control panel)
Okay, you're now taking cover behind the control panel.

"Come out of there!" Earl yells.
action: You wait for a while
response: Time passes...

Earl growls with frustration.
action: You look at the catwalk
response: Corroded in strange and unpleasant ways, it doesn't seem like it can keep up the fight against gravity for long. It hangs from crooked bolts that half protrude from the ceiling.

Glow-in-the-Dark Earl is standing on the rickety catwalk.

Earl clucks like a chicken until his hoarse voice breaks down into a coughing fit.
action: Wait
response: Time passes...

"Come out of there!" Earl yells.
action: Shoot panel
response: You can't get a good shot while you're taking cover.

Earl sends an arrow flying over your head. "I know you're still in here! You can't hide from me!"
action: You shoot earl
response: As you aim at Earl, he tenses his grotesquely long legs. After you fire, but before the bullet hits him, he jumps up, high into the air, and lands on the girder.

"What's the matter, Mute?" Earl says, "too fast for you?"

Earl holds out his bow and notches an arrow to it.
action: Shoot bolts
response: You take aim at one of the ancient metal bolts and fire. It shatters into a cloud of rust. The catwalk creaks, and begins to move. One by one, the rusted bolts pop out of the ceiling and the catwalk curls downward, sinking into the steaming nuclear waste below.

Earl jumps clear of the catwalk and lands on the girder.

Earl holds out his bow and notches an arrow to it.
action: You hide
response: (behind the control panel)
Okay, you're now taking cover behind the control panel.

Earl growls with frustration.
action: You examine girder
response: The thick iron girder juts up at a crooked angle. It seems to be propped up on a thick pipeline that traverses the dome.

Glow-in-the-Dark Earl is standing on the girder.
action: You examine the pipeline
response: Blackened and heavily corroded, the pipeline emerges from a delicate husk of machinery and winds its way across the dome, disappearing into the distance.

You hear an arrow ping uselessly off the other side of the control panel.
action: You stand
response: Okay, you're now standing.

Earl holds out his bow and notches an arrow to it.
action: Shoot pipeline
response: You put a bullethole in the corroded metal of the pipeline. It quivers slightly, but remains otherwise intact.

Earl draws back the string on his bow, taking aim at you.
action: You hide
response: (behind the control panel)
Okay, you're now taking cover behind the control panel.

Earl clucks like a chicken until his hoarse voice breaks down into a coughing fit.
action: Shoot pipeline
response: You put a second bullethole in the pipeline, close to the first. The pipeline creaks loudly, but stays in one piece.

Earl looses the arrow. You look down and aren't entirely surprised to it sticking out of your chest. You feel yourself falling off the platform as if it were happening somewhere very far away.
action: You hide
response: (behind the control panel)
Okay, you're now taking cover behind the control panel.
action: Wait
response: Time passes...
action: Reload
response: (your six shooter)
You quickly empty the spent casings from your six shooter and replace them with live bullets.

Earl growls with frustration.
action: Wait
response: Time passes...

Earl clucks like a chicken until his hoarse voice breaks down into a coughing fit.
action: Shoot pipeline
response: You put a second bullethole in the pipeline, close to the first. The pipeline creaks loudly, but stays in one piece.

Earl draws back the string on his bow, taking aim at you.
action: You hide
response: (behind the control panel)
Okay, you're now taking cover behind the control panel.

You hear an arrow ping uselessly off the other side of the control panel.
action: You wait for a while
response: Time passes...

Earl sends an arrow flying over your head. "I know you're still in here! You can't hide from me!"
action: You wait for a while
response: Time passes...

You hear an arrow ping uselessly off the other side of the control panel.
action: Shoot pipeline
response: You put a third bullethole in the pipeline, in between the first two. For a moment, nothing happens. And then the pipeline shatters into disparate shards of rust. The girder leaning on it tips slowly to one side, smashing into the dome with the sound of heavy masonry shattering like glass.

Earl jumps clear of the girder and flails uselessly in the air for longer than seems possible. Then, inevitably, he drops - falling into the radioactive slime below with an infuriated yell.
action: F.
response: On the bank of a thick black river, you're surrounded on all sides by corroded tin shacks and heaps of rotting garbage.

It's awfully quiet around here.
action: You look at the garbage
response: Dirty rags, rotten food, human excrement... other things you don't want to look too closely at.
action: You look at the shacks
response: Home to the physically diseased and the socially reviled.
action: You look at the river
response: The river is black and viscous, emitting a fine, yellowish vapour.
action: You listen
response: It's very quiet. The river burbles quietly.
action: You look at the vapour
response: You try not to breath too deeply. The river's noxious vapour probably does little to promote good health.
action: F.
response: You start looking for a good route to move through the dreary shanty town, when a rhythmic pistoning reaches your ears from somewhere ahead. Atomic April strides out from behind one of the shacks, blocking your path with her enormous metallic form.

April's distorted voice booms from the metallic grill she has for a mouth. "I'm gonna pummel you good, Mute."

April raises her great metal fist into the air, blotting out the sun.
action: You look at April
response: A towering metal figure, topped with a transparent brain jar, her right fist obscenely huge. She totters on stilt-like mechanical legs. A bright yellow symbol adorns her chest.

April's shoulder clunks loudly, letting out bursts of steam.
action: You shoot april
response: You blast April right in the middle of the archaic symbol on her chest. The bullet richochets without leaving a mark.

April's massive form is knocked backwards. She drops her arm and regains her footing in a slow and ungainly motion.

April booms with laughter. "A squishy meat-bag like you is no threat to a mechanical god!"
action: You shoot brain
response: You blast the see-through dome containing April's brain. The bullet richochets off, leaving a few hairline cracks.

"This is like pulling the legs off a fly..." April muses.

April raises her great metal fist into the air, blotting out the sun.
action: You shoot brain
response: You shoot April's brain jar again, fine cracks spreading across the dome.

April laughs. "I splatter insects like you without even thinking about it!"

April's shoulder clunks loudly, letting out bursts of steam.
action: You shoot brain
response: Your bullet completely shatters April's brain jar, showering glass over her shoulders.

"Some meat-bags just don't know when they're obsolete." April booms.

April brings her huge fist down in one swift, mechanical motion. It races down at you from the sky like a falling boulder.
action: You shoot brain
response: Your bullet strikes April's exposed brain straight on, splattering it over her shattered head. Her body suddenly goes limp and collapses into a heap with a loud metallic clattering, sliding slowly into the river, fumes rising where her body touches the acidic slime.
action: You examine the symbol
response: The bright yellow radiation symbol adorns April's great metal upper torso.
action: F.
response: A dark little office. The bright sunlight shining through the window casts a perfect square of light on the polished floor, as if it were too timid to wander away from a straight line. Coffins stand in rows against one wall, funereal garbs against the other.

Solemn Gertrude is here, in a black suit and top hat.

When she sees you arrive, Gertrude stands up from her chair by the window and unrolls her tape measure.
action: You examine gertrude
response: A tall, thin woman with almost albinic pale skin. She wears a close fitting, jet-black suit and a shiny top hat. Her movements are small and carefully calculated. You remember Gertrude as being the one person in town more quiet than you.

Gertrude steps lightly on one end of the tape measure, and holds it up to measure your height.
action: You examine the hat
response: A rather intimidating piece of headwear, really.

Gertrude measures you across the shoulders.
action: Point to coffin
response: You point at the coffins.

Gertrude doesn't seem to notice.

Gertrude quickly pulls out a notepad to jot down your measurements.
action: Point to garb
response: you a renegade lawman. Your score consists of:
1 point for drinking the plainswoman's potion
7 points for killing members of the sheriff's posse
1 point for trapping Juanita beneath the chandelier
1 point for kissing Juanita
1 point for scaring off Gatling Gun Fiona
1 point for getting measured for your coffin

You point at the funereal garbs.

Gertrude doesn't seem to notice.

Gertrude stands moderately far away from you and studies the floor.
action: You take the hat
response: You don't need to weigh yourself down with anything other than your trusty six shooter.

Gertrude redirects her attention to the ceiling.
action: You look in the coffin
response: There's nothing unusual in the coffins.

You catch Gertrude looking at you. She turns her head sharply.
action: You look at the ceiling
response: You see nothing unusual about it.

"Mute..." Gertrude says, her voice almost a whisper. "No, never mind."
action: Point to coffin
response: You point at the coffins.

Gertrude doesn't seem to notice.

Gertrude opens her mouth and then closes it again shortly after.
action: You point to yourself
response: You point at yourself.

Gertrude doesn't seem to notice.

Gertrude steps over to you, looking down at her feet. "Mute, I know that... you must have passed Fiona to get this far. I was just wondering, well, is she okay?"
action: Nod
response: You nod your head.

Gertrude remains absolutely impassive for quite a while. Slowly but surely, though, her lips start to form a smile. "Okay," she says, so quietly you have to strain to hear her. "I'm glad."
action: You point to her
response: You point at Solemn Gertrude.

Gertrude just blushes.

Gertrude smiles happily to herself.
action: You kiss her
response: You don't want to give her the wrong impression.

Gertrude cheerfully writes out a notice for the funeral of Vicious Sue
action: You listen
response: You hear nothing out of the ordinary.

Gertrude files the funeral notice away neatly, humming to herself.
action: You look around
response: A dark little office. The bright sunlight shining through the window casts a perfect square of light on the polished floor, as if it were too timid to wander away from a straight line. Coffins stand in rows against one wall, funereal garbs against the other.

Solemn Gertrude is here, in a black suit and top hat.

Gertrude cheerfully writes out a notice for the funeral of Claw-Hand Hank
action: You look at the garbs
response: Rows of neatly pressed suits and dresses - all either black or white.

Gertrude files the funeral notice away neatly, humming to herself.
action: You examine the square
response: The sun casts a perfect square of light onto the floor of the room.

Gertrude cheerfully writes out a notice for the funeral of Deputy Gene
action: You examine the floor
response: The floor is shiny, meticulously polished, cold underfoot.

Gertrude files the funeral notice away neatly, humming to herself.
action: F.
response: As you leave, Gertrude clears her throat - a soft sound a little like someone hitting a cloud with a ball of cotton wool. "G-G-Good luck," she stammers. "If I see you again, I hope it's not in... a professional capacity."

And then she unexpectedly races forward and throws her arms around your neck, her hands cold against your bare skin. "Kill him," she whispers into your ear as she hugs you tightly. "Don't hesitate to kill the sheriff. If there has to be someone with a gun walking around the town shooting people, I want it to be you. I trust you."

She starts to let you go, blushing bright red. You grab her roughly and kiss her on the cheek, your stubble scratching her pale skin. She laughs with a shy happiness.

You turn away from her and head out into the street. The sun is high overhead. It's almost time.

This narrow, cramped back street twists and winds fitfully towards the town centre, and your goal. A bare market stall stands here unattended. A simple wooden cart blocks up the road. A table sits here, ready to receive customers to a small restaurant nearby. A small neglected garden is surrounded by a tall wooden fence. In the garden, a sickly tree seems to have died long ago from dehydration.

Gun-Run Raoul stands here, ready to draw.

"Mute!" Raoul calls out. "Don't try and come any closer. You know I'm the fastest draw in the wastelands, and I'd hate to have to riddle an otherwise decent citizen such as yourself full of bullet-holes."
action: You look at Raoul
response: A dusky, unshaven man with a multitude of guns and bullets strapped to his body. He's smiling mirthlessly, a sad glimmer to his eye.

"Hermano," Raoul pleads, "there's no bad blood between us. Leave town while you still can."
action: You look at the cart
response: Two wheels and a large wooden bucket. Nothing special, certainly, but it must do a pretty good job of carting things around.

"Last chance, hermano," Raoul says, his hands slowly moving towards the many weapons he carries. "Get out of here!"
action: You hide
response: You'll have to be a little more specific here. You can take cover behind: The market stall. The cart. The restaurant table. The wooden fence. The sickly tree.

"Last chance, hermano," Raoul says, his hands slowly moving towards the many weapons he carries. "Get out of here!"
action: You hide behind the sickly tree
response: Okay, you're now taking cover behind the sickly tree.

In a flash, Raoul has drawn a pair of six shooters. He fires both in a rapid blur, a hail of bullets disintegrating the sickly tree.
action: Wait
response: Time passes...

Raoul's six shooters click empty. He tosses them aside and pulls a lever-action rifle from over his shoulder. He loads and fires the gun with inhuman efficiency, his hands a blur. The high calibre bullets send you flying. You're already dead by the time you land.
action: You hide behind the cart
response: Okay, you're now taking cover behind the cart.

"Hermano," Raoul pleads, "there's no bad blood between us. Leave town while you still can."
action: You hide behind the market stall
response: Okay, you're now taking cover behind the market stall.

"Hermano," Raoul pleads, "there's no bad blood between us. Leave town while you still can."
action: Wait
response: Time passes...

"Last chance, hermano," Raoul says, his hands slowly moving towards the many weapons he carries. "Get out of here!"
action: You wait awhile
response: Time passes...

In a flash, Raoul has drawn a pair of six shooters. He fires both in a rapid blur, a hail of bullets disintegrating the market stall.
action: You hide behind the cart
response: Okay, you're now taking cover behind the cart.

Raoul's six shooters click empty. He tosses them aside and pulls a lever-action rifle from over his shoulder. He loads and fires the gun with inhuman efficiency, his hands a blur. The high-calibre bullets utterly destroy the cart you're taking cover behind.
action: You hide behind the fence
response: Okay, you're now taking cover behind the wooden fence.

Raoul tosses the rifle aside and pulls a sawn-off shotgun from a thigh holster. He aims at you and fires both barrels. The wooden fence you're taking cover behind explodes in a shower of splinters.
action: You hide behind the table
response: Okay, you're now taking cover behind the restaurant table.

Raoul tosses the sawn-off shotgun aside and pulls an antique machine pistol from the back of his belt. He fires indiscriminately, blowing apart the restaurant table in a series of shattering bullet strikes.
action: You hide behind the tree
response: Okay, you're now taking cover behind the sickly tree.

Raoul drops the machine pistol to the ground and grabs a small laser gun from his bandolier. He directs a beam of lethal blue light right at you, causing the sickly tree to spontaneously combust in a puff of smoke.
action: You hide
response: Raoul has destroyed all the cover in this location.

Raoul throws down the laser gun and pulls a derringer from his boot. He looks at the tiny gun for a second and then shrugs. "That's all folks!" he says, before bolting down a narrow alley and disappearing from view.
action: Reload
response: (your six shooter)
It's already fully loaded.
action: F.
response: The eclectic buildings of the town crowd round this open space, leaving a circle of bare, trodden dirt, featureless except for the towering wooden gallows at its centre.

Elias stands on the gallows, the noose around his neck.

The rotund execution bot sits by the gallows, its single metallic arm gripping the lever that works the trapdoor.

Sheriff Clayton stands in your way.

"Mute," the sheriff says. "Just in time."
action: You shoot sheriff
response: You shoot the sheriff, the bullet tearing right through his chest explosively. He lets out a yelp of pain and staggers briefly, before regaining his footing.

"Damn you, Mute!" the sheriff screams, "you want shooting? I'll give you shooting!"

Clayton whirls round, draws his six shooter and takes aim at Elias.
action: You shoot the noose
response: You put a bullet right through the rope dangling from the gallows.
The noose falls slack around Elias' neck.

The sheriff fires, his bullet striking Elias right through the heart. The man you love looks at you, one hand held out into the blood gushing from his body. The light leaves his eyes in a matter of seconds and he collapses onto the gallows.

No! You let your gun fall from your hands.
action: You shoot the noose
response: You put a bullet right through the rope dangling from the gallows.
The noose falls slack around Elias' neck.

"Damn you, Mute!" the sheriff screams, "you want shooting? I'll give you shooting!"

Clayton whirls round, draws his six shooter and takes aim at Elias.
action: Shoot gun
response: Which gun do you mean, the six shooter, or your six shooter?
action: You shoot the lever
response: The bullet ricochets off the lever, jerking it backwards. The trapdoor beneath Elias' feet drops away. With a short yell, Elias plummets downwards and disappears.

The sheriff fires, his bullet passing through thin air.
action: You point to the sherrif
response: You point at Sheriff Clayton.

The sheriff stamps his foot in the dust. "Quit it, Mute, I'm talking now!"

The sheriff turns to face you. "You piece of crap," he splutters, "I should have done this a long a time ago."

He aims his six shooter at you and fires again and again, hitting you square in the chest with bullet after bullet. You remain standing for a few seconds, unsure what's happening, and then the world begins to fade away.
action: You point to Elias
response: You point at Elias.

The sheriff stamps his foot in the dust. "Quit it, Mute, I'm talking now!"

"I'm sorry about trying to kill you the way I did," the sheriff continues.
action: You wait
response: Time passes...

"I thought it'd be quick and painless. I didn't anticipate you wandering the wastelands half-naked, nurturing a vendetta - no, not even a vendetta, a petty grudge against me."
action: You wait
response: Time passes...

The sheriff looks around at the shuttered buildings, as if grandstanding to a huge audience. "I mean, come on Mute, you think I'm the bad guy here?"
action: Nod
response: You nod your head.

"Of course you do," the sheriff sneers.

The sheriff points at you accusingly. "You're the one shooting your way through the town, killing the only men and women who stand between its people and the marauders, the mutants and the savages!"
action: You shake head
response: You shake your head.

"You're damn right I'm not," the sheriff responds.

The sheriff points at you accusingly. "You're the one shooting your way through the town, killing the only men and women who stand between its people and the marauders, the mutants and the savages!"
action: Wait
response: Time passes...

"By the Gods, I know they were a motley crew of vagabonds, but as long as they were in my posse they were on the side of the Law!"
action: Wait
response: Time passes...

The sheriff fixes his steely eyes on you. "And whose side are you on, Mute? Your own?"
action: You point to Elias
response: You point at Elias.

The sheriff stamps his foot in the dust. "Quit it, Mute, I'm talking now!"

He aims an accusing finger at Elias. "What about his?"
action: Nod
response: You nod your head.

"As long as you're not on the side of the Law," the sheriff hisses, "I don't owe you anything. Because I will always see that the Law is obeyed."
action: You wait
response: Time passes...

"Or better than obeyed... feared."
action: Wait
response: Time passes...

The sheriff rests his hands on his hips. "Well, Mute, it's your move."
action: You shoot the noose
response: You put a bullet right through the rope dangling from the gallows.
The noose falls slack around Elias' neck.

"Damn you, Mute!" the sheriff screams, "you want shooting? I'll give you shooting!"

Clayton whirls round, draws his six shooter and takes aim at Elias.
action: You shoot the lever
response: The bullet ricochets off the lever, jerking it backwards. The trapdoor beneath Elias' feet drops away. With a short yell, Elias plummets downwards and disappears.

The sheriff fires, his bullet passing through thin air.
action: You shoot sheriff
response: You shoot the sheriff, the bullet tearing right through his chest explosively. He lets out a yelp of pain and staggers briefly, before regaining his footing.

The sheriff turns to face you. "You piece of crap," he splutters, "I should have done this a long a time ago."

He aims his six shooter at you and fires. Still reeling from his gunshot wound, the sheriff misses by a hair's breadth, the bullet whipping past your bare arm.
action: You shoot sheriff
response: You send a second bullet ripping through the sheriff's body. He clutches his heart, blood gushing freely from his chest. "You've killed me, Mute, but that ain't enough to stop me!"

The sheriff fires, but his hands are shaking and his knees seem weak. The shot goes wide.
action: You shoot sheriff
response: You blast sheriff Clayton again. He falls to his hands and knees, struggling to keep his gun trained on you. "Long as you're dead," he rasps, blood dripping down his chin, "I can rest easy in the hereafter!"

The sheriff fires, discharging his gun impotently into the dirt.
action: You shoot sheriff
response: You shoot the sheriff for the fourth time. He arches his back, squealing in agony, teeth bared, and then falls forward: finally dead.
action: Reload
response: (your six shooter)
You quickly empty the spent casings from your six shooter and replace them with live bullets.

The execution bot surveys the scene with its optical sensors and begins to trundle away discreetly.
action: You look at your surroundings
response: The eclectic buildings of the town crowd round this open space, leaving a circle of bare, trodden dirt, featureless except for the towering wooden gallows at its centre.

The execution bot trundles slowly away from the gallows.

Sheriff Clayton lies on his front in a pool of blood.

The execution bot disappears down an alleyway.
action: You examine the gallows
response: A wooden platform with a wooden beam over it, from which dangles a rope noose. A small trapdoor is set into the gallows, directly beneath the noose.
action: You pull the lever
response: The trapdoor is already open.
action: You examine the trapdoor
response: This opens and the person on the gallows drops down, the noose snapping their neck or strangling them to death. It's operated by the lever protruding from the back of the gallows.
action: F.
response: (first getting off of the gallows)

You're in the shade beneath the gallows. The air is deathly cold.

Elias lies on the ground here, unconscious.
action: Point to Fiona
response: You point at Gatling Gun Fiona.

"She's growing on me," Elias says. "Very, very slowly."
action: You point to Gertrude
response: You point at Solemn Gertrude.

"Oh, she's such a sweetheart," Elias says. "Go kill some more people so she has something to do."

Raoul rubs his unshaven jaw.
action: Point to Raoul
response: You point at Gun-Run Raoul.

"He's done a lot for the town, hasn't he?" Elias says. "But I'm not about to go running to him the next time there's a noose around my neck."

Fiona absently fingers the action of her machinegun.
action: You point to the zomboids
response: You point at the mutant zomboids.

Elias pulls a face. "Are you sure they're dead now?"

Fiona playfully pokes Gertrude in the ribs.
action: You look at Fiona
response: Fiona stands by Raoul, a machinegun propped up in the dirt next to her. Her gaze repeatedly wanders from the mutant zomboids towards Solemn Gertrude.

Gertrude laughs shyly.
action: You point to yourself
response: You point at yourself.

Elias leans over to kiss you on the cheek.

Raoul prods one of the mutant zomboids with the barrel of his rifle.
action: You examine the zomboids
response: You're pretty sure they're dead for real this time.

Fiona absently fingers the action of her machinegun.
action: You examine gertrude
response: Solemn Gertrude stands by Fiona, looking down at the ground as she twists the tip of her shoe into the dirt.

Raoul prods one of the mutant zomboids with the barrel of his rifle.
action: About yourself
response: You're Mute Lawton. A devilishly handsome cowboy with windswept black hair and roguish stubble. Lean and tall, your tanned body is taut with cool, calculated strength.

You're smartly dressed in a black suit and a three-quarter length overcoat. A black stetson keeps the sun out of your eyes.

Fiona playfully pokes Gertrude in the ribs.
action: You kiss elias
response: You draw Elias closer and kiss him on the lips. He folds easily into your embrace.
action: You examine Elias
response: Slender, dark haired, quite tall. He regards you with kind, hazel eyes.
action: You shoot the zombies
response: Raoul and Fiona will deal with them if they start moving again.

Gertrude laughs shyly.
action: F.
response: Elias comes with you.

Rowdy Juanita's Saloon is a homely place, and meticulously clean. A shady refuge from the wasteland sun, a shaft of ruddy twilight shines in through the doorway, enveloping countless dancing motes of dust in its glare. A multitude of round tables are dotted around the carefully polished bar, and sturdy wooden beams criss-cross the high ceiling.

The former-execution bot trundles around behind the bar, a wash cloth in its single claw-like hand, while Rowdy Juanita is hard at work tending to the needs of her many customers.

Elias is close by your side.

"Well, if it isn't my two favourite patrons," Juanita exclaims. "Your drinks are on the house."
action: Drink
response: What do you want to drink?
action: You point to yourself
response: You point at yourself.

Elias leans over to kiss you on the cheek.

Juanita sets two glasses of wasteland wine on the bar. Elias picks up one.
action: Point at bot
response: You point at the execution bot.

Elias sighs. "I avoid him whenever I get the chance. He's nice enough, but still..."
action: You take the wine
response: As she sees you raising your glass, Juanita heads over to you, brandishing a small capsule of machine oil. "A toast," she says. "To love."

Elias meets your eye. "What do you think?" he asks. "To love?"
action: Nod
response: You nod your head.

Elias smiles and slips his arm in yours. "To love, then," he says.

"To love," Juanita repeats, her vinyl lips forming a wide smile.

The three of you raise your glasses.
action: Full
response: That isn't one of the options.

Would you like to RESTORE a saved position, RESTART the story, UNDO the last move, see your FULL SCORE, see some AMUSING things to try, or QUIT?
action: Shake
response: What do you want to wake?
action: No
response: You must be more specific about whom you want to talk to.

"To love," Elias says, slipping his arm in yours.

"To love," Juanita repeats, her vinyl lips forming a wide smile.

The three of you raise your glasses.
action: You shake head
response: You shake your head.
action: You shake head
response: As she sees you raising your glass, Juanita heads over to you, brandishing a small capsule of machine oil. "A toast," she says. "To love."

Elias meets your eye. "What do you think?" he asks. "To love?"

You shake your head.

Elias cottons on immediately. "No," he says to Juanita. "A toast to the dead. Especially those we wanted dead. May they stay that way, and rest in peace."

Juanita smiles. "How noble. Okay: to the dead."

The three of you raise your glasses.
action: You look at Juanita
response: Originally intended as a utilitarian synthetic wife for lonely wasteland farmers, Juanita is half farm machine, half sexbot. Her figure has curvy, art deco proportions, while her four hydraulic arms can plough a whole field in minutes.

Juanita is completely pinned down by a fallen chandelier. Up close you can now see that a program crystal has been inserted into a port in the back of her head.
action: You examine the crystal
response: A thin, translucent shard of nanoscale computer memory.

"Do you see something that doesn't belong?" Juanita asks.
action: You take the crystal
response: You take hold of the program crystal and pull it out of Juanita's head socket.

Juanita sighs with relief. "Ah, I feel much better now."

She wedges her upper arms against the the bar and they begin to emit a low, hydraulic hiss. "Don't worry about me," she says. "I'll be out of here in no time. Go save Elias!"