<html><style>body {background-image: url("http://www.islahinck.com/FahlstaffMap/FahlstaffSiteBG23.jpg");
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</style>The Fahlstaff City Council welcomes you and thanks you for your interest in our beautiful city!
Please accept a gift from us before beginning on your journey! You may choose between this [[small wooden box]] or this [[twig spraypainted gold]].
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(set: $gift to 1)
The Fahlstaff City Council welcomes you and thanks you for your interest in our beautiful city!
Please accept a gift from us before beginning on your journey! You may choose between this small wooden box or this twig spraypainted gold.
(if: $gift is 1)[You pick up the small wooden box in your hands. It is smooth and pleasing to the touch, you can't seem to get it open. In fact it is impossible to tell if it does open. You only surmise it is a box and not a solid block of wood because you can hear something rattling around inside it.]
Where would you like to go first?
[[Arts District]].
[[Fahlstaff River]].
[[Destiny Park]].
[[County Road H]].<style>
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(set: $gift to 2)
The Fahlstaff City Council welcomes you and thanks you for your interest in our beautiful city!
Please accept a gift from us before beginning on your journey! You may choose between this small wooden box or this twig spraypainted gold.
(if: $gift is 2)[You pick up the twig. A bit of the gold spraypaint comes off on your hands.]
Where would you like to go first?
[[Arts District]].
[[Fahlstaff River]].
[[Destiny Park]].
[[County Road H]].
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Art plays a huge part in the lives of Fahlstaffians. Near historic City Hall (some artists have joked "Oppressed by City Hall") the Fahlstaff Arts District is a bustling hub of artistic expression.
While you're here take a look at the local artist's work. Pick up a few paintings or Fahlstaff Dolls, or visit the home of famous Fahlstaff artists like the political cartoonist [[Gloria "Franz" Kaufmann]].
Sadly, another notable site in the Arts District, [[The Speaking House]], was recently demolished.
[[City Hall]].
[[Church of Nothingness]].
[[Old Main Street]].
[[Fahlstaff River]].<style>
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Fahlstaff River is the fifth cleanest river in the world, thanks in no small part to being protected as a National Riverway. It is also the site of the world's second largest logjam. It took months for the loggers to knock the logs loose and clear the river for boats again. Commerce was significantly impacted during these months and gave rise to a special breed of wagoner that would outfit boats with wheels to move them past the clogged river passage. The bottom of Fahlstaff River is littered with submerged logs, or DeadHeads, to this day.
Legend says that the Fahlstaff river is home to angry spirits that, if disturbed, will drag hapless swimmers to the bottom and hold them there forever. Other scholars submit that this is merely undertow, a naturally occuring phenomenon.
[[Fahlstaff woods]].
[[Floating Logging Town]].
[[The Coast]].
[[Destiny Park]].
[[Arts District]].
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Destiny Park was founded in the late 1800s as Devil's Clearing Park. It was renamed Destiny Park in 1967 after prominant Fahlstaff poet Candice Destiny. Ms. Destiny is known for her bleak tone but hopeful message, for example: "This Earth is scorched and bleeding / But there I see the furtive signs of life"
Destiny Park is home to beautiful [[Japanese]] inspired buildings and lovely [[forest paths]].
The Park also boasts stunning [[panoramic views]] of Fahlstaff! Great for picnics!
Destiny Park is also one of the safest parks in Fahlstaff, the only reported crime known to have taken place here was a quadruple murder in 1966.
[[Fahlstaff River]].
[[County Road H]].
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*Note from Fahlstaff City Council: Cameras don't seem to work on Country Road H, scientists posit that there is too much electromagnetic interference, as such the photograph shown here is not of County Road H. Thank you for your understanding.
County Road H is a picturesque country thoroughfare leading into and out of Fahlstaff. There are many roads which lead to Fahlstaff but this is the most travelled and storied of all of them. Urban legends mention disappearances, strange lights, voices in the wind, errors in timekeeping devices, etc. It is advised that whenever possible one should employ the buddy system when using County Road H, if for no other reason than to have someone able to corroborate your stories.
[[Destiny Park]].<style>
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The Fahlstaff woods are famously dense, home to all manner of wildlife and mysteries. One such mystery is the case of the disappearing cabin. There are various reports of a cabin being spotting in a dark corner of these woods, even well documented reports, with GPS coordinates, but when other individuals attempt to return to the location no structures are found. One account described the cabin as "really quite lovely despite the omnipresent feeling of dread."
(if: $gift is 1)[As you walk deeper into the dense and opressive woods you notice something out of the corner of your eye, you can't be sure, but is that... in the distance there... is that wood running horizontal instead of vertical? You move forward. There it is! The cabin! It is dark brown, built of some kind of beautiful heavy wood. The same wood as the box you are carrying as a matter of fact. The cabin is indeed lovely, though you are filled with a deep trepidation as you mount the porch. You walk forward, not really sure why, and reach out for the handle. You open the door carefully and look [[inside]].]
[[Old Logging Site]].
[[Destiny Park]].
[[County Road H]].
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The inside of the cabin is pleasant, warm, well furnished, if not a little dusty. There is a tree that has grown through the floor in the back right corner. It extends all the way up through the ceiling. Judging by the size of the trunk the tree is ancient.
"Go ahead, ask it a question."
You jump and whirl to look behind you to your left. A very old man sits in an even older wooden chair. He has a long white beard, his legs are wrapped in a wool blanket, his arms are bandaged, he seems to be blind as he is not looking directly at you.
"Sorry to startle you."
You also notice that the door is now shut. You didn't hear it close. The old man pokes a metal rod into the fireplace, which has a few glowing coals in it. You hadn't noticed the fireplace until now either.
"You can ask the tree a question. It'll tell you the truth. But I'll need to take my box back, if that's alright."
You look at the tree. Then at the box in your hands. The old man reaches out his frail shaking arms toward you.
Do you [[give him the box]] or [[keep the box for yourself]]?<style>
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You hand the old man the box, careful not to touch his bandaged hands. (set: $gift to 0) A smile creeps across his lips, not melicious, but certainly unpleasant.
"Ask your question of the tree. Think it in your mind. Think it clearly. And you shall have your answer."
As he says this the old man opens the box effortlessly, sliding the wooden top aside with the push of his thumb. From within the box he removes what looks like a small stone egg. Gray and speckled, perhaps made of granite or marble. He sets the egg inside a bird's nest made of tiny twigs which sits on a shelf behind him. You notice there are two other stone eggs in the nest.
"There you go. There you go." He says quietly to the eggs as he gingerly arranges them next to each other.
He looks up at you. "Ask. Ask. But keep it yes or no, it is just a tree after all."
You turn to the tree unsure what to ask. You think for a moment until you are certain you have the right question held in your mind. Without speaking you [ask the tree]<ask|
(click: ?ask)[(either: "'No.'", "'Never.'", "'Patience.'", "'Yes.'", "'Yes, but not in the way you'd like.'")
The voice of the tree appears in your mind like a thought. Except you can tell it is not //your// thought, the feeling is not exactly enjoyable.
"There. You have your answer." You turn and look at the old man. He is turned to the bird's nest. There are three tiny baby birds inside it. They cheep cheerfully as he feeds them liquid from an eyedropper.
You notice that the door is open again though you did not hear or see it move.
"You are welcome back anytime, though you'll likely never find us again. For now I think you'd better go, I think these little ones need some rest." He smiles his strange smile at the baby birds.
You look around for a moment, then leave.
[[Fahlstaff woods]].
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You draw the box in close to yourself. The old man waits a moment longer then lowers his arms, a look of deep sadness on his face. For the first time he seems to really look at you.
"Very well."
The old man looks down at his lap. The tree seems to creak in the wind causing you to look toward the tree, nothing seems to have changed. When you turn back to look at the old man he is gone. The ancient chair is covered in ancient dust, undisturbed for countless many years. The fireplace is cold. The entire cabin feels cold to you now. You notice the door is open again, though you never heard or saw it move. The feeling of dread you felt before entering the cabin has been replaced be a deep sadness. It is as though melancholy is a part of the very air you are breathing. It hangs on everything. You feel you can not bear to stand in this cabin a second longer.
You walk out through the door. When you look back the cabin is gone, along with the tree growing inside it.
[[Fahlstaff woods]].<style>
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This wonderful Japanese style building was built in honor of popular Fahlstaffian chef Koharu Yamamoto who's prized dishes included a wonderful Mebaru no Nitsuke (or Stewed Rockfish) and a scrumptions Oden. She was also well known for playing her violin in the kitchen of her restaurant The Dawn Flower. Superstitious patrons to this day claim to hear violin wafting in from the kitchen from time to time. Current head chef Sana Ota denies rumors that the staff simply plays a recording of a violin from time to time.
[[Destiny Park]].<style>
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Destiny Park is home to many winding forest paths.
*Note from Fahlstaff City Council: Reports of large blue spiders have been coming in from certain Southern paths in Destiny Park. If you see such spiders you are advised not to approach them.
[[Destiny Park]]<style>
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Fahlstaff River is home to a roaming waterborne Logging Town that was abandonded some time in the 1800s. The loggers would move the entire establishment up and down the river as they went ashore to cut the trees. This mobility allowed them to work more efficiantly and never be too far from home. When logging was outlawed in Fahlstaff in the early 1900s the town was abandoned, left to float for all time. It is unknown how the town manages to float upstream, but it does, never going too far up or down river from Fahlstaff. The town is now mostly inhabited by eagles.
[[Fahlstaff River]].
[[Destiny Park]].
[[County Road H]].<style>
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In various places around Fahlstaff woods curious explorers might find tools or homes left behind by the old loggers. It is advised to leave these tools where they lie, for fear of tetnis, wildlife, and upsetting any nearby ghosts.
Also, if you encounter any [[Strange Moss]] please don't eat it.
[[Fahlstaff woods]].
[[Destiny Park]].
[[County Road H]].<style>
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(set: $alertText to (font:"Courier New") + (text-style: "shudder") +
(colour:"#FF3300"))
The Strange Moss found in Fahlstaff woods, named for Jacob "Strange" Strandello, can cause horrifying visions if ingested. Even the most adventurous narcotically inclined individuals avoid Strange Moss.
(if: $gift is 5)[You are walking through the forest when you feel a sudden compulsion to eat some of the moss. The feeling is overpowering, you fear that if you do not eat the moss you might go mad.
You take a handful of the moss and thrust it into your mouth, chewing ravenously. You look up $alertText[and see eyes everywhere in the forest watching you. Terrible hungry eyes. They belong to beasts beyond imagining. Some horrible viscous liquid drips from the eyes. Down tentacles. Across huge lipless beaks lined with razor sharp teeth.
You are knee deep in this liquid. It makes your skin itch and burn terribly. You hear a voice calling your name. But it sounds horrible, like a thousand screams. Grinding bones. Gnashing teeth.
You know that these creatures have killed everyone you've ever loved. You suddenly feel so desperately sad and lost that you fall to your knees. The liquid is rising, it burns your arms. It splashes in your eyes. You are unable to move.
You look up and see the eyes are closer now. The tentacles are reaching for you now. Your vision is blurring as your eyes burn out of your head.
The last thing you feel are the bites.]
You wake up many hours later. You are very thirsty and very depressed.]
[[Fahlstaff woods]].
[[Fahlstaff River]].
[[Destiny Park]].<style>
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Imagine having a picnic with this marvelous view!
[[Destiny Park]].<style>
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Gloria Kaufmann, or "Franz" to her friends, was a well respected political cartoonist. She lived in this house until she was 87 years old when, if accounts are to be believed, she "drew herself out of existance. Like some sort of inverse Drawing Hands by Escher."
[[Arts District]].<style>
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Wonderful Historic City Hall! Where many of Fahlstaff's more irritating decisions are made. Make sure you take the Architectural Tour or the popular Corruption in Fahlstaff Tour. The latter is not sanctioned by City Hall so athletic shoes are advised. The tour begins at different places each time, so be sure to check their twitter account for more information.
[[Arts District]].<style>
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The Speaking House was a famously opinionated building in Fahlstaff that would "speak" by changing the graffiti adorning its Southern facing outter wall. No one could explain this phenomenon. It was thought for many years to be the work of an artist or artists who refused to claim their work. But in 1996 cameras were installed to constantly monitor the side of the building and it was revealled that no human hands were influancing the messaging on the side of the building. Infuriatingly the change seemed to take place instantly. The cameras monitored at thirty frames per second and whenever the messaging would change it would say one thing in one frame and something completely different in the next. Sometimes messages would remain for days other times they would change several times a day. The building, and, alas, security cameras, were destroyed by the mob. It is thought the building knew too much.
(if: $gift is 2)[As you look at the former site of The Speaking House, now a vacant lot adorned with nothing but weeds and twigs, you happen to look down at the gold spraypainted twig in your hands. Except now it isn't gold, it's a metalic red! There seems to be something written on it in a classic graffiti style. You rotate the twig in your hands, trying to make out the message. As soon as you realize the message reads "RUN!" someone on a motorcycle rushes by and hits you hard on the head. You can't be sure but you think maybe they were wearing a frilly neck collar. You [[black out]]. (set: $gift to 3) ]
[[Arts District]].<style>
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The Church of Nothingness is the church for a popular religious sect in Fahlstaff. The Church combines the beliefs of Buddhism, Taoism, and Christianity into a very loose religion, the main precept of which could largly be summed up with the phrase "don't be a jerk."
[[Crescent Park]].
[[City Hall]].
[[Arts District]].<style>
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You come to a few hours later. Your head hurts quite a bit. You look around for your mysterious assailant but see no one.
[[Arts District]].<style>
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Crescent Park is a large residential neighborhood in Fahlstaff notable for it's reasonable rates, reasonable saftey, and morotorium on cat ownership.
[[Crescent Heights]].<style>
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Crescent Heights is an affluent neighborhood known for its exorbitant rates, extreme policing, and mandatory cat ownership.
[[Crescent Park]].
[[Arts District]].
[[City Hall]].
[[Church of Nothingness]].<style>
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"Old Main Street" is, as you my have guessed, the Fahlstaffian hub for gourmet cuisine. Home to The Dawn Flower, The Aching Heart, and many other famous Fahlstaff "feasteries" Old Main Street is the place to eat!
(if: $gift is 3)[As you walk down Old Main Street you look down an alley, though, the alley doesn't seem to make any sense, instead of being lined with buildings, such as those the facades of which you can clearly see and should line the alley, this alley is lined with tall trees.
[[Go down the Alley]].]
[[Arts District]].
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You walk down the alley. You seem to be somewhere else entirely. The sounds of the city can't be heard. The air seems more like country air. There is a chill in the breeze.
You walk almost to the end of the alley when you see a man running across the path. A man with a ruffled collar like someone might wear in a classic Shakespearean play. Or like one might wear when knocking someone out and stealing their strange magic twig! You run after the man into a small clearing behind one of the trees. There are several other people, all wearing similar Shakespearean costumes.
"Hello!" Says the man who hit you, you're pretty sure it was him. "Welcome!"
You keep your guard up, you look at them skeptically.
"We are a roaming company of performers. Today we are putting on some favorite scenes from Shakespeare! Would you care to watch? Oh, and sorry about that bonk on the head! We had lost one of our most important props, and it can be dangerous in the wrong hands!"
"You didn't need to resort to violence however!" A woman from the troupe calls to the man, speaking much louder than she probably needed to.
"You're right!" Says the violent man. "You're right. I'm very sorry." He says this to the woman. Then he turns to you. "I'm very sorry. Does your head hurt at all?"
You notice that it does not and shake your head.
"There! See?!" He says to the woman. "I used my special gloves!"
She waves him off as though they argue about things like this all the time and she seldom agrees with his methods but has resigned herself to the fact that these descussions can only ever go so far.
"Anyway," says the man "would you care to watch?"
[[Watch]].
Return to [[Old Main Street]].<style>
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You watch as they perform, quite well, some scenes from Hamlet, Macbeth, Much Ado About Nothing, and Tempest. You laugh at all the right places, and your heart races at others. You nearly begin to cry at one point. They are all quite marvelous. After the final scene they all bow and you clap your hands.
"Thank you! Thank you! You are a wonderful audience!" The man says to you.
"If you would like to make a donation we would be ever so grateful!" The woman adds. All the performers bow again and hold their hands out to their right indicating a box with Donations written on it in gold paint.
You pat yourself down, realize you do have a few bills in your pocket and stand up.
Give them your [[twenty]].
Give them your [[five]].<style>
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The performers all stand up and smile.
"Thank you! Thank you! You are so very kind!" The man says. "And again, I'm sorry about that bump on the noggin. Here, this is for you!"
He hands you a folded piece of paper. You look down, unfold it and read the word "Lighthouse" written upon it.
When you look back up they are gone. No trace of them remains.
(set: $gift to 4)
[[Old Main Street]].<style>
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"Thank you! You are very kind!" The man says. "Thank you for joining us today. Again, I'm sorry I hit you. Here, this is for you."
He hands you a piece of paper. You look down, unfold it, and read the word "Moss" written on it.
(set: $gift to 5)
[[Old Main Street]].<style>
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The Fahlstaff coast is beautiful. Home to many islands and sunken ships.
The historic Fahlstaff [[Lighthouse]] has been keeping the harbors safe for over 100 years!
[[Fahlstaff River]].<style>
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The Fahlstaff Lighthouse was built anonymously more than 100 years ago and has been kept up ever since. Remodled in the late 1950s Randolf Sadd the Lighthouse has spared many ships from a disastrous end.
(if: $gift is 4)[As you walk up to the Lighthouse you see a little wooden sign fallen over in the tall grass beside the path. On the sign is written a Sonnet from Shakespeare:
//Let me not to the marriage of true minds
Admit impediments. Love is not love
Which alters when it alteration finds,
Or bends with the remover to remove:
O, no! it is an ever-fixed mark,
That looks on tempests and is never shaken;
It is the star to every wandering bark,
Whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken.
Love's not Time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks
Within his bending sickle's compass come;
Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,
But bears it out even to the edge of doom.
If this be error and upon me proved,
I never writ, nor no man ever loved.//
You right the sign and stack some rocks against the pole to keep it from falling down again.]
[[The Coast]].