The Shadow in the Cathedral: Clockwork Interactive Fiction

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AJ_Impy: Jun 17, 2007; SWORD OF SMATTAS. CAN YOU NOT HEAR A WORLD CRY OUT FOR JUSTICE? WHEN WILL YOU DELIVER IT?; Yam Slacker

We need to impede his conscience somehow. Drunkenness?

# ? Aug 30, 2017 03:44

Adbot: ADBOT LOVES YOU

# ? May 5, 2024 06:08

Ratatozsk: Mar 6, 2007; Had we turned left instead, we may have encountered something like this...

>Open clock
>examine clock
>wind clock
>polish clock
>polish knife

# ? Aug 30, 2017 04:06

King of Bleh: Mar 3, 2007; A kingdom of rats.

Can we move the ladder to the garden?

# ? Aug 30, 2017 10:44

Glazius: Jul 22, 2007; Hail all those who are able,
any mouse can,
any mouse will,
but the Guard prevail.; Clapping Larry

Drake seems like a guy who likes his snack time. Can we put something on the table he'll munch on? Something incapacitating? Something... like mushrooms?

# ? Aug 31, 2017 01:48

CaptainCaveman: Apr 16, 2005; Always searching for North.

AJ_Impy posted:

We need to impede his conscience somehow. Drunkenness?

Haven't seen any booze around so far.

Glazius posted:

Drake seems like a guy who likes his snack time. Can we put something on the table he'll munch on? Something incapacitating? Something... like mushrooms?

All our attempts to do anything with the mushrooms were thwarted.

quote:

> OPEN CLOCK
That�s already open.

> EXAMINE CLOCK
It�s mostly bells. The clock is currently set to twenty-one minutes past three. Still a while till five o�clock, and dinner.

> WIND CLOCK
If I want the clock to ring I�d better set it to dinner-time.

> POLISH CLOCK
I�m a few years beyond that, to be honest.

> POLISH KNIFE
The knife seems clean enough as it is.

King of Bleh posted:

Can we move the ladder to the garden?

We can.

quote:

> N

Kitchen
If there was ever a proof of the perfection of Clockwork over Nature, it�s that the dirtiest and most hectic room in the whole Abbey is its Kitchen. Shelves, walls and floor are covered by machines belching, slicing, steaming, chopping, stirring, boiling, broiling, frying, pureeing ... the list goes on. The noise, smell and heat are almost overpowering, and the Cook, who controls this madhouse, can only stand it because he�s stone deaf.

The cool of the Hall is west. South, through a broad arch, is the Refectory. North is the dark recess of the Pantry.

The cook knocks past me, to thump the crumb-sucker.

> W

Upper Hall
If I crane my neck I can see the dark square of the floorboards of my room - the ladder snakes down from one side, west of here. Lights move in and out overhead, from the candles moving on their Holy Tracks. Strong smells float through an archway to the east.

From their niches, the Three Major Saints are watching sternly, keen that I should head southwest out of the Cathedral and see the Archbishop as quickly as possible.

I hear footsteps, receding.

> W

Western Corner of the Great Hall
I�m in the western corner of the Great Hall, just by the foot of the ladder up to my room (the rest of the hall is east). There�s a note attached to the third rung asking Amble the caretaker not to put the ladder back in the garden just yet.

> TAKE LADDER
Taken. Might just do the trick, I think...

This ladder�s getting really heavy.

> E
I stumble along with the ladder.

Upper Hall
If I crane my neck I can see the dark square of the floorboards of my room above the darkest corner of the hall, west of here. Lights move in and out overhead, from the candles moving on their Holy Tracks. Strong smells float through an archway to the east.

From their niches, the Three Major Saints are watching sternly, keen that I should head southwest out of the Cathedral and see the Archbishop as quickly as possible.

> E
I can�t fit through that doorway with this ladder!

> SW
Just in time, I see Drake�s there. I hang back. He�ll move on in a moment.

I hear footsteps, receding.

> SW
If anyone catches me running around with this ladder, I�m dead.

Central Hall
I�m standing in the very centre of the Abbey�s Great Hall. The vast empty space is filled by the muttering and echo of Holy Mechanisms, and the hiss of the candles as they sweep around their Tracks, providing a little light everywhere but rarely ever enough. I can just make out archways both east and west.

Footsteps - moving away.

> E
I troop onward with the ladder.

West Refectory
I spend some of my time here, eating at one of the two long tables. I spend even more serving the monks. Each of them has their own seat, marked by a little brass hourglass, and if the twenty or so I can see here weren�t enough (which they aren�t), there�s more to the east, where the Refectory continues. Back west is the archway to the Great Hall.

> E
Just in time, I see Drake�s there. I hang back. He�ll move on in a moment.

I hear footsteps, receding.

> E

East Refectory
The eastern end of the long Refectory is given over in part to the tables lined with brass hourglasses, but in the other half there�s nothing but the enormous Refectory Clock. It�s an impressive thing, so big because it only needs winding once a year, despite all the gongs, cymbals, tubes and bells that strike when dinner time comes around. Right now, the clock is showing the time at just after twenty past three.

Pungent smells drift in from the kitchen to the north. On the east wall is the small green door to the Abbey�s herb garden. It�s wide open.

> E

I slip the ladder awkwardly through the doorway.

Abbey Herb Garden
Right now, the lens in the centre of the great disc of the garden is bathed in light and the day-plants are out: basil, thyme, potatoes, other vegetables. The mushroom beds are under the metal hood on the south wall.

Otherwise, there are tall walls on three sides and only one door, back into the Abbey, to the west.

> DROP LADDER
I lean the ladder up against the wall. It clears the top by a few feet.

# ? Aug 31, 2017 03:50

Ratatozsk: Mar 6, 2007; Had we turned left instead, we may have encountered something like this...

CaptainCaveman posted:

Haven't seen any booze around so far.

All our attempts to do anything with the mushrooms were thwarted.

We can.

>set clock to dinner time
>revel in the ensuing chaos

# ? Aug 31, 2017 12:10

King of Bleh: Mar 3, 2007; A kingdom of rats.

>climb ladder

# ? Aug 31, 2017 12:36

CaptainCaveman: Apr 16, 2005; Always searching for North.

quote:

> CLIMB LADDER
In a flash, I�m up and over! It�s a short fall to the alley behind the wall, then I scamper along a shadowy alleyway and out into the Cathedral Yard. I�m clear! Time to go see the Archbishop!
Chapter 3: In the Cathedral of Time

Please press SPACE to continue.

However, before we do that, let's see what happens if we go set the clock to 5:00.

quote:

> W

East Refectory
The eastern end of the long Refectory is given over in part to the tables lined with brass hourglasses, but in the other half there�s nothing but the enormous Refectory Clock. It�s an impressive thing, so big because it only needs winding once a year, despite all the gongs, cymbals, tubes and bells that strike when dinner time comes around. Right now, the clock is showing the time at just after twenty past three.

Pungent smells drift in from the kitchen to the north. On the east wall is the small green door to the Abbey�s herb garden. It�s wide open.

The Refectory Clock clunks forward one minute.

> SET CLOCK TO DINNER-TIME
The thought of that Figure in Grey spurs me on. So I make the sign of the Winding Key - maybe that�ll buy me some forgiveness when I wind down - and then I push the hands around to five o�clock.

The clash of metal on metal: the Refectory Clock leaps into life like an advancing army, with bells, gongs and organ pipes ringing and chiming and clanging away! Very, very quickly, I slam shut the clock case door and, covering my ears, rush over to the other side of the room. It�s still horribly loud.

> SET CLOCK TO 3:30
I�m not going anywhere near the clock now it�s ringing. You know what happened to the Cook when he did.

Calvin and Drake have raced into the West Refectory. �Wren?� Drake shouts. �Turn that thing off! It�s not dinner yet!�

I put one hand to my ear, as if I couldn�t hear him at all.

> STOP CLOCK
It�s doing that itself already! I SAID, IT�S DOING THAT ITSELF ALREADY!!!
Calvin and Drake race over to the clock and start struggling with the case. Both are hampered by keeping their hands over both their ears at the same time.

I slip away quietly into the Kitchen.

Kitchen
The Cook is working like a double-escapement all of a sudden, probably trying to get dinner ready two hours too soon!

The cool of the Hall is west. South, through a broad arch, is the Refectory, where the Refectory Clock is throwing up a wall of sound. North is the dark recess of the Pantry.

> S
No way. The coast is clear to get out of the Abbey and over to the Cathedral, but only so long as Calvin and Drake are distracted in there.

> W

Upper Hall
If I crane my neck I can see the dark square of the floorboards of my room above the darkest corner of the hall, west of here. Lights move in and out overhead, from the candles moving on their Holy Tracks. Strong smells float through an archway to the east.

From their niches, the Three Major Saints are watching sternly, keen that I should head southwest out of the Cathedral and see the Archbishop as quickly as possible.

> SW

Central Hall
The archway at the end of the hall, to the southwest, is clear. I can almost see the Cathedral beyond.

> SW

Lower Hall
The exit to the Abbey is clear to the southwest. Quickly, now, before someone turns that clock off and starts looking for someone to blame!

The Abbey has turned into a giant trumpet, echoing the sound of bells.

> SW

Entry
Sunlight and the sound of the city of St Philip pour in from the west through the Abbey�s great doors. At last! I can get away and see the Archbishop!... before whatever happens, happens!

To the east, a cloister runs towards the cells of the monks, novices, initiates, unaffiliated staff - really, of everyone apart from me.

> W

Cathedral Yard
The Yard is where we go on Saturdays for exercise, cleaning up the muck left behind by the market (worse once a month when the horse-traders from the south come up and leave their presents for the Abbey gardens). Today it�s quiet, at least, with the space between the Abbey to the east and the Cathedral to the west empty but for the usual collection of beggars, unfortunates, wretches and the disadvantaged poor.

The Cathedral really is enormous - but it doesn�t have many rooms, so finding the Archbishop shouldn�t take too long. Which is lucky, because I don�t know how long I�ve got before Gubbler - and the mysterious Figure - put their plan into action. If I warn the Archbishop too late it�ll be no good. He might just blame me for whatever it is they�re planning to steal!

A couple of beggars shuffle over to me, their hands held out pitifully. They�re diseased, like rats, and covered in sores. I hang back, pretty disgusted.

Note: this gets us to the same place climbing over the wall will, but does not move us to the next chapter. The only other thing that we missed doing is we can go talk to the Abbot. If we go East from the Lower Hall (where Calvin is):

quote:

> E

Corridor of Contemplation
The ancient stones of the Abbey rise to about shoulder-height before arching over, forcing me to bow my head in supplication before the Abbot�s door, back east. To the west, I can hear the gentle echo of ticks and tocks coming from the Abbey�s main hall.

Carved into the walls are a series of pious engravings, depicting the long path from initiate to Abbot.

> E
I knock before entering the Abbot�s study.

Abbot�s Quarters
The Abbot�s Quarters again. Gubbler is here, standing by his desk (no chair, remember?). He�s looking right at me, waiting for me to explain why I�m interrupting him, and why I haven�t run away back west yet.

Gubbler coughs into a fist. �Well, yes?� he demands.

> X GUBBLER
Gubbler�s staring right at me, or maybe just past my shoulder. He doesn�t look very happy. His mechanical salamander is climbing restlessly over his shoulders.

> TALK TO GUBBLER
(about me)
�My name�s Wren,� I say.

�One of the initiates,� he replies. �I know you. I recognize you by your height.�

> ASK GUBBLER ABOUT DRAKE
�I wanted to ask about Calvin and Drake, Father,� I begin.

�Hmph. Meant to clean my clock today, I think.� He peers at it. �Looks clean enough to me. They must have done a splendid job. I�ll commend them.�

> ASK GUBBLER ABOUT HORLOGE
�Tell me about Brother Horloge,� I ask.

�When the time comes for you to start Reading,� the Abbot says firmly, �then you�ll get to know Brother Horloge. Till then, you�ve got your chores to do. This Abbey won�t clean itself.�

The salamander buzzes up and down and around Gubbler�s arms, using its tail to keep balance.

> SK GUBBLER ABOUT COOK
That�s not a verb I recognize.

> ASK GUBBLER ABOUT COOK
�I was talking to the Cook...� I begin.

�Don�t lie to me,� Gubbler snaps, distractedly. �No-one talks to the Cook. The Cook doesn�t talk.�

> ASK GUBBLER ABOUT FIGURE
�I thought I saw a figure earlier,� I begin, nervously.

�A figure? Nonsense,� Gubbler replies, unhappily. �You�ve got too much imagination. Do your chores, you�ll soon be fixed.�

> ASK GUBBLER ABOUT GUBBLER
�I wondered if there was anything you needed, Father,� I say, trying to get into his good books.

He looks at me, touched by the kindness. �Why thank you, young... yes, well. Thank you. No.� He grimaces. �There�s nothing you can do to help me.�

> ASK GUBBLER ABOUT SALAMANDER
�Is your salamander real?� I ask.

�Of course not. What a horrible idea,� Gubbler replies. �What would I be doing with a real animal in my room?�

> X SALAMANDER
The salamander is a wind-up pet of Gubbler�s. It ratchets a little as it scurries, and near anything steep - like his upper arms - it waggles its feet uselessly and slides back down.

I don't know that there's anything useful we can do there, though. Let me know if you have anything you want me to try (I have a save here). For now, we'll proceed on from having climbed the wall:

quote:

> CLIMB LADDER
In a flash, I�m up and over! It�s a short fall to the alley behind the wall, then I scamper along a shadowy alleyway and out into the Cathedral Yard. I�m clear! Time to go see the Archbishop!
Chapter 3: In the Cathedral of Time

Please press SPACE to continue.

Cathedral Yard
The Yard is where we go on Saturdays for exercise, cleaning up the muck left behind by the market (worse once a month when the horse-traders from the south come up and leave their presents for the Abbey gardens). Today it�s quiet, at least, with the space between the Abbey to the east and the Cathedral to the west empty but for the usual collection of beggars, unfortunates, wretches and the disadvantaged poor.

The Cathedral really is enormous - but it doesn�t have many rooms, so finding the Archbishop shouldn�t take too long. Which is lucky, because I don�t know how long I�ve got before Gubbler - and the mysterious Figure - put their plan into action. If I warn the Archbishop too late it�ll be no good. He might just blame me for whatever it is they�re planning to steal!

A couple of beggars shuffle over to me, their hands held out pitifully. They�re diseased, like rats, and covered in sores. I hang back, pretty disgusted.

>

# ? Sep 1, 2017 01:42

Ratatozsk: Mar 6, 2007; Had we turned left instead, we may have encountered something like this...

>give keys to beggars
>polish beggars
>west

# ? Sep 1, 2017 05:14

CaptainCaveman: Apr 16, 2005; Always searching for North.

quote:

> POLISH BEGGARS
The poor wretches seem clean enough as they are.

�Think of a spring,� the Abbot would say, talking about the likes of these beggars. �Put something in, and you will receive. But Mechanics declares that only nothing can come of no work.�

> GIVE KEYS TO BEGGARS
I drop Horloge�s keys and the beggars fall on it like hungry wolves, scrabbling and fighting. One gets hold and soon both are gone in a cloud of dust.

I'm sure giving up our keys was a good choice and we won't ever regret it.

quote:

> W

Great Door
Imagine an ant crawling up inside a daffodil trumpet. That�s what it�s like to stand in here, and this is just the Entry to the massive Cathedral further north (I guess in there you�ll need to imagine an ant inside a church bell).

Let me try and do better. The main doors to the street are south and about as tall as the Abbey itself, so they need a lot of space just to fit the hinges in (those are about as big as me, I think). I came in from the Yard by the east door; there�s another similar door west but it�s locked right now - the Cathedral is closed to the public most of the time.

Looking northwards I can see the long Nave, and the altar beyond. Carved on the floor just by my feet is the first of the aisle�s Great Seals.

> EXAMINE DOORS
The doors are covered in carvings and inscriptions, some of the Mechanists, but ever a few from the older faiths of smoke and fire. The doors lead to the city but are rarely open (Last Newtonmass I was part of a parade of children that troop to get the homeless to do some proper work, but I�ll be too old for that this year.)

> N

Lower Nave
The Nave of the Cathedral is a quiet place, quieter than the Abbey because the Archbishop only allows study here and no workshops. Pews on either side are enough to seat a thousand easily, with more further north. I can�t look at the ceiling (it�s so high) without lying down across the Second Great Seal, and the last time I did that a monk tripped up on me and had me thrown out.

East and west are smaller shrines, and back south are the Cathedral�s Great Doors.

# ? Sep 1, 2017 21:33

dscruffy1: Nov 22, 2007; Look out!; Nap Ghost

Pews to seat thousands seems like too many to examine. Is there a limit to the area you can explore? Might be easiest just to explore/see what's obvious around. In that spirit, go East young man.

# ? Sep 1, 2017 21:56

CaptainCaveman: Apr 16, 2005; Always searching for North.

quote:

> EXAMINE PEWS
Rows of varnished oak pews. I�m glad I�m not a Cathedral Wood Polisher! That�d take forever!

In a pocket behind each of the pews is a hymnal.

A little heat licks in from the west.

> EXAMINE HYMNAL
The hymnal is a small leather-bound prayer book printed on one of the Abbey duplicators. It lists all the words for the hymns. I don�t know why, since most people in this city can�t read, but I suppose it must make them feel better to know there are words.

> READ IT
I open the page to a random hymn: All Springs Bright and Beautiful.

A little heat licks in from the west.

> G
I open the page to a random hymn: Onward, Machinist Solders.

> G
I open the page to a random hymn: The Third Law is my Shepherd.

> G
I open the page to a random hymn: Gracious Grease, Oil in Me.

> G
I open the page to a random hymn: When a Knight Wound his Spurs.

> G
I open the page to a random hymn: Let All the World Rejoin.

> G
I open the page to a random hymn: Where Angels Fear to Thread.

> G
Wren, come on. You can�t waste all your time reading hymns, you�ve got to do something about that Figure!

> E

Shrine of the Saints
A small shrine but a packed one. Where the Abbey�s got three niches for the Major Three Saints, the Cathedral has about a hundred niches for the Minor Everybody Else. Little busts and statuettes, some holding the tools of their trade, and all glaring at me for skulking around in here. The Nave is back west.

In one corner is a stand of candles, for use in devotions (and for the poor to pinch for lighting).

> EXAMINE SAINTS
There�s one: St Cauchy, with his dividing rod.

> G
There�s one: St Maxwell, with his electronia.

> G
There�s one: St Descartes, with his set square.

> G
There�s one: St Descartes, with his set square.

> G
There�s one: St Ykea, with his design manuals.

> G
There�s one: St Ykea, with his design manuals.

> G
There�s one: St Cauchy, with his dividing rod.

> G
There�s one: St Ykea, with his design manuals.

> EXAMINE CANDLES
There are red, blue and yellow candles here - which do you mean?

> EXAMINE RED CANDLE
There is a cluster of red candles on the stand, between the blue and yellow candles.

> EXAMINE BLUE CANDLE
There is a cluster of blue candles on the stand, between the red and yellow candles.

> EXAMINE YELLOW CANDLE
There is a cluster of yellow candles on the stand, between the red and blue candles.

We can't go anywhere else from here, so let's keep exploring.

quote:

> W

Lower Nave
The Nave of the Cathedral is a quiet place, quieter than the Abbey because the Archbishop only allows study here and no workshops. Pews on either side are enough to seat a thousand easily, with more further north. I can�t look at the ceiling (it�s so high) without lying down across the Second Great Seal, and the last time I did that a monk tripped up on me and had me thrown out.

East and west are smaller shrines, and back south are the Cathedral�s Great Doors.

> W

Calendar Shrine
This shrine is centred around a big brass table with a glass top, which doesn�t seem nearly important enough for the Cathedral of St Philip! Perhaps the important thing is the brazier in the corner: a shallow dish held over a low, flickering flame. The Nave is back east, should any of this prove dull.

> EXAMINE TABLE
The top of the table is glass, beneath which is a mess of dials and pointers filling the whole surface. This is the Calendar Unlimited! The ultimate device that declares where in Time we are. Right now, for instance, the date is the 11th, the season is Autumn, the political climate is Restless, the next major disaster is Bakery Fire, the person currently looking is Wren - good Grease! IT CAN SEE ME!

> HIDE
There�s no need to hide right now.

> EXAMINE BRAZIER
A brass dish set over a little tripod, in the centre of which a quiet flame burns. It�s meant for incense and holy oils, that kind of thing. Doesn�t seem very mechanistic to me: must be a hangover from the past, like shoelaces and Laundry.

> E

Lower Nave
The Nave of the Cathedral is a quiet place, quieter than the Abbey because the Archbishop only allows study here and no workshops. Pews on either side are enough to seat a thousand easily, with more further north. I can�t look at the ceiling (it�s so high) without lying down across the Second Great Seal, and the last time I did that a monk tripped up on me and had me thrown out.

East and west are smaller shrines, and back south are the Cathedral�s Great Doors.

> N

Upper Nave
This is the north end of the Nave, where the more important people sit during services - you can tell that because the pews either side are wider and have more legroom, and each has a little cup-holder carved into its armrest. Of course, it�s also closer to the Altar to the north (and further from the draught coming up from the doors to the south).

A group of monks are standing around the altar, singing softly. The Archbishop�s office will be beyond and up the stairs, I think.

The floor is taken up with the Third Great Seal.

> EXAMINE MONKS
The monks are gathered around some gleaming object on the altar.

> EXAMINE ALTAR
The altar is surrounded by monks, softly singing.

> EXAMINE OBJECT
I can�t make out much of the gleaming object from here, except it�s gold - and it�s moving.

> EXAMINE PEWS
Rows of varnished oak pews. I�m glad I�m not a Cathedral Wood Polisher! That�d take forever!

In a pocket behind each of the pews is a hymnal.

> W
The only ways to go from here are north and south.

> N

Cathedral Altar
On a dais is the main altar, representing the Celestial Workbench itself. Hanging over it as large as the setting sun is the incredible machinery of the Cathedral Clock itself.

Around the dais, a group of monks are celebrating and blessing something on the altar. I can slip away - quickly, please! - in any of the four main directions, although I might have to scurry to get around the dais (the Archbishop�s room is north of here, I think, above the Choir.)

The monks gather in close to the Altar, as the mechanism they watch makes a sudden movement. �In Perpetuum, we Observe,� a lead monk cries.

> EXAMINE DAIS
The dais is the fourth seal, raised up from the stone floor. It�s right below the Cathedral Clock and the light from above bathes the iron trim in dull light.

�In Perpetuum, we Observe,� the other monks reply, raising their hands and making the sign of the Penduluum in the air. �A-tempus, a-fugit,� they chant.

> EXAMINE CLOCK
The machinery of the Clock disappears out of sight overhead. It�s hard to see in detail because of the light that streams through, cut to ribbons as it comes by the enormous cog-teeth. I can just about see a gear the size of a horse and an escapement like the mast of tall ship. And both are moving, with eternal slowness.

�A-tempus, a-fugit,� repeats the lead monk. He steps up to the dais, and reaches with one finger to touch the side of the mechanism. All is quiet.

Anything we want to do here, back with the stuff we found, or which way shall we explore?

# ? Sep 2, 2017 10:13

Glazius: Jul 22, 2007; Hail all those who are able,
any mouse can,
any mouse will,
but the Guard prevail.; Clapping Larry

Well, clearly, we need to go set a bakery on fire. It would be an offense to Time to do otherwise.

# ? Sep 3, 2017 01:56

Ratatozsk: Mar 6, 2007; Had we turned left instead, we may have encountered something like this...

>get hymnal
>get candle
>put hymnal in brazier
>restore to get back our keys because we need those

# ? Sep 3, 2017 04:02

AJ_Impy: Jun 17, 2007; SWORD OF SMATTAS. CAN YOU NOT HEAR A WORLD CRY OUT FOR JUSTICE? WHEN WILL YOU DELIVER IT?; Yam Slacker

That calendar shrine, can we tinker with it and manipulate causality?

# ? Sep 3, 2017 12:27

CaptainCaveman: Apr 16, 2005; Always searching for North.

quote:

> S

Upper Nave
This is the north end of the Nave, where the more important people sit during services - you can tell that because the pews either side are wider and have more legroom, and each has a little cup-holder carved into its armrest. Of course, it�s also closer to the Altar to the north (and further from the draught coming up from the doors to the south).

A group of monks are standing around the altar, singing softly. The Archbishop�s office will be beyond and up the stairs, I think.

The floor is taken up with the Third Great Seal.

> TAKE HYMNAL
I don�t need one: I know all the hymns by gear.

> S

Lower Nave
The Nave of the Cathedral is a quiet place, quieter than the Abbey because the Archbishop only allows study here and no workshops. Pews on either side are enough to seat a thousand easily, with more further north. I can�t look at the ceiling (it�s so high) without lying down across the Second Great Seal, and the last time I did that a monk tripped up on me and had me thrown out.

East and west are smaller shrines, and back south are the Cathedral�s Great Doors.

> E

Shrine of the Saints
A small shrine but a packed one. Where the Abbey�s got three niches for the Major Three Saints, the Cathedral has about a hundred niches for the Minor Everybody Else. Little busts and statuettes, some holding the tools of their trade, and all glaring at me for skulking around in here. The Nave is back west.

In one corner is a stand of candles, for use in devotions (and for the poor to pinch for lighting).

> TAKE CANDLE
There are red, blue and yellow candles here - which do you mean?

> W
I can�t see any such thing.

> W

Lower Nave
The Nave of the Cathedral is a quiet place, quieter than the Abbey because the Archbishop only allows study here and no workshops. Pews on either side are enough to seat a thousand easily, with more further north. I can�t look at the ceiling (it�s so high) without lying down across the Second Great Seal, and the last time I did that a monk tripped up on me and had me thrown out.

East and west are smaller shrines, and back south are the Cathedral�s Great Doors.

> W

Calendar Shrine
This shrine is centred around a big brass table with a glass top, which doesn�t seem nearly important enough for the Cathedral of St Philip! Perhaps the important thing is the brazier in the corner: a shallow dish held over a low, flickering flame. The Nave is back east, should any of this prove dull.

> PUSH SHRINE
I can�t see any such thing.

> EXAMINE CALENDAR
Somewhere on the panels of this horrible thing is marked the day I was born and the day I�ll die. I hope it isn�t too soon, that�s all, and has nothing to do with any Figures in Grey.

> OPEN PANEL
I can�t see any such thing.

> PUSH PANELS
They don�t want dust getting in. They certainly don�t want me getting in. So the whole case is tightly sealed.

> USE CALENDAR
They don�t want dust getting in. They certainly don�t want me getting in. So the whole case is tightly sealed.

> OPEN CASE
They don�t want dust getting in. They certainly don�t want me getting in. So the whole case is tightly sealed.

> HIT CASE WITH KNIFE
They don�t want dust getting in. They certainly don�t want me getting in. So the whole case is tightly sealed.

# ? Sep 3, 2017 13:05

Ratatozsk: Mar 6, 2007; Had we turned left instead, we may have encountered something like this...

Are we able to go up to the Archbishop's office?

# ? Sep 7, 2017 04:24

CaptainCaveman: Apr 16, 2005; Always searching for North.

quote:

> E

Lower Nave
The Nave of the Cathedral is a quiet place, quieter than the Abbey because the Archbishop only allows study here and no workshops. Pews on either side are enough to seat a thousand easily, with more further north. I can�t look at the ceiling (it�s so high) without lying down across the Second Great Seal, and the last time I did that a monk tripped up on me and had me thrown out.

East and west are smaller shrines, and back south are the Cathedral�s Great Doors.

> N

Upper Nave
This is the north end of the Nave, where the more important people sit during services - you can tell that because the pews either side are wider and have more legroom, and each has a little cup-holder carved into its armrest. Of course, it�s also closer to the Altar to the north (and further from the draught coming up from the doors to the south).

A group of monks are standing around the altar, singing softly. The Archbishop�s office will be beyond and up the stairs, I think.

The floor is taken up with the Third Great Seal.

> N

Cathedral Altar
On a dais is the main altar, representing the Celestial Workbench itself. Hanging over it as large as the setting sun is the incredible machinery of the Cathedral Clock itself.

Around the dais, a group of monks are celebrating and blessing something on the altar. I can slip away - quickly, please! - in any of the four main directions, although I might have to scurry to get around the dais (the Archbishop�s room is north of here, I think, above the Choir.)

The machine makes an almost imperceptible click. The lead monk steps down and is lost in the crowd of monks. A great chant goes up: �In Perpetuum, In Mobilis, Forever and Ever, Happen! Happen!�

> N

Choir
To the north of the altar, this is a semi-circular space with staircases to east and west leading up to the gallery overhead. When they sing from up there - I�ve only heard it once - they fill the whole Cathedral with their beating rhythmic music: songs that echo round and around the dome overhead like the movement of the Greater Rotation itself.

During normal services the choir sit in the stalls on the ground level by the east staircase. They�re covered in carvings just like those on the Abbey doors, but lit up in brilliant colours from the stained glass all around.

> E
Two rotations to reach the top. Everything in this place is designed to be correct, as carefully set as new teeth on a dog-screw.

East Clerestory
This balcony, which curves to the northwest, is built right above the choir stalls. I could probably jump down onto them if I felt really brave, but it�d be easier to take the stairs, built against the east wall, just below the enormous stained glass window.

There�s another door to the north; solid oak. It may not look like much, but judging by the guard in front, that�s the Archbishop�s door. The guard�s name-badge declares him to be Doric of the Swiss Watch.

Excellent. I can get on and warn him about Gubbler�s plan to have something stolen from the Vaults!

> N
I approach the guard, wearing my best Abbey-servant voice. �Excuse me,� I begin. �I�m here to see the Archbishop.�

�Are you, Squirt?� the guard replies easily. Ah. Not such a pushover, then. �Got an appointment, do you? I suppose you must, �cos you know what a waste of time it�d be to turn up wanting to see a man like the Archbishop with no appointment. Like a bald man at a barbers. Waste of time. So you�ve an appointment, don�t you?�

�I�m on Abbey business,� I say.

�If you were on Abbey business,� the guard replies with a smile, �and I�m not saying you�re not, I ain�t calling you a liar. But if you were, you�d be carrying one of them documents they give to people to prove they�re on Abbey business. Church Accreditation, I believe it�s called. And it you were on business and not, say,� - he pauses for effect - �some scruff of a street-rat fallen in here from the street...�

I start to protest but he cuts me off with a poke of his halberd.

�Then sure as my name�s Doric - which it is - sure as that you�d be able to quote me a bit of the creed. Wouldn�t you, now? That�s how it�d be, I fathom, if you were here on business. Real Church business.� He looks at you firmly. �So are you going to tell me the creed, then? Go right ahead.� He starts waiting. He�s good at that, clearly.

# ? Sep 8, 2017 01:30

Ratatozsk: Mar 6, 2007; Had we turned left instead, we may have encountered something like this...

>uhhh...

# ? Sep 8, 2017 02:18

Glazius: Jul 22, 2007; Hail all those who are able,
any mouse can,
any mouse will,
but the Guard prevail.; Clapping Larry

Surely, we can just >recite creed, right? How long have we been at this monestary again?

Also I love how the Amen equivalent here is just "happen".

# ? Sep 8, 2017 02:36

CaptainCaveman: Apr 16, 2005; Always searching for North.

quote:

> RECITE CREED
(to Doric)
�I know the creed,� I tell him.

�Go on, then.� He waits for me to supply it.

What is the creed? > UHH�..
�No,� he replies curtly. �But don�t matter. If you don�t have the paperwork, you aren�t coming through. Creed or no creed.� He smiles with satisfaction.

Mayhap-

quote:

> RECITE CREED
(to Doric)
�I know the creed,� I tell him.

�Go on, then.� He waits for me to supply it.

What is the creed? > I AM THE VERY MODEL OF A MODERN MAJOR-GENERAL. I�VE INFORMATION ANIMAL, VEGETABLE, AND MINERAL. I KNOW THE KINGS OF ENGLAND AND I QUOTE THE FIGHTS HISTORICAL FROM MARATHON TO WATERLOO IN ORDER CATEGORICAL
�No,� he replies curtly. �But don�t matter. If you don�t have the paperwork, you aren�t coming through. Creed or no creed.� He smiles with satisfaction.

Alas

# ? Sep 8, 2017 03:35

AJ_Impy: Jun 17, 2007; SWORD OF SMATTAS. CAN YOU NOT HEAR A WORLD CRY OUT FOR JUSTICE? WHEN WILL YOU DELIVER IT?; Yam Slacker

>Recite Creed
>In Perpetuum, we Observe.
>A-tempus, a-fugit
>In Perpetuum, In Mobilis, Forever and Ever, Happen! Happen!

# ? Sep 8, 2017 10:40

CaptainCaveman: Apr 16, 2005; Always searching for North.

quote:

> RECITE CREED
(to Doric)
�I know the creed,� I tell him.

�Go on, then.� He waits for me to supply it.

What is the creed? > IN PERPETUUM, WE OBSERVE. A-TEMPUS, A-FUGIT. IN PERPETUUM, IN MOBILIS, FOREVER AND EVER, HAPPEN! HAPPEN!
Doric shakes his head. �Them monks might be singing, and you can listen to them all you like, but what they is singing is a ritual for that machine of theirs. That�s the Perpetuum Mobile - pretty important piece of kit, they say. Worth a good ritual. But not worth a whole Creed. Your creed has got to be more basic stuff, doesn�t it? You know. Levers and ...� He tails off. �Parts like that.�

And, because I know one of you guys would suggest it:

quote:

> RECITE CREED
(to Doric)
�I know the creed,� I tell him.

�Go on, then.� He waits for me to supply it.

What is the creed? > LEVERS AND PARTS LIKE THAT
�No,� he replies curtly. �But don�t matter. If you don�t have the paperwork, you aren�t coming through. Creed or no creed.� He smiles with satisfaction.

# ? Sep 8, 2017 10:56

AJ_Impy: Jun 17, 2007; SWORD OF SMATTAS. CAN YOU NOT HEAR A WORLD CRY OUT FOR JUSTICE? WHEN WILL YOU DELIVER IT?; Yam Slacker

Basic stuff, he says. How about:

>Recite Creed
>Every body continues in its state of rest, or of uniform motion in a straight line, unless it is compelled to change that state by forces impressed upon it.
>The change in motion is proportional to the motive force impressed, and is made in the direction of the straight line in which that force is impressed.
>To every action there is always opposed an equal reaction.

# ? Sep 8, 2017 11:15

CaptainCaveman: Apr 16, 2005; Always searching for North.

quote:

> RECITE CREED
(to Doric)
�I know the creed,� I tell him.

�Go on, then.� He waits for me to supply it.

What is the creed? > Every body continues in its state of rest, or of uniform motion in a straight line, unless it is compelled to change that state by forces impressed upon it.
�No,� he replies curtly. �But don�t matter. If you don�t have the paperwork, you aren�t coming through. Creed or no creed.� He smiles with satisfaction.

# ? Sep 8, 2017 21:27

CaptainCaveman: Apr 16, 2005; Always searching for North.

Sorry about the delay, I'll try to be better about updating.

So, we seem to not yet have what we need to get into the office. Let's keep exploring.

quote:

> W
The only ways to go from here are north, northwest and down.

> NW
�I�ll be back,� I promise the guard.

�Sure you will. With an Army, I suppose,� he laughs.

North Clerestory
To the south the whole cathedral stretches away, all monks and pews and the three Great Seals on the floor. The balcony - which is the only thing to stop me breaking my neck - curves from southwest to southeast.

In one corner stand two enormous statues of St Breguet and St Babbage. They�re huddled together like conspirators and Babbage�s enormous head gets in the way of the beautiful stained glass behind him.

Along the balcony to the southeast I can see a guard, standing duty.

> EXAMINE STATUES
The statues are twice life-size (probably exactly), and carved down to the tiniest detail. Breguet has fluff on his jacket and Babbage�s wig seems to have a few lice. Their enormous faces are turned toward each other, and down, as though they were muttering something about me. In between their feet is a shadowy gap.

Out of sight of the guard - I give a shout of frustration. What am I meant to do now? Second Assistant Clock Polishers don�t know any creeds. And paperwork? How can I get paperwork around here?

Then, like a slipping escapement, a gentle tick-tock in my mind: look around, Wren. Look around.

> EXAMINE BALCONY
The balcony curves right around the Clerestory.

> SW

West Clerestory
This balcony has a good view down over the choir stalls and the altar where the monks are still clustered. The sun has just come round and I�m standing, bathed in colourful light from the enormous stained glass window. Spiral stairs lead down, and the balcony curves around to the northeast.

> D
I climb back down.

Choir
To the north of the altar, this is a semi-circular space with staircases to east and west leading up to the gallery overhead. When they sing from up there - I�ve only heard it once - they fill the whole Cathedral with their beating rhythmic music: songs that echo round and around the dome overhead like the movement of the Greater Rotation itself.

During normal services the choir sit in the stalls on the ground level by the east staircase. They�re covered in carvings just like those on the Abbey doors, but lit up in brilliant colours from the stained glass all around.

> S

Cathedral Altar
On a dais is the main altar, representing the Celestial Workbench itself. Hanging over it as large as the setting sun is the incredible machinery of the Cathedral Clock itself.

Around the dais, a group of monks are celebrating and blessing something on the altar. I can slip away - quickly, please! - in any of the four main directions, although I might have to scurry to get around the dais.

A new monk steps up from the group. He looks a tiny bit younger than the previous lead monk. �In the name of the Lever,� he declares.

> W

West Apse
There are more pews, though there�s clearly one row missing, which Drake says is the one they took and chopped up to make the floorboards of my room. I don�t believe it - why would anyone waste such a good bit of wood on me?

Anyway, the altar is back east and there�s another archway in the southwest corner of the room. Silence emerges through it like noise from Calvin�s mouth when he�s eating. It must be a library.

> SW

Cyclical Library
The Library of the Cathedral of Time is about as much like the one in the Abbey as the mould on the floorboards of my room is like the oak tree standing outside the Cathedral gate. This room is massive, and mechanised. Little blocks of shelving, holding about twenty books each, tile the cylindrical wall in a kind of mosaic, but they�re all fixed up to winches, pulleys, and the whole room can revolve, so instead of you going to a find a book... well, you get the idea.

This is all controlled by a gold-panelled contraption that dangles from the ceiling like a chandelier they forgot to hoist. It�s got three main controls. Occasionally, one of the initiates going through the studying phase of their education goes up and takes a look, but they seem nervous to touch it, for some reason.

By the door to the northeast is a card catalogue. That�ll be gone as soon as they work out how to do something more useful with one of Reloh�s keyboards than just type letters onto paper.

> EXAMINE CATALOGUE
It�s a box of index cards, filed alphabetically. Easy to use, unlike the contraption that controls the shelves! I just need to look up whatever title I�m after.

> LOOK UP CREED
I don�t find that in the catalogue. It might be listed under a different name or it might not be here at all.

> NE

West Apse
There are more pews, though there�s clearly one row missing, which Drake says is the one they took and chopped up to make the floorboards of my room. I don�t believe it - why would anyone waste such a good bit of wood on me?

Anyway, the altar is back east and there�s another archway in the southwest corner of the room. Silence emerges through it like noise from Calvin�s mouth when he�s eating. It must be a library.

> E

Cathedral Altar
On a dais is the main altar, representing the Celestial Workbench itself. Hanging over it as large as the setting sun is the incredible machinery of the Cathedral Clock itself.

Around the dais, a group of monks are celebrating and blessing something on the altar. I can slip away - quickly, please! - in any of the four main directions, although I might have to scurry to get around the dais.

�The Lever!� cry the other monks.

> E

East Apse
More pews, facing the altar back west. This is the women�s corner, because they aren�t allowed to sit with the men (especially women with children, who have to sit at the back). Much more interesting, is the iron grate to the northeast that covers - so they say - the door to the Cathedral crypt.

There�s also a door to the southeast, and in the corner of my eye, I keep catching movement from somewhere inside.

> EXAMINE GRATE
The iron grate is made of metal a foot thick and it�s locked with a gigantic padlock. I doubt I could manage to turn the lock even if I had the key for it, which I don�t. Behind this is the Cathedral Vault: the one Gubbler was talking about breaking into! I guess they haven�t tried yet...

> NE
Did you read the bit about the padlock?

> EXAMINE PADLOCK
The iron grate is made of metal a foot thick and it�s locked with a gigantic padlock. I doubt I could manage to turn the lock even if I had the key for it, which I don�t. Behind this is the Cathedral Vault: the one Gubbler was talking about breaking into! I guess they haven�t tried yet...

> SE

Orrery Hall
Something metal clicks and whirrs past my head, like a slow metal wasp. I barely notice it in time to dodge because of all the other levers and rods and wires and lines. Each has a little ball on the end and the whole thing is called an Orrery - I�ve seen pictures of it in books, but never a real life-size one like this. The door is past a whipping meteorite to the northwest.

Sat behind a desk in the corner, only just out of the way of a particularly far-off comet, is strange Brother Sa�at. He watches his machine with unblinking eyes.

On Sa�at�s desk is a pile of papers.

> EXAMINE ORRERY
The machine is centred around a large gold ball that�s meant to look like the sun (but I�ve seen the sun, and not only does it change size it changes colour too - much redder after dinner, much like Brother Horloge�s cheeks). Around that centre are wide hoops of thin wire which are slowly revolving, sliding and spinning over one another. Fixed to them are coloured balls - planets - and pressed brass discs bearing the symbols of the major constellations. Further off, in the very corners of the chamber, are comets, asteroids and a few galaxies.

The brother�s attention twitches toward me.

�Ah, good! Someone�s come along, I knew someone would, in the end.� As he speaks, he winds his hands together as if washing them under a tap. �A job. I need this map from the Society of Astronomers. Tight-fisted ogres, they always demand a sheet of my parchment in return for every one of theirs.�

He grins, as if he�s just made a joke, and holds up a sheet of paper - it�s a work order of some description, but I can�t read more before he flaps it down on the table again. �Run along with it, then.� He returns his gaze to the orrery.

> TAKE PAPER
A work order, I�m thinking: perfect. I can think of somewhere handy to wave this! But then Brother Sa�at snatches the order back out of my hands.

�Oh, cantilever,� he swears, coarsely, looking it over. �I�ve forgotten the galactic axis that I want, haven�t I?� He begins hunting around for something but evidently can�t find it. �You!� he declares, waving an unruly finger. �You, go get a Principia, will you? From the library. A Planetaria, mind you now, not one of those Mathematicas, they�re no use to me. Good! Well, then! Off you go!� He puts the order back down on his desk and proceeds to ignore me.

> TAKE ORDER
Sa�at snatches it back from me. �I told you to get my book!� he exclaims. �This order�s no use without the co-ordinates. How would they know which map to provide? Think, child. Think!�

Sa�at�s eyes dart across the wheel of his orrery like he was reading a book.

> ASK SA�AT ABOUT CREED
I can�t see any such thing.

> ASK BROTHER ABOUT CREED
�Brother Sa�at,� I ask. �What�s the creed of the Church?�

�Creed? Who has time for creeds? Creeds and passwords are the same thing, that�s all a creed is. In the name of the Radish, the Cartwheel and the Winding Key, or something like that, it�s all hopelessly out of date.� He shrugs. �You�ll probably hear them chanting about it. Back there.�

# ? Sep 18, 2017 02:05

Glazius: Jul 22, 2007; Hail all those who are able,
any mouse can,
any mouse will,
but the Guard prevail.; Clapping Larry

Well, we can >LOOK UP PRINCIPIA PLANETARIA for the guy at least. Get to grips with how this library works.

And then maybe >LOOK UP CATECHISM for us?

# ? Sep 19, 2017 01:51

CaptainCaveman: Apr 16, 2005; Always searching for North.

quote:

> NW

East Apse
More pews, facing the altar back west. This is the women�s corner, because they aren�t allowed to sit with the men (especially women with children, who have to sit at the back). Much more interesting, is the iron grate to the northeast that covers - so they say - the door to the Cathedral crypt.

The door to the southeast leads back to the Orrery Hall and strange Brother Sa�at.

> W

Cathedral Altar
On a dais is the main altar, representing the Celestial Workbench itself. Hanging over it as large as the setting sun is the incredible machinery of the Cathedral Clock itself.

Around the dais, a group of monks are celebrating and blessing something on the altar. I can slip away - quickly, please! - in any of the four main directions, although I might have to scurry to get around the dais.

�In the name of the ...� the lead monk continues. Whatever he�s about to say is smothered by a booming clonk from the Cathedral clock machinery above. The other monks seemed unfazed by this.

> W

West Apse
There are more pews, though there�s clearly one row missing, which Drake says is the one they took and chopped up to make the floorboards of my room. I don�t believe it - why would anyone waste such a good bit of wood on me?

Anyway, the altar is back east and there�s another archway in the southwest corner of the room. Silence emerges through it like noise from Calvin�s mouth when he�s eating. It must be a library.

> SW

Cyclical Library
This room is massive, and mechanised. Little blocks of shelving, holding about twenty books each, tile the cylindrical wall in a kind of mosaic, but they�re all fixed up to winches, pulleys, and the whole room can revolve, so instead of you going to a find a book... well, you get the idea.

This is all controlled by a gold-panelled contraption that dangles from the ceiling like a chandelier they forgot to hoist. It�s got three main controls. Occasionally, one of the initiates going through the studying phase of their education goes up and takes a look, but they seem nervous to touch it, for some reason.

By the door to the northeast is a card catalogue. That�ll be gone as soon as they work out how to do something more useful with one of Reloh�s keyboards than just type letters onto paper.

> LOOK UP CATECHISM
I don�t find that in the catalogue. It might be listed under a different name or it might not be here at all.

> LOOK UP PRINCIPIA PLANETARIA
There are a lot of cards labelled �Principia�, but after a while I pick out Newton�s Planetaria. The card reads: ��Principia Planetaria, the apocryphal astronomical writings of St. Isaac Newton.� Cartesian Call Number (43, 12, 95).� I put it back in the catalogue.

> EXAMINE CONTRAPTION
Suspended from the centre of the ceiling the contraption is covered in controls. Somehow what you select down here on ground level gets fed into the mechanism that controls the walls. There must be wires running up inside the tubes and turning cogs overhead.

(You might be wondering where all the power for these big machines comes from. The story goes that when St Philip founded the city, he made sure to build the cathedral on a spring.)

> EXAMINE CONTROLS
The controls consist of three cranks (one steel, one brass and one gold), beneath which are three rotating cylindrical dials engraved with numerals and the letters X, Y and Z, showing 57, 11, 68. Next to all this is an iron chain that runs right back up to the ceiling.

> TURN STEEL CRANK
I turn the steel crank clockwise once, and the second tumbler of the X meter slowly winds on, so it now reads 58.

> TURN BRASS CRANK
I turn the brass crank clockwise once. The Y meter reads 12.

> TURN GOLD CRANK
I turn the gold crank clockwise twice. The Z meter reads 60.

> PULL IRON CHAIN
I pull hard on the chain and very slowly, the mechanism overhead comes to life. The walls themselves start to move! Sections of shelf seem to float upwards, creating gaps that others sidle into. It�s like a basket of crabs kicked over in a market; all the books scuttling this way and that. Noisy, though. Shelves collide with thumps and groans and scrapes. The initiates look very annoyed indeed.

Eventually, everything comes to a halt, and a metal plate extends down from a position above my head with a single book in place.

Sadly, it�s not the Principia. I release the chain and the book disappears into the stacks.

# ? Sep 20, 2017 01:17

Glazius: Jul 22, 2007; Hail all those who are able,
any mouse can,
any mouse will,
but the Guard prevail.; Clapping Larry

Can we, say, >TURN SILVER CRANK TWO TIMES and have that recognized.

Anyway, judging by current crankery, the planitia seems... impossible to get? I think we should turn each crank and see what happens to all the numbers.

# ? Sep 20, 2017 03:24

inflatablefish: Oct 24, 2010

Glazius posted:

Can we, say, >TURN SILVER CRANK TWO TIMES and have that recognized.

Anyway, judging by current crankery, the planitia seems... impossible to get? I think we should turn each crank and see what happens to all the numbers.

The brass crank is already right (unless this is one of those puzzles), so let's just turn the steel and the gold a few times.

Also, can we check out that shadowy gap between the statues of St Breguet and St Babbage?

# ? Sep 21, 2017 17:33

CaptainCaveman: Apr 16, 2005; Always searching for North.

quote:

> TURN STEEL CRANK TWICE
I turn the steel crank clockwise twice. The X meter reads 50.

> TURN BRASS CRANK TWICE
I turn the brass crank clockwise twice. The Y meter reads 14.

> TURN GOLD CRANK TWICE
I turn the gold crank clockwise twice. The Z meter reads 62.

quote:

> NE

West Apse
There are more pews, though there�s clearly one row missing, which Drake says is the one they took and chopped up to make the floorboards of my room. I don�t believe it - why would anyone waste such a good bit of wood on me?

Anyway, the altar is back east and there�s another archway in the southwest corner of the room. Silence emerges through it like noise from Calvin�s mouth when he�s eating. It must be a library.

> E

Cathedral Altar
On a dais is the main altar, representing the Celestial Workbench itself. Hanging over it as large as the setting sun is the incredible machinery of the Cathedral Clock itself.

Around the dais, a group of monks are celebrating and blessing something on the altar. I can slip away - quickly, please! - in any of the four main directions, although I might have to scurry to get around the dais.

�And in the presence of the Winding Key,� the monk finishes, before making the sign of Winding. The other monks repeat the gesture. �In Perpetuum, we Observe,� they chant.

> N

Choir
To the north of the altar, this is a semi-circular space with staircases to east and west leading up to the gallery overhead. When they sing from up there - I�ve only heard it once - they fill the whole Cathedral with their beating rhythmic music: songs that echo round and around the dome overhead like the movement of the Greater Rotation itself.

During normal services the choir sit in the stalls on the ground level by the east staircase. They�re covered in carvings just like those on the Abbey doors, but lit up in brilliant colours from the stained glass all around.

> W
Two rotations to reach the top. Everything in this place is designed to be correct, as carefully set as new teeth on a dog-screw.

West Clerestory
This balcony has a good view down over the choir stalls and the altar where the monks are still clustered. The sun has just come round and I�m standing, bathed in colourful light from the enormous stained glass window. Spiral stairs lead down, and the balcony curves around to the northeast.

> NE

North Clerestory
To the south the whole cathedral stretches away, all monks and pews and the three Great Seals on the floor. The balcony - which is the only thing to stop me breaking my neck - curves from southwest to southeast.

In one corner stand two enormous statues of St Breguet and St Babbage. They�re huddled together like conspirators and Babbage�s enormous head gets in the way of the beautiful stained glass behind him.

Along the balcony to the southeast I can see a guard, standing duty.

> EXAMINE STATUES
The statues are twice life-size (probably exactly), and carved down to the tiniest detail. Breguet has fluff on his jacket and Babbage�s wig seems to have a few lice. Their enormous faces are turned toward each other, and down, as though they were muttering something about me. In between their feet is a shadowy gap.

> EXAMINE SHADOWY GAP
Between the toes of St Breguet and St Babbage is a patch of deep shadow, perfect for hiding in!

> HIDE IN GAP
That�d make a great hiding place, except that nobody�s following me.

Pretend I made a clever "foreshadowing" pun here.

# ? Sep 21, 2017 23:09

Glazius: Jul 22, 2007; Hail all those who are able,
any mouse can,
any mouse will,
but the Guard prevail.; Clapping Larry

Hmm. It's hard to say what's going on here. It seems like there are certain numbers getting... skipped over , maybe?

...oh god are we going to have to navigate a 3D coordinate maze?

# ? Sep 23, 2017 01:06

CaptainCaveman: Apr 16, 2005; Always searching for North.

A hint just because doing this in a Let's Play is slower-paced than when you're playing it yourself and can keep trying things: Note and compare carefully the response we've gotten so far each time we try turning a crank.

# ? Sep 23, 2017 01:30

inflatablefish: Oct 24, 2010

CaptainCaveman posted:

A hint just because doing this in a Let's Play is slower-paced than when you're playing it yourself and can keep trying things: Note and compare carefully the response we've gotten so far each time we try turning a crank.

Of course!

Okay, so turning the crank clockwise increments the units digit of one co-ordinate by one, but not the tens digit. When Z got to 69 it then lapped around to 60 rather than going up to 70. Try turning a crank anticlockwise (such heresy!), or possibly pulling/pushing the crank to see if it will move into the right place to increments the tens digit.

# ? Sep 24, 2017 15:26

CaptainCaveman: Apr 16, 2005; Always searching for North.

quote:

> SW

West Clerestory
This balcony has a good view down over the choir stalls and the altar where the monks are still clustered. The sun has just come round and I�m standing, bathed in colourful light from the enormous stained glass window. Spiral stairs lead down, and the balcony curves around to the northeast.

> D
I climb back down.

Choir
To the north of the altar, this is a semi-circular space with staircases to east and west leading up to the gallery overhead. When they sing from up there - I�ve only heard it once - they fill the whole Cathedral with their beating rhythmic music: songs that echo round and around the dome overhead like the movement of the Greater Rotation itself.

During normal services the choir sit in the stalls on the ground level by the east staircase. They�re covered in carvings just like those on the Abbey doors, but lit up in brilliant colours from the stained glass all around.

> S

Cathedral Altar
On a dais is the main altar, representing the Celestial Workbench itself. Hanging over it as large as the setting sun is the incredible machinery of the Cathedral Clock itself.

Around the dais, a group of monks are celebrating and blessing something on the altar. I can slip away - quickly, please! - in any of the four main directions, although I might have to scurry to get around the dais.

The monks gather in close to the Altar, as the mechanism they watch makes a sudden movement. �In Perpetuum, we Observe,� a lead monk cries.

> W

West Apse
There are more pews, though there�s clearly one row missing, which Drake says is the one they took and chopped up to make the floorboards of my room. I don�t believe it - why would anyone waste such a good bit of wood on me?

Anyway, the altar is back east and there�s another archway in the southwest corner of the room. Silence emerges through it like noise from Calvin�s mouth when he�s eating. It must be a library.

> SW

Cyclical Library
This room is massive, and mechanised. Little blocks of shelving, holding about twenty books each, tile the cylindrical wall in a kind of mosaic, but they�re all fixed up to winches, pulleys, and the whole room can revolve, so instead of you going to a find a book... well, you get the idea.

This is all controlled by a gold-panelled contraption that dangles from the ceiling like a chandelier they forgot to hoist. It�s got three main controls. Occasionally, one of the initiates going through the studying phase of their education goes up and takes a look, but they seem nervous to touch it, for some reason.

By the door to the northeast is a card catalogue. That�ll be gone as soon as they work out how to do something more useful with one of Reloh�s keyboards than just type letters onto paper.

> TURN STEEL CRANK LEFT
I turn the steel crank anticlockwise three times, and the first tumbler of the X meter slowly winds on, so it now reads 80.

> TURN BRASS CRANK COUNTERCLOCKWISE
I turn the brass crank anticlockwise once. The Y meter now reads 24.

> TURN GOLD CRANK ANTICLOCKWISE
I turn the gold crank anticlockwise once. The Z meter now reads 72.

I quite like that puzzle. When you haven't worked it out, it makes no sense at all and makes you think things aren't working right. Then once you get it, it all makes sense and fits in well with the clockwork nature of everything.

We already found what numbers we need: 43, 12, 95.

quote:

> TURN STEEL CRANK LEFT SIX TIMES
I turn the steel crank anticlockwise six times. The X meter now reads 40.

> TURN IT RIGHT 3 TIMES
I turn the steel crank clockwise three times. The X meter reads 43.

> TURN BRASS CRANK RIGHT 8 TIMES
I turn the brass crank clockwise eight times. The Y meter reads 22.

> TURN BRASS CRANK LEFT 9 TIMES
I turn the brass crank anticlockwise nine times. The Y meter now reads 12.

> TURN GOLD CRANK LEFT TWICE
I turn the gold crank anticlockwise twice. The Z meter now reads 92.

> TURN IT RIGHT THREE TIMES
I turn the gold crank clockwise three times. The Z meter reads 95.

> PULL CHAIN
I pull hard on the chain. Shelves move and glide around the walls of the library with colossal noise! Eventually, everything comes to a halt, and a metal plate extends down from a position above my head with a single book in place.

It�s the Principia! I snatch it down and the plate slides back into the shelf.

> READ PRINCIPIA
Why anyone would want to read this is beyond me. After a hundred pages of numerical tables listing the table-co-ordinates of co-ordinates of stars, there follows a hundred pages of diagrams of the night skies and everything beyond, all joined up by watch escapements, rods, springs, levers and releases. Newton�s Clock Universalis, it�s called. It�s like someone sketched the Milky Way and their child doodled all over it. (It�s an Apocrypha. I�m pretty sure that means it�s rubbish).

Let's go give this to Brother What's-his-name.

quote:

> NE

West Apse
There are more pews, though there�s clearly one row missing, which Drake says is the one they took and chopped up to make the floorboards of my room. I don�t believe it - why would anyone waste such a good bit of wood on me?

Anyway, the altar is back east and there�s another archway in the southwest corner of the room. Silence emerges through it like noise from Calvin�s mouth when he�s eating. It must be a library.

> E

Cathedral Altar
On a dais is the main altar, representing the Celestial Workbench itself. Hanging over it as large as the setting sun is the incredible machinery of the Cathedral Clock itself.

Around the dais, a group of monks are celebrating and blessing something on the altar. I can slip away - quickly, please! - in any of the four main directions, although I might have to scurry to get around the dais.

�In Perpetuum, we Observe,� the other monks reply, raising their hands and making the sign of the Penduluum in the air. �A-tempus, a-fugit,� they chant.

> E

East Apse
More pews, facing the altar back west. This is the women�s corner, because they aren�t allowed to sit with the men (especially women with children, who have to sit at the back). Much more interesting, is the iron grate to the northeast that covers - so they say - the door to the Cathedral crypt.

The door to the southeast leads back to the Orrery Hall and strange Brother Sa�at.

> SE

Orrery Hall
This hall is mostly filled by a huge machine, of perfect bearing and a spooky silent grace (it reminds me of the candle tracks in the Abbey.) It�s called the �Orrery� and it�s meant to depict the movements of the heavens, though to me it looks more like the badly-mangled bicycles they dredge from the river and sell on Saturday�s for scrap, and how anyone�s meant to read the whirls of discs, balls, wire hoops and spindles is beyond me. The door is past a whipping meteorite to the northwest.

Sat behind a desk in the corner, only just out of the way of a particularly far-off comet, is strange Brother Sa�at. He watches his machine with unblinking eyes.

On Sa�at�s desk is a pile of papers, including a work order.

> GIVE BOOK TO BROTHER
�Is this the book?� I ask, offering the Principia Planetaria to Sa�at.

�Well done,� he replies, insincerely. �Well done. You managed to not bring me the Principia Mechanistica, Principia Mathematica or the Principia Copiomatrix. Or any of the other dubious volumes I�m always pulling down.� He takes the book I have brought and quickly flicks through the pages. Seems he knows exactly what he�s after...

�There we are. Coordinates...� He scribbles something down onto the work order on the desk. �Done. Coordinates to find coordinates, all to find coordinates,� he says with a smile. The book he puts away in his desk. �I�ll keep that,� he mutters, winding his hands around one another. �Yes, why not?�

> TAKE WORK ORDER
Sa�at snatches back the order to check it over. �Coordinates - map - Crab Nebula - yes, yes, we know. As the cog said to the butcher�s wife. What? Oh. Oh, cam.� He scowls at me. �Seal and sign. They always say, seal and sign. I�ve signed, but oh, no, not good enough, is it?� He begins the process of hunting around again.

�Do you need another book?� I ask.

�No. Idiot,� he says. �I need some wax for sealing with. Official business, has to be purple wax, none of this empty-your-ear business that was perfectly good enough a few years ago. Oh no. The world�s gone mad, I tell you.� He winds his hands together quite unexpectedly. �Mad.�

The orrery quietly revolves.

We have successfully turned in our quest and in exchange our questgiver has given us a quest!

# ? Sep 24, 2017 19:49

Glazius: Jul 22, 2007; Hail all those who are able,
any mouse can,
any mouse will,
but the Guard prevail.; Clapping Larry

Well, that should be easy enough. Wasn't there some big table full of candles? There should be purple wax puddled between the red and blue ones.

# ? Sep 25, 2017 05:23

CaptainCaveman: Apr 16, 2005; Always searching for North.

quote:

> NW

East Apse
More pews, facing the altar back west. This is the women�s corner, because they aren�t allowed to sit with the men (especially women with children, who have to sit at the back). Much more interesting, is the iron grate to the northeast that covers - so they say - the door to the Cathedral crypt.

The door to the southeast leads back to the Orrery Hall and strange Brother Sa�at.

> W

Cathedral Altar
On a dais is the main altar, representing the Celestial Workbench itself. Hanging over it as large as the setting sun is the incredible machinery of the Cathedral Clock itself.

Around the dais, a group of monks are celebrating and blessing something on the altar. I can slip away - quickly, please! - in any of the four main directions, although I might have to scurry to get around the dais.

�A-tempus, a-fugit,� repeats the lead monk. He steps up to the dais, and reaches with one finger to touch the side of the mechanism. All is quiet.

> S

Upper Nave
This is the north end of the Nave, where the more important people sit during services - you can tell that because the pews either side are wider and have more legroom, and each has a little cup-holder carved into its armrest. Of course, it�s also closer to the Altar to the north (and further from the draught coming up from the doors to the south).

A group of monks are standing around the altar, singing softly.

The floor is taken up with the Third Great Seal.

> S

Lower Nave
The Nave of the Cathedral is a quiet place, quieter than the Abbey because the Archbishop only allows study here and no workshops. Pews on either side are enough to seat a thousand easily, with more further north. I can�t look at the ceiling (it�s so high) without lying down across the Second Great Seal, and the last time I did that a monk tripped up on me and had me thrown out.

East and west are smaller shrines, and back south are the Cathedral�s Great Doors.

> E

Shrine of the Saints
A small shrine but a packed one. Where the Abbey�s got three niches for the Major Three Saints, the Cathedral has about a hundred niches for the Minor Everybody Else. Little busts and statuettes, some holding the tools of their trade, and all glaring at me for skulking around in here. The Nave is back west.

In one corner is a stand of candles, for use in devotions (and for the poor to pinch for lighting).

> TAKE WAX
I can�t see any such thing.

> EXAMINE CANDLES
There are red, blue and yellow candles here - which do you mean?

> RED
There is a cluster of red candles on the stand, between the blue and yellow candles.

> EXAMINE BLUE CANDLES
There is a cluster of blue candles on the stand, between the red and yellow candles.

You seem to be on to something but it looks like it will take more work than just sauntering up and taking what we need.

# ? Sep 26, 2017 01:08

Glazius: Jul 22, 2007; Hail all those who are able,
any mouse can,
any mouse will,
but the Guard prevail.; Clapping Larry

Um.

> GET MATCH
> GET LIGHTER

I can't imagine us being trusted to carry something flammable around.

Or maybe > EXAMINE SAINTS to see if any of them have had red and blue candles lit for them?

# ? Sep 26, 2017 01:59

CaptainCaveman: Apr 16, 2005; Always searching for North.

quote:

> GET MATCH
I can�t see any such thing.

> GET LIGHTER
I can�t see any such thing.

> EXAMINE SAINTS
There�s one: St Maxwell, with his electronia.

> EXAMINE MAXWELL
St Maxwell ponders his electronia glumly.

> EXAMINE ELECTRONIA
St Maxwell ponders his electronia glumly.

# ? Sep 26, 2017 02:04

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# ? May 5, 2024 06:08

Ratatozsk: Mar 6, 2007; Had we turned left instead, we may have encountered something like this...

>tip candles?

# ? Sep 26, 2017 14:33

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Video Games > Let's Play! > The Shadow in the Cathedral: Clockwork Interactive Fiction

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