A War Story

[Ertxiem]

(I'll just ignore bugfartboy's suggestions instead of deleting them.)
(My post below is as if it was after reply #28)

PULL the joystick!!! Quickly!
If that's not enough, seek guidance on releasing ballast.

(I would also like to take a look at the security footage. But avoiding the imminent crash may be wiser!)

[ArtDrake]

The airship groans slowly, tilting its nose upwards. You feel the floor shift beneath you, and behind the bridge doors, things fall backwards down the corridors of the cabin. Looking out the front window, you see the ground falling away from you, and the altimeter's counter is slowly increasing. It looks like you won't need to jettison the ballast at the moment.

Suddenly, an alarm bell sounds: the controls have been utilised by an unauthorised pilot! The bridge doors fly open, and you see that the three animated skeletons that have been scratching at the doors can now enter the cockpit of the aircraft. The one on the right side (the side with the portal), starts to run towards you, arms outstretched. You think you can make it to the portal if you go now, and the odds don't look good for you with just a metal spring that you took from the prison bed.

(And now, I'd like to explain why I was a bit frustrated before. I have a limited view of the story ahead, and it's a branching storyline that can be explored freely, but the destruction of the hero's bedroom and house is not an option that I have planned. It also makes victory unfeasible; the door would be burnt down, and the portals would close. The hero could never return. That and, I don't want to shut down entirely one half of the storyline)

[Ertxiem]

Throw the metal spring at the skeleton nearest the portal and
run for the portal.
In the bedroom pick up for a baseball bat or something like that, if its available (the hero should know).

(I'm thinking about either locking the bedroom door and exploring the rest of the house to get something to defend the hero or locking the door to prevent the skeletons going through the rest of the house and running through the 2nd portal searching for help, through the unlocked cell door.)

[ArtDrake]

The metal spring flies at the skeleton approaching the door, catching in its eye socket and disrupting it for a moment, giving you extra time to make a break for the portal. The skeleton eventually dislodges the spring, but by the time it does, you have disappeared. Then, you shut and lock your bedroom door, preventing skeleton invasion. Then, in thinking about somehow defending yourself, you think of the ceremonial sword in your father's study, and the aluminium baseball bat in the basket of sports equipment downstairs. Your mother is downstairs, filing papers for her job, but your father is working late at the university. However, you are not allowed in your father's study at all.

[bugfartboy]

Retrieve the baseball bat.

[ArtDrake]

You quietly go downstairs, trying to evade notice (imagine the explaining you'd have to do if your mother found out about the portals), and reach into the basket to retrieve the bat. However, the bat makes a significant amount of noise as you pull it out, and your mother calls you over to her downstairs office. You have no choice but to walk over to her, leaving the bat behind on the floor, and she demands an explanation for the noise. What do you tell your mother?

[Ertxiem]

I tell her that I was picking up the bat to put it in my backpack because tomorrow afternoon I will go play with some friends. I politely ask her permission and say the things the way she likes to smooth her.

[ArtDrake]

She decides that you're probably up to no good (and she's right), but that she doesn't really care enough to pursue it right now. You leave her office, take the bat, and go upstairs with it, back to your room. You do not hear any noise coming from the closet.

[bugfartboy]

Go into and examine the bedroom.

[ArtDrake]

You are already in your bedroom. It has not changed since you were last in it.

[Ertxiem]

Look at both portals.
(It seems that the skeletons haven't detected the portal... yet. If it seems that the skeletons aren't about to go to the bedroom, then it may be interesting to go through the 2nd portal, hiding the baseball bat first in case we need it later. The ceremonial sword seems useful against the skeletons, but I would like to take a look at what's in the 2nd portal before risking to pick it up.)

[ArtDrake]

By the second, you mean the one leading to the airship and the skeletons, right? Or do you mean the one leading to the prison cell?

Either way, you take a quick look into both portals. In the prison cell portal, you see nothing new or of interest; there is still the cot, the homework that you sent into the portal earlier (forgot to mention it before), and the unlocked cell door, which the guards have not discovered yet. You unlock your closet door, open it, and stick your head quickly into the portal leading to the airship. Now you see that the three skeletons have taken up guard positions around the cockpit, one of them standing just about a foot in front of the portal, the other two standing on the opposite side of the room. You're lucky you didn't accidentally hit your head on that skeleton. You quickly duck your head back out before they notice you.

[Steelfist]

Scout the area outside of the cell, looking for a hiding place. Hey, maybe you could hide inside the mattress? I'm just thinking, if you could lure the skeletons through into the prison, maybe you could get the guard to deal with them, or just leave them there and explore the airship.

[Ertxiem]

(I meant the prison portal, not the cockpit portal. I'll start calling them by their names, that should be easier for everyone! I also think that we should scan carefully the bedroom for another portal, who knows!)

In the cell, pick up the homework (we'll need it... and at some point it may be interesting to read it...).

(Is the baseball bat with the hero or on his bedroom? Exploring outside of the prison cell with a baseball bat may give the wrong idea... And while the hero is on the cell, he should pay attention to noises or movements - maybe it's a guard approaching.)

(I also thought about luring the skeletons into the prison cell, but they don't seem to detect the portal... perhaps the hero will need the ceremonial sword.)

[Steelfist]

Or the guard's weapon; I'm willing to bet we'd be caught if we tried to get the ceremonial sword. I'd rather kill a guy, thanks.