> east
You move east. The cabin is quite old, and the wood that composes its walls is also decomposing. The fireplace is full of old, blackened ashes, and a wood box sits nearby it. The mountain is back west, and an open trapdoor exposes a cellar beneath. The floor is made of dirt, so grass also grows here. A cool breeze blows past. The grass and plants that surround you quiver as it caresses them.

> open box
You open the woodbox. An axe is inside the woodbox.

> get axe
You take the axe from the woodbox. You hear a small snap, as if a twig had been broken. A bird chirps musically in a nearby tree.

> down
You clamber down the ladder into the cellar.

> look
The stench of mold hangs in the air. The shelves are empty, and covered with a film of dust. A small bed rests in the corner. A group of planks nailed to the wall makes a ladder which leads back up to the cabin.

> x bed
It smells really bad. It's also stained. A rusty bucket is on the awful-smelling bed.

> get bucket
You take the rusty bucket from the awful-smelling bed.

> up
You grasp the ladder and climb back into the cabin.

> west
You move west. A huge mountain looms in front of you, like a man before an ant. You can see a small hole at the base of a group of trees. There is a path that leads south, through a winding forest. A small, dilapidated cabin lies eastward. You hear a small snap, as if a twig had been broken. A bird chirps musically in a nearby tree.

> south
You move south. The trees are quite varied. Some are pine, some oak, some live, some dead and rotting. The dirt path leads south and north. You can see footprints of small animals in the dust. Small twigs litter the grass. A cool breeze blows past. The grass and plants that surround you quiver as it caresses them.

> chop trees
You whack the tree repeatedly with the axe. Soon, it crashes to the ground. A shovel dislodges from the branches.

> get shovel
You pick up the shovel. You hear a small snap, as if a twig had been broken. A bird chirps musically in a nearby tree.

> south
You move south. This field is so big that if you went anywhere but back north, you'd get lost. The grass is taller here than anywhere else. It's almost up to your elbows. The grass moves occasionally, as a small creature moves through it. There is a large molehill near your right foot. A cool breeze blows past. The grass and plants that surround you quiver as it caresses them.

> dig
You sink the shovel into the soft earth of a molehill and start to remove the dirt. Soon, you expose a small hole leading down into the ground.

> down
You move down. This is a small underground cave that you discovered. Stalactites that shine with an eerie glow hang from the ceiling. At your feet, a small river flows past. Light shines through the small hole that leads back to the surface.

> fill bucket
You dip the bucket into the river and scoop up some water.

> up
You move up. This field is so big that if you went anywhere but back north, you'd get lost. The grass is taller here than anywhere else. It's almost up to your elbows. The grass moves occasionally, as a small creature moves through it. Dirt is scattered about the field, and you can move down through a small hole into a cave.

> north
You move north. The trees are quite varied. Some are pine, some oak, some live, some dead and rotting. The dirt path leads south and north. You can see footprints of small animals in the dust. Small twigs litter the grass. You hear a small snap, as if a twig had been broken. A bird chirps musically in a nearby tree.

> north
You move north. A huge mountain looms in front of you, like a man before an ant. You can see a small hole at the base of a group of trees. There is a path that leads south, through a winding forest. A small, dilapidated cabin lies eastward. A cool breeze blows past. The grass and plants that surround you quiver as it caresses them.

> pour water into hole
You turn up the bucket and empty its contents into the hole. Suddenly, everything begins to shake. You watch as the cabin shatters and the trees disappear. The sky seems to boil and the grass burns beneath your feet. And then everything goes black... You wake up lying on the ground in a large castle.

> look
This is the entrance to the castle. An elegant tapestry hangs above a door to the north. The bricks in the wall are roughly hewn, and cold to the touch. A film of dirt coats the floor, and you can see your footprints in it. The drawbridge is up, so the way is blocked.

> x tapestry
It depicts a fierce battle between a giant griffin and an army of knights. There seems to be a lump on it.

> move tapestry
You shove the tapestry aside and a small key clatters to the floor, which you take.

> open door
You put the key in the lock and turn it. The lock clicks and the door swings open.

> north
You move north. This is apparently the pride of the castle. There is a large table in the center of the room surrounded by chairs, and a balcony above where the king apparently sits. There are doorways, void of doors, to the south and west.

> west
You move west. This is the king's living area. Not only is there a throne, but there is also a bed, a table, and two chairs. The rug is nailed to the floor. The gem-enlaced doorway gives access to the room to the east.

> x throne
You look at the throne's ornate body and see a small button near the padded headrest.

> push button
You press the button. Suddenly, there is a great noise of clanking chains.

> east
You move east. This is apparently the pride of the castle. There is a large table in the center of the room surrounded by chairs, and a balcony above where the king apparently sits. There are doorways, void of doors, to the south and west.

> south
You move south. This is the entrance to the castle. An elegant tapestry hangs above a door to the north. The bricks in the wall are roughly hewn, and cold to the touch. A film of dirt coats the floor, and you can see your footprints in it.

> south
You move south. Mushy clouds rearrange themselves beneath your feet. The castle is to your north, and more cloud stretches around in every other direction. A small puff of cloud floats by your nose. You grab at it, but miss.

> southwest
You move southwest. It's a beanstalk, but that castle wasn't a giant's. Good. The beanstalk stretches down, but you can't see where it's growing from. The only way to go is northeast to more clouds, or down the beanstalk to who-knows-where. A small bird flies past, twittering like a fool.

> down
You climb down the beanstalk. After about an hour of climbing, you stop and look around. You hear a small noise, and it sounds a bit like this: creeeeaaak... Then you hear it again. And again. And then you hear yourself screaming as you fall through the air, tumbling head over heel... You black out...You wake bobbing about in the middle of an ocean.

> look
You are floating about in the ocean, treading water. The waves bounce you about, making you slightly sick. Those same waves also splash up into your eyes repeatedly, stinging with the force that only salt can. Your clothes are drenched, and you want to get out of this sodium-fortified mess as soon as you can.

> west
You move west. You are on a sandy stretch of ground near a huge stone structure that appears to be a lighthouse. Its stones are aged and deteriorating, due to the constant battering by the waves. The sand squelches about under your feet, making shoe-prints that are almost immediately washed away by the tide. There doesn't appear to be much vegetation on the island except one thin tree at the back of the lighthouse.

> west
You can't go in that direction, but you can move north, east and in. The tide recedes from the island, leaving wet sand where there was water.

> north
You move north. Behind the lighthouse, the masonry is less dilapidated. The tide only washes up to about within 10 feet of the tower, so it is not striking the stone back here. A lone tree sits to the west, oddly right on the edge of the ocean. You can see a gaping hole in the structure of the lighthouse, around the third floor. Also here is a pretty blue seashell.

> get seashell
You pick up the pretty blue seashell.

> open seashell
You open the pretty blue seashell. A tiny pearl is inside the pretty blue seashell.

> get pearl
You take the tiny pearl from the pretty blue seashell.

> west
You move west. You are standing at the base of a tall, rough-trunked palm tree. Seagulls fly incessantly over it, circling for ages and ages, almost as if it is a god to them... The wet sand smooshes around beneath your feet, making footprint molds that are washed away every so often.

> climb tree
You grasp the tree around its trunk and pull yourself up into the fronds, foot by foot.

> look
As you clamber around noisily in the fronds of the palm, seagulls screech at you. Occasionally, you knock loose one of the fronds, and it drifts down into the ocean and floats away. The bark is surprisingly smooth up here, more so than the bark down lower. A coconut hangs directly in front of your face, tantalizing you to wrench it loose and take it with.

> get coconut
You reach out for the coconut to pick it, but as you touch it, it falls to the ground below. It must be rotten.

> down
You move down. You are standing at the base of a tall, rough-trunked palm tree. Seagulls fly incessantly over it, circling for ages and ages, almost as if it is a god to them... The wet sand smooshes around beneath your feet, making footprint molds that are washed away every so often. Also here is a rotten coconut.

> get coconut
You pick up the rotten coconut. The tide recedes from the island, leaving wet sand where there was water.

> east
You move east. Behind the lighthouse, the masonry is less dilapidated. The tide only washes up to about within 10 feet of the tower, so it is not striking the stone back here. A lone tree sits to the west, oddly right on the edge of the ocean. You can see a gaping hole in the structure of the lighthouse, around the third floor.

> south
You move south. You are on a sandy stretch of ground near a huge stone structure that appears to be a lighthouse. Its stones are aged and deteriorating, due to the constant battering by the waves. The sand squelches about under your feet, making shoe-prints that are almost immediately washed away by the tide. There doesn't appear to be much vegetation on the island except one thin tree at the back of the lighthouse. The tide recedes from the island, leaving wet sand where there was water.

> in
You move in. The lighthouse floorboards squeak under your feet as you walk around. Dust stirs up from an ancient table as you brush by it, walking about slowly. Sunlight shines in through a dusty window about seven feet over your head. You can see something on the window ledge, but you can't quite make out what it is in the dim light.

> up
You move up. The floor is less stable up here, and you can feel the floor bend under your feet. The stench of decay fills the air, and the reason is quite apparent. The man who owned the lighthouse is sprawled across the floor, spread-eagle, with a large knife protruding from his back. A trickle of dried blood (which obviously trickled across the floor before it dried) winds about the dusty floor and stops near your feet. An old pirate is here,searching through everything in the room, stopping and cursing every so often. "Where is it, where IS it, !%@$^%?!"

> give pearl to pirate
The pirate's eyes light up. "Hey, thanks, kid, this's what I've bin lookin' fer!" He pockets the pearl. "Aye, I said I'd give yer somethin' fer yer trouble, didn't I?" He searches his bag. "Ah, here you go, matey! May the seas be in yer favor!" He hands you a dirty coil of rope and scuttles away. You wonder where he would go, since there wasn't a boat outside.

> up
You move up. The third floor is even less stable. Huge parts of it are dried, rotted, and missing. It is all you can do just to sidestep around the holes to get across the floor. There doesn't appear to be much dust here, it having all fallen through the floorboards. The sunlight from a large hole in the stonework shines on the floor in a thick beam.

> up
You move up. The room is a complete mess. Clothes lie strewn about the floor, and a dresser has been tipped backwards. Shattered pieces of a glass lamp are scattered about the mayhem, making it a hazard to walk around. A tiny bed lies tucked into the corner, its sheets and blanket nowhere near made.

> x sheet
The sheet is wrinkled and moldy. The pirate most likely picked it up, took one look, and put it back down on the bed again. You wouldn't blame him if he did, it's a bit gross to be honest. A tiny bronze key is inside the ruffled sheet.

> get key
You take the tiny bronze key from the ruffled sheet.

> down
You move down. The third floor is even less stable. Huge parts of it are dried, rotted, and missing. It is all you can do just to sidestep around the holes to get across the floor. There doesn't appear to be much dust here, it having all fallen through the floorboards. The sunlight from a large hole in the stonework shines on the floor in a thick beam.

> out
You move out. You're pretty sure that this was not intended to be a balcony. It only sticks out of the building about 3 feet, allowing little walking room. The bricks seem to be sturdy, though. You can see out over the endless expanse of sea, and down onto the beach. Seagulls fly around above the ocean, squawking incessantly. It gives you a headache. A metal bar protrudes from the wall of the lighthouse, slightly bent upwards.

> tie rope to bar
You knot the rope around the metal bar and drop it down over the edge of the balcony. You can now climb down to the beach, and the floors in between.

> down
You move down. You are dangling from a rope outside the lighthouse, at about the second floor level. You can stare straight into the palm tree, and observe the palm fronds in all their glory.

> down
You move down. You are dangling on the rope about 10 feet above the ground. There is a window in the side of the lighthouse, at approximately your height. You can feel the spray of the ocean on your cheeks from here. A seagull is flying around over by the tree, squawking repeatedly. You'd like to hurt it, but you don't have a way to.

> x window
The window is a bit dusty, but you can still see through it -- just barely, though. There is a rectangular object sitting on the window ledge inside. It is stuck shut, and you cannot coax it open. After a quick examination, you see the reason. The latch has become gummed up.

> open window
You try to wrench the window open, but the clasp is all gummed up.

> hit clasp with coconut
You hold onto the rope with one hand while smashing the coconut against the clasp. After a while, the latch comes unstuck. Looking at the coconut, you see a large hole in the side. Having no more use of it, you toss it into the ocean where it promptly sinks, water filling in through the hole.

> open window
You pluck at the clasp and it springs open. As you push the window open, it squeaks, and something falls into the lighthouse from the window ledge. Hmm... wonder what it could be?

> down
You move down. Behind the lighthouse, the masonry is less dilapidated. The tide only washes up to about within 10 feet of the tower, so it is not striking the stone back here. A lone tree sits to the west, oddly right on the edge of the ocean. A length of rope hangs down from the third floor, allowing you to climb up.

> south
You move south. You are on a sandy stretch of ground near a huge stone structure that appears to be a lighthouse. Its stones are aged and deteriorating, due to the constant battering by the waves. The sand squelches about under your feet, making shoe-prints that are almost immediately washed away by the tide. There doesn't appear to be much vegetation on the island except one thin tree at the back of the lighthouse. The tide washes in, splashing about your feet.

> in
You move in. The lighthouse floorboards squeak under your feet as you walk around. Dust stirs up from an ancient table as you brush by it, walking about slowly. Sunlight shines in through a dusty window about seven feet over your head. You can see something on the window ledge, but you can't quite make out what it is in the dim light. Also here is a gold-laced box.

> get box
You pick up the gold-laced box.

> unlock box
You insert the tiny key into the box's golden lock and twist it. You hear a click!, and at that instant, the key snaps off in your hands. You discard the useless piece of metal.

> open box
You lift the lid of the box, and peer inside. What you see makes you gasp. It's that $%#%* spiral! You slowly back away from the box, but the spiral rises up, and you feel as if you are in a vacuum. You are sucked into the vortex that the spiral creates, into another world...

> look
As you glance about the eerie forest, a chill runs up your spine. The trees are all dead, and they all seem to have empty, black, staring eyes directed right at you. You want to get out of here as quickly as possible. A very large tree stands in front of you, its trunk blemished by an arched hole that looks suspiciously like an entryway...

> in
You move in. The room is filled with a sense of foreboding. A large figure floats above the floor in the center of the room. His guards stand on either side of him, ready to defend him if needed. Also here is the help list. The man himself is a truly fearful sight. His skin glows with an awful, iridescent blueness that illuminates the room and reflects from the golden walls. He is wearing a glass crown that is set with emeralds, sapphires, and rubies. It has a large "P" set in the center of it.

> get list
You pick up the help list.

> read list
Fear Strength Sloth Panic 50 fang cross Ghosts Anger Ignorance Pain Cold Death Lost Monsters Satan Ice Dark

> ask puzzlelord about "whatever"
Before you can open your mouth, he begins to speak. "Hello, Anonymous. Yes, I do know your name. I like to know my victims." "Victims?" you ask. "Yes, victims. You see, down in the Labyrinth of Terror, I have imprisoned five demons, so that they may no longer plague my realm, but they do still exist in your world. They are called Anger, Fear, Ignorance, Pain, and Sloth. Though they are more deadly in combination, they, by themselves, can enter an unsuspecting victim and completely destroy his life. And, you see, they get hungry, too, so I feed them on brave but stupid adventurers like yourself. But I'll give you a sporting chance. If you can answer my riddle within ten turns, you will gain your freedom. Does that sound fair?" You nod. "Good. Here is your riddle." He takes a deep breath and goes into a sort of trance. As he floats, an eerie chant drifts from his mouth. 50 is my first nothing is my second a snake will make my third then three parts a cross is reckoned. Now, to find my name fit my parts together. I am all your past, and you fear me in cold weather.

> lost
You think for a moment. And it hits you. You turn to the Puzzlelord and speak. "All fear being... LOST! Especially in cold weather!" The Puzzlelord gets a dejected look on his face and shoos the guards away. "How did you find it out? Not even my top logic wizards could figure it out!" "Simple," you say. "50 is my first- L is the Roman numeral for fifty. Nothing is my second- O is the symbol for nothing. A snake will make my third- The letter S is shaped like a snake. Then three parts a cross is reckoned- the three parts of a cross make a T. Fit them together and it spells L-O-S-T. All people fear being lost in cold weather." The Puzzlelord gets an even grumpier look on his face. "Fine, I shall grant you your freedom." He pulls the spiral from midair, and you are siphoned into it through his magic... You land on your rear end in a patch of grass. As you brush yourself off, you realize something. This is your home! You look around at your small house. The garden, the shutters, the little gravel road... It's almost too much to stand. You joyfully open the door and enter your home. As you plop down in your chair, you look at the clock. You've only been gone for ten minutes! How very strange. Oh, well, you'll try and figure it out tomorrow... Tomorrow after a long nap...

NOTE: the pirate has an annoying habit of moving around so if he's not where he should be when you first try to give him the pearl, just keep trying. He'll show up eventually.