openthebox/content/adventures/space/intro.lor

// Space Adventure - Open The Box
// Theme: Space exploration with boxes floating in the void

character captain
  name: Captain Nova

character ai
  name: ARIA
  role: Ship AI

character alien
  name: Zx'thorp
  role: Alien Merchant

state
  fuel: 100
  discovered: 0
  hasSpaceBox: false
  trustAlien: false

beat Intro
  The ship hums quietly as you drift through sector 7-G. #intro-hum
  ai: Commander, scanners are detecting something unusual. #intro-scan
  ai: A box. Floating in space. Defying several laws of physics. #intro-box
  captain: A box? In space? #captain-box

  choice
    Investigate the box #opt-investigate
      -> InvestigateBox
    Ignore it and continue #opt-ignore
      -> IgnoreBox
    Run a deep scan first|||Fuel reserves insufficient for deep scan #opt-scan if fuel > 20
      fuel -= 20
      -> DeepScan

beat DeepScan
  ai: Deep scan initiated. Fuel reserves reduced. #deepscan-init
  ai: Analysis complete. The box appears to be... sentient? #deepscan-result
  ai: It's humming a tune. I believe it's... the box theme. #deepscan-humming
  captain: The box theme? #captain-theme
  ai: Every box has a theme, Commander. Didn't you know? #ai-theme

  choice
    Open the sentient box #opt-open-sentient
      -> OpenSpaceBox
    Try to communicate with it #opt-communicate
      -> CommunicateBox
    Back away slowly #opt-backaway
      -> BackAway

beat InvestigateBox
  You approach the box carefully. It's about a meter wide, floating serenely. #investigate-approach
  captain: It's... beautiful. #captain-beautiful
  ai: Commander, I wouldn't use that word for a box. #ai-beautiful
  captain: You don't tell me what words to use for boxes, ARIA. #captain-words

  choice
    Open it immediately #opt-open-now
      -> OpenSpaceBox
    Scan it first|||Not enough fuel for a scan #opt-scan-first if fuel > 10
      fuel -= 10
      -> ScanThenOpen
    Poke it with a stick #opt-poke
      -> PokeBox
    Close your eyes and listen to what the box is really saying|||You sense there might be more to this box than meets the eye... #opt-whisper if hasStat("Wisdom", 10)
      -> BoxWhisperer

beat BoxWhisperer
  markSecretBranch("space_box_whisperer")
  You close your eyes. The hum of the ship fades. Something else rises -- a frequency beneath frequencies. #whisper-listen
  The box is transmitting. Not data. Not sound. Coordinates woven into the fabric of space-time itself. #whisper-coordinates
  ai: Commander, how are you doing that? The box just... aligned with your brainwaves. #ai-brainwaves
  captain: I'm not doing anything, ARIA. I'm just listening. #captain-listening
  ai: The box has shared a direct route to its home system. No fuel cost. It's folding space around us like... #ai-folding
  captain: Like folding a box? #captain-folding
  ai: I was going to say "like origami," but yes. Like folding a box. #ai-origami
  trustAlien = true
  discovered += 1
  -> OpenSpaceBox

beat PokeBox
  You extend the ship's robotic arm and gently poke the box. #poke-arm
  The box rotates 90 degrees and reveals a label: "THIS SIDE UP" #poke-label
  ai: Commander, I don't think boxes in zero gravity have an "up". #ai-gravity
  captain: Maybe the box defines its own reality. #captain-reality
  ai: That's... philosophically concerning. #ai-philosophy
  -> OpenSpaceBox

beat ScanThenOpen
  ai: Scan reveals the box contains crystallized starlight and something called a "Nebula Shard". #scan-contents
  ai: Also what appears to be a very small, very angry alien. #scan-alien
  captain: Define "very small". #captain-small
  ai: Approximately the size of a box. Commander, I think the alien IS a box. #ai-alienbox
  -> OpenSpaceBox

beat IgnoreBox
  You set course away from the mysterious box. #ignore-course
  ai: Commander, the box is... following us. #ai-following
  captain: What? #captain-what
  ai: It appears to have tiny thrusters. And what I can only describe as determination. #ai-thrusters
  captain: A determined box. My favorite kind. #captain-determined
  discovered += 1
  -> OpenSpaceBox

beat CommunicateBox
  captain: ARIA, open a channel to the box. #comm-channel
  ai: Commander, it's a box. #ai-itsabox
  captain: I said open a channel. #captain-channel
  ai: Channel open, Commander. #ai-channelopen
  captain: Hello, box. I am Captain Nova. I come in peace. #captain-peace
  The box vibrates gently. It seems pleased. #comm-vibrate
  ai: Commander, the box just sent us coordinates. And what appears to be... a friendship request? #ai-friendship
  trustAlien = true
  -> OpenSpaceBox

beat BackAway
  You engage reverse thrusters. The sentient box watches you leave. #back-thrusters
  ai: Commander, the box looks... sad. #ai-sad
  captain: Boxes don't have feelings, ARIA. #captain-feelings
  ai: This one does. I'm reading elevated levels of box-sadness. #ai-boxsadness
  captain: That's not a real metric. #captain-metric
  ai: It is now. Box-sadness level: 7 out of 10. #ai-level

  choice
    Go back to the box #opt-goback
      -> CommunicateBox
    Leave for good #opt-leave
      -> LeaveForGood

beat LeaveForGood
  You leave the sentient box behind. #leave-behind
  ai: I hope you're happy, Commander. #ai-happy
  captain: I am. No weird space boxes for me today. #captain-happy
  ai: Incoming transmission. It's... from the box. #ai-transmission
  ai: It says "you'll be back. they always come back." #ai-message
  captain: That's ominous. I love it. #captain-ominous
  -> Ending

beat OpenSpaceBox
  hasSpaceBox = true
  discovered += 1
  You carefully open the box. Light spills out from within. #open-light

  if trustAlien
    Inside you find a Nebula Shard, pulsing with friendly energy. #open-friendly
    alien: Ah, a fellow box appreciator! Take this as a gift from my collection. #alien-gift
    captain: The alien WAS the box? #captain-wasbox
    alien: I'm Zx'thorp. #alien-intro
    -> AlienEncounter
  else
    Inside you find a Nebula Shard and what appears to be a map to more boxes. #open-normal
    ai: Commander, the map shows three more floating boxes in nearby sectors. #ai-morebox
    captain: Three more boxes. This is either Christmas or a trap. #captain-christmas
    ai: In space, those are often the same thing. #ai-same
    -> SpaceExploration

beat AlienEncounter
  alien: I've been collecting boxes across the galaxy for centuries. #alien-collecting
  alien: Most species open them. Very few appreciate them. #alien-appreciate
  captain: I appreciate boxes. Especially ones with good loot. #captain-loot
  alien: "Loot." What a crude word for cosmic treasures. #alien-crude

  choice
    Ask about the galaxy's rarest box #opt-rare-box
      -> RareBoxStory
    Trade items with Zx'thorp #opt-trade
      -> AlienTrade
    Challenge the alien to a box-opening contest #opt-contest
      -> BoxContest

beat RareBoxStory
  alien: The Singularity Box. It contains everything and nothing. Also a coupon. #alien-singularity
  captain: A coupon? For what? #captain-coupon
  alien: For another Singularity Box. It's boxes all the way down. #alien-coupon-answer
  captain: You're saying the universe is just boxes inside boxes? #captain-boxes-inside
  alien: Now you're getting it, Captain. #alien-getting-it
  ai: Commander, I'm detecting a slight existential crisis in your vitals. #ai-existential
  captain: I'm fine, ARIA. Just rethinking everything I know about reality. #captain-fine
  -> Ending

beat AlienTrade
  alien: I have a Space Helmet for you. In exchange, I want... a story. #alien-trade-offer
  captain: A story? #captain-story
  alien: Tell me about the first box you ever opened. #alien-first-box
  captain: It was small. Cardboard. My parents gave it to me. Inside was a toy rocket ship. #captain-first-box-story
  alien: ... #alien-pause
  alien: That's the most beautiful thing I've ever heard. #alien-beautiful-trade
  The alien removes its helmet and places it gently in your hands. Its eyes -- all seven of them -- are glistening. #alien-gives-helmet
  captain: Are you... crying? #captain-crying
  alien: We don't cry. We leak appreciation fluid. It's different. #alien-appreciation
  -> Ending

beat BoxContest
  alien: You dare? No one out-opens Zx'thorp! #alien-dare
  alien: ...fine. Best of three. You open first. #alien-contest

  choice
    Open with confidence #opt-confident
      -> ContestRoundOne
    Open with theatrical flair #opt-flair
      -> ContestFlair

beat ContestFlair
  markSecretBranch("space_box_flair")
  You crack your knuckles. You stretch your fingers. You do a little spin. #flair-spin
  captain: Watch and learn, Zx'thorp. #captain-watch
  You open the box with a flourish, confetti exploding from inside. Wait -- you didn't put confetti in there. #flair-confetti
  alien: Theatrical. I approve. 8 out of 10. #alien-score-flair
  ai: Commander, where did the confetti come from? #ai-confetti
  captain: From the heart, ARIA. From the heart. #captain-heart
  -> ContestAlienTurn

beat ContestRoundOne
  You grip the box firmly and open it in one clean motion. #contest-open
  alien: Clean technique. 7 out of 10. #alien-score
  -> ContestAlienTurn

beat ContestAlienTurn
  Zx'thorp produces a box from somewhere. You try not to think about where. #alien-produces
  The alien opens it using three of its tentacles simultaneously. The lid flies off, does a triple backflip, and lands perfectly back on the box. #alien-opens
  captain: That's... that's not even possible. #captain-impossible
  alien: 10 out of 10. I win. #alien-score-2
  ai: I'm afraid the alien is correct, Commander. That was objectively superior box-opening. #ai-correct
  captain: Rematch. One day. I'll be ready. #captain-rematch
  alien: I look forward to it, Captain. Across the stars, I'll be waiting. With boxes. #alien-waiting
  -> Ending

beat SpaceExploration
  ai: Setting course for the nearest box. ETA: approximately one dramatic pause. #explore-course

  You arrive at a cluster of three boxes, orbiting each other like a tiny solar system. #explore-cluster
  captain: A box system. Literally a system of boxes. #captain-system
  ai: The large one appears to contain the other two. It's boxes all the way down. #ai-alltheway

  choice
    Open the biggest box first #opt-big
      -> BigBox
    Open all three at once|||Not enough fuel for maximum box velocity #opt-all if fuel >= 30
      fuel -= 30
      -> AllBoxes
    Leave them orbiting, they seem happy #opt-happy
      -> HappyBoxes

beat BigBox
  You open the biggest box. Inside: two medium boxes and a note. #big-open
  The note reads: "Congratulations! You've found the Box Nebula. Population: boxes." #big-note
  captain: There's a whole nebula of boxes? #captain-nebula
  ai: Scanners confirm it, Commander. Approximately 4.7 billion boxes, all orbiting a supermassive box. #ai-billion

  choice
    We must go deeper #opt-deeper
      -> GoDeeper
    We've seen enough boxes for one day #opt-enough
      -> Ending

beat GoDeeper
  You open the two medium boxes. Each contains two smaller boxes. #deeper-open
  captain: ARIA, how many boxes is this now? #captain-how-many
  ai: I've lost count, Commander. My box-tracking subroutine has crashed. #ai-crashed
  captain: Then let the boxes count themselves. #captain-count
  ai: ...that's not how boxes work, Commander. #ai-not-how
  captain: Maybe it should be. #captain-should-be
  -> Ending

beat AllBoxes
  captain: All three, ARIA. Maximum box velocity. #captain-velocity
  ai: That's not a real measurement, but I admire your enthusiasm. Fuel reserves depleted for the maneuver. #ai-enthusiasm
  All three boxes burst open simultaneously. The contents mix together in zero gravity. #all-open
  ai: Commander, the items are forming... a bigger box. #ai-biggerbox
  captain: Of course they are. #captain-ofcourse
  ai: A bigger, better box. It's vibrating at a frequency I've never seen. I think it's... proud of itself. #ai-proud
  captain: A proud box. Now I've seen everything. #captain-everything
  ai: Commander, I doubt that very much. #ai-doubt
  -> Ending

beat HappyBoxes
  captain: Let them orbit in peace. #captain-orbit
  ai: A surprisingly philosophical choice, Commander. #ai-philosophical
  ai: The boxes seem to orbit faster. I think they're happy. #ai-happy-boxes
  captain: See? Sometimes the best box is the one you don't open. #captain-best-box
  ai: I'm going to write that down. That might be the wisest thing you've ever said. #ai-wisest
  captain: Don't get used to it. #captain-used-to-it
  -> Ending

beat Ending
  ai: Adventure complete. Updating ship's log. #ending-complete
  ai: Boxes encountered: $discovered. Box-related existential crises: 1. #ending-log
  captain: Only one? We'll do better next time. #captain-next
  ai: There's always next time, Commander. The universe is full of boxes. #ai-next
  -> .