label herbalist_5:
$Herbalist5Weakness = 0
window hide
with Pause(1)
show text "Joan" with dissolve
with Pause(2)
hide text with dissolve
window show
show bedroom zorder 3 with dissolve
show joanimg zorder 4 with dissolve:
    xalign 0.05 yalign 0.25
"""

You've come to Joan's house, where she works as the town's herbalist.  Whether you came for social or business reasons, you have been chatting with her, Noah, and Mila for some time.  

They've done good work today and are in good spirits, although they all show their satisfaction in different ways.

Joan is sitting upright in one of her kitchen chairs, idly sorting some spare cuttings while she talks.  Noah is slouched in a large armchair, a beer in his hand, his eyelids heavy with contentment.  Mila stands with a mug of tea by her side, ready to spring up at any moment to meet the needs of either of the other two.

Noah is just beginning to talk about all the ways in which the town's social infrastructure could be improved if the darkness is taken as an opportunity to re-evaluate the town's old, broken systems, when there is a heavy knock on the door.

Already standing, Mila is the first to reach it and before the visitor has a chance to speak you hear her gasp.
"""
show milaimg zorder 4 with dissolve:
    xalign 0.95 yalign 0.25
mila  "Oh, oh don't speak, take my arm, here."

"""

Mila comes back into view, waving frantically to Noah for him to stand up.

Behind Mila comes a man you vaguely recognise as one of the local lumberjacks.  With a glance you quickly take in that he's clean shaven, well muscled and quite short, then you notice the more pressing details.

His clothes are covered in stains, in some places mostly mud, in others mostly blood.  His arms are covered in scrapes and fresh bruises.  But the real point of concern is his right calf.  It is bleeding heavily from multiple deep wounds.  A creature of the night, a creature of the moon, attacked this man.

Mila helps him sit down in the chair that Noah just hurriedly vacated.
"""
show noahimg zorder 4 with dissolve:
    xalign 0.5 yalign 0.25
"Noah"  "What happened to you?"

mila  "Shush Noah.  He's in great pain, go get him some medicine.  Red-root should dull the pain, yes Joan?"

"Joan nods, although she does not rush to fetch the drug herself."

"Noah"  "Red-root would knock him out and we need to ask what happened to him."

"Mila shakes her head slightly, clearly not willing to argue with Noah, and turns to look at you instead."

menu:
    "*Fetch the red-root*":
        $c=1
        """

        You rush to Joan's herb cabinet and start searching for red-root.  The supplies are meticulously sorted and labelled alphabetically and it takes you very little time before you are rushing back to Mila, the glass jar of thick black extract in your hand.

        Mila is standing next to the man, holding his hand and telling him that he is going to be okay, that you will get him strong pain killing medicine and that then they'll figure out what to do about his leg, that he need not worry.  Noah is crouched by the man's leg, examining it carefully while Joan stands above him, asking him questions.

        The medicine works quickly, taken orally and rubbed straight onto the wound.  The man visibly calms, his eyes turning glassy, only dimly aware of what is going on around him.
        """

        $game.town_stability +=1

        $c=3


    "No, Noah is right, we need to know what did this.":
        $c=2
        "Noah nods and turns to the man.  Mila reluctantly takes a step backwards.  His question is simple and direct."

        "Noah"  "What did this to you?"

        "The man turns towards Noah, a look of confusion in his eyes.  His jaw opens and closes multiple times before anything more than whimpers and pained breathing escapes."

        "Man"  "I don't know, it … it was tall.  Down on … down on hands and knees.  Jumped out, bit me again … and again.  Just, just in and out.  Tried to, tried to strangle me.  But I beat it … I beat it away.  It was dark."

        """
        These last words sound like an apology.  Noah tries to ask the man more, but he barely manages to repeat what he has already said through the rapidly increasing pain.  Leaving you pondering the words 'hands and knees'…
        """

        $game.town_stability +=1  
        $Herbalist5Weakness+=1

        $c=3
joan  "We have to decide what to do with him."

"Noah"  "We amputate, obviously.  He wouldn't be in this much pain unless the wound was infected badly.  We can't afford to waste time.  We have to do it ourselves."

"Joan raises an eyebrow while Mila goes pale."

mila  "We can't.  We have to fetch Fyodora.  She's the only one in town able to deal with this."

"Joan nods at this, but says no more.  Again, you feel that, despite your lack of medical qualifications, they are all waiting for your judgement."
$textin52 = "five"
$textin53 = "Joan"
menu:
    "We need to amputate.":
        $c=5
        "Joan nods slowly and then there is a moment of heavy silence as you all prepare for the inevitable question."

        joan  "Who should do it?"

        $Herbalist5Weakness+=1 
        $game.town_stability -=1  
        $Herbalist5Fyodora = "False"
        menu:
            "I'll do it.":
                $c=6
                joan  "I really do not think that is a good idea.  I should do it, I have some training in medicine."
                menu:
                    "No, I will do it.":
                        $c=7

                    "You are right, you should do it.":
                        $Herbalist5Amputate = "Joan"
                        $c=8


            "Noah should do it.":
                $Herbalist5Amputate = "Noah"
                $Herbalist5Weakness+=1
                $c=8

            "Mila should do it.":
                $game.town_stability -=1
                $Herbalist5Amputate = "Mila"
                $c=8

            "You should do it Joan.":
                $Herbalist5Amputate = "Joan"
                $c=8



    "We can't amputate, we need to fetch Fyodora.":
        $c=4
        joan  "Who should go and get her?"

        $Herbalist5Fyodora = "True"
        $textin52 = "five"
        $textin53 = "Fyodora"
        menu:
            "I'll go.":
                $c=10
                "Joan nods appreciatively."

                joan  "You should go now, and fast."

                """

                Joan opens her mouth as if she is going to say more, but closes it again.  Her implication is clear.  If you don't go now, the man could die.
                """
                hide joanimg with dissolve
                hide milaimg with dissolve
                hide noahimg with dissolve
                """

                You rush out of the house, up the hill back into town and to Fyodora's clinic.  You are lucky: while she does have some patients waiting for her, none of them are demanding her immediate attention, so all she has to do is grab her medical bag and race with you back to Joan's cottage with you explaining the situation on the way.

                Fyodora, keeping pace with you well, seems focussed on the shape of the tooth marks.  They are, you agree, odd.  Pairs of deep, thick, round wounds, but around some of them marks that look like they were made by much blunter teeth.
                """
                show fyodoraimg zorder 4 with dissolve:
                    xalign 0.5 yalign 0.25
                    
                fyodora  "From what you describe … Could they be human teeth?"

                """

                It is difficult to tell, but now that you think of it, yes.  Yes, they {i}could{/i} be human teeth.

                All is quiet when you arrive back at Joan's house.  That could be a good sign.  Or a very bad one.  

                You open the door and let Fyodora step inside.  She nods to Joan, Mila, and Noah and calmly indicates the patient.
                """
                show joanimg zorder 4 with dissolve:
                    xalign 0.05 yalign 0.25
                show milaimg zorder 4 with dissolve:
                    xalign 0.95 yalign 0.25
                joan  "He passed out, but his breathing is regular.  I think he-"

                $c=9


            "Noah should go.":
                $Herbalist5Message = "Noah"
                $c=11
                hide noahimg with dissolve

            "Mila should go.":
                $Herbalist5Message = "Mila"
                $c=11
                hide milaimg with dissolve

            "You should go Joan.":
                $Herbalist5Message = "Joan"
                $c=11
                hide joanimg with dissolve


if c==11:

    """

    [Herbalist5Message] nods and, with only a quick backwards glance, leaves.
    """
    if Herbalist5Message == "Joan":
        "The rest of you stand in silence for a moment.  Then Mila moves over to the man and begins cleaning out his wound.  Noah starts boiling water for the preparation of a more potent anaesthetic."
    elif Herbalist5Message == "Mila":
        "The rest of you stand in silence for a moment.  Then Joan moves over to the man and begins cleaning out his wound.  Noah starts boiling water for the preparation of a more potent anaesthetic."
    else:
        "The rest of you stand in silence for a moment.  Then Joan moves over to the man and begins cleaning out his wound.  Mila starts boiling water for the preparation of a more potent anaesthetic."
    """
    Both seem occupied by, but individually capable of, their tasks, leaving you with nothing constructive to do.
    """
    menu:
        "Pray to the Pantheon.":
            $c=12

        "Pray to the spirits.":
            $c=12

        "Just wait.":
            $c=13



if c==12:

    "Your prayers are met with silence, at least for now."

    $c=13

if c==13:
    if Herbalist5Message == "Joan":
        "Mila gives a little cry, followed a few moments later by a relieved sigh."
        "Mila"  "He's fallen unconscious, but he's still breathing evenly.  That's good.  I don't think there's any more we should do until [Herbalist5Message] returns."
        "Noah agrees from the kitchen and you resume your useless pacing until [Herbalist5Message] finally does return with Fyodora.  She nods quickly at the three of you and then indicates the man."
        show joanimg zorder 4 with dissolve:
            xalign 0.05 yalign 0.25
        show fyodoraimg zorder 4 with dissolve:
            xalign 0.5 yalign 0.25
        "Noah"  "He passed out, but his breathing is regular.  I think he-"
    elif Herbalist5Message == "Mila":
        "Joan"  "He's fallen unconscious, but he's still breathing evenly.  That's good.  I don't think there's any more we could do until [Herbalist5Message] returns."
        "Noah agrees from the kitchen and you resume your useless pacing until [Herbalist5Message] finally does return with Fyodora.  She nods quickly at the three of you and then indicates the man."
        show milaimg zorder 4 with dissolve:
            xalign 0.95 yalign 0.25
        show fyodoraimg zorder 4 with dissolve:
            xalign 0.5 yalign 0.25
        "Noah"  "He passed out, but his breathing is regular.  I think he-"
    else:
        "Joan"  "He's fallen unconscious, but he's still breathing evenly.  That's good.  I don't think there's any more we could do until [Herbalist5Message] returns."
        "Mila agrees from the kitchen and you resume your useless pacing until [Herbalist5Message] finally does return with Fyodora.  She nods quickly at the three of you and then indicates the man."
        show noahimg zorder 4 with dissolve:
            xalign 0.5 yalign 0.25
        "Mila"  "He passed out, but his breathing is regular.  I think he-"
    $c=9


if c==7:

    "Joan looks around the room, but when she finds Noah nodding and Mila too distressed to come to her aid, she acquiesces."

    joan  "I have a small saw.  I don't know if that is what is best, but it's all I have that might work."

    """

    Joan disappears outside for what feels like several minutes, leaving you, Noah and Mila to stand in shuffling silence.  When she returns she is holding a saw, dripping wet from a quick clean.

    She hands it to you without saying a word and you look down at your patient.

    You have never done this before.  Never cut into another man's flesh in the hope of saving his life.  You have no idea where to start, but you have to do something.

    You kneel down by the man whose head has lolled back while he mutters weakly up at the ceiling, grit your teeth, set the edge of the saw just by the bite mark, and begin.

    The man screams.  Your mind shakes with it.  His leg comes up and smacks you hard in the face, sending you reeling backwards, blood trickling down from your nose.

    With the blade no longer pressing against his skin, Joan and Mila safely move in to restrain his arms and torso, while Noah pins his legs.  You move back into position and move the saw across the ragged cut that you have already made.

    The man screams again and the pain within the sound jolts you, sending the teeth of the saw in deep and at an angle.  Blood spurts suddenly, thick and warm, covering your hands and making you lose your grip momentarily, the angle of the blade twisting in that moment and cutting off a ragged strip of flesh.

    The sight is too much.  You cannot help it.  You just about have time to stand and turn before you retch, vomit covering your shoes as Mila screams and Joan assures her that the man has only fallen unconscious.

    You look at the man and the hanging, ragged flap of skin that you clumsily hacked off his leg.  Blood trickles from his mouth.  Perhaps he bit his tongue.  His chest heaves up and down, belying the calm of his face.
    """

    $game.town_stability -=2  
    $game.occult_connection +=1

    $c=9

if c==8:
    "[Herbalist5Amputate] nods."
    $textin5 = "her shaking hands on her trousers."
    if Herbalist5Amputate == "Joan":
        "She takes it and looks down at the patient, before kneeling and, indicating that the rest of you should hold the man down while, she begins to saw."
    elif Herbalist5Amputate == "Mila":
        "[Herbalist5Amputate] takes it and looks down at the patient, before kneeling and, indicating that the rest of you should hold the man down while, she begins to saw."
    else:
        $textin5 = "his shaking hands on his trousers."
        "[Herbalist5Amputate] takes it and looks down at the patient, before kneeling and, indicating that the rest of you should hold the man down while, he begins to saw."
    """
    The man screams.  Your mind shakes with it.  His leg comes up and almost smacks you in the face, but you hold it down as you watch the blood well up around the teeth of the saw.

    There is so much blood.  So, so much blood.  And you feel every drop of it being ripped out of the man as [Herbalist5Amputate] saws.  You hear it in his cries.  So much pain that he sounds mad.

    It goes on for so long that you begin to feel numb, both physically and emotionally.  Your muscles ache from the effort of trying to keep the man's legs still.

    And then two things happen, almost concurrently.  The man goes limp.  He's finally fainted from the pain and blood loss.  Or died.  Both are very possible.

    And there is a scraping sound.  A rough, dry sound.

    The sound of steel against bone.

    [Herbalist5Amputate] has only just made it to the bone.
    """
    "You feel panic and fear rise within you.  You are not alone.  [Herbalist5Amputate] stands suddenly, wiping [textin5]"

    "[Herbalist5Amputate]"  "I can't, I need to breathe, just for a second."

    "You and the others stand up cautiously, moving around the man and towards [Herbalist5Amputate]."

    $c=9

if c==9:

    """

    The man's eyes open.

    He looks up at you as his breathing slows and the pain lines smooth from his face.

    He does not smile.  He does not grimace.  He simply stares.

    And then there is a crack.

    The grating of bone against bone.

    The sound hangs in the air for a moment, the silence lasting not long enough for the [textin52] faces in the room to register anything but surprise and shock before the man screams.

    There is more than just pain in his cry, although there is plenty of that.  

    There is horror as well.

    The man tries to stand, but he falls as another loud crack fills the room and this time you notice its effect.

    You catch it out of the corner of your eye, a stunningly quick movement.  It had already happened to the man's lower leg, below his knee, but what you see is it happening to his thigh.  

    In the space of less than a second, the skin and muscles stretch.  You can see some blood vessels bursting beneath the suddenly grey, translucent skin.  Muscles rip.  But much, somehow, remains intact as the bone shears itself vertically in two and {i}pushes{/i}, taking all around it with it down, snapping back into place only once it has finished scraping against itself.

    In the space of a few seconds, the man's leg, grey, knotted and thin, is twice as long as it was.

    He continues to scream.

    Pain and fear.

    Nerves break and muscles and internal organs compact as the growth shoots up one side of his torso, leaving him bent at almost a right angle as only half his ribs, half of his stomach and back muscles shear themselves in two and stretch him out.

    A few seconds later, he's straight again, but his torso is as thin as his leg was, his head perched comically large on top.
    """
    "[textin53]" "We have to do something!"

    mila  "We have to calm him!"

    "Noah"  "Sod that, help me hold him down!"

    joan  "Wouldn't that be dangerous?"
    menu:
        "Mila's right, all we can do is calm him.":
            $c=14

        "*Help Noah*":
            $c=18

if c==14:

    """

    Everyone, even Noah, nods at your words.

    Then there is a moment of silence.  It is clear that no-one knows what to say.  {i}You{/i} certainly don't.  Even if you did, the screams of the man as a bone in his other leg tears itself apart aren't letting you think.

    Someone else has to do it.
    """

    $Herbalist5Weakness+=1
    menu:
        "*Nod to Mila*":
            $Herbalist5Calmer = "Mila"
            $c=16

        "*Nod to Noah*":
            $Herbalist5Calmer = "Noah"
            $c=15

        "*Nod to Joan*":
            $Herbalist5Calmer = "Joan"
            $c=16

        "*Nod to Fyodora*" if Herbalist5Fyodora == "True":
            $Herbalist5Calmer = "Fyodora"
            $c=15


if c==15:

    if Herbalist5Calmer == "Noah":
        "Noah takes a step forward, towards the screaming, terrified man."

        "Noah"  """

        Hey, hey, um, what's happening, it's, well, it's all the body, isn't it?

        I mean, it may hurt a lot, but, well, we have pain killers for that.  And hey, you're, well, you're taller now.  That could be useful, that's the kind of thing our capitalistic society values …
        """

        "Noah turns back to the rest of you, the look on his face clearly showing that he knows he is doing awfully."
        "You barely notice.  You are watching what is happening to the man behind him."
    else:
        "Fyodora takes a step forward, towards the screaming, terrified man."

        fyodora  "Sir, I need you to know that we are in the process of preparing a strong anaesthetic for you, which should significantly help with your pain.  As … as a medical professional, I just want to say that … that the fact that you are still … well your body is clearly highly resilient and I'm very impressed by your willpower, that you have remained conscious is a good sign that you … "

        "Fyodora turns back to the rest of you, the look on her face clearly showing that she knows she is doing awfully."
        "You barely notice.  You are watching what is happening to the man behind her."
    """
    His arms now twisted and stretched like his leg, the man is staring with a kind of animalistic horror as the skin and muscle around his pinky fingers peels away, revealing clean white bones held together by nothing but taut blood vessels.

    Then another grinding sound, but this one different, higher pitched, and flecks of bone fly off the ends of his pinky fingers, leaving each one tipped with a viscious, pointed spike.

    [Herbalist5Calmer] sees your horrified looks and turns back to the man just in time to see him jam his fingers into his face.

    Not points first, as you would have expected.

    He pushes his knuckles into his bleeding, shifting gums and the flesh of his face grows around the bone.  

    Then, with a snap as he quickly withdraws his hands, the base of his sharpened pinky fingers remain lodged in his gums, pointing straight down out of the front of his face: huge fangs sticking out of his upper jaw, scraping bloodily against his lower lip and chin as he closes and opens his mouth.

    Then he stops screaming.

    And looks at you one by one.

    """
    if Herbalist5Calmer == "Noah":
        "One glance at his eyes and you immediately agree with Noah as he grabs Joan's arm and screams:"

        "Noah"  "Run!  Run for your fucking lives!"
        $game.town_stability -=1
    else:
        "One glance at his eyes and you immediately agree with Fyodora as she grabs Joan's arm and screams:"

        fyodora  "Run!  Run, run run run!"
    $c=17
if c==16:
    $txtin = "Joan here, our herbalist, she's very good, she's going to look after you as soon as she can, okay?"
    $txtin2 = "Joan"
    if Herbalist5Fyodora == "True":
        $txtin = "Fyodora here, the doctor, she's very good, she's going to look after you as soon as she can, okay?"
        $txtin2 = "Fyodora"
    if Herbalist5Calmer == "Mila":
        mila  """

        Sir, I … I really can't imagine what you are going through.  I really can't and … well I hope I never do.  I'm sorry, that must sound awful.  But, but I can see how hard what you are going through is.

        And I wanted you to know that, while we're never going to understand, we are here for you.  [txtin] We'll do everything we can, and I can't promise anything, but we'll do everything we can.  Okay?
        """
        
        """

        Mila turns to [txtin2], to make sure that she really will do all she can do to help.

        She barely notices and neither do you.  Both of you are watching what is happening to the man behind her.
        """
    else:
        joan  """

        Sir.  I can't imagine what you are going through, but you have to trust me when I say that I am going to try to do everything that I can to help you.  

        While I have never felt the pain you are feeling now, or the fear, I am a trained professional in dealing with both and I am here for you.  I, and all these other people, are here just to look after you, to ease your pain and to help you recover from this.

        Look me in the eye, look me in the eye so that you can understand that I am here to help you.

        And now look at them.  They're all here to help you as well.  We are all here to help you.
        """

        """

        Joan turns to face all of you, to reinforce that you will all help.

        You barely notice.  You are watching what is happening to the man behind her.
        """
        $game.town_stability +=1

    """
    His arms now twisted and stretched like his leg, the man is staring with a kind of animalistic horror as the skin and muscle around his pinky fingers peel away, revealing clean white bones held together by nothing but taut blood vessels.

    Then another grinding sound, but this one different, higher pitched, and flecks of bone fly off the ends of his pinky fingers, leaving each one tipped with a vicious, pointed spike.
    [Herbalist5Calmer] sees your horrified looks and turns back to the man just in time to see him jam his fingers into his face.

    Not points first, as you would have expected.

    He pushes his knuckles into his bleeding, shifting gums and the flesh of his face grows around the bone.  

    Then, with a snap as he quickly withdraws his hands, the base of his sharpened pinky fingers remain lodged in his gums, pointing straight down out of the front of his face: huge fangs sticking out of his upper jaw, scraping bloodily against his lower lip and chin as he closes and opens his mouth.

    The man screams again, a final time.  Even through the pain and blood and bone, you make out his words.


    """
    "Man"  "Run.  Run now!"

    "None of you have to be told more than once."
    $c=17
    $Herbalist5Weakness+=1

if c==18:

    """

    You move forward with Noah and clasp your hands around the man's shoulders.

    Almost a second later, you feel the snap.

    You feel the muscle break and the skin stretch, pulling away from you, almost dragging you with it, but it is the bone that disturbs you the most.  The way you feel it judder and then slide, down and away from you, out of your grip, out of the grip of reason.

    The man's screaming is barely worse this close than it was a few paces away, but it is worse.

    He shudders and lets out a yelp, like an animal suddenly trapped beneath a fallen tree.

    Mila's scream joins his.

    It is difficult to see from where you are standing, but the skin and muscle around his pinky fingers are peeling away, revealing clean white bones held together by nothing but taut blood vessels.

    Then another grinding sound, but this one different, higher pitched, and flecks of bone fly off the ends of his pinky fingers, leaving each one tipped with a vicious, pointed spike.

    He stops screaming.

    He stops struggling.

    He stops shaking and writhing.

    And then, with one movement faster than you could possibly have reacted to, he stabs you.  Cleanly sinks the point of his pinky finger into your shoulder.

    You let go instinctively and take a step back.  Out of the corner of your eye you are vaguely aware that Noah has done the same thing.

    The man has sprung to his feet and you watch as he jams his fingers into his face.

    Not points first, as you would have expected.

    He pushes his knuckles into his bleeding, shifting gums and the flesh of his face grows around the bone.  

    Then, with a snap as he quickly withdraws his hands, the base of his sharpened pinky fingers remain lodged in his gums, pointing straight down out of the front of his face: huge fangs sticking out of his upper jaw, scraping bloodily against his lower lip and chin as he closes and opens his mouth.

    Someone screams that you need to run.  That you need to run now.

    You don't need to be told more than once.
    """

    $game.town_stability -=1

    $c=17


if c==17:
    hide bedroom with dissolve
    show woods zorder 1 with dissolve

    """

    You all dash out into the cold night air and run as far and as fast as you can.  Behind you you hear the sound of one of Joan's windows shattering and look back to see the figure of the man, his skin grey and translucent and his clothes hanging around him comically too short and too wide, bounding away from you, towards the forest.

    You stop running, some of you more out of breath than others.  Mila and Joan lean on each other for support, while Noah walks back and forth puffing, his hands on his gut.
    """
    "Noah"  "I'm going to go and hunt it.  We know where it went, more or less.  You coming?"

    "Mila holds up her hand to indicate that she wants to say something while she slumps to the ground, panting."

    mila  "No, we should wait.  We don't know what happened to him.  He might have just been panicking.  He might come back out and need our help."

    "Noah"  "You think we'll be able to help that {i}thing{/i}?  I feel sorry for it Mila, I really do, but it's a monster now.  We have to kill it."

    joan  """

    Please, Noah, even {i}if{/i} he is a monster {i}now{/i}, he {i}was{/i} a person.  Be more respectful, do not call him 'it'.  But you might be right.  I don't know.  I'm just an old herbalist, I don't know how to make decisions like this.

    I really am sorry to do this to you, but of all of us, you are the most qualified to make this choice.  Should we wait, or should we send out hunters?
    """
    menu:
        "We'll go get some hunters to keep watch, but we'll wait before we hunt.":
            if Herbalist5Weakness >= 2:
                $c=19
            else:
                $c=20

        "Send out hunters.":
            if Herbalist5Weakness >= 3:
                $c=21
            else:
                $c=22

if c==19:

    """

    It is decided that Joan, Noah and Mila will wait for the man, with a couple of hunters from the town keeping watch.

    As it turned out, those hunters were not needed.  You hear that night that a creature was found attempting to enter the town.  The old guardsman said it behaved like a wounded, starving animal, charging through the streets desperately looking for something to kill.

    The guard who killed it describes the beast perfectly.  

    It was even still wearing the same blood-stained clothes.
    """
if c==20:

    """

    It is decided that Joan, Noah and Mila will wait for the man, with a couple of hunters from the town keeping watch with them.

    As it turned out, those hunters were not needed, or at least not there.

    You hear that night that the creature managed to kill three people, two women doing washing by the river and one fisherman, before an old town guard managed to shoot it between the eyes.
    """

    $game.town_stability -=6

if c==21:

    """

    You help Noah organise a small group of hunters and wish them luck as they split up to sweep the forest while you remain ready to coordinate if any of them gives the signal.

    As it turns out, you were not needed.  The hunting party returns not too long after it set off.  They do not bring the body back with them.

    A couple of them got the jump on it, they say.  It was too weak to fight back.  Well, either that or it was unwilling to fight back.

    Little more difficult than shooting a rabbit, the one who fired the killing shot says.
    """
if c==22:

    """

    You help Noah organise a small group of hunters and wish them luck as they split up to sweep the forest while you remain ready to coordinate if any of them gives the signal.

    As it turns out, you were not needed.  The hunters who first encountered the creature did not have time to raise the signal.  You and Noah had sent them all out in pairs.

    The creature managed to tear through the first within a couple of seconds.

    The second pair was more challenging.  It killed one, but the other was a scout in the war and was on it before it could rebound from her partner.  

    The hunters returned without the creature's body.  They had their arms full carrying their own dead.
    """

    $game.town_stability -=6
hide fyodoraimg with dissolve
hide joanimg with dissolve
hide milaimg with dissolve
hide noahimg with dissolve
hide woods with dissolve
return