A colorless chemical compound with a strong odor. Primarily produced by combining water with methylethelene. A solvent in industrial processes.\n\nAnd very flammable. If you pour this over something and expose it to flame, then you'll have a lovely blaze in merest seconds.\n\n[[All righty then.|You]]\n

The lower shelves are empty. You could check the upper shelves, but with no stepstool around, you'd have to [[haul yourself onto the counter|Search the upper shelves]] for a moment.\n\n[[Forget that, there's no time.|Long Counters]]\n

They're mostly empty<<if $isopropyl eq true>>.\n\n[[Nothing useful left.|Examine the glassware]]<<else>>, but you do spot a half-full container of [[isopropyl|Isopropyl alcohol]], which you take.<<set $isopropyl = true>>\n\n[[That could be useful.|Examine the glassware]]<<endif>>

If you're not going to light the explosives now, you still shouldn't leave them here - after all, that would just provide Dane with a new and more horrible weapon.\n\n[[You pick the box back up and get moving.|Beside the Exit Door]]\n

The phone clatters across the floor. There's not even time to be horrified before the outside door flies open.\n\n"LEE!" Dane roars, and you take off through the darkened halls.\n\nEven with tennis shoes, you skid across the dust. No one's been here in a very long time.\n\nYou turn the next corner [[and he's right there.|Face to face with Dane]]\n

Most of the equipment here is gone, with only a few old [[Bunsen burners|Examine the Bunsen burners]] remaining.\n\n[[Forget this, there's no time.|Long Counters]]\n

<<silently>>\n<<set $time = $time + 1>>\n<<if $killernext gt 0>>\n <<set $killerloc = $killernext>>\n <<set $killernext = 0>>\n<<endif>>\n<<if $killerdest eq $killerloc>>\n <<set $killerdest = 0>>\n<<endif>>\n\n<<if $killerloc eq 0>>\n <<if $time gt 2>>\n <<set $killernext = 3>>\n <<endif>>\n<<endif>>\n\n<<if $killerloc eq 1>>\n <<if $killerdest gt 0>>\n <<if $killerdest eq 4>>\n <<set $killernext = 4>>\n <<else>>\n <<set $killernext = 2>>\n <<endif>>\n <<else>>\n <<if (Math.random() * 3) gt 2>>\n <<if (Math.random() * 2) gt 1>>\n <<set $killernext = 2>>\n <<else>>\n <<set $killernext = 4>>\n <<endif>>\n <<endif>>\n <<endif>>\n<<endif>>\n\n<<if $killerloc eq 2>>\n <<if $killerdest gt 0>>\n <<if $killerdest eq 1>>\n <<set $killernext = 1>>\n <<else>>\n <<if $killerdest eq 3>>\n <<set $killernext = 3>>\n <<else>>\n <<set $killernext = 5>>\n <<endif>>\n <<endif>>\n <<else>>\n <<if (Math.random() * 3> gt 2>>\n <<if (Math.random() * 3> gt 1>>\n <<if (Math.random() * 2> gt 1>>\n <<set $killernext = 3>>\n <<else>>\n <<set $killernext = 5>>\n <<endif>>\n <<else>>\n <<set $killernext = 1>>\n <<endif>>\n <<endif>>\n <<endif>>\n<<endif>>\n\n<<if $killerloc eq 3>>\n <<if $killerdest gt 0>>\n <<if ($killerdest eq 1) or ($killerdest eq 2)>>\n <<set $killernext = 2>>\n <<else>>\n <<set $killernext = 6>>\n <<endif>>\n <<else>>\n <<if (Math.random() * 3) gt 2>>\n <<if (Math.random() * 2) gt 1>>\n <<set $killernext = 2>>\n <<else>>\n <<set $killernext = 6>>\n <<endif>>\n <<endif>>\n <<endif>>\n<<endif>>\n\n<<if $killerloc eq 4>>\n <<if $killerdest gt 0>>\n <<if $killerdest eq 1>>\n <<set $killernext = 1>>\n <<else>>\n <<set $killernext = 5>>\n <<endif>>\n <<else>>\n <<if (Math.random() * 3) gt 2>>\n <<if (Math.random() * 2) gt 1>>\n <<set $killernext = 1>>\n <<else>>\n <<set $killernext = 5>>\n <<endif>>\n <<endif>>\n <<endif>>\n<<endif>>\n\n<<if $killerloc eq 5>>\n <<if $killerdest gt 0>>\n <<if $killerdest eq 4>>\n <<set $killernext = 4>>\n <<else>>\n <<if ($killerdest eq 2) or ($killerdest eq 1)>>\n <<set $killernext = 2>>\n <<else>>\n <<set $killernext = 6>>\n <<endif>>\n <<endif>>\n <<else>>\n <<if (Math.random() * 3> gt 2>>\n <<if (Math.random() * 3> gt 1>>\n <<if (Math.random() * 2> gt 1>>\n <<set $killernext = 4>>\n <<else>>\n <<set $killernext = 6>>\n <<endif>>\n <<else>>\n <<set $killernext = 2>>\n <<endif>>\n <<endif>>\n <<endif>>\n<<endif>>\n\n<<if $killerloc eq 6>>\n <<if $killerdest gt 0>>\n <<if ($killerdest eq 1) or ($killerdest eq 2) or ($killerdest eq 3)>>\n <<set $killernext = 3>>\n <<else>>\n <<if ($killerdest eq 4) or ($killerdest eq 5)>>\n <<set $killernext = 5>>\n <<else>>\n <<if ($killerdest eq 7) or ($killerdest eq 9)>>\n <<set $killernext = 7>>\n <<else>>\n <<set $killernext = 8>>\n <<endif>>\n <<endif>>\n <<endif>>\n <<else>>\n <<if (Math.random() * 3> gt 2>>\n <<if (Math.random() * 4> gt 1>>\n <<if (Math.random() * 3> gt 1>>\n <<if (Math.random() * 2> gt 1>>\n <<set $killernext = 3>>\n <<else>>\n <<set $killernext = 5>>\n <<endif>>\n <<else>>\n <<set $killernext = 7>>\n <<endif>>\n <<else>>\n <<set $killernext = 8>>\n <<endif>>\n <<endif>>\n <<endif>>\n<<endif>>\n\n<<if $killerloc eq 7>>\n <<if $killerdest gt 0>>\n <<if $killerdest eq 9>>\n <<set $killernext = 9>>\n <<else>>\n <<set $killernext = 6>>\n <<endif>>\n <<else>>\n <<if (Math.random() * 3) gt 2>>\n <<if (Math.random() * 2) gt 1>>\n <<set $killernext = 8>>\n <<else>>\n <<set $killernext = 9>>\n <<endif>>\n <<endif>>\n <<endif>>\n<<endif>>\n\n<<if $killerloc eq 8>>\n <<if $killerdest gt 0>>\n <<if $killerdest eq 9>>\n <<set $killernext = 9>>\n <<else>>\n <<set $killernext = 6>>\n <<endif>>\n <<else>>\n <<if (Math.random() * 3) gt 2>>\n <<if (Math.random() * 2) gt 1>>\n <<set $killernext = 9>>\n <<else>>\n <<set $killernext = 6>>\n <<endif>>\n <<endif>>\n <<endif>>\n<<endif>>\n\n<<if $killerloc eq 9>>\n <<if $killerdest gt 0>>\n <<if $killerdest eq 8>>\n <<set $killernext = 8>>\n <<else>>\n <<set $killernext = 7>>\n <<endif>>\n <<else>>\n <<if (Math.random() * 3) gt 2>>\n <<if (Math.random() * 2) gt 1>>\n <<set $killernext = 8>>\n <<else>>\n <<set $killernext = 7>>\n <<endif>>\n <<endif>>\n <<endif>>\n<<endif>>\n\n<<endsilently>><html><p></p></html>

You have particularly unfond memories of fighting to light them, and wishing you could just pull out a lighter. The sparkers used to live in the [[cabinets|Examine the cabinets]] above the southern shelves.\n\n<<if $sparker = true>>You have a sparker. Perhaps you could [[light the burners|Try to light the burners]], or even a gas hose - there might be some kind of weapon you could create.<html><p></p></html><<endif>>[[But lightless Bunsen burners aren't weapons.|Long Counters]]\n\n\n

A short and violent story written for Ectocomp 2013.\n\nPlayer discretion is advised.\n\n[[Continue|Title]]

<<if $explosive eq true>>You've already taken one questionable box. If you move any more, Dane might get suspicious and start looking at these more closely.\n\nNo need to arm your would-be killer.<<else>>You tuck a damp box under your arm carefully.<<set $explosive = true>><<endif>>\n\n[[That's that.|Mildewing Boxes]]

<<set $playerloc = 5>><<display "global">><<if $playerloc eq $killerloc>><<display "caught">><<else>>[[You]] are in part of the lab's old workspace. [[Long counters|Examine the counters]] border this aisle to the north and south, with [[cabinets|Examine the cabinets]] and an ancient fume hood suspended above the southern counters.\n\nYou recall the lab's sole exit is to the [[west|Beside the Exit Door]]. To the [[north|Aisle Past Safety Posters]], you can barely make out the old safety posters hanging on the wall, and to the [[east|Intersecting Aisles]], the aisles intersect.<<if $killerloc eq 2>><html><p></p></html>The beam of a flashlight plays along the walls to your north. He's close.<<endif>><<if $killerloc eq 6>><html><p></p></html>The beam of a flashlight plays along the walls to your east. He's close.<<endif>><<if $killerloc eq 4>><html><p></p></html>The beam of a flashlight plays along the walls to your west. He's close.<<endif>><<if ($killernext eq 2) or ($killernext eq 4) or ($killernext eq 6)>><html><p></p></html>The sound of footsteps grows louder. He's approaching.<<endif>><<if $killernext eq $playerloc>><html><p></p></html>Suddenly, a flashlight beam plays at your feet and the sound of shoes on stone becomes dangerously loud. Dane is almost on top of you!<<endif>><<endif>>

You open the gas valve and scrape the sparker once, twice, three times, watching the tiny spark flash and die each time.\n\nThen you listen for the gas - and there's nothing. The gas was turned off long ago.\n\nBut you've attracted Dane's attention - you hear the footsteps. Time to move.<<set $killerdest = $playerloc>>\n\n[[Dammit!|Long Counters]]\n

You haul yourself onto the counter so you can check the upper shelves.\n\n<<if $sparker eq true>>There's nothing up there.<<else>>\nYou find [[an old sparker|Examine the sparker]] hiding on the highest shelf and hastily pocket it.<<set $sparker = true>><<endif>>\n\n<<set $killerdest = $playerloc>>[[As you climb down from the counter, your shoe squeaks across the tile.|Long Counters]]

<<silently>>\n<<set $killerloc = 0>>\n<<set $killernext = 0>>\n<<set $killerdest = 0>>\n<<set $time = 0>>\n<<set $playerloc = 0>>\n<<set $drenched = false>>\n<<set $isopropyl = false>>\n<<set $explosive = false>>\n<<set $sparker = false>>\n<<set $glassware = false>>\n<<set $drenched = false>>\n<<endsilently>>\nYou agreed to meet Dane by night, in the parking lot of the old lab. A crescent moon hung over the broken roof, and glinting stars pierced the leafless twigs of the trees.\n\nYou thought that your honesty would lead to closure. That you could walk away, and never look back.\n\nBut he became agitated - and then enraged. "Did you think you could TALK me out of caring? Did you think words could raise the dead?" he snarled.\n\nMaybe you should have stopped. Held your ground. Reasoned with him.\n\n[[But you broke and ran.|Running]]

You know from the tape that this box contains explosives. What you don't know is what kind. It could be something that needs a primer, or it could be something that just needs a shock.\n\n<<if $isopropyl eq true>>Fortunately, you have an accelerant. If you drench the outside of the box with isopropyl alcohol, and find a way to light the alcohol on fire, then you should get a very big blast of some kind shortly after.<<else>>If you're going to blow it up, you'd better have an accelerant. Just to be on the safe side.<<endif>><html><p></p></html>Unless this is a box of plastic explosive. In that case, you're screwed.\n\nBut the box is taped too tightly to find out.\n\n[[Better keep moving.|Mildewing Boxes]]

You strike the sparker beside the box. When the orange glint touches the isopropyl alcohol, it bubbles immediately into a halo of blue flame.\n\n[[Duck and cover.|Duck and cover]]\n\n\n

You don't sneeze. Not sneezing means surviving. You absolutely don't sneeze.\n\n[[Sneeze passed. Keep going.|Glass-Laden Shelves]]\n

There's a heap of brittle and broken glassware here. <<if $glassware eq true>>You already have a bottle, so you leave them alone.<<else>>You stuff a small glass bottle into your pocket; breaking glass would make a good diversion if you need Dane to move.<<set $glassware = true>><<endif>>\n\n[[Time to move on.|Glass-Laden Shelves]]

<<set $playerloc = 2>><<display "global">><<if $playerloc eq $killerloc>><<display "caught">><<else>>[[You]] have reached the back aisle of the basement lab. Wrinkled yellow safety posters run along the back wall. In memory, you see the bold black print reminding you to use goggles, avoid breathing fumes, and [[report any safety violations to OSHA|Examine the safety posters]]. But you don't have light enough to read them now.\n\nThe back corner with the dumbwaiter is to the [[east|Back Corner]], the lab counters are to the [[south|Long Counters]], and a faint glint confirms that glassware still covers the shelves in the [[west|Glass-Laden Shelves]] corner.<<if $killerloc eq 5>><html><p></p></html>The beam of a flashlight plays along the walls to your south. He's close.<<endif>><<if $killerloc eq 3>><html><p></p></html>The beam of a flashlight plays along the walls to your east. He's close.<<endif>><<if $killerloc eq 1>><html><p></p></html>The beam of a flashlight plays along the walls to your west. He's close.<<endif>><<if ($killernext eq 1) or ($killernext eq 3) or ($killernext eq 5)>><html><p></p></html>The sound of footsteps grows louder. He's approaching.<<endif>><<if $killernext eq $playerloc>><html><p></p></html>Suddenly, a flashlight beam plays at your feet and the sound of shoes on stone becomes dangerously loud. Dane is almost on top of you!<<endif>><<endif>>

The dumbwaiter is an odd feature for a chemical lab, but a critical one for a lab with no elevator. No one wanted to fall down the stairs while carrying boxes of [[acetone peroxide|Acetone peroxide]].\n\n<<if $time lt 3>>Dane will be coming down any minute now – you lowered the dumbwaiter yourself, but you can already hear the loud scraping at the top of the shaft.\n\n<<else>>You look up the dumbwaiter's shaft, wondering whether you can climb back up the way you came, but it's a lost cause.\n\nFirst, you're not that strong.\nSecond, you couldn't climb up without making noise - and every sound echoes terribly in the deserted lab.\nThird, he would only have to shake the ropes to dislodge you.<<endif>>\n\n[[Turn away in search of a different plan.|Back Corner]]

You've reached the end of this story.\n\nYou could play again. Things might go differently next time.\n\n...of course, they might not.

You know from the tape that this box contains explosives. What you don't know is what kind. It could be something that needs a primer, or it could be something that just needs a shock.\n\n<<if ($isopropyl eq true) and ($drenched eq false)>>Fortunately, you have an accelerant. If you [[drench the outside of the box with isopropyl alcohol|Drench the box of explosives]], and find a way to light the alcohol on fire, then you should get a very big blast of some kind shortly after.\n\nUnless this is a box of plastic explosive. In that case, you're screwed.\n\nBut the box is taped too tightly to find out.\n<<endif>>\n<<if ($isopropyl eq false) and ($drenched eq false)>>\nIf you're going to blow it up, you'd better have an accelerant. Just to be on the safe side.<<endif>>\n\n[[All righty then.|You]]\n\n

A few rodent tracks interrupt the gray, heavy dust that covers the floor, but even the rodent tracks contain dust. The lab has been long untouched.\n\nIt's probably for the best, considering everything that happened.\n\n[[But Dane is coming, and there's no time for memory lane.|Back Corner]]

Suddenly, everything goes quiet.\n\nYou crouch in the darkness, straining to catch any stray noise or movement in the pitch darkness. You slowly turn your head.\n\nA sudden impact -- you are jolted to the side, a numbness blossoming in your chest. You twist to see Dane's face, a mask of cold, triumphant rage.\n\nHe jerks his hand away, causing a blossom of agony where he struck. You look down to see a bloody knife blade and the reddening clothing from which he withdrew it.\n\nYou slump to the ground and Dane crouches to finish his work. The last thing you see is his bitter smile.\n\n[[The end|The end]]

<<set $playerloc = 3>><<display "global">><<if $playerloc eq $killerloc>><<display "caught">><<else>><<if $time eq 1>>You fall out of the dumbwaiter, almost catch your balance, pinwheel your arms madly, and crash to the hard tile floor. There's no way the sound could go unnoticed, and it doesn't.\n\n"Lee! Don't you dare move!"\n\nBut you're not an idiot. Staying here will get you killed, and Dane has no mercy left.\n<<endif>>\n\n[[You]] are at the back east corner of the lab. This space is mostly clear of clutter, a situation necessitated by [[the dumbwaiter|Examine the dumbwaiter]] in the corner. [[Layers of dust|Examine the dust]] cover the ground.\n\nThe back aisle runs [[west|Aisle Past Safety Posters]] past a row of safety posters. Alternately, you can go [[south|Intersecting Aisles]] toward the intersection of two aisles.<<if $killerloc eq 6>><html><p></p></html>The beam of a flashlight plays along the walls to your south. He's close.<<endif>><<if $killerloc eq 2>><html><p></p></html>The beam of a flashlight plays along the walls to your west. He's close.<<endif>><<if ($killernext eq 6) or ($killernext eq 2)>><html><p></p></html>The sound of footsteps grows louder. He's approaching.<<endif>><<if $killernext eq $playerloc>><html><p></p></html>Suddenly, a flashlight beam plays at your feet and the sound of shoes on stone becomes dangerously loud. Dane is almost on top of you!<<endif>> <<endif>>

<<set $playerloc = 8>><<display "global">><<if $playerloc eq $killerloc>><<display "caught">><<else>>[[You]] are in the corner set aside for the eye wash station and the safety showers. Rusted shower heads hang above equally rusted drains, and the smell of rust surrounds you as you pick your way carefully past. Any misstep here could produce a horrible screeching sound – you remember how the old pipes used to wail when anyone [[pulled the handle|Pull the safety shower's handle]].\n\nThe junction with the workspace is to the [[north|Intersecting Aisles]], and a variety of badly rotting boxes have been heaped in the corner to the [[east|Mildewing Boxes]].<<if $killerloc eq 6>><html><p></p></html>The beam of a flashlight plays along the walls to your north. He's close.<<endif>><<if $killerloc eq 9>><html><p></p></html>The beam of a flashlight plays along the walls to your east. He's close.<<endif>><<if ($killernext eq 6) or ($killernext eq 9)>><html><p></p></html>The sound of footsteps grows louder. He's approaching.<<endif>><<if $killernext eq $playerloc>><html><p></p></html>Suddenly, a flashlight beam plays at your feet and the sound of shoes on stone becomes dangerously loud. Dane is almost on top of you!<<endif>><<endif>>

You scrape the sparker once - twice - three times - and the orange glints die out uselessly. Sparkers are supposed to be safe in a lab environment, the source of a spark that won't send clothing up in flames.\n\nYou need an accelerant to make this work.\n\nUnfortunately, your actions have attracted Dane's attention - his heavy footsteps halt, then move again with new and dangerous purpose.<<set $killerdest = $playerloc>>\n\n[[Time to move.|Take the box with you]]\n

Dane steps forward and you throw the phone - it's all you can think to do.\n\nIt flies at his face. He recoils.\n\nYou dodge sideways, skid under his fist, run down the corridor, turn, get your bearings.\n\nYou run down another corridor, breath searing in your lungs. You can't let him circle you again.\n\nAnd you can't keep running. Dane's faster than you.\n\n[[But you picked this corridor for a reason.|Top of the dumbwaiter]]\n

He comes after you. He's faster, in better shape - the October air burns in your lungs. You can't shake him.\n\nYou round the corner of the building, see the propped door.\n\n[[Duck inside.|Inside the building]]\n

<<set $playerloc = 6>><<display "global">><<if $playerloc eq $killerloc>><<display "caught">><<else>>[[You]] are at the intersection between the northwest side of the lab and the southeast side of the lab. In the heyday of this building, people did real work along the counters to the north and west and then documented their work to the south and east, wearing the polish off the linoleum at the intersection.\n\nThe back corner and the dumbwaiter are to the [[north|Back Corner]], two old desks are barely visible to the [[east|Abandoned Office]], the safety showers are to the [[south|Safety Shower and Drains]], and lab counters stretch off to the [[west|Long Counters]].<<if $killerloc eq 8>><html><p></p></html>The beam of a flashlight plays along the walls to your south. He's close.<<endif>><<if $killerloc eq 7>><html><p></p></html>The beam of a flashlight plays along the walls to your east. He's close.<<endif>><<if $killerloc eq 5>><html><p></p></html>The beam of a flashlight plays along the walls to your west. He's close.<<endif>><<if $killerloc eq 3>><html><p></p></html>The beam of a flashlight plays along the walls to your north. He's close.<<endif>><<if ($killernext eq 8) or ($killernext eq 3) or ($killernext eq 5) or ($killernext eq 7)>><html><p></p></html>The sound of footsteps grows louder. He's approaching.<<endif>><<if $killernext eq $playerloc>><html><p></p></html>Suddenly, a flashlight beam plays at your feet and the sound of shoes on stone becomes dangerously loud. Dane is almost on top of you!<<endif>><<endif>>

Acetone peroxide: A nasty chemical, explosive upon impact. It would still be bad if the dumbwaiter fell, but there were precautions for that. Even if there weren't many precautions.\n\nThere's no acetone peroxide in the dumbwaiter now (if there were, you'd be bloody smithereens across the lab from that fall) but perhaps you can find something of a similar nature elsewhere.\n\n[[Turn away in search of a different plan.|Back Corner]]\n

Chemistry and Physics

A classic old sparker: metal handles, flint, a rough steel surface. Perfect for lighting a flammable substance. Bad for lighting anything else.\n\n[[You have to keep moving.|Long Counters]]\n

Report any safety violations to OSHA – Laughable. Say anything to OSHA? At all? Ever? This was a free country, right? If people didn't like it, they could quit....\n\n[[But you don't have time to reminisce.|Aisle Past Safety Posters]]

<<if ($playerloc eq 9) or ($playerloc eq 4)>>\n<<if ($playerloc eq 4) and ($sparker eq true) and ($drenched eq true)>>\n\nYou drop the box of explosives, still reeking of isopropyl alcohol, in front of the door. Now all you have to do is light the outside of the box, and you should get an impressive bang.\n\nYou have a sparker. [[Light the box|Light the explosives]]\n[[Wait on that for the moment|Take the box with you]]<<else>><<if ($playerloc eq 4) and ($sparker eq true)>>\n\nYou drop the box of explosives right in front of the door. Now all you have to do is light the outside of the box, and if you're lucky, there will be an impressive bang.\n\nYou have a sparker. [[Light the box|Try to light the explosives]]\n[[Wait on that for the moment|Take the box with you]]<<endif>><<endif>>\n\n<<if $playerloc eq 9>>\n\nThere's no time to shove the explosives back where you found them, and getting this wrong will just attract Dane's attention to a new, more horrible weapon.\n\n[[But maybe there's somewhere more appropriate to put them.|You]]<<endif>><<else>>\n\nYou can't think of a good reason to leave the box of explosives here, and having them out in plain sight will just attract Dane's attention to a new, more horrible weapon.\n\n[[But maybe there's somewhere more appropriate to put them.|You]]<<endif>>

You dodge sideways, skid under his fist, run down the corridor, turn, get your bearings.\n\nYou run down another corridor, breath searing in your lungs. You can't let him circle you again.\n\nAnd you can't keep running. Dane's faster than you.\n\n[[But you picked this corridor for a reason.|Top of the dumbwaiter]]\n

If an inspector had ever been down here, and seen a lab with only one exit, it would have been over. You don't know how they got away with it, and you've never known. You just wanted to make your paycheck and go home.\n\nAnd now Dane just wants revenge.\n\n[[This won't help you stop Dane.|Beside the Exit Door]]\n

You scurry for shelter behind one of the sturdy lab counters.\n\nDane's footsteps sound suddenly louder - the blue glow has attracted his attention. You hold your breath as the flashlight swings near.\n\nBlue flames silhouette Dane's body as he bends down to look at the burning box. He cocks his head sideways, puzzled.\n\n[[The box explodes.|The box explodes]]\n

The water's turned off, so the pipes don't wail, but the chunk! of the handle going down echoes loudly in the deserted space.\n\nThat'll attract Dane's attention.<<set $killerdest = $playerloc>>\n\n[[Time to move.|Safety Shower and Drains]]

Many boxes found their way down here while the upper floors were being inspected, tucked under desks and beneath lab counters like so many bags of groceries. Inspectors never came down here, after all. Officially, the lab down here didn't exist.\n\nTaking a closer look at these specific boxes, you see they were taped shut twice, once with regular packaging tape and once with broad black tape. To anyone familiar with the lab's secret codes, that indicates DANGER as brightly as neon. But in the darkness, the [[sealed box of explosives|Examine the sealed box of explosives]] is only one cubic shadow among many cubic shadows.\n\nAnd Dane, so far as you know, never learned the code.\n\n<<if $explosive eq true>>You already have a box, so no need to take another one.\n\n[[Better get a move on.|Mildewing Boxes]]\n<<else>>[[That could be useful; take one.|Grab a box]]\n[[Come back for this later.|Mildewing Boxes]]<<endif>>

<<set $playerloc = 1>><<display "global">><<if $playerloc eq $killerloc>><<display "caught">><<else>>[[You]] are in the northwest corner of the lab. Shelves line the corner, heavy with the dust of many forgotten years. Half-obscured by the [[layer of dust|Examine the shelf dust]], a [[heap of old glassware]] stands in neat lines along each shelf: beakers, test tubes, alembics, and more esoteric options. No one has used these in over a decade.\n\nIf memory serves, the exit should be through the door to the [[south|Beside the Exit Door]]. To the [[east|Aisle Past Safety Posters]] you can see some posters on the wall.<<if $killerloc eq 4>><html><p></p></html>The beam of a flashlight plays along the walls to your south. He's close.<<endif>><<if $killerloc eq 2>><html><p></p></html>The beam of a flashlight plays along the walls to your east. He's close.<<endif>><<if ($killernext eq 4) or ($killernext eq 2)>><html><p></p></html>The sound of footsteps grows louder. He's approaching.<<endif>><<if $killernext eq $playerloc>><html><p></p></html>Suddenly, a flashlight beam plays at your feet and the sound of shoes on stone becomes dangerously loud. Dane is almost on top of you!<<endif>> <<endif>>

Colin Sandel and\nCarolyn VanEseltine

You fumble the phone from your pocket, flip it open. The green light glows across the concrete walls. You stab at the buttons and every tone echoes.\n\n"911," the dispatcher says, and the door slams open.\n\n"Lee, don't do anything stupid," Dale snarls, and the dispatcher says, "State your emergency."\n\nYou can't state your emergency. You run, gasping something into the phone - "He's after me, he's trying to kill me, I'm in trouble, help me!"\n\n[[Deeper into the building]]\n

Carpet has no place in a lab. It's hard to clean at best and dangerous at worst. But Shannon always insisted on leaving a welcome mat just inside the door. No one at the top cared if it was there, and no one at the bottom could get away with throwing it out.\n\n[[It's not useful in this situation.|Beside the Exit Door]]\n

You kick the prop out of the way and then hold your breath, straining to hear outside as you press yourself flat against the concrete wall.\n\nThese jeans are uncomfortably tight (dictates of fashion!) and something presses sharply on your hip. You touch the pocket and remember - your new cell phone. The pocket's so small that the phone hardly fits.\n\n[[Use the phone. Call the police.|Use the phone]]\n\n[[Stay quiet until Dane goes away.|Stay quiet]]\n

You think it was yours once. Embarrassing.\n\n[[But not useful now.|Abandoned Office]]\n

<<set $playerloc = 7>><<display "global">><<if $playerloc eq $killerloc>><<display "caught">><<else>>[[You]] used to spend a lot of time in this part of the building. This was an office once, or – if not a proper office – at least a corner for doing paperwork. Two desks stand across from each other, both devoid of chairs, with sedimentary piles of paperwork mounding ghostly pale in the near-total darkness. The mold in one abandoned [[coffee cup|Examine the coffee cup]] has gone past mossiness and into the bonsai stage. There's a heap of [[damaged glassware|Examine the glassware]] shoved off in the corner and ignored.\n\nThe wet stench of mildew emanates from the [[south|Mildewing Boxes]], and the aisle intersection is back to the [[west|Intersecting Aisles]].<<if $killerloc eq 9>><html><p></p></html>The beam of a flashlight plays along the walls to your south. He's close.<<endif>><<if $killerloc eq 6>><html><p></p></html>The beam of a flashlight plays along the walls to your west. He's close.<<endif>><<if ($killernext eq 6) or ($killernext eq 9)>><html><p></p></html>The sound of footsteps grows louder. He's approaching.<<endif>><<if $killernext eq $playerloc>><html><p></p></html>Suddenly, a flashlight beam plays at your feet and the sound of shoes on stone becomes dangerously loud. Dane is almost on top of you!<<endif>> <<endif>>

<<set \s$glassware = false>>You deliberately smash the piece of glassware, sending sparkling pieces raining across the floor. None of them, sadly, are large enough to make a good weapon.\n\nThe sound is piercing in the near absolute silence. Dane is surely on his way.\n\n<<if $playerloc eq 1>>[[Return|Glass-Laden Shelves]] <<endif>>\n<<if $playerloc eq 2>>[[Return|Aisle Past Safety Posters]] <<endif>>\n<<if $playerloc eq 3>>[[Return|Back Corner]] <<endif>>\n<<if $playerloc eq 4>>[[Return|Beside the Exit Door]] <<endif>>\n<<if $playerloc eq 5>>[[Return|Long Counters]] <<endif>>\n<<if $playerloc eq 6>>[[Return|Intersecting Aisles]] <<endif>>\n<<if $playerloc eq 7>>[[Return|Abandoned Office]] <<endif>>\n<<if $playerloc eq 8>>[[Return|Safety Shower and Drains]] <<endif>>\n<<if $playerloc eq 9>>[[Return|Mildewing Boxes]] <<endif>>\n

<<set $playerloc = 9>><<display "global">><<if $playerloc eq $killerloc>><<display "caught">><<else>>[[You]] have no fond memories of this part of the lab. This used to be a space to do paperwork, just like the desks to the north, but in the later days, this section was converted to storage. Now, the desks are gone, but a heap of [[questionable boxes|Examine the questionable boxes]] remain. White mildew traces snowflake patterns across their heavily taped exteriors.\n\nThe safety showers are off to the [[west|Safety Shower and Drains]], and two old desks can be seen in the dimness to the [[north|Abandoned Office]].<<if $killerloc eq 7>><html><p></p></html>The beam of a flashlight plays along the walls to your north. He's close.<<endif>><<if $killerloc eq 8>><html><p></p></html>The beam of a flashlight plays along the walls to your west. He's close.<<endif>><<if ($killernext eq 7) or ($killernext eq 8)>><html><p></p></html>The sound of footsteps grows louder. He's approaching.<<endif>><<if $killernext eq $playerloc>><html><p></p></html>Suddenly, a flashlight beam plays at your feet and the sound of shoes on stone becomes dangerously loud. Dane is almost on top of you!<<endif>> <<endif>>

<<set $playerloc = 4>><<display "global">><<if $playerloc eq $killerloc>><<display "caught">><<else>>[[You]] are in the southwest corner of the lab. The texture changes underfoot, which means there's a [[welcome mat|Examine the welcome mat]] underfoot. And that means that [[the door in front of you|Try the door]], tucked into the opening between two jutting shelves, is [[the only exit to the lab|A major safety violation]].\n\nThe corner to the [[north|Glass-Laden Shelves]] was used for storing glassware, and the long tables to the [[east|Long Counters]] used to be covered with equipment.<<if $killerloc eq 1>><html><p></p></html>The beam of a flashlight plays along the walls to your north. He's close.<<endif>><<if $killerloc eq 5>><html><p></p></html>The beam of a flashlight plays along the walls to your east. He's close.<<endif>><<if ($killernext eq 5) or ($killernext eq 1)>><html><p></p></html>The sound of footsteps grows louder. He's approaching.<<endif>><<if $killernext eq $playerloc>><html><p></p></html>Suddenly, a flashlight beam plays at your feet and the sound of shoes on stone becomes dangerously loud. Dane is almost on top of you!<<endif>><<endif>>

There's a panel in the wall and you pull it open. It's the entrance to a dumbwaiter - the dumbwaiter used to carry materials down to the basement lab.\n\nDane knew about the lab, but maybe he doesn't know about the dumbwaiter. Maybe he won't recognize it.\n\nYou can only hope. \n\nIt's not rated for your weight. You grip the rope and throw yourself into the little box anyway.\n\n[[The box plummets as you struggle to slow down.|Back Corner]]\n\n\n\n

There's a heap of brittle and broken glassware here. <<if $glassware eq true>>You already have a bottle, so you leave them alone.<<else>>You stuff a small glass bottle into your pocket; breaking glass would make a good diversion if you need Dane to move.<<set $glassware = true>><<endif>>\n\nOn close inspection, there's more than just glassware here – you spot several [[plastic bottles|Examine the plastic bottles]] and rusted cans at the bottom of the heap.\n\n[[There's no time to poke through the junk pile.|Abandoned Office]]

<<silently>>\n<<set $drenched = true>><<set $isopropyl = false>>\n<<endsilently>>\n\nYou hurriedly splash isopropyl alcohol all over the box. An eye-watering reek rises up from the dampened cardboard.\n\n[[No time to rub your eyes.|You]]\n

He's just outside. You hear the crunch of footsteps on gravel, the heavy breathing like a maddened bull.\n\nYou ease backward, certain that you make no sound.\n\nIt's so quiet. You can almost hear your heartbeat.\n\n[[And then the phone falls from your pocket.|Running from Dane]]\n

A classic old sparker: metal handles, flint, a rough steel surface. Perfect for lighting a flammable substance. Bad for lighting anything else.\n\n[[All righty then.|You]]\n

You try the handle. It won't open, and it's probably locked.\n\nYou try again, but you can't really haul on it without making a dangerous amount of noise. And you're sure that it really is locked.\n\n[[Dammit.|Beside the Exit Door]]\n

Later: fire trucks, and police sirens, and the blessed coolness of the night air. You lay on the grass outside the building and waited until the police officer came over to speak with you.\n\nShe played her flashlight over you, but when you cringed away from the light, she dropped the beam to the sidewalk. She asked, "Are you hurt?"\n\n"Hurt?" you asked.\n\nThe officer said, "There's blood on your face." She dug a white napkin from a pocket and offered it to you.\n\nYou ran it over your face, held it in the flashlight beam and looked at the crimson stain. You said, "It's not mine," and laughed a little, or cried a little.\n\nShe said, "We're going to have some questions to ask you," and she led you out of the night into the safety of a police car.\n\n[[The old science lab burned from the inside out, and Dane burned with it.|The end]]\n

killerloc <<print $killerloc>>\nkillernext <<print $killernext>>\nkillerdest <<print $killerdest>>\nplayerloc <<print $playerloc>>\ntime <<print $time>>\n[[Provoke]]

A colorless chemical compound with a strong odor. Primarily produced by combining water with methylethelene. A solvent in industrial processes.\n\nAnd very flammable. If you pour this over something and expose it to flame, then you'll have a lovely blaze in merest seconds.\n\n[[That's worth keeping in mind.|Abandoned Office]]\n

You've drawn Dane's attention.<<set $killerdest = $playerloc>>\n\n<<if $playerloc eq 1>>[[Return|Glass-Laden Shelves]] <<endif>>\n<<if $playerloc eq 2>>[[Return|Aisle Past Safety Posters]] <<endif>>\n<<if $playerloc eq 3>>[[Return|Back Corner]] <<endif>>\n<<if $playerloc eq 4>>[[Return|Beside the Exit Door]] <<endif>>\n<<if $playerloc eq 5>>[[Return|Long Counters]] <<endif>>\n<<if $playerloc eq 6>>[[Return|Intersecting Aisles]] <<endif>>\n<<if $playerloc eq 7>>[[Return|Abandoned Office]] <<endif>>\n<<if $playerloc eq 8>>[[Return|Safety Shower and Drains]] <<endif>>\n<<if $playerloc eq 9>>[[Return|Mildewing Boxes]] <<endif>>

Afterward, you remember the sound best, because you ducked back and squeezed your eyes shut before the flash.\n\nThere was a breathy whump, like the sound of a Bunsen burner catching, and then a deafening bang that rang in your ears for minutes after, and then a pattering sound, like rain.\n\nWhen you opened your eyes and peered around the counter, you could see the crater by the light of the burning walls.\n\nSomething pattered down onto your skin. You slapped at it instinctively, but the sensation was wetness, not heat.\n\n[[You hurdled the crater and ran for it.|Escape]]\n

You stop, heart pounding. You can still hear Dane coming - "LEE!" he roars through the darkness.\n\nYou listen to the phone, waiting for the dispatcher's instructions, but there's nothing.\n\nYou look at the phone. Signal lost.\n\nSignal lost.\n\nYou round the next corner and [[he's right there -|Face to face]]\n

You're exhausted, bewildered, and running quickly out of energy. You'd better find a way to escape the basement lab before Dane catches you.\n\nYou're carrying:\n\n<<if ($sparker eq false) and ($isopropyl eq false) and ($explosive eq false) and ($glassware eq false)>>...nothing of use. That's not good.<<endif>>\n<<if $sparker eq true>>[[a laboratory sparker|Examine the old sparker]]<<endif>>\n<<if $isopropyl eq true>>[[a bottle of isopropyl alcohol|Examine the isopropyl alcohol]]<<endif>>\n<<if $explosive eq true>>[[a questionable box that almost certainly contains explosives|Examine the questionable box]]<<if $drenched eq true>>, currently drenched with isopropyl<<endif>><<endif>>\n<<if $glassware eq true>>[[a beaker|Examine the glassware]]<<endif>><html><P></P></html>\n\n<<if $glassware eq true>>You can [[break the piece of glassware|Draw Dane's attention]] to draw Dane away from his current location (but toward yours).<<endif>>\n<<if $explosive eq true>>[[Drop the box of explosives|Drop the box of explosives]]<<endif>>\n<<if ($isopropyl eq true) and ($explosive eq true)>>[[Pour isopropyl alcohol over the box of explosives|Drench the box of explosives]]<<endif>><html><P></P></html>\n<<if $playerloc eq 1>>[[Return|Glass-Laden Shelves]] <<endif>>\n<<if $playerloc eq 2>>[[Return|Aisle Past Safety Posters]] <<endif>>\n<<if $playerloc eq 3>>[[Return|Back Corner]] <<endif>>\n<<if $playerloc eq 4>>[[Return|Beside the Exit Door]] <<endif>>\n<<if $playerloc eq 5>>[[Return|Long Counters]] <<endif>>\n<<if $playerloc eq 6>>[[Return|Intersecting Aisles]] <<endif>>\n<<if $playerloc eq 7>>[[Return|Abandoned Office]] <<endif>>\n<<if $playerloc eq 8>>[[Return|Safety Shower and Drains]] <<endif>>\n<<if $playerloc eq 9>>[[Return|Mildewing Boxes]] <<endif>>