AI Adventure

Setting: You are in a small room with five other people. In the middle of the room, there is a table. On top of it is a doll, which looks seemingly normal at a glance.

> You look around the room.
There are many things in the room. Old toys, furniture, decorations from many different periods and places.

> You look closer at the doll on the table.
The doll looks eternally innocent. It is dressed in a red and green striped shirt, with black ironed jeans. The doll is bald, without eyes or a nose.

> You look around at the other people.
There are 5 people in the room with you. A bald man with a long, thick, curly mustache that reaches his sideburns. He wears a dark blue suit with a cowboy hat. A young girl around high school age, with long blond pigtails, wearing a gingham dress. A bald man with a long beard that touches his chest, wearing a bright blue wizard robe. A bald man with a long scar going from his forehead to his chin, wearing army fatigues. Finally, a chubby jolly looking man in a green and red Christmas outfit.
They appear to be staring at you.

> You say "What is going on here? Where am I, and who are you people?"
The wizard speaks up first.
"What? You don't recognize us?" he says quizzically. "You've never seen 'It's A Wonderful Life?'"

> You say "Well, I have, but what does that have to do with this place? Or that doll?"
"This is what we call the Dreamworld." the wizard explains. "And that doll is you. At least, it's an aspect of you."
You look at the doll again, wondering what this all means.

> You say "What do you mean by "aspect"?"
"The Dreamworld is a place of deep imaginations, and inner thoughts. The doll on the table represents an aspect, or a part, of your personality."
The cowboy looks at you, sitting on the floor cross-legged.

> You say "Well, okay, but why am I here, then? What am I supposed to do?"
"You don't know? You're supposed to dream up an adventure for the doll. Give him a quest, a goal, an objective. Then, you'll wake up, and the Dreamworld will create a world based on your story."

> You say "But why? What will that accomplish?"
"How should I know? I'm not the one making up the questions, now am I? Just think of something for the doll to do."
You look at the doll on the table.

> You say "Okay, let's say the doll's goal is to explore a haunted mansion and find a lost artifact there."
"That's it? That's your goal?" the cowboy laughs. "Why not have him discover a powerful magic sword while he's at it?"
"Shut up, William," the wizard says. "I don't think that'll be a problem. Go ahead and wake up, then."
You feel yourself starting to stir.
"Wait, I have another question! If you're all aspects of my personality, then who are you?"
"I am you. Simple as that."
"I doubt it. I'm not an idiot."
The wizard laughs. "Of course you are! That's the whole point, isn't it?"
With that, you wake up, finding yourself in an old mansion that clearly hasnt been occupied for a very long time. The doll is still with you, but it's appearance has changed drastically. It now has long black hair, and a gloomy, pale expression. It no longer resembles you at all, or at least how you hope you appear.
It wears a tattered purple dress, and it's difficult to look at due to the fact that its appearance seems to blur for a moment sometimes.
"What is going on?" it asks quietly.
"I don't know."

> You say "Wait, you can talk?"
"Of course I can talk. Can't you?"
"I...guess so."
The doll stares at you for a moment.

> You say "Well, I'm guessing that I'm supposed to take you with me as I explore this mansion, right?"
"Why would you want to do that? I'm nothing more than an inanimate object. I'll just be a burden to you."
"Maybe, but I still want to try. We're in this together, aren't we?"

> You say "And besides, you sure seem to be more than an inanimate object to me. Come on, I'll carry you with me."
The doll smiles.
"Thank you. I think."
You carry the doll with you as you explore the mansion. It's quite large, so you're in no danger of getting lost any time soon.

> You look around.
The mansion is huge, even larger than it first appeared. It's at least three stories tall, and each floor is almost the size of a football field. You're inside what appears to be the foyer. The floors are black marble, the walls are a pale polished stone, and the ceiling is high enough that you could fit most of your house inside of it.

> You walk deeper into the house.
You walk down a flight of stairs, and find yourself in the basement. It's dark, and you can't see anything, but you hear the quiet hum of...something nearby.
It sounds almost like...electricity?

> You say "Hey, doll, do you know what that sound might be? It sounds electric but there's no light here."
"I think I hear it too," the doll says.
The two of you move forward, your hands out in front of you in an attempt to not bump into anything. Soon, the sound gets louder.

> You stop moving and wait to see if anything happens.
Suddenly, the sound stops.
"What's going on?" you ask.
"I don't know. I think we've gone too far."
The doll is is clearly afraid, and is gripping your arm tightly as you hold her.

> You say "Okay, let's not push our luck here. I think maybe we should go back to the main floor and explore from there."
"No! I'm not going back in there!"
"We don't have to go far, just a bit further into the basement."
"There's nothing down here but darkness and terror!" she screams.

> You say "All we gotta do is go back the way we came, and go back upstairs to the main floor where there's some light. I wont let anything happen to you, so try to stay calm."
The two of you slowly make your way back out of the basement.

> You say "See? We made it out of the basement. Are you a bit less scared now?"
"A bit, yes."
"Okay, good. I think we should head to the foyer now, there's got to be something there that we can use. Like a map perhaps?"
"Good idea."

> You carry the doll with you into the foyer to see if there is anything useful there.
The two of you make your way through the foyer, which is much smaller than the one above. You pass the front door, and you notice a large painting hanging on the wall to the right of it.

> You look at the painting.
A painting of a king sitting on an elaborate throne, holding a crown in his right hand. The crown is comprised of many sharp metals, and looks quite painful. Behind him are two larger than life figures.

> You say "Well, that's not quite what I was hoping to find. I wonder how the painting is connected to this mansion?"
"I think it's pretty clear. That's the king who owned this place."
You look at the doll, confused.
"How do you know?"
"Duh, look at the crown. It's the same one that's on the table in the front hall."
"Well, you're more observant than I am, I didnt even notice the crown back there."
The doll looks at you and says, "Wow, you're not very smart. I wonder how you got through life."

> You say "Heh, you're quite the sarcastic one, huh? I guess I'll just have to be smarter then, eh?"
The doll smiles.
You leave the foyer and head back to the sitting room. You remember that there is a library here, and think that maybe you can find something useful there.

> You walk into the mansion's library.
You walk into a large room filled with books. There is a librarian's desk in the middle of the room, and several reading tables are placed around the edges of the room.

> You check out the librarian's desk.
You see a note on the desk. It reads:
I have gone out for a walk. I'll be back soon! -Bernadette
You notice that there is something written on the back of the note.
the truth is not defined by what you see.
you must look deeper.
you must find the truth hidden in the past.

> You say "Well, I'm not sure what to make of that. Any ideas?"
The doll remains silent.
You head back to the foyer and notice that the front door of the mansion is now open. But instead of the front yard that you expect to see through the door, you see a vast nothingness, like you're in the middle of a black void.
Then, a man wearing a black robe and a white mask enters the room.

> You hold the doll closer to protect her.
"You've come farther than anyone has in a long, long time. I offer you my congratulations."
"W-who are you?"
"An observer. A watcher of the experiment. And you, young one, are the subject."
"What is this place? Where are we?"
"That doesn't matter. What matters is that we find out what you are truly made of."
You tremble with fear as the man approaches you.

> You say "Dont come any closer. I'd rather not die here, and I wont let you harm her either."
"I'm afraid you have little say in the matter, child."
The man grabs you by the neck and holds you up off the ground. He stares coldly at you with his one visible eye.

> You kick the man in the stomach.
You drop to the ground and scuttle away from him.
"You are quite the interesting one. Most of the children simply stood there in fear, too cowardly to even move."
You pick up the doll again, glad that she seems to be alright. You stand there, holding her close, waiting to see what the masked man does next.
"So, do you have a name?" the man asks.
"Holly."
"I see. Well then, Holly, why don't you come with me?"                                                   ------------------------------------------------------
"Where are we going?"

> You say "And why should I trust you? You attacked us just now, didnt you?"
"An error on my part. I simply wished to see how you would respond. Be at ease, young one. You're among friends here."
You don't know what to make of this man.

> You say "Hey, doll, what do you think, should we follow him and see where this all goes?"
The doll stares blankly ahead. She seems to be in a trance.
"I see the damage is more severe than I thought," says the man.

> You say "What are you talking about?"
"I'm talking about the curse that's been placed on you and your doll. The look in her eyes... it's the look of death. Your death, to be precise. There's nothing I or anyone else can do to save you."

> You say "Something tells me you wouldnt be here if my death was guaranteed, though."
You decide to test out the masked man's claim.
"Well, there may be hope for you yet," the man says. "Follow me."
You follow the man up the stairs. He leads you to a bedroom with a chest at the foot of the bed.

> You say "Is there something important in this room?"
"Oh, no. I just thought it would be best to take you somewhere with more light."
You see the man reach into his robe and pull out a long, sharp needle and a spool of black thread.

> You say "Uh, what's that for?"
"Sssh. This won't hurt, I promise. It needs to be done. The curse that's spreading through you and your doll is an awful one, and it must be stopped."
The man walks towards you and grabs your wrist.

> You say "Alright, whatever it is, just do it quick. "
"Hold still," he says.
The man stabs the needle into your wrist. It hurts a little, but it's nothing compared to what you've felt before.
"What are you doing to him?" the doll asks.
"Calm down, little one, I'm not your enemy. I'm only trying to help, for your sake as well as his."
The man begins to wind the thread around your wrist. He ties it into place and snips off the excess thread with his teeth.
"There we go. It's a good thing you're such a skinny one, or I'd have run out of thread. I'll be able to do the other wrist with what's left over."
The man turns to face the doll.
"And now, young lady, I need you to have a seat over there. Don't worry, this won't take long."
The man grabs the doll by her shoulders and guides her to the bed.

> You say "Well, whatever you're doing, it's clearly working, she's snapped out of her trance."
"Yes, it's working," the man says. "But I'm worried about her speech impediment. It's not going away. That can't be a good sign."
An odd glow seems to come out of the man's mask as he continues to examine the doll.
"Hmmm. That's very strange," he says.
The man reaches into the front pocket of his robe and pulls out a handful of cherry cordials.
"It appears that you have completely lost your appetite for sweets."

> You say "Wait, she's a doll. Does she even need to eat?"
"Only if you make her," the man says, offering you the bag.
"I don't need to eat," the doll says softly.

> You say "Do you at least want to try one? It might help you, even if we dont know quite why yet."
You take one of the cherry cordials and offer it to the doll.
"No, thank you."
The man pulls the bag away from you.
"Hey!" you say.
"Sorry, but it's not yours," the man says. "Now, I need you both to stand over there. Together."

> You pick up the doll and go stand on the spot the man is pointing towards.
The man leads you over to a small table. On the table is a large, white candle. He positions you and the doll so that you're standing over the candle and so close that your feet are touching its base.

> You say "Okay, now what?"
Before you can react, the man pushes you and the doll over. You fall forward, head first into the candle.
"Don't move!" the man commands.
You feel a strange pulsating feeling coming from the candle's wicks.

> You try not to move.
"Good work," the man says. "You seem to be getting the hang of this."
The man leaves you and the doll there.

> You say "But wait, what was that for?"
"If you stick around long enough, you'll find out," the man answers.
You sit there for what seems like an eternity, with the doll standing silently beside you.
The man returns with a tray of food. There's two bowls of cereal and two cups of tea.
"Alright, dinner time," the man says. "Let the games begin."
The man sets down the tray and motions for you to help yourself.
"I can't... I can't move," you say, terrified.
"Calm down," says the man, "it's just the effect of the candle, it'll wear off in an hour or two."
The man takes a spoonful of one of the bowls and blows on it before putting it in his mouth.
"You know, food tastes better when you eat it with friends, try some!"
The doll grabs a spoonful of food and puts it in her mouth.
"It's delicious," she says.
"See, told you, now you have to try it."
You take a spoonful and put it in your mouth. It tastes like ashes, but you devour the entire bowl. You begin to feel a pulsating numbness coming from your chest.

> You say "What is this stuff? And what was that candle for?"
"Like I said, we need to deal with the death curse that is on you and the doll. The purpose of the candle is to help with that."
"What do you mean?"
"The candle was infused with the power of death. It's one of my more... experimental tools.

> You say "But how does this power of death protect us from a death curse?"
"It doesn't. It only prolongs the effects of the curse. The curse is still in effect, it just is slowed down by the effects of the candle."
"So when does this candle wear off?" you ask.
"I don't know. A year? A week? Maybe less, maybe more, who knows? But it's only temporary, the curse kills you either way," the man says matter-of-factly.

> You say "What's the next step, then? The doll and I are here in this creepy mansion for a reason, right?"
"Oh, yes. You still need to bring the head of Count Grey to the Count's mistress. She lives in an old church not far from here."

> You say "So, this Count Grey is somewhere in this mansion, then?"
"Oh yes, he's in here somewhere. But I cant help you find him. You and the doll will have to do this on your own, or there wont be any meaning to it."

> You pick up the doll and stand up.
"I'm ready, tell me what to do."
The man smiles.
"I knew you had it in you! Now, get to it!"
As you start walking out of the room, the man calls you back.

> You say "What is it? Did we forget something?"
"Not exactly... you're going to need one more thing before you go."
"What is it?"
The man reaches below the table and takes out a revolver. He hands it to you.

> You say "Is this what I need in order to kill Count Grey?"
"Yes, but you have to use it just right. You only get one shot, so you better make it count."
"What happens when I kill the Count?"
"When you kill Count Grey, the death curse is lifted. You both will be able to leave this place, and live your lives.

> You say "Alright. I guess we'll get going then, and search the mansion to find Count Grey. Are you ready?"
A dark, empty smile forms on the doll's face as she nods.
"I'm ready."
The man at the table smiles, and looks at you both with twinkling eyes.
You and the doll begin slowly walking through the mansion.
"So... how long have you been here?" you ask.
"I don't know, but it feels like an eternity," the doll says in a distant tone of voice.

> You say "Does it have anything to do with Count Grey? Is he the one keeping you here?"
"... No... it's something much worse than that."
You continue walking through the halls of the mansion. After a few minutes, you notice the floor is becoming wet. It is not water either; it is blood. The smell of blood and death fills the halls. You see a door with a lever on the right wall.
"Let's find the Count," you say.
The two of you enter the room.

> You look around the room.
The room is dark, but the light of the moon shines through the window, allowing you to see. You are in a bedroom; there is a dressers and nightstands along the walls.

> You look out the window.
A bloody corpse is on the ground in front of the window. It appears to have had its throat ripped out.
"This doesn't look good..." you say.
"There's a note over there."

> You pick up the note.
You pick up the note on top of the dressers. In the darkness, you can't make out what it says, so you walk over to the windows to get more light.
"It appears to be addressed to us," the doll says as you read it.
My Dearest Holly and Victoria,
I have been eagerly awaiting your arrival. I am in the cellar, waiting for you.

> You say "Victoria? Is that your name?"
"Yes."
"It's nice to meet you, Victoria."
"Y-you too..."
You put down the note and walk over to the door at the end of the hallway.

> You open the door.
You open the door and are greeted by a ghoul, which jumps through your legs.
After the initial shock, you slam the door shut and run back to the bedroom.

> You say "Okay, that cant be good. Any ideas?"
The doll stares at you blankly for a second, then she says "The window in the kitchen leads to the backyard. Maybe we can find something to defeat it out there."

> You take the doll and head for the kitchen.
You find nothing in the kitchen. You begin to head back to the hallway, but you notice another door.
"We never went in this room!" the doll says with excitement.
"We'd better check it out."

> You open the door to the room.
You enter the mysterious new room. It appears to be a bathroom. There is a toilet, sink, and bathtub. You never thought you'd be in a situation where you'd use one of these things.
"We need some water."

> You say "What do we need water for? Is it going to do something against the ghoul?"
The doll stares at you.
"Don't worry, I've got this," she says, and walks into the bathtub.
The doll climbs onto the edge of the tub and puts her hand against the wall. The old paint, which is peeling from the wall, begins to move and swirl around her hand. She opens her hand and drops a marble into the running water of the tub. It begins to fill up.
"What are you doing?" you ask.
"You'll see," is all the doll says.
The water stops filling up, as the tub is only so big. You notice a mixture of blue and green water.
"It's a magical experiment."

> You say "How will it help us?"
The doll looks up at you and stares into your eyes.
"I need you to trust me, Holly."
You can tell she's hiding something from you, but it's best you don't know what it is.

> You say "Alright, I'll trust you."
"Thank you."
She continues to stare into your eyes. It's very creepy. The water begins to swirl around, like when you drop a stone into a pond. The water turns a glowing green color.

> You say "Well, it sure looks like something is happening there."
"We're almost done."
You stare into the water, and you see it. An image of Count Grey. He is lying on the ground, dead. You jump back in shock.

> You say "What happened? We havent even found him yet. Is it showing us that we're going to defeat him?"
The doll shakes her head.
"It's showing us how he died."
"Can you explain what we're seeing?"
"I'm not sure I should," she says, "I think you should try to make your own conclusions."

> You say "Has he been murdered by someone else, perhaps? Before we even started searching for him?"
"Perhaps."
The doll stares at you in the eyes, then looks down at the water. She reaches for her arm. There is a needle there, with green liquid inside. You realize the water has stopped swirling.

> You say "Well, what now? It looks like whatever was happening with the water is done."
The doll holds the needle out.
"I need you to inject this into me."
"What?! Why?"
She doesn't respond, and just stares at you.

> You say "Allright, I said I would trust you, so let's do it. I'll inject you with the needle."

> You inject the needle into the doll's arm.
"Thank you."
It looks painful, but she doesn't cry out. The doll jumps into the bathtub, and the water begins to swirl again. You look at it in awe.

> You say "now what is happening?"
The doll turns to you.
"You're going to have to get in as well."
"What?!"
"Just do it!" she yells.
You step into the bathtub, joining the doll.
The water feels warm and nice. You can't help but enjoy it. The doll grabs your arm and smiles at you.
"We're going to fall asleep in a moment," she says,

> You say "But why?"
"It's part of the ritual," she says, "Just relax."
You feel your eyes getting heavy... Your heartbeat slows down... You think you see something in the distance... But then, everything fades to black. You don't know if an hour has passed, or ten minutes, or maybe even just a second. You can't see anything. You don't know where you are.
Then, you wake up. You're laying down on something soft. You open your eyes. You're in a room with white walls, illuminated by a bright light coming from above you. The light itself is fixed in place, and doesn't move no matter how hard you look at it. The doll is sitting next to you.

> You say "What happened? Are we still somewhere in the mansion?"
"We're somewhere else, yes. We made it out of the mansion."
You look around. The doll is laying next to you on a bed. There is another bed in the room, but it is empty.

> You say "But what about Count Grey? We were supposed to go deal with him, right?"
"No, the Count escaped."
You feel a sense of panic coming over you. The doll notices, and holds your hand.

> You say "He escaped? But why did we see an image of him dead?"
"The image was fake. He set up the room to display the image after he escaped."
The doll looks troubled.
"However... He didn't escape without a trace."
You look at her, waiting for her to explain.
"His wife was in the room. She helped him escape. They left together."
"So... We failed..."
The doll doesn't answer, but instead looks down. You can see tears in her eyes.

> You say "Come on, dont cry now. We're still in one piece, arent we? That's gotta count for something."
She shakes her head a little, then smiles.
"You're right," she says, "It's not like we died or anything. We should be happy about that."
She hugs you for a few seconds, then lets go.

> You say "Still, that means that Count Grey is still out there somewhere. Even if he escaped this time, we can still track him down."
"Exactly," she says, "Come on, we should see what this place is."
The two of you exit the room, and find yourself on a nearly deserted street.

> You say "Okay, so, any ideas on where we should search for him?"
She thinks for a second, then speaks.
"We should try searching the Seamstress's house. No one's searched it yet, as far as I know, so it's the perfect place."

> You go to the Seamstress's house.
You and the doll walk along the abandoned street. After a few moments, you find yourself standing in front of a large brick house.
"Is this it?" you ask.
"Yeah," replies the doll, "This is it."

> You say "This whole area seems abandoned... I'm guessing that this house is abandoned too?"
"Yeah. The people here all fled when the Count arrived."
"So this house has been empty for a while?"
"That's right. Let's go in."
You pry open the window, and enter the house.

> You look around.
You see a large, dusty room. You look around, and find that there are cobwebs everywhere.

> You explore the rest of the house.
You find a dusty bookshelf, with only one book on it. You pick it up, and blow the dust off of it.
"The History of Count Grey," you read, "Oh, this looks interesting."
You open the book. It's a diary, written by Count Grey himself. You start reading it.
"I have found a new girl. A pretty one... I'll make her my bride."
You feel sick. You close the book, and set it down.
"What's wrong?" asks the doll.
"It's a creepy diary. That's what's wrong."
"Really? I didn't know Count Grey was into writing."
"Neither did I."
You turn, and walk away from the book.

> You say "it said something about some girl he found, who he intended to marry."
You see the doll's face fall. Her pupils shrink, and she clutches your arm tightly.
"We can't let him have her," she whispers, "He'll kill her."

> You say "Why would he do that?"
"Because that's what he does. He finds a new bride, then kills her after a few weeks."
"Why would he do that?"
"He is a monster. It's what monsters do."

> You say "So it's not about some grand scheme or something, he's doing stuff like this simply because he's just that evil?"
"That's right. I think he's always been evil. He just pretended to be good for a little while, so he could become Count."
The doll looks uncomfortable.
"OK," she says, brusquely, "Let's go."
You twist around, and see Count Grey standing at the top of the staircase. He smiles.
"Hello," he says.
Count Grey steps forward.

> You say "If you're here, you must already know we were looking for you, right?"
You hear music coming from another room. It sounds like a harpsichord.
"Yes," says Count Grey, "I did."
The Count slowly steps forward. The doll backs up, moving closer to you.

> You say "So what are you intending to do?"
"I haven't decided yet," he says, "But whatever it is, it will most likely involve you in some way."
"OK...?" you say, uncertain what to say next.
Count Grey steps forward, raising his hand. He puts a finger to the side of his mouth, thinking.
"You... you look familiar."
"I should do," the doll says, "You murdered my little brother."
Count Grey tilts his head, still frowning in thought.
"I have?" he asks.
The doll nods. Count Grey strokes his chin, still staring at you.
"Are you sure?" he asks.
"Yes!" the doll shouts, "You pretended to be his friend, but you killed him anyway. You're a monster."
The Count looks taken aback. For the first time, a dark shadow crosses his face.
"I'm not..." he starts to say, then stops, then continues, "Were we friends?"
"Yes! You told me I was your favorite. Then, you betrayed him. You betrayed all of us!"
"I'm sure I had my reasons." Count Grey smiles, once again looking serene.
"What were they?" the doll asks.
Count Grey presses his lips together.
"You're trying my patience," he says, "Perhaps you don't want to know my reasons. Perhaps it's better not to know."
The Count turns, and walks away. He heads towards the parlor. You follow him, the doll by your side.

> You say "Wait, you're not going to attack us?"
Count Grey walks on, descending the staircase.
"Don't be ridiculous," he calls back, "I'm not going to do anything."
He disappears from view. You follow him down the spiraling staircase. The doll takes a sharp breath.
"I think I smell something burning..." she says in a hushed voice.
You smell the air. There's a faint odor of smoke, in the distance.

> You say "Maybe that's something he is trying to show us? For now, let's just follow him, I feel like there's something important here."
"Yeah," the doll says, "I suppose you're right."
You walk down the steps. You reach the bottom, finding yourself in a marble hallway. Count Grey stands by a doorway, looking back at you.

> You say "So, now what?"
Count Grey walks over to the door. He glances back at you.
"I suppose I can show you a few of my rooms," he says, "But only a few."
He opens the door. You follow him through the doorway. You find yourself in a massive library. Count Grey strides across the floor. You follow him, walking past shelf after shelf of books. Reaching the far wall, you turn down another aisle. He stops at one of the shelves. He pulls out a book. Putting his hand inside, he begins to slide it to the side. With a click, a hidden door appears in the wall. He opens it, walking inside. You follow him inside. Inside, you find a massive room. A king-sized bed takes up most of the space. There's a chest at the foot of the bed.

> You say "What's in there?"
"A few of my most treasured belongings," Count Grey says, "I'll have you know, however, that this is not where I sleep."
You stare at him, confused.
"How could you not sleep...?" you say before realizing how stupid the question is.
Count Grey laughs softly.
"It's another joke," he says, "Welcome to the upper levels."
You follow him back out into the hallway.

> You say "what do mean by upper levels?"
Count Grey walks down the hallway, opening doors as he goes.
"These are the rooms that my family and I used," he says, "This is the game room, this was my son's room, this was my wife's room."

> You say "is this what you wanted to show us?"
Count Grey smiles at you.
"In a way," he says, "Now that you've seen them, I can tell you about my family."
He leads you to a pair of doors. He pauses, looks back at you.
"This was my daughter's room," he says, humbly opening the doors.
Inside you see a large room, with a beautiful canopy bed, and a dressmaker's dummy in the middle.
"This is where I spent most of my time with her," Count Grey says, voice quivering slightly.
"Her name was Sarah."
Count Grey stares at the dummy for a few moments.

> You say "What happened to her?"
"She's dead," Count Grey says, flatly.
"My son, James, killed her. He was never the same after that."
Count Grey looks at you.
"Follow me," he says.
You and the doll follow Count Grey through the halls. He leads you to a set of stairs you didn't even know were there. They wind down, down, down, going further and further underground. Count Grey flicks his wrist, and the torches lining the wall light up.

> You say "So why did James kill your daughter?"
Count Grey laughs, a cold cruel laugh.
"He didn't mean to," he says, "He loved her, you know. He would have done anything for her. He saw her as his angel."
"He was a good boy once. Perhaps he still is, deep down inside, but..."
Count Grey sighs, glances at you.
"You remind me of her," he says, "Do you have a name?"

> You say "My name is Holly."
"Holly..." Count Grey says, tasting the name in his mouth.
"It's a nice name."
He leads you into the massive room. You're not quite sure what to expect, but it sure as hell isn't this.
The room is filled with tables. On each table there are bodies. Corpses. Some of them dead only a few hours, some... you shudder to think how long they've been lying there. The bodies are in different states of decay.

> You say "Did James kill these people too?"
"Some," Count Grey says, leading you through the room.
He walks with a noticeable limp. It seems to get worse as you go through the room.
The doll stares at Count Grey, and says "Wait, why are you being so nice to us?"
"Because you remind me of her," he repeats.

> You say "I'll be honest here, you really dont seem like the awful sort of person I was expecting."
"I try not to be," Count Grey says, "but my son James... as he grew more and more insane, he started to do incredibly evil acts, all while disguised as me. I still dont quite know why."
The doll looks shocked. "Are you saying that James was the one who really did all that awful stuff? Killed all those people? Killed my brother?"  "Yes."
"So I've been chasing the wrong guy this whole time!"
Count Grey nods. "I'm sorry for that mistake. Now, here we are. The very heart of the chateau."

> You say "I'm guessing you have some proof of this too, is that right?"
Count Grey holds up two fingers.
"I have two witnesses that will testify that my son was the one who attacked the carriage. One of them is dead, unfortunately, but I can assure you, he told the truth before he died."

> You say "And the other?"
"Is right here," Count Grey says, stopping in front of a door.
He leads you through the door into a small bedroom. Inside is a small girl, no older than fourteen, cowering in the corner.

> You say "Who is this?"
"This, is Alison," Count Grey says.
"Alison Cray?" asks the doll. "I've heard that name before... she's the one who survived?"
Count Grey turns to Alison. "Would you like to tell them your story?"
Alison nods slowly, then begins to speak.
"I was traveling through the woods with my father and our servants when we were attacked by a man in a wolf mask. He had this... thing with him, it..." she pauses, looking as if the memory is too much for her. Count Grey helps her out.
"He had a weapon" says Count Grey, "a strange weapon. A weapon with no form. I suspect it is what was driving him to madness... I dont know where he got it from. But it was enough for him to easily kill Alison's father." Alison pauses again, to collect her thoughts and wipe a tear from her eye. "The man in the wolf mask killed the servants and then dragged my father's corpse away, and I... I ran. I got lost in the woods, and ended up here. That was three days ago."
"That's... that's terrible," the doll says. "I'm so sorry for your loss."
"So am I," Count Grey says, then looks at Alison. "Thank you for sharing your story with us. You may wait in your room until we return."
Alison nods, and heads back to her room.
"So, back to the task at hand," says Count Grey.

> You say "I'm guessing you want us to stop James, is that it?"
"Correct," says Count Grey. "I want you to go and find my son, and put an end to all this nonsense."
"I think we can do that," you say.
"Great." Count Grey walks over to a bookshelf, and takes out a key. He returns to you, and hands it to you. "This is the key to my weapons cabinet. Help yourself to whatever you can carry. I'd give you some of my men, but seeing as James and his followers almost certainly killed most of them, that wouldn't do much good."