You are a person. (And no, this is not an Arthur Miller play.)
Wow, you're actually a person! And an adventurer at that! Congratulations, man, that's pretty cool.
Anyway, you're walking through the snowy ''forest'', on your way to find a new adventure (or at least a hot meal) when [[suddenly->noise]]
You hear a noise!
Do you [[turn around->turn around]]?
Or do you [[run away->run away]]?
It's a ''DRAGON!!''
Holy shit. Okay, so dragon. That's a thing that's happening. I mean, it's not a //huge// dragon by any means, more the size of a large dog or a small pony. But it's still a dragon, razor-sharp claws, fire breath, and all.
You're not wearing any armor (you're not really that great of an adventurer yet), but you //do// have a ''sword''!
Do you [[draw your sword and attack->attack]]?
Or do you [[try to back away slowly while bowing respectfully->back away]]?
You don't get far before your world erupts into fire and pain, and your (incredibly short) life flashes before your eyes.
''GAME OVER''
[[Start over->Start]]?
Your sword glances off of the ''dragon'''s tough hide and does no damage whatsoever.
All the same, the ''dragon'' does not appreciate being hit with a hunk of metal and burns you to a crisp.
''GAME OVER''
[[Start again->Start]]?
The ''dragon'' seems appeased by your respect and breathes a jet of comfortably warm steam at you. It feels amazing, a nice respite from the freezing cold forest, and your icy fingers really appreciate it.
Do you [[smile in appreciation and thank the ''dragon''->thanks]]?
Or do you worry that the ''dragon'' just really likes smoked meat and [[try to run away->run away]]?
The ''dragon'' smiles a very dragon-y smile and begins herding you off the ''path''.
Do you [[freak out and run away->run away]]?
Or do you let the ''dragon'' do its thing and [[go with it->go with it]]?
You allow the ''dragon'' to herd you off the ''path'' and a little ways through the ''forest''. Surprisingly, whenever you begin to slip on the icy ground, the ''dragon'' is there to catch you and keep you from falling. It really doesn't seem so evil after all.
After a while, you find yourself in front of a ''cave''. It's pretty dark, so you can't see what's inside, but the ''dragon'' seems pretty determined to get you to go in.
Do you [[enter the cave->cave]]?
Or do you [[run away->run away]]?
Or do you apologize to the ''dragon'', saying you really must be on your way and [[try to leave politely->leave politely]]?
You cautiously enter the ''cave'', praying that this whole thing wasn't some sort of plot to get you back here so the ''dragon'' could eat you in the comfort of its own home.
Inside, the ''cave'' is pitch black, and you stumble around for a bit before there's a flash of fire. A large pile of wood lights up, and you see the ''dragon'' smiling smugly at it before giving you a look that tells you its very proud of itself.
You smile hesitantly back.
Now that the cave is all lit up, you can see treasure heaped everywhere. Gems and coins and indescribable treasures for as far as the eye can see. It's incredible.
By the fire is the carcass of a large deer. The ''dragon'' grabs your tunic in its mouth and pulls you toward the deer before pushing a ''hunting knife'' toward you with its snout.
Clearly, the ''dragon'' wants you to butcher the dead deer for food.
Do you [[get to work because, hello, you're starving->cook]]?
Or do you [[turn on the dragon, thinking you can steal the food and the treasure once it's dead->turn on the dragon]]?
The ''dragon'' seems sad that you're leaving before entering the ''cave'', but it doesn't seem to be angry with you and allows you to leave.
You try to follow your tracks back to the path, but you can't seem to find your way. You wander through the ''forest'' for a couple of days before stumbling out into a small ''village''.
You find a small ''inn'' and rejoice because, hello, you haven't eaten much in a couple of days now. Unfortunately, when you enter the ''inn'', you discover that you do not have enough money to pay for a meal and are forced to pay for your food and board by working in the small ''inn'' for the rest of your days. Indentured servitude is a bitch.
''GAME OVER''
[[Start over->Start]]?
You make quick work of the deer (it's amazing how great of a motivator hunger is) and use some of the smaller sticks to skewer the meat, placing them on a flat stone to your side as you finish them. You go to pick them up and move them over to the fire to cook when the ''dragon'' shoves you away.
It breathes a jet of fire at the meat, seemingly adjusting the temperature here and there, until the cave is filled with the mouth-watering aroma of cooked venison. Yum.
The ''dragon'' sits back proudly at this accomplishment and smiles another very dragon-y smile.
You pick up a skewer and begin to eat. The ''dragon'' begins gnawing on what's left of the deer carcass, apparently enjoying raw meat over the cooked venison you're chowing down on.
When the two of you finish eating and are quite satisfied, you're feeling quite sleepy. The ''dragon'' pulls you over close to the fire and curls up. It's obviously exhausted, too. It urges you to lie down beside it in the warm glow of the fire.
Do you [[pretend to sleep, then gather up some treasure and slip out of the cave once the ''dragon'' falls asleep->sneak out]]?
Or do you [[genuinely fall asleep because you're so tired and believe the dragon might not want to kill you after all->fall asleep]]?
The ''dragon'' is very offended that you're being so rude and attacks.
You don't last very long, and soon your world is engulfed in fire and pain.
''GAME OVER''
[[Start over->Start]]?
You manage to fool the ''dragon'' and gather up an armload of precious gems and treasures. As you're making your way out of the ''cave'', however, you trip over a rock and fall with a clatter.
The ''dragon'' wakes up immediately and realizes that you were trying to steal from it. It's disappointment is almost heartbreaking, but you don't have to witness it for long before your world is engulfed in fire and pain.
''GAME OVER''
[[Start over->Start]]?
You wake up much later, feeling refreshed. The ''dragon'' is puttering around its ''cave'', attending to its treasure. It turns when you stand up and makes a sort of noise that you're pretty sure might be one of happiness. You smile, this time a bit less hesitantly than you did last night.
The ''dragon'' grabs a sack from the floor beside it and drags it over to you before nudging it closer with its snout and smiling up at you. You [[open the sack to find...->open sack]]
''TREASURE''
So much treasure. Like seriously, more treasure than you've ever dreamed of owning. There's also a pretty snazzy sword in there which is, like, a million times better than your cousin's castoff that you've been using.
You thank the ''dragon'' profusely, and it walks you to the mouth of the ''cave''. You go on your way, having had an excellent adventure in befriending a ''dragon'' and with quite a bit of treasure to show for it.
''END''
[[Play again->Start]]?
''Adventures with Dragons''
By J Cole Miller
[[Begin->Start]]