Faking and Re-Making the Fandom Spear

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<center> <img src="https://thepuzzlingbotanicalsociety.neocities.org/thedrilledcoin/building_the_spear_cover.png" width="50%"> !Building the Spear !!!a //Blow the Man Down// text-adventure ---- !!You know exactly two things, Player: !!The year is 1718 !!and you are an unconscious pirate. ---- !!''[[Introduction|Begin]]'' !!''[[Begin the Game|Build a Blorbo.]]'' !!!!<<linkreplace "''Credits''">>//Credits// Written by Katherine Crighton (Worcester Polytechic Institute), Dr. Naomi Jacobs (Lancaster University), and Shivhan Szabo (York University in Toronto), with original art by Shivhan Szabo, for the [[Fan Studies Network North America 2023 conference|https://fsn-northamerica.org/fsnna-23/]] as the poster presentation for "[[Faking and Re-Making: The Use of Emotional Responses and Creative Resonances in Communal Multimedia Storytelling|https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/e/2PACX-1vTuPk2-5zFEBl57TjLTuCiM73NbYB-t5xjeEZvgqKhAjyNoN8DEVDKOCanH8qUDvXEkvxL312jguDqg/pub?start=false&loop=false&delayms=3000]]". <br><br>"Building the Spear" was created using [[Sugarcube 2.36.1|"https://www.motoslave.net/sugarcube/2/"]] for [[Twine 2.6.2.|https://twinery.org/]]<br>For more information about the authors, please visit our [[About the Authors|AuthorCred]] page.<br><</linkreplace>> !!!!<<linkreplace "''Click to see content tags and warnings.''">>//Content tags and warnings// The story starts with bodily harm, implied peril, and loss of memory. After that, depending on the story choices made, the following content could appear: Strong language, isolation, confinement, references to period-typical violence, reference to animal death (though no animals die on or off-screen), reference to animal harm and human predation of animals (though no animals are harmed or threatened on or off-screen), graphic descriptions of vegetal rot, references to capital punishment.<</linkreplace>> <br> //Latest version: November 17, 2023// </center>

Building the Spear <center><img src="https://thepuzzlingbotanicalsociety.neocities.org/thedrilledcoin/spear_icon.png" width="10%"></center>

<<nobr>><<if $brigLocation is true>> ''Where are you?''<br> You're in a brig...and you've been kidnapped. <<elseif $alleyLocation is true>> ''Where are you?''<br> You're in a port town alley...and you've been robbed. <<elseif $caveLocation is true>> ''Where are you?''<br> You're in a wet cave...and there's no sign of your ship. <<elseif $noLocation is true>> This feels like a bad dream... <<elseif $blankLocation is true>> <<else>> A demonstration in faking and re-making real feelings for an imaginary work <<endif>><<if $eyesopenOllie is true>> //Why have eyes if not to use them?//<br> Who do you know who speaks with a French accent? <<elseif $eyesclosedSam is true>> //Death comes for both the fast and slow; make him wait for it.//<br> Wow, way to be melodramatic... wait, //who// said that? <<else>> <<endif>><<if $frenchCaption is 0>> Turns out //you// know French. Huh. You're not sure you're the kind of person who would go around giving "eye" proverbs, though... <<elseif $frenchCaption is 1>> Nope, you don't know French. So... who do you know who //does?// <<else>> <<endif>><<if $rememberMasquerade is true>> It was the night of the masquerade. <br><br> <<elseif $rememberSalem is true>> It was the night of the Salem raid. <br><br> <<else>> <<endif>><<if $canonDetail is true>> <small>''//From <<link "BTMD 'canon'">><br> <<script>> Dialog.setup(""); Dialog.wiki(Story.get("BTMD canon").processText()); Dialog.open(); <</script>><</link>>://''<br></small> <<else>><<endif>><<if $meetingFact is true>><small>''Episode 1: Coup de Foudre''<br>"Pirate Sam Bellamy boards a ship, thinking they're a rival for the Spanish gold he seeks; instead makes a new friend."</small> <br><br> <<else>> <<endif>><<if $catFact is true>><small>''Episode 2: The Buzzard and the Prince''<br>"As Sam and Olivier learn more about one another, the ship's cat goes missing. Villainy is suspected." <br><br> //[...] the theoretical standoff between Carolus the rat and Souris the cat from the second episode[...]//</small> <br><br> <<else>> <<endif>><<if $ratFact is true>><small>//[...]the theoretical standoff between Carolus the rat and Souris the cat from the second episode[...]//</small> <br><br> <<else>> <<endif>><<if $olewurmFact is true>><small>''Episode 6: At the Point of a Quill''<br>"While the crew's shore leave is complicated by Ole Wurm's experiments, messages are sent, received, and promised."</small> <br><br> <<else>> <<endif>><<if $eyepatchFact is true>><small>//They practice sparring in Olivier’s cabin. When they eventually tire, Olivier removes his eyepatch and tells the story of how he lost his vision in the war, how it was his own damn fault, that he’s weaker because of it—<br> And Sam simply listens, head cocked, captivated by Ollie's display of vulnerability. He promises Olivier to look out for him, to watch his blindside, then kisses the pad of his thumb and presses it to the scar under Ollie’s eye.//</small> <br><br> <<else>> <<endif>><<if $cowislandFact is true>><small>//Sam and Olivier arrive on Cow Island to offload the rescued goats, but the resulting chaos sends Zipper and Carolus stumbling into Ollie’s blindside, and they're nearly skewered by the surprised captain as a result. In an attempt to smooth things over, Sam suggests the crews take some shore leave. Comedic hijinks ensue, especially after Ole Wurm begins distributing free samples of his newest psychotropic concoction in the name of science.//</small> <br><br> <<else>> <<endif>><<if $stormFact is true>><small>''Episode 7: A Tall Ship and a Star to Steer Her By''<br>"Captaining seperate ships again, Sam and Ollie battle both the Red Flag Fleet and the oncoming stom–either of which may drive them apart forever."</small> <br><br> <<else>> <<endif>><<if $witchFact is true>><small>''Episode 8: The Widow and the Widower''<br>"While Sam slowly recovers on shore with the help of a mysterious stranger, Ollie tries to forget his losses by chasing down an impossible treasure ship."</small> <br><br> <<else>> <<endif>><<if $drilledcoinFact1 is true>><small>//When Mariah finds Sam, she thinks he’s dead—and so do we, the audience! We’re meant to question her intentions immediately when we see her remove the drilled coin from our unconscious Sam’s neck.<br>We watch as she helps him work through his amnesia, and we learn that she deciphers the coded letter far before he does. Yet despite her romantic feelings for him, she returns the coin to Sam and lets him go.[...]//</small> <br><br> <<else>> <<endif>><<if $drilledcoinFact2 is true>><small>//And when Mariah Hallett pulls the drilled coin off Sam’s body[....] "He could have remembered Ollie so much sooner, found his path again, his purpose!"//</small> <br><br> <<else>> <<endif>><<if $masqueradeFact is true>><small>''Episode 9: The Goat''<br>"Revelations all around as Sam and Mariah decode Ollie's letter and Ollie and his new crewmate, the Viceroy of Portugal, commit a heist at a masquerade ball."</small> <br><br> <<else>> <<endif>><<if $codeFact is true>><small>//Ollie had supposedly used a similar code in his letter to Sam, the exact contents of which are still unknown to the fans. Episode nine shows Sam and Mariah decoding it, and Sam’s response, and so viewers are able to infer—//</small> <br><br> <<else>> <<endif>><<if $navyFact is true>><small>''Episode 10: Crossed Paths''<br>"An uncertain future looms as Ollie and Franky await trial at the hands of the French Navy and Sam relies on his old captain, Benjamin Hornigold, to help him get //[indistinguishable]// Ollie."</small> <br><br> <<else>> <<endif>><<if $feelingsFact is true>><small>//[...]Sam, desperately trying to make his way across the world to find his beloved; Ollie, attempting to forget the love he thinks he’s lost; the two men, struggling to recapture the best parts of themselves, stolen by fate after only just finding them.//</small> <br><br> <<else>> <<endif>><</nobr>> ---- !!!!!Want to just play the game? Skip straight to [[Build a Blorbo.]] !!!!!Don't want to play the game at all? Skip straight to [[the conclusion.|blorno ending]] !!!!!Visit the slideshow version of our FSNNA 2023 presentation: [[Faking and Re-Making (slides only)|https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/e/2PACX-1vTuPk2-5zFEBl57TjLTuCiM73NbYB-t5xjeEZvgqKhAjyNoN8DEVDKOCanH8qUDvXEkvxL312jguDqg/pub?start=false&loop=false&delayms=3000]] !!!!!Visit a narrated video of our FSNNA 2023 presentation slideshow: [[Faking and Re-Making (YouTube)|https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bRNjKbL_po]] ---- <small>Latest version: [[November 17, 2023|UpdateLog]]</small> <small>See where we're going and what people are saying in [[News and Reviews.|NewsReviews]]</small> <small>Report a bug or tell us about your blorbo with our [[feedback form.|FeedbackForm]]</small> <small>Learn more [[about the authors.|AuthorCred]]</small>

!!Welcome, Player. //This is the world of ''Blow the Man Down'', where clever pirate captains <<link "Olivier Levasseur">> <<script>> Dialog.setup("Olivier Levasseur"); Dialog.wiki("Read his Wikipedia article here: [[Olivier Levasseur|https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olivier_Levasseur]]"); Dialog.open(); <</script>> <</link>> and <<link "Sam Bellamy">> <<script>> Dialog.setup("Sam Bellamy"); Dialog.wiki("Read his Wikipedia article here: [[Samuel Bellamy|https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_Bellamy]]"); Dialog.open(); <</script>> <</link>>, each pursuing the same vast treasure of Spanish gold, meet up and--through storms, enemy fleets, and their combined delight in codes and hidden messages--eventually fall in love.// ''Blow the Man Down'' //(BTMD) is a television show that doesn't exist. It was invented as ancillary media for an alternate reality game (ARG) of the same name, developed in relation to and within the fandom of the very real show// ''Our Flag Means Death''//. The creator(s) of the ARG seeded the game with "canon" details of BTMD and then provided opportunities--and rewards--for fans to collaboratively improvise the fanworks that// ''would'' //have existed if the show was real.// //This game is now one of those fanworks. And just like anyone who participates in the creation of a real fandom for a fake work, you're invited to add to the world of BTMD with the story and character you build ➡ [[by playing this game.]]//

Amnesia. That's--you're familiar with that. (//From where...?)// It's not a fun experience. But you at least know that it can resolve itself with a little time...if you work at it. If you can find enough clues to bring the memories back. There are a limited number of things you //do// remember, though: <<linkreplace "➡''1.''">>➡ ''1.'' Unless you've lost more time than you think, the year is still 1718.<</linkreplace>> <<linkreplace "➡''2.''">>➡ ''2.'' Whatever happened to you, you've got to get back to your captain--that was definitely the memory of his voice that woke you, you'd recognize it anywhere--and his crew on the... the...<</linkreplace>> <<linkreplace "➡''3.''">>➡ ''3.'' You don't remember the name of your ship. Or--or anything about your captain, not even a name. Except the one big thing that might //absolutely// have led to a coshed head and a broken memory: You, and your captain, are [[pirates.|You've got to get back to...]]<</linkreplace>>

You try to remember more, but--devil take it, your head is //pounding.// Enough of that for now. You're still prone in some miserable heap with your eyes smashed shut. ➡ [[Get more information: open eyes.|You need more information: open your eyes.]] ➡ [[There might still be danger: keep them closed.|You don't know if you're still in danger: keep them closed.]]

<<set $noLocation to false>><<set $eyesopenOllie to true>><<set $blankLocation to true>>With effort, you crack your lids open slightly, giving yourself time to get used whatever light there might be. If there's anyone around you, they might catch that you're awake, but //why have eyes if not to use them?// Oh. That's--familiar. A memory? Or just talking to yourself? (The words had a...French accent? Huh. Do, uh--do you //speak// French?) <<listbox "$frenchTalk" autoselect>> <<option "">> <<option "Yes" true>> <<option "No" false>> <</listbox>> In the dark of your head, you try to say "I would like some leeches for this headache, please" [[in French.|in French(Ollie).]]

<<set $noLocation to false>><<set $eyesclosedSam to true>><<set $blankLocation to true>>You don't know whether your breathing changed between when you were unconscious and now, but you can at least manage to keep your eyes shut and use your other senses first before announcing yourself to anyone who might be watching. //Death comes for both the fast and slow; make him wait for it,// you think. Or maybe--remember? You mentally poke a little harder at the words, and you think you remember...another voice? A laugh, and then...is that //French?// (Huh. Do, uh--do you //speak// French?) <<listbox "$frenchTalk" autoselect>> <<option "">> <<option "Yes" true>> <<option "No" false>> <</listbox>> In the dark of your head, you try to say "It is not exactly comforting to talk about death right now" [[in French.|in French(Sam).]]

<<set $noLocation to false>><<set $frenchCaption to 2>><<set $brigLocation to true>>Your cheek is scraping against rock-solid timber, the worn feel of it as familiar as your own skin. A ship's deck. But you're not topside. You're below, deep enough that there are no portholes. Someone, though, has left a lantern lit outside of...ah. Right. Outside the //metal bars// of the //brig// you're locked inside. <center><img src="https://thepuzzlingbotanicalsociety.neocities.org/thedrilledcoin/brig.png" width="50%"></center> The wood beneath you has a damp, flop-sweat smell to it. Combined with the growing lump on your head, you put it together: You're not just sleeping off a rough night on your own ship. You've been //[[kidnapped.|A ship's brig-2]]//

<<set $noLocation to false>><<set $alleyLocation to true>>This isn't...the worst situation ?they could be in. ?Theyre cheek is in mud, and ?their ribs definitely feel cobblestones. It's late evening, and the only light is coming from torches perched on the corners of the low buildings around ?them. So ?theyre outside and...in a town, probably. In fact--the air around ?them smells of seawater and grog. Seawater? Grog? Combined with the mud and cobblestones, the buildings around ?them, ?they put it together: ?Theyre in a port town. And with //that// bit of information under ?their belt, it's easier to recognize the muffled sounds ?theyve been hearing all along: a very, very busy tavern. Bruised up in an alley at night in a port town outside a tavern? Well, that solves one mystery: ?They <<if $pgen == 2>>were<<else>>was<<endif>> //robbed.// [[So...what can be determined?|rememberAlley]]

<<set $noLocation to false>><<set $frenchCaption to 2>><<set $caveLocation to true>>The dim, suffusing grey of dawn light illuminates without shadows, and that is how you see the cave you've washed up in. <center><img src="https://thepuzzlingbotanicalsociety.neocities.org/thedrilledcoin/cave.png" width="50%"></center> Even that little effort--just opening your eyes--tires you. You focus for a while on the curving crest of land, leading who knows where, visible from your spot lying bruised and battered at [[the cave's mouth.|A wet cave-2]]

//Staying here forever,// you think grimly, //is not actually a reasonable life choice.// It would be //nice// if it was, but on the other hand, lots of things would be //nice// right about now. Starting with about a //million percent// fewer full-body bruises. It takes what feels like a thousand years to actually lever yourself up onto hands and knees on the cave floor, but you don't stay there long--these gods-be-damned rocks seem to be entirely made up of pointy bits expressly seeking //every// bit of [[immediately available pirate to embed themselves within.|detailclothingCave-2]]

Getting up is probably the first step. Let it be said now: It is //not// a pleasant one. You shove yourself up on what, surprise surprise, turn out to bruised up hands--a fight, maybe? Makes sense, if you were awake when you were taken. So not sleeping, probably. You manage to get youself into a sitting position, pressed back against the hull, without blacking out again, which to be honest feels like [[a bit of a victory at this point.|detailclothingBrig-2]]

//explore setting// [[alleyObject1]] [[alleyObject2]] [[alleyObject3]]

<<set $frenchCaption to 2>><<set $noLocation to true>>Your cheek is scraping against rock-solid timber, the worn feel of it as familiar as your own skin. A ship's deck. But you're not topside, you don't think--there's an enclosed feel to the air around you. You're below, then, [[and the wooden deck has a damp, flop-sweat smell to it.|brig2]]

<<set $frenchCaption to 2>><<set $noLocation to true>>Your clothes are soaked through and the ground beneath you is a cold combination of sharp rock and scratching sand. Your skin, where the damp air touches, feels scraped raw. You can hear the tide, [[and the air is heavy with the scent of saltwater, wet stone, and rotted wood.|cave2]]

?Their cheek is in mud, and ?their ribs definitely feel cobblestones. So ?theyre outside and...in a town, probably. In fact--[[the hot, cloying air has the pungent funk of seawater and grog.|alley2]]

<<set $noLocation to false>><<set $alleyLocation to true>>With effort, ?they <<if $pgen == 2>>crack<<else>>cracks<<endif>> ?their lids open slightly, giving ?themselves time to get used whatever light there might be. It's late evening, and the only light is coming from torches perched on the corners of the low buildings around ?them. Aside from the tavern sounds, the town--and ?their little bit of alley--seem quiet. Whatever danger ?they might have been in, it's already passed. Probably. So ?theyve got a little leeway to move on to the next concern... [[...What can actually be remembered?|rememberAlley]]

Damp? //Sweaty?// Combined with the belowdecks wood, the sway of the ocean, the distant sound of crew, and the growing lump on your head, you put it all together: You're not just on a ship. You've been //kidnapped.// Great. Amazing. //Fan-bloody-tastic.// [[Might as well look around.|brig3]]

<<set $noLocation to false>><<set $brigLocation to true>>With effort, you crack open your eyelids, giving yourself time to get used to whatever light there might be. There are no portholes down this deep, but someone's left a lantern lit outside of...ah. Right. Outside the metal bars of the //brig// you're locked inside. <center><img src="https://thepuzzlingbotanicalsociety.neocities.org/thedrilledcoin/brig.png" width="50%"></center> There's no gaoler here, but someone will likely come when the watch changes. You hope you'll be able to hear the bell from here. It could happen in another minute--it could happen four hours from now. Whatever danger you might have been in before, it can't get much worse right now, and you may not have much time. You might as well move on to the next concern... [[...What else can be remembered?|detailclothingBrig]]

Seawater? Sand? Combined with how much every part of you feels as if you've gone ten rounds against Poseidon himself, you put it together: There's been an accident. A shipwreck, maybe, or a storm that sent only you overboard. You hope it's the second one, but... You hear nothing but the ocean waves and the cry of seabirds. //I'm alone,// you think, and the world seems very much to agree with you. [[Might as well look around.|cave3]]

<<set $noLocation to false>><<set $caveLocation to true>>With effort, you crack your eyelids open slightly, giving yourself time to get used to whatever light there might be. The dim, suffusing grey of dawn illuminates without shadows, and that is how you see the cave for the first time. <center><img src="https://thepuzzlingbotanicalsociety.neocities.org/thedrilledcoin/cave.png" width="50%"></center> You're in the mouth of it, and based on how wet everything is, you can only assume that the cave is usually covered when the tide is in. You must have been dragged inside--deeper in the cave, a few feet away, is a few scraps of wood that you must have clung to to get this far. You turn your head a little, regretting it instantly, but--there--outside the cave you see a curving crest of land, [[leading who knows where.|cave3-2]]

!!It's important that you know this is a game, Player. //There is no real //''Blow the Man Down''// for you to watch. If there was, you might not like its plot, or its characters, or its themes, or its writing.// //But while the// ''television show'' //doesn't exist...BTMD as a //''story''// absolutely does. It's a story that's been built--and is still// ''being'' //built—by a fandom that saw the open opportunities within and around the scant details provided and were encouraged to fill in those gaps with all the tools fandom has at its disposal: meta analysis, artwork, fanfiction, and more. And while BTMD appears to have been created with that intention in mind, it is not the only example of this kind of reverse-creation: //''<<link "Goncharov">> <<script>> Dialog.setup(""); Dialog.wiki(Story.get("Goncharov Note").processText()); Dialog.open(); <</script>><</link>>''// is a fake film that gained a similar, organic development of "canon" only a few months earlier than BTMD's release within the ARG, and may have served as inspiration.// //Studying //''Goncharov''// and //''Blow the Man Down''// in parallel, we can see that as fans add cumulative "canon" detail to the imaginary work (an activity we call "//''<<link "gonching">> <<script>> Dialog.setup(""); Dialog.wiki(Story.get("gonching").processText()); Dialog.open(); <</script>><</link>>''//") the negative space where the imaginary work exists starts to develop shape and detail—becoming, if not //''the''// story, certainly //''a''// story, collaboratively built, invisible but present. Participants in these fan activities drape their own interests, preferred themes, narrative wishes, and prior fan history onto the empty scaffolding of these "invisible" works, predisposing themselves to feel a real emotional reaction to what is essentially a placebo canon they know is "fake".// //So we're going to ask that you remember that this is a game. That this is just a device to help guide you through the process of adding to the story of BTMD through the creation of a crewmember on one of BTMD's two pirate ships. We are guiding your hand to the side of //''something''// in front of us, and asking you to describe what //''you''// think ➡ [[could be there.]]//

!!What you love is important, Player. //You too can be part of the collaborative work that is BTMD, Player, and share in the ownership of its story by imagining a show that you would// ''love'' //to see, populated with the narrative elements that you enjoy—or actively seek out—in the media you engage with. These might even borrow <<link "concretes">> <<script>> Dialog.setup(""); Dialog.wiki(Story.get("Concretes Quote").processText()); Dialog.open(); <</script>><</link>> from your own favorite stories, acting as a form of transformative work. By consciously adding these, you can help build out the full story for yourself and others.// //In writing the presentation for "Faking and Re-Making" and developing this game, we relied heavily on author Jo Walton's "<<link "Spearpoint Theory">> <<script>> Dialog.setup("Spearpoint Theory"); Dialog.wiki("Read the essay here: [[Spearpoint Theory|http://www.jowaltonbooks.com/23rd-february-2004-the-dyer-of-lorbanery-spearpoint-theory/]]"); Dialog.open(); <</script>> <</link>>," which describes how creators can use the audience's own lived experience to fill in the missing emotional logic that would make a story's "<<link "moments of poignancy and realization">> <<script>> Dialog.setup(""); Dialog.wiki(Story.get("Spearpoint Quote").processText()); Dialog.open(); <</script>><</link>>" meaningful.// //Or, another way: Everyone builds spears out of the narratives they've experienced throughout their lives, and depending on the length of those spears, and how strongly they're made, the spearpoint of a theme--a trope--a single line--referenced again in one or more new works, can pierce the audience with an emotional resonance stronger than the work could have achieved on its own.// //When there's //''no'' //work to engage with, though--when the work is, in fact, imaginary--then a way to help an audience get invested in it //''anyway''// is to remind them of the long pole they've built out of other media, and then...switch out the spearheads.// ➡ //[[Player: We're going to help you build a spear.]]//

!!This is a question you don't have to answer out loud, Player. //You've come upon the final choice in this foreword. We've gone through the theory with you; if you keep going, you'll be taken into a text adventure where you play a pirate ?crew trying to regain ?their memory--where, through your choices, you can create a character and then share ?them with others through Discord or social media. In doing so, you will, through the fannish acts of creating, sharing, and transforming, add a layer of "reality" to the invisible work of //''Blow the Man Down''//. And who knows? Your character may inspire someone else to improvise further--the ripple effect of creative resonance will continue in incalculable ways, even if you stop right here and go no further.// //And that is your choice, Player. While we have a link in the sidebar that will allow you to skip this foreword when replaying the game in future, you can also choose here to skip directly to the end for a conclusion to //''your''// part of this story. [[Click here to skip the game.|blorno ending]]// //...But if you //''do''// want to play this game and add a little more to the world of //''Blow the Man Down'',// then we just need to ask...// //...now that you've really thought about them--your favorite character, in your favorite stories, experiencing the things that make you fall in love with a piece of media...// !!!//''What if you could take all that'' and have your character ➡ ''[[wake up.]]''//

<<set $noLocation to true>><center> !Building the Spear </center> ---- //''Wake up''.// Blast it, you don't //want// to be awake--you want to ignore your captain's voice and keep your eyes closed and maybe never move again because... because... In the dark behind your closed eyes, you realize: Every inch of your body //hurts.// [[What the hell did you do last night?]]

!!This is about you, Player, and what //you// love. //Fandom uses <<link "the long spear of the media they love">> <<script>> Dialog.setup("The Long Spear"); Dialog.wiki("Special thanks to jmtorres, niqaeli, et al. for the 2009 Star Trek fanvid [[The Long Spear|https://fanlore.org/wiki/The_Long_Spear]] and its accompanying [[announcement|https://jmtorres.dreamwidth.org/1366457.html]], which led the authors to Spearpoint Theory and its application to fandom experience."); Dialog.open(); <</script>> <</link>> to create shortcuts to the spearpoints, or to switch out the spearheads to make a new point with the bulk of the canon media propelling it.// //Another, related shortcut we're going to use to help reach that spearpoint faster is by helping you create a <<link "blorbo.">> <<script>> Dialog.setup(""); Dialog.wiki(Story.get("blorbo from my shows").processText()); Dialog.open(); <</script>><</link>> (Wait, what's a ''blorbo''? Friend, we thought you'd never ask. The short answer is that a "blorbo from your show" is your favorite character from any given story, regardless of their importance to the actual total narrative. For a longer answer, click the popup link above.)// //So if this game as a whole is going to be you building the spear of meaning and engagement with a show you've never seen, then this page in particular is here to help you build an avatar--your blorbo--you can use to engage directly with this weird historical pirate romcom. Take a moment now to think about what sort of character you love, what sort of character you'll always gravitate toward or identify with...// !!!''And Let's Build that Blorbo'' //What is a positive adjective that describes your blorbo? Examples might be// ''brave'',// or //''thoughtful''//.// <<textbox "$positiveAdjective" "">> //What is a negative adjective that describes them? (Even favorites have a fatal flaw!) Examples might be //''rude'',// or //''dishonest''//.// <<textbox "$negativeAdjective" "">> //Do they have a gender? Pick a set of pronouns.// <<listbox "$pgen" autoselect>> <<option "">> <<option "He/Him/His" 0>> <<option "She/Her/Hers" 1>> <<option "They/Them/Their" 2>> <</listbox>> (Want to test these choices real quick? <<button "Click this button.">> <<script>> Dialog.setup("Test"); Dialog.wiki(Story.get("Pronoun Test").processText()); Dialog.open(); <</script>> <</button>>)  //Now pick the kind of memory your blorbo might respond to:// <<listbox "$memory1" autoselect>> <<option "">> <<option "romantic" 0>> <<option "humorous" 1>> <<option "angsty" 2>> <</listbox>>  !!!➡''[[And finally, one more question, Player...]]''

Do these sentences feel right? If not, go back and edit your text boxes. 1. "This was ?their favorite time of night." 2. "Is that a message from ?them?" 3. "?They felt seasick." 4. "No ?adultPerson should have to put up with this." 5. "I'm just a simple ?crew, looking for a ship to sail on."

<<nobr>> <<set $noLocation to false>> <<set $blankLocation to false>> <<set $frenchCaption to 2>> <<set $canonDetail to false>>   <<set $blorboName to "">>  <<set $clothingEssay to "">>   <<set $positiveAdjective to "">> <<set $negativeAdjective to "">> <<set $genericPositive to "playful">> <<set $genericNegative to "indecisive">>  <<set $blorboCrew to "">>  <<set $eyesopenOllie to false>> <<set $eyesclosedSam to false>> <<set $ollieShip to "La Louise">> <<set $samShip to "Whydah Gally">>  <<set $brigLocation to false>> <<set $caveLocation to false>> <<set $alleyLocation to false>>  <<set $memory1 to 3>> <<set $rememberOllie to false>> <<set $rememberSam to false>> <<set $rememberMasquerade to false>> <<set $rememberSalem to false>> <<set $masqueradeFact to false>> <<set $eyepatchFact to false>> <<set $navyFact to false>> <<set $stormFact to false>> <<set $catFact to false>> <<set $meetingFact to false>> <<set $ratFact to false>> <<set $witchFact to false>> <<set $feelingsFact to false>> <<set $codeFact to false>> <<set $olewurmFact to false>> <<set $cowislandFact to false>> <<set $drilledcoinFact to false>><</nobr>> !The year is 1718... ...And this is the world of //Blow the Man Down,// where clever pirate captains <<link "Olivier Levasseur">> <<script>> Dialog.setup("Olivier Levasseur"); Dialog.wiki("Read his Wikipedia article here: [[Olivier Levasseur|https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olivier_Levasseur]]"); Dialog.open(); <</script>> <</link>> and <<link "Sam Bellamy">> <<script>> Dialog.setup("Sam Bellamy"); Dialog.wiki("Read his Wikipedia article here: [[Samuel Bellamy|https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_Bellamy]]"); Dialog.open(); <</script>> <</link>>, each pursuing the same vast treasure of Spanish gold, meet up and--through storms, enemy fleets, and their combined delight in codes and hidden messages--eventually fall in love. //You,// though, are just a simple pirate who's woken up in a strange place--and with no idea who you are or how you got there. Through your choices, you piece together your memories...and create your own place within the BTMD universe. If you haven't already, we strongly suggest reading the introductory text to this work: [[Faking and Re-Making a Spear for Blow the Man Down|Begin]]. But if you want to just skip to the game, go ahead and fill out the below to create your blorbo avatar. (Wait, what's a ''blorbo''? Friend, <<link "we are excited to tell you.)">> <<script>> Dialog.setup(""); Dialog.wiki(Story.get("blorbo from my shows").processText()); Dialog.open(); <</script>><</link>> ---- !!!''Let's Build that Blorbo'' //What is a positive adjective that describes your blorbo? Examples might be// ''brave'',// or //''thoughtful''//.// <<textbox "$positiveAdjective" "">> //What is a negative adjective that describes them? (Even favorites have a fatal flaw!) Examples might be //''rude'',// or //''dishonest''//.// <<textbox "$negativeAdjective" "">> //Do they have a gender? Pick a set of pronouns.// <<listbox "$pgen" autoselect>> <<option "">> <<option "He/Him/His" 0>> <<option "She/Her/Hers" 1>> <<option "They/Them/Their" 2>> <</listbox>> (Want to test these choices real quick? <<button "Click this button.">> <<script>> Dialog.setup("Test"); Dialog.wiki(Story.get("Pronoun Test").processText()); Dialog.open(); <</script>> <</button>>) //Finally, pick the kind of memory your blorbo might respond to:// <<listbox "$memory1" autoselect>> <<option "">> <<option "romantic" 0>> <<option "humorous" 1>> <<option "angsty" 2>> <</listbox>> !!!Excellent! Your blorbo is ready to go. Time for them to [[wake up.]]

//Excerpt from Jo Walton's essay [["The Dyer of Lorbanery (Spearpoint theory)"|http://www.jowaltonbooks.com/23rd-february-2004-the-dyer-of-lorbanery-spearpoint-theory/]]:// <blockquote>There comes a point in writing, and it’s a spear-point, it’s very small and sharp but because it’s backed by the length and weight of a whole spear and a whole strong person pushing it, it’s a point that goes in a long way. Spearpoints need all that behind them, or they don’t pack their punch in the same way. Examples are difficult to give because spear-points by their nature require their context, and spoilers. They tend to be moments of poignancy and realization. [...] There are all sorts of things you can expect the audience to know, that you can rely on them essentially bringing along their own spear-shafts for. [Orson Scott] Card talks about hurting children as a way of creating sympathy — hurting children is something where people bring their own spear-shafts to slot into the point you give them.[...]</blockquote>

<<set $noLocation to false>> <<set $blankLocation to false>> <<set $frenchCaption to 2>> <<set $canonDetail to false>>   <<set $blorboName to "">>  <<set $clothingEssay to "">>   <<set $positiveAdjective to "">> <<set $negativeAdjective to "">> <<set $genericPositive to "playful">> <<set $genericNegative to "indecisive">>  <<set $blorboCrew to "">>  <<set $eyesopenOllie to false>> <<set $eyesclosedSam to false>> <<set $ollieShip to "La Louise">> <<set $samShip to "Whydah Gally">>  <<set $brigLocation to false>> <<set $caveLocation to false>> <<set $alleyLocation to false>>  <<set $memory1 to 3>> <<set $rememberOllie to false>> <<set $rememberSam to false>> <<set $rememberMasquerade to false>> <<set $rememberSalem to false>> <<set $masqueradeFact to false>> <<set $eyepatchFact to false>> <<set $navyFact to false>> <<set $stormFact to false>> <<set $catFact to false>> <<set $meetingFact to false>> <<set $ratFact to false>> <<set $witchFact to false>> <<set $feelingsFact to false>> <<set $codeFact to false>> <<set $olewurmFact to false>> <<set $cowislandFact to false>> <<set $drilledcoinFact to false>>

Seawater? Grog? Combined with the mud and cobblestones, ?blorboName puts it together: ?Theyre in a port town. And with //that// bit of information under ?their belt, it's easier to recognize the muffled sounds of a nearby tavern, which ?they <<if $pgen == 2>>are<<else>>is<<endif>>...next to? Face down in the... Oh. ?They <<if $pgen == 2>>were<<else>>was<<endif>> //robbed.// Great. Amazing. [[Might as well look around.|alley3]]

<<set $passage4 to Story.get("memory1_Sam_Romance")>><<set $passage5 to Story.get("memory1_Sam_Humor")>><<set $passage6 to Story.get("memory1_Sam_Angst")>><<if $memory1 is 0>><<print $passage4.text>><<elseif $memory1 is 1>><<print $passage5.text>><<else>><<print $passage6.text>><<endif>>

Your back still against the hull, you shift to look at the <<if $brigObject is 0>>lumpy bed pallet. It's essentially a thin cushion made of canvas-covered straw. The canvas has unfortunate stains on it. The straw, you are all but certain, is rotten. You do not look forward to spending any time on it whatsoever. With a careful hand you reach out to lift the corner of the pallet, just to see what horrors lie beneath but--<br><br>--but underneath, you see that some long-gone prisoner before you has painstakingly carved... <<elseif $brigObject is 1>>scurrying rat, its hunched body rising and falling like a tiny wave as it crosses in front of you.<br><br>It's funny...you know that rats are common on shipboard, and usually pests to be tolerated if not outright killed, but there's the dim memory of someone's...pet? A pet //rat,// yes, that's right--smart as anything, it did tricks, it...it bothered the hell out of someone //else's// cat, you remember that too...<br><br>As your little companion here hops outside the confines of your cell, the light from the lantern hits the markings on its fur, and for just a moment the pattern that appears looks just like...just like... <<elseif $brigObject is 2>>piss bucket tucked into the corner by the cell door, a certain unfortunate scent wafting from it. You wonder how often your gaolers clean the bucket. You don't know whether to hope they do it rarely (which would not speak well to how your treatment is likely to be), or that they do it daily (which would mean that someone was here before you...and who knows what happened to them to make room for you...).<br><br>The ship suddenly rolls beneath you as it crests what must be a larger wave, and the bucket slides and, to your vague horror, tips over. There is fortunately nothing very much inside it, but it still doesn't precisely //please// you when it begins to roll toward your outstretched feet...except that you notice, strangely, that some prisoner--long-gone or entirely too recent--has scratched something into the bucket's underside.<br><br>You squint, lean forward, and the spinning image suddenly resolves into... <<else>>pallet, the rat, the bucket...they're all there, but meaningless to you, just signs of incarceration.<br><br>Damn it, if you only had your memory back, you wouldn't have this much trouble. You'd know what to do. You'd know whether to wait, or to work, or to, to...to bash your head into the wood until something big enough broke off that you could sharpen into...into... <<endif>> [[...a spearpoint.|memoryobjectBrig-2]]

<<set $rememberMasquerade to false>><<set $canonDetail to true>><<set $meetingFact to true>>You blink, returning to the ship's brig, returning to-- //Yourself.// Your name--what your captain, the one-eyed Frenchman Olivier Levasseur, called you when you rose to fight beside him--is <<textbox "$blorboName" "">>. You've been a member of the crew of //La Louise// for years, doing your duties as a <<textbox "$blorboCrew" "">>. You remember when your captain and Sam Bellamy, captain of the //Whydah Gally//, met for the first time--and instead of fighting, [[joined their crews to sail together.|brigmemoryReturn-2]]

<<set $rememberSalem to false>><<set $canonDetail to true>><<set $meetingFact to true>>You blink, returning to the ship's brig, returning to-- //Yourself.// Your name--what your captain, the legendary pirate Black Sam Bellamy, called you when you rose to fight beside him--is <<textbox "$blorboName" "">>. Before she'd sunk, you'd been a member of the crew of the //Whydah Gally// for years; then and now, you do your duties as a <<textbox "$blorboCrew" "">>. You remember when your captain and Olivier Levasseur, captain of //''La Louise''//, met for the first time--and instead of fighting, [[joined their crews to sail together.|cavememoryReturn-2]]

//look at alley with new eyes and the confidence of your captainName// //look behind [object not chosen previously -- use if/else random?]// [[alleyDiscovery]]

<<if $brigObject is 0>>You lower the mattress you've held clutched this whole time and look around, assessing the rest of the space with skill and rapid intent than you'd managed before. Ah--//there.// Just behind--in fact, entirely too close to--the piss bucket, there's something small just jutting into view.<br><br>You lever yourself up and walk, with new certainty, to the bucket--and pick up <<elseif $brigObject is 1>>Your eyes are still trained on the spot the little rat had passed by, but it's long gone now. Never mind that, then. With more skill and rapid intent than you'd managed before, you assess your cell anew. Ah--//there.// Right next to you, in fact, there's something wedged beneath the straw-filled pallet.<br><br>You use one finger to hook out <<elseif $brigObject is 2>><<set $canonDetail to true>><<set $ratFact to true>>You gently kick at the piss bucket still rolling around your feet and take another, better look around, assessing the rest of the space with the skill and rapid intent that you'd been missing the first time around. It's why, you think, you see the rat scurrying by the cell door--a rat with markings almost identical to the pet rat one of your Bellamy crewmates keeps.<br><br>This one is no one's pet, you're sure, but you've learned that they're clever little things. You follow it with your eyes, careful not to startle it--which is why, you think, it happily draws your attention to something just visible over the lip of the cell door's bottom bar.<br><br>As the rat continues on its way, you lever yourself up and walk, with new certainty, to the cell's door to pick up <<else>>You look around with fresh eyes at the lantern-lit brig; how might Captain escape this situation? Better yet--what would he trust you to //already know to do?//<br><br>You're grinning, and you don't even know when you started. Because <<if $frenchTalk is true>>//oui, mon Capitaine,//<<else>>yessir, Captain sir,<<endif>> in fact you //do// have an inkling of an idea.<br><br>As rapidly as you're able to start scanning every inch of the brig for something of //just// the right size, and that's when you spot it, just on the other side of the cell door: <<endif>>[[a small tin cup.|brigSolution]] <center><img src="https://thepuzzlingbotanicalsociety.neocities.org/thedrilledcoin/tin_cup.png" width="40%"></center>

//you find a goat! and with it, your memory comes FLOODING BACK// //here's how you got robbed! the villain is an inhabitant from the COW ISLAND because as we all know the crew had a hell of a time offloading goats before being drugged by Ole Wurm back in season1 and the inhabitants probably have some beef// //and with relief, you also remember your blorboName and your crewRole on captainName's ship -- holy shit, you gotta get back there and warn them that there are some vengeful folk on the way-- and you know exactly how you're going to do it.// [[goatSolution]]

<<if $caveObject is 0>>You step away from the clump of seaweed you've regrettably been standing over this entire time and look more closely at the mark at the top of the cave mouth. You'd taken it for a spearpoint at first, which was enough to bring your memories back, but it has another meaning. One you are, in fact, extremely familiar with.<br><br>As rapidly as you're able, you enter the cave again, searching the ground for--ah. //There.//<br><br><<elseif $caveObject is 1>><<set $canonDetail to true>><<set $catFact to true>>There are seagulls farther down the beach, but you're focus now is on the mangy cat who does not, in fact, look much like Captain Levasseur's pet moggy--but is nevertheless approaching you with far less fear in its eyes than a feral cat ought. You keep yourself still as it passes you, rubbing against your leg as it does, and you watch as it heads directly into the cave.<br><br>You're still considering whether to follow or start searching the rest of the beach when you hear the very //distinctive// yowl of a cat that is expecting to be fed. Because, you realize, it has been fed often enough to //expect// it.<br><br>As rapidly as you're able, you enter the cave after the cat, searching the ground for first it, and then--ah. //There.//<br><br><<elseif $caveObject is 2>>You're still holding the out-of-place rock, but with care you place it back where you found it--while it might have triggered your memories again, you don't want it to lose its real purpose. Which, if you're right...<br><br>With careful steps you walk a little farther into the cave, keeping your eye to any likely looking spots, and--ah. //There.//<br><br><<else>>You look around with fresh eyes at the cave, beach, //world// around you; how might Captain look at this situation? Better yet--what would he trust you to //already know?//<br><br>You're grinning, and you don't even know when you started. Because yessir, Captain sir, in fact you //do// know what to do.<br><br>As rapidly as you're able, you hitch around and start scanning the cave floor for likely spots, and--ah. //There.//<br><br><<endif>>[[A hand-sized metal ring embedded in a half-hidden wooden hatch.|caveSolution]] <center><img src="https://thepuzzlingbotanicalsociety.neocities.org/thedrilledcoin/ring_pull.png" width="50%"></center>

<center> !Faking and Re-Making the Fandom Spear !!a demonstration in faking and re-making real feelings for an imaginary work ---- //Thank you for playing //''Building the Spear'',// and we hope you enjoyed this //''Blow the Man Down''// text-adventure! We propose such interactive experiences can become powerful tools for multimedia and multifaceted storytelling, and we created this game to demonstrate one method of inviting collaborative fan engagement in an imaginary work.// ---- //Copy or screencap your results below and share on the Fan Studies Network North America 2023 Discord server--or on your favorite social media--to add your crewmember to the collaborative canon of //''Blow the Man Down''//!// ---- !WANTED !!!<<if $blorboName.length is 0>>A Mysterious Pirate<<else>>$blorboName<<endif>> !!!!<<if $brigLocation is true>>?crew on the dread ship //$ollieShip//<<elseif $caveLocation is true>>?crew on the dread ship //$samShip//<<elseif $rememberOllie is true>>?crew on the dread ship //$ollieShip//<<elseif $rememberSam is true>>?crew on the dread ship //$samShip//<<else>>Shipless vagabond and mercenary for hire<<endif>> <<if $clothingEssay.length is 0>>Appearance unknown; reports only indicate that a scoundrel is in the area. <<elseif $clothingEssay is "Describe your blorbo's fantastic pirate garb">>Appearance unknown; reports only indicate that a scoundrel is in the area. <<elseif $clothingEssay is "Describe your blorbo's competent pirate garb">>Appearance unknown; reports only indicate that a scoundrel is in the area.<<else>>''LAST SEEN WEARING'' $clothingEssay<<endif>> ''CRIMES INCLUDE'' <<if $blorboCrew.length is 0>>-lies regularly about what posts ?theyve held on pirate ships<<else>>-holding position of $blorboCrew on a pirate ship<<endif>> -<<if $frenchTalk is true>>fluency in French<<else>>complete inability to speak French<<endif>> -<<if $rememberSam is true>>strong opinions on witches<<else>>unreasonable dislike of masquerade balls<<endif>> -robbing printshops of their <<if $memory1 is 0>>romantic<<elseif $memory1 is 1>>humorous<<elseif $memory1 is 2>>angsty<<else>>pirate-themed<<endif>> broadsides -being both <<if $positiveAdjective.length is 0>>$genericPositive<<else>>$positiveAdjective<<endif>> //and// <<if $negativeAdjective.length is 0>>$genericNegative<<else>>$negativeAdjective<<endif>> -and, finally, having some sort of weird //thing// about spear construction ---- //To make another member of the crew, you can [[start again with the introduction|Begin]] or go straight to the [[Build a Blorbo|Build a Blorbo.]] shortcut.// //We also encourage you to visit the full presentation of "[[Faking and Re-Making: The Use of Emotional Responses and Creative Resonances in Communal Multimedia Storytelling|https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/e/2PACX-1vTuPk2-5zFEBl57TjLTuCiM73NbYB-t5xjeEZvgqKhAjyNoN8DEVDKOCanH8qUDvXEkvxL312jguDqg/pub?start=false&loop=false&delayms=3000]]", authored for Fan Studies Network North America 2023 by Katherine Crighton (Worcester Polytechic Institute), Dr. Naomi Jacobs (Lancaster University), and Shivhan Szabo (York University in Toronto)// //Thank you for playing, and we can't wait to see the new crew!// </center> <center><img src="https://thepuzzlingbotanicalsociety.neocities.org/thedrilledcoin/spear_icon.png" width="5%"></center>

//If you've learned anything from your captains, it's that sometimes you've got to do something big and weird and unexpected to get from point A to point B. Does the goat have a name tag? No? Great. This is now you're goat for the next 10 minutes. Slam your way into that next-door tavern and announce that you've got a magic goat who can predict the future. Bidding starts at 10 gold pieces...// //get back the contents of your stolen money-- which HAD been intended to pay the docking fee for captainName's ship whoops-- and a ride back to the ship to warn everyone to cook up extra rations of Ole Wurm's special sauce for anyone who comes aboard...// [[blorboReveal]]

You wonder if your captain appreciates a well-dressed--or, at least, //interestingly// dressed--crew. It seems like that must be true. When you think of what sort of person your captain must be, you get a sense that...that yes, yes he's seen you in this, and for a moment you feel a warm clasp of your shoulder and no words, no, but...the lilting rhythm, maybe, of a French accent, a smile in its tone. Well--good. Good. You feel a warm surge of purpose: Whatever trouble you're in now, [[your captain would want to help you out of it.|objectfindBrig-2]]

You wonder if your captain also dresses like this. Or maybe--what's the sweet spot between practicality as a sailor, and identity as a pirate? Where one minute he can roll up his sleeves and haul the rigging when they're a crewperson short, but the next swirl on a fine, dark coat and polish his leathers up to impress a prisoner... You get the uncanny feeling that you have most definitely seen your captain do both those very things. That you have been at his side and hauled line with him like he was any other sailor; that you have seen him use that coat like a shield, making himself the focus--the target--[[to protect his own.|objectfindCave-2]]

//Excerpt from tumblr user [[kayanem|https://kayanem.tumblr.com/]]'s blog post regarding the definition/theory of [["concretes"|https://kayanem.tumblr.com/post/719409497577340928/a-couple-of-years-ago-we-that-is-ladylark-and]] as discussed by kayanem and the co-author Dr. Naomi Jacobs (Ladylark):// <blockquote>In any adaptation or transformative work (including fanfic) there are aspects that remain fixed, to make it a recognisable part of the continuum with the original. In fanfic, people often concentrate on retaining either the setting, or the characters. In the case of characters, there are certain aspects at the heart of what makes a character ‘them’, that have to be retained to make them recognisable across fic, whether AU [alternate universe] or canon. It’s generally the case that the author will choose some of these specific aspects of the character that persist across interpretations. These are the ‘concretes’, the essential structural essence, that make a character recognisable as that same person. Any character is made up of a whole range of these, and which ones people choose to focus on can vary. Further, these concretes can come from canon or fanon, and so also give you an insight into the community that has shaped that person’s understanding and writing.</blockquote>

<<set $eyesopenOllie to false>><<if $frenchTalk is true>><<set $frenchCaption to 0>> //Je voudrais des sangsues pour ce mal de tête, s'il vous plaît.//<br><br>Huh. Okay, so. French. Neat. Add that to the things you know about yourself, then... But that means that could be either a memory //or// just you talking to yourself.<br><br>Maybe your head got hit harder than you think. <<elseif $frenchTalk is false>><<set $frenchCaption to 1>> //Uh... bon...jour...nio..?//<br><br>--Nope, okay, you definitely don't know French. So that means that has to be a memory. Of...someone. Add that to the list of mysteries, then, along with everything else. <<else>> Attempting to think //anything// in French has suddenly given you a //blinding// headache, so, uh. You set that little conundrum aside for the moment. <<endif>> Little by little, as your eyes adjust, the space around you becomes clearer. <<nobr>>➡ [[A ship's brig]] <</nobr>> ➡ [[A wet cave]]

<<set $eyesclosedSam to false>><<if $frenchTalk is true>><<set $frenchCaption to 0>> //Ce n'est pas vraiment réconfortant de parler de la mort en ce moment.//<br><br>Huh. Okay, so. French. Neat. Add that to the things you know about yourself, then... But that means that could be either a memory //or// just you talking to yourself.<br><br>Maybe your head got hit harder than you think. <<elseif $frenchTalk is false>><<set $frenchCaption to 1>> //Uh... bon...jour...nio..?//<br><br>--Nope, okay, you definitely don't know French. So that means that has to be a memory. Of...someone. Add that to the list of mysteries, then, along with everything else. <<else>> Attempting to think //anything// in French has suddenly given you a //blinding// headache, so, uh. You set that little conundrum aside for the moment. <<endif>> The surface beneath you feels like... ➡ [[a hard-scraped wooden deck|brig1]] ➡ [[cold rough stone and sand|cave1]]

<<set $passage1 to Story.get("memory1_Ollie_Romance")>><<set $passage2 to Story.get("memory1_Ollie_Humor")>><<set $passage3 to Story.get("memory1_Ollie_Angst")>><<if $memory1 is 0>><<print $passage1.text>><<elseif $memory1 is 1>><<print $passage2.text>><<else>><<print $passage3.text>><<endif>>

Mindful of your unsteadiness, you pick your way toward the <<if $caveObject is 0>>stinking clump of seaweed just outside the cave's mouth. The pile of twisted, tentacle-like seaweed is covered in rotting brown polyps, which is a sight no ?adultPerson should have to deal with on top of a concussion, and you force yourself to consider how it might be useful to you. Can you, for instance, turn it into food? Or--burn it?<br><br> As you get closer and the smell intensifies, you become genuinely uncertain which would be the worse option.<br><br>In an effort to find anything //whatsoever// that might serve as a better choice for sustenance or arson, you turn to look at the area just outside the cave--which is how you come to see that, despite the utter absence of any sign of human life, //someone// has, nonetheless, scratched a jagged shape into the highest point of the cave's stoney arch.<br><br>It's an arrow, pointed down. A guide.<br><br>Or--<br><br>--a shudder runs through your body as your brain shifts, the angle changes, and it's not an //arrow,// no, but--but-- <<elseif $caveObject is 1>>mangy cat stalking something on the beach outside. You make your way from the cave and step out onto the beach, the rocks resolving into sand, the sand resolving to fly up and stick themselves with pinprick precision onto your still damp clothes. Despite your ungainly flailing, the cat stays focused on its target: a seagull walking with unhurried assurance along the watery shoreline, apparently completely oblivious to both cat and concussed pirate.<br><br>You have the vague feeling that, considering the food needs of all shipwrecked mariners, you ought to be concerned with catching at least //one// of these sources of fresh meat, but...well. It's bad luck to kill a seabird, and the cat is--the cat //reminds// you of something. A...pet? Yes, someone's pet, better fed, brushed regularly, and as sweet as anything unless it saw a rat--which, well, ship-life being what it was, meant it wasn't half so sweet after...after...<br><br>You almost had something. Damn it. And worse yet, you've managed to get too close--the bird cocks its head in your direction, spies the cat, curves its wings into a massive upswell--and the cat jumps, //misses,// twists as it lands again facing you and--<br><br>--you can see clearly, now, the markings on the cat's face. Two angled patches of black sweep down from ears to chin, forming beneath its mouth a--a-- <<elseif $caveObject is 2>>the odd-looking stone that somehow, in the midst of all this other rock, rock, and more rock, has caught your attention. It's deeper in the cave, well past where it looks like the tide goes, and it...<br><br>It's not that there's anything especially //wrong// with the rock. As you push yourself along the cave wall to get closer, you can see that there's nothing special to it. It doesn't have any markings on it, or signs of having been knapped into a tool. It's just sitting there, centered on a small rise of rock, and--<br><br>You frown, and step a little closer. It's darker here, the smell still saltwater thick but considerably cooler. Saltwater, though. The tide doesn't come this far back. And this rock, this odd-looking rock that isn't actually all that odd at all--<br><br>It's //odd// because it shouldn't really be there. Not //there,// not //on top of// the jutting cave floor, not //well above// where the highest tide might carry and deposit a rock in so perfectly centered a spot--<br><br>With shaking fingers, you reach out and pick up the stone--only to see, etched with harsh white lines into its underside-- <<else>>seaweed, cat, weird little rock...they're all there, but meaningless to you, just signs that you are very much //alone.//<br><br>And blast it, if you only had your memory back, you certain you wouldn't have this much trouble. You'd know what to //do.// You'd know whether to wait, or to work, or to, to...to leave this tiny world you've mapped out so far and strike for any sort of land, //trees,// wood you can at least turn into something like heat or shelter or, if you're very lucky and can find a stone sharp enough to whittle with, you might even make yourself a--a-- <<endif>> --//[[a spearpoint.|memoryobjectCave-2]]//

//From his seat on the ground beside you, Captain Levasseur reached into the foliage and, with gentle fingers, broke away a thin branch. He handed it to you, and then reached back in again.// //"<<if $memory1 is 0>>I think perhaps you are not in the right frame of mind for advice at the moment, so perhaps you will bear with me while I think aloud. Or--yes. Wait. <<endif>>I'm going to <<if $memory1 is 0>>show you something Sam taught me, that will be most helpful I think,<<elseif $memory1 is 1>>be a distraction,<<else>>teach you something,<<endif>>" he said, before finding a stick of his own that satisfied him. "<<if $memory1 is 1>>You seem like you need to relax. It's only a death-defying raid that may end all our lives--absolutely nothing to be concerned about.<<else>>Something I need to remember sometimes too.<<endif>> [[Follow my hands, eh?|memoryOllie2-2]]"//

<<if $memory1 is 3>><<set $memory1 to 2>><<endif>><<set $brigLocation to false>><<set $blankLocation to true>><<set $rememberOllie to true>><<set $rememberMasquerade to true>><<set $canonDetail to true>><<set $stormFact to true>><<set $masqueradeFact to true>><<set $navyFact to true>>//It was the night of the masquerade--or, the second masquerade. Captain didn't really like to talk about the first one, the one that had gotten him captured by the French Navy. That //''first''// masquerade had been a mess, what with the Captain thinking Sam Bellamy was still dead and--and you thinking so, too, along with the friends you'd made there, the crew that had drowned on the //''Whydah Gally''// with Bellamy in that horror show of a storm. Nobody had acted quite right that night, and they'd all suffered for it, [[oh yes they had.|memory1_Ollie_Angst-2]]//

<<set $brigLocation to false>><<set $blankLocation to true>><<set $rememberOllie to true>><<set $rememberMasquerade to true>><<set $canonDetail to true>><<set $masqueradeFact to true>><<set $navyFact to true>>//It was the night of the masquerade--or, the second masquerade. The //''first''// masquerade wasn't really something that should be emulated, what with the absolute mess with burying the gold cross of Goa, the mysterious //''thing''// that had happened between Captain and the Viceroy of Portugal that made Sam Bellamy get, quote, "all weird" about it once his memory came back enough to give a toss, and--well, //''and'',// of course, Captain getting captured by the French Navy and sentenced to hang.// //...Possibly that last one most of all, to be fair. It wouldn't exactly be a great idea to have your captain captured like that //''twice''.// Sets a bad precedent. And made for [[really embarrassing broadsides.|memory1_Ollie_Humor-2]]//

<<set $brigLocation to false>><<set $blankLocation to true>><<set $rememberOllie to true>><<set $rememberMasquerade to true>><<set $masqueradeFact to true>><<set $navyFact to true>>//It had been the night of the masquerade--or, the second masquerade. (The less said about the //''first''// masquerade--what with the Viceroy, the cross of Goa, and, of course, the whole //''Captain getting captured by the French Navy''// bit, the better.)// //But the //''second''// one. That night there was a masquerade happening in the Governor's palace, and the whole crew, Captain's and Sam Bellamy's combined again, were lying in wait. The sky was new-moon dark, the rose bushes that you were hiding behind were thick, and you had been listening for the signal, attuned to every crack and crackle of the guards movements, [[ready to--|memory1_Ollie_Romance-2]]//

<<set $canonDetail to false>><<set $feelingsFact to false>>//A bird call sounded--the five-minute warning. You glanced at Captain, wondering if he would stop now, but he shook his head and kept his eye on you.// //Something sharp, then. You looked around, thinking--oh. <<if $memory1 is 0>>The roses. You reached out, tentative, with your fingertips, until your skin snagged on a thorn. You pinched, pulled back, and held it out. Captain paused, and nodded. "Fitting," he said. "I should remember that."<<elseif $memory1 is 1>>The roses. You reached out, tentative, with your fingers, which worked approximately as well as one might assume when sticking one's hand into an entire bush of bloody-minded plantlife.<br><br>"<b>Mon ami</b>," said the Captain, sounding slightly injured by your muffled cursing, "that is not, I think, the useful life lesson I was intending to impart here."<<else>>Your knife. Not the big one for the raid, but just the little knife you keep about your person, always ready to slice meat off bone, cut chunks of cheese, tip the food-heavy point of it into someone else's mouth at mealtime like a proof of trust.<br><br>Captain paused, and nodded. "Fitting," he said.<<endif>>// //Captain took out <<if $memory1 is 0>>a thorny stem of his own<<elseif $memory1 is 1 >>a thorny stem of his own<<else>>his own meat knife<<endif>>, <<if $memory1 is 1>>with significantly less foliage-related violence, <<endif>>and with a swift twist of the cord in his hand tied it to the pole. [[He waited for you to do the same.|memoryOllie3-2]] //

<<set $canonDetail to false>><<set $cowislandFact to false>>//Without moving overmuch from his position, Captain Bellamy searched a moment along the ground before finding a long, thin stick beneath the hedge. For some reason he handed it to you--and then reached back in again.// //"<<if $memory1 is 0>>I'm realizing now that you're probably not in the right frame of mind to give advice at the moment, so. Bear with me while I think aloud. Or--wait. Yes. <<endif>>I'm going to <<if $memory1 is 0>>show you something Ollie taught me, that might help us both just now,<<elseif $memory1 is 1>>be a distraction,<<else>>teach you something,<<endif>>" he said, before finding a stick of his own that satisfied him. "<<if $memory1 is 1>>You seem like you need to relax. It's only a death-defying raid that may end all our lives--absolutely nothing to be concerned about.<<else>>Something I need to remember sometimes too.<<endif>> [[Watch me and follow along.|memorySam2-2]]"//

<<set $caveLocation to false>><<set $blankLocation to true>><<set $rememberSam to true>><<set $rememberSalem to true>><<set $canonDetail to true>><<set $witchFact to true>><<set $masqueradeFact to true>>//It had been the night of the raid on Salem--a weird place to be going, but Captain Bellamy had developed some "feelings" about the persecution of witches in his time away. Word among the crew was that it had to do with the Wellfleet woman who'd rescued Captain after the //''Whydah Gally''// smashed to bits; her neighbors called Mariah Hallet a witch and, if Captain was to be believed, it was for nothing more than being willing to care for whatever shipwrecked, amnesiac pirates happened to wash up on her shore.// //No one really knew what might've happened between Goody Hallet and Captain in the time his memory was lost--and what he might've left in Wellfleet the moment his memory of //''Levasseur''// had been regained. But either way, the captains had both agreed--in front of the crew, at least--to answer Goody Hallet's call for help in rescuing these Salem prisoners. And so: two crews, two captains, twelve unaware town watchmen, [[and one courthouse on the brink of being raided.|memory1_Sam_Romance-2]]//

<<set $caveLocation to false>><<set $blankLocation to true>><<set $rememberSam to true>><<set $rememberSalem to true>><<set $canonDetail to true>><<set $witchFact to true>>//It had been the night of the raid on Salem--a weird place to be going, but Captain had some "feelings" about witches now thanks to the woman who'd rescued him after the //''Whydah Gally''// smashed to bits. Her nearby Wellfleet neighbors called Mariah Hallet a witch for the crime of, among other things, being able to give reasonable medical care to amnesiac shipwrecked pirates--so that was one part of the "feelings," you were pretty sure, and certainly the one that had led to this nighttime raid.// //But then there was the //''other''// set of "feelings" you thought might be driving this, the ones that had to do with Goody Hallet and whatever happened between her and Captain in the time his memory was lost--and what he might've left behind in Wellfleet the moment his memory of //''Levasseur''// [[had been regained.|memory1_Sam_Humor-2]]//

<<if $memory1 is 3>><<set $memory1 to 2>><<endif>><<set $caveLocation to false>><<set $blankLocation to true>><<set $rememberSam to true>><<set $rememberSalem to true>><<set $canonDetail to true>><<set $witchFact to true>>//It had been the night of the raid on Salem--an act of mayhem outside the usual, but Captain had gotten a letter from the woman who'd rescued him after he'd washed up on shore alone and mindless, the //''Whydah Gally''// sunk and gone and no other friendly face to remind him of [[who he was.|memory1_Sam_Angst-2]]//

<<set $canonDetail to false>><<set $feelingsFact to false>>//A bird call sounded--the five-minute warning that you'd been so nervous to hear before. You glanced at Captain, wondering if he would stop now, but he shook his head and kept his eye on you.// //Something sharp, then. You looked around, thinking--oh. <<if $memory1 is 0>>The roses. You reached out, tentative, with your fingertips, until your skin snagged on a thorn. You pinched, pulled back, and held it out. Captain paused, and nodded. "Nice one," he said. "I'll remember that."<<elseif $memory1 is 1>>The roses. You reached out, tentative, with your fingers, which worked approximately as well as one might assume when sticking one's hand into an entire bush of bloody-minded plantlife.<br><br>"I like the initiative," said Captain, ignoring your muffled cursing, "but 'don't get into fist fights with ornamental flowers' is not exactly the useful life lesson I'm going for here."<<else>>Your knife. Not the big one for the raid, but just the little knife you keep about your person, always ready to slice meat off bone, cut chunks of cheese, tip the food-heavy point of it into someone else's mouth at mealtime like a proof of trust.<br><br>Captain paused, and nodded. "Fitting," he said.<<endif>>// //Captain took out <<if $memory1 is 0>>a thorny stem of his own<<elseif $memory1 is 1 >>a thorny stem of his own<<else>>his own meat knife<<endif>>, <<if $memory1 is 1>>with significantly less foliage-related violence, <<endif>>and with a swift twist of the string in his hand tied it to the pole. [[He waited for you to do the same.|memorySam3-2]]

<<set $canonDetail to false>><<set $ratFact to false>><<set $rememberOllie to true>>If you've learned anything from your captains--and particularly from Captain Levasseur when he was playing up his nickname of //La Bouche--// it's that sometimes the only tool you have is the bloody big mouth God gave you. Maybe you can talk yourself out of this cell. Maybe you can stall until you're rescued. Maybe you can ingratiate yourself with your captors. Maybe you can talk enough nonsense that someone will get just a //little// too close to the bars... But it starts here. With a tin cup. With which you intend to make a //godawful ruckus// until someone comes down to check on you... And that's when the //real// fun will begin. <center><img src="https://thepuzzlingbotanicalsociety.neocities.org/thedrilledcoin/spear_icon.png" width="5%"><br>THE END !!''[[See and share the profile the French have on you!|blorboReveal]]'' </center>

<<set $canonDetail to false>><<set $catFact to false>>If you've learned anything from your captains--particularly the sometimes lateral, squirrelly thinking of Captain Bellamy--it's that sometimes stealth isn't the answer; it's //blowing the doors off Hell itself// to ask the Devil out for dinner. You put all your strength into pulling on the metal ring--and with only the mildest of creaks the hatch swings open to reveal an obscenely huge hoard of fine foods, rich silks, and a truly //extraordinary// amount of alcohol. You lean back against the cave wall and take a moment to thank all the kind and generous //smugglers// who have been using this island--which you //did,// in fact, recognize--as a [[convenient drop point for more decades than you can count.|caveSolution-2]]

The 1973 mafia film //Goncharov// has [[music, art, meta,|https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/goncharov]] even [[tie-in video games|https://itch.io/jam/goncharov-game-jam]]--and does not exist. For a more thorough description of the Goncharov phenomenon, see Autumn Chen's presentation "[[On Goncharov (1973): Fact and (Interactive) Fiction|https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tmEwYfws4zg&ab_channel=InteractiveFictionTechnologyFoundation]]", presented at NarraScope 2023 on August 23, 2023.

<center> !Building the Spear !!a demonstration in faking and re-making real feelings for an imaginary work ---- //Thank you for visiting our multimedia game poster for //''Faking and Re-Making the Fandom Spear''.// If you had played the game, or played it all the way to the end, you would have created a crewmember based on your own existing emotional attachments and with unique <<link "concretes">> <<script>> Dialog.setup(""); Dialog.wiki(Story.get("Concretes Quote").processText()); Dialog.open(); <</script>><</link>>. We propose such interactive experiences can become powerful tools for multimedia and multifaceted storytelling, and we created this game to demonstrate one method of inviting collaborative fan engagement in an imaginary work.// //If you would like to play or restart, you can either start from the [[introduction|Start]] or skip to [[Build a Blorbo.]] You can also [[read our slide presentation|https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/e/2PACX-1vTuPk2-5zFEBl57TjLTuCiM73NbYB-t5xjeEZvgqKhAjyNoN8DEVDKOCanH8qUDvXEkvxL312jguDqg/pub?start=false&loop=false&delayms=3000]] from Fan Studies Network North America 2023.// //Finally, here's what little we know of your mysterious crewmember --a bare-bones "wanted" poster half-hanging on an alley wall...// ---- !WANTED !!!<<if $blorboName.length is 0>>Unnamed Pirate<<else>>$blorboName<<endif>> !!!!<<if $brigLocation is true>>?crew on the dread ship //$ollieShip//<<elseif $caveLocation is true>>?crew on the dread ship //$samShip//<<elseif $rememberOllie is true>>?crew on the dread ship //$ollieShip//<<elseif $rememberSam is true>>?crew on the dread ship //$samShip//<<else>>Shipless vagabond and mercenary for hire<<endif>> <<if $clothingEssay.length is 0>>Appearance unknown; reports only indicate that a scoundrel is in the area. <<elseif $clothingEssay is "Describe your blorbo's fantastic pirate garb">>Appearance unknown; reports only indicate that a scoundrel is in the area. <<elseif $clothingEssay is "Describe your blorbo's competent pirate garb">>Appearance unknown; reports only indicate that a scoundrel is in the area.<<else>>''LAST SEEN WEARING'' $clothingEssay<<endif>> ''CRIMES INCLUDE'' <<if $blorboCrew.length is 0>>-lies regularly about what posts ?theyve held on pirate ships<<else>>-holding position of $blorboCrew on a pirate ship<<endif>> -<<if $frenchTalk is true>>fluency in French<<else>>questionable fluency in French<<endif>> -<<if $rememberSam is true>>strong opinions on witches<<elseif $rememberOllie is true>>unreasonable dislike of masquerade balls<<else>>may actively enjoy masquerade balls and be indifferent to witches<<endif>> -robbing printshops of their <<if $memory1 is 0>>romantic<<elseif $memory1 is 1>>humorous<<elseif $memory1 is 2>>angsty<<else>>pirate-themed<<endif>> broadsides -being both <<if $positiveAdjective.length is 0>>$genericPositive<<else>>$positiveAdjective<<endif>> //and// <<if $negativeAdjective.length is 0>>$genericNegative<<else>>$negativeAdjective<<endif>> -and, finally, having some sort of weird //thing// about spear construction ---- </center> <center><img src="https://thepuzzlingbotanicalsociety.neocities.org/thedrilledcoin/spear_icon.png" width="5%"></center>

Verb derived from the collaborative fannish play observed surrounding the improvised development around the imaginary film "[[Goncharov|https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/goncharov]]". An activity similar to the parable of the [[three men trying to describe an elephant by touch alone|https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blind_men_and_an_elephant]], except there //''is''// no elephant and, instead of disagreeing, the men collaboratively improvise and [[yes-and|https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yes,_and...]] their way to an agreed-upon imaginary beast.

//The sky was new-moon dark. The attack was set to come after a warning signal, and you strained to listen for it, nerves jangling beneath your skin, setting aside thoughts of what Captain Levasseur must be thinking about all this effort <<linkreplace "for a woman not even twenty leagues away--">>for a woman not even twenty leagues away--//<br><br><<linkreplace ""So..."">>"So"//, <<linkreplace "came a long, drawn-out whisper...">>came a long, drawn-out whisper, "I'm wondering if I should talk to Ollie about <<linkreplace "some stuff."">>some stuff."//<br><br>//With what must have been the absolute favor of every minor deity you could have possibly imagined, you managed to hold back a flinch of surprise at Captain Bellamy's sudden presence approximately //''five inches''// behind your ''[[gods-be-damned ear|memory1_Sam_Romance-4]]''//.//<</linkreplace>><</linkreplace>><</linkreplace>><</linkreplace>>

<<set $canonDetail to true>><<set $masqueradeFact to true>><<set $navyFact to true>>//You swallowed. "Right," you whispered. "Yes. Captain Levasseur. You're...you're wondering if you should talk to him. About. Stuff."// //"About the Mariah thing," Captain said. He paused a moment and continued, "And also probably Ollie's thing. With the //''Viceroy''//." Captain's low voice seemed loud in the shadows; he sounded a little--uncertain. Lost, maybe.// //The memory of the captains when they'd shared the rescue plan with the crew--both crews--abruptly came to mind. The tension in Captain Levasseur shoulders. The tight look [[on Captain Bellamy's face.|memory1_Sam_Romance-6]]//

<<set $canonDetail to false>><<set $feelingsFact to false>>//You shook your head a little. "I, uh. I could try, Captain. To give advice."// //Captain looked at you a long moment, and then glanced up at the sky, seemed to do some mental math, and shrugged before making himself more comfortable beside you.// //[["It occurs to me," he said, "that we haven't had a chance to talk since I came back."|memorySam2]]//

<<set $canonDetail to true>><<set $drilledcoinFact1 to true>>//You watched him as he stripped the few leaves from his stick, and you mimicked his movements, uncertain where this was going. When you were done, he lifted the bare wood and waited for you to match him again. "This? This is a pole now," he said. "<<if $memory1 is 1>>Ollie called it something different, but we are going to be adults about this. <<endif>>It's a pole, right, except maybe it's also--time. Time with your ship. Time with your--<<if $memory1 is 1>>loved one<<else>>friends<<endif>>. It's stronger than it looks, because it's had time to grow like that."// //He reached up and pulled out the cord that tied at the throat of his shirt, leaving the collar falling open against his chest. For a moment, you thought you saw a leather thong, revealed with Captain's open collar--and hanging from it, strung through a small drilled hole, [[a glinting gold coin lay like a fingerprint against his bare skin.|memorySam2-3]]//

<<set $canonDetail to false>><<set $drilledcoinFact2 to false>><<set $witchFact to false>>//He gave you one half of the string and kept the other. It felt like a ritual--<<if $memory1 is 0>><<set $canonDetail to true>><<set $feelingsFact to true>><<set $navyFact to true>>like a wedding, maybe, and you wondered if Captain had ever thought about that sort of thing with his Goody Hallet--or, or maybe the kind that pirates have--a matelotage. You wondered, in fact, if Captain had ever thought about it with certain //''other''// captains, ones who may or may not have returned to //''La Louise''// with a rope burn around their neck but an eye that turned hungry whenever they saw Captain Bellamy come on deck.<<elseif $memory1 is 1>>like when new sailors would cross the Equator for the first time and get the ceremonial haddock slap and humorous wig.<<else>>like Captain's own vicar-born habits, still here even after so many other memories seem to have been lost.<<endif>>// //"This," said Captain, thumb over his bit of string<<if $memory1 is 1>>--and his voice went oddly serious, as if the joke was turning off a well-worn path and toward some more rocky wanderings--<<else>>, <<endif>>"is when you wake up, and you know that you're safe. When a man is about to kill you, but someone saves you first. When you go to sleep, and know that you'll wake the instant any danger befalls your crew." He paused. "I say 'crew.' [[But sometimes a better word is 'family'.|memorySam2-5]]"//

<<set $canonDetail to false>><<set $feelingsFact to false>><<set $navyFact to false>>//<<if $memory1 is 1>>He blinked, and then looked back up at you. "Though I accept that it's also basically a bit of string, which should be good enough for anyone without weighing it down with a metaphor as well.<<else>><<set $canonDetail to true>><<set $feelingsFact to true>>His thumb brushed the string again, and you think of Captain Levasseur, and how Captain Bellamy had a tendency, even greater now than before the storm that had separated them, of turning to the man like a flower following the sun.<<endif>>// //"But a bit of string and a stick--that's not enough for what we're doing here," Captain continued. "There's one more thing we need: [[Something sharp.|memorySam3]]"//

//"So," said Captain. "We have a pole, right? And now we have the <<if $memory1 is 0>>rose<<elseif $memory1 is 1 >>rose<<else>>knife<<endif>>, here. The important thing is that it's got to be something that stings a little. Like--you." He turned his lamp-lit eyes suddenly toward you, and--// //The easy camaraderie fell away. It was like being seen from the inside-out. // //"You," Sam Bellamy said. "I've been watching you. And you know what I see? You're //''<<if $positiveAdjective.length is 0>>$genericPositive<<else>>$positiveAdjective<<endif>>''//. I'm not sure anyone else aboard is quite like you in that regard, or at least to the same extent. And that's...important to me. It's important that I run a ship, have a crew, where it's safe for you to be like that. Safe, and--and //''valued.''// A ?adultPerson like you is worth ?their weight in gold." His smile winked on again. "[[And you know how much pirates like gold.|memorySam3-3]]"//

//You swallowed, caught your voice. "That doesn't seem like a sting, Captain," you said.// //"Oh, well. Yeah," he said. "The sting is...well. The sting here is that people aren't just made up of one of kind of thing. People are a mess, made up of a thousand impulses struggling to overcome us at every moment. And so that's why I know: You're <<if $positiveAdjective.length is 0>>$genericPositive<<else>>$positiveAdjective<<endif>>, sure. But I //''also''// know, because I've seen it: you're <<if $negativeAdjective.length is 0>>$genericNegative<<else>>$negativeAdjective<<endif>>, too."// //He left it there, the silence hanging like windless sails in an [[empty, too-calm sea.|memorySam3-4]]//

//This was, you thought distantly, <<if $memory1 is 0>>no longer remotely about giving advice to your lovesick captain. Maybe it was [[never supposed to have been.|memorySam3-5]]<<elseif $memory1 is 1>>[[no longer remotely funny.|memorySam3-5]]<<else>>the worst thing you had ever heard [[in your entire life.|memorySam3-5]]<<endif>>//

//"Why are you telling me this," you said, "Why--" // ''It's not fair, being known like that,''// you thought, heart beating like a bird caught in your chest. And having it recited back at you, when you had no defense to give, no escape, no--// //"Because," said Captain, a whisper in the dark. "We're about to go into an unknown situation and you were--alone. I've been there. Ollie and I both have. But look," he said, lifting the stick and cord and <<if $memory1 is 3>>knife<<else>>thorn<<endif>> as if was heavier than its parts, "Look at what we made together. We've stuck your sharpness at the long end of the time you've spent with me, with our crew. But for this--for you, I'm the //''cord.''// And I'll hold you secure here for as long as you want. I'll watch your back. I've //''seen''// you, all right? And it only makes me more sure that I want you here, on our ship, the fine point on a long spear that'll keep us safe, together, and--[[whole.|memorySam3-6]]"//

//The scent of roses hung sweet and heavy in the air, and your captain sat with you as the strange cleansing feel of acceptance washed through you and into the forgiving night air.// //You looked down at the spear in your own hands, your captain at ease beside you, and when the bird call came again, your captain barked a command, pulled you up, //''called you by name''// to join the others, and--// //[[You remember, now. You remember everything.|cavememoryReturn]]//

Sensory information starts leaking in like morning fog. Your eyes feel crusted shut; your tongue feels too thick and dry inside your mouth; your body aches like one enormous bruise; and--there's a dull but all-encompassing throbbing pain coming from the back of your head. It's hard to breathe--probably because you're flat on your stomach, splayed out. You don't know how you got like that, though. Or where you are. In fact-- In fact, you don't [[remember much at all.|In fact, you don't remember much at all.]]

<<set $canonDetail to false>><<set $witchFact to false>><<set $masqueradeFact to false>>//Bellamy and Levasseur's blended crew were stationed around the courthouse, hiding in the dark. You'd picked a hedge of wild roses to hide behind, which you now regretted--no one else had joined you in the thorns. Understandable, but...// //[[You would've liked a little back-up.|memory1_Sam_Romance-3]]//

<<set $drilledcoinFact1 to false>><<set $drilledcoinFact2 to true>>//Captain made a little noise, then, and your eyes flicked away in time to see him take his knife and cut the shirt string in two. When you looked back, the coin was out of sight again [[as if it had never been.|memorySam2-4]]//

<<set $witchFact to false>><<set $codeFact to true>><<set $navyFact to true>><<set $masqueradeFact to true>><<set $eyepatchFact to true>>//Goody Hallet had gotten a message to Captain somehow, though, which had lead to some very public discussions between the two captains as to how to proceed--including one memorable afternoon when Captain Levasseur had loudly commented from //''La Louise'''//s forecastle that,// ''certainement'',// he felt the utmost sympathy for those threatened by the noose, and //''he''// didn't need the pleadings of a near-stranger to do what was Right by the Unjustly Accused. // //In turn, Captain Bellamy had, with polite cordiality, threatened Levasseur with a noose made of Levasseur's own eye-patch strings if he kept being tetchy about Mariah nursing Bellamy back to health--particularly since it wasn't as if Bellamy had been in any fit state to hold out hope for a dashing pirate to come to his rescue and, actually, hadn't Levasseur been busy at the time in some French prison with a certain //''Viceroy''// [[who would remain unnamed--|memory1_Sam_Humor-3]]//

<<set $canonDetail to false>><<set $codeFact to false>><<set $navyFact to false>><<set $masqueradeFact to false>><<set $eyepatchFact to false>>//--at which point the first mate had had to shove them both into the captains' cabin until they could behave properly in front of the crew again.// //It had been, overall, an entertaining journey up the coast. [[The cabin boy had made popcorn.|memory1_Sam_Humor-4]]//

//You'd arrived eventually, though, and that left you here. The whole crew, Captain's and Olivier Levasseur's combined again, were lying in wait. You'd found yourself a spot behind a hedge of wild roses bordering the building, which you now regretted a bit--no one else had joined you in the thorns. Understandable, but...you would've liked a little back-up, or at least some company, it was //''freezing''// [[in Massachusetts--|memory1_Sam_Humor-5]]//

//"It seems wasteful, if I'm being honest," Captain said from approximately five inches behind your //''gods-be-damned ear''.// "I mean, Mariah knows what to put into a soup to lower a fever. How is that bad information to have? Who thinks 'oh, sure, we could cure this potentially fatal but definitely preventable illness, or, hear me out, we murder the person who knows how.'"// //You briefly wonder if the greatest achievement of your career in piracy will be that you did not, at Captain Bellamy's sudden appearance, scream at a pitch only audible to [[dogs and watchmen.|memory1_Sam_Humor-6]]//

//"Sorry if I startled you," your captain said, not sounding particularly sorry about it--but you felt his hand warm on your shoulder, keeping you steady and in place instead of falling sideways in embarrasment, which was, admittedly, <<linkreplace "comforting.">>//comforting.//<br><br><<linkreplace "For a moment.">><<set $canonDetail to true>><<set $olewurmFact to true>>//For a moment.//<br><br>//And then he said, "If I asked Ole Wurm if he was a witch, [[do you think he'd poison me.|memory1_Sam_Humor-7]]"//<</linkreplace>><</linkreplace>>

<<set $olewurmFact to false>><<set $cowislandFact to true>>//"Captain," you said in such a way as, you hoped, conveyed how terrible an idea that would be--//''my God,''// you thought in rising horror, //''wasn't what happened on Cow Island bad enough, I still can't look Ole Wurm in the'' //eye// ''after that,''//--and after a slow blink Captain Bellamy's eyes crinkled and a corner of his mouth turned up, looking for all the world as if he'd won some game that he hadn't bothered to mention you were playing with him.// //You held out for approximately three seconds after this before rolling your eyes and offering him some of the popcorn you'd brought to munch on while waiting for the signal.// //Captain waived it off--but he glanced up at the sky, seemed to do some mental math, and [[settled down beside you.|memorySam2]]//

//You turned your head enough to see the captain crouched down behind you, looking over your shoulder to study the brightly lit courthouse.// //"Um," you said. "Ollie...Levasseur?"// //Captain glanced at you with dark, deep-set eyes and raised his eyebrows.// //His eyebrows, as it turned out, [[had many things to say.|memory1_Sam_Romance-5]]//

<<set $masqueradeFact to false>><<set $navyFact to false>><<set $feelingsFact to true>>//And yet...the way they'd still seemed to turn toward one another, even while speaking to the crew--even while they both, evidently, had "feelings" of one sort or another to deal with.// //You wondered, a little, what it would be like to have that sort of--trust? Certainty? That even when things weren't quite right, [[they could never be truly wrong.|memory1_Sam_Romance-7]]//

<<set $canonDetail to false>><<set $witchFact to false>>//The nearby townsfolk called her "witch," both then and now, and Captain's mouth had gone tight when he'd read her letter. He'd talked it over first with Captain Levasseur, and their argument had been low-voiced and long, but it had come down to simple things, in the end: Captain Bellamy couldn't say no to someone who had cared for him, and [[Captain Levasseur couldn't say no to Sam.|memory1_Sam_Angst-3]]//

<<set $canonDetail to true>><<set $navyFact to true>>//That the witches were due for hanging, and that both captains remembered all too well what the French had been planning for Olivier Levasseur not two months back, were things that stayed unspoken but present all the same.// //There had been a rescue that night, too. But tonight wasn't going to be as messy as that horror show had been. Levasseur was back, was //''Captain'' //too along with Captain Bellamy, and this was going to be a perfect raid, absolute justice, which was why [[it made no sense that, that--|memory1_Sam_Angst-4]]//

<<set $canonDetail to false>><<set $navyFact to false>>//"I feel it, too," Captain said, his low voice a whisper in the shadows outside the wretched courthouse.// //You jumped. You didn't mean to. The man moved like a shadow. He smiled a little, white teeth flashing in dark that swaddled him, and waved you back down. His heavy, deep-set eyes caught the light from the watchmen's torches, and he crouched there beside you, peering a moment through the thick hedge of wild rose that hid you both. He was still looking away when he said, very quietly, "You're remembering."// //Your eyes felt hot, and you didn't even know why. Everything was fine now. Everyone was alive. Even Captain's memory was coming back faster than ever, a miracle after everything was said and done, and both crews had survived, [[it was fine, it was--|memory1_Sam_Angst-5]]//

//"I know," your captain said, and you felt his hand warm on your shoulder. Holding you upright. Keeping you grounded. "It's hard, remembering," he said. "A kind of hard that not everyone understands."// //After a moment, his hand left you, and you thought he might stand again to check on the others. But instead [[he settled more firmly beside you.|memorySam2]]//

<<set $masqueradeFact to false>><<set $navyFact to false>>//"So," came the long, drawn-out whisper from approximately //''five inches''// behind your //''gods-be-damned ear'',// "I am wondering if maybe this would be a good night to talk to Sam again."// //With what must be the absolute favor of every minor deity you can imagine, you did not even //''twitch''// at this. [[But you turned. And stared.|memory1_Ollie_Romance-3]]//

<<set $canonDetail to true>><<set $eyepatchFact to true>>//Captain Levasseur was crouched behind you, digging into the dirt with the point of his knife, having evidently used all his vast talent for stealth and subterfuge to...ask you. For advice.// //"Um," you said. "Sam...Bellamy?"// //Captain looked up and raised his eyebrows, one over a bright brown eye, the other over what appeared to be a patch that matched his raiding outfit down to the black velvet accents and silk ties.// //His eyebrows, as it turned out, [[had many things to say.|memory1_Ollie_Romance-4]]//

<<set $canonDetail to false>><<set $eyepatchFact to false>>//You swallowed. "Right," you said. "Yes. Captain Bellamy. You're...you're wondering if you should talk to him. Again."// //Captain's accented English seemed loud in the shadows, but possibly you only felt that way because every word encapsulated a world of knowledge you //''wish you did not have''. //"He is being obstinate about all sorts of things," Captain said. He paused a moment and continued thoughtfully, "I think it is because Franky kissed me at the previous masquerade," which was a terrible thing to say to a ?adultPerson when there were murderous guards patrolling [[less than twenty feet away.|memory1_Ollie_Romance-5]]//

//"Advice," you wheezed gently into the night air, wondering if it would be better to get caught now or wait for Captain Bellamy to throw you overboard like he had Fra--//''the Viceroy''.// "You, uh. Were asking for some advice?"// //Captain glanced up at the sky, seemed to do some mental math, and shrugged before settling down beside you.// //[["I have an idea," he said.|memoryOllie2]]//

<<set $canonDetail to false>><<set $masqueradeFact to false>><<set $navyFact to false>>//But //''tonight''// was not going to go tits up like the last one. Bellamy was here, for one, and he had what might be called a sensible influence over Captain's more //''exciting''// ideas, and you'd found yourself an absolutely plum spot behind the Govenor's rose bushes, <<linkreplace "so--">>so--//<br><br>//"I think we should do this every year," Captain said from approximately five inches behind your //''gods-be-damned ear''.// "Like a holiday. It would be festive, no?" His accented English seemed loud in the shadows outside the Governor's palace, but possibly you just thought that because you were, at that moment, experiencing what you were pretty sure would be listed in the autopsy as "[[captain-induced heart attack.|memory1_Ollie_Humor-3]]"<</linkreplace>>

//"//''Pardon'',"// your captain said, more French than usual, and you felt his hand warm on your shoulder, keeping you steady and in place instead of falling sideways in embarrasment. <<linkreplace "It was comforting.">>It was comforting. // <<linkreplace "For a moment.">>//For a moment. // <<linkreplace "And then he started patting it.">>//And then he started patting it. [[Slowly.|memory1_Ollie_Humor-4]]//<</linkreplace>><</linkreplace>><</linkreplace>>

<<set $canonDetail to true>><<set $eyepatchFact to true>>//"There there," Captain Levasseur intoned, and when you looked at him reproachfully, his one good eye caught the light from the palace's torches and lit him with an unholy humor. Slowly he smiled, teeth flashing, and with his dark skin already blended into the night it looked for a moment like he was made up of all grin, playing a game and [[inviting you to join him.|memory1_Ollie_Humor-5]]//

<<set $canonDetail to false>><<set $eyepatchFact to false>>//You held out for approximately three seconds before rolling your eyes and offering him one of the snacks you'd brought to munch on while waiting for the signal.// //Captain waived aside the offer--instead, he glanced up at the sky, seemed to do some mental math, and shrugged before settling down beside you.// //[["Will you indulge me a moment?" he asked.|memoryOllie2]]//

<<set $canonDetail to false>><<set $stormFact to false>><<set $masqueradeFact to false>><<set $navyFact to false>>//But //''tonight''// was not supposed to be like that. Bellamy was back, was //''Captain'' //too along with Captain Levasseur, and this was going to be a brilliant raid, absolutely flawless, which was why [[it made no sense that, that--|memory1_Ollie_Angst-3]]//

//"You feel it too, eh?" Captain said, his accented English a whisper in the shadows [[outside the Governor's palace.|memory1_Ollie_Angst-4]]//

<<set $canonDetail to true>><<set $catFact to true>><<set $eyepatchFact to true>>//You jumped. You didn't mean to. The man moved like his own cat. He smiled a little, white teeth flashing in dark that swaddled him, and waved you back down. His one good eye caught the light from the palace's torches, and he crouched there beside you, dark skin blending into the night, and peered a moment through the thick hedge of wild rose that hid you both. He was still looking away when he said, very quietly, "You're remembering."// //Your eyes felt hot, and you didn't even know why. Everything was fine now. Everyone was alive. Even Captain Bellamy's memory was coming back faster than ever, a miracle after everything was said and done, and both crews had survived, [[it was fine, it was--|memory1_Ollie_Angst-5]]//

<<set $canonDetail to false>><<set $catFact to false>><<set $eyepatchFact to false>>//"Shh," your captain said, and you felt his hand warm on your shoulder. Holding you upright. Keeping you grounded. "It will be well," he said. "Eventually, it will be well."// //After a moment, his hand left you, and you thought he might stand again to check on the others. But instead he settled more firmly beside you.// //[["I have an idea," he said.|memoryOllie2]]//

//You watched him as he stripped the leaves from the branch, and you mimicked his movements. When you were done, he lifted his bare branch and waited for you to match him again. "This? This is a pole now," he said. "<<if $memory1 is 1>>You may feel the urge to call it a 'shaft,' but I have been told very firmly that there is never a good time to do so, so I suppose we must be boring about it.<<endif>><<if $memory1 is 1>> Instead, we will call it a pole, and we will also call it<<else>>Except maybe it is also<<endif>>--time. Time with your ship. Time with your--<<if $memory1 is 1>>loved one<<else>>friends<<endif>>. It is stronger than it looks, and that is because [[it has had time to grow like that.|memoryOllie2-3]]"//

//He reached up and pulled the cord from the throat of his shirt, the collar falling open against his chest, and for a moment you saw a chain glinting, some unknown weight dragging it below the neckline. Captain hummed a little, drawing your eyes back to his hands--where with his knife, he was [[cutting the cord in two.|memoryOllie2-4]]//

<<set $canonDetail to true>>//<<if $memory1 is 1>>He blinked, and then looked back up at you. "Though I will hazard that it is also, sometimes, just a bit of string, which is a cheerful enough conclusion, no?"<<else>><<set $feelingsFact to true>>His thumb brushed the cord again, and you think of Captain Bellamy, and how Captain Levasseur had a tendency, even greater now than before the storm, of turning to the man like a flower following the sun.<<endif>>// //"But we are not done yet, //''mon ami,''// because there is one more thing we need," said Captain. "[[Something sharp.|memoryOllie3]]"//

//"So we have the pole, yes?" Captain said. "And the <<if $memory1 is 0>>rose<<elseif $memory1 is 1 >>rose<<else>>knife<<endif>>, here--it is something meant to sting a little. Like--you." He turned his lamp-lit eye suddenly toward you, and it was like being seen from the inside-out. "You, I have been watching. You, //''mon ami'',// are //''<<if $positiveAdjective.length is 0>>$genericPositive<<else>>$positiveAdjective<<endif>>.''// I am not sure anyone else aboard is quite like you in that regard, or not to the same degree--and I? I value that kind of rarity. That is what the sea, this life, is for me--a search for what can not be attained by property or bloodline or courtly favor. The only treasure worth pursuing is that which can never be bought--only found." His smile winked on again. "Or, I admit, perhaps [[stolen.|memoryOllie3-3]]"//

//You swallowed, caught your voice again. "That doesn't seem like a sting, Captain," you said.// //"Oh, that. Yes," he said. "The sting is that not all that is rare is also beautiful, hm? Because I also know: You are <<if $negativeAdjective.length is 0>>$genericNegative<<else>>$negativeAdjective<<endif>>. Yes, I know that as well."// //He left it there, the silence [[hanging like a gallows noose.|memoryOllie3-4]]//

//This was, you thought distantly, <<if $memory1 is 0>>no longer remotely about giving advice to your lovesick captain. Maybe it was [[never supposed to have been.|memoryOllie3-5]]<<elseif $memory1 is 1>>[[no longer remotely funny.|memoryOllie3-5]]<<else>>the worst thing you had ever heard [[in your entire life.|memoryOllie3-5]]<<endif>>//

//"Why are you telling me this," you said, "Why--" // ''It's not fair, being known like that,''// you thought, heart beating like a distant drum. And having it recited back at you, when you had no defense to give, no escape, no--// //"But look, eh?" said Captain, a whisper in the dark. "Look at what we have made with your rarity, your sting. We have placed it at the long end of the time you have spent with me, with my crew--crew that is family for you in a way they can never really be for me, hm? But here am I--I am the tie, holding you secure for as long as you wish it. I have seen you, all that you are, and it only makes me more sure that I want you here, on our ship, the fine point on a long spear that will keep us safe [[as we venture beyond the seas we know.|memoryOllie3-6]]"//

//The scent of roses hung sweet and heavy in the air, and your captain was here, sitting with you, as the strange cleansing feel of acceptance washed through you and into the forgiving night air.// //You were still holding your spear, looking down at what your captain had shown you, when the bird call came again, your captain laughed and pulled you up, //''called you by name''// to join the others, and--// //[[You remember, now. You remember everything.|brigmemoryReturn]]//

You can't see a gaoler, but someone will likely come when the watch changes. You hope you'll be able to hear the bell from here. It could happen in another minute--it could happen four hours from now. Whatever danger you might have been in, it can't get much worse for the time being, and you may not have much time. You might as well move on to the next concern... [[...What else can be remembered?|detailclothingBrig]]

Your clothes are soaked through and the ground beneath you is a cold combination of sharp rock and scratching sand. Your skin, where the damp air touches, feels scraped raw. The air is heavy with the scent of saltwater, wet stone, and rotted wood. Combined with how much every part of you feels as if you've gone ten rounds against Poseidon himself, you manage to come up with a theory: There's been an accident. A shipwreck, maybe, or a storm that sent only you overboard. You hope it's the second one, but...you hear nothing but the ocean waves and the cry of seabirds. //I'm alone,// you think, [[and it's not a comfort.|A wet cave-3]]

Based on how wet everything is, you can only assume that the cave is usually covered when the tide is in. You turn your head a little, regretting it instantly, but--there--deeper in the cave, a few feet away, is a few scraps of wood that you must have clung to to get this far. You'll need to get out of here before the tide comes back. And a fire; you need a fire. But you're so, so tired. You can stay flopped here a moment longer, probably. And while you rest... [[...What else can be remembered?|detailclothingCave]]

//All right,// you think. //Deep breaths. What else can I figure out?// You look down. Wet clothes, certainly, but ones that should be indicative of //something// beyond the very basic concept of "sailor"--and they look like you are quite a fashionable pirate. You see: <<textarea "$clothingEssay" "Describe your blorbo's fantastic pirate garb">> [[Well, at least the clothes are great...|objectfindBrig]]

And if there's any trouble heading //his// way...you want to be there to help. It's not easy being a pirate, and yet you have a bone-deep certainty that //your// captain's ship, at least, is one worth fighting for. Right. Your memory can come back as needed, but you at least know you want out of //here.// You look around and try to find something that might help. You see: <<listbox "$brigObject" autoselect>> <<option "">> <<option "A lumpy bed" 0>> <<option "A scurrying rat" 1>> <<option "A piss bucket of uncertain cleanliness" 2>> <</listbox>> With a care for your aching head, [[you turn to examine it closer...|memoryobjectBrig]]

Oh. //Oh.// With one last burst of agonizing pain and sudden, all-consuming light-- //[[You remember.|memoryOllie1]]//

You'll need to get out of here before the tide comes back. And a fire; you need a fire. But you're so, so tired. You can stay flopped here a moment longer. And while you rest... [[...What else can be remembered?|detailclothingCave]]

With an extra shove, you push yourself to standing, which--fewer sharp rocks, fantastic, but now quite a lot of vertigo. You stumble sideways and, ah, yes, of course: the //side// of the cave. A whole new adventurous angle to get stabbed by geology. Still though--you lean there for a moment, letting the black spots dance in front of your eyes until they resolve back into the faint sparking glitter of the cave wall's outcroppings. //All right. Deep breaths,// you think. //Let's take stock.// You look down. Clothes. Wet clothes, certainly, but ones that should be indicative of //something// beyond the very basic concept of "sailor"--and they look like you are quite a competent pirate. You see: <<textarea "$clothingEssay" "Describe your blorbo's competent pirate garb">> [[Well, at least the clothes mean you're useful...|objectfindCave]]

You feel almost knocked down by the sudden warm sense of purpose that comes upon you: Whatever trouble you're in now, your captain would want to help you out of it. And if there's any trouble heading //his// way...you want to be there to help. It's not easy being a pirate, and yet you have a bone-deep certainty that //your// captain's ship, at least, is one worth fighting for. Right. Your memory can come back as needed, but you at least know you want out of //here.// You look around and try to find something that might help. You see: <<listbox "$caveObject" autoselect>> <<option "">> <<option "A stinking clump of seaweed" 0>> <<option "A mangy cat" 1>> <<option "An odd-looking stone" 2>> <</listbox>> With a care for your aching body, [[you move to examine it closer...|memoryobjectCave]]

Oh. //Oh.// With one last burst of agonizing pain and sudden, all-consuming light-- //[[You remember.|memorySam1]]//

<<set $meetingFact to false>><<set $stormFact to true>>You remember the Red Flag Fleet. You remember Zheng Yi Sao's encoded flags. You remember the storm, and seeing the //Whydah Gally// and your new friends, your new captain, be swept away. And you remember the dark times after, as forgetting the lost seemed an impossible goal. To think, you'd once //wanted// to forget. (Well. [[You'll be damned if you make that mistake again.|brigmemoryReturn-3]])

<<set $stormFact to false>><<set $navyFact to true>>You were part of the rescue squad who'd helped Bellamy save Captain Levasseur from the French Navy's noose, and it was just yesterday that you found out that you too now have your very own wanted poster--which honestly is pretty exciting, and would have been the highlight of your week were it not for the fact that it led directly to being spotted in port and reported to the authorities. The last thing you saw was a pair of beefy soldiers heading your wait--and the last thing you //felt// was the heavy cosh of what was probably [[yet another soldier behind you.|brigmemoryReturn-4]]

<<set $canonDetail to false>><<set $navyFact to false>>The thing is, if you're a wanted ?adultPerson, then so is absolutely //everybody// else on that raid. Leaving aside how you're probably awaiting your own trial and hangman's noose--your new priority is getting out of here or, barring that, getting a message out to //La Louise// and your captains. [[Start looking around.|brigDiscovery]]

<<set $meetingFact to false>><<set $stormFact to true>>You remember the Red Flag Fleet. You remember Zheng Yi Sao's encoded flags. You remember the storm, and seeing //La Louise// escape as the waters rose higher and higher. [[You remember seeing Sam Bellamy fall.|cavememoryReturn-3]]

<<set $canonDetail to false>><<set $stormFact to false>>You remember the dark times after, as you and your crewmates abandoned ship, found shore, and set about, in the weeks that followed, mourning your captain and the kind of life you'd never have again. To think: You'd actually once //wanted// to forget. (Well. You'll be damned [[if you make that mistake again.|cavememoryReturn-4]])

You know now that you weren't shipwrecked or knocked off a deck during a storm--about a week ago, you were captured by a wayward barque from the Red Flag Fleet, its captain willing to do whatever it took to get you to reveal what you knew of the rest of the fleet's location. But he'd made the mistake of taking you topside to "test the wind," and you saw that the barque was on course to pass by an island you recognized--not much more than a rock in the ocean, but with a distinctive look and one particular useful trait... What with one thing another, back in the ship's hold, you may have acted a bit hastily and--well--//maybe// blew a //tiny// hole [[through the barque's hull.|cavememoryReturn-5]]

While the captain and Fleet sailors were dealing with the whole "sinking ship" thing, you hauled yourself onto a piece of drift wood and headed landward. You must've hit your head on something as the waves hit the island's rocky outcroppings--but the sea carried you the rest of the way in to safety. [[And now you know exactly what to look for next...|caveDiscovery]]

<<set $rememberSam to true>>A quick check reveals that the food is fresh enough that the smugglers are likely to come back by nightfall-- and with any luck, they'll talk first instead of shooting. Not bad odds, though. You'll take it. And, well--with enough time, effort, and rag-stuffed bottles set aflame, you can probably either convince the smugglers that you're not here to steal their goods //or// take over their ship while they're distracted. Either way: your ship--and your family--are waiting for you. You'll see them soon. <center><img src="https://thepuzzlingbotanicalsociety.neocities.org/thedrilledcoin/spear_icon.png" width="5%"><br>THE END !!''[[See and share the profile the Red Flag Fleet began on you!|blorboReveal]]'' </center>

The word "blorbo" is intended to be a generic name for a fan's favorite character--no matter the importance of that character within the actual narrative. The origin of the term was a December 2021 post by tumblr user thelustiestargonianmaid, referring to the habit of other users tagging non-fandom posts with the names of their favorite characters, thereby tying the emotion or action within the post to their personal understanding of the character. Read more about the history of the "blorbo" meme and its slang usage here: [[blorbo|https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/blorbo-from-my-shows]]

The scant canonical information released for <i>Blow the Man Down</i> has largely been collected through player effort and analysis of ARG-provided elements. The most easily accessible for non-players is a [[TV Guide spread|https://btmd.neocities.org/tvguide.jpeg]] from the alternate universe where BTMD exists, but the best, most canonical starting point may be with the source of the ARG itself: [[Javid Denkins.|http://javiddenkins.tumblr.com]]

//He gave you one, and kept the other. It felt like a ritual<<if $memory1 is 0>><<set $canonDetail to true>><<set $feelingsFact to true>>--like a wedding, maybe, and you wondered if Captain ever thought about the kind that pirates have--matelotages--for himself. You wondered, in fact, if Captain had ever thought about it with certain //''other''// captains, ones who may or may not have returned to //''La Louise''// with half their memories but eyes that got big as saucers whenever they saw Captain Levasseur come on deck.<<elseif $memory1 is 1>> maybe--like when new sailors would cross the Equator for the first time and get the ceremonial haddock slap and humorous wig.<<else>> maybe--like Captain Bellamy's vicar-born habits, still here even after so many other memories seem to have been lost.<<endif>>// //"This," said Captain, thumb over his bit of cord<<if $memory1 is 1>>--and his voice went oddly serious, as if the joke was turning off a well-worn path and toward some more rocky wanderings--<<else>>, <<endif>>"is when you wake up, and know that you are safe. When a man is about to kill you, but someone saves you first. When you go to sleep, and know that you will wake on the instant if any danger befalls your crew." He paused. "Crew is one word for it. [[But sometimes 'family' is another.|memoryOllie2-5]]"//

* ''November 17, 2023:'' Minor rewording to the "skip to conclusion" ending; added new sidebar links:<blockquote>[[Update Log|UpdateLog]] [[News and Reviews|NewsReviews]] [[About the Authors|AuthorCred]] (an expanded version of our credits dropdown) [[Feedback Form|FeedbackForm]] [[Link to video version of FSNNA23 presentation|https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bRNjKbL_po]] (narrated by Katherine Crighton)</blockquote> * ''October 12, 2023:'' Version1.0 released for the [[Fan Studies Network North America 2023|https://fsn-northamerica.org/]] conference

* ''November 17, 2023'' [[AlphaFest|https://www.wpi.edu/academics/departments/interactive-media-game-development/events-news/alphafest]]<blockquote>//Building the Spear// will be appearing at the [[Interactive Media and Game Development|https://www.wpi.edu/academics/departments/interactive-media-game-development]] program's annual playtesting and feedback event ''AlphaFest'' at [[Worcester Polytechnic Institute|http://www.wpi.edu]].</blockquote> * ''October 23, 2023'' [[Fanhackers: When building a spear, what matters: you, building or the spear?]]<blockquote>"Katherine Crighton, Dr. Naomi Jacobs and Shivhan Szabo introduced an online game where you can create new fanworks for your blorbo for the newest fannish sensation: Blow the Man Down. The catch is, this fannish sensation is not a TV show. The story is reverse engineered through the fanworks created for it, but in a sense, it doesn’t exist. Your blorbo also doesn’t exist. My blorbo is real cool, though, their name is Bogdán. "[...]When it comes to fannish creation, there are some key theories to reference. Participatory culture is one, we also talk about gift economy, affective labor; can they possibly explain why we are able to act fannishly when there isn’t even a canon to be fans of? Are we experiencing real feelings for a fake blorbo because we participated in their creation, committing to this silly man? Or is it because of the nature of the work, we used fannish practices to create them, which is inherently affective? Or is it, as the presentation already points out, due to the spear theory: we build our blorbo by piercing many blorbos through and that creates our type?"</blockquote> * ''October 10, 2023'' [[FSNNA23 Program Released|https://fsn-northamerica.org/2023/10/10/fsnna23-program-released/]]<blockquote>//14. Transmedia and Remediation in Fandom// * Amelie Macaud, “The remaking of authors' photographs byliteraryfandoms” * Katie McCain, “Our Good Friend Jonathan: The Memetic Transformation ofDracula (Daily)” * ''Katherine Crighton, Naomi Jacobs, and Shivhan Szabo, “Faking and Re-Making: The Use of Emotional Responses and Creative Resonances in Communal Multimedia Sto‐ rytelling”'' * Tom Ue, “Wade’s Myopic Gaze: Focalization, Fanfic, and Fiction in Andy Weir’s “Lacero” and Ernest Cline’s Ready PlayerOne Canon”</blockquote>

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!!Credits Written by Katherine Crighton (Worcester Polytechic Institute), Dr. Naomi Jacobs (Lancaster University), and Shivhan Szabo (York University in Toronto), with original art by Shivhan Szabo, for the [[Fan Studies Network North America 2023 conference|https://fsn-northamerica.org/fsnna-23/]] as the poster presentation for "[[Faking and Re-Making: The Use of Emotional Responses and Creative Resonances in Communal Multimedia Storytelling|https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/e/2PACX-1vTuPk2-5zFEBl57TjLTuCiM73NbYB-t5xjeEZvgqKhAjyNoN8DEVDKOCanH8qUDvXEkvxL312jguDqg/pub?start=false&loop=false&delayms=3000]]". <br><br>"Building the Spear" was created using [[Sugarcube 2.36.1|"https://www.motoslave.net/sugarcube/2/"]] for [[Twine 2.6.2.|https://twinery.org/]] !!About the Authors ''Katherine Crighton'' Katherine is a writer with over twenty years of experience in SF/F publishing. They’ve been published by Tor Books, Apex, Lightspeed, and more, and is a host of the [[No Story Is Sacred podcast|http://www.nostoryissacred.com]]. They are pursuing an MFA with [[Worcester Polytechnic Institute|http://www.wpi.edu]]'s [[Interactive Media and Game Design|http://imgd.wpi.edu]] program. * For more information, visit their dedicated homepage at [[KatherineCrighton.com|http://www.katherinecrighton.com]] ''Dr. Naomi Jacobs'' Naomi is Lecturer in Design Policy and Futures Thinking at Lancaster University. Her work is interdisciplinary, crossing Design, Fan Studies and technology governance, and focuses primarily on interaction; between individuals, communities, disciplines or sectors, between the physical and digital worlds, and between people and technology and the media they consume. * For more information, visit her [[Imagination Lancaster profile page|https://imagination.lancaster.ac.uk/person/naomi-jacobs/]] ''Shivhan Szabo'' Shivhan completed her Masters in Art History in 2023 at York University in Toronto, where she studied the use of artificial intelligence in visual art. She is a trained goldsmith and visual artist, as well as an avid creator and consumer of fan-made works.