▷ The Spider Cliff Mysteries
▷ Story 1: Bridging the Gap
▷ Chapter 6: Crystal's imaginary friend
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Transcript of this chapter:
crystal: This looks like a safe place to rest.crystal: This place is a death-trap! Someone cuts down the bridge, trapping me in the most superstitious town ever.
crystal: It's only a matter of time before they realize I'm a demon and send the demon-hunter after me. They'd make me into a trophy.
crystal: And... and there's something else... Something nearby is jamming my demon senses... I feel so cut-off from the world. It's making me paranoid.
crystal: What I really need to do is make a plan.
crystal: I need to stay on task and destroy this town. If someone thinks that they can intimidate me, they just don't know me...
crystal: I'm vicious... I'm strong... I have all of my wits about me... I am-
crystal: First things first... I need to take out that demon-hunter. Then I'll have some breathing space.
crystal: It can't be that hard, he's too young to be much of a challenge.
crystal: Just wait until he finds out that demons DO exist! Hehe, he'll probably say...
crystal: I need to figure out who cut down the bridge. I appear to be safe for now, in the role of Crystal the waitress. I'm just glad that waitress never showed up.
crystal: I should start by finding whoever is responsible for the bridge. Fortunately I have a better idea of how the town works, so I don't expect any more big surprises...
crystal: I need to figure out what is jamming my demon senses. It's making me feel so isolated. It's creeping me out.
crystal: It's a good thing that I've still got a rational mind... I know I can figure this out...
crystal: OH MY GOD... now I'm hallucinating!
crystal: I'm going crazy... floating animals... floating around... my mind is floating away...
turnip: Are you okay?
crystal: It talks!!!
crystal: Of course it talks... why wouldn't it, really? If I'm going to see floating animals, I'd expect them to talk... only makes sense.
turnip: What's wrong with you? Haven't you ever seen a paper mammal before?
crystal: Obviously, I've been drugged.
turnip: What makes you say that?
crystal: I'm seeing you!
crystal: You're made of... paper?
turnip: No, paper is made from me!
crystal: Like... like paper bags? You sort of look like a paper bag with a head.
turnip: Oh thank you for reminding me.
turnip: How would YOU like to be slaughtered and gutted and be used to carry eggs and mayo from the store?
crystal: Actually, I can sympathize with you, in a way.
turnip: I doubt that.
crystal: Do all... uh, paper mammals talk?
turnip: Only me. I learned from Barlow... he's my best friend. He's human.
crystal: So... other people can see you, too?
turnip: Hehe, well... we're not all invisible.
crystal: If I'm going to see imaginary floating animals, they should at least be more sympathetic to MY problems.
turnip: And your problems are...?
crystal: The little problem of me walking into a trap.
turnip: Trap? I see no trap here. Traps impale you... or squash you... or sometimes play polka music.
crystal: I apologize for being so insensitive to your plight.
turnip: I don't expect sympathy from humans. I learned from an early age that if I'm going to defeat the Evil One I've got to rely entirely on my own abilities.
crystal: The Evil One? You mean the Prince of Darkness?
turnip: Don't be silly. I'm talking about the sheriff. There is no one more evil in this town... he spends all of his time trapping my brothers and sisters.
crystal: So... you know a lot about traps?
turnip: I spend all my time avoiding them.
crystal: Can you teach me?
turnip: Well... what do you need to know?
crystal: How do you get out of a trap once you're in one?
turnip: If you know you're in a trap and you're still alive, there is always hope.
turnip: But first, one question... Is there anyone who's sympathetic to your cause?
crystal: How do you recognize a trap before you fall into it?
turnip: It's not hard. The trick is to get into your opponent's head, so you have to study your enemy, think like him. And don't let him know that you can.
turnip: For instance, I know that there's a trap in that suspiciously-placed cactus plant.
crystal: No... you think?
turnip: It contains a substance that attracts paper mammals like myself.
crystal: Strange, I'm oddly repelled by it.
crystal: Nope.
turnip: That's a pity. This will make things more difficult.
crystal: There might be... someone. I'm not sure.
turnip: It is always good to identify your allies.
crystal: There's one other person who's upset about the bridge falling... but I can't trust him with the whole truth.
turnip: Survival is too important for absurd principles about truth. We ally with necessity and use deception when needed.
turnip: I will also tell you this... the way out of a trap is always documented. It's a flaw of the trap-setters... they are always so proud of their cunning traps that they can't help bragging about them.
crystal: Really? That seems so careless.
turnip: The trap-setter is always careless. For example, look at this...
turnip: I just stole this... it's a map that pinpoints the exact location of every infernal trap the sheriff has set up. I'm secretly deactivating them to save my species.
crystal: Good luck to be sure!
turnip: Exactly. I advise you to find your own map to your own trap.