Sherlock Indomitable
by mathbrush (2018)
Genres: Mystery

Join a dying Sherlock Holmes in a journey through his memories. Sherlock Indomitable is a direct adaptation of two Sherlock Holmes stories into a text adventure. At least 90% of the text is taken directly from Arthur Conan Doyle's writing.

action: %
response: Time stands still in here. You are in a wide, elevated room filled with sunlight. You can go north to the Lesser Sciences,
south to the Physical Sciences, or east to the Human
Sciences.

A large display case is in the middle of the room, titled "Clues". It is empty; it's been a long time since you've had a case.

A massive banner says "This area is under construction; the part
I'm entering to the IntroComp is just one case, which is beginning in four turns. That case is finished and (hopefully) polished. This introduction, the framing story, the other cases and the epilogue are not part of this intro comp entry.

room to the north. Anything the rooms say you can do is not true. The implemented portion will begin within four turns."
action: About yourself
response: You are merely an expression of Holmes' thought.
action: You go north
response: This is a large room that is mostly bare. Each corner is labelled by letters in worn gold foil. The areas titled LITERATURE, PHILOSOPHY, and ASTRONOMY are bare. You can return to the south.

There is a single bookshelf under POLITICS where you can LOOK UP clues related to politics.

There is a reminder placard here, in the only room with enough space.
action: You look at the placard
response: It says:

Life is infinitely stranger than anything which the mind of man could invent. We would not dare to conceive the things which are really mere commonplaces of existence. If one could fly out of a window, hover over this great city, gently remove the roofs, and peep in at the queer things which are going on, the strange coincidences, the plannings, the cross-purposes, the wonderful chains of events, working through generations, and leading to the most outrÃ© results, it would make all fiction with its conventionalities and foreseen conclusions most stale and unprofitable.
action: You check your inventory
response: You are carrying:
nothing

[You can see current clues by typing C or CLUES]

You hear a strange thumping noise; it seems to be coming from
outside.
action: Go outside
response: You find yourself returning to the outside world... 
Your Bedroom (on your bed)
Your bedroom seems cluttered to the untrained eye, but you know where every item can be found. A large tin is in the corner, a violin is leaned against the wall. A wardrobe contains your various costumes. Your bed is sloppily made. The parlor is to the east.

You hear a thudding sound coming from the front room.
action: You look at the violin
response: Your violin is well-tuned.

Someone is knocking on your front door.
action: You go east
response: (first getting off your bed)

You are in a large airy sitting-room, cheerfully furnished, and illuminated by two broad windows. Your bedroom is to the west,
and Watson's bedroom is to the south. The front door is to the
north.

The fireplace is unlit, the sideboard is supplied with food, and the various objects you have acquired throughout your career are scattered about.

Someone is knocking on your front door, here.
action: You open
response: (the front door)
You open the front door.

You see Mrs. Hudson here. She says, "There's a lady come here to see you, sir. Shall I send her up?"

[When you don't have an active case, you can TALK TO characters to speak with them.]

Mrs. Hudson is waiting patiently for her orders.
action: Hudson
response: You say, "Let me fetch Watson. Show her into the parlor in the meanwhile."

Mrs. Hudson steps outside, where she is waiting for you to return with Watson.
action: You examine the food
response: Which do you mean, the roast beef or the bread?
action: You examine the beef
response: You scan the roast beef for clues, but find none of importance.

Mrs. Hudson is waiting for you to return with Watson.
action: You go south
response: Watson's bedroom has always been singularly uninteresting to you. Watson's bed is here. The parlor is to the north.

Watson is asleep on his bed.

You knock as you enter. Watson wakes to find you standing, fully dressed, by the side of his bed.

As the time is only a quarter-past seven, he blinks up at you in some surprise, and perhaps just a little resentment. He looks to you for an explanation.
action: You explain
response: (to yourself)
[Use TALK TO to talk someone, or SAY a clue to someone.]
action: You talk to Watson
response: "Very sorry to knock you up, Watson," you say, "but it's the common lot this morning. Mrs. Hudson has been knocked up, she retorted upon me, and I on you."

"What is it, then-a fire?"

"No; a client. It seems that a young lady has arrived in a considerable state of excitement, who insists upon seeing me. She is waiting now in the sitting-room. Should it prove to be an interesting case, you would, I am sure, wish to follow it from the outset. I thought, at any rate, that I should call you and give you the chance."

"My dear fellow, I would not miss it for anything." He gets up.
action: You examine Watson
response: Watson is a gentleman of a medical type, but with the air of a military man. His left arm has been injured; he holds it in a stiff and unnatural manner.
action: You go north
response: (first opening Watson's door)

You are in a large airy sitting-room, cheerfully furnished, and illuminated by two broad windows. Your bedroom is to the west,
and Watson's bedroom is to the south. The front door is to the
north.

The fireplace is unlit, the sideboard is supplied with food, and the various objects you have acquired throughout your career are scattered about.

A lady dressed in black and heavily veiled, who has been sitting in the window, rises as you enter.

You can also see Mrs. Hudson here.

Mrs. Hudson leaves and closes the door.

Watson accompanies you.

[New clue - Greeting]

[Holmes is much more interested in cases than in regular conversation. During a case, you can see current thoughts with CLUES (or just C), and you can SAY a clue TO someone nearby.]
action: You wait
response: You pause.
action: You say C to the lady
response: where clues you know can be found by typing CLUES. In situations of boredom or extreme excitement, Sherlock can only TALK TO individuals.]
action: You say the greeting to the lady
response: "Good-morning, madam," you say cheerily. "My name is Sherlock Holmes. This is my associate, Dr. Watson, before whom you can speak as freely as before myself. I shall order you a cup of hot coffee, for I observe that you are shivering."

"It is not cold which makes me shiver," says the woman as she sits.

"What, then?"

"It is fear, Mr. Holmes. It is terror." She raises her veil, and you can see her face.

[Like most of your clients, she'll need a demonstration of your powers of observation.]

[Finished with clue - Greeting]
action: You examine her
response: You run her over with one of your quick, all-comprehensive glances. She is a lady, dressed in black clothing with an unusual pattern of mud splatters. A certain something is stuck in one of her gloves.
action: You examine the gloves
response: You see half of a return ticket in her glove.

[New clue - Train]
action: You examine the clothing
response: Miss Stoner's clothing is splashed with mud, exactly as if she had driven in a dogcart.

[New clue - Dogcart]
action: You examine the mud
response: Miss Stoner's clothing is splashed with mud, exactly as if she had driven in a dogcart.
action: You look at the dogcart
response: Dogcart - "Miss Stoner drove in a dogcart, along heavy roads."
action: You say Dogcart to Stoner
response: You say, "You had a good drive in a dog-cart, along heavy roads, before you reached the station."

The lady gives a violent start and stares in bewilderment at you.

"There is no mystery, my dear madam," you say, smiling. "The left arm of your jacket is spattered with mud in no less than seven places. The marks are perfectly fresh. There is no vehicle save a dog-cart which throws up mud in that way, and then only when you sit on the left-hand side of the driver."

She is beginning to believe in your mental acuity.

[Finished with clue - Dogcart]
action: You say the train to the lady
response: (Train to the lady in black)
You say, "You have come in by train this morning, I see."

"You know me, then?"

"No, but I observe the second half of a return ticket in the palm of your left glove. You must have started early."

She now seems fully convinced of your powers. You can ask her about her story, now.

[New clue - Testimony]

[Finished with clue - Train]
action: You say the testimony to Stoner
response: [Finished with clue - Testimony]

You say, "And now I beg that you will lay before us everything that may help us in forming an opinion upon the matter."

"Alas!" replies your visitor, "the very horror of my situation lies in the fact that my fears are so vague, and my suspicions depend so entirely upon small points that even my future husband looks upon all that I tell him about it as the fancies of a nervous woman. But I have heard, Mr. Holmes, that you can see deeply into the manifold wickedness of the human heart. You may advise me how to walk amid the dangers which encompass me."

"I am all attention, madam."

"My name is Helen Stoner, and I am living with my stepfather, who is the last survivor of one of the oldest Saxon families in England, the Roylotts of Stoke Moran, on the western border of Surrey. It was two years ago..."


You listen intently to her story... 

I was on the grounds of Stoke Moran, a very old manor house, and the ancestral house of the Roylott family, to which my stepfather belonged. The windows of my family's rooms all opened out onto the lawn.

[New clue - Shutters]

The grounds extended all around me, but they held nothing except for brambles and the scattered tents of the gypsies, who were friends of my stepfather. Beyond the grounds was a stream, crossed by a small bridge.

[New clue - Gypsy]

From somewhere nearby, I heard the inhuman screeching of my stepfather's baboon, and shivered. I could only go north, into
the manor. These grounds held terrible memories for me.
action: About yourself
response: You are Helen Stoner, daughter of the deceased Major-General Stoner of the Bengal Artillery.
action: You go north
response: The manor-house, Mr. Holmes, is very old, and only the east wing is now inhabited. No servant would stay with us, and for a long time we did all the work of the house. The corridor to the east wing,
and our rooms, was open.

I could return to the grounds to the south.
action: You go east
response: Before Dr. Roylott's room
The bedrooms in this wing all opened out into the same corridor.

[New clue - Hallway]

The corridor was lit by corridor-lamps. I stood in front of Dr. Roylott's room, to the south. My sister's room and my own were
to the east.
action: Go south
response: Dr. Roylott had gone to his room early.
action: Go east
response: I was in the main corridor; the door to my room was to the east
, and my stepfather's door was to the west. I stood before my
sister's door, to the south.

Her situation had changed, recently. I have an aunt who lives near Harrow, and we were occasionally allowed to pay short visits at this lady's house. Julia had been there at Christmas, and met there a half-pay major of marines, to whom she became engaged.

My stepfather had learned of the engagement fourteen days ago, and offered no objection to the marriage.
action: You go east
response: I stood before my door, to the south. The rest of the corridor
was to the west. An old service door leads outside, but it is
unused.
action: You go south
response: (first opening my door)

I had a homely little room, with a low ceiling. My window faced the lawn to the south, but it was now closed and bolted. my bed was plain but comfortable. The air was fresh in my room. My door was to the north.

[New clue - Fresh]

After a moment, my sister followed me into the room.

[To speak during flashbacks, you TALK TO the character you wish to speak to.]

Julia was here, deep in thought.
action: You talk to Julia
response: Julia sat with me, and we chatted about her wedding until the clock struck eleven. Julia preferred to spend time in my room, due to the rank smell of my stepfather's cigars that wafted from his room to hers.

[New clue - Cigars]

She rose and stood by the door, saying "Tell me, Helen, have you ever heard anyone whistle in the dead of the night?"

"Never," said I.

"I suppose that you could not possibly whistle, yourself, in your sleep?"

"Certainly not. But why?"

"Because during the last few nights I have always, about three in the morning, heard a low, clear whistle. I am a light sleeper, and it has awakened me. I cannot tell where it came from-perhaps from the next room, perhaps from the lawn. I thought that I would just ask you whether you had heard it. Have you heard it?"

[New clue - Whistle]
action: You talk to Julia
response: "No, I have not," I said. "It must be the band of gypsies in the plantation."

"Very likely," said she, "and yet if it were on the lawn, I wonder that you did not hear it also."

"Ah, but I sleep more heavily than you."

"Well, it is of no great consequence, at any rate." She smiled back at me, closed my door, and a few moments later I heard her key turn in the lock.

For you see, Mr. Holmes, we had no feeling of security unless our doors were locked.

[New clue - Safety]

The clock struck eleven. I stifled a yawn.
action: Sleep
response: Helen's Room (on my bed)
I had a homely little room, with a low ceiling. My window faced the lawn to the south, but it was now closed and bolted. my bed was plain but comfortable. The air was fresh in my room. My door was to the north.

I could not sleep that night. A vague feeling of impending misfortune impressed me. The wind was howling outside, and the rain was beating and splashing against the windows.

Suddenly, amid all the hubbub of the gale, there burst forth the wild scream of a terrified woman. I knew that it was my sister's voice.
action: Go north
response: (first getting off my bed)
I sprang from my bed and wrapped a shawl round me.

As I opened my door I seemed to hear a low whistle, such as my sister described, and a few moments later a clanging sound, as if a mass of metal had fallen.

[New clue - Clang]

I stood before my door, to the south. The rest of the corridor
was to the west. An old service door leads outside, but it is
unused.
action: Go west
response: I was in the main corridor; the door to my room was to the east
, and my stepfather's door was to the west. I stood before my
sister's door, to the south.

My sister's door to the south was unlocked, and revolved slowly
upon its hinges.
action: You go to the south
response: Julia's room was dimly lit.

By the light of the corridor-lamp I saw my sister appear at the opening, her face blanched with terror, her hands groping for help, her whole figure swaying to and fro like that of a drunkard.
action: You talk to Julia
response: I could do nothing; I had to run to my sister, but at that moment her knees seemed to give way and she fell to the ground. She writhed as one who is in terrible pain, and her limbs were dreadfully convulsed.

At first I thought that she had not recognised me, but as I bent over her she suddenly shrieked out in a voice which I shall never forget, "Oh, my God! Helen! It was the band! The speckled band!"

[New clue - Speckled]

There was something else which she would have said, and she stabbed with her finger into the air in the direction of the doctor's room, but a fresh convulsion seized her and choked her words.
action: Again
response: I had to see the doctor! The door was to the north.
action: Go north
response: You finish listening to Miss Stoner's story... 

You are in a large airy sitting-room, cheerfully furnished, and illuminated by two broad windows. Your bedroom is to the west,
and Watson's bedroom is to the south. The front door is to the
north.

The fireplace is unlit, the sideboard is supplied with food, and the various objects you have acquired throughout your career are scattered about.

Miss Helen Stoner is waiting patiently.

Watson is paying close attention to Miss Helen Stoner.

"I rushed out, calling loudly for my stepfather, and I met him hastening from his room in his dressing-gown. When he reached my sister's side she was unconscious, and though he poured brandy down her throat and sent for medical aid from the village, all efforts were in vain, for she slowly sank and died without having recovered her consciousness. Such was the dreadful end of my beloved sister."

Thus Miss Stoner ends her tale. You prepare your questions in your mind.

[Now, and in the future, you can combine clues by LINKing a clue TO another clue. This will be most important once you have concluded your investigation at Stoke Manor.]
action: You link fresh to the cigars
response: (Cigars)
There must be some sort of small connection, like a ventilator, between Julia's room and Dr Roylott's.
[New clue - Connected]
action: Link clang to whistle
response: Yes, both sisters heard whistles, but only Helen heard a clang, which came after the whistle.
[New clue - Whistles]

[Finished with clue - Clang]

[Finished with clue - Whistle]
action: You say connected to Watson
response: "You saw the ventilator, too?"

"Yes, but I do not think that it is such a very unusual thing to have a small opening between two rooms. It was so small that a rat could hardly pass through."

"I knew that we should find a ventilator before ever we came to Stoke Moran."

"My dear Holmes!"

"Oh, yes, I did. You remember in her statement she said that her sister could smell Dr. Roylott's cigar. Now, of course that suggested at once that there must be a communication between the two rooms. It could only be a small one, or it would have been remarked upon at the coroner's inquiry. I deduced a ventilator."

Watson's esteem for you has increased.
action: You look
response: You are in a large airy sitting-room, cheerfully furnished, and illuminated by two broad windows. Your bedroom is to the west,
and Watson's bedroom is to the south. The front door is to the
north.

The fireplace is unlit, the sideboard is supplied with food, and the various objects you have acquired throughout your career are scattered about.

Miss Helen Stoner is waiting patiently.

Watson is paying close attention to Miss Helen Stoner.
action: You talk to Watson
response: You can only communicate with Watson about clues, at this time.
action: You say the cigars to Helen
response: (Cigars to Miss Helen Stoner)
You say, "If I recall, you said that Julia's room smelled of smoke?"

"Yes, frequently so. Poor Julia could hardly bear it."
action: You say connected to Helen
response: You say, "There are one or two very singular points about this room. For example, what a fool a builder must be to open a ventilator into another room, when, with the same trouble, he might have communicated with the outside air!"

"That is also quite modern," says the lady.

"Done about the same time as the bell-rope?" you remark.

"Yes, there were several little changes carried out about that time."
action: You say speckled to Helen
response: You say, "What did you gather from this allusion to a band-a speckled band?"

"Sometimes I have thought that it was merely the wild talk of delirium, sometimes that it may have referred to some band of people, perhaps to these very gipsies in the plantation. I do not know whether the spotted handkerchiefs which so many of them wear over their heads might have suggested the strange adjective which she used."

You have a better idea of the situation now. You can propose a visit.

[New clue - Visit]
action: You say the visit to Watson
response: You say, "Watson, would you be willing to accompany me to Stoke Moran?"

"Of course."
action: You say the visit to Helen
response: "This is a very deep business," you say. "There are a thousand details which I should desire to know before I decide upon our course of action. Yet we have not a moment to lose. If we were to come to Stoke Moran today, would it be possible for us to see over these rooms without the knowledge of your stepfather?"

She says, "As it happens, he spoke of coming into town to-day upon some most important business. It is probable that he will be away all day, and that there would be nothing to disturb you. We have a housekeeper now, but she is old and foolish, and I could easily get her out of the way."

[Finished with clue - Visit]
[New clue - Farewell]
action: You say farewell to Helen
response: You say, "You may expect us early in the afternoon. I have myself some small business matters to attend to. Will you not wait and breakfast?"

She say, "No, I must go. My heart is lightened already since I have confided my trouble to you. I shall look forward to seeing you again this afternoon." She drops her thick black veil over her face and glides from the room.

[Finished with clue - Farewell]
action: You take the bread
response: You cut a slice of beef from the joint upon the sideboard, sandwich it between two rounds of bread, and eat the rude meal.

You exclaim, "What in the name of the devil!"

Your door has been suddenly dashed open, and a huge man has framed himself in the aperture. So tall is he that his hat actually brushes the cross bar of the doorway, and his breadth seems to span it across from side to side.

A large face, seared with a thousand wrinkles, burned yellow with the sun, and marked with every evil passion, turns from one to the other of you.

"Which of you is Holmes?" asked this apparition.

[Dr. Roylott's arrival has put the details of the case out of Sherlock's mind. You can only PROVOKE Dr. Roylott, or DISMISS him.]
action: Provoke
response: (Dr Roylott)
"My name, sir; but you have the advantage of me," you say.

"I am Dr. Grimesby Roylott, of Stoke Moran."

"Indeed, Doctor," you say blandly. "Pray take a seat."

"I will do nothing of the kind. My stepdaughter has been here. I have traced her. What has she been saying to you?"

[You can PROVOKE Dr. Roylott or DISMISS him.]
action: Again
response: (Dr Roylott)
"It is a little cold for the time of the year," you say.

"What has she been saying to you?" screams the old man furiously.

[You can PROVOKE Dr. Roylott or DISMISS him.]
action: Again
response: (Dr Roylott)
"But I have heard that the crocuses promise well," you continue imperturbably.

"Ha! You put me off, do you?" says your new visitor, taking a step forward and shaking his hunting-crop. "I know you, you scoundrel! I have heard of you before. You are Holmes, the meddler."

[You can PROVOKE Dr. Roylott or DISMISS him.]
action: Again
response: (Dr Roylott)
You smile.

He says, "Holmes, the busybody!"

[You can PROVOKE Dr. Roylott or DISMISS him.]
action: Again
response: (Dr Roylott)
Your smile broadens.

He says, "Holmes, the Scotland Yard Jack-in-office!"

[You can PROVOKE Dr. Roylott or DISMISS him.]
action: You continue
response: (Dr Roylott)
You chuckle heartily. "Your conversation is most entertaining," you say. "When you go out close the door, for there is a decided draught."

"I will go when I have said my say. Don't you dare to meddle with my affairs. I know that Miss Stoner has been here. I traced her! I am a dangerous man to fall foul of! See here." He steps swiftly forward, seizes the poker, and bends it into a curve with his huge brown hands.

"See that you keep yourself out of my grip," he snarls, and hurling the twisted poker into the fireplace he strides out of the room.
action: You keep going
response: You can only do that to something animate.
action: You look
response: You are in a large airy sitting-room, cheerfully furnished, and illuminated by two broad windows. Your bedroom is to the west,
and Watson's bedroom is to the south. The front door is to the
north.

The fireplace is unlit, the sideboard is supplied with food, and the various objects you have acquired throughout your career are scattered about.

Watson is here, lost in thought.

You can also see a twisted poker here.

It is time to take action. To the streets of London!
action: You take the poker
response: "He seems a very amiable person," you say, laughing. "I am not quite so bulky, but if he had remained I might have shown him that my grip was not much more feeble than his own." As you speak you pick up the steel poker and, with a sudden effort, straighten it out again, and set it down.
action: You look
response: You are in a large airy sitting-room, cheerfully furnished, and illuminated by two broad windows. Your bedroom is to the west,
and Watson's bedroom is to the south. The front door is to the
north.

The fireplace is unlit, the sideboard is supplied with food, and the various objects you have acquired throughout your career are scattered about.

Watson is here, lost in thought.
action: You go north
response: Your landing is a convenient place for clients to wait before summoning the courage to enter. Your lodgings are to the south,
and the streets await to the east.

Watson accompanies you.
action: You go to the east
response: It is a blazing hot day in August. Baker Street is like an oven, and the glare of the sunlight upon the brickwork of the houses along the road is painful to the eye. You can take a cab south to
Waterloo Station.

Watson accompanies you.
action: You go to the south
response: You enter a cab with Watson and make your way to Waterloo Station. The cab rattles through the streets of London.

You arrive just in time! The train to Leatherhead is departing in a few moments to the east.

Watson accompanies you.
action: You go east
response: You are fortunate in catching a train for Leatherhead, where you hire a trap at the station inn and drive for four or five miles through the lovely Surrey lanes.

It is a perfect day, with a bright sun and a few fleecy clouds in the heavens. The trees and wayside hedges are just throwing out their first green shoots, and the air is full of the pleasant smell of the moist earth.

You are in deep meditation.

The cabman drives down the road.

Watson accompanies you.
action: You examine cabman
response: The cabman was lazily surveying the countryside.

The cabman drives down the road.
action: About yourself
response: You review yourself; you are over six feet in height, and excessively lean. Your eyes are sharp and deep-set, your nose is thin and hawk-like. Your hands are blotted with ink and stained with chemicals.

The cabman drives down the road.

Just then, you see it. A heavily timbered park stretches up in a gentle slope, thickening into a grove at the highest point. From amid the branches there jut out the grey gables and high roof-tree of a very old mansion.

It must be Stoke Moran. The cabman slows down to look; he seems to have something to say.
action: You talk to the cabman
response: "Look there!" you say. "Stoke Moran?"

The cabman says, "Yes, sir, that be the house of Dr. Grimesby Roylott."

"There is some building going on there," you say; "That is where we are going."

"There's the village," says the driver, pointing to a cluster of roofs some distance to the left; "But if you want to get to the house, you'll find it shorter to get over this stile, and so by the foot-path over the fields. There it is, where the lady is walking."
action: You talk to lady
response: [When Sherlock is interested in a case, he prefers to discuss clues, found by typing CLUES]
action: You look
response: It is a perfect day, with a bright sun and a few fleecy clouds in the heavens. The trees and wayside hedges are just throwing out their first green shoots, and the air is full of the pleasant smell of the moist earth.

Watson is paying close attention to the lady.
action: You examine lady
response: You shade your eyes; as you suspected, it is Miss Helen Stoner.

You call to the cabman to stop, and pay him before he leaves.

You are near a fenced road, with a stile leading over the fence to the north, toward the unseen estate.

Miss Helen Stoner is waiting patiently.

Miss Helen Stoner hurries forward to meet you with a face which speaks her joy. "I have been waiting so eagerly for you," she cries, shaking hands with you warmly. "All has turned out splendidly. Dr. Roylott has gone to town, and it is unlikely that he will be back before evening."

Watson accompanies you.
action: Go north
response: You are standing before a grey building with a high central portion and two curving wings, like the claws of a crab, thrown out on each side.

The central portion is in poor repair, but the right-hand block is comparatively modern, and the blinds in the windows, with the blue smoke curling up from the chimneys, show that this is where the family resides. Some scaffolding has been erected against the end wall, and the stone-work has been chipped into, but there are no signs of any workmen at the moment of our visit.

You can reach the east wing to the east, or travel to the
village to the south.

Watson accompanies you.

Miss Helen Stoner walks quietly behind you.
action: Go east
response: The right-hand block is comparatively modern, and the blinds in the windows show that this is where the family resides. These draw your interest.

Some scaffolding has been erected against the end wall, and the stone-work had been broken into, but there are no signs of any workmen. There is something clearly wrong with the scaffolding.

There is a small side door to the northeast. You can return to
the central portion to the west.

Watson accompanies you.

Miss Helen Stoner walks quietly behind you.
action: You look at the windows
response: You walk slowly up and down the lawns, examining the outsides of the windows with deep attention. You, after a careful examination through the open window, endeavour in every way to force the shutter open, but without success. There is no slit through which a knife could be passed to raise the bar. Then you examine the hinges, but they are of solid iron, built firmly into the massive masonry.
[New clue - Bolted]
action: Link bolted to shutters
response: (Shutters)
Yes, it seems unlikely that anything could have gotten through those shutters.

[Finished with clue - Shutters]
action: You look
response: The right-hand block is comparatively modern, and the blinds in the windows show that this is where the family resides. These draw your interest.

Some scaffolding has been erected against the end wall, and the stone-work had been broken into, but there are no signs of any workmen. There is something clearly wrong with the scaffolding.

There is a small side door to the northeast. You can return to
the central portion to the west.

Miss Helen Stoner is waiting patiently.

Watson is paying close attention to Miss Helen Stoner.
action: You examine the scaffolding
response: The end wall does not seem to need repairs.

[New clue - Needless]
action: Go northeast
response: (first opening the small side door)

This whitewashed corridor leads further to the west, or you can
return outside to the southeast.

The third chamber's door is here, but it is clearly unimportant.

Watson accompanies you.

Miss Helen Stoner walks quietly behind you.
action: You go to the west
response: This corridor leads west to Dr. Roylott's door, or back
east to the empty room's door.

Miss Stoner's room is to the south.

Watson accompanies you.

Miss Helen Stoner walks quietly behind you.
action: Go west
response: This corridor leads west to the hall or back east to Miss
Stoner's room. You do not wish to see the entrance hall.

There is a door that leads south to Roylott's room.

Watson accompanies you.

Miss Helen Stoner walks quietly behind you.
action: Go south
response: (first opening Dr. Roylott's door)
Dr Roylott's room
Dr. Grimesby Roylott's chamber is larger than that of his step-daughter, but it is as plainly furnished.

A camp-bed and a small wooden shelf full of books, mostly of a technical character, are the principal things which meet your eye.

There is also a large iron safe here.

Watson accompanies you.

Miss Helen Stoner walks quietly behind you.
action: You open safe
response: It seems to be locked.
action: You look at safe
response: It is a large iron safe with a saucer of milk on top.

[New clue - Secured]
[New clue - Creature]
action: You examine milk
response: It is a large iron safe with a saucer of milk on top.
action: You look at the books
response: The books are primarily medical treatises.
action: You examine the bed
response: You examine the bed with your magnifying glass, and find nothing. Next to it, though, is a small dog lash.
action: You look at the leash
response: A small dog lash hangs on one corner of the bed. The lash, however, is curled upon itself and tied so as to make a loop of whipcord.

[New clue - Dangerous]
action: Link dangerous to creature
response: Yes, it must have been a dangerous creature indeed.
[New clue - Predator]

[Finished with clue - Creature]

[Finished with clue - Dangerous]
action: Link speckled to Predator
response: Yes, perhaps the dangerous creature was the speckled band; you are mildly certain that the creature was a snake, but you need more evidence.
[New clue - Snake]

[Finished with clue - Creature]
action: You drink the milk
response: where clues you know can be found by typing CLUES. In situations of boredom or extreme excitement, Sherlock can only TALK TO individuals.]
action: You look
response: Dr. Grimesby Roylott's chamber is larger than that of his step-daughter, but it is as plainly furnished.

A camp-bed and a small wooden shelf full of books, mostly of a technical character, are the principal things which meet your eye.

There is also a large iron safe here.

Miss Helen Stoner is waiting patiently.

Watson is paying close attention to Miss Helen Stoner.

You can also see a small dog lash here.
action: Go north
response: This corridor leads west to the hall or back east to Miss
Stoner's room. You do not wish to see the entrance hall.

There is a door that leads south to Roylott's room.

Watson accompanies you.

Miss Helen Stoner walks quietly behind you.
action: You go to the east
response: This corridor leads west to Dr. Roylott's door, or back
east to the empty room's door.

Miss Stoner's room is to the south.

Watson accompanies you.

Miss Helen Stoner walks quietly behind you.
action: Go south
response: (first opening Miss Stoner's door)

You enter into the second room, in which Miss Stoner's sister met her fate.

It is a homely little room, with a low ceiling. A brown chest of drawers stands in one corner, a narrow white-counterpaned bed in another, and a dressing-table on the left-hand side of the window. The corridor was to the north.

There were several features of the room that stood out to me as most unusual.

Watson accompanies you.

Miss Helen Stoner walks quietly behind you.
action: You look athe bell-pull
response: The bell-pull was a thick rope, the tassel actually lying upon the bed.

[New clue - Communication]
action: You look
response: You enter into the second room, in which Miss Stoner's sister met her fate.

It is a homely little room, with a low ceiling. A brown chest of drawers stands in one corner, a narrow white-counterpaned bed in another, and a dressing-table on the left-hand side of the window. The corridor was to the north.

There were several features of the room that stood out to me as most unusual.

Miss Helen Stoner is waiting patiently.

Watson is paying close attention to Miss Helen Stoner.
action: You examinthe dressing-table
response: You see immediately that the dressing-table is unimportant.
action: You examine the drawers
response: A quick glance assures you that the brown chest of drawers is unimportant.
action: You pull the bell
response: You give the bell-pull a brisk tug. Nothing happens.

You see that the rope is not a bell-pull at all; it is fastened to a hook just above where the little opening for the ventilator is.

[New clue - Fake]

[Finished with clue - Communication]
action: You examine the ventilator
response: The ventilator communicates between Miss Stoner's rom and Dr. Roylott's room.

[Finished with clue - Fresh]

[Finished with clue - Cigars]
action: You link fake to the Snake
response: Yes, the bell pull would be a perfect bridge for a snake to crawl down from the ventilator. You are almost convinced that the speckled band was a snake.

[Finished with clue - Fake]
action: Link connected to Snake
response: Yes, a snake could fit through; you are certain that the speckled band is a snake.

[Finished with clue - Connected]

[Finished with clue - Hallway]

[Finished with clue - Shutters]

This is very serious. You must catch the doctor in the act, but there will be great danger. You should reveal your plan to Miss Helen Stoner.

[New clue - Plan]
action: You say the plan to Helen
response: [Finished with clue - Plan]

It's time for you to reveal your plan to Miss Stoner, and to Watson.

[You can IMPRESS her with the seriousness, or you can ABRIDGE your plan.]
action: You impress
response: (Miss Helen Stoner)
"It is very essential, Miss Stoner," you say, "that you should absolutely follow my advice in every respect."

"I shall most certainly do so."

[You can IMPRESS her with the seriousness, or you can ABRIDGE your plan.]
action: Continue
response: (Miss Helen Stoner)
You say, "The matter is too serious for any hesitation. Your life may depend upon your compliance."

"I assure you that I am in your hands."

[You can IMPRESS her with the seriousness, or you can ABRIDGE your plan.]
action: Continue
response: (Miss Helen Stoner)
You say, "In the first place, both my friend and I must spend the night in your room."

Both Miss Stoner and Watson gaze at you in astonishment.

[You can IMPRESS her with the seriousness, or you can ABRIDGE your plan.]
action: You continue
response: (Miss Helen Stoner)
You say, "Yes, it must be so. Let me explain. I believe that that is the village inn over there?"

"Yes, that is the Crown."

"Very good. Your windows would be visible from there?"

"Certainly."

"You must confine yourself to your room, on pretence of a headache, when your stepfather comes back. Then when you hear him retire for the night, you must open the shutters of your window, undo the hasp, put your lamp there as a signal to us, and then withdraw quietly with everything which you are likely to want into the room which you used to occupy. I have no doubt that, in spite of the repairs, you could manage there for one night."

"Oh, yes, easily."

[You can IMPRESS her with the seriousness, or you can ABRIDGE your plan.]
action: You continue
response: (Miss Helen Stoner)
You say, "The rest you will leave in our hands."

"But what will you do?"

"We shall spend the night in your room, and we shall investigate the cause of this noise which has disturbed you."

"I believe, Mr. Holmes, that you have already made up your mind," says Miss Stoner, laying her hand upon your sleeve.

"Perhaps I have.

It is time to go, now.
action: You go to the north
response: This corridor leads west to Dr. Roylott's door, or back
east to the empty room's door.

Miss Stoner's room is to the south.

Watson accompanies you.

Miss Helen Stoner walks quietly behind you.
action: You go east
response: This whitewashed corridor leads further to the west, or you can
return outside to the southeast.

The third chamber's door is here, but it is clearly unimportant.

Watson accompanies you.

Miss Helen Stoner walks quietly behind you.
action: Go southeast
response: The right-hand block is comparatively modern, and the blinds in the windows show that this is where the family resides. These draw your interest.

Some scaffolding has been erected against the end wall, and the stone-work had been broken into, but there are no signs of any workmen. There is something clearly wrong with the scaffolding.

There is a small side door to the northeast. You can return to
the central portion to the west.

Watson accompanies you.

Miss Helen Stoner walks quietly behind you.
action: You go south
response: You turn to Miss Stoner. You say, "And now, Miss Stoner, we must leave you for if Dr. Roylott returned and saw us our journey would be in vain. Good-bye, and be brave, for if you will do what I have told you, you may rest assured that we shall soon drive away the dangers that threaten you."

Watson and I had had no difficulty in engaging this room at the Crown Inn. The room is on the upper floor, and from our window we command a view of the inhabited wing of Stoke Moran Manor House. The door was to the north.

There was a long night before us. Watson seemed eager to learn more of the case.

[You can SAY clues TO WATSON if you would like to keep him informed, or WAIT for Dr. Roylott].

Watson accompanies you.
action: You say Snake to Watson
response: You prefer to keep your private conjectures to yourself.
action: You say the Gypsy to Watson
response: You say, "Watson, what do you think of the gypsies as the perpetrators of this crime?"

"But what, then, did the gipsies do?" asks Watson.

"I cannot imagine."

"I see many objections to any such theory."

"And so do I."
action: You say needless to Watson
response: You say, "By the way, the stonework at the end of the wall seems unnecessary."

Watson nods. "I agree."
action: You say bolted to Watson
response: You say, "What do you make of the fact that the windows were bolted?"

Watson says "If the lady is correct in saying that the flooring and walls are sound, and that the window is impassable, then something came through the door, or her sister must have been undoubtedly alone when she met her mysterious end.

"Hum!" you say, scratching your chin in some perplexity, "my theory certainly presents some difficulties. No one could pass these shutters if they were bolted. Well, we shall see if the inside throws any light upon the matter."
action: You say secured to Watson
response: "Watson, what do you think is kept in the safe?"

He answers, "Why, I would imagine it is simply his papers, deeds, and other items."
action: You say speckled to Watson
response: You say, "What do you make, Watson, concerning the very peculiar words uttered by the dying woman concerning a speckled band?"

"I cannot think."
action: You say the safety to Watson
response: You say, "What do you make of the fact that the Stoners" doors were locked?"

Watson says, "Then, as I said, her sister must have been undoubtedly alone when she met her mysterious end."
action: You wait
response: At dusk you see Dr. Grimesby Roylott drive past, his huge form looming up beside the little figure of the lad who drives him. The boy has some slight difficulty in undoing the heavy iron gates, and you hear the hoarse roar of the doctor's voice and see the fury with which he shakes his clinched fists at him. The trap drives on, and a few minutes later you see a sudden light spring up among the trees as a lamp is lit in one of the sitting-rooms.

You still are waiting for a signal from Miss Stoner.

There was a long night before us. Watson seemed eager to learn more of the case.

[You can SAY clues TO WATSON if you would like to keep him informed, or WAIT for Dr. Roylott].
action: You wait
response: About nine o'clock the light among the trees is extinguished, and all is dark in the direction of the Manor House. Two hours pass slowly away, and then, suddenly, just at the stroke of eleven, a single bright light shines out right in front of you.

"That is our signal," you say, springing to your feet; "it comes from the middle window."
action: Go north
response: As you pass out you exchange a few words with the landlord, explaining that you are going on a late visit to an acquaintance, and that it is possible that you might spend the night there. A moment later you are out on the dark road, a chill wind blowing in your faces, and one yellow light twinkling in front of you through the gloom to guide you on your sombre errand.

You have entered the grounds through the unrepaired breaches that gape in the old park wall to the south. Past the lawn is the open
window, to the north. Before it are some laurel bushes.

Watson accompanies you.
action: Go north
response: Out from the clump of laurel bushes darts what seems to be a hideous and distorted child, who throws itself upon the grass with writhing limbs and then runs swiftly across the lawn into the darkness.

"My Goodness!" whispers Watson; "did you see it?"

You are startled, then break into a low laugh, and whisper to Watson. "It is a nice household," you murmur. "That is the baboon."

Now you can enter the window to the north.
action: You go to the north
response: You noiselessly close the shutters, move the lamp, and cast your eyes round the room. All is as you saw it in the daytime; the rest of the house is to the north. The lamp should be turned off to avoid detection.

Watson accompanies you.
action: You turn off the lamp
response: You turn off the lamp. It is time to wait.

It is now pitch dark in here!
action: You wait
response: You wait for hours. From outside comes the occasional cry of a night-bird, and once you hear a long drawn catlike whine, which tells you that the cheetah is at liberty.

Far away you hear the deep tones of the parish clock, which boom out every quarter of an hour.

Twelve strikes, and one and two and three.

Suddenly there is the momentary gleam of a light up in the direction of the ventilator, which vanishes immediately, but is succeeded by a strong smell of burning oil and heated metal. Someone in the next room had lit a dark-lantern. You hear a gentle sound of movement, and then all is silent once more, though the smell grows stronger.

There is nothing to do but wait.
action: You wait
response: You wait another half an hour with straining ears. Then suddenly another sound becomes audible-a very gentle, soothing sound, like that of a small jet of steam escaping continually from a kettle.

Watson strikes a match. You ready your cane. It is here, the viper!

Watson is bewildered; he holds the match and peers at the bell-pull.

The speckled band writhes on the bell-pull.
action: Hit band
response: You beat at it with your cane until it retreats through the ventilator. Its snakish temper is aroused!

As you stand there panting, there breaks from the silence of the night the most horrible cry to which you have ever listened. It swells up louder and louder, a hoarse yell of pain and fear and anger all mingled in the one dreadful shriek. It strikes cold to your heart, and you stand gazing at Watson, and he at you, until the last echoes of it die away into the silence from which it rose.

It's time to see what's become of Dr. Roylott.
action: You go to the north
response: This corridor leads west to Dr. Roylott's door, or back
east to the empty room's door.

Miss Stoner's room is to the south.

It's time to see what's become of Dr. Roylott.

Watson accompanies you.
action: Go west
response: This corridor leads west to the hall or back east to Miss
Stoner's room. You do not wish to see the entrance hall.

There is a door that leads south to Roylott's room.

It's time to see what's become of Dr. Roylott.

Watson accompanies you.
action: You go south
response: (first opening Dr. Roylott's door)
Twice you strike at the chamber door without any reply. Then you turn the handle, and enter, Watson at your heels, with a cocked pistol in his hand.

A dark-lantern stands with the shutter half open, throwing a brilliant beam of light upon the iron safe, the door of which is ajar.

On a wooden chair sits Dr. Grimesby Roylott clad in a long grey dressing-gown, his bare ankles protruding beneath, and his feet thrust into red heelless Turkish slippers. Across his lap lays the short stock with the long lash which we had noticed during the day, far from the serpent's reach but within your own.

His chin was cocked upward and his eyes were fixed in a dreadful, rigid stare at the corner of the ceiling. Round his head was wrapped the swamp adder. He made neither sound nor motion.

You can see Dr Roylott and a small dog lash here.

The speckled band slowly writhes around the Doctor's head. You dare not come within its reach.

Watson accompanies you.
action: You shoot the Snake
response: where clues you know can be found by typing CLUES. In situations of boredom or extreme excitement, Sherlock can only TALK TO individuals.]

The snake has noticed you!
action: You talk to Watson
response: You can only communicate with Watson about clues, at this time.

The viper seems agitated. You must hurry!
action: You hit the Snake
response: (the speckled band)
You need something...the dog lash is far from the adder. You could take it.

The adder is ready to strike!
action: You take lash
response: Taken.

The snake leaps forward! Watson tries to shoot it, but his shot goes wild.
action: You get the lash
response: Taken.

The snake has noticed you!
action: You get the Snake
response: (the speckled band)
The speckled band does not look like he would appreciate that.

The viper seems agitated. You must hurry!
action: Trap snake
response: (the speckled band)
Throwing the noose round the reptile's neck, you draw it from its horrid perch and, carrying it at arm's length, throw it into the iron safe, which you close upon it.

You are travelling home on the train.