Gamebooks (Choose Your Own Adventure Style)

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

You Say Which Way:  Pirate Island Alternate Endings Part 5


"The cave's entrance is narrow but a faint light is coming from a crack high up in its ceiling.  From somewhere deep in the cave's interior you hear a steady drip, drip, drip of water.  The floor of the cave is damp and smooth and you are careful to watch where you step".  So begins my trip through the cave in an alternate CHOICE #2.


Stalactites and stalagmites look like icicles "ready to drop down and spear anyone underneath them".  Given the earthquakes that happen on this island, is this foreshadowing?  I don't have a flashlight (or a cell phone, I guess), but I take a picture with my camera and see stone steps during the flash.  These are narrow and "there is no handrail for safety".  How inconsiderate of pirates not to build to modern safety codes.  Enough hints in the narration suggest the danger of climbing the steps, that it might lead to a Death.


CHOICE #12 is to either keep going, or find another way to the fortress and go to CHOICE #3.


"With your back hard against the stone wall, you slowly take one step after another.  It is quite scary climbing in near darkness.  You know that one slip will mean certain injury, if not death.  Who would come to your rescue if you were to fall?"


But I don't die here.  Instead, I find a wooden torch that "turns to dust" when I touch it.  And some vines as thick as my thumb are visible that may allow me to exit the cave without backtracking.  I also see a writing in an "old script" saying "Climb to the sky and embrace the Saint.  Only then will you see your golden future".  Is this writing in English, or is it merely translated from some other language for the benefit of the reader?  And if it is in English, these pirates must have been unusually good spellers.


Even if you do take the "find another way to the fortress" option at some point, the book assumes you've seen this clue in the cave.  That's why it seemed so abrupt when I first saw my character hugging the saint statue.


CHOICE #13 is to either climb the vines like Donkey Kong, or "find another way to the fortress" (i.e. CHOICE #3).


"The jungle around the hole is foreign to you.  Dense vegetation of every description crowds in.  It makes you feel like you are the first person to stand here, but then you remember the steps painstakingly cut into the solid rock and laugh at your foolishness".


Isn't everything on these islands foreign to me?  Anyway, I see another arrow stone in the "crook of a gnarled old tree" pointing toward a "rocky watercourse".  This watercourse doesn't stone me to death and I reach the fortress.  CHOICE #14 is to either try to go back the way I came, or take another path to the resort.


"You see a broken and charred gate on the far side of the fortress, but decide to go back over the collapsed wall the way you came in just to be sure you don't miss the track back down the hillside.  Going down is harder than climbing up because you can't reach forward and grab on to things so easily.  A couple of times you slip on the smooth rocks as you descend.  You slow down as you get close to the top of the hole, not wanting to slip over the edge.


The hole appears below you as a gaping crack in the earth.  You work your way around the side and look for the vines that you climbed up.  It's hard to tell which vines are which from this angle.  You regret not marking the right ones.  When you're pretty sure you've found the place to descend, you lie on your belly clutching the vines and lower yourself feet first over the ledge.


It is hot and your hands are sweaty.  You twist your head around searching for a foothold.  You finally jam your foot over a twist in two vines and are able to take the pressure off your arms.  This isn't as easy as you thought it would be.  Finding the next foothold is just as hard.  Your arms strain as you try to find a place to rest your foot.  This is so much harder than climbing up, when you could easily see where to put your foot as you climbed.


Your arms are aching as you look for a step.  Your feet are flailing around desperately.  You feel your hands slipping on the vines as your strength starts to go.  You try to grip harder, but you can't.  You are slipping!  The friction burns your hands.  The pain is too much and you fall through the darkness."


Blair Polly taunts me after this Death with "Pity you didn't think of that".  Pirate Island is unusually strict for a You Say Which Way, a series that goes easy on its players compared to other CYOAs.


Results So Far


2 Good Endings

3 Deaths

0 Bad Non-Death Endings

0 Neutral Endings

1 Inconclusive Endings

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

You Say Which Way:  Pirate Island Alternate Endings Part 6


Going to the resort through the charred gate in CHOICE #14 isn't dangerous despite the appearances of an "extremely poisonous" giant centipede and a banana spider, "one of the most lethal in the world!"  Blair Polly makes a nature fact mistake when he says "This is not an insect you want to mess around with" when referring to the centipede.  Insects have 6 legs, and centipedes. . .


A CHOICE follows which is pointless to number because it doesn't lead to new paths or endings.  Either check on my nondescript family, which returns me to CHOICE #1 with an added sailboat option, or take the sailboat without checking on my family.  As much as I make fun of the You Say Which Way protagonists having families that talk and acts in unison, I realize it's intentional.  According to DM Potter's Writing Interactive Fiction, this is meant to allow for readers from various types of families.


After all this, I have to go back to CHOICE #1 and go to the lighthouse.  Along the way, I see a sand spit where migratory birds nest and walk carefully to avoid disturbing them too much.  They still screech at me.  I snorkel for a while and find a gold coin, but I see a large shadow.  It's a manta ray instead of a shark. 


The coin has a Crusader's Cross and a Lion and a Castle, which means it's a Spanish doubloon.  But it might not be a good idea to look for more.  "You're keen to go and look for more coins, but just as you put on your snorkel again, you see a triangular grey fin cruising back and forth along the beach.  It's hard to tell if the fin is a shark or a dolphin".  Either option is dangerous to me given my history with dolphins.


CHOICE #15 is to either swim for coins and be rewarded with an obvious Death, or continue towards the lighthouse.


"The fish fin hasn't returned for over ten minutes.  You wade into the water and put on your face mask and snorkel.  As you paddle back out to where you found the coin you scan left and right for sharks.  You're scared, but you also want to find more coins.  Floating on the surface, you scan the sea floor below.  You scan again for sharks before swimming further away from shore.  A little further out you see that coral is growing on something sticking up from the bottom.  It looks man-made.  Could it be part of a sunken ship?


You kick your feet and head out towards the outcrop.  The sandy bottom has given way to rocks and coral.  Flower-like anemones sway in the current and tiny fish are everywhere.  There are fish with orange and white stripes, fish of bright blue and others of yellow and red.  Schools of bright silver fish race past, zipping one way and then the other, moving together like a troupe of dancers.  Some fish weave around the tentacles of the anemones for protection, others pick at the algae growing on the rock.


Occasionally there is a flash of silver as a larger fish swoops in for a meal.  The smaller fish scatter quickly in all directions, but once the danger has passed they reform into schools again.  When you reach the outcrop that has caught your attention, you see an old anchor, encrusted with barnacles and other sea life, jammed between two large rocks.


You take a deep breath and dive down towards the anchor.  As you swim down, you wonder if the anchor is from an old Spanish galleon or from a more modern vessel.  As you reach the anchor, you grab on to its shaft to keep yourself from floating upward as you look around.  With so many things growing on the surface of the anchor, you can't tell its age.  You can't even tell if the shaft is made of wood or metal.  You've decided to have a quick look for coins before your air runs out, when you see a shadow moving across the seabed.  This time you can tell it isn't a manta ray, but that of a large shark.


Your air is nearly gone.  You have no option but to head for the surface, but before you head up, you grab a rock to use for protection should the shark attack.  The rock can't be too big because you won't be able to reach the surface with too much weight, but too small a rock won't be of much use for fighting off a hungry shark.  You grab a medium sized rock and push off the bottom.  As you kick up towards the surface you scan the surrounding water for signs of the shark.


But sharks are the ocean's most effective predator.  You don't stand a chance.  The shark hits you from behind and drags you out into deep water.  You try to swing the rock, but everything goes black."


My character should have paid more attention to the background music when the fin swam through the water.


Results So Far


2 Good Endings

4 Deaths

0 Bad Non-Death Endings

0 Neutral Endings

1 Inconclusive Endings

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

You Say Which Way:  Pirate Island Finale



A flowchart of Pirate Island would be interesting to look at.  The book offers some of the same decisions in multiple CHOICEs.  In more extreme cases, the book loops to the beginning in the routes where you check on your family, with the added option of taking the sailboat to the treasure island.  So this conclusion is nothing more than a Dead Ends post.


Walking toward the lighthouse makes a boy say "Hey watch it!" when I pass by the nests.  This is Kai, although his name isn't mentioned in this conversation.  He's trying to protect the endangered birds and thinks I haven't read the sign.  The lighthouse itself is white with red stripes.  Its brass plaque says "Beware of the sea.  For under these calm waters lay many shattered dreams".  Of course the sea is dangerous!  Why else would they need a lighthouse in the first place?


The lighthouse's door is rusty, but it doesn't open.  CHOICE #16 is to either follow the shell path, or go back to the resort the way I came.


The shell path "crunches underfoot" when I cross it.  My character drinks from a stream in the jungle.  At least it's running water, unlike the contaminated pond in Lost in Lion Country.  Kai's village has huts "with four stout poles set into the ground and walls of corrugated iron."  A woman shows tourists how to "weave cane".  I put the doubloon into a pocket in my shorts, and "stationery and a pen" will allow me to take notes.  Since there are so many CHOICES that to the same destination, don't expect these items to come up again.


But then it's revealed that I had a cell phone the whole time!  ". . .you set the alarm on your phone as a reminder".  My character could have saved a lot of trouble with that.


I read about shipwrecks at the local library with no Wifi.  But none of the books mention buried treasure.  Then it's revealed that the player character has a mother with just enough individuality to say one line:  "Talk about cutting it fine".


The next CHOICE that leads to no new ending is to either take the sailboat, or meet Kai.  Kai's story is long and I won't quote most of it here.  For reasons unknown to me, he doesn't introduce himself.  Kai says that the battle between the pirates and the Spanish happened in 1726.  The leader of the pirates was British.  The Spanish built the old fortress with slave labor from Kai's village, and the pirates were regarded as heroes for defeating them.  Supposedly the captain married the chief's daughter.  At the end of his story, Kai mentions how his father needs cataract surgery.


When the conversation with Kai is done, another CHOICE asks me to either take the sailboat to the treasure island, or meet my family.  Going the way back I came in CHOICE #16 reveals another arrow cairn when I try to stay away from the endangered birds.  It's old because it has lichen growing on it.


CHOICE #17 is to either follow the cairn's arrow, or return to the resort.  Going back to the resort gives me a brief irrelevant scene where I rescue a boy from a shark, followed by a CHOICE of either taking the sailboat, meeting my family, or talking to Kai.


This cairn points to a tall tree with a pipe at the top similar to a telescope.  It points to the small island, like everything else in this book.  There seems to be some danger when a python slithers by.  What would Cedric the owl say when confronted by a non-POIsonous snake?  The CHOICE that follows is to either wait for the python to leave, or climb back down and take the shell path.  Either decision follows the usual loop back to the resort. 


Pirate Island is a weird You Say Which Way both because of its CHOICE structure and unusually high number of Deaths.  I found it to be entertaining, if not up to Deadline Delivery or Secrets of the Singing Cave standards.  The next book I'll review won't be a You Say Which Way, but something a friend requested.

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Can You Survive the Titanic? Part 1


A friend of mine was interested in the idea of a Titanic CYOA, and this was available on the Kindle Store.  Like Can You Survive in a Dystopia?, Can You Survive the Titanic is published by Capstone Press.  But the imprint is "Interactive Survival Adventure" instead of "Interactive Doomsday Adventure".  The latter series works more like a conventional CYOA, while the former gives you the option of 3 different player characters or scenarios in CHOICE #1.  However, the average length of books in each series is the same, so I fear the paths will be underdeveloped since 3 characters may stretch the plot too thin.


Chapter 1:  The Ship of Dreams


"It's April 1912.  You're thrilled to be traveling on the biggest, most famous ship in the world.  The RMS Titanic is making her maiden voyage, sailing from England to the United States.  Everything on the ship is better than anything you imagined.  Crisp, fresh linens cover the dining room tables, which are set with silver and china.  The wood in the magnificent grand staircase gleams.  The food is excellent, and there's plenty of it".


Maybe not if I'm in steerage and don't get to eat much of it!


The narration explains about the Titanic's 16 compartments designed to prevent the ship from sinking.  My character, whoever that may be, notices there are suspiciously few lifeboats.  Though this may be odd for a person from 1912 to think.  The Titanic carried more lifeboats than the legal requirement at the time according to a quick search.


The Titanic travels at 25 miles per hour, but wouldn't its velocity be measured in knots?  Maybe someone more knowledgeable about nautical terms in the Peanut Gallery could clarify this. 


"Around 11:40 p.m. Sunday, the huge ship shudders and jerks for a few seconds.  Then the gigantic engines fall silent.  Stewards appear in the hallways.  They urge everyone to put on warm clothing and life vests and go to the upper decks.  Is this a drill?  No one seems to know what's going on.  Soon you hear dreadful news.  The ship has hit an iceberg.  Even then everyone is confident that the ship is only slightly damaged.  But what if it isn't?  Can you make the right choices to survive?"


CHOICE #1 is which player character I will be:  a surgeon's assistant in the crew, a governess for a rich family, or a 12-year-old boy going to New York with his dad.

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Can You Survive the Titanic? Part 2


Chapter 3:  Save the Family or Yourself?


"You look around at the elegance of Titanic's first-class rooms.  You can't believe your good fortune.  When you answered the newspaper ad for a governess, you never imagined you'd be traveling on the 'Ship of Dreams'.  Edward and Annabelle Charles hired you to look after their three children on the voyage.  The children are 2-year-old Henry, 6-year-old Agnes, and 12-year-old James.  You and the children have spent most of the voyage exploring the ship.  It's been great fun."


I had to pick the governess for my CANONICAL ENDING.  Different from every other CYOA protagonist, and I can make bad Victorian novel jokes if the occasion calls for it.


I tell Annabelle Charles that the children are in bed, and she tells me to get some dinner because the valets' and maids' dining saloons haven't closed yet.  Other servants are eating there, including Madeleine Astor's maid Rosalie Bidois, and Elisabeth Walton Robert's maid Emilie Kreuchen.  Emilie thinks we'll be in New York by Tuesday because the Titanic is the fastest ship at sea.


When I finish eating, I tour the ship until 11:30.  By the time I reach the first-class cabin, "the ship jerks slightly.  It doesn't feel like much, but it is unusual".


CHOICE #2 is to enter the first-class cabin, or go back to the decks.  This is clearly a decision between visiting the kids or having a better chance of getting to the lifeboats.  I'm more of a Madame de la Rougiere kind of governess than a Jane Eyre, so of course I'll save myself and leave the Charles brats to drown!  They probably didn't pay attention to my French lessons.


"Your brothers taught you to trust your instincts on a ship".  My brothers helped build the Titanic, so they should have some decent advice.  Or maybe they were the ones who installed the defective rivets.


A steward tells me "Probably dropped a propeller or something".  But Emilie knows better.  She tells me the Titanic hit an iceberg.  I notice the engines have stopped and decide to investigate the boiler room.  Postal workers "are in knee-deep water" trying to save mailbags.


"The best way to survive a disaster at sea is to get into lifeboats as fast as possible.  But maybe the damage isn't as bad as it looks."


Is the narration expecting me not to metagame in a book about the Titanic?  


CHOICE #3 asks me to "try to find out more", or to wake up the Charles family.  


"I'm not going to wake Mr. and Mrs. Charles unless I'm sure we're in danger', you tell Emilie as you return to the upper deck.  'This ship has a one-inch-thick hull and 16 watertight compartments.  It's made to withstand a collision like this".


But my complacency is ended when I talk to Thomas Andrews, who designed the Titanic.  He says "It is very serious, but keep the bad news quiet for fear of panic".  A caption below a photograph gives the historical spoiler that "Titanic designer Thomas Andrews went down with the ship".  First you try to make me pretend that the ship is less damaged than any player already knows it to be, then you tell me who dies before I've finished making CHOICEs.  Make up your mind, book! 


Emilie rushes off to warn Mrs. Robert.  The stewards try to warn the passengers, but many try to go back to sleep.  The bottom step of one flight of stairs is underwater.  If the Charles family is to survive, they'd better be good swimmers.


CHOICE #4 is to try to rescue the Charles family in their cabin, or return to the deck.


"When you reach the deck, you scan the crowd for Mrs. Charles and the children.  But you don't see them.  Officers stand near each lifeboat.  They help warn women and children get in the boats and keep men and older boys away.  As you debate which way to go next, James appears in the crowd.


'Blessed be!'  you cry, hugging him tightly.  'Where's everyone else?'  'Mama and the girls got on a lifeboat', James says, trying not to cry.  'They wouldn't let me on because I'm a big boy.  I can't find Papa.'  You swallow hard.  'Let's get on one of these lifeboats, shall we?' you say.  'But we'll have to play a little trick on the officers, all right?'


James nods and wipes his eyes.  You wrap your shawl tightly around James's head and shoulders, hiding his short hair.  Then you push through the crowd to the nearest lifeboat.  'Please let me and my sister on this boat!' you cry to the officer in charge.  He barely looks at James as he lifts him up and tosses him gently into the half-full lifeboat.  You climb in after James.  As the boat is being lowered, the sky explodes with a bright flash and a loud hiss.  'That's a disaster signal', you tell James.  'We got off Titanic just in time'.


Several passengers grab oars and start to row away from the ship.  Terrible sounds of screaming and tearing metal fill the air, but you can't look.  After what seems like forever, everything is quiet.  About 3:30 a.m. a ship named Carpathia sails into view.  One by one the survivors are lifted onto the ship.


Suddenly James shouts, 'Mama!'  Mrs. Charles has Henry in her arms and is holding Agnes's hand.  'Is Mr. Charles here too?' you ask.  Mrs. Charles shakes her head sadly.  You're grateful that you all survived, but everyone is saddened because Mr. Charles did not.  THE END".


Okay, Peanut Gallery, how would you rank this ending?  It seems like a Good Ending because I survived.  And the kids did too despite my efforts to turn the player character into a villainous governess like the one in Uncle Silas.  But Mr. Charles died.  That may make it a Bad Non-Death Ending.  For now, I'll add it under the Good column because these categories aren't scientific.


Results So Far



1 Good Endings

0 Deaths

0 Bad Non-Death Endings

0 Neutral Endings

0 Inconclusive Endings

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Can You Survive the Titanic? Alternate Endings Part 1


"The idea of the children being trapped is too much for you to bear.  You jump into the water and wade down the hall to the cabin.  The door is open, and the cabin is flooded.  The Charles's beautiful things are floating everywhere.  But thankfully the family is gone.


By now the water is hip-deep.  You have trouble getting out of the cabin.  If you can make it to the stairs, you'll surely survive.  Just as you get there, a wave of water rolls down the hallway.  It lifts you off your feet and carries you forward.  Something hits your head.  You fall unconscious, drowning below decks as Titanic sinks.  THE END".


This happens when I ignore the warning of the flooded staircase in CHOICE #4.  It's a fair Death, and you'd have to be new to CYOAs to fall for it.


Results So Far


1 Good Endings

1 Deaths

0 Bad Non-Death Endings

0 Neutral Endings

0 Inconclusive Endings

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Can You Survive the Titanic? Alternate Endings Part 2


Waking up the Charles family in CHOICE #3 may save Mr. Charles's life.  Both he and his wife are concerned when I tell them about the flooded mail room.  Mrs. Charles and I wrap as many "warm layers" around the kids as we can manage.  I have "two layers of stockings and an extra sweater" for myself.


The deck is unusually calm, and some of the lifeboats have launched half-full.  Many don't want to get in one of them because of the uncomfortable conditions.  We see a "shower of white stars" after Captain Smith sends a distress signal.  I'm holding Henry, and the crowd takes Agnes away from me.


CHOICE #5 is to find the rest of the Charles family, or get into a lifeboat now.


"Here, miss', a stranger says, leading you by the arm to a lifeboat.  'There's room for you and your baby here'.  'Please, sir, the rest of the family is here somewhere!' you cry as the stranger lifts you into the lifeboat.  He pats Henry on the head and then disappears into the crowd.


'Mrs. Charles!' you shout.  But you can't be heard over the noise as people scramble to get into lifeboats.  As the boat is lowered, you look up.  The electric lights of the ship are still burning brightly.  Once the lifeboat is in the water, several men begin rowing away from the ship.  From here you can see how much of the ship's bow is underwater.  'It won't be long now', you think, as you clutch Henry tightly.


'Hello there', a familiar voice says softly.  You turn and see Emilie and Mrs. Robert in the lifeboat with you.  'Looks like we survived', is all you manage to say.  'We're the lucky ones', Emilie says sadly.  You bury your head in the baby's blanket and pray the rest of the family is as lucky as you two are.  THE END".


This is an odd Good Ending that feels like an Inconclusive Ending, at least for some of the supporting cast.


Results So Far


2 Good Endings

1 Deaths

0 Bad Non-Death Endings

0 Neutral Endings

0 Inconclusive Endings

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Can You Survive the Titanic? Alternate Endings Part 3


Trying to find the Charles family in CHOICE #5 is partially successful.  Mr. Charles's hat is easily recognizable even in this crowd.  Mr. Charles tells Mrs. Charles to get in the lifeboats, but she insists on staying with him.  When he then suggests that I go with the children, Mrs. Charles shouts about not being separated from them.  She thinks it'll be "warm and dry" inside the Titanic.  She's determined on dooming her family, isn't she?


CHOICE #6 is to save Mrs. Charles's children from her unintentional mass suicide, or obey her orders.


Listening to Mrs. Charles gives me this ending.


"You don't think it's a good idea to go back inside, but you must obey your employer.  As you pass the grand staircase, you see Thomas Andrews.  He helped design and build Titanic.  He's urging everyone to put on life vests.  The deck is tilting now.  It's difficult to walk without stumbling.


The closer you get to the first-class area, the more a sense of doom fills you.  'Please you must go back to the lifeboats', you beg Mrs. Charles.  But she won't listen.  'My place is with my husband, and my children's place is with me', she says.  The sound of rushing water is coming from somewhere below, but she doesn't seem to notice it.


You know you won't survive if you follow Mrs. Charles.  Without a word you turn and run back to the deck.  By the time you get there, all the wooden lifeboats are gone.  'I'm not going to panic', you think.  Several men have locked arms and made a ring around one of the collapsible boats.  They are making sure only women and children get in.  You run to the boat and pass through the ring of men. 


Soon after you get in, the boat is lowered into the water.  Everyone in the boat is silent as you watch the horror unfold.  By now Titanic is sinking rapidly.  People are jumping and falling into the water.  The ship's stern lifts out of the water, higher and higher.  Then it plunges into the sea and is gone.


About 3:30 a.m. the ship Carpathia sails into view.  Rescue!  You hope the Charles family somehow managed to survive as well.  THE END".


Isn't it weird that the ending where the most members of the Charles family are confirmed to survive is the one where I ignored them completely?  And why is Mrs. Charles willing to join her children in the lifeboat in the CANONICAL ENDING, yet want to die with her husband in this alternate reality?  The characters' motivations seem inconsistent.


Results So Far


3 Good Endings

1 Deaths

0 Bad Non-Death Endings

0 Neutral Endings

0 Inconclusive Endings

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Can You Survive the Titanic? Alternate Endings Part 4


"Quickly Mr. Charles writes something on a piece of paper and hands it to you, along with a roll of cash.  'This is the address of our relatives in America', he whispers.  'Make sure the children get to them'.  You nod.  Mr. Charles hands Agnes to the officer in charge of the lifeboat.  You clutch Henry as the officer helps you, then James, into the lifeboat.


Mr. Charles tries to persuade Mrs. Charles to join you.  She refuses, sobbing.  As the boat is lowered, James and Agnes wave tearfully at their parents.  Mr. Charles waves back.  Mrs. Charles buries her head in her husband's coat.  An hour late it's all over.  Titanic is gone.  All you can think of is that you and the children have survived.  You'll do your best to get them to their relatives in the United States.  THE END".


Mrs. Charles commits suicide, unlike her incarnation in the CANONICAL ENDING.  This is a result of saving the children in CHOICE #6.  For the purposes of this playthrough, read Good Ending as "Survival" or something like that.


It's surprisingly hard to die for a historical scenario where over 2/3 of the passengers perished.



Results So Far


4 Good Endings

1 Deaths

0 Bad Non-Death Endings

0 Neutral Endings

0 Inconclusive Endings

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Can You Survive the Titanic? Alternate Endings Part 5


In CHOICE #2, I go to the first-class cabin instead of the decks.  For some reason I fall asleep after I check on the Charles kids, but the noise of the ship's engines stopping wakes me up.  Mrs. Charles tells James about the steward's orders to put on life preservers.  James insists there's no danger because his dad said so.  I say the Titanic is unsinkable because of its thick hull and watertight compartments.  But we put on more clothes in case something has gone wrong.


Mrs. Charles says "Wait, I can't leave without my things!" and tries to get her jewelry and photos out of her luggage.  She tells me to take the kids, and she'll be right behind me.  So much for her desire not to be separated from the children in another path!


CHOICE #7 is to either obey Mrs. Charles and bring her children to the deck, or wait for her to finish getting her stuff.


"Mrs. Charles seems to take forever to pack.  She tucks the photos and jewelry into a bag.  Then she pulls a wad of cash from the safe.  'Let's go', she says finally.  The small clock on the table reads 1:30 a.m.  'Where's Mr. Charles?' you ask.  'We'll meet him on deck', Mrs. Charles replies.  You lead her and the children down the hall toward the main elevator.


'Look', James says, pointing to the end of the hallway.  Water is rushing toward the group.  'Follow me', you say, turning around.  'I know a different way.'  Your brothers spent months working on Titanic.  They told you about every passageway and ladder in the ship.  You herd the family back down the hall as fast as you can.  Water laps right behind you.  You run through several more hallways and up a flight of stairs.  Finally you reach the aft first-class staircase.  With relief you stumble onto the boat deck.


'Where are the lifeboats?' you ask an officer.  'All gone here', he says.  'Try the port side of the deck, but be quick'.  It's all you can do to drag the children and Mrs. Charles to the port side of the ship.  A few boats there are still being loaded.  Someone picks you up and throws you and Henry into a lifeboat, along with Mrs. Charles and Agnes.  They leave James on deck.


'James must come with me!'  Mrs. Charles screams.  'He's just a child!'  'No men or big boys', the officer says.  Mrs. Charles begins to cry.  'Jump, James!' you yell, holding out your arms.  Before the officer can stop him, James leaps off the deck and into the lifeboat.  When the boat reaches the water, two crew members onboard grab oars and start rowing.  You're a safe distance from the ship when it slips under the water.  You're happy when you are rescued about two hours later.  But you are heartbroken to learn that Mr. Charles went down with the ship.  THE END".


Only one more chance to save Mr. Charles.  And one more chance to drown Mrs. Charles.  She's the main antagonist of this book.  Or at least in Chapter 3.


Results So Far


5 Good Endings

1 Deaths

0 Bad Non-Death Endings

0 Neutral Endings

0 Inconclusive Endings